prog: (Default)
[personal profile] prog
New meme:

Suddenly, everyone hates Tom Cruise.

I am not sure why this is. Some strange parodic references to this and that have trickled down to me, but without context they are meaningless. They do provide me with google terms I can use, however. Probably I'll go research them now, but I just wanted to note this here before I figure out what's going on.



Just-noticed meme:

People who run for exercise don't jog; they run. And the word for these people is: runners.

I wonder if this is just regional. I want to jump to the sexier conclusion that it's actually the result of a successful rebranding effort by the running-for-exercise community, since "jogger" is probably right down there with "mime" for most middle-Americans.

Date: 2005-07-16 02:26 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xymotik.livejournal.com
Tom Cruise has been going on a Scientologist kick and saying that psychiatric drugs are Teh Bad. He publicly criticized Brooke Shields for taking anti-depressants after she had post-partum depression, and then he went off on a TV interview sayin' that he knew the history of psychiatric medicine far better than most people. Brooke Shields wrote back in a guest column in the NY Times and made a wild guess that TC had never had post-partum depression.

I'm not sure what the fuss is about, because everyone knows that modern medicine is all a sham and spending tens of thousands of dollars to exorcise the Thetans from your body is all worth it. What? You haven't heard of them? They're the spirits of the aliens who were thrown in the volcanoes by Evil Galactic Ruler Xenu 75 million years ago and now they POSSESS US ALL.

Just last week I was at a mall in San Jose and there was a kiosk, complete with e-meters, offering free "stress tests." I also seem to remember that when you were here 5.5 years ago we saw a big Scientologist building on Market in SF.

Now he's marrying a 26-year-old or something, and they're both gonna live happy Scientologist lives forever and ever. Awwwwww, isn't that sweet?

Date: 2005-07-16 02:36 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] glowingwhispers.livejournal.com

I say hip hip hurray to Tom Cruise for drawing attent to the political and profit driven history pharma psychiatry. Then again, I myself did an MA thesis that argued similar views.

Date: 2005-07-16 02:54 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
You did an MA thesis that argued that all psychiatry (and, by extension, the very concept of mental disorder) is a scam perpetrated by a vast global conspiracy?

If not, then you probably don't really hold similar views to TC and his Scientologist brethren.

Date: 2005-07-16 02:58 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
Huh. It's been happening here too. Is a coordinated evangelization effort by TCoS underway?

Date: 2005-07-16 03:17 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xymotik.livejournal.com
Scientologists have been going after celebrities for a long time: there's both money and influence there. But I wonder, if they're trying to broaden their base, are programmers (or at least geeks in general) the next target? Boston and SF are arguably still the programming capitols of the US, and geeks as a whole have plenty of disposable income, plus they usually enjoy sci-fi, so maybe that's Scientology's reasoning.

Date: 2005-07-16 03:25 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
Interesting notion. I could enumerate reasons why this would be spectacularly flawed reasoning on the Church's part, but I won't bother since you can probably do the same.

More likely that they're doing this all over the place but most of my friends are in one people's republic or the other, so I haven't heard.

Date: 2005-07-16 02:33 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] glowingwhispers.livejournal.com


I agree with the 'runner' rather than 'jogger' rebranding distinction. It's cool to be hardcore athletic at the moment rather than be a chipper flaneur.

As for the Tom Cruise one, I agree with you here too. To understand this, I find myself relating this phenomenon most strongly to A J Ayer's concept of emotivism, i.e. many are just regurgitating dominant culture norms and I assume that they are disingenuously reporting a current state of mind.

Date: 2005-07-16 02:53 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] cortezopossum.livejournal.com
People who run for exercise don't jog; they run. And the word for these people is: runners.

I don't see the problem with the term "jogger". Aren't "runners" people who are trying to avoid the Sandmen after "Last Day"?

Date: 2005-07-16 02:55 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
I was thinking more "Logan's Run" myself.

Year of the City 2005. Carousel begins.

Date: 2005-07-16 03:07 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xymotik.livejournal.com
Run, runner!

I was thinking that as I turned the big 3-0 last month.

We're not worthy

Date: 2005-07-16 03:22 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
Er, wait, so were you.

See xymotik's prostration below.

Date: 2005-07-16 03:09 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xymotik.livejournal.com
I bow to your geekdom. I just saw that movie about a year ago and I had already forgot the term "sandman."

running v. jogging.

Date: 2005-07-16 03:48 am (UTC)
cthulhia: (feets don't fail me now)
From: [personal profile] cthulhia
I'm not sure if there's an actual stride different, like trot v. canter.

Probably has more to do with heart rate than much else. I consider myself a slow runner, but I suppose somewould say I jog. (except that sounds like I need a better support bra or something.)

Date: 2005-07-16 03:58 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] radtea.livejournal.com
Runners run. I dunno what joggers do. Nudge people with their elbows?

(I'm a runner--there's a definite ecological/sociological structure to the fittness community, and at my old strength-oriented gym you could tell the runners from the purely strength-oriented guys from a mile off. Body-builders are quite different again, and aerobics people are likewise distinct. Lots of sub-divisions, based on everything from body type to age to sex to what wacky theory of fittness you believe in.)

Date: 2005-07-16 04:16 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dougo.livejournal.com
Funny thing is, I read about the recent Tom Cruise goings-on in Wikipedia. It's surprisingly up-to-date. Well, not really that surprising.

Date: 2005-07-16 04:27 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prog.livejournal.com
I thought to look there after making this post. Yes, it's brilliant. They even have a still from the couch-jumping incident.

Date: 2005-07-16 03:08 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] keimel.livejournal.com
The real problem people seem to have with TC stems from the interview with Matt Lauer (sp?) which began as the typical "my new movie" interview. The transcript of the interview is here.

I think most people's problem with him is that he's coming off as a self purported expert because he "read the research papers on how they came up with these theories" and is now the absolute expert on all topics psychiatric. And since Matt didn't read them so he's a total idiot (which might be true) AND all of Matt's experiences with friends and family are moot, because he didn't read the research papers.

So, Tom, having read a few research papers (I suppose that TC is now a scientist and understands scientific theory (the scientific method, as would be taught), understands testing methods, etc etc etc) and is expert in all things science.

Another reason might be an interview in Germany where when asked "So what would you do if the aliens came...." (like in the movie, or perhaps like a more friendly alien visit) he just babbled and laughed "I dont know... "

Personally, I used to think TC was kind of cool and had half a brain. Since the Germany interview he carries himself like a nit-wit unable to answer a hypothetical question from a fan and then comes off as self taught expert on psychiatry because he's read a few research papers. He's just a hollywood whacko now.

IMHO.

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