The Dog's Name

A Fresh Circle

2009-10-22T06:00:00.002+08:00

Sometimes when you keep a journal there comes a point when you reach the last page and the tome is full. At this moment you close the cover and shelve the thoughts within, reaching for a new volume you ease open the cover, gently crack the spine and allow the pen to flow anew and maybe even renewed.

My new tome, is a return to a place I once inhabited and for a while have desired to return to: whyistheplatypus? [link]

Last Next year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Why is the Platypus?

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, A New Blog, Why is the Platypus?

Capt. Obvious

2009-09-30T06:00:00.003+08:00

So I guess its a tad too obvious to state that the urge to write did not really return, or rather maybe it was lost somewhere on the east coast of Bali while I lazed away the days drinking, diving, and just reading the kinds of books that E@L despises.

What might not so obvious is that my lack of blogging is not in anyway an indication that I have neglected my inner-geek, in fact, the last few months have seen me pick up a copy of the re-released Space Hulk, re-awaken my wargaming urges, laugh way too hard at The Guild and the antics of Greg Dean at Real Life Comics, and spend way to much time at ArtFriend picking up all the bits and pieces I need to indulge an almost adult Lego like habit as I see what I can build from HirstArts.

Oh, and what might be even less obvious, and probably more telling as to my blogging absence is that I have picked up an off-line writing gig with the local publication of an International Women's magazine. So my creative finger dancing and once befuddled thoughts on dating, sex and all things men and relationships is now being polished by a professional editor and then published monthly for all to see. ~grin~

So the rant/angst/searching posts have a new outlet, and besides they have become hard to write since I am no longer searching, have little to rant about on the relationship front, and only occasionally feel angst, in other words, it's tough to write when all is well.

Which kind of leaves me looking for a new direction for this space, which might just lay in a direction that includes letting more of my inner-geek out for all to see.

But then again, since we all know the answer is 42...does it really matter what I regurgitate here?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Some More Cars

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Blogging, Writing

BRB

2009-07-09T06:00:00.002+08:00

I know the urge/motivation/inspiration to post again has just returned but for the next 2 weeks I will be enjoying both the relaxing and adventurous side of Bali, so, brb.

Crap In The News

2009-07-08T06:00:00.001+08:00

Apart from my daily reading of the smh.com.au another source I regularly read for a bit of "whot's goin on at ome" is news.com.au. So my "news" comes from both an online broadsheet and what could loosely be described as a tabloid, but this week they sunk to a new low* as they attempted to broadside Gordon Ramsey. Now "ole Gordo" is usually good for an expletive or two and is not shy of the old blow-up, but here he was dignified, respectful and I think spot on.

As for the "reviewer" the journalist sat next to at Maze, What did he think he was getting, you order a steak "well done", you have just asked the kitchen to cook it until its burnt to a cinder and has no flavour or juice left, and then you try to complain about it. And as for news.com.au trying to make this "news" worthy...FFS, if I hadn't been reading it on my MAC I would have used it to line the bottom of a bird cage.

In a week where papers, the TV, and the Inter-geek was flooded with messages about MJ, a poor little black kid who rejected his race and sought to squander his millions on plastic surgery to become white all while molesting little boys dominates the news, instead of focusing on the "deaths for oil" debacle that is the Middle East, or rather the thousands losing their jobs with no easing in sight, this instead is the best some papers can come up with...something is seriously wrong in the world.

*I think someone in the editorial team must have purchased the journalists in his team shovels.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Blank Slate

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Gordon Ramsey, News.com.au, Epic Fail

Man Stuff #1

2009-07-07T06:00:00.001+08:00

This has to be a simply amazing idea, every guy should have one, the Krups Beertender

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Blog Without Words

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Man Stuff, Boys Toys

72" Down

2009-07-03T06:00:00.000+08:00

So on the casual mention of a friend I decided to alter my daily ride and explore a path I had not taken knowing that it would flow into a path I had taken just a few days earlier.

