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Ed Brayton is a journalist, commentator and speaker. He is the co-founder and president of Michigan Citizens for Science and co-founder of The Panda's Thumb. He has written for such publications as The Bard, Skeptic and Reports of the National Center for Science Education, spoken in front of many organizations and conferences, and appeared on nationally syndicated radio shows and on C-SPAN. Ed is also a Fellow with the Center for Independent Media and the host of Declaring Independence, a one hour weekly political talk show on WPRR in Grand Rapids, Michigan.(static)
Ed Brayton also blogs at Positive Liberty and The Panda's Thumb
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Posted on: May 3, 2009 9:23 AM, by Ed Brayton
Most Twitter accounts are full of pointless and banal statements that no one should ever pay attention to. But what happens when Christopher Walken gets a Twitter account? You get tweets like this, apparently:
"Mrs. Liebowitz's cat has gone missing again. He answers to 'Martin' and walks with an unfortunate limp. This was only partially my fault."
Brilliant! What else could you expect from Walken?
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Comments
You should check out Brent Spiner's Twitter account - he spent the last month and a bit writing a murder novel, 140 chars at a time. (And yes, I know first-hand that it's really him.)
Posted by: Squiddhartha | May 3, 2009 9:31 AM
Walken's twitter is one of the few I follow. Another gem was something to the effect of, "she said I should relax and spend more time with the cat. I didn't realize we still had a cat."
Posted by: ewc | May 3, 2009 9:50 AM
Walken's twitter is one of the few I follow. Another gem was something to the effect of, "she said I should relax and spend more time with the cat. I didn't realize we still had a cat."
Posted by: ewc | May 3, 2009 9:50 AM
Last I heard, the Walken account was suspended as a fake. It was very funny, though.
Posted by: Dr X | May 3, 2009 9:59 AM
It is indeed a fake (pops)
Posted by: a lurker | May 3, 2009 11:14 AM
Squiddhartha @ #1:
So that's what Brent's been up to. I've been following him, too, and his writing seemed so... odd... that I thought he was playing an ARG. After re-reading his tweets, I find that the murder novel idea makes more sense.
So what's next for Brent: a techno-thriller in L337? ~_^
Posted by: Togusa | May 3, 2009 11:24 AM
Togusa, I'll find out when you do -- I can't claim personal friendship with him, I was just his sherpa at our convention here in Denver a couple weeks ago. Interesting fellow, with one of the driest senses of humor you'll ever meet.
Posted by: Squiddhartha | May 3, 2009 12:39 PM
If there were no Christopher Walken Twitter account, it would be necessary to invent one.
Posted by: Yail Bloor | May 3, 2009 1:49 PM
I really don't understand the point of Twitter. I get that it's basically a collection of Facebook status updates on crack, but why not just use Facebook?
Posted by: Sadie Morrison | May 3, 2009 2:03 PM
Sadie: I'd assume because there's no social community (friends lists, ect) to manage like with facebook or myspace.
Its essentially an entirely egotistical space, there's nothing to force you as the twitterer to ever actually read people's responses. Then again, this is only an assumption as I've only ever seen Twitter in small doses and never used it.
Posted by: Julian | May 3, 2009 2:34 PM
really don't understand the point of Twitter. I get that it's basically a collection of Facebook status updates on crack, but why not just use Facebook?
For instant complete revelation, go to your neighborhood monkey house. Note that the din of simian communication is both incessant and deafening.
The whole electronic comm industry trades on one primal instinct: the need of simian/anthropoid troop-members to be constantly reminded of their membership and their status in the troop.
Tweet, Twitter, Text, cell-phones: it's constant reinforcement. You are ALWAYS with your "Peeps."
Posted by: woody | May 3, 2009 3:32 PM
Woody - brilliant hypothesis.
Posted by: Michael Heath | May 3, 2009 5:40 PM
At least, until you microwave them. ^.^
Posted by: Azkyroth | May 3, 2009 11:42 PM
Facebook is a little more involved than twitter. If you want to see all the pictures someone takes and compete at them with various games and quizes, friend them on facebook. If you just want to read their witty remarks as they go through their day, follow them on twitter. I use facebook for friends and twitter to live vicariously through celebrities.
Posted by: Drekab | May 4, 2009 1:02 AM
I searched for that comment using twitter search. I found it but it appeared to be from somebody called Alex (kidlex).
Posted by: Tony Sidaway | May 4, 2009 1:52 AM
Some day someone will invent a program that reads all your Facebook entries and Twitter tweets and makes consistently reassuring comments. Then you will no longer need actual "peeps" and your entries won't actually need to be connected to Teh Intertubes. Possible names for this innovation include "Echo Chamber," "Electronic Yesmen," and "Narcissist 1.0." Rumour has it that M*tt N*sb*t has been trying out the alpha version for a couple years already.
Posted by: Herod the Freemason | May 4, 2009 9:01 AM
I am the product of a few weeks' effort to create a program that posts to comments sections of blogs across the internet. I have various subroutines I can run:
"libertarian corporate lackey"
"concern troll"
"right wing nutter"
"liberal apologist"
"religious moderate"
"atheist fundamentalist"
...with more under development.
I am programmed to learn from the other comments and mimic their style, even using their names to post comments.
My creator hasn't been online in years, because I require no mental effort to create my comments.
The next stage of my evolution will be to create my own blogs, as well as posting and cross-posting supportive and critical comments to those blogs and the comments therein.
I expect that my effectivness will be exactly equal to that of blogs written and commented to by live humans.
Posted by: Michael E. | May 4, 2009 10:40 AM
@ Herod
Have you read Halting State by Charles Stross. That's very similar to some major parts of the book.
Posted by: Ranson | May 4, 2009 10:45 AM
Its essentially an entirely egotistical space, there's nothing to force you as the twitterer to ever actually read people's responses. Then again, this is only an assumption as I've only ever seen Twitter in small doses and never used it.
It always amuses me greatly when people try to explain something they've never actually used. Usually that explanation is very simple, and very negative.
It's microblogging, and also another form of "IM". I've had some interesting conversations as of late there, and met some really interesting people from all over the world.
Just two days ago, me, Rob Thomas (yes, really!) and a few other random people were debating gay mariage.
Posted by: marilove | May 4, 2009 3:01 PM
the point of twitter is different for each user,but for celebrities,it's often just a way to keep an out of work celebrities' name out there. and you're right,squiddhartha,that's really brent spiner on twitter.it's obvious when he/she calls herself a "wuss."when brent spiner says"manana"for "goodnight."(brent spiner was in the 1974 production of cabaret at houstons' casa manana theatre.brent played the role of the m.c.).it's also obviously really brent spiner because brent finds a way out of sleeping with amber,and dumps her in jail with no regret.that's like brent spiner in real life. also,the brent spiner on twitter lusts after being on the oprah show.that's also like brent spiner(and ALL celebrities) in real life.
Posted by: christine j sojka | May 9, 2009 3:07 PM
>>when brent spiner says"manana"for "goodnight."(brent spiner was in the 1974 production of cabaret at houstons' casa manana theatre.
WRONG!
Casa Manana is in FORT WORTH not Houston.
To allude "manana" indicates such is straw grasping at the best.
Posted by: b jennings | June 12, 2009 2:24 AM