During the day, I'm basically a grunt worker for an advocacy group, and I don't diary about what they advocate. Seems disrespectful both to GMD readers and my employer. Frankly, as a hobbyist (at both this blog and through my involvement in my County Democratic Committee), policy matters aren't so much my bailiwick anyway – electoral stuff is. It makes for a nice personal symmetry that way, as my employer doesn't do the electoral thing at all.
So, wearing my electoral-observer hat, I can't help but look at the Climate Commission report, and the Governor's decision to ignore 90% of it, and wonder if the partisan electoral interests in the legislature and the Democratic Party structure aren't seeing what I'm seeing:
That is: George Bush's 9-11 Commission report.
Bush was somewhat forced into creating the 9-11 Commission from public and Congressional outcry, and likewise chose to ignore 90% of it. In doing so, he created one of the most potent weapons to use against him – and that use came to a head when the Democratic Congress put him in a corner by working to pass legislation to enact all of the Commission's recommendations, leaving Bush caught between a rhetorical rock and a hard place. Now it's hard to believe that the Vermont legislative Democrats could muster the focus, leadership, teamwork and follow-through to create that sort of legislation around this commission.
But man, would it have the potential to turn the election year on its head if they did. I know I'd be breaking out the popcorn for a good show…
I’ve been putting a lot of work into tying all my diaries specifically into politics, even when discussing my more creative pursuits.
For Thanksgiving Day, however, I’m putting politics aside and just talking about art.
Well, maybe. We’ll see.
So, anyway, about the picture…
This is not a Photoshop effect. It’s a light drawing, in which I used a hand held light source to create patterns over the course of a very long night exposure. In this particular case, the exposure was one minute and 25 seconds. (for the photographers out there, all these photos have been done using a sigma 17-70mm zoom lens @17mm, at f22).
This is not something I invented. This idea came originally from Eric Staller (visit his web site– he’s got some amazing works there, and if you can afford it, buy his book– it’s expensive, but a great read, and it supports a very original and creative lefty artist). As Staller himself puts it:
9/11 shook loose in me a need to write this memoir. I wanted to give the reader an intimate look at my creative process;to show how my life and loves, my places and times, have been inseparable from my 35 years of art making.
And if you’re wondering, this isn’t a Rudy “9/11 changed everything” piece of nonsense. This is about him realizing a lot of things that are wrong with the world and moving back into thinking of ways to change it. Okay, so there’s a little political content in this post. Back to the art.
When Staller was doing his work, he built a lot of his own devices and understood a lot more about mechanics and electronics than I do. Today, there are all sorts of ready made light sources that I can play with to create all sorts of effects.
The effect in the picture shown, for example, was produced with, of all things, light sabers. There are these light sabers which have a strobe effect, changing colors multiple times each second. So, I thought, what would happen if the camera captured an object in motion throughout the process of that strobe effect? (Now I know).
This picture was taken the first night I played with these light sabers, and I’ve done quite a few photos using them since. (clicking here will get you to a list of thumbnails of my favorites).
There’s a neat Zen quality to doing these photos; I never quite know how they’ll come out but it’s at the point now where I have the general idea. It’s giving me the opportunity to learn more about how light works over time, and giving me a better understanding of this particular camera and lens.
But more importantly, it’s a lot of fun.
My plan for this winter is to play a lot more with this medium and subject matter, ideally incorporating groups of people to create patterns, shapes and lights in the air through group interaction. Who knows if it will work; it’s definitely been fun trying to organize this sort of thing.
Where is it going from here beyond that? No idea. But sometimes it’s neat to just delve into a project. All I’m hoping for now is that someone enjoys the work I’ve done so far. And if anyone volunteers to let me photograph them while juggling fire, that’s cool too 🙂
So, anyway, I hope everyone has a good holiday. Soon enough I’ll get back to talking about why John Edwards would make a better president than any of the other options we’ve got, why it’s so important to fight for what you believe in, even when everyone thinks you’re nuts for doing so, and why Democrats don’t just need a spine replacement, but they need some morality infusion as well, but for today, I’m okay with just talking art, photography, creativity and fun.
