A beef with telecommunications...

About a month ago, I read about AT&T’s indiscretions in sharing customer information. I meant to write something about it at the time, but somehow did not get around to it. It’s been simmering in the back of my mind ever since then. Today, when I finally did get around to sitting down and writing my thoughts on this subject, I could hardly find mention of it. When I type in AT&T into the Google news search I come up with a million stories about the death of the payphone. I guess that is also troubling if you are, like thousands of homeless people, without alternative means of communication. It’s one of those things that will hit a middle class person some day when they need to call 911 and their cell phone is dead in the middle of the night when all the businesses are closed, no one is around and there’s not a payphone in sight.

In the mean time, I am highly disturbed by the obscurity of this other AT&T story. It is there if you dig. But this should have caused a much greater stir. AT&T made a deal with the devil, or maybe it was just two devils making a deal together. It turns out that the communications company was, possibly still is, collecting customer data, including phone conversations and emails, for the NSA. They were apparently ordered by President Bush to conduct this spying program, but they forgot to take a look at the Constitution, you know, the part about “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” According to a whistle blower, the NSA had a secret room at the San Francisco offices of AT&T, into which went all Internet traffic. I was never shown a warrant for them to have my communications, were you? And I certainly do not feel secure in my person. This has been going on for sometime. To be honest I am not all that surprised, but why didn’t I hear about it a little sooner. This should be front-page news, along with all the other violations of our constitutional rights this administration has perpetrated. This is surely a sign of what we are in store for in the near future: totalitarian society, in which people are either oblivious, or in denial of that fact. Maybe we are already there.

I should also probably mention my bias with regards to this story. I live in the Bay Area and I am an AT&T customer. I am pissed off at AT&T for betraying my trust, but I am also pissed off that I don’t really have much of a choice when it comes to finding another provider. Effectively AT&T has a monopoly in my neighborhood. When I was shopping around for phone and Internet service, I was repeatedly told, “We don’t carry service in your area.” Only AT&T could connect to my apartment. Well that’s not entirely true. If I made twice as much a year, I might be able to afford Comcast’s service. But essentially I’m being screwed and don’t have much say in the matter. (There’s that voice in the back of my head again saying: You could move out into the middle of nowhere in the mountains and cut contact with the rest of the world.)

Articles to check out regarding AT&T spying issue:
“Definition Changing for People's Privacy.”

“Big Bro chokes on own surveillance data.”

“Judge: Feds Must Release Telecom Records”

“Ex-Worker at AT&T Fights Immunity Bill”

News Encounters

“Skivies are the new civic duty”? So says NBC11’s Nightly News anchor, Brian Williams. Apparently the TSA wants to tell us how to pack our bags…neatly: clothing folded, electronics’ wires coiled and everything placed in our suitcases in specific layers. While I personally strive to pack my luggage in a way that is organized for easy use and increased economy of space, I will figure out which way that is myself, thank you very much. They always mess things up when they dig through our bags anyway. Things are getting increasingly bizarre, beyond any of the dystopian literature that is frequently cited as the inspiration for current events.

I don’t usually watch Nightly News but I left the TV on after the local news. The story that I was really interested and sad to hear was about the death of Mehdi Shahbazi. His is the story of a man doing the best to fight for what he believed. He passed away last week after a hunger strike against the greed, manipulation and abuse of large oil companies. He was the owner of a small gas station who decided that what the oil companies were doing was wrong. When he tried to do something about it by putting posters of his beliefs up in his gas station, Shell managed to shut him down. Left without his business, he did what he could to continue to try to make his point. You don’t hear about someone having that kind of heart everyday. It seems like someone important was lost before anyone realized he was important.

I also noticed while perusing the NBC11 website to verify what I heard, that they have a wide variety of links, including, under a section titled Bay Area Iraq Links, MoveOn.org. I have to give props to NBC11 for encouraging website visitors to check out multiple points of view. And they seem to be pretty strong on local news and events. I have to say their entertainment news section may be a little too big, but at least I don’t have to hear about it on their televised evening news. I don’t think much of their parent network, but, all in all, I think I will add their site to the list of news sites I regularly scan.

