Sugarpoet

The Battle for My Shredder's Soul

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:48:00 +0000

Recently, my beloved privacy bodyguard, a crosscut medium-duty shredder from Staples, died. The product was still in purgatory (or maybe on life support) until last rites were finally performed when the customer services representative at Staples said that the product was no longer under warranty (1.8 year old product, 1 year warranty) and it would not be worth it to fix the poor thing. I asked, dutifully, if Staples recycled their short-lived shredders and the representative replied curtly, "No." I hung up but continued to battle for my shredder's soul in an email to Staples. Their reply:

"I appreciate the time you have taken to contact Staples, Michelle. I am sorry to hear your Staples Shredder is not working properly. Staples shredders are backed with a 1 year full warranty and a 10 year cutter warranty, which is the similar or longer than most competitors warranties, so I assure they are not made to be a throw away product. Unfortunately Staples does not currently offer a recycling program for shredders specifically. However it may be able to be recycled under the technology recycling program."

Of course, Staples' technology recycling program does not cover shredders (which I guess are not technological enough to qualify). Additionally, they charge you ten dollars to voluntarily get rid of their waste, which I find outrageous. Never mind that I spent a $100 on a shredder that lasted less than two years (with shockingly moderate use I might add) but now I have to throw my unfortunate office product onto the heap, where it will still be in a 1000 years. Why, Staples, why?

Why the Iraq War Still Matters

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:28:00 +0000

All the talk about Iraq these days, what little of it there is, briefly alights on the fantasy of the surge and departs as if Iraq is a one-dimensional issue, like abortion or gay marriage, that can be addressed through a simple declarative statement. Before the surge, most Americans no longer supported the Iraq War and thought history would judge it a mistake. Now despite its ongoing costs and continuing bloodshed, albeit decreased from a year ago, Americans seems to view Iraq favorably, or more likely, not at all.

First off, let's not forget about, as Sarah Palin might say, "the" death. There has been a lot of it, surge or no surge, to little or no effect. They think that about a million Iraqis, including the 500,000 that died in the Iran/Iraq war, died under Hussein's 2- year rule. But there are estimates that put the Iraqi death toll for our war at 1,220,580. The American military's death toll is 4,174 and we have had more than 8,000 serious injuries. The war has cost more than $650 billion and may cost two trillion more(it costs us $430 million now every day just being there). As to decreasing terrorism worldwide, there is something known as the Iraq effect which is basically an overall increase in not only attacks but in the number and strength of terrorist groups - it's only a matter of time before we suffer another attack here (remember there were 8 long years between the attacks on the WTC). All over the world we have lost our good will and our partners in resolving conflict; even in Iraq, they want their supposed liberators out, out, out. According to a recent Gallup poll in Iraq:

"71% of Iraqis said they think of the coalition forces in Iraq mostly as occupiers and just 17% said they think of them mostly as liberators."

There is no justification for not ending this war in a timely, and if possible, responsible, manner. Even if the surge reduced Iraq's violence, we are still over there, spending good money after bad and sending young Americans sometimes to an untimely death. What qualifies as victory in a situation that never should have been in the first place? How can we leave if all the political will in our country is focused on toxic mortgage securities? Why do Americans care more about a middle class tax cut then about a war we recklessly launched, incompetently waged, and interminably conduct?

John McCain wants to wage perpetual war for perpetual peace, but he is a warrior and war is all he knows. We need a man of peace, one who thinks before acting, one who considers changing conditions in the world when formulating policy positions, and one who is willing and able to restore honor to America. I just wonder if we will choose what we need when we are always so focused on what we want during the thirty seconds of advertising between scenes from Survivor.

We need to keep talking about Iraq during this election. Forgetting about a war does not make it disappear. Tell them we won't die or pay for George Bush's hubris anymore.

Ourselves, Our Daughters

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:27:00 +0000

I wrote this to swing voters in Missouri and Ohio on behalf of Planned Parenthood:

I have a 20-month old daughter and the outcome of this election is very important, on so many levels, not just for me but for her. I worry that if our country elects another anti-choice candidate like George Bush, which McCain is, he will continue the relentless replacement of federal jurists with men like Samuel Alito and John J Roberts. The may overturn Roe v Wade, and possibly Connecticut v Griswold, and God forbid that my daughter is in a position in 15 or 20 years, while these jurists still control the courts, that she cannot obtain safe and legal reproductive health care. I worry that my daughter will not have access to birth control, when the time comes (hopefully later than sooner!), because McCain and Palin will staff the FDA with fundamentalists who will block reproductive medicine, not based on science but on their wrong-headed beliefs. And I worry that despite what I teach her at home, her classmates will have no idea how the reproductive system works or how to prevent themselves from derailing their lives in high school because McCain/Palin think that teaching about abstinence is the only kind of sex education that is acceptable. So I worry, and I cross my fingers for an Obama presidency in 2008. Not just for me, but for my daughter.

Bring Your Baby to Work Day

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 22:09:00 +0000

I just posted this comment on a Motherlode (new parenting blog on the Times) post about the two presidential candidates' positions on national family issues:

Clearly, most businesses do not believe that child care, flex work schedules, maternity leaves, and other similar programs that benefit mostly mothers are in their interest. I wonder exactly how John McCain intends to convince businesses, especially small ones, that they should pay for these programs themselves when the benefits are no doubt remote and indirect? Most companies see workers as fungible and discount the cost of turnover, so arguments like "give a woman maternity leave so that you don't have to pay for replacing a valuable employee" is unlikely to be effective.

Any benefits of the Family & Medical Leave Act are social and macro (unlike addressing the health insurance issue, which has a direct impact on any given company's bottom line) and therefore require government intervention. Especially in this economy, we cannot leave such a sensitive issue up to companies that will be tightening their belts and shedding employees anyway. The critical aspect of expanding these programs is how to do so in a cost-effective manner that will not hurt corporate competitiveness in the global marketplace and will not cost the taxpayers more when we are already saddled with so much debt.

