Thursday, May 11, 2006, 02:35 AM - Politics, Technology
I'm happy to report that our first LA Net Tuesday was a success - we had an interesting diversity of attendees and a presentation from www.stickam.com on their live streaming video of the May 1 immigrant rights demonstrations. People who came were a mix of nonprofit folks (California Association of Nonprofits, Asian Pacific American Legal Center), freelance programmers and technologists, people working in the for-profit technology sector interested in social change (Yahoo, NetworkLive) and politics (LA Councilmember Garcetti's Communications Director). We were a small enough group to have an interesting discussion about the role of technology in the organization, documenting, and analysis of the May 1 demonstrations - as well as our responsibilities as technologists to be aware of and try to minimize the digital divide. We had fun discussing the role that myspace.com had in organizing student protests, brainstorming tools we need to better filter information to support progressive debate, and thinking about how linguistic differences limit the adaptation of progressive technology solutions for immigrant communities. We talked a little about topic ideas for another session, and people seemed interested in coming up with a project or goal for the group (maybe helping to do communications training for students organizing on immigrant rights issues?). Come to the next event and find out more - we may move out to the west side for our next meeting...
Thursday, May 11, 2006, 02:13 AM - Politics
I've been thinking about this all week, since I read one of the editorials in the Sunday Times about Democrats' chances this fall and their struggles to build a coherent message. Sadly I haven't had time to come up with my own coherent message, but if I don't write about this today it will evaporate from my little brain. Why, on earth, do the Democrats not understand that emphasizing the dangers/ risks of the current economic situation will NEVER WORK. People do not want to believe they're on the bring of disaster or bankruptcy - even when they are. Scare tactics and doomsaying are the wrong strategy - we need to find ways to point out the inconsistencies in our current economic reality while emphasizing progress and positive solutions. (Don't get me wrong - what's unsustainable is endless - growing inequality in the middle of abundance, constant credit-fueled consumption of foreign-made goods while domestic producers wither, massive agricultural subsidies for crops nobody needs; I could go on - but it's not what we should be foregrounding). We need to come up with a message that's consistent across domains - one that stresses opportunity, advancement, and personal and community standards, while demanding accountability from corporations, rational tax policy, reasonable regulation, and realistic and fair rewards. We have to develop a conversation about what's feasible and hopeful in our economic lives, not constantly harp on what's wrong.Monday, May 8, 2006, 02:17 AM - Food
I spent the weekend in SF (lovely visits with Aurora, Alice, Adam, Augi and Angela and several friends whose names don't start with A). I have been homesick for all the good local Marin/ Sonoma county cheese (is it too dry for milk farming down here?) and got my fix at the farmer's market. Although I was sad to hear that there won't be any more Capricious for at least two months, it demonstrated the Bay Area's preciousness (in the best sense) when the Achadinha cheese company proprietress described the problems of the (2) goats in question. (Not enough milk for a while, hence a gap in production and the current batch is aging.) It really takes the local food ideology to a whole new level when you don't just know your local cheesemaker, but you get the skinny on the goats' inner lives...I'm sure my greek ancestors are glad I'm only one degree removed from goatherding.Thursday, May 4, 2006, 11:14 PM
but I kind of like it. It has been a crazy intense day - last night in VC partyland with Ken and his crowd, rescuing my car from the Hollywood tow this AM, walking into a MomsRising crisis as the MoveOn member mailing traffic (and our tech guys' lack of thoroughness?) crashed the site. It's all turned out nicely, though, as we're close to 20K members today and I'm heading out to dinner with Claud and Angel and Ken at Blair's. Off to SF tomorrow for some orthodontic adventures...and something from La Taqueria.A day without immigrants. Actually, for me it was a day when I spent way more time than usual with immigrants. Where were all the other white people at this march, anyway?
Monday, May 1, 2006, 03:21 PM - Politics
I'm not buying anything today, and will probably try to get down to the afternoon protest on Wilshire. It's not like LA needs a reminder that our city functions on immigrant labor - but I wonder how much people staying home today will impact the perception of immigrants in cities in the middle and eastern parts of the country. I am losing hope that the Dems will step up and take a proactive position on the immigration issue - I would love an honest acknowledgement of the net benefit that immigrants have on our economy (whether legal or illegal) - I mean really how else do you think we're going to pay for social security 30 years from now without immigrant-driven population growth? I find the hardline conservative criminalize/ deport position so disingenuous, it's disgusting. I've never seen anyone work harder than undocumented grape pickers in Napa vineyards, and I have huge respect for people who take personal risk to better their own and their families' lot. Why capital should be able to flow freely across borders, while people are limited by the accident of their birth is one of those hypocrisies that drive me up a wall. We're a nation of people (with the obvious exception of descendents of slaves and native people) who took the initiative to get here - what is more American than doing what is necessary to support your family? And don't get me started on how our free-trade policies throughout Latin American have failed to make a dent in poverty there - so I hope we're not surprised that there's considerable 'push' out of those countries, as well as 'pull' through the economic incentives to work here. I guess as someone who's at heart a relativist, I have no problem with an amnesty program. I think a principaled realistic immigration reform package includes a path to legal residency/ citizenship for people who are here, increased quotas for new immigrants, a guest worker program for people who only WANT to come for a season/ a short time, increased border enforcement with a national security focus (what's more dangerous, a dirty bomb or a woman who wants to be your nanny?), and a real focus and aggressive enforcement against employers who exploit undocumented workers. A good start towards integrating new immigrants into our civic life is opening up local elections (such as school boards) to all residents/ parents of children in their schools, regardless of immigrant status. We've got so many resources, why can't we be more accepting?
