Stray_Dog_Blog

Hermitism - The Faith of Elders

2007-09-03T02:52:00.000-07:00

Wiki : A hermit (from the Greek ἔρημος erēmos, signifying "desert", "uninhabited", hence "desert-dweller"; adjective: "eremitic") is a person who lives to some greater or lesser degree in seclusion and/or isolation from society.

Perhaps hermitism isn't one of the faithful religion of this day and age and perhaps it isn't this generations new age hoop-la-dee-da. But what ever it is, is a old time faith of elders. Not one religion has its monopoly upon the ever seeking and faithful lot of humanity. None but the Hermit. For the Hermit is John The Baptist (John 5:35), the buddha ("Stricken" by asceticism - or rather in the company of.) or even Lao Tzu. No one can really describe the hermit. In the west he is the one whom baptized the living Christ. Yet for another it is the awakened maya. Case in point : The Hermit is the one who brings about reform in religion. Be it Judaism to Christianty, or Hindusm to the Jains/Carvaka awakening the Buddha , it is always the secluded individual that bring about reformation.

The following link is a site specializing in the writings, contemplations and the visions of various forms of hermitism.
Link - The Hermitary - Resources and Reflections of Hermits and Solitude

The Lords Prayer

2007-08-08T18:56:00.001-07:00

Convicted forger A. Schiller was serving his time in Sing Sing prison in the late 1800s when guards found him dead in his cell. On his body they found seven regular straight pins whose heads measured the typical 47/1000ths of an inch or 1.17 millimeters in diameter. Under 500 magnification it was found that the tiny etchings seen on the heads of the pins were the words to The Lord's Prayer, which is 65 words and 254 letters long. Of the seven pins, six were silver and one was gold - the gold pin's prayer was flawless and a true masterpiece. Schiller had spent the last 25 years of his life creating the pins, using a tool too small to be seen by the naked eye. It is estimated that it took 1,863 sepatate carving strokes to make it. Schiller went blind because of his artwork.

Source - Anomalies-Unlimited

Down Time - Stray_Dog_blog

2007-07-05T18:48:00.001-07:00

Sorry about the down time folks. Minds been in other places. But seems that the planets have now aligned ( or maybe Wayne Batteau's Cetacea ultrasound machines have finally laid off my sensitive brain waves. Hah.) I have been archiving good material this whole time, even if i haven't gotten around to posting it. Be sure, the new stuff i have will get you digging for months. I have at least 100 new post just waiting to be churned out now that i have my focus back.

Peace all, Stray Dog

Bill Hicks - Last Public Interview

2007-07-05T18:43:00.000-07:00

This is Bill Hick's last interview before his untimely death. It was for a Austin TX Public Television. Bill you'll be missed.

DVD Player Hack - With Video & Link

2007-06-03T00:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you folks but i enjoy movies from other places in the world and many times they are cheaper say from China for example. Heck it seems even Europe, while more expensive, gets more DVD extras. But ALL American DVD players only play DVD's from a certain region, that being region 1 DVD's. Screw that rubbish. I bought the thing i should be able to play ANY DVD i buy, right?! Well you can and its is VERY EASY to do. Just watch the video below and then go to the link i provide afterwards. From the webpage linked just type in your DVD players brand and model number and search. Its really that simple. Hope this helps people who love international cinema!

Video Help's DVD Hacks

Rubber Johnny - 6min Experimental Short Film

2007-05-30T23:53:00.000-07:00

Rubber Johnny is a six-minute experimental short film and music video directed by Chris Cunningham in 2005, using music composed by Aphex Twin.Johnny (played by Cunningham) is an isolated deformed (possibly hydrocephalus) teenager kept on a wheelchair and locked in a dark basement with his chihuahua. Given his situation, he spends his life imagining all kinds of musical psychedelia to entertain himself.
Aphex Twin - Afx237 V7 (Rubber Johnny)

Smashing Pumpkins - Reunited - MP3's

2007-05-24T22:00:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if you guys are aware or for that matter, even care, if not move on. Smashing Pumpkins is 'officially' back together. The sad news is its isn't the original line up. James and D'arcy are no longer backing Billy's massive ego. But still, its good news to me, not ideal, but good news nonetheless. Recently SP played their first concert in Paris and a few tracks from the show have leaked. Tarantula (the newest single), Bullet with Butterfly Wings, Muzzle & Rocket (an acoustic version). Download here - SP Reunion First Show (23.47 MB)

And just as an added bonus back when Machina/The Machines of God was being produced it was intended as a double disc album, but the studio fell thru. So SP released Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music for free download on the Internet. Its the Smashing Pumpkins album that could - but didn't. You can download all 21 tracks here. Knock yourself out. Here's hoping the new album kicks ass!

The author is not responsible for any contents linked or referred to from his pages - If any damage occurs by the use of information presented there, only the author of the respective pages might be liable, not the one who has linked to these pages.

Image of the Day

2007-05-24T03:45:00.001-07:00

I get the feeling this Cop can't meet his quota.

The 666 Preacher - Jose Luis "De Jesus" Miranda

2007-05-24T02:46:00.000-07:00

José Luis de Jesús Miranda isn't the typical preacher. He claims to have at least 100,000 members world-wide in his congregation and every church meeting is held in a 500 seat auditorium, never with a bare seat in the house. But what makes this one so strange? Pastors usually don't travel in armored vehicles, preach on a stage flanked by undercover guards, spend $350,000 a year on security and have the number 666 tattooed on their bodies. But Miranda does. Why? Miranda an ex-heroin addict says he began to have revelations one night in 1976, when two angels appeared to him, heralded by trumpets. De Jesús says that at that moment, Jesus Christ merged with him. After that, he began to preach his version of the gospel and his version is indeed strange.

Miranda says that sin doesn't exist, he is one with God and also the Anti-Christ. Basically a 'do what feels good' philosophy. But it didn't start that way. At first Miranda believed himself the be an incarnation of Paul, but then came the conclusion he was one with God - therefore Jesus the Christ reborn. Miranda can't seem to decide who he is. Upset by his teachings others outside the congregation began to call him the Anti-Christ, this didn't bother Miranda one bit. In fact he acknowledged that he is indeed the Anti-Christ and commanded his followers to get the number tattooed on their arms, which all 500 loyal Houston Tx followers have done thus far. (See video bellow) Miranda also claims that all other religions must be destroyed and that he will one day rule the world via a New World Order.

Is he the next Jim Jones? Who knows for sure, but certainly he has a strong psychological hold on his followers. His show even boasted the highest December rating on the spanish tv station Univision. Much to critics' surprise the show generated the highest ratings of any TV show in the month of December, even surpassing the ratings of the live broadcast of the Latin Grammys in November by a substantial amount of viewers. Keep an eye on this one.

Links - Growing in Grace (English version), The Growing in Grace Cult (Cult Info), CNN.com "Pastor with 666 tattoo claims to be divine." & ABC.com "Jesus Might Be Alive and Well in Houston."

Video - CNN (Growing in Grace church members tattoo 666 on their bodies)

Video II - Interview on the Today Show

Bottle Rocket - Original Short Film

2007-05-24T00:09:00.000-07:00

Wes Anderson's first film Bottle Rocket from 1994 that later became a full feature film by the same time. The short film was originally set to feature established actors but because of the low budget, the main characters were given to brothers Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson, who had never been in a movie before. This short is what put Anderson on the map and set him on the path to make such films as Rushmore (1998) , The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) . Enjoy.

The sound quality is poor - so turn up that volume. Also i know the video quality is pretty poor but this is a true rarity, not to mention the weapons conversation is worth the watch in of itself. Classic.

The Architecture Of Eugene Tsui

2007-05-21T00:43:00.000-07:00

Antonio Gaudi, Frank Lloyd Wright, Santiago Calatrava and others have referred to nature but only in a visual and metaphoric sense, but Eugene Tsui's vision is beyond anything i personally have ever seen. It 'feels' as if one has stepped on a alien planet, stumbled upon homes that sprang forth from the ground and have been manipulated by craftsmen following a alien tradition. Very strange stuff indeed. But enough rambling on about how it makes me feel. I'll just leave you with some of my favorite pics and his website bellow. Enjoy.

Link - Gallery of Eugene Tsui's works

The Rasterbator - Posters for Free

2007-05-19T22:49:00.000-07:00

The Rasterbator creates huge, "rasterized" images from any picture. Upload an image, print the resulting multi-page pdf file and assemble the pages into extremely cool looking poster up to 20 meters in size. The image to the left is what it will look like close-up! Now if i were you, i would burn the pdf file on a dics and take it up to Kinko's and print these bad boys on some nice matte photo paper. Now im off to make some badass posters on company time. Ha. Enjoy.

Link after examples :

Link - The Rasterbator

Video - Bill Hicks Last Show

2007-05-19T01:32:00.000-07:00

We'll miss you Bill. Blessings.

Google Video Link - Bill Hicks Last Show

FreeMoviesCinema - Free Movies - D'uh

2007-05-19T01:14:00.000-07:00

Wow the net is booming with sites hosting free movies these days. Watch em free while you can people, i have feeling this isnt going to last very long. With that said, this is Free Movies Cinema, sure i have posted LOADS of others sites doing the samething, hosting movies to watch for free; but this one's a bit diffrent and worth a look. They seem to lean on the classic movies side, Documentaries, Film Noir, Classic Horror films etc. Plus they have a cool feature where you can read the latest movie news from there news feed at the bottom of the page. I digg it. Hope you do.

Link - FreeMoviesCinema

The author is not responsible for any contents linked or referred to from his pages - If any damage occurs by the use of information presented there, only the author of the respective pages might be liable, not the one who has linked to these pages.

Image of the Day

2007-05-11T01:08:00.000-07:00

Antoni Gaudí's - Sagrada Familia

2007-05-11T01:00:00.000-07:00

La Sagrada Familia [official site & wiki], or Catalan for "The Holy Family", is a yet-to-be-finished Roman Catholic basilica in Barcelona, Spain.

The church’s design is rich with Christian symbolism, with façades featuring intricate details describing the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Perhaps the most awe inspiring is the eighteen towers representing the 12 Apostles, 4 Evangelists, the Virgin Mary, and a central tower - the tallest of them all - representing Christ.

The construction of the Sagrada Familia basilica started in 1882, directed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, who devoted his life to it. When people said that the construction had taken a very long time, Gaudí replied that he was building the church for God, and that his client wasn’t in a hurry. He then became known as "God’s Architect."

In 1926, Gaudí got run over by a street car. Because of his raggedy attire and empty pockets, no one wanted to take him to the hospital. Eventually, he was taken to a pauper’s hospital where no one recognized him until his friends found him and tried to move him to another hospital. Gaudí refused, saying that he belonged with the poor, and died a few days later.

Because Gaudí refused to work with blue prints, preferring to use his imagination and memory instead, construction of La Sagrada Familia was halted after his death. Part of the church was even burnt during the Spanish Civil War. Construction of La Sagrada Familia was restarted afterwards and continues until today.

Hisaharu Motoda - Post-Apocalyptic Art

2007-05-11T00:57:00.000-07:00

Artist and teacher Hisaharu Motoda created haunting visions of a post-apocalyptic Tokyo, complete with ruined buildings and plants growing through the cracked streets. Link -via Cynical-C

The Animation of Robert Morgan

2007-05-06T23:37:00.000-07:00

"Robert was raised in the cursed town of Yateley, Hampshire. At the tender age of three, he developed a passion for cinema when his uncle showed him Fiend Without A Face (1958) on an 8mm projector. As a result, he became a strange child, obsessed with monsters, sharks and insects.

As a “sensible adult” he studied Animation Filmmaking at The Surrey Institute Of Art And Design and in 1997 made his very own film THE MAN IN THE LOWER-LEFT HAND CORNER OF THE PHOTOGRAPH, which won five international awards and several cheap sales to broadcasters.

In 2001, he made THE CAT WITH HANDS, a tale about a very bad pussycat . It was inspired by a recurring nightmare Rob’s older sister Eleanor had when she was young. The film was funded by Channel 4, and won six fairly prestigious awards, including the Soho Rushes New Director Award.

In 2003, having been given funding by S4C and SGRÎN, Rob made THE SEPARATION, another stop-motion piece that won 15 international awards. He currently has numerous projects in various stages of development. Some are live-action, some are animated. Some are long, some are short. He lives in London." - Source & Link's to all his videos for free - Animus Films

Below is Robert Morgan's animation "The man in the lower-left hand corner of the photograph".

Part 1

Part 2

Skulls in Culture

2007-05-06T00:04:00.000-07:00

Skulls in Culture takes a look at how mankind has regarded and portrayed human (and non-human) skulls through the ages.

Skulls do more than just protect the brain — they also stimulate the mind. Often symbols of mortality and power, they have been employed in human ceremony, ritual, and art for tens of thousands of years. From the ancient animal skulls in Paleolithic burial sites to the curlicued cattle skulls that float like spirits over Georgia O’Keefe’s canvas mountains, cultures around the world have turned to skulls to express ideas about both life and death.

Link - Skulls in Culture

Photography - Manuel Libres Librodo Jr.

2007-05-06T00:03:00.000-07:00

Manuel Libres Librodo Jr. is a photographer from the Philippines living in Thailand. His gallery has thousands of photographs all kinds of people from different cultures, but he obviously loves to take pictures of beautiful women’s faces. Link -via Metafilter

215 Free MP3s from the Wu-Tang Clan

2007-05-06T00:02:00.000-07:00

The Wu-Tang Clan are giving away 215 MP3 songs on their official website. A great mix of tracks from 2003-2005, there are also some rarities like demo tape versions and live recordings. Link - via MetaFilter

Conspiracy Video's

2007-04-28T02:54:00.000-07:00

I dont know about you, but i love conspiracy video's and conspiracy theories in general. Some have even been shown to have been right, take MKULTRA for example. Some are very persuasive, some half baked and some seem like the ramblings of a tin-foil hat wearing madman. True, possible or even far fetched, i love them all. These are links to sites with Video and Documents from the likes of very real conspiracies that where perpertrated agianst the american people by their own government (see MKULTRA), some that are plausable ( A second gunman/JFK - The Waco Fires ) and other that if real would be earth shattering( 9-11 an inside job ) . You decided. Enjoy.

Links - The Dossier - Freedom Files - Support the Truth

TV Links - Better then a Remote Control

2007-04-18T22:54:00.000-07:00

TV Links is a site will LOADS of free content. From Movies, TV Shows, Cartoons, Music Videos, Anime and Sports, they got your fix. Just check em' out. You wont regret it.

Link - TV-Links

The author is not responsible for any contents linked or referred to from his pages - If any damage occurs by the use of information presented there, only the author of the respective pages might be liable, not the one who has linked to these pages.

Civil Disobedience - Vrillon of the Ashtar Galactic Command

2007-04-15T23:24:00.000-07:00

Vrillon, representative of the Ashtar Galactic Command was the name used by an unidentified voice who broadcast on the transmitters of Southern Television in the United Kingdom for about five minutes at 5:10 PM on Saturday November 26, 1977. The voice, which was disguised and accompanied by a deep buzzing, broke in to a broadcast by Independent Television News to warn viewers of the dangers of Atomic bombs, false prophets, the evils of money, "the destiny of your race" and "so that you may communicate to your fellow beings the course you must take to avoid a disaster which threatens your world and the beings on other worlds around you".

As the broadcast did not affect the video signal, it was difficult to detect its source, and the transmission disappeared at the end of what sounded like a prepared statement. While this signal overrode the broadcast many people called the police and one women even needed an ambulance citing fear. - Source & Full message transcript and Video - Labyrith 13

Vrillon of the Ashtar Galactic Command Recording

Museum Vrolik

2007-04-13T03:43:00.000-07:00

The McConvilles send the Kircher Society these haunting photos from their recent visit to the Museum Vrolik in Amsterdam, one of the world’s great 19th-century teratological collections.

These photos are 'graphic'. They are actual human bodies that where once preserved for the sake of science and medicine. You have been warned.

Via - The Kircher Society

Walerian Borowczyk - Collection of Short Films (1923-2006)

2007-04-13T03:07:00.000-07:00

Walerian Borowczyk is a prolific animator of the bizarre. His influence is far reaching, including the fabulous Brothers Quay. A collection of Walerian Borowczyk's short film works can be found here or Dom, posted bellow.

