Fears and Frets

Failure to yield right of way

2008-07-23T23:51:00.004-04:00

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It's good when things happen to celebrities, because we get to talk about them. Valerie [Plame] Wilson outer Bob Novak ran into a guy crossing with the light on a crosswalk today, and drove off. A cyclist stopped him, and he was cited for 'Failure to yield right of way.'

As you know, my friend* transportation activist Susie Stevens was ironically struck down by a bus when in a St. Louis crosswalk on March 21, 2002 at around 8:35 in the morning. The driver, Michael W. Wamble, was charged, like Mr. Novak, with failure to yield, and paid the minimum $500 fine.

The point is, you can kill pedestrians (and bicyclists!) with no fear of comeuppance. I'm not going to encourage you to try it, but thanks to Mr. Novak, I don't have to. There's no special treatment because he's a celebrity. Motorists in general get off, with excuses like "I didn't know striking and killing pedestrians crossing on a crosswalk with the light was against the law."

As of this writing, Mr. Novak's strikee hasn't died, but the reportage on his wounds has begun to get more dismal. His final disposition won't matter to Mr. Novak's fine, however.

* -- Well, we saw each other a lot, but mostly only ever talked about bicycle and pedestrian activism and various events and activities pertaining thereto. We very nearly hung out at least thrice, but could never quite make it work. Anyway, when acquaintances you like, respect and value the enormous civic contributions of die, they become your friends. Mostly because they can't deny it. I do miss Susie.

Funny Garrison Keillor line on Amtrak in Salon

2008-07-23T15:46:00.001-04:00

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Penn Station, America's ugliest waiting area [is] made uglier by Amtrak's infernal blockheadedness. It is a lovely thought, passenger rail service, but Amtrak has an uncanny ability to take a few hundred ordinary Americans and make them feel like refugees. One moment you're in New York, 2008, and the next you're in Warsaw, 1939, trying to squeeze aboard the last train to Sweden. Passengers crowding into stairways, elbowing each other to find seats for which they've paid a pretty penny -- it's as if online reservations hadn't been invented yet.

Got $500? Put a deposit on a Tango.

2008-07-23T11:56:00.002-04:00

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Production vehicles require investment in the tens of millions of dollars for engineering and tooling to allow reasonable part costs. Several investors with the capability of funding Commuter Cars to this level are showing serious interest, however, they need the assurance that there is a market for the vehicles at prices that are profitable. The only way to demonstrate this definitively is to have a large number of orders with deposits. Therefore, in order to show investors that there is a market, we're requesting that any of you who are interested in a production Tango, even if it's 2 or 3 years away, place an order now with a fully refundable deposit.

The main problem with cars is their emissions, CO2, particulate matter, this and that. But, close on is their total perversion of the spaces we live in.

The Tango is quite narrow and electric. So, it deals with one problem and nods to the next. The rest of us would be better off if you didn't have a car at all. But, if you must have one, don't you want the same one as George Clooney?

Walkability and Electric Cars

2008-07-23T10:25:00.006-04:00

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Seriously? According to this web site, I live in a Walker's Paradise. I thought I'd do my last few apartments:
This one: 100 out of 100
Kips Bay: 98, although I have to say the walkability was impaired a bit by the elevator ride. Penthouse living has its drawbacks.
Central Square in Cambridge, MA: 94
Boston's North End, Prince Street: 94
Boston's North End, Copp's Hill: 88. At this point I drop to 'Very Walkable.'
Downtown Seattle: 100! Back to a Walker's Paradise
First Hill, Seattle: 98
Tukwila: 43, Car Dependent. This was sort of a low point, but I was only there for a month. And I got by with a bicycle.
View Ridge, Seattle: 62, Somewhat Walkable.

This covers something like the last 13 years. I've been car-free this entire time, but I'm guessing there are swaths of the country that would find that more difficult.

My mother's at 63 (Somewhat Walkable) and my brothers who don't live with her are at 40 (Car Dependent) and again 63, somewhat better off than I was in View Ridge.

