Remembering John Lennon: An Objective View

   If John Lennon were still alive, he would be turning 70 tomorrow (October 9th).   As John is one of the greatest icons in the history of popular music, there has been a lot of media coverage about that, and some people will be celebrating his birthday tomorrow.


  EMI has released some new recordings, taking advantage of the event.


  Yoko Ono has organized an Imagine Peace Tower event in Iceland, tomorrow, which can be watched live via imaginepeacetower.com, starting at 1pm EST.  People may tweet messages for peace by sending them to IPTower.  See twitter.com/IPTower and twitter.com/YokoOno.

 In New York City, a documentary will be shown in Central Park at 7pm.  

 In Liverpool, Julian Lennon and John's first wife Cynthia will be presenting a monument in John's honour.

 Finally, there will be a celebration in Hollywood at John Lennon's star on the Walk of Fame.

  See http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/music/2010/10/08/15631851.html

 It's obvious that John Lennon was a man who touched millions of hearts.  These celebrations, nearly thirty years after he was murdered, are a testament to the impact he had on the world.

  I'm in a good position to provide an objective view on John Lennon, because I'm not a Beatles fanatic, but I have an appreciation for John's music with and without the Beatles and his impact on popular culture.  

  So my view isn't:

•  John Lennon was godly, perfect, and could do no wrong.
• That horrid witch Yoko Ono broke up the Beatles! or
• Crazy hippies like John Lennon have corrupted society!

  In my opinion, gathered from being an obsessive student of pop music, and having read lots of well researched books on the Beatles, John, and Yoko Ono, is that John Lennon was a tremendously talented artist and musician, but he was far from perfect as a human being, because we're all imperfect and we always will be.  

  I've extensively dated a couple of musicians in the past.  (I don't think either knows about the other.)  The later one, especially, has a few personality traits in common with John Lennon.  

  A lot (maybe not all, but most) of male musicians are great people to have and friends or 'friends with benefits'.  But male musicians, more so than the general population, find it difficult to live in monogamy.  Some of them THINK they can, but they can't.

  And that holds true a lot of the time, with or without fame and fortune.  

  There's a lot of documentation of how John treated his first wife, Cynthia, and his first son, Julian, quite badly.  He got married and had a kid when he wasn't emotionally ready.

  Just before Lennon's murder in December 1980, Julian had reconciled with his father.  So, I think John realized some of the mistakes he made in his life, and it was a shame that his life was cut short.

  At this point, I don't think there's much animosity between Cynthia and Yoko, and it certainly seems that Julian and Sean (John's son with Yoko) are on good terms.  Half-siblinghood is tough!  I should know...

  I'm really inspired by how Yoko has taken her position as an opportunity to promote world peace.  We follow each other on Twitter, and I think it's great how she constantly puts an effort to reach out to the public- on the Internet and through her music and art installations.

  She certainly doesn't HAVE to do any of that.  I think Yoko has a good heart.

  Her life wasn't as easy as you may think, for someone who was born in wealth.  World War II was especially devastating to her and her family.  See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoko_Ono 

  When those experiences are kept in mind, it becomes obvious why Yoko works so hard to promote peace.

  And it really annoys me when people STILL blame her for breaking up the Beatles.

  If John hadn't met Yoko, he would've been bringing ANOTHER woman into the recording studio for the last Beatles recordings.  And SHE would've been a scapegoat.

  At that point in John's life, he cared about sex, romance, and his own creativity a lot more than he cared about the Beatles.  "I don't believe in the Beatles."

  With or without Yoko, the Beatles would have broken up around 1970, anyway.  With their tremendous success, making money was no longer a motive and they felt they had nothing left to prove- as a group.

  They couldn't keep recording together.  They felt stifled.   John, Paul, Ringo and George all launched post-Beatles musical careers.  They all wanted to demonstrate to the world that they could make good music without the other Beatles.  

