Goyo Duu buyu There's nothing wrong with liking Zohioliin Duu

I remember one day I was chatting with my old classmate from University of Mongolia and when I asked how is UB he remarked "Oh well, last time I visited it (he studied in Japan that time)it was quite depressing. UB is not UB anymore. It's flooded with country people and dismal mood is fostered by fleeting former city people abroad. You hear everywhere Zohioliin Duu and nothing else."

His statement expressed his melancholy and lost nostalgia for old urban lifestyle that UB represented. It is sort of we hear today, London is not London anymore it's flooded my immigrants. Here, the nostalgia is not my main concern here. I wanted to discuss here what is Zohioliin Duu. To try to render it loosely, Duu means song and Zohioliin would be somewhere close to amateur writing. The connotation of this phrase has altered dramatically in last 10-15 years. As far as I remember when I grew up zohioliin duu always meant songs made up and composed by amateur artists who would just combine together well sounding rhymes and attach tune to it by guitar or basic musical instruments. In general it was not composed by well-established composers and never had any classical note recording. These songs were popular in camps, countrysides where people played a lot of guitar.
Nowadays, the connotation has changed abruptly to acquire almost new meaning of Zohioliin Duu. It meant clearly, songs that are popular in rural areas and among country bumpkins who recently moved to UB. These songs are often played in supermarkets where labor is usually driven from rural areas, black markets, in taxi cabs, and lately a lot on popular FM stations. Now, the last one is a matter of a concern to my friend who studied in Japan. Of course, all his teenage and early student years were filled with Western Pop in anticipation of the fall of Communism, which made its splash in its aftermath in 90's and early decade of 2000. For him zohioliin duu would always sound cowboyish. I must admit that probably he doesn't have distate to it. He has his favorite zohioliin duu and favorite zohioliin singer perhaps, but nevertheless what is this resentment to zohioliin duu entering the mainstream?

This is my favorite one where this couple resembles Romeo and Juliet. The song is very simple consists of basic repetitive rhyming. But, the song altogether is awfully retro. I love it.

Kink in the movie:The Pervert's Guide to the Cinema

Zizek on Violence

In his book Violence Zizek takes radical step in approaching faith, Christianity and relation to God by questioning then from the atheist point of view.Yes, precisely offering atheist judgement. He argues that in today's supposedly post-political and post-ideological society the world is resorting into antinomies of two fronts, liberal western, predominantly Judeo-Christian and fundamentalists,fanatics,and ultra-conservatives. The latter in this case is seen as sort of what communists were to west during cold war. He sees that to such antinomy only one institution can provide pure critique and that is detached moral judgement provided by Atheists. By only ignoring the existence of God, Zizek argues, and not being invested into the symbol of hell and heaven, in this case symbolized in our society by reward and punishment one can act from pure good which in its turn, is God himself.
Instead of tolerance and respect for the Other, Zizek proposes Lacanian approach to the conflict in Middle East between Palestine and Israel, and further between Arab world and West, that is to relieve the subject from its pathologically invested object a, Jerusalem.
There's a lot to think about this book. In overall my impression was that he is lost for now or at least searching for way out of void. Way out might be for now precisely Leninist stanza, "Learn, Learn, and Learn . . ." And here is song of the day, Glukoza. I'm sure monsieur Zizek appreciates good moderato in music. Personally I like the video because the artist tries to defy gravity and climb to the window. The song is about butterflies, does it mean love lifts us out of ditch, is that what the video is proposing?

Discussions with Nigel

I am sitting in my office and ready to weep as spasmodic tears are blurring my vision. Four years ago in year of 2004 my colleague and friend, whom I failed to understand due to my childish preoccupations with empty life, died mysteriously in Republic of Georgia. If you can understand the lifestyle that I once led in UB and kind of people I associated myself with, it is rather not complicated to understand my late realization of sorrow and loss of such dear friend. That time it was hard to believe it had occured, but nevertheless I recovered pretty easy as young girls in early twenties can. His name is Nigel Ockenden (I refuse to acknowledge him in past tense) and he died relatively young while teaching English in Georgia. I met him when I taught as well and became friends through sort of peculiar bond as can only perhaps be formed between a person of superior knowledge and intellect and the one who possesses absolute idiotic ignorance, therefore forming certain dialectic of two opposites. I must say until now I did not fully realize what was he up to. . . I know that he left me bunch of tapes with french lessons which I failed to recover, at the restaurant we were supposed to meet, before his departure to England. Today I accidentally discovered that he was a major contributor to amazon books' philosophical, political and literature section. AND I always wondered what he was doing all the time spending all day in library and in front of pc with mug of espresso. Reviews for Althusser, Deleuze, Diderot, Foucault, Agamben, Adorno, . . . the list is long. If only I asked, I would have discovered Agamben back in 2003! I am angry at myself and really are my tears are of a man who just realized that he won million dollar lottery and all along he didn't know about it. As I said I did not ask that time and I had lost interest in books, considering my teen years reading was enough and pretty dresses and shoes were far important.

