A matter of words

Hi everyone ! Already back on Culture Critics ! (be careful, blogging is an addictive behaviour ^^)
Today I'd like to react to two things dealing with the same topic : racism.
First, we were asked last week to thing about what we would like Barrack Obama's election as the USA president to change in this country or even in the world. Of course this election is remarkable because Obama is black-skinned and because Americans are renowned racist (at least in France...).
Then, I saw at lunchtime, in the "Zapping" of canal+, an extract from a TV show in which Eric Zemmour, a french journalist, said it was obvious that a white person and a black person belong to two distinct races.
(here is the video, in french of course : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRR-KWSqhEg)

As I see it, someone who's racist is not necessarily someone who says something like : "I don't like blacks", but everyone who believes that it does exist several human races (like Eric Zemmour). Of course it's completely wrong, you can't establish a race based on the different forms of a single gene. It's even totally absurd if you know (and everybody should) that a race is defined by a genome, that is to say by an entire list of genes (and not their forms). Otherwise you could invent human races based on eyes color or hair color...or whatever you want. Science tells us that all human beings have the same genome, therefore this is obvious that there are NO human races but ONE human race : THE human race.

Nevertheless, in english we often use the word "race" to denote skin color, including in official documents, and even in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights ("Article 16 : Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family.").
That's what I would like to see changed in USA. Using the word "race" in that way should not be politically correct, because I believe that if you use that word to denote skin color, it amounts to recognize there are several human races based on skin color, and thus it is, according to me, a major step towards racism.

A word may hide other ones

Well, now that our Prophet Balázs has blogged, we have no choice : we must blog (or be cursed forever !). But before, I'd like to say that MTV shows us that "change we can", but that doesn't necessarily mean getting better !
(and just another electoral allusion, I love the word you used in your message : "Americain" ^^)

Anyway, today is Halloween, so I'd like to talk about...acronyms !
Nowadays we use lots and lots of abbreviation, in every languages, because of chats, SMS and online games (you've probably all seen or used "lol", which has hundred meanings, "omg", "ty" or "thx", "wtf ?!"...and others). But acronyms are much more older. Some became proper names, for example associations or administrations names (Unesco, Nato, Nasa...), and others became common names. Those last are often given by scientists to their discoveries or inventions, and are seldom translated, that is to say that the name is international but that it stands for something in english (hey, that's not my fault if only english speaking people make important discoveries !). You've got for instance : laser ("Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation"), radar ("RAdio Detection And Ranging") or aids ("Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome") that french people managed to translate in "sida" (just mix letters).
But the most beautiful acronym ever, the one for which I write this message, is "nylon". Don't try, if you don't know what it stands for, you'll never guess ! Before I tell you (suspense...), you must know that nylon was first used in 1938. After that, it was used during World War II for parachute clothes, and that's when nylon got a second etymology (not the real one, which is really trite, but a much more funny one). Since 1941 and the entry into war of USA, nylon is an acronym standing for "Now You Lose Old Nippons" !
Okay, that's not its real meaning, but it's even stronger to create an acronym from a name than a name from an acronym, don't you think ? And I believe that only Americans could have given such a powerful name !

So, happy Halloween, and long live our first blogger Balázs ! (you wonder how do I write an 'á' on my poor french keyboard ? Well, that's quite simple, just hold "Alt" and type "0225"...I said quite simple !)
See you on "Culture Critics" !

I want my MTV!

My "culture critic"!

It's a bit sad to look at a blog that hasn't got any articles since it's creation. So I thought maybe if I start, you others will be be more motivated. (even if it's just to say I'm wrong).
My comment isn't about politics, but MTV. I always thought about it, as the channel that diffuses primarily musical videos. At the beginning this was it's purpose. (Giving a chance to musicians to enlarge their audience.) But since about a month, I'm able to observe this phenomen ( a thing that I couldn't do a long time ago). The channel metamorphosed into something, that has nothing to do with music. (You can watch more music videos even on Arte.) Instead, you have reality shows from "dusk till dawn". From the "My super sweet sixteen" (a show where the spoiled child of a rich family throws his 16th Birthday, naturally like a superstar, and repeating about a hundred times: "I deserve this!!!!!" ) to "Pimp my Ride" (where MTV chooses the car of a candidate, and tunes it). Even if it's really amusing, to watch this piece of the culture Americain, because it has to be a part of their culture, if it's the favorite channel of the americain youth, Personally, I miss the old Mtv, with Beavis & Butthead, and the music. Of course if you have the cable, you can have 32 other music channels, but neither of them gives you the real, original feeling...

So thats it for my first "culture critic". I hope someone will have something to say about my little writing. If I have other things to say, I'm going to let you know!! :D