Dom (AKA HOUSE)
Dirs. Walerian Borowczyk & Jan Lenica (Poland, 1957) 12 mins
An eclectic collage of film fragments and styles bound together by a shared preoccupation of self-consciousness as being trapped in a cruel world.

Xia Xiaowan - Artist

2007-04-12T23:59:00.000-07:00

Chinese artist Xia Xiaowan’s 3D artwork is made from "slices" of painted glass stacked in a row to create a 3 dimensional image. I find his work eye grabbing and the medium he uses as vastly original. Some of his darker work reminds me of Adam Jones' of the band Tool. A definite complement coming from this blogger. I think Shu-Min Lin sums it up best by saying :

Xia Xiaowan surpasses the boundaries of painting and establishes a new way of “looking” at paintings. He draws his inspiration and method from X-ray photographs, giving two-dimensional painting a three-dimensional effect. He combines material, technology and painting, thus maintaining the hand-made qualities of painting while adding elements of installation and sculptural art and displaying the cold, absurd and strange qualities of realism. In this sense, his painting installation alters the way the audience “views” art. The audience is encouraged to “appreciate” the artwork from different perspectives and to think about the method by which the work was created. As an integration of sculpture, painting, installation art, photography and medical technology, Xia Xiaowan’s works exude an air of ambiguity. His distinct artistic approach represents the trend of China’s contemporary new painting.

If this is the contemporary trend of China's new artist, count me a fan. After all one of the meanings of art is to have the observer question, to force them to find prespective in the object being viewed, and Xia Xiaowan does it well. For me personally it's humanistic, cold & haunting realism. Love it.
Links: Galerie Meile & artnet

Images of the Day - Reflective Art

2007-04-09T01:32:00.000-07:00

Crucifix imbedded in the throat for 10 days.

2007-04-09T01:11:00.000-07:00

Yes you heard right. Crucifix was imbedded in the throat for a Boston woman for 10 days and was removed without a knife! (Apr, 1924)

via[J-Walk]& Image[Modern Mechanix]

Coca-Cola - NSFW Poster

2007-04-09T01:02:00.000-07:00

From the website:

This poster was released in the mid 80s and prompted a total recall of all posters because of the picture painted in ice-cubes at bottom right corner - a woman performing an act. The graphic artist who designed the picture put this in as a joke, and it went through unnoticed until someone spotted it on the back of a Coke truck.
The artist lost his job and was sued, and all promotional material had to be recalled and destroyed. Very rare and hard to get hold of — released in South Australia in mid '80s.

link:Urban Legends Reference Pages via:haha

“I am Not a Nazi” Swastika.

2007-04-09T00:58:00.000-07:00

Here’s an online gallery of "I’m not a Nazi" Swastika at Heathen World (and yes thats Coca Cola):

The Swastika has been in use by humans since prehistory. The word Swastika has its roots in Sanskrit, the language of ancient India, but the actual symbol is older. Swastikas have been found on vases, coins, and other artifacts all over the world. Various cultures that probably didn’t communicate used swastikas or similar symbols independent of each other. The Swastika has been a Hindu symbol for thousands of years.
…
The Nazi use of the swastika has stained the symbol’s reputation for a long damned time. Hitler’s adoption of the swastika is logical when looked at in a historical context.

The gallery is very interesting: Link - via Happy Ant

The Manga Bible

2007-04-09T00:44:00.000-07:00

Hodder Headline will be selling a manga version of The Bible(SMS Version). Ink and color are done by a guy called Siku of Marvel comics. Don't know about you but this blogger will be picking one up!
Link

Free Online Photo Editors

2007-04-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

A bit diffrent then my typical post, but i found some of these to be really fun and neat. They do the job fairly well and hell, you get to trick out your pics for free for myspace or whatever social network you use. Extreme Tech goes over all the 5 best they found. I had fun with Picnik myself. Just click the links below and Extreme Tech will let you know which one is the best for the job at hand.

Fauxto
Picnik
Picture2Life
Pixenate
Snipshot

Geoff Hudspith’s Steam-Powered Bicycle.

2007-03-24T23:12:00.001-07:00

Geoff Hudspith created a steam-powered bicycle: Link - via BloggerFodder

Foot Binding and Other Fashion Blunders in History.

2007-03-24T22:55:00.000-07:00

From Radar Online, here’s a top 10 list of History’s Biggest Fashion Fouls. Coming in at number 5 is Chinese Bound Feet:
"According to one of several versions of the story, the Chinese fetish for foot-binding (pictured, above), designed literally to keep women in their place, dates from the thirteenth century with the Empress Taki, who was born with a clubfoot. Her courtiers took to binding their own feet in cloth in imitation, and soon small, tightly bound designer feet became highly desirable in Chinese women, even though bound toes were likely to become gangrenous. Chinese husbands, meanwhile, encouraged foot-binding because their crippled wives were less likely to run off. Foot-binding was officially abolished by Chairman Mao in 1949."
Link - via Gorilla Mask

Aleksandr Aksinin - Russian Graphic Art

2007-03-16T00:11:00.000-07:00

These 3 etchings are © the estate of Russian graphic artist, Aleksandr Aksinin (1949-1985), killed in a plane crash on his way to an exhibition in Tallin.

Galleries: one, two, three, four. [Toronto Slavic Quarterly article]

18th Century Obstetrical Models.

2007-03-15T23:10:00.000-07:00

The Anatomical Museum in Modena, Italy, has a very cool collection of obstetrical models made by Giovan Battista Manfredini in 1775.
Link [warning: teratology section at the bottom of the page is gross and distrubing, but now that I told you this, can you resist? Of course not you sick puppy.]

Jan Švankmajer - Rakvickarna

2007-03-15T00:42:00.000-07:00

Images of the Day

2007-03-07T22:14:00.000-08:00

UFO's in Ancient Artwork?

2007-03-04T00:04:00.000-08:00

"In a time when there were no airplanes, weather balloons, or experimental military crafts, classic silvery discs, emanating beams of light appear in many famous Renaissance Era paintings, also religious text from China and India. Athough not always obvious, the resemblance is uncanny. Reports of unidentified flying objects appear even in our most ancient historical records. For anyone looking at the most ancient primitive cave drawings and petraglyphs it seems impossible now to take them for anything other than technology." Siriusly has brought togather an amazing collection of Artwork displaying what seems to be - well UFO's. Link below after some of my favorite images.

~ "The Baptism of Christ" ~ Fitzwilliam Musuem, Cambridge, England Painted in 1710 by Flemish artist Aert De Gelder

~ "The Madonna with Saint Giovannino" ~ Above Mary's left shoulder is a shining, or glowing, disk shaped object. A man and his dog can clearly be seen looking up at the floating object. Painted in the 15th century, Palazzo Vecchio lists the artist as unknown ~ although attributed to the Lippi school.

"La Tebaide" ~ Academy of Florence, painted c.1460-1465 by Paolo Uccello The close-up (right)

Haratonohama, Hitachi, Japan ~ 1803 The book "Ume No Chiri" (Dust of Apricot) tells us that a "foreign ship and crew" was once witnessed at Haratonohama (Haratono Seashore) in Hitachi no Kuni (Ibaragi Prefecture), Japan. The outer shell was made of iron and glass ~ and strange letters were seen inside the ship. Notice also four examples of alien heiroglyphs.

Many more images at - Siriusly

TDG - The Best of This Week

2007-03-02T21:31:00.000-08:00

The best links and stories from TDG (The Daily Grail) in the past week.

BBC was half an hour too early reporting WTC7 collapse. More here. BBC responds. Further analysis.

A look inside an ancient computer: the Antikythera Mechanism.

Huge underground ocean found beneath Asia.

Joe Rogan talks about his DMT experiences (psychedelic video - which begins loading when you click - with audio overlay, which includes an abundance of expletives). Transcript and MP3.

Printable Cold Sores - Vandalism At Its Creative Best

2007-03-01T22:16:00.000-08:00

Ah, vandalism at its creative best: printable cold sores. Link with a step by step guide - via Wooster Collective

Video of the Day - MS Paint Master

2007-03-01T21:55:00.000-08:00

We have all sat at our PC and screwed with MS Paint at one time or another. Drawing to our hearts desires, but this guy is a MS Paint master. Reminds me of some of the stuff my buddy Ronnie would do back in the day before getting Paintshop. Amazing stuff.

