Foucault's bio power

Foucault writes of the “soul” as a reality which transcends the impermanent body. The body is subject to devises of power which target the soul as static state of being in one body to the next. This is bio power.

The reason for this, Foucault writes, is because:

“it is produced permanently around, on, within the body by the functioning of a power that is exercised on those punished…on those one supervises, trains and corrects,” and goes onto say “…the historical reality of this soul, which unlike the soul represented in Christian theology, is not born into sin and subject to punishment, but is born rather out of methods of punishment, supervision and constraint…it is the element in… effects of a certain type of power and the reference of a certain type of knowledge, the machinery by which the power relations give rise to a possible corpus of knowledge… on this reality reference, various concepts have been constructed and domains of analysis carved out: psyche, subjectivity, personality consciousness etc.”

The soul is focused on bodies, producing a self

“But let there be no misunderstanding: it is not that a real man, the object of knowledge… has been substituted for the soul…a ‘soul’ inhabits him and brings him into existence”

Artefacts of bio power exist in the conditioning of the “self”, the “soul”, in social relations because of the machinery of power focusing on the soul. We as these permanent “selves” and permanent “identities” are solidified in time. Our whole social structures are base on constructed contracts of being and how we should be.

In example:

The contract of “friendship” assumes certain parameters of action which delineate the scope of action. “One”, that permanent “self”, must respect them, be a subject to them. He should not lie, under the assumption of the construction of honesty, which was agreed in this vice of “friendship”. We reproduce the same social relation again and again.

The teacher as a “teacher” assumes the “pupil” wants to learn while the pupil as a “pupil” is assumed to want to learn. The relationship is finite focusing on the self as a static identity. The whole education system lines up bodies and treats them the same, as though we had a soul.

We will continue to do this by our expansion of knowledge, of power. I feel as though this relates to my truth doctrine. It is not as though we have some real gauge of morality or of right, nor does our language even grasp reality. Any attempt at such a project leads to more canons of bio power constraining us, the doctrine shows that much.

Quotes taken from: Foucault Discipline and punish - the birth of prisons PG: 29-30

A FB convo on islam

I think the UK gov't was wrong in not letting the danish MP show his documentary on Islam. The text is startling.The koran is the text to which it refers.

Her:

fuck islam! bunch o boming twats

6 hours ago ·

Me:

Not all muslims want to bomb people. don't be so narrow minded.
I'm going to show you here the issues.

Ireland for instance.
... See More
There are many groups who are considered terrorist all over the world. liberation army.. revoloutionary struggle.
mostly these are against capitalism, topdown organiszation, globalization (esp. corporate/economic)

Islam as a religion makes up just about a quarter of the worlds population & thier belief systems are very different.
Religion is the main issue, but it is very rooted in the culture, far more so than ours.

Plus mohammed as a prphet (unlike jesus) didn't teach us to be critical of law.
islam's laws thefore are considered tantamount to many muslims.

The other main issue comes from culture as well, look at what middle eastern countries have had to deal with over the last 100 years of foriegners declaring war and killing muslims... gulf, lebansese civil war invasion of iraq... and this is over the last 30 years... with constant western intervention.
aside from the military problems...there are economic issues
there have been repeated accusations of corporations taking advantage of lax social protection & exploiting the middle easts resources... which is thier main souce of natural wealth and what would allow them to become a power near ours (pending on how well they use it)

on top of that western banks have been imposing their will in forcing middle eastern countries to reform thier economies (FORCING)
E.G. on this sustainable economics website they point out:
"The World Banks and IMF’s interrelationship, financial opportunism, corporate mandate and US backing is best exemplified by their economic occupation of Iraq. Since the occupation began, Iraq’s entire economy has been fashioned by the IMF and World Bank to suit (mainly US) foreign investors and corporate interests."
source: http://www.stwr.org/imf-world-bank-trade/decommissioning-the-imf-world-bank-and-wto.html

Wake up and smell the hegemony.

We are manipulated and controlled by a predatory and ultimately destructive economy and a democracy with little real participation. (an oxymoron that is)

What is going on with terrorism is not so much justified... but understandable.
it represents a cry out for recognition that self determination is important.

