This story is about democracy and why a limited (voting) franchise is better than an unrestricted one. It was first brought to my attention in Robert Heinlein’s book of essays Expanded Universe, and is quite hard to find, since it’s probably not as popular as some of Twain’s other stories. I found it online after being pointed to a different story by a different author. That is why the internets are so great.
The Curious Republic of Gondour by Mark Twain
Category Archives: books
Noah Scalin
from SkullADay was on the Martha Stewart show today, promoting his book Skulls! (of which I was one of the lucky winners drawn for the signed copy for my papercraft skull–see my previous post), which looks real nice from the glimpse we got on the show, showing off some of his Skull_A_Day creations, and making skull potoato stamps. Looks like a fun time was had by all. There’s more about his experience on his blog.
Can’t wait to get my copy of the book!
Chuck Close: Self Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, 2000
I went to see This show at Colby College yesterday. Really nice show, nominally based around the etching of the title, whch you can see the whole process here.
Description of the show from the Colby site (since I don’t know how long it’ll stay there)
Chuck Close has been making self-portraits since the late 1960s. These efforts are invariably based on photographs that he makes of himself and famously translates into paintings, drawings, prints, and other media—typically a methodical, labor-intensive process. His investment in such processes forms the subject of his Self-Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, 2000, a set of twenty-five prints that illustrates the steps required to produce a single, twelve-color etching. It is also the focus of this exhibition, which uses that portfolio as a lens through which to examine the intersections and parallels that structure Close’s artistic ideas. Accompanied by a full-color catalogue featuring a new interview with the artist. Organized in conjunction with the Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University and The Mead Art Museum, Amherst College
It closes at Colby in a couple of weeks,, and I’m not sure if it’s headed anywhere else (it looks like Colby was the last stop on the tour).
This tapestry was also in the show, and is from Colby’s permanent collection:
This is also the 2nd thing on my 101 in 1001 I get to cross off. Yippee!
Grey People
Something I did while out on ship:
Wreck this Journal
A friend sent me this last week, and I’ve started on it.
Check it out on Amazon
Geraldine Newfry
Geraldine Newfry makes books/journals using various materials, including polymer clay. Check out her gallery
Probably one of the best definitions of what a book is, that I’ve ever read.
Cool Tool: Five Good eBooks
1) A book (even without its paper pages) is a long argument that coheres as a whole, and whose argument or story is made by integrating well-selected parts.
From Kevin Kelly, one of the founders of The Well (The WELL was an early, influential, and pioneering outpost in what later came to be called cyberspace.), an editor of Whole Earth Review 9and actin publisher after Stewart Brand left), and one of the founding editors of Wired magazine, among other things (for those who don’t know who he is). This is from his Cool Tools blog which is about Cool Tools for everyday living–sorta a continuance of the Whole Earth Review.
Check out the blog, and his other stuff.
Tortured Artist
By way of Art News Blog
I am 53% Tortured Artist.
Art is significant in my life, people are scum but I have the capicity to deal with it. Give it a few more years and I will either forget about art or hate the world.
Another thought on the Kindle (and E-Readers in general)
This post from Neil Gaiman’s Journal (Thanks from the future…) reminded me of another point against e-readers in general. When you buy and e-book, what happens to author’s signings, autographs, etc. I know most people don’t care, but many do, and that physical interaction with the author does have meaning. Yes I remember from the Times article–the first in my series on E-Readers (strange I didn’t mean for it to go there, but there you have it.)–that there might be more interaction in general, but all electronic, or from a distance.
So while authors may like the e-book idea for this reason, since it’s easier on them (although I think many do enjoy meeting their fans, and interacting with them (Wil Wheaton for example)), it’s a lousy deal for fans.
Bookeen – Cybook ePaper – the eBook reading device
Bookeen – Cybook ePaper – the eBook reading deviceThis e-book reader is much nicer looking, can read non-DRMed e-books (as well as DRMed ones), and a little cheaper than the Kindle. Still too expensive for my tastes, but it is more in the right direction.
(Three years of development and the Kindle is all Amazon could come up with, when they have models like this, and the Sony e-book reader? Wow.)
(Got this from the comments on Cory Doctorow’s article trashing the Kindle, over on BoingBoing.)