Contact
- Email Address:
- Website: http://asher813.typepad.com/dreams_into_lightning/
- Location: United States
One-Line Bio
The decline of Western civilization is not related to the decline of organized Liberalism; they are, in fact, one and the same. Over the past thirty years, political liberals in Europe and North America have allowed themselves to be lulled into a fantasy world of vapid, feel-good rhetoric, which has morphed into a pernicious cult of dogma and exclusivity. Meanwhile, the most dangerous fascist elements in todays world have taken over the enfeebled institutions that we once trusted to safeguard the liberal ideals we hold dear. In a final irony, it is left to the guardians of tradition - the conservatives - to defend the West and its liberal heritage against totalitarianism and anarchy. The cost of this liberal abdication is immense. Our conservative colleagues will shape the future of the West and, to a large extent, the Middle East, for the coming generation. They will do many things right, but they will get some things wrong - not because they are evil, but because there are things they do not understand. This is why the true liberal voice - the voice of freedom - must be heard.
Biography
ABOUT ME.
I'm single and I live in San Francisco; I was born in 1963. In summer of 2007, I moved back to San Francisco after seven and a half years in Portland, Oregon.
I've served ten years in the military, including four years in the US Marine Corps (1989-1993). I've been in the Hasidic section of Jerusalem during the Jewish holidays; volunteered as an English tutor for Asian immigrants, and as a care provider for AIDS patients; lived in Izmir, Turkey for two years. My spiritual path is Judaism but I'm open-minded about other traditions - Buddhist, Christian, Islamic, Yoruba, Hindu, Taoist - and I'm not afraid of people with new and interesting ideas. Currengly pursuing a double major in English and Physics at PSU. Working in between bouts of going to school. Writing fiction. Collecting my family history and my father's World War II memoirs (which I'm publishing on the web). Learning how to graph the Planck Blackbody Radiation Formula in Mathematica and Maple. Re-reading Jung's "Memories, Dreams, Reflections".
Fan of: Irshad Manji, Natan Sharansky, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Phyllis Chesler.
Not a fan of: Pat Buchanan, Noam Chomsky, Jesse Helms, George Galloway.
Favorite books: Lao Tzu - The Tao Te Ching; Encyclopaedia Britannica; OED; CRC Mathematical Tables; Shakespeare; the Feynman Lectures on Physics; the Sefer Yetzirah; Stuart Kaplan's Encyclopedia of the Tarot; Irshad Manji; Mary Cheney; Tammy Bruce; Kalonymus Kalman Shapira; Ursula K. LeGuin; Octavio Paz; Azar Nafisi; Isaac Asimov; Samuel R. Delany; Alastair Reynolds; Jeanne Cavelos; Audre Lorde; Jorge Luis Borges; N. Scott Momaday; Gerard Manley Hopkins; Robert Frost; Edna St. Vincent Millay; Edwin Arlington Robinson.
Geeky reading list:
Marc L. Kutner - Astronomy: A physical perspective. Oooh, this is fun.
Tristam Needham - Complex visual analysis. Lots of fun stuff about complex numbers. I love the way you can get the sine, cosine, and exponential functions from Euler's formula.
Roger Penrose - The road to reality. This is definitely a long-term project, so I'm taking small bites. But well worth it.
Robert Zubrin - Entering space. Aerospace engineer and space-travel advocate explains the how, why, and how-much-is-it-gonna-cost of space travel.
Roger Penrose - The large, the small, and the human mind. Much more accessible than the previous title, and (as far as I can tell) covering much of the same territory. What I love about Penrose is that he explains things in layperson's terms WITHOUT dumbing-down the discussion. Great discussion on probability amplitudes, plus a forum at the end with three scientists debating conceptual questions of physics.
Richard P. Feynman - Lectures on physics (CD).
Great for audio-learning. I don't know whether RPF ever imagined he would achieve immortality in quite this form.
