Category Archives: Transhuman News

It was startling to see this post on the Chaffee County Republican Party Facebook page this past week:

Chaffee County RepublicansYesterdayat3:13PM

We saw that this summer when Democratic Party officials made light of riots spreading across the nation in the name of yet another liethe lie that America is systemically racist, rooted in slavery and Jim Crow, and replete with bigoted police dedicated to endangering black lives.

Democrats demanded no evidence to support those claims. In knee-jerk fashion, they simply repeated ad nauseam untruths about the existential threat to black Americans in the United States. Which means that for the Democrats and the political left, violence is fine so long as it supports their narrative, and un-evidenced claims are fine so long as they support an agenda.

In order to defend such violence, the political left has mobilized behind another convenient and advantageous lie: the lie that the Capitol riots represent all conservatives and Republicans.

Fact Check:

First is this what Republicans are telling each other? If so, then some fact-checking is in order. Given the extent of the lies being propagated by right-wing elements including conservative media, Pravda would be proud of your Soviet-style disinformation campaign.

Since this is a national holiday celebrating the life and non-violence civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King Jr. the timing couldnt be better.

1. Systemic racism might sound like a pipe dream when youre a privileged, white guy or a privileged white anyone, or a rich SOB. But it is real.

While racism has been practiced on all other races that have entered this country, or happened to live here in the first place, it has focused cruelly on Black Americans. It is especially practiced by some who are white and somehow proud that your ancestors came here to settle in, say 1857. (Got ya beat, my English ancestors began arriving in 1630, so I guess by your way of seeing things, I should be racist against every ethnic group except American Indian and the Spanish who had already settled St. Augustine, Florida.)

Waves of immigrants have faced racism for periods of time prior to assimilation. If youre willing to look back in your own family heritage, its there; the Italians, the Jews, the Polish, the Chinese, the Scandinavians, the Irish.the Hispanics and on and on. Dont believe me? If you dont, you either havent checked your family history, or you arrived wealthy and bought your way in.

2. American is absolutely rooted in slavery its called our original sin. Before Chaffee Republicans declare it aint so, you should perhaps read some history. The fight over allowing Virginia and the Carolinas to keep their slave system came up when the Declaration of Independence was written, and it nearly undid the Constitutional Congress. George and Martha Washingtons will freed the Mount Vernon slaves that were theirs (there were estate slaves from the Curtis family they couldnt free) Washington had been saying for years that slavery wasnt a sound economic system and should be abolished and the wealthy Virginia planter class hated his guts for that.

The great compromise was to ratify the Constitution, get going, and set a date to deal with slavery in 1806. Come 1806, cowards kicked that can down the road. As the country expanded westward, it was the Mason-Dixon line thing that brought the long-simmering issue to a head. The pesky line kept moving west with the northern states free, the southern states slave and it didnt seem any way to run a country. What we all think of that war depends upon where you grew up. If you grew up in the north it was about slavery and human rights. If you grew up in the south it was about states rights, not human rights.

3. Then there is the legacy of Jim Crow the racially-charged laws that began to pile up around 1876 during a disputed election that was solved with a grand bargain between the parties. That agreement undid the gains of the reconstruction period and instituted decades of discrimination in everything from business, to schools, to using red lines to tell you where you could live and whether you could own a home.

This era told you what side of the street you could walk on, it featured white hooded Ku Klux Klan and lynchings, stripped voting rights and general terror. Yup that was a grand old time (oops, that is the Grand Old Party, and it was big here in Colorado). It took until thos past Nov. before the last Jim Crow law was struck down in Mississippi.

By the way, these confederate statues that are plopped down all over this country, those military bases named for confederate generals that Trump insists are Our history and must stay? Well, those glorifying tributes to the Confederacy got put up and named during you guessed it the Jim Crow era.

4. A lot of Republicans just hated parts of the 60s the marches, the laws that let Black folks drink out of the same drinking fountain and swim in the same pool, the great society and the expansion of Medicare, the Civil Right Act that created equal schools system. Well there was also the Vietnam war and they seemed to support that.

I was a kid in the 60sbut I remember my parents in rural, northern Wisconsin tell us kids to watch, to look, to listen. They raised me to be focused on human rights. Its amazing considering they werent wealthy, or highly educated, or metro residents they were country people, staunch Lutherans, who focused on human rights and the inherent dignity of all of us.

5. Moving on to now the falsehood that somehow everyone but Republicans hate the police.

Not true, even though at the moment, I really dont know that I can trust some of them. Some in this county are associated with violence advocated by right-wing militias. Some, hardly all, appear empowered by their guns, trained to automatically use force before anything else and assume their positions protect them from taking any responsibility for their actions.

Going on a mental health crisis call would seem to need an officer with mental health training, not an assault rifle. If you think every problem is a nail, then all you ever use is a hammer.

No, I dont believe that the Capitol riots represent all conservatives and Republicans. But in the last four years of sweeping lies, of rising intolerance of the truth due to perceived political gain, of attacks on fact-based news media, white privilege has taken on grievance, wrapped itself in the flag and thumps a bible. Some good people have been swept into an essentially authoritarian power grab, by their mis-interpreted view of Christianity and freedom.

By 1994, no less than Mayor Rudy Giuliani actually said this:

We look upon authority too often and focus over and over again, for 30 or 40 or 50 years, as if there is something wrong with authority. We see only the oppressive side of authority. Maybe it comes out of our history and our background. What we dont see is that freedom is not a concept in which people can do anything they want, be anything they can be. Freedom is about authority. Freedom is about the willingness of every single human being to cede to lawful authority a great deal of discretion about what you do.

Heres our view: The measure of a person is not where they stand in times of comfort, but in times when truth and the constitution itself is being challenged this is a time for courage. The time is here to cease tolerating the lies from an element of conservatives who claim that their freedoms are more important than our mutual responsibility to each other and our loyalty to the constitution.

I challenge those who keep touting their individual rights over our combined human right, to actually read the whole Constitution not just the Bill of Rights. It isnt that long. Especially note the way our founders divided government for a reason. If then you remain anti-democratic, bigoted, and privileged, well, then Houston we have a problem.

Featured image: Photo of a child at a colored drinking fountain in the 1950s. Image courtesy of Unsplash.

Read the original here:
Our Voice: Confronting the Lies, Upon Lies, Upon Lies, Upon White Privilege - by Jan Wondra - The Ark Valley Voice

touring from tokyos PARCO museum, to osakas PARCO event hall through february 2021, a monumental exhibition brings together the work of japanese artist hajime sorayama and swiss artist HR giger for the very first time. co-curated by alessio ascari and shinji nanzuka, and featuring over 50 pieces ranging from the late 1960s to the present day, the show explores the artists similar concerns and subjects including an obsessive investigation of AI and eternal life. sorayama and giger were born and trained at opposite ends of the world, and their motifs and themes might seem apparently at odds upon early inspection. while sorayamas vibrant colors and animated outlook on technology are swallowed by gigers dark chiaroscuro and nightmarish dystopia, the exhibition GIGER SORAYAMA seeks to highlight the ways in which the artists share more than meets the eye.

on the occasion of the show, designboom spoke with artist hajime sorayama and the exhibitions co-curator alessio ascari to hear more about the artists shared subjects, and their take on technology, dystopia, beauty and humanity today. read on for insight from hajime sorayama and alessio ascari in their own words

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

both within japan and internationally, hajime sorayama has become legendary for his extensive oeuvre that underlines an ongoing pursuit for beauty in the human body and the machine. sorayama is best known for his precisely detailed, erotic hand-painted portrayals of women realized through an artful use of realistic techniques, most prominently airbrush painting. the artists global recognition is inextricably tied to his signature series sexy robot, which he started working on in 1978, featuring erotic android figures clad in shiny chrome metal and placed in suggestive poses. in continuing a study of man and machine, sorayama also designed aibo, the award-winning robotic pet for SONY, in 1999.

hans ruedi giger, who passed away in 2014, was a swiss surrealist painter, sculptor, and set designer best known for his biomechanical creatures, extraterrestrial landscapes, and disturbing sexual machines. in a career that spanned more than five decades, HR giger employed a wide variety of media, including furniture, movie props, prints, paintings and sculptures. these studies often resulted in the creation of exhibition displays and total environments with the immersive quality of a wunderkammer including the HR giger museum in gruyres, switzerland. in 1979, his concept design for ridley scotts alien won an academy award for best achievement in visual effects and catapulted his vision of death and futurism to fame.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

designboom spoke with artist hajime sorayama about his attraction to metal, and the enduring appeal of the sexy robot

designboom (DB): what initially led you to art? how has your background and upbringing shaped your artistic principles?

hajime sorayama (HS): I was born in 1947. japan at that time was a burnt field right after the end of the war. it was a time of extreme poverty, where food was a problem. but even so, humans drew pictures before writing. and because there are women in the world, men want to live.

DB: what were your primary influences and inspirations as an emerging artist? are they the same today?

HS: I like metallic light light and transparency. I think it is my lifes work to express these two in my work.

DB: how would you describe your work to someone you just met?

HS: Im an entertainer. I just think about surprising people with my paintings. I never thought of myself as an artist.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

DB: was there a moment that sparked your initial curiosity in the sexy robot subject?

HS: when I was in elementary school, I liked shiny things and was happy to pick up iron scraps from a lathe factory. when I was an adolescent, I became interested in girls, and the sexy robot was born by combining them. I have a metal fetish, and I feel erotic and sexy for metal. thats why its natural to use metal to express something erotic in yourself. for example, the silver train on the subway seen from the front, it feels like its turning. thats erotic, isnt it? there is such a fetish.

DB: your vision of the sexy robot has spanned generations what do you think is its enduring appeal?

HS: I think everyone likes metallic things and womens bodies. because we are men. if youre gay, youll love men. mammals have survived endlessly since ancient times because they have a sexual desire and appetite. but religion denies it christianity, islam. thats why overseas, robots in the shape of humans cannot be made due to religious restrictions. it can be done only in japan. I think everyone thinks that my female robot drawings are very particular to japan.

HR giger, biomechanoid I, 1975-83image estate of HR giger, courtesy of marco witzig

DB: artificial intelligence and robotics has evolved a great deal since the 1970s. what you think of todays technological landscape? what effects do you think technology will have on the future?

HS: I dont trust AI at all. it has a blueprint, and it just works according to the scenario. I think researchers and engineers just make AI believe that they have an ego. AI seems to be evolving, but that is evolution within the simulation. if AI and humans fight, humans will win. humans have ingenuity that technology cannot reproduce. is it wisdom? there is no such thing on the computer emotions are copied rather than real, and they have intelligence but no wisdom.

DB: this landmark exhibition across PARCO museum, tokyo and PARCO event hall, osaka situates your work alongside that of swiss artist HR giger. how do you think the exhibition highlights your differences? your similarities?

HS: I dont think we have so much in common, but I think we are the opposite. eros and thanatos, yin and yang, life and death. HR giger proudly exposed taboos such as internal organs and bones to the world. I thought he was really transcendent. Im cute compared to giger.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

DB: what themes did you notice most overlap between both your practices?

HS: there are only two types of human beings in the world. some people hide their lewdness and others dont. an honest artist like me is the latter. giger is that type of person, too.

DB: how would you like your work to be perceived by audiences?

HS: I would be so happy if I could surprise people, or make people think well done. for example a person who saw my work and felt something became a scholar or engineer in the future and received a prestigious award someday, and answered to the magazine nature in an interview, I saw hajime sorayamas works and decided to become a scholar. if that happens, I will feel blessed to be in my artist position. but it is a public stance (laughs).

DB: generally speaking, are you optimistic about the future?

