Excess Noise Blog
Opinions and informal analyses by Cemil (Jim) Alyanak - K3MRI
Excess Noise Blog
Why do we ignore warnings? Why have we become so laissez-faire that even a fire alarm, a signal telling us that the building might burn down and kill us, will not rouse us? We sit there in our apartment or hotel room wondering when this annoying noise will stop. The obvious first answer is that we have heard so many false alarms, that we no longer associate that ringing with actual danger. It’s probably some…
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Those who know me, know my passion for comics. They can say so much more in one image than pundits can in a day. Regardless of your political affiliation, or maybe because of it, a comic will either confirm your world view, reject it or cause you to think about it. The image I’ve chosen to best illustrate this is one drawn by Joe Heller. Again, regardless of whether you agree with the substance of…
Read Full Post...Secretary General's re-election
I was surprised to notice that there was only one candidate for the post of Secretary-General of the United Nations. There were no other interested candidates? The General Assembly and the Security Council were in full agreement that Ban Ki-Moon was the absolute best choice? He might very well be, but only having one candidate for the world’s top multilateral job seems awkward, at best. I feel that in an era in which we condone…
Read Full PostRetail with a conscience
I just got back from London. I saw a store that caught my attention. I want to share it with you. Before I do, however, I do want to warn you that I am not at all in favor of businesses that espouse a green message without backing up the statement with action. Howies stores, like this one on London’s Carnaby Street, use their window space to promote a public interest message. So, this store…
Read Full PostNo dreams here
“Our energy will always be powered by your dreams.” is how this Enel advertisement produced by Saatchi & Saatchi leads. The phrase sounds like it was delivered by one of those brainstorming applications. I just cannot see the link between my dreams and energy. In some metaphysical way there might be a distant one but I am looking for energy that is clean, affordable and safe, that’s all. I am not dreaming about this, I…
Read Full PostRoyal wedding coverage
I love a wedding. I love relationships that make our lives better. I am happy for Prince William and Kate Middleton. I am just a little envious… No, I am not envious of Prince William, on that front I am fortunate. I am envious of the type of coverage they are receiving. Predictions are that their wedding will be watched by millions, if not billions, of people worldwide. The phrases “wedding of the century”, “fairy…
Read Full PostMore airtime please
This is good. This is what more media need to do. More media need to devote precious space or time to promoting a cause. I know, there is a danger. The danger is that they will choose to promote a partisan cause, a contentious cause or, worse, a divisive cause. But I think there are some causes which are, by now, evidence-laden or universal enough that we cannot renounce them. One such cause is slavery.…
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