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Vanilla 1.1.4 is a product of Lussumo. More Information: Documentation, Community Support.

 
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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeOct 21st 2017
    Jk aside, get well soon mate. feel free to discuss it here with us whenever you feel like it. modern society is difficult on people and i guess a lot of us are on the verge here and there, from time to time in our lives, but being through it indeed, i can't even imagine how it must suck...personally speaking, i find that disconnecting even for short recurring periods, is healing. especially from the awful crappy toxic world online and esp. social media.
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
    • CommentAuthorlitefoot
    • CommentTimeOct 21st 2017
    222 'error' posts in the FSM Quartet thread since 10am this morning.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeOct 31st 2017
    On a slightly lighter note...

    I bought a lot of candy today, since Halloween has (sadly) become very popular in Norway too. Alas, no kids showed up on the door, so I ended up eating half of it myself before I got nauseaus.
    I am extremely serious.
  1. Having to sort out my Spotify account after it was 'acquired' by someone - who seems to have a pretty poor choice in music judging from the recently played list of artists that have appeared on my account.

    To be fair, Spotify sorted it out once I had contacted them but I do wonder how I was hacked in the first place.
    The views expressed in this post are entirely my own and do not reflect the opinions of maintitles.net, or for that matter, anyone else. http://www.racksandtags.com/falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    Composer John Beal continues to show a disgusting display of pro-Trumpism on Facebook. I had enough and deleted him.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    I had to Google him as I've never heard of him. He looks like a 19th century slave owner. tongue
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    I gave him the benefit of the doubt for a moment, as someone said he's critical of all sides of the spectrum and the general political game, but it's become VERY clear what his stance is.

    Not that it's a "hero's fall from grace" or anything. I primarily know Beal for his trailer stuff in the 90s, and the oddball TV thing.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Thor wrote
    Composer John Beal continues to show a disgusting display of pro-Trumpism on Facebook. I had enough and deleted him.


    its safer for artists to profess leftist views; conservatives don't tend to care about an actor/composer's political views since they're used to almost every single figure in hollywood calling them nazis, whereas leftists will purposely avoid the one or two conservatives that pop up every once in a while. slant
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    The mud slinging and pigheaded clinging to disturbing notions because they fit a personal frame of mind or narrative against all common sense or even blatant evidence is unfortunately hardly limited to either one side.

    Especially on social media I tend to focus on those traits, skills or productivity I find worthwhile rather than on 'fringe' elements like personal convictions or politics. Unless those become prevalent. Or offensive.

    I have many an artist on each side of the political spectrum I follow whose political or religious expression I deplore.
    But as long as the main reason -their art- is prevalent, I'm still interested in what they share,s ay and think (about that subject).
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Martijn wrote

    Especially on social media I tend to focus on those traits, skills or productivity I find worthwhile rather than on 'fringe' elements like personal convictions or politics. Unless those become prevalent. Or offensive.


    Where does that 'prevalent or offensive' cross the line?

    Eminem recently declared that "you're either my fan or Trump's" and that "he's drawing a line in the sand." Those few Trump Supporters I saw discussing it essentially shrugged: so what? His music is still good. He can't stop us from listening to it.

    Now imagine if tomorrow Taylor Swift announced, "You can't be my fan if you're on the left." I mean, already she's getting articles about her claiming that "Her silence about politics fuels speculation she may have voted for a republican". Front page news, disaster, album burnings, etc.

    When the Piano Guys agreed to play at Trump's inauguration they were flooded with hate-mail, had mass-unsubscribing, and their youtube comment sections were filled with people declaring, "I've been a fan for three years, but no more."

