--- /dev/null
+---
+postid: 065
+title: The European Union at the end: a chronicle
+date: September 22, 2017
+author: Lucian Mogoșanu
+tags: asphalt
+---
+
+Euronews informs us[^1]:
+
+> *Is Romania ready to deal with its rising migrant numbers?*
+>
+> Migrants have been crossing the Black Sea to Romania in increasing
+> numbers.
+>
+> On Tuesday night a small boat carrying 157 migrants from Iraq and Iran
+> was found off the Romanian coast.
+>
+> Three days before, the coast guard had intercepted a rickety boat with
+> 97 migrants on board, 36 of them children.
+
+So the new route to Europe has become the Black Sea, via ramshackle
+boat. But wait, there's more!
+
+> On September 3rd another fishing boat carrying 87 migrants was stopped
+> by the border police.
+>
+> These are just the latest in a series of search and rescue missions,
+> which saw over the last month 480 migrants reaching the Romanian
+> shoreline.
+>
+> Migrants took the 200-km-long journey across the perilous Black Sea,
+> igniting fears that Turkish smugglers are opening up a new route for
+> illegal entry into the European Union.
+
+Reviewing our [last chronicle][eu-2015], we recall that the previous
+preferred route of refugee (and/or "refugee") hordes was via the
+Mediterranean, i.e. from Turkey to Greece or Bulgaria -- but mainly
+Greece -- then Serbia, then Hungary or Croatia, then the sky's the
+limit. More importantly though, the destination is usually Germany,
+whether EU bureaucrat derps formally relocate them to Hungary (pro-tip:
+they don't), Poland (pro-tip: they don't) or Switzerland -- pro-tip:
+they do on their own terms, and beaucoup de lulz ensues. Anyway, moving
+on.
+
+> The route has been used modesty in the past -- just one person in 2016
+> according to statistics from the European Border and Coast Guard
+> Agency (Frontex).
+
+But modesty has been used quite immodestly.
+
+> Migrants entering Romania by boat are taken to a hosting area and held
+> for up to 48 hours in order to verify their identity. If they don’t
+> request political asylum, those caught at sea are returned to
+> Turkey. Once the background check is completed, the immigration office
+> steps in, sending asylum seekers to various centres across the
+> country.
+>
+> Besides receiving basic amenities, asylum seekers get three euros per
+> day for food and almost 40 euros annually for clothing.
+
+Let's do a bit of math. 3€ is about 13-14 units in the local currency
+(lei). 14 lei per day amounts to 420 lei per month, which is more than
+what many elder Romanians get for their pension, after decades of
+bleeding and sweating for the [ol' regime][july-theses]. So despite what
+the average Westerner might think, 3€ per day for food is more than a
+generous giveaway. *More* than.
+
+> The average waiting time for an asylum application to be resolve is
+> about 10 months and asylum decisions are open to lawsuits.
+
+Then again, most actions pertaining to the local authorities last about
+ten months. Romanian bureaucracy, what can I say.
+
+> In the first seven months of this year, 2,800 people were caught
+> illegally crossing the border, up from 1,624 for the whole of 2016,
+> according to the Romanian Border Police.
+>
+> A spokesperson for the force told Euronews the increase is limited in
+> comparison to other parts of Europe but that authorities had scaled up
+> efforts to better secure and monitor the frontiers.
+>
+> The rising number of people trying to illegally enter Romania could
+> signal a shift in the routes migrants use to get into the EU.
+
+Thank you, Captain Obvious.
+
+> Romania isn’t part of the Schengen Area making it harder for migrants
+> to move westwards.
+>
+> But that could all change. Jean Claude Juncker, president of the
+> European Commission, used his State of the Union address this week to
+> call for Romania and Bulgaria to be part of Schengen.
+
+Oh, really? Romanians [moved this item off][priority] the list of
+priorities about four years ago, give or take. Meanwhile, random
+bureaucrat derp imagines himself in the position of giving said
+Romanians the so-called benefit of "Schengen", when all this time said
+Romanians have shown to be doing very well without it. Gee, thanks but
+no thanks, Mr. Juncker.
+
+> So far, Romania has been unscathed by the refugee crisis affecting
+> other European countries, acting more as a transit passage for
+> migrants trying to reach Western Europe.
