Friday, July 28, 2017

Historic Controversies

There is a renewed interest in the author, James Baldwin these days. One of the reasons for this may be that his birthday is August 2.

However, there is a lot to be said about the gay Black author. He wrote about topics that were exotic to a 1950s and '60s audience. He explored heterosexual relationships between people who were of different racial backgrounds and sexual identities. He considered whether these relationships could survive in a Jim Crow culture where segregation and discrimination was the way of the land, where homosexuality was only whispered about in smoke-filled cocktail party room of predominantly comprised of the Beat crowd and university thinkers. But that, in and of itself, was a distinction because few Black writers were able to rise to having the status of having their works and theories form the basis of serious discourse.

He dared to speak of the rejection of the Black native son and portray his position in a society that allowed travel on one of two paths while ignoring all the others. And, like Richard Wright, Baldwin attempted to explain the psychology of existence and moral standards of one racial group compared with another.

Perhaps Baldwin's friendship with archaeologist Margaret Mead explains some of his essays and the depths into which he went with his analyses of his subjects and the critical acclaim he gained because of his willingness to explore these topics with the reading world. When we compare some of the titles of his works to those of Richard Wright, the critical-thinking reader will ponder to what extent Wright influenced Baldwin's voice.

And here we are, more than a half century since he emerged in the literary world, now daring to include black characters on both the large and small screen who go about their lives in all walks of life, without restraints, because the diversity and inclusion conversation was doing little toward moving us forward in the realm of diversity and acceptance in reality.

Perhaps this birthday will be the one where the resurgence in interest will be the one that also encourages the lowering of the barriers to outright acceptance and nurtures consideration and inclusion based on actual ability without regard to genetics.

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Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Critique: Still Star-Crossed

It's been a goal to write a review/critique of the TV series "Still Star Crossed" since it first aired. That is still my goal. It's one thing to watch an adaptation of a classic. It's yet another to view the sequel not anticipated by the original author, complete with 21st Century modifications for inclusiveness. How closely the after story follows the conventions of the times is worth at least a viewing or few.

When it first aired, it was one of the Summer substitutes for the Shondaland empire on Thursday nights. That was interrupted when the air dates started changing in deference to things such as awards shows, sports specials, TV reality contests, and other madness. Then the show air dates started moving. Initially, it followed episodes of "The Bachelorette." That changed. It showed up again on a Sunday night then eclipsed itself only to reappear on a Saturday night - in conflict with KCET's dramas and PBS's Masterpiece Mysteries.

At this point, it isn't clear whether it's supposed to be a weekly Summer show or just a filler until the Fall season starts. It appears the series is going to suffer a slow death. Thus, a good review/critique may be a postmortem.

In the meantime, here are a few observations about "Still Star-Crossed."

It's the next chapter of the classic tale of Romeo and Juliet, penned by the bard, Shakespeare. Perhaps that's why the Italian families speak with extremely British accents.

There's nothing to explain why the royal families are so diverse. Perhaps this has to do with the fact that Italy is so close to Morocco and the northern areas of Africa. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that the remains of Beachy Head Woman of British archaeology was originally from a sub-Saharan country and who could have been the wife or mistress of merchant. At any rate, the awareness of Beachy Head Lady lends credence to the array of colors of the Veronese and Venetian aristocracy portrayed in the series.

Much of the story line has a "Scandal" feel with regard to the intrigue the hangs like a heavy cloud over the characters. But that was also the signature intrigue unique to the bard in many of his dramas. Richly colored costumes (that have a certain color scheme for particular characters) are very accurate for the time. There's a very limited view of the common life that should be part of the population. The story feels like we're watching a period-based soap opera. But it's well executed, which is one of the reasons for my frustration when it isn't aired on the expected day and time.

It was a bit difficult to take when Lady Rosalind ran off astride a horse instead of side saddle with Lord Benvolio. There were reasons why ladies rode side saddle. But there were also women who broke with traditions and were brazen and bold and rode cross saddle. It appears she was among them. (Right on, ladies!)

Which brings me to the roles of the women in this series. Were they truly involved in the various maneuverings of political plans and schemes or were they merely window dressing for their husbands? Theory has it that the former was true. Although there could have been strategic pillow talk, it was not uncommon for there to be his and hers bedrooms. Is it really possible that the women of rank from the House of Escalus could fall to being servants and then rise again to being considered aristocracy? Is that, perhaps, how the stardust of Liberty was sprinkled onto the subconscious of the masses? (wink)

For the time being, the series can be viewed on Saturday evenings. Find episodes and show dates here. [I just found it while attempting to learn whether it's still being aired.] Each episode can be viewed on Amazon.com for $1.99 per episode. The episodes are exciting and very close to a Dumas novel.

So there you have it. A review of the show that isn't a postmortem.

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Thursday, July 6, 2017

Proofreading and Attention to Detail - Spam or Scam

Many times documents are created but the finishing touches aren't added. Most of the time the reason for the lack of attention to detail is because the writing is simply a reminder to self or a quick note to a friend. Those are instances when the errant misspelling or incorrect punctuation can be forgiven. Additionally, the circulation is negligible, if any at all.

