Last post I left you as we turned in for the evening after a soggy, but delightful day spent in the San Juan Mountain Range.  We had set up camp at point [3] and after debating re-locating each night, elected to use it as a set base camp for the duration of the trip.

Friday morning was cold.  Not just frosty, but legitimately cold enough that dragging ourselves out of our sleeping bags was difficult. The first order of business was a fire and breakfast. Unfortunately, the lions share of the coals we had buried from the night before had burned out, so with a few muffled grunts and curses we eventually managed to light the semi damp twigs we’d gathered and before long had a decent sized, albeit smoldering fire going.  As soon as the fire was burning steadily and there were a few coals we quickly set to cooking a delightful, if salty spam breakfast. Unfortunately, our first attempt - taking the can of spam and just tossing it in the fire - didn’t work very well, forcing us to fish it out with sticks, open it up, and carve thick slices out, which we then cooked with a flat piece of tinfoil on the grill attached to the fire pit.

[5] - Before long we filled up our water bottles and set out.  After staring at the map for a good 10 minutes we decided upon Priests Gulch for our first hike. Located a few miles down the road, I harbored fond memories of the trail and small stream running along it from a few years back. The drive to it was easy and painless, and before long we’d turned off on a small overgrown gravel road and found the trail head. A small parking lot/meadow sitting besides a wooded stream, the dandelions were in full bloom and to our relief the area had escaped the previous day’s snow.

We strapped on our bags, took a minute to look at the map at the trail head, and then had a brief conversation with an elderly gentleman who was up from the Sun City area and the only other body to be seen. He offered up a few suggestions and tips for the best hike and following his advice we set off. Despite several small inclines the hike was generally fairly easy.  The biggest obstacle for me was probably the altitude. The greater Phoenix area sits at about 1,000 ft. The trail we were hiking was approximately 7,000 ft higher than my norm and the lack of pollutants in the air was definitely offset by it’s thinness.  That said the crispness and virgin freshness of the mountain air was incredible.  Living in the city, I think two of the things I miss the most are clean air and being able to see the stars in their pure vibrancy at night. you see the smog, smell the subtle undertones of pollution, but it’s not until you get away from it all and get a whiff of pure mountain air that you really realize just how bad it is.  In the valley if i take a deep breath and try and hold it I’ll cough. In the mountains, after a few deep breaths to purge my lungs, I could not only take a deep breath but hold it without the associated coughing fit.

PHOTOS HERE

I mentioned that the dandelions were in bloom, but not only were they in bloom they were prolific, dotting the mountain meadows in a sea of vibrant yellow, supplemented by the occasional wildflower bloom. In the throes of spring all of the grass was a healthy, rich green, and the aspens were all sporting fresh leaves. To add to the experience the day was perfect.  With hardly a cloud in the sky, it was a beautiful 70 something degrees and ideal for a hike.

After hiking for a mile or so along the path, I found a spot where the water was flowing slightly slower and decided to toss my fly in and try my hand at a little fly fishing.  To my disappointment the small stream I remembered from past visits, was still swollen with runoff and snow melt turning it into a murky, fast moving stream making it both impossible to spot fish and extremely difficult to find good areas to fish. Eager to enjoy the moment as much as anything, I persevered and after managing to catch my fair share number of trees, we continued on our way up the trail.  The boys were wonderful about pausing and patiently waiting for me as I tossed my line in at various points along the trail. Not to mention helping me fish my fly out of a low hanging tree or two.

The aspen were beautiful, with their fresh leaves and clean scent they sprung up in the midst of the smaller meadows, while the majority of the trail was shadowed by large pine trees all putting off a wonderful, if subtle strawberry vanilla scent.  Eventually, we reached a point in the trail where the swollen stream had swallowed the ford forcing us to make our way down the stream until we found a fallen tree we could use as a bridge. After crossing we elected to trade the trail for a sightly more rugged, but more natural deer path that traced its way along the rivers side. It took us through beautiful meadow after beautiful meadow, through thickets of oak, and under beautiful pine trees before finally being forced to re-ford the river, this time on a much more precarious tree bridge.  Fearing for our lives, we all made it across in one piece - no small feat I assure you.

[4] - Tired and starving we piled back into the car and decided to make the trip back into Dolores.  Just over a day in we’d already realized that we had drastically underestimated the cavernous extent of our highly metabolized hunger.  As we approached Dolores, we were shocked to find traffic at a near standstill. The cause?  A cattle drive - down main street. There were cows and bulls of all sizes leisurely meandering their way down the road.  Traffic slowly inched forward through the herd, moving at the whim of 1,000+ pounds of pure muscle.  In total there were about 6 cowboys/cowgirls managing the herd, though they were obviously in no hurry to move things along.  The whole experience was pretty comical and loads of fun - there’s nothing quite like sitting in a car, waiting for a cow to stop trying to lick it’s own tail or staring out your rolled down window as a huge bull ambles by at eye level and less than a foot away. Thank god the car was silver and not red!

Once through the herd and into Dolores proper, we stopped at an old restaurant (The Ponderosa) I’ve been going to with family for as long as I can remember. The whole place is the epitome of a small town mid-western restaurant and loads of fun.  The food wasn’t quite as good as I’d remembered, but still satisfied our burning hunger and left us more than content. After finish our meal we made our way to the local market - a small affair the size of the bakery in most major supermarkets.  There we stocked up some bare essentials, and I picked up a few fresh pork chops for the fire later that evening.

Once back at the camp and settled in, we relaxed, unwound, and I decided to take my pole and try my hand at the one or two small eddies/fallen trees located along the river near our campsite. Up to my knees in the freezing cold snow melt I finally had space to really cast comfortably and was able to knock off some of the rust and re-hone my flymanship. Before long I got a fantastic strike, but failed to land the fish, which unfortunately turned out to be the only strike I had during the entire trip.  I’m still not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing given Lander and my pact to try and make fresh sashimi out of whatever trout I managed to catch. Cold, wet, and a little frustrated with myself I made my way back to the camp and the campfire where the boys and I spent the rest of the evening drinking, telling stories, and singing odd songs.

[6] - Every bit as gorgeous as Friday, Saturday was bright, sunny, crisp and clear. After repeating Friday morning’s breakfast ritual we geared up and piled into the car.  Our destination? Lizard Head Pass and trail head, located about 30 miles north east of our campsite, past Rico but not quite to Silverton or Telluride. The pass itself is at about 11,000 ft with peaks surrounding it soaring closer to 14,000 sf.  The drive from our campsite up to the pass was a gorgeous one.  The small two lane highway winds along the Dolores river, as it makes its way up the valley through aspens, spruce, and pines.  The dandelion filled meadows were also common.  The air was amazing, and the whole experience liberating.  The drive in and of itself was amazingly relaxing and almost meditative. As we slowly wound up the valley the leaves changed, the air grew slightly cooler and significantly thinner and eventually we found ourselves traveling through small patches of snow.  Luckily, given our timing the majority of the snow we had encountered Thursday when trying to reach Sharkstooth had melted in the lower areas of the high peaks, leaving periodic drifts and green grass in its wake.

Unlike the lower elevations, springs first touch was just starting to be felt in the pass.  Where the cabbage like plants had been well on their way to unfurling during our adventure around Transfer and during our Priests Gulch hike, they were small buds just breaking the surface in Lizard Head Pass. The trail we took wound up and away from the road toward the backside of mountain and offered a beautiful view of Trout Lake, located on the far side of the pass.  The trail itself showed minimal signs of traffic, and I think it’s safe to say that we were only the 2nd or 3rd group on it in several days.  Despite the warm weather and general lack of snow, there were still deep snowdrifts across the trail in numerous spots.  These drifts rose out of the soil, often perpendicular to the trail forcing us to scale the 2-6 foot gentle slopes, at times sinking all the way to our knees before descending the other side and returning to firm ground.

The most comical part of the trip came in the form of a hidden stream.  The stream, presumably fed by snow melt, had carved a small tunnel about 2 feet underneath the surface of one of the snow drifts. As I paved our path I jumped from the top of the drift down into what looked like a safe lowered area and proceeded to punch through the 2 feet of snow and down into the 3 inch deep stream. Thankfully my foot hit the water and I immediately pulled it out, leaving it damp but not drenched.   What made the whole thing that much more comical was when Dan following directly on my heals, misjudged the distance needed to avoid the stream and punched a second hole down into the water leaving his foot drenched.

