GREEK TRAGEDY, ACT II

“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

The latest events in Athens have left me exasperated and quite distraught. As I wrote in this blog a couple of days, the financial crisis in Greece was bound to have repercussions and the draconian economic measures that have been announced by the government were going to be the stimulus for a massive public outcry. Sure enough, thousands of protesters (at least 30,000 people, although some estimate double that number) took to the streets yesterday in an attempt to voice their dissent and displeasure against the economic measures, which are felt to target unfairly the poorer citizens.

The protest was peaceful up to a point as the march took the protesters towards the Parliament, where the protest was to culminate. However, the government maintains that a small proportion of the protesters were the “known-unknowns” (as the Greek press describes hooded anarchists who are behind a number of terrorist attacks). These hoodlums, they say, are the ones responsible for the heinous acts of terrorism that robbed three ordinary bank employees their life, amongst them a 4-month pregnant woman.

The Marfin Bank in central Athens, housed in a restored neoclassical building was the site targeted by the protesters. Molotov cocktails and large quantities of petrol were thrown through smashed windows of the bank and the building was immediately enveloped by flames, forcing occupants to seek escape via the roof, which unfortunately was inaccessible. The tragic loss of life occurred on the first storey, as people struggled to reach the balconies. Some succeeded while others were overcome by fumes and smoke. As well as the pregnant woman, another woman died and also a young man.

The march in Athens yesterday was frightening in terms of both size and brutality. Demonstrators in wild hordes stretched several kilometers throughout the central Athens maze of streets. The protest began from Pedion tou Areos (Field of Ares, named after the god of war). It is said by many eyewitnesses, that a lot of the protesters came prepared to do battle, armed with gas masks, sticks and Molotov cocktails. Apparently, this was not a case of just the usual suspects of the hooded “known unknowns” being violent, other ordinary citizens enraged by the crisis joined in too. The protest was fought by police with tear gas and once again the protesters maintain that the police used excessive violence, which further exacerbated the crowd’s anger.

It is in the nature of Greeks to dissent, protest, voice their displeasure, march and be actively anti-government. This is felt to be part of their democratic right. However, the line is drawn by most citizens at violence. The financial crisis and the worsening economic woes of the country may have changed the position of many people who feel as though they have suffered enough. However, at this point where some innocent workers found an agonised end in a firebombed building, and where the protesting mob caused the murderous tragedy, may be a trigger for some serious soul-searching.

Ironically, yesterday was the feast day of St Irene. In Greek, Irene means “Peace”. In the country where Western civilisation was born, maybe is fitting that Western civilisation’s death will commence here also. How sad, what a pity, what a great loss for humanity, what a tragedy…

FOR MY BELOVED, FAR AWAY...

“Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling in at night. I miss you like hell.” - Edna St Vincent Millay

When our beloved is far away from us we discover a new way of loving. The experience of our affections alter in quite subtle ways and hits us with quite a punch in our everyday life. The longer the period of absence is protracted, the greater our change and our every action and thought begins to be coloured by that absence. Here is a poem I have just written for my own beloved, now far away…

Your Distant Presence

Though far away, you are close to me,
Because your distant presence
Attunes within my heart, your heart.

Though far away, I hear your voice,
When you call me; and its lingering echo
Resonates deep within my soul.

Though far away, I see your face,
Your smile a distant sun that warms
Each ice-cold fibre of my body.

Though far away, I taste your kiss,
Each time I bite into a ripe strawberry,
Fragrant, lush, juicy and succulent.

Though far away, I speak your name,
And my winged words fly out,
Across the oceans, swiftly to find you;
And in their beaks they carry my kisses,
And in their claws grasp my solitude.

Though far away, you’ll hear my words,
Calling your name, giving you kisses.
And my solitude, delivered to you, will be no more,
As you open your arms and in your dream of me
Will feel my love enveloping you softly.

Jacqui BB hosts Poetry Wednesday. Please visit her blog for more poems.

A GREEK TRAGEDY

“Who goeth a-borrowing, Goeth a-sorrowing.” - Thomas Tusser

The economic situation in Greece has reached a crisis point, which has threatened not only the European economy but has also cast a shadow on the shaky recovery from the global financial crisis. Greece is the leading economic force in the Balkans and a collapse in its economy will have dire consequences in its immediate vicinity. Furthermore, the single currency model that the European Union has espoused makes it vulnerable if one of its member countries fails. As if all this weren’t bad enough, the remaining southern European countries (Italy, Spain and Portugal) are also on shaky financial ground. However, it is not a problem confined to southern Europe, even Ireland is in trouble!

Greece is a developed country with a high standard of living and very high Human Development Index (HDI), ranking 22nd on the Economist’s worldwide quality of life index. Since the early 1990s, Greece’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth has also been higher than the European Union average. However, the Greek economy also faces significant problems, including rising unemployment levels, inefficient bureaucracy, illegal immigration, para-economy, tax evasion and corruption. Greece’s economic growth turned negative in 2009 for the first time since 1993. This was because of over-lending in recent years. By the end of 2009, as a result of a combination of the international financial crisis and local uncontrolled spending prior to the October 2009 national elections, the Greek economy faced its most severe crisis. The national debt, put at €300 billion, is bigger than the country’s economy, with some estimates predicting it will reach 120 percent of GDP in mid-2010. The country’s deficit (that is how much more it spends than it takes in) is 12.7%.

Greece’s credit rating  (which is the assessment of a country’s ability to repay its debts) has been downgraded to the lowest in the Eurozone, meaning it is viewed as a financial black hole by foreign investors. This leaves the country struggling to pay its bills as interest rates on existing debts rise. The Papandreou government, which came into office last year and inherited many of the financial problems from the previous Karamanlis government had to slash its budget and renege on most of its election promises in an austerity-driven strategy to try to reduce national debt. These measures are of course not popular in a country that has in the last few years been living beyond its means.

Eurozone finance ministers have finally agreed to a 110 billion euro rescue package for Greece to prevent a default and stop the worst crisis in the Euro’s 11-year history, from spreading through the rest of the European Union. Germany, the eurozone’s biggest economy, wants greater austerity measures from Athens, including more tax cuts, easier firing of civil servants and increased privatisation, for Germany to commit to the bailout. Greece has introduced a number of austerity measures in order to tackle its debt, leading (understandably) to widespread public opposition. Civil servants’ bonuses (including Christmas and Easter windfalls) will be cut by between 12 and 30 per cent, saving about $2.25 billion euros. It is pledging to trim social security payments further by raising the retirement age and banning early retirement in a bill to be produced in May. The state pension will also be frozen, saving $600 million euros. The VAT is being increased from 19 to 21%, this expected to raise $1.7 billion and is to introduce a 2% supplementary petrol tax to bring in $600 million euros. A one-off corporate tax will raise $1.3 billion euros and a 2% supplementary cigarette tax will give an extra $400 million euros. There will also be a one-off tax on holiday homes and oversized properties, while the commercial activities of churches will also be taxed.

Yet, despite the agreement by European finance ministers last Sunday on the unprecedented three-year loan package to Greece, the euro fell as world markets questioned the ability of the Greek government to push through its new austerity measures pledged in exchange for aid and is an indication of the worry that other vulnerable euro states may be following Greece’s footsteps. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s managing director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, says the Greek Government has come up with an ambitious program to address its economic crisis. The IMF says its executive board will consider approving Greece’s request for about $40 billion in loans within the coming week.

