Monthly Archives: November 2009

Nothing will be left to chance, to random impulse, to irrational narcissistic whim

In Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven from 1971, a therapist gets a patient who can change the world with his dreams. When things change, they change so that it has always been that way, and nobody knows the difference.

The therapist believes he can use this power to make the world a better place, and also get himself a nicer office, and he starts to take control over the patient’s dreams. He gradually changes the world from an over-populated, starving, war-crazed mess to a sparsely populated, well-fed world that is ordered according to his ideals. Which include eugenics and state-run child upbringing.

And everybody knows it’s always been like that.

This is a story about utopianism versus real life. The therapist never gets exactly what he wants. The dark side of human nature keeps reasserting itself. And when he gets what he wants, there’s a price. To solve over-population, the dreamer’s subconscious invents a plague in which billions of people died. To solve race conflicts, everyone must turn the same grey skincolor. The world becomes gradually duller, joyless.

Le Guin introduces the chapters with taoist quotes, and the patient eventually arrives at a taoist point of view: You can’t force your will on the world, even when you think you’re right. You have to respect the dynamics of things as they are.

Or as Lao Tzu says in Ron Hogan’s creative translation of Tao The Ching:

Stop doing stuff all the time,
and watch what happens.

40′s movies marathon – part 43


Shadow of a Doubt (1943, USA) – Nice uncle Charlie comes to visit his small-town relatives. He brings large wads of cash, jewelry with other people’s names on it, and a nihilistic philosophy of life. Watched it all.

Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943, USA) – Self-congratulatory musical about Hollywood actors. Watched: 10 minutes, then fast-forwarded through the rest to see if it’s also a patriotic war musical. Doesn’t seem to be, but one can never be too sure.

Destination Tokyo (1943, USA) – Whenever I see Cary Grant I expect him to crack a joke and offer a drink. Which makes it hard to take him seriously as a submarine captain. Watched: 11 minutes.

Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943, UK) – Opens with a raven with a taste for blood. How cool is that? But the rest isn’t so impressive. Watched: 15 minutes.

Son of Dracula (1943, USA) – The 1943 idea of horror was to play ghostly music while a bat flies across the screen. Watched: 11 minutes.

Whistling in Brooklyn (1943, USA) – A serial killer story, the first in this marathon. I hate serial killer stories. Watched: 4 minutes.

Private SNAFU (1943-45, USA) – A series of educational cartoons for soldiers, made by Frank Capra, Dr. Seuss, Fritz Freleng, Chuck Jones – and Mel Blanc. Which means they’re also hilarious. Here’s my favorite, which explains that even if you are a super-awesome super-soldier with super-powers, you still maybe ought to read the field manual. “The Americans are on our side, you know.”

I am not a number, I am a free man

This is one of my favorite TV intros, from The Prisoner (1967):

Music by Ron Grainer, who also wrote the theme for Dr. Who.

There’s now a remake of The Prisoner, which began airing this weekend.


I’m not convinced by it. It’s certainly different from the original. It’s okay that it’s different, of course. James Caviezel shouldn’t be the same Number Six as Patrick McGoohan any more than Daniel Craig should be the same James Bond as Sean Connery. You have to change, or there’s no point in a remake. But so far I don’t like it.

Here’s one way in which it’s different: The premise of both series is that a man is imprisoned in a surreal environment, an isolated village, where someone tries to break his mind. But Caviezel’s Number Six is a victim. McGoohan never was. McGoohan was always in charge. Caviezel plays Number Six like a character from Lost. McGoohan played him like free will incarnated. Someone who doesn’t bend. Who falls when he’s struck, but always gets back up again.

Caviezel’s Number Six is someone you can feel sorry for, sympathize with. McGoohan’s Number Six is someone you can admire, be inspired by.

I’ll try to watch the new series on its own terms. But if you haven’t seen the original, that’s the place to start. Despite the .. weird second half of the series.

Datalagringsdirektivet: Kjekt å ha!

En av konsekvensene av Stopp Datalagringsdirektivet ser ut til å være at de som støtter datalagringsdirektivet nå ser seg nødt til å komme ut i mediene og faktisk forsvare det. Sist ut er John Ståle Stamnes fra KRIPOS, som skriver i Aftenposten at politiet trenger all denne informasjonen for å fange pedofile, og .. eh, beskytte personvernet ditt.

