U2 Live from the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles

Watch it LIVE on youtube RIGHT NOW.

http://www.youtube.com/u2

American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein

I came to learn of a new documentary that has recently come out entitled, American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein.  It chronicles the life of American political scientist Dr. Norman Finkelstein, the son of parents who survived the holocaust.

For those that are not familiar with Dr. Finkelstein, he used to be a professor at DePaul University before he was denied tenure in 2007.  Through his academic work, he is best known as one of the greatest opponents to the occupation of Palestine and a fervent critic of Israel and the United States vis a vis Palestine.  It is speculated that because of his critique of the Israeli and US body politic through his academic work and a famous debate with himself and Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz on Democracy now that DePaul regarded Finkelstein as being ultimately a liability to the University.  Dr. Finkelstein has written 5 books, all of which have gained a significant amount of notoriety.  Finkelstein, a Jew himself, was banned from entering Israel in May of 2008, citing Finkelstein as being a security threat which landed him a ban from Israel for ten years.

I have not yet seen the film but based on the trailer, it seems to offer a fascinating look into the life of one of America’s foremost scholars.  The film shows clips of various confrontations with anti-Palestinian protesters during his talks, chronicles the whole DePaul University debacle and interviews people close to him and even those that are enemies of Dr. Finkelstein, including Professor Dershowitz, who many claim is the primary reason why Dr. Finkelstein was overlooked for tenure.

The film first premiered at the Chicago Underground Film Festival on September 17 , 2009 and is slated to premier in Europe at the Scheffield Doc Fest on November 4, 2009.  The film has also been chosen to premiere at the Montreal International documentary Festival on November 11, 2009.

Have a look at the trailer and if you get a chance, go and see the film.

Max Richter – Autumn Music 2

Here is another sublime piece of composition by Max Richter to end off the night.

The Red Light by Rene Gruss

I first came across this song sometime in the middle of the night while studying for an exam at university.  I have this little widget on my sidebar that plays classical music on sky radio.  I remember just being absolutely mesmerised by this song.  I wasted a better half of an hour trying to locate this song that night but to no avail.

Finally a few nights ago, I decided to tune into the station once again and this song played again.  So I decided to do a search and I finally found the song.  Since then I’ve been listening to it over and over again.

The description in the youtube box says “Quite possibly the most beautiful piece of composition ever.”  I have little reason to disagree.

Departures

Departures.  The television show that I am using as one of my many mediums for inspiration for my backpacking trip next year.  Essentially what is is two friends, Scott and Justin who travel all over the world for one whole year.

This show is absolutely amazing.  First off, it’s filmed in high quality HD.  The production of this show is stellar.  The music, the picture quality, the editing is all probably some of the best on Canadian television right now.  But more importantly than that, the concept of the show is superb.  It’s not just a show about two people who go to obscure and beautiful places.  Departures really captures the essence of their friendship in the context of travel.  These two friends, while being around each other almost 24/7, get to share some life changing experiences together.  Scott and Justin were best friends before they embarked on this year long experience. But by virtue of them experiencing these different countries together, their friendship has formed a new bond that very few people in this world ever get to experience.  And you get to view that in the show.

The best part about the show is that it has been able to capture the intrinsic value of their travels.  You literally see Justin and Scott appreciate this world and come to these amazing realisations about where they are at that particular point in time.  Literally, their eyes and their minds open and expand right before your eyes.  That is probably the best part of the show in my opinion.

On their one year long journey they travelled to Jordan, India, Ascension Island, Japan, Cook Islands, New Zeland, Thailand, Cambodia, and rediscovered their very own Canada from ocean to ocean to ocean.  The travel bug has bit these two friends pretty hard because season two of this show is set to air on January 25, 2010 where they will have travelled to Morroco, Lybia, Brazil, Cuba, Mongolia, Iceland, Zambia, Madagascar, Chile and Antarctica.

Amazing, isn’t it?

Every time I watch this show it gives me drive and motivation to make this trip a reality.  I realize that I too can experince with my friends what these two are experiencing on this television show.