  Yoko-hating Beatles fans should keep this in mind- because of her share of the Beatles intellectual property and licensing rights, her decisions could make or break merchandising deals, recordings or movies.  For all of Yoko's wealth, I think making money stopped being a motive for her quite a while ago.  Yes, there are fat cat CEOs who feel like they have to keep on making more and more money no matter what, but I think Yoko has a very different mindset.  She certainly lives quite modestly for a billionaire.

  All of the Beatles licensed recordings and merchandise that have come out after John's death (including the Rock Band: Beatles video game) got Yoko's approval because she believes John's creativity and legacy should be shared with the world.

  I'll be Twittering my message of peace for the Imagine Peace Tower tomorrow.  I hope you'll be doing the same.

kimcrawley.com



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It's up to all of us to stop bullying!

  I'm willing to guarantee that pretty much everyone over the age of ten has either witnessed bullying, been bullied, or has bullied others.  So the subject of this post concerns everyone, children and adults alike.


  Bullying is an especially hot topic these days, because news has been made of a few teens who have committed suicide due to bullying of a homophobic nature.


  Eighteen year old Tyler Clementi was a talented violin player and a student at Rutgers University.  After his roommate Dharun Ravi videostreamed Tyler online while he was being intimate with another man, Tyler was in tremendous despair.  On September 22nd, Tyler jumped off the George Washington Bridge, to his death.


  Thirteen year old Asher Brown was harassed about his religion and sexual orientation by his classmates.  On September 23rd, Asher shot himself with his stepfather's gun.


  Seth Walsh was only eleven years old.  He was also harassed about his perceived sexual orientation by his classmates.  He was found unconscious in his own backyard, another apparent suicide.  He died after ten days on life support.


  Fifteen year old Billy Lucas received homophobic harassment by the other kids at school.  Billy hung himself on September 9th.


  Fifteen year old Justin Aaberg was a talented cello player who came out of the closet at age thirteen.  He also hung himself.


  Nineteen  year old Raymond Chase attended Johnson & Wales University.  He was openly gay, and he hung himself in his dorm room last week.


  See http://www.gaylesbiantimes.com/?id=17469.


  These homophobia related suicides touched Ellen DeGeneres' heart, and she candidly spoke about them on her talk show on September 30th.









I was also violently bullied as a child. I'm heterosexual, and no one ever thought I was gay, but people who know about bullying know that bullies target people who are different, period. I was bullied for my eccentricity and awkward social skills. I wasn't diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome until I was nineteen, and years of bullying and enduring a public school system that couldn't understand me made me drop out as soon as it was legal, at age sixteen.


There were certainly times I felt like committing suicide, much like those teenagers mentioned in my post who committed suicide due to homophobia.


My experience with bullying started when I was nine years old, in Grade Four at Munden Park Public School, in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Teachers and lunchtime supervisors would tell me, "Just ignore them, Kim, they're only teasing!" From age nine, until I dropped out at age sixteen while attending Meadowvale Secondary in Mississauga, I was constantly bullied in various ways.


I was constantly insulted. I was ostracized by all the other kids in my class, ALL of them. I was kicked. I was punched. I had my possessions stolen and vandalized.


The teachers, supervisors, and school administration always ignored the issue. "Kids will be kids!" Arrrgghh! That attitude makes me so angry.


Like gay kids, or kids who are suspected of being gay, autistic kids, whether diagnosed or undiagnosed are also subject to bullying a lot more than other kids.


From Michael McGrath's article, Aspergers Syndrome and Bullying, http://www.suite101.com/content/aspergers-syndrome-and-bullying-a66366:

Children with Asperger’s syndrome are ideal targets for bullying. Asperger’s children tend to be socially isolated and awkward in conversations and physical coordination. An Aspie child often has interests that other children consider odd, or may have unusual verbal or physical habits. Most rewarding, from a bully’s perspective, is how easily many Asperger’s children “meltdown” and lose control when under pressure.

