Con-found the fellow!

Think you all will find this amusing:

http://www.themonkeycage.org/2008/12/post_147.html

Knockoff electronics

The headphones on my iPod stopped working a couple of days ago, so I
went searching for a new pair this afternoon. It took me about an hour
to find a genuine (I think--at least the packaging is pretty convincing
and the sound's pretty good) pair of Philips headphones, but along the
way I spotted the following "brands":

Aima
Somy
Suomi (this would presumably be a Finnish national brand)
Sonia
Sowi
Sonty
Suny

I wish I had the guts to take pictues. The "Sonia"'s were the best.
The packaging even has reasonably good copies of the Sony trademark
lettering.

More Evangelical Christianity

First off, the evangelical Christianity:

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, after all of my thoughts and
(mild) criticisms of the Evangelical faith, but I had my first
experience with Evangelical church services today. It was Lucy and
Ricardo's graduation from Theological Seminary, and the graduation
ceremony took place during an Evangelical service (of course).

A couple of things were notable about the service.

My church experiences have typically been with the Catholic faith, or
with what I would consider more traditional protestant sects. I think
what that means, really, is that my experiences with church services
have been in churches that are predominant in New England, where I grew
up. I'm Episcopalian (Anglican) at least when it's convenient, and I've
spent a fair amount of time in Catholic, Lutheran, Congregational, and
Methodist churches, among others. But down here, I've only been in
Catholic services, though I've made fun of evangelical services from afar.

I will continue, by the way, to make fun of all flavors of religion.
I'm as open-minded as anyone in that regard.

Anyways, there was far less "O God (Gawd), forgive us for our sins, for
things that we have done and for things that we have left undone..."

There was, however, a lot of exaggerated gesturing, some low-key
speaking in tongues (I believe that's what I witnessed), a pretty good
Christian rock band (a 10 piece band, by the way!), lunch with lots of
Potatoes and no Guinea Pig that I could see, a Disney cartoon about
hookworm, and a theological seminary graduation ceremony.

So, as Emily put it, it was everything that I love all rolled up in
one. Church services and graduation ceremonies. Yeehaw.

Aside from my irrational griping about those two things, the experience
was interesting.

First off, a lot of indigenous apparel in evidence. This despite the
fact that evangelical churches supposedly discourage that sort of
thing. So are the rumors true? Half true, I think, but I may have to
elaborate on that later.

Second, the band was pretty good. Not exactly Gregorian Chant, but
there was a pretty good trumpeter and a good conga drum player. Maybe
there is hope for the evangelical tradition yet.

Third, the graduation ceremony was shorter than average. The only thing
better than a short ceremony is the complete absence of any ceremony
whatsoever.

Fourth, the Disney movie about hookworm was interesting. Not the
typical kind of thing that I would expect in church, but it probably
can't hurt to tell an audience of Andean peasants that they should be
using pit latrines. Plus, the movie was voiced-over in Quechua, which
gave me a little bit of an opportunity to practice.

Fifth, there was more quechua speaking. Always good. And beautiful.

Sixth, there was a blessing for the sick. And like half the
congregation got up to be blessed. This may speak to (a) different
social codes in different churches, or (b) how many people are sick. Or
both. But either way, it's interesting.

Seventh, I was at the church for about four hours, and I wasn't even
there for the half of it. Holy crap! No pun intended.

Election News

Now this is the kind of hard-hitting investigative reporting that should
make the traditional press sit up and take notice:

http://www.weeklyworldnews.com/election-08/jindal-in-talks-with-satan/

Chinchero

So, I took the day off from recoding data and learning Quechua to check
out the Incan ruins and market in nearby village of Chinchero.
Beautiful little town--I've put some pictures up on my Picasa account,
and you can get to them by clicking on the link (a picture of an
indigenous woman) over in the sidebar.

Chinchero is another place where you're surrounded by history. Farmers
still work in the shadow of Incan terracing, and the (stunning) village
church is built on the site of an Incan religious site. People also
speak Quechua in the market to one another, and the locals wear
traditional costume, and probably not only for the tourists. In the
market, you can see indigenous families and friends eating together,
sharing their meals communally.

