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All in Your Head...and Internet: Culture and Psychology Collide

CitizenSugar — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 06:00:56 -0800

Paranoid delusions are nothing if not timely. In World War II, psychotics often thought their neighbors were Nazis. They became spies during the cold war and terrorists after 9-11. But as the cultural landscape changes, so does the delusional scenery. Today culture and technology intersect with mental illness like major events did before.

While it may seem like this only affects a select group, psychiatrists say delusions and hallucinations of the mentally ill reflect what the world, or at least its more neurotic inhabitants, worry about. What's being escalated into all-out delusions today?

Internet Delusion
The Internet could make anyone paranoid, but it's a minefield for some. People become convinced the Internet is monitoring or controlling their lives. An Austrian woman even believed she was a walking webcam.
Truman Show Delusion
Named after the movie The Truman Show, where Jim Carrey's character learns his life is a soap opera that's being broadcast 24-7, people believe they are stars of reality shows. While patients differ in experiences, they all believe they've been chosen without consent and producers are controlling their lives.
Climate Change Delusion
While I've heard of eco-anxiety, climate change delusion is a whole new level. Australian psychiatrists reported the first case this Summer when a patient refused to drink water, fearing its consumption could lead to the death of millions.

These all lead to a chicken-and-egg question: Are these just modern examples of age-old paranoia? Or is there something about the pervasive coverage — both method and subject — that's pushing people over the line, farther and faster than ever?

Source

Culture Vulture: Would You Watch Opera on the Internet?

geeksugar — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 09:00:48 -0700

You no longer have to be in NYC to get a dose of the Met: The famed opera house is going to start streaming its opera performances online! You'll be able to get audio and video via its "Met Player" from metopera.org.While I think this is completely cool — I want all important forms of culture to be widely available on the web — I'm kind of curious about the audience rift. That is, are people who are into opera also tech buffs who watch streamed content on the Internet?But then again, who's not into the Internet?! Share your thoughts on this below!Source

Culture Vulture: Would You Watch Opera on the Internet?

Yes, I would watch opera on the Internet.

No, I'm not into opera.

No, though I enjoy opera, the only way to watch it is live.

Something else. See my comment below.

New Bible Modernizes the Word With Angelina: Heavenly Idea?

CitizenSugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 15:45:22 -0700

Though the story might always start, "in the beginning," the Bible has taken a whole host of formats from iPod ready to graphic novel, but this latest incarnation called Bible Illuminated: The Book takes the Bible and smashes in a bit of People and a little bit of Vogue and reimagines it as an avant-garde coffee-table book of photo essays to tell the story of Jesus for an Angelina Age (yep, she's in there.)What's behind the new slick format? One professor of religious studies explains it like this: "In general, Bible publishers have always been creative, but now they are scrambling to meet a culture where people are moving away from print reading. In a visually literate, advertising-skeptical age — how do you grab people's attention? Mixing the biblical text with Angelina Jolie doesn't surprise me."Sales of Bibles rise during times of war and economic crisis, (uh, check and check) so the new version may be an instant best-seller and might lure new readers in. The dean emeritus at the Nida Institute For Biblical Scholarship says, "We are living in the age of increased secularization and distance from traditional religion. It's about new points of entry in a modern world that is not ready to open its doors and windows to the traditional word."

New Bible Modernizes the Word With Angelina: Heavenly Idea?

Of course! As long as it tells the story, what's wrong with modern images?

No way. It's one step closer to total commodatization. Jesus is fine without Angelina.

Other. I'll give you my good word in the comments.

Artist Shows True Consequences of Brutal Bugs Cartoons

CitizenSugar — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 10:00:36 -0700

Ah, Saturday morning. That blissful time formerly devoted exclusively to cartoons, though what happened? Cartoon Network, did you have to ruin everything? Even though Bugs, Daffy, and their pals might not be standard pancake breakfast companions anymore, given this new less-than-appetizing art show at London's Aquarium gallery, that might be a good thing.

You know how Elmer Fudd was always hunting ducks, and Daffy's bill was constantly getting blown to the back of his head? Artist James Cauty does — and he's re-imagined all of the faux-cartoon violence, with realistic gory consequences. The artist says, "People have been saying since the 60's that cartoons should show the consequences of violence, or kids will get the wrong idea. It's very difficult to shock kids these days — you have cartoon characters being shot in the head and walking off cliffs, so we have decided to replace them with something more realistic."

That realism includes a work showing the cat Sylvester having taken a bite out of Tweety, with a generous amount of blood, and Tom the cat chopping Jerry the mouse into small pieces in a pool of . . . Jerry's insides. Is this appropriate for kids? To see what the artist says,

Boo, I'm Osama bin Laden? Are Certain Costumes Off-Limits?

CitizenSugar — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 07:00:12 -0700

While it may be a bit until Halloween, all those "Spirit Stores" are popping up selling costumes already, and they made this story jump out at me. This week a senior British police officer found himself in hot water over his choice of costume for the local carnival parade. He's been advising the Afghan government on counter-terrorism, so I suppose he thought his costume was true to the theme: he showed up dressed as Osama bin Laden. Despite the fact that the officer works to fight terrorism and has attended 9/11 memorial services in New York, his superiors were not amused by the flowing robes and turban. A spokesman for the officer's unit released a statement condemning the costume: “While we believe that his actions were misguided rather than malicious, they were clearly inappropriate, and we would condemn any such actions by any police officer as unacceptable.”Even though Halloween is more and more (it seems to me anyway) about dressing as sexy and shocking as possible, was this beyond the boundaries of taste? It's certainly a scary enough costume — and they sell Osama masks online — but are certain costumes automatically off-limits?