But there are communications such as business letters, proposals, articles and blog posts intended for generating new business, and even term papers (not to mention books), that demand attention to detail. The typos, misused words, and so on, detract from one's credibility.

Lately a large amount of spam and scam mail has been reaching my mailboxes. Much of it presents itself as emanating from a legitimate source. Well, that comes into question when reading the message starts. Here is one example. I've added proofreader comments as we move through the text so that all of us can benefit from this exercise. Please also note that this post is made with the assumption that the name of the person at the end of the message is fictitious although the intent of the message becomes clear by the end.

Sent: Sunday, June 25, 2017 11:38 PM
Subject: <<<< [brackets should not precede the content of the subject line]From U.S. Department of the Treasury [The name of the agency sending the message will not be in the subject line. The subject line denotes what the message is about.]

Attention:

Your credit payment file have been [should read "has been"] added and opened,[This should be a period followed by a space to start the new sentence. ]We received an email from Mr Fred Atkinson [titles that are abbreviations such as "Mr.", "Ms.", "Mrs.", or "Dr." are followed by a period to show they are abbreviations.] today that you had an accident and died in the act.. [only one period at the end of a sentence.]
Mr [title] Fred Atkinson claim [should read "claims"] to be your lawyer and he is ready to claim your funds related to your compensation funds of $500,000.00 (five hundred thousand United State Dollars [the amount should be initial capitals; the name of the nation is plural]) that has been with us for three months now which you refuse to claim. he has also agreed to pay the fund release charges of US$460 [consistency of reference].

So we write to confirm if you are DEAD OR ALIVE, [punctuation] if [first word of a sentence is capitalized] you fail to reply back within 48hrs [space between number and word; "hrs" should be spelled out], We [improper use of a pronoun as a proper noun] will assume that what Mr Fred Atkinson said about you is right so we have no other alternative than to believe that you are truly dead according to Mr Fred Atkinson . [no space between last word of the sentence and the closing punctuation]

After 48hrs of no response from you, We [improper use of pronoun] will start the transfer and the delivery of your funds to your next of kin account which he claim to be [parenthetical phrase should be set off by a comma; end of sentence should be closed with a period]

IF YOU ARE STILL ALIVE, YOU ARE ADVICE [wrong word] TO GET INTOUCH [should be two words] WITH US BY A REPLY ON [should be "by"; unclear] MAIL OR GIVE US A CALL AS FAST AS YOU CAN..my cell phone. [numerous errors: One period followed by a space; first word of a new sentence is capitalized; reference has changed from "plural pronoun to singular] +1 484-305-9864[end a sentence with a period before starting a new paragraph.]

Take note that Mr Fred Atkinson has agreed to pay for THE RELEASE CHARGES, if you refuse [punctuation; new sentence] to get back to us, am afraid [missing pronoun; improper verb] we shall give him the go ahead with the release chareges [spelling] payment and then the fund transfer will be made to his Name and Account [no initial caps].

NOTE: He has drop is ["dropped his"?] account details and his home address for delivery of the funds into his International [no initial cap] ATM card and he promise [tense] to make the neccessary [spelling] payment.We are writing to confirm if all he said was [tense] true because he want [tense] us to start the transfer ASAP [should be spelled out].

You are to send a scan [tense] copy of your driver's licence [this is the British spelling of the word that is used by an American government agency] or national ID [abbreviation improper] for proper confirmation.Please ,get back to us as soon as possible to know if we are to get Mr Fred Atkinson Arrested [lower case] for trying to claim your fund illegally.note that you have been given just 48hrs to get back to us .

fill the Information Below. [incorrect use of capitals]
Name:
Country:
House Address:
Occupation:
Phone Number:

We await your swift response in regard to this news we received from Mr.Fred Atkinson

U.S. Department of the Treasury
Sanusi Kayode.

In addition to the numerous composition errors, Mr. Kayode does not provide his title. His email message did not contain a reply address. And he does not indicate which Treasury office location is where he is located. The Treasury Department has at least one office in each state.

There are a number of ways to contact the Treasury Department by phone. Mr. Kayode's phone number doesn't seem to match any of the ones listed.

The Treasury Department also has a division that can be contacted to learn whether it is holding unclaimed federal funds for individuals. Their website can be searched. It should also be noted that each state has a department for unclaimed funds.

Incidentally, a lawyer does not have a right to a client's (current or past) unclaimed property. To claim the property would be a form of unjust enrichment. It isn't clear why Mr. Kayode is giving legal advice in his letter of notification. He does nothing to identify himself as a member of the legal staff in the Treasury Department.

After experiencing this correspondence, there are probably questions going through your mind about various forms of property, such as
  • life insurance benefits
  • real estate
  • intellectual property rights
  • tax refunds
  • insurance overpayments
and other types of funds and properties. There is a page on Reference.com that provides many answers to these types of questions. We've meandered away from copy editing and proofreading but when your writer comes from many backgrounds and wears several hats, you get bonus information. No matter what, do your own research to confirm that the information is correct.

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