Uncouth Reflections

Question Du Jour

Posted on October 1, 2014 by Paleo Retiree

Paleo Retiree writes:

Why are so many young Americans today (esp. of the white-and-privileged sort) not-OK with the idea that there’s a difference between messy, bad sex and rape? Is it mainly because everyone these days craves victim status? And, if so: Why on earth are we cultivating a culture that holds up victim status as something that’s to be passionately desired?

Related

Thank god for Camille Paglia.
Esther Perel is another brainy woman with a sensible, worldly view of sex. Here’s her fabulous book; here’s her latest column.
Those in a mood for a great anti-feminist rant might want to give a book by another Esther a look, Esther Vilar’s 1971 “The Manipulated Man.” It’s a little dated in some details, but Vilar’s generalizations about men and women — and especially about how women use men and men deceive themselves about women — hold up awfully well. There are good reasons why it’s become an underground classic. The Kindle version is only $4.99.
At my old blog I interviewed a woman who really was raped while a college student: Part One, Part Two. These days do I need to spell out that by “raped” I mean that she was raped in the traditional sense of “being forcibly penetrated under threat of physical harm”? I guess I do.

Posted in Politics and Economics, Sex | Tagged Lena Dunham, rape, sex | 31 Comments

Art Du Jour

Posted on October 1, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

Jean-Léon Gérôme, “Pollice Verso,” 1872

Click on the image to enlarge

Posted in Art | Tagged Academic art, Jean-Léon Gérôme | 3 Comments

Linkage

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

Michael Lewis says the “Ray Rice video of the financial sector has arrived.”
Eric Holder’s legacy of duplicity, incompetence, and obliviousness. BoingBoing reminds us that he pioneered the Too Big To Jail doctrine.
Fifty percent of Americans think crime has increased over the past two decades when in reality it has nearly halved. “To be precise, the F.B.I.’s count of violent crimes reported to law enforcement has declined from a rate of 747 violent incidents per 100,000 people in 1993 to 387 incidents per 100,000 people in 2012, which is the most recent year for which it has published complete data. This reflects the fact that over this period, the homicide rate has fallen by 51 percent; forcible rapes have declined by 35 percent; robberies have decreased by 56 percent; and the rate of aggravated assault has been cut by 45 percent. Property crime rates are also sharply down,” writes Justin Wolfers.
Virginia Postrel defends ousted Forbes columnist Bill Frezza. “Judging, or even acknowledging, the risky behavior of female college students has become a cultural taboo,” she writes.
Does “sexual violence” include “discounting the partner’s feelings regarding sex; criticizing the partner sexually; touching the partner sexually in inappropriate and uncomfortable ways; withholding sex and affection; always demanding sex”? The University of Michigan thinks so.
Is incest a “fundamental right”?
Have Americans lost control of our government because of too many complex laws? I’d say yes, but the problem goes hand-in-hand with the country being too big. Richard Epstein, in his book Simple Rules for a Complex World, discusses the issue of statutory rules written a priori as being inferior to judge-made law written in response to actual controversies.
It’s decorative gourd season, motherfuckers.
A French pulp fiction cover:

Posted in Linkathons | Leave a comment

Architecture Du Jour: The Wooden Churches of Chiloe

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

The remote, heavily forested Isla de Chiloe [in Chile]…is home to a remarkable set of wood churches, sixteen of which have been recognized by UNESCO World Heritage as “outstanding examples of the successful fusion of European and indigenous cultural traditions to produce a unique form of wood architecture.”

…It was Jesuit missionaries who first established the churches…the myths, spirits, and beliefs of the indigenous people became intertwined with the Catholic doctrine; this cultural fusion became enshrined in the unique wood structures that the Indians built under Jesuit instruction.

— Building Without Architects: A Global Guide to Everyday Architecture

Posted in Architecture | Tagged Catholicism, Chile, Chiloe, churches, South America, traditionalism, vernacular architecture | 5 Comments

Docs About Movies 4: “Side By Side”

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Paleo Retiree

Paleo Retiree writes:

Another in my series of looks at good documentaries-about-movies, a movie genre in its own right and one that strikes me as particularly healthy. Previous installments in this series are here, here and here. Today …

Side by Side

Straightforward, super-informative documentary, directed by Christopher Kenneally and narrated and co-produced by Keanu Reeves, about the changes digital tech has brought about in the movie business — in the industry itself as well as in the business’ creations. The film features a perfectly amazing collection of interviewees, from James Cameron and Martin Scorsese and Steven Soderbergh to execs, editors and cinematographers. Nearly all of them do great jobs of sharing experiences and insights, and nearly all of them are frank about the minuses as well as the pluses of the technology; this is no pro-digital propaganda piece. I’m a little perplexed about why the Jennifer Jason Leigh / Alan Cumming movie “The Anniversary Party” didn’t get a mention; it was one of the more interesting (IMHO, of course) of the earlier digital features. But let’s be grateful for what we do get, which is considerable. If you watch this movie, you’ll learn everything any civilian might reasonably want to know. Keanu’s a likably enthusiastic and (as you might expect) goofy interviewer, and the glimpses we get of the compact tools and teeny cameras used to make the very documentary we’re watching really help drive the film’s messages home.