Trepanation - Opening Ones "Third Eye" - The Hard Way

2007-02-26T03:38:00.000-08:00

The medical community argues against it . . . media has used it as a shock story . . . but it's a procedure that has been around for ages, and some people believe it to be effective: trepanation. The desire to increase one's conciousness permanently has led some brave people to undergo this procedure. - Source WARNING - SHOCKING IMAGES ( This source under went a trepanation procedure. It shows not only trepanation in action, but also has his own personal diary. You have been warned. Read below for more links and information. )

Hippocrates endorsed its use and it’s the world’s second oldest surgical procedure following circumcision. It’s called trepanation and it literally means drilling a hole in your head. The practice of making a hole in the skull has been around since the Stone Age — archaeologists have found trepanned skulls dating back to 3000 B.C. Hippocrates, in his classic medical text "On Injuries of the Head," endorsed trepanation for the treatment of head wounds. During the middle ages it was thought the procedure was able to liberate demons from the heads of the possessed and, later on, “enlightened” Europeans did it to cure maladies ranging from meningitis to epilepsy.

And yes, today in the 21st Century people are still doing the procedure, even whats known as self-Trepanation....

So why are people still doing it? Wiki says : "Although widely considered today to be pseudoscience, the practice of trepanation for medical benefits continues. The most prominent explanation for these benefits is offered by Bart Hughes, sometimes referred to as "Dr. Bart Hughes" even though he did not complete his medical degree. In the Hughes theory, trepanation increases "brain blood volume" and thereby enhances cerebral metabolism in a manner similar to cerebral vasodilators such as gingko biloba. However, most individuals who practice non-emergency trepanation today do so for psychic purposes. A prominent proponent of the modern view is Peter Halvorson, who drilled a hole in the front of his own skull to increase "brain blood volume"."

Quite the length to go for Enlightenment. There is a Trepanation Society, Trepan, Which believes that by having Trepanation done, or even Self-Trepanation one can expand their own consciousness and open their 'third-eye'. Apparently, it goes under the guise of body modification, although it is a serious and dangerous 'medical' procedure. Its hard to believe people are actually out there doing this. Then again, not really.

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

2007-02-26T01:16:00.000-08:00

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP) is a freely-accessible online encyclopedia of philosophy run and maintained by Stanford University. Each entry is written and maintained by an expert in the field, including professors from over 65 academic institutions worldwide. Apart from its online status, the encyclopedia maintains the traditional academic approach, used in most encyclopedias and academic journals.

Link - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Images of the Day

2007-02-25T21:57:00.000-08:00

Best Commercial Ever

2007-02-17T22:45:00.000-08:00

This commercial is for real. I mean it happened for real. He really made a rap video for his furniture store. Yeah.

The Armed Forces Welcomes Suicidal Teens

2007-02-17T22:38:00.000-08:00

Top 5 weirdest patron saints

2007-02-17T22:18:00.000-08:00

Mental Floss has compliled a collection of the top 5 weirdest patron saints :
1) Saint Drogo (1105-1185), a Flemish nobleman who was reportedly able to bilocate, maintaining his presence in two locations at once. Witnesses claimed seeing Drogo working in fields simultaneously, and going to mass every Sunday. He is the patron saint of coffee and coffeehouses, we suspect because his peculiar talent for multitasking. (He’s also the patron saint of those whom others find unspeakably repulsive, but that’s another story altogether.)

2) Saint Anthony the Great (251-356), an Egyptian Christian monk who lived in a tomb for some years to overcome the temptation of “boredom, laziness and the phantoms of women,” and thus is known (among other things) as the patron saint of gravediggers.

3) Saint Lawrence of Rome (225-258), having been martyred by being roasted alive on a gridiron, is the patron saint of cooks and tanners.

4) Saint Nicholas, commonly associated with Santa Claus, is said to have aided the poor father of three marriageable girls who could not afford their dowries. To save them from a life of prostitution (a common fate for unmarried women in third-century Asia Minor), he dropped three sacks of gold down their father’s chimney late one night. (Sound like another St. Nick we know?) Thus, he is known as the patron saint of prostitutes.

5)French saint Thérèse de Lisieux (1873-1897), known as “The Little Flower of Jesus,” who wrote “Love proves itself by deeds, so how am I to show my love? Great deeds are forbidden me. The only way I can prove my love is by scattering flowers and these flowers are every little sacrifice, every glance and word, and the doing of the least actions for love.” She is the patron saint of flowers.

Via - Mental Floss

Junko Mizuno - Powerpuff Girls on Acid

2007-02-17T21:22:00.000-08:00

Junko Mizuno [wiki] is a Japanese artist. She debuted in 1996 with a booklet called MINA animal DX. Her drawing style mixes childish sweetness and cuteness with blood and terror -a so-called kawaii noir style-. She describes her artwork as “The Powerpuff Girls on acid.”. Besides her comics, sometimes published in color, she designs T-shirts, calendars, postcards, and other collectibles. Mizuno has participated at Angoulême International Comics Festival. In the U.S., Viz Comics has published some of her work.
In this video, Jonathan Ross interviews Junko Mizuno for the Japanorama BBC series.

Consciousness and Reality Documentaries

2007-02-09T04:26:00.000-08:00

Some guy catalogues every Google and Youtube video dealing with consciousness and reality. This Site is a trip in of itself. An amazing video collection indeed! In fact after you're done with the videos, which will take ages, take a look around his page. This one is for surfing for hours.
Link - DEDROIDIFICATION

Images - Frozen "Waves"

2007-02-03T23:44:00.000-08:00

OK, so it isn't really a "Frozen Wave" but it sure looks like it. What it really is is a Glacier that has melted and re-frozen over-and-over. Still amazing. Source - Thrilling Wonder - Tons of More Pics

Greeks - Worshipping the Ancient Gods Again

2007-02-03T23:23:00.000-08:00

After a break of 16 centuries, Greek pagans are worshipping the ancient gods again - despite furious opposition from the Orthodox church.

"Not since the late fourth century AD, when the newly Christian Roman state outlawed all forms of pagan worship, had a high priestess officiated on the sacred site. It was high noon when Doreta Peppa, a woman with long, dark locks and owlish eyes, entered the Sanctuary of Olympian Zeus. At first, tourists visiting the Athenian temple thought they had stumbled on to a film set. It wasn't just that Peppa cut a dramatic figure with her flowing robes and garlanded hair. Or that she seemed to be in a state of near euphoria. Or even that the group of men and women accompanying her - dressed as warriors and nymphets in kitsch ancient garb - appeared to have stepped straight out of the city's Golden Age. However this was indeed an act of worship.

So big, that like a thunderbolt from the deity himself, the one-hour ceremony has achieved the near-impossible task of unnerving Greece's powerful Orthodox church. Since Peppa's performance 10 days ago, hierarchs have redirected the venom they usually reserve for homosexuals, Catholics, Jews, Jehovah's Witnesses, masons and the "barbaric" Turks at the "miserable resuscitators" of the degenerate dead religion. In fire-and-brimstone sermons priests have slammed the "satanic" New Ageists and fulminated against their idols. "

Article and interview in full at - The Guardian UK

Image of the Day - First Hair Wash in 26 Years

2007-02-03T23:07:00.000-08:00

An 80-year-old Chinese man has washed his hair for the first time in 26 years.

Video - Constantly Mutating Painting

2007-02-03T22:04:00.000-08:00

In 2005, Japanese art group Rinpa Eshidan filmed themselves painting one week’s worth of art - painting and erasing the same canvas over and over again.
The time-lapse clip is fantastic - if you haven’t seen it before, you’re missing out.

