Maar die ding waaroor ek eintlik dink en besef is, hoe mens nie eintlik so daaroor dink nie. Vat byvoorbeeld as jy 'n sekere liedjie as jy dit hoor op die radio of van jou bure se blerrende musiek, dit bring memories terug, goeies of slegtes, maak nie saak nie. Stilletjies is daar altyd 'n song wat net 'n memorie dra. Dis vir my eintlik intressant. Maar as mens daaraan dink, dan het meeste van die songs betrekking tot ons lewens en iets wat al gebeur het...
Ek het byvoorbeeld die een song van Metallica 'Whiskey in a Jar', as ek net daardie song kan hoor, al is dit hoe sag, spring daar 'n dimpel in my wang, want die song het 'n memorie laat opspring, sal nie hardop die memorie kan deel nie...maar verstaan.

Dis seker warom mense van sekere musiek hou, die dinge wat hul siel inkleur, of waarby hul die gevoel kan opwek van memories? Ek weet nie, ek wonder net.

Ek het redelik ;n oor vir alle tipe musiek, van rock, rave, disco, techno, alternatief, reggae, ens, as mens mooi luister kom daar altyd 'n storie of beleidenis uit. Country weer aan die ander hand het weer 'n manier om al die 'soppy' stories te sing, bv Kenny Roger's se 'Lucille'.

Maar ek dink verseker dat ons musiek ook by ons persoonlike lewens kan opsit. As jy tog so hardseer is, sit 'n moerse hardseer song op, dit maak sommer dat jy jouself goed uithuil! Op 'n vrolike dag begin sommer vroeg met 'n lekker song wat 'n ekstra huppel in jou stap kan sit.

Musiek doen baie vir my. Ek is verslaaf aan my musiek...

La prima giornata del congresso, infatti, sarà dedicata ai tutorials: un' occasione di formazione mirata su argomenti di attuale interesse, i 5 tutorial previsti avranno luogo solo se si raggiungerà un numero minimo di 10 partecipanti e saranno svolti in sessioni parallele. Ogni interessato potrà quindi registrarsi per un tutorial sia la mattina che nel pomeriggio scegliendo anche tra due proposte differenti visto che per ognuna delle cinque proposte è prevista una prima ed una seconda parte indipendenti tra loro.
Ecco la lista dei tutorials previsti per il giorno 8 Ottobre 2008: 

• un primo approccio socio-culturale e educativo
• group management e progettazione didattica

5. Design for Learning and Learning as Design: a new Life

Il costo dell’intera giornata è 300 euro ma si può scegliere di iscriversi unicamente ad una parte del tutorial (mattina o pomeriggio) il cui costo sarà di 150 euro.
La scadenza per l’invio delle prenotazioni è fissata per il 30 agosto 2008 ed il programma dettagliato può essere consultato e scaricato alla seguente pagina del sito dedicato al convegno Sie-l.

Um dos eventos, a ter lugar nos dias 15-17 de julho em Genebra, Suíça, será a "Conferência Inaugural" de uma nova entidade: a "Society for International Economic Law" (SIEL). Esta organização é interessada em contribuir para a expansão do direito do comércio internacional, tal como vem sendo institucionalizado no regime da Organização Mundial do Comércio (OMC) e várias de suas ramificações ou parcerias políticas, técnicas e acadêmicas. O programa da conferência pode ser obtido aqui. A ênfase do evento parece ser sobre as virtudes e desafios das políticas de liberalização comercial e suas possibilidades de avanço. Os trabalhos estão sendo publicados on-line na medida em que são recebidos (ver aqui).

O outro evento, embora discuta fenômenos correlatos aos do primeiro, tem caráter bem distinto. Será promovido pela Society for the Advencement of Socio-Economics (SASE) e terá lugar nos dias 21-23 de julho, em San José, Costa Rica , focalizando o tema: "Flexibilidade Econômica e Estabilidade Social na Era da Globalização".