I’ll end with one more photo, a 2 minute, 18 second exposure.
This one involved a small light wand which I manipulated in two different ways. First, I slowly backed up, moving it and holding it briefly each step of the way. Then, I switched it to solid red and started spinning it from a string, letting it circle several times and then moving forward.
Last night was particularly fun because I finally started discovering how I can leave the exposure open long enough to capture the surroundings without making it over exposed. Apparently, on a night with a half moon, 2-3 minutes is the trick.
Okay. I’m done for now. Hope you all enjoy the photos.
Have a happy Exploitation of Native Cultures and Land day, everybody!
Happy Thanksgiving week, folks. Since this is a travel week, traffic will be down – which makes me want to save the hard-hitting stuff for next week when the audience is back.
In 1984, the Cable Communications Policy Act stated that local governments could require cable operators to provide one or more channels for public use. This is how public access television was born.
Given that Charity has repeatedly said things like this:
Ideally, I believe that government is best which governs least.
In conversations about liberty and less government, someone inevitably brings up the big, bad Big Business. Obviously without government regulation, big business would take over the world. And since we can't vote Big Business out of office, we won't be able to do anything about it.
This is the justification for allowing the government power that it was not granted in the constitution
First, I have to point out, you will not likely find me with an inconsistent ideology. I am nothing if not consistent.
… should she put her conservative principles into action by leaving her public access TV show and swearing off exploiting this, big government, non-original-intent, nanny-state meddling with free enterprise in the communications sector?
It's ballot time, y'all, and the Edwards campaign is looking to get their man on the Vermont ballot. To qualify, he needs 1000 verified signatures. The goal, then, is to generate 2000 as a comfortable margin of error, given that many will inevitably be disqualified because the signer isn't actually a registered voter, they already signed another presidential ballot (you can only sign one in Vermont, which sucks, quite frankly…), or whatever…
As this is an all-volunteer effort in the state, there is a need for people to help circulate petitions. If you're a supporter, and can help, just leave a comment and I can look up the email address you registered with to get one sent your way.
I would remind folks that – like any national election – this aint just about the candidate. In fact, for me personally, its barely about the candidate at all. It's about responding to the clear, specific and aggressive progressive policy message Edwards has been delivering. We need to show the country that this sort of rhetoric wins elections. That a pro-labor, green, equal justice platform is what people want to hear – even expect to hear – and that other politicians should follow suit (and in doing so, move the center of debate in this country to the populist left). That's largely what the blogs themselves are all about, after all.
My first contact with Stephen “Donny the Punk” Donaldson began in the 1990s when I was running an e-mail group for bisexuals when no other such group existed at the time.
This was a man who spoke eloquently and openly about issues that generally make us uncomfortable. Donny was a peace activist who, after having been arrested for a peaceful White House protest, suffered numerous sexual assaults over the course of his incarceration.
When he would send e-mails, the direct and up front nature of his activism was immediately visible. Whereas many users would send e-mails with their own name attached, he would add a tag in his. All his e-mails came from Stephen Donaldson — “Stop Prisoner Rape”.
I only corresponded with Donny for a brief couple of years before he died from complications related to the HIV that infected him as a result of those prison rapes. But his work as an activist had a profound effect on me.
It’s common to see jokes about prison rape in movies and television. Sometimes the jokes are subtle and sometimes much more direct, but they all have something in common: they dismiss the seriousness of the problem and make light of it in a way which suggests that it’s not worth real consideration.
But the reality is different. The social environment of prisons blurs the line between rape and sex, and it blurs the line between consent and coercion. Even though it may, on the surface, seem as though it has something to do with homosexuality, the topic is actually entirely distinct from sexual orientation. Sex, in confinement, whatever you may think about it, is primarily about power.