I am finding it difficult to come to terms with Greece’s financial position, given the reckless way in which the country and its economy have been run for the past few years. Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, has been dubbed the “evil woman” of Europe by Greeks given her reluctance to bail out Greece. Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president and also a philhellene, is the “good guy” who has from the outset wanted to help Greece out. Perhaps we should consider the way the two leaders live in order to understand who has the better plan for Greece’s rescue: Mrs. Merkel, a physicist raised in communist East Germany, has a hard-working, parsimonious lifestyle, still lives in a modest Berlin apartment she occupied before her election in 2005, and does her own shopping. She has an analytical, somewhat bland personality that in many ways reflects the national value system, according to Gerd Langguth, author of a 2005 biography of her. Mr. Sarkozy resides in the majestic Élysée Palace and has an army of staff members, not to mention his republican French background with its tradition of state intervention and a more Mediterranean and relaxed attitude toward public debt.

Greeks should perhaps cast their minds back to the legend of Hercules and the choice he made at the beginning of his life as hero. When confronted by the two goddesses, Kakía (Vice) and Areté (Virtue), he chose the rocky, winding path pointed out by Areté and not the easy, straight road pointed out by Kakía. To be honourable and virtuous takes great courage and self-sacrifice. The road of vice is easy to begin with but leads to ruin soon enough…

UN BAISER...

“My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground upon which I stand.” - Thich Nhat Hanh

We watched a rom-com from France at the weekend, which was quite lightweight and enjoyable, but still, it had bit of a hidden sting in its tail… The 2007 romantic comedy “Un Baiser, s'il Vous Plait” released in English as “Shall We Kiss?” was written and directed by Emmanuel Mouret. As if that weren’t enough, he also played one of the leading roles (see above as Nicolas, with Virginie Ledoyen, who plays Judith)! We rather enjoyed seeing this amusing persiflage of a film and we got into a discussion following it, which I presume is exactly what the director set out to do. An enjoyable rom-com, which nevertheless tried to make a point about the profound consequences of one’s even slightest actions.

The film is a story within a story and briefly, the plot is as follows: Gabriel, a native of Nantes, and Émilie, a visiting Parisienne, meet by chance in Nantes and he offers her a ride. They seem to get on very well and they end up dining together, talking and laughing all the while. As Émilie gets dropped off at her hotel by Gabriel, he tries to give her “a kiss without consequences”. Émilie refuses the kiss and warns him that a kiss could have unexpected consequences. When the perplexed Gabriel protests the innocence of his kiss, Émilie tells him a story, which in flashback makes up the bulk of the movie. It concerns Judith, her husband Claudio and her best friend, Nicolas. The triangle of this main story illustrates Émilie’s refusal to kiss Gabriel.

The film illustrates the impossibility of indulging one’s desires without affecting someone else’s life. This is especially true in relationships, even in very happy relationships where one partner may “stray” and bring the universe of the other partner collapsing in around the couple. The plot also distinguishes between falling in love and loving, passion and affection, selfless sacrifice and selfishness. The difference between the lover and the beloved is also pointed out. I shall not say more in case you wish to see the film yourself, so I will not spoil it.

Apropos films and watching movies, in my paper in the train today I saw a risible article regarding what wine to drink when watching movies. The ploy is a marketing device and concerns Oovie,  a DVD renting company and a Sydney Wine Bar, Time to Vino. The 'Time to Vino' sommelier, Clint Hillery said that the DVD-wine pairing system is like selecting the right wine to have with a specific kind of food/meal, the best combinations enhancing the effects of each other. In terms of the movie genre, the effect caused by the right wine would be a heightening of the emotions that were generated by the film. In case you are wondering what drop is right for what genre, here are the recommendations:

Romance: Dolcetto – sweet, lush, soft, easy to drink…
Thriller: Pinot noir – robust, intense, complex, layered!
Romantic Comedy: Riesling – floral, vibrant, crisp, aromatic.
Drama: Champagne – ethereal, effervescent, emotional, zingy.
Action: Sauvignon blanc – Racy, edgy, clean, lively.

For more of the blurb, go into the “news” section of the Oovie website. There you go, another Australian cultural first! I wonder what I should drink with SciFi?

ET IN ARCADIA EGO

“Death never takes the wise man by surprise; He is always ready to go.” - Jean de La Fontaine


“Et in Arcadia Ego…” - “And in Arcadia I (had lived).” This is a tomb inscription that serves as a memento mori to the carefree travellers who may chance upon it. It purpose simple, to remind even the happiest of mortals that happiness and youth are transient and the tomb awaits us all. Arcadia, the Greek rustic region in the Peloponnese was from ancient times idealised as a wonderful place to live in natural and simple surroundings.

The first appearance of a tomb with a memorial inscription (to Daphnis) in the idyllic settings of Arcadia appears in Virgil’s Eclogues V 42 ff. Virgil took the idealised Sicilian rustics that had first appeared in the Idylls of Theocritus and set them in the idealised and rustic Arcadia. The idea was taken up again in the circle of Lorenzo de’ Medici in the 1460s and 1470s, during the Renaissance. In his bucolic work Arcadia (1504), Jacopo Sannazaro painted the picture of Arcadia as a lost world of idyllic bliss, remembered in nostalgic verses. The first pictorial representation of the familiar memento mori theme that was popularised in 16th-century Venice, made more vivid by the inscription ET IN ARCADIA EGO, is Guercino’s canvas above, painted between 1618 and 1622 (in the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica Rome), in which the inscription gains force from the prominent presence of a skull in the foreground, beneath which the words are carved.

Two shepherds gaze with awe at the tomb on which the skull is set. Attributes of death and decay like the mouse and the fly re-enforce the message of memento mori. Paintings such as this were commonplace once, especially meant for contemplation by the rich and powerful. The message was: “Where you are, I once was – where I am you shall be. Remember, you are mortal, no amount of money or earthly power will subvert the arrival of death…”

Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (born 1591, Cento, died 1666, Bologna) was better known by his nickname Guercino (meaning “the squinter”). He was an Italian painter of the Bolognese School. Although he was self-taught he developed precociously into a formidable artist. Even though he spent much of his life in Cento (a small provincial town between Bologna and Ferrara), he managed to become one of the major artists of his day. He was early inspired by the classical reforms of Carraci but his pictures were full of movement and intense feeling.

In 1621 Pope Gregory XV summoned him to Rome where the artist stayed until 1623, trying to balance his own dynamic temperament with the rarefied manner of the classical school. In the process producing some very original and striking paintings. After Gregory's death in 1623, he went back to Emilia, his energy gradually seemed to dissipate and his painting became more controlled. On the death of Guido Reni (1642), who had loathed him, Guercino moved to Bologna where the dominant climate was coldly classical. Altering his art to suit this atmosphere, Guercino took over Reni's religious picture workshop and his role as the city's leading painter.

MAY DAY 2010

“He that is in a town in May loseth his spring.” - George Herbert

Happy May Day! The celebration of May Day dates back to ancient times and like many ancient festivals it has a Pagan connection. For the Druids of the British Isles, the first of May was the second most important holiday of the year, as the festival of Beltane was observed then. It was thought that this day divides the year into half. The other half was marked by Samhain on November 1st.