No caso desta segunda conferência, as preocupações recaem, não sobre as possíveis virtudes da liberalização comercial, mas sim (conforme destacado no texto de sua apresentação) sobre como reconciliar duas tendências: (a) o avanço do "livre mercado" e seus benefícios materiais sob os atuais processos de globalização; e (b) a reação à crescente desorganização que os mercados impões à vida das pessoas, o que corresponde à "tentativa de preservar as relações sociais por meio das quais as pessoas se entendem a si mesmas e encontram significado para as suas vidas".

O evento da SASE -- mais ligado à sociologia econômica e formulações próximas, de que são exemplo os trabalhos da publicação Socio-Economic Review -- tem inspiração explícita em Karl Polanyi e terá painéis sobre Marx, Keynes, Polanyi e Hirschman. Já o evento organizado pelo SIEL é relacionado à crescente doutrina jurídica instrumental do direito internacional econômico (em grande parte correspondente ao direito do comércio internacional, sob a forma do regime da OMC), com expressão, por exemplo, no periódico International Journal of Economic Law.

São, portanto, dois eventos emblemáticos de diferentes perspectivas a respeito dos fenômenos da economia mundial contemporânea.

À Análise Jurídica da Política Econômica (AJPE) interessa a interdisciplinaridade, inclusive as contribuições que a sociologia econômica puder ofrecer, para iluminar, contextualizar e, onde necessário, reformar as doutrinas do direito em seus diversos ramos, abrangendo o do direito do comércio internacional.

- - - - - - - - -

Veja neste blog as matérias correlatas:

• "O direito do comércio internacional e os direitos humanos: uma articulação desejável"
• "Contestações ao livre mercado suscitam missão para juristas"
• "A economia das convenções: entre o mercado e o enraizamento social"
• "O anti-utilitarismo como elemento da AJPE"

I met today with the Abbott Kinney District Association, who organizes the Abbott Kinney Festival for over 150,000 attendees that takes place every year in September. We have been asked to curate and produce their Green Living Area. We are really excited to rock Milwood Ave with an incredible presentation of a green lifestyle as "CONNECTED" - I came up with this idea based around the idea that the core reasoning of being green is to be connected - to your community, your environment, and yourself. Moving away from last year's direction of a speaker-oriented presentation, we'll be focusing on sharing our version of the green lifestyle experienced through music, art, great vendors, and of course...you! Send me an email if you'd like to get involved!!

After the Festival talks I picked up some organic tequila and agave nectar from 4 Copas, who is donating to the LACE art auction that happens tomorrow - with the attendees at about 400 earlier this morning, we can't wait to party it up big in the art scene and raise some money for this great organization!

I grabbed an extra bottle of tequila to give to my drinking buddies Siel, the Green LA Girl, and Summer of the online eco-fashion boutique BTC Elements - met up with them at the killer happy hour with one of my favorite summer drinks the Calimucho that the Bodega Wine Bar on Broadway in Santa Monica puts on. Those girls are so awesome!! Really deep in the green space and on top of their game. We caravaned over to the opening of the new eco-boutique Visionary that my friend Nicole Landers put on. It was great to see a lot of familiar faces and also met Max Noce and some new friends next door at the ultra-cool Sorum Noce boutique which seems to be the new go-to spot for LA rockers looking for a punch in style.

Another day in the Pink Cloud life...See you tomorrow at LACE?

Eugene Marais was veral bekend vir poësie en werk oor miere en bobbejane, maar hy was véél meer as dit. Dié briljante wetenskaplike was ’n baanbreker in die veld van etologie en talle van sy bevindings oor verskeie vakgebiede heen. 'n Baanbreker in die waarneming - iemand wat weggesteek staan agter 'n paar matriekgedigte. 

’n Groot styd wat Marais gevoer het was teen antropomorfisme, of die neiging van die mens om homself in die middelpunt van alles op die planeet te plaas. Sy benadering tot die natuur was veel breër as die mens se kort bestaan. 'n Beginsel wat 'n mens baie buite die gespreekwoordelike boks laat dink. Ons is g'n so spesiaal nie. Wie se diere is laer as ons?