But even sex connected with power doesn’t need to be a death sentence for the people involved. Countless prisoners dealing with rape in prisons suffer a great deal of additional damage beyond their incarceration. While the topic may be uncomfortable, sexual intercourse does happen in prisons and without a proper means to protect those prisoners (especially the non-violent offenders who are sometimes at mercy from the more violent in the groups), we end up introducing a much greater risk factor of STD transmission both into prisons and into the population at large.
Despite such warnings, recent efforts to expand behind-bars condom access have gone almost nowhere. Prison officials contend that condoms can be used to conceal drugs, and law-and-order politicians scoff at what they depict as a step that would encourage both consensual and coercive sex.
“Removing the freedoms of criminals is in itself a deterrent,” said California Assemblyman Paul Cook. “Allowing condoms into prisons simply sends the wrong message and confirms what we all suspect: Our prison system has serious and severe behavioral and inmate-control issues.”
So let’s stipulate something: I have no problem with acknowledging that “our prison system has serious… inmate-control issues.” This is because we don’t have the resources to control every single aspect of every prisoner’s life while in prison. We don’t have the ability to watch over them every single second of their time and, furthermore, we don’t have the interest in doing so. It is ridiculous to assume that prisoners will not have sex and it’s ridiculous to assume that many of them want to have unsafe sex.
But our [a]moral police are, as usual, more interested in complaining about lack of compliance than in dealing with reality.
I should be clear: I admit fully, when I write about this, that I would, most likely, not even be thinking about much of it if it weren’t for Donny: one man who spoke eloquently and clearly about his experiences, his life and his expected death. Prisoners? Condoms? Who cares, really?
When Donny died, it was not a shock to me. It was an inevitability. Sometimes, when someone you know dies, there’s a finality to it, as though you’ve lost all connection with that person and will never have it back again.
In Donny’s case, the activism he started clicked with me and has never really disappeared. His courage and fearlessness in the face of his own death inspired me then and continues to inspire me today, more than a decade later.
Recently, when talking about Pete Seeger, I wrote the following:
What we do today can cause ripples into the future. The rights we stand up for today can influence the next generations, and the cowardice we show today will affect our children and our grandchildren.
What will you do next time you hear someone joke about rape and prisons? Will you laugh? Will you shrug it off? Will you say something about it?
What we do today can cause ripples into the future. People, innocent or otherwise, are arrested all the time. They may or may not deserve incarceration. They never deserve rape, and they never deserve the death sentence that comes with HIV.
“How long, Lord, how long? How long before 9/11 is allowed to rest in peace, rather than being pressed into service by every sweaty-palmed down-ballot Republican from Boise to Bangor?”
I’m with ya, Philip. I’ve been suffering from a severe case of post-9/11 fatigue since the ’04 campaign cycle.
And it only took three times hearing Bush say, “September the 11th,” to get really, really sick of the unnecessary participle.
More people died in Bangladesh this week than we tragically lost 6 years ago. And the number of deaths are likely to be lost in the aftermath of Cyclone Sidr than we’ve lost in Iraq. \
Maybe we should start talking about, “November the 15th.”
Terri Hallenbeck seems shocked and horrified that political parties track which citizens vote, which ones (based on polling data and personal references) are likely to be sympathetic to their views, and which ones are most likely to tell their candidates to go to hell. Gimme a freaking break. I guess she had to write something about the Democratic Party reorganization meeting, since the rumors of a floor challenge to Chair Ian Carleton never materialized, and there was no further gossip on candidates for Governor.
Baruth continues to lead on the Vermont Yankee issue. It seems every star is starting to align against its re-licensing, as opponents apparently have enough momentum that Entergy and the Governor are taking notice. Time to start planning for a post-yankee energy future now.
If you’re not scared about the future yet, read this post from Alex at Rip & Read. Here’s a sample:
The report, according to the article by Arthur Max, postulates that a shift in the world’s climate will give rise to bitter and bloody conflicts for water resorces, a scrabble for land, as sea levels rise, increased immigration to the United States (and conservatives, take note, these immigrants will NOT be coming because we offer political freedom- but because they want our water and our dry land- it’s your worst xenophobic nightmare come to life), and a proliferation of new diseases born of malnutrition, and nasty diseases able to expand their range…imagine, the return of malaria to Pennsylvania…won’t that be fun?