Approximately 90 percent of Asperger’s children are bullied – some sources suggest the number is closer to 100 percent. Adults with Asperger’s syndrome often relate how helpless, angry and alone schoolyard bullying made them feel, and how the effects of bullying followed them into their adult lives.

Parents and teachers should make it quite clear that there is never a good reason to bully, and that the correct and safest thing to do is to tell an adult the child trusts – whether a parent, teacher or counselor. The traditional belief that ignoring bullying makes bullies stop is simply not true. Many schools now have no tolerance policies for bullying, but those policies can only be enforced if teachers and school staff know bullying is occurring.

 In my experience, though, schools don't take bullying seriously at all.  It's a crying shame.


 And, not only kids are bullied.  Adults are often subject to bullying as well.


 From http://www.canadianliving.com/relationships/friends_and_family/adult_bullying_how_you_can_fight_back.php:

Adult bullying takes place at the park, in parent committees and kids’ sporting events; among people in volunteer and peer groups; and even in families. Examples of outright physical bullying among adults include Stewart Ferguson of Pakenham, Ont., near Ottawa, who was sentenced in 2005 to 18 months probation for shoving a referee into a door frame after his son was thrown out of a minor league hockey game. But more often adult bullying is emotional. 

 The Canada Safety Council defines adult bullying as a “grab for control by an insecure, inadequate person, an exercise of power through the humiliation of the target.” It involves humiliation or abusive words that lower a person’s self-esteem. It can take the form of rude, degrading or offensive remarks; intimidating gestures; or discrediting a person by spreading rumours, ridiculing her or calling into question her convictions and private life. It can also be about belittling a person by making her do tasks below her skill level. 

According to the International Labour Organization, physical and emotional violence is one of the most serious issues facing the workplace today because the psychological wounds can run deep. The Commission des normes du travail, which enforces labour standards in Quebec, has conducted surveys that show up to one in 10 workers in that province have been the subject of harmful bullying, intimidation or belittlement by a boss or coworker. 

  There is a solution to combating bullying.  And all of us must take part in order for the campaign to be effective.

• Schools, for young children and adults alike, must have strong and detailed anti-bullying policies.  And they must be enforced by all authority figures.  Adult workplaces need the same.
• If you observe bullying, and you did nothing about it, you are not an innocent bystander.  You are a guilty party, as well.  I can't count how many times I was viciously bullied while other kids just watched and did nothing.  The same applies to adult bullying, too.  If you witness bullying, tell the bully to stop!  Or, at the very least, tell an authority figure about it.  The bully may possibly be breaking the law as well, so teen and adult bullies may be charged with a crime by the police.  In those situations, make sure the police are involved.

 Ellen DeGeneres has recently popularized the use of the #StopBullying hashtag on Twitter.  I posted a few #StopBullying tweets last night, and I got a quick response from musicismylifee1.

 Thanks, musicismylifee1 and idkmybffjenn for bringing this wonderful blog to my attention.  Here's the link for everyone: http://www.stopbullyingnoww.blogspot.com/.  It's an inspirational story, Pursuing Happiness.  You've got to check it out.

  What it all boils down to is this: it's up to all of us to stop bullying!

  Some more related links:

•  thetrevorproject.org/
• http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/comment/story.html?id=7b05f33a-7b8b-477b-af23-42965920b1a0
• Bullying and Asperger's Syndrome

On a more positive note, there's plenty to look forward to on this blog and kimcrawley.com...

Kimcrawley.com and buchalterconsulting.ca will be upgraded to HTML5 and CSS3 by 2pm EST, tomorrow, October 8th.  See Getting ready for HTML5- no more delays!

  And...

  This Saturday, October 9th, John Lennon would have been celebrating his 70th birthday.  Tomorrow, October 8th, you can look forward to my new post: Remembering John Lennon, An Objective View.


  This weekend of October 9th and 10th, I've got a real treat for computer nerds and newbies alike.  I'll be debuting my A Brief History of The Web series, which promises to be fun and informative.  Surely you wonder how the web started, and how we got to the web we have today?


  On Monday, October 11th, possibly in the evening, I'll start the conclusion to my Project HTML5 series.  The last two articles will be about CSS3.













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Why I will never spend a dime on Apple products...

  Steve, I'll 'think differently', rather than 'think different', thank you very much.


  Some days, I just have it 'up to here' with all those Apple fans who've really been drinking the Kool-Aid.


  Those of us who are more perceptive and savvy, we don't buy the idea that Apple is some clever underdog. We know Apple is a big corporation that has gone evil, much more so than even Microsoft.


  Apple has been trying to sell an image of being progressive, anti-'Big Brother' innovators since I was born.  I mean that quite literally.  I was born on January 13th, 1984.  (It was a Friday, which my friends and family believe explains everything about me.)  Apple's iconic Ridley Scott directed, George Orwell themed commercial, introducing the Macintosh computer, was televised only twice, once on December 31st, 1983 in the Idaho area, and once during Super Bowl XVIII on January 22nd, 1984.  I was born almost halfway between the two airings.  See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1984_(advertisement)











  Gee, I'm just a week and a half older than Apple's first Macintosh.  And the idea behind that iconic commercial was pretty simple to grasp- Apple's progressive innovation will shatter the 'Big Brother' like hold of their tech competitors!  1984 won't be like (George Orwell's) '1984'!  And ever since, in various ads, commercials, and in various ways, Apple's been trying to convince consumers of that image.


  So, let me sarcastically play with that concept for a while!  Yes, Steve Jobs, Apple is soooo anti-Big Brother!  It's soooo anti-Big Brother to:

• Feature really restrictive DRM in your products!

 If you have a non-Apple media playing device, you can pretty much use any music or video on your device that's in a compatible format.  Whether your mp3 was free (or pirated) off of P2P networks or BitTorrent or purchased from a non-iTunes music store, it's no problem to transfer the file from your computer to your portable device, and then start enjoying it right away.


  But if Apple fits anywhere in the equation, whether you're using iTunes, an iPod, an iPhone, and/or an iPad, Apple makes damn well sure you must buy from iTunes (not their legal competition) and only enjoy it on that one device.  Transfer an iTunes purchased song or video from your iPod to your friend's iPhone?  Unless you're a competent hacker, that's a no-go.


  The DRM is obviously not just about making sure that musicians and copyright holders see some money, because they make less money (as a percentage of retail price) off of music and videos sold on iTunes than they do from Apple's legal competition.  Musicians make 13% of iTunes' retail price on average, and Apple wants to see that lowered to 4%.  See http://applesucks.wordpress.com/2008/02/05/apple-wants-artist-royalties-lowered/ and http://torrentfreak.com/pirated-by-itunes-artist-turns-to-bittorrent-080206/.




  Spiritually related to that, it's soooo anti-Big Brother to:

• Deliberately limit what your products can do, both to screw your competition and to limit adult access to pornography!

 Steve Jobs has made it clear.  He doesn't like Flash, and he doesn't like porn.  (How many guys go around saying they don't like porn, but privately whack off to porn more often than less prudish people?)


  Most people agree that it's very important to keep porn out of the hands of children.  But usually, only people on the religious right want to keep porn made by consenting adults out of the hands of other adults.  Mr. Jobs hardly strikes me as a born-again Christian, so what the hell's his problem?


  Ol' Steve says: "We do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone. Folks who want porn can buy an Android phone."

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-20002922-71.html#ixzz11WY9TzHO

  You heard it straight from the horse's mouth, folks.  The Apple CEO believes he has a 'moral responsibility' to keep adults from enjoying porn.

  If you're a parent, and you want to keep content that's inappropriate for children away from your kids, Apple's competition makes that possible.  I own both a PSP (a Sony product) and an Xbox 360 (a Microsoft product).  There is parental control software on both devices.  I don't use any of it, because I love M rated video games (I'm particularly fond of the Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty franchises), and my fiancé and I are both childless adults.  But Sony and Microsoft make it really simple to set up parental control accounts for children that won't play M or T rated games.  If I had kids and I wanted a parental control-free account for myself, I could set it up to be password protected from my kids.

  Plus, I have popular erotica novelists in my family.  My dad is 'Morgana Baron' and 'Felix Baron' and my stepmother is 'Madeline Moore'.  They would be glad to sell adults e-book versions of their works.  But, I don't think Steve wants you to enjoy them on your iPad or iPhone.

  Now, on to the Flash issue.

 “The primary goal of Flash has always been to enable cross-browser, platform and device development,”  (Adobe product manager Mike) Chambers wrote in a blog post. “This is the exact opposite of what Apple wants. They want to tie developers down to their platform, and restrict their options to make it difficult for developers to target other platforms.”

Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/04/adobe-flash-iphone/#ixzz11Wb5Ilsm

  Now, why wouldn't Apple want the iPhone and iPad to be able to access Flash content?  Could it be because Apple doesn't want you to play games on those devices that you didn't have to buy from Apple's App store?  Or could it be because Apple wants you to be buying videos from iTunes instead of watching them for free via Youtube or Veoh?

  Also, it's soooo anti-Big Brother to:

  Treat your customers like crap!  

  Remember the antenna issue with the launch of the iPhone 4 earlier this year?  At first, Steve Jobs wanted his customers to quit whining about the iPhone 4 having a defect.  See these quick videos:

  Eventually, Mr. Jobs was forced to admit that the iPhone 4 had a serious antenna problem.  And he HATED  to have to offer consumers a fix.  Listen to his tone of voice, and watch his body language in this video:







Gee, ol' Steve sounds pretty pissed off while rambling off with his doublespeak! (A SMALL number of phones, how about ALL iPhone 4s, Mr. Jobs?) Doublespeak... hmmm... doesn't sound like 'Big Brother' at all!




Occasionally, this high and mighty billionaire has direct communication with his customers. When he does, he makes it clear he doesn't give a rat's ass about them. See this news reported on Gawker.com:


  Long Island University senior Chelsea Kate Isaacs, 22, emailed Jobs Thursday with a complaint: Her journalism professor had assigned her a story on a new initiative at her college to buy iPads for all incoming students. She wanted to get a quote from Apple about the use of iPads in academic settings. But when she repeatedly called Apple's PR department, leaving six voice messages, they never got back to her.


   "My friend just jokingly suggested I email Steve Jobs," Isaacs told us over the phone. "I wrote him a long email not expecting that he would get back to me."


  Ms. Isaacs:  "Mr. Jobs, I humbly ask why Apple is so wonderfully attentive to the needs of students, whether it be with the latest, greatest invention or the company's helpful customer service line, and yet, ironically, the Media Relations Department fails to answer any of my questions which are, as I have repeatedly told them, essential to my academic performance."


  Mr. Jobs:  "Our goals do not include helping you get a good grade. Sorry."


 Ms. Isaacs:  "I never said that your goal should be to "help me get a good grade." Rather, I politely asked why your media relations team does not respond to emails, which consequently, decreases my chances of getting a good grade."


 Mr. Jobs:  "Nope. We have over 300 million users and we can't respond to their requests unless they involve a problem of some kind. Sorry."


  Ms. Isaacs:  "You're absolutely right, and I do meet your criteria for being a customer who deserves a response:

1. I AM one of your 300 million users.
2. I DO have a problem; I need answers that only Apple Media Relations can answer."

 Mr. Jobs:  "Please leave us alone."

See http://gawker.com/5641211/steve-jobs-in-email-pissing-match-with-college-journalism-student.

  So, my conclusion is glaringly obvious.  Apple has sold itself as anti-Big Brother since I was born, but just like a used car salesman who tells you he's 'really, really honest", Apple is anything but.


  Don't buy ANYTHING Apple!  Unless you hate yourself!


 You might want to read this previous post of mine:


Don't Get an iPad, Wait for RIM's PlayBook

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