Well, having read approx 750 books this year it is kind of hard to pick only five as the top. But here are some standouts, in no particullar order:
- Thud - Terry Pratchett
- Methusala's Children - Robert Heinlein
- The Dark Eyes of London - Edgar Wallace
- Schrodinger's Cat - Anton Wilson
- The Requim for Homosapiens series - David Zindell
- The Politics of Australia - Dean Jaensch
- Graffiti 4 - Unknown
- The Bridge of San Luis Rey - Thornton Wilder
- The Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger
- The Crucible - Arthur Miller
- Going Postal - Terry Pratchett
- Schild's Ladder - Greg Egan
- The Witches of Eillanan series - Kate Forsyth
- Bliss - Peter Carey
- Good Omens - Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
- Llama Llama, Red Pyjama - Unknown
- The Foundation Series - Isaac Asimov
- Absurdistan - Eric Campbel
Well, I am currently working on a game (as Head of the Creative Team!!! lol). The game is called Project Azrael, it's open source and it is turning out to be really interesting, esp. in the story department.
The basic story premise is a semi-dystopian earth, with a decaying human society (ranging from neolithic to fuedal) scattered amidst the ruins of a previously glorious, technologically brilliant (i.e. Kardashev scale II) society. Humanity grew to this technological height with the help of a semi-reclusive alien race called the Najir (who first visited the Earth in 1150AD and began the process of educating us, it took fewer than 100 years to equip humanity with the knowledge and technology of the Najir and to forge a brotherhood of man otherwise known as the UNE or United Nations of Earth).
However, an event (as yet undecided) caused the Najir to retract their help and our society began to crumble and regress. The date is 1977AD and the human race is currently living in squallor, in societal conditions ranging from neolithic (i.e. late stone age) to feudal, amidst the ruins of technological wonders and megastructures. There are even humans still in space, on semi-functional space stations which, while still capable of sustaining life, have no human hand at the controls.
If it sounds interesting, visit our forums at http://www.forum.daedulus.net or the Dev Team blog at http://www.projectazrael.vox.com. If your interested in contributing, tell us on the forums or if you think it's a good idea, why not donate?
P.S. on the Dev Team Blog I am ~Shades
~Shades
It's a very fast news day (if you can say a day with much news is fast). John Howard on A.M. with his new Immigration bill (read racist, white australia bill), fires sweeping accross the country, Pinochet being dead (and the riots about it), Kofi Annan retiring.
Which of these is the most important?
Well, worldwide - Kofi Annan (he was a good bloke and will be sorely missed) but in Australia - John Howard and the immigration legislation.
This legislation is the most, biggoted, reactionary, close minded piece of pointless conservative tripe dished up to us from a government who has previously given us changes to IR laws (which remove workers rights) and has spent their entire term in office systematically removing rights and priveleges from the working class.
More on the immigration test later - an essay is in the works.
A friend and I have been working on this little loophole for the past month or so, sussing out all of the relevant legalities and this is what we have come up with (we sent it out yesterday):
Department of Education
& Training
Uniform policy guide for students:
Literally Wear Whatever You Want
For all students in Western Australian state schools, you probably have had to endure some pretty shoddy Uniform requirements in your school. For example at , it is compulsory to wear black shoes and other formal uniform in 2007, making way for the new Academically Selective School.
If you’re any public school student fed up with those horrible garments or styles, you might be surprised to learn that the law actually states that you can literally wear whatever you want; as long as you preferably have the school logo somewhere, (though it technically doesn’t even have to feature that), and you can’t legally be punished in any way by any teacher or administrator in the school.
Sounds good? The part applicable is contained within Part D. of the Dress Requirements for Students Policy:
Dress Requirements for Students
Effective: 1 September 2005
NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE DRESS REQUIREMENTS
d.) Sanctions do not include suspensions, exclusions, or any approach which would inhibit participation in the student’s educational program.*
Sanctions are limited to the following actions:
i) preventing the student from any activity in which the student would have been representing the school (Regulation 36(2)(a)); or
ii) preventing the student from attending or participating in any school activity which, in the opinion of the Principal, is not part of the educational program (Regulation 36(2)(b)).
So in summary, if you’re a teacher reading this printout, it means you cannot
do the following:
*Hand out an infringement or incident slip.
