Archive for November, 2007

Some background to the video:

It was reported after the debate that Kerr is a member of the LGBT Americans For Hillary Steering Committee (Or for short, NAMBLA). You better believe that conservative bloggers and media were all over this. Just a couple of quick facts – those seem to be missing from the previous three articles I linked you to…

1) It still has not been confirmed that Brig. Gen. Kerr was actually a plant from Hillary Clinton. He is, however, and individual capable of making his own decisions. And, in full disclosure, a part of a large group of people who have thrown their lot in with Ms. Clinton. There are sixty-four (64) other names on the taboo list – including Billie Jean King. As of this posting, there have been no comments from the Clinton Camp.

2) Brig. Gen. Kerr has been gay for a long time. He did not come out of the closet conveniently for the CNN/ You Tube Debate. In a keen piece of research on my part, I found this link to a 2003 interview with Brig. Gen. Kerr on Talk Of The Nation (the whole interview is very interesting, but 50 minutes long. The first few minutes are worth the listen, however.). So Kerr has been openly gay for at least four years, back when Hillary was just an outrageously dressed Senator (pictured).

3) Regardless of his motives for being at the debate, the candidates believed (and very possibly correctly) that Brig. Gen. Kerr’s comments came from a concerned citizen and a retired military officer only. Bloggers and News Networks will, I’m sure, continue to spin this as Clinton’s fault. But the truth is that there is still a vicious prejudice and gross misunderstanding surrounding the topic of homosexuality.

4) This is the last one, and the most ironic in my eyes. The original Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell legislation was signed into law by my fellow musician Bill Clinton. Brig. Gen. Kerr is an alleged plant of Will’s wife, Hillary, but Kerr is condemning the bill. Does that sound like a good campaign strategy to you? For a more in-depth look at the law itself, and some analysis surrounding the conversation, check out Stanford’s Law School project here.

Thanks for making it this far. I’m political in my daily life often, but I promise not to over-do it here. This video just hit me so strong. I would love to know what you have to say on the subject.

These bikes have one gear, and only one gear. They are not a “single gear” bike that allows the user to coast, like a Cruiser, or a BMX bike. If my back wheel is in motion, so are my legs. They do not have twenty-one (21) speeds for me to pick and choose from. My chain is connected directly to the cog that makes the back wheel move. No technology.

Yesterday, I stopped by onePlace on the way to class to say hi to Kevin and Mark. While our friend Ace was riding around on my bike, Mark made a comment about progress. “You know, there is a way to have the bike keep going when you aren’t peddling. And to change gears to adjust resistance. It just doesn’t make sense to revert back to only one, fixed gear. Technology should always be moving forward.”

I stood there awhile with nothing to say. He makes a viable argument, but it just didn’t sit well with me. I know that technology is good – for society, the economy, adult entertainment, and many other things. We developed cellular technology, and I haven’t lived in a place with a land line for four (4) years. Furthermore, our phone numbers don’t start with the city’s name any longer. You have a better chance calling 867-5309 than you do Pennsylvania 6-5000. And even if Jenny wasn’t home, you could leave a message on her voice mail, yet another mad advance in this crazy world of ours.

Later in the afternoon, a few of us went to the Phoenix Art Museum to check out the new Graffiti Fashion exhibit. Free on Tuesdays! After that exhibit, we strolled up the stairs to the Center for Creative Photography for the traveling exhibit about Group f/64. Group f/64 might sound familiar to you because it was the battle cry of Edward Weston, Willard Van Dyke, Sonia Noskowiak, and Ansel Adams. It was there in the gallery that I finally found the words to describe my feeling earlier that day. Here is an excerpt from the Group’s Manifesto:

The Group will show no work at any time that does not conform to its standards of pure photography. Pure photography is defined as possessing no qualities of technique, composition or idea, derivative of any other art form.

Purity. This was it, I found my answer. People sometimes revert back to a single, fixed gear bicycle because they desire the purity of control. Much like how Porsche and Ferrari still offer their vehicles with manual transmission as standard. Purity of control. Sometimes people are so fed up with the direction of photography, that make a pact to avoid glossy prints, and narrow focus. Sometimes a callback to the basics is really rewarding.

