Hero's Journey

"[W]e have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us. The labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god. And where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves. Where we had thought to travel outward, we will come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we will be with all the world."

-- Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth, 1988, p.123

Just saw 'Avatar' Last night....

Media consumption is interesting to me... access to what and how, who benefits from hollywood's stable industry and how much, and what we humans are interested in in terms of entertainment (and the existential dilema of why we need to be entertained at all, of course)

Here's a statistics-rich Economist article about the release of the largest grossing film to date "New Moon" and the recent release of "Avatar."  Toward an understanding of human entertainment consumption patterns...

The Most Important Ten Minutes of TV this Decade.

Either you're With Us, or you're With Us

John Marks - founder and president of Search for Common Ground is a hero of mine.

Amidst the debate of President Obama's international diplomacy, many different voices emerge - hatred, frustration, lack of understanding, support, vehement support, and admiration. John and Susan's article falls in the 'support' category, in my opinion.

Existential Debate:
How is it possible that every president/leader/boss has the same amount of aversion/attraction to them? I would say the same statement above while inserting George W. Bush's name for Obama's. Does that make anyone else think?

Melanoma

I've come dangerously close to skin cancer. Thanks to my generous former employer and the affordable Indian healthcare system, I've been able to keep tabs on what's manifesting itself on my skin. It's a swift, silent killer (as so many things are), so detection early and often is good.

Check this Guardian article out.

Existential debate:
We all want to live a long healthy life, even if we can't articulate it - but if we're going to die anyway eventually, why spend thousands on heath care to keep us alive? What's the point? What's our human responsibility to advocate for our own lives?