Favorite movies: Mulholland Drive; Ghost in the Shell; Ghost in the Shell II: Innocence; Serenity; 2001; Blade Runner; Stranger Inside; Three Kings.
Favorite music: Alice Coltrane; The Doors; Joy Division / New Order; Cesaria Evora; the Psychedelic Furs; Bach; Jeanette Alexander; West African traditional and pop; and I have an embarrassingly comprehensive collection of 70s prog rock and German techno.
My name is not Lisa.
MORE ABOUT ME.
THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A LESBIAN
1. Is it a date or just coffee? I'm always getting confused.
2. First serious relationship ACTUALLY led to the use of a U-Haul.
3. Ex-girlfriends = friends for life.
THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A GAYBOY
1. I love smoothies.
2. Favorite expression: "Faaabulous!"
3. You should see my wardrobe.
THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A STRAIGHT CHICK
1. Zero aptitude for sports. I was born without a sports gene.
2. 5 bars of scented soap + 3 scented candles + 4 bottles of shampoo (herbal varieties preferred) + assorted hair conditioner, skin conditioner, and hand lotion = current inventory.
3. A secret passion for Lisa Frank stuff.
THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A STRAIGHT DUDE
1. Rock and roll, dude. The louder the better.
2. I'm really, really good at using maps.
3. Never dated men. My sexuality is not "fluid".
ABOUT DREAMS INTO LIGHTNING.
The weblog "Dreams Into Lightning" provides news and views from a culturally liberal, politically neoconservative viewpoint.
New readers begin here:
Women and Power - April 2004
As of April 2006, this TypePad account represents the primary homepage for Dreams Into Lightning. All entries from April 2004 through April 2006 may be found at the old site, Dreams Into Lightning - Blogger. The Blogger site remains active as an archive and backup; however, all new posts will appear at the TypePad site first.
Title and tagline.
I turned your dreams into lightning
Ain't that enough
I held the world back for you
Ain't that enough
- Melissa Etheridge, "Enough of Me"
"It is not really responsible behavior. It is not well brought-up behavior. They missed a good opportunity to keep quiet."
- Jacques Chirac, on Eastern European nations supporting the United States
Other taglines will appear occasionally.
Picture - "Queen of the Space Unicorns".
My apartment manager recently refurbished the lobby and installed this piece. It's a reproduction of one of the series of six medieval tapestries known simply as the "lady with unicorn tapestries" now in the possession of the museum at Cluny, France (not to be confused with the seven-piece "Hunt of the Unicorn" series now held by the Met). The work dates from around 1500 and was discovered in 1841. Art historians offer varying interpretations of the symbolism, but most agree that the six pieces represent the five senses plus love. This one is "touch" with the lady touching the unicorn's horn.
I think Dan Rather would appreciate it.
Content.
Mostly world events, with a strong focus on the Middle East, Israel, Iraq and Iran, the Arab and Muslim world, and the freedom movement. Politics and culture from a liberal, pro-Bush perspective. Women. Liberalism and its future. Neoconservatism; neoconservative politics. Lesbian, gay, feminist, and gender-related topics. Spirituality, religion; Judaism and Islam. Science and science fiction. America. In the coming year I expect to add more cultural and creative stuff. Regular features include "Morning Report" (daily headlines) and "Let's Blogroll" (an occasional roundup of interesting posts from around the blogosphere). Past features have included "The L Word: Liberalism in Crisis" (critiques of the contemporary left/liberal movment) and "The New Republican" (responses to articles in The New Republic). New weekly features are planned.
Homepage.
The new homepage URL for Dreams Into Lightning is http://asher813.typepad.com/dreams_into_lightning/.
Alternate URLs are:
http://asher813.com/
http://dreamsintolightning.com/
Introduction.
First post:
A Little About Me - April 2004
Family history, genealogy, and anecdotes: The Town Down the River.
Best posts - first year.
Please take a moment to visit Best of Dreams Into Lightning - first year.
The Dreams Into Lightning Universe - related and affiliated blogs.
