Keyword: Tactics | Tactics is such a vague concept. When hearing the word, I’d get confused with multiple interpretations because tactics could have a double meaning. I believe that the use of tactics have especially been used in the topic, subversion. Art can be a tool for subversion. Kony 2012 at first glance seemed like an emotionally compelling video that succeeded in getting support from the US citizens. However, it was later revealed that the video was mostly a tactical ploy for the US to occupy the oil-rich land.
Personally, as someone who plays a lot of games, I first think of tactical games such as chess or sports. I strategize all the time when I’m pressed against the screen of my psp, furiously pressing on multiple buttons, or playing a simple game of battleship with my cousins. But tactics could also be used for more serious subjects, such as military and political tactics. I think political tactics have been emphasized a lot more this week as I’d watched the debate between Mitt Romney and Obama for the second time. I’m not an expert on politics and it was clear that both candidates performed well. However, when it comes to strategy, Romney was more tactical in his speech and seemed to have prepared beforehand to make Obama seem week. He had most likely planned way ahead what he was going to say during the speech and though most of his claims were false, he was more aggressive during the debate. Obama, on the other hand, had not strategized properly, which is why it seems that he had lost the debate. In order to win a debate, one must make sure his/her opponent does not get away with lies. The 700 billion cuts from Medicare that Romney had claimed that Obama would do could’ve been easily been debunked by a simple, “This is a lie and here is my website proving that this is a lie.” In failing to do so by remaining too passive, Obama had come out as being not as tactical as Romney.
On October 12, the Arts Research Center at UC Berkeley and the Curatorial Practice at the California College of the Arts are partnering to host a live-streaming of the Creative Time Summit, an annual conference in New York that brings together cultural producers–including artists, critics, writers, and curators–to discuss how their work engages pressing issues affecting our world. To jump-start the conversation in advance of the event, attendees have been asked to submit a paragraph on a keyword associated with one of the summit themes: Inequities, Occupations, Making, or Tactics. This posting is by Nicole Kim, American Cyberculture student at UC Berkeley.