Continue reading →

Posted in Computers, Movies, Personal reflections | Tagged documentaries, keanu reeves, movies | 2 Comments

Linkage

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Paleo Retiree

Paleo Retiree writes:

Slumlord picks a nit with Theodore Dalrymple.
Lloyd rediscovers the original-cast LP recording of “My Fair Lady.”
Were humans happier in the Stone Age? FWIW, I take this kind of question pretty seriously. Civilization can be a lot to put up with, you know?
Co-blogger Sir Barken Hyena, a man who knows his electronic currencies, tells me that this guy explains Bitcoin particularly well.
What about that supposed “rape epidemic“?
A great visit with Anthony Bourdain. As far as I’m concerned, Bourdain’s TV shows are 1) the closest thing we have these days to ’60s Gonzo journalism, as well as 2) better examples of balls-out ’70s-style filmmaking than anything Hollywood is currently turning out. I’m thinking of you, QT, David O. Russell and Paul Thomas Anderson.
There’s no going back, I’m afraid.
I loved this 1973 anti-feminist book by Esther Vilar. It’s a little out of date but it’s no period piece; there are good reasons why it’s become an underground classic as well as a livre maudit. It’s pretty damned daring. Most of what Vilar peddles as eternal truths about men and women hold up really well. And Vilar is scarily shrewd (as well as much more needlingly, scathingly insightful than a man could ever be) about the ways men let themselves be taken advantage of by the ladies, as well as the ways we deceive ourselves about them. The Kindle version is a bargain at $4.99.
It seems that not all the experts agree about how wonderful transgenderism is …
Steve Sailer wonders if there might be a connection between transgenderism and transhumanism. So does Jack Donovan.
Don’t forget to visit our NSFW Tumblr blog, where we share some of the crazy and goofy things that get our juices flowing.

Posted in Linkathons | Tagged Anthony Bourdain, bitcoin, books, Esther Vilar, Jack Donovan, Lloyd Fonveille, Paleo, Slumlord | 10 Comments

Movie Poster Du Jour: “Judex”

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

Italian poster for this 1963 take on the Feuillade classic. “Judex” was finally released on DVD a few months ago.

Posted in Commercial art, Movies | Tagged Film, France, Georges Franju, Italy, Judex, Movie Posters, movies | 2 Comments

Cocktail Du Jour (Sydney Hipster Bar Edition, Part 2)

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Eddie Pensier

Eddie Pensier writes:

“Dublin or Nothing” (Jameson, benedictine, peach, pineapple, ginger) and “Annabel Lee Martini” (raisin-infused gin, spiced maple syrup, orange, lemon) at the Baxter Inn, located in the same dingy central Sydney alleyway as The Barber Shop and certainly one of the finest cocktail establishments I’ve had the good fortune to patronize.

“Bon Vivant Milk Punch” (cognac, spice, vanilla, nutmeg, milk), served in a milk bottle.

Posted in The Good Life, Travel | Tagged cocktail du jour, cocktails | 6 Comments

Notes on “Vendetta of a Samurai”

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

Kazuo Mori’s semi-satirical action flick pops the bubble of valor surrounding the samurai genre. Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura – they’d later be featured in “The Seven Samurai” – play best friends who find themselves on opposite sides of a feudal spat. Their missions aren’t appealing: both are sworn to protect young men who are not worth protecting. The situation anticipates Peckinpah, but where Bloody Sam might have emphasized its romantic fatalism, Mori highlights the absurdity of its wastefulness. Still, like Peckinpah, Mori has a soft spot for the trappings of male camaraderie: The scenes between the sympathetic adversaries, while not belabored, are touching and heartfelt. (When the pair discuss their predicament over tea, their communication is largely subverbal. Beneath the pleasantries they’re sizing each other up; they’re also exchanging condolences.) Most of the picture occurs in individualized flashback, like “Citizen Kane,” as the members of Mifune’s team reflect on the five-year period during which they’ve pursued their quarry. In place of dissolves Mori uses hard cuts to transition into and out of these sequences. Though the editing is deft, and sound is used to help bridge the gaps, there’s no denying the temporal confusion this generates. I suspect that confusion is intentional: It’s Mori’s way of evoking the mindset of his warriors, who exist in a timeless state defined by fear and anticipation. This is an action movie in which the dead moments surrounding battles are more important than the battles themselves. In fact, I can’t think of a picture that works harder to undermine its action sequences. Most are cut so that they play out in isolated segments, devoid of momentum and the suspense generated by clearly delineated cause and effect. The movie’s one semi-traditional action bit occurs right at its start. It’s a fictionalized premonition of the sloppy, somewhat ignoble fight between Mifune and Shimura that closes the picture. In it we see Mifune slaughter 30 enemies in slapstick double-time. Intentionally overblown, it’s meant to reflect how history regards the battle — that is, as a grandiose spectacle rather than a descent into baseness. Akira Kurosawa wrote the screenplay. It’s available on Hulu Plus.