The website for the show is here and their youtube channel is here.

My heart calls out for Southeast Asia.  All I need is a bit of patience and discipline.

A Sweet Song To End Off The Night

Perfect sounds to end off the night…

Youtube EDU

This is one of the most unique things I have come across lately in my daily surf of the Internet.  Youtube has created a specific directory of all of their college and university partners.  Educational institutions from all across North America and the world have their own channels on youtube where people from anywhere in the world can view whats happening on their campuses.

Youtube.com/edu offers a directory of a number of post secondary institutions that post videos.  The nature of these videos range from recent and past commencement speeches to guest speakers and even classroom lectures.  So one could literally sit in on a class on the fundamentals of physics class or a game theory lecture without leaving their home.

This part of youtube is great for those that are wanting to research which college of university is the right one for them.  They have some of the top schools in the world posting videos all the time.  There are even a handful of Canadian universities such as the University of Manitoba and SFU that have partnered up with youtube.

This is perhaps most phenomenal in the sense that it allows one to explore academia from the perspective of a student without having to pay the necessary tuition and money to acquire an academic knowledge.  Now obviously not all classes and subjects are posted.  This is all at the discretion of the institution but its better than nothing.

Have a look and perhaps a lecture on one of the classes you are taking is somewhere up there.

Because I am a political science student, I am going to post a lecture from poli 114 (Political Philosophy) from Yale by professor Stephen Smith.

Telepopmusik – Just Breath

Here’s a really cool vid I came across.  The dancing is actually really good. Perfect song to have playing in the background while one studies.

Vulgarity on Youtube

I just want to comment on this because it really bugs me.  I am not referring to the content on youtube.  Rather, I am referring to the obscene comments that people leave on youtube, especially on videos that women post.

The comments that I am specifically referring to are sexual in nature.  I am quite sure you know what I am talking about.  Comments referring to the woman’s breasts, or other parts of their body; comments about the poster want to have sex with the woman in the video…that sort of stuff.

It seems as though that this culture we live in has stripped the innocence out of almost every facet of society.  I have come across videos of 13, 14 year old girls talking about how they love Hanna Montana or something and some sick pervert will leave a vulgar comment on that poor girl’s page.  What is wrong with these people?  Has our society and culture become so sexualised that people feel that they can express deviant sexuality freely in front of everyone without worrying about consequences?  I honestly think that innocence is becoming such a rare characteristic that people may actually forget that such a thing actually existed at one point in time.  And the victims are none other than women.

This post was sparked by my outrage after I came across a clip on youtbe that was “featured” on the site.  Its of this young woman talking about being greatful which featured her mother in the clip as well.  I scrolled down to look at the comments and every now and then there would be some sick douche talking about how beautiful the girl’s breasts were and what a “MILF” the young girl’s mother is.  I mean come on, have some respect here.  What do people gain out of making such comments?  They literally don’t get anything out of it.  In fact they are doing themselves a detriment by fueling such thoughts inside their heads.

To have thoughts of a sexual nature are normal.  Everyone has them.  But for one to convert those thoughts into vulgarity and then to express that vulgarity in the open is something we as people (especially on the Internet) need to be aware of at the very least, but also try and prevent in a open public realm such as youtube.

The clip I was refering to above:

This Is My…

I just came across this amazing advert for the University of Calgary.  I guess it was video that was made and aired for the Induction Ceremony for new students this semester.  Whoever made this seems like they put in a lot of effort into it.  The actual camera used, the angles, the camera work, the lighting, and production value are top notch.  Plus, I am just fascinated with this whole “My U of C” concept that the university has.  And for this ad to personalize My U of C and the various facets of the University the way that they have is really tremendous.  The cherry on top is Frou Frou which totally sets the mood. 

I think every university should have something like this.  It’s one of those things that I would love to see first thing in the morning while glancing up at a tv screen in a hallway on my way to class.  Sometimes, its these “feel good” things that could change the course of your day.  A good moral booster I think.   

Good on the people involved in this project. Excellent job guys.