It's neat to hear people speaking Quechua in these places, even if I can
only understand a little.

I don't envy the lives these people hold--Peruvian peasants are tough,
and many of them live lives that many of us would find unimaginable.
But it's good to see that their strong social bonds have, in many
places, survived the changes of the modern age, at least so far.

In the course of my Quechua lessons, we've spent a lot of time talking
about the process of modernization, and the ways in which urban
in-migration, technological modernization, and resulting cultural
changes have left a lot of poor urban residents without either a
connection to their ethnic and cultural roots, or the ability to take
advantage of many of the things the urban world offers.

I wonder if there's something of a Samuel P. Huntington-esque story here
in which social bonds and informal, traditional institutions (like the
Quechua tradition of communal labor) are unable to deal with the large
numbers of people and more complex problems of the urban world. On the
other hand, urban areas of Peru and other parts of the developing world
have yet to develop the complex institutions of the developed
world--things like effective police forces and educational systems.
Maybe, despite his authoritarian apologetics, Huntington got it right.

On the other hand, a lot of the developed world lacks these things, as
well. One might argue that parts of New York, possibly the most
developed place on earth, lack effective law enforcement and educational
institutions.

The Moustache: The Universal Symbol for Pizza/Villainy/Irish Bartenders from the 1850s

One question: Why is the handlebar moustache the universal symbol for
Pizza when (1) Pizza is really hard to eat with a moustache, and (2)
I've never seen an Italian with a handlebar?

The campesinos, by the way, very rarely have any facial hair. I get
stared at a lot. And pointed at, sometimes. Especially by little kids.

And the little kids out in Anta tugged on it to make sure it was real.
I'm not sure they were convinced. And they pulled _hard_!

Me and the Evangelical Protestants

First off, one of the great advantages of being Episcopalian is that you
can pretty much be all things to all men (and women) down here. You're
not really Catholic, so you can always explain to the evangelicals that
you're protestant, etc., and then you're good. If you're talking to a
Catholic... well... Episcopalianism is, as some of my Episcopalian
friends have said, "Catholic Light." And if you're talking to a
nonbeliever, you just tell them the story about how the Anglican church
got started with sufficient irony ("Henry VIII really wanted to divorce
Catherine of Aragon, but the Pope said no, so he just started his own
church.") and you're golden.

And I'm not what you would call a rabidly dogmatic believer, so this is
really no big deal as far as I'm concerned, though I'm sure it would
make some people uncomfortable.

Anyways, the family I'm living with here in Cusco is evangelical
protestant, and they're pretty vocal about it. Normally, this would
make _me_ a little uncomfortable--We talk about religion in my family
(Actually, it's all my grandfather ever talked about. Somehow, even
arguments about gun control turned into arguments about Jesus), but I
guess I'm always just afraid somebody else is going to try to convert
me. And I'm pretty much okay with my Anglican belief system.

No fear of attempted conversion here, though. And all in all, I have to
say, I really agree with the fam's version of evangelical
protestantism. In effect, they think people should:
(a) be honest,
(b) be respectful of women,
(c) work hard,
(d) not judge others, and
(e) go to church on Sunday.

With the exception of the last one, which I'm not too big on, I pretty
much agree with all of that stuff.

Indeed, it's interesting that so many of the European and American
travelers down here have such a strong negative reaction to religious
faith of any kind. First off, the Catholic faith is such a part of the
local history and culture that it's difficult to imagine a day here
without some pretty salient Catholic feel to it, and second of all, one
of the things that these Protestants admire most about the States and
Europe are the same things that have turned them to their own religion.

Listening to these guys talk, it's become increasingly clear to me how
appealing this kind of philosophy can be in a place where:
(a) people lie and cheat all the time (prisoners' dilemma, really--cheat
or the other guy will and you'll be the sucker),
(b) machismo is more the rule than the exception, and sometimes the
worst version is openly on display,
(c) people show up to work late and often do a poor job--good luck
getting the internet turned back on once it's broken down, for example, and
(d) the Catholic church is, shall we say, less than energetic about
following its own dogma.