Stonehenge Builders' Houses Found

2007-02-03T21:28:00.000-08:00

A huge ancient settlement used by the people who built Stonehenge has been found, archaeologists have said. BBC NEWS

"Excavations at Durrington Walls, near the legendary Salisbury Plain monument(Stonehenge), uncovered remains of ancient houses. In ancient times, this settlement would have housed hundreds of people, making it the largest Neolithic village ever found in Britain. The dwellings date back to 2,600-2,500 BC - according to the researchers, the same period that Stonehenge was built. "In what were houses, we have excavated the outlines on the floors of box beds and wooden dressers or cupboards," he explained. "Source and Full Article - BBC NEWS

Boston's Scared of 8-Bit Finger Flippers

2007-02-02T23:14:00.000-08:00

A marketing campaign for Cartoon Network's Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie went awry Wednesday in Boston when several of Cartoon Network's blinking signs were mistaken for bombs causing a terror alert throughout the city that included blowing up at least one of the lights by the city's bomb squad. Check out what caused all the stir here.

The charges were (see finally) dropped against the marketeers putting up the signs, but apparently Turner Broadcasting (who paid them) will be fined for the publicity stunt. More info - ATHF Wikipedia entry

Seriously America, are you that afraid?

Kittiwat Unarom - The Body Baker - Weird Breads

2007-02-02T23:05:00.000-08:00

Kittiwat Unarom, age 28, is a Thai artist and son of a baker who creates macabre edible sculptures out of bread. From the Associated Press:

“Of course, people were shocked and thought that I was mad when they saw the works. But once they knew the idea behind it, they understood and became interested in the work itself, instead of thinking that I am crazy,” said the fine arts masters degree student. He hopes his realistic artwork will make people ponder whether they are consuming food, or food is consuming them.

Lady’s Fingers? Anyone? Ok - Bad Joke.....

The Photography of Dora Maar

2007-02-02T22:39:00.000-08:00

Dora Maar was a French photographer and painter, best known for being a lover and muse of Pablo Picasso. However, she was famous as a photographer, and also was a painter herself, before she met Picasso. Picasso was attracted by her beauty and self-mutilation (cutting her fingers and the table - he got her bloody gloves and exhibited them on a shelf in his apartment). She spoke Spanish fluently and lived a very secluded, quiet life. Their relationship lasted nearly nine years. On May 3, 2006, one of Picasso's portraits of her, Dora Maar au Chat (Dora Maar with Cat) was auctioned at Sotheby's at a closing price of US$95,216,000, making it the world's second most expensive painting ever sold at auction [1]. - [Wiki]

Examples of her Photography :

Library of Terence McKenna Media

2007-02-02T22:30:00.000-08:00

Terence Kemp McKenna was a writer and philosopher. He was notable for his many speculations on subjects ranging from the Voynich Manuscript to the origins of the human species to Novelty theory, which claims time to be a fractal wave of increasing novelty, which culminates dramatically in 2012. His concept appeared to involve a combination of hallucinogenic chemical agents, Gaianism, and shamanism. - [Wiki]

Data Church has an amazing Collection of McKenna's writings, lectures, videos and much more. Ranging from Food of the Gods , Culture & Ideology are not your friends, Stoned Ape Theory, Timewave Zero and Novelty Theory. An amazing site for anyone intrested in other theories of existence.

Links - Data-Church>People>Terence McKenna - Transcripts of Terence's Work

The Cynosphere

2007-02-02T22:19:00.000-08:00

"An unusual tricycle built in France in 1875, the Cynosphere was driven by two caged dogs. The Society for the Protection of Animals thought the idea inappropriate and further development was abandoned, just as the world's first superbike, driven by great danes, came off the drawing board. A ladies version driven by poodles actually went into production but suffered from several flat spots in the power curve. What's this got to do with motorcycles, well it is clearly where the term "a dog to start," so much used by Velocette owners, derived from!"

Link-Source - A-Z Motorcycles

Every Mad Magazine Cover - 1952-2007

2007-02-02T21:58:00.000-08:00

This site has scanned images of all the regular issue Mad comic and magazine covers staring with #1 from 1952 to the current day at over 450 issues. My favs so far have been the covers during the 60's and 70's. Pretty cool stuff if you ever were a Mad magazine kid like me. Link after these covers.

Link - Mad Mag Cover Site

Update - After surfing around looking at Mad Mag stuff i found a site that has started archiving the Mad "Fold-in's" on their page. Its pretty cool, there is a menu at the bottom, where you select the date of the "Fold-in". Once selected you get the page in full, then just click the image to see it "Fold-in"! In the forums they said they just started and he found a group of folks ready to start scanning in their's aswell. I.e. Watch this one - its going to grow.
Link - Mad Mag "Fold-In" Page

God and Gorillas

2007-02-02T21:51:00.000-08:00

Anthropologist Barbara J. King explains what our distant cousins can tell us about religion and why it's OK for scientists to believe in God.

"Every human culture has believed in spirits, gods or some other divine being. That's why human beings have often been called Homo religioso. Some people take this long history of belief in the otherworldly as evidence for God; doesn't it explain why religion continues to be so pervasive? But many scientists are coming up with their own, decidedly secular, theories about the origins of faith. Take Daniel Dennett, the philosopher who has proposed that religion is a meme -- an idea that evolved like a virus -- that infected our ancestors and continued to spread throughout cultures. By contrast, anthropologist Pascal Boyer argues that religious belief is a quirky byproduct of a brain that evolved to detect predators and other survival needs."

"Of course, these thinkers are either religious skeptics or outright atheists who mean to imply that we've been duped by evolution to believe in supernatural beings when none, in fact, exist. That's what makes Barbara J. King, an anthropologist at the College of William and Mary, so unique. She has no desire to undermine religion. In fact, she's been deeply influenced by the religious writers Karen Armstrong and Martin Buber. But her main insights about the origins of religion come not from researching humans' deep history, but from observing very much alive non-human primates. "

"For the last two decades, King has studied ape and monkey behavior in Gabon and Kenya, and at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. In her new book, "Evolving God: A Provocative View on the Origins of Religion," King argues that religion is rooted in our social and emotional connections with each other. What's more, we can trace back the origins of our religious impulse not just to early cave paintings and burial sites 20,000 to 40,000 years ago, but much earlier -- back to our ancient ancestors millions of years ago. And today, King says, we can see the foundations of religious behavior in chimpanzees and gorillas; watching our distant cousins can do much to explain the foundations of our own beliefs."

The entire interview of a very provocative concept from Kingcan at Salon.
Source-Quotes from the same article.

The Other Tomb of Jesus Christ - Kashmir

2007-01-30T16:22:00.000-08:00

Many of us in the west know the story of Christ and where he was buried, its referred to as the Holy Sepulchre. It was the place where a great stone rolled to the door, outside the walls of Jerusalem, in the place called Calvary. We grew up hearing this story countless times, for the simple fact that this story correlates to the telling in the Biblical documents we have collected and amassed, known as the Bible. But it shouldn't come as a shock to some, that other nations (and in fact other religions) have had to contend with the figure of Christ. And in doing so, many have laid claim to being the place where the 'true' tomb of Christ exist. And this is where our journey begins.....

The Ahmadis believed that Jesus, or as they call him Yuz Asaf survived the crucifixion and subsequently traveled to Kashmir, where he lived, preached and died. Similar beliefs are held about Yuz Asaf by a wide variety of people and groups, including some hindu groups that see him as Isa Masih, a Hindu Saint. The belief is held because in the Hindu literature known as the Bhavishya Maha Purana there contains some ten verses indicating that Jesus was in India/Kashmir during the reign of King Shalivahan, which has been placed within 39 to 50 C.E. Jesus is said to have spoken to the King and gave his teachings in full, there after his teaching where included alongside Hindu teachings. Other local beliefs about Yuz Asaf include that he married a woman called Marjam (that is, Mary) who bore him a number of children, and that he lived to be between 105-110 years old before he died. It is also claimed that Jesus' mother, Mary, died when he was 38 years old, and is buried nearby in the town Murree in Pakistan, where her burial place is called Mai Mari da Ashtan. There is also the Yusufzai, which is the name of a tribe in Afghanistan who still maintain ancient Israelite customs. To them the word means 'child or children of Joseph.'

It is worth noting that in Islam, Jesus' name is Isa as well. Moreover, Islam in general doesn't even believe that Jesus underwent the crucifixion, but that someone substituted for him on the cross (Some say one of his brothers). Also, In Iranian traditions by Agha Mustafai, it is said that Yuz Asaf came there from the west and preached, causing many to believe in him. It is said he also taught a strange form of reincarnation there. [See : (John, 1:21), (Matthew 11:14.) and (Matthew 17:12,13). Where Elijah became John the Baptist/Second chapter of II Kings, Elijah does not die, but rather is called up into heaven while yet alive.] Within northwest Afghanistan, centered in the city of Herat, an explorer of Sufism, O. M. Burke, came across a sect of some 1000 people who are devotees of Yuz Asaf, whom they also knew as Isa, son of Maryam.Their tradition includes Isa, the prophet from Israel, having escaped the cross, traveled to India and settled in Kashmir.

