As the new year approaches and the unwitting start of a new decade rolls around on the calender, it seems appropriate that the major event in the week before the end is an attempted and failed terrorist attack. An incompetent flunkie failed to blow himself up on Christmas day and once again the panic is raised. New regulations are thrown about without thought and the idea that safety is more important than liberty is flying around conversations much more lightly than it should. This panic is the defining characteristic of the past decade, and it frightens me much more than terrorism ever has.
On one of the national news shows last night they did a piece on the full body scans that have been proposed as mandatory and are in use at several major airports throughout the US. These scans show what amounts to a nude image of the person being scanned to the monitor. The person being interviewed said that this tech would have been able to spot the bomb that the most recent bomber used when other methods failed. And then claimed that acceptance of an invasion of privacy like this was the way to handle it. While it might be true that it could have spotted the bomb, acceptance of a violation of personal privacy is never the proper way for a modern society to cope. Freedom and liberty must be the first considerations. And to have a life size nude picture broadcast against your will is a violation that shouldn't be accepted. Yeah, the choice to show yourself like that should be allowed and not condemned at all, but to be forced to against your will is akin to rape. Why not make everyone just fly naked? It would be much more fun.
The other argument that has been voiced loudly recently is to adopt the more direct profiling system that Israel uses. The argument is pure effectiveness. Israel openly profiles, openly bans and searches people without cause except the profile, and they have not had a successful hijacking in nearly 30 years. I cannot argue against the effectiveness of the policy. But liberty and justice for all was not what Israel was founded on. It is what the United States is all about. Israel has let the terrorist win by sacrificing the freedoms of a modern society in order to maintain safety. It makes the country paranoid and leads to a list of human rights violations and half the population of the area being completely disenfranchised and a cycle of violence that continues on and on. We are supposed to be better than this. We are supposed to be the shining example of freedom and hope and liberty and justice for the world to aspire to. A country founded on reason and thought, not panic and fear. When we sacrifice these ideals then it is the same as letting the terrorists win.
The thing is, the bombing attempt could have been prevented by people just doing their jobs now. He was on terror watch lists, which should have flagged him. He was known to have attended terror training camps which should have had him under surveillance. His own father called the US embassy and said that his son should not be allowed to fly. Good police work, people doing their jobs, and following up leads that weren't obtained by any violations of privacy rights should have stopped this man. The question should be why didn't it? Is it a sign that we need more people working for security? Is it a sign that the people who are working security need to do their jobs better? Is it part of a plot to make Obama look like a weak liberal pussy? Ok, yeah the last is a bit facetious but still, the point stands. We as a society, as citizens, must ask these questions and not get caught up in the panic that is so easy to be swept up in. We must find solutions that fit with our laws, our national constitution, and the idea that perfection is obtainable.
Alright, those are my ramblings. Leave some love or leave some hate. The next one might be a last 10 years in review type blog that is extremely emo and laughable for most of you. But hey, it's my blog and I can write what I want to.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Meeting Neil Gaiman
Would have written this sooner, but the experience took a couple of days to settle in. It was amazing.
Have to start by setting the ambiance. Going to Atlanta, a fog set in, the kind that we never see around here. Middle of the afternoon, the clouds seemed to touch the ground, a gray blanket that wrapped goosebumps around your arms. A picturesque fog that belonged across the pond, not in Georgia. It never rained until much later, but the fog stuck around. Waiting out in it for the couple of hours before the doors opened just heightened the anticipation. We waited behind a girl who was knitting a Doctor Who scarf, and another girl who I swear I lived in the same dorm as in college.
The doors finally opened and the crowd filed in and filled a large auditorium in no time at all. They even opened up an overflow room with a live feed of Gaiman talking. The place was packed and the anticipation heavy.
Then finally, the introduction was made, with the amazement at the audience for a 'children's author's audience' and Gaiman came out. He made jokes about the weather, then took a book from a kid in the audience, and did a reading from "Odd and the Frost Giants." First off, wow. I'd seen films of him reading, but it doesn't prepare you. He reads so wonderfully well. Made me want to go out and buy audiobooks just becuase he reads most of his own. Hypnotic, colourful, and had this 30 year old hanging on the edge of his seat like he was 3. Secondly, he takes Norse mythology and turns it into children's books. If that isn't beautiful, I don't know what is.