As for the family values of the particular candidates, parading a special needs baby at crowded, brightly lit event after event is a pretty clear indication that Sarah Palin does not think women need assistance in balancing work/life (heck, have the baby on the plane if you have to!). McCain never noticed his wife's prescription drug habit, though she was charged with the care of their very small children. Ambition first, family last.

Who Says 'Shout Out' During a Debate?

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 04:33:00 +0000

I posted this comment to the blog entry "Palin Meets Test" on the New York Times:

She sounds like a hometown little league announcer - I fail to understand the media's love affair with her "style." Her constant use of colloquialisms and that terrible scripted Midwestern lilt is soooo irritating. I am beginning to think her hilarious but disastrous performance in the Couric interviews was a ploy. The McCain camp knows she has reasonable political debate skills - meaning she knows how to obfuscate and evade where she does not understand and like the question, speak forcefully if insubstantially, and spin stock phrases over and over again - and wanted the bar as low as possible to create undue enthusiasm for Palin post-debate. The media, as usual, just goes along. They probably feel bad for "mistreating" her after the Couric catastrophe (correct me if I'm wrong, but those were Palin's words that sunk her during that interview, right?). (Sigh). Nothing ever really changes. She embarrasses me as a woman and an American. It's like she thinks she's running for head cheerleader.

Conversations in a Red State

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 04:32:00 +0000

Below are some random musings from an email that came out of a (rather heated) conversation with the unnamed relative about Barack Obama's crazy pastor versus Sarah Palin's crazier pastor, Sarah Palin's own pre-wedding pregnancy, Palin's views on choice, and her position on the overfishing problem (hint: she doesn't think there is one, really). PS - I added a few more notes and links than exist in the original email, which I thought I would mention just for sake of truthiness.

The Reverend Wright versus Wasilla Assembly of God Thing

A lot of socially important black people in Chicago belong to Trinity Church (which is Church of Christ, ie Congregationalist, which is predominantly white nationally) - Oprah belonged for some time as well. Wright follows something known as black liberation theology, which was developed during the Civil Rights era to draw blacks from the Muslim faith back to church. I personally am not a fan of this philosophy but feel that most evangelical thought - on abortion, gay rights, sex education, evolution vs creationism, etc - is much more scary because it actually has an impact on our laws.

I agree that Wright is a nut but I don't think Obama adheres to Wright's nuttier beliefs whereas Palin does adhere to the nuttier beliefs of the Assembly of God congregation. Pastor Ed Kalnins, who has been a friend, mentor, and minister to Palin all of her life said after her assumption of the vice presidential candidacy, "She will take our message to the world!" According to Salon, a pastor named Howard Bess said of her,

"The evangelicals were trying to take over the valley. They took over the school board, the community hospital board, even the local electric utility. And Sarah Palin was in the direct center of all these culture battles, along with the churches she belonged to."

Obama did eventually resign his membership officially in May but I think he had not really attended in some time because he apparently was not present for those incendiary sermons which have so angered everyone (Obama was in Florida when Wright damned America). Palin also resigned her membership in the Wasilla Assembly of God (which is a division of Penetecostal faith) but has maintained a close relationship with the church. No one has asked her to renounce them despite the fact that pastor Ed, "preached that critics of President Bush will be banished to hell; questioned whether people who voted for Sen. John Kerry in 2004 would be accepted to heaven; charged that the 9/11 terrorist attacks and war in Iraq were part of a war "contending for your faith;" and said that Jesus "operated from that position of war mode". (from a Salon article about Bess and Palin).

Like Mother, Like Daughter

BTW, Palin eloped in 8/29/88 and her son was born in 4/20/89. That's less than 8 months - oops! Dubious that he was conceived on the day they were married and then born prematurely.

Feminist for Life?

Also, her views on abortion are as follows: Palin has called herself "as pro-life as any candidate can be"^[176] and has called abortion an "atrocity."^[177] Palin supports a constitutional amendment to make abortion illegal in all cases, including rape and incest,^[178]^[179] except if the life of the mother is endangered.^[180]" Her views on sex education aren't much better, but at least she will allow discussion of birth control (whatever that means).

All the Fish in the Sea

With regard to commercial fishing as in all things us versus Mother Earth, Palin deprecates science and environmentalism: "I do not want to see us return to the days when ADF&G (Alaska Department of Fish & Game) decisions were based too much on science promoting environmentalist politics." Basically wherever someone wanted to protect wildlife or fish stocks, she would attack it as "personal agendas of federal fishery managers."(Interestingly, the source document for these quotes used to be located at www.palinforgovernor.com/Position%20Papers SarahPalinOnCommercialFishing.pdf is no longer available).

I Think I'm James Carville

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 03:10:00 +0000

I filled out a survey for the Obama campaign today and said this in the comments field:
I think the campaign should focus on the historic twin pillars of American culture - sacrifice and innovation - that will heal our economy and environment, and reposition America as a global powerhouse. Forget about critiquing McCain & Palin - leave that to us bloggers - get back to Obama as an active positive. Remember, Kerry mostly ran as the anti-Bush and look where that got us. People need more than "I am not like him," they need "I am a leader." And Obama has everything a great leader needs in spades: an inspiring, articulate rhetorical style; an easy grace with others; intellectual curiosity and a lightning acumen; and a commanding presence of body and mind. That is why I chose him over Hillary Clinton in the primary - even though it broke my heart not to vote for a woman - because I believe he has the stuff to beat McCain and remake the American presidency into an institution of which we can all be proud once again. I love Obama - let everyone else love him too.

The No Twilight Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 19:38:00 +0000

Faced with a bizarre barrage of odious press releases, emails, backroom comments, and rally speeches from the McCan't campaign, Jason, James, and I decided to launch a blog to discuss our mutual nausea (and hopefully provide some relief to ourselves through expiation). From now on, all political sugarpoet posts will go onto The No Twilight Zone as well (anything baby, musical, opera, or tech-related will publish solely on sugarpoet). Progressives and pragmatists, give yourself a big hug...visit notwilightzone.blogspot.com for some regaling rants and snappy snippets on the race of our lives.

