- A whole lotta nothin' goin' on 2004-11-10 11:38:53 It's amazing how a whole week can go by and almost nothing interesting takes place. Other than the fact that I've been really stressed out with school, but I can kinda relax now that freaky midterm is over. I'm behind in my webcomic, though. That's not good. I REALLY need the Adobe Creative Suite for home, but even if I could afford it I can't use it untill Dad finally gets the new comp, Aphrodite, finished (he's not really sure why he named it that; he just said it was the first name that popped in his head). At least he's got the cable working. Even if we can't use it with the old comp, we at least have basic cable TV now. But I'm not a couch potato (don't have time for it this quarter, anyway), so I'll probably only watch an occasional show. At least this way I have access to a little more dubbed anime then what's aired on regular TV! Can't tape it and make unsubbed AMVs with, though. I haven't the proper equipment.
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American voting
2004-11-03 11:39:13
I must asdmit I am very impressed with the sheer number of voters who turned out yesterday to cast their opinions for the government of their state and country. I'm even glad that those who's opinions differ from mine (of which there are far too many of in my state to make me comfortable about the future, but that's just an opinion) had gone to vote--it is the principal of the thing that matters, I suppose. I myself am quite pleased with the results, considering how it could've gone much worse. While it is not yet ceirtain, it seems Bush will remain president, which was a real biggie for me. Washington's govenor is at a tie with 99% of votes counted...what a nerve-wracking race this one is. Some other politicians that I DO NOT LIKE in Washington made their races, crud, but some that I favored made it as well. Ditto for the Initiatives (but WHY people think that the Haford problem will get better by dumping MORE waste there is beyond me). All in all, I'm compromisably happy with the results. Both parties won different major elections, so I guess that keeps the balance in check. --Except the balance in Hanford, where I guess we'll start seeing a resemblance to some alien environment soon as everything mutates and begins to glow green (joke).
There was one thing on the Washington ballot that REALLY irked me. We had to vote for one of several methods to raise taxes (the most infuiating one being the tax on distance driven in a year--that's STUPID). This WILL be contested in court--it is SO against the constitution to force a choice out of voters on an issue without the opition of voting the idea down in the first place. It's like saying, "Here! Choose your form of suffering. No, you don't have the right to choose not to suffer at all, you can only decide what pain to be inflicted with." Man, that irks me. this is NOT anything close to the ideals this country was founded on. But then, we seem to be drifting from those ideals a lot, lately. Already, we pay FAR more in taxes then our forefathers paid under England's rule, and THEY rebelled because of it. And here we are, doing worse to ourselves. How bitterly ironic. At any rate, I followed the path of many and refused to vote at all on this issue. The courts will crush it anyway--or at least, they should. Next time, people, do the thing RIGHT, and maybe your little campaign might go better. Sheesh. - More opinions! 2004-10-28 16:45:18 Ooo, goodie! Someone gave me two opinions! ^_^ Now all of my AMVs have at least one opinion. I'm very happy!
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Explosive topics
2004-10-28 16:39:06
Hm. I seem to have started a disscussion thread in the forums that has erupted into a highly debated topic involving what is the actual definition of anime, wither American/other than Japanese-done anime should be allowed, and what defines American anime anyway. ((O_o))
Just for the purposes of keeping record in my journal, my arguement was the following:
I believe some people made very good points about why Teen Titans isn’t considered anime, however, I myself must disagree. TT was created using just about everything you’d find in anime such as emotion symbols (ex: tic mark and sweat drop), patterned backgrounds, freeze poses, abrupt comic chibi transformations, and more. The only thing that is debatable is wither or not American done anime (or Amerime as I’ve heard it called) or anything else produced outside of Japan and using a different language qualifies as anime. I think it ought to. Take the history of art movements, for example. The Bauhaus movement originated in Germany and is considered very German in style, but later in the movement the style was picked up by artists in other countries, particularly here in America where some prominent Bauhaus artists came to teach. The Bauhaus movement is still credited to be a German movement, even though not all the art was produced in Germany and/or by Germans. For another example, I’ll bring in manga. Manga is another arguable topic exactly like anime. Does manga drawn in other countries and in other languages besides Japanese actually count as manga? According to one of the leading manga distributors here in Japan, yes. A couple years ago, Tokyopop began the “Rising Stars of Manga” contest series. In this contest, American artists compete to have their short mangas published and to win rights to produce their own manga series. This example shows that the professional industry has acknowledged American-done manga officially as American manga. If this applies to manga, why can’t it apply to anime, which is no different except it has sound and moves?
