Archive: 2002-11
Roll Your Own...DVD
I thought I’d just write a brief entry about what I’ve been up to over the past week or so. Having been finally remunerated for my job, I decided that my flat would benefit from a DVD player. However, rather than just go out and buy a DVD player, I decided to make my own. Why?
What’s Wrong With Public Autopsy?
Aside from the fact that I love to be a contrarian, I’m fascinated by the reactions to Professor Gunther von Hagen’s public autopsy in London yesterday. He went ahead with it despite threats from the authorities, which deserves respect. The man obviously has balls (although whether they are plastinated or not, I don’t know...). If I lived in London, I might even have been tempted to buy a ticket for the event.
New Toy
Despite being Sunday, I had to go to work today, because there was a kind of open day for the parents of the schoolchildren. Still, it’s not too bad, because I only had to work for a short time this morning, and I got away before midday. In return, I get a day off tomorrow. So I’m quite happy with the arrangement!
The Right To Bathe
I have to say I’m rather surprised, but pleasantly so, by the result in the Otaru lawsuit in Sapporo (in the north of Japan). A brief history of the case runs as follows: a Japanese bathhouse put up signs excluding ’foreigners’ (apparently due to bad experiences with visiting Russian sailors). One particular man took a trip to the bathhouse, and was refused entry for being foreign. However, he is actually a Japanese citizen, although white and originally a US citizen by birth. He, along with a German and an American, sued the bathhouse.
Cultural Differences
Are morals absolute or relative? It may be an academic question, but it seems relevant recently. In Iran, a man is sentenced to death for questioning the theocracy’s interpretation of Islam. The university professor in question, Hashem Aghajari, has also been banned from teaching for ten years. Which seems redundant, as it is hard to teach when you are dead.
I’m Back!
At last, I’m back online. You don’t know just how much I’ve missed having internet access! Once more, I can read the news, listen to the radio and most of all, use Google again. I hadn’t realised just how much I have come to rely on Google for providing me with instant answers to every question.