Pop quiz: Aside from making great music, what do David Bowie, TV On The Radio and Massive Attack all have in common? Answer: the oh-so-awesome indie band Dragons of Zynth. Bowie’s a fan of theirs, and they’ve worked with TV On The Radio and Massive Attack.
In this installment of Culture Klatsch, we hear from the band’s drummer j.Bernard, who let us know that his show on October 29 at 92YTribeca is particularly special to him – it marks his five-year anniversary with the band.
Where do you go for news when you start your day?
I start with the news, then find out what the world is thinking, then get to work. I generally start with MSNBC and the BBC.
How much do you use Twitter and Facebook (or other social networking services)?
I tweet therefore I am. Facebook is a dying star in the universe of human connection. I read an amazing tweet the other day that said, “Twitter makes me fall in love with strangers that I may never meet. Facebook makes me hate the “friends” I already know.” That pretty much sums it up.
What Is The Role Of Religion In Developing A Sense Of Morality?
Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, senior religion editor for the The Huffington Post, recently spoke to Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks “about his understanding of the role of religion in developing a sense of morality in our globalized world.” The interview is excerpted below.
Paul Brandeis Raushenbush: You said earlier this is not necessarily a religious thing. How do you talk about a moral sense if it is not the “voice of God”?
Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks: I’m saying that we in the religious community have taken the lead in creating a normative community of business people and financiers who have ethical expectations of one another. It’s done by creating the standards that people expect of one another if they are part of the community.
And this leads to a discovery in a different area that Robert Putnam made in his book “American Grace.” He points out that it’s not so much what you believe that makes the difference; it’s being part of a community. Science Nobel Prize winner Niels Bohr had a horseshoe over his door, and he was visited by a fellow scientist, who was amazed and said: “Niels, surely you can’t believe in that superstitious nonsense.” And Niels responded: “Of course I don’t believe in it, but the thing is, it works whether you believe in it or not.”
That is what Robert Putnam was saying about community, and it is what I am saying about community: It works whether you believe in it or not. In the end, our business ethics association works because the leading business people had an influence over their peers and said: We have power, therefore we have responsibility.
