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TOL Our Town
- A tumblr site dedicated to the people and places that make up Oregon and Southwest Washington.
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blackredphoto's comments:
on The Switch: Solar Power
sorry to post within this stream, but I'm attempting commenting about World Have Your Say, as was suggested at the end of the adoptive services show.
Though I have made efforts, I have rarely been able to listen through a single hour of WHYS. Too much of the show struggles with technical communications, phone lines, accents.... Too much of the show depends on opinions from the most random of people. Too much of the show sounds like English Parliament, where the loudest and most assertive voice dominates. Too much of the show is the personality of the commentator or host. Though I respect the concept of the show and its promotion of democratic expression, I simply have to turn it off after TOL to return to OPB radio latter in the day.
posted 3 years, 11 months ago
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on Main Street Oregon
Ah, Main Street Oregon, what a fascinating topic! I believe it's this "Main Street" theme defining rural Oregon in many ways, for better or worse. Traveling on HWs 20, 26, 97, 82, 31, and 95, the impression is wide open high desert spaces, often viewed at express way speeds. People stop is the towns, and it is always the down town, because this is where these highways merge -- Main Street.
Main Street gives many conflicting impressions. A person can assume the town's history and economic development fairly quickly. Main Street is an easy point of reference.
Follow the link for a gallery of rural OR impressions, including some Main Streets: http://tinyurl.com/pxhdru
Thanks so much for your conversations about rural Oregon.
posted 4 years ago
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on The Art of Hard Times
posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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on The Art of Hard Times
If art were merely a superficial indulgence and decoration then a period of economic recession would do away with it.
If art was to be only an undergraduate degree for people who can't stomach business administration, then it would have disappeared some time ago.
Though there are numerous examples of art being both of these, the value of art as symbolic language cannot be measured financially. Art itself can be a form of expression rather than a spectator's commodity and it is a tool to self improvement and an understanding of the human condition. Art helps us question and peer deeper to the meaning of things, and, as such, is invaluable to a democratic society.
Art distinguishes culture from mob. Art, like science and physical education, inspires innovation. Without it I fear social degeneration akin to a medieval thinking, where creative talent is spent defending such nonsense as the authenticity of the Bible. Without creative arts the individual has only the yoke of conservatism to look forward to and the sting of a master's whip.
Art, I believe, sheds light on dark times. The photo documentary of Dorothea Lang is a perfect example of artistic pursuits assuring society of its dignity and its worth, as well as warn against injustice.
Because the government endows art projects and taxes help pay for art curriculum, it is especially important in a recession to distinguish creative art from the decorative. Unfortunately, this is blurred by subjectivity. One person's trash is another's beauty.
What I do hope for is coming out of the recession better off. Not necessarily more wealthy, but with a better character. If we take a better look at valuing art, perhaps we can all come out of this with a better social value -- and our cultural icons will be more articulate than Paris Hilton or George Bush.
posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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on March Show Suggestions
I believe phones are only the tip of the iceberg. They are an obvious sign of distraction while driving and have proven to result in fatalities.
But to pass laws prohibiting such obviously dangerous behavior would overlook the so many more signs of distraction in our cars and our lives. Billboards, pets, children, GPS, radio, makeup applications, eating, stress of the day, day dreaming...all become part of our distracted driving experience. Driving is more than ignition, gas, brake, steer.
To be better drivers we must become better regulators of our distractions. A law regulating cell phone use doesn't work as a solution to ameliorate our fractured lifestyles.
posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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on March Show Suggestions
How has the recession undermined news coverage in the US in general, and Oregon specifically?
Newspapers are cutting their budgets by slashing their coverage. Bloggers insist on filling in the gaps, but can that be, and who's funding their coverage?
Why have we all but forgotten about Iraq in the news? Why is much more attention given to Oscar parties than homelessness? We might be dazzled by barista competitions in the headlines, but how's the line-up in mental health care facilities?
In a news era where it is painfully obvious that we get our information handed to us by ad-revenue based newsrooms, what is the future of democracy when there is no voice to be protected by the First Amendment?
When revenue isn't driving news, can we change a system to become better informed? Can new broadcast technology change our way of absorbing the news? With shows like your own, I'm encouraged to participate in news. With Twitter, for example, I'm dosed all day long with information tidbits. Where traditionally I'm used to simply "hearing" and dividing news in to timeblocks, such as morning paper, afternoon radio, 5 o'clock news....
Cheers!
posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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