This is worth checking out.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/7069943.stm

I’ve just returned from an interesting movie going experience. Lions for Lambs is a movie to think about. I’m still not sure exactly what I think about it, it may take a day or two, but I am inclined to think that might exactly be the point. I went into the theater not sure what I was about to see, the previews are entirely ambiguous, but so is this film. It’s making a point but does not come straight out with it. A not so favorable review (the first one I read) by Carina Chocano, of the LA Times, says the movie would like us to understand the complicity of everyone in the disastrous Iraq/Afghanistan war. This is definitely part of it. Though whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is vague. I personally hope this complicity in bringing about war is seen as an undesirable thing. My understanding of Robert Redford’s politic leanings makes me think this is probably his slant, though large amounts of screen time were given to other points of view. I also think Chocano is right in saying this movie is more suited to a stage then a screen. The acting was good and the dialogue between Meryl Streep and Tom Cruise was very engaging. I may or may not get back to you with more interpretations of this film depending on whether or not I actually give it more thought. Though, I hope other people who see it do give it more thought.

I broke my goal of writing a blog a week, but never fear I will someday succeed. It is the third anniversary of my brother's death. I don't have anything particular to say about this event that I would care to share with the general public, except that today my thoughts have been filled with questions about life and death. Is death necessary? Is life precious? Is it even worth wondering about?

Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. -Martin Luther King, Jr.

The week before last I was visiting friends when I saw upon their table a newspaper opened to an editorial entitled "Harry Potter an allegory for war on terror?" As a fan of the Harry Potter series I was intrigued. It starts out like a lot of reviews of both the books and the movies. Why are they so popular, and isn’t it interesting how things keep getting darker and more serious as the series continues? Then begins the comparison to times past, namely the Second World War, comparing Fudge to Chamberlain, who turned a blind eye to the ultimate harm that Hitler could generate. True, I can see comparisons there, Voldemort set on destroying anyone he does not see as pure blood, just as Hitler tried to purify his race. Intolerance and lack of respect and caring for other human beings does seem to be a standard theme, and togetherness, compassion and understanding are the lessons to be learned. Harry can only succeed in his quest by possessing these qualities. But then Mr. Pinkerton, author of the essay, steps into the realm of absurdity, and I couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of it. He says that Harry Potter is about stopping the Muslims. He does not say it is about stopping intolerance and violence between those who think differently then each other. No, it’s about the Muslims, which to me seems short sighted and lacks the sense of compassion and understanding that Harry must gain to reach his goal. The debate about terrorism is a real one and needs to be considered seriously, but it becomes ridiculous when compared to the Harry Potter books.

"But what's not possible to dispute is that we are in a war now. There are people around the world who are waking up every morning determined to kill us. Some are undoubtedly already here in America. And that's the reason, of course, so many of us were opposed to McCain's ill-fated immigration bill; if we are in a death-struggle against unknown enemies, we need to close the borders immediately - not waiting for a "comprehensive" approach pleasing to those who still strangely hanker for unrestricted transit across frontiers.”


What does this statement really have to do with Harry Potter? I do not think J.K. Rowling’s intention was to create appeal for intense patriotism. No, I think her intention was quite the opposite. Isn’t the shutting down of borders, restricting citizenship, and creating an atmosphere of devotion to “US” Voldemort’s goal?

“When kids see "Harry Potter," they should be thinking first about defending their country, and their civilization, against evildoers wielding weapons of mass destruction. After that's taken care of, they can then worry more about carbon dioxide.”

When children’s literature is suggested as propaganda to incite children to actually take up arms (the character’s in Harry Potter take up wands, but they are of age when this actually happens, before then they are protected, and discourage from using their magic for anything of the sort, and it’s fiction) in all seriousness and we are expected to not see the scary parallels of this proposition in the past, that is ridiculous. I wonder what Rowling would say to Pinkerton’s interpretation of her work? The jab at environmentalism is just icing on the cake.

A blog a week.

That’s the plan. Feel free to bug me if I slack. That’s all I’ve got for the moment. I promise something better next week.

Environmentalism and class...

An issue that has always irked me is the tendency of Americans to equate the ability to consume with citizenship. It is common to hear the idea “your dollar is your vote” bandied about. Constantly, pundits on the news say, “the market place has decided.” There are two major problems I have with this development. First, the consumer is not necessarily a rational being, but a citizen should be. People are moved to consume by a myriad of subconscious emotional reasons, beyond the urge to fulfill basic human needs. Marketing and advertising campaigns are designed to manipulate this fact. They play on our need to be accepted by others and promise us the keys to a nebulous happiness, none of it based solely on fact or appealing to the rational mind. To use a classic example, you know that that new SUV or convertible isn’t going to make up for your inadequacies, but, deep down, you get this feeling that somehow it will make you feel better about them. Does it?

