May 2 lecture blog

“Our fine arts were developed, their types and uses were established, in times very different from the present, by men whose power of action upon things was insignificant in comparison with ours. But the amazing growth of our techniques, the adaptability and precision they have attained, the ideas and habits they are creating, make it a certainty that profound changes are impending in the ancient craft of the Beautiful. In all the arts there is a physical component which can no longer be considered or treated as it used to be, which cannot remain unaffected by our modern knowledge and power. For the last twenty years neither matter nor space nor time has been what it was from time immemorial. We must expect great innovations to transform the entire technique of the arts, thereby affecting artistic invention itself and perhaps even bringing about an amazing change in our very notion of art.”
The whole sphere of authenticity is outside technical – and, of course, not only technical – reproducibility. Confronted with its manual reproduction, which was usually branded as a forgery, the original preserved all its authority; not so vis-à-vis technical reproduction. The reason is twofold. First, process reproduction is more independent of the original than manual reproduction. For example, in photography, process reproduction can bring out those aspects of the original that are unattainable to the naked eye yet accessible to the lens, which is adjustable and chooses its angle at will. And photographic reproduction, with the aid of certain processes, such as enlargement or slow motion, can capture images which escape natural vision. Secondly, technical reproduction can put the copy of the original into situations which would be out of reach for the original itself. Above all, it enables the original to meet the beholder halfway, be it in the form of a photograph or a phonograph record. The cathedral leaves its locale to be received in the studio of a lover of art; the choral production, performed in an auditorium or in the open air, resounds in the drawing room.

     I get that when you copied something, you didn't get the real thing.  Because for something to be seen or heard by a third party supplier of evidence, you could not get the nature of something.  But because time goes by and history fades with generations that die, recordings in the masses can be used technologically to the point out things we couldn't detect with our own eyes.  Hence there is progress.  Original pertains to the time it was recorded.  The present pertains  to how it was done and what it meant to us historically, socially, and technologically. It seems that original meant a sense authenticity, which was valued then. It give us a chance to look back.

April 25 Lecture.. Bridging Culture with politics

In war, when shells fly past our bodies at high speeds, we sense clearly that no level of intelligence, virtue, or fortitude is strong enough to deflect them, not even by a hair. To the extent this threat increases, doubt concerning the validity of our values forces itself upon us.

but it has also produced a long series of practical measures typical for the human spirit of the past century, such as–to name just a few–the abolition of torture and the slave trade, the discovery of electricity, vaccination against measles,

Born in full enjoyment of all these blessings now taken for granted, it seems to us as if in truth rather little has changed

Since Liberalism fades out and totalitarianism is the new progress.
War and evil is what affords us the pleasures.
This concept then means from these previous  passages that we must see things accordingly.

I see these group of statements to be hinting that we do not associate pleasure with pain.  Pain is felt at the moment by the indvidual fighting to build our power to choose our pleasures.. But to associate pain with pleasure is not possible. We create values in reflection of pleasure.  We do not associate pleasure with pain.
But we want be sure that we do not misunderstand what pleasure means.  There are sacrifices.  However, the sacrifices can have consequences.  We may be made to think that we can come to expect peace.  However, in order to maintain peace, there is pain.   Pain can be the harmful actions that we overlook to procure values and pleasures.  We have to watch our back at all times. We enjoy pleasure, but with a doubt that nothing is permanent.  We also experience pleasure it as a uniform society. But politics will deal with the pains to organize pleasures of life  through technology  We want freedom and pleasures, but we have to make sacrifices of evil actions to make it possible. If we share things, we may have to deal with a consequence of how we use or develop with our pleasures of life. Nothing is permanent. Progress is made through control, not by enjoying pleasure

March 28th Lecture on Weber

A passage from Weber in the Lecture.


Will you simply and dully accept world and occupation? Or will the third and by no means the least frequent possibility be your lot: mystic flight from reality for those who are gifted for it,


This quote is stating that it wants to know if the person assigned to public service is wanting to do it full time or part time as a vocation.  Is he discipline to follow the assignment which consist of passion and non emotional discipline.  Weber is asking are you loyal and committed enough to follow the procedures of your Ruler or are you more geared to emotional interaction with your land and production from your following.  He also states that it is delusional to think that you would think it is effortless. Since the knowledge and rules may not agree with the serviceman, it may get into his soul.  So he wants to know if the structure is there to do what he is told or will his emotions get in the way.

Albie March 21 lecture

Article 109
All Germans are equal in front of the law.
In principle, men and women have the same rights and obligations.
Legal privileges or disadvantages based on birth or social standing are to be abolished.
Noble titles form part of the name only; noble titles may not be granted any more.
Titles may only be granted, if they indicate an office or occupation; academic degrees are not affected by this regulation.
The state may no more bestow orders and medals.
No German may accept titles or orders from a foreign government.