+
+And why would that be? For one, however welcoming they suppose
+themselves, Romanians are deeply conservative creatures, for centuries
+orthodox Christians. Then, the countries whence so-called "immigrant
+terrorists" are coming don't have any particular bone to pick with
+Romanians, despite the latter's continuing sucking off of NATO. The
+people in this geographical region have had about half a millenium of
+experience in dealing with Muslims; so fancy yourselves multicultural
+much?
+
+> Pressured by the EU, Romania has recently agreed to receive 2,000
+> refugees from Greece and Italy.
+>
+> “This comes on top of the 700 refugees already relocated here,” added
+> Romania’s Minister for Foreign Affairs.
+>
+> Despite the political move, questions remain over the country’s
+> readiness to welcome refugees and brave a possible influx of migrants.
+>
+> Speaking to Euronews, a representative of the Immigration Office, put
+> the total capacity of Romania’s six asylum centers at around 1,330,
+> with the possibility of adding additional bed facilities.
+>
+> The news site Digi 24 went to a Bucharest receiving centre currently
+> housing 200 refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Egypt and
+> reported on the living conditions found there.
+>
+> The worn-out linoleum flooring and damp patches on interior walls,
+> leave room for improvement, it reported.
+
+Aha! So the *actual* story goes along the lines of: Gigi invites a
+random stranger, Ali, in his house, to stay a while; Ali isn't
+interested in staying much: er nicht sprech rumänisch, and besides,
+there's other places with better loot (though fewer beautiful women to
+fuck); meanwhile, one of Gigi's neighbours, Hans, elected the town mayor
+or whatever, complains to Gigi that his house "leaves room for
+improvement" and that Ali wouldn't be satisfied with his stay. What the
+actual fuck? Seriously now: Romanian officials kindly invite
+Mr. Juncker, Mrs. Merkel and all their pantsuit friends to host the
+refugees wherever they want, on their own fucking money.
+
+> But this asylum facility, as well as the remaining five scattered
+> across Romania, will quickly become overcrowded if a refugee surge
+> were to happen.
+
+Romania has bigger problems at the moment. The hospitals are overcrowded
+with ill people, the streets in the few big cities are overcrowded with
+cars, the rail infrastructure is decaying, the national roads aren't
+much better and the local social-democrat government isn't doing much to
+help -- by which I mean, it seems to be trying its best to plunge
+everyone into deep shit.
+
+So. Romania has bigger problems at the moment.
+
+> Putting up tents in the courtyards of asylum centers as a way of
+> doubling housing capabilities is the authorities' only response so
+> far.
+
+And since we're here, putting up tents in open spaces would be the
+authorities' only response to a potential (and not at all improbable) 7+
+Richter earthquake taking place in the Vrancea region -- nine eleven,
+nine eleven, remember nineteen seventy-seven. What do?
+
+Now that we've introduced ourselves straight into the subject by
+dissecting this very informative news article, let's take a bit of time
+recounting the olds.
+
+The Roman Empire reached its peak extent at the beginning of the second
+century AD, during Trajan's reign, one of the last regions annexed being
+Dacia, which incidentally overlaps much of today's territory of
+Romania. Moreover, the Roman Empire extended to the east as far as Asia
+Minor and the Arabic Peninsula, and to the south as far as northern
+Africa, including today's Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Turkey, etc. This state of
+affairs did not last long: by the end of the third century, Aurelian
+evacuated Dacia Traiana under various (mostly internal) pressures. By
+the end of the fourth century, the Roman Empire was split in two pieces
+and by its end the Germanic barbars -- or were they the barbaric
+Germans? -- were left to rule the Western ruins, while the Byzantines
+were left to preserve whatever they could (culturally, intellectually,
+economically, etc.) given the times.
+
+Now let us again return to present-day empires. Romania joined the EU in
+2007; the EU reached its peak extent in 2013, with Croatia's
+adherence. Romania, Bulgaria and Greece however host the eastern border,
+and will likely continue to do so for the time being, since there is
+little to no interest from Turkey to join the party. What next?