“Skoonheid in die natuur is nie vir die mens bedoel nie,” skryf hy in die Huisgenoot in 1926. Hy gaan verder om te sê dat die natuur al daar was vir miljoene jare voor die mens bestaan het en dit sal daar wees vir miljoene jare nadat ons hier was. Inderdaad.

Ons is vreeslik verwaand oor ons eie belangrikheid. Mense is nie die middelpunt van die Heelal nie. Ons is net toevallig die dominante spesie van hierdie tyd. Dinosourusse, onthou, was eens dominant.

Dr. Wilmot James, hoof van die Africa Genome Education Institute (AGEI) het verlede jaar tydens een van die gewilde Darwin-lesings wat deur die AGEI by die mediese skool van die Universiteit van Kaapstad aangebied word, sy lesing gewy aan die wetenskap van Marais. Ek het dit bygewoon.

“Alle die skitterende kleure van die pronkpou, van merops, van ons suikerbekkies, van die loerie, is alles bedrog. Dit is alles te danke aan ’n slimme klugspel van die natuur – waar spoke wat in werklikheid g’n reg van bestaan in ’n materiële het nie,” het Marais in 1926 in Huisgenoot geskryf. Want dit is nie die oog wat sien nie, dit is die brein.

Ons weet vandag presies hoe sig werk, maar Marais het dit dekades gelede al verstaan. Dit die oog die lig “versamel” en die brein wat kleur en betekenis daaraan gee.

Alles staan onder genetiese beheer en sy verstommende insig in die werking van die oog en brein kom sonder dat daar enige aanduiding is dat hy vertroud was met die werk van Gregor Mendel.

Dit is ook hier waar hy vasgesit het met die bekende Jan Smuts, wat ook president van die Akademie van Wetenskap was, oor sy “holistiese benadering tot die natuur”. Marais was woedend te hy hoor die British Royal Society wil aan Smuts ’n prys vir ’n boek, omdat hy gemeen het Smuts se skrywery is gebasseer op “wanbegrippe”, “onsinnge verwaantheid” oor sy idees oor sogenaamde skoonheid in die natuur en sy totale onkunde van feite.

Marais het gemeen (en korrek ook) dat daar nie so iets soos skoonheid in die natuur is nie. Skoonheid word in die brein aanmekaar gesit deur middel van neurologiese aktiwiteit. Dit is ’n biochemiese konstruksie geplant in die geheue-sisteem van sy eienaar. Skoonheid is in die oog, of meer presies, in die brein van die eienaar.

Wat mooi is vir die mens, is nie mooi vir ander diere nie en dit is net menslike arrogansie om te dink dat dit is. Kleur het verskillende doele in die natuur, dit speel onder meer ’n rol in kamoeflasie en in seksuele seleksie.

Sowat 140 jaar ná Charles Darwin en 80 jaar ná Marais het navorsing vandag in molekulêre biologie bewys dat evolusie inderdaad die meganisme is wat Darwin se meganisme van fantastiese perfeksie, die oog, gevorm het.

“Om in ons tyd van ’n grenslose Wese, sonder begin en sonder einde, te dink as onderhewig aan ons gemoedstoestande, is byna geen weerlegging waardig nie. Ons dierlike siel kan Hy nie besit nie net so min as ons dierlike liggaam. Ons skoonheidsgevoel kan alleen bestaan solank as die mensesiel bestaan en op sy omgewing reageer. Lig en duisternis kan vir ’n Grenslose Wese as teëstellings g’n betekenis hê nie, want lig is ’n tydelike en toevallige verskynsel in die heelal. Die voortdurende en ewige toestand van die heelal is uiterste koue en uiterste donker,” antwoord Marais vir Smuts.

Sy eie verslawing aan morfien (na die dood van sy vrou en kind) het hom egter nie daarvan weerhou om oor wat hy “euforiese vergiftiging” soos hy die gebruik van middele genoem het, navorsing te doen nie.

