update

happy may day! thanks to everyone who made may day happen again this year! it seems like there is a lot of change happening with may day, but i feel like at its core, its really all about one love and thats what im about, so carry on party people!

and happy may day to all the noble workers of the world! I salute you brothers and sisters of the hard work for least pay. We do the work where the rubber meets the road. Without us, nothing happens, all you have are rich people sitting in banks and architects drawing lines on paper. Without us, things don't get put together into products, without us places go to shit! literally!

Speaking of workers, I went for a bike ride yesterday and had my walkman radio on and i heard this guy rick steves, who does travel shows for pbs, on the radio interviewing another guy, advocating for more vacation time. "what is the economy for?" he asks. i'm going to link to their page. he wrote a book called affluenza, i think. John Degraf is his name, www.timeday.org


the forum went well. much better than the drizzly previous week. it started out slow, but picked up momentum as people spoke. I have to miss next weeks, though. The JATC has a mandatory seminar up in Salem.

life goes on

liberty

Liberty is the combination of freedom and responsibility. Alone, freedom allows people to harm each other for their own gain. Only when you join freedom to right action do you produce a just society. Without justice, freedom is worthless. To understand that you are not alone is the first step on the path. Either we are all in this together, or we're not.

I just came upon this blog which had the above as the subtitle, or about the blog part. brilliant.

my letter to robert greenwald of brave new films

hi Robert,

Thanks for your email. I don't utube...yet. I think I need a faster computer. But it sounds cool, what you've been up to. So I just wanted to make two suggestions, make that three. one is: what really happened on 9-11? two is: why isn't the government supporting renewable energy more? and three: is our preparation/plan for global peak oil really going to be endless resource wars and armageddon?

back to work

after two weeks of temporary laying off, i'm returning to work today. its nice that i didn't have to get up at the butt-crack of dawn, though. i went to see an ear-nose-throat dr. this morning for an ingrown hair in my nose. thats a lot of fun, believe me! wouldn't you know it, the swelling had subsided and he couldn't find it, so i spent $30 for the co-pay for a prescription and a nose hair trim. what are you going to do? maybe it won't re-occur this time, knock on wood.

well, i don't know if i'll be able to keep up the blogging activity but i'll try. i'll definitely be at the forum unless something big comes up.

be well beloved readers

America at a Crossroads

I've been watching this series on OPB this week. Though I take it with a grain of salt (CPB's reputation is weakening as is every other government agency under Bush and Co.), I have to say that so far it has been very interesting to watch. Last night they had a piece on Richard Perle and why he thinks the war was a good idea. The best part was when talking to protestors one woman called him a wmd. I have to give him credit for going out there and meeting the protestors face to face. However, I did not find any of his arguments compelling.

how to pre-empt mass shootings

For those of you who watch the Newshour with Jim Lehrer, you know that last night they devoted the entire hour to coverage and analysis of the VTech shooting. One segment had two experts on the criminal mind. Here is the opening introduction:

JEFFREY BROWN: We turn to Stanton Samenow, a clinical psychologist based in Alexandria, Virginia. He's the author of "Inside the Criminal Mind." And Paul Viollis, he's CEO of Risk Control Strategies, which provides security consulting for corporations and educational institutions. He's the author of "Avoiding Violence in our Schools."

Check out the transcript or view the clip here. I haven't read these books, but both experts gave testimony to the fact that in these types of cases, the perpetrator has certain defining characteristics. For example,

PAUL VIOLLIS: Typically, this type of person is someone that's found as a loner, more or less the quintessential outsider, someone that's never accepted, someone who has a difficulty accepting criticism.

This person finds himself in a position where he's constantly searching for attention, constantly searching for inner control. And if it escalates to the extent that he cannot find that, it builds to a sense of powerlessness. And when that happens, typically violence is imminent.

And from Samenow, "They do have unrealistic expectations of other people. They have this all-or-nothing thinking, but that is not mental illness."