Article 181
The German people, by the means of its national assembly, has passed and ratified this constitution. It takes force on the day of its proclamation.

Article 108
In accordance with a law, a supreme court will be established for the German Reich.

Second Part
Basic rights and obligations of the Germans

Article 1 The German Reich is a republic. State authority derives from the people.

If I am to interpret these two articles as a whole, what I understand is that they have a federal government. However, it seems to have a wording of central control, rather than an individual state control.  Since it cannot simply run as individual state policies, but only federally, I sense a mechanism for dictatorship to blossom here in this format.  It seems to have the right idea in terms of supreme courts and federal government with Article 108.

With article one, it also seems to imply that what is best for the people is what its purpose it.  However, the basic rights and obligations title seems to have an undertone of possible interpretation from a government official clash from administration to administration.  These articles are too loosely worded. Since everything is federal, something can go wrong with the interpretations from region to region.

109-181

These articles depict that under 181, protesting is forbidden.  You can't tell someone that laws are permanent and are enforced without a protest.

Then, 109 is stating that the German is to be loyal to his country and not abide by any rules from foreign countries.  It also states that no special family name is going to get you any special privilege status. I you are part of a political party, it is because of the office or occupation that you declare with your accomplishments to be part of the government.  Men and women are equal.

This one is a little lighter and more plausible.

The March 14 Lecture on a line from the Luxemburg The Junius Pamphlet essay , Chapter 7

But there is one thing that the firemen in the burning house have forgotten: that in the mouth of a socialist, the phrase “defending one’s fatherland” cannot mean playing the role of cannon fodder under the command of an imperialistic bourgeoisie.

Social Democratic Party controlled the labor union. They did not want there to be a war. They wanted to keep the classes to remain stable and in order. They supported the imperialistic rule. Meanwhile, the revolutionist who were proletarians or the working class were of mass numbers.  As the social Democratic Party became more organized, so did the working class. Basically, Luxemburg depicts that when social democratic party is at its peak of exploitation in regards to imperialism. The working class will have formed their new opinions as they break away from their past ways. But while it is still developing, when you say that a fodder is not in a role of imperialistic bourgeoisie, it is saying that the middle class will not risk their lives for the proletarian. The bourgeoisie is superior to the working class. If there is a fire or war, the middle class are not going to be in the frontlines of war nor a house fire.  The risks of life are taken by the expendable working class. The social democratic party make decisions for the working class. It may or may not be favorable for the working class. While the fireman thinks he is “defending one’s fatherland”, they are really just laborers that must follow a role put upon them to do physical labor and act in a way that is inferior to the bourgeoisie.

The movie M  is disturbing in the very beginning itself.  It reminds me of the movie "Children of the Corn" where a group of children are worshiping a scarecrow to create demon icon.  This movie has kids playing an ineminemynemo for who is to be killed.  When you put children to think about these things, it creates wild fantasies that have no right and wrong distinction because it' shared with kids in the dialogue.  If a movie is going to be responsible in telling a story, it has to be in a way that this dialogue is not allowed by children to speak.  It should have gotten the strongest rating for viewing by the general public.

And of course, people like to see horror films.  When we feel fear, it keeps us on the edge of our seats.  We love thrills. Just like a move filmed in that era called "Freaks" was filmed before some rules were launched to prevent humiliation of people with impairments.  We all face fear in our daily lives because of obstacles.  But why should we teach people how to be animals and crazy when we are not developed enough to understand these values of morals

I guess the crazy side is the side that makes people feel alive, which give Nihilism gives fuel again to kaos

I wonder if the root of all evil came from Germany.  It certainly looks this way.   We as a society cause each other to be a wreck.  I know that for us to live like animals is how the rich man stays in control of our moral errors and natural imperfections in behavior.

Lecture February 28 in Class. The Blue Angel Post song lyric post

Lecture February 28 in Class.  The Blue Angel  Post  song lyric post

Title :Just a Gigolo  Marlene Dietrich

There will come a day, that you will sleep away, what will day say?

Translation

Es wird der Tag kommen , dass Sie weg zu schlafen, was heute sagen?

The means when you die, what will people say about your life. It is said that Dietrich was bisexual when she lived.  But it wasn’t told until she died.

Title :The Velvet Underground- Feme Fatale

Here she comes.  You have to watch your step. She’s going to break your heart in two.  It true

Translation

Hier kommt sie . Sie müssen Ihren Schritt zu sehen. Sie wird dein Herz entzwei . es gilt.

Dietrich in Blue Angel was seductive sexy woman.  She basically took the professor out of his repressed life to experience her limitless life of desire.   Then she cheats on him toward the end of the movie.  Since he then wants to be a professor again, the lyric hits the nail on the head with “watch your step”