In ancient times, the predominant May Day custom was the setting of the New Fire. It was one of the ancient New Year rites performed throughout the world. The fire itself was thought to give life to the burgeoning springtime sun. Cattle were driven through the fire to purify them. Men with their sweethearts passed through the smoke for good luck.

When the Romans occupied the British Isles, the beginning of May was devoted primarily to the worship of Flora, the goddess of flowers. It was in her honour that a five-day celebration, called the Floralia, was held. The festival would start on April 28 and end on May 2. Gradually the rituals of the Floralia were added to those of the Beltane. The day became associated with fertility rites and the maypole became associated with this aspect of the celebration. Trees have always been the symbol of the great vitality and fertility of nature and were often used at the spring festivals of antiquity. The maypole is a stylised tree and is an obvious phallic symbol.

The election of a May Queen is also a May Day tradition. When the sun rose, the maypole was decked with leaves, flowers and ribbons while dancing and singing went on around it. The Queen was chosen from the pretty girls of the village to reign over the May Day festivities. Crowned on a flower-covered throne, she was drawn in a decorated cart by young men or her maids of honor to the village green. She was set in an arbour of flowers and often the dancing was performed around her, rather than around the Maypole. The May Queen may have been a personification of Flora, the Roman goddess.

May Day observance was discouraged by the Puritans. Though the holiday was revived when the Puritans lost power in England, it didn’t have the same robust force. Gradually, it came to be regarded more as a day of joy and merriment for the kids, rather than a day of observing the ancient fertility rites.

May 1st, International Workers' Day, commemorates the historic struggle of working people throughout the world, and is recognised in most countries. The USA and Canada are among the exceptions. This is despite (or perhaps because of) the fact that the holiday began in the 1880s in the USA, linked to the battle for the eight-hour day, and the Chicago anarchists. May Day is celebrated as Labour Day in most countries around the world, including the United Kingdom. It was officially proclaimed and endorsed by the Soviet Union as the Day of the International Solidarity of Workers.

For May Day, a beautiful Brazilian song sung by the incomparable Elis Regina. It is called “Vento de Maio”, or “May Wind”. My (very bad) translation follows, but I don’t speak Portuguese…



Vento de Maio

Vento de raio
Rainha de maio
Estrela cadente

Chegou de repente
O fim da viagem
Agora já não dá mais
Pra voltar atrás

Rainha de maio
Valeu o teu pique
Apenas para chover
No meu pique-nique

Assim meu sapato
Coberto de barro
Apenas pra não parar
Nem voltar atrás

Rainha de maio
Valeu a viagem
Agora já não dá mais...

Nisso eu escuto no rádio do carro a nossa canção
(Vento solar e estrelas do mar)
Sol girassol e meus olhos ardendo de tanto cigarro
E quase que eu me esqueci que o tempo não pára nem vai esperar

Vento de maio
Rainha dos raios de sol
Vá no teu pique
Estrela cadente até nunca mais
Não te maltrates
Nem tentes voltar o que não tem mais vez

Nem lembro teu nome nem sei
Estrela qualquer lá no fundo do mar
Vento de maio rainha dos raios de sol

Rainha de maio valeu o teu pique
Apenas para chover no meu pique-nique
Assim meu sapato coberto de barro
Apenas pra não parar nem voltar atrás

May Wind

Wind of sunrays
May Queen, you’re a
Shooting star.

The end of the journey
Suddenly arrived;
Now there's no more
Going back

May Queen
Thanks for your rejection,
It caused it to rain
On my picnic.

So that my shoes were
Covered in mud,
Just so that I won’t stop
Or go back.

May Queen
It was worth the trip,
Now there's more...

I listen to our song on the car radio
(Solar wind and sea stars)
Sunflower sun and my eyes burning with too many cigarettes,
And I almost forgot that time will not stop or wait for us.

May wind
Queen of sunshine
Go to your shipwreck,
Catch shooting stars no more;
Don’t force it,
Don’t try to return to what once was.

I do not remember your name,
I do not know
Any star there on the seabed
Wind of May,
Queen of sunshine.

PRIZE-WINNING FOOD

“He who distinguishes the true savor of his food can never be a glutton; he who does not cannot be otherwise.” - Henry David Thoreau

Australia has been making its mark in the world as a trendsetter in things cultural and artistic for quite some time. It is the turn of the epicurean now with four top Australian restaurants being awarded a place in the coveted 100 best restaurants of the world as published by the San Pellegrino group. Two in fact are in the best 50, while the other two are in the 51-100 list. The best restaurant in the Australasia region is “Quay” in Sydney, which comes in at number 27 in the world.

In Melbourne, “Attica” ranks 73rd best in the world and I’m pleased to say that I have dined there and can offer an opinion. Even though I enjoyed the experience of dining there, it was more to do with the company rather than the food. The ambience and food were a little too precious for my liking and any restaurant that has menus that offer “tastings” according to the whim of the chef rather than allowing the diners to select their own dishes puts me off immediately. The tasting menu idea is so condescending… Nevertheless, there are some interesting ideas and the tastes and textures one samples are unique, although (at least for me) not conducive to a second visit.

Which brings me back to something I have often said: Simple food with a few seasonal and fresh ingredients cooked in a straightforward way is often the best tasting, but the hardest to do well… Which is why so few restaurants offer that type of food and which is why good home cooking is so much better than most restaurant food. The trouble with many restaurants, especially the modern ones that vie for “best in the world” status is that they are so full of artifice and artistry. There is something fake about such food and the tastes are too foreign and bizarre to be memorable and evoke an emotion from the diners.

Food is such a fundamental need, but it is also a pleasure and can evoke a strong emotional response from most people. The abominations of “molecular gastronomy” and other such nouvelle cuisine oddities leaves me somewhat cold. Mum, your cooking rules!

UFOs & ALIENS

“Man's destructive hand spares nothing that lives; he kills to feed himself, he kills to clothe himself, he kills to adorn himself, he kills to attack, he kills to defend himself, he kills to instruct himself, he kills to amuse himself, he kills for the sake of killing.” - Josef de Maistre

There has been a spate of UFO sightings in Darwin, in Australia’s Northern Territory. The NT is notorious for reports of flying object sightings, perhaps because the air is clear and visibility of heavenly bodies is good, but also because many people tend to spend quite a lot of time in the open in the balmy tropical nights. As the number of sightings of UFOs is high in NT, it is no surprise that a website is devoted to these sightings, which is maintained by Alan Ferguson, a UFO aficionado and photographer who has seen many UFOs and has photographed many. Some people may beg to differ…

According to Ferguson, the sightings increase during the dry season (which is starting now) and which sightings are corroborated by many other people. There were at least seven sightings of UFOs in the last week, around the Darwin area. Geoff Carr, an astronomer, said he believed 99.9% of all the UFO sightings could be explained as simple weather phenomena. The objects that people have seen and have been captured on camera have ranged from dark disks flying in broad daylight to strange lights glowing in the night sky. Many of the sightings have been explained by experts as aircraft, weather balloons, clouds, planets, stars, etc.