So it seems to me, that this is somewhat systemic, in that, the perpetrator goes down a downward spiral, with behaviors that reinforce each turn. Say you are this person who is an outsider, never accepted, etc. But then some kind hearted soul reaches out to you and tries to be friends. But unbeknownst to you, you have unrealistic expectations of this kind friend, and the first time they cross you (whether real or imagined/misunderstood), you respond with exaggerated anger and perhaps even violence. Well, how is the friend going to react? I know if I were in those shoes, I would get freaked out and probably not want to be friends anymore. Indeed, I would probably warn others to stay away from "you" because I think you have a screw loose. Thus, the downward spiral. Isolation and erratic behavior beget more isolation and desperation.

I think we need to develop the response-ability to recognize these situations and stop the downward spiral. How to do that? Well, I think it has to start with our hypothetical friend. The friend needs to first recognize that unrealistic expectations were held, and then not give up on "you" so quickly. Somehow, explain that sometimes things don't go exactly as we'd like them to, but that doesn't mean the end of the world, or relationship or whatever. This is definitely the tricky part.

My two cents.

test

is it possible for me to write an email that automatically posts on my blog?


Tim Kijoo Nam
Corvallis, OR
tkn317071@yahoo.com
http://timsbloggo.blogspot.com/
"We are discussing no small matter, but how we ought to live." -Socrates

---

Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car" smell?
Check out new cars at Yahoo! Autos.

Imus be missing somting?

My buddy Dan argued this weekend that Imus is not a racist, or that his comment wasn't racist. Here is my reply via email and this blog.

I've been thinking about this some, and Imus' comment seems racist to me. It seems that he (wrongly) assumed that he could get away with making an extremely derrogatory statement about african-american women b-ballers...because he's a rich white guy, indeed, a regular good-ol-boy. If that kind of thinking doesn't reflect and support an underlying feeling of superiority, then I'm not sure what does. If he wasn't fired, then the fact that he said what he said and got away with it would've meant that its okay for a rich white guy to publicly demean black people who've been systematically and institutionally oppressed for hundreds of years. He didn't violate anyone's civil rights perse, but he did cross the line and vocalize a put-down of black women, which incrementally bolsters the still-alive-and-well (as you know and I know) system of thought that says white people are better than black people, brown people, red people and yellow people.

so what if a black person said that about a white team? say, something like blond-headed whores, If Chris Rock came out and called some white women's basketball team a bunch of blonde headed hookers, would that be percieved as racist?

I understand about PCness run amok, but I don't think this is one of those cases. And as Tina mentioned, it was the market that ultimately "punished" Imus. Is this a kind of mob mentality? perhaps, but it seems a lot better than the kinds of mobs that ruled in some of the southern parts of this country.

Explain yourself man.

P.S. I'm gonna post this on my blog.

KIVA

I was inspired the other night when I saw Frontline World. They did a story on the micro-credit outfit Kiva, which connects relatively well-off folks with people who need micro-loans in other countries, via the internet. So now, I'm investing in Ivan Salinas' business, which is in Baba, Ecuador. What a great thing. Thank you Kiva! Go for it Ivan!

KBOO listeners in Corvallis

I've been tuned in to KBOO this morning and wanted to put this out here.
Let me start by saying I think KBOO is great, it airs the programming that OPB fails to air. Of course, KBOO is a Portland entity, first and foremost. I've often felt that while I support KBOO financially, I'm not really a member of the KBOO community. One reason for this is that the signal here in Corvallis is often prone to interference. Most of the time that I tune in there is static and interference from other stations. I've asked our local KBOO guru, Michael Papadopolos about this and he seemed to not know what I was talking about. My question to you is, do you listen to KBOO and if you do how has your reception been? If your experience has been like mine...you wish something could be done to boost the 100.7 frequency...lets organize. I'm thinking about a mid-valley campaign to provide more power to the KBOO transmitter with solar and wind power. Whaddya say?

RIP Kurt Vonnegut

When I saw Kurt Vonnegut awhile back on NOW (the weekly PBS show I consider must see tv) he didn't seem well. He was very skeptical of our chances as a species to get our act together which made me want to try even more. I have yet to read his latest book, Man Without a Country, but hope to soon.

Kurt Vonnegut's writing changed me for the better. I'm still grateful to Ms. Martinez, my 10th grade English teacher, who included his book Cat's Cradle in a reading list for us to choose from. Somehow I chose that book and it opened my eyes to a greater vision of the world, how it is and how it can be. His writing was so creative and different that it suggested new possibilities to me. For a few years after that, he was the only author I read. I consumed his books voraciously though I fell short of reading all of them.