    Diversity of everything except thought.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Aidabaida wrote
    its safer for artists to profess leftist views; conservatives don't tend to care about an actor/composer's political views since they're used to almost every single figure in hollywood calling them nazis, whereas leftists will purposely avoid the one or two conservatives that pop up every once in a while. slant


    Yeah, that's my right. I know perfectly well what Trump and Trump supporters stand for, but as I said when he was elected: "Fuck, I'm gonna have to live with that stupid face in the media for at least 4 years now". So I have no interest in seeing, or being associated with anyone of that ilk in my own social media feed.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Thor wrote

    Yeah, that's my right.
    '

    Sure I don't contest that its your right to do it, I only wonder whether or not its right to do it. Should we be ostracizing people based on their political beliefs? It seems a dangerous slope to me, not to mention practically an assurance that the base of support for Trump won't sway. People wonder why corrupt or immoral politicians aren't abandoned by their constituents - perhaps because both sides have developed such a rancorous animosity that they feel there is no returning. If we were able to, as Aristotle said, entertain ideas without accepting them, perhaps conservatives and liberals alike would feel more comfortable weeding out the corrupt and hateful wings of their parties without feeling as though they are "giving ground to the enemy."
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    It is. It's a personal preference thing.
    I am extremely serious.
    •  
      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Aidabaida wrote
    Martijn wrote

    Especially on social media I tend to focus on those traits, skills or productivity I find worthwhile rather than on 'fringe' elements like personal convictions or politics. Unless those become prevalent. Or offensive.


    Where does that 'prevalent or offensive' cross the line?


    Wherever you want.
    It's purely personal.
    It's social media. Not a rule book.
    Hence me speaking purely for myself in that regard.

    Eminem recently declared that "you're either my fan or Trump's" and that "he's drawing a line in the sand." Those few Trump Supporters I saw discussing it essentially shrugged: so what? His music is still good. He can't stop us from listening to it.


    Exactly.
    ..except of course I absolutely loathe his music, but that's another topic altogether.

    Now imagine if tomorrow Taylor Swift announced, "You can't be my fan if you're on the left." I mean, already she's getting articles about her claiming that "Her silence about politics fuels speculation she may have voted for a republican". Front page news, disaster, album burnings, etc.


    I make it a point not entertaining scenarios in other parts of the multiverse.
    If she should ever do that then we'll see what we shall see.
    I can say this: some people will surely be outraged. Other people will surely laud her courage. In two days absolutely no one will care any more. And the world keeps on spinning. smile

    When the Piano Guys agreed to play at Trump's inauguration they were flooded with hate-mail, had mass-unsubscribing, and their youtube comment sections were filled with people declaring, "I've been a fan for three years, but no more."


    I'm fairly sure this happens to everyone who makes a choice that is in the middle of a politically charged environment.
    I seem to remember a right-wing outrage on some rather anti-religious remarks from Sinead O'Connor a while back...(yeah, old example. Sorry. Showing my age).

    All in all there actually seems to be rather little correlation between what side is more vocal, acerbic or outright villainous in their reactions and their political colour, but MUCH more of one between the reactions and the level to which the object of those reactions has a polarising effect!
    Trump certainly has been able to create some massive, very high profile rifts.
    So the reaction is stronger.

    Makes perfect sense. We're only human.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Aidabaida wrote
    Should we be ostracizing people based on their political beliefs?


    I'm not entirely sure what you're saying here.
    Are you actually advocating remaining connected to people on social media who it turns out you have very little or indeed nothing in common with?

    If a writer whose output I admire, and therefore decided to start to follow on social media, uses that social media only to profess his love of quilting in every post, arguing it's the best activity in the world, and spending the vast majority of his posts analysing and debating the values of various outings of quilting, then I'll drop off.
    It's simply not why I wanted to follow him in the first place.
    Surely that's not "ostracising"?

    Why would you willingly subject yourself to something on what is supposed to be a social platform that holds absolutely no interest to you (or that you fully, utterly and completely disagree with) ? It's not like it's bleedin' Evergreen where the very FUNCTION of the institution is at risk because its "customers" are demanding to be shielded from knowledge or opinions they find objectionable.

    It's just a personal, social choice.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    (Purely from a personal point of view the analogy above might have worked better would I have employed "spiders" instead of "quilting". wink )
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited

    I seem to remember a right-wing outrage on some rather anti-religious remarks from Sinead O'Connor a while back...(yeah, old example. Sorry. Showing my age).


    well there's been interesting arguments that the right was the "politically correct" force about 2 decades ago. I'm certainly not supportive of that either.

    I'm fairly sure this happens to everyone who makes a choice that is in the middle of a politically charged environment.


