Blacknell.net

Politics, open government, and safe streets. And the constant incursion of cycling.

Month: May 2009 Page 5 of 6

What’s Important in Virginia Politics

By

On May 5, 2009

In Politics, Virginia

here:

Step away from the polls, go outside and get some perspective. Find a hobby, hire a hooker. It doesn’t matter, but at some point, everyone needs to calm the fuck down and stop living or dying by Virginia politics. It’s not a skillful sport; it comes down to money, connections, and not being a fuckup.

[ . . . ]

Quit taking yourselves and this race seriously. The fact that you put so much energy into these things should probably tell you (and will demonstrate to your court-ordered psychiatrist) that the Virginia political machine is so filled with it’s own self-replicating ego bullshit that it can’t possibly work for the people. You. Are. Not. Important.

What’s important to recognize is that while you’re donating 500 bucks to a candidate, there is a homeless guy down the street who hasn’t eaten a decent meal in a few days, or a food bank that has empty shelves. Think about that while you stress about some two-bit poll, you selfish bastard.

I encourage each of you to take a day you would normally volunteer for a campaign and instead, after calling and politely telling the campaign volunteer coordinator to go fuck himself, find a worth charity or cause and donate your time to making a difference in the world and in the lives of others. Because, honestly, the rest of us think you people are real pricks.

Now GTFO and do something useful with your lives.

Hear, hear.  I have to admit that I’ve got multiple drafts of posts related to the Virginia governor’s race generated over the last month.  But halfway through each, I realize that it just won’t matter.  Plus, Angry Potato’s probably already written what I’ve wanted to say, and is (usually) funnier in saying it.   So I’m just going to keep leaving it alone, for the time being.  Except for saying that I hope you’re not suckered by the McAuliffe machine.

White House on Flickr, Under a CC Attribution License

By

On May 5, 2009

In Policy, Politics

You’ve got to admit that that’s kind of compelling.

Huh.  Actually, in the writing of this post, I realize that the White House is trying to extend terms that are inconsistent with the terms of the CC license it’s labeled its photos with:

These official White House photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.

In fact, each photo is labeled with the Creative Commons Attiribution license, which provides simply:

You are free:

* to Share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work
* to Remix — to adapt the work

Under the following conditions:

You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work).

It strikes me that the terms listed by the White House on its Flickr stream attempt to restrict commercial use of the photos, but the CC license which it chooses to govern the photos don’t make any such restriction.

Photo: Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy

This Is What Bush/Cheney/Rice Deserve

By

On May 4, 2009

In Society

Condoleeza Rice can’t even go to an elementary school without getting questioned about her role in torturing people:

Rice, in her first appearance in Washington since leaving government, was at the Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation’s Capital before giving an evening lecture at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue. She held forth amiably before a few dozen students about her love of Israel, travel abroad and the importance of learning languages, then opened the floor to their questions.

The questions had been developed beforehand by students with their teachers and had not been screened by Rice.

[ . . . ]

Then Misha Lerner, a student from Bethesda, asked: What did Rice think about the things President Obama’s administration was saying about the methods the Bush administration had used to get information from detainees?

[ . . . ]

Misha’s mother, Inna Lerner, said the question her son had initially come up with was even tougher: “If you would work for Obama’s administration, would you push for torture?”

“They wanted him to soften it and take out the word ‘torture.’ But the essence of it was the same,” Lerner said.

See, Rice doesn’t deal with questions about torture very well.  She lied to the 4th grader, of course, but at least she didn’t browbeat him the way she did this Stanford student last week:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijEED_iviTA[/youtube]

While you and I may not have the power to give Rice and crew what they deserve – an indictment and trial – we may well have the opportunity to press them – repeatedly, insistently, and publicly – on what they did.  They should have to suffer consequences for what they’ve done for the rest of their lives.  The Stanford student gets it.  The fourth grader gets it.  Do you?  Will you do it, when the opportunity comes?

More Warner Music FAIL

By

On May 4, 2009

In Distribution, Law, Music

Boing Boing points out that if you go to the official Sire Records (a Warner Music Group ) site, and try to click on any of the videos for Sire Records artists, you’ll get a notice that the video has been taken down as a result of a DMCA claim by . . .  Warner Music Group.  As a Boing Boing reader puts it:

Their long arm of the law has stretched all the way around the internet to spank themselves in the ass.

We already know that Warner hates its customers, but now it seems to have declared open warfare on itself.  Morons, truly.

Monday Music: Class War!

By

On May 4, 2009

In Music

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnaeImQ0TSg[/youtube]

Just because.

(This is the Swedish trio MOVITS!  More info and tracks here.)

I Must Count You

By

On May 4, 2009

In Policy, Society, Tech

If you read the title in the voice of Drago, you will better appreciate my intent in linking this note about the pathetic tech underlying the upcoming US census.  I saw one of these poor souls standing outside my house and staring intently at her PDA.  I thought, at the time, that she must be having some sort of technical difficulty. Turns out that that is just par for the course.

Godspeed, Yehuda Moon

By

On May 4, 2009

In Cycling, Personal, Society

This is coming a bit late, but I just wanted to note that Yehuda Moon has come to a stop, and is coming off of my links on the right.  It’s only in my 30s that I’ve truly come to appreciate the medium that is comics, and the Yehuda Moon strip has been part of that.  If you haven’t checked it out before, and are at all interested in the practicalities and politics of cycling, do check it out.  And if it comes back, please do join me in kicking in a few $/€’s for it.

Middle Class Democracy

By

On May 3, 2009

In Politics, Society

A short FP article worth reading:

For years, political theorists have argued that developing a healthy middle class is the key to any country’s democratization. To paraphrase the late political scientist Samuel Huntington: Economic growth and industrialization usually lead to the creation of a middle class. As its members become wealthier and more educated, the middle class turns increasingly vocal, demanding more rights to protect its economic gains.

But over the past decade, the antidemocratic behavior of the middle class in many countries has threatened to undermine this conventional wisdom. Although many developing countries have created trappings of democracy, such as regular elections, they often failed to build strong institutions, including independent courts, impartial election monitoring, and a truly free press and civil society.

The middle class’s newfound disdain for democracy is counterintuitive. After all, as political and economic freedoms increase, its members often prosper because they are allowed more freedom to do business. But, paradoxically, as democracy gets stronger and the middle class grows richer, it can realize it has more to lose than gain from a real enfranchisement of society.

I don’t have enough understanding of all of the situations it gives as examples to endorse it, but this thesis certainly fits with those situations where I do feel like I’ve got a solid grasp. Here’s an exercise for the reader: apply this thesis to America.

Weekend Music

By

On May 3, 2009

In Music, Personal

This first vid – KMD’s Peachfuzz – comes courtesy of a reminder by Ta-Nehisi Coates, who has been on fire (with music and other things) lately:



This is Black Sheep’s This or That:


>


And Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth’s T.R.O.Y, which will get almost any head nodding:


The hip-hop golden age, for me.

Clifton Beach, Karachi

By

On May 3, 2009

In Travel

Clifton Beach, Karachi, Pakistan

Clifton Beach, Karachi, Pakistan

Click to view large.  Photo taken here.

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