...half way up a hill in a small fecund clearing a flower "decorated", or rather strewn mound reminds of a freshly interned burial plot and whether this is its purpose or not I have not stopped to investigate but from the quick glimpse I give it as I avoid nearby traffic its as close to an accurate description as I can give. The coast down the other side not to mention a break in traffic gives me a moment to reflect on graves and burial and I am reminded of those areas in Indonesia where relatives are buried until such time as the family can afford the wood for cremation, at which time up the family member comes and onto the wood pile. Whereas, until space and rising costs became a factor in the west they just tended to leave them in the buried state...6 feet down.

And as I rode up onto the foot path around a parked truck and then jumped from the gutter back to the road to avoid an old lady, I wondered...

...why six feet?

Well apparently it was the idea of the Lord Mayor of London in 1665 as a method to stop the plague spreading from a dead body to the living, a sort of earthy shroud of protection for the living. Later it made sense to stop scavengers from getting to the free meal, but it's no longer enforced or even the law, and after a poke around Google I found that California only requires 18 inches of dirt over the corpse...so shallow graves are not just the thing for crime stories and psycho killers getting rid of the evidence.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Something Buried

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Six Feet Under, Musings

Morning "blah"

2009-07-02T06:00:00.001+08:00

...slowly the sounds of the surrounding suburb aid in the waking up, the hiss of brakes, the slllssshhh of the street sweeper, the steady grumble of diesel trucks starting the days deliveries periodically interrupted by the clang of steel as surrounding construction sites come to life...

A general malaise punctuated by moments of levity but underscored by a very "run-down" feeling. Basically I feel tired and in need of a break, the irony of which is not lost on moi since I am on a holiday and the batteries seem to still be refusing a charge.

Every day a new "ache" to replace one that real or imagined is now replaced, an energy sucking humid heat, not scorching but more of a warm nature designed not to replace chills but drain, the remnants of the flu (cue: ~oink~ jokes) only adds to a sense of basic "blah".

Maybe it is the senseless directionless moments where purpose and action are at odds and instead of progress a steady feeling of retarding hangs over and haunts a static reality.

Maybe the simple thing is that I need to get laid...but since the libido seems to have taken itself off on a holiday without me even the urge to engage in such is buried in the "blah".

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Another Ache

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Over Thinking, Malaise

More Than Meets The Eye

2009-07-01T06:00:00.000+08:00

Transformers: While it might be true that the movie has a certain amount of charm and "watchability", no small measure of this can be attributed and is thanks to this:

As for the rest, this movie is pure escapist action, like a Clive Cussler novel devoured while relaxing on some tropical beach, this movie is a CGI roller-coaster of one-liners, matrix inspired slow motion fights, the heaving breasts of the aforementioned "charm" and lots of healthy explosions pined to a "let's save the world from evil aliens" scenario. In other words, it's a great flick, not the most high-brow or requiring of the deepest thoughts, but heck its as good as any of the other crap that LeBeouf guy has been in...and at least in this one he gets to the kiss the girl...a few times. ~grin~

NOTE: I figured if I was going to breathe some life into this old dog, who better to help me than Megan Fox. ~bigger grin~

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: The allspark

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Transformers 2, Megan Fox

Oh FFS

2009-04-29T06:00:00.000+08:00

I am not sure whether these complaints against Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull are so sad:

a. Because they are made by "small" people trying to make a noise to be heard, or,
b. That the world has sunk so low into the mire of political correctness that it is now impossible to have a good fictional adventure movie.

Personally, I wish people would just accept that its a fracken* movie, it does not have to be factual, it does not have to be sensitive to every culture, race, gender, or sexual bend**, all it has to be is a few hours of escapist fun...period.