Tongue somewhat-in-cheek (or perhaps not), Minor Heresies is concerned about the spiraling cost of, er, non-perscription drugs, and waxes analytical about its impact on aging baby-boomers and the prospect of Canadian marijuana “reimportation” given local crackdowns. Why should the political class in Vermont care?
Let me address political time-servers and aspirants directly, in words that even a campaign consultant can understand. These boomers have a political conscience. You know and I know that anyone with a political conscience would have to be completely stoned to vote for you. They won’t be, if the price of marijuana is not brought under control.
Heh.
Update: iBrattleboro surpasses 10 million pages viewed!!!!! That’s pretty good for a citizen journo site dedeicated only to Brattleboro topics. Chris Grotke has the story. Go iBrattleboro!!!!
The Barre/Montpelier Times Argus today looks at Governor Douglas's re-election outlook through the lens of a potential Pollina campaign, following his announcement-that-wasn't-an-announcement at the Progressive Party's reorganization. The early sign is that the media's extended endorsement of Jim Douglas that we have all come to expect is starting early:
Douglas continues to test the patience of the liberal electorate of Vermont, though there is no sign yet that erosion of support among the moderate middle has become a serious threat.
Unfortunately, this is the modus operandum for the Vermont media in all things gubernatorially electoral (say that 10 times really fast). The obvious way to interpret those numbers is that, while the moderate & independent voters still like Douglas, they are no longer automatically concluding that he is the right man for the job.
But such an obvious conclusion goes against the conventional wisdom, and you don't defy conventional wisdom, lest you lose standing among your peers. As a result, ignore the numbers and fall back on the mantra: Douglas is unbeatable, everybody except the far left wackos love him, the election is just a formality, why bother. Saying anything different is tantamount to going out on a limb.
And it's in this way that the media has made Douglas's re-election such an inevitability: they don't check into the process when Douglas is, predictably, 30 points ahead in internal polling early in the election season – preferring instead to laugh off the opposition. By not checking in, they leave that opposition futily twisting in the wind, looking for coverage. By the time the media actually engages, its relatively late in the process, the numbers haven't budged, so the new mantra is simply “look at how far ahead Douglas is so late in the process.” It's self-fulfilling and self-reinforcing, and the above quote, coming as it does this early and in the face of common sense, indicates just how determined the media will continue to be in this myopic narrative they're so comfortable promoting.
The trick, therefore, is for any campaign to work hard enough, early enough under the radar to start those polls creeping up in other ways. If that traditional 30 point lead that Douglas carries come summertime – when the press actually decides to start looking seriously at the election that's only a few months away – can be wittled down to 20 or tighter, the press might do a bit of a double-take and break open the narrative of inevitability that keeps them so dismissive of the Governor's challenges.
But the clock is ticking. Sure, it may be traditionally early for a formal campaign announcement, but the reality is that, in the last two cycles, we already knew for months before this time who the candidate was going to be, and their fundraising and organizational efforts were already well underway.
In other words, time's very much a-wasting, no matter what the “hear-no-evil, see-no-evil” crowd may suggest.
December 1, 2007 – Des Moines, IA, Brown & Black Forum
December 1, 2007 – Des Moines, IA, Heartland Presidential Forum
December 4, 2007 – Des Moines, IA, NPR News/Iowa Public Radio Debate
December 10, 2007 – Los Angeles, California, CBS
December 13, 2007 – Johnston, Iowa, Des Moines Register Democratic Debate
January 15, 2008 – Las Vegas, Nevada
January 31, 2008 – California
In the space of an hour this weekend, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois, using some of their most pointed and forceful rhetoric of the campaign, framed the choice for Democrats deciding their party’s presidential nomination.
Clinton gave a strong speech at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner late Saturday. But Obama, criticized for occasional lackluster performances, delivered one of his most focused and powerful addresses.
In the view of many watching, he emerged as the oratorical winner at the biggest Democratic political event in Iowa before the state’s January caucuses.