Boo, I'm Osama bin Laden? Are Certain Costumes Off-Limits?

Absolutely. Some costumes are by nature in very poor taste and shouldn't be worn.

Where you're wearing it is a consideration, but in the end, it's just a costume.

Nope. They're all fair game. Osama, Hitler . . . after all, the point is to be scary, right?

Other. I'll say "boo" in the comments.

Hug It Out! McCain Brings a New Level of Affection to Politics

CitizenSugar — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 12:15:20 -0700

It's one small squeeze for woman, one giant leap for hug-kind. I didn't believe the prevalence of the McCain/Palin embrace until I went searching for pictures — and found the mother lode of warm greetings. The second mixed-gender ticket in history is breaking the boundaries of the cold handshake with a now signature — yet brief and businesslike — clinch.

What a change from 1984, when candidate Walter Mondale had a strict look-don't-touch policy with his running mate, Geraldine Ferraro — so much so that he didn't even put palm to back when the two stood side by side on stage, with waving arms high. Ferraro remembers, “people were afraid that it would look like, ‘Oh, my God, they’re dating.’ ”

While Palin gets the hugs, Cindy gets the smooches — and now the first introduction — when they're all on stage together. To see how that evolved, and who disapproves,

Coney Island's Astroland Takes Its Final Shot at the Freak

LibertySugar — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 03:00:00 -0700

A New York establishment, Astroland Amusement Park on Coney Island's boardwalk, closed its doors Sunday, after 46-years of amusing visitors. Since landowner Thor Equities decided not to renew the lease with the park owner, 300 park workers will be out of work after they dismantle the rides.

Not all is lost — the Cyclone and Wonder Wheel rides have been spared, thanks to their independent ownership and landmark status. And Thor Equities has plans to bring new rides by next summer.

Since we all know the children matter most, it's a shame to hear that the news of the closure on Coney upset the local kids, as well as nostalgic adults. A seventh-grade teacher at a Brooklyn school explained that the kids greeted the news with disappointed curiosity. Ms. Simonson said:

They were upset and confused that the rides they'd spent childhood summers on would no longer exist. I reassured them that some elements of Astroland would still remain, but I also understood their disillusionment. They don't get all of the politics and profits behind the changes — to them, it just seems like strange people are going to march into the park and knock things down.

Are cities losing their character to progress and profit, or is it time for modern and financially sustainable institutions of fun?

Source

Nyet to Kenny? Russia Wants to Ban "Extremist" US Cartoon

CitizenSugar — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:30:38 -0700

While it's never won awards for being kinder and gentler entertainment (though it does have two Emmys) now South Park is on the run in Russia. Prosecutors are looking to ban the "extremist" cartoon after viewer complaints. Filing suit against the network showing the cartoon, the spokesman says, "South Park is just one of many cartoons that need to be banned from open broadcast . . . as it insults the feelings of religious believers and incites religious and national hatred."

The episode in question? The 1999 episode called "Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics" that shows the cast singing Christmas Carols. The spokesman goes on to say, "It's one thing if they are on cable TV and viewers pay money and make a conscious choice. But young children should not be able to turn on the TV after school and watch this. They need to be defended."

In 2006, Russia passed a law extending the definition of extremism to include "the abasement of national dignity" and "inciting religious and national hatred." Does South Park do this — or is it all in good fun?

Would You Get a Tattoo of Your Favorite Candidate?

CitizenSugar — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 07:00:49 -0700

Holy commitment to the cause, Batman! A tattoo shop in Moore, Oklahoma is giving away free tattoos— of Barack Obama's face. The tattoo artist is an Obama supporter and says while he doesn't have money to give to the cause, he can donate his talent to help Obama-maniacs wear the Senators face — forever. The artist says, "I'm a tattoo artist and a lot of people that are into the tattoo thing like free tattoos." He's done about 100 of those free tattoos, a black and white likeness of the Senator with the words Obama 2008 in red. Is this wildly creative campaigning and a testimony to the fervor the 2008 campaign has inspired? Would you transfer your ballot to your back?

Would You Get a Tattoo of Your Favorite Candidate?

Why not? It's free, and what better way to remember a historic election?

Heaven's no. This is absurd! Candidates come and go, ink is forever.

Maybe? People get tattoos of less meaningful things all the time, right?

Other. I'll ink it up in the comments.

Has the Peace Sign Sold Out Its Meaning?

CitizenSugar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:00:57 -0700

I remember drawing them on my notebook during the first Gulf War and not really knowing what they meant — and now the peace sign is turning the big 5-0. The famous symbol made its first official public appearance in 1958 to advocate nuclear disarmament, and has since been used to graphically support a range of efforts from economic justice to environmentalism. Nearly every altruistic group has used this iconic logo as a way to communicate the idea of universal brotherhood.

The designer of the symbol, Gerald Holtom, created the logo while in a big funk. He explains the symbol: “I was in despair. Deep despair. I drew myself: the representative of an individual in despair, with hands palm outstretched outwards and downwards . . .” (I never saw that until I read this, but now it makes sense!) Holtom died in 1985, and some say if he had lived this long, he might really understand the true meaning of the word “despair."

How has a simple symbol morphed from a cry for help to a price tag? To see how,