Looking for the Walk Score web site, through the Huffington Post and the Tree Hugger web site, I found news on an upcoming "affordable electric car" and a list of electric cars out now. I know what your thinking -- "Rionn, you've called for all electricity to be generated without hydrocarbons by July 17, 2018. This specifically excluded fossil fuels used for transportation. Won't adding cars to the things that use electricity make your goal that much harder to meet?" Well, yes, you make a good point. And I know you were already prepared to make some sacrifices in your energy use. But, really? I'm sure policy makers have thought about all this. It's not like they'd make a change in energy policy that would perfectly predictably make a resource much scarcer by using it to power cars. Well, besides corn.

Still, you may be better off emulating Louis Palmer (who's arriving at UCLA today) and driving around in a solar powered car. You've got 24 choices from the North American Solar Challenge alone, which the University of Michigan won, incidentally. Congratulations to them! I want to give special notice to the University of Kentucky's "Gato del Sol III" for two reasons
(1) UKY was the first American news outlet I could find that's covering the race, unless you could MarketWatch posting a German news release, and
(2) I doing an Ironman in Kentucky next year, so I'm going to start sucking up to Kentuckians. Even if (like my Kentuckian brother) they're car dependent.

Update: sorry, I know you're wondering how MIT did. Here are the top five finishers:
Daily Rayce Summary:
Calgary, AB (Updated 07/27/05)

Rank	Team Name (Class)	Car #	Total Elapsed Time	Interval Miles Raced	Last Chkpoint Reached
1	U. MI (O)	2	53:59:43	2494.9	Calgary, AB
2	MN (O)	35	54:11:35	2494.9	Calgary, AB
3	MIT (O)	6	56:34:43	2494.9	Calgary, AB
4	MO R (O)	42	57:20:11	2494.9	Calgary, AB
5	U. Waterloo (O)	24	57:44:59	2494.9	Calgary, AB

Note that they're reaching Calgary, Alberta. This race is sponsored by our own Department of Energy. Do you feel like they're really promoting this stuff?

We're all set up for incredibly bad things to happen to Iceland while I'm there

2008-07-23T00:20:00.002-04:00

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I'd like to direct your attention to the line

The remains of the hurricane Berta are approaching Iceland and will go straight across the country today. According to meteorologist Einar Sveinbjörnsson, a hurricane has not drifted all the way to Iceland in mid-summer before.

Right? So mid-Summer hurricanes have a new playground. Iceland. And Eduoard is really looking like he'll be launching in about three days, and will hit Iceland two weeks later. When I'm there. Ironic to you, tragic to me.

They're upping the ante

2008-07-22T22:55:00.001-04:00

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Who ever said three's a crowd?

Each time you donate platelets from August 1 - October 31, 2008, we will scratch off one of 3 boxes on the postcard you receive in the mail to reveal a special gift. (Even if you don't receive a postcard, you will still receive a bonus gift for each platelet donation).

PLUS...

Make 3 platelet donations from Aug. 1 - Oct. 31, 2008 and get 500 Platelet Advantage bonus points. Make 4 platelet donations and get 750 extra points. All donations made between Aug. 28 - Sept. 8, 2008 will receive an extra 50 bonus points.

To schedule an appointment visit us at: www.plateletadvantage.com

Or, call the Platelet Concierge Desk at: 1-866-PL8LETS (758-5387)

If you cannot donate but still wish to participate in bringing life-saving products to those in need, please consider volunteering at your local blood drive. For general inquiries, or for additional information about volunteering, please call 1-800-933-2566.

Eduoard Threatens

2008-07-22T08:31:00.003-04:00

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You can see Cristobal as he veers harmlessly off into the North Atlantic, and Dolly as she smashes harmlessly into Monterrey, 'harmlessly' here meaning 'in a way that does not impact my commute.' But. There's trouble brewing in the Eastern Pacific.

Now, quick. If you had to choose between a goofball Manned Mission to Mars and better cyclone intensity forecasting, which would you choose? I don't mean 'goofball' prejudicially.

The MBA explained

2008-07-22T00:49:00.003-04:00

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Did you ever wonder how those people got into business school?

