Amusing ourselves to death for one hour each Sunday
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Most recently I completed my Advanced Media course for my MA in Communication. One of the required readings was Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death. 
Aside from a historical and well-thought-out indictment of TV media, I was struck with what Postman had to say about the Church. At the time if his writing, the PTL and Swaggart scandals were fresh memories for Postman. Televangelism was his ripe target for criticism. What is amazing is how applicable his words are for today. The entertainment and marketing driven local church was just a twinkle in some pastor's eye in 1985. Postman's work can be recast to analyze the folly of experience-driven, productized churchianity. In my last paper for the class, I propose just such a reading of Amusing Ourselves to Death--a cautionary tale for today's Church.If you're brave or bored, feel free to read the attached five-page review with this perspective.
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David Brent on Microsoft Values
Thursday, January 25, 2007
I can't help but think that Microsoft UK has more going for it than the HQ in Redmond after seeing this video. It's nice to have some more David Brent after such a long absence. Nobody understands the business world better than Brent. Genius.
Apple TV 1.0 reflections
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Just wanted to post about what I would like to see in the Apple TV that hasn’t been announced in the just-released version 1.0. By now I think we can begin to understand the Apple TV box will serve to connect people with their Macs' and iTunes', paid-for content, rather than act as a TiVo/DVR device.
There are pros and cons to this. The biggest pro for Apple would seem to be creating more demand and use for iTunes-purchased video. This is a paid content strategy, as opposed to a commercial broadcast strategy. But, because of how the TV and movie industries have evolved differently from the music industry, it does not provide a complete digital solution for the paid video content people already own a boatload of (DVDs)—at least, not yet.I’d be willing to fully embrace this approach if two things happen: First, storage capabilities must increase so that people can manage the storage of as many videos (TV and films) as they do songs in iTunes. This will come, but has a way to go (1 Tb drives are just now hitting the market. Apple TV's 40 Gb drive won’t cut it). Second, a solution for ripping DVDs and HD DVDs/BluRay video into iTunes must become more mainstream and usable (built-in to iTunes like the ability to rip CDs)—beyond third-party apps like Handbrake. Those two desires notwithstanding, I’ll probably get an Apple TV anyway, since I can connect to my network and access my Mac content from the home theater.
But beyond the cons of content side, there is one more feature that I hope and pray comes to the Apple TV box: iChat AV. And why not? Hook up a camera to that USB 2.0 port and you should be in business. I’d love to video conference from my media room HDTV. I don’t think Apple realizes this yet, but video conferencing on this large and personal scale would be a killer app for personal communication. Add to this a simple Apple-style interface option to access Web video via Google/YouTube (via the remote control), and you could unleash hours of mindless viral video fun in the home theater. I think these things are coming, but we’ll have to wait a little while longer to see them.
Wake up and smell the kingdom
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
“But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ's triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent from God.” 2 Corinthians 2:14-17 TNIVI looked at this passage in a couple of other translations. I was intrigued by the notion of a for-profit Gospel, and how Paul slices through it with a higher, kingdom calling. But as I re-read it, I began to think more about the metaphor of aroma that Paul uses to describe our evangelistic role as believers.
To me, an aroma, or a smell, requires close, personal contact. You don’t get a true scent of another person by sitting in an auditorium and watching them perform on a stage, or by watching television or by visiting a church’s retail welcome center that’s been laced with a potpourri fragrance like a Bath & Bodyworks store. This passage in 2 Corinthians led me to ask myself some uncomfortable questions: Can people smell the knowledge of Christ and His kingdom on my skin? Am I getting close enough to anyone to let them get a whiff? If they do get close enough, are they smelling the authentic me in Christ, or some kind of artificial, Old-Spice scent hiding a really obnoxious odor underneath?
Corporately, are we more concerned with presenting our churches as clean-smelling, deodorized, never-let-them-see-you-sweat, retail experiences in hopes of attracting the right customers? Or do we create authentic communities of grace that aren’t embarrassed by a little body odor, but also understand the power of the kingdom aroma we have together in Christ?
The Apple iPhone and the rise of the podcomputer
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
For all of you wondering about my reaction to today’s Macworld "Steve"-note speech, I’d like to draw your attention to a post from a while back—8/29/05. That’s when I predicted (or dreamed up) the idea that the hand-held (an iPod) could become all you needed for a mobile PC. And I didn’t mean like a Treo or Palm or Windows CE. I meant a fully functional image of your computer that you could just port-in to a PC setup (CPU, keyboard, monitor) and use. With OSX on board, software and data storage, the device would allow you to take your full computer world (digital life) with you anywhere.
Fast forward to Apple’s announcement today. How close am I? Well, it's definitely not exactly what I was thinking, but it's darn close (it does have WiFi, after all). Plus, we can expect this to evolve much like the iPod and the Mac have evolved.
You really need to follow this link and check this thing out to understand it. Lev Grossman of TIME magazine had this to say: "Apple's new iPhone could do to the cell phone market what the iPod did to the portable music player market: crush it pitilessly beneath the weight of its own superiority. This is unfortunate for anybody else who makes cell phones, but it's good news for those of us who use them." The rest of this article is outstanding.
Yes, today was a good day to be a Apple addict. Dawni has frozen our joint account.
Impossibly successful parody
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
I always thought that Michael Cera, who played George-Michael Bluth, the hapless son of Arrested Development’s Michael Bluth, had an uncommon comic talent. Now that the show has been cancelled, many have been wondering what has become of some of the shows cast members.The embedded video is a first rate send-up of the Aleksey Vayner personal resume video that was virally circulated in 2006. It seems Michael is busy keeping his comic new media chops in top shape.
Enjoy “Impossible is the opposite of possible.”
Arresting development
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Police reunion in the offing? It seems that some dreams may come true if reports of a reunion tour materialize in 2007. Unlike some, I’ve been progressively bored by Sting’s solo career (yes, even the fancy-shmancy lute record). And while a reunion tour would be fantastic, it pales in comparison to getting back into the studio together for new material. "If you love somebody, set them free." Well, we did that for Sting, and he never came back.
Clone bowl
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Who would have predicted a Star Wars fan club marching in the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day dressed as full on storm troopers? It might have been more interesting to watch those silly clones play some football. I, for one, welcome our international, flag-bearing, storm trooper overlords.This is one of those surreal moments in pop-culture that just makes you feel giddy. For every one of those moments there are probably several that make you feel nauseated.
Speaking of science fiction, I’m now into season 2.0 of Battlestar Galactica on DVD (thanks to Netflix). I do love this show, and have been quite happy to watch it apart from the commercially interrupted network version in true 16:9 format—even if I’m delayed by a year. And, then it’s on to season 2.5.