Det er noe halvhjertet over dette. Jeg får en kjekt å ha-følelse: Jo takk, denne informasjonen skal vi nok finne en bruk for. En eller annen gang.

Og det vil de nok. Desto mer politiet vet om oss, desto lettere vil det være å forhindre og etterforske forbrytelser. Men vi betaler for det med privatliv. For noen typer informasjon er gevinsten stor og kostnaden liten. Andre ganger er gevinsten liten og kostnaden stor.

Jeg synes det å lagre hvilke IP-adresser du er i kontakt med, hvem du ringer, og hvor du var da du ringte, er en stor kostnad. Da holder det ikke med en litt nølende: Det kunne jo hende vi fakket en pedofil.

Vi gir bort personvernet vårt på mange områder, gjennom teknologivalgene vi gjør hver eneste dag. F.eks. hver gang du sender en ukryptert e-post. Det bekymrer meg. Men denne trusselen er i det minste desentralisert og kaotisk.

Det som virkelig bekymrer meg er når myndighetene ser på dette, og sier: Hm, tro om vi kunne samle og organisere alle disse dataene. Datalagringsdirektivet er et videre skritt i denne retningen.

Andrew Marr’s history of modern Britain

I’ve been enjoying Andrew Marr’s BBC documentary series about the history of 20th century Britain. First The History of Modern Britain (2007), about the second half of the century, and now the ongoing The Making of Modern Britain, about the first half.

Marr focuses on social history. He looks at how people saw the world and their place in it, and how this changed over time. He portrays the rise of mass politics, and shifting power networks. It’s not primarily about telling “what happened”, cramming as many big events as possible into the story, but about how people perceived things at the time.

The central events of the story are events that changed those perceptions, or illustrates them. I like history that allows the past to speak in its own voice, and Andrew Marr does that well here. He digs up these gems that seem to capture a mood or a turning point. Little facts and events, or just a short piece of footage, that force you to broaden your view of a period.

But he’s also opinionated, in the same evenhanded way that I liked in Rick Perlstein’s book Nixonland.

It all breaks down as he approaches the present, of course, with platitudes and odd priorities, but all history at that level does. It’s hard to understand change you’re right in the middle of. But the rest of the series gives an idea of the kind of insights historians will one day provide about our own time. I can’t wait.

40′s movies marathon – part 42

Ossessione (1943, Italy) – A hobo arrives at a café, and starts seducing the wife of the owner. He succeeds, and now there’s a fat, opera-loving husband to get rid off. Based on The Postman Always Rings Twice. Watched it all.

The More the Merrier (1943, USA) – The Odd Couple, wartime edition, with Jean Arthur as Jack Lemmon, Charles Coburn as Walter Matthau, and Washington D.C. as New York. Also starring Joel McCrea as Sir Destined-to-hook-up-with-Jean-Arthur. Not bad, but the farce gets a little too goofy. Watched: 34 minutes.

Our Enemy the Japanese (1943, USA) – It turns out that Japan isn’t awesome after all. They’re fanatical murderers, whose minds are completely alien to a Westerner. Watched it all.

Hangmen Also Die (1943, USA) – Reinhard Heydrich, a cartoonish Nazi villain, wants the Czechs to respect his authoritah. Watched: 6 minutes.

Phantom of the Opera (1943, USA) – A Romantically disfigured violinist spreads terror and music at the opera house. Not a great movie, but the music is good, and it’s not by Andrew Llllloyd Webber. Somewhat different from the original by Terry Pratchett. Watched it all. The opening credits say Fritz Leiber has a role, and throughout the movie I tried to guess who he was. Turns out he’s playing Franz Liszt as an old man, and that the Leiber in question is Leiber Sr., the actor, not his son Leiber Jr., the author. Makes sense.

Slipp skoledataene fri

Nettavisen har analysert de nasjonale prøvene og funnet ut at private skoler gjør det best i engelsk.

Det er morsomt å se leserkommentarene: Jammen, det er ikke så enkelt allikevel, fordi ..