Incident or infringement slips, when one has accrued a specific number, causes suspension or detention (which are both "exclusions" and therefore against the approved sanctions).
*Force a student to see any administrator (Principle, Deputy, etcetera), the Year Coordinator, Student Services, or take a student out of class to discuss uniform issues.
This would inhibit participation in the student’s educational program, and is also therefore against the approved sanctions.
*Try to remove a piece of uniform, whether by force, or by mounting verbal pressure on the student to do so.
According to the CRIMINAL CODE - SECT 222, if you use force, it is assault, and if you apply verbal pressure, it can also be assault.
The definition of ASSAULT is:
A person who strikes, touches, or moves, or otherwise applies force of any kind to the person of another, either directly or indirectly, without his consent.
"The term "applies force" includes the case of applying heat, light, electrical force, gas, odour, or any other substance or thing whatever if applied in such a degree as to cause injury or personal discomfort."
Shouting or demanding that the student remove a uniform item can cause personal discomfort, and therefore can also be classified as assault.
*Exclude a student from a class activity or punish them in any way.
Other than excluding the student from an excursion or out-of-school event, you are powerless under the law to hand out punishment of any kind that would inhibit the student’s education; this can be interpreted to mean almost everything.
Students should stick to these guidelines assertively, and use this printout to inform ignorant teachers of the Law and their rightsFor those of you who don't know, I am an avid trombone fanatic (i.e. someone with 2+ shelves full of trombone sheet music, 5gb of trombone mp3's and 3 different trombones). I thought i would go into detail as to what I have, what I want and why I want it.... I really don't care if you get bored and wander away.
I have decided to buy a new trombone, manufactured by possibly the best mass-manufacturer in the world - S. E. Shires. These guys make fantastic trombones (I have had the privelege to play on three; one straight small bore jazz tenor, a medium-heavy weight gold and rose brass classical Bflat/F bone and a huge gold, rose & ss elkhart BFlat/F/DFlat bass bone - which I fell in love with) and the quality and customer service is second to none (unlike Edwards). The bone I am going to buy will be for mainly classical playing (but should still provide a decent sharp jazz attack, gotta love the balance value of Sterling Silver) and will feature:
Leadpipes
# 2.5G = Gold Brass pipe: warmer, more dense sound
# 1.5NS = Nickel Silver pipe: more brilliant sound
# 2SS = Solid Silver pipe: Solid, Dense sound
Slide
# TB47NYC =
Medium bore tenor slide with bass crook: much wider sound and more open feel. Can also be used for a small bass
trombone
Valve
# The S.E. Shires Axial Flow Valve =
Constructed of nickel-plated brass in a brass casing. The Axial Flow Valve has the most open feel and sound of any
valve on the market today.
Bell
# 1GMA1 =
1 = soldered bead: favors pointed articulations and centered sound.
G = Gold Brass: 85% Copper, 15% Zinc. Combines many of the characteristics of yellow and red brass for a
very balanced and flexible sound.
M = Medium Weight: Slightly lighter than standard. Resonant and slightly more brilliant with a quicker, easier
response.
A1 = Annealing (heat) treatments, soften the metal, for a warmer, somewhat less centered sound.
I am also investing in the following bone paraphrenalia and suggest everyone else does to (it will make your bone work gooderer and be shiny!!):
Slide Grease
# Hetman PREMIUM SLIDE GREASE =
A long-lasting slide lubricant of heavier consistency, this premium slide grease keeps slides airtight and moving
smoothly. Packaged in 10 cc jars. PN: H8-SGR-10.
Valve Oil
# Hetman ROTOR OIL =
Designed for instruments with rotors having average clearance. Comes reccomended by Shires (whom I trust)
PN: H12-R-22.
Slide Lubricant
# Slide-O-Mix SET =
Slide-O-Mix Trombone Lubricant gives your slide a fantastic glide. It is a 2-component liquid lubricant, which
adheres very well to the slide surface. There is no sticking or stopping of the slide. Slide-O-Mix is very economical
in use.
# Slide-O-Mix RAPID COMFORT =
Here Rapid Comfort can be used in addition to the Set if the time for an individual Re-application is missing. The Set
Slide-O-Mix and Rapid Comfort "get together" on the slide.