His candidacy, Obama said, could produce a new Democratic majority capable of breaking the gridlock and polarization that have plagued Washington for a decade or more.
“The same old Washington textbook campaigns just won’t do it in this election,” he said. Seattle Times
November 19, 2007 – Meet the Candidate, Barack Obama, Clarion, IA
November 19, 2007 – Town Hall Meeting with Barack, Fort Dodge, IA
November 20, 2007 – Meet the Candidate, Barack Obama, Alton, NH
November 20, 2007 – Meet the Candidate, Barack Obama, Conway, NH
November 20, 2007 – Meet the Candidate, Barack Obama, Laconia, NH
November 20, 2007 – Michelle Obama, Orangeburg, SC
November 20, 2007 – Michelle Obama, Columbia, SC
November 30, 2007 – Barack Obama and Former Sec of Navy, Richard Danzig, Washington, D.C.
December 2, 2007 – Countdown to Change, Boston, MA
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? Why It’s Barack Obama Obama Shows Off Organizational Strength at JJ Dinner Transcriptof Obama Apperance on Meet the Press
obama on meet the press with tim russert, november 11, 2007, des moines, ia
Democrat Barack Obama said Sunday that if elected he will push to increase the amount of income that is taxed to provide monthly Social Security benefits.
Obama and other Democratic presidential candidates previously have signaled support for this idea.
But during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Obama said subjecting more of a person’s income to the payroll tax is the option he would push for if elected president.
He objected to benefit cuts or a higher retirement age.
“I think the best way to approach this is to adjust the cap on the payroll tax so that people like myself are paying a little bit more and people who are in need are protected,” the Illinois senator said.
“That is the option that I will be pushing forward.”
Currently, only the first $97,500 of a person’s annual income is taxed. The amount is scheduled to rise to $102,000 next year. more
Democratic Caucus Goers Pick Obama, Edwards as JJ Winners
Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Scott Brennan called it “the most successful Jefferson Jackson Dinner in history,” but it was more successful for some candidates than for others.
After discussions with party insiders and people in attendance, the early consensus seemed to be that the candidates who have generally polled in the top three — Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama — all did well, with Edwards and Obama excelling in particular. Among the other three candidates — Joe Biden, Chris Dodd and Bill Richardson — the crowd seemed to be moved the most by Dodd and Biden, but not enough to significantly affect their chances in January, interviews Saturday night suggested. Candace Opstvedt of Story City was an undecided caucus-goer, but not any longer.
“I am definitely leaning toward Barack after tonight,” she said after the long night of speeches and Democratic fundraising, including an auction. Undecided caucus-goer Jordan Oster, a Drake University student and a Des Moines native, thought Obama and Edwards made a definite impression on the crowd.
“It is yet to be seen if tonight can be considered a moment of shakeup, but I think it really goes to show that Edwards and Obama cemented their importance in the race,” he said. “Neither made direct reference to Senator Clinton, but without mistake many references were aimed her way.”
Oster said he thought Biden, Dodd and Richardson did well, but didn’t stand out. Iowapolitics.com
Can Obama Rock the Nomination?
What kind of question is THIS??? One word, yes. He showed it last Saturday night, at the JJ Dinner. The debate performance is now past and will forever be plagued with innuendo. He is stronger than ever in Iowa. And if people are fed UP, with partisian politics, gridlock, the same old thing. Then you know for sure, what time it is. It is change time.
youtube interview
Will Obama Turn Out Young Voters inIowa All TiedUp in Iowa Obama PhotoBlogLebanon, NH Obamaon Net Neutrality
UAW Region 4, Endorses Obama
UAW Region 4 Delegates Throw Support to Obama’s Campaign for PresidentDUBUQUE – Delegates of United Auto Workers Region 4, which includes 30,000 members and retirees in Iowa, voted today to support Senator Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. The group announced its overwhelming support at the close of a weeklong conference where seven of the major Democratic presidential candidates addressed the group earlier this week.
