RIP Geraldine

Geraldine Ferraro was the first woman to ever make it on a major party ticket, running as the vice presidential candidate with Walter Mondale in 1984. The daughter of an Italian immigrant father and a first generation Italian American mother she was first woman in her family to earn a college degree. Geraldine taught in the New York public schools, then became a lawyer, and next a prosecutor (think Law and Order SVU). In 1978 she was elected to Congress and put her focus on women's equality issues primarily wages, pensions, and retirement. In 1984 she became not only the first woman but the first Italian American ever nominated to a major party ballot. Later in life she became the US Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and continued her life as a journalist, businesswoman, and author.

Here is her acceptance speech for the nomination of VP, its pretty good.

Lindsay Beebe : The Nightmare Doesn't Care

Lindsay Beebe is a force to be reckoned with, a renaissance woman of the wildest variety. This video is from a reading she gave at Printed Matter from her book The Nightmare Doesn't Care published by 100%.












The description of the book of poems from the 100% website:
The Nightmare Doesn't Care is an anthology of poems and drawings by artist, musician, and performer Lindsay Beebe, whose work frames violence, humor, sex and politics within her own unique post-hippy, post-punk outlook. Written in Beebe's homespun slang vernacular, these raw, earthy poems produce a dream-like fusion of the urban and rural, inspired by experiences ranging from a hung-over job interview to an epiphany in the woods. Marrying the anti-establishment toilet humor of The Fugs’ lyrics with the manic, carnal, and emotional tones of Kathy Acker’s writing, Beebe's poems embody the legacy of a particular American underground sensibility.

Lindsay Beebe @ Printed Matter from 100% BIZ LLC on Vimeo.

You can go here to buy the book! Please do, its worth the investment!

"This is a Frontal Assault on Democracy, a Corporate Coup D'Etat"

Naomi Klein on Anti-Union Bills and Shock Doctrine American-Style: "This is a Frontal Assault on Democracy, a Corporate Coup D'Etat"


Naomi Klein's book The Shock Doctrine has to be one of the most important books written in our time, laying out tactics used by those in power to take advantage of times of crises to push through undemocratic and extreme free market economic policies.

Klein appeared on Democracy Now this week to talk about the union busting going on in Wisconsin and across the states. Please watch this, or put it on and just listen to the audio while you do something else.... she has so many good points. It helps make whats happening in our country understandable - with some ideas of what you can actually do, what to look out for, and a few hard truths about Obama which I have a hard time hearing but are all too true.

Here is a good quote from the interview about how the changes going on would effect us women.

"Teachers’ unions are getting the worst of it. Yesterday was International Women’s Day. This is—you know, as you pointed out on your show, it’s overwhelmingly women who are providing the services that are under attack. It’s not just labor that’s under attack; it’s the services that the labor is providing that’s under attack: it’s healthcare, it’s education, it’s those fundamental care-giving services across the country, which could be profitable if they were privatized."
-Naomi Klein

Bunny Chase

Lady Bunny is chased around Grenwich Village in this video by Nelson Sullivan with music by NOW EXPLOSION Also starring Lurleen Wallis and Albert Crudo

Snoop

You may have heard that Felicia Pearson, the infamous Snoop on The Wire, was arrested as part of a major drug raid last week in Baltimore. And so life mirrors art that mirrored life. Snoop was one of the most authentic Baltimorians on the show and definitely took the prize for being the most bad ass bitch on the show.

Here is a clip of her buying a nail gun that will come in handy when killing people.



The Wire was one of the most truthful and unapologetic shows to ever grace the television waves and with the most complicated and complex plot lines known to man. Felicia Pearson, Snoop, was born to to incarcerated drug dealers, worked as a drug dealer herself, and spent 6.5 years in prison for second degree murder. However, the death of a friend and her work on The Wire turned her life around and she had been pursuing acting, music, and philanthropy since then. Along with Jamie Hector (Marlo Stanfield) she started Moving Mountains, a youth drama organization that aims to curb violence by providing an alternative in the performing arts for at risk kids.