These latest reports from the NT are highly topical as the famous astrophysicist, Stephen Hawking warns that our earth could be at risk of an alien invasion. Hawking has suggested that extraterrestrials are almost certain to exist, as the universe has 100 billion galaxies, each containing hundreds of millions of stars. In such a big place, Earth is unlikely to be the only planet where life has evolved.

Hawking suggests that aliens might simply raid the Earth strip its resources and then move on: “We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn’t want to meet. I imagine they might exist in massive ships, having used up all the resources from their home planet. Such advanced aliens would perhaps become nomads, looking to conquer and colonise whatever planets they can reach.” He concludes that trying to make contact with alien races is “a little too risky”. He said: “If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.”

The scenario is well known to us from science fiction stories, as for example “War of the Worlds” and “Independence Day”. It is a chilling thought and it is unlikely humanity would have a chance of resisting an attack by technologically advanced aliens intent on coming to earth and stripping it of its resources. However, although it makes a very good story, it is an unlikely scenario in real life. A technically advanced civilisation capable of making spaceships capable of interstellar travel, would certainly have the means to be self-sufficient and able to harvest resources from interstellar space or non-inhabited worlds.

One may also be excused in thinking that to get to that advanced stage of civilisation and technology, aliens would also be advanced socially and would not be bellicose and cruel. I am thinking that perhaps they would be superior to us in every way. I think those poor aliens, should they visit earth soon would have to fear more humans than we from them… Heaven knows we are cruel enough to each other because we have different skin colour to each other, or a different religion or have different politics! Aliens would have no chance of surviving!

APRIL'S FULL MOON

“Only in love are unity and duality not in conflict.” - Rabindranath Tagore

April in the Antipodes is such a contrary month that sometimes grates against the Spring of my northern hemisphere psyche, and sometimes resonates deep within my adopted southern existence. April the smiling month of northern climes, weeps autumnal tears in southern latitudes. A battling duality draws my heart out into a thin string that elongates and threatens to break, only to fold in upon itself again and again, and quickly spin into a multi-ply thread. April for me personally carries with it lots of memories both unpleasant and pleasant. It encloses within it many anniversaries, both agreeable and disagreeable. Its northern-southern contrast encloses within it good and bad, smiles and frowns, pleasure and pain…

Here is poem freshly written, as the full moon graces our sky which today was at times laden with leaden clouds full of rain, and other times cleared to allow autumnal sun to shine through.

April’s Full Moon

The end of April soon to come
And Autumn ripens like a juicy plum,
While moon fills, calm and silver,
The night cold, bright quicksilver.
I loved you, lost you, now all but forgotten.

The end of April is so sweet
As memories, of foot so fleet,
That run by and disappear too quick –
Candle all burnt out with black wick.
I gave my heart, and lost it; as an apple rotten.

The end of April, once again
Entices, binds with golden chain.
The moon gazes on, dispassionate
While dark of night, once passionate
Now makes me feel the weight of my years.

The end of April covers, seals,
And ultimately time passing, heals.
From apple seed, from rotting fruit
A new tree sprouts, takes root;
My heart regenerates, and love again dries tears.

See Jacqui BB's blog for more poems on Poetry Wednesday!

NOAH'S ARK? HMMMMM...

“There’s something in every atheist, itching to believe, and something in every believer, itching to doubt.” - Mignon McLaughlin

The reconciliation of religion with history is always a tough proposition. Religion relies mainly on faith, whereas history relies on facts. The older a religion is the less the facts and artifacts we can find to substantiate claims made by that religion’s holy books, its adherents and belief systems. History, which relies on facts and documentary evidence is sometimes more reliable, but unfortunately, even in history books serious errors have been promulgated (for one or another reason) as time and closer investigation often shows. It is an electrifying experience when one finds some real documentary evidence that tends to support a religious belief and it galvanises the adherents of that religion into raptures of joy, while the non-believers are somewhat shaken in their skepticism.

I read in the paper in the train this afternoon that a group of explorers said on Monday they believe they may have found Noah’s Ark. Apparently, while searching for the remains of Noah’s Ark on Mount Ararat in Eastern Turkey, a team of evangelical Chinese-Turkish explorers successfully excavated and ventured inside a large wooden structure at an elevation of more than 4,000 m above sea level.

Specimens of the wood found at the site were dated as being 4,800 years old. Officials of the Turkish government and Cultural Ministries regarded the finds positively and jointly announced the discovery with the exploration team in Hong Kong. They planned to submit an application for the wooden structure to be included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. A mutual agreement for further co-operation was signed and the Hong Kong team members were recognised as Honorable Citizens of Agri Province, Turkey.

The decrepit wooden structure that was discovered by the team was entered through various openings, to discover seven enclosed spaces. More “rooms” are expected to be discovered. Attending experts and government officials agreed that the discovery is of great significance. In light of historical records, they believe that the most probable identity for the structure is Noah’s Ark and subsequent scientific studies should be undertaken. Mr. Gerrit Aalten, renowned Dutch Ark researcher said, “The significance of this find is that for the first time in history the discovery of Noah’s Ark is well documented and revealed to the worldwide community.”

The absence of photographs from the report is conspicuous. The types of dating tests that were done (and by whom) are not given. The composition of the expeditionary team is also rather suspicious as it is a prejudiced group that has a vested interest in the discovery. The Turkish authorities also are far from impartial as they can only benefit from publicity surrounding the supposed find: Tourism to the region will be greatly boosted by any claims that the Ark has been discovered. Furthermore, when I googled the “renowned” Mr Gerrit Aalten I found very little on him, except one site which he has obviously constructed.

Call me a skeptic, but I regard such claims with suspicion. Maybe it is my scientific training and my logic that is getting in the way of pure faith. However, let me also add that anyone who believes in a religious idea fervently needs no tangible proof to underpin that faith.

A LITTLE COMEDY...

“Comedy is simply a funny way of being serious.” - Peter Ustinov

We have watched a few comedies over the last couple of weeks, which goes to show that we have had need for some serious escapism. When it came to select a film to watch, the deep serious stuff got the flick and we chose instead the light and frothy, humorous, funny or downright silly. I’ll present a few of these comedies we saw lately with a brief review and a recommendation (or not).

The first was a very formulaic vehicle for Doris Day, from those innocent days of the 1950s, which even as this film was being made were passing by so rapidly. It is the 1959 Richard Quine film “It Happened to Jane”. Doris Day plays Jane, a widow who is trying to earn a living by farming and selling lobsters. Jack Lemmon plays George, her lawyer friend (long-suffering and virtuous) who looks after Jane and her children (but no hanky-panky – it is a 1959 film and Jane is a widow and George is even a scout leader!). When one of Jane’s shipments of lobsters is ruined because of railway inefficiency, Jane decides to sue the railroad magnate who is the “meanest man in the world” (played by Ernie Kovacs). The usual trials and tribulations follow with love, justice and the American Way triumphing in the end. This was a predictable and fairly tedious movie, interesting only as a historical document. Mildly amusing in parts, irritating in others.
Our rating 5/10 (IMDB rating 6.6/10).