Misery, Thy Name is Sarah Palin

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 03:52:00 +0000

Sarah Palin...governor to a backwater state, mayor to a backwater town, lover of lipstick-smeared dogs on ice, hater of polar bears, one-time media darling and scourge of America. As a voter, my penultimate question to Palin (after asking first, "Why are you here?") is "Why do you hate women, and especially mothers?" Actually, this is more of a question I would put to the Republican Party. Palin claims she can balance her newborn special needs baby with first a cross-country no-holds-barred presidential campaign and then one of the most demanding positions in the world (and possibly the most demanding if McCain's 72 year-old body does not hold out). According to an aide, Palin fuses mothering with governing:

�She�ll be with Piper or Trig, then she�s got a press conference or negotiations about the natural gas pipeline or a bill to sign, and it�s all business,� Ms. Burney, who works across the hall, said. �She just says, �Mommy�s got to do this press conference.� �

By holding herself up as both the paragon of motherhood and the ideal state executive, Sarah Palin is essentially saying that both are not full-time jobs. She is insulting stay-at-home mothers, some of whom have sacrificed career and money to care for their own children, day in and day out, twenty-four hours a day. She is also insulting working mothers, who must daily battle exhaustion, guilt, and separation anxiety in an uneasy compromise between two jobs. And finally, she is insulting women who have forgone motherhood for careers, a great sacrifice in its own right (Condoleeza Rice comes to mind as an example). Take it from someone who tries to do some piddly consulting work here and there and take care of a perfectly healthy and wonderful eighteen-month old - you cannot work and take care of a baby at the same time without the assistance of another caregiver. You cannot balance the baby on one knee while you balance the budget. You cannot breastfeed while composing important legislation. You cannot resolve the Georgia-Russia crisis during naptime. You cannot take care of baby at the very same time you are doing something else, because caring for a baby is full-time employment.
Please somebody tell Sarah Palin to stop holding up her position as a working mother as a qualification for the highest office in the land. Whether it's her knocked-up teen daughter or giving a speech while her water breaks and then waiting to fly back to Alaska to seek medical treatment, or her plundering of tiny Wasilla's budget or trying to use her clout to get her sister's ex fired (and then getting caught), aka Troopergate, she's not doing well at either the mother or the governor thing. Maybe there is a woman out there that can manage a family of five with one still in diapers, and learn how to lead an entire nation with a complex bureaucracy, a squabbling Congress of an opposing party, a multi-front war, an economic crisis of deep and scary proportions, and many rogue nations itching for a fight. But the woman who could balance these monumental tasks is not Sarah Palin. To say that this feat of the imagination is even possible for her is a grotesque lie and an affront to women everywhere.
The pig has lipstick and the lipstick is a really ugly color.

CAP is up!

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:19:00 +0000

And running. Finally, I can get my life back! Want to see what all the fuss is about? See Citizens for Animal Protection's new site at cap4pets.org. Joomla 1.5, Groundspring for donations and email marketing, EventsList for calendaring, etc.

Baby Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 19:47:00 +0000

Below are lists of baby stuff - one of items I appreciated during these last harrowing months and one of the not-so-appreciated. My perspective is one of cash-strapped, pseudo-environmentalist, space-limited obsessively-attached new parent. Loved and Liked:

Slings and Carriers - Ergo Baby Carrier (great as a backpack for later), Wrap Slings (especially for the beginning because your baby is small and testy and wraps let you carry her in a variety of positions) - look at kangaroocorner
Toys - Whoozit and Whoozit Water Mat from Manhattan Toy, Lamaze musical inchworm, Musical Shakers from International Playthings, Edushape Blocks, Early Years Stacking Cups, Children's Factory 4 x 4 mat (so they don't bang their head learning to crawl), little things to chew on that are easy to clean and you stuff in a diaper bag (like the Bristle Buddy or plastic keys), rubber duckie
Baby Books - Anything with textures (Fuzzy Bee, Zoo's Who, Dog, Quack Quack, B is for Bear), A Picnic with Monet, The Art of Colors, Colors by Priddy, Olivia, Why is Blue Dog Blue?
Parenting Books - Our Babies, Ourselves (this changed everything for me), The Baby Book, Baby 411 (good in the beginning to quickly look stuff up)
Hygeine/Medical - Mustela facial wipes (for their gross neck cheese), California Baby sunscreen (no PABA), Burt's Bees Shampoo Bar, Red Cross nail clipper, First Years aspirator, Feverall suppositories (check with doctor before using)
Feeding - the Medela Pump-in-Style pump, Playtex Drop-ins 4 oz with slow nipple, the Boppy pillow, Bebe Au Lait nursing cover, freezer bags (Lansinoh or Medela), Svan high chair
Clothes - Gap (best fit for larger babies and wear very well), Under the Nile (organic)
Linens - Swaddle Designs organic receiving blankets, fleece or lambswool pads, Under the Nile organic burpcloths, hooded towel
Diapering - Diaper Dekor diaper disposal system, Seventh Generation diapers (these are sized quite a bit more trimly than the listed weight indicates), Burt's Bees diaper rash ointment, 4-sided changing pad (need straps to come from underneath pad rather than from the top of the pad - I also recommend getting a cover because baby waste tends to erode the vinyl), travel diaper mat
Strollers - a fold-up stroller like the Maclaren for the subway (you may not need this for a while if your baby remains lightweight - mine got hefty fast) and a substantial stroller for the long walks which will form the basis of your only exercise for months (I like the Bugaboo, which is expensive but has high resale value and is really good for when they're first born because it can be used in place of a bassinet)
Carseat - SunshineKids convertible carseat (even if you live in NYC and have no car, you will have an occasion for a carseat and this one folds, will last their entire childhood, and can go on an any airplane but it is heavy)

Not so much - I get a little preachy here, please forgive me but I have nowhere else to put negative energy these days:

Arm's Reach Original Co-Sleeper - if you decide to go with co-sleeping, try having the baby in the bed with you first. Then if that doesn't work out, put them in the bassinet of your big stroller or the crib in your room. Abby wouldn't sleep in the co-sleeper and it's really a separate surface anyway, so you might as well put the baby in a crib or bassinet if you can't have him or her in the bed with you.
Baby Bjorn - I used the Bjorn a lot for a couple of months but you can only use the carrier for a short time because of the weight window and it's pretty expensive.
Wipe Warmer - these things are a stupid waste of energy (plus they have a filter in them that gets really nasty) - baby does not need warm wipes.
Ring slings and pouches - I found that Abby, because of her reflux, would not lay on her side in a sling after she was a couple of weeks old. Wrap slings or rebozos really allow so much more flexibility for positioning that once you get the hang of tying them, they're much more useful than rings slings or pouches.
Infant car seat - these contraptions are completely useless after eight months if your baby gains weight rapidly (as mine did) - better to get a convertible with a body pillow if you really need to have a car seat.
Crib bumpers - even if you use a crib, crib bumpers are a waste of money, albeit often a beautiful, irresistible one, because they have to be removed at six months (they can use the bumper to climb out of the crib). The dust ruffle is a necessity for some cribs where the bottom part of the crib is all machinery.
Wooden blocks - Baby is virtually guaranteed to strip the paint off the blocks within seconds once teeth start arriving. Maybe the paint is non-toxic, but it's disconcerting to see green paint chips on your baby's tongue. Besides, baby probably won't stop at removing the painted surface and will continue on into splintering the wood. Much as I hate plastics, plastic blocks are the way to go for a real mouther such as my kid.
Baby gyms or entertainers - I know people love these but I feel that they take up a lot of space, are fairly unattractive, don't hold much sway with baby for long, and are a substitute for entertaining your baby yourself (which is not the anti-thesis of fun I always thought it would be).
Expensive clothes - they grow out of and utterly ruin everything in two seconds. Buy everything on sale and not far in advance since you may not be able to predict their growth well.

Abigail Rose

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 23:48:00 +0000

From Getting Big

You may have noticed that I haven't posted anything to this weblog in like...a little more than nine months. Interestingly, that amount of time neatly coincides with the amount of time it took me to bring Abigail Rose into the world. After nine months of nausea and vomiting, and nearly twenty hours of labor, I finally delivered a healthy 6 pound, 13 ounce girl on January 30. As I recently told a friend, Abby is adjusting to life on planet earth and Jason and I are adjusting life on planet Abby. She of course has her own website and blog at abigailrosenyc.com - hopefully she will be a more prolific blogger than I.

Sex, Lies, and Brochures

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Mon, 24 Apr 2006 20:58:00 +0000

Today I participated in the Planned Parenthood Campaign Against Fake Abortion Clinics by sending the following letter to my congressional representative. You can support the campaign too by going to Planned Parenthood and filling out the email form.

I am writing as your constituent to urge you to support H.R. 5052, the Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act, sponsored by Rep. Carolyn Maloney.

Abortion is a legal procedure that the majority of Americans support. Unwanted pregnancies are a serious social problem, particularly for low income and working class families. They reinforce the cycle of poverty, contribute to crime and abuse, and create an enormous, but entirely unnecessary, roadblock to women's equality. These so-called crisis pregnancy centers want to silently undermine women and families, in the name of moral and religious principles that have no basis in fact or law. CPC's are not legitimate providers of health services, and are violating FTC, HIPAA, and other trade, privacy, and consumer regulations by giving patients non-medical, scientifically inaccurate propaganda without providing services advertised. Furthermore, they receive government funding, and because these groups often have religious affiliations and purposes, they are breaching the constitutionally mandated division between church and state. Crisis pregnancy centers use practices that are unlawful, unconstitutional, and un-American. Please support HR5052 and help women get the information they need to make an informed, conscientious decision.

Why is it so hard to photoblog?

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 20:21:00 +0000

So I can send emails to my blog, but not pictures from my cell phone. Just when technology gets you a little closer to everything you want in life, it bitch slaps you and says, "Not!"

Wars Bush Doesn't Want to Fight

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 18:34:00 +0000

There are a lot fights to pick on this planet (and apparently, we should call everything a "war" because there's that lovely imagery of a violently, fiery death so important to propaganda). But the war on consumerism is one fight for which Georgie Porgie is not itching. According to Thomas Friedman in this week's op-ed, that's because Bush is a sissy. Sadly, I know many of you out there will not be able to read this article, so I'll just quote liberally:

As we enter 2006, we find ourselves in trouble, at home and abroad. We are in trouble because we are led by defeatists - wimps, actually. What's so disturbing about President Bush and Dick Cheney is that they talk tough about the necessity of invading Iraq, torturing terror suspects and engaging in domestic spying - all to defend our way of life and promote democracy around the globe. But when it comes to what is actually the most important issue in U.S. foreign and domestic policy today - making ourselves energy efficient and independent, and environmentally green - they ridicule it as something only liberals, tree-huggers and sissies believe is possible or necessary. Sorry, but being green, focusing the nation on greater energy efficiency and conservation, is not some girlie-man issue. It is actually the most tough-minded, geostrategic, pro-growth and patriotic thing we can do. Living green is not for sissies.

As usual, nameless relative and I do not completely see eye to eye on the problem (though at least we agree that environmental degradation is a problem). His/her response to the article is along the usual Republican fault line (no pun intended) of personal responsibility:

I quickly reviewed this and do agree with him. Our mayor in his inaugural address asked that we practice conservation -- it was the centerpiece of his speech. Also even Bill O'Reilly continues to make a big push about conserving energy and has asked that people not drive on Sundays. Is anybody listening to these people? At the end of the day it does not matter what our leadership says -- it has to be a personal effort that each person takes on. I am beginning to see more and more people getting rid of their SUV's and buy station wagons. While not huge that is a step in the right direction. I drive very little so it does not matter. Having no commute really saves on energy.