Now Kurt Vonnegut's spirit has returned to the Source and though just a humble fan, I will miss him. Thank you Mr. Vonnegut for opening my eyes and my mind.

shout outs

This is another piece I wrote to say at the forum awhile back.

What a great day to be alive and kicking in the world as we know it.
So as you may or may not know, the forum here was created to be an outlet for your voices. That means anyone who is within earshot or anyone who actually cares.

I’d like to give a few shout outs today

To the mass consumers: do you really need that? And you know, I still have to insist that it doesn’t matter what kind of clothes you wear, or what your hair looks like, what you smell like, or how you get around, it doesn’t matter to me. I know it does to you but that is pure fiction. I hate to burst your bubble but What I’m interested in is what’s in your mind and in your heart.
To the media: keep trying
To the ruling class: the sooner you learn to share, the better off we’ll all be. The future will either be sustainable or it will cease to exist for humankind. To be clear, that means peace not war, that means equality of every person’s right to exist, that means justice for all and restoring and conserving natural systems not raping and pillaging them. Enough is enough.

To family: thank you
To my allies: thank you
To my enemies: I love you and wish for you the warm embrace of God.

To the people who say you can’t change things. You’re wrong. Because as you can see, change is happening. Simply by deciding that a place can exist for public speaking and meaningful expression, one exists. What kind of world could we create if we all simply made different, more co-creative decisions? It really boggles the mind.

To the people who say why bother? Because we’re here goddamit! We’re here and we can… I don’t need any higher purpose than that. If you don’t think we are capable of improvement then must you drag everyone else down with you?

American Fascists ala Chris Hedges

These are some thoughts I wrote down for the forum a few weeks ago. They refer to an article and speech by Chris Hedges. I heard the speech on Alternative Radio then I got on the web and found the article.

What Chris Hedges speech and article illustrate so clearly for me is that American terrorists are being indoctrinated even as we speak. Taking Hedges at his word, Fundamentalist Christianity is no different than Fundamentalist Islam except for the vastly superior economic and technological abilities, and world-superpower status. These terrorists hate people like us and would prefer our extinction. Perhaps coincidentally or not, these are also the same people supporting the war on terror. Taking Hedges at his word, This is a serious problem we need to recognize and deal with before its too late.

Is Hedges exaggerating the problem? What is the real number of people who believe violence is a good thing to perpetrate on non-believers? What are the real parallels between pre-Nazi Germany and now? How do you affect someone who wants to see you dead?

We need to be waging the war on terrorism, it is We The People who need to get to the root of the terrorism problem. We are the only ones who can. I don’t think we can bomb terrorism off the planet. I don’t think we can neighborhood patrol terrorism off the planet. This is truly a matter of personal belief and conviction. Terrorism grows out of religion. Those of us whose hesitation is heard as silence and then implicitly agreement, must regain our voice.

See, I believe that most people are decent and well-meaning. I believe the consensus is to follow the golden rule. Most people don’t go to such extremes. The problem is the numbers that do are increasing. The solution is for the center to pull back on the extremist views, especially when those views are held and acted upon by the leaders of our country..

forum update

well, the forum has been in existence every week since it began. Its tough to get people when your time and place are always changing. I think the only thing we have to go on, other than the strength of the idea itself, is consistency...well I take that back there are probably other things to go on, but I can't think of them at the moment.

Last weeks was a low point, to be perfectly honest. In leiu of the no-more-war march, time change at Sunnyside, and other folks not being there for whatever reason, the COF didn't really happen.

Suffice it to say that I've noticed a slight concern about its longterm survival creeping up every once in awhile. Perhaps a meeting is in order?

hollah

still here again

apparently some people do read my blog.

Here's what I just wrote in an OSPIRG letter to state legislators...(I think?)

Blogging is a lot of work. I salute those of you who find/have the time!

I urge you to support the Renewable Energy Standard, Senate Bill 838.

In my humble opinion, supporting renewable energy in general, and this standard, to be more specific, is a no-brainer. In terms of monetary investment, renewable energy will pay for itself many times over.