The rest of the hike was wonderful. The views, sounds, and general energy of the wild mountain peak was liberating.  After a few miles we paused to rest on a giant scree field, before turning back and returning to the car.  Once back at the car we drove the mile or so down the far slope of the pass to Trout Lake, where we paused, relaxed, and took in the amazing mountains that surrounded us, soaring into the crystal clear, blue heavens.

On the drive back down to the camp site we paused for an hour or so just north of Rico for PB & J sandwiches and a bit of fishing.  The area we stopped at had the look of a perfect fishing spot, the river opened up and split into a number of small, shallow channels winding down over the rocks and through the trees.  To my amazement, frustration, and general dismay despite the look of the area I still was unable to so much as spot a fish. Again the weather, snow melt, and proximity to memorial day weekend no doubt played a major role.

Once back at the campsite we fell back into your routine.  Collecting damp driftwood to dry out and burn, cooking dinner, a little fishing, a little drinking, and lots of stories and singing. Added to the mix we spent a good hour playing with our cameras and taking long exposure shots.  The best of which were neon-light-esque shots in which we set a 15 second exposure, then took burning sticks and spelled out words and names in the air.

When Sunday morning came we broke camp early, ate a quick breakfast, and somehow fit everything back into the car before making our way back to Durango where we dropped Lander off at the airport.  From Durango we began our long trip back south. Despite the barren nature of the drive there is some amazing country.  The area about an hour north of Flagstaff in particular always amazes me.  The bizarre, eroded hills look more like martian terrain than something of this earth. That wraps up the trip.  I hope to have more to share soon.

I was going stir crazy.  I’d been back from Europe for five and a half months and was in desperate need of a change in scenery.  Lacking the time off and finances to schedule a trip abroad I focused on locations closer to home, within driving distance. The downside was it was a quick fix, the upside was the proximity meant I got to spend quality time with several of my best friends. In early May we started looking at our options.  Before long we selected the San Juan Mountain Range which surrounds Durango and is a few miles north east of Cortez in Colorado.  Google maps told us that each leg of the trip would cover some 450 miles.

By the end of the planning stage there were 4 of us able to make the trip. Nick, Dan and I would meet up in Prescott before driving up from Arizona, while Lander would fly in from Montana and planned to meet us at the Durango Airport. Eager to maximize our time I headed north immediately after getting off work. By 7 we were on the road to Flagstaff and by 10 in the evening we were somewhere in the middle of the desert in northern Arizona. The drive was fun, if a little cramped as the 3 of us, all over 6 foot piled into Nick’s ford cavalier with our various sleeping bags, tents, and packs. By 1:30 in the morning we had crossed into Colorado, passed through Cortez and could practically taste Durango’s mountain air. Our minds were already filled with spring laden mountain meadows full of blossoming wild flowers and fresh, recently ripened wild strawberries.

By 1:45 we were staring out the car windows with wide eyes and in shock. The weather had been rainy all day, but now we were seeing what looked like the white of snow along the sides of the road.  It was just far enough out that we couldn’t tell for sure if it was snow, or just late night frost until I also noticed that the street signs were covered in a splattering of white crystalline sludge.  Surprised and a bit disgruntled we rolled forward for another 20 minutes, dropping in altitude until we found ourselves in a cold, damn, but blessedly snow free Durango. Lander had found a bus in from the airport and luckily had a warm hotel room ready and waiting. We caught up quickly before setting our alarms and crawling into bed.

Here is a map of the area we covered with key locations numbed:

[1] - Thursday wasn’t exactly a camper’s dream. It was overcast almost to the point of being foggy, there was a light drizzle falling intermittently, and everything was wet and cold. Undaunted we tossed our bags back into the car before figuring out a way to squeeze Lander and his added bag into the car before heading down the street to the local Albertsons to pick up our provisions. A few cans of spam, beans, canned pears, chili and a few bottles of water and liquor later we made our second stop at a local outdoors store. There I picked up a few flies for fishing, a 3 day fishing license, and the boys grabbed a frisbee. As I started at the medicine cabinet full of flies trying to pick one, I made the mistake of asking the elderly gentleman working the counter if he had any recommendations. After staring at me aghast, he overcame his shock and offered up several obvious and worthless recommendations in between assurances that fly fishing was pointless under current conditions. A fact I was well aware of. I could tell he’d already decided I was an idiot of a tourist and that I wasn’t going to get anything useful out of him, but just in case I decided to ask if any of the trails we were debating hiking were open yet. By his response you’d have thought I’d grown antlers and a tail, he eventually offered up several local trail options before seeing us off.

[2] - We piled back into the car and decided to head towards Sharkstooth and the Transfer camp ground. Curious how far we would make it, and wondering how much snow was on the ground we made the 30 or so minute drive up into the foothills.  Before long we had passed out of the gently misted rolling green hills and were surrounded by snow dusted scrub oak and juniper trees. As we pushed on we passed into areas covered with snow but still showing signs of spring. Flowers were blooming, grass was growing, and everything was fresh.  Eventually we reach Transfer campground and after pausing for a quick photo and a view from the lookout - which overlooks a beautiful pine and aspen valley - we decided we would pass on braving the snow, push on towards Sharkstooth and find a campground later in the evening bellow snow level. Despite the snow everything was green and the flowers were vibrant yellows pushing up through the wet, damp snow as it quickly turned into slush.

The roadsigns warned that Sharkstooth was some 15 miles ahead. We pushed on down the well maintained dirt road onto rough gravel and managed to make it 9 miles before coming to a forced stop.  We’d long ago left any other tire marks in the snow behind and were starting to face decent sized, gravel laden, snow covered hills which demanded we abandon our forward trek.  Only marginally defeated we pulled over to the side at a small trail head, grabbed our day packs and set off across the white landscape.  We were surrounded by gorgeous aspens and small pools fed by snow melt all covered by 3 or 4 inches of snow. The suns glare off of the snow was nearly blinding. As we wound down along the path, and eventually looped around we decided to abandon the set path and cut cross country back towards the car. Up and over a large hill covered in small snow melt streams and dotted by the fresh buds of mountain cabbages pushing their way up through the icy dusting we headed somewhat confidently in the direction we suspected the car was.  Eventually, after a fair amount of debate, a bit of luck, and some perseverance we found our way back to the meadow we had parked in and our car, where exhausted, cold, and wet we paused for a quick snack before hopping back in the car and making our way back towards Dolores.

[3] - After passing through Dolores we continued to wind up along the Dolores river to where the west fork splits off.  There we drive another mile or so through a gentle drizzle before finding a campground that had a fantastic site located at the edge of the campground along a bend in the river and with plenty of room for our tents and privacy.  The west fork of the Dolores ran directly past our campsite offering soothing sounds and wonderful scents.  We quickly braved the light mist that was falling and set up our tents, then purchased a Cort of dry firewood from the campground host. In between drizzle spats we quickly set the fire and got it burning comfortably.  Before long we’d also gathered a number of driftwood logs pushed down by the swollen west fork and deposited conveniently just down the stream from our camp spot.  Knowing we’d need more wood later in the evening we piled the collected driftwood on top of and around the fire we’d set and allowed it to dry. With the fire steaming and smoking we cooked a hearty meal of hot dogs and beans as we spent the evening catching up and relaxing.

Before long our friendly neighbor made his way over in typical traveler fashion and introduced himself.  He was an elderly man who had retired and now traveled full time with his wife.  Living affordable as they wandered from campground to campground they spent their free time painting, carving, and working trade shows. We exchanged stories and in true travel fashion quickly knew more than we probably wanted about each other.  As we chatted he shared a number of interesting stories, the most fascinating of which was a tale of how he’d been struck by lightening a few years back, survived, but lost some feeling in the tips of his fingers.

The rain stopped falling and began to clear as the sun set, and by 8 or so things were dry enough to turn in and call it a night.  I’ll continue with day 2 (spent hiking Priests Gulch) and day 3 (spent hiking Lizard Head Pass) in a follow-up post.

In the interim you can view the photos I shot during the trip [here].

I’ve discussed it previously and as a result will only briefly mention it here, but what makes the ISP/Bandwidth debate all that much more pathetic is that the U.S. - the founders of the internet - is now ranked 15th for broadband penetration.  Which fails to even realistically consider how far behind we are with respect to broadband speeds.  The US is talking in single digit gigabyte connections while foreign nations are offering as much as triple digit connections for the same price…or less.