Marais skryf: “Vandat die mens geleer het om sy gedagtes in skrif weer te gee, het hy sy eie sielsverdriet bejammer en middels gesoek; en die vernaamste en tegelyk gunstigste van die middels in alle stadiums van sy beskawing, is ongetwyfeld die bonatuurlike godsdiens gewees; daarna kom euforiese vergiftiging. Die filosofie was ’n derde en baie swakker mededinger.”

Hy verwys na die gebruik van tabak, alkohol, opium en dagga. Hy wys ook uit dat ons die neiging van verslawing met die primate deel wat ook op ’n evolusionêre skakel wys en sekerlik nie ’n gewilde stelling was nie.

Marais het destydes nie geweet daar is genetiese bewyse dat ons en die groot primate ’n gemeenskaplike voorsaat deel nie en sy talle bevindings oor gedrag, emosie (die lag is dieselfde as die van die mens, en hull teur, skryf hy), speel, en kommunikasie is voortreflike waarnemings. “Desnieteenstaande is die gedrag van selfs die laagste aapsoorte oneindig meer menslik as die gedrag van selfs die hoogste soogdiere benede die ape.”

Nog lank voor primatoloë en evolusionêre bioloë op die toneel gekom het, het Marais opgemerk dat die bobbejaan (die primaat waartoe hy baie toegang gehad het) die siel van die individuele oorsaaklike geheue ontvang het. Dit is wat die mens verstand, rede en bewustheid noem, skryf hy.

Die titels van Marais se Siel van die Mier en Siel van die Aap word ook gereeld misverstaan. Dié werke handel volgens James nie oor enige siel of teologiese behandeling van die primaat of insekte nie, maar oor die biochemie van emosie, gevoel en die neurologiese breinfunksie van die diere.

Maar dit is juis sy werk oor die miere wat groot hartseer veroorsaak het. Maurice Maeterlinck se werk The Life of the White Ant is een van die grootste gevalle van intellektuele diefstal ooit waarin Marais se werk letterlik gesteel is.

Nie net as wetenskaplike nie maar ook as taalkundige wat Afrikaanse woorde geskep het in die vakgebiede van sielkunde, etologie, insektekunde en Darwin se evolusionêre biologiese wetenskap, en as wetenskapskrywer wat wyd in Afrikaans gepubliseer het, het Marais diep spore getrap.

Bronne: Science in the Life and Times of Eugene Marais, South African Poet and Writer, The Darwin Lectures, Wilmot James

Huisgenoot, September 1926 en 3 en10 Desember 1926.

’n Paradys van Weleer, Eugene Marais, 1965

Kopiereg op die foto het verval omdat hy meer as 50 jaar dood is.

Alex's article both empowers cyclists to participate in society, to be their own solution, to create and have fun, while succinctly explaining what the different small groups of autonomous free cycling community organizations are already doing to improve their/its/yours/mine/humans situation (okay, maybe I'm getting into my bag of rhetoric, go fuck yourself), in lieu of the complete absence of help, support, environmental decency, societal decency from the city of Los Angeles.

In complete, with block-quote, I present to all humans, a symbolic expression in the form of Alex Thompson's soul power! From the Los Angeles Times Emerald City Blog:

L.A. to cyclists: 'Do it yourself'

(Curmudgeonly L.A. cyclist Alex Thompson's rants cause the conflict-adverse discomfort, but he cares a whole lot.)

Between 1996 and 2008, the city of Los Angeles added 5 miles of bike paths or lanes each year. That's an astronomical success!

No, that's a complete failure. The city of Los Angeles encompasses 469 square miles. Adding 5 miles of bike lanes per year corresponds to adding 56 feet per square mile each year. 56 feet. That's the width of a small 7-11 parking lot. Ride your bike for 2 seconds, and that's how much farther you can expect to be able to ride on bike lanes in your neighborhood next year. You can expect a complete network of bikeways in about 100 years. City of L.A., EPIC FAIL.