Her:
yea i didnt read a word of that.
islam is a fucked up religion, they burn the women, the bomb every other fucker that dont agree with them, I hate them all and they get the fuck out of this country...

Me:

It sounds to me you'd rather be ignorant to save you narrow world-view.
>99% and above are not terrorists. Or misogynists to any reprehensible degree.

her:

yes i would rather be narrow minded than be on a plane with a paki and a big looking bag.

I think the issue of islam is much more complex than "a paki and a big looking bag" or "islam is a fucked up religion"

never mind.

I think the whole issue over in the middle east will really kick off soon.. maybe years though.

More reasons to laugh at FarmVille or anti health reform astroturf

I recently discovered a post about an on-line about a scam on farmville!

Over in America where Health Reform is the current hot topic on the legislative agenda, the health insurance lobby is getting social gamers, like those of Mafia wars and the dreaded FARMVILLE, to contact their member of congress (an MP in the UK) and oppose health care reform in exchange for virtual currency...

Apart from horrifically misleading to lawmakers who are trying to help some 12million onto health insurance who don't have it, what does this tell us about the demographic of a Farmville/mafia wars or many other social games?

They're dumb. Unquestioning & passive.
They'd happily sell their country to the control of corporations.... for some fake money and a pig...
Oink.
Oink.

But that is a little unfair, if it was for supporting health care and i played that gaming stuff i probably would.

But the intent is clear, to mobilize individuals into opposing health reform and for this opposition to not appear corporate.

Shame really.
Very deceptive.

... I don't know right now.

Oh!
look!
Right there, in the corner!

is it a message?
A reply?
A comment!

three facebook notifications?!
ftw.
What trash.

Wow. An application...
An application...
An
A-P-P-P-P-LICATION-TION-TION!


COMB-BO-BO BREAKER!

Musings in the Night.

Dark, it is, outside now. I would guess that it is also quiet but my music is playing, so i can't. It's two minutes past twelve according to my clock and the yellow lamplight is illuminating some of my streets more "economical" (poor peoples) cars, theres a peugot 106 and some blue cars and some red cars. I can't actually name that many cars, my skill(z) actually extend to 106, 206, 306... and yellow car (punch in the arm) and convertable (another punch) and nissan (is that even a car).

I've had a pretty uneventful day.
Then again.
For it to be eventful something really eventful would need to happen... like...
I don't know, a disaster of some sorts including flying ants or naked women.
Hurracances...
and cows with megaphones.

All this i imagine just outside of the school gates: around 1000 males screaming and running. Thier green blazzers flapping about, being trodden on under the stampede...little children still attached to them.

But i'll digress from the darker sides of my fantasy.

This post, unlike all the ones before, has no real or unreal meaning. Which means, really, that i get free reign with things that i'd usually fomalize for "appearances" like...

1 g3t t0 t41k l1k3 th15 2 u. 1 1nder h0w 1ong 1 c4n 3xt3nd my u|3|3er p0w3rs 4.
1 4m th3 m45t3r 0f d3c3pt1on.

1 c4n p14y w1th th3 f0rm:
th3n wh4t3v3r
1 typ3
c4n
b3 411
0v3r
d4

p14c3.


Ah well. I really can't be bothered with that vocation anymore.
But it was fun while it lasted.

I'll finish with a poem im making up on the spot =)


there once was a dilema
that met a girl called emma.
on a phone
they answered or hungup
on the same rings
broke the same things
twice.
would write incomparitavley, convolouted and convexing sentances
that missed the rythm
or the message.

But both found happiness, in that thier names would rhyme.
dilema
and emma
would be first in line.

but packages get crossed (with similar names) and words that hurt were slung.
neither had the option, dil rung emma
emma rung dil.
again, still, one hung up.
the other answered,

and had to shout. hard. at the recorder.



Hope you enjoyed my midnight musing. =) it's 12:32 now... and i'm signing off.

Dearest Sprog.

Well. My good friend Sprog, I regret to inform of your recent obsession with blogging. My dear friend, Blogger to you is what Farmville is to those Facebookers that get somewhat
infatuated in the wonderful world of...

Virtual SHIT.

The only difference being the fact that blogging, is actually rather enjoyable, and some people may actually benefit from it, so im not going to rip you in this blog, maybe next time?