* Random BSG quote
** Actually imagine a two hour movie that was sensitive to all those groups...it would be a blank screen, perhaps showing a spectrum of colours lest someone get offended by so much white, and we would stare at it for two hours while our brains melted and we gave that time away to a venture that is wasted and pointless.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="http://thedogsname.blogspot.com/2009/02/2-1-2.html">2-1=2

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, FFS, Humourless Twat

How To Choose...

2009-04-15T06:00:00.002+08:00

...a career.

"The only thing I was fit for was to be a writer, and this notion rested solely on my suspicion that I would never be fit for real work, and that writing didn't require any."
- Russell Baker

Writing has been a bit slow* at the moment, and while I blame it on work and perhaps more importantly, trying to find a new cave, the truth is I am happy and have less to write about while I have a smile on my face...ohhh and maybe because the camera has been more and more replacing words.

* ok...stopped.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="http://thedogsname.blogspot.com/2008/04/when-to.html">When To

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Life, A New Cave

Politicians = Dumb

2009-04-13T06:00:00.000+08:00

It is hard to believe that not only could a politician actually say something like this, but then be unrepentant in the face of criticism?

So while I admire the lady for standing up for what she believes and holding true to her words, this has to go down as one of, if not the, dumbest thing said ever,

"Asians should change their names to make them ‘easier for Americans to deal with."
- Texas State Rep. Betty Brown(R)

From here.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Hopefully, a New Cave

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Dumb Things Said, WTF

Spare the Rod

2009-03-29T06:00:00.002+08:00

I really can't wait to hear what E@L thinks of this.

...personally, there is a huge difference between physical punishment as a consequence of choice and action and abuse, but the do-gooders can't see that. And laughingly there has to be some irony that the very parents that threaten "you ever hit my kid" are the very same kids who lack discipline and focus. Once upon a time, the threat of the cane kept many an unruly child on the right side of the behaviour line...now what do we do? Ohhh...that's right, we drug the kid instead.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Back 2 Sq 1

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Thinking, Boundaries, Schooling

Freedom...What's That?

2009-03-18T06:00:00.000+08:00

"Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot"

Seems like the political ideas explored in V are becoming more and more to fruit as some Governments clamp down on anything that seems to disagree with the view they want the people to see. Censorship is alive and well, so is propaganda and limits of freedom, surely brainwashing cannot be too far behind.

Hitler's view of total control is just taking longer to come about than the Fuhrer wanted.

And as for freedom, it does not exist!

Meanwhile the British Govt. continues to limit the powers of photojournalists while clinging to the Bush spouted "terrorism" mantra...and in the end all that happens is that the truth gets trampled as a Govt attempts to insulate the rich from the poor and separate itself from the policies it has not the stomach to change.
Here, here, here, here and here.

Machiavelli would be proud.

NOTE: I wonder how long it will take for a tourist to be arrested for taking photos near Downing St or outside the Palace?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Photo of a Copper

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Photography, Civil Freedoms

Questions...

2009-03-16T06:00:00.001+08:00

A recent comment (ok, very recent) hinted that it is far too easy to find out information about complete strangers on the internet...and as I read it I went through the gamut of thoughts...the sinking feeling of another stalker, identity theft, then some anger, some blog closing questions and then I thought WTF?

As in...

The dropping of such a comment by a basically anonymous source is one that I find a little perplexing, as in, why would you bother to try and find out information about strangers? Why can't you be content to let people have their own little space to explore and show what they want of themselves? And the the wry, don't you have a life?

But then I got thinking...

Maybe this is the path of anyone who tries to maintain some separation between their writing space and the the one they live in? Even allowing for the blurring of the line between such, maybe it is the simple hazard that goes with using a nickname, and maintaining a small semblance of "gap" between a digital life and a breathing analog one?

Maybe the internet is more a reflection of the world than we would like to admit, maybe just as people seek to improve, reflect and look upon their world with a little light, their are those who also seek to ensure that we only see it through shadows?

Maybe the separation is the problem, trying to see them as apart when really they are one...trying to keep a small division that in some measure compartmentalizes a life.

