Rufus Wainwright's Blackout Sabbath is June 21, 2008. He wants us to use no electricity for 12 hours that day. http://www.blackoutsabbath.org/
TimRusso
· 1 year ago
i was in a post soviet hotel in Ukraine working for NDI, with no international phone lines (or reliable local for that matter) when a coup happened in my home base country Armenia. i think we have this same Hero ability.
FightForJustice
· 1 year ago
"...But in the Unlikely story that is American, there has never been anything false about hope"
shell
· 1 year ago
Is this proposed for 24 hours on any day? Or the same 24 hours for everyone? If the same for everyone -- yikes! LOL
jr
· 1 year ago
watched pot never boils
TBLJ
· 1 year ago
I have been doing this for sometime. On Shabbat I do not turn on my Laptop. I will occasionally make an exception but I try very hard to cut down my use of technology
AngelaChanning
· 1 year ago
John, maybe you should go on an Atlantis cruise. We can get the big news event and you can well...get laid. j/k. LOL.
Jim Olson
· 1 year ago
I do this regularly, usually from Sunday night to Monday night, I turn off the computers, and the cell phone...and I mean really off, not just sleeping. I find that I sleep better when I know that the phone isn't going to ring.
Bostonian_Queer_in_Dallas
· 1 year ago
I work in a Jewish organization, although I am an Agnostic Anglican myself. Out of respect (and our charter), we do not use email or phones on Shabbat (Friday sundown to Saturday sundown...you've seen "Fiddler"). Once in a great while I forget but there is no real consequence. I am beginning to envy my colleagues who have a true day off once a week. The rest of us are running a rat race for the power pigs of corporate America. Techno Shabbat or Shabbis is a brilliant idea.
Indigo
· 1 year ago
On pilgrimage in India in 2006, I trekked for an entire month without going on the internet. It felt weird at times but when I got back home, I found out that nothing much had happened without me. Somehow, that was even more weird. I suspect the golden age of the internet is tarnishing anyhow, the time to step away from cyberspace more often is upon us. Google sucks, Yahoo! is the new Netscape, and Second Life is no life at all.
DAR_Progressive
· 1 year ago
Cool piece. We could all use a break from nonstop "on" especially after Hillarygate.
My story (from the 70s) is this: Up in Canada at whitewater canoe school, sleeping in a tent, not much connection to the outside world.
Holy cannoli - Nixon freaking resigns!!!! We got bits of news up there and everyone was ecstatic. Maybe I should go back up there to that river and pray, as the song goes.
On second thought, we'd just get Cheney!!!! LOL.
lynchie
· 1 year ago
We are beyond being connected. cell phones, call waiting on cell phone, voice mail on cell phone, voice mail on phone at work, pager, voice mail with pager, home phone, voice mail on home phone, PDA, text messaging, e-mail at work, e-mail at home. Connected means the expectation of companies that you are always available. Think of how many times you just answer your cell phone without caring who it is, time of day, whatever. You even answer if you are in a meeting, at dinner with friends and family. It is intrusive yet we accept it. 8 months ago i got rid of the phone clip on my belt. I now carry my phone loose or in my brief case. It rings, people leave a message and when you have time or inclination you retrieve your voice mail. I use the new law in Pa. about cell phones in cars as a real reason i don't answer every call. I kind of got my life back. 4 months ago I declared to everyone at work that I do no e-mail on Friday's. If someone wants me they can phone or actually walk to my office. This started because my boss came into my office asked if I had read his e-mail, I said no what did you need. He said read my email and come and see me. I said you are standing right here what is it you need. He admitted that he didn't fully remember what he wanted and walked away. We have lost the ability to communicate face to face. It is like the dating services or even blogging here on Americablog. You can be anyone you want, with any personal history, you can be a company executive or unemployed. I say answer cell phones when you want to and take Friday or any day off from e-mail. It has changed my life and I feel more in control. I also get more done.
Milli
· 1 year ago
Unless there's a disaster I avoid news of any kind on the weekends (my roommate lets me know if something "big" happens). My brain is usually fried on Friday afternoons because I constantly listen to political talk and read blogs all week. Perhaps if we get a sane president into office I may be able to handle some news on the weekend. Bush just wore the hell out of me and it seemed like a job just to mentally juggle all the foolishness that he created.
Matthew Saroff
· 1 year ago
You worked for Ted Stevens?
You have to write about your thoughts on the corruption scandals currently embroiling him.
Busboy
· 1 year ago
That's par for the course. The shinola never hits the rotor blades until you go on vacation or leave town. Speaking of which, we may be leaving shortly and not by our own volition. One of the meanest T-storms this year getting ready to sweep OKC. Already have transformers blowing up. Not a good sign....
shell
· 1 year ago
You live in OKC?
Busboy
· 1 year ago
close by
shell
· 1 year ago
In a message dated 6/7/2008 12:52:24 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, writes:
All Comments
My story (from the 70s) is this: Up in Canada at whitewater canoe school, sleeping in a tent, not much connection to the outside world.
Holy cannoli - Nixon freaking resigns!!!! We got bits of news up there and everyone was ecstatic. Maybe I should go back up there to that river and pray, as the song goes.
On second thought, we'd just get Cheney!!!! LOL.
We have lost the ability to communicate face to face. It is like the dating services or even blogging here on Americablog. You can be anyone you want, with any personal history, you can be a company executive or unemployed.
I say answer cell phones when you want to and take Friday or any day off from e-mail. It has changed my life and I feel more in control. I also get more done.
You have to write about your thoughts on the corruption scandals currently embroiling him.
writes: