K. Kumar's Blog, page 17

Movie Review: The Gambler

I recently saw The Gambler:


Long story, short: this was a very bad movie and I left about half way through. The acting was bad and the writing was terrible. It was overwrought, self righteous garbage from the start. The only redeeming quality was the music. 

Açaí

I had the opportunity to try Açaí for the first time a couple months ago. I happened to be Rio de Janeiro and I was walking the streets near the beach and they were selling bowls of the stuff, like this:
Source: WikipediaThey add a bit of Agave syrup to it for sweetness, and it has a real deep, rich flavor that is hard to describe in words. But it is unique and that probably explains why so many people eat it daily. My understanding is Açaí is only grown in Brazil and apparently has a hig...

Modigliani

In the modern culture we live in, we are often put in situations where people go to great lengths to explain things to us and educate us all. Everyone has a truth they have discovered about the world based on some experience they have had or some book they read and they'll take the first opportunity to sit you down and pontificate and demonstrate all this new knowledge they have. Anyone who has had to experience this will likely find it underwhelming. You might nod your head, but I am not oft...

'What It's Like'

I was listening to the radio and this familiar song came on:




A close listen of this song invokes a strong sentiment of empathy:

Empathy is a powerful concept because empathetic people are thought to be more compassionate and introspective. Such a person will think deeply about all the problems and concerns facing the people they come into contact with. They are known to be more charitable towards those less fortunate, to be less judgmental.
Though I wonder how much empathy is self delusion....

Free Speech

Late last year with the release of The Interview there was a renewed debate about free speech and the threats to free speech. Sony had decided to cancel the release of the movie and as a result many people came out to express their concerns that free speech was being threatened. They talked of dire consequences if hackers had the power to limit speech by making threats. And so in the midst of this debate, Sony reversed its decision and all was suddenly well with the world and free speech won...

The Interview

I saw The Interview about a month ago:


There was a lot of controversy surrounding the movie due to the Sony hacking scandal and the decision to cancel the release. I had already planned to see it, so it worked out that I could watch  it online for $5.99.
Overall, I thought is was an ambitious and well put together comedy that kept me interested throughout. The acting was good and the writing was good and what made it work for me was that the movie never took it itself too seriously. I...

Self Delusion

It is interesting the more I experience things in life, the more I value the idea of self delusion. And I think it is beneficial up to a certain point. All great pursuits and challenges begin at a point of self delusion, it is the only way to be able to convince yourself to put forth the effort in the first place.


Self delusion takes so many forms throughout life that it is often hard to reconcile a true reality against a self deluded reality. Often, we see the world as we want to see it...

Police Shootings and Racism

There has been a lot of talk in the media and in the social and political spheres about racism and policing and a general distrust that many feel towards authority. The events involving the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown have revealed something about the relationships between the public and the police. And one result has been protests and riots, but most importantly the effect has been the furthering of a simple narrative that white police officers target black youths.
It is a belief,...

Letter from the World IV (Gold Edition)

Came across this letter in Sao Paulo:

Letters from the World III (Gold Edition)

Came across this letter in Colombia: