"To demand something of someone else is to assume that they have power over you, and ultimately, to grant them power over you.It's time to stop fighting the institutions of the past, bypass them completely, and occupy the future".
Bill Moyers interviews former chairman of the Federal Election Commission Trevor Potter, who advised John McCain during both his 2000 and 2008 presidential campaigns, and more recently has gained notoriety helping Steven Colbert form his super PAC and 501(c)(4). An insider with a unique background, Potter explains current problems with campaign finance in everyday language - centering specifically on the effects of Citizens United and the meteoric rise of 501(c)(4)'s in American elections.
The Upside of Being An Introvert (And Why Extroverts Are Overrated)
by Bryan Walsh - Time Magazine, published Feb 6, 2012 - Full Text
..."Yet he pushes through the constraints of
his temperament because the social value of lecturing and speaking--of
truly connecting with his students--trumps the discomfort his
introversion can cause him. Little calls this phenomenon Free Trait
Theory: the idea that while we have certain fixed bits of personality,
we can act out of character in the service of core personal goals. The
key, he explains, is balancing three equal but very different
identities. There's our mostly inborn personality, the one that wants us
to be introverted or extroverted; that's the biogenic identity. There
are the expectations of our culture, family and religion--the sociogenic
identity. And then there are our personal desires and our sense of what
matters--the ideogenic identity.
An introvert like Little could
live in a way that satisfies his nerves, never leaving the library, but
then his ideogenic self would starve. He'd miss out on doing what
matters most to him, even if doing it occasionally sends him into a cold
sweat. "Am I just going to let things wash over me, or am I going to
strike out and change and grow and challenge?" says Little. "The answer
depends on what you want out of life."
So it can be for all of us
introverts. From the moment we wake up to the second we go to
sleep--preferably after relaxing with a book in bed--introverts live in
an extrovert's world, and there are days when we'd prefer to do nothing
more than stay at home. But while our temperaments may define us, that
doesn't mean we're controlled by them--if we can find something or
someone that motivates us to push beyond the boundaries of our nerves.
I'm happy to be an introvert, but that's not all I am".
-excerpt by Bryan Walsh/ Time Magazine - link to full article here
Bill Moyers. God bless the man, even at 77 he just can't seem to retire. Though his infamous "Journal" aired it's final show last summer, Moyers has begun a new series that's digging deep to the roots of political and economic corruption that plague our country and our economic environment.
In this video Bill interviews economists and authors Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson, who make the case that income and class inequality in America have been intentionally engineered by the strategic collusion of Big Business and the Federal Government over the last three decades. They argue that the extreme wealth currently realized by the top fraction of income earners is no accident - and that the political ramifications for a Democratic society are indeed dire. Going beyond the obvious problems that extreme inequality produce in society, Hacker and Pierson present strong evidence that highly concentrated wealth indeed threaten the very solvency and integrity of a Democratic state. More info and full transcript link here
It's been awhile since my last post. The new year was busy and I got pretty sick. But feeling better now, and new ideas are kind of backed up in my head, so here we go:
First order of business, kids are supposed to be able to have fun, right? That's what being a kid means, having fun while learning about yourself and the world. When kids' rights to have fun are threatened, then something has gone very wrong.
Things have gone wrong in Gresham, a suburb of Portland. The mayor and the stodgy, stuffy, fossilized old white men of the Gresham city council are doing their best to kill fun for kids in Gresham. They have made it a crime to ride a bmx bike in the city's only skate park.
If you've never been to Gresham, let me tell you something important about the town, as I spent part of my own childhood growing up there: even on a good day, there isn't a whole lot for kids to do. Despite this fact, city "leaders" have decided that banning bmx'ers and spending already-spread-way-too-thin police resources on citations, bike confiscations, and the general harassment of minors is somehow a sensible way to burn taxpayer dollars.
They say bikes are dangerous, they say skaters and bikers can't get along, they say bmx is a public nuissance. Blah, blah.... blah.
Gresham is among the only cities in Oregon that do not allow bmx and skaters to ride together. From other smaller parks like Tualatin and Oregon City to the professional training grounds (and largest indoor skate park in the state) at Windell's in Welches, all manor of riders are able to coexist in peace. Not to say there aren't problems sometimes, but as any athlete knows all sports have some tension and in general folks figure out ways to make things work for everyone - think skier/snowboarder on the mountain or longboard/shortboard in the waves. At Windell's, word is that older riders and skaters actually help and assist younger members to learn the ropes and get along.
Imagine that - kids solving their own problems when air-headed adults get out of the way long enough to give 'em a chance.
So what happened in Gresham? Well, the kids and their parents organized and fought back. On December 17 they staged their first peaceful protest at the park - see amazing pictures here. More at the group's main facebook page here.
An online petition was started after one well-intentioned parent was veritably cussed out of the mayor's office for trying to discuss sharing the park.
Not long after this incident Occupy Gresham and the PDX Bike Swarm got word of the struggle to legalize fun, and in support of the BMX riders all three groups held a demonstration for over 4 hours in a snowstorm on January 15th. After which all parties retired to eat pizza at the nearby Wall Street Pizza. And what do you know, the Mayor finally sent one of his city managers to come chat.
Check out the video of the day's events, including the discussion with the manager afterwards.
While some progress has been made, the Gresham skate park remains closed to BMX bikes. The brave riders are not deterred, however, and come Spring I think we can count on a lot more action at the park.
In the meantime, sign the petition and keep an eye out for future events!