The 2007 Scott Hicks film “No Reservations” is a remake of the 2001 German film “Mostly Martha” written and directed by Sandra Nettelbeck. We have seen both films and we still prefer the original German one, although the US version is quite good too. Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart are much better looking and sexier than the more average-looking Martina Gedeck and Sergio Castellito. The production is slicker and the little niece in the US version is the cuter Abigail Breslin, rather than the more taciturn Maxime Foerste. The remake didn’t disappoint, but it was a little more shallow than the original. All actors played well and Catherine Zeta-Jones looked most demure in her chef’s outfit. Definitely worth seeing either or both of these films.
“No Reservations” - Our rating 6.5/10 (IMDB rating 6.3)
“Mostly Martha” – Our rating 7.5/10 (IMDB rating 7.3).

Elvis Presley was guilty of making many movies in his career, when perhaps he should have just sung more. Most of the Presley movies were predictable, mind-rotting mash, a loose scaffold to support his singing character who was ever ready to belt out another song. We really like his songs, but his movies are really trashy. We watched the Normal Taurog 1961 “Blue Hawaii” knowing what we were in for, but the DVD was a gift and we did not look at the horse’s mouth… Elvis starred as young man back in Hawaii after being a soldier in Europe. He has to find his own way rather than be part of his father’s business. Joan Blackman plays his Hawaiian/French girlfriend while Angela Lansbury plays his scatty, socialite mother. Lots of songs are sung, of course and the scenery is quite delightful. Only for Elvis fans…
Our rating 5/10 (IMDB rating 5.7).

Speaking of Elvis, how about a movie with hundreds of Elvises, 34 of them flying? The 1992 Andrew Bergman film “Honeymoon in Vegas” is a stilted comedy starring a very uncomfortable looking Nicholas Cage and an ageing James Caan, vying for the love of Sarah Jessica Parker, all in Vegas during an Elvis impersonator convention. It’s kitch and predictable and didactic and very Hollywood.
Our rating 5.5/10 (IMDB rating 5.8).

And what was our favourite, Wes Anderson’s 2001 movie “The Royal Tenenbaums”. This was a comedy drama about the vicissitudes of a very strange family, the Tenenbaums. Three grown prodigies, all with a unique gift of some kind, and their mother are staying at the family household. Their father, Royal, who had left them long ago, and comes back to make things right with his family. The stellar cast includes Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller, Bill Murray, Gwynneth Paltrow and Luke Wilson. This is quite an engaging, though odd film, where drama mixes with black humour.
Our rating 7.5/10 (IMDB rating 7.6).

Enjoy your week!

ANZAC DAY 2010

“In war, there are no unwounded soldiers.” - José Narosky

Today is Anzac Day, one of the most important commemorative days in the Australian Calendar. ANZAC was the name given to the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps soldiers who landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey early on the morning of 25 April 1915 during the First World War (1914-1918). As a result, one day in the year has involved the whole of Australia in solemn ceremonies of remembrance, gratitude and national pride for all our men and women who have fought and died in all wars. That day is today, 25 April.

Every nation must at some stage, come for the first time to a supreme test of quality; and the result of that test will hearten or dishearten those who come afterwards. For the fledgling nation of Australia that first supreme test was at Gallipoli. The Australian War Memorial in Canberra leads the nation in honouring the fallen, but every city, town and village in Australia today commemorated the significance of this day with a variety of activities that perpetuates the memory of the dead, “lest we forget”…

The Gallipoli operation cost Australia 26,111 casualties, 8,141 dead; New Zealand 7,571 casualties, 2,431 dead; Britain 120,000 casualties, 21,255 dead; France 27,000 casualties, 10,000 dead; India 1,350 dead; Newfoundland (now part of Canada) 49 dead.

The painting for this Art Sunday is Charge of the 2nd Infantry Brigade at Krithia (1927) by Charles Wheeler (1880-1977). He was born on 4 January 1880 at Dunedin, New Zealand, son of John Edward Wheeler, labourer, and his wife Victoria Julia, née Francis, both English born. After John's death, Julia moved with her family to Williamstown, Melbourne, about 1891. Apprenticed in 1895 to C. Troedel & Co. as a lithographic artist, Charles began part-time study next year at the Working Men's College; in 1898 he took drawing classes at night in the National Gallery schools under Frederic McCubbin and in 1905 joined the painting class under L. Berbard Hall. Some five years later Wheeler held his first one-man show. In 1910 the National Art Gallery of New South Wales purchased his painting, 'The Portfolio', and the National Gallery of Victoria acquired 'The Poem'. Wheeler exhibited with the Victorian Artists' Society in 1908-10 and with the Australian Art Association in the 1920s and 1930s.

In April 1912 he had travelled to London, visiting Paris and the Prado in Madrid to see the work of Velazquez. In the following year he exhibited 'Le Printemps' at the Salon de la Société des Artistes Français, Paris, and in 1914 went to the Netherlands. Returning to England before the outbreak of World War I, he enlisted in the 22nd Battalion, Royal Fusiliers. He was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (1916) for his actions at Vimy Ridge, but refused a commission and remained a sergeant. Demobilized in February 1919, Wheeler took a studio at Chelsea and exhibited 'Autumn Afternoon' and 'Golden Hours' at the Royal Academy of Arts, London. Back in Melbourne, he held an exhibition at the Athenaeum Gallery in March 1920. For some years a private teacher of drawing and painting, he became assistant drawing instructor at the National Gallery in 1927 and drawing-master in 1935.

TEARS

“I didn't want my picture taken because I was going to cry. I didn't know why I was going to cry, but I knew that if anybody spoke to me or looked at me too closely the tears would fly out of my eyes and the sobs would fly out of my throat and I'd cry for a week. I could feel the tears brimming and sloshing in me like water in a glass that is unsteady and too full.” - Sylvia Plath

A very busy day today spent running around doing chores, shopping and housework. It was good to relax in the afternoon and watch a movie on TV.

For Music Saturday today a most famous piece by John Dowland, his lute piece “Lachrimae Pavan” played on the guitar by Nataly Makovskaya.



John Dowland, English composer and lutenist was born in 1562/63, Westminster, London, Eng. and died Jan. 21, 1626, London. He was educated at Oxford, but was refused a court position in 1594 and, believing his adoptive Catholicism had been the cause, he left for the continent. There he travelled extensively and took a position at the Danish court. In 1612, when his compositions had made him famous, he was finally appointed lutenist to the English court. He published three collections of songs, including about 90 works for solo lute and some 80 lute songs, including “Come again, sweet love does now invite”, “Flow my tears” and “Weep you no more, sad fountains”. His Lachrimae (=tears) is a collection for viol-and-lute ensemble.

A LITTLE KOREA IN SYDNEY

“The heart remembers what the head erased.” – Korean proverb

I was in Sydney for the day today for work. I attended a special Australia-Korea partnership for the future Business Briefing Forum supported by the Australia-Korea Business Council. The event was very good in that if nothing else it allowed some serious networking to occur, by bringing under the same roof people who had the same goals and strategies. The Ambassador of Korea to Australia, H.E. Dr Woosang Kim gave a very informative and engaging talk and the Australia Government was represented by two parliamentary secretaries to ministers.

The event was catered for very well and during the morning break there was entertainment also in the form of a Korean folk dancer who performed two traditional dances, the flower dance and the fan dance. For lunch I joined an educational envoy and two of his staff and we enjoyed a traditional Korean meal at the Daejangkum Restaurant. This was a very warm and friendly restaurant with some very good food. Most people think that Korean food is like Chinese or Japanese, but in fact, it has its own distinct style and uses ingredients in special and locally defined ways.

