"Time and the pure essence of Heaven, the moisture of the Earth, the powers of the Sun and the Moon all worked upon a certain rock, old as creation. And it became magically fertile. That first egg was named "Thought"...Elemental forces caused the egg to hatch. From it came a stone monkey. The nature of Monkey was irrepressible!"
---Saiyuki [1]
[1] Saiyuki is a 2006 Japanese historical TV drama based on the 16th Century Chinese story Journey to the West [2]. It is a successor to the popular 1970's TV show Saiyuki, known outside Japan as Monkey.
[2] Originally published anonymously in the 1590s during the Ming Dynasty, part of the novel's enduring popularity comes from the fact that it works on multiple levels: it is a first-rate adventure story, a dispenser of spiritual insight, and an extended allegory in which the group of pilgrims journeying toward India stands for the individual journeying toward enlightenment. More >
17 May 2008 @ 22:46 "Finally the day arrived! When the boy received the Sea-Monkey kit, he tore into the package with the humanoid characters on the front of the box. Sadly he was disappointed to find that inside the Sea-Monkey kingdom was really only a tiny plastic tank and a package of brine shrimp. No castle, no humanoids, no races, no tricks, no evolving colony. You really couldn’t interact with them in any meaningful way. You could only peep through the little magnifying glass spots on the side of the tank and watch them twitch. This was not at all what was advertised. How disappointing!"
The Sea Monkeys were spoofed on an episode in the sixth season of South Park called The Simpsons Already Did It. Cartman's sea people built a little underwater civilization and even a statue to him. More >
The Holy Mount Athos has always been a "barrier against which the waves of heresies would break"[1]. From ancient times this sublime institution, the domain of the Mother of God, which lived in accordance with Divine principles, has been the stronghold of Orthodoxy. In guarding the faith of the Holy Fathers, Athonites (hagiorites), for centuries, have been an example of piety to all... Having renounced the world and entirely dedicated himself to serving God, "a true monk fears neither the imperial purple, nor the mitre of a patriarch, and is prepared to endure anything joyfully and happily for the love of the Orthodox faith, which is his greatest treasure . ... Monastic hood does not bow before any masters who disdain the Divine Law and the Sacred Tradition, and who subject the Faith to sinful people desirous of worldly things, to people obedient to Satan." [2]
[1] Athonite monk-zealot Theoklitis Germanos, "Confession of Faith", in the collection Protestations Orthodoxes... , p. 62.
The Holy Mount Athos has always been a "barrier against which the waves of heresies would break"[1]. From ancient times this sublime institution, the domain of the Mother of God, which lived in accordance with Divine principles, has been the stronghold of Orthodoxy. In guarding the faith of the Holy Fathers, Athonites (hagiorites), for centuries, have been an example of piety to all... Having renounced the world and entirely dedicated himself to serving God, "a true monk fears neither the imperial purple, nor the mitre of a patriarch, and is prepared to endure anything joyfully and happily for the love of the Orthodox faith, which is his greatest treasure . ... Monastic hood does not bow before any masters who disdain the Divine Law and the Sacred Tradition, and who subject the Faith to sinful people desirous of worldly things, to people obedient to Satan." [2]
[1] Athonite monk-zealot Theoklitis Germanos, "Confession of Faith", in the collection Protestations Orthodoxes... , p. 62.
[2] Ibid., p. 63.
And do not forget to check under your bed before you turn the lights off at night...
An introduction to the science and art of perception management.
The phrase "perception management" is filtering into common use as a synonym for "persuasion." Public relations firms now offer "perception management" as one of their services. Similarly, public officials who are being accused of shading the truth are now frequently charged with engaging in "perception management" when disseminating information to media or to the general public.
Although perception management operations are typically carried out within the international arena between governments, and between governments and citizens, use of perception management techniques have become part of mainstream information management systems in many ways that do not concern military campaigns or government relations with citizenry. Businesses may even contract with other businesses to conduct perception management for them, or they may conduct it in-house with their public relations staff.
Perception management is a term originated by the U. S. military. The U. S. Department of Defense (DOD) gives this definition:
Actions to convey and/or deny selected information and indicators to foreign audiences to influence their emotions, motives, and objective reasoning as well as to intelligence systems and leaders at all levels to influence official estimates, ultimately resulting in foreign behaviors and official actions favorable to the originator's objectives. In various ways, perception management combines truth projection, operations security, cover and deception, and psychological operations.
16 May 2008 @ 20:41