blogx
musings of mark since 2001

Utah Cops Attack Rave (2005)
According to the video trailer, Police in Utah stormed a rave on Saturday night, even though the promoters had all the necessary permits. Near the end of the video you can hear one of the people saying, “I think they’re serious, they got guns man!” and a bit later the sound of a gun clicking and bullets at the ready as you watch someone on the ground. Growing up, going to High School in the USA, a right of passage for us was to be invited to the beer blasts we had out in the orchards. It’s still being done today, and there always will be the problems that these kinds of events generate. Although the police did show up once in a while to remind us we were high school students having an illegal party, it was never anything like the response these kids got for their rave. I guess it’s the storm trooper outfits and the helicopter that makes it so Orwellian, kinda like watching a sci-fi movie.

There is so much political commentary that a person could go on about. Venezuela is about to be invaded after thumbing it’s nose to amerikan capitalism once again, drawing more revenues from oil to help the poor as the country moves toward a socialist economy. Meanwhile, Brazilians are up in arms after finding out that a countryman was shot in cold blood on a London Tube while doing anything but acting like a terrorist. The USA is more divided than ever with their red or blue colour codes, with us or against us factions and a Mother that brings out their Presidents’ innermost desires to be just left alone to his own agenda. Russia and China are teaming up and doing joint exercises while the US govt. prepares it’s people for the nuke on their homeland in preparation for some really big ones in the Middle East with no one sure if it’s going to happen or not, and their pres saying all options are on the table.

Meanwhile back at home, our own Provincial govt. has sold our gas infrastructure to Richard Kinder, former Enron president. The new owner of our telephone infrastructure is locking out their employees after five years of stonewalling and propaganda with their future is friendly and glorifying the wee percentage of their profits they return to the community type of advertisements. All this adds to the private pot that already contains the above, plus a large amount of the actual paperwork and billing of the govt. body itself through Maximus and Accenture, the sale of BC Rail, BC Hydro, most of the wood, and all of the cattle and oil in Alberta.

It’s always a little rocky before things smooth out though; history shows that the common man has always gained more human rights over property rights when those that wish for property, money and power get a little too greedy. In parallel, is the steady increase throughout history of the common man being able to communicate and share ideas and experiences. With the advent of the world wide web from the original Internet, our time may be seen in history as the dawn of a new, more humane day.

Although you can’t tell from the ferry cam that’s stuck on last spring, there was a typical large overload, (too many cars to fit, some stay ashore until the next one comes), with cars going up the hill to the school at 4:30.

Just about anywhere you turned something was going on, a local band was playing their brand of music at the Dog Days of Summer party and benefit for the BC Guide Dogs Association. Then across the street the Library was having their book sale, with most of the lawn taken up with tables and people milling about browsing the titles. To get there, walked by the Peir where the Lawndogs were cranking up the bluegrass all day, and after you could either take in Brenda Reid and Teun Schut doing some nice mellow jazz numbers at Crippen Park or have High Tea with Rodgers and Hammerstein where the Bowen Island Summer Choir sang old favourites like Oklahoma, Edelweiss, Climb Every Mountain, and I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair.

Blogged on Bowen looks a little different today, moved from Textpattern to Word Press for a change. Still need to add a few links to the right for the Bowen News page etc. but it’s about there.

They just keep robbing the people blind:
The money came from revenues from the United Nations’ former oil-for-food program, oil sales and seized assets—all Iraqi money. The audit did not examine the use of U.S. funds appropriated for reconstruction…the U.S.-led administration that ran Iraq until June 2004 is unable to account for the funds.($8.8 billion)…CPA staff identified at one ministry that although 8,206 guards were on the payroll, only 602 guards could be validated…

The Defense Department, which was in charge of the reconstruction effort, and former Iraq civil administrator Paul Bremer have disputed the findings. heh, heh, they will probably get a raise and a better job posting.