While I agree that a personal effort on every individual's part is very important, we need vast changes at the national level if we hope to rescue ourselves from our impending predicament. Recycling here and there and not driving one day a week is not going to do it. Most people need to be taking public transportation or walking in most of the country - right now, very few places have the infrastructure in place to accomplish this. Agriculture uses incredibly unsound practices to deliver a boatload of food that Americans do not need (in fact we throw away millions of pounds of food per year). Protien sources are all too cheap - if all beef indisutrialists used natural techniques (grass-fed cows raised to full maturity before slaughter, no hormones or anti-biotics, free range), beef prices would skyrocket and people would eat less of it. Same with grain, milk, eggs, pork, etc. Consumer packaging, particularly of food (even organic stuff), is incredibly wasteful. The food we make contains highly addictive elements like corn syrup, which means that people will consume much more packaging and eat more calories than is necessary (also making themselves fat and paradoxically malnourished at the same time). Cities allow for too much suburban expansion - suburbs are land-intensive, cannot avail themselves of high-density infrastructure, encourage wasteful behavior (lots of storage space which means people will collect more stuff, use of lawn care products and too much water, etc). We have all these electronic devices that contain mercury, lead, PCD's, and dioxin that we just dump willy-nilly, whether here or elsewhere in the world. Manufacturers are never responsible for disposing of all the waste from which they profit - some companies, like HP, have taken it upon themselves to recycle or reuse things like ink cartridges, but it's not mandatory which means most companies won't do it.

The bottom line is that we have a consumer-based culture from which the individual citizen cannot be expected to substantially escape on his or her own. If there is a massive information campaign about conservation and individuals do not respond, then conservation laws are our only choice (imagine if we said, we leave it to your conscience whether you can steal from or kill your neighbor - some people wouldn't take anything or wouldn't kill, but quite a few people would). One method for imposing individual conservation is gas taxes, but we can't implement high gas taxes unless we give people an alternative method of transportation. Also, companies must be held responsible for their own waste, period. If they cannot make products profitably when paying for the true costs of manufacturing these products, then we don't need the products. For instance, drink manufacturers should be responsible for reusing or recycling their drink containers, instead of a city or a locality having to dispose of them (this would force manufacturers to come up with innovative ways to reduce their waste creation and it would also increase prices, which might reduce consumption). With regard to gasoline use, many companies relocate out to the suburbs, which causes some incredible commutes. Therefore, companies that want to relocate out to the suburbs to save money on facility costs should pay a commuter fee, which could be calculated on the number of workers they have. And we should make it extremely unprofitable for car companies to make SUV's - right now, the converse is true. The Hummer should not even be legal.

At our current rate of burning up the planet, whether in a few decades, or a century, there's going to be an apocolypse of a fashion, except without any rapture, and those of who are left will be living like Mad Max. But even if we accept that our past dooms us (and most of us naturally do not accept this proposition), we can slow down our demise significantly through conservation. If women with ovarian cancer can suffer through a course of incredibly painful IP treatment for an additional 16 months of life, we can all find the courage to build some subways, dismantle our outlying suburbs, reduce the availability of junk food, regulate our agriculturalists and manufacturers more heavily, and maybe even get rid of some of our cars for a few more years of humanity's existence, right?

All About Broadway II

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Mon, 14 Nov 2005 17:31:00 +0000

A continuation of my reviewing binge from last entry. And PS to the person who is hacking sugarpoet.com - that's not cool!

6) Sides - An almost funny insider comedy down at the Bleeker Street Theater, Sides both appeals to and repels the producer, writer, casting agent, director, and perhaps even the actor. The joke of the confused and incompetent auditioner, ridiculous dialogue and plot, politically incorrect casting agent, and bizarre director is funny but starts to wear thin after, oh, five minutes. At first, you think to yourself "It is so like that!" Then you realize Sides is saying that everyone in the industry is a talentless hack with no sense of artistic integrity. The play ends with a musicalized version of Medea with dancing, silver lame costumes, and a strobe light. Admittedly, many a production induces the query, "How did this find a backer?" (see the below review). And while Sides is funny enough not to elicit this sad question, one is left with another, "Where's the hope?" If you're making fun of something you do, there always needs to be hope, otherwise there's no point in making fun.

7) In My Life - I can honestly say that this is the worst new musical I have ever seen. And I have seen virtually every new musical hoisted on off-Broadway and Broadway this season. The production values are incredible - they spent a lot of money on this stinking pile of horse manure. The plot is ridiculous, the theme is Hallmark dripping with Sweet n' Low, the performances are mediocre bordering on summer stock, the costumes and scenery overblown, and the music....The lyrics, melodies, and terrible underscore are perhaps the most suicide-inducing of any musical written...ever. At some point, I could no longer muster the courtesy clap. Needless to say, we left before the bows (the belatedness of our exit owed to the lack of intermission). If you value your sanity, save your money for Spelling Bee or even Wicked. And if you've seen those shows, stay home and watch some TV. There are commercials that have more artistic integrity than In My Life.

8) The Great American Trailer Park Musical - A product of last year's NYMF, this outrageously funny and fun musical is down at the magnificent Dodger Stages, which has provided a great (albeit subterranean) space for off-Broadway shows. Though shticky with no central dramatic thesis (at least not one of apparent value), the shtick is entertaining and even a little risky. The vocal performances and comic delivery are so outstanding that you barely notice the derivative and banal nature of the rock score. The set is rather ingenious with trailers that open up to form a strip club and other trailer park niceties. If you're looking for something to do that will leave you (temporarily) without a care in the world, Trailer Park is a good bet.

9) Slut - Slut is a traditional love story masquerading as some kind of Gen X morality tale, with drab and repetitive rock music.

10) Nor'mal - For the duration of the show, I felt like I was sitting in health class, suffering through yet another dramatization of some current scare among parents of teenagers (in this case, anorexia). Dressed up in metaphoric garb and bizarre staging, Nor'mal is a Lifetime movie with ordinary musical theater songs inserted every ten to fifteen minutes.

