Sunday, August 15, 2010

Urban Density


Continuing on my fascination with cities, particularly NY, it strikes me how much suburban sprawl there is in America. While making 3D buildings on Google Earth I noticed that a lot of European cities are much denser than almost all American cities. Most people live in apartments in Europe, even in the smaller cities and towns. In the U.S. most people live in detached houses. That's always been the American dream.

Americans like owning houses and Americans like their space. Space is what the pioneers found when they arrived in the New World: a giant near-empty continent, sparely populated by Indians. So they spread out from the cities of the east, to the great plains of the Midwest, eventually reaching the Pacific. What we have as a result is miles and miles of suburban sprawl, aided by the invention of the automobile, and the domination of the "big oil" companies. The epitome of this is Los Angeles. Many American cities and towns are built around transportation by automobiles. European cities are not. They were built years before automobiles and thus remain tightly compacted for easy transport. A few tiny parts of a few American cities resemble this, most notably the Wall Street District of Manhattan, and Boston's North end.

That tight density gives European cities their distinct flavor. It gives them their street life. Most American cities with several exceptions, have no street life because everyone is in their car. What you'll have is a few strip malls or a single commercial district, where people park their cars in go right inside to do their shopping. No walking, no motorbikes, or any bikes. I was in Portland, Oregon a few months ago and was shocked at how dead it was on a Saturday night, there wasn't a soul around. That's one of the things I hate about American cities: they're too boring and void of life. NY is the obvious exception to the rule here. NY has great street life, and not in just the Central Business District. That's one of the reasons why Europeans like it here. That's also why so many American tourists from other cities are shocked at how many people are out walking on the streets of NY.

In LA (which I loath) the rich want to live in the sprawling suburbs, whereas in NY the rich often tend to want to live in the city. They city, and city life is what draws people to NY. Who would want to live in the suburbs of NY? They are practically just like suburbia of almost anywhere else in the US. No, it's the city that people want. The exact opposite is true for many other cities in the US. Consequently most inner cities look like shit and many people have to drive 10 or more miles to get to work. I wish that we would, as a nation, move towards a more urban way of living, less reliant on the automobile, and reinvest in our cities. This is beginning to happen but the problem with this is that the poor who are living there, are often kicked out as a result. How can we balance this? Well for one thing even without investment, the poor can make their communities look better by not polluting and taking care of their environments. "Don't shit where you eat" comes to mind. You don't need massive capital investment to clean up a neighborhood. This concerns me since I may never get rich, and I don't want to get pushed out to the suburbs one day if I can't afford to live in the city anymore. In the end money almost always wins out, which is why I had a fall out with capitalism recently. But I have not embraced socialism fully as a result. I'm still trying to find the type of economic system that's perfect for me. It's like capitalism but with elements of socialism intertwined with it. That's really for another post anyway.

The bottom line is: suburbia scares me, and I want American cities to look more like Europe's.

The Reason for Ritual


As an atheist, I have often forgotten the power of ritual, and ceremony. I was once having a really stressful day at work, fixing some computer problems at this Jewish school. Then this young Hasidic Jewish man came into the room and he started singing in Hebrew, this religious chant. I had no idea what he was saying, but almost as soon as he began singing, I felt this immediate wave of calm over me. It was amazing. I had another experience when I was surrounded by some Hindus who lit some ceremonial incense and began moving it around the room. Upon seeing this and smelling the incense, I felt that same sense of calm and relaxation that engulfed me. It's a great feeling.

Now, being that I'm an atheist and don't take part in any ritualistic ceremonies whatsoever, I have rarely experienced this type of religion-induced state. I have to admit that I realize why ceremony and ritual, and I'd say meditation also, is so important to so many cultures and religions. They do have very powerful effects on the human psyche. I'm not against any of these acts, in and of themselves. I do when superstition takes over and persuades people that if they don't do the ritual right, or on the right night, spirits or God(s) will punish them, or their livestock and crops. The superstition that the rituals are tied to are what I am against.

Some say that without the superstitious element behind the ritual, the ritual won't be as powerful, they'll be rendered impotent. I understand this, but there are many traditions and rituals that take place today that were started as religious or pagan practices, that have had their supernatural elements discarded. Think of Halloween. Can't we have singing and chanting and traditional foods and dance, without the superstition behind it? I don't want to eradicate all of the aforementioned, just the outdated supernatural elements behind it. What's wrong with that? It's a move towards modernity that I want to instigate, while trying to retain tradition.

Friday, August 13, 2010

Zeitgeist


A close person to me told of this documentary that I must see. Zeitgeist a documentary by Peter Joseph has 3 parts to it: part 1 about the astrological and pagan origins of Christianity, part 2 about the 9/11 conspiracy, and part 3 about the Federal Reserve and its true characteristics that many aren't aware of. I'm not a big 9/11 truth-er, if fact I believe the planes took down the towers, but I am deeply interested in the origins of organized religions. Zeitgeist has an excellent chapter explaining how natural astrological phenomenon centered around the Sun's movements in the sky led to the creation of the myth of Horus, an Egyptian God, who was a precursor to the story of Jesus.

Horus was born on December 25th, around approximately 3000 B.C. His birth was accompanied by a star in the east and 3 wisemen. He was baptized at age 30, had 12 disciples, and performed miracles. There are too many similarities between Horus, and Jesus to be a coincidence. Horus gives us insight into where the Jesus myth originated from. I'm not sure as to whether Jesus was made up entirely or was an actual person whose life was mythologized. Either case involves a re-tinkering of the Horus myth to accommodate it to a new audience. Check Zeitgeist out and learn.



