Peter Howard is Wintermute, mythologist

Update… With Photos!

22March2005 [directLink] [france]

OK, finally delivering the oft-promised photos… The bar on the right displays the six most recent albums, mouse-over for a Title popup (if you’re using a decent browser). Select a thumbnail and you’ll get the album. Or you can hit the ‘Preview All’ option and it’ll list all the albums with a couple photos from each… There are currently 7 albums all up, with around 65 photos…

Oh and I have higher-res versions if anyone wants to print things… Just email me

'threats that no one country, however powerful, can fight alone'

22March2005 [directLink] [myth]

I’m watching Kofi Annan give a press conference at the UN HQ at the moment… Calling for a huge range of reforms, and trying, by the sounds of things, to reassert the UN’s authority… The short ones I’ve heard are scrapping the Human Rights Commission and starting them over, and defining terrorism as attacking civilians.

My admiration for the guy is boosting with every answer he gives.

I’ll see if I can find a transcript when he’s done and add the link here…

Updated w/ Links:
BBC News Article, which includes a link to PDF of his Report to General Assembly

I Want One!

21March2005 [directLink] [film]

An ingenious offering from Apple

So what are your politics?

17March2005 [directLink] [myth]

An Attempt To Sort Out My Thoughts

In brief, I think I’d say I’m Catholic and Pacifist, with sympathies towards a kind of Socialist Anarchy.

Catholic, because I’m all for the Church’s teachings on social justice and human rights (incl rights of the unborn, &c). Pacifist because I despise war, but then I’m not totally anti-War - just most of the time. I think the only justification for war is defense of a sovereign nation against invasion, but even then it’s always difficult, and it should be limited to defense (and none of this preemptive nonsense, nor defense ‘at a distance’)…

Socialist Anarchy is a tricky one. Basically I’m not a particular fan of Democracy - it’s just a tool Capitalism uses to control the Masses. But Autocracy is too difficult to implement justly (I like the idea of a Theocracy, but it’s never been properly implemented, and would struggle too much to include competing beliefs). A kind of Socialist Anarchy could truly leave power in the hands of the people. But too much would lead to Survival of the Fittest, which is even worse; we need a Rule of the Innocent, which couldn’t work outside of very weird science-fiction. I loved discovering the 1968 French ‘Revolution’ as it was somewhat aimless, and yet people worked together, however briefly.

~*~*~*~

Where I think things are headed is very cyberpunk influenced, but as time passes more and more comes true, so I wouldn’t discount it… We’re headed for systems of Global Tribes - some tribes already exist, and more are being created (usually informally) all the time. Many of the Tribes will be Corporate - if one works for Microsoft, one will belong to the Microsoft ‘Tribe’, which will entail living in a Microsoft home, driving a Microsoft car, socialising with other MS employees, probably educating one’s children at MS schools, and having health-care supplied, if not directly by MS, by MS-approved and supported hospitals. HOWEVER, some people will belong to more than one Tribe. One might also belong to the Catholic Tribe, and choose to have one’s children educated at a Catholic school and have health-care supplied by a Catholic medical system. Some people will continue to change jobs regularly, but I wouldn’t be surprised if things become more settled and as people become more and more ‘corporate slaves’ they will end up working for one company all their life - because they will rely on them for the housing, education, health &c of their family.

There will also be tribes, much like there are today (though informally), that unite people by trade - like the old Guilds. For example, film-makers may belong to a studio-based tribe, or may belong to a global Guild-Tribe. These global guilds would enable the transfer of knowledge, opportunities &c, allowing one to travel the globe for work, knowing one will be supported wherever one travels.

Like everything, there is a dark underside to this system - the problem of poverty will only get worse. Some Tribes may specifically help the poor (for example, the Catholic Church might re-introduce the 10% tithe, some of which supports its members, some of which supports charitable works). But largely they will be left out. And this future is realistic enough that this problem needs desperately to be dealt with.