They see a lot of hypocrisy in the Catholic church (which is,
incidentally, one of the things that drives me nuts about dogmatic
people of any ideological or religious stripe back home), and they
believe in what could almost be termed a constructivist theory about
commonly held beliefs leading to improved behavior. They really think
that energetic religious belief--a very worldly belief system about the
right way to behave in this life, rather than the next--will help solve
Peru's problems with corruption and development. If everybody is trying
to lead a life of "right action" (to steal a phrase from the Buddhists)
and they're all keeping one another in line, things will get better.

As someone who's been socialized as a rational choicer, this stuff is
sometimes hard for me to swallow, but there's clearly a role for belief
in a rational choice explanation of human behavior, as I've written
about before.

There's also a social network story to be told, I think, about the way
evangelicals belong to a close-knit community that can sanction its
members for breaking certain social codes, so it's easier for
evangelicals to trust one another than it is for them to trust the
Catholic downstairs, or (frankly) than it is for others to trust
Evangelicals.

Of course, this won't stop me from making fun of the comically awful
evangelical musical tradition.

But even that, in a way, is a form of democracy. You don't have to be a
professionally trained musician to express your faith through music.
You can just be some schmoe with an electric guitar and a microphone.
And a screechy, out-of-tune voice. And lots of feedback. And a
terrible double-breasted suit.

More thanksgiving...

I am also thankful that my hat is wearing a belt:

http://www.homestarrunner.com/stinkoturkey.html

Maureen thinks I should be thankful for television online and Pizza
Hut. I'm not a big fan of either Pizza Hut or TV, but I have clearly
forgotten to be thankful for Taco Bell and "Bembo's" the Peruvian burger
chain (which is not related to the even-more-amusingly named "Bimbo's",
the Mexican bread company. And Inka Kola.

Yesterday, my Quechua instructor taught me how to give thanks to the
Apus (animist Quechua deities) and Pachamama (mother earth) with my
Chicha. Chicha is homebrewed corn beer. I said, "I'm not a big chicha
drinker. Do I do this with Inka Kola, too? He said, "the campesinos do
it with everything."

So I need to start making coffee offerings to the Fifth Flatiron and
Bear Peak.

A Couple Things I'm Thankful For

I realize it's a little late, but the Peruvian internet was broken over
Thanksgiving. And I had Quechua homework.

1. Emily
2. NetNewsWire
3. STATA
4. The SteriPen
5. Thunderbird
6. Cast iron frying pans
7. Skype
8. Emily

Certainly not a comprehensive list, but three things that do make my
life easier.

Thanksgiving

And by the way, happy Thanksgiving, all!

"Thanksgiving: We were fundamentalists before you were!"

The story has everything:
1. Religious fundamentalism
2. A military captain that was so short that he had to shorten his
sword by 6"
3. Funny hats
4. Anticommunism
5. Great chase scenes (though mostly on foot).
6. Religious persecution
7. Several possible roles for Bruce Campbell
8. The exiling of dissidents to Rhode Island

A fate worse than death, really.

As my good friend William J. Bourke would say, "I kid because I love."
Mostly, I love the cranberry sauce that arrives in the shape of a can,
and the pie. I'll take any kind, but I'm especially fond of the
mincemeat. I'll pass on the turkey and green bean casserole.

I also like Rhode Island. The state's only okay, but the accent is the
best. And there's a pretty good Boy Scout camp there.

Thanksgiving makes for something of a strange story, really. According
to historian Nathanial Philbrick, the whole time the Pilgrims were in
Massachussets, they really wished they were back in the Netherlands.
Can't say I agree with that. If there's one place I'm not inclined to
go (other than Checnya), it would be Kashmir. But after that, it's
Holland. And then Disneyland. Where they also celebrate "Dia de accion
de gracias." Gracias a diós.