All About Broadway

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 09 Nov 2005 06:59:00 +0000

Actually, these shows are all off-Broadway, but you get the idea. I've recently seen a whole slew of musicals and plays - the ones in this blog entry have closed. Look to the next entry for those that are still up and running. Here are some brief reviews:

See What I Wanna See - Warning: this review is from a letter to Michael John LaChiusa and is ridiculously effusive about the work. "Today I saw See What I Wanna See at the Public and was, am...astonished. Each element of the show perfected and enriched the other: from the mellifluous, layered richness of the musical landscape, to the warmth and intelligence of comedic and dramatic moments, to the fluid, easy movement from scene to song. The intellectual depth, yet emotional authenticity of the piece is still working its way through me. The beauty of the song shared between Kesa and Morito, and the sheer power of the cantata-like last ensemble number are like electricity in my circuits. I feel changed somehow."
Miracle Brothers - Nice idea, about peace and promoting brotherhood among the races, but then nice ideas often have a way of coming off as a little too PC, which was the case here. The performances from the male lead and several of the female performers were exemplary and the sets were serene, the choreography explosive. But overall, a disappointment.
In the Wings - let us never speak of this again.
6 Women with Brain Death - part of the NYMF's assortment of musicals, this fun series of shorts all (or nearly all) revolving around a light feminist theme, entertained, though not perhaps as smartly as it intended. The music was not particularly memorable (except for the opening number) but was funny and enjoyable. All six women delivered admirable performances despite numerous demands made on them by the strange staging, prop use, and seemingly gratuitous costume changes.
The Tutor - alas, this work tried hard, lurching out of the gate with several nice numbers in the first act and an achingly "authentic" and heartfelt theme, but ultimately failed to keep me entertained through the second act.
Dr. Sex - I felt like I was watching the Pajama Game or the Music Man with semi-nudity and adult themes. If you think that's a compliment, this is the show for you.

lovesick auditions

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 15:11:00 +0000

James Jannucci and I are holding auditions at the end of August for our new musical, lovesick. lovesick is a musical where passion becomes pathology and desperation becomes a license for radical transformation. The main character breakdowns are as follows:

Julia Fine (female lead) � female in her mid 20's - early 30's, alto 1 � soprano 2; she is a smart, sarcastic, aspiring singer/songwriter who becomes obsessed with her former lover David Bloom.
David Bloom (male lead) � male in his mid 20's - early 30's, tenor; a womanizer, he is funny and sexy but darkly manipulative. Guitar is a plus but not necessary.
Amy McCallister � female in her mid 20's - early 30's, soprano; she is Julia's best friend but has a relatively sunnier disposition and better luck with the opposite sex.
Dr. Elizabeth Kent - 20's to 50's female with educated but somewhat over-articulated speech; she is Julia's pretentious and secretly judgmental therapist.
The Guru � vague European accent, tenor; a seriocomic role, he is a "doctor" who performs radical brain operations on women to transform them into perfect objects of desire.

Actors may submit pictures and resumes to casting at iamlovesick.com or through Actor's Access. See our website, www.iamlovesick.com, for more details.

Letter to Karl Rove

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 18:01:00 +0000

In response to Karl Rove's indictment of all liberals on 9/11, New Democratic Majority asked members to share our stories of that day. Here is mine:

On the morning of 9/11, I had a job interview scheduled in the World Trade Center and was sleeping in. My husband came rushing in to the bedroom, said the towers were on fire, and turned on the television. Because we were living in Hoboken at the time, I could look out my window at my former workplace and glimpse the top of the twin towers. Neither one of us had seen the planes hit and had no idea that this was a terrorist act until the news showed the Pentagon in flames as well and replayed the plane crashes in New York. At first, like so many others, we were in shock and then desperately tried to get in touch with people we knew who worked there. I watched the towers fall from my window and to reflect on that most vivid memory today brings tears to my eyes. I still remember the stillness of that day - the clear blue skies interrupted only by the column of thick black smoke spiraling out of downtown. The hurt and the horror were so profound, people who have lived in and loved New York all felt a deep sense of violation, grief, and outrage. And I will always remember that smell, the smell of burning plastic, flesh, and metal, that permeated the streets of New York and Hoboken for weeks and weeks. Even though I knew no one who died in the attacks, I hardly spoke for the next week and often cried. Our entire beloved city was in mourning.

We moved back to New York shortly after 9/11 and through some people still talked of a "different attitude," mostly I noticed that we New Yorkers, always a hearty variety of Americans, had returned to our lives, perhaps with a renewed sense of purpose and respect for the city that had given us all so much and suffered so greatly. Though many of us wanted to punish the individuals and groups responsible for attacking us and killing so many innocent people, we also wanted to understand the hatred from which these desperate acts sprung, not to console the attackers but to prevent more from coming and doing even greater harm. And after knowing the pain of having your buildings and your fellow citizens crushed under the weight of some other people's anger, we were hesitant to inflict the same pain without absolute certainty.

New York is the essence of America. Ellis Island is the point of origin for many American families. We are the great melting pot, the cauldron of nations, the world's second home. To call us unpatriotic in our hour of need, because we did not want to become like our attackers, because we act from a place of reason and justice rather than jingoism and vengeance, is grotesquely libelous on the part of people like Karl Rove. I am not going to say he's un-American for there have been many Americans who have used our fears as a weapon against us. And while we have been Karl Rove's America and may continue to be under the stewardship of him and others like him, there is a better America, one of proud diversity, constant innovation, equality of opportunity, and freedom of personal expression. That is our hoped-for, best-of America. That is New York.

Musical Theatre Festival Call for Submissions

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Wed, 22 Jun 2005 04:14:00 +0000

"WARNING: Not For Broadway" is an annual festival of new musical theater and opera works -in-progress. Richard S. Bach, a Dixon Place board member, initiated the festival in 2001 to open doors to emerging and established musical theatre creators trying out unconventional pieces. "WARNING: Not for Broadway" seeks new and unusual works that combine story with song; whether the story is non-linear, from a rarely heard voice, about a controversial subject, or the song is all electronica, hip-hop, or even barber-shop quartet.