Indeed, I don't see why Oregon couldn't be an exporter of energy, bringing in cash flow; instead of importing it, draining our economy, as it does today. Only, instead of that income being channelled into relatively few coffers, with renewable energy production, it will be flowing into the people's coffers. Average homeowners like you and I.

Imagine a million solar roofs being like the trickles and rivulets of water which converge into rivers which we already capture with hydropower. Only with solar, it makes sense to widely distribute the point of collection.

Recognizing a limitation of solarpower and other REs, that of the variability of the sun, lends the opportunity for the next step, namely hydrogen. With the solar "river" of energy generated, hydrogen generation could be coupled to create a form of energy more dense and transportable, indeed a flow of hydrogen.

The energy system of the 21st century is sitting right there, I can see it, but we need to invest in it to make it a reality. The People need to decide that its worth investing in, and I'm one citizen who is letting you know that I affirm that our society should invest and invest heavily in renewable energy and hydrogen. By positioning ourselves now, this is the ground floor right now people, we can create and enjoy *clean* energy abundance in the future.

Thanks

report to wrench about the forum

The first ever Corvallis Open Forum was a success, thanks in large part to members of wrench. Thanks for showing up and speaking.

Granted, the numbers were small (~15), but people were respectful and it wasn't boring. We will be there again this coming Sat. from 1-2, possibly longer. (Riverfront Park close to the fountain. We are asking the parks department for permission to move to a shadier spot.)

So here's my synopsis.

I spoke first, about why the forum, what I'm curious about, that kind of thing. Dan was next with a heartfelt rendition of a dreadfully sorrowful tune on the accordian. Then people started expressing their political views and after the lone republican spoke, a back-and-forth happened, between the republican and everyone else. In other words, mr. republican sustained a barrage of questions from the crowd and deflected them by reason of not having enough time.

Which reminds me, for those who were there, but didn't fill out a questionaire, is three minutes good, too long or too short? Any other suggestions, comments?

Anyways, I don't know if I can make it for pizza and beer this week, but I'll try if its on.

Tim

pfb post forum briefing

the first forum was a success. Not an overwhelming success, but a success nonetheless.
We pulled it off. We didn't sink, bog down and no one got hurt.
A few people other than the organizers showed up, the majority of which were members of wrench. I counted at least 12-15 total. Anyways, the group is psyched and ready to invite more members of the community for next week.

There was one fellow who introduced himself as a conservative republican. It seemed to me that the others lobbed a few too many questions at this brave fellow, but everyone was respectful and it seemed like everyone who wanted to speak was able to speak.

corvallis open forum

My speech for the forum due to launch on au19 2006 in corvallis, or:
Actually, I haven't timed this version, so if its not under three minutes I'll have to edit or speak more quickly.

Greetings fellow citizens of the world, neighbors, friends and family,
Hi, I’m T, one of the organizers of this space.
Thank you for your attention and for being here for something experimental.
So, what are we doing here?

Well, a problem as I see it, is that there is a severe lack of civil discourse in the culture of America. This nation was founded from a culture of town hall meetings, congresses, conventions and otherwise real democracy where real debate occurred. And from the increased number of viewpoints being suggested, truly great ideas emerged. E Pluribus Unum. From Multitudes, One. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Today we’ve become of culture of closeted bloggers and choir members and preachers; we stay in our respective camps, we’re so polarized we’re coming full circle on some issues. But that’s not counting the legions of completely apathetic folk, of course, you know, the people lost in tv land (I know because I used to be one).

Too long have we accepted the notion that the two subjects one should never discuss in society are religion and politics. There are no more important subjects to discuss especially with people with a different viewpoint. We need to get back to the roots of our Nation to deal with the problems of the 21st century and take democracy to the next level.

Now, if the idea of a civilized, open, public forum intrigues you, realize that all it really takes is an audience of participants. And that audience will here every week until it starts raining at which point we’ll find an indoor location. I for one, hopefully among others, or unless I get gunned down, will be here to listen to what you have to say regarding your view of the world, whatever that may be. Be forewarned that I may not agree with you but I will do my best to express my views as respectfully and honestly as I can.

