ISRAELI SETTLEMENTS

In a move that will surely bring an end to the newly started Peace Talks between Israel and Palestine, Israel lifted its ban on settlement construction in the West Bank. Wasting no time, Israelis staged large events today, pouring new foundations and speaking out about the oppression of the ban on building.

"For 10 months you have been treated like second-class citizens," said Danny Danon of Mr. Netanyahu's Likud Party at a settlement ceremony. "Today we return to build in all the land of Israel."

If you want to see real second-class citizens, come visit a Palestinian refugee camp here in Jordan. They've existed a little over ten months; actually 62 years. The picture above was taken at the largest landfill in Jordan where men from the camps collect recyclables to make a living.

There is not a huge difference between these selfish Israeli settlers, crazy Koran burning Americans, and radical Arab terrorists. Each religion has its share of uneducated selfish assholes who are loud and steal the spotlight from soft-spoken moderates. Soft-spoken moderates don't attract viewers. Putting idiots like these settlers on the news sells more shampoo. I'm getting tired of it. The world is not full of as many lunatics as the media would have us believe.

SPINY TOOTHED MADMAN

This picture of Walt Whitman hangs in the classroom above the chalkboard in the movie Dead Poets Society. I just re-watched the film today and made a startling discovery. In the scene where Ethan Hawk's character is forced to describe "Uncle Walt" in front of the class, he calls him a "sweaty-toothed madman". I thought it was spiny, thus the reference in the masthead of my blog. I guess they both don't really make any sense.

KURT VONNEGUT ALLIGATOR QUOTE

"I want to be with people who don't think at all, so I won't have to think, either. I'm very tired of thinking. It doesn't seem to help very much. The human brain is too high-powered to have many practical uses in this particular universe, in my opinion. I'd like to live with alligators, think like an alligator."

SHAPING THE LIGHT

These are portraits of Jordanian artist Hani Alqam that I took earlier today. He was very gracious and let me experiment quite a bit with my lights. The key light in each of the above photos was shaped by a different tool. From top to bottom: ring light, large soft box, and honeycomb grid. I bounced two other lights off the ceiling to give his shoulders a little rim light and to light the paintings behind him. Post a comment and let me know which one you like the best. My favorite is a completely different concept that I'll post after it publishes.

BRIEFLY MEET AMER AL-KHUFFASH

This is a shoot I did this past month for Nox magazine. I now know that Amer is a singer here in Jordan. This is all I know. His website is in Arabic. You can view it here. I think the spread turned out nicely. Wait, I also found him on IMDB. He played a small role in the TV movie entitled "The Holy Family", a historical reenactment about how Mary met Joseph. Try finding that on Netflix.

9/11 IN THE MUSLIM WORLD

I have to say, I've been pretty embarrassed by the United States these past few weeks. Between the New York Mosque controversies and the Qur'an burnings, I'm wondering when we turned into a nation of intolerant rednecks. I know the media has had a major role in sensationalizing these issues, but I also know that hatred and bigotry are a part of the unspoken fabric of America.

I spent 9/11 taking photos at a Children's Museum here in Amman. It was nice being around little people blissfully unaware of the craziness of the world. Thankful I live in an open-minded, tolerant, Muslim country. People here, unlike many Americans, have the mental capacity to separate US policy from the American people (if not I'd be the victim of daily hate crimes). It is almost a cliche to get into a cab in Amman and hear a tirade from the driver condemning US policy on Iraq and Israel, and then in the same breath declare that he loves the American people and wants to know if you can help him get a visa. Even concerning Israel, most people here direct their anger at the "Zionist machine" and not at Jews themselves. I think Americans inability to separate the actions of a few from a religion practiced by over a billion people is a frightening testament to the state of our education system. If we burn anything, it should be school textbooks!

THE SHAKESPEARE OF OUR TIME: ALAN BALL

I think a lot about who writing today might be regarded as highly as Shakespeare in say 500 years. I used to consider traditional writers, but now I think that "our" Shakespeare will be a TV or film writer. Though nowhere near as prolific, I think Alan Ball currently has my vote for the title. He's the man behind American Beauty, Six Feet Under, and True Blood. To be Shakespeare, your work has to appeal to the masses, but also have rich layers of subtext that appeal to slightly more discerning eyes. If you can create a show that is enjoyed by both a cowboy from Wyoming and a critic for the New York Times, you are walking the line that very few people can. I believe that writers who can have this mass appeal and also have something to say are the ones who change our world. For people who aren't ready for subtext, a show like True Blood offers great passive entertainment: lots of sex, clever dialog, and creative cinematography. But later, when those passive viewers are exposed to something that challenges them in the show, it becomes like a gateway drug toward critical thinking. And when people are ready, True Blood is waiting with its thinly veiled critiques of racism, sexuality, and religion. It is spoon-fed transformational ideology cleverly disguised by Anna Paquin's tits. Stare at those tits long enough and soon you'll be a vampire sympathizer. Next, you'll be marching in gay pride parades, and soon you'll be writing your own TV show. It may sound like a joke, but this is how the evolution of creativity works. And from True Blood (A Midsummer Night's Dream) you can move on to deeper viewing, like Six Feet Under (Hamlet) or American Beauty (The Tempest). If you want to get sidetracked from your mental transformation watch Towelhead (The Merchant of Venice).

SLOWLY DROP THE BANANA AND PUT YOUR HANDS WHERE I CAN SEE THEM!

For the entire month of Ramadan (which ends in 4 hours) it is illegal to eat, drink, or smoke in public while the sun is up. If caught, you can be imprisoned for the remaining duration of Ramadan and fined up to $250. Julie and I made it through the holy month without event. Julie did eat a peanut leaving Safeway a few weeks back, but luckily no one noticed. This law doesn't bother me near as much as the fact that all liquor stores are forced to close for the month. You can still drink, but it has to be done at spendy 5 star hotels. Oh how I long for the days of $2 cans of Amstel.

RESTRONT

There are no vowels in Arabic, so translating it into English can be challenging. This also applies to sounding out an English word and attempting to spell it. All over Jordan people use a unique form of written English I'll call Arabish. It's usually pretty close to the intended word; close enough where you get the point. Also interesting are the road signs here, written in both Arabic and Arabish. Cities and roads change spelling from one sign to the next. Ten kilometers to Jerash. Five kilometers to Jeresh. Welcome to Jarash!

MORE UNDERWATER PHOTOS

I dare say that the nicest part of Jordan is underwater. Julie and my friend Bryce and I headed down to Aqaba this past weekend for some badly needed Ramadan r and r. Thankfully this "holy" month is almost over. Not sure that a month of arduous fasting, nicotine withdraw and no water when its 100 degrees outside can truly bring out the best in people. They would be better off with a holy weekend. Anyways, I'm still enjoying the underwater camera, though I continue to use fully automatic underwater mode. Judging from the metadata, this means aperture 2.0-2.5, ISO 80, and a shutter speed of at least 1/250 of a second. Next time I will venture into TV mode.