As the holidays go on, my parents have been exposing me to some pretty interesting concepts and people - ones that I finally have time for! (Huzzah!!)
Two of these, I felt, were quite deserving of a blog post:
Alistair Cooke
I was too young to be aware of him when he was alive (That being the case regarding many of the people that interest me). My father, on the other hand, used to follow his regular 15-minute radio series - Letter from America - with interest: I soon understood why. As I listened to the first episode, one that focused on the assassination of John Lennon - I came to terms with the fact that it was very different from the radio series or podcast I'm used to - Mr. Cooke managed to speak about his topic and shift seamlessly to another one with an almost uncanny brilliance. I found his eloquence, wit and sense of humor to be refreshingly wonderful; all capitulated into 15-minutes. But this wasn't your short-term stint. Letter to America is easily the longest running radio programme in history, enjoying 58 years on air.
Regarding the same episode I mentioned above, Mr.Cooke made excellent observations which I believe still holds very true for today's gun control issues:
Regarding the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
A lot of people tend to throw the phrase 'Right to bear arms' around with a sort of ease - the interesting fact about this is that it is only the latter part of the amendment. Yes, a former one exists:
For me, that just puts a better perspective on things. Consider it food for thought.
Regarding more stringent gun-control laws
Here is a point of view that I respect - the jist of it being that unless the government realises that fear breeds 'closet vigilantes', no progress shall be made regarding gun-control laws. More than 30 years later, these words couldn't be truer - that there exists a larger issue to tackle. Funnily enough this always seems to be the case: That we end up trying to find the solution to what we perceive to be the problem when it is in fact a mere tip of the iceberg. There always is something more.
This, however, is just my takeaway from a single episode. Courtesy of the BBC, many of these episodes are available online, follow this link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00f6hbp/features/cooke-collections
Happy listening!
Charlie Chaplin
Why of course, Charlie Chaplin, the man that one grew up considering a comedian - one specializing in what seemed to be slapstick at the time. Now older, I started to consider Chaplin for the true genius he really was - one who specialized in what Dad calls 'Hilarious pathos'. While it is true that hilarity and hijinks ensue in his presence - a little afterthought brings about a more satirical feel to things.
This couldn't be more evident in one of his movies I watched: The Great Dictator
I believe this to be the first of Chaplin's 'talking pictures'. While the movie in its entirety was quite amusing to watch, there is one part that everyone - stoic, cynic or comedic - should watch. The speech.
After years of silent films, who would've guessed that he would deliver a speech that would stand the test of time? In an age of excess and diminished values, this speech sends you off into a bit of introspection: it could be a couple of minutes - or if you're like me, half a day - but healthy introspection nonetheless.
It's a beautiful speech - and hence I give you a link for this too:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcvjoWOwnn4
This post may discuss retrospect from my point of view.
But what it really does discuss is foresight. Truly incredible foresight - that seemed to be almost prevalent amidst the minds in those ages.
Consider today - get your work done. Consider the week ahead - be prepared. Consider the next few years - that's where it gets tricky.
Foresight.
Two of these, I felt, were quite deserving of a blog post:
Alistair Cooke
I was too young to be aware of him when he was alive (That being the case regarding many of the people that interest me). My father, on the other hand, used to follow his regular 15-minute radio series - Letter from America - with interest: I soon understood why. As I listened to the first episode, one that focused on the assassination of John Lennon - I came to terms with the fact that it was very different from the radio series or podcast I'm used to - Mr. Cooke managed to speak about his topic and shift seamlessly to another one with an almost uncanny brilliance. I found his eloquence, wit and sense of humor to be refreshingly wonderful; all capitulated into 15-minutes. But this wasn't your short-term stint. Letter to America is easily the longest running radio programme in history, enjoying 58 years on air.
Regarding the same episode I mentioned above, Mr.Cooke made excellent observations which I believe still holds very true for today's gun control issues:
Regarding the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
A lot of people tend to throw the phrase 'Right to bear arms' around with a sort of ease - the interesting fact about this is that it is only the latter part of the amendment. Yes, a former one exists:
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed"
For me, that just puts a better perspective on things. Consider it food for thought.
Regarding more stringent gun-control laws
Here is a point of view that I respect - the jist of it being that unless the government realises that fear breeds 'closet vigilantes', no progress shall be made regarding gun-control laws. More than 30 years later, these words couldn't be truer - that there exists a larger issue to tackle. Funnily enough this always seems to be the case: That we end up trying to find the solution to what we perceive to be the problem when it is in fact a mere tip of the iceberg. There always is something more.
This, however, is just my takeaway from a single episode. Courtesy of the BBC, many of these episodes are available online, follow this link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00f6hbp/features/cooke-collections
Happy listening!
Charlie Chaplin
Why of course, Charlie Chaplin, the man that one grew up considering a comedian - one specializing in what seemed to be slapstick at the time. Now older, I started to consider Chaplin for the true genius he really was - one who specialized in what Dad calls 'Hilarious pathos'. While it is true that hilarity and hijinks ensue in his presence - a little afterthought brings about a more satirical feel to things.
This couldn't be more evident in one of his movies I watched: The Great Dictator
I believe this to be the first of Chaplin's 'talking pictures'. While the movie in its entirety was quite amusing to watch, there is one part that everyone - stoic, cynic or comedic - should watch. The speech.
After years of silent films, who would've guessed that he would deliver a speech that would stand the test of time? In an age of excess and diminished values, this speech sends you off into a bit of introspection: it could be a couple of minutes - or if you're like me, half a day - but healthy introspection nonetheless.
It's a beautiful speech - and hence I give you a link for this too:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcvjoWOwnn4
This post may discuss retrospect from my point of view.
But what it really does discuss is foresight. Truly incredible foresight - that seemed to be almost prevalent amidst the minds in those ages.
Consider today - get your work done. Consider the week ahead - be prepared. Consider the next few years - that's where it gets tricky.
Foresight.