Palm-vein scanning on GMAT test takers... targets "proxy" test taking, a fraud in which applicants hire high-scoring imposters to take the exam in their place. Five years ago, federal authorities broke up a ring of six fraudsters who took more than 590 exams, including GMATs, for customers who paid at least $3,000.

I'm enough of a sucker for a free market that this sounds less like a boondoggle to me than if the government were doing it.

I was accused of cheating on my GMAT myself, incidentally.

GMAC*: You're accused of cheating!
Me: I didn't.
GMAC: Well, OK, then.

They did seem like they could use some beefing up in the investigative department.

* -- Graduate Management Admissions Council, not General Motors Assurance Corporation. They felt I had started a section early. The irony was, it was a computerized test. I didn't have any more control over when it started than they gave me. I've been accused of a lot of things -- I've been guilty about 72 % of the time, just so you don't start thinking it's an unfair world -- but this was one of the most puzzling.

Lifestyle changes to mitigate climate change

2008-07-21T16:26:00.002-04:00

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Just looking at Greener Choices from the publishers of Consumer Reports.
1. Switch to green power -- did that.
2. Seal and insulate duct system -- I'm a renter. I use New York's infamous steam heat.
3. Drive a fuel-efficient car -- Got no car.
4. Replace an old hot water heater -- Renter!
5. Control heating temperatures -- I do this, which involves a lot of painful valve operation. See 'infamy' above under 'steam heat.'
6. Choose an energy-efficient central air conditioner -- I don't use an air conditioner. I'm thinking of changing that, though, at least for my bedroom. I'll try to get an efficient air conditioner, but that's really number 17.
7. Reduce driving speed and drive evenly -- ahhh, more on this below.
8. Control your hot water heater temperature -- Renter!
9. Tune up and maintain your car -- No Car!
10. Put your computer to sleep -- I turn 'em off.
11. Replace 5 regular bulbs with compact fluorescents -- Could do.
12. Carpool or telecommute to work -- Subway!
13. Control air conditioning temperatures -- No A/C!
14. Choose an energy-efficient washing machine -- My laundry is done by neighborhood Bulgarians
15. Combine errands or ride your bike instead of driving -- No Car!
16. Pump up your tires -- No Car!
17. Choose an energy-efficient room air conditioner -- No A/C!
18. Choose an energy-efficient refrigerator -- Renter! The unit I have is pretty well-rated, though.

OK. So, the checklist is pretty irrelevant to me. It's almost like they want us to urbanize, and I've already done it. All I really have left is to, when I drive, not drive like an asshole. But, I'm not sure I can do it.

Really, I leave 3 seconds of space in front of me and try to keep an even speed, signal and minimize lane changes, but it's hard to feel you're using time effectively when you're much under 80 miles per hour. Has it come to this? I really only drive once or twice a month. Maybe I'll try a trip at 65 mph and see how it goes.

Oceanside

2008-07-18T11:01:00.002-04:00

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Now, I'm a returned Peace Corps volunteer. And one of the things that separates us as a class of people is that we're perfectly willing to talk about feces, specifically our own stool samples. It's a subject that comes up a lot over two years of tropical illnesses and strange foods, and after a while it's hard to recover the shame.

My own father developed sewage treatment devices, and I did some graduate work in supervisory control systems for municipal water systems at MIT. I am aware of the enormous waste water system that surrounds me, and I think it's a good thing (not a good a thing as weather prediction, but a pretty good thing.)

So, this idea that a waste water plant be renamed for George W. Bush, in order to remind us how shameful his administration was in perpetuity, makes me furious. I'm really angry. We're going to grow increasingly aware of our various public services as our standard of living declines, and we shouldn't be giving waste water plants names that lead us to expect "failure on... you name the subject."

Isn't there a trading floor that needs naming?

13 Dilbert Strips -- I made a movie

2008-07-18T10:08:00.001-04:00

So, I was asked to provide commentary for a bunch of Dilbert strips some friends filmed and to string it all together. This is the result.

Manhattan Losing 6 Starbucks Stores

2008-07-18T01:07:00.002-04:00

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Maybe fancy news outlets like the Wall Street Journal are too hot stuff to cover local news, but I think New Yorkers should expect to get at least as much consideration as Baton Rouge.