In memoriam of my dear friend whom unfortunately my infantile mind failed to understand on timely manner, I shall write a discussion that might have taken place if only I realized on time what a great friend I had in handy and what a great mentor he could have become throughout my stumbling with ideas and books.

Art of da day

Critique and Crisis

Have been musing past few weeks about what happened in UB after the party election. Some pieces just wouldn't come together. Although it was apparent we were repeating after what history already presented us I was puzzled about something that was all along evident. I now recall that I even wrote once essay about such incident. I am talking about Reinhart Koselleck's Critique and Crisis. I find it necessary to mention here this author because when I was a grad student his work was influential in understanding the concepts of revolution and violence. Having lived in post-communist and post-revolutionary state where nothing substantial was given about history of revolution except Leninist ideology, I remember the joy of discovering other concepts by ones like Koselleck and Arendt.
Koselleck's work can be relevant to the events in Mongolia in a sense that he provides essential link between participants of the revolt and its organizers. By comparing eighteenth century secret masonry clubs founded by educated bourgeoisie who unlike aristocracy were deprived of political power Koselleck sheds light into roots of French Revolution and how it subsequently influenced Russian Decemberists. The theory reads that at the moment of intellectual renaissance experienced by educated middle-class but nevertheless not aristocracy, Paris also burgeoned with aggrieved peasants, and urban wage-earners who lived under miserable conditions. Same can be observed with Mongolia where following enrichment of oligarchy certain groups were provided with special opportunity to follow high standard education and thus creating intellectual elite against mass who mostly do not think beyond tomorrow's bread. Now isn't it best example of history how peasants' need for bread actually met with ambitions of wealthy bourgeois intellectuals and together they formed devastating forces of violence to critique and challenge the established power? Wouldn't it be correct to argue that oligarchic power in Mongolia, decadence of politicians and leaders are tantamount to the opulence that once Versailles surrounded itself?

Resource Curse?

Following Sunday election in Mongolia there was major riot against majority holder, Mongolian People's Revolution Party (MPRP) for alleged election fraud. It was discussed that the winner of this term's election would hold a key authority to legislation of the new law on natural resource exploration. The majority party holds it necessary that the resource exploration should be public whereas minority leaders of Mongolian Democratic Party disagree with it by suggesting full privatization.

Natural Philosophy

Reading Rousseau and talking about natural man I wish I could escape for few days where I could feel air against my bare skin

Tango me Right and Left

Just received news from friends back at home, mostly revolving around local politics and upcoming elections in UB. How amusing it is to observe current buzz around presidential election in the US and sort of be presented at the same time with miniature version of election drama from somewhere in Central Asia. Apparently Democrats (back home) are in lead in the process of disintegrating their party system into newly established independent parties, though never completely understood the term "independent", as if to suggest that representative politics anyway about estabiushed two party system (don't the free and fair democratic elections allow equal acknowledgement of all political parties, thus ensuring their equal participation?...naaah) If the newly established party is actually formed by former members of the same old parties, what difference does it make to us? Recycled X-mas cards with just visibly crossed over old content of wishes? I mean what moron on earth would vote for new party if the leader of it was a former member of a party where he suffered total knock out by his colleagues and therefore proved to be blindly unskilled statesman? What they were thinking? Plz...need some fresh air!

Never mind, on other hand seems like rightist are proving far more capable of moving their party through this confusion of equally divided vote. At least people are able to see clear determined issues and resolutions there instead of internal intrigue and havoc trashed out in open air of media war. Speaking of right and left moves, thinking about joining some tango establishment, will have something to mutter when folks ask me "what sport do you do?".

-I don't jog

-I don't play tennis

-I don't go to gym

-I don't workout and run like a rat

But

-I dance (good enough for me to sustain my booty in shape

CPR on Animals

I found this while surfing arund websites, found it mad cute. It is an excerpt from wikipedia about CPR on animals.


"It is entirely feasible to perform CPR on animals like cats and dogs. The principles and practices are virtually identical to CPR for humans. One is cautioned to only perform CPR on unconscious animals to avoid the risk of being bitten" from wikipedia

Хөгжмийн талаар

It can be regarded that listening to music is a privilege given to those who have ears to hear it and that rhythm is a matter of techne. In other words composition and the final musical element can be understood as just a human-made technique to render harmonious melodies and sounds. Thus one could argue that without excellent ear for music one cannot feel the depth of music. By saying this we can resolve only the mechanical process of producing final sound whereas music might exist all on its own, independently long before it was translated through human ear and performed through musical instruments. When we question famous composers often they say it was from divine inspiration, that is revelation of something that just exists in nature and which was always there waiting to be discovered. The proof of the fact that music lives in our soul rather than in our ears is this curious video of Chinese deaf dancer.