So there we have it, many groups of peoples all thru out Asia saying that Jesus went to Kashmir, taught, lived, had children and died in old age. But is there any sort of inscription on the so-called "Tomb of Christ"? Indeed there is, in Persian script the inscription says : "At this time Yuz Asaf proclaimed his prophethood. Year fifty and four [in the reign of King Gopadatta]. and He is Jesus, prophet of the Children of Israel." But what of it? The correct dating and significance of the year 54 is not clear. The year has been placed within the reign of King Gopadatta at 107 C.E. by Kersten, and at 78 C.E. by Professor Fida Hassnain, director of archives and antiquities in Kashmir. Very interesting indeed. Sadly, not many western minds take any of this seriously. So no outside sources have made much of these legends or even tried to partake in serious research on the subject of the tomb. But nonetheless, if this is in conflict with your system of belief (Christianity) , just remember next time you're speaking to a Muslim, Hindu, Iranian or Sufi what John 3:16 truly says : "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Perhaps this whole salvation thing is larger then your first glance....
Links, quotes and sources - Wiki -Yuz Asaf , TombofJesus.com & Traditions of Jesus
within Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Paganism, The BBC Documentary - "Did Jesus Die on the Cross?" Featuring the Kashmir Site- At Google Video & Amature Video of the Grave Site in Kashmir - YouTube

Holga Camera - Wicked Cool

2007-01-27T04:11:00.000-08:00

Tonight one of my co-workers had an intresting box sitting on the desk, when i asked what it was come to find out it was a camera, but not just any camera - i would soon find out. The camera in question is a Holga Camera, the box was clearly from China, but what made it so damn intresting where the examples of the types of pictures it took. Ohh, by the way when this camera first came out it was a toy camera, 15 bucks in local Chinese toy shops. Keep in mind none of these images are photoshoped, the camera does all the work by means of its shortcomings. ( And a bit of knowledge of how to exploit its shortcomings ) Make sure to click these pictures to see the full effect - amazing.

Thing is you can STILL get these cameras in there most basic form for 25 bucks. Seems a whole photography subcuture has sprung about all around this cheap toy that makes amazing artistic photos. Or as Wiki says -

" The often bizarre photographic results of these effects have ironically
popularized the camera with an international audience, and Holga photos have
won numerous awards and competitions in art and news photography."

Very cool indeed, You can also buy Modded-Holga Cameras that do some amazing things like, strobe effects, color effects, creates tracers, etc.... and you can get this type for a cool 75 bucks. I don't know about you but im seriously thinking about picking one of these puppies up! Awesome links after the break!

Best site for all Holga info- HUGE Gallery too - Lomography Holga
Very informative Wiki article - Wiki Holga
As a side note if you plan on buying one go to Ebay or Amazon, way cheaper......

World’s Largest Jade Buddha

2007-01-26T00:43:00.000-08:00

W.Y. of Random Citations has a post of this amazing sculpted Buddha: the world’s largest jade Buddha statue!

The statue was sculpted from a piece of jade 7.95 meters high, 6.88 meters wide, 4.10 meters thick, weighing 260.76 tons. This piece of jade was found in the nearby Xiuyan town, known as "hometown of jade", on 22 July 1960.

Anshan Jade Buddha Via Wiki

Guido Daniele - Body paint art

2007-01-26T00:24:00.000-08:00

"Guido Daniele was born in Soverato (CZ - Italy) and now lives and works in Milan. Since 1964 until 1968 he attended Brera artistic High School and he graduated from Brera School of Arts (major in sculpturing) in 1972.

In 1990 he added a new artistic experience to his previous ones: using the "body painting" technique he creates and paints models bodies for different situations such as advertising pictures and commercials, fashion events and exhibitions. His personal artistic research has recently led him to the combination of the two traditional portrait techniques, which are photography and oil painting."

While not the most amazing artist, an intresting medium nonetheless.
Link - Guido Daniele

Pictures that lie - Cnet

2007-01-24T23:48:00.000-08:00

Folks interested in information literacy should especially appreciate C-Net's gallery of photos that have been manipulated, and its commentary on the alterations.
samples :
This digital composite of Sen. John Kerry and Jane Fonda sharing a stage at an antiwar rally emerged during the 2004 presidential primaries while Kerry campaigned for the Democratic nomination.The picture of Kerry was captured by photographer Ken Light as Kerry was preparing to give a speech at the Register for Peace Rally held in Mineola, N.Y., in June 1971. The picture of Jane Fonda was captured by Owen Franken as Fonda spoke at a political rally in Miami Beach, Fla., in August 1972.This March 2004 political ad for George W. Bush, prepared during his run for president, shows a sea of soldiers as a backdrop to a child holding a flag. This image was digitally doctored by copying and pasting, from the original photograph, several soldiers in order to digitally remove Bush from a podium. After acknowledging that the photo had been doctored, the Bush campaign said that the ad would be re-edited and reshipped to TV stations.

More Examples here - Pictures that lie - Cnet

Google Gadgets For Your Webpage

2007-01-24T23:39:00.000-08:00

The free tools include the Babelfish translator, the Google conversion calculator, time and date, Google Maps, driving directions, Wikipedia search, and SO much more. Just pick the gadget you like, get the code and add to your Webpage!

Link - Free Google Tool Codes

Jean-Philippe Charbonnier - Photos of Psychiatric Hospitals

2007-01-24T23:10:00.000-08:00

In 1954 Jean-Philippe Charbonnier documented French Psychiatric hospitals and this exhibition includes rarely seen photographs from the series. Some of the photographs were first published in Réalités in January 1955. Here a selection of the original reportage is shown followed by the magazine layouts - published in the magazine with two fluffy cats on the cover. It is interesting to see that a number of most most powerful images were not published due to the sensitivities of the 1950s and that the eyes of the patients are at times masked to protect their identities.

23 more images - Luminous-Lint

Reiniger's Prince Achmed - 1926 - Rare Film

2007-01-24T22:37:00.000-08:00

"If you ask the average person what the first feature-length animated film was, just about everyone will answer Walt Disney's "Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs". But Disney's film wasn't the first animated feature by a longshot. Arguably, that honor belongs to Lotte Reiniger's "Adventures of Prince Achmed".

In 1923, Reiniger and her husband and business partner, Carl Koch began work on an ambitious project... a feature length silhouette puppet film based on "The One Thousand and One Nights". She worked with animator Bertold Bartosch and background artist Walter Ruttman for three years on the film. The paper cutouts were jointed using wires and delicately arranged on top of a lightbox, where it was photographed frame by frame. Reiniger continued to animate her distinctive silhouette films up into the mid-1970s. She passed away in 1981." Source - Animation Archive

This important film is available at Amazon - Adventures of Prince Achmed DVD

Odd Vintage Images

2007-01-24T22:22:00.000-08:00

Free Spaghetti Western Soundtracks

2007-01-20T23:52:00.000-08:00

I dont know about you but i love the music on spaghetti Western's. The best-known and perhaps archetypal spaghetti Westerns were the so-called Man With No Name trilogy (or Dollars Trilogy) directed by Sergio Leone, and with musical scores composed by Ennio Morricone (all of whom are now synonymous with the genre): A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). Ennio Morricone is truly the master of the spaghetti western film score.

Download these soundtracks for godsakes, they OWN!
A Fistful Of Dollars.mp3
For A Few Dollars More.mp3
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.mp3

Full Link with LOADS of songs - Free Spaghetti Western Soundtracks

AllUC.org - Free Movies - Tv Shows

2007-01-20T03:42:00.000-08:00

AllUC.org is the mother of all free visual media on the net. I'm talking 1000's of various movies, shows, cartoons, music videos, anime - etc. All on one easy to use page, featuring even genres under the movies section. As an example here are some of the various forms of media you can expect. Movies like - James Bond: Casino Royale, Jackass 2, Night at Museum, Rocky Balboa, Tv Shows like - Dexter, Ugly Betty, Nip/Tuck, 24, Cartoons like - Aeon Flux, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Boondocks and SO MANY MORE. Seriously, even if a show i listed isnt your cup of tea, i'm willing to bet they have what you're looking for! So give it a look!

