BBC Blog Network

User Profile

J_O_E_L_-_C

Listed below are comments made by J_O_E_L_-_C between Saturday, 26th September 2009 and Sunday, 1st November 2009.

«Newer
Older»

PM Glass Box for Friday 3:06pm on 01 Nov 2009 91. "I expect the same to happen about evolution and man-made global warming, eventually."

Hmmm that looks like a veiled attempt to promote the old gunz'n'relijin agenda but, oddly enough, just reinforces the strength of the scientific method. The whole reason that science exists and is able to sustain itself is precisely because it premits dissent and paradigm changes, so long as new theories are able to account for all of the available evidence.

Using your example of "phlogiston", that wasn't a scientific fact as such, merely the best available theory that explained the observed phenonema at the time. Yes, further evidence was found, a new hypothesis was devised, tested against that evidence and thus a new theory superceded it - in no way does it point to a weakness in the methodology!

Similarly with "Evolution" (by which I assume you mean "modern evolutionary synthesis"). The field just happens to be the most coherent, comprehensive and stable explanation for the observed phenomena (namely, you, me, kittens, the 'flu etc, etc) - any 'rival' theory that can best it would have to be a very big theory indeed; similarly with man-made global warming.

Back to your cage, troll! :-)
PM Glass Box for Friday 6:32pm on 30 Oct 2009 I think its sad but typical truism that all governments will be happy to follow scientific advice, so long as it broadly agrees with their political aims. Sadly, that's not how science works. The truth has a rather peculiar habit of going 'off message' from time to time. However, to paraphrase the old legal cliche "Let science be done, though the heavens fall...". You need to accept a given scientific truth, regardless whether or not its 'comfortable' politically (or even spiritually, he says opening-can-of-worms-edly)

Can we write to the Home Secretary to protest at this action?
The Beach 07:35am on 16 Oct 2009 Wow!

(apologies for this)

I woke up not long ago from a very odd dream featuring PM and thought I would 'braindump' it before I forgot.

It was more a PM-as-'Culture Show' thing: for some reason Eddie was hosting (nay, MCing) a concert/theatre/art installation show by the band 'Massive Attack', in what looked like a posh hairdressers shop (all wooden floors, low partition walls, white paint).

It was one of those shows where the audience moves about the room to follow the actors (rather than sitting down). Not sure what the nature of the show was, although it involved young parents and a child(?)

Don't know why but David Jason was in it - and he took part in the 'unwrap' discussion at the end too...

Very odd! Again, apologies! :-)
The Revisitations of Doctor Kermode 5:50pm on 13 Oct 2009 A Slightly different take on the theme here: films you LIKED the first time you saw them, then subsequently HATED on further viewings.

1. Mac & Me (i.e. the dreadful ET clone) - Enjoyed it the first time around as a child - saw it relatively shortly afterwards and realised how crass and commericial it really was (particularly the big advert for a popular Fast food franchise).

2. Moonwalker - Again saw it as a child, at a time when I was listening to virtually nothing but 'Bad', and loved every minute - I particularly remember chiding my Dad for falling asleep halfway through and insisting that he stay awake for the remainder (poor Dad!). I saw it again about 10 years ago and... jings... isn't it just about the creepiest film ever made? 1/2 unabashedly self-regarding pop promo, 1/2...erm...weird wacko-as-superhero mini-fantasy, featuring Danny DeVito as the villain (well seeing he doesn't promote *that* on his CV).

I would actually recommend seeing Moonwalker just for curiosity's sake!

p.s. the innuendo and double entendre in 'Young Frankenstein' went way over my 5 year old head!
What Jennifer Aniston's Best Friends won't tell her 05:17am on 04 Oct 2009 33. Mongoose of Death.

NNNNooooo....!!! (or perhaps 'Do not want', paleomeme-followers)

Farce? really? Are we on the same planet?
What Jennifer Aniston's Best Friends won't tell her 05:16am on 04 Oct 2009 23. Problem is, would anyone want to make a film of her life?
What Jennifer Aniston's Best Friends won't tell her 05:16am on 04 Oct 2009
What Jennifer Aniston's Best Friends won't tell her 05:16am on 04 Oct 2009 13 said: "television, especially sitcoms, are very economical in terms of how they're telling a story and especially in terms of acting"
...
"film acting is far more layered and the best of it is as concerned with subtext as it is with with text."

-

relating to the above post, I think it's perhaps time that particular cliche be pricked. Film doesn't automatically equate to 'depth of character' - similarly television shouldn't invoke feelings of shallowness.

Film is more akin to a short story, whereas broadly TV drama (yes, including sitcoms) can accomodate significantly greater narrative depth and character development. By it's nature, film has to achieve it's aims within a 3 hour window, whereas a television programme (or series) can incorporate several hour's worth of material, allowing greater time for development. Compare and contrast 'Traffik' the series with 'Traffic' the film; in addition, might it be instructive to compare Godfather II with The Sopranos' or perhaps 'The French Connection' with 'The Wire'?
What Jennifer Aniston's Best Friends won't tell her 5:14pm on 02 Oct 2009 To be fair to her (whilst simultaneously agreeing with Dr. K), she's not the only 'friend' to be similarly typecast and thus useless in films. Can anyone honestly provide an example of an ex-castmember who has gone on to greater things since the end of that particular show?
Music Lesson 03:54am on 26 Sep 2009 On a slight tangent, what [b]really[/b] gets my goat is when there is some sort of gig situation and the 'band' (and there only ever is one band...) come on to a rapturous applause from a full house and play [b] ONE solitary song [/b], then [i]leave[/i]!

Oh and another thing - I saw 'Dirty Dancing' for the first time ever a few weeks ago and... well... it IS supposed to be a period peice isn't it? In which case, can someone explain to me why, during the ending finale, everyone starts grooving away to a completely anachronistic 80's pop track?

«Newer
Older»

^ Back to top

BBC MMVI

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites

BBC.co.uk

BBC Blog Network

Find and talk to the BBC's bloggers.

User Profile

J_O_E_L_-_C