    I think that's my disagreement: Every Avengers actor has spoken out vociferously against Trump yet I don't see anyone on the right caring (and I don't care either. Thor Ragnarok was awful but I'm looking forwards to Infinity Wars). Whereas when Jessica Chastain said - not that she supported the charlottesville marchers, not even that they should be allowed to speak - but that she didn't support using vigilante violence against them, she was mobbed with so much abuse she had to give a tearful video apology.

    Are you actually advocating remaining connected to people on social media who it turns out you have very little or indeed nothing in common with?


    Oh certainly not. If someone's twitter feed is nothing but ranting about toilet maintenance, I'm not interested. But the guy in question is a composer and Thor specifically said he blocked him for "disgusting pro-trumpism", so it didn't seem to me like, "he was just talking about stuff I'm not interested in." I might be wrong.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    I don't even know who that is, but I'm sure any "tearful video" has not had any kind of averse effect on her visibility or marketability. No such thing as bad publicity, eh? There IS a certain level of cynicism in showbizz... wink

    But you actually prove my earlier point: when the topic/object is more polarising, the reaction effect will increase.
    And I think Nazis fairly fit that bill. smile

    (On a side note, I'm sure any of those Avengers actors will have received their fair share of hate. Twitter and Facebook are such wonderful instruments to rain down nigh-anonymous excrement on ANYTHING -I have seen a historian and a mathematecian receive rape and death threats on Twitter!- in a drunken or stupid spur of the moment. )
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    Aidabaida wrote
    Oh certainly not. If someone's twitter feed is nothing but ranting about toilet maintenance, I'm not interested. But the guy in question is a composer and Thor specifically said he blocked him for "disgusting pro-trumpism", so it didn't seem to me like, "he was just talking about stuff I'm not interested in." I might be wrong.


    That's why I amended my post to say the example would have worked better with spiders.
    I absolutely hate and loathe spiders. So anyone I'd follow anywhere focus on that interest rather than the very reason I followed them for (say "art") then they'd lose me as a follower pretty damn quick!

    On social media there's absolutely no obligation to subject yourself to material you have any kind of problem with.
    Why would you? Why would you choose to be so masochistic? Life's too short as it is!
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    I don't even know who that is, but I'm sure any "tearful video" has not had any kind of averse effect on her visibility or marketability.


    She played Cooper's daughter in Interstellar. Decent actress. And sure, if we're looking at it from a cynical perspective, then we can say, 'No, having to weather hundreds of death threats and post an emotional apology didn't hurt her career" but that would be entirely impersonal and leave out the fact that no one should have to take so much hatred for saying you don't believe in vigilante violence. I'm not worried about Chastain's career, that's not necessarily the point here.

    (On a side note, I'm sure any of those Avengers actors will have received their fair share of hate. Twitter and Facebook are such wonderful instruments to rain down nigh-anonymous excrement on ANYTHING -I have seen a historian and a mathematecian receive rape and death threats on Twitter!- in a drunken or stupid spur of the moment. )


    Yeah, I suppose death threats are sort of part and parcel of the internet. Ol' Clemmensen over on Filmtracks has gotten his fair share as well.

    Martijn wrote

    That's why I amended my post to say the example would have worked better with spiders.
    I absolutely hate and loathe spiders. So anyone I'd follow anywhere focus on that interest rather than the very reason I followed them for (say "art") then they'd lose me as a follower pretty damn quick!

    On social media there's absolutely no obligation to subject yourself to material you have any kind of problem with.
    Why would you? Why would you choose to be so masochistic? Life's too short as it is!


    interesting perspective; but it plays right into my point. Once we're viewing our opponent's political views like spiders, we have a serious problem. Once we view choosing to listen to our opposition's side as masochism, we have a serious problem. My argument is not against blocking things you find repulsive, but the danger in labeling ideas you disagree with repulsive in the first place.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    I think you may be overanalysing things a bit here.

    Thor, looking for interesting information about soundtracks, is under no obligation to -instead- be subjected to a unilateral political barrage he neither has an interest in, nor feels comfortable with.

    In a social setting you don't have to subject yourself to anything, especially if the person 'at the other end' is actually not engaging in discussion or debate, but merely delivering unidirectional statements that you have no absolutely no connection to.