I read about the influence of Korean culture and religion on food, and there are some extremely interesting and admirable things about it. For example, Buddhist monk Dae An, owner of Balwoo Gongyang Temple restaurant, says about food:
“It is important that temple food does not run counter to nature. It minimises the use of artificially processed foods by insisting on seasonal natural produce. The food is simple and plain. We make only what we can eat; no leftovers are allowed. We should be grateful for our food, always aware of the travail of the farmer and nature in bringing a single grain of rice to fruition…”

How simple and fundamental and wise this statement is. How we could learn from it and apply it to our own table…

Both Busshism and Confucianism are widespread in Korea and these two philosophies have elegant, simple precepts whose observance leads to a harmonious coexistence with other people, animals, nature and the environment. Confucianism teaches Koreans to respect their elders as a matter of course and respect other people as a show of good etiquette. In meals this translates thus:

“Respect for elders dictates that you do not pick up your spoon or chopsticks until an older person has begun to eat. Conversely, you should be careful not to continue eating after an older person has finished. When drinking wine, etiquette dictates that you should turn your head away from the older person.

It is considered uncouth to make noises while eating. You should not slurp soup and noodle dishes. Do not talk with your mouth full and if you need to talk do it quietly and limit the conversation to the essentials. In earlier times, all meals were conducted in silence, but this has been relaxed somewhat nowadays. Do not lift your rice or soup bowl from the table (as the Chinese often do), as this is considered impolite.

Eat with an awareness of hygiene. A meal is a very sociable occasion in Korea and much sharing of side-dishes or even main courses occurs. Do not rummage through the side dishes with your chopsticks. Use the serving spoons provided. Wrap meat and fish bones in a paper towel and dispose of them discreetly without the other people being aware of it. Turn aside to sneeze, use your handkerchief to cover your mouth and nose and preferably wash your hands before resuming your meal.”

I really like these rules!

Rice is the staple food of Korea and it is the basis for highly nutritious and delicious dishes. Rice and products, prepared in all sorts of different ways can form the foundation of many a meal, and be prepared in endless varieties of savoury and sweet ways. The Korean word for rice is “bap” and this turns up in many a recipe. For example, steamed rice is “ssalbap”, while “bibimbap” (= mixed rice) is a savoury rice dish served with seasonal vegetables served on top of it.

A variant of this is “dolsot bibimbap” (“dolsot” meaning stone pot), which is bibimbap served in a very hot stone bowl in which a raw egg is added last and it is cooked against the sides of the bowl. The bowl is so hot that anything that touches it sizzles for minutes. Before the rice is placed in the bowl, the bottom of the bowl is coated with sesame oil, making the dish fragrant, but also the layer of the rice touching the bowl becomes golden and crispy. Numerous side dishes usually accompany the meal and these are flavoursome, spicy, sour, crisp, sweet and tart. Fermented dishes and pickles are also favoured.

“Gogi gui”, (Korean barbecue) refers to the Korean method of grilling various meats in a distinctive way. Such dishes are often prepared at the diner’s table on gas or charcoal grills that are built into the centre of the table itself. Most diners enjoy doing their own grilling at the table. Some Korean restaurants that do not have built-in grills provide portable stoves for diners to use at their tables.

At lunch we had the traditional dolsot bibimbap with various side-dishes. It was delicious and a wonderful vegetarian meal, which was healthful as well as tasty.

PLANT A TREE FOR EARTH DAY 2010!

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.” - Chief Seattle

Millions of people around the world will celebrate Earth Day today, especially so this year, as 2010 marks its 40th anniversary. The idea behind the day, celebrating our planet and all living things that inhabit it, began during the early 1960s hippy movement, as Earth Day bloomed into a grassroots cause that eventually culminated in the first USA observance in 1970. The first Earth Day in 1970 brought more than 20 million people out into the streets to protest against environmental destruction and changed history.

Senator Gaylord Nelson of the USA was instrumental as the driving force behind the establishment of Earth Day and this link explains how it occurred to him in his own words. As all ideas that are ripe for their time do, Earth Day took root, grew and blossomed into the “greening” movement that is now part of the way that we live.

Presently, in many parts of the world there is a move to extend Earth Day celebrations for an entire week thus increase awareness of greening, recycling, better energy efficient communities. In 2010, there is major campaign in a Billion Acts of Green to help to get the entire planet involved in recycling, planting a tree, saving energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions or any other action to better the earth.

One of the symbols of Earth Day is the “Earth Flag”. This uses an image of the earth as taken from space and it highlights the fragility of our “spaceship earth” in which all of the living creatures on the earth’s surface share its limited resources and depend on each other for survival.

Seeing that I planted two trees at the weekend, my pledge is to plant a few more until the end of the year. Here are the instructions on successful tree-planting:

•    Select the right time of year for planting the tree. Do not plant in late spring or summer because the heat will stress the plant and may cause it to die. The best time to plant a tree is fall (autumn) or early spring.

•    Check to see if there are any local requirements concerning digging deep holes if  you need to dig near telephone and other cables (for example, in urban areas).

•    Choose a suitable tree for the region, climate, and space. It is best to choose a tree native to the region where you will plant it. considering, including how quickly and how large they grow, how much clean-up the need, and their tolerance to diseases, drought, and pests. Be sure you know  the growth habits of the tree you will plant, the shape and size that your tree will have when it is mature.

•    Select a healthy tree. If there are leaves on it, look at the condition of the leaves, but remember that the best time to plant many deciduous trees is when they are dormant.

•    Decide where you want the tree. Many people forget that trees will grow large, so in addition to arranging it according to how you want the area to look, think ahead. Will it shade other plants? Will its branches affect power lines or neighbours’ property? Will it cause or be affected by flooding?

•    Once you’ve decided on the tree and location, take a suitable shovel and dig a hole. The size of the hole depends on the plant, but always dig it a little larger so that your plant ‘s root ball will easily fit . Dig a hole 2-3 times the width of the root ball, not just enough so it will fit. This allows good root growth. Water the base of the hole and let the water seep through into the surrounding soil.

•    Put a mixture of charcoal chunks mixed with sand and spoil in the centre of the hole so that it forms a pedestal on which the root ball will sit. This encourages good drainage.

•    Prepare your tree for planting by taking it out of the pot or cutting the hessian around the root ball if it is a larger tree.

•    Place the tree into the hole gently. Be sure the hole isn't too deep or too shallow. The ground level of the plant in the pot should match up with the ground level after you fill the hole in. Do not bury over the crown (where the stem changes to root) or leave any roots exposed.

•    Add fertiliser only after the hole is dug. All plants need fertiliser to thrive, but too much and you will burn the leaves or kill the plant (more is not better!). A good choice is slow release fertiliser, available from nurseries. Use some compost or composted manure instead of fertiliser if you have some. Compost or composted manure is essential if you are planting fruit or nut trees.

•    Pack the soil and compost firmly around the tree and water. Allow settling, backfill the remaining soil, and water again. This will eliminate air pockets. Water 4 litres for every 20 cm of tree height.

•    Cover the planting hole with 5 cm of shredded hardwood or leaf mulch to keep water in and most weeds out. Do not put mulch against the trunk or it will rot. Mulch out to the level of the tips of the branches.