Ahh... too many questions for a Monday morning, but yet at the Rubicon I once more stand, the threat of revelation from someone who may have something to gain from such if even to only satisfy a destructive urge begs the question...leave, or offer up more transparency in the face of such, and therefore transform the "nick" into just that?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Only Dusty Questions

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Questions, Thinking

Canon - POTY

2009-03-11T06:00:00.002+08:00

This is a shameless plug to get me more votes, but it will only really apply to:

a. Those of you who know my name, and,
b. Those of you who can be bothered to register with Canon.
c. Those of you actually living in Singapore.

I have decided to enter the monthly competition for the Canon Photographer of the Year, so if you have nothing better to do, follow the links, register and vote. Even if you don't know me, you might see some good photographs and might vote for me without meaning too because I deserve it rather than I "guilted" you into it with this shameless plug ~grin~

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A New Camera

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Canon, Photographer of the Year

Religious Thinking...

2009-03-10T06:00:00.000+08:00

So a belief in a god is merely a mistake of social cognition.

mmm...as for the people who believe that for religion to evolve and to have lasted it must have offered some sort of benefit to society...that's an easy one, it provided social cohesion and an easy framework for those in control to stay in control.

Or even better...

"The hope given by religious beliefs to people confronting their own mortality might provide motivation to care for their offspring."

If one is given a life beyond this one, then making sure this one is "good" becomes more important. If life just ends, then personal happiness, thoughts of self, and acting for "the one" become more important than acting for others or in "social cohesion"...

Maybe, we had a need for religion to provide that "pause" before someone did wrong, much the same way as the law and "getting caught" does now? Maybe the purpose of religion has never been in its "good" but rather in the threat of punishment it offered for transgression...that simple pause that stops most people from breaking the social cohesion of the group and instead pursuing the selfish desires of self? Maybe its always been more about the "hell and damnation" than it ever was about the "heavenly peace"?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Ruth Fowler

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Religion, Thinking

A Life Wasted

2009-03-09T06:00:00.002+08:00

In this little part of the world recently a NTU student upon having a scholarship revoked for poor academic performance stabbed one of his professors and then slitting his wrists jumped to his death from the top of one of the university buildings.

So while I feel for the innocent lecturer currently recovering from the attack, and I feel for the family who are left with so many unanswered questions and only their feelings of loss, for the departed I can think of only one thing...

...coward.

V. Cawley* writes on his blog,

"A scholar is a scholar. Once good enough to secure a scholarship, they should be free to work in their own way. Genuine scholars will pursue their subjects with passion...there is no need to further harass them over grades."

The deceased was not a scholar, he was a student. While one day he may have hoped to be a scholar, his current work was one of repetition and regurgitation to satisfy an institutional set of hoops designed to "pretend" that the "bit of paper" was worth the money and effort put in, while in truth is merely a stepping stone to a better paying job. There is nothing terribly scholarly about an undergrad degree, it is merely a path to more money and maybe a scholarly path if one chooses to pursue further studies.

"Think of the situation he was in. He was late in his degree. If withdrawal of his scholarship meant that he could not complete it, all his effort would have been in vain... ...He would have had to leave the University without a degree... ...It could be said that they killed him and nearly killed Professor Chan Kap Luk."

(Note: I have omitted certain passages in the above paragraph, go read them if you feel inclined), there are many ways a student without his scholarship could finish his degree, he could seek part time work or he could apply for a loan, and as followup articles show his parents are quite wealthy and the 3K+ he needed to complete his studies would have easily been provided. The university did not kill him, his failure to own up to the responsibility of his own decision is what killed him, if the universities decision had killed him then I must question the mental state of the individual before such.

"Let all future scholarships be unconditional."