There isn't just failure on cycling infrastructure. There's failure on all cycling issues. The Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee, which advises the City Council on cycling issues, can't find a steady meeting location. The committee president, appointed two decades ago by then-Mayor Bradley, still fails to follow basic rules of order or treat the public with courtesy. Councilman Bill Rosendahl is indulging residents of Mar Vista who are convinced bike paths cause crime, rather than insisting on better law enforcement.

Worst of all is the institutionalized bias against cyclists at the L.A. Department of Transportation (LADOT). LADOT bicycle staff spend most of their time explaining to bike activists, "here's why you can't have what you want." In order to update the L.A. Bike Master Plan, the LADOT and Planning department scheduled four meetings for community input. That's about one meeting per million people. Portland had one meeting per 12,000 residents to update their bicycle master plan. It gets better, if you visit LADOT's Bicycle Services website and follow the link to "planned bikeways" it sends you to this map:

This map is from 1996!!! I was still a virgin. "LADOT, planning to make a difference since 1996."

The only reasonable way to interpret the city's inaction is as a collective "Go **** Yourself" to cyclists. Punk rock til the end, cyclists irreverently flipped this, and interpreted it as "Do It Yourself!" And so a large segment of cyclists have found new and innovative ways to make progress without the cooperation of local government. Indeed, when the Bike Kitchen's budget purportedly surpassed the LACBC's, it was a quiet signal that doing it OURSELVES is the way to go. Does that sound angry? That's an echo of a whisper of the frustration that exists throughout the cycling community.

So we've been doing it for ourselves. Outreach? Midnight Ridazz has developed it's own brand of outreach: F.U.N.! Fun rides through the city -- a nightlife that revolves around biking -- is the unexpected form that cycling outreach takes in L.A. Most Ridazz prefer not to describe their activities as activism, it's just what they do for fun. Whatever it is, it's fun and effective. Thousands have been inspired to bike by these epic displays of F!U!N!

(RichTOtheIE demonstrates FUN at CRANK Mob, best bike ride on the Westside! photo by digablesoul)

Cyclist education? The bike repair collectives -- the Bike Kitchen, Bike Oven, and Bikerowave -- do more to educate cyclists than any other L.A. org, governmental or not. These entirely volunteer organizations mobilize over a hundred volunteers weekly to teach cyclists how to fix their bicycles on a not-for-profit basis. Informal education on other topics takes place here as well. Step into the Bike Oven and mention a recent problem with a motorist and you'll likely hear several similar stories, and learn a couple new coping strategies. To a certain extent this happens on Midnight Ridazz rides too; I learned a lot of the tricks that keep me safe talking with other riders at group rides. There might even be a motorist education effort on the way, and not from the Metro, but from cyclists.

Bike infrastructure? At Semiotics of the Ride, activists are developing a signage system to turn 4th St. in Hancock Park into a bicycle boulevard. Is the city supportive? As far as I know, they're not. These activists lobbied hard, to no avail, to get cycling improvements on 4th St. This DIY effort is a reaction to unassailable status quo that persists within city departments. So, now we do our own infrastructure.

There are a few people in the city, or other local governments, that get it. The Santa Monica Planning Department has shown not only a progressive attitude toward cycling, but a remarkable willingness to open their planning process to the public. Lynne Goldsmith of Metro is doing good work to connect cyclists and bus operators to try to prevent conflicts. The city of Pasadena & CICLE successfully worked together to produce Bike Week Pasadena last year. They did so well that the 2nd Annual Bike Week Pasadena takes place in two weeks. Surprisingly, one of the best allies of cyclists is the LAPD. LAPD treats social bike riders with an open mind, allowing big group rides to continue if the ride is safe and moves along quickly. As well, anecdotal evidence suggests that officers in the LAPD are far better educated in the rights and needs of cyclists than in other jurisdictions.

There are people in local government who do right by cyclists, they're just the rare exception to a daunting rule. News that the L.A. bike culture is a fully DIY culture should resonate ominously within deaf ears at City Hall. 100% independent of city support, a growing constituency of cyclists can now bring uncompromising political will to bear on city officials.

(Next week I'll summarize some ways you can get involved in bike activism.)

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Outreach has never been so F.U.N.