Secondly, putting the vote to the market place also removes power from those who do not have the economic ability to consume or least lack the ability to consume with discretion. If you are on a tight budget with a couple of other mouths to feed, you probably aren’t going to buy the more expensive healthier organic food. You are probably going to buy whatever will allow you to feed the most mouths for the least amount of money, or what is quick and easy and inexpensive to make, if you are working two jobs and don’t have time to cook. The large food manufacturers can continue to make and sell food that is bad for you because they know this segment of the population will continue to buy it. The market place has voted for this food. But the choice implied by the word vote, is not one that many of these people feel they have. (I’m sure many of you will say that they do have a choice, but remember that the consumer is not rational, and consumption in this system is based on “feeling.”) In a sense, this point makes the “consumer as citizen” system an inherently classist system.

People without monetary means to consume with discretion lose their ability to participate equally in the system, to decide what should and should not be bought and sold, and who should be doing it. This is not a little thing. Our country’s production and consumption patterns have an enormous effect on economy, national and international, which, in turn, can determine a country’s accountability for human rights. (I am thinking of China here. Would they be able to get away with such blatant human rights violations if they did not have such a strong economy?) Perhaps more importantly, production and consumption has had a devastating effect on our environment. The waste and excess use of non-renewable resources, the pollution constantly released from the factories of large manufacturers, the toxin by-products that come with many day-to-day items, these not only effect our environment, but our health. But companies participating in these environmental violations can continue with indiscretion, because they know that people will continue to buy their products and give them money, money which allows them to deal with that pesky, ineffective government, to continue with these practices which harm that segment of the population which continues to support them and whose health they don’t really care about.

Ideally, as our forefathers conceived it, our citizenry would each have one vote, regardless of monetary status, to put in place a government to look out for our best interests. With the market place as our pseudo-government, one dollar equals one vote, and the market place has no interests in looking out for our best interests, only its own.

I read an interesting article last month, which I thought effectively made a good point about consumerism and classism. Entitled “Schwarzenegger: The Fake Environmental Hero,” this article essentially says that the ability to be environmentally friendly is a choice given to those with money, specifically dealing with the automobile. The eco-friendly, fuel-efficient vehicles are currently out of the price range of a large portion of the population. “Schwarzenegger has become the GOP's Al Gore but the trouble is that his "environmentalism" isn't about curbing our reckless consumption; it's about having more cool choices -- if you can afford them.” This tag line says it all. Environmentalism is a consumption choice. Consumption itself is not to be stop, because its how we choose who’s going to have the power.

There are many ways to be environmentally friendly, especially without cost, and there have been many instances when public outcry has caused the government to change policy. There have also been instances of consumers using their consumer power to band together to get companies to change their practices. Don’t worry we are not completely lost yet. I am worried, however, that the trend that I’ve talked about above is the norm and the instances of consumers consciously using their power is more of an exception to the rules. More than that I am worried that we will completely lose the idea of the citizen completely to the idea of the consumer-citizen. Everyone should be able to have an equal vote and should be able to count on our political system to look out for us. This should include our solitary brethren, living off the grid in the woods, our low-income families doing the best they can with little, as well as the more well to do among us. Our buying practices should be separated from our government, just like religion should be.

A battle won...

Oh, so many horrible things happening in the world, but here's a good one. My friend recently informed me that class action lawsuit, in which she was a plaintiff, for those arrested during the WTO protests in Seattle in '99 has finally come to a happy conclusion. PublicJustice.net has the full story. Those arrested claimed wrongful arrest and the court ruled in their favor, saying that the arrests violated the protesters' Fourth Amendment rights. According to my friend, the city has settled for $1 million and will also restructure its police training program to appropriately deal, meaning no blanket arrests, with protest situations. This news gives me hope that the constitution is not yet dead and that we do still have some rights. I also hope this news will encourage other cities to look at their police tactics during similar situations and question whether they too are in violation of our fourth amendment. I applaud those who continue to speak their minds , and protest against what they see as wrongful doings, making use of those rights we are told our forefathers fought and died for. This takes extra courage when those rights are under constant assault. It's uplifting to know that they haven't been completely lost yet. Thank you to the Seattle District Court for upholding the Constitution, when it seems the trend in US justice is to do otherwise.

In today's news...

Once again I took my time getting around to posting anything. In the meantime, the socio-political world continues on its route to chaos, while the Earth itself seems to be maintaining a pretty steady course around the sun. In the sphere of juvenile incarceration, children want out, but wonder if they will be shot when they return home. And common sense care for them seems to be an illusive dream. Friends keep asking me what I think of Obama in '08 and I have no answer, only that I have no faith in electoral politics. Sure, I'll vote, but that doesn't mean I think it counts for anything. Anna Nicole's death was finally determined to actually be a legal drug overdose. That's the top news as far as I can tell. While the continued struggle of impoverished people, with no access to prescription pharmaceuticals to begin with, hardly ever makes into the periphery of news consciousness. Gonzales seems to be in hot water now, but what about the people pulling his strings? And why am I paying $3.20 for a gallon of gas? Wasn’t I once promised the prices weren’t going to go up? I’ll have to try harder to limit my car trips to only the necessary, which is better for the environment. I wish I could afford one of those fancy hybrids. I guess my mobility is limited by my economic status. As always a bigger paycheck means more freedom.