You may or may not be familiar with the current struggle being waged in Washington and throughout the U.S. between consumers, visionaries and ISPs.  In brief the argument is that P2p (Peer 2 Peer) users are using a disproportionate amount of the bandwidth available.  Driving up ISP costs, and heavily impacting the quality of the connections their fellow users are using.  Ever noticed how your internet slows down distinctly after 5:00? Thus far the ISPs chief argument and technique for lobbying tech-oblivious lawmakers has been to claim that not only is the P2P network traffic unfair, it’s illegal. As a result they have pushed for laws banning P2P altogether, while simultaneously secretly operating software that blocks certain types of high bandwidth applications and hinders your connection.

The catch is P2P isn’t illegal, don’t get me wrong - a fair amount of the content transfered through it is, but the software itself is not. In fact it has a multitude of uses all of which are being employed and which are legal.  From the distribution of open source software, to video game patches, to authorized music, ebooks, photos and home video.  Beyond that, certain other types of high bandwidth content that’s getting throttled is also completely legal.  Things like massively multiplayer online games (think World of Warcraft), and even streaming video resources like Hulu.  While ComCast just got in a fair share of legal and PR trouble for the techniques they employ and not to be outdone, Cox has been ranked as the 2nd worst bandwidth throttler in the U.S.  very little action is being taken against these groups in large part because the average consumer doesn’t realize just how badly they’re being screwed. ArsTechnica reported:

Of the nine ISPs in the US found to block BitTorrent, Comcast and Cox were far and away the most aggressive. Both blocked more than half of all attempted BitTorrent tests on their networks (82 of 151 tests on Cox were blocked, while 491 of 788 tests on Comcast met the same fate).

What makes it that much more agitating is that not only does Cox block certain types of streaming high bandwidth traffic, they will also reset your cable modem secretly forcing you to power down and reboot before the system will recognize you again.  All the while blaming it on your hardware or other failiures.  In recent months tech’s have started fessing up if you ask them directly, but as little as 3 months ago they would blatantly lie to your face about it. Blaming software, the network, outages or faulty routers. I can’t even begin to guess how many customers spent hundreds of dollars replacing hardware for no reason or how much money Cox made off tech support calls (if they don’t find a problem you get charged).  Again, this doesn’t only apply to LEGAL P2P use, it applies to gaming and some types of streaming video.

It gets worse.  Not only will they throttle/kill your service illegally they also limit your alloted traffic without bothering to tell you and while using deceptive advertising that leaves you thinking that they’d be doing the exact opposite.  Before I outline the details, let’s take a look at their advertising and weboffering:

Keep in mind that this video, is one of several in their current “A Brave New World” campaign.  All of which make equally deceptive and ludicrous claims and implications.

To recap the video, the advertisement states that “soon virtually everything they watch will be in HD and available at any time.  They’ll even watch TV on their cell phones” The second  advertisement depicts streaming video conferencing and again talks about the future.  In addition to the ads there are two pages on the website in particular I want to take a closer look at.

Page 1 - PowerBoost: One of the cornerstones of Cox’s advertising is their PowerBoost technology. About which Cox claims, “When extra bandwidth is available on Cox’s local fiber-hybrid network, you will experience a faster download. Speeds will be boosted up to 29% faster for Preferred customers, and up to 33% faster for Premier customers”. So, while you may think you’re buying a 9mb connection you’re really getting 7mb. The page describing powerboost references all sorts of wonderful uses for your bandwidth such as video, music and even photos.

Page 2 - Tiers and Pricing: This page outlines the 3 tiers that Cox offers outlining important numbers like your download speed, upload speed, price and then they go so far as to offer a wonderful features section telling you what you can/should use that added speed for.  If we overlook the fact that most of the “No”s for the first tier are complete lies, we can see that in the standard mid range tier they have the gaul to list Multimedia Web Surfing, Streaming Video/Music, and Downloading Large Files and Online Gaming, Telecommute/Remote Office as “You could, but…”s if they were actually delivering the 7mb connection (which in my experience they usually actually only provide 1.5-4mb connections) you should have more than sufficient bandwidth for any of the activities on the list. While they’re starting to catch up most webhosts can’t offer more than 400kb/s.  In actuality the lions share of sites you probably use peak out at about 75kb/s. Keep in mind that there are 1,000kb in a mb, and 1,000mb in a gigabyte. For my part I’d LOVE The ability to actually pull data at 7,000,000kb/s wouldn’t you?

In fact, if they weren’t meddling with your connection and were actually delivering what you paid for, the 1.5 mb connection would be more than sufficient for playing online games, downloading at 400kb a second, and watching streaming video…simultaneously. What makes the whole thing that much more deceptive is the upload rates which are horrible.  THAT is where a large part of the bottleneck occurs since even while accessing a website you are both sending and receiving information.  It’s also what complicates things with P2P networks and to a lesser extent online games in which you’re sending data symmetrically instead of the classical a-symmetrical way you access the WWW. In this way they effectively reduce that 7mb connection with “power boost” to a 512kb connection. Slick, huh?

That’s not the extent of their misinformation though. You see, Cox also has monthly bandwidth caps. Even if you’re fairly tech savy and a capable consumer you probably didn’t know that ehh?  Only, they don’t mention it ANYWHERE on either of the order pages.  In fact, to find it you have to select the “Policy” link (which is super fine print) in the footnote of the page.  Then navigate down through the legal speak to point 13: “Bandwidth, Data Storage and Other Limitations” and select the link to “Limitations of Service” this page is so obscure they don’t even bother keeping it up to date.  As of this post, it was last updated 11/7/07 and outlines the following for the “Preferred with Powerboost” option:

1. Maximum downstream speed : 5 - 9 megabits per second
2. Maximum upstream speed : 512 kilobits – 2 megabits per second
3. Maximum monthly consumption cap : 40 gigabytes downstream; 10 gigabytes upstream
4. Personal WebSpace account size : 10 megabytes of disk space per User ID
5. Personal WebSpace traffic : 300 megabytes of traffic per month (for visitors viewing your pages)

That’s right, you no doubt had no clue, but there’s a 40gb monthly cap associated with your account.  Please recall that the Japanese ISPs just adopted one of these with a 30gb DAILY cap for UPLOADs. So the individuals subscribing to that Japanese ISP are recieving 90 times more bandwidth than you with your Cox account. Still think that the American ISP’s argument that they can’t provide the bandwidth is valid?

I rest my case. On a parallel note:

I don’t subscribe to Cable TV anymore. Frankly, there isn’t really a point.  I run dual 22 inch wide screen monitors and the ability to surf the web, pause, start, fast forward, and chat while watching a film/show in full screen far outweighs sitting on my sofa in my living room staring at a slightly larger monitor.   I find cable TV horrible.  I’ve always found the business model abusive.

In what other delusional reality would it be acceptable for a service that costs $30+ a month to sell you a service, for which you have to purchase all of the peripherals to use it, in which you pay for a set continuous service, and then have to sit through 15 some odd minutes of advertisements every hour?  Do the math - 15 minutes, is 25% of an hour.  So in reality, I guess that $30-50 is really only buying you 45 minutes of programing an hour.  As if that wasn’t bad enough, they then have the nerve to sell you channel packs full of useless crap. I appreciate the sentiment, but I really, really don’t need the biblical channel or the Latino vibes channel and since you’ve already acquisitioned 25% of my time, I’d rather not spend any more of what’s left flipping through crap than I have to.  In fact, all I really want is 5 or 6 channels that don’t suck.  With all that said, I suppose it’s not really a surprise that I jumped ship as soon as possible and switched over to services like Hulu.

It’s time we hold these crooks accountable.  Sadly, our representatives are either to corrupt, or inept to protect us and look out for our best interests.  Write to them, demand accountability from them, and don’t swallow the pigswill they’re trying to feed you.

With friends like these ushering us into the digital age, who needs enemies?

On the FISA Bill and Retro-Active Immunity:

Dear Mr. Berger:

Thank you for contacting me in regard to your concerns about the recent update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA.  I appreciate hearing your thoughts on this important issue.

I agree with you that we must work toward a better FISA law that protects our civil liberties and provides our intelligence community with the tools they need to protect our homeland from another terrorist attack.

While far from perfect, I believe that H.R. 6304, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Amendments, is a reasonable compromise. As a result, I voted for H.R. 6304, which passed the House on June 20, 2008 by a vote of 293 - 129.

