Life is sweeter than jewish wine

The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO)

“The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), initiated in 1990 in Tartu, Estonia,[1] and formed in February 11, 1991, in the Hague, is a democratic, international organization. It is a roof organisation whose members are political organisations and governments representing indigenous peoples, occupied nations, minorities and independent states or territories which lack representation internationally. The organization educates groups in what channels to use to make their voices heard, and helps defuse tensions so that frustrated groups do not turn to violence to gain attention for their demands. Some former members, like Armenia, East Timor, Estonia, Latvia and Georgia, have gained full independence and joined the United Nations.”

-from Wikipedia

Chinese whispers

Chinese whispers
(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
In the game variously known as Chinese whispers,[1] Telephone, Broken Telephone, Whisper Down the Lane, Gossip, Arab Phone (from the French Le téléphone arabe)[citation needed], and Stille Post (Silent Post), the first player whispers a phrase or sentence to the next player. Each player successively whispers what that player believes he or she heard to the next. The last player announces the statement to the entire group. Errors typically accumulate in the retellings, so the statement announced by the last player differs significantly, and often amusingly, from the one uttered by the first. The game is often played by children as a party game or in the playground. It is often invoked as a metaphor for cumulative error, especially the inaccuracies as rumours or gossip spread,[2] or, more generally, for the unreliability of human recollection.
In the United States, “Telephone” is the most common name for the game.[2] The name “Chinese whispers” reflects the former stereotype in Europe of the Chinese language as being incomprehensible.[3] It is little-used in the United States and may be considered offensive.[4] It remains the common British name for the game.[5]

berlintopia 2

v and i visiting kunst-stoffe in berlin, a recycle art center where we applied for and didn’t get a residency. corrina the director told us she really enjoyed our proposal but that they opted to award their residencies to artists from developing countries. fair. she showed us around and invited us to utilize the materials while in berlin this summer, possible in exchange for leading a workshop on reggio-emilia style remida art.
looks like a busy august in berlin!

last wikipedia search…

kung pao chicken

my wiki entry

yesterday was the wikimarathon for improving wikipedia’s entries on contemporary art.  i tried to do my part by drafting this entry for Francis Alys.  however, it’s been tagged as reading too much like a personal essay or reflection… i guess neutrality isn’t my strong point.

last wikipedia search…

Anomie, in contemporary English, means a condition or malaise in individuals, characterized by an absence or diminution of standards or values.
The word comes from Greek, namely the prefix a- “without”, and nomos “law”. The Greeks distinguished between nomos (νόμος, “law”), and arché (αρχή, “starting rule, axiom, principle”). For example, a monarch is a single ruler but he or she might still be subject to, and not exempt from, the prevailing laws, i.e. nomos. In the original city state democracy, the majority rule was an aspect of arché because it was a rule-based, customary system which might or might not make laws, i.e. nomos. Thus, the original meaning of anomie defined anything or anyone against or outside the law, or a condition where the current laws were not applied resulting in a state of illegitimacy or lawlessness. The contemporary English understanding of the word anomie can accept greater flexibility in the word “norm”, and some have used the idea of normlessness to reflect a similar situation to the idea of anarchy. But as used by Émile Durkheim and later theorists, anomie is a reaction against or a retreat from the regulatory social controls of society, and is a completely separate concept from anarchy which is an absence of effective rulers or leaders.