Right? Here's the PDF list of closings. Note that Manhattan and New York are listed separately. And here's the quote from the Journal:

The list reads like a cross section of the U.S., with closures planned inside shopping malls, near beach resorts, in college towns and off highways. Las Vegas will lose the most stores of any U.S. city, with 13 expected to close. It is followed by San Diego, with 10; Dallas and Baton Rouge, La., each with nine; and Houston, with eight. Starbucks's hometown of Seattle is scheduled to lose seven cafes.

Now, I can't name every neighborhood in Queens, but I can name some. So, here are the boroughs or Queens neighborhoods that I can identify with their closings:
Brooklyn: 1
Douglaston: 1
Glendale: 1
Manhattan: 1
New York: 5
Staten Island: 1
The Bronx remains unscathed. But, the point is, we match San Diego at 10. There are only two in Los Angeles, a municipality of comparable size. I've mapped the Manhattan closures, because I'm compulsive. You'll notice they're bordered by 7th Ave or Broadway to the West, 54th Street to the North, Madison to the East and 34th Street to the South -- the box would actually be much tighter if it weren't for the store in the Herald Square Macy's.

I don't tend to pass any of these locations, but the 9th closest Starbucks (according to Google Maps) to my office and the 50th closest Starbucks to my apartment are closing up shop. So, my options for confusing drink sizes, misleadingly named concoctions and smooth jazz will be slightly more limited by "early next year."

I call on America to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from electricity production by July 17, 2018

2008-07-17T22:58:00.004-04:00

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OK? Are you clear on that now? Incidentally, Al Gore has set the same goal. If you're keeping track at home, that's two of us. I know that it'll be hard to know which of us to credit when it happens, but let's leave that to historians to unwind.

Maybe he's a little more influential.

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said he supported Gore's challenge, and said he would fast-track investments in renewable energy like solar, wind and biofuels if elected. "It's a strategy that will create millions of new jobs that pay well and cannot be outsourced, and one that will leave our children a world that is cleaner and safer," he said.

Obama's rival in the November election, Republican candidate John McCain, also backed Gore's plan. "If the vice president says it's do-able, I believe it's do-able," he told reporters.

John McCain likes to talk about Iraq, and he sounds like a crazy son-of-a-bitch when he talks about Iraq (as opposed to most topics when he sounds like he's parroting wingnut ideology he doesn't buy), but he does identify climate change as an issue we need to address.

Of course, so did candidate George Bush in September of 2000. He even had a plan to implement. Or, you know, a principle. Looking that link up (which took forever -- I was shooting for speech text) I got to read things like "the idea the global ice caps may melt." Now, we just talk about the disappearance of Arctic Sea Ice and the instability of Greenland's ice sheet, and I still meet people who don't believe in anthropogenic global climate change. What was crazy alarmist liberal science fiction 8 years ago is now just another thing that happens in God's creation.

The speech text I linked to is from the New York Times' "dot Earth" blog, and the blogger tries to annotate Gore's speech. However, he gets undeservedly snarky here and there.

Mr. Gore appears to have shifted from his original stance that climate change alone was the “planetary emergency” of our time to the multi-pronged view that including it in a basket of reasons to undertake a nonpolluting “energy quest” makes more sense.

I don't see a shift. I hear him saying, "We have to change our energy production to save civilization, and here are some other nice benefits."

But, the main point is, we need to hear this from someone in power. I'm happy the Democrat and Republican candidates have signed on, but they seem to have largely separated their Senatorial work from their campaigning. If they're both so on board with this, can they go back to their body and get a non-binding bipartisan resolution through the senate?