# Slide-O-Mix SLIDE SPRAY BOTTLE 50 ml =
Our range of spraybottles has a size for every need. All three sizes (10ml, 30ml, 50ml) are characterised by a very
fine spray-mist.
Cleaning Materials
# Slide-O-Mix Cleaning Set =
An easy but thorough cleaning of your whole trombone slide. The cleaning set is an effective combination of
cleaning rod, towelling sheath and a short flexible brush. The complete set can be taken along in your trombone
case or gigbag without any problems.
Your trombone slide needs occasionally a quick dry clean, especially the outer slide. This can be practiced with the washable towelling sheath. Because the cleaning rod is completely covered by the sheath, the
outer slide is protected against damages.
For the periodical wet cleaning of the outer slide and the tubes of the inner slide, the short flexible brush can be
screwed onto the cleaning rod. With this brush you also can clean the mouth pipe very intensively.
I am also attempting to find a good, cheap jazz trombone. At the moment I am using either a crappy Yamaha 350A or a mediocre combination bone made from a half decent 1923 La Fluer and sons bell (TINY!!!) and a really bad Yamaha 354B slide. Both are in bad condition. Anyone want to donate $3000? I will write and perform a song for you....
I just bought some new music to play on this bone - Bach Sonata in G Major/Minor Set (1-3) for Trombone and Piano, Faure's Siciliene and Tcherepnin's Andante fur Tuba oder Posaune und Klavier Op. 64 (or Andante for Tuba or Trombone and Piano). I have also started playing G. P. Teleman's Fantasies again (arr. Raph) - mostly numbers IV, VIII and X. So some challanges ahead....
Anyway, I will stop boring you all with my trombone gabble and head off to my practice.
I am currently obsessed with comedians, especially British and Russian ones. I find American comedians (except for perhaps Colbert and Hicks) either too under-graduate or just too unintelligent.
Some of my favourites are (in no particular order):
Dylan Moran
Bill Bailey
Savely Kramarov
Bill Hicks
Victor Borge
Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie (a comedy group)
Monty Python (goes without saying)
Yakov Smirnoff
Humphrey Littleton
Graham Gardener
Barry Cryer
Tim Brooke-Taylor
Tatyana Zbirovskaya
Billy Connolly (again without saying)
Mitch Benn
Jasper Carrott
and last but not least some Australian comedians
Adam Hills
Andrew Denton
Wil Anderson
Peter Berner
Gena Riley
Brian Doore
John Clarke
Corrine Grant
Dave Hughes
Max Gillies
Ben Elton
Justin Hamilton
Paul Hogan
Barry Humphreys
It has finally happened, the great blundering buffoon has been removed from the Labor Party. Whilst it may be sad that Kim is gone forever and that his brother has died, it does not mean that we should cease our rejoicing!
Mr Beazley was one of the greatest destructive forces let losein the Labor Party ever. He was one of the main proponents of de-ideologising and over-popularising the party. He may have meant well but we cannot be certain, considering the devestating appeasment style politics he employed. We can but hope that Kev and Julia will do better as they progress in the future.
And to those who say Kevin is under-experienced, both he and I spit on you. Is ten years as a politician and an on and off shadow minister not enough? Show me some one better!
More on leadership as it progresses...
