Mix It Up!

News Watch: Guerrilla Gardeners

(I'm having troubles of all kind today!  This was supposed to post at 12pm, not 12am.  Sorry about that!)

I found this news item on the Mother Nature Network to be totally wild and wonderful!

If you don't have the time to go read it; in brief the article describes how in London many people are sneaking out at night to plant tiny gardens in the city's roundabouts and meridians.  They plant everything from tulips to cabbages and feel that it's their duty to "liven up places that could really do with it."  

I LOVE the idea of "vandalizing" public spaces with beautiful flowers and vegetables!  If you are interested in their mission, head to the Guerrilla Gardening Homepage and share in the news from the "horticultural front lines"!

News Watch: Fanfiction Debate

 

As someone who is both a voracious reader and writer, I am always interested in the intersection of both.  For those who don't know, fanfiction is generally classified as stories set in existing fictional worlds written by people who are not the original authors.  Often they are speculations on "what might have happened," such as "what would have happened if Arwen had not chosen a mortal life in The Lord of the Rings?"  Fanfiction.net is a great place to head if you are interested in the genre.

What interests me even more than the individual stories, however, is the drama that their creation stirs up.  One side of the story is authors such as Diana Gabaldon who feels that fanfiction is tantamount to stealing her hard work.  The other side is readers, writers, and authors who believe that fanfiction stories are works of love and homage that can even be of cultural importance (such as the retelling of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in West Side Story).

The heart of the issue is murky copyright law and the personal preferences of authors and readers.  Do you think fans should be permitted to create speculative fiction set in existing worlds, or does the idea bother you?  Share your opinion in the comments!

(As usual, I have no affiliation with any of the sites or persons mentioned above!)

News Watch: Facebook Privacy Changes

If you are one of the more than 400 million active users of Facebook, you may be interested in some news from the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Briefly, Facebook is changing the way your personal information is shared.  Things that previously were kept private if you wished (such as your hometown, your education, and your interests) are now going to be collated on public sites even if your privacy settings are set at the strictest level.  Facebook claims this is to allow people who are interested in, say, cooking, to immediately see everyone else who shares that interest, but the EFF (and I) maintain that it is really only useful to the advertisers and companies who use Facebook as a cheap source of marketing information.  Even if that's not the case I find the breach of privacy appalling on a personal level.  I certainly don't mind if people know that I'm interested in cooking, but what if I worked in a non-unionized job and had followed unions on Facebook?  What if I lived in a country where women were oppressed, and showed an interest in women's rights groups?  Publicizing people's private interests and affiliations can expose them to personal and professional danger and humiliation. 

I urge you to contact Facebook today and protest this invasion of privacy.  I also urge you to delete any sensitive information from your Facebook account.  Today, mix it up by speaking up -- it's only by sharing our voices that change can be made!

(I am not affiliated with either Facebook or the EFF, although I am an outspoken supporter of the EFF's mission of defending our digital rights.)