Langer on Theology Lived @irislanger - Tumblr Blog

Photos made by LIFE magazine's John Dominis in eastern Kentucky (Appalachia) in 1964, early in Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty."

In IRIS, we talk a lot about perspective and different ways of "seeing" and different ways of knowing and telling the truth. One of the most compelling ways to tell the truth about poverty and human suffering is by means of photograph. Here's a link to a photojournalistic essay that helped turn American popular opinion in favor of Lyndon Johnson's New Society programs. It proved far more powerful than speeches and the written word.

•18+ Adults Only

Watch Anya Live on Cam

Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.

✓ Live Streaming✓ Interactive Chat✓ Private Shows✓ HD Quality✓ Free Actions

Free to watch • No registration required • HD streaming

Here is a great example of technology giving access to reality, and at the same time shaping reality itself. How much of our perception of war is now mediated through photography--both still and video? How much of war is now fought by public perception? How does the ability of our citizenry to see a war in action change how a war is fought? This is definitely and exhibit worth checking out!

Also, when reading 1984, it is easy to get queasy about our attachment to reality. Is war photography a blessing because it gives us such a direct window into the reality of our wars, or is it dangerous because it creates the impression of open access when in fact it is a highly selective access. It is almost entirely dependent on the eye of the photographer and the decisions of an editor, both of which may be largely subverted to economic self-interest.

Where's Socrates

So let's play "Where's Socrates"! The game where we look for philosophy hidden in the massive, surging, mindless crowd of words, phrases, tweets, blogs, articles, books and movies that is modern media.

First, a brief line that could be seen on almost any major newspaper or magazine website. In this case, from an article in the NY Times on Voyager 1 leaving the solar system.

Here's the simply, and rather uninteresting quote:

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: September 12, 2013

A picture caption with an earlier version of this article referred incorrectly to Voyager 1. It is a spacecraft, not a satellite.

So I ask, where's the philosophy?

Trending Blogs

Last Seen Blogs

Langer on Theology Lived