Selvsagt er det ikke så enkelt. Det er derfor man trenger å offentliggjøre denne typen data, slik at vi kan analysere dem, og finne ut hva det er som skiller de gode skolene fra de dårlige. Hva er det de beste gjør riktig? Er dette noe resten kan etterligne?

Tilhengere av offentlig skolemonopol kan ikke både påstå at dette er den beste løsningen, og samtidig forsøke å hemmeligholde alle tall som kan brukes til å vurdere påstanden.

Selv tror jeg ikke skoler blir bedre fordi de er private. Men hvis vi skal lære oss hvordan man skal drive gode skoler – for vi er ikke akkurat der ennå – så trenger vi skoler som har frihet til å eksperimentere. Så kan vi vurdere resultatene, og de dårlige skolene kan lære av de gode.

Private skoler er en naturlig del av dette, og frihet til å velge. Men viktigst av alt er å offentliggjøre data om tilstanden på hver enkelt skole. Det virker ganske lite troverdig når noen sier: “Dette er best! Stol på oss! Men vi vil ikke fortelle deg hvordan vi vet at det er slik. Du kunne jo misforstå tallene.”

Hypotese: Offentlig skole er best. Flott, så legg ut alle tallene, og la foreldre velge fritt. Stemmer hypotesen er det ingenting å frykte.

Vis dere nå, som nybrottsmenn og ikke som nølende ekspeditører for avholdenhet

Med en fersk finanskrise forhåpentligvis mer bak oss enn foran oss, passer det godt å kikke litt nærmere på den forrige. Bankerott (1993) av Stein Imset og Gunnar Stavrum forteller historien om de villeste årene i nyere norsk bankhistorie. En periode som begynte med liberalisering og endte med milliardtap og statlig overtagelse av storbankene.

Hvert kapittel følger omtrent samme mønster: En traust regionalbank møter 80-tallets økonomiske tøvær med friskt mot. De dytter millioner i hendene på luringer med spinnville prosjekter. Problemene som så oppstår møter banken i fire stadier: 1 – gi de dårligste kundene mer penger, 2 – budsjettjuks så det ser ut som det går bra, 3 – fusjonering med andre, forhåpentligvis mer stabile banker, 4 – total kollaps og statlig inngripen.

Bank etter bank gjør de samme tabbene. Hadde dette vært en roman ville det vært kjedelig forutsigbart, og ikke helt troverdig.

Imset og Stavrum legger skylden på Willoch-regjeringen, for å ha oppmuntret til utlånseksplosjonen, og på et umodent bankvesen, som brukte sin nyvunnete frihet til å avholde historiens dyreste hjemme alene-fest.

Lærdommen er at finansielle institusjoner ikke alltid vet sitt eget økonomiske beste. Spesielt ikke når de har blitt skjermet fra virkeligheten gjennom tiår med kvelende reguleringer.

Imset og Stavrum skriver at krisen kunne vært unngått hvis aktørene hadde kjent sin bankhistorie, for den var et ekko av tidligere kriser. På samme måte er det mye her som går igjen i dagens finanskrise. Lære, denne gangen?

40′s movies marathon – part 41

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943, UK) – Follows the life of an English soldier, a veteran of the Boer war. As the decades pass, he grows more and more out of touch with his country, until, at the time of the Second World War, he’s seen as a stuffy remnant of the past. His old German friend explains why: He’s a gentleman, but “this isn’t a gentleman’s war”. There’s no room for fair play when you’re fighting for your existence. Bittersweet comedy that sees both sides: Britain has learned a lesson, and has become bolder and quicker on its feet, but it has also lost something. Watched it all.

Submarine Alert (1943, USA) – All expenses were spared: The Japanese voices are made by running the audio track backwards. Watched: 7 minutes.

Crazy House (1943, USA) – Olsen and Johnson wants to make a followup to Hellzapoppin, their nonsensical 1941 comedy. And that’s the plot of their followup, which is just as nonsensical, and pretty funny. The real star here is Cass Daley, pictured above. Watched it all.

Around the World (1943, USA) – A patriotic war musical. I hate patriotic war musicals. Watched: 6 minutes.

The Ox Bow Incident (1943, USA) – A real western, at last: A dark tale from the borderland between law and anarchy. A man is murdered, and a lynch mob is formed. It starts roaming around the countryside in the middle of the night, looking for someone to hang. Watched it all.