In case it hasn’t been obvious for some time, I’ve all but shuttered this blog.  I just don’t have the time to post enough to make this project real to me, if that makes sense.  I would be interested in some kind of group-blogging situation in the future, so feel free to email me about that.

I am also working on this sort of leftist housing networking site — radical crib – but the site goals & functionality are still both a little broken.  If and when that project comes together a bit more I’m sure I’ll return to talk about it at length.  Anyway.

If you came here expecting something exciting to read, this may strike you as quite a bummer, so let me suggest you head on over to the ‘ol blogroll for some choice content.

So Long.  Thanks for all the fish.

Today, as I left the metro a woman was asking for money for food. Not uncommon. Less common: she was accompanied by her 5 year old (? — I find it impossible to tell the age of children. My observations can’t get past: small, disproportionate), who had very large eyes. Then:

She asked, “Spare some money for food?” and the person behind me said, “No. But I will call Social Services to come pick up your child.”

“Fuck You.”

“I’m going to call Social Services since you can’t feed your child.”

The woman paused, then walked to the elevator where we all enjoy an awkward ride up out of the station.

Now, I’m willing to admit that there’s some moral complexity with regards to the children of extremely poor folk. At what point should one give up their child for a “better” life? At what point should the government step in and “take” children away? Certainly food, shelter, and safety form a bright line that there’s probably consensus about. And it’s possible that my subway woman had crossed those lines, and she probably should have access to a social worker for assistance if nothing else.

However: I don’t think begging in and of itself should be grounds to take a child away. Entirely possible that said child had been fed and a bed for the night at a local church was lined up, but woman had not eaten. Or needed money for job interview clothes (my strong case). Or for beer (my weak case, but not actually an illegitimate purchase!). Moreover, hanging out in the subway asking for money: not particularly dangerous. So cursory look at the situation suggests hard-luck case to sympathize with, not vile child abuser to scorn.

But no: must call child protective services. Of course, given that SS does not have a rapid response guerrilla division, and I would only be able to direct SS to “go check out the Hollywood Metro,” and on top of it all the chances of me actually calling are about one in a million, this is all just posturing.

You see, I’m so annoyed that you, a poor person, would have the gall to ask me, ‘innocent’ bystander in your poverty, for money and thus make me feel guilt at my own tightfistedness that I will threaten to break up your family. That’s just how I roll. Asshole.

I feel like I should end my story by saying how I gave the women money/food to make this recitation serve as some sort of behavioral model. Or I could say that I didn’t do anything to help, admitting my own complicity, and by extension that of everyone who reads, given that we all participate in this classist society. But neither feels right. I’m not comfortable with my character as either holy or fallen.

Instead: a plea. I don’t have a solid opinion on the quantity and frequency of direct small-sum charity you should engage in. But sure as hell, harshing on beggars is fucked up. So don’t do it or I may have to punch you in the face.

Update: Someone is already doing this in The City.  Clever Hippies.

Mostly, I don’t understand how there could possibly be so much variation  in the first-person shooter genre.  I mean, you’re basically (only?) holding a gun and shooting things; how different can electroquake be from ezquake?

All this to say, why not a lefty SimCity that has mixed use and biking?  Is that a tax on the coder strategic reserve?

But really: setting most of the snark aside, unless you live or work in an unreinforced masonry building, you don’t have much to fear from earthquakes.  Codes now require buildings to be able to dissipate a lot of kinetic energy (read: break) in the event of the Big One, and they definately probably won’t fall on your head most of the time.  Of course seismic engineering is largely empirical so it suffers from all the usual problems of trying to extrapolate from a curve set to a small historical data set, meaning it’s predicitive value is something less than awesome.

There’s a reason they write a new building code after every major earthquake…

…and the youtube primary continues to go to Obama in a landslide.

Would that be just awesome?

Or,

Would it be the most brilliantly awesome thing in the history of humanity?

I really just can’t decide…

La Live by Gensler

It’s not often you see a building get larger as it goes up. Something to do with physics…

On the plus side, this is my first project by a popularly known architect (the blank stares that come with saying you’re consulting for DMJM just aren’t as fun).  And I would rather work on interesting projects than, say, parking garages.  Still, when the office joke is that you must have done something to piss of your boss, you have to be a little wary.

The great American electorate continues to befuddle me, so I have no idea what happens in the matchup against McCain (and Nader!), but I’m cautiously optimistic…just like I was in 2004.  Shit.