Madeley meets Mazy and makes monstrous moustaches morbidly. Mazy matches Madeley’s morbid moustaches and maintains much moustache and musical mischief. Mazy and Madeley make moustache men and mate as they meet Mr Morrison. Mr Morrison makes Madeley and Mazy maintain their mating as Madeley makes moustache men much too much. Madeley and Mazy’s mating makes mulch and mush as well as many moose, mosses and mouses. Madeley also meets and mates with Moses and makes Mazy Madeley Moses monsters. Mr Morrison makes Madeley masturbate meticulously; meanwhile, menstrualality making Mazy moan mercilessly as Morrison makes Madeley make much maligned Morrowind memos with manly members. Mazy makes Madeley mix magnesium meaninglessly with mayonnaise and multiply - Mazy and Madeley mate (with much magnesium/mayonnaise mapped aMong Madeley and Mazy’s masses) - Morrison moans massively. Madeley/ Mazy monsters make morbid monstrosities amongst many moral Mormons. Multiple Mormons make Madeley memorize multiplication memos. Morrison makes meaningless, mercifully mad Mormons mate meticulously with Madeley. Mazy makes Madeley mention Meningitis and Meningococcal to many mathematicians who mention modal measurements; many make modal measurements mandatory- Madeley mentioned Meningitis and Meningococcal and Mr McEwen (muscled mathematician) made Madeley masturbate at and on Mazy; Madeley masturbated- Morrison made Mr McEwen mention median measurements. Madeley made the mandatory mission of measurement -Morrison mocked McEwen- Mr McEwen mashed Morrison into metaphorical misery. Morrison's mother made MacBeth memorization mandatory; Morrison moaned miserably; Morrison's Mother- Mandy, made McEwen mess-up Morrison- Morrison made Madeley mash up McEwen- McEwen out-Muscled Madeley and made Madeley mash up Morrison. Morrison's Mother made Madeley mention modal measurements to Mr McGoo- a mathematician magician with menstrual mishaps. Madeley made a massive mantra making Morrison look meek.
Madeley macadamized Morrison’s makeup; Matt McEwen’s Macintosh made many macrocosms. Morrison made a magisterial mail out; making multifarious many mathematicians. Madeley, a mathematicaster, manipulated Morrison to make McEwen manufacture manganese metals- McEwen took up mal-cartomancy.
Madeley made Morrison manufacture marquisettes, mascles, mastoids, martyrs and mavrodaphane. The malodorous Morrison mashed up Madeley; making use of metapsychology, metasomatosis and meteorology. Mr McEwen manufactured a microseismograph, making Madeley get monochromes. Madeley made Morrison masturbate with McEwen, masticating mozzarella and micro-statistical materials.
*All Characters mentioned in this play are entirley fictional and are not to be misconstrued as any individual relating or otherwise in any way/s to the author/s.
The heavy rock era (i.e. the 60’s and 70’s) was a time filled with social upheaval, a period of reform and revolution and the rise of youth. The music of the times also evolved, it evolved to both mirror society and to change it. The events brought society into a new age, an age where the young people challenged the decisions made by the old, an age of social change and activism. The heavy rock genre was used to convey the new ideas and concepts emerging on political, religious, morale and scientific issues. In songs like Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” they discuss the troubling events of the times , and . Black Sabbath discussed issues linked with paganism and the Christian repression of opinion, for example, in their song “Masters of reality” they took on the existence of God and the human superiority complex. In The Who’s rock opera “Tommy” they explore social themes of the day.
From its beginnings, rock and roll has been associated with youth, rebellion, and anti-establishment activities. The combination of the influence of the recently repressed Africa Americans, explicit, threatening and suggestive lyrics, and wild response by youth made rock and roll shocking, threatening and even vulgar to the elders of the community. This newfound ability to musically “kick their parents in the teeth” and to defy the societal concepts of normality in turn became part of the appeal of heavy rock music to young people.
Attempts to control the influence of rock often turned comical, even humorous, for example there were numerous FBI investigations launched into bands and songs which were considered seditious or antisocial. These enquiries came to light several years ago, with the most humorous being a 4 year study into a cover of the song Louie-Louie, because it was thought the lyrics were about the devil. The investigation concluded with the realization that it was impossible to tell what the lyrics were saying and yet they may indeed be referring to the devil, however nothing was ever done about this.
The beginnings of the genre were in bands that migrated from rhythm and blues music, shows like the Jimi Hendrix Experience that, as a part of the psychadelica movement introduced the amplification, the power chords and large drum kits that served as the foundation the heavy rock groups needed to create their heavy sound. These bands still used the blues chord progressions in their music and modern music at large has not really departed wildly from the original characteristics of the original rock patterns, although they have introduced more modern styles and some contemporary chord progressions.
One of commonly used line-ups in heavy rock music is:
- a drummer
- a bass guitarist
- a rhythm guitarist
- a lead guitarist (in early metal bands a single guitarist often sufficed ),
- a singer (who is often one of the instrumentalists)
Sometimes a band can have a keyboard player, horn section or even a whole orchestra.