Remembering Molly Ivins…

On discovering yesterday morning that Molly Ivins had passed away the previous day, I felt a pang of great loss and defeat. Always one of my favorite reads, her columns were not only entertaining but made sense. Ivins put into words what I think most of us know in the back of our consciousness somewhere. And she was unabashed in her social critique, a quality that I much admire. In a column she wrote shortly after last November’s election, she describes herself best to be a populist, interested in the people:

"Now, from my hours spent battered and half brain-dead listening to the fatuous, self-important commentators of our nation, I learn that the people did not elect liberals to Congress last week. Nope, they elected populists! Well, gosh all hemlock. Populist! I am one.

Who knew? I thought all said I was chopped liver. Populist. Like Tom Frank of What's the Matter With Kansas? fame. Jim Hightower. We can even draw our lines of political genealogy -- via Ralph Yarborough and Bob Elkhart.

A populist is pretty much for the people and generally in this case exactly the same as a liberal -- we just put the em-pha-sis on a different syl-la-ble. We also tend to be more fun. We do not vote to hurt average Americans, even if the corporate payoff is really big. Even if it's just a little bit -- like the bankruptcy bill.

We tend to focus less on social issues and more on who's gettin' taken and who's doin' the taking. In my opinion, Americans are not getting taken by the Republican Party. They are getting taken by Large Corporations that bought and own the Republican Party."

Yes, I think Molly Ivins was the true definition of a populist. I am saddened that there is one less out there to care about what happens to the rest of us and speak out. Please read her work, it is an important part of the American lexicon.

Not really a fan of post-modernism but...

Found this poetic interpretation of the work of Deleuze and Guattari in one of my old college journals today. I thought it was slightly entertaining, enough so to share:

The Stratification of a Thousand Oedipi

Stratification is the verification
of the inscription
transcription
description
of the body with out organs
the body that is free flowing
free growing
free of all
It is the machines that
make order, reorder
record order and
territorialize
And the body with out organs
finds these masochistic pleasures
slowing, thickening
imprisoning, locking
habitualizing
separating and sensualizing
It pulls away
but it is addicted
to a lobster with a stenograph machine
a lobster as a stenograph machine
reading, being read
articulating and interpreting
pontificating?
compressing, being compressed
first, last and all becoming sedimentized
imposed upon, selected from
order, statistics
unstable molasses flows
folded upon folds
structure, function
cementation?
total, hierarchical, final
Simultaneously coded and defined
interpreted in language
formed, molded, placed
territory-wise
Good, bad, needed? polysignified
dichotomized, polarized relations
of segments
of strata
of substrata
of interstrata
of strata articulations
There is unity
then diversity
then division
in the process of stratification
but is it a process
or is it an end?

Keeping my hand in...

As part of the life reconsideration that happens every year about this time, I am determined to write more than the occasional every third month. I know that I am starting a little late off the block the traditional date for resolutions is the first, but the 13th isn't that bad. Okay, now it's the 23rd. That is bad. I have nothing spectacular to write about at the moment. There have been a few issues floating around in my head for a few months. Just a few random questions. If you, people who might possibly be reading this, have answers please let me know.

1. Does Truth need a market to viable? Do the ratings, sales, etc. need to be high for the truth to make it into the mainstream of mediated knowledge?

2. Do people still truly believe in the American dream, the Horatio Alger’s myth, you to can have roads paved with gold if only you work hard enough? People do occasionally pull themselves up by the proverbial bootstraps, but is this the exception rather than the rule? The 'system' is set against so many people, hoping to guarantee their failure to fill our prison and fill up the ranks of our military. And the idea of capitalism, in its current incarnation, strives to let those organizations with the most pariah-like behavior get ahead of the rest. Here's another related to question: Can one succeed in life, according to the American Dream version of success, with out falling prey to the ideology and values of this system, can one succeed and not sell out? Would someone with out the same values exalted by this system truly want to succeed in the way in which we are told we should by the society around us?

3. If a train traveling from Chicago leaves at 8:30 AM traveling at a consistent speed of 65mph, and another train leaves New York City at 9:45 AM traveling at a consistent speed of 70mph, at what time will they mysteriously be zapped out of existence by an alien race from three galaxies over?

That's all.