Ambit's undercut Iderbola

2008-07-17T19:20:00.001-04:00

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You can apparently get wind power for less than I do.

gulp

2008-07-16T17:22:00.004-04:00

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I do believe we're in for a rough couple of weeks.
GULF OF MEXICO...
DEEP LAYERED TROUGH IS OVER THE E U.S. DIPPING S OVER THE N GULF
WITH A EMBEDDED SHORTWAVE NEAR 28N88W. THIS IS PROVIDING SUPPORT
FOR A STATIONARY FRONT THAT IS ACROSS CENTRAL FLORIDA AND FOR A
1016 MB SURFACE LOW NEAR THE COAST OF TAMPA FLORIDA NEAR 27N83W.
A WEAK SURFACE TROUGH EXTENDS FROM THE LOW CENTER TO 24N85W.
THIS SURFACE LOW ALONG WITH DIFFLUENCE ALOFT E OF THE SHORTWAVE
IS GENERATING AN AREA OF SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
FROM 26N-29N BETWEEN 82W-86W AND ACROSS THE WRN COAST OF THE
FLORIDA PENINSULA AND THE WESTERN FLORIDA KEYS. ISOLATED SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE FROM 25N-28N W OF 86W. FLORIDA SHOULD
EXPECT RAINFALL IN GENERAL FOR ABOUT THE NEXT 24 HOURS BECAUSE
OF THE DEEP LAYER TROPICAL MOISTURE AND THE LOW PRESSURE AND
CYCLONIC FLOW OVER THE STATE. SCATTERED MODERATE CONVECTION IS
IN THE FAR SW GULF OF MEXICO WITHIN 30NM OF 20N96W. ELSEWHERE
AT THE SURFACE ACROSS THE GULF S OF 25N...IT REMAINS FAIRLY
TRANQUIL WITH LIGHT WINDS AS A WEAK SURFACE RIDGE BUILDS BACK
INTO THE WRN GULF BY LATE WED. AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE EXTENDS
E FROM TEXAS/NRN MEXICO COVERING THE GULF W TO 90W.

CARIBBEAN SEA...
AN UPPER TROUGH IS ACROSS THE NW CARIBBEAN DRYING THE AIR NEAR
ITS AXIS THAT EXTENDS FROM ERN CUBA TO THE HONDURAS BORDER AND
KEEPING THE AREA N OF 16N W OF 77W CALM. THE ITCZ IS ALONG THE
N COAST OF SOUTH AMERICA AND PANAMA. A SURFACE LOW IS IN THE
SW CARIBBEAN ENHANCED BY UPPER LEVEL DIFFLUENT PATTERN.
SCATTERED MODERATE CONVECTION IS FROM 10N-13N BETWEEN 76W-80W.
SIMILAR CONVECTION IS ALONG THE NICARAGUAN COAST FROM 11N-15N
BETWEEN 82W-85W. AN UPPER LEVEL HIGH DOMINATES THE ERN CARIBBEAN
INTO THE W TROPICAL ATLC ANCHORED W OF THE WINDWARD ISLANDS NEAR
15N67W WHICH IS ENHANCING THE ACTIVITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE
TROPICAL WAVE ALONG 75W.

ATLANTIC OCEAN...
BROAD UPPER LEVEL TROUGH IS OVER THE E U.S. AND INTO THE FAR
W ATLC WITH A NARROW UPPER RIDGE EXTENDING ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA
TO 31N75W PROVIDING AMPLE DIFFLUENCE TO GENERATE SCATTERED
SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS FROM 28N-32N BETWEEN 75W-80W.
A STATIONARY FRONT REMAINS W OF THIS ACTIVITY. AN AREA OF
SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE IS LOCATED S OF T.S. BERTHA CENTERED NEAR
28N60W. A BROAD DEEP LAYERED TROUGH IS OVER THE CENTRAL ATLC N
OF 15N BETWEEN 42W-58W WITH A SURFACE TROUGH ENTERING THE REGION
NEAR 30N45W TO 26N50W GENERATING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE
ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WITHIN 120 NM EITHER SIDE OF THE TROUGH
N OF 30N. AN AREA OF SCATTERED SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE
THUNDERSTORMS ARE NW OF THE TROUGH AXIS FROM 28N-30N BETWEEN
50W-53W. AN UPPER RIDGE EXTENDS FROM THE UPPER HIGH IN THE ERN
CARIBBEAN TO OVER THE W ATLC W OF 55W. A LARGE UPPER LEVEL HIGH
IS CENTERED OVER THE E ATLC ANCHORED NEAR 31N23W COVERING THE
AREA E OF 41W.

