Translated material
Other languages #31
Hollywood is freedom, democracy and, as a result, political leftism. Robert De Niro and Barbra Streisand are Clinton's friends. Democrat Tom Hanks has the biggest box office receipts. The Oscar-winning “Traffic” and “Erin Brockovich” crown a strong tradition of liberal Hollywood mainstream (“Schindler’s List,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “Casablanca”). Only a few renegade stars showed up to the inauguration of Republican Bush. It would seem that artistic bohemianism and political liberalism have long been equated. However, in fact, these same films affirm the values of the right wing of society in a specific way. The author of the article, an employee of the BBC2 studio, analyzes the creations of David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, Bernardo Bertolucci and other “mainstream avant-gardists” to find in them the most right-wing message , far from any liberal values.
Quotes: “His final message is that there is no better place in the world than home. There is no need to go somewhere: a patriot will find everything he needs at home, in his family, in the life of a small American town. Isolationist instinct, sewn with white thread, clearly manifests itself in classic American cinema - especially clearly, of course, in Westerns."
"Rambo" seems to help Americans get rid of their guilt over Vietnam. Apocalypse Now does the same thing. Only if "Rambo" is a naive and openly reactionary work, then "Apocalypse" has a more subtle and more powerful impact. This film aestheticizes Vietnam. The war is transformed in the soul of the nation, turning from a great political mistake into a great sublime and dramatic experience."
Order a full translation of an article?How Do Women Rule? ...Just Like Men (Woman at the helm?) Christine Stolba (Christine Stolba) Independent Women's Forum
All power goes to women! This is what feminists say and write, convinced that women are much better suited to governing the state than men: they talk less and listen to others more, they know how to gradually direct the course of events in the right direction, they are open to discussion and do not try to suppress their opponents. Women must realize that they are united by common interests and a common goal - gaining power into their own hands. However, the author of the article - a woman, Ph.D. and a full member of the Council of the Independent Women's Forum organization (in the printed edition of which the article was published) - categorically disagrees with this point of view. Her arguments are illustrated by numerous examples from history - from Catherine de Medici to Margaret Thatcher.
Quote: “The English Queen Elizabeth I, apparently, was not fully aware of the commonality of her interests with the interests of other representatives of her sex: as is known, in 1587, on her orders, Mary, Queen of Scots was beheaded. However, Mary herself obviously suffered from the same drawback : She was part of a conspiracy to kill Elizabeth and seize the British throne."
Order a full translation of an article?Lakeside tsunami Judy Lightfoot Seattle Weekly
Ban total computerization of schools! This is the slogan used by the parents of students at one of the most prestigious private schools in America. The indignation of parents was caused by the decision of the school administration that starting next fall, every student (starting from the 7th grade) is required to have a personal computer on which he could work during lessons. Many parents believe that this expensive project is not justified from a pedagogical point of view, since the computer cannot be considered a universal tool for solving all problems of school education. What’s surprising is this: we’re not just talking about a prestigious school, but about a school where many big names in the computer business once studied and where their children go today. Lakeside School alumni include Paul Allen, the Craig brothers and Bill Gates himself.
Quote: "It's funny that the center of the fight against school computerization has become the website of the father of one of the students at Lakeside School, a professional programmer. The site contains numerous letters of protest sent by parents - by email, of course."
Order a full translation of an article?Battling banality Martin Amis The Guardian
Today, in times of universal equality, any mediocrity can become a TV star, a president, or even a literary critic. Now everyone who is not too lazy writes about literature, laments the famous British literary critic Martin Amis. But just some thirty or forty years ago, this profession ( literary critic - in our opinion, both a critic and a literary critic) was considered almost elitist. No one, of course, opposes equality; the only trouble is that no rights will help a mediocrity become a talented person. And this quality, oddly enough, is still necessary both in the profession of a writer and in the profession of a literary critic.
Quote: "In today's academic world, it's quite difficult to make a name for yourself with, say, a solid study of Wordsworth's poetics. But you can make a name for yourself by writing a paper about his political beliefs - for example, about his treatment of the poor, or about how the poet subconsciously "glorified" "Napoleon. But it is better to leave Wordsworth aside altogether and engage in an in-depth study of some of his forgotten (most often quite rightly) contemporary. All this leads to the gradual withering away of the canon."
Order a full translation of an article?Confidence Games Jim Holt Lingua Franca
Most people think of themselves as better than they really are. Research by psychologists shows that self-confidence is one of the most common traits of human character, and only one category of people realistically assesses their own abilities. These are people suffering from clinical depression. The results of a study were recently published in which a group of respondents were tested on their ability to think logically, their knowledge of the English language and their sense of humor (the third point was assessed by professional comedians). As a result, another pattern emerged in our perception of ourselves: the less competent we are in any area, the more competent specialists in this particular area we consider ourselves.
Quote: "So, if you are one of the competent people, the results of this study can serve as consolation to you: it means that you are unlikely to be overconfident. On the other hand, perhaps you consider yourself to be a competent person only by mistake, because arrogance inherent in all incompetent people."
Order a full translation of an article?Peace In Our Time? (Are we living in peacetime?) Natasha Berger (Natasha Berger) The American Prospect
It’s too early for American liberals to lay down their arms. The war between leftists and conservatives is not over yet, argues the author of the article, arguing with Andrew Sullivan, former editor of the New Republic (see Other languages #29). She simply left the streets, moving into the offices of scientists, politicians and public figures. Moreover, having won a number of victories in recent years, the liberals seem to have begun to calm down, indulged in complacency and are gradually losing ground. This is evidenced by the following statistics: if in 1990 64.9% of American students supported abortion, then in 1999 - only 52.7%. This means the fight must continue. In war it’s like in war.
Quote: "Of course, both sides have achieved a lot - just look at the number of gays and lesbians in the new presidential administration. But for every gay person elected, at least one homophobic piece of legislation has been passed."
Order a full translation of an article?The Ten-Percent Myth Benjamin Radford Sceptical Inquirer
It has long been explained to us that a person uses no more than 10% of his brain. Nonsense, says the author of the article, a psychologist by profession. All this is nothing more than a myth, built on the lack - or even absence - of reliable information about the functioning of the human brain. In a word, if only 10% of someone's thinking process is involved, it is those who tirelessly repeat and spread this misconception.
Quote: Have you ever heard a doctor say: “Luckily, the bullet only hit 90% of the brain, which the victim never used”?
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