the essential industry

I will get caught up with all kinds of emails and things when I get back. I am not sure why things are escaping me so much lately, I am usually pretty good about that stuff even when I am far more busy than I am right now. Lately I have been in need of some alone time, and today I actually turned off my phone and went to the river to read. I am one of those people that feel irrational guilt about things like that, and spend the first twenty minutes thinking about the things I should be getting done and by the time I get settled- it is time for me to get back to wherever I need to be… Continue Reading »

I’ve been thinking a lot about these things lately, as I have been reading a lot of self published lit mags and ezines and “outsider” small press offerings. In fact, I just ordered a bunch of goodies to support some of my new favorites. But there’s a lot of confusion and disagreement about what an “outsider” is. Excluded, or rejected? Empowered or oppressed? Is an “outsider” somebody who chooses to be on the outside for “political” reasons or somebody barred from entrance by groups determined to maintain the status quo? Can groups keep artists and writers on the “outside” when anyone can transform the dynamics of the circle? How many people are inside but describe themselves otherwise? Is the idea that people can actually change the circle/power a lie? Is the answer to take the exclusivity and power away, or is the answer to emulate the institutions that are excluding- do what they do, but with different rules? Can we change elitism, regardless? Should we? Questions, questions…I have gotten pretty into “outsider” movements lately, from self taught artists to small presses to DIY to virtual galleries to collectives… some are people who would gladly leave “outsider status” if they could get that “big break” and some are people who feel that they can create on their own terms, with control over resources. Which is pretty cool. One thing is pretty clear: that outsider movement provide the networks and means for people to take charge of their creativity and get their work out there without many of the traditional barriers like money, commercial appeal, name recognition, formal training, credentials. .. Continue Reading »

So I’m reading the “news” (is this news?) about the people who are angry because the touch-screen iphone design discriminates against long nailed women. Apparently it can be quite difficult to use such devices that rely on the pads of one’s fingers, and using a stylus requires an additional purchase that short fingered folks are not burdened by. I can’t help but think that this whole thing might cause us to take pause and revisit what discrimination is and what it isn’t…. Continue Reading »

This has been on my mind, and it has been bugging me ever since I had the conversation. For some reason I really needed to revisit this a few times to really “get” what was bothering me about it so much. So here’s the situation: I’m talking to a male friend who has gotten divorced, with shared custody of their son. We’re talking about some of the details, like how often he gets to see his son and I am truly sad for him because I know how much he talked about her as “the one”. The conversation turns to health insurance and then I make some quick remark about how sometimes that is part of child support. He informs me that he has no intention of paying child support. I say nothing. He proceeds to get this smug voice and tell me how he is glad that they are adult enough to be above fighting about money, and it becomes some sort of backhanded indictment of capitalism or… something. Hippie children don’t need child support? … Continue Reading »

I was awake before five this morning, and since I wanted to be quiet I decided to stay in bed reading. That is when I realized that I am in the middle of like FIFTEEN books, more than half dry as hell and only one with any humor. I’ve got to get a life. I am not even sure what I am looking for with all these books. To settle on some sort of philosophy, to settle on some kind of way to make sense of the world? To find comfort in some “ism” that at last really speaks to me, that I can grab onto, that I can staple to my head so I can get on with other thoughts? … Continue Reading »

Deirdre Imus, writing in the Huffington Post, does an excellent job with her critique of the vaccination article in Time:

“Finally, a major periodical puts a spotlight on the most emotionally charged and inaccurately reported medical controversy in modern history. And what does Time do? Blame parents for a crisis in confidence created by public health officials. If you were hoping to learn the “truth” about vaccinations, you are not going to find it in this issue of Time. ”

Now my point here is not to get into the debate itself, but to point out the problem with it’s coverage as she writes about how parents are portrayed as clueless dolts while safety reassurances come from industry plants. Many times when I read about the vaccination controversy, I ask the same questions… Continue Reading »

One of the key differences between Clinton and Obama (although many claim there are no differences) is the health care dilemma and the difference between voluntary versus involuntary health insurance purchase. First- make no mistake here: forcing the uninsured, under penalty of fines, to buy insurance is NOT universal health care coverage. Calling it a plan that promises “health care for all” is a bit like forcing people to buy homes and calling it a “solution to homelessness”. .. Continue Reading »

I met Ani recently through these “internets”, and I find that she has a very thoughtful and open way of discussing ideas. Like me, she asks a lot of questions- and does not presume to know the answers to them all. I can relate to her desire to keep working through them, as we all must do, and I agree that there are some conversations that need to keep going. Perhaps this is not for the sake of some conclusion or final resolution, if those are even possible- but because of the ways that these conversations force us to keep returning to our comfort zones to re-examine them. One example that I have been thinking about a lot lately is privilege, and beyond- the way privilege relates to progressive movements.

Is it healthy to be self critical, within movements? Despite the claims that this is divisive, I think that when we avoid reconciliation we are in fact leaving divisive elements on the table while we eat around them. While we pretend they aren’t there. One thing we do is resent the people who bring them up because we feel that it makes for a more pleasant dinner to stick with our usual chatter. What are we ignoring, though? Who are the guests that never get a word in edgewise?

Anyway… Continue Reading »

My friend told me that if every person who actually belonged to her gym used it- nobody would be able to walk. The electric company responded to complaints of service interruption by complaining about the inadequate grid. The cable companies are annoyed because people are now actually USING their high speed internet services to mess around on things like YouTube.

A strange thing happens when people who pay for a service actually start to use it. Suddenly, we learn that there is no plan for that kind of scenario. We learn that our bad service is because we were not expected to actually get our money’s worth. We learn that many internet providers will gripe about 5% who are heavy data pigs.

What happens when a person pays that electric bill or that internet or cable bill? Is there any connection between this NEW REVENUE and some kind of obligation to invest that into actually being able to provide the service for the number of users? I guess not. I guess they want to collect their cash then raise rates when people begin to do what they are supposed to do.

 As long as people exchange time and resources with one another, people will be motivated to accumulate resources to better broker their own positions. If I can grow ten apples, I can trade five for oranges because it would be prohibitively ridiculous to try to grow the full spectrum of what I need and I am better served by focusing on apples and a handshake at the orange cart. As long as people can broker their own positions, there will always be a tendency toward power struggles between people and groups for more resources to increase power, more power to increase resources.

As long as power is inextricably linked to resources, people will not willingly give up those resources. It would be unwise then to give up one’s apples for free, in other words. Resources can mean the difference between surviving a long winter or choosing who should eat. Metaphorically speaking. Metaphorically speaking, there are also those whose appetites turn them into unscrupulous raiders and knowing this often makes people answer any and all doors with suspicion. Knowing this makes each apple seem more precious, the protection all the more crucial. Perhaps so much that the sacrifice of one for protection services makes sense. But wait-we’ve just created a King. And armed guards.

It would be nice if we could say that people might accumulate wealth and redistribute that wealth to people with fewer resources and less power because of innate goodness. The widespread existence of innate goodness is contradicted by many features of the observable world and besides- goodness is subject to a lot of relativism. Indeed- the motivation to do that seems to rest on whether or not there is a mutual benefit: I might be concerned about an epidemic and the way that would impact my circle, and so I might be convinced that it is in my best interests to part with some of my resources (perhaps taxes) in order to address that concern. The level of my commitment in many cases would depend on my perception of gain. I might rationalize that chipping in for a large expensive military is crucial to the maintenance of my way of life and therefore prioritize that higher. I will approach these questions with all kinds of delusions about what threatens me, with all kinds of skewed statistics… Continue Reading »