+
+Of course, history is not cyclical. You're a special snowflake and all,
+living in special times, and just because you say it's so, then that
+makes it so -- big words make history, you see.
+
+At some point, the Romans reached a cultural, technological, etc. peak
+and then made the mistake of diluting and inflating their culture,
+technology, etc., which led to a natural dissolution; the EUians also
+reached a cultural, technological, etc. peak and then made the mistake
+of diluting and inflating their culture, technology, etc., which --
+naturally! -- will not lead to any sort of dissolution, mais au
+contraire, more and more progress!
+
+Moreover, at some point the Roman Empire started to crumble under the
+weight of [lack-of-culture-as-insecurity][security], as displayed by
+whatever hordes -- conquered or conquering -- started to wreak havoc
+around the place, and as a result the orcs were left to, as previously
+mentioned, rule the ruins; the EU Empire is also burdened by the
+pressure of whatever hordes -- conquered, and conquering -- started to
+wreak havoc around various places[^2], who -- naturally! -- won't wreak
+havoc in the EU, which they appreciate with all their hearts[^3].
+
+May your ass be safe while all these things don't not not happen. The
+irony of it being that the inept Romanians might end up in the role of
+non-preservers of non-Imperial non-culture, non-intellect, non-economy,
+etc., given their generally byzantine approach to things.
+
+[^1]: [Original link][euronews] and [archived][euronews-archived]. The
+ archived article is broken at the moment, in that the text is
+ missing; and given that news sites usually suck donkey balls, I
+ don't trust that the original link will be up for long. So I guess
+ I'll just have to paste the whole thing here.
+
+[^2]: Never forget: there are now [historical monuments][palmyra] that
+ you'll only see in photos. Good thing we still have photos, eh?
+
+[^3]: They won't, will they? Well, let's take just
+ [an example][brussels] of how not-wreaking-havoc looks in the EU.
+
+ Oh, and by the way, don't think that you're safe just because you
+ live on the other side of the Atlantic. You're not. [Examples][lee]
+ there are [plenty][shakespeare], you just have to open your eyes a
+ bit and look around you.
+
+ Speaking of which, this orcishness has absolutely nothing to do with
+ race, religion, gender and other subjects in fashion nowadays, or
+ whatever subjects were or will be in fashion in your day. The only
+ distinction is that in one part of the Western Empire the orcs are
+ mostly imported, while in the remaining part they are mostly
+ cultivated. Which one's which? This is left as an exercise to the
+ reader.
+
+[euronews]: http://www.euronews.com/2017/09/16/is-romania-ready-to-deal-with-its-rising-migrant-numbers
+[euronews-archived]: http://archive.is/pLtLL
+[eu-2015]: /posts/y02/040-europe-at-the-end-of-2015.html
+[july-theses]: /posts/y03/05a-july-theses.html
+[priority]: http://trilema.com/2013/no-seriously-not-much-of-a-priority-anymore/
+[security]: /posts/y02/04a-on-security.html
+[palmyra]: http://archive.is/NiShu
+[lee]: http://archive.is/d4PQz
+[shakespeare]: http://archive.is/3luFh
+[brussels]: http://archive.is/Obh1s
--- /dev/null
+---
+postid: 066
+title: Samurai Jack
+date: October 1, 2017
+author: Lucian Mogoșanu
+tags: video
+---
+
+<p style="text-align: right">
+*Long ago in a distant land, I, Aku, the shapeshifting Master of Darkness,
+unleashed an unspeakable evil!
+But a foolish Samurai warrior, wielding a magic sword, stepped forth to oppose me.
+Before the final blow was struck,
+I tore open a portal in time and flung him into the future, where my evil is law!
+Now the fool seeks to return to the past,
+and undo the future that is Aku!*</p>
+
+Samurai Jack is a -- successful, I believe -- attempt at full-blown
+Western anime.
+
+The TV show, created by Genndy Tartakovsky, the same guy who wrote
+Dexter's Laboratory[^1] and directed Hotel Transylvania[^2], has the
+main advantage of being conceived back in the day when one could still
+ignore the whole "gender issues" and "diversity" nonsense without
+drawing ire from the [offended][offending]. Yes, in the Samurai Jack
+universe, the "regressive" past is infinitely more desirable than the
+future -- who could have thought!