This one might be a stretch, but what if there is a group of people who decide to rebel against the technology of warfare, and engage in the purity of diplomacy? Neat idea, huh?

So next time you see someone without a digital camera, automatic transmission, or a ten (10) speed bike, remember – technology doesn’t always have to move forward.

Below are a series of three videos. First, and ad for the iMac Intel Core Duo. Second, the music video for Such Great Heights. Third, a split screen shot showing the haunting similarities. The entry here does a pretty swell job of explaining the similarities and why this is stealing, etc. That’s not my purpose here. But I do want to flesh out why I’m so appalled…

Happy Sunday!

Number 2: Crown of Barbed Wire

Number 3: Go Around Twice If You’re Happy

Also, the City of Phoenix will be collecting items for those who won’t otherwise have a comfortable Christmas. Blankets, warm clothes, and warm shoes are all being accepted (full list here). It is really easy for me to forget how much the weather changes here in the Valley. Without a roof or a heater, our winter nights can be fairly grueling for our Street Family. The program launched this past Tuesday and will run until the middle of March.

That’s all for this week. Good wishes to you and your family as we enter into this Holiday Season!

Adbusters is an organization determined to limit our consumption as a human race. They sponsor Buy Nothing Day, but it is largely a grassroots campaign. Their website has some startling stats, and fairly humorous videos. Have fun poking around. And don’t buy anything on Friday.

Quick note: The end quote is long today. I hope you can make it through to the end. It’s worth it, I promise.

On the first of two days, Elliott announced to the class that Brown Eyed people are smarter, funnier, faster at doing math problems, and prettier. In contrast, those that are Blue Eyed are wasteful, not smart, and are not good enough to drink from the same water fountain. This verbal conditioning lasts the morning. By the end of lunch, it was internalized. Fights broke out because one boy called another a “Blue-Eyed”. Two girls that were best friends the day before now sat on opposite ends of the lunch room, saying negative things about the other to a newfound group of comrades. The afternoon brought no new comfort. Elliott continued the verbal bashing of the Blue-Eyed group and chastises them for any minuscule crime that is committed. The children go home demoralized – or emblazoned, depending on which new identity was a reality – and anything but eager to return the next day.

When class does begin again, the roles are reversed. Now, those with blue eyes are the superior group, while those unfortunate enough to born with brown eyes sit dejected and outcast. Elliot gets away with the “Romney”-like flip-flop due to the fact that her students are seven (7) and eight (8) years old. The day unfolds in a similar fashion and the children go home- stronger and confident, or broken and hurt.

The exercise was highly publicized (not Elliott’s doing, but the media) and Elliott toured the nation to hold seminars and workshops in the following years and decades. She also was hosted by PBS Frontline, The Tonight Show and Oprah.

As we watched these conversations and exercises in class yesterday, I was struck by the relevance of it all. Racism is still very much alive in our country, in our city, and in our neighborhood.

To keep your attention – and mine – I’m not going to delve into a long-winded discussion on what should be done to confront these issues. What follows is an excerpt from the conversation that followed the exercise when Elliot visited the Oprah Show. During this run of the exercise, it was assumed that those with blue eyes were the inferior group, and were treated unkindly during the entirety of the show. Elliot’s response to an off-the-cuff remark is gold, and the reason why I spent so many words giving this situation background… The italics are mine.

Blue-eyed audience member: In America, we are the melting pot of the world, and we should be able to be tolerant, and you shouldn’t dislike me because I’m white and I shouldn’t dislike you because you’re black.

Jane Elliott: Now, wait a minute, people—what do you mean by melting pot? That we put everyone together and mix them up, and they all come out the same? So that white folks feel comfortable with them? So that blue-eyed folks feel comfortable with them? We don’t need a melting pot in this country, folks. We need a salad bowl. In a salad bowl, you put in the different things. You want the vegetables—the lettuce, the cucumbers, the onions, the green peppers—to maintain their identity. You appreciate differences. A melting pot does not appreciate differences, and this country ought to be about appreciating differences.