First and foremost it will keep us safe.  According to a National Intelligence Estimate, al Qaeda has reconstituted itself, and is continuing to plot against Americans.  In recent months, fighting in Afghanistan has intensified.  While I am frustrated that the Administration chose to divert troops from Afghanistan to Iraq, the threat is real and we must do what we can to protect Americans.

At the same time, the act requires that, in gathering intelligence, President Bush and future Presidents, will need to seek warrants to conduct surveillance on Americans.  The law allows an exception for certain emergency situations, provided the Attorney General notifies a specialized FISA court that surveillance is beginning, and the Attorney General applies for a warrant within 7 days.

In addition, the act will ensure that any past surveillance abuses by the Bush Administration will be fully investigated.  The bill requires the inspectors general of the Justice Department, and all agencies authorized to conduct foreign surveillance, to report to Congress on all federal government programs involving warrantless surveillance conducted since September 11, 2001.  The bill requires a preliminary report within 60 days of enactment, and specifically requires that the final report include a detailed description of what President Bush referred to as the “NSA Terrorist Surveillance Program,” as well as any program conducted by or at the direction of any part of the federal government that involved domestic electronic surveillance of Americans or did not, in any way, fully comply with federal law.

I was extremely disappointed earlier this year when, in the middle of negotiations about a new FISA bill, the President abruptly ended negotiations, and allowed temporary FISA amendments to lapse because of his insistence that Congress immediately grant retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies who may have violated their customers’ privacy rights. I believed then, as now, that courts, not Congress, should make such determinations, based upon evidence.

H.R. 6304 requires just that.  Instead of granting retroactive immunity, the bill requires courts to make individualized determinations and only dismiss suits against telecommunications companies upon proof, by substantial evidence, that the assistance they provided to the Administration was part of a program to detect or prevent a terrorist attack, was specifically authorized by the President, and that they had been told by a high level intelligence official that such cooperation had been determined to be lawful.

Finally, H.R. 6304 contains a “sunset” provision, requiring the next President, and a future Congress to review these FISA amendments in 2012, and make any necessary changes, before allowing them to continue.

I strongly believe that warrantless wiretapping abuses by the Bush Administration must be fully investigated, and I am pleased that nothing in H.R. 6304 prevents any current or former government official who may have broken the law from being investigated by Congress or the Department of Justice as appropriate.  Please be assured that I take violations of civil rights seriously, and will continue to support efforts in Congress to get answers.

Again, thank you for sharing your views with me on this issue. If you have any further questions or comments please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.

If you would like to receive email updates about how I am working on behalf of Arizona’s 5th Congressional District, I invite you to sign up for my newsletter at http://www.mitchell.house.gov.

Sincerely,

Harry E. Mitchell

Member of Congress

On the subject of Impeachment:

Dear Mr. Berger:

Thank you for contacting me regarding impeachment. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

I share your frustration with many of the policies the Bush Administration has implemented, and do not feel the previous Congress provided adequate oversight. I am pleased, however, that the new Congress is finally examining these policies. I believe this is very important.

Oversight, like impeachment, is one of the checks our constitution gives Congress over the Executive branch. Our founding fathers wisely gave these powers to Congress to protect against Executive excess, and abuse of power. I believe Congress has an obligation to use this power, forcefully when necessary, but always responsibly.

Oversight provides an opportunity for Congress to investigate actions undertaken by the executive branch, make factual findings, and make policy changes. Should congressional oversight uncover evidence of a high crime or misdemeanor, then I believe it would be appropriate to consider impeachment.

As Chairman of Oversight and Investigation for the Veterans Affairs Committee, I take congressional oversight very seriously. In that committee alone we have uncovered grave injustices toward many of our nation’s veterans.

As you may know, on June 10, 2008, Rep. Dennis Kucinich introduced H. Res. 1258, a resolution impeaching President George W. Bush, for high crimes and misdemeanors. This legislation is now pending before the House Judiciary Committee. Should the resolution pass out of committee and come to the floor of the House for a vote, I will keep your views in mind.

Please be assured that I will continue work for a balanced, transparent, and ethical government as this Congress progresses.

Again, thank you for contacting me about this issue. I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me again should you have any additional questions, comments, or concerns.

If you would like to receive email updates about how I am working on behalf of Arizona’s 5th Congressional District, I invite you to sign up for my newsletter at http://www.mitchell.house.gov.

Sincerely,

Harry E. Mitchell

Member of Congress

While I am refraining from commenting in depth, both of these responses while thorough are hogwash. Add one more worthless congressional representative to the list. As if being saddled with Kyle and McCain’s corruption and moral failings was not enough. The sad part is I actually voted for, and had some level of faith in this one.

Several links to discourse currently occurring in the senate about the FISA bill and illustrating why Mitchell’s response is horseraddish:  [Boxer],[Feingold],[Dodd]

Willing to give up our constitutional rights in the name of security? All because you’ve been told and believe it will prevent Islamic terrorist attacks and that air travel, buildings, etc. will be safer and that you and your fellows will no longer be at risk if we give up enough of our liberties or allow enough supervision? Let me let you in on a little secret. Not only are you wrong, but you’re so far off base you should be embarrassed. You want something to be afraid of? I’ll share the TRUTH with you and let me assure you it’s FAR scarier than the cinematic garbage you’ve been cowering from for the last 7 years. Only, these threats are hardly mentioned. These are just a taste of the real threat you face and the sad reality is that the steps being taken, and the rights you’ve offered up for sacrifice won’t make you any safer from them.

Edit: In reviewing this post I’ve decided that I need to attempt to clarify a key point before going into the following illustrations. I’m sharing these threats not to illustrate the danger we are in, but rather to illustrate the general dangers out there.  To paint a big picture in the hope it helps you understand better, the real situation.  I believe that once you understand the situation better that you will, I hope be less willing and susceptible to fear tactics based on over exaggerations/lack of perspective. I’ve included the following illustrations, because while useful I don’t believe big picture statistics such as the following register for the average individual. On the off chance that they do please note that the CDC has reported the following top 10 causes of death in the U.S. in 2005: Heart disease: 652,091, Cancer: 559,312, Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 143,579, Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 130,933, Accidents (unintentional injuries): 117,809, Diabetes: 75,119, Alzheimer’s disease: 71,599, Influenza/Pneumonia: 63,001, Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 43,901, Septicemia: 34,136.  When you add these 15 diseases up they killed 1,891,480 in 2005. Keep in mind that these statistics do not accuratly include the estimated 400,000+ people who die from smoking each year, or the 43,000+ estimated car accident fatalities which occured in 2005.  Consider how these threats impact your behavior and then consider how your behavior and ability to live life to its fullest has changed given your reaction to the threat of terrorism.  Now please consider these illustrations and I remind you that they are real, and shared not to drive you to give up your constitutional rights but rather the exact opposite. These are shared to educate and to give you perspective. Before you give something up paramount to the quality of your life, consider the relative nature of the alleged threats to your life.

Illustration I: It’s 113 degrees outside right now, tonight’s low will be 77 degrees. My air conditioning is running, I have constant access to cooled water, and I still go home dehydrated. In fact when I walk into my apartment I have to take off my shoes, or wait for the tar that’s melted onto them from the asphalt in the parking lot to melt. On my way home from work I’ll pass through at least 10 traffic lights. When I get home and go to cook dinner I’ll pull a T.V. dinner out of my Freezer and microwave it. Now imagine the death toll that we could expect among Phoenix’s 6 million residents if the power went out for 2 days. The death toll aside, imagine the catastrophic economic impact?

Don’t think that’s possible? The Washington Post, January 19th 2008:

In a rare public warning to the power and utility industry, a CIA analyst this week said cyber attackers have hacked into the computer systems of utility companies outside the United States and made demands, in at least one case causing a power outage that affected multiple cities.

‘We do not know who executed these attacks or why, but all involved intrusions through the Internet,’ Tom Donahue, the CIA’s top cyber security analyst, said Wednesday at a trade conference in New Orleans.

The article goes on to quote:

Over the past year to 18 months, there has been “a huge increase in focused attacks on our national infrastructure networks, . . . and they have been coming from outside the United States,” said Ralph Logan, principal of the Logan Group, a cyber security firm.

At the time MSNBC noted:

In a test last year, the Homeland Security Department produced a video showing commands quietly triggered by simulated hackers having such a violent reaction that an enormous generator shudders as it flies apart and belches black-and-white smoke.