This is the worst idea I have ever heard. This would be like a company paying you ahead of the fact simply because you were good enough to be hired. Life, especially working life has certain benchmarks one must attain regularly if you want to be paid. This young man agreed to a scholarship, he sought it out, applied for it, and was granted it on condition of academic performance. He failed to live up to his side of the agreement that's why it was revoked. Why he killed himself, will unfortunately for the family likely forever be a mystery.

Is his death sad, somewhat**...but what is sadder is that society will chose to mistake a young-mans inability to own his choices, accept his responsibility and "grow into a man" as a failure of society and the systems in place, rather than see it as a young man's cowardly choice to take an easy way out. We will blame the scholarship system rather than the system that taught him he was entitled to something for nothing, and that he did not have to honour his word, and be true to his agreements. We will look for all manner of excuses and blame the pressure of a system that does produce results and true scholars and instead seek to "ease" such and take comfort in mediocrity and a delusional belief that all of us are capable of anything. We will seek to create further cushions for the young so that they feel valued, cared for, loved and live with a sense of equity, and in doing so we will do them a disservice we will not prepare them for adulthood, we will teach them that "bail outs" are the norm and that failure is not something to be triumphed over. We will remove risk, the need for effort and encourage a oneness that denies strive and seeks not to advance over setback but expects that all comes easy and such setbacks are removed and replaced.

We will create a society where all think they are entitled to be anything they want, without the tempering realism that entitlement requires effort, sweat and sometimes tears, that to be anything one must want it, and be prepared to struggle...but instead we seek to hood people with the idea that we are all capable of being anything and doing anything.

We are not, and we can not.

Some of us accept who we are, what we can do, and more importantly what we have to do in order to honour ourselves and the words we give.

What is sad, is that some do not.

UPDATE: Reading TOC's update on this matter, I have to shake my head and think coward all over again. Reading the comments at this post, I agree with some of them, if you do not want the pressure then avoid such schools. And if something else was going on in this young man's life that contributed to his desire to end it, then we should not be blaming an institution for revoking a scholarship after so many warnings.

* This is most definitely not an attack on this man or his blog, his usual examination of educational practices I feel are spot on, but on this matter he and I are at opposite poles, un-tested, and without-condition scholarships, amounts to being paid before you do a job, this is a recipe for mediocrity, general slackness, and would only contribute to a sense of entitlement and "deserving" that is already responsible for many of the worlds current problems.
** I am not being cold here, but the truth is getting sad over an individual with whom I did not know is not part of who I am, or who many are. His impact on my life was nil, and while he may have gone on to "great things" I am not one to mourn possibilities. IT is sad for those he leaves behind, his death is a waste, another tragic tale of lacked responsibility and a life lost to a gaming addiction, but hardly sad.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Tragic TAle

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, A Wasted Life, Integrity

Sex Offender

2009-03-06T06:00:00.000+08:00

When I read this all I could think was: you know if she was a man she would be in Gaol.

When I read the same story at a different paper with a different picture all I could think was: you know if she had not used the oppressed Muslim woman defence she would be in Gaol. Calling it a "sheltered life" and bringing up the fact she was forbidden from mixing with boys, does not change the fact that if she were a man she would be in Gaol tonight.

I mean WTF! Since when has immaturity been a defence for a sex crime.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="">

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Sex Offender, Gender Bias, WTF

Vote For ...

2009-03-03T06:01:00.001+08:00

A good buddy of mine has a chance of winning a Wild Card entry for, THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD. So vote for him here.

And yes, this is a blatant attempt to send his entry viral, and secure a free place to holiday on the Great Barrier Reef. ~grin~

Last Week Away

2009-03-03T06:00:00.008+08:00

I spent last week in West Australia, a first for me since I had yet to visit that side of my home country, so my posts last week were all pre-written and posted ahead of time*, thus the lack of comment replies. And so while it may take me a few days to get re-organised and back into the swing of things here are a few photos from the trip to share a glimpse of what I saw and were I went. ~grin~

* A nice feature that Blogger finally added some time ago, but which I had not really tried until now.