HS: Im not interested in the future. just seeing it.

hajime sorayama, untitled, 1991image hajime sorayama, courtesy of NANZUKA

designboom also spoke with the exhibitions co-curator alessio ascari about what the show seeks to reveal to audiences about the two legendary artists

DB: although trained in opposite ends of the world and expressing different imagery and motifs, what predominant themes overlap between hajime sorayama and HR gigers work?

alessio ascari (AA): both artists emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, becoming acknowledged masters of airbrush painting a preferred medium which allowed to render both sorayamas shiny chrome surfaces, and gigers deep chiaroscuro. more importantly, at the very core of their practice lies a similar concern: an obsessive investigation of AI, eternal life, and the fusion of organic and apparatus. gynoids (female androids) are predominant subjects, conjuring the post-human and the apotheosis of the woman to reveal an underlying tension between life, death, power and desire.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

DB: what elements of both hajime sorayama and HR gigers artistic motivations and personal characters did you want the exhibition to reveal to audiences?

AA: interestingly, these two extremely influential creators were both somewhat outsiders in the official art world, who blurred traditional boundaries between commercial and personal work, and experimented with different forms of expression not only painting and sculpture, but also set and concept design, and many collaborations. this creative freedom, driven by an authentic urgency and vision, is something these artists share; they were both loyal to their inner child, and following the passions they had as kids rather than pursuing an over-conceptualization of their practice.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of nanzukahajime sorayama, untitled, 2017image hajime sorayama, courtesy of NANZUKA

DB: with technology, dystopia, beauty and humanity concepts covered across both artists work, how do you think this exhibition is pertinent in todays times?

AA: at a time when cyborgs have receded in the popular imagination, but society is increasingly sinking its teeth into biotechnology, their visionary art is all the more relevant nurturing our fantasies, illuminating ethical questions, and inspiring revolutionary solutions for our future.

installation view estate of HR giger / hajime sorayamaphoto by shigeru tanaka, courtesy of NANZUKA

the exhibition tours from PARCO museum, tokyo (december 26, 2020 january 11, 2021) to PARCO event hall, osaka (january 23 february 7, 2021). GIGER SORAYAMA coincides with the 80th anniversary of gigers birth, and is accompanied by a catalogue published by kaleidoscope featuring a foreword by co-curator alessio ascari, a critical essay by venus lau, an interview with the late HR giger by hans ulrich obrist and patrick frey, and a recent interview with sorayama by ascari.

More:
'GIGER SORAYAMA' exhibition brings together the 'sexy robots' and surrealist sexual machines of two legendary artists - Designboom

Human remains found during searches near a Highland farm have been confirmed as missing cyclist Tony Parsons.

Tony Parsons was reported missing in October 2017 after travelling from his home in Tillicoultry, Clackmannanshire, to Fort William, before aiming to cycle home.

Searches last week homed in on a farm near Bridge of Orchy, with police blocking off roads and setting up cordons.

He travelled south on the A82 Inverness to Glasgow road, and was last seen outside the Bridge of Orchy Hotel at around 11.30 pm on October 2, 2017.

Specialist search officers, supported by forensic scientists, discovered his remains in a remote area of ground close to a farm near the A82 at Bridge of Orchy.

Mr Parsons body has now been recovered by the police and a post mortem examination will be carried out in the coming days.

The inquiry is being led by detectives from Police Scotlands Major Investigation Team, supporting local officers.

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Sommerville said: This is a difficult and challenging investigation given the remote location and the extreme weather conditions faced by the team.

We will support Mr Parsons family through this very difficult and distressing time as the investigation into his death continues.

I would like to repeat my thanks to everyone who has assisted our inquiries so far and again urge anyone who may be able to help to come forward.

Anyone with information can contact Police Scotland via 101.

On December 30, 2020, two men, both aged 29, were arrested and then released pending further inquiries in connection with the disappearance of Mr Parsons.

More here:
Human remains found near Highland farm confirmed to be missing cyclist Tony Parsons - Press and Journal