Link - AllUC.org

The author is not responsible for any contents linked or referred to from his pages - If any damage occurs by the use of information presented there, only the author of the respective pages might be liable, not the one who has linked to these pages.

The Green Pastures - Rare Film - 1936

2007-01-18T00:55:00.000-08:00

This is a film that modern audiences may approach with mixed feelings. At a time when black actors struggled harder than any other period, this film emerged with the historical significance of being the first in history to use an entirely black cast. The Green Pastures, the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Marc Connelly, is a reenactment of stories of the Old Testament in which all the characters (including God) are African American and speak in a black southern dialect.The Green Pastures follows stories of the Bible, such as Adam and Eve, Noah and the flood, Moses and the exodus from Egypt, and the crucifixion of Christ, but places them in a rural black southern setting.

There is nothing intrinsically offensive about this all-white use of all-black stereotypes to illustrate the gospel religion of Deep South slavery. On one hand at times one can tell stereotypes where forced upon some of the actors, on the other hand, in a matter of seconds, they are given the ability to act as true actors of the day, i.e. no stereotypes. While one could easily find fault with some of the direction given to the actors - its does stand as an amazingly progressive film for 1936. Moments like the mass Exodus of Slaves, singing gospel hymns, is nothing short of moving - frankly breathtaking. And one can almost sense the joy of the actors portraying such a scene in that day and time.

There can be no questioning the uplifting moral fiber of the tales, the infectious spirit of its music, or the genuine affection brought to their parts by the actors involved. In my mind this is a must see, not only is it an amazing film in it own right, but it serves as a piece of history. One where the white audience is served the foolish stereotypes of their day and at once back-handed by the graceful presence the actors displayed in a story where slaves are lifted up by God (a black YHWH). It was no accident that the film is double handed, and for this reason its is truly a work of art and a rare jewel of its day.

Read another review at - Black-Flim.com

Nuclear Shadows in Hiroshima

2007-01-13T01:58:00.000-08:00

This bridge, located about 900 meters from the nuclear explosion in Hiroshima, Japan, got a permanent “nuclear shadow” of the handrails.

Wikipedia explains why:

Since thermal radiation travels in straight lines from the fireball (unless scattered) any opaque object will produce a protective shadow. If fog or haze scatters the light, it will heat things from all directions and shielding will be less effective. Massive spread of radiation would also occur, which would be
at the mercy of the wind.

It seems that they have also found shadows of people but not their bodies (which were instantly vaporized by the heat of the explosion.)
Nukeworker tells us more about the nuclear effects, with some more images of this great human loss in Hiroshima.

Image Source along with 5000 more images - Nuke Worker

Giant Rabbits - North Koreas New Food Source

2007-01-13T01:46:00.000-08:00

This 22 lb giant rabbit from Germany, will soon be on its way to a new home - North Korea. The Communist state has determined that Karl Szmolinsky’s prize winning rabbits are the answer to its food shortages, and has already purchased 12 rabbits that they keep in a petting zoo until Szmolinsky can teach them how to bread the beasts. Link [Spiegel] Actual picture bellow.

Nicholas Roerich - His Visionary Art

2007-01-12T23:26:00.000-08:00

In my last post i told you about Nicholas Roerich and his dealing with the 33rd Vice President of the United States, also his influence on the reverse of The Great Seal of the United States. As a fan of the mans Art, i thought i would also share that with you as well. With out further ado, the artwork of Nicholas Roerich.

The collection of all his works may be found here - The Nicholas Roerich Museum

Nicholas Roerich - Yogi to a Vice President

2007-01-12T22:44:00.000-08:00

Nicholas Roerich (Russian- Николай Константинович Рёрих) was a poet, artist and eminent man of learning who had emigrated from White Russia and settled in Paris. He was regarded as one of the most distinguished of the Theosophical elite of the period. Apart from searching for the home of the Mahatmas, the purpose of his scientific expedition across Tibet and Xinjiang to Altai (1923-26) was never made entirely clear in his diary, but appears to have been related to the return of a certain sacred stone. Roerich also laid claim to having had an encounter with UFO's.

Henry Wallace, the 33rd Vice President of the United States (1941–45), also Franklin Delano Roosevelt's two-term secretary of agriculture, sampled a great many religious creeds, studying Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Islam, and Christian Science, among others. He also investigated secret societies and Eastern cults, developing a fondness for the arcane symbols and practices favored by such groups. Not long after Wallace assumed his post at the Department of Agriculture, he became acquainted with a strangely charismtic Russian emigre named Nikolay Konstantinovich Roerich. The business matter that brought Roerich and Wallace in contact was a pet project of the guru called the Roerich Paca and Banner of Peace. Wallace was so taken with Roerich's plan - and promoted it so energetically - that in 1935, delegates from twenty-one nations turned out to put their names to the agreement at a White House ceremony. Franklin Roosevelt himself presided over the gathering.

Shortly after Wallace pursuaded his fellow cabinet officer, Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., to make a change in the U.S. currency. An exotic-looking symbol of a pyramid with an all-seeing eye at its apex had long been part of the Great Seal of the United States. At Roerich'surging, Wallace convinced his colleague to make the symbol a fixture on the back of every one-dollar bill. Morgenthau later claimed that it was not until after the change had been made that he learned of the pyramid's "cabalistic significance for members of a small religious sect." Documents leaked into newspapers soon there after showing personal letters between Wallace and Roerich, calling Roerich "My Yogi". Wallace was then accused of harboring communist sympathies. Shortly there after Wallace publicly cut ties with Roerich. The two where never in contact again.

Or as Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. explains, "Wallace's search for inner light took
him to strange prophets.... It was in this search that he encountered Nicholas
Roerich, a Russian emigre, painter, theosophist and con man. Wallace did Roerich
a number of favors, including sending him on an expedition to Central Asia
presumably to collect drought-resistant grasses. In due course, H.A. [Wallace]
became disillusioned with Roerich and turned almost viciously against him." [2]
Sources :FusionAnomaly - Wiki - Wallace - Wiki - Roerick

Alejandro Jodorowsky - DVD Boxset - Coming soon

2007-01-12T22:29:00.000-08:00

Jodorowsky talks about THE HOLY MOUNTAIN and EL TOPO. This was recently released by ABKCO Films for the upcoming official DVD release of his films.

ABKCO Flims
The unofficial bootlegs

Masterpieces of Mesoamerican Art

2007-01-01T22:41:00.000-08:00

Within these photo galleries provided within the link below, you will find full-color photographs of archaeological sites and museums from all over Mexico, complete with detailed captions.

Link - Mesoamerican Photo Archives

The Holy Mountain - Rare Cult Film

2007-01-01T22:16:00.000-08:00

I have to see this Movie : "La montaña sagrada (The Holy Mountain, reissued as The Sacred Mountain) is a 1973 cult film directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky who also participated as actor, composer, set designer, and costume designer. The film was produced by Beatles manager Allen Klein. John Lennon and George Harrison also put up production money. The film was never given wide release.

The central members of the cast were said to have spent 3 months doing various spiritual exercises guided by Oscar Ichazo of the Arica Institute. The Arica training features Zen, Sufi and yoga exercises along with eclectic concepts drawn from the Kabala, the I Ching and the teachings of Gurdjieff. After the training, the group lived for one month communally in Jodorowsky's home before shooting began."

Now for the plot synopsis : "A Christlike figure wanders through bizarre, grotesque scenarios filled with religious and sacrilegious imagery. He meets a mystical guide who introduces him to six wealthy and powerful individuals, each representing a planet in the solar system. These six, along with the protagonist, the guide and the guide's assistant, divest themselves of their worldly goods and form a group of nine who will seek out the Holy Mountain, in order to displace the gods who live there and become immortal." Wiki

If any of my readers have seen this one, let me know.

