An Ordinary Person
Progressive Movement Crash Course
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I took the day off work today to attend a fantastic educational event, the Progressive Movement Crash Course organized by the New Organizing Institute (NOI). I have been following the NOI online for about a year now, curious about the high-quality training and political campaign bootcamps they have held in the past to encourage young professionals and those who are cutting their teeth in political organizing to continue in their careers. Most impressive to me was their focus on how to harness the power and potential of New Media technologies in political activism.
The day was divided into three panels of three speakers each who spoke about their fields of expertise and focus area. Each panel closed with a brief Q&A session with the audience and a meet and greet where audience members can approach the panelists to request their contact information and to chat briefly.
Philippine Youth Situation by Mong Palatino
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The following is an eye-opening article by Filipino blogger, journalist and activist Mong Palatino on the state of Filipino youth in 2005. I got his permission to reproduce his article in full over here at my blog and am doing so because I think he has a lot of very provocative and important insights regarding the effect of free-market economic policies, privatization, and neo-liberal globalization in a society. What occurred to me in reading it is that what he was saying about Filipino youth could very well be what the near future might look like for middle and working class youth here in the U.S. The Philippine educational system and economy has been molded to a great degree according to free-market principles, deregulation and privatization with minimal interference by the state. The results speak for themselves and serve as a stark reminder on what future may be in store for U.S. society if it follows the same path.
Tags: free trade, globalization, Mong Palatino, neoliberal, privatization
A Song for Ourselves Mixtape Review
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I am very much a rocker in terms of my musical tastes. I listened to some hip hop during high school and college and follow some rap (and rap-influenced) groups here and there (The Coup, The Roots, Rage Against the Machine) But I primarily listen to rock and rock-influenced music more than anything else.
I’ve been on the lookout for something new to listen to the past few months and got tipped off to a free download to some music by the Angry Asian Man blog. Angry Asian Man alerted readers that filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura will be releasing a documentary this month on the life and musical work of 1960′s folksinger and pioneer of Asian-American activism Chris Iijima. Here’s a link to the blog promoting the documentary which has the link to download the mixtape.
Wolfgang Close (Almost) Encounters Part II
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About a week ago, on a whim, I sent seven questions to Wolfgang by email. To my surprise they answered back with some good responses. They didn’t touch on all of my questions but were gracious enough to provide answers to the ones that dealt with the March 19 Two Sides Live concert, the Villains album and deciding to go indie, and what the future holds for the band.
Tags: Basti Artadi, Francis Aquino, Manuel Legarda, Mon Legaspi, Two Sides Live concert, Wolfgang, Wolfgang Villains
Third Parties, Independents and American Politics
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What role can third parties, independents and other political outsiders play in the American political system? If you are someone who is dissatisfied with the job that both major parties have been doing in running the government what options do you have to register your disapproval in a meaningful way? Is there room in small “d” democratic participation for independents and third party adherents or is running against the tide of the major parties just a waste of time and effort?
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