Thoughts on geeking out

Geeking out has been defined, at least by way of Google, as freaking out over something that others think is geeky. I don't think everyone geeks out over something, but I feel kind of sorry for those who don't.

I admit to being a promiscuous geeker, meaning that I geek out on several things, ranging from martial arts to ancient Greece to critical theory, among other things.

I've noticed that people who geek out often like to geek out about movies about the object of their geeking. For example, when I was on the local volunteer fire department, our guys would laugh at the inaccuracy of firefighter movies...but they were glued to the screen and probably teared up at the appropriate moments (not that they'd ever admit that to anyone).

I'm in that boat when it comes to karate, and particularly movies and TV shows like The Karate Kid and Cobra Kai, the contemporary version of the story. While the karate techniques in this are only marginally like the real thing, the spirit of Mr. Miyagi is pretty close to the spirit of Okinawan karate, which in my opinion covers a multitude of sins. And the solo forms or katas shown are based on real ones, although they were generally mangled.

In this age of Brazilian jiu jitsu, Muay Thai and mixed martial arts, karate is as retro as analog watches, vinyl records and cell phones that are just phones. Still, it's my thing.

The movie and show are comically inaccurate as far as what it's really like for some of these reasons:

*First of all, the flashy techniques. Anyone who is dumb enough to try the crane technique (pictured above) really doesn't deserve to have intact ribs. And, while balance is good, spinning hook kicks on trees has limited application.

*Second, the training methods are hilariously unspecific. I seem to recall that the late great Bruce Lee said, "If you want to develop your punch, punch!" Instead, these movies emphasize waxing cars and painting fences and hanging clothes. You get good at what you practice. Exactly that.

*Third, it's amazing how many people become expert fighters if not black belts in a few lessons. It took most of the people I know several years. It's almost like downloading martial arts styles on The Matrix movies. If it was easy, it would be cheating.

*Fourth, I've done this stuff off and on for much longer than the median age of contemporary humans (without ever getting really good at it). I cannot recall a sensei or a senior show me a cool technique. Mostly they make you drill on the same dull, extremely non-flashy boring stuff you were first shown early on. You also have three really close friends: tiredness, boredom and pain.

Having said all that, I was glued to Cobra Kai like a fly on....whatever flies enjoy close proximity to. I can hardly wait for the next season.

Meantime, sweep the leg! And geek proudly.

To paraphrase book of Ecclesiastes in the Hebrew Bible or Christian Old Testament, "Whatever your mind finds to geek on, geek on it with all your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom or geeking in the realm of the dead."

Cute and not cute

If you just want to see something amusing today, click here. You'll never think about toy dinosaurs the same way again.

AND IF THAT DIDN'T WORK, check out this harmonica playing elephant.

OK, ENOUGH CUTE. Here's a look at the connection between zombies, international politics and 21st century anxieties.

AND YOU CAN HEAR THEM ALL THE TIME IN WV. From Bloomberg by way of Ken Ward's Coal Tattoo, here are some bad arguments from the coal industry.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Pendulums

For most of the 20th century, disciplines like sociology and anthropology emphasized culture as the main shaper of human behavior and were skeptical of suggestions of biological or genetic influences on human social life.

They had some reason on their side. Anyone who thinks human nature is fixed by heredity has a lot explaining to do about our species' variability across time and space. Also, many previous attempts to bridge the gap between biology and society were suspect on many grounds.

So-called Social Darwinists misused Darwin's ideas to justify cut-throat unregulated capitalism in the Victorian era. Eugenics was the rage on both the right and left up until the mid 20th century. Racists and imperialists misused "science" to reinforce their bias and social positions. The Nazi movement imagined a struggle for existence between races. No wonder people wanted to focus on culture.

Lately, with growing knowledge in the fields of biology and genetics, things have begun to change. Biological determinism is still out as a catch-all explanation for social life, but there seems to be a greater willingness to consider the genetic bases of at least some behavior at the group and individual level.

More on this to come.

STATING THE OBVIOUS is a good thing these days. Here's another op-ed on the need for more action to create jobs. Krugman throws in his two cents here.

INTERESTING DEVELOPMENT. Massey executives went deep into the Upper Big Branch mine shortly after the disaster, which raises lots of questions.

FRAME THIS. Here's George Lakoff on politics, morality and messaging.

TAX THIS. Here are some reasons why raising taxes on the wealthiest makes sense.

PLATO, POP CULTURE AND VIDEO GAMES here.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED