Anthropocentricism

Rain’s been falling quite generously in the last few days; colourful mushrooms sprang. They’re beautiful in the way that they care not hide the danger their sensuality entails pretty much the way Rita Hayworth was in Gilda and Rebecca Romijn in Femme Fatale, just begging you to sin.

What is the kind that falls for such irresistible temptation? In my humble opinion, it is those who fall for temptations when they prove to be irresistible. The anthropocentric mistake manifested when those beautiful mushrooms are removed sometime between the evenings I strolled by the water. The hand that plucked them for whichever reason they cared or cared not justify left two traces: one, it was a genocide; the other, the animals that would’ve enjoyed such delicacy had been robbed of their God-given privilege.

Impacts? For one, a beautiful population was terminated. More importantly, though, the process of selection was ruthless interrupted. Results? One direct loss of diversity, and a deterioration of another.

Some say that selection is all about reproduction and copies of genes. Personally, I firmly believe that is partial and likely a hint of unleashed libido – it’s not difficult to notice that reproduction is usually a compensation for mortality. Question: should we reduce our beautiful planet to a paradise for bugs?

After all, God love us, but please don’t assume that He love the moon, the stars, or the sun any less.

BTW, a new record in the Village: http://www.elliman.com/new-york-city/manhattan/greenwich-village/66-east-11th-street/bnxqpik

Human nature and Wild at Heart (1990)

First off, sometimes I have the impression that one sometimes runs into the question of good or evil, human nature. I find it insensible: the nature of human is that of an animal, a beast. As an animal, none of our basic instincts can be considered good or bad; that is the derivative of our awareness – possibly the one and only thing that makes us so sure of our superiority over other animals. Few hesitate over the atrocity of slaughtering other animals and/or plants… It would be fine if we could adhere to our awareness all the time; we can’t. We have a humane self and a beast self; imbalance is bound to occur. That’s perhaps why schizophrenia may be a symptom of ingeniosity.

Anyway, WAH is an ingenious film. Its depiction of the South, be it real or fictitious, sparkles something nauseating to the degree one can truly smell the taste of its stink. Love is certainly a medium. It’s the way Sailor is, care-free; it’s the way Lula is, madly in love. It’s the rush that gives you all the strength in the world and you damn want everyone with an eye or not to see it – the choice of the South underpins Lynch’s greatness: I might’ve set the story in NYC and have a poor copy of the story of Midtown West; at most some audacious moments at the top of the ESB or 30 Rock. Then again, maybe that’ll make it True Romance?

Single White Female (1992) and Wall Street (1987)

SWF is certainly a recommended psychological thriller. Unlike certain heedless movies such as the X-Men series or the Final Destination series that target immature audiences, this is a film for adults who have come to appreciate the delicacy of the human mind. Jennifer Jason Leigh is wonderful in this film. Her character is suffering and lost in pains. It eventually makes you realize why bombshells seldom appear in any masterpiece: they certainly fit the cover of the sports illustrated swimsuit edition.

Then it’s WS. I personally dislike Charlie Sheen and his character; it made little sense that he should regret anyhow: it was money; nothing personal. Then, Gekko became personal, too – that’s why I think the ending sucks; a true player knows revenge won’t bring him any money.

Have you taken a two-star airline? http://www.airlinequality.com/StarRanking/5star.htm
Now, I don’t wonder why SAS sucks.

Shopping List

Ermenegildo Zegna suit; wool and silk, peak lapel, single-breasted
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John Lobb shoes; Phillip II style, five eyes
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Santa Barbara ranch; 123 acres, ocean view
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Montecito villa; ocean, mountain, and valley views, 4 acres, 5 bedrooms, soaring ceiling
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Financial District penthouse; next to NYSE, 5523 sf, 39/40 floor duplex, 5000 sf roof terrace, literally possible to piss on Wall St with a good prostate
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The Game (1997), Femme Fatale (2002), and The Prestige (2006)

During the last couple of days, I watched these three films. It’s perhaps my third time seeing FF; the other two are new for me. So, why don’t I start with FF? It’s definitely the sexiest film ever made. Rebecca Romijn is amazing; I guess it’s mostly her lips. I can hardly think of another actress who can pull it off like she did, thanks to her perpetual bad girl look. If you’ve ever glanced over her modelling portfolio, you’ll notice there’s a natural sense of danger in the way her face contrasts her body. I especially checked some photos of Claudia Schiffer, the supposedly racy ones; they’re not racy at all. Anyway, it’s allegedly one of the best of Brian De Palma, certainly better than Dressed to Kill and Body Double.