God is in his heaven, and all is right with the world

2008-07-14T09:58:00.002-04:00

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The only really confusing thing about the housing bubble collapse is that its looked like wealthy, well-connected investors had been left holding at least part of the bag.

Thankfully, the President has stepped in and transferred their difficulties to taxpayers, making my worldview whole once more.

Thanks, Mr. President!

I really wish John McCain would slow-roll the screwing up

2008-07-13T22:42:00.003-04:00

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So, cigarettes are suddenly bad for Iranians, suggesting they may be bad for Americans, at least those of Iranian descent. This will hamper GOP plans to have Medicare pay for them. The nation is not in a mental recession, and McCain can no longer have surrogates speak for him. Our plan to stay in Iraq forever is at loggerheads with our 'peace dividend,' and awkwardly opposed to the expressed wishes of the Iraqis.

John McCain seems to be collapsing as a candidate. He's just flaming out. Obama's leading by three points in national polls, winning in both... Carolinata? Carolinae? Carolinas, and catching up in Texas. It's looking bad for the straight talk express.

Which is fine. Whatever MoveOn.org will tell you, Greens do not want Republicans in the Oval Office. If Cynthia McKinney doesn't take it -- and I'll point out she's not even included in Pollster.com's 4-way polls, which have Senator Obama over Senator McCain by 5 per cent -- Barack Obama would be my second choice.

But, I worry. I worry that McCain might find some pretext to drop out before the convention, and the fact that he was constitutionally ineligible to run for office in the first place might not be in anyone's back pocket. So, if Huckabee retakes the stage, well, I'll look amazingly prescient, but we may have another Republican in office. His campaign has only been suspended, remember. If the candidate slot opens up, he and Romney will be slugging it out within minutes.

Update: Our judicial system is a joke. This is from the story linked above in re McCain's failure to be born a citizen.

In the motion to dismiss the New Hampshire suit, Mr. McCain’s lawyers said an individual citizen like the plaintiff, a Nashua man named Fred Hollander, lacks proof of direct injury and cannot sue.

Daniel P. Tokaji, an election law expert at Ohio State University, agreed. “It is awfully unlikely that a federal court would say that an individual voter has standing,” he said. “It is questionable whether anyone would have standing to raise that claim. You’d have to think a federal court would look for every possible way to avoid deciding the issue.”

Right? If only voters are harmed, and individual voters do not have standing, who exactly is going to bring suit?

This is a minutiae blog

2008-07-13T14:38:00.003-04:00

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So, FotB* Lexiconance has started an apparently anonymous book reviewing site, and done a link exchange. You'll notice that I updated to a far fancier link exchange applet. Anyhow, I got listed under 'minutiae blogs,' along with 'What I Ate For Lunch Today and Why' and 'What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today'.

O wad some Pow'r the giftie gie us
To see oursels as others see us
It wad frae monie a blunder free us
An' foolish notion
What airs in dress an' gait wad lea'e us
An' ev'n Devotion

* -- Friend of the Blog, in a nod to Stephen Colbert

I don't see the Green Party as an alternative. I see it as imperative.

2008-07-13T14:24:00.003-04:00

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The McKinney-Clemente acceptance speech is airing on C-Span today at 6:30. This is your official notice that they're the official ticket. From the campaign:

Hello Powerful People:

Welcome to the 12th issue of the
Power to the People Committee,
Cynthia McKinney for President Weekly Update.

-- McKinney - Clemente Nominated by Green Party --

Cynthia McKinney won the Green Party's Presidential Nomination at its Chicago Convention, taking 313 of 532 first round ballots in an eight way contested race to lead the 2008 Party's Peace slate.

Once securing the nomination, she asked the Convention to also nominate as her running mate, Rosa Clemente, Bronx born activist, journalist, scholar and organizer who helped to found the HipHop Political Convention. Clemente said, "I chose to do this, not for me, but for my generation, my community and my daughter. I don't see the Green Party as an alternative. I see it as imperative."

-- Campaign Visibility --

It appears that CSPAN's Road to the White House will carry the Acceptance Speech, today, Sunday, July 13th, at 6:00 pm and again at 9:00 pm.

