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The explanation of why the storyteller is scared of geese comes suddenly at the end, and wraps it up nicely (and in a silly way).
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This book is quite insightful, especially for a Southeast Asian media professional like myself. I recommend this book to everyone, even to those who work in the upper regions of the power sturcture of the media conglomerates critiqued in the collection.
For starters, it is a wonderful overview of how the media economy is shifting all over the world. The US market is saturated, as the book said, and the rest of the world is ripe for picking, especially my country, the Philippines.
This book is a tool to launch our own media analysis of what's happenning in our own countries. And from an analysis, we launch a critique, and from a critique, we launch steps to face the situation.
This book, published by New Media, is invaluable. I first read about it in an issue of Utne Reader. I took down the title and hunted it down in Amazon. I found it, bought it, and consumed it. I loved it because it gave me useful insights to work with.
This is a book I will dog-ear in my attempts to understand what to do in my field, and how to start my own media conglomerate from scratch. I already have my ideas, which I hope aren't just soundbites in my head.
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I first became interested in Popper for his view on science. In a nutshell, that falsificationism is the best (only?) approach to practicing science. Popper's view taken literally might not make a full arsenal for a working scientist, but the spirit of his idea - that mistaken but provocative theory contributes importantly to the progress of science - is liberating, even exhilirating. Sounds a little strange? Well, try it and see for yourself. Popper is probably the only philosopher of science who has had an impact on how scientists actually think about their work. Others, who may try to strike a more balanced tone, end up writing mush.
From Miller's fine collection we learn that Popper has done much more, including making important contributions to social and political theory. This book will also introduce the reader to one of Popper's personal wellsprings, the pre-Socratic philosophers. In all, this book is an intellectual treasure.
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This book did not disappoint! It is simply incredible considering how much information is between the covers as well as how many striking photographs are contained in this book. One could almost consider it an Encyclopedia on U-Boats. This book describes the full history of Deutschlands Unterseeboot Programe as well as a detailed history and explination of each type of boat. It also has a table listing every U-Boat made and a brief history about each ship. This book also does a fantastic job explaining the role of these vessels in WWII (and to a lesser extent, WWI). I can imagine with "U-571" in theaters and "Das Boot" on DVD, U-Boat interest has increased. I would suggest to anybody interested in U-Boats because of these movies or for any other reason to look no futher. "U-Boats : The Illustrated History of the Raiders of the Deep" is probably the best book presently available on this subject.
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But soon enough the story picks up in pace and builds interesting and sympathetic characters, even making one of the bad guys seem justified in his actions. Some of it is superfluous but not so much that it's boring.
I found the end to be a bit fast and confusing. Not enough is described and one the last page is finished you might feel like things aren't tied up so well. Though there is another book after this one. I hope that the character of Saavedro from Myst III is mentioned somewhere, tho it is cool to have a young Gehn as a character is this one. If Saavedro doesn't show up then I know I am not alone in wishing for a fourth Myst novel.
I am very much looking forward to reading 'The Book of D'Ni' and I hope it lives up to this and the first. For anyone who is interested The Sci-Fi channel are making a 240 minute mini-series of Myst set for airing sometime this year. I don't know what the story is yet but I believe that either Rand or Robin Miller are executive producing.
The book has only six chapters averaging about 100 pages each and has random black and white drawings sporadically scattered through-out.
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I am not luddite, but my favourite quote from the book is this: "We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing to communicate". Does this say something about the Internet, newsmedia and our contemporary information overload, or what?
I liked the introduction and footnotes of Meyer. Just enough to provide context and explanation, but never intrusive. This book is as relevant today as it was during Thoreau's lifetime. Highly recommended.
Disobedience is the shorter of the texts, but probably more important. It is an attempt to justify moral anarchism and a call to act on individual judgements about justice.
Walden can be interpreted as an important treatise against consumerism and the dangers of specialization, as well as an appreciation of the natural environment. Those interested in anti-globalization/anti-free trade movements would do well to read Walden to gain an understanding of where anti-consumerism came from and an examination of its ethical implications. However, it also pays to remember that Walden is a failed experiment and, in the end, Thoreau returns to Cambridge.