"Light-Echo" from an Exploding Star

2007-01-01T22:03:00.000-08:00

A Light echo is a visual phenomenon seen when light from a rapidly brightening object such as a nova is reflected from interstellar matter. Imagine a camera-flash in space - it's an expanding sphere of light. Likewise from NASA, we have a star which has exploded. What you're seeing in these images is the light-burst traveling outwards in all directions as it illuminates dust and gas previously blown-off by the star. For a size comparison, our entire Solar System would fit easily inside the red aura around the star, look again at the dates on the images and remember that light travels at roughly 186,000 miles per second and these pics span 6 months. Amazing.

Images of the Day

2007-01-01T21:55:00.000-08:00

Monk Can Control Body Temperature by Meditating

2007-01-01T04:26:00.000-08:00

"In a monastery in northern India, thinly clad Tibetan monks sat quietly in a room where the temperature was a chilly 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a yoga technique known as g Tum-mo, they entered a state of deep meditation. Other monks soaked 3-by-6-foot sheets in cold water (49 degrees) and placed them over the meditators’ shoulders. For untrained people, such frigid wrappings would produce uncontrolled shivering.

If body temperatures continue to drop under these conditions, death can result. But it was not long before steam began rising from the sheets. As a result of body heat produced by the monks during meditation, the sheets dried in about an hour.

In 1985, the meditation team made a video of monks drying cold, wet sheets with body heat. They also documented monks spending a winter night on a rocky ledge 15,000 feet high in the Himalayas. The sleep-out took place in February on the night of the winter full moon when temperatures reached zero degrees F. Wearing only woolen or cotton shawls, the monks promptly fell asleep on the rocky ledge, They did not huddle together and the video shows no evidence of shivering. They slept until dawn then walked back to their monastery."
Source - Harvard University

700-year-old painting looks like Mickey Mouse

2007-01-01T04:04:00.000-08:00

"An amazing 700-year-old picture that looks just like Mickey Mouse has been found in an Austrian church. The mouse picture - called a fresco because it is painted straight onto plaster - has a pointed nose and big round ears that make it look just like it is the famous cartoon character. The image was found on the wall of a church in the southern part of the country, and is standing with a group of other animals." Source - BBC NEWS

Blogs blocked in India, Pakistan, Iran and China!

2006-12-31T23:42:00.000-08:00

A big screw that from Stray Dog! Fellow bloggers, readers from Myspace, please add people from India, Pakistan, Iran and China. Tell them all they can still speak freely on the internet! Direct this link provided bellow to them all. Freethinkers unite, ideas never die, let us all speak loudly from our keyboards from sea to shining sea!
Godspeed!

Link and Banner that will allow people to shove it to their respective goverments - Pkblogs

Unkle - Eye For an Eye - Shynola

2006-12-31T23:02:00.000-08:00

This video was sent my way by my bestfriend via Myspace. Its a Song by the Group Unkle, with an amazing music video, it's astounding, sinister and etheral. Frankly, i was blown away. After a bit of searching i found out the animation was the work of a collective of artist known as Shynola. They are a group of four visual artists based in London. The name Shynola is a reference to a line in the Steve Martin movie The Jerk which implies that all you need to know in life is the difference between shit and Shinola. Wow, i'm already a fan. Thanks Sean.
Band Website - UNKLE
Animators Website - Shynola

Unkle - Eye For an Eye

Knitting Gone Wrong

2006-12-31T21:29:00.000-08:00

Strange Politics - Mitsuo Matayoshi - The only God

2006-12-29T23:27:00.000-08:00

"Mitsuo Matayoshi is an eccentric Japanese politician, self-styled as The only God Mitsuo Matayoshi Jesus Christ or Matayoshi Jesus. He is the leader of the World Economic Community Party. Matayoshi was trained as a preacher of a Protestant sect, and did religious activity. After a life of preacher he has developed a particular concepts of Christianity, strongly influenced by Eschatology. In 1997 He established the World Economic Community Party based on his conviction that he is the God and Christ.

According to his program he will do the Last Judgement as the Christ but the way to do this is totally within the current political system and its legitimacy. His first step as the Savior is to be appointed the prime minister of Japan. Then he will reform Japanese society and then the United Nations should offer him the honor of its General Secretary. Then Matayoshi Jesus will reign over the whole world with two legitimate authorities, not only religious but also political.

He has presented himself in many elections but he has not won yet. He has become well-known for his eccentric campaigns where he urges opponents to commit suicide by hara-kiri (disembowelment, note that he avoids the more polite seppuku) and says that he will cast them into Gehenna (Hell)."
Source - Wiki
Official website (in Japanese)
Unofficial website (in Japanese)
Matayoshi campaign poster with English translation

The Artwork of Gregory Euclide

2006-12-29T23:09:00.000-08:00

"Euclide's paintings on paper build from a tradition of landscape painting that is lyrical and a bit romantic; the images are atmospheric, delicate, and often wistful. Rendered in naturalistic shades of green, rust, gray, and the soft black of sumi ink, the pastoral scenes of hill, dell, and lake country are masterfully executed with fluid lines and painterly flourishes. But where traditional landscape painting ends, Euclide's work begins to get interesting. Skylines burst off the horizontal axis into exuberant scrolls and scribbles that resemble calligraphy or lines of graffiti tags. Detailed drawings of riverbanks and shrubs dissolve into masses of abstract lines and drips of paint. Throughout, cryptic letters, numbers, and a quirky use of office supplies disrupt the illusion, suggesting a highly subjective vision -- landscape on an acid trip. Euclide's near-psychedelic imagery reminds us that nature is more than a pretty view: It can be charged with emotional resonance, broken down into underlying patterns, and dissected through scientific inquiry. "
Source - sfWeekly
Artist Homepage - Gregory Euclide

Hallucii: Trapped in Escher Illusion.

2006-12-29T23:03:00.000-08:00

Hallucii is an animated movie created by Goo-Shun Wang about a guy trapped in an M.C. Escher illusion.

Tiger's Nest Monastery - 3000 miles above Bhutanese

2006-12-29T22:49:00.000-08:00

"One of the most holy sites in Bhutan, the Guru Rinpoche is said to have flown here on the back of a tigeress and then meditated in a cave, contained within the present structure, for three months. The monastery (goemba in Bhutanese) was built in its present form in 1692. It suffered a devastating fire of unknown origin during the night of April 19, 1998. Speculation is that the fire was caused either by lightening or an overturned butter lamp. Old photographs and diaries were used to make the reconstruction as close to the original as possible, though there was little documentation of the wall paintings and other artwork housed inside.Special permission is required for non-Bhutanese to visit the monastery, usually granted only to practicing Buddhists on a religous retreat. This photograph was taken from the viewpoint across the valley, the furthest point ordinary tourists can reach before being stopped by a guard."
Source - UNM.EDU
Image via - Leo Palmers portfolio

Images of the Day

2006-12-29T21:46:00.000-08:00

Visual Acoustics

2006-12-29T21:39:00.000-08:00

With Visual Acoustics you can paint a musical composition on your screen! Choose an instrument for your brush, set the volume and delay, and move your mouse over the surface to create a pattern both visual and acoustical. Link -via Dump Trumpet

The Video for Röyksopp's "Remind Me"

2006-12-28T23:46:00.000-08:00

I'm not a huge fan of the music on this Video, but i do really like the animation. Good stuff.

James Brown - Rest in Peace

2006-12-25T01:22:00.000-08:00

"Brown was admitted to the Emory Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia on December 24, 2006 after a dentist visit where he was found to have severe pneumonia.[6] Brown died the next day on December 25, 2006, around 1:45 a.m. (06:45 UTC)" Source : Wiki
James Brown- Sex Machine / Soul Power

Pictures of Walls

2006-12-23T01:27:00.000-08:00

Link : 100's of Galleries with Pictures of Walls

Reindeer Hot Dogs Served For Holiday Season

2006-12-22T23:17:00.000-08:00

"Just in time for Christmas, they're selling reindeer hot dogs in suburban Chicago. With grilled onions and mustard, it will cost you $8 at Fred Markoff's hot dog stand in Glenview.The reindeer dogs are made in Alaska and actually contain a bit of beef and pork, because reindeer meat is so lean and dry." Source : CNN

Justin Time for Christmas

2006-12-22T22:57:00.000-08:00

Justin Timberlake sings "Dick in a Box" SNL Uncensored