Tuesday, April 18, 2006

J.D. on genocide This PBS show is on way past my bedtime, so I'll tape it: The Armenian Genocide: It happened. NY Times: A PBS Documentary Makes Its Case for the Armenian Genocide, With or Without a Debate. It is impossible to debate a subject like genocide without giving offense. PBS is supposed to give offense responsibly. And that was the idea behind a panel discussion that PBS planned to show after tonight's broadcast of "The Armenian Genocide," a documentary about the extermination of more than one million Armenians by the Turkish Ottoman Empire during World War I... [New Media Musings] J.D. links to articles he wrote long ago about the Armenian genocide, and mentions hearing from victims' and survivors' families. My family is one that was impacted by the genocide: my great-grandfather was nearly killed in the 1893 massacres. He carried a scar from a Turkish saber across his forehead for the rest of his life. He came to America in 1896, becoming a successful portrait photographer. His brothers followed him to America with their families, but then returned to Armenia, only to die in the 1915 genocide. It's not a myth. It happened, and Hitler used the Armenian genocide as a model for his own campaign against the Jews. The Turks aren't doing anyone any favors by denying what happened. 9:37:07 PM    Questions? Comments? Flames? []

Happiness may be overrated, but. . . Kathy has a long, detailed, thought-provoking essay on a subject that's of more than passing interest to me right  now:   Angry/negative people can be bad for your brain. Everyone's favorite A-list target, Robert Scoble, announced the unthinkable a few days ago: he will be moderating his comments. But what some people found far more disturbing was Robert's wish to make a change in his life that includes steering clear of "people who were deeply unhappy" and hanging around people who are happy... [Creating Passionate Users] I'm probably one of those relatively unhappy, easily angered people she and Scoble seek to avoid. I try to keep it under control, especially in my public/work persona. And right now, I'm motivated to be less-stressed and closer to content, if not happy. I don't know for sure about hanging around happy people; I do know that I'm a whole lot more satisfied with my work situation when I'm working with smart people who know how to think as opposed to the high-school dropouts I once work with. So it just might work. Anywho, thanks Kathy for the useful exposition. I'm gonna keep that one handy. 9:24:47 PM    Questions? Comments? Flames? []

© Copyright 2002-2006 Fred Sampson. Last update: 5/3/06; 12:00:40 PM.