Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

"Personality theory and social psychology research suggest that when we encounter someone whose arguments for censorship are dogmatic and simplistic, we are probably dealing with an authoritarian personality who is reacting to something he/she fears. Authoritarian personalities are characterized by a strong desire to exert power, an equally strong need to submit to power (often the power of a social, political or religious group), resentment of weakness, fear of ambiguous situations, and an unusual fascination with sex. Authoritarian personalities are highly moralistic, exhibiting a 'conventional' level of morality on Kohlberg's scale of moral development (minor rules and social respectability are placed above principles such as equality, freedom of expression, and human rights). Any information which is contrary to their (or their group's) beliefs, stereotypes and rationalizations is perceived as a threat. [...] Censorship is more strongly motivated by the fear of losing control over children than a concern for their moral development, and books which portray young people who defy parental values may especially outrage authoritarian personalities." -- from the abstract for "How the Mind of a Censor Works: The Psychology of Censorship", by Dr. Sara Fine, School Library Journal 42 no. 1 (January, 1996): 23-27. [I was not able to find the complete paper online, only the abstract. I'll try to remember to see whether I can find it in a public library the next time I find myself near one.]

"Personality theory and social psychology research suggest that when we encounter someone whose arguments for censorship are dogmatic and simplistic, we are probably dealing with an authoritarian personality who is reacting to something he/she fears. Authoritarian personalities are characterized by a strong desire to exert power, an equally strong need to submit to power (often the power of a social, political or religious group), resentment of weakness, fear of ambiguous situations, and an unusual fascination with sex. Authoritarian personalities are highly moralistic, exhibiting a 'conventional' level of morality on Kohlberg's scale of moral development (minor rules and social respectability are placed above principles such as equality, freedom of expression, and human rights). Any information which is contrary to their (or their group's) beliefs, stereotypes and rationalizations is perceived as a threat. [...] Censorship is more strongly motivated by the fear of losing control over children than a concern for their moral development, and books which portray young people who defy parental values may especially outrage authoritarian personalities." -- from the abstract for "How the Mind of a Censor Works: The Psychology of Censorship", by Dr. Sara Fine, School Library Journal 42 no. 1 (January, 1996): 23-27. [I was not able to find the complete paper online, only the abstract. I'll try to remember to see whether I can find it in a public library the next time I find myself near one.]

Despite how tired I felt when I got home from 3LF rehearsal, I haven't managed to fall asleep yet. I just got up to visit the euphemism room, and on the way back, a flash of bright red caught my eye as I passed the window on the landing.

The sky has lightened just enough to be able to see the texture of the cloud deck and notice a bit of colour. The sky over Baltimore is a mottled faint indigo and dusty purple. Except for a break, or a thin spot, or something in the clouds, over the harbour, that the not-quite-rising-yet sun has turned into a spectacular Bright! Crimson! Slash! across the sky just above the horizon, all the more dramatic for the contrast with the grey-purple (with muted indigo swirls) winter overcast. It's a dark January morning so far, except for that Bright! Red! Gash! over the harbour.

Baltimore gets some freaky skies, man.

And yeah, it's pretty.

Despite how tired I felt when I got home from 3LF rehearsal, I haven't managed to fall asleep yet. I just got up to visit the euphemism room, and on the way back, a flash of bright red caught my eye as I passed the window on the landing.

The sky has lightened just enough to be able to see the texture of the cloud deck and notice a bit of colour. The sky over Baltimore is a mottled faint indigo and dusty purple. Except for a break, or a thin spot, or something in the clouds, over the harbour, that the not-quite-rising-yet sun has turned into a spectacular Bright! Crimson! Slash! across the sky just above the horizon, all the more dramatic for the contrast with the grey-purple (with muted indigo swirls) winter overcast. It's a dark January morning so far, except for that Bright! Red! Gash! over the harbour.

Baltimore gets some freaky skies, man.

And yeah, it's pretty.

I eventually slept, but only for about three hours. Argh. Since then, I've actually gotten a number of things done ... all very small things, and there's much else more urgent, but at least I managed to feel like I'd gotten somethings accomplished, however minor, despite feeling crappy all day. I think I may be falling asleep again soon at last -- I propped my eyelids open long enough to program the VCR, and after I post this I'll close my eyes and see whether the needed sleep does arrive.

