Sorry I Didn't Give Money To Stop Kony, But I Did Pledge $50 For This ...

I confess: I am a jaded postmodernist, generally skeptical about the ability of any nonprofit agency to do actual good in the world. Every now and then I see requests for donations on facebook but I can’t remember ever actually giving money. Even for causes I care about. And to be honest, that’s first of all because I’m stingy. Second because I’m lazy. Thirdly, I get nervous making financial transactions online. And then also, I get paralyzed by cynicism.

But for some reason, this project made me stop and decide to open my wallet. (And then I found out they may not even take my money after all—which was kind of emotionally confusing—“Oh, good, I might get to keep my money” but also “Oh, bad, maybe they won’t get enough support to make their movie.”)

This is the article that I first read (most of—well, okay, really just the parts that interested me). To summarize: it’s the story of author Alisa Valdes’ disgust at certain mainstream Hollywood producers’ rejection of her pitch for a t.v. show (based on her bestselling novel) about a diverse group of Latinas because (she tells us they said) they wanted to limit themselves to more stereotypical portrayals of Hispanic women. And sure enough, one of the studios she was in talks with (Lifetime) but could not reach an agreement with is now (unsurprisingly) coming out with a show about sexy Latina maids.

So Valdes is now trying to raise enough money to produce independently a movie based on her book. That’s ambitious. And definitely, to my mind, a worthy goal.

I love this idea, first of all, because it’s not like giving to so many national or international charitable organizations where there’s a real question as to what, exactly, your money will accomplish. Here, you know that a movie is going to be produced. Art will be created. And that is an end in itself.

Also, the more people support small budget films, ultimately, the less people’s attitudes will be shaped by mainstream media (which relies to a horrifying, revolting extent upon stereotyping, sexual exploitation, hackneyed tropes, and other undesirable appeals to the lowest common denominator in taste[lessness]).

So, now I’m doing my part to spread the word. Support better art; support a better world! (-: Read about the project and perhaps you'll be inspired to make a pledge, too.

Bird Project, Panel 1: California Quail (mama with four chicks)

I'm planning nine panels for this project--which would make it a "triple triptych" or "ennea-tych," I guess.

This first panel depicts the state bird of California. I completed it a little while ago, but thought it would be appropriate to post it on Mothers' Day. (Note: I know it's "supposed" to be "Mother's Day," but that just doesn't make sense to me.) Happy day of honoring mothers, everyone!

Human Life Or Cheap T-Shirts: What Matters More To You?

The death toll for the collapsed garment factory in Bangladesh reached 500 yesterday. At least 501 people are dead.

I read in this Associated Press article that back in November (after 112 factory workers died in a fire), "clothing brands and retailers continued to reject a union-sponsored proposal to improve safety throughout Bangladesh's $20 billion garment industry." Apparently, they didn't think consumers would be willing to pick up the extra costs.

I feel like I ought to say something about how it may be perfectly natural for us Americans to have a much stronger emotional response to the death of three people at a bombing of the Boston Marathon--after all, most of us know someone who has run in a marathon or have even run or watched one ourselves. But only the very tiniest percentage of Americans knows anyone who works in a sweatshop in Bangladesh. The vast majority of us cannot imagine what the lives of Bangladeshi factory workers are like at all. 

And it's only to be expected that people would sincerely "wish there was something they could do to help" in the case of a national tragedy like the one in Boston--but that they'd have a very difficult time talking or even thinking about how their actions and choices might help to prevent future industrial disasters in developing nations.

I don't want to "preach" about this. I can't take a stand of righteous indignation, not least of all because I buy my clothes at thrift stores and Target; I have not myself taken the principled stand of purchasing only from fair-trade organizations or sewing my own clothing.

And, like I said, it's understandable and completely unsurprising that people would be callous and unmoved by the unimaginably horrendous accident in Bangladesh that they're still sorting through the rubble from right now. It's only to be expected that we all just want to put the responsibility on the Bangladeshi government--and it is their responsibility. But we are ignoring or justifying the role that we ourselves play in the system by purchasing cheap goods which we might have guessed were produced in sweatshops with unsafe working conditions. It's understandable. It's not surprising. But it's also sickening and sad and terrible.

Anyway, at least some folks think that major improvements in safety could be made in Bangladeshi factories without dramatically increasing prices. This article suggests that all it might take is some pressure from consumers on the brands they buy to start seeing some positive changes. Now all we need is some folks to start campaigns of making phone calls, writing letters and emails and signing petitions and stuff, right? Hm ...

