days of naze

progressive defined
10:27 PM

"A progressive is someone who understands that personal wellbeing cannot be separated from the wellbeing of society..."

"A progressive is someone who, instead of reaching backward for a nonexistent, idyllic past, works tirelessly toward bettering the future."

"A progressive is someone who cares about the other guy. It's as simple as that!!"

There is some great work being done across America to unify and strengthen the progressive movement.

Most of what we have built as a country and as workers has arisen from those that refused to accept the failures of the status quo and sought something better. Stop blindly accepting the mantras of powerlessness and take action, even a small one, to move us forward.

May 21, 2006

j'accuse
10:03 PM

2006 05 impeach.jpg

Step 1: Launch Word. Open new doc.

Step 2: Select a sans serif font (Verdana will do) and a suitable font size. I like 155.

Step 3: Print, fold, and tape to inside of right rear car window.

Step 4: Drive, turn up Air America or tasty tunes and smile.

May 13, 2006

theatre sans vox
05:42 PM

I've been meaning to go to Imago Theatre for 20 years. This afternoon, I finally did.

Imago's mask theatre characters are penguins, sloths, larvae, accordians, and even a paper bag. But the things I noticed most during the performance were the moments of stillness and silence. We rush about with radios humming, jabbering into cell phones, glued to non-stop montage. When your attention is held in stillness, it wakes you up to your environment.

Almost all of the short pieces feature music, but none the spoken word. I particularly enjoyed the patterns of the glowing ropes in the dark, the scrolling cartoon head cowboy, and the sloths stacking the boxes to the theatre ceiling.

You have 15 days to see Frogz.

May 10, 2006

only a fool remains placid as the things he loves are destroyed
09:39 PM

"George W. Bush and his pals used September 11th against the American people, used perhaps the most horrific day in our collective history, deliberately and with intent, to foster a war of choice that has killed untold tens of thousands of human beings and basically bankrupted our country. They lied about the threat posed by Iraq. They destroyed the career of a CIA agent who was tasked to keep an eye on Iran's nuclear ambitions, and did so to exact petty political revenge against a critic. They tortured people, and spied on American civilians.

You cannot fathom anger arising from this?"

-W.R. Pitt at Truthout

May 08, 2006

buying portland & oregon
11:07 PM

Why haven't I been more careful to buy from my neighbors?

I've been alternately feeling really satisfied and kicking myself. Lately, I've been making a much more concerted effort to buy local. In the face of Walmart Borg and the American Taliban hellbent on crushing the working people of this country, I've been thinking a lot about what I can do each day to fight the bastards.

The math is simple: spend a buck with a local company and it circulates many times throughout the community. Spend a buck with a massive corporation (and yes, it is difficult to avoid) and that dollar takes the express train somewhere else.

I'd been buying fair trade coffee at Fred Meyer (a one-stop store with a long Portland history, but since bought and sold by KKR and other nasties). And then (very late to the party) discovered that an amazing coffee company, Stumptown, roasted its fair trade beans less than 12 blocks from my house.

In Portland, the theme is consistent: buy local, pay a little more, get a much better product, build a stronger economy.

Supporting 3 children, I'd been buying bargain beer to save cash. But was I really making a wise decision? Widmer costs more. Percentage-wise a lot more ($7-8 per six versus $4 per six). But what is that really? Three or four bucks. In terms of quality, there is no contest. Widmer makes real beer with body and flavor. Hell, my neighbor three houses up the street is one of the Widmer brewers.

Cathy prefers the hard stuff (which, I dabble in also). We figured that the English and the Russians had us pretty well locked in. Au contraire, mon frere! Bend Distillery uses wild juniper berries to make a kickass, so-smooth-you-can't-believe-it gin. They are also brilliantly pricing themselves right at the level of other premium gins. I'm delighted to choose gin from Bend, Oregon over Beefeater or Bombay.

Think about it. How will you vote with your dollar?

Now I'm going to settle down with a book from a little publishing house down the street...