Guitar playing is very important in heavy metal. Amplification of guitars, as well as innovative effects and electronic processing is used to enrich, thicken and emulsify the sound. The resulting sound is a simple yet powerful musical style with great impact. The vocals can range from mid-range clean to a high-pitched wail to a deep growl, the black and death metal scene tend to use distorted and guttural voices called death grunts. Generally, it is hard to understand what the singer is "singing". Often, the text is considered to be too crude to be spoken out clearly but there are some bands that have their very good lyrics obscured by the style of the singing.
Intricate solos and riffs are a big part of heavy rock music. Guitarists use sweep-picking, tapping and similar techniques to obtain amazingly fast playing. Heavy metal is not limited, however, to the standard outfit of guitars and drums. The Finnish cello quartet, Apocalyptica, have created their own version of heavy metal. This translation is heavily criticised for its unconventional style, however while this style makes it difficult to categorise, they lean towards the darker side of metal. They apply various effects to their sounds such as the all-familiar distortion, chorusing, flanging, etc. to create their music.
The heavy metal scene has incorporated a variety of classical musical styles, although it tends to head towards the Bach and Paganini rather than the Mozart or Franz Liszt, for obvious reason. Though Deep Purple/Rainbow guitarist Ritchie Blackmore had been experimenting with musical figurations borrowed from classical music since the early 1970s, Edward Van Halen's solo cadenza in his song "Eruption" (released on Van Halen's first album in 1978) was one of the most important moments in the early development of heavy rock, showing that the genre was not just about thrashing or noise, that players had talent, even virtuosic ability with their instruments. Following in the footsteps of Van Halen, the "classical" influence in heavy rock guitar during the 1980’s looked to the early 17th century for its model of speed and technique. Indeed, the late Baroque era of western art music was also frequently interpreted through a gothic lens; it is used today in the punk genre and many pop songs, for example, "Mr. Crowley," (1981) by Ozzy Osbourne and guitarist Randy Rhoads, uses both a pipe organ and Baroque-inspired guitar solos to create the mood for Osbourne's lyrics.
Many of the early heavy rock musicians were known as hard-drinking, hard-living men, doing drugs and partaking in dangerous and often futile stunts; during the 1960s a specific rock lifestyle was portrayed by the media, aided by the growth of the underground rock press which documented such excesses. Musicians had always attracted attention from the opposite sex; Groupies, girls who followed, spent time with and often did sexual favours for band members, appeared in the 1960’s. Drugs became more socially acceptable (this was boosted by the hippie movement) and parties and raves were rampant. These events went hand in hand with the political activism of the time, young people speaking out against what they believed was the stupidity of their elders.
Heavy rock has been looked upon harshly by many cultures because of the raucousness and the life style it promotes:
“The loud, confrontational aspects of heavy metal have led to friction between fans and mainstream society in many countries. Due to the hedonistic nature promoted by the music and its occasional anti-religious sentiments heavy metal as a sub-culture has come under attack in many Islamic countries where even wearing a black T-shirt can be an arrestable offence. In Europe and , the fan base for heavy metal consists primarily of young white males, many of whom are attracted to heavy metal's overtly anti-social yet fantastical lyrics and extreme volume and tempos. Hence, the stereotype of the spotty-faced, adolescent head banger venting his rebellious urges by listening to preposterously loud, morbid music. This image has been highlighted in popular culture with such television shows and movies as "Beavis and Butthead"" and "Airheads". Heavy metal's bombastic excesses, exemplified by hair metal, have often been parodied, most famously in the film This Is Spinal Tap (see also the phenomenon of the heavy metal umlaut). Douglas Adams neatly satirised the propensity for excessive volume in The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy with the fictional rock band Disaster Area — creators of the loudest sound in the known universe. It should be noted, however, that was satirising Pink Floyd stage shows specifically, rather than heavy metal in general.”
- quoted from www.wikipedia.org parts in yellow written by Me
The themes that heavy rock concentrates on are generally more morbid than the “happy” pop genre with subjects such as war, nuclear annihilation, environmental issues (often disasters) and political and religious propaganda.
The end of the pure heavy rock genre is probably Iron Maiden. After the demise of this band the genre has been split and bands rush along their separate tracks such as hair metal, speed metal and death metal. We will not forget the bands that blazed the path and laid the foundation for such a diverse and powerful genre: AC\DC, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, Metallica and Cream. These bands started a revolution, not just in music but in society. They were (and some still are) controversial and they made bold statements about society, they fought for what they believed in and inspired others to do the same and their music will endure.
