As long as we're talking about contract theorists .... Thomas Hobbes is the crazy. My favorite part of the (unreadable) third section ("On Christian Commonwealths") is how he goes on and on to try and prove that the church DOES NOT have more power than civil government. The last part ("On Kingdoms of Darkness") is also rich for how he wants to show that the Pope is fucked up. Not b/c he cares about the Pope, but b/c the Pope is a *threat.* It's awesome. But Hobbes is so wrong - his sense of human nature and the capacity for cooperation is too skewed, leading him to embrace a totalitarian government that is just evil.
My big query: Contracts only work when they can be enforced by a powerful civil authority, by Hobbes's own admission. But then who enforces the contract that hands over power to the Leviathan and creates the civil authority that enforces other contracts? In other words, there is no authority to oversee the FIRST contract. So contracts are not based on enforcement, but something else and Hobbes is just wrong again.
Lots of movies this weekend...
Land of the Dead - it was ok. Not as great as I had hoped. The big problem is that I guess I'm supposed to like have empathy for the zombies now? But I mean, they want to EAT ME, and in the bad way at that. I mean, bunnies and tigers are *not* nature's best friends. And it's not like it's my fault that they're zombies. I feel like the social commentary that makes the first three movies work sort of got muddled in this one. Honestly, other recent zombie flicks (28 Days Later and Shaun of the Dead) really blow this one out of the water.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith - pretty people blowing things up in a stylish manner never gets old. I love that Angelina Jolie is *womanly* - she does not look 22 years old or 95 lbs. I also love the natural movie star ease that she and Brad Pitt have. They just ooze charisma and self-confidence. They are such old school movie star glamour, it's amazing. They need to be in more movies that takes advantage of that. However, it's a bit disconcerting to me that they never explain just WHO these two work for: are they like *terrorists*?
I'm taking today off, and re-reading The Prince. I'm on the lookout for the republican in Machiavelli.
It's been a nice weekend. Got some work done, went to the Taste of Chicago on Friday. Slept in, watched a little TV. The Incredibles was also fine weekend viewing, though the vaguely elitist subext of it still bothers me. Compare the "it's great to be great!" attitude with Donner's Superman, where service is what matters. The Incredibles are a modern day superhero family - re: success is what REALLY matters. In that sense, Brad Bird comes off like a really whiny bitch. But now I'm rambling. Have a good 4th y'all.
My big query: Contracts only work when they can be enforced by a powerful civil authority, by Hobbes's own admission. But then who enforces the contract that hands over power to the Leviathan and creates the civil authority that enforces other contracts? In other words, there is no authority to oversee the FIRST contract. So contracts are not based on enforcement, but something else and Hobbes is just wrong again.
Lots of movies this weekend...
Land of the Dead - it was ok. Not as great as I had hoped. The big problem is that I guess I'm supposed to like have empathy for the zombies now? But I mean, they want to EAT ME, and in the bad way at that. I mean, bunnies and tigers are *not* nature's best friends. And it's not like it's my fault that they're zombies. I feel like the social commentary that makes the first three movies work sort of got muddled in this one. Honestly, other recent zombie flicks (28 Days Later and Shaun of the Dead) really blow this one out of the water.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith - pretty people blowing things up in a stylish manner never gets old. I love that Angelina Jolie is *womanly* - she does not look 22 years old or 95 lbs. I also love the natural movie star ease that she and Brad Pitt have. They just ooze charisma and self-confidence. They are such old school movie star glamour, it's amazing. They need to be in more movies that takes advantage of that. However, it's a bit disconcerting to me that they never explain just WHO these two work for: are they like *terrorists*?
I'm taking today off, and re-reading The Prince. I'm on the lookout for the republican in Machiavelli.
It's been a nice weekend. Got some work done, went to the Taste of Chicago on Friday. Slept in, watched a little TV. The Incredibles was also fine weekend viewing, though the vaguely elitist subext of it still bothers me. Compare the "it's great to be great!" attitude with Donner's Superman, where service is what matters. The Incredibles are a modern day superhero family - re: success is what REALLY matters. In that sense, Brad Bird comes off like a really whiny bitch. But now I'm rambling. Have a good 4th y'all.
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I wanted to ask you a question! My boo keeps saying how interested he is in traffic...like the patterns of traffic around the city, and how things can get soooo fucked up. He seems interested also in how the roads themselves were laid out, the interstates and highways and expressways all going in and out of the city. Do you know any good books or websites that he could go check out to learn more???