It seems to me that history is complex and non-linear.
In the morning we put out the magazines. “Kim Kardashian secret photoshopped rendezvous with Justin Bieber; Kate Middleton ‘confesses’ splicing mad cow DNA into 9/11 was an inside job”. I ignore the headlines because I feel that every piece of new information that gets through makes me stupider.
Later in the day we try to figure out who the hell the Kardashians are and why they should be famous. Seriously, I want to know, but I just don’t care enough to find out.
Then we gossip about how our other co-workers spend all their time gossiping and being cliquey. We are so much better than them.
At some time I seek out a newspaper and try to learn everything new I can about Julian Assange – my opinions are already pre-determined, so this is purely for voyeurism.
Then I come home and complain about the people who leave rubbish on the counter and expect us to throw it away for them, and then I just don’t want to talk about work any more at all. I feel a bit sad that no one commented on my thoughtful facebook comment, but eight people ‘like’ someone else’s full-caps comment about chocolate coated coffee beans.
It’s about spatial structure. Gossip is meant to inform us about little local events with big consequences; it gets messed up by complex networks of parasocial relationships with fictional and effectively fictional (see: Kardashians, as in comments above) persons that appear to be local to us all because of the amount of pseudo-private information about them splashed like salty slush into our peripheral vision daily.
December 30, 2010
T-shirt idea:
Zeus with a large web of lightning around him. Written beneath in a large font is “PAY ATTENTION TO ME”.
December 30, 2010
I’d go for one with ‘…and that’s when I robbed the Waffle House.’.
December 31, 2010
It seems to me that history is complex and non-linear.
In the morning we put out the magazines. “Kim Kardashian secret photoshopped rendezvous with Justin Bieber; Kate Middleton ‘confesses’ splicing mad cow DNA into 9/11 was an inside job”. I ignore the headlines because I feel that every piece of new information that gets through makes me stupider.
Later in the day we try to figure out who the hell the Kardashians are and why they should be famous. Seriously, I want to know, but I just don’t care enough to find out.
Then we gossip about how our other co-workers spend all their time gossiping and being cliquey. We are so much better than them.
At some time I seek out a newspaper and try to learn everything new I can about Julian Assange – my opinions are already pre-determined, so this is purely for voyeurism.
Then I come home and complain about the people who leave rubbish on the counter and expect us to throw it away for them, and then I just don’t want to talk about work any more at all. I feel a bit sad that no one commented on my thoughtful facebook comment, but eight people ‘like’ someone else’s full-caps comment about chocolate coated coffee beans.
December 31, 2010
What did Zeus say when he came down to Earth in the form of a swan?
“Take me to your Leda.”
December 31, 2010
It’s about spatial structure. Gossip is meant to inform us about little local events with big consequences; it gets messed up by complex networks of parasocial relationships with fictional and effectively fictional (see: Kardashians, as in comments above) persons that appear to be local to us all because of the amount of pseudo-private information about them splashed like salty slush into our peripheral vision daily.
January 8, 2011
@Erika
Beautiful. I disturbed the entire library laughing at that.
January 11, 2011
I agree with Sarah.
February 21, 2011
Thumbs up, David Thomsen.