Illustration II: The power issue aside, let’s talk about Nuclear threats. We are, after all discussing invading Iran for continuing to pursue nuclear weapons - but again, let’s look at the REAL threat to Americans. A foreign nation, located on the other side of the world in which, despite all of the posturing, and what’s happened in the middle east over the last 6 years has a relatively positive view of the U.S. or the potential harm just one or two rogue hackers could inflict if they were able to hack our nuclear facilities. Let’s look at Arizona again. Arizona is home to the Palo Verde nuclear power plant which has 3 reactors and is the largest in the U.S.; it’s also located less than 50 miles from DOWNTOWN Phoenix. Anyone in the mood to speculate what might happen if hackers were able to compromise the facility and initiate an overload resulting in an enormous generator literally ripping itself apart? Oh, and I forgot to mention Presidential Candidate John McCain stated last week that his future energy policy would focus on building 45 new nuclear reactors in the U.S. by 2030 (NY Times).

Illustration III: Feeling nervous? That’s hardly anything compared to what would happen if malicious hackers penetrated the FAA’s flight system. You thought Sept. 11th was bad? As I’m writing this I did some flash research. According to FlightAware there are currently over 5,500 airborne aircraft being tracked by the system right now, with over 53,000 arrivals tracked in the last 24 hours. What happens if the software coordinating part or all of that traffic is compromised?

Illustration IV: Attended a major concert or sporting event recently? Pretty tough security right? Pat downs, searches, no opened water bottles or containers. Heck, more than a few of us have had our small nail clippers confiscated for “safety” reasons. All in the name of preventing terrorism and keeping you safe - it makes you feel better, right? One catch - when I was a student at ASU we snuck all sorts of things in through those security measures. Luckily we were focused on getting tortillas and bottles of alcohol in, not plastic explosives and marbles. The student section typically holds several thousand of Americans best and brightest youths, packed shoulder to shoulder. The pathetic thing is, that despite all the money being spent and time being wasted, those security precautions still miss more than they actually catch. Just last week I was talking to a friend, who realized after the fact that she’d accidentally flown with a can of mace in her handbag. It’s an uneasy feeling I’m sure more than a few of you have shared.

Illustration V: Let’s put death, destruction and devastation aside and look at the information wars. Earlier this month an important, though little covered, news story broke noting that at least 3 members of Congress have reported that their computers had been compromised by Chinese hackers looking for information on dissidents. Even more interesting is this quote;

The Pentagon last month acknowledged at a closed House Intelligence committee meeting that its vast computer network is scanned or attacked by outsiders more than 300 million times each day.

Do I have your attention yet?

The Reality: These dangers are a basic snap shot of the threats out there. I’ve shared them with you to 1) educate you and to 2) offer illustrations of the extreme dangers out there in the hope of illustrating the triviality and blatant stupidity of the fear tactics currently being used on the American public 3) illustrate why terrorism is not sound grounds for giving up our constitutional rights. The panicesque behavior which the current atmosphere of fear is a very real type of terrorism. The talking heads also have it right, in part. The target IS America and the American people. The unsettling and unpopular truth, however, is that we face two distinct groups of terrorists. The Islamic extremists we’re all more than familiar with and then a second, equally insidious group. The politicians, corporations, and consultants encouraging an atmosphere of fear for political and economic benefit. Since the viewpoint I’m about to cover is extremely controversial let’s start out with a basic definition:

ter•ror•ism– noun

1. The use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, esp. for political purposes.
2. The state of fear and submission produced by terrorism or terrorization.
3. A terroristic method of governing or of resisting a government.

In a post 9/11 world we are all more than familiar with this definition. Most of us use the words terrorist, terrorism, etc. on a weekly basis over the past 7 years. However, this post is about what happens when we take a close look at the actual definition - at the significance of the word, the meaning, and what it truly means for American’s health, freedom, and safety as it relates to domestic threats.

For the sake of this post the two parts of the definition we need to focus on are the 2nd and 3rd points. In respect to the 2nd. I’d like you all to take several moments and to reflect. Ask yourself who are ALL of the parties that have played a role in the creating and perpetuating the current atmosphere of fear and submission in the U.S.? Second, I want you to ask yourself who has capitalized the most on those fear and used the threats posed by terrorism to the greatest advantage? As you ponder these two questions keep in mind, that no one can hear you right now. No one is there to judge you. Now is a moment for true, honest reflection, for you to look at the concepts fairly, ask yourself if you’ve been correct in your assumptions, and if you feel you have to defend those assumptions to yourself.

Now - consider the 3rd definition. This is of paramount importance as it’s something we seldom look at fairly. When we discuss terrorism it is typically as a tool for resisting government, as is the case with the Islamic Zealots. Occasional, as was the case with Saddam we apply it to foreign dictators who have shown a blatant disregard for human rights, who typically operate above the rule of law, who imprison political prisoners, and who discourage opposition through fear. Say it again, “A terroristic method of governing a government” and now ask yourself how that fits against what has occurred in the U.S. under the Bush administration. Consider it relative to the questions you answered in regards to the previous point and keep in mind that the current administration and it’s supporters have violated the Geneva convention, made a mockery of habeas corpus, a proven use of report terrorist threats to shift elections/political favor, has outed secret agents for political gain, has facilitated countless no-bid contracts, forced into retirement or disgrace any qualified dissenting voice, and illegally spied and detained Americans among a plethora of other scandals and violations.

Realistic Threats

Don’t mistake my words. I’m not saying that religious zealots are not a threat. I’m not saying that we should ignore their preferred use of hijackings and suicide bombings. I AM saying that they are a relative threat. I AM saying that the fear of boarding an airplane and having it hijack should be kept in perspective. That if we give in to fear and are willing to sacrifice everything America stands for, and even our morality for a false sense of security, then we are truly pathetic creatures and anything but patriots. The war on terror hasn’t just been a war against a small minority which attacked us. It hasn’t just been a war on the government (Afghanistan) that supported them. It has been a war on an entire religion, a war against sovereign nations under false pretense, and most disturbingly it has been a war against what America truly stands for carried out by self proclaimed American patriots. The real threats to America come not only from extremists but those bereft of morality seeking power or financial gain. It doesn’t matter if the threat comes from an Islamic zealot, a Christian zealot or an Atheist hacker. This is not truly about religion. It’s about money and power.

My only hope is that from this point forward, when faced with new legislation, or a decision that affects the future of the world, that you will pause. Ignore the false appeals to fear. Transcend the impulse to sacrifice anything and everything for the illusion of safety and that you will judge the measure, bill, action, or statement by its legitimacy instead.

Let the words of our founding fathers guide you:

Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety
-Benjamin Franklin

It behoves every man who values liberty of conscience for himself, to resist invasions of it in the case of others: or their case may, by change of circumstances, become his own   -Thomas Jefferson

For further reading: A recent Forbes article on tech threats.

Something unclear?  Want more information?  Have a question? Disagree? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.

On April 8th, 2008 I wrote an article entitled “The Technological Revolution - Lessons from 1770″ outlining my belief that we are at a pivotal point in American history. One that will have sweeping social, technological and economic impacts on a par with those that occurred during the American Industrial Revolution. I theorized that some of the social and economic shifts we are currently experiencing are elements of the first wave of a modern technological revolution.

Jonathan Pfeiffer, Author of the blog Multivoiced recently wrote an intellectually stimulating response exploring a number of powerful, intriguing counter points. In place of a private discussion about the points and in the name of further exploration of the concepts discussed in our collective posts, I’ve elected to respond here, in the form of a full post. I encourage you all to review his blog, he has some excellent, thought-provoking posts.

My Thesis: We are well into the early stages of the technological revolution and the window of opportunity is quickly passing during which the U.S. can change the way we operate while working to maintain our spot at the leading edge of the new social/political/financial structure that will eventually transform the global landscape. We are faced with an opportunity to not only maintain but strengthen our status as the world’s super power for another 100 years…but only if we adjust.

Jonathan’s Counter-thesis 1: While it is obviously true that a certain kind of economic development is a very good thing, the demand to consolidate the U.S. position at the top of the world is not. What I don’t think Alex understands is that international relations are a non-zero-sum game. The technodevelopmental transformations which Alex finds to be so awe-inspiring should not lead us to an us-versus-them attitude toward our partners around the world.

My Response: While this shouldn’t lead us to an us vs. them attitude toward others around the world, we don’t have to stop our leadership and growth to allow others to catch up and be equals. We must vigorously continue our research and development; we must not be constrained by reactionary policy or an idealistic view of global politics.