    Choosing to dissociate yourself from that person is no different than abstaining to talk to the boring neighbour at the block party. It's not "ostracising" anyone. It's just making a personal choice to keep on enjoying yourself, rather than subjecting yourself to a situation you did not seek. And the neighbour in question is fully occupied talking to others who share his obsessions with model trains anyway.

    Of course that is completely different from actively cutting off someone you are actively engaging in mutual debate or discussion, or worse: signing up for a context (university, club, team, web site) where you know full well that to actually function in that context you will be exposed to things that do not fit your own preconceptions or preferences, and then demanding such expressions to be culled or deleted!

    And while I recognise the risk of the Comfort Bubble (mostly observed on Twitter, I find, where like-minded people flock together in herds, blocking any and all critical question or differing point of view, to happily engage in the circle-jerk of their assumed righteous and unassailable correctness), that's not what Thor is talking about at all.
    This is not cutting someone -who you have no personal relationship with anyway- off for the views you knew he held before you signed on, but rather having second thoughts about what added value this person's contributions -which are quite different from what you expected- offers to what you weere looking for!

    That said, I have absolutely no compunction in labelling ideas that are repulsive as repulsive, whether I agree with them or not. The fact that everyone has a right to an opinion in no way somehow automatically validates all opinions as being on an equal footing. There ARE stupid, silly, wrong and -yes- repulsive opinions.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    Martijn wrote
    I think you may be overanalysing things a bit here.


    Indeed.

    A person who is liked for his music publicly supports a guy who is generally hated for his politics. Hardly surprising Thor would unfollow him. Doesn't exactly require much of an analysis.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Martijn wrote
    I think you may be overanalysing things a bit here.

    Thor, looking for interesting information about soundtracks, is under no obligation to -instead- be subjected to a unilateral political barrage he neither has an interest in, nor feels comfortable with.


    This is not cutting someone -who you have no personal relationship with anyway- off for the views you knew he held before you signed on, but rather having second thoughts about what added value this person's contributions -which are quite different from what you expected- offers to what you weere looking for!


    Steven wrote

    A person who is liked for his music publicly supports a guy who is generally hated for his politics. Hardly surprising Thor would unfollow him. Doesn't exactly require much of an analysis.


    Oh certainly, I totally understand that. If I followed an author because I wanted tips on writing and all he did was retweet anti-conservative talking points, I would unsubscribe because there is no value there and its not what I came for anyway. However a post that just says, "Composer John Beal continues to show a disgusting display of pro-Trumpism on Facebook. I had enough and deleted him," doesn't seem to me to have anything to do with "He's talking about things I'm not interested in"... it is, as you said, a Comfort Bubble, which bothers me.

    ...or worse: signing up for a context (university, club, team, web site) where you know full well that to actually function in that context you will be exposed to things that do not fit your own preconceptions or preferences, and then demanding such expressions to be culled or deleted!


    Well when I sign up for a soundtrack website, or follow an author's blog, I, as you said, 'know full well that to function in that context', I'll have to hear conservatives called Nazis who hate the poor, given that the artistic world tends toward the left. Which may be why Thor's post bothered me: I felt like, "90% of Hollywood is leftist, and you have to delete the one odd guy who might like Trump?" Now if it was just a matter of "I followed for music, got politics instead" and Thor would also block someone who showed a loud display of Anti-Trumpism as well, then I misread the situation.

    That said, I have absolutely no compunction in labelling ideas that are repulsive as repulsive, whether I agree with them or not. The fact that everyone has a right to an opinion in no way somehow automatically validates all opinions as being on an equal footing. There ARE stupid, silly, wrong and -yes- repulsive opinions.


    no disagreement there: certain opinions deserve condemning. like I was illustrating above though, it seems that its not just extremism being labeled 'repulsive', but also relatively banal ideas such as "I don't believe in using mob violence"
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    Aidabaida wrote
    Steven wrote

    A person who is liked for his music publicly supports a guy who is generally hated for his politics. Hardly surprising Thor would unfollow him. Doesn't exactly require much of an analysis.


    Oh certainly, I totally understand that. However a post that just says, "Composer John Beal continues to show a disgusting display of pro-Trumpism on Facebook. I had enough and deleted him," doesn't seem to me to have anything to do with "He's talking about things I'm not interested in"... it is, as you said, a Comfort Bubble, which bothers me.