NOTE: It was almost a year ago that Gary Gygax died...next to Tolkien he probably was a hugely influential part on my geeky development from larval to pupae stages

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed:

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Travels, Photography, Australia

Worst Things Said

2009-02-26T06:00:00.001+08:00

Without a doubt the 2 worst things a woman can say to a man are:

We need to talk
I am going to get my hair cut.

Closely followed by:

Did you know there was a dent in the ute/truck/car/pride and joy?
Do you think my friend {insert name} is cute?
Do these jeans make me look fat?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: An Old Master

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Women, Wisdom

Men = Visual Creatures

2009-02-25T06:00:00.000+08:00

"I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way."
- Jessica Rabbit.

It was a team of cartoonists who imagined the curves, the flowing hair, the (over) emphasized decolletage, not to mention the legs that went all the way up, a dress designed to defy gravity as it appeared painted over the aforementioned form. As a team they knew exactly what they were doing when they created Jessica, they knew both the image they were creating and the pinup poster (think Elvgren) male visual trigger they were pulling?

Men are visual.

Not a single Bloke in the Pub would disagree with that statement, I know I couldn’t…since it sums up the trigger that is most likely to excite and arouse me...long before she actually touches me, its all about her look.

I have never made it a secret that for me the look starts at the pavement, lingers up the legs, pauses over the curve of hip and bum, enjoys the taut expanse of gently muscled belly, races higher, takes in her neck, glances at her hair, moves to take in her lips and then finally rests on her eyes.

How long does this take? Well I guess that depends on her distance from me, how good the visual is, and perhaps most importantly whether she welcomes such a “study”, or finds its disturbing...and that is all dependent on how much she likes me?

And so while Mrs. Rabbit is the embodiment of all the triggers a team of men in an animation department can imagine for both themselves and for their friends, I myself am not so pen-wieldingly exacting and only require a little less in the visual feast to say “yes”.

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed:

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Men, Dating, Wisdom

I Like My...

2009-02-23T06:00:00.001+08:00

i like my body when it is with your
body. It is so quite new a thing.
Muscles better and nerves more.
i like your body. i like what it does,
i like its hows. i like to feel the spine
of your body and its bones, and the trembling
-firm-smooth ness and which i will
again and again and again
kiss, i like kissing this and that of you,
i like, slowly stroking the, shocking fuzz
of your electric fur, and what-is-it comes
over parting flesh ... And eyes big love-crumbs,

and possibly i like the thrill

of under me you so quite new

ee cummings, from poemhunter.com

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Papyrus

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Poetry, Thinking

The OPC Entitlement

2009-02-20T06:00:00.001+08:00

I read this, and like much I read (even Clive Cussler) it got me thinking...

The problem with this economic crisis is that we were driven to it, in no small part, by a "sense of entitlement" and a misguided belief that seems to have settled on society that we are "supposed" to have things and that we are entitled to things we did not earn.

Social leftists, well meaning equitists*, those with intents derived from some conscious of social equality have eroded concepts of competition. Governments reinforce this societal behavior with their policies of equity, the socialist belief that all should have exactly the same regardless of how much they give or deserve such. Education systems drown in a mediocrity as misguided parents cling to the idea their kids are "special" and "gifted" and instead academic rigour is eroded and the value of certificated awards is lessened, all in the name of equity and the concept of a "fair go".

And in the middle is a growing generation that believes it "deserves", that passes on an expectation to it's progeny and yet does nothing to work for, and worse does nothing to care-take.

When society measures the success of a man by the car he drives, the thickness of his portfolio, or upon which street he receives his mail, then I for one hope the economic downturn lasts a long time, and further that from the economic rubble we return to concepts like honesty, integrity, and the most simple idea of "an honest day's pay for an honest day's work". And not to be too Ann Rand about it, but all of us are not equal, nor should we be.