“There are many talented Democrats in the presidential field this year, but Barack Obama is the leader who will bring the kind of change to Washington that America’s working men and women can believe in,” said UAW Local 442 (Webster City, IA) President Paul Erickson. “For the last two decades, working families have been able to count on Barack Obama to stand up for us and our values. We are supporting him, because we know he’ll do the same thing in the White House.” Time, DemDog
kos, on Obama’s Plan for Open Government StollerLeaning Obama Chris Bowers, Ok, it is Still a Close Campaign Barack Obama and the Illinois Death Penaltyby AdamB
Clinton Camp, Sure Do Not Care About Nor Believe in the Youth Vote
Yep. The Clinton Campaign has to be one of the more out of touch campaigns running. For the Clinton Campaign to tout the inevitability meme, this campaign does not understand what drives the youth. And to totally dis’ them as unimportant is even more laughable. I am sure no dissin’ will be going on in an Iowa barn on January 3rd, if these Facebook Caucus Goers decide to show up. Respect the youth. Respect the ones who are disenfranchised. Respect the lost Democratic Voters who want in again. Just respect the voters. Ok?
shoutouts: food prices up, by bink; i am starting to detest hillary clinton, the british observer; read, dengre; why an edwards fan thinks obama took jefferson-jackson; dl’s take on democrats preferring dems on iran; update on marlboro marine; foreclosures record high
icebergslim’s last word: obama and his supporters advocates.
Barack came from the Iowa JJ Dinner, with a speech that people are still talking about.
Then the debate.
Well, it was a sham. My opinion, as I do not speak or write for Obama Supporters Advocates. But, it was. Then we got the blistering report from an Obama supporter advocate who called them all out in her diary, no stone unturned, not off the beaten path, but blunt and precise. LV Pol Girl’s diary of the events surrounding the debate was simply titled, Las Vegas Disgrace. Was it Pulitzer Prize writing? No. Rhetorical Rhetoric? No. It was four simple paragraphs with an ending sentence that summed it all up what happened in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the CNN Debate. So, simple, that everyone has read this diary, passed it on, shaking their heads. And those that did not want it out had to sit, squirm, and take it.
Then Bob Johnson, comes on the scene. You really don’t know what to expect with him, but he ripped Steny Hoyer a new one with this diary, Hey, Steny… Butt out. I don’t know who Bob supports, but he was absolutely correct in this assessment of Hoyer going after Obama:
Oh, no. Steny thought it best to single out a candidate who he felt was bashing the current frontrunner:
“I’ve been disappointed,” Hoyer, 68, said in an interview on Bloomberg television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt,” scheduled to air tonight. “I think it will hurt the party.”
He took particular exception to Illinois Senator Barack Obama’s assertion in a Las Vegas debate yesterday that Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton hadn’t given “straight answers” on “a host of issues.” Hoyer said that comment is “likely to get used by Republicans” in the general election.
What is this you ask? It is what politicians refer to as, “calling your chits in.” The old, “I helped you, raised money for you, now you need to help me.” In other words, the Clinton Camp needs to dirty up Barack Obama. The Clinton Camp need to reinforce that Obama is inexperienced, not ready. Obama should not challenge, nor question anything on Hillary Clinton. The GOP could use this against her. As if “girlfriend” has already been anointed and appointed.
Then your keepin it real voice of icebergslim, rolls into a Saturday with an aw, hell naw diary on our best friends at CNN. I don’t like to write on the weekends because I am usually compiling ‘This Week’, but when you get articles from NYT and L.A. Times sent to you about the debate, but more importantly how it is all connected up? What are you to do? I had to do what I do best. Clinton News Network = CNN.
Of course, Obama Supporters Advocates then had to read insinuations of a whisper campaign, against our candidate. Remember, it is all about making him dirty. But, we took solace to what Barack said in his statement.
“The item did not identify these ‘agents,’ nor did it reveal the nature of the charge. It was devoid of facts, but heavy on innuendo and insinuation of the sort to which we’ve become all too accustomed in our politics these past two decades. If the purpose of this shameless item was to daunt or discourage me or supporters of our campaign from challenging and changing the politics of Washington, it will fail. In fact, it will only serve to steel our resolve.