Found an Amazing Blog! ("Jyoti Art Ashram")

Nowadays especially, I am always on the lookout for great artwork with spiritual themes and did I ever hit the jackpot stumbling across this blog: Jyoti Art Ashram! OH MY GOSH IT'S INCREDIBLE!!!

I absolutely, instantly fell in love with this mandala of the shepherd with a hundred sheep who seeks out the one that is lost; a revival of my all-time favorite genre/style: medieval Europe, pre-Renaissance.

And look at this gorgeous painting of the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus at his baptism!

And this one of "Guru Jesus and his fiery sermon"!

And I LOVE this one of "Jesus the Healer"--depicted as a member of the Dalit/"untouchable" caste.

And this joyful sketch of the healing of the paralytic, and this fascinating image of the "Trinity in the landscape," and this one of a 15th century mystic poet, Kabir.

Wow wow wow! That's what I have to say!

The only bad thing about this blog is that it hasn't been updated recently and it's kind of hard to navigate. In fact, the only way to find one of the brightest gems in the collection is to scroll halfway down this page to the "Surya Namashkar" entry, which is a series of yoga poses, beautifully illustrated, of the stations of the cross!

Let me just repeat that for anyone who failed to catch the absolutely amazing awesomeness of that the first time: it's a beautifully illustrated series of yoga poses for praying the stations of the cross!!!!!!!

I feel like I just discovered a buried treasure chest filled with wonders beyond my imagining!

"How To Make Six Figures Online"

A few weeks ago I went to a free lecture on how to make six figures on the internet. It was pretty good. The guy who gave the talk shared his experiences and the strategies that ended up working for him.

The primary take-away for me was that you can make buckets of money on the internet if you really want to--but you have to really want it, and it's a ton of work.

Personally, I have never particularly wanted to make a lot of money, so I probably never will. I would guess that's true of most people. Anyone likes the sound of "six figures" but very few want the money badly enough to do the work required to earn it.

So, lesson number one is, most people should stop complaining about how little money they make. If it were a higher priority, they could be making plenty more. They just don't care enough to get off their butts and do it. (And I mean most Americans, by the way--can't say about people in other countries.)

And then the other lesson is, you can accomplish all kinds of things that seem beyond the reach of ordinary people if you're passionate enough about it.

Someday I hope to write some books that will actually be accepted by a publisher ... but at the present time, it's not a high enough priority in my life to actually happen. I think that's okay, though--what all is going on in my life now is future grist for the writing mill ...

Jesus' Donkey: symbol of what, exactly?

Typical Palm Sunday interpretation: Jesus rode a peaceful donkey instead of a war horse to indicate his non-violent intention. However, I've also heard it suggested that donkeys were better animals for waging war on rocky hillsides where horse-drawn chariots were useless--so, donkeys were still a symbol of war, but they represented the indigenous underdog using guerrilla tactics, as contrasted with the big and powerful armies of a foreign invading empire. Perhaps there's room for both meanings--we could imagine the crowds taking the second interpretation (hoping for a violent revolution) whereas Jesus intended the first (as was demonstrated soon after). Or we could take Jesus' act as transforming a symbol of the people's resistance into something even more powerful.

Stupid Brain Stem Wants To Subdue That Chevy

Sometimes psychologists make a big deal about the "reptilian brain." They're referring to the brain stem, thought to be the earliest part of the brain to evolve, which controls very basic, unconscious processes (heart rate, breathing, etc.)--as contrasted with the limbic system, which is said to be the seat of emotions, and the neocortex, which enables us to reason. It's said that threatening situations trigger the reptilian brain's fight or flight instinct, which overrides rational processes. I've never found the supposed applications of this concept to everyday life to be very meaningful or helpful, with one exception.

The "fight" instinct always kicks in when I'm walking across the street and a car is approaching at a high speed. Although the calculations of my neocortex would indicate impact is very unlikely (it's rare that a motorist would intentionally mow down a pedestrian rather than stopping at a red light), an uncontrollable instinct takes over for a moment, and my body automatically stops in the middle of the road and braces itself for mortal combat with the oncoming vehicle. It only lasts for a moment, but it happens every time. No matter how many times the neocortex tries to inform the brain stem (for future reference) that "flight" would be a better option than "fight" in those cases, the stupid reptilian brain simply never learns.

Have other people experienced this? Do I have an overactive "fight" response, or what?