-- Federal Matching Funds --

Cynthia McKinney is a candidate as well for the nomination of the California Peace and Freedom Party, which will resolve is Presidential slate at an upcoming meeting of its state committee.

Link to our website and make your donation now.

http://supporters.runcynthiarun.org/supporters.cgi

This gives us two more weeks now to qualify for Federal Matching Funds. With enthusiastic pushes from McKinney supporters in both Wisconsin and Washington DC, we believe both those have now joined the list of qualifying states, including California, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Illinois, Texas and Washington.

If you are from any of these states:

        Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maryland,
       Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey and Oklahoma

Your urgent action to put us over the top is needed now. We also need at least two additional states to enter the mix and help us make a difference.

These states' residents have already given $1,000 or more and are on their way towards that goal: Arizona ($2.1k), Conneticut ($1k), Florida ($3.5k), Iowa ($1k), Massachusetts ($1.8k), Maryland ($1.6k), Maine ($3.7k), Minnesota ($4.4k), New Jersey ($3.7k) and Oklahoma ($1k). Colorado, Georgia and Pennsylvania are the next closest to entering the running at the $1k level. (Unaudited figures current through June 30th, 2008; indicates change since last month).

-- Joining our Updates list --

To all new readers, thank you for subscribing to the Power to the People Committee Campaign Updates. To all readers, new or otherwise, please encourage your friends and family to join the Campaign Updates list by sending them this link:

http://supporters.runcynthiarun.org/supporters.cgi?function=subscribe

A Question on 'America the Beautiful'

2008-07-10T17:16:00.002-04:00

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Some puff piece on Ronald Reagan was enthusing about his patriotism, saying he knew both versus to 'American the Beautiful.' I'd always thought there were three. Wikipedia adds a fourth. Or, really, a third.

O beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
'Til all success be nobleness, and ev'ry gain divine!

Apparently, I've been singing this song wrong. But, that's not my question. My question is with the line

Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!

Now, when I first learned the song, which I think was Third Grade, although it could have been as late as Fifth, I assumed this referred to our national callousness. Cry all you will, but your grief won't dim the gleam of our cities. However! In my 30s, I came to understand it as aspirational, that one day we would be a nation of whiners no more, and there'd be no tears shed. But, now I'm not so sure.

What do you think?

Tropical Force Winds Sneaking Up on Us

2008-07-10T09:23:00.003-04:00

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This is through next Tuesday. So, we probably have a week before they're on Manhattan Island.

Bogeyman Campaigning

2008-07-10T09:17:00.002-04:00

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[D]oes all this wrangling over Obama's shift to the center really matter to Democratic voters? Some who follow the minutiae of the daily campaign might care, but the LAT says that most Democrats are too focused on the bigger picture to give it much thought. "When I hear people complaining," one Democratic strategist explained, "I tell them I have one thing to say: 'President John McCain. Three Supreme Court appointments.' That's all I need to say."

Right. Ah... OK. Thank goodness the days of an unaccountable executive are coming to an end. No, but, seriously. Are Republicans the new Al Qaeda?

Minimum Healthy Sex Rate is Thrice per Week

2008-07-09T15:13:00.001-04:00

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Thank goodness for Finnish medical research, or we'd never have known.

The Weather's Going to take six hours off

2008-07-09T14:30:00.003-04:00

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As of this writing, Sunday July 13th's only got precipitation potential from 2 AM to 8 AM. I'm going to hope that's a bug.

I'm glad somebody noticed

2008-07-08T16:59:00.002-04:00

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Secretaries of State Warren Christopher and James A. Baker III oversaw a year-long study of the longstanding tension over war powers between the executive and legislative branches. In a report to be released on Tuesday, they concluded that the 1973 law, which was passed in the waning days of the Vietnam War and which aimed to limit the president’s ability to commit American forces to war unilaterally, never served its intended function and must be replaced.

Seriously. Between this and FISA, you've got to wonder what the point of the laws Congress passed in Nixon's wake really were. If you were wondering why I simply don't care about these 'closing the barn door after the horse is out' mortgage reform laws, it's that until the horse tries to escape again, there's no way to know if they're working.