~*~*~*~

And Finally, A Prediction. A couple of years ago, I gave the USA 5-10 more years in its current situation, and that timespan still stands - now it’s 3-8. And how about that, the next election campaign sits smack at the start of that - Bush’s 2nd term and what the Republicans decide to do at the end of it will be crucial… By ‘its current situation’, let me clarify: I believe the USA of 3-8 years away will be dramatically different (or arguably, not so different). It will either go the way of Fascism, or will fall apart - becoming at best a loose conglomeration of Tribes and States.

content+distribution

15March2005 [directLink] [film]

An interesting post over at The New Normal on the challenges faced by Old Media in regards content and distribution. He basically argues that the two should be separate - something the major Old Media companies have got radically wrong recently - mistaking the symptoms of our paradoxical media divergence and convergence and buying up all aspects of content creation and delivery (which is just old school capitalism at its best).

The convergence/divergence of media is a strange one. In short, I get the impression we’re getting a divergence of content creation with a convergence in delivery. By which I mean there is more and more access to the tools of creation, and more and more people of different backgrounds creating content (whether we’re talking film specifically or other new media aspects, from blogging to animation on a home pc). But at the same time the lines between delivery methods are blurring - the fact that content can be delivered at a cinema, at home on a computer, television, via cable, rentals, &c suggests divergence, which seems to be how the big companies are viewing it in their efforts to buy access to all those channels. HOWEVER, at the same time all those channels are converging dramatically - it won’t be long till a home entertainment system consists of a central computer with various output systems (whether it’s a projector or a handheld) — meaning delivery is converged, filtered through one pipe into the household… (and people will soon forget that they used to wash clothes and ppl in the river while tripping to the well to get drinking water)

Six Weeks Later…

07March2005 [directLink] [france]

Well it took a while, but I’m finally online… That means there’ll be a few little changes to the site, the most important of which is photos - by the end of the week there should be a few up, but I’m still working on the interface to it

In brief

Week 1: Arrived; it Snowed. Spent lots of time with the other Aussies sitting round Drinking Red
Week 2: Warming, somewhat Deceptively. Language school started, level 3 of 6.
Week 3: Boring Administrata
Week 4: Vacances already. England for the week. Bought two tickets back to France, as One of which I was on the wrong side of the Channel to Collect.
Week 5: Back to France, and School; suddenly Freezing again; Running Around collecting things for my Carte de Sejour
Week 6: Actually went to every class this week; not sure how. Needed the distraction though, as I had my First Run-In with French Bureaucracy when I went for my Carte de Sejour (an extended residency, as my Visa only gives me 3 months). Got rejected as I needed my student card, which the university had cleverly Neglected. Asked for another Appointment, but the woman just repeated “Bring your student card” over and over. Gave Up and Left
Week 7: Went for the carte de sejour again today, but as there was a long queue and I had No Appoinment was Ejected again. Forced them to make me an appointment, not till the month of April now.

Not having problems adjusting to the culture - loving the cold, and starting to enjoy the relaxed lunch breaks and Sundays. But the bureaucracy are driving me nuts. The bank cleverly took 7euros from my account while it was still empty. The next day my transfer from Australia came through, but they insisted on sending me a letter claiming I was now in debit (and charged me another 8euros for the privelege). I put it down to a French computer and ignored it, but a couple of days later, when I’m clearly in the Black, received another letter asking that I arrange an appointment. Went in this morning to complain, but they wouldn’t even talk to me without an appointment (“But my account has 4000euros!” “This letter says you’re in debit” “But I’m not in debit anymore, I was waiting on a transfer” “This letter says you have to make an appointment with me” “You still want an appointment?!” “This letter says…”) So I made the appointment, for like 10 days away… Still not sure if I’ll bother going, but of course that’ll confuse them even more.

(I think it’s people like the French that are pulling Humanity behind in the war against Machines, they don’t seem to be able to think for themselves)

<em>rébranché</em>

07March2005 [directLink] [personal]

Finally got internet at home, albeit dialup. I’m still waiting on France Telecom to activate my ADSL(2+) line, but fortunately the highspeed provider gives me a free backup dialup connection…

All meaning… I’ll be able to get emails out, respond to old ones, update this site - there’ll probably be a bunch of new entries in the next couple days as I copy over all the things I wrote in the last few weeks…