What You Can’t Say

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Very interesting essay by Paul Graham about forbidden thoughts and how to express them, or why we don’t.
One interesting question he asks; “Do you have any opinions that you would be reluctant to express in front of a group of your peers?”
Actually not really… and not for the reasons he says. He thinks that if you don’t have opinions you are afraid to express, then you’re a conformist who goes along with others. But that’s not necessarily true.
It’s possible that you just aren’t afraid to express any opinion, no matter how controversial, because you simply don’t care what others think.
I know I say things that make people angry. From strangers, I tend to hear about it. Friends tend to not say anything, or to say something quietly to me. Honestly, I think it’s important to say them. Or I wouldn’t.
But he makes a very good point at the end of the article… “The most important thing is to be able to think what you want, not to say what you want. And if you feel you have to say everything you think, it may inhibit you from thinking improper thoughts. think it’s better to follow the opposite policy. Draw a sharp line between your thoughts and your speech. Inside your head, anything is allowed. Within my head I make a point of encouraging the most outrageous thoughts I can imagine. But, as in a secret society, nothing that happens within the building should be told to outsiders. The first rule of Fight Club is, you do not talk about Fight Club.”

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Republican Letters to Margaret Cho

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Margaret Cho, the well-known comedian, did a stand-up set during MoveOn.org’s “Bush in 30 Seconds” awards ceremony-fundraiser-show in New York on Monday night. After the show, a partial, heavily edited transcript of her stand-up routine was published by Matt Drudge, who took what she said out of context and even implied that she was giving a speech rather than a comedy show.
This prompted quite a few Republican’s to respond on Margaret Cho’s website. Here’s a sample of what they had to say:
F$@# you you oriental c$%& . you are not even an american. You are soooo stupid. Go f$@# yourself and go back to Asia you slanted eye whore.
Pretty. Notice that the e-mail address of the fine fellows are linked, so you can send them an e-mail and let them know what you think of THEIR writing.

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MythTv.org – Open Source Digital Video TV Recording

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Basically, mythtv.org is an open source TIVO/ Replay TV program. You port your cable hookup through a PC equipped with a TV tuner card ($100) and a decent sized hard drive, set up the open source software on the PC, and connect the PC to a large monitor or TV & stereo. Then you use the software to record your favorite programs. There’s a web interface that lets you set our programs remotely, say, from work.

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Bush Wants $1.5 Billion Drive for Promotion of ‘Marriage’

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According to the New York Times, George Bush is planning on spending $1.5 billion dollars of my money to promote heterosexual marriage. By design, the plan is also to discourage equal marriage rights for gay people.
I suggest that he take a cue from Britney Spears, and just fly het couples to Vegas and get them drunk.

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Brokeback Mountain

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A gay cowboy romance that is in in the works, directed by Ang Lee and produced by James Schamus and Diana Ossana for Focus Features, a division of Universal Pictures (In other words, a major studio release). Shooting on the movie begins this summer. It is currently in casting negotiations for the part of the two male leads: Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
The screenplay is adapted from the short story, “Brokeback Mountain” by Annie Proulx, available in the collection Close Range : Wyoming Stories.

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