To clarify, my world view is largely based on the belief and observation that humans are fundamentally simple animals. Our core social behavior is, in many respects, not unlike a complex version of that found in packs of apes and wild dogs. This social behavior relies on a constantly shifting, evolution-driven, hierarchical structure of Alphas, Betas, Gammas etc. On a more macro level, this system is commonly divided into the small percentage who choose to lead and the majority who choose to follow. Can you imagine what humans could achieve if every member of our species took charge of their individual potentials and chose the enlightened paths of productive intellects? It is a wonderful thought, but sadly, not one that is realistic.

Due to our nature, all social constructs we build defer to a hierarchical system. From personal friendships to governmental power each interaction is subject to these considerations. This phenomenon can be seen in the rise and fall of empires. One popular counter argument to this claim, is that as global communication, the internet, and transportation has improved we have begun to shift into a new global era in which the conventional governmental and social hierarchy have shifted in a fundamental way (eg: the concept of globalism). I disagree. I’m more than willing to acknowledge a shift in the way we receive information, the way we perceive things and how individual dynamics operate.  However, this does not change the basic hierarchical behaviors that drive our system - as has every past system.

In his Counter-Thesis 1 Jonathan makes two specific points. International relations - a zero-sum game? For the sociological reasons outlined previously, I do believe and must counter with stipulations, that it is. While I do believe there is an absolute winner, I do not believe as the concept of a zero-sum game can imply, there must be an absolute loser. Even the individual/organization or nation that might be ranked in last place still benefits, as long as the social structure on a macro level moves forward. If it did not, we would still be pack animals bereft of language. For example, even the Zeta wolf in the pack is safer, stronger and better off as a member of the pack, when compared to how that same wolf would fare operating independently.

The goal of the leader, be it Alpha Wolf or Super Power, is not the zero-sum obliteration of all lesser competition but rather the pursuit, attainment, mastery and maintenance of the pinnacle position and benefits associated therein. I suppose, as Jonathan mentions later in the article, this could be construed as a capitalistic view. I must also argue that despite the attempts of other systems to overcome our hierarchical structure as a species, they suffered many of the same obstacles and corruptions that made it’s implementation neigh impossible. Communism is a primary example.

The second point Jonathan notes, which is integrally connected to the first, has already partially been addressed. It is the nature of a technologically-based us-vs-them mentality. To a degree, I agree with Jonathan. Central to the health and hope of staying competitive in a global economy is our need to integrate, connect, and work together. However, in instances of internet-like technology, each nation is bound by the establishment, maintenance, and most importantly, the control of their own infrastructure.  An individual with phone and mail capabilities can respond more quickly and accurately than an individual limited to mail exclusively. America must work to develop and embrace new technologies to maintain a competitive edge. Regressive legislation and the myopic mentality behind it has disastrous potential to limit our advancement and do harm to our global position. This is evidenced in the current pay-per-gigabyte campaign, the leaked treaty information which, as I understand it, would ban, among other things, all P2P technology and other major anti-technology legislation.

My Thesis: Right now America is falling further and further behind every day. Luckily with powerhouses like MIT, Silicon Valley, Microsoft, Google, Dell and a plethora of brilliant individuals and infrastructure we have a slight advantage.

Jonathan’s Counter-thesis 2: We actually do not have an advantage, if “we” means all of us who are stakeholders to the transactions and public decisions that sustain U.S. supercapitalism. Alex seems to be measuring “advantage” by way of places and institutions that represent an educated and moneyed élite. (This is a common mistake that even Democrats make. See section V of Mike Davis’s 2007 essay, “The Democrats After November”.)

My Response: If I understand this statement correctly Jonathan is putting forward the classic and difficult to answer question, “But what of the poor?”. As we focus on the future, creating strong platforms for the 20% - or even the 70% - to continue building upon, what happens to that final 10? What is the responsibility to that Zeta piece of the population, individuals without roofs over their heads, struggling from hunger and all the while living in a first-world nation. On the one hand, as a compassionate human being,  I do feel as though it’s a relevant issue. On the other hand, I also feel it’s an issue more macro in nature than something just tied to technology which is the current subject of this discussion.  As a species we have defied nature by striving to protect and aid the weak. We choose to perpetuate the survival of the “unfit” and that is a tribute to humanity even though we still have a long ways to go.

The article you linked to discusses the technological platform as a political tool;  a prop which has been adopted by political mouths as an end-all solution. The same article also notes that these political representatives are relying heavily on/loyal to major players in the tech industry. I’m advocating something larger and more general than that. I’m advocating the necessity of a shift in the way we view technology as a culture and how we treat it in our cultural dialog. Investment in technological infrastructure, encouragement of up and coming technologies, and the associated industry, needs to become complete fact in place of theorized agenda. It’s an issue that transcends political party or agenda, even economic policy. It’s simple necessity. Review the leaked treaty I linked above - the names on that treaty are mostly democrats, democrats who also receive the lion’s share of their donations from lobbyists in the media and music industries. While these industries are technologically based, they have shown a vested interest in blocking the US’s forward movement and our steps towards maintaining a competitive technological presence. Their unwillingness to adapt is strangling the country’s ability to lead. While not directly related a wonderful lead on the subject is Brafman and Beckstrom’s the Starfish and the Spider.

My Thesis: For America to ride the current wave we need to adopt, embrace, and acknowledge the new role of technology and the worldwide web (WWW). Our political policy and legal approach to internet/technological issues cannot cling to our old systems while stifling growth with regressive policies. We must embrace invention and focus on creating a culture that not only understands technology, but is driven by it. Already, every aspect of an average American’s daily life has been effected. We may not acknowledge it, but from entertainment to food distribution, our lives are now driven by modern technology, especially the WWW.

Jonathan’s Counter-thesis 3: As Dale Carrico explained, there is “no such thing” as technology. This means that we cannot oppose, or as Alex calls us to do, favor, technology in general.

Much of the remainder of the essay, which Alex obviously put some significant thought into, is a list of ostensible historical parallels which reads like something out of a Ray Kurzweil book on the Singularity. We have all the usual suspects, like the proliferation of railroads and canals compared to the up swinging curve of computational power. It’s all nothing more than transit and commercial infrastructure, writes Alex.

My Response: Carrico makes an interesting point. Though to me it focuses on the semantics of words, instead of the nature of the core issues. From an anthropological point of view, every advancement we make is based on improved technology. (Defining technology as the application of science to industry.) Referring back to my initial example citing the Industrial Revolution as an illustration - I imagine we can all agree that the Industrial Revolution was nothing more than another technological revolution at its core. A drastic shift based on new processes and machinery. In that respect there are without question more fitting titles - some might say the Digital Revolution, yet others might prefer the Internet Revolution.

Regardless of the title we choose, I believe Cerrico’s argument makes the assumption, perhaps rightly so, that we are always advancing and that as a result we are all inherently technologically open. What it fails to give credence to, however, is eras of accelerated adoption and significant technological inventions which drastically shift and alter the nature of civilization. The canal, the highway, the mapping of the stars, flight etc. the flip side of which are also eras like the Dark Ages, the fall of the Greek Empire, the collapse of the various eastern civilizations etc. During these times great stores of knowledge and technology were not only rejected but lost. Remember as well that it was most often during these periods that the greatest human suffering occurred. History leaves little doubt in my mind that embracing technology is of greater benefit to humanity than the negative impacts of rejecting it. Subject to those extremes is a spectrum to which we as individuals and as nations have to consider and respond. The nature of those responses chart the direction and speed at which we will advance.

My argument and proposed action is based on the belief that we are at the edge of one of those great periods of advancement, largely made possible by a cultural psyche that has focused and invested in pursuing and embracing new technologies. That the impact of this next evolutionary period will re-define the way we operate and re-establish the nature of the global social structure. Already technologies like the Internet 2 and virtual worlds with millions of residents are springing to life. The ripples of these changes will be felt across the surface of the globe by ALL living creatures. We must be cautious and studious as we move forward working to avoid doing harm, and always remember our humanity, but we must never the less move forward and embrace these technologies or fall back upon ourselves.

Once again, I’d like to thank and credit Jonathan for offering up a number of excellent links and varied view points. Phenomenal food for thought!

*Edit* I just came across this link today in a speech by Presidential hopeful Barack Obama on the subject of technology. It’s a must read.