•    After the planting is finished come back in about an hour and water one more time. You may need to stake the tree also so now is a good time to do it. Drive the stake beside the tree, hammering in until it is strong and stable. Tie the tree loosely around the stake so that the tie does not dig into the bark and damage your tree.

•    Water regularly until the tree is established. The stake can usually be removed after the first year.

•    Enjoy your labours, and as an old Greek proverb says, “A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in”.

BYZANTIUM

“An age which is incapable of poetry is incapable of any kind of literature except the cleverness of a decadence.” – Raymond Chandler

Byzantium, was the Greek city by the Propontis (the Sea of Marmara), at the southern end of the Bosporus on the European side, later renamed Constantinople, and now Istanbul. It was magnificently situated, commanding the two opposite shores of Europe and Asia with the advantages of security and great ease of trade. It was originally founded by Megarians in the seventh century BC, opposite Chalcedon (the ‘city of the blind’, so called by the Delphic oracle because its earlier Megarian founders had failed to choose the superior site of Byzantium).

Ruled by Persia from 512 to 478 BC, then alternately under Athenian and Spartan dominion in the fifth and fourth centuries, Byzantium was a formal ally of Athens from c.378 to 357 BC, and then again when successfully resisting Philip of Macedon in the famous siege of 340–339 BC. The help supposedly given by the goddess Hecatē on this occasion was commemorated on Byzantine coins by her symbol of crescent and star (adopted by the Turks as their device after they captured the city in AD 1453). The city suffered severely from the Celtic (Gallic) invasions of the third century BC and subsequently passed into the Roman empire, while remaining Greek in culture. It was chosen by the emperor Constantine for his new capital (AD 330), to be known thereafter in the West as Constantinople.

When the Roman empire in the West finally collapsed in the fifth century under barbarian invasions the eastern empire and its capital, firmly in the Greek world, flourished. The city's position as the capital of the eastern empire was interrupted in 1204 when it was captured by the French and Venetians (collectively known as Latins) during the Fourth Crusade, and became the seat of the Latin empire until restored to Greek possession in 1261. The last emperor, Constantine XIII, was killed when the city and empire fell to the Turks in AD 1453, under whose rule it has remained to this day as Istanbul.

I wrote the following poem after visiting the city some years ago…

Byzantium

Byzantium, on heavy golden crown
You are the brightest jewel!
On the crossroads of history
You soar like a double-headed eagle.

Byzantium, dressed in royal purple,
You temper time with a steel sceptre.
With pen, coloured mosaic, faith and spirit
You light the dark corridors of the centuries.

Byzantium, you’re overtaken by dusk,
You’re oppressed by the melancholy of the Bosporus.
In Saint Sophia’s lofty halls, expires
The pitiful flame of the last votive candle.

Byzantium, you draw your last breath,
When minaret rises and wounds the blue sky.
The eagle-sun dies in the west
And dyes the white and blue incarnadine.

Byzantium, in blood-red skies now
The crescent moon now promenades.
And in its faint, borrowed light,
Only your eternal sadness in the night will reign.

A COMMUTER STORY

“It is clear that the way to heal society of its violence... and lack of love is to replace the pyramid of domination with the circle of equality and respect.” – Manitonquat

Some of you who read my blog regularly may know that I commute to work on the train. This is a convenient and “green” way to get to work, as well as allowing me some time while on board to do all sorts of things: Read, write, listen to music, etc. I have my computer with me on board and it’s amazing how much one gets done in even 20 minutes of travel time. At other times I observe my fellow travellers and it amuses me to imagine their lives, simply by looking at them – they way they cut their hair, their jewellery, their clothing, even the perfume they wear. Overall, I enjoy my commuting time and most of my fellow travellers seem to do so as well. Occasionally there are some unpleasant commuters, you know the kind, those who have their iPods on too loud, those that take up three seats, the ones who are openly rude and impolite.

However, this morning in Clayton, a suburb a few kilometers away, a man was stabbed in the morning rush hour at the railway station. The victim in his 20s was stabbed up to eight times just outside the Clayton station, at about 8:15 a.m. He died in the station car park with commuters in shock as they filed past his body covered with a blood-stained cloth, to get to their train a few metres away. The murderer was not deterred by the broad daylight, the hordes of commuters going to work, no the very public place.

We are living in times where our life is forfeit from the one minute to the next. Being in a crowd or being locked up at home makes no difference. Death could be waiting to confront us at any time. Who knows whether the poor victim could have imagined last night that the day he had lived would have been his last? Did his family suspect that yesterday was the last time they would have seen him alive? His friends who perhaps waved to him from the train, did they see the murderer amongst the crowd?

Why was he stabbed? Robbery? Settling of accounts? A matter of the heart? An act of ethnic motivated hate? A victim of a psychopathic rage? Who knows? Will we ever find out? Apparently both men were Asians and according to witnesses an argument may have preceded the stabbing. There may be photographs of the murderer on security cameras and police appear to be hopeful of capturing the perpetrator, but how often have we heard that and how few times is it true? In any case the young man who died will not be catching another train, ever again.

One of the most upsetting thing about the case for me was that hundreds of people walked by the dying victim and did nothing to help. Only one young psychology student stopped to help and he heard the incomprehensible dying words of the young man as he lay in the pools of his blood. About 15 other people just stood by and watched the scene in morbid fascination… Who knows what the dying victim was trying to say as he lay dying? His murderer’s name, if he had recognised him perhaps? An appeal for help? A message of his loved ones? The name of his wife, girlfriend, mother?

In the meantime our city, like so many other large cities around the world is experiencing a wave of knifings. Wild, vicious stabbings where youth are often implicated. The problem is enormous and “Knives Scar Lives” campaign here in Australia doesn’t seem to be helping. Increasing numbers of such horrible crimes are being reported on a daily basis.

O tempore, o mores!

A CHALLENGING FILM

“The tragedy of sexual intercourse is the perpetual virginity of the soul.” - William B. Yeats

Please read this poem:

Absent from Thee I Languish Still;

Absent from thee I languish still;
Then ask me not, when I return?
The straying fool 'twill plainly kill
To wish all day, all night to mourn.

Dear! from thine arms then let me fly,
That my fantastic mind may prove
The torments it deserves to try
That tears my fixed heart from my love.

When, wearied with a world of woe,
To thy safe bosom I retire
where love and peace and truth does flow,
May I contented there expire,

Lest, once more wandering from that heaven,
I fall on some base heart unblest,
Faithless to thee, false, unforgiven,
And lose my everlasting rest.

It is a poem written by John Wilmot (1647 – 1680; Oxfordshire - England). Most of you will probably not know this poem nor the poet. What if I say he was also the Second Earl of Rochester? Some of you may recognise him now, but still, for the most part, most people would not have a clue as to who he is. Judging from the poem, you might guess he was some young, noble and romantic Englishman who spent his life sniffing the roses and delighting his virginal love with delightful poems such as this.

In fact, he was a rake and a libertine, a bisexual and utterly debauched, by all accounts already having a terrible reputation by the age of fourteen years. By the age of 33, John Wilmot, second Earl of Rochester was dying, of syphilis, gonorrhea, other venereal diseases, as well as the effects of alcoholism. However, you may be pleased to learn that he repented on his deathbed… He was the ultimate restoration rake, immoral and dissolute, promiscuous and decadent. His short life was a surfeit of excess, and yet his fine mind was capable of logical, rational, original and creative thought.

