Congratulations to Kirsten and Danny, married 22 March, in Sydney, Australia.

The Seattle Police Chief was on local NPR this morning talking about all the usual bullshit around protests- how they cost the City so much money, they cause other neighborhoods to be understaffed, and, of course, that he's proud of the way Seattle police have handled the civil disobedience (so orderly and polite here in the Northwest!). Obviously you'll get a different picture if you ask anyone who has been away from their television for a moment. So I wrote in by email, asking him to respond to a situation in which a teenage girl was walking by the protests, received unprovoked blows and shoves, and was then arrested (an acquaintance of mine was an eyewitness and is now helping the girl with publicity and lawsuit- you can find more info on Indymedia). Surprisingly, my letter was read on-air. Unsurprisingly, the Chief blew it off with the usual, "well, there are procedures for complaints . . ." It did set off a chain of phone call responses, however, with people demanding more accountability and information of misconduct.

Would the real George Bush please stand down

Yesterday's appearance has also given fresh credence to outlandish claims that Mr Bush's public outings have long been undertaken by an animatronic puppet especially built for Dick Cheney in the mid-1990s.

"I don't want to eke out my life like a resource in short supply. The only selfish life is a timid one. To hold back, to withdraw, to keep the best in reserve, both overvalues the self, and undervalues what the self is."

- writes Jeanette Winterson in The Powerbook. Seems to speak to my experience these days- the disconnect and frustration.

For MSG- the American Poop Liberation Front (photograph courtesy of IG).

I found Rick's analogue.

Open Letter to God . . .

Dear God,

If you actually exist -- and I seriously doubt it -- but if you do, can you send Lee Harvey Oswald back to Earth ... preferably as a pretzel?

Thanks a bunch,
Ultra Deb

And here we are- together again.


After an intense weekend with the Js, isolation in the Sierra foothills, nourishment and tenderness from Filbert, and the U.S. attack in high gear-- I'm back home in Seattle. Time to start making sense. Time to unfuck the world.

Happy birthday, Judy.

We've determined that John, Nick and I have not been in the same room together in over 10 years (shown here). Will blog from destination.

Happy 2-Week Bday to Maddie (or "Scooter," if you're Nick), Crick and Larin's beautiful new daughter (and my god(less) daughter)!

R.I.P. Stan Brakhage. One of the most important filmmakers and visual artists of our time- he died Sunday, March 9th, in Victoria, British Columbia.

Weird stuff over here. I changed text in my template last week (including typo), and while it appears saved in edit-mode, no changes appear when one accesses the page. Anyone have any advice?

Meanwhile, in hyper-reality:

While Pentagon war planners may be gunning for an attack on Iraq by mid March, heavily armed soldiers have already quietly seized a strategic position: your Easter basket. National retailers like Kmart and Walgreens have stocked their shelves with baskets in which the traditional chocolate rabbit centerpiece has been displaced by plastic military action figures and their make-believe lethal paraphernalia.

and the shocking response:

But guns would seem to be at odds with that convergent pagan and Christian spirit of renewal. The juxtaposition is an affront to some soldiers, too. "I call that, myself, a pretty stupid insult and a slap at a religious observance," says Bruce Zielsdorf, who served 23 years in the air force and is now a spokesperson for the army in New York City. "First they commercialize one of the holiest days of the Christian calendar, and now this? It sounds like some vendor threw some stuff up on a shelf to see what would sell. I can assure you that we were not consulted on any decision to make any such Easter baskets."

A dose of optimism in a venomous week

I've been watching Howard Dean for 2004.

Arundhati Roy, writing from January's World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, insists that our fight against this war, and Empire, is not in vain, and that we can "reinvent civil disobedience in a million different ways." She writes:

Empire may well go to war, but it's out in the open now--too ugly to behold its own reflection. Too ugly even to rally its own people . . . Before September 11, 2001, America had a secret history. Secret especially from its own people. But now America's secrets are history, and its history is public knowledge.

So I keep hearing about about these supposed Bush-supporters, but I never actually get the chance to hear from one (except in the press, of course). In an email to my sister, my brother's roommate writes the following crackpot nonsense. This guy is white, straight, in his late 20s, lives in Orange County, CA, and works in finance- no wonder he thinks there's no sense in getting pissed off.

(snip)
I just figured it was something we definitely disagree on and there's no sense in one of us getting pissed off. But, since you think Republican's are yucky, here goes: I will say that I thank my lucky stars that W. is our president instead of Al Gore in the middle of all this terrorism and war stuff. Women's rights? I assume your talking about abortion, and I frankly see the argument on both sides being very strong but the issue will never affect me like it would a woman, so its not that important to me. Economic freedom? No contest, the Republicans have been champions of economic freedom while the Democrats have been the confiscators of wealth for decades...who do you think is cutting the taxes and letting American's keep more of what they earn? Civil Liberties? Not quite sure what you're specifically referring to. If you just mean the American way of life, well, I'll take W. protecting us over Gore, who would have undoubtedly tried to appease a dictator who is hell-bent on destroying America and what it stands for. And as a role model I'll take W. over Clinton, the womanizing, adultering liar. No contest there either.

Just my thoughts...try not to think I'm too yucky.

-XX

(since this was an email to my sister, I guess I should have some semblance of anonymity.)

Growl
I can’t stand it here in Seattle. It’s full of people I don’t like, which makes me feel claustrophobic (aside from the beloved CAPGAS crew, of course). In fall 96, when I arrived for grad school, I remarked to my out-of-town friends that there appears to be Valium pumped into the water. Well I’ve learned that it’s most likely Valerian Root instead, but either way the result is some fucked up neo-liberal Stepford community. Everyone seems so absolutely fine, and sterile, and passionless. Outside of the university setting, which has its own internal logic, I feel like I find myself in pretend conversations all the time. We pretend to talk about politics, or art, or this, that (and then, if I forget to pretend I’m immediately backed into the corner: “there goes mouthy again”). It just feels so uptight and mannered. I'm looking for a pulse here in Seattle- something other than complacency and smugness.

March Fourth: the only date that is also a command.





Happy birthday, Anna, and Happy Birthday Peter.

Despot or Sexpot?

In life, sex and death are two important issues that everyone must face.

But can you tell the difference between a selection of murderous, human rights-abusing dictators and some Hollwood porn legends, simply by examining their moustaches?