A decision by Congress to pursue impeachment is not an option, it is a sworn duty. It is time for Congress to stand up and defend the Constitution against the blatant violations and illegalities of this Administration. Our Founding Fathers bestowed upon Congress the power of impeachment, and it is now time that we use it to defend the rule of law from this corrupt Administration. - Rep. Robert Wexler

The past 48 hours have been exciting. Something I’ve been waiting for over the past several years has finally come to pass. Impeachment has been presented and proposed by Mr. Kucinich and co-sponsored by Mr. Wexler. While it’s not a surprise that these two are involved in the presentation of the 35 articles of impeachment - as both have worked tirelessly towards impeaching both George W. Bush and Dick Chaney - it is significant because it continues to add credibility to the case against President Bush.

The fight for impeachment has been an uphill battle. On the coat tails of the ridiculous mockery of the system that was the Clinton impeachment fiasco, many people are gun shy. So much so that the America that was more than willing to try and impeach Clinton for minor sexual dalliances and the lies that followed during the cover up, has now sat idly during 350 scandals most of which have been far more damaging to the health, well-being, and integrity of the office of the President and the United States.

Unfortunately, the fight for impeachment is, has been, and will continue to be, an uphill battle. Impeachment has found significant resistance among the upper echelons of the Democratic Party. Nancy Pelosi in particular has spearheaded a resistance movement focused on killing and discrediting any attempt at impeachment. She has repeatedly stated that “impeachment is off the table” and more recently that any attempt at impeachment would be a “distraction”. In the last 48 hours it’s a sentiment I’ve heard echoed by friends, family and strangers - typically accompanied by the question, “Isn’t it too late at this point in the game? What’s the point?�

Now, perhaps more than ever, impeachment is necessary

The truth is that by the time the impeachment process picks up momentum and goes into full swing Bush will be close to /out of office anyway. I don’t think you’ll find many people that disagree on that point. That does not, however, in any way negate the current need for activation of the impeachment process.

The impeachment process is needed to reveal factual information, create a whistle-blower-friendly environment, force media coverage, encourage perspective, make a statement to the international community, establish a point for the historical record, and to track down key data to be used against Bush and Cheney after this administration ends.

• Revealing Factual Information - The general public already has access to amazing amounts of information about Bush’s gross misconduct. However, the dissemination and credibility of that information has been largely ignored or maligned. Freedoms of Information Act filings have been used by the ACLU and others to gain the release of important troubling documents. Despite these actions, significant pieces of information that would shed light/validate other existing information/whistle-blower’s claims, has been retained under the Nixonesque guise of national secrets. The impeachment process would give Congress access to these documents, and to a lesser extent the American people while entering that data into the official record. This data could then be used at a later date for review of Bush and the administration as a whole.
• Whistle Blowers - There have been so many over the course of this administration it’s hard to keep them all straight. These individuals have come forward time and time again, only to be largely ignored, harassed, assaulted, and in some cases imprisoned. The most high profile example of which is the case of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson (Plame). Though others - more recently such as Scott McClellan’s book and the recent FBI raid in May on the office charged with protecting whistle blowers. Mr. Bloch was accused of abusing his authority to investigate cases, retaliating against employees, and repeatedly dismissing whistle blower cases with minimal examination based on a political agenda.
• Force Media Coverage - Almost 8 years later and I finally find myself in a position where I can say, beyond reasonable doubt, “I told you so”. On issues of impeachment, anti-corruption, public opinion, and questions of morality the Main Stream Media (MSM) has been guilty of gross negligence and bias over the last several years. Recent revelations (The Pentagon Propaganda Campaign, Scott McClellan, Murdock’s Statements etc.) have illustrated the sad state of the American MSM. Major public events which demand media coverage are necessary to catch the eyes, ears and hearts of average American Joes. Not only would the impeachment process force MSM attention on the issues, it would focus the spotlight on various sub scandals and issues tied to this administration which have fallen “out of sight/out of mind” and/or been swept under the rug.
• Encouraging Perspective - Despite everything that has occurred over the past 7 years there are still major segments of the American population that, while moving away from their approval for Bush, still look favorably on the actions, sentiments, atmosphere and behavior his administration has fostered. Impeachment would go a long way toward accelerating the current shift in perspective and begin the healing process. Further, it would serve to destabilize the power hungry politicians who are still loyal/more than willing to associate with Bush, the administration and its policies. One prime case being John McCain.
• The International Community - The modern marketplace is global. Like it or not, the U.S. is inescapably influenced and bound to the world economy. To that end, our presence within the world sphere is paramount to the success, health and safety of the United States; especially that of American business men/women and travelers. The actions of the Bush administration and the American people in their previous support for that administration have severely damaged our position and credibility in the global environment. The impact of that lost credibility goes far beyond the simple “Oh well, we don’t need them” mentality of the early 00’s. It impacts the way we interact with the world and the way our future generations perceive that global environment. The impeachment process would declare to the world, “We were lost, but we have found ourselves.” It would show once again why America is the greatest country in the world and why, despite the occasional hiccups and flaws, American democracy is supreme.
• Historical Record -Failure to begin the impeachment process sets a terrible precedent. While future presidents will no doubt work to reverse the damage the Bush administration and Congress have done, part of that process will rely on precedent. If we fail to take action against Bush our inaction validates those behaviors as acceptable. These behaviors are NOT acceptable and for my part, I refuse to sit by idly and let it be said that our generation failed America, the constitution, and the world.
• Key Data - This will not be over when Bush leaves office. In fact, it’s very possible that what we are seeing today is little more than the quiet beginnings of a landslide. We face a very real future where the United States of America, more specifically our President and select members of his administration, will face international war crimes charges. The ramifications of their legacy on domestic issues are staggering. As previously mentioned, the information and data an impeachment investigation - especially on the 35 diverse counts Kucinich has offered - will help establish a firm, factual, foundation for future exploration and action.

With those factors in mind I hope you will join me in continuing to push for accountability and impeachment. The house votes today to determine if the Impeachment Bill will go before the Judiciary Committee. I urge you all to keep careful track of how your representatives vote and to ask yourself - what is best for America?

View the full 35 articles and in-depth explanations here.

I’ll let you in on a little secret - I have a bit of a perfectionistic streak. In fact, I hold myself to a very high standard and can literally make myself sick to my stomach, beating myself up over my failures. Even worse, they stick with me for years as jagged thorns in my memory. Often much more memorable and easy to remember than my successes. Recently, however, I’ve had an epiphany. Failure is not the end, but rather the pre-cursor to success.

That epiphany is quite simple. It’s something I’ve understood for years and based on observations which I think we all innately know to be true. Simple little life lessons. At an early age you no doubt learned the hard way that fire was hot just as you learned what foods you liked and which ones you detested. We don’t classify these as failures, we classify them as learning experiences. So what changes when you get older? The reality is … nothing.

When Edison was questioned about his 10,000 failed experiments to invent a storage battery, he put it best with his witty response, “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” However, the issue often requires a more complex exploration before it becomes internalized. Which leads me to an important and difficult concept I’ve been working to incorporate into who I am.

Simply put there is no such thing as failure. In short, failure is a state of mind. To explain, every action changes us. If you look at life like a a maze, every decision takes you down one of several paths. Some lead to dead ends which conventional thinking would call failures. The catch is that each of those decisions has changed who you are. Moving forward you’re better equipped to deal with future decisions and challenges because of that ‘failure’ than you would be if you had not experienced it. Though you may not realize it, that “failure” will serve you later down the road. It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, and you may not even realize it when it does, but it will shape your future and who you become.

So, next time you find yourself facing failure remember it’s not a bad thing. You’re not defeated. You’ve just taken one more step toward success.

To be clear, it wasn’t that I couldn’t go on. I could have quite easily and was pressured fairly heavily to do so. Which isn’t to say I started out as a good dancer. Quite the opposite. In fact, I take a certain level of pride in just how horrible I was when I started. Clumsy, petrified of the girls I was forced into close proximity with, unable to hear the beat, unable to count out the steps - I was a complete dance disaster. About the only thing I had going for me was an awkward sort of charm and perseverance.

Over the last 4 years my dancing has come a long way. In fact, as a person I have changed a lot - and in no small part due to dance. My confidence has skyrocketed. Girls are now relegated to only being marginally scary (downgraded from petrifying). I can hear the beat about 95% of the time. I still can’t count, but I’ve figured out the rhythms. I haven’t dropped a girl and, through it all - somehow - I’ve been accused of moving smoothly and gracefully. I still� have a long way to go but the transition from ugly duckling to swan has been an interesting and enlightening one.