    I said that?

    Anyway, Trump is a special case (in every sense). He's not just someone who's politics differ or a "agree to disagree" situation; he's a repugnant character who clearly shouldn't have any amount of power who is constantly in the news. Blocking, unfollowing, or whatever, a person who posts supportive messages of someone like this is not exactly outside the bounds of reason. It's for the sake of sanity.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Aidabaida wrote
    Oh certainly not. If someone's twitter feed is nothing but ranting about toilet maintenance, I'm not interested. But the guy in question is a composer and Thor specifically said he blocked him for "disgusting pro-trumpism", so it didn't seem to me like, "he was just talking about stuff I'm not interested in." I might be wrong.


    No, you're right. It's because I don't want any friends and connections rattling of rightwing, Trumpian views in my facebook feed. If I want that kind of discussion, I'll seek it out myself. I actually have several rightwing friends on Facebook (mostly childhood friends whom I've outgrown in several ways), but they don't use Facebook as their personal soap box for that.

    Also, I really have no interest in being friends with people whom I disagree so fundamentally with when it comes to basic human values. Life's too short.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017
    Meh, I'm hardly ever phased by the hyperbole used by those on the cyberwar path on either side. As far as I'm concerned the mere use of the phrase "repulsive" means no more than "repulsive to me".
    Which is fine.

    Green peas repell me.
    I'm sure they're another man's manna.

    Yes, you have a point, the artistic world does tend to lean more to the progressive side (I feel uncomfortable using the phrase 'left'...I always have great difficulty equating the American left to anything that is seen as politically left in the rest of the western world! smile ), and it's simple statistics that you'll find more anti-rightwing topic sentiment or bias there.
    Par for the course.

    But I do understand how that can be grating to those of a different political persuasion (or those who see a bias in one direction). As you said: that's not what you signed up for.
    To my mind -nor, if I read things correctly, yours- such expressions should not be culled.
    But it's interesting to see that even here we may be taking thema bit for granted...and I do rather enjoy that there is a counter sound now and again.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 5th 2017 edited
    Steven wrote


    I said that?.


    Martjin did. I'll try to connect the quotes better.

    Thor wrote

    No, you're right. It's because I don't want any friends and connections rattling of rightwing, Trumpian views in my facebook feed.


    well that's that. I just can't help but wonder how many others take that very same policy about blocking "commie Sanders supporters". how will ideas ever be debated? To be fair, when it comes to soundtrack music, I suppose you're not really looking for that sort of debate, so I completely understand your position.

    Martjin wrote

    To my mind -nor, if I read things correctly, yours- such expressions should not be culled.


    well its your right to cull them, but when people talk about specifically avoiding people who they disagree with, I can't help look with bleak eyes at situations like Alabama where some Republicans are willing to vote for an (alleged) monster like Moore because things are just that polarized (although Moore is down 25% from where Republicans usually are, so there's hope).
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 6th 2017 edited
    Aidabaida wrote
    well that's that. I just can't help but wonder how many others take that very same policy about blocking "commie Sanders supporters". how will ideas ever be debated?


    Probably when both parties have a mutual interest and a mutual platform from which to discuss?

    Your argument is very bizarre. As if blocking Trump supporters from my Facebook network means I don't know what Trump stands for or that I'm not willing to discuss politics with opponents from the right side.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeDec 6th 2017
    Thor wrote

    Your argument is very bizarre. As if blocking Trump supporters from my Facebook network means I don't know what Trump stands for or that I'm not willing to discuss politics with opponents from the right side.


    Wait. Isn't that definitionally what blocking Trump supporters means? That you're not willing to discuss with them?
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
    •  
      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeDec 6th 2017
    Aidabaida wrote
    Thor wrote

    Your argument is very bizarre. As if blocking Trump supporters from my Facebook network means I don't know what Trump stands for or that I'm not willing to discuss politics with opponents from the right side.


    Wait. Isn't that definitionally what blocking Trump supporters means? That you're not willing to discuss with them?


    No. If I want to discuss Trump or have an engaging debate with rightwingers, I want to do it on my own terms, not have annoying propaganda shouted in my face on social media (which I use for totally different purposes).
    I am extremely serious.