What do elephants that paint have to do with Web2.0?

There really is a connection between painting elephants and Web2.0.  I promise.... just give me a second and I'll come up with something.  First, I discovered the video on Twitter (thanks @blmurch). I can post it to my blog courtesy of YouTube and Blogger.  I can research it's authenticity via Wikipedia (smart elephants), snopes.com, or watching Mythbusters (I'm sure they're working on this episode right now). I can just see Jamie and Adam digging out the silicone to make Buster a trunk and  thinking hard about which part of painting requires explosives.  I could probably buy a painting elephant on eBay or at least sell one of its gargantuan dung piles as long as it looked like the Virgin Mary.  I could BE an painting elephant in Second Life and I could adopt an elephant at elephantsanctuary.org (the ones that can paint always find homes first). I could create a Painting Elephants profile on Facebook and see how many other painting species I can friend.  If you just want the art and not the hassle of feeding a painting elephant, you can browse and buy these works of wonders at elephantartgallery.com. 

So meanwhile, back in Thailand.  I tend to believe in the outrageous so I think this elephant is really painting.  If you look in the background, you'll see lots of elephants painting and I don't see any of them being beaten and they don't look like they're starving. Not that I'd know what a starving elephant looks like. You'd think they would start eating the brush or something.  Heck, if they are smart enough to do self-portraits, they should be able to go make themselves a ham sandwich.  Or at least paint "help me" on the canvas instead of some flower.  

Obama Speech is the most-viewed video on YouTube

As of today, Barack Obama's Philadephia speech on race has been viewed over 1.2 million times, making it the most-viewed video on YouTube, according to the Washington Post. The fact that so many people are taking the time to view this video is encouraging. Not because I back the Senator as a presidential candidate, but because it means that people are paying attention to the most enlightened perspective on the issue of race that I have heard in a long time. Even if people are not participating in the conversation, they are willing to take 35 minutes and listen to someone else talk about it.

The catalyst for his speech was the unrelenting demand (from both critics and supporters) to respond to the remarks made by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his former paster, which were indeed racial and inflammatory. But I actually respect that he didn't take the easy way out and disassociate himself with Rev. Wright in favor of the political gains. His refusal to disown the influences that made him who he is today, even in a moment of disappointment, reflects great personal character in my book.

The biggest take-away I got from his speech is the notion that we can't get beyond our racial divisions by invalidating or dismissing the deeply-rooted reality of both sides. That incredibly unifying perspective would simply not have landed the same on me had I heard it from Hillary Clinton or John McCain. That tells me it is not just about the words, its about the person who conceived the ideas.

Maybe Barack Obama will be the Democratic candidate, maybe he won't. Regardless, I'm glad that someone with his vision and passion is willing to sacrifice a normal, quiet life with his family to be a public stand for what is possible in this country and help us all take a hard look at the issues we avoid.

Madeline Powell and the Cactus Cuties

Watch five minutes of any American Idol episode and you'll get why this video is so amazing. Madeline Powell and her four friends aren't even all out of elementary school yet and have more harmonizing talent than many new artists topping the charts .



No lip-synching, no instruments, no electronic pitch-corrections. Just raw, make-the-hair-on-your-neck-stand-up talent. The group of five call themselves the Cactus Cuties and include Andi Kitten (11), Baylee Barrett (13), Madeline Powell (8), Tatum Lowe (11), and Blaire Elbert (10). I wish them all the best of luck. They will surely rise to stardom with their video out on YouTube. Hope they get to remain kids, too :)