All of this of course would make a marvellous film! And so I thought, when I chose the DVD of Laurence Dunmore’s 2004 film “The Libertine” with Johnny Depp playing Rochester and John Malkovitch playing Charles II. Stephen Jeffreys who wrote the play that the film is based on, was also responsible for writing the screenplay. I was not familiar with the play, but I knew of the Earl of Rochester and his (s)exploits as well of his poetry.

The film follows fairly accurately the biography of Rochester, and sets a realistic scene in Restoration England around the 1660s. The return of Charles II to the English throne allowed the English to return with gusto to the previously forbidden pleasures of theatre, visual arts, scientific enquiry and promiscuity. In the 1670s, in the middle of critical political and economic problems, Charles II asks the return of his friend John Wilmot, second Earl of Rochester, from exile to London. Although his friend John is a dissolute drunkard and cynical poet, the King asks him to help him raise funds by preparing a spectacular play for the French ambassador to earn the financial support of France. John in the meantime meets the aspirant actress Elizabeth Barry in the theatre and decides to make her a great star. He falls in love with her, and she becomes his mistress – to the dismay of his wife, Elizabeth Mallet. The play Rochester presents is a pornographic romp which openly satirises the king, causing John Wilmot’s banishment once again…

The film is bawdy and sometimes verging on the pornographic, so in this respect it is not suited to viewing by prudes. The playwright stretches his point and the director gleefully follows suit. The licentiousness of the Restoration after the strait-laced rule of the Puritans is accented to such an extent that it appears almost a caricature. Yet, much of the literature, the art, the documentary evidence of the time shows that our official history books (especially if they are deemed suitable for use in schools) must be necessarily bowdlerised.

The acting in this film is very good and Depp gives an excellent performance as does John Malkovitch. There is something very disturbing about Rochester’s initial speech that begins:
“Allow me to be frank at the commencement. You will not like me. The gentlemen will be envious and the ladies will be repelled. You will not like me now and you will like me a good deal less as we go on. Ladies, an announcement: I am up for it, all the time...”
It sets the stage and prepares the viewer for the onslaught that follows.

It is not an enjoyable film to watch, but nevertheless, one which puzzles and confounds the viewer at times. There is much there to digest and the questions about morality it asks are sincere and should generate much cogitation. I would recommend it with reservations and only to people I know would rise to the challenges of this film, which when viewed superficially could be dismissed as sensational and pornographic.

DAVE COOPER

I wanted to make the violence beautiful in order to heighten our revulsion. – Edward Hall

We had a very quiet Sunday today, going out for a short drive in the morning and then passing by a Sunday Market on the way back home. The weather has been very changeable, but warm. Certainly the last throes of a Summer, which has been mild this year. The days continue to shorten and the sun is losing its fierceness. Autumnal days of warm contentment.

For Art Sunday today (upon the suggestion of a friend), I am featuring Dave Cooper. This is an American cartoonist, illustrator and artist, born in Brooklyn NY in 1967. He presently resides in Ottawa, Canada, and is presently mostly working on fine art, to the dismay of his comics fans. Cooper first came to the public eye in his teens when his sci-fi comics were published in Barry Blair’s Aircel Comics. Blair mentored the young Cooper and although there were never any accusations of molestation, Cooper has described their relationship as “inappropriate”. Cooper spent several years in a band and then returned to comics in his 20s, producing disturbing and strangely erotic work.

Increasingly, Cooper spent more time concentrating on paintings, which have a popular art appeal and are often inspired by the images, colour and clean lines of the comics he initially drew. The images of his art are often grossly misshapen and gaudily disturbing. The erotic mingles with the repulsive and the amusing with the disconcerting. In any case, whether one likes his art or not, his imagery is hard to ignore and will certainly raise an intense emotional response – as should all art.

Readers who wish to find out more about this artist are directed to the Wikipedia article and Cooper’s own personal website 1 and website 2.

GRADUATION

“No man should escape our universities without knowing how little he knows.” - J. Robert Oppenheimer

I was in Brisbane for the day today as the graduation ceremony for our Queensland students was scheduled. I always enjoy traveling to our different campuses at graduation time as it is a pleasure to see our students’ hard work acknowledged and rewarded. The ceremony is always well-attended and is a happy occasion for both staff and students, who see it as a highlight of the academic year. The families of the graduating students are also there in full force and the happiness and pride in their faces as they see their students finally reaching their goal, is a delight to see.

The ceremony was at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane’s Southbank, which is a magnificent venue. It always tends to be a long ceremony, over two hours long as there are processions, speeches, presentation of certificates and testamurs, student and staff awards and responses. My speech is at the beginning of the ceremony and I always try to make it as uplifting and inspiring as I can. This year, my speech ended thus, befitting graduates who will go out there in the community to work in health care:

“…Always try to be good and do what is right, rather than what happens to be pleasant or convenient at the time. What is good and what is happy are the same. Be unselfish and help others because the world is full of suffering and to alleviate the suffering is the noblest thing that a human being can do. Should we be fortunate enough to be able to live our lives by these simple precepts we may confidently say that we have not lived our lives in vain.

Graduands, you have succeeded. I am sure my colleagues, your fellow students, you families and friends join me in congratulating you most sincerely.
It is now time for you to go out and be inspired to do great things…”

The ceremony finishes with the academic procession exiting to the strains of the organ playing the old 13th century student song: “Gaudeamus Igitur”. Quite fitting therefore to have this as the offering for Song Saturday!



Gaudeamus igitur
Juvenes dum sumus.
Post jucundam juventutem
Post molestam senectutem
Nos habebit humus.
Ubi sunt qui ante nos
In mundo fuere?
Vadite ad superos
Transite in inferos
Hos si vis videre.
Vita nostra brevis est
Brevi finietur.
Venit mors velociter
Rapit nos atrociter
Nemini parcetur.
Vivat academia!
Vivant professores!
Vivat membrum quodlibet
Vivant membra quaelibet
Semper sint in flore.
Vivant omnes virgines
Faciles, formosae.
Vivant et mulieres
Tenerae amabiles
Bonae laboriosae.
Vivat et respublica
et qui illam regit.
Vivat nostra civitas,
Maecenatum caritas
Quae nos hic protegit.
Pereat tristitia,
Pereant osores.
Pereat diabolus,
Quivis antiburschius
Atque irrisores.

Let us rejoice therefore
While we are young.
After a pleasant youth
After a troubling old age
The earth will have us.
Where are [they] who before us
Were in the world?
Go to the heavens
Cross over into hell
If you wish to see them.Our life is brief
Soon it will end.
Death comes too quickly
Snatches us too cruelly
It spares no one.
Long live academe!
Long live the professors!
Long live each student!
Long live all students!
May they always be in their prime!Long live all girls
Easy and beautiful!
Long live mature women also,
Tender and lovable
Good [and] productive.
Long live the state as well
And he who rules it!
Long live our city
[And] the charity of benefactors
Which protects us here!
Let sadness perish!
Let haters perish!
Let the devil perish!
Let whoever is anti-student
As well as the mockers [perish]!