In our society we have traditionally viewed the media as the defenders and regulators of our political and social systems, exposing the flaws and holes in our democracy and societal values. We had come to regard them as an integral part of our information age, bringing enlightenment to the masses and scandals (both political and social) to the fore. They were meant to serve the public in holding their representatives accountable, to creat a golden age of transparency, but now it seems that they have become appeasement factories, designed to pander to those of us in society with an already apathetic view (those doing a perpetual dog-paddle in the vast see of intellectuality) and serving to dumb down those who truly care (our champion swimmers).
The television stations of our society have become ruled by two types of people. In the non-for-profit/state sector they are now controlled by largely rightwing, politically correct men who, out of fear for their jobs and their funding (especially in the government run stations), pander to the whims of a government who are consistently lowering funding for these ventures regardless of their success and who have activelly state that they are totally against an academic, intellectual Australia. In the commercial sector, unlike yet akin to the nfp's, we have a culture of ratings obsession. Instead of producing programs that both entertain and inform we have seen the rise of that despicable genre – reality T.V. – with shows like Big Brother seducing those unwary viewers with its risqué (if pointless) antics and the user interaction it provides.
Apart from these "reality" shows all that is available on T.V. and commercial networks in particular is bad American drama. Not only is it not Australian it is also quite often incredibly bad. We have seen shows like Dharma and Greg, Days of Our Lives, The Bold and the Beautiful, The OC and Lost, all of which are frankly terrible.
Furthermore, whilst providing shows like Big Brother and Dancing with the Stars our T.V networks have given us a disturbing lack of serious Australian drama, the only long running show we have left at the moment is Neighbours, a show which could hardly be argued to be intellectual. Over the years we have seen consistent caning (to use a media term) of shows that challenge the audience. On the political & social satire front we have seen the demise of shows such as:
The Graham Kennedy Show, The Mavis Bramston Show, Frontline,
The Glasshouse, The Paul Hogan Show and The Gillies Report.
The last bastion of this genre is seen in The Chaser, which, it has to be said, is not the greatest defender of political satire and humorous expose.
However political satire is not the only genre that has become unwanted in medialand. We are also gradually losing our current affairs/investigative shows, with shows such as Today Tonight, A Current Affair and Sixty Minutes becoming the major performers in the area. These are, perhaps, the most terrible shows (not just in current affairs but in every sector) in Australian history and when seen from the perspective of an outsider they render a truly disturbing picture of the spiralling decline of the Australian media and our society as a whole (especially considering the ratings that these shows pull). However all is not lost, we still have one warden on this front - , the ABC’s seminal investigative program 4 Corners, is the shining light of our media industry. Whilst it may not be as impressive as it has been previously (with a no holds barred exposé of the worst in Australian life) it is still a brilliant program which showcases problems in Australian society.
With the introduction of new anti-sedition laws by the Federal Government we can only look forward to our T.V. getting worse, if not because of the continual ratings chase than out of fear. We can already see the first steps in this process being implemented by the ABC board (consisting of people like Keith Windschuttle, Janet Albrechtsen and Peter Hurley) in the new “anti-bias” rules. These rules, as they are written now, effectively prevent opinion journalism and political satire. The Australian public should recognise them as the small snowflakes before the avalanche.
In many ways the media has become like McDonald’s or any other fast food provendor. Instead of providing us with quality food at decent prices we are given fatty, disgusting and mostly pointless “food-substitute” which makes their companies a fortune and leaves consumers fatter and thicker than ever before.
To conclude, it has been made clear by the media (through the programs that they present and the rules laid down by both the media companies and the government) that they no longer care about challenging, educating or inspiring the public and all they care about is either (in the government sector) maintaining neutrality or (in the commercial sector) maintaining ratings. Instead of providing us with programs that are made well and about somethign – programs that we need and want, we get handed drivel that is meant to appease us because it humiliates our fellow man. We are not being educated or informed by our media anymore – we are now going through a process of de-education and misinformation. It is now time for the Australian public to go out and reclaim the television media for their own and not leave it as some huge fast food chain bent on padding and slowing the country’s intellectual nervous system.