No, this is not why I’m writing this blog; I’m writing it because I’m hugely disappointed by the ending of The Prestige. It involves Angier’s ‘Real Transported Man’: the entire film feels real and even humanistic at time until the end, when the film ostensibly confirms that Tesla’s machine makes copies of everything. This ending is flawed because: (i) Either Angier can control where he’s being copied to, or the audience at that last show will notice him – at least someone will see him; then, there wouldn’t be a murder. (ii) Borden told Angier about Tesla as misdirection; it’d take a coincidence good films avoid for him to be able to make a machine that copies everything. To suggest that Borden’s brother is a copy is flawed because he would’ve known how Angier did his trick and wouldn’t go beneath the stage. (iii) Tesla certainly acted like a swindler. It’s ridiculous to suggest that all the time he and his assistant were there they didn’t notice the things having been copied while a cripple leaving the lab could on his way out. Of course those hats appeared to be planted. (iv) In the 21^st century it’s not considered ‘science fiction’ to have 19^th century pseudoscientists copy everything by electricity. (v) Most importantly, everything could’ve made more sense if Angier used his double all along and killed him when it was time to frame Borden. Besides, if he could copy everything, why didn’t he copy a woman, a cat, a handkerchief? Isn’t it tedious to copy the same thing again and again?

In contrast, The Game has a perfect ending. I’ll save it for you.

Why USD May Rally when the United States Faces Imminent Default

For decades, US Treasury bond has kept its AAA rating not because its face value is backed by anything solid, like gold, or virtual, like America’s reputation. Investors think it is safe because the United States can always, as it has been doing since Vietnam, issue new debts to cover the old ones. This time, however, it seems BH Obama and the conservatives played with fire a little too long; in less than a week the US government will have to cover some $50bn payments while it hits its credit limit.

Still, USD may rise against a range of, and perhaps all of, currencies in the coming days before 2 August.

It is impossible to imagine the US government default on its payments. That would, for starters, be political suicide for Mr BH Obama and the Tea Party. Investors may bet on the US selling its assets, most likely gold. Since whenever USD rises gold falls, it may worth a try to push up the USD before the possible emergency sale next Tuesday morning. Since there will be an over $100bn hole in the US government’s balance sheet August alone, there is a possibility to acquire up to 2,000 tonnes of gold. The temptation of having 20% of America’s gold reserve is irresistible. After all, gold is gold and paper is paper.

The Swedish Undercurrent as I See It

I’m by no means expert in collective psychology, and ‘undercurrent’ is indeed an overstatement; nonetheless, there’s something about Sweden and Swedes that takes time and an open mind to appreciate.

On the surface, there’s surprising conformity. People tend only to express their uniqueness, their inner side, to the ones they absolutely love and trust; to others, it is in my humble opinion truly understandable to tell Swedes apart by their looks. A brunette is a brunette; a fake blonde is a fake blonde. It is not that the outsiders are shallow, but there’s a tendency not to care about the judgements others are pushing. In fact, Swedish conformity makes it easier for newcomers to fit in; it is a tolerance to differences through a collective identity.

Underneath, Swedes are not much different than others. Some prefer hedonic pleasure; others appreciate eudemonic well-being. Some are honest; others not much so. Many who do not understand the dissonance between the surface and the underneath lose their open mind in understanding a different culture after several unfortunate encounters – what a pity!

I wouldn’t regard myself as well-travelled, though among the places I’ve been to Sweden is on the top of the list of beauty countries. I just wish the ceilings there are higher, the drinks cheaper, and the girls love me better.

My Guess on What Happened to Casey Anthony Three Years Ago

Recently, I have been following this overly-publicized trial. Many say they are shocked to learn the ‘not guilty’ verdict; I was surprised, not shocked. Prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt; in fact, the circumstantial evidence presented could be used on virtually everyone: If your trunk smells, you must have murdered someone. If you do not cry hysterically when a family member dies, you must be linked to his/her death. If you hide one thing, every other thing you say must be a lie. Here comes the worst – if you Google anything at all, you must be doing it for premeditation of a crime; search ‘bank’, and you have got to be planning on robbing one. I was surprised only because the system worked.

My guess is simple: Whichever day it was, Casey left her daughter home alone. Caylee died of an accident of whatever kind, and Casey was afraid of negligence charges and hence tried to cover up the accident. George Anthony certainly was involved in the cover-up.

Reason?

1. Many family friends testified that Casey apparently loved Caylee. On all the photos, and there are a lot of them, it is hard not to see that the mother does love her daughter. There was no motive of murder.
2. No one would be stupid enough to hide a corpse in her own trunk; no one capable of ‘premeditation’ would dispose the body so close to her home. There was no sign of premeditation.
3. The prosecution failed to prove the cause of death. There was no evidence linking the mother to any action that would directly cause the death of her daughter.
4. ‘Death’, ‘murder’, ‘abuse’, and many chemicals are Googled by millions every day. It does not mean everyone is trying to abuse others and use these chemicals to murder anyone.
5. George Anthony’s ‘suicide attempt’ was apparently bogus. He could have killed himself easily; it is America, where there is Second Amendment. He was obviously guilty of something.
6. Once Casey started telling lies, she had to keep up so as not to be linked to murder. She could not testify in front of the jury because she is guilty of something. She could only hide behind her Fifth Amendment right.