I'm not moving at all well, so the to-done items that involved trudging up and down stairs also involved a lot of grunting and grimacing. Arms, legs, mid- and lower-back, all working rather suboptimally. And just before I stopped moving, I got a sharp-steady pain between the third and fourth, and between the fourth and fifth, metatarsals in my right foot. That's a new one.

I had thought I would have a vehicle this week, but that has turned out not to be the case. I still need to get my wrist X-rayed -- either tomorrow or Thursday, tomorrow being better -- and am hoping to get a ride to the radiologist (out in Catonsville, but not on the #10 bus line, alas); and would love a ride to the orthopedist at waytooearly Friday morning (09:00), though I do have bus+subway+walking directions if I can drag myself out of the house early enough for how long that method will take. starmalachite said she thinks she can get me to the radiologist but wasn't absolutely certain how that was going to work schedule-wise, so I'm listing that ride-need just in case ...

I'm also still trying to gather documentation for the renewal application for Maryland's health-care-for-poor-people plan, and for sorting out just how far down the sliding fee scale I'll be with the orthopedist (not covered by the state plan). And I need to get something notarized before Friday as well. Whee. I'd really hoped to get most of this finished last week, but last week did not work out very well for me.

Depending on how things go at the orthopedist on Friday, I'm supposed to be playing with most of The Homespun Ceilidh Band at the Pirate Feast on Saturday. So unless the doctor puts my wrist in a cast or forbids me to play guitar for a while, I'm looking for a ride to that as well. Anybody headed to that from Baltimore, with room for me, a couple guitars, and some audio gear?

Wish me luck.

I'm trying to decide whether I should take a guitar with me to the orthopedist on Friday in case we need to discuss specifics about how I move my wrist while playing, and with how much force.

And in unrelated news, Perrine continues to be adorable and frequently entertaining. Such a sweetie-cat.

I eventually slept, but only for about three hours. Argh. Since then, I've actually gotten a number of things done ... all very small things, and there's much else more urgent, but at least I managed to feel like I'd gotten somethings accomplished, however minor, despite feeling crappy all day. I think I may be falling asleep again soon at last -- I propped my eyelids open long enough to program the VCR, and after I post this I'll close my eyes and see whether the needed sleep does arrive.

I'm not moving at all well, so the to-done items that involved trudging up and down stairs also involved a lot of grunting and grimacing. Arms, legs, mid- and lower-back, all working rather suboptimally. And just before I stopped moving, I got a sharp-steady pain between the third and fourth, and between the fourth and fifth, metatarsals in my right foot. That's a new one.

I had thought I would have a vehicle this week, but that has turned out not to be the case. I still need to get my wrist X-rayed -- either tomorrow or Thursday, tomorrow being better -- and am hoping to get a ride to the radiologist (out in Catonsville, but not on the #10 bus line, alas); and would love a ride to the orthopedist at waytooearly Friday morning (09:00), though I do have bus+subway+walking directions if I can drag myself out of the house early enough for how long that method will take. starmalachite said she thinks she can get me to the radiologist but wasn't absolutely certain how that was going to work schedule-wise, so I'm listing that ride-need just in case ...

I'm also still trying to gather documentation for the renewal application for Maryland's health-care-for-poor-people plan, and for sorting out just how far down the sliding fee scale I'll be with the orthopedist (not covered by the state plan). And I need to get something notarized before Friday as well. Whee. I'd really hoped to get most of this finished last week, but last week did not work out very well for me.

Depending on how things go at the orthopedist on Friday, I'm supposed to be playing with most of The Homespun Ceilidh Band at the Pirate Feast on Saturday. So unless the doctor puts my wrist in a cast or forbids me to play guitar for a while, I'm looking for a ride to that as well. Anybody headed to that from Baltimore, with room for me, a couple guitars, and some audio gear?

Wish me luck.

I'm trying to decide whether I should take a guitar with me to the orthopedist on Friday in case we need to discuss specifics about how I move my wrist while playing, and with how much force.

And in unrelated news, Perrine continues to be adorable and frequently entertaining. Such a sweetie-cat.