Update: March was great - tons of families, endless crowds, a sea of white t-shirts and american flags, there was even some cute young actor couple (don't ask me who). I liked walking down the middle of Wilshire.
Monday, May 1, 2006, 03:02 PM
In yet another attempt to transform into a southern Californian, I went to the Coachella music festival on Saturday with Claudia. Getting in was a horrendous logistical nightmare (they've been doing this for 6 years, I think, so I really don't understand why they haven't figured out traffic patterns - we missed Lady Sovereign because it took so long) but once we were there is was fun. I don't think I'd go back, but I'm glad I went. It felt like Burning Man with training wheels - lots and lots of people wandering around happily with pretty desert mountains in the background, but with grass underfoot and food for sale. Not nearly as much outlandish attire, and no middle-aged naked men, but a bit of the Burning Man vibe (bicycle carousel, a tesla coil). It wasn't particularly persuasive (and the whole thing is predicated on spectation) but it did make me sad that the drum and bass oasis test was as close as I'll get to Burning anything this year. (I've been told that Moontribe is the LA analog and Jeff B is pushing a monthly dance night with their djs, I think...). Best sets were Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Carl Cox and Derrick Carter (dj sets), Cat Power, Devendra Banhart (surprisingly), Kanye West (not surprisingly). I was not so thrilled with Daft Punk, Common, or Sigur Ross, but Ladytron was cute and weird. Only thing I'd have wanted more of was She Wants Revenge. Kanye apparently loves A-ha, and danced around on stage like Molly Ringwald in the Breakfast Club, which alone was worth half the price of admission.
Saturday, April 29, 2006, 03:32 PM - Dancing
of my new job is that my office is on the next corner from the Hollywood Amoeba record store. So far that means I've gotten to sneak out to see in-stores from Calexico, Pretty Girls Make Graves, and my favorite from this Thursday - the Coup. Nothing like a set by some radical Marxist Oakland rappers (and some amazing breast-facilitated scratching by the wonderful Pam the Funkstress) to make a Bay Area girl feel right at home in Hollywood.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006, 11:01 AM - Travels, Art
;)
I saw Matthew Barney and Bjork's latest project last night. The most horrifying thing about it was not the underwater romantic dismemberment, but rather the number 9 at the end of the title, suggesting that I'll be spending two hours a year for the next 8 on Mr. Barney's stylized, well-lubricated fantasies. This one fugues on Japanese culture, which apparently even the uber-weird Mr. Barney finds perplexing. At times it seemed like Leslie's and my trip, had we been shooting ourselves up with Ketamine and dropping acid daily. That said, there are stunning panoramic pageant moments at the beginning that I adored (that man is our generation's .Busby Berkeley), exquisite thoughtfulness in the oceanic tea set, and fabulous shots of congealinig icebergs of vaseline. It does crack me up that this was the first film I've seen in a theater since I arrived in LA; apparently I'm not totally assimilated into mainstream film culture quite yet.
Saturday, April 22, 2006, 06:25 PM - Technology
So part of why I've been so slack on the blog front is that our new site launched this week - I've been working to help get MomsRising.org off the ground, and it's finally happened. I'm really pleased with the site, and I'm itching to get Phase II social networking and user content components up and running. Would love to hear your thoughts on the site...
]| related link
Saturday, April 22, 2006, 06:14 PM
I never properly chronicled our snow weekend with Lizbet, Louise, Ladle and Otto. They were sweet enough to invite me and the Republican into their spring break snow retreat paradise, and we were lucky enough to have PILES of snow rain down on our heads. Ken was just using me as a ruse to get to spend more time with Ladle and Otto, but I didn't mind. I got my annual heart-stopping chute day at Kirkwood, and we all marvelled at the violence of a blizzard experienced from a hot tub. Be sure to note the snow behind the window in this too-cute picture of Lizbet. Sadly Ladle has had some health problems since our weekend, and Lizbet and Louise had a terrifying car crash, but everyone is safe and recovering well... please remember to be careful and to appreciate what you've got.
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