December 2008

I’m preparing like mad to go to DC; still, these 2 Worcester stories, which broke on the blogs, seemed worth pointing out.

142 words

The release of the heavily-redacted citizen complaint records against Officer Rojas has been an ongoing fiasco–even just counting the number of pages revealed there weren’t as many as claimed.

Now we know more about what sorts of things were redacted, as Kevin Ksen compares his virgin copy of his own complaint against the version the police released. The redactions are not at random, but they are bizarre–why is it important to black out any mention of the fence at the scene of the incident?

Graphic via Wordle.

Doug “Action Geek” Chapel’s comic strip leaves Worcester Magazine
It’s less surprising that Worcester Magazine cancelled Action Geek than that he stuck around for so long after the recent sale of the magazine; after all, they fired almost everyone else who was a contributor. If you’re interested in creating a brand-new feel for the magazine, getting rid of old features makes sense.

Action Geek, while a bit too grouchy for me lately, has remained one of the reasons I open the magazine. I’ll miss it. Speaking of “brand-new feel”, the only other change I’ve really noticed under the new management is the refashioning of the “one-on-one” interview to have less personality and fewer follow-up questions. So the magazine’s become less interesting in 2 ways, without adding anything new. Maybe they will surprise us.

Doug, meanwhile, is poised to lose both influence and $1,200 a year. If the 1,000 True Fans theory is legit, he should be able to make this up with a little more focus on his internet presence. Best wishes to him in whatever course he takes.

Related: Print continues its slide by almost any way you can measure.

Since the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity this year will coincide with the Lunar New Year season, I have this New Year couplet (春貼) to offer:

同舟共濟百又壹冬祈和好
天下為公兩千玖春更合壹

Tóngzhōu gòngjì, bǎiyòuyī dōng qí héhǎo;
tiānxià wéigōng, liǎngqiājiǔ chūn gèng héyī.

All in the same boat and helping each other, we have prayed for reconciliation for 101 winters;
the whole world but a single commonwealth, in spring 2009 we shall become more at one.

It surely does not follow the meter, and especially in bad form as the first four syllables of each singlet are a cliché.

Well, what is the line going across on the top doorframe (橫批)? Of course, it has to be the four Greek syllables οἰ-κου-μέ-νη, written à la sini Arabic or quốc ngữ.

And instead of the pair of mythical door guards, certainly Peter and Paul should have the honour of place, upholding the church.

If you implement this at your church, I would appreciate that you taking a photograph and leaving a message here to let me know. I might make a mock up image when I have time.

Happy new year!

Greyhound bus crash. Icy roads. I was released from the hospital with a tetanus shot and a bandage. The front of the bus caved in, trapping the driver. He seemed in very bad shape. I was three seats behind him. The people in the seats in front of me seemed pretty hurt, but were able to walk around afterwards.

Say a prayer for everyone travelling this week, that they will stay safe.

Still haven’t made it to my family after spending 24 hours on what should have been a 10-hour trip. With luck, I’ll be there for Christmas lunch.

The Christmas Miracle, for me, is that this delay meant I connected with a friend at the Philly bus station, and we spent the long ride across PA together.

Weary travelers. I think this is the Plainfield Rest Area on the PA Turnpike.

This year I somehow finished most of my Christmas chores in late November. Then things got super-busy, and the last few tasks, like writing this pre-Christmas blog post, got pushed till the last minute.

Civil disobedience through oil and gas bids
Adam sent along this inspiring story of Tim DeChristopher, who de-railed “an oil- and gas-lease sale that caught the attention of Congress and the incoming Obama administration.”

Holiday giving?
If you’re thinking of donating money to an interesting cause, and you’ve already helped your church and local Catholic Worker house, you might consider Worcester’s EMPOWER. This group has been working to start a local biodiesel cooperative, converting waste restaurant fryer oil into home heating oil. They’re raising a few more funds so they can finish crossing the Ts and dotting the Is and begin production. You can learn more about them through EPOCA (their fiscal sponsor), or I’d be happy to put you in touch with the right people.

If you’re looking for a present for post-Christmas giving, you could do worse than the Snow Ghost Community Show DVD box set, available for a $50 donation to WCCA TV13, Worcester’s cable access station (and my sometime employer). Get your copy at WCCA’s office or HBML. I’m slowly uploading the images to the Archive for your DVD-burning pleasure.
Read the rest of this entry »

This is the final episode of 508, a show about Worcester. The panel is DeJongh Wells, Tracy Novick, and Scott Zoback.

 

 Standard Podcast [34:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We talk about the ice storm, the response from the authorities, the reporting of WTAG, and Kate Toomey’s helpful Facebook updates with official info on the situation.

Jeff Barnard found that while the City Councilors want people to shovel their sidewalks, they’re doing a poor job with their own sidewalks.

The Snow Ghost Community Show also wraps up today. You can get a DVD set of all 24 episodes + extras with your $50 donation to WCCA TV13. Sets are available at WCCA (415 Main St.) and HBML (420 Pleasant St.).

Tracy talks about the tree loss at Cascading Waters and other Land Trust properties.

In honor of the absent Brendan Melican, we make bold predictions about what Mike will find when he returns to Worcester in May.

• Wells: There will be movement on downtown redevelopment. Demolition will start in July or August.
• Zoback: The various police scandals will be dragging on. Earliest beginning to a City Council/mayoral campaign in history, with record numbers of people tossing their hats into the ring. A newcomer will be the mayor.
• Novick: Ditto on the elections; we’ll also see this with the School Board. As well, people will have their electricity back….
• Benedetti: T&G offered up for sale. Jeff Barnard buys it with one day’s cabdriving tips.

We finish up by discussing our upcoming plans. For my part, I will spend the first part of 2009 on the 100 Days Campaign to Close Guantanamo.

mp3 link, other formats, feed, low-fi versions