These having been said, I was shocked to see many people so ignorant and easily swayed by false journalism. One big mouth’s ‘article’ started with ‘It an attempt…’ – illiterate, is he not? Another big mouth, utter disgrace, would be Nancy Grace. Take a look at her Wikipedia page 2.1 Prosecutorial misconduct and 3.1 Controversies. This person was an adamant believer of guilty until proven innocent or, rather, guilty and damn you are. All she cares about is her huge ego; whether it is winning a case or shooting at ratings. Many of her viewers could not wait to commit murders themselves. Oh, wait a second – they want to ‘muder’.

Actually, using her logic: Since she is a fake blonde, she must be fake throughout.

my view of Sucker Punch, the movie

Having enjoyed the film, I went on to read a couple of reviews. It wasn’t really ‘critically acclaimed’ due to its supposedly ‘objectification of women’ as a ‘fantasia of misogyny’. To me, those are either crack-head feministic extremists or imbeciles who ignore issues instead of facing them.

Consider:

1. All fight fantasies are 100% from video games, whereas the brothel and the asylum were from 50s and 60s. Someone living in an asylum in the 50s cannot fantasize video games – therefore everything in this film is fantasy.
2. Amber doesn’t have amber eyes; Blondie doesn’t have blonde hair – because they don’t exist. All five girls are Sweet Pea, who is a blonde with amber eyes, and who is father’s Baby Doll and her own Rocket; I’d say she’s mother’s Sweet Pea. Rocket is the abrupt one. Baby Doll is the helpless one. Amber is the sympathetic one. Blondie is the weak one. – Only Sweet Pea, as said in the movie, is strong enough to survive the world.
3. Ms Gorski is apparently the mother, while Blue is the stepfather. Stepfather is abusive; mother, as said in the movie, tries to protect her daughter.
4. The Wiseman tells the girls to stand for something and don’t be afraid of anything. The girl tells her mother about the abuse, and the stepfather was caught by the police in the end.
5. There of course wasn’t a lobotomy; otherwise there would be a hole. Lobotomy in the movie is a cure for the problem. Baby Doll is the one Sweet Pea turns into when she is abused.
6. The ‘outside world’ didn’t look real at all with its anachronism and the girls’ bizarre belongings.

The film is only telling a story of one girl fighting over her not-so-strong personalities and finally gathering enough courage to accuse the stepfather of the abuses she had suffered. Apparently, she played a lot of video games, which is not uncommon among those suffering from autism. There’s nothing ‘sexual’ or ‘misogynist’ in it.

MY DEAR VIRGINIA – Synopsis by Jiulin Teng

MY DEAR VIRGINIA

Synopsis by

Jiulin Teng

My Dear Virginia is one woman’s contemporary story lived out by three at the crossroad of fantasy, mystery, and romance. Symbolism and intertwined timeline have found their way around recurring events and shifting characters. It is unique in its change of narrator as the woman’s identity falters halfway into her discovery that she was never born.

The girl allegedly named Virginia revealed her loss of mother and how she had been continuously watching, judging, and punishing herself. She began taking travel notes as she headed south for father, Marco. Virginia imagined several encounters before she shifted her attention onto her new friend, Julia. She was stable but suffered from nightmares until she met Marco.

Virginia started to think herself as mother; her life resembled living nightmare as she started to confuse reality with fantasy. Before leaving for halfway to the south, she remembered that her real name was Anna while Virginia was mother.

The girl gradually lost count of time; a third-personal narrator took over. Anna saw Marco on a party with a young woman, Gina, who was the mirror of mother. Anna came back to Marco, while Gina walked out on him. The development between Marco and Gina made Anna believe Marco killed mother; she ran away with Julia left behind.

Fantasy, reality, dream, and hope interweaved as Anna met two people whose existence was at question. She remembered how mother lived and died and was appalled by her memory that she killed mother and another man.

Anna subsequently came back to the north and was adopted by Alma, who treated her like mother. She realized that mother killed herself during her pregnancy. Virginia and Anna were last seen as sisters: Virginia drowned herself; Anna faded away.

My Dear Virginia revolves around two questions: Who am I? and Who killed mother? It hints at the multifariousness of the human mind and the contrasts between love and hate, generosity and selfishness, life and death it bears.