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Democracy Archives

We will only realize the true dream of democracy when all of us -- corporations, politicians, consumers, and private citizens choose to participate fully.

September 11, 2011

9/11/11: A Decade of Breakdown and Renewal

A decade ago, a 25 year old in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, I remember driving over the Manhattan bridge, seeing the smoke coming from the first tower, and thinking what idiot crashed some small plane into the World Trade Center.

In the hours and days that followed, I remember feeling the amazing shared sadness across New York City. It was both the worst of times and best of times, when our individual experience became shared across worlds.

What if we had chosen peace?

No where was this sense more prominent than in Union Square, where a memorial emerged and there were intense conversations about what our response should be as a nation. For that first week, I remember thinking, "What would be possible if the United States chose to take a deep breath and choose a non-violent response to this act of terror?"

Eli Pariser had started an email list called 9/11 Peace that gathered hundreds of thousands of email addresses of those calling for restraint and peace. Imagine a 21st century defined by such a profound choice inspired by Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Henry David Thoreau, and one of the original crew - Jesus of Nazereth.

Radiohead Idioteque: This is Really Happening

Of course, the Bush administration chose the more expected and less inspired path, which led a team of us to create the video below, inspired by the prophetic Radiohead song Idioteque, which we completed in November of 2001.

Now a decade later, reflecting on my time away from ground zero, having lived internationally in France, Singapore, and London, and now based in San Francisco, I still feel deeply connected the New Yorkers and others who have felt the impact of war over these years.

We Have Always Been at War, Our Time to Rise

Because I grew up without experiencing any violence towards me, I know it's naive for me to tell those impacted by war to choose peace. But the recent movements across the world, particularly the true non-violence leadership in Egypt, give me hope in the face of the institutional breakdown and extreme weather. I offer the song below as a tribute to those continuing to build.

The first inspiration for the song below came the night of 9/11, on the promenade in Brooklyn Heights, where I experienced New Yorkers singing together outside for the first time. Over the years, as I continued to listen to both old and new voices of those impacted by war, this song has continued to evolve and grow. This morning, on the tenth anniversary of that day, I put the finishing touches on the lyrics and finally discovered the name of the song, "Our Time to Rise."

For all of those who felt and continue to feel the sadness and loss that comes from acts of war and terror, and all of those who are building towards the dream of a world that chooses non violence, thank you and keep building.

Posted by Colin | Permalink | Comments ()

January 12, 2009

Where does our garbage go? - Letter to London City Council

For a potential project I am exploring, I searched online to try to find out where the garbage that I throw out in city garbage/rubbish bins goes.  The best information I could find was article in the Guardian called "Following the rubbish trail," but it was from 2004.  I wrote an email to the author Leo Hickman, but so far, no response (I'm sure he busy on new articles).

So I asked my housemate, a proper Londoner where she would look, and she pointed me to the city councils.  After a quick google search, I found the newly organized London Waste & Recycling Board, and sent the following letter to the contact person listed.  I'll let you know how it goes.

--
Hi,



Thanks for the work you do for the city of London.  I used to live in
New York City, and London is definitely a much cleaner city.  As
someone interested in environmental issues, I have become interested in
finding out more about the impact (positive and negative) that I make
with my daily life and choices.



One specific piece of information I haven't been able to find online is
where the rubbish is taken that I put into the public bins around the
city.  Do you know where I would be able to find out?  While I'm
intersted to know where it all goes, the buroughs I am more interested
in are my home burough of Hackney, as well as Islington, Camden and
City of London. 


Any information or contact information for the right person to contact would be very much appreciated. 



Cheers,

Colin

Posted by Colin | Permalink | Comments ()

October 19, 2008

Great Video - "Vote for Hope" by MC Yogi

Obama '08 - Vote For Hope from MC Yogi on Vimeo.

Posted by Colin | Permalink | Comments ()

October 5, 2008

Politics of Participation - Podcast with Robert Stromberg

The second 'active conversation' of the 2nd season of the activefree podcast is with another college friend Robert Stromberg, , who I knew as a media activist man of action back during college at Duke and more recently visited in Knoxville, TN during my Free Culture tour in 2005.

Our phone conversation, recorded back July through FreeConference.com (unfortunately the quality of the audio is less than ideal), covers some of his background working with the Barack Obama campaign on the ground in North Carolina, and why he thinks that the approach of the campaign, if successful, may result in more long term participation than previous campaigns.

Download from the podcast.

Photograph "Thinking Obama" thanks to cfrye6395 via Creative Commons Search.

Posted by Colin | Permalink | Comments ()

September 11, 2008

Beyond Lipstick, Please - Letter to MSNBC

Hi,

I am a concerned voter. It is 2008. This is a historic election where our country is facing major challenges about how we choose to take responsibility for ourselves and our people, how we interact with other countries and cultures, and how we choose to impact the current and future changing climate and ecology.

And yet again, the conversation on stations like MSNBC is spending nearly a full news day bringing guests onto national television to discuss a comment about lipstick.

Yes, there is sexism and racism in our culture. But this election should not be about catch phrases that Barack Obama or John McCain say, or who is looking like a better candidate to win this week. It should be a constructive conversation about what's important to our citizens and our country.

Today's conversation reminds me of what John Stewart said to Tuck Carlson on Crossfire a few years ago applies to you as well: "You're hurting America."

As a citizen and consumer of your content, here is my request to you. Please lead and take responsibility for the conversation that you create on your national television station that millions of citizens and families watch every day.

Thank you,
Colin

Posted by Colin | Permalink | Comments ()