For a deeper look into our monetary system and all its ills take a look at the second documentary by Peter Joseph. It has many interesting points:

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Crossroads...


Where do I go from here? Which path is right for me? Fear lurks in every direction.

The pain of debt. The humiliation of owing others. The sadism of interest. The masochism of borrowing.

Who's design was this?

Who masterminded this perfect storm? Who kept us ignorant of its ways?

Who lied to keep the wheels in motion? Who greased this ugly machine?

Who will liberate my madness? Where shall I go?

Monday, August 9, 2010

Moving to New York...


It's amazing how many people want to move to New York, the big exciting city. I meet so many people from other countries, including tourists, people here doing internships, as well as people from around the U.S. who come here and fall in love with the city and want to stay. I remember not that long ago, just back in the 90s when all I heard was negative things being said about New York. The crime, the pollution, the noise, the small apartments, foreigners! I still remember a time when people wanted to move out of New York so bad. Most of my white friends growing up moved out to suburbia during the 90s. I stayed and I'm glad I did.

I'm worried that my area will become too nice an as result, completely unaffordable. So what happened was the exact opposite of what the fears of my white friend's parents were worrying about. The areas got better instead of worse, crime went down instead of up. As a result of those white families moving out, the city became more ethnically diverse. This is a classic case of white flight: fear that minorities will bring crime up and reduce property values cause whites to flee to suburbia, resulting in those neighborhoods becoming much less white.

Now however, whites are moving back into New York, drawn to it by the culture and diversity, that was a result of earlier generations of whites moving out because of the increasing diversity. Irony works in mysterious ways.

I can definitely understand why one would want to move to NY. If I grew up anywhere else I'd want to live here too. Suburbia is boring, as is the country life. Nice places to visit, but not to live. So what does NY have to offer a newcomer? Nightlife, culture, history, and an incredible cityscape to envelope you. Market rate rents are atrocious, however. All the new construction is luxury apartments or condos designed and built for the upper middle class and the rich. I've long worried about the fate of the middle class in NY.

NY does offer the chance to live in a secular society unlike many parts of rural America. I couldn't believe how religious some people were when I was down south. They use religion like a crutch to cope with daily life. I can see the glow in their eyes, when they speak of the God that is out there who loves them personally, and cares about their suffering and wants them to be happy. These are all the things that make religion so appealing to its victims. You don't meet a whole lot of those kind of people in NY. The ones you do see who are like that in NY are usually shouting from a street corner or a subway train, while panhandling.

I'm glad I live in NY, and my area, Queens, is urban and diverse. It's not Manhattan, but still no doubt the city. I can only hope I live here for a long time.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Random Thoughts


Oh what is there to do on a Saturday night, when your friends are all broke and/or homeless? I guess that means it's time to write a blog.

There is a video of Christopher Hitchens on the internet now of him during Chemo therapy, bald with a few scraggly hairs. He looks bad, and his type of cancer, esophageal, which I never heard of before, doesn't have a kind record of survivability to its victims. So he may be on his deathbed. I hope not because I only just recently got into him, and I really want him to live as long as he can and remain as a loud voice for Atheism. If he dies I'll be really sad.



How has my life changed in the past year? I'm not sure. I have realized that I want to spread atheism around the world, to be a voice for it, and to instigate a new enlightenment for those people still stuck in the 20th century, or the 7th. What the world needs now is love, and secularism. No mosque at ground zero or anywhere else. No tax dollars of mine or anyone else to be used to print Korans for our prisoners; to pay the salaries of chaplains in our military; to drop Bibles out of U.S. military airplanes along the Afghan border; or to fund Jewish settlements on the West Bank for fanatical Zionists.

No no no no and no.

What else is on my mind?

The rich. High society. Something I'll probably never be a part of, and don't necessarily mind. Typewriters. What we used to use before computers. I wonder how scary it was to be a writer not have a computer, to not have a spell check, to have to print onto paper, which could be damaged or lost or to make a mistake on the last word of a well-written page, scary thoughts. I guess back then people had to be very good at spelling and grammar. I use spell check far too often to image having to use a typewriter. I guess you could always whiteout a mistake and retype over it. Did they have whiteout back then? When was it invented? Oh now I have to Wikipedia it. Just a moment....Ok it seems whiteout first appeared on the market in 1951. Earlier than I expected. So at least since 1951, typists and writers have been able to blot out mistakes. Still not as good as a delete button.

Angry drunks. I don't like them. Never got along with people who can't handle their liquor. I've known too many people who turn into complete assholes when they have a few drinks.

Food. Food is on my mind. I'm hungry. Time for some... KFC? I don't want to but I have little choice right now. It's late and New York City, contrary to what they say, does sleep.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Addiction...


I don't normally write about my personal life but I recently have become completely addicted to Google's SketchUp artist program. I have been spending the past 3 days making models of various buildings in Queens. I'm obsessed with Google Earth in general and can be on it for hours on end. Once I learned that I too can make 3D buildings like the thousands that are in Google Earth, I just couldn't stop. I've literally spent all my waking hours for the past 3 days making models. I even have skipped meals to continue models that take especially long.

It's crazy. I've made some good renderings though. I want to make models for all the tall buildings that are not inside Manhattan particularly in Queens. The other night I was up until 6 a.m. making models. I justify it by thinking that I'm not just doing it for me, I can share this with the entire world and benefit millions. Who doesn't benefit from their world in 3D? No one that's who. Some complex building models like the high rises that are in Long Island City can take 6 or more hours. Simpler buildings can take 20 minutes. I keep getting better at it every time I do another. I even want to do more now but its getting rather late and I don't want to be up until 6 a.m. another night.


I'm going to have to fight the urge.

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