Thoreau, as political philosophy, has certain problems. Moral anarchy and denial of the social contract is difficult to replace in civil society--Thoreau makes no more than the most vague references as to what could replace it, seeming to rely on the fact that his personal sense of justice is universal.
Nevertheless, Thoreau's conscience has resonance and is as relevant today as ever. His rejection of consumerism as the basis for society and its stratification also teaches important lessons.
Thoreau represents that first step in understanding the other part of American political thought--extremely different from that of the Constitution and Federalist Papers--but with profound connections to the work of Dr. Martin Luther King.
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Miller subtly drops these apparently irrelevant scenes on you halfway into the stories, which serve as a preamble to some of his most powerful lines/images... [among my favorites: In DK Returns, Commisioner Gordon's speech to Captain Yindel "Roosevelt knew about Pearl Harbor but didn't stop it because 'it was too big'" only to have Yindel return in that single frame on the last book to say [about Batman]: "He's too big" - [she finally "gets" Gordon!] second-favorite: The splash page in every issue of DD Born Again, showing Matt's sleeping journey, from the lap of luxury down to the gutter, and then back to the most comfortable bed any of us will ever know - must've took me three reads to click, and realize what Miller was doing (you just don't see that too often in this medium, and by all means NEVER as masterfully executed!). I won't even go into Sin City, "it's just TOO BIG")
Do yourself a favor. Pick up Daredevil Born Again and read it at least twice, then pick up Dark Knight Returns, Batman Year One, Sin City (all of 'em), and 300, and READ THEM SLOWLY, cause, believe me, when you're done with them, you'll be sad... because you'll have to wait, like the rest of us... patiently... for Frank's next work of art. And make no mistake, this is art of the highest form!
Frank Miller's writing and David Mazzucchelli's art are career bests in this eight-issue story. Like so many great superhero stories of the modern era, this one interrogates a fundamental aspect of the comic book tradition - namely, what would happen if a hero's worst enemy discovered their secret identity?
The story is laden with Frank Miller's usual grit, but this feels integral to the story, rather than tacked on. In the hands of other comic book writers, themes such as prostitution, destitution, pornography, drug addiction and US military intervention abroad are often used to give superficial stories a faux-profundity. But in 'Born Again' these themes are served well, and not wallowed in any more than they need to be - Matt Murdock, Karen Page and Ben Urich may be sent to Hell in the story, but all three are then redeemed. The blossoming romance of Foggy Nelson and Murdock's ex Glori O'Breen is a corrective to all the misery as well.
As well as being Daredevil's finest moment, this is also the Kingpin's. No artist has made the Kingpin's bulk look more imposing than Mazzucchelli does, whether big baldie is seen on a yacht at sunset, in his trademark suit, working out with weights, or sitting in a sauna. Another beautiful artistic touch is that several issues of the story open with a page showing Matt Murdock waking up, each one a snapshot of the state of his life at that point. And in one sequence, where Ben Urich listens to a murder on the telephone surrounded by the chaos of the the Daily Bugle, his face becomes progressively less naturalistic in each panel to reflect his growing horror - eventually, he looks like a Picasso.
The godlike cameo of the Avengers towards the end of the story is a great example of the 'less is more' approach to comic books. And it's a pleasant surprise, in the last couple of issues, when Miller decides that since he's writing the best ever Daredevil story, he might as well have a crack at writing the best ever Captain America story at the same time. Cap Ap's tortured role in 'Born Again', torn between his patriotic ideals and US injustice, is exactly the same as Superman's role in the Batman story 'A Death in the Family' - but the set-up works better here.
Daredevil is taken apart and put back together in 'Born Again', which is what makes the story so good. It contains an important revelation concerning Matt Murdock's family - typically, Miller delivers this bombshell with a light, blink-and-you'll-miss-it touch. And the story's final page, which shows Matt Murdock and Karen Page walking down a sunlit street in Hell's Kitchen, is immensely satisfying - a clean slate for the character. As the accompanying text says: 'My name is Matt Murdock. I was blinded by radiation. My remaining senses function with superhuman sharpness. I live in Hell's Kitchen and do my best to keep it clean. That's all you need to know.'