To bring in another point, anime exists because of American animation. It was the work of Disney that inspired the creator of Astro Boy, one of the earliest animes. Early anime was produced sort of like a duplication of American animation, very much like how today’s debated “Amerime” (as I’ve heard it called) is an impression of Japanese anime. In this sense, one could say the influence has come full circle. America itself is a country that has no old history as a nation and is comprised entirely by adapted foreign influences that in turn gave rise to original ideas—a quality seen in any colony-founded country. Today America is a place where ideas come from all across the globe to mix into the society and define its culture. The acceptance of anime into American animation is simply another example in the let’s-mix-it-all-together American ideal. You could even say that anime might be facing another stage in the evolution of the style as it is blended with current American techniques.
The rise of Amerime is not something that will end soon. Anime recently began to become more widespread and popular here in America in the last couple decades. The kids who were introduced to anime early one are now grown up and entering the job field of media—and with them, they bring their fascination with anime. This “phase” will only become stronger, as each successive generation is exposed to more and more anime, generating an ever increasing number of fans. The issue of wither Amerime is considered anime will have to be resolved sooner or later, because Amerime could very well be here to stay.
Having said all this, I will concur that it is certainly up to the mods wither or not to allow Amerime AMVs on this site. There are certainly problems involved. Defining exactly what is an American anime and what is simply an anime-influenced cartoon is difficult. Teen Titans is a far-end “Amerime” example, while TV shows such as Codename: Kids Next Door is an example of an American cartoon with a few minor anime influences (the creator even admits to this, and admitted being an anime admirer himself). The line becomes blurred, though, when equally mixed shows are brought to light, such as Xiaolin Showdown; this show could be easily argued either way. I suppose in this case it would certainly be up to the discretion of whoever’s in charge—even if they plan to ban all “Amerime”. I will, however, continue to argue for and on behalf of Amerime, just as I have argued for and on behalf of anime in the face of anti-anime art professors and art fans at school.
On a personal note, I’d like to point out that simply “not liking” American anime is not a good reason to censor it. There are those that do like it, and it’s unfair to deny Amerime fans just because someone is biased against the style. After all, those who don’t like it don’t have to pay any attention to it. I apologize if that sounded harsh. ^_^ I just don’t see how it’s right to force on many the opinions of a few, even if it is within the rights of the few to do so.
Sorry if this went long. As you can see, this is a topic I’ve dealt with a lot.
So far there have already been some interesting responses. I don't often start topics that many people respond to, so this is an interesting experience. It's also proof that I need to monitor how much I talk when I'm on my medication--I kinda get really analytical. -
Ups and downs
2004-10-25 18:45:04
In contrast to my last journal entry, life is full of ups and downs.
UP: I just decidedon a date to get my wreck of a room cleaned, and will hopefully actually be able to see what color the floor is soon.
DOWN: I gotta clean the room... -_-
UP: I'm kinda feeling better from the really bad cold that totaly laid me out for the weekend
DOWN: I'm still really weak and my head is in a fog and I didn't want to come to school today but I had a midterm test.
UP: Someone left an opinion on one of my AMVs! ^_^
DOWN: I messed up my timing estimate on my midterm and thus didn't finish it. At most I'm going to get 50 out of 60 points, and this thing is worth 15% of my grade. :-( I'm so upset that my exaustion is getting worse. I almost collapsed outside the testing center. I can't believe I managed to wobble down that hall. Really embarassing, too. I felt like waving a sign reading "What are YOU looking at" towards anyone who stared (which was noone, since the hall was deserted. But the voices in my head told me people were staring anyway).
UP: At least the darn thing is OVER.
DOWN: So's my academic career (or that's what it feels like).
Ok, this rollercoaster is making me feel sick again. :-P
JOURNAL: JMZ
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