Monthly Archive for July, 2010

The End of Forgetting

Alex has posted about an article on Web 2.0 and reputation management, and I have commented at length.

What happens to subjectivity when every whim, thought, impulse, or embarrassing photo becomes permanently cataloged on Twitter, Facebook, or the Blog? How will this immutable digital trail impact our relationship to ourselves, to knowledge, to our understandings of past and the future?  One of the effects, as the article intimates may be a radicalization of image maintenance and protection that accelerates an already creeping cultural narcissism associated with immanent collective surveillance and identity/reputation construction.

Read more.

Only At Athletic Events, Or Else!

In the eyes of the state, our national anthem ought only to be sung at hockey games and the Olympics, certainly not in the streets by citizens “standing on guard”:

Peaceful G20 protest at Queen & Spadina from Meghann Millard on Vimeo.

I saw it first at I cite.

As much as the national anthem gets perverted daily in problematic constructions of our national identity, in this video, it appears that some of the key lyrics “free,” “love,” and “standing on guard” are interpreted quite differently by either side!