Эмэгтэй хүн

"A beautiful woman is a practical poet, taming her savage mate, planting tenderness, hope and eloquence in all whom she approaches. ""

Impotentia Coeundi

Theories and researches on post-colonialism and nationalism have long discussed the embodiment of female body into the land and nation. It is often supposed that the imagined boundaries of one's community and borders are tightly administered through masculine fantasy over the female and desirous body, the body that is penetrated by phallus which in its order protected and propertied. Assia Djebar once mentioned in her novel Fantasia: An Algerian Cavalcade, that women of Arab berber tribes became more cloistered and more veiled under the invasion of French, than prior the colonization. In this case the invaded Algerian territory becomes tantaumont to pentrated female body, the "motherland", the direct consequence of which becomes placebo effect a.k.a. psychological impotence influence by shame, loss of masculine integrity.
The reason I invoked Assia Djebar's work is that, in lieu of my observations in recent years an active cultivation of masculinity in Mongolian society, there emerged almost blatant chauvinism, sometimes even taking form of blind misogyny directed towards women.
Along with cult-like following of Chinggis Khan, the ultimate patriarch to the nation, and endorsing of such masculine activities such as wild animal hunting which are traditionally considered masculine, here it can be observed that my nation has developed almost fetishistic obsession with phallus. The example of once shunned but resumed hunt for misplaced phallic symbol can best be depicted through much talked about exploration for ancient patriarch's remains. It was done as if invoking violent history of Mongol empire could restore the nation its virgin state previously invaded by Soviet ideology or Manjchurian oppression. Thus there is need among Mongolians to look for not recent, invaded by Manjchus, Russians, history, but to look somewhere in pre-history when the myth of the nation woven out of pure Mongol mother's womb, Maral Goo exists. It becomes the ultimate male fantasma to possess the female body and motherland.
If the nation is unable to establish its phallic ideals, the society develops external symptoms of underlying psychological impotence manifested through male frustration and hereto raised alertness towards female population. Perhaps I should recall here one of the early works by Chinese film-maker Zhang Yimou, Judo, where impotent husband is portrayed also as abusive partner who likes to invoke sadistic rituals on his wife played by young Gong Li. In the film we see feudalistic social order as the ultimate abusive but impotent factor that affects the social immobility and frustration all carried out on Gong Li's body. Whereas in our case it can be identified through shifting economic borders, where female bosy is represented as shiftable global commodity and thus male paranoia about Mongolian woman whoring herself to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or to whoever from West.
Our contemporary world dictates certain looked at ness in women as such exhbitionism is encouraged through popularity of traditional model of femininity where women are ultimate beautiful images to cast gaze upon. Social websites with aspiring model girls, modeling agencies, and cultivation of appreciation of feminine beauty is an attempt to control national asset such as the female body and naive female attempt to gain her subjectivity through instant exposure to male gaze. In this instance Lacan was right when he said that image is pornographic. By starring in his film Gong Li, the Chinese screen goddess with Western curves, Zhang Yimou explores delicate matter of male voyeuristic tendency over female flesh, that is casting audience as collective male gaze over exposed and tortured flesh. Thus the female body becomes and object to be penetrated by male gaze and discourse.

Whenever the female body tries to gain subjectivity and tries to return critical gaze, hitherto reserved for male subjects, it threatens to undermine the patriarchial order and create male frustration. The double ended adoration of female beauty on one hand admiration, but on the other end misogyny and chauvinism, is a symptom of our social problematic that threatens our nation's progress upward.

Orientalism

Academia long discarded Edward Said's theory "Orientalism" as outdated and too structualist without however realizing that worldwide ignorance in regards to culture and ethnicity is still trickling its nasty tale behind glitz and glamout of modern metropolises. Were we a bit too in a rush to state that we are already past the primitive orientalism and exoticism of XX century? just to find us again in the midst of mass re-production of "otherness" of XXI century? How far are we from wearing again the "banana skirt" and dancing on the stage of La Scala?

Found this website and the description of services provided by "Oriental" people.
If "Oriental" do still exist in our "civilized" twenty first imagination, then it is certainly a symptom of underlying disease called contemporary racism.

Here I quote excerpt from the website http://www.orientalnannies.com/ and according to the site the definition of "oriental" is as follows:

"5 reasons to choose ‘Oriental Nannies’


• If you are specifically looking for oriental staff we are here to help - Our large pool of oriental domestic staff, enables us to send you more oriental applicants than any other agency in the UK.

• ‘Oriental Nannies’ gives you value for money, charging less, with our flat fees and we give you 6 month guarantee! (see our terms of business)

• We offer a risk free 2 week trial period-which means you have 2 weeks to get to know your new employee and ensure you are both comfortable with the arrangement.

