Sun Oct 05, 2008 20:38 EST (UTC -5)
My last few posts have been pretty weighty. Let's get back into the normal swing of normal things.
Ah, college. It is pretty nice. Except for, you know, the classes and stuff. But it's good to have good friends. Adam, my roommate from last year, invited me over to his dorm for dinner tonight. But the place isn't really a dorm in the traditional sense. It's an apartment-style dorm, and it's pretty comparable to student apartments you'd find off campus (that is to say, sweeeet). He lives there with Cameron, who was one of our suitemates last year. They also invited Evan, who was also one of our suitemates, so it was like a little reunion. Fajitas and TV with old pals. Ain't nothing like it.
It was good to catch up with Adam. Turns out he still reads this blog. I think he didn't read it over the summer, but tonight he brought up the themes of some of my recent posts. I believe that would make him a World of Stuff fan. You don't have to have read all 993 posts to be a fan (although it doesn't hurt).
What else? Oh yeah. I start my new job tomorrow, the one I was interviewed for a few weeks ago. I'm the new webmaster for the Dean of Students Office. Actually, my friend Mark, who works there and told me about the job, showed me the ropes last week, so I got a bit of a head start by making some small updates. But tomorrow, it is official. I won't have as much free time, but I'll be gaining knowledge and experience (and I'll have a cool job). Plus, I probably won't have to work at strange times. I know some people who have to work at night while going to school. I don't know how they manage.
Also, my new Esperanto club is getting off the ground. We're going to have a presentation entitled "Esperanto: The Solution to the World Language Problem." It'll be an introduction to Esperanto explaining why people use it and such. If you happen to be in the area of Gainesville, Florida, it'll be on Thursday, October 16, at 8:00 P.M., in room 110 of Rinker Hall at the University of Florida. If you have a Facebook account, RSVP on our event page. Everyone is welcome.
Surprise? Surveillance of Skype Messages Found in China. Yet another reason not to trust Skype or any other non-free software.
Also in the news: Military Hit with 2nd Suit Over Religious Freedom. They can't seem to wrap their heads around the idea that they shouldn't be pushing religion on people.
Finally, a blog: Cake Wrecks, for "when professional cakes go horribly, hilariously wrong."
Filed under Computers, Esperanto, Friends, In the News, Internet, School, Stuff
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13 comments
#1 by mankso | Tue Oct 07, 2008 01:59 EST (UTC -5)
Re your new Esperanto club - I hope you'll remember to feature the 7 points of the Prague Manifesto:
http://lingvo.org
Multkapan cheeston kaj viglan diskutadon mi deziras al via informa vespero, kaj al la nova klubo mem bonan kaj dauran sukceson!
#2 by Jordon | Tue Oct 07, 2008 09:52 EST (UTC -5)
I've been reading up on how and how not to promote Esperanto, so I'll be trying not to come off as aggressive or creepy. I don't plan on having a very deep discussion unless someone happens to ask a question that requires a deep answer. Tamen, dankon pro viaj bondeziroj!
#3 by Daniel | Tue Oct 07, 2008 13:46 EST (UTC -5)
Yeah, sharing 7 points of any "Manifesto" on a college campus is probably not the best way to avoid the creepy tag.
#4 by mankso | Tue Oct 07, 2008 18:05 EST (UTC -5)
Creepy?! Call it whatever you like, but the 7 points of the Prague Manifesto are an intelligent and modern attempt to summarize what Esperanto is all about. If you'd prefer to stick with LLZ and 1887 (peace, love, friendship, non-nationalism, brotherhood of mankind etc. etc.) it's your choice. Maybe your campus is different, but up here (in Canada) I don't think you'd get too far with all the 1887 stuff these days. If few in the audience have personal experience of the frustrating inability to communicate with other-language speakers, of language-based discrimination, or of language problems in the EU, then there might be some difficulty in explaining the concept of 'universal bilingualism' to monolinguals [YOUR ethnic language + non-ethnic Esperanto for all]. If any linguistics majors show up, you might consider asking them why Esperanto is rarely mentioned in N. American linguistics textbooks.
(By the way, does your college library have any up-to-date books on/in Esperanto?)
#5 by Jordon | Tue Oct 07, 2008 18:49 EST (UTC -5)
What I really wanted to do was just present Esperanto as sort of a nifty little thing that people can draw their own conclusions about. Citing a "Manifesto" from the outset would give a bad first impression to people who would otherwise be interested. The same goes for any mention of Zamenhof, which might be considered cult-like. (These guides have been useful.) Having said that, I would probably imply the Prague ideals in my lecture (as well as the praceloj, because I'm that kind of person).
The last time I checked, my college library did have a few books in and about Esperanto. I did a search online while I was away for the summer, but I'll have to look again since I'm just a short walk away.
#6 by Luke | Wed Oct 08, 2008 19:41 EST (UTC -5)
Manifestos make me think of the scene in Portait of the Artist where the supporters of the Tsar try to get Stephen to sign on for "world peace." But that's just me...
I say from talking to Jordon that he has a good handle on why people should try Esperanto and citing reasons from other people would only weaken his argument.
#7 by Jordon | Wed Oct 08, 2008 21:52 EST (UTC -5)
Thanks, Luke. mankso does make some good points that I'll try to consider, though. It should help me give a framework for my argument.
#8 by mankso | Thu Oct 09, 2008 00:31 EST (UTC -5)
Sorry to create a minor stir! - if the word 'manifesto' is likely to cause so many problems in the USA, simply don't mention it. Chiu el la 7 punktoj tamen estas nepre menciinda, kaj ech mencienda, k donos bonan bazon por inteligenta kaj informplena diskutado! Bonan sukceson kaj bonan kuraghon al vi.
#9 by Jordon | Thu Oct 09, 2008 08:54 EST (UTC -5)
Yes, I realize that now. Thanks for the good wishes, and stay tuned to hear how it goes.
#10 by Brian Barker | Fri Oct 10, 2008 22:40 EST (UTC -5)
Many people think Esperanto "creepy" Jordon.
Let them see http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8837438938991452670
#11 by Jordon | Fri Oct 10, 2008 23:15 EST (UTC -5)
Another great source of ideas. I'm tempted just to play that video, in fact.
#12 by mankso | Fri Oct 10, 2008 23:39 EST (UTC -5)
Don't give way to that temptation, Jordon! After watching that video, I'm beginning to think that maybe 'creepy' might not have been so far off, after all. Now I'm beginning to see why many people think thus. I thought your prospective audience was supposed to be college-age (& presumably well educated and informed about the world), not junior high wind-heads or a bunch of rappers. Now I'm all agog to hear what the reaction will be! Chacun à son goût! La mondo atendas vian nova?on.
#13 by Jordon | Fri Oct 10, 2008 23:43 EST (UTC -5)
Actually, I don't think it will be that bad. The people who will decide to go to the presentation are the people who are interested in the idea, and the people who are interested in the idea are probably well educated and informed about the world.
And do Esperanto characters really get eaten in the comments? Aĉe.