+
+The premise of the story, recounted in the first two episodes, is a mix
+between a Japanese fairy tale and a Gibson/Dick-esque dystopian science
+fiction thing. Emperor meets evil Aku, defeats it; evil comes back,
+however; thus Emperor sends his son into hiding[^3], to learn the
+cultures of the world and become a fierce warrior; son grows to be a
+powerful samurai, rescues his parents and battles evil; Aku, before
+being defeated, uses his powers to cast the samurai into a future where
+Aku rules the world. Thus the whole plot is centered around our Jack's
+attempt at returning to the past to undo all of Aku's evils.
+
+A few comments on the main protagonist. The samurai, having just arrived
+to the so-called future, is a nameless creature, Jack being only an
+arbitrary slave name. In fact, Jack is the archetypal warrior-slave,
+very much reminding us of Spartacus. In contrast to his name, his
+abilities are unique: he has a knack for survival under the direst of
+circumstances, when and where all the odds are against him. His only
+inability (at least in the original four seasons) seems to remain that
+of returning "back to the past", which, we have to agree, is altogether
+a dubious idea.
+
+Moreover, the links to the oh-so-desirable past are a recurring theme of
+Samurai Jack, many of the episodes being nostalgic memories of Jack's
+childhood. This is ultimately what keeps the samurai going, standing as
+a reminder that our perennial traditions are a necessary ingredient in
+the road to [becoming human][humanity]. This aspect, in spite of what
+the reader may think, is not at all a matter of choice, but of honour,
+life and death. As the scenes in season five illustrate, the warrior who
+fails to adhere to Bushidō must unite with his sword via seppuku.
+
+That being said, I am more or less satisfied with the conclusion that
+Tartakovsky decided to add to the first four seasons: Jack finds himself
+then finds the necessary ingredient to defeat Aku, that being in a quite
+romantic fashion love. However, Jack doesn't know that by defeating Aku
+he would also lose his love, which puts the whole "gain some, lose some"
+karmic thing into balance.
+
+To add to the list of disorganised thoughts about the show: don't be
+confused by the whole "absolute evil" mumbo-jumbo. Aku is in fact a
+fellow with a decent sense of humour, who doesn't give much of a fuck;
+and would you, were you wielding his power? To add to this layered cake
+of humour, we witness in this show that evil fails first and foremost
+because evil is stupid.
+
+This being maybe the take-away idea[^4] of Samurai Jack: evil is stupid,
+and disintegrating it is any warrior's duty.
+
+[^1]: The boy genius trope seemed fashionable back when I was a kid. I
+ have no idea whether this is factually so, I just enjoyed the hell
+ out of it. And yes, I bugged my folks to get me [LEGO][legos] toys!
+
+[^2]: I watched this a couple of years ago and didn't bother to review
+ it, which means it most probably fits into the pattern of useless
+ [Hollywoodian][abrams] crap.
+
+[^3]: Surprisingly Christian this little bit, innit?
+
+[^4]: In case you've been wondering, this whole "take-away"/"in a
+ nutshell" modern fashion, as applied to the world of ideas, is a
+ preposterous anti-intellectual piece of shit thought pattern, and
+ its proponents are more than welcome to rot in the depths of hell
+ for suggesting it.
+
+ No, there is no "take-away idea" or "X in a nutshell". Simplicity as
+ an inherent attribute is important, yes, but this attribute is
+ pointedly distinct from simplisticism, i.e. overly simplifying ideas
+ for the sake of keeping them -- or making them -- simple. The main
+ advantage of Knowledge (with a Kapital K!) is that it can be
+ deconstructed into simple, i.e. atomic bits, but those bits being
+ simple does not a. make the whole simple and neither does it b. make
+ the act of contemplation of said bits simple. Keep this in mind,
+ lest I swing my magic sword at you, will you now?
+
+[abrams]: /posts/y00/011-star-trek-into-darkness.html
+[legos]: http://btcbase.org/log/2017-08-19#1701125
+[offending]: /posts/y01/037-charlie-hebdo.html
+[humanity]: /posts/y01/032-your-worth-to-humanity.html
projects / thetarpit.git / commitdiff