The Wire's creator David Simon released a pretty great statement about not just Felicia's arrest but the cycle of poverty and drug trade that has such a larger context than this one arrest.

First of all, Felicia’s entitled to the presumption of innocence. And I would note that a previous, but recent drug arrest that targeted her was later found to be unwarranted and the charges were dropped. Nonetheless, I’m certainly sad at the news today. This young lady has, from her earliest moments, had one of the hardest lives imaginable. And whatever good fortune came from her role in The Wire seems, in retrospect, limited to that project. She worked hard as an actor and was entirely professional, but the entertainment industry as a whole does not offer a great many roles for those who can portray people from the other America. There are, in fact, relatively few stories told about the other America.

Beyond that, I am waiting to see whether the charges against Felicia relate to heroin or marijuana. Obviously, the former would be, to my mind, a far more serious matter. And further, I am waiting to see if the charges or statement of facts offered by the government reflect any involvement with acts of violence, which would of course be of much greater concern.

In an essay published two years ago in Time magazine, the writers of The Wire made the argument that we believe the war on drugs has devolved into a war on the underclass, that in places like West and East Baltimore, where the drug economy is now the only factory still hiring and where the educational system is so crippled that the vast majority of children are trained only for the corners, a legal campaign to imprison our most vulnerable and damaged citizens is little more than amoral. And we said then that if asked to serve on any jury considering a non-violent drug offense, we would move to nullify that jury’s verdict and vote to acquit. Regardless of the defendant, I still believe such a course of action would be just in any case in which drug offenses—absent proof of violent acts—are alleged.

Both our Constitution and our common law guarantee that we will be judged by our peers. But in truth, there are now two Americas, politically and economically distinct. I, for one, do not qualify as a peer to Felicia Pearson. The opportunities and experiences of her life do not correspond in any way with my own, and her America is different from my own. I am therefore ill-equipped to be her judge in this matter.

I See Your Conservatism And I Raise You a Booty Pop

Both of these people have the right to free speech.... its just that one is a way better dancer than the other.




In the words of Emma Goldman "If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution."

Also... God Bless punk boys...

Zoe Keating

Zoe Keating is an avant garde cellist and composer who constructs musical structures through live sampling and repetition of rythms and layered sounds. Her feet control a computer system that can repeat what she just played back to her with the composition becoming increasingly layered and interwoven with the new live notes and rythms.

Wall Street Compared To Teachers

The Daily Show - Crisis in Dairyland - For Richer and Poorer
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Yes! What John Stewart said! Hitting the nail on the head!
This bullshit gets me so fired up. What is wrong with people? How does Fox News think it can get away with defending Wall Street while shitting all over teachers. Yes, teachers get summers off, but I know many teachers who have to take up another job in the summer to make ends meet, and thats after spending 60-80 hours a week at the normal teaching job - correcting, planning, in parent and professional conferences, and coaching or heading clubs and staying after with kids for extra tutoring. Also much of their "vacation" time is spent in training, professional conferences or classes, or planning for the next school year. All this so they can be paid vastly less than any other professional. That's what they are professionals - do you know how much schooling you need to be a teacher -especially to have a secure tenured position. All of this work and you still are treated like crap. This hits close to the literal home because my mom is an art teacher - she has a master degree from one of the best art schools and has won Connecticut Art Teacher of the Year - yet, many days in August each year were spent driving around to the town beach, the supermarket, and other places, reminding people in town to go to the town meeting and vote to keep art in the curriculum. I know there are occasional duds, but as a whole public school teachers are amazing, it is a labor of love. I had teachers who cared about me and my friends, who took us hiking in the White Mountains, who managed to make math fun sometimes, who checked in on me when I got depressed, who took us to the Guggenheim, or stepped in and took over for friends of mine who didn't have parents who cared about their education.
Fox News' attacks on teachers are bizarre and confusing, I'd love someone to get to the bottom of who is benefiting off of it. I'm guessing its a push to privatize more school systems so someone can turn a profit.
Okay thanks for enduring my rant.....



http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-march-3-2011/crisis-in-the-dairyland---for-richer-and-poorer---teachers-and-wall-street