I’ve had the opportunity to dance with and to get to know a lot of the incredible dancers that have come out of ASU. In the 3 years I spent in the program, and the year I’ve spent on it’s fringes since I graduated, I’m constantly amazed at the talent and thrilled to see the program grow. It’s truly amazing how things have changed in the last 4 years. When I started Ballroom was still taboo - something for “girls and queers”. Somewhere between the 60s and 70s it had fallen out of favor. That dead period has finally come to an end. Our generation is once again embracing dance and that is a really fun and exciting thing.

For those of you just getting into it or considering picking it up, I’m offering these suggestions as food for thought based on my experiences, approach, and what I’ve seen.

1. Dance is fundamentally about having fun. I’ve seen a lot of people get into it,� push through the classes, and memorize routines with an all consuming focus on competing. For a lot of these people the drive to be the best comes at the cost of actually enjoying what they’re doing. Fundamentally, dance is about enjoying yourself and making sure your partner does the same. If you lose sight of this none of the medals or fancy moves mean squat.
2. Men - beyond fancy turns or quick spins focus on your ability to lead. If the girl can’t follow you, you aren’t doing your job. On the flip side Girls - work on your ability to follow. Don’t cling to him, listen to his suggestions, and let his body lead you.
3. Find the music. This one is more difficult for some of us than others. As someone who to this day fights with the beat in some dances,� I can’t over emphasize the importance of listening to the music in your spare time and figuring out a system that works for you. Mix it up. The way they told you to count it may not be the best for you. I had major issues with salsa until I started matching up “Quick, Quick, Slow” to the music in my head. No numbers, no this on that beat. Just a simple rhythm� I could match and follow. To this day it’s what I use and it’s allowed me to break away from the standard salsa formats and embrace a more South American/natural style.
4. Be humble - it’s easy to get cocky. It’s also really easy to get frustrated when dancing with someone at a totally different skill level. The reality is, you sucked once. Not only did you suck once, but you’re probably a lot less skilled right now, at this moment, than you think you are. You just won’t realize it until you reach the next skill level. Always make time to dance with a beginner, take the time to be patient, teach them the basics, offer a tip, and be supportive. Guys - in the long run, I promise a smile and a little support will leave the girl feeling like you were a much better dancer than a horribly executed Level III move designed to show her how good you are.
5. Be careful who you turn down. To this day there are girls I won’t dance with because they were rude. There are others that I won’t dance with because of the way they treated my friends. Also, girls - quite often the guys who have the roughest time at the start end up being some of the best and most prolific dancers. Likewise - guys, it takes a lot of courage for a girl to ask you to dance. If you have the energy, go for it. Even if they intimidate you or you really don’t have any desire to dance with the person. One of my biggest goofs was turning down a phenomenal dancer who approached me about partnering with her on ASU’s competition team. In my shyness, I was intimidated by her and felt severely outclassed skillwise. That combined with my policy at the time not to compete (and frankly my lack of interest in competing) led to a hasty no. That no wasn’t delivered with nearly enough grace or consideration and is something I’d take back in a heartbeat given the opportunity.
6. Guys - just go for it. There’s a whole story behind it, but there was a line a few girls told me summer of my freshman year during a drunken night out on the town in Edinburgh, Scotland. To this day it’s stuck with me. I’d just finished flailing around at a club in a disastrous drunken version of dance-meets Big-Bird on rollerblades when the girls stopped me mid sentence, “Alex, it’s such a nice change to finally find a guy who dances. Anything is better than the stalker dance.” What is the stalker dance one might wonder? It’s when you stand on the side of the dance floor, bobbing your head to the beat, and stare at the girls like a basset hound eying dinner. So remember - just don’t do the stalker dance and you’ll be a hit.
7. Try not to smell - I know this one should be common sense but a lot of people are not aware of the scent associated with them. For some it’s just bad breath, for others it might be tied to medicine, breath mints, your toothpaste or gum. Regardless, always be conscientious and pay attention to how you smell. If you smell, not only will it drastically harm the level of enjoyment your partner gets out of the dance, it will cost you future dances.
8. Girls - don’t tolerate gropers. Accidents happen. Lord knows I’ve accidentally grabbed a boob or two, and on more than one occasion blown a move and ended up with my face nose deep in cleavage. It happens and it can’t be helped. Unfortunately, there are more than a few guys out there who intentionally grope, squeeze, pinch, and generally disrespect the women they’re dancing with. If a guy starts pulling this sort of crap don’t feel like you have to finish the dance with him. Just stop and walk away. Never dance with him again and feel free to intentionally stomp on his toes if you do decide to finish the dance with him. Warn your girlfriends, and let the guys you dance with regularly, know. My only word of caution would be to make sure it’s not legitimately part of the dance (eg: Bachata’s close grinding).
9. If you’re just starting don’t let the skill of the dancers you see keep you off the dance floor. Anyone who’s going to judge you isn’t worth your time to begin with. Also, it took me about a year to figure it out - but the better dancers typically don’t tend to dance in the more visible locations. So, it’s probable that the dancers dancing along the edge of the dance floor right at the entrance etc. are probably some of the best dancers at the club. Just push on in to the middle or find a quiet corner where you’re comfortable and have fun.
10. Don’t stop. Even if you totally blow it and get lost - just push through and have fun with it. Crack a joke, make a funny face, and keep going. Remember, you’re out there to dance. Not to be a robot carrying out pre-programmed moves. Besides, how do you think some of the best moves were created?

Tips, ideas, suggestions or questions of your own? Post a comment!

It’s been a busy few weeks with school ending for many of my good friends, the election dragging on, temperatures soaring, and life’s adventure in full swing. Two things to share with you all.

Zoo Pictures

Sunday 5/4/08 on a wild hair I decided to spend the afternoon doing a bit of urban tourism. I recently purchased two replacement Lithium-Ion batteries off e-bay for my camera and was curious to see how the generic brand batteries would hold up. The price difference was amazing - $10 for two 1800 rated batteries, compared to the $60-70 official price for one 1300 rated name brand battery through a major outlet. For those curious the batteries worked out great with over 3 hours of battery time each. Quite an improvement when compared to the dwindling 2-30 minutes of active time I’m currently getting out of my old battery.

I shot off a few quick texts before taking a power nap. As expected most of the people I contacted were busy or lacked interest in the Zoo. It was actually almost a relief. By and large I was eager to go and wander at my own pace, taking photos, enjoying the animals and generally spending some time as a tourist in my home city. It’s always one of those funny quirks - the way in which we travel hours and thousands of miles to explore foreign destinations and then forget to take even the smallest amount of time to explore the area around our own city.

After having a little trouble locating the Zoo (google maps showed a non-existent street) I eventually arrived a few minutes before 3 which gave me a full 2 hours of wandering before the zoo closed. All things considered the Phoenix Zoo has a lot to offer. It’s definitely not the largest Zoo out there, nor is it the nicest. It is, however, ideal for a lazy Sunday afternoon. If the 90+ degree weather left me wondering if it was still spring the blossoming flowers assuaged my doubts. The Zoo grounds were alive with the buzzing of pollinating bees and splashed in the reds, yellows, and golds of blooming flowers.

Despite the heat I was surprised to find that a lion’s share of the animals were out and about enjoying the late afternoon sun…Though the lions and tigers themselves were holed up in the shade and all but invisible. The beauty, power and majesty present in some of the animals is truly amazing. A photo can express a lot, a great photo can leave you feeling like you’re there, but it never truly compares to being present in the flesh…Seeing, smelling, feeling and hearing the animal’s presence.

I spent my two hours lazily wandering through the Zoo before winding down shortly after 5. I’ve uploaded the photos from the trip here.

After catching a quick dinner with a friend as he passed through town I tightened up my laces, drank a hefty glass of water and made my way to Shall We Dance for the Sunday night salsa dance social. Nate and I have started recording some of our dances both for our own reference, and as a way to share with family and friends.

Dancing at a salsa club is vastly different than performance salsa. It’s dirtied, random, and lacks any sort of standardized routine. It’s fun, fast-paced, shoot from the hip style dancing that is both extremely enjoyable and always a unique experience. The following is a video of Michiko and I dancing next to Chris and Andrea:

The following is another sequence shot late last month of Mitchiko and I:

Here’s a third of Ashley and I dancing:

If you’d like to see more videos I’ve added a number of them to my Youtube page. Most are salsas but several are other dances (rumba, etc.). In addition to videos of me dancing I’ve also posted a number of videos of Nate and other members of our dance group dancing. View It.