Submissions will be accepted until July 12, 2005 for the upcoming fall festival in late September, early October. The length of the work can vary anywhere from ten minutes to one hour, and we encourage you to submit works-in-progress, or newly completed work that has not yet been produced. Please include in your submission: a cover letter describing your piece; length of work; technical requirements; CD, video, or link to website with audio or video of the piece itself or recent original work (if available); and short bios for you and collaborators.

Send completed submissions packets to:
Michelle Feldman
Dixon Place
258 Bowery, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10012
RE: WNFB
Or send via email with link to songs/music: michelle_at_dixonplace.org

Dixon Place, a home for performing and literary artists, is dedicated to supporting the creative process by presenting original works at all stages of development. Visit us at dixonplace.org to learn more.

Anguilla: Isle of Sartre

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Thu, 09 Jun 2005 21:40:00 +0000

Anguilla (pronounced "Angweelah"), a small eel-shaped island not far from St. Martin, is the ultimate destination for the existential experience. No meaning, no cultural, ecological, or historical education, no self-advancement. Just toes wriggling in powdery pearly sands, aquamarine waters curling over supine bodies, and trade winds gently ruffling hair, billowing linens. Oh sure, we played tennis every day, went kayaking, sailing, and snorkeling, took some cooking classes, and pretended to swim for exercise. But moving in the Anguilla dimension mostly translates into a heightened sense of pure being. One returns to the city, grateful for the coconut-crusted parrotfish and quickly dissipating tan, with a sense of what it means to live in the moment, of how to just be. See our pictures of paradise here.

The Politics of Prurience

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 01 Apr 2005 17:05:00 +0000

The "culture of life" is a misnomer - this arm of the Christian right-wing (more like the entire body of this loud-mouthed ideological faction) should operate under the title "culture of prudes." Not as catchy, perhaps, and certainly not as humanistic or grandiose, but much more a propos. Stem cell research is not about protecting the "weakest among us" but about recriminilizing abortion and hopefully, for many social conservatives, a whole slew of currently legal and rampant practices. The gay marriage amendment is not about shoring up an institution that divorce has thoroughly ravaged - outlawing gay marriage is about preventing men from doing you know what with each other. Stopping our activisit judiciary is not about checks and balances, but about stamping out any hope people have for intimacy without significant government interference. Terry Schiavo is not about the "culture of life" versus the "culture of death" - Terry Schiavo is about abortion. And abortion is not about defining life, abortion is about sex.

Why at this late date, with Brittany Spears running about half-nekked, three-year-olds parading down runways in makeup and slinky numbers, and every other show on Fox revolving around sexually active teenagers and their adulterous parents, would anyone bother with the politics of prurience? Maybe the response is "better late than never." Others might say the movement is a backlash for our three decades of glorious (and sometimes painfully confusing) freedom. But I prefer to think of the Christian Coalition and their brethren as the last gasp of old-time religion. Oh sure, they control the legislatures, executive branches, and wide swathes of the judiciary. Rest assured these folks are on their way out and this is last hurrah. How can I be so cocky (no pun intended)? I watch television. I see movies. I pass glossy magazine covers in the grocery store. Sex sells and what sells in this country wins.

These tight-pantied old prudes may get their legislation passed, reversing decades of progress in women's and civil rights. They may even get a whole Supreme Court chocked full of their brothers in arms. But they cannot stop people from having sex where the end goal is not reproductive. If you ask me, they should blame God for this. God (aka Nature) made us this way - made us want to have sex all the time, whether we are ovulating, infertile, too old or too young (and yes sixteen is too young to have a baby in this culture). The sexual revolution is natural, though perhaps not orderly. Nobody beats nature, not even humans, with our fancy pants smarts, high tech gadgets, and medical wizardry.

Nature's bitch-slaps - the tsunami or global pandemics - are generally pretty spectacular. So why do we keep messing with Nature? Instead of constantly carping on what is "right" or "wrong" according to the doctrine of a bunch of primitive folks running around the desert 4,000 years ago, we should try to figure out the true way of things. Maybe if Republicans would learn to get with the Tao, their policies would make more sense and they would no longer look like a bunch of hypocritical hooligans. And maybe, just maybe, if we stopped talking and fretting about sex, if we did not freak out and bristle at the mere mention of the word, we might be less interested in the whole topic, develop a healthier approach, and get on with our lives. After all, shouldn't a "culture of life" be first and foremost about living? So let's stop making every little thing about sex and live a little.

Bizzaro Land

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 19 Nov 2004 16:47:00 +0000

Dimensions have shifted. A rift has opened in the fabric of the time-space continuum. Worlds are colliding and universes are inverting. No, I have not suddenly developed an abiding interest in quantum mechanics. I am a blue state professional living in a post-11/2 world. And that world is one in which almost nothing, politically speaking, makes sense. I almost expect Ralph Reed to start working for Planned Parenthood and Clinton to join a Fransiscan order.

Since Ronald Reagan , the Republican Cabal has wisely induced working and middle class voters to vote against their economic interests through the incentive of so-called moral values. Though the choice is not necessarily advisable from a financial perspective, I suppose one can understand why some vote with their hearts and not their wallets (even if their hearts are wrong and their wallets can scarcely afford the mistake). And for the wealthier classes, trending Republican made even more sense (even if in the long-run they're financially better off with a high-functioning economy, no matter what their tax burden, and besides, no amount of money can buy civil liberties). The marriage is not made in heaven, no matter what Bob Jones might have you believe - moral values do not feed and clothe children and the din of the proletariat evangelicals is bound to rub the rich the wrong way eventually. Still, we could divine, and perhaps even respect, the sense, the cosmic order, of this union, however short-lived we hoped it to be.

Many progressive professionals, who had something of a financial disincentive, at least in the short run, in voting Democratic, believed that at the very least the Republicans would not harm us financially, and that we were standing up for those who were less fortunate and who needed greater support from the state. Not only are we not going to benefit in any way from George Bush's re-election, but our tax burden will increase, in some cases to a very large extent, and we may even lose our health insurance. I am not talking about the deficit or some distant future in which we resemble Argentina or Indonesia, after our currency and our market tank. The future is here in the form of a massive tax code overhaul in which the only winners are the idle rich and the major losers are professionals who derive almost all of their income from work (rather than investment), live in states with high state and local income taxes (which is virtually everywhere but Texas), and have employer-provided health care. This means you.