Seriously now though, Farmville. Please. Mother of all that is untainted with the impending catastrophe that is going to unfold if the viral spreads ever farther, forcing those nice people who own a REAL farm to trade it in for a VIRTUAL farm, inevitably leading to the destruction of mankind, stop notifying me everytime one of my several hundred friends 'moves on up' in Farmville.

Many thanks.

TheHolyTowel.

FUCK the FACEBOOK FARMING FARMVILLE fuck.

Please... I beg. i crawl on my knees. I sacrifice my self on the altar of all that is good in the world. Stop the farmville viral. For the love of jesus... for the love of krishna.... with respect to buddist karma...It's a game... facebook is a social networking site not...

"LOOK AT ALL THE ANIMALS I HAVE ACCUMULATED IN SUCH A SHORT SPACE OF TIME. LOL"

The voice i would mimic is the pig from shrek.

It's not that i don't want you to play the farmville game...
I just don't want to be updated every time you get sucked in. The effect is a viral... you masterbate over it... someone catches you.. and then they do the same.

Well stop..
Updating me.
Stop.
Titillating.

I got a message from a friend, on face book, "soso" likes you status. Which read like the above..
So i go on there to thank him, to praise him. I want to pat him on the back and be like, we're in this together..

BUT NO!

YOUR WITH THEM ARN'T YOU, YOU MAFIA WAR-ER-ER.
Tsk.

I don't want to help you find a camera... an fbi agent..or anything...virtual

I want you to find a brick and to plough it through you hardrive.
I want you to put your ecstacy fingers in lawnmower and then to paint a picture..
at least that's something i'd click "like" and comment:
Hey, that's a really impressive feat. You put those farmville/mafia people to shame.

if only.
But there aren't an martyrs for this one is there.

I AM NOT YOUR FAN!!!1

No really, i'm a friend.
On facebook, the ever wondrous social networking site with an astounding array of applications using personal (private) information. Has finally caught me. I don't believe I've ever had the pleasure of pushing "allow access" for a facebook application to my personal stuff. But by the sounds of it I don't need to!

Recently i have been appearing all over my friends facebook accounts as a fan!
A fan!
on my friends...
facebook.
a fan.
a friends.

facebook.

Just by typing comments, viewing picture... etc.

Wikipedia tells me I'm "someone who has an intense, occasionally overwhelming liking and enthusiasm for a sporting club, person ..."

"intense, occasionally overwhelming liking" what, like an erection... like a stalker-ish suprise...
Maybe wikipedia and facebook didn't realise that half of the people im a "fan" of are women... (hehe or maybe they did) and i coincidentally commented on their profile recently saying, bluntly, you have penis envy... (a freudian joke)

But no. Very intense. Surely a real supporter.

dictionary.com sheds even more light... "fan2-noun" a "enthusiastic devotee, follower, or admirer of a sport, pastime, celebrity, etc."
thanks... im a devotee and a follower... im not devoted to them... im a devotee. Check that...

and finally..
just to rattle my cage a little more.

http://www.facebook.com/dictionarycom

They want me to become a fan.  

A lavish horde

Ok, so the Bar Lavish is having an "end of summer" party (is party the right word?).
These hyperactive promotions over face book have resulted in currently "488" maybe attending and "771" awaiting reply and "1007" confirmed guests... Let me please put this into perspective. However nice lavish is, very nice colours and an authentic feel -the situation is about as feasible as pushing an egg, or "1007 eggs" through a small sieve. If this metaphor confuses you, the egg may as well be trying to permeate the walls of lavish by osmosis.

I'm attending, i'll be the one on the table, squashed against the wall with my hand in the air trying to get served amid a horde of students.
I'm only 5"6

and that translates as FTW!


The words: Critical Mass
come to mind-
In fact,

If I fall over, I would possibly dissaperate (yes, like they do in the magical world of harry potter).

... and i need I.D..
Just to top it off.

Look forward to the event - see you guys there.
All of you..

All possible 2000 odd.

Wait, so if the total amount of sent invites exceeds 2000... then the people who organised it were relying on a low response rate!? I think they should have done their homework.
Only kidding.