That paragraph, for me, said it all about Barack Obama.
It will only serve to steel our resolve.
That is what the other campaigns don’t get. But they will, starting in Iowa.
Yes, we are supporters of Barack Obama, but you are correct in your assessment, we are his ADVOCATES, first.
If you appreciate the weekly Obama Roundup, then Tip My Obama Jar!! Minimum five dollars. This contribution goes directly to the Obama Campaign. We are in the last stretch of fundraising, Quarter 4, it ends December 31st. Remember to make your contribution.
::
Lastly, a magnificent diary by femlaw titled, “Obama’s Field of Dreams (California & Iowa Edition)” This is a must read for all. If you don’t understand strategy and Obama’s passion for building from ground up, peep this. After the read, you will get it.
well, barack was in austin, texas telling them to get ready for change. and i am here to ask you, are you ready for it? always, remember to focus on obama, and not the drama….
The metaphorical imagery of bridge building is powerful stuff. If you think about it, though, building a bridge from one community to another doesn't have to be about bringing the people from both sides together to learn from each other and become something greater than the sum of the parts. A bridge could also be no more than the means for someone who thinks of themselves as an enlightened person from the village on the hill to get across the river to the village of unworthy slobs to tell them how it is.
Case in point: Probably like many of you, I'm part of a freecycle listserv. If you don't know about freecycle, it's awesome. Freecycle is “a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (& getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It's all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills”. Click here to get hooked up with a freecycle group in your area (or help you get one started).
Recently, on the Montpelier freecycle listserv, some folks have been asking for and offering Shaw's “turkey points” – the points you receive from spending money at Shaw's supermarkets through which you can get a free turkey after you accumulate a certain amount.
Well, sure enough someone complained, and it didn't much questioning to determine that the complaint was coming from an anti-corporate ethic, and a desire to keep the freecycle list ideologically pure. Apparently similar things have happened on Chittenden and Franklin County listservs (and likely others).
Look, mega-corprorations create problems, there's no arguing that. If you're working towards local economies and against global warming, a place like Shaw's is the bad guy. When the dairy compact was first launched, Shaw's put anti-compact propoganda on it's milk coolers.
But its all too easy for people with a comfortable standard of living to make such demands and declarations.
The fact is, if you haven't been in the position of seriously having to cut coupons and scramble for special deals just to be sure the basic needs of you or your family are met, it hardly seems fair to demand others emulate your perhaps more enlightened (and expensive) lifestyle. If you have a good job, your spouse has a good job, you have parents who could bail you out if you were in danger of starving, or you married into money, you're just not in a position to make judgments about those who literally have no month-to-month safety net.
Someone in such a position who asks for “turkey points” because they truly need them should not be made to feel small for being poor, and probably does not need a lecture on why they should pay a little more money (that they don't have) to buy a free range turkey from a local farmer. Freecycle is a fantastic invention – an online community that not only redistributes resources based on need and keeps crap out of landfills, but builds a genuinely diverse community by bridging class and cultural communication gaps through the medium of the internet. Stepping into that process and demanding the community precisely mirror an ethic that comes from a couple rungs up on Maslow's hierarchy (especially when there is no conflict in play with the stated intent of the community – in this case, reusing stuff and keeping it out of landfills) is simply an attempt to colonize the resource at the cost of people who really need it.
And of course, this sort of thing happens all the time on the left.
On a larger scale, it happened with the Vermont impeachment movement. Lots of us came together because we agreed it was time to get rid of George Bush. When a few decided they weren't content with such a big tent, and instead insisted the group manifest their own particularized ideology, it largely dimisnished in size, utility and effectiveness. It's a common story.
Sometimes creating common ground doesn't have to be a means to end, it's an end in itself. If you can let it be, you may find that, organically, people can come to amazing things in their own way, and in their own time a lot more reliably than if you try and seize the podium and lambaste them with your own personal gospel, no matter how right (or righteous) you may be.