According to the Washington Post, the administration is stepping off its flat tax or national sales tax scheme and moving to:

"...push major amendments that would shield interest, dividends and capitals gains from taxation, expand tax breaks for business investment and take other steps intended to simplify the system and encourage economic growth."

And now the part about you:

"The changes are meant to be revenue-neutral. To pay for them, the administration is considering eliminating the deduction of state and local taxes on federal income tax returns and scrapping the business tax deduction for employer-provided health insurance."

The sky is not blue, Rush Limbaugh is not a big, fat idiot, and the Republicans have become the party of tax and spend. Under this new cosmological infrastructure, I am not a limosine liberal but a fiscal conservative. I guess Bush is showing us what political capital really means - the power to upend the natural order of things. He never did like science anyway.

The Real Meaning of Rock the Vote

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Thu, 11 Nov 2004 18:11:00 +0000

I know I've been an absentee blogger for some time now but I promise to do better. In fact, America could do better (wait, where have I heard that catchy phrase?). But then, despite our possibilities, we continue to disappoint left and right; well, maybe not so much on the right, but definitely on the left, middle, up, down, so on and so forth. The election results immediately caused shock waves to ripple throughout the progressive community; we were humiliated and grief-stricken. I went through all five stages but then reverted back to my favorite stage: anger.

From whence this anger? For the second time in a row now, a former frat rat and his rag-tag crew of hawkish corporate evangelicals (was there ever a stranger combination?) have stolen the election from the Democrats. From the get go, I did not believe the election results were valid and there is some credible evidence coming in from various fronts that this is not an insanely paranoid notion. While Kerry may not have been the warmest guy on the planet and he had some problems with PR late in the campaign, he surely did not cause more than half of the country to vote for the worst President ever (ala Comic Book Store Guy). Some of the rednecks, the stupids, and the bible beaters, sure I can see that, but fifty one percent?

The numbers do not lie but the media does, even if the lie is by omission. According to the Washington Post, although rumors and innuendo about a fallacious vote tally are flying fast and furious around blogs and bulletin boards, there is no "solid" evidence to support the allegations. Invariably, big media does not support a particular story, so political bigwigs don't buy in, and the two run in little circles around each other until they have effectively buried the story.

Wild-eyed leftists did not suddenly concoct the notion of massive electoral fraud to explain away a valid victory for the other side. This story has been brewing for over a year and the major papers thoroughly documented likely issues with the 2004 vote, especially with electronic voting machines. Both the Washington Post and the New York Times have published numerous articles on early problems and security faults with the machines, built and run by Republican contributers, now installed in so many counties. In fact, Diebold just settled a lawsuit with California over broken machines that disenfranchised thousands back in March and one machine in Ohio racked up 3,893 votes for Bush though only 600 people voted in that district.

The fact that the machines make mistakes and are paperless is of grave concern, but the ability to change votes from within the machine, when the data is transmitted, or even on the server that receives the transmissions, is even more frightening. According to one source,

"A manipulation mechanism was found hidden in the Diebold central tabulator. A two-digit code creates a second vote set, which in turn cues the voting system to read the totals from the bogus set of votes."

Altering votes once they have reached the server, regardless of how the votes entered the system, in many instances is also a snap. The "server" can be a regular old Windows PC, where one can dip into any of the files, say even the database of the Diebold tabulation software, and alter the data. Ask Howard Dean how he lost to Lex Luthor.

Disenfranchising voters does not require technology. Texas denied the vote to a relative of mine this year when he applied for an absentee ballot and was turned down because he requested that the ballot be sent to his home, rather than an address outside the county. I know that my relative's story is only one of a thousand even more aggregious stories.

Maybe now that MoveOn has called for an investigation, the media and Democratic leaders will grow a pair and officially uncover the latest in a long procession of hostile and sometimes criminal acts against the American people and the world. After all, if a democracy is based on one person, one vote, then surely we have failed as a democracy. How can we light the way of nations if we are ourselves lost?

The Original Landscape: Alaska's Inside Passage

noreply@blogger.com (Michelle) — Fri, 10 Sep 2004 08:15:00 +0000

From Alaska 2004

At the end of August 2004, Jason, my parents, and I journeyed to Juneau to experience what may prove to be, given the state of our environment, a once in a lifetime glimpse at America's last wilderness. We discovered a seemingly untouched landscape, so verdant and pure that one almost forgets the lengthy list of mercury-contaminated fish, litter cluttering our sidewalks, and exhaust choking our skies. Alaska is a place of natural beauty that astonishes at every turn - from young island mountains exploding from the glassy green seas, to the rush and roar of tidal glaciers calving and melting, to towering cedars sternly guarding primeval forests thickly blanketed in ferns, to wind-sculpted aquamarine icebergs that only hint at their great depths below the water's surface.

As amazing as the landscape is the wildlife of Alaska. To see that great glossy black of the humpback whale arch, and that wide tail cascading water in sheaves, is to enjoy a state of grace, if only momentarily. The soaring white and black pattern of an orca's underbelly, the antics of a hundred sea lions, the pure Darwinian madness of silver salmon rushing to spawn and die (hopefully in that order), the majestic flight of a bald eagle to its aerie outpost, and the coy stretch of a speckled harbor seal, looking for that stray bit of sun before swimming for its dinner - these are scenes that only Alaska's Inside Passage has performed for me.

And the last people to have truly known and loved this land are here too - the Tlingkit, the Inuit, the Aleut. They have steadfastly held on to their wisdom, their ancient arts, and even some of their practices to the benefit of this state. Perhaps this is projection, or even just wishful thinking, but I felt that the native peoples of Southeastern Alaska know the secrets of those dark and teeming waters and they are the last, best hope for this arctic paradise.

See our pictures of this amazing place - you can almost taste the clean air.