I hope we learn to reach out to help our neighbour and break down the tall fences society has taught us to erect as a shield from others and instead we truly return to a time when character was valued more than assets, and when words were valued as they were uttered and not as the ink of lawyers dried.

But then maybe there is a little too much Mel Fisher in me and I am simply a pie-eyed dreamer.

* Yes, I made this word up. Since it's my blog I am allowed too. ~grin~

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Wine Filled Valley

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Economic Entitlement, Thinking

The Character of Games

2009-02-18T06:00:00.002+08:00

One of the most interesting things about sport is that is it can bring out the best and the worst of nearly anyone involved, the crowd, the officials, the players and more-so perhaps the coaches and managers. Otherwise reasonable even pleasant people who exhibit great humility bordering on graciousness in victory become snarling, sniping, crows in defeat. They seek redress, the look for blame, the hurl insults and taunts, usually at officiating and they reveal the very worst of their character.

The niggling back chatter of the losing coach, phrased in such to offer guidance, hiding behind a veneer of "indignant innocence" that seeks only that things be called consistent and "fair", punctuated with a "sir, or a maam", as gender dictates, reflect more of the individual than they realise.

The fear of failure, the fear of ill-prepared athletes, the fear of a job not done, is deftly shifted and blame is laid at the feet of another, and never with honest congratulations into the hands of the opposition who have worked harder and quite simply were more hungry for the laurel.

Once when athletes won only a ring of leaves or maybe only the right to their evening meal they contested with everything, they held nothing back and they, if the contest did not include death, offered real thanks and congratulations to the victors. Today we see too many offer pithy words as the pursuit of dollar has overtaken the worth of testing competition.

Instead we see the failures of those who control the sport reflected by the athletes and the sinking of it as a test of self to one measured in trinkets and baubles...instead we see the lowest of character, the ill-prepared making excuses and looking furtively for someone to blame.

Has sport come to reflect society or rather does society simply reflect its athletes?

The Dog's Name

A Fresh Circle

Last Next year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Why is the Platypus?

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, A New Blog, Why is the Platypus?

Capt. Obvious

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Some More Cars

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Blogging, Writing

BRB

Crap In The News

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Blank Slate

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Gordon Ramsey, News.com.au, Epic Fail

Man Stuff #1

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Blog Without Words

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Man Stuff, Boys Toys

72" Down

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Something Buried

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Six Feet Under, Musings

Morning "blah"

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Another Ache

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Over Thinking, Malaise

More Than Meets The Eye

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: The allspark

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Transformers 2, Megan Fox

Oh FFS

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="http://thedogsname.blogspot.com/2009/02/2-1-2.html">2-1=2

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, FFS, Humourless Twat

How To Choose...

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="http://thedogsname.blogspot.com/2008/04/when-to.html">When To

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Life, A New Cave

Politicians = Dumb

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Hopefully, a New Cave

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Dumb Things Said, WTF

Spare the Rod

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Back 2 Sq 1

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Thinking, Boundaries, Schooling

Freedom...What's That?

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Photo of a Copper

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Photography, Civil Freedoms

Questions...

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Only Dusty Questions

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Questions, Thinking

Canon - POTY

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A New Camera

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Canon, Photographer of the Year

Religious Thinking...

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Ruth Fowler

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Religion, Thinking

A Life Wasted

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Tragic TAle

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, A Wasted Life, Integrity

Sex Offender

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: href="">

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Sex Offender, Gender Bias, WTF

Vote For ...

Last Week Away

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed:

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Travels, Photography, Australia

Worst Things Said

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: An Old Master

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Women, Wisdom

Men = Visual Creatures

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed:

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Men, Dating, Wisdom

I Like My...

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Papyrus

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Poetry, Thinking

The OPC Entitlement

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: A Wine Filled Valley

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Economic Entitlement, Thinking

The Character of Games

Last year in the Temple of Doom, Indiana unearthed: Some New Texts

Technorati Tag: The Dogs Name, Sportsmanship, Thinking