After reading a couple of chapters, he answered audience questions. Mostly regarding "Coraline," "The Graveyard Book," and "Odd". Though the meaning of life did come up, and he answered in a way that was possibly better than the standard 42. The question that stands out though was about "Coraline." He was asked where he got the idea for the button eyes. His honest answer was that he couldn't remember, but that whenever he finally got his rectangular, box shaped time machine, before flitting off through time and space having all sorts of adventures, he would go back to around 1991 and ask himself if he had thought of the button eyes yet. Then would tell himself to remember when he did because that would be the most popular question in the future. Yeah, it's much funnier listening to him tell it. The other question that stands out was also about "Coraline" and the answer involved asking at his local bookstore about "gothic horror for 5 year olds," the looks that brought about, and the decision to write his own.
Following the Q&A session, he read a chapter from "The Graveyard Book." It was the chapter where Bod goes and asks the poet for advice. If you've got a copy, go look it up and imagine the enthusiasm that Gaiman read it with. It was wonderful to listen to. The fact that it was one of my favorite scenes in the book was just icing on the cake.
After the second reading, the signing began. They let the families with children go first, and then did the rest by rows. It went smoothly, or at least the first part did. We were sitting in the second and third rows, respectively and were in the first group of rows called. The line was moving quite quickly, but there were enough people there that he was probably signing all night. Talking to him was amazing, even though I almost stumbled over my tongue and sounded like an even bigger fool than normal. My brother gave him an engraving he had done for a project of Morpheus and Daniel, which got sincere praise and left him still walking on clouds. Hell, when we left, all three of us were giddy as schoolgirls.
It was a wonderful experience. Neil Gaiman has no right to be as amazing a person as he is. That much talent wrapped up in a nice guy. If you're not reading his stuff, go find some now. If you are, then yes, he is as awesome as he seems.
Have to start by setting the ambiance. Going to Atlanta, a fog set in, the kind that we never see around here. Middle of the afternoon, the clouds seemed to touch the ground, a gray blanket that wrapped goosebumps around your arms. A picturesque fog that belonged across the pond, not in Georgia. It never rained until much later, but the fog stuck around. Waiting out in it for the couple of hours before the doors opened just heightened the anticipation. We waited behind a girl who was knitting a Doctor Who scarf, and another girl who I swear I lived in the same dorm as in college.
The doors finally opened and the crowd filed in and filled a large auditorium in no time at all. They even opened up an overflow room with a live feed of Gaiman talking. The place was packed and the anticipation heavy.
Then finally, the introduction was made, with the amazement at the audience for a 'children's author's audience' and Gaiman came out. He made jokes about the weather, then took a book from a kid in the audience, and did a reading from "Odd and the Frost Giants." First off, wow. I'd seen films of him reading, but it doesn't prepare you. He reads so wonderfully well. Made me want to go out and buy audiobooks just becuase he reads most of his own. Hypnotic, colourful, and had this 30 year old hanging on the edge of his seat like he was 3. Secondly, he takes Norse mythology and turns it into children's books. If that isn't beautiful, I don't know what is.
After reading a couple of chapters, he answered audience questions. Mostly regarding "Coraline," "The Graveyard Book," and "Odd". Though the meaning of life did come up, and he answered in a way that was possibly better than the standard 42. The question that stands out though was about "Coraline." He was asked where he got the idea for the button eyes. His honest answer was that he couldn't remember, but that whenever he finally got his rectangular, box shaped time machine, before flitting off through time and space having all sorts of adventures, he would go back to around 1991 and ask himself if he had thought of the button eyes yet. Then would tell himself to remember when he did because that would be the most popular question in the future. Yeah, it's much funnier listening to him tell it. The other question that stands out was also about "Coraline" and the answer involved asking at his local bookstore about "gothic horror for 5 year olds," the looks that brought about, and the decision to write his own.
Following the Q&A session, he read a chapter from "The Graveyard Book." It was the chapter where Bod goes and asks the poet for advice. If you've got a copy, go look it up and imagine the enthusiasm that Gaiman read it with. It was wonderful to listen to. The fact that it was one of my favorite scenes in the book was just icing on the cake.
After the second reading, the signing began. They let the families with children go first, and then did the rest by rows. It went smoothly, or at least the first part did. We were sitting in the second and third rows, respectively and were in the first group of rows called. The line was moving quite quickly, but there were enough people there that he was probably signing all night. Talking to him was amazing, even though I almost stumbled over my tongue and sounded like an even bigger fool than normal. My brother gave him an engraving he had done for a project of Morpheus and Daniel, which got sincere praise and left him still walking on clouds. Hell, when we left, all three of us were giddy as schoolgirls.
It was a wonderful experience. Neil Gaiman has no right to be as amazing a person as he is. That much talent wrapped up in a nice guy. If you're not reading his stuff, go find some now. If you are, then yes, he is as awesome as he seems.
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