What is a problem as you see it? What should be done about it?
What is real? What is illusion?
Who are you? What is your story? I don’t care how low or how high you are on the supposed ladder of success, and I don’t care what you look like. I believe we’re all the children of God, worthy of respect, and call me what you will, but I want to know. And I have a hunch that you have a lot to say. Furthermore, I suspect that we have much more in common than we’ve ever experienced.

And I hope to meet you, hear you, and debate ideas with you very soon.

Thanks again for your attention.
With that, I humbly yield the box

renewable energy

I’m against nuclear energy. I’m against creating hazards that last for many millennia and that require the most advanced technologies to manage. I think there are other, safer ways to create energy. Take solar energy for example. People say solar isn’t worth it in Oregon. I say it is. The more we invest in solar energy here, the closer we are to becoming net exporters of energy. Don’t think about the rain in the winter, that’s what micro hydro power is about, think about all the sun in the summer. We get a fair share, believe me. Right now, we just use it to heat up our roofs, making us get air conditioning and use more energy. We’re wasting a valuable resource, the light from the sun, by leaving our rooftops bare.

To be sure, it is a significant investment, especially for a single household, but we’re investing in so much more than electrical power. An investment in renewable energy supports the natural world, homeland security, the local economy, the health of citizens, and of course, manufacturers of renewable energy technologies, a business we should think about getting going here. The ONLY harm it causes is to the big power producers, the giants, the titans of industry, and don’t you think they have enough already? And don’t bring up the stockholders, unless we do an actual head count of all the people vs. all the people who own shares in Megagiantconglomerate money sucking corporation.

Am I wrong?


It’s not like we’re saying everyone should own a Cadillac power supply. Its more like saying everyone should own a pickup truck that gets the gas milage of a Toyota prius. Something useful and efficient. And if that takes public support at this time, then the side benefits make it worth it.

Well money’s tight, I understand. Especially with all the sacrificing we’ve been doing to support our men and women overseas. If we want our troops home, we should tell the government/military/industrial complex that we don’t need cheap oil. We should cut demand. All antiwar people should start synchronizing and systematically reducing petroleum consumption. Ride a bike to save the life of an American GI.

norovirus

apparently there has been a norovirus outbreak at OSU. norovirus gives one nausea and diarrhea, among other symptoms. I don't know if I have norovirus but my gut feels a little imbalanced. Haven't puked yet but had the runs the other day.

I'm going to try to affect the outcome by chalking it up to too much popcorn and pop.

Went to see the Da Vinci Code last night. It was fun to watch and remember the story, but of course the book was much richer in detail.

So, I don't really see the big deal about whether or not Jesus was married and had children. Like most religious questions, its something that can be argued about indefinitely. I do recognize the effects of the oppression of the sacred feminine in our society and civilization. We seem to be dominated by (mostly) white males.

Here's an idea that just flashed into my head. a direct action of bowing and scraping to some person of elite wealth. I mean, really people, we had come so far from the dark ages where lords lorded over the land. Do we really want to go back there? Didn't the geniuses who founded this country say everyone had a say in how the pie gets sliced? By demonstrating the true relationship of social classes perhaps people will think twice about the reality of the situation as I see it. Which is to say, the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. I'm not blaming them perse, they seem as much cogs in the machine as anyone else. Looking at the situation from a different perspective, as a system, the capitalist system inevitably tends towards ever concentrating control of capital. It is the nature of the beast. What was great and is great about socialism* is that it is the People, standing up and democratically saying, "its time to restore the balance." "Not only is our population obese, but perhaps our economy is obese as well." "And while we're on the subject, we need to talk about how much growth is too much growth and whether or not increasing growth indefinitely is a wise policy."

*this word was considered for edit due to fear of government surveillance and/or political retaliation but re-instated out of disdain for cowardliness and too much foolhardy optimism/courage? and faith.

Socialism is not Communism ala Soviet Russia. Socialism is as American as apple pie. People, working people in America have led the world in improving the position of the worker in the capitalist economy. I believe that individuals should be able to have a brilliant idea and profit from it in a free market. But I also believe that we live in a society and we are not in the dark ages again. Its time to wake up people. Its been time for awhile now.

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOAOAOOAAAAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!

WAKE UP America!