• As parents ourselves, we understand your needs and concerns.

We shall satisfy all our clients with superior quality service, quality applicants, excellence, leadership and integrity in the industry".

Thy Kiss of Divine Nature

थिर्द वर्ल्ड Third World Democracy

If the history should witness another revolution perhaps it will come from immigrant mass. The classical antagonisms of racial, gender, and sexual difference seems to be replaced by new ones dwelling in urban megapolises dividng people and class by citizenry and status. In other words the classic division between white and black, female and male, heterosexual or perverts have been internalized to the extent that there is urge to shift the weight to new others. my God does it sound pompous. anyways. here's music of the day

In the Mood for Romance

When I was a kid and Soviet Art passed its initial phase of Renaissance, Russian performer Alla sang famous Tsvetayeva's lines in Romance style. No other music genre as Russian Romance has this ability to resonate emotional feelings, and ability to evoke music from the soul. Whenever I listen to it I experience a wave of sentimentality, disguised by delicate melancholy of lyrics. The video is an excerpt from Eldar Ryazanov's classic Irony of Fate or Enjoy your Bath! The film is supposed to be a social satire of communism and its failure as collective ideology in the face of individual creativity. The irony of individuals trapped in the societal obligations and planned housings is transformed through one magical New Year's night into spontaneity of unknown fate

Till this day I'm a big fan of Russian Romances.

Хочу у зеркала, где муть
И сон туманящий,
Я выпытать -- куда вам путь
И где пристанище.

Я вижу: мачты корабля,
И вы -- на палубе...
Вы -- в дыме поезда... Поля
В вечерней жалобе...

Вечерние поля в росе,
Над ними -- вороны...
-- Благославляю вас на все
Четыре стороны!

American, French, Brittish cultural subtleties

The train was packed, and the U. S. Marine Walked the entire length looking for a seat, but a well-dressed, Middle-aged, French woman's poodle took the Only seat remaining. The war-weary Marine asked, "Ma'am, may I have that seat?"
The French woman just sniffed and said to no one in particular, "Americans are so rude. My little Fifi is using that seat."
The Marine walked the entire train again, but the only seat left was Under that dog.
"Please, ma'am. May I sit down? I'm very tired."
She snorted, "Not only are you Americans rude, you are also arrogant!"
This time the Marine didn't say a word; he just picked up the little Dog, tossed it out the train window, and sat down.
The woman shrieked, "Someone must defend my honor! Put this American In his place !"
An English gentleman sitting nearby spoke up, "Sir, you Americans seem to have a penchant for doing the wrong thing. You hold the fork in the wrong hand, you drive your vehicles on the wrong side of the road.
And now, Sir, you seem to have thrown the wrong bitch out the window."

Кино урлаг шүүмжлэл эмэгтэй хүний нүдээр

Latest and as always finely executed text from Rey Chow. This time her theoretical musings flutter around classical, but never thoroughly exhausted leitmotiff of sentimentality and cinema. The subject of her study evolves around cinematic images from contemporary chinese selection already familiar to worldwide audience such as In the Mood for Love, Happy Together, and with post-scriptum about Brokeback Mountain. Borrowing from Nietzsche (hot the true world ultimately became a fable)she discusses individual auteurs in conjunction with vast theoretical knowledge on the phenomena of sentimentalism and its cinematic explorations. Truly every time I read her works my humble intellect goes "Ah that is what it is".

So I Started Revolution from my Bed . . .

Lately there have been a lot of studies and speculations conducted in relation to happiness and productiveness. Companies are launching relationship counselors, marriage consultants in hopes to boost overall performance in accordance with psychological hypothesis that a happy worker is usually productive one-hence blurring once established lines between private and professional life.

We should note here that most of drugs that target depression and melancholy are usually engineered to induce happy hormones in all its deverse formulae. Talking about happy hormone, here's one called oxitocin released during active engagement with your significant other, whether in kissing, hugging touching, or orgasm. So does it mean my typically blue mondays better endured if there was enough weekend snuggling? hmm interesting. . .shall I launch my businees right from my bed?

Call it True Romance

"I had to come all the way from the highways and byways of Tallahassee, Florida to Motor City, Detroit to find my true love. lf you gave me a million years to ponder, l would never have guessed that true romance and Detroit would go together. And to this day, the events that followed all seem like a distant dream. But the dream was real and was to change our lives forever. l kept asking Clarence why our world seemed to be collapsing and everything seemed so shitty. And he'd say: "That's the way it goes. But don't forget, it goes the other way too.'' That's the way romance is. Usually that's the way it goes. But every once in a while, it goes the other way too" From film True Romance by director Tony Scott, music Hans Zimmer, story by Quentin Tarantino