The Age of Computer

As evidence continues to mount that hackers were directed by the Russian government to disrupt the US presidential election (source), Donald Trump encourages Americans to "get on with our lives" and discussed the complex problems we face in "the age of computer."

A Bit of Perspective...

Here's a bit of perspective for the incoming president...

Growing VEGI - Valley Educational Gardens Initiative

I just completed a promotional video featuring La Puente's innovative community program to connect children and families to growing and eating fresh, local foods!

House Republicans are Noticeably White

Vice-President Elect Mike Pence has joined House Speaker Paul Ryan to assure America that the Republican Party can get a noticeably whiter government in one easy election.  Notice the one black man to the far left of the Republican party?  He's in the very back of the room.

Picturing Peru: Crafting Images of Travel

How do you picture a place you're encountering for the first time?  How do you effectively share that picture with others?  Filmmaker and photographer Danny Ledonne discusses how to create images that communicate a sense of place.

Ledonne shares photographs taken on a recent field study to Peru, identifying his creative workflow from inspiration to final image.  Blending technical craft with a sense of wonder, this presentation transports audiences through the Andean highlands, the jungles of Manú National Park, the historical majesty of Machu Picchu, and along the Madre de Dios river.  Please join us and experience the vibrant colors, textures, and terrain in "Picturing Peru!"

Trump stars in "Law & Order"

Clinton Endorsed by George H W Bush

New reports confirm that former president George H. W. Bush has "plans to vote for Hillary Clinton."  (source)  This is just another example of the kinds of support that Clinton doesn't need if she wants to inspire and motivate progressives and independents.  But what better way to affirm that the USA has become a corporate duopoly run primarily by two wealthy white families?

Clinton Cash

I just finished watching this documentary.  Based on the book by Peter Schweizer, this film essentially "follows the money" from despotic dictatorships and rapacious transnational corporations directly to the Clinton Foundation.  It identifies the incredibly high speaking fees that Bill Clinton commands in locations that coincide with important matters that Hillary Clinton considers in the State Dept.

From deforestation, fracking, and uranium mining to human rights violations and global neoliberal economics, this film makes the case that the Clintons are personally profiting from all of it.  While edited in an overly-dramatic fashion, the film cites credible sources throughout and offers a compelling argument that the Clintons are and always have been for sale to private interests - and that doing so compromises the very ideals that form the basis of their public live.

... and because this is America, the rebuttal article has already been produced!

Who Won World War Two?

Comparing Conventions

Alright, let's be honest.  After having watching convention coverage from Cleveland and Philadelphia, Republican and Democratic parties, I've drawn the following conclusions:

• The Democratic Party has ambition, hope, ideas, vision, optimism, and a value system of inclusion and diversity; the Republican Party has paranoia, fear, avarice, backwards-looking pessimism, and a reactionary, xenophobic worldview.
  
  
• The Democratic Party has an amazing collection of celebrities, policy makers, and engaged citizens who are young or young at heart in which dissent is a healthy function of democracy; the Republican Party has the remains of a few has-been or onetime personalities, disgraced party leaders who tediously support their nominee, and angry, uninformed voters who are headed to a nursing home within the next decade.
  
  
• For the Democrats, the future looks to be full of promise and potential; for the Republicans, the future is a frightening series of dangers and enemies to be destroyed.
  
  
• For the Democrats, leadership means working together and bringing many voices to the table to overcome common challenges; for the Republicans, leadership means a strongman who will single-handedly solve problems by virtue of his ego alone.

... But those are just my opinions, I could be wrong.

Picturing Peru

A calendar of images from the Andean highlands, the forests of Manú National Park, and along the Madre de Dios river is COMING SOON.

Don't Second Guess Democracy

You know, I have seen so little actual actual argumentation for/against each candidate in this election cycle.  Instead, I see editorial piece after editorial piece that plays 3D chess or some complex metagame with this election like it's 20 layers deep with all sorts of side bets and secondary assumptions.

Just get informed on the issues, view speeches and policy positions by each of the four major candidates (Clinton, Johnson, Stein, Trump), take an online quiz matching you to your candidate, review their records, and make your own decision as a participant in this democratic republic.  But whatever you do, get registered and make sure to vote.

ACLU Wins $100K Settlement for Ledonne

ACLU Wins $100K Settlement for Former Adams State Professor Who Was Banned from Campus after Criticizing the University

DENVER – Adams State University has agreed to rescind a “No Trespass Order” banning Danny Ledonne, a former professor who publicly criticized administration practices, from its Alamosa, CO campus and to pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Colorado based on claims that the university violated Ledonne’s free speech and due process rights.

“The ACLU of Colorado brought this suit to vindicate Danny Ledonne’s First Amendment rights and his right to due process of law,” said ACLU of Colorado Legal Director Mark Silverstein.  “By summarily banning Danny from a public campus and falsely labeling him a security threat, without providing any opportunity to rebut the false allegations, the university deprived him of due process and unjustifiably retaliated against him for his constitutionally-protected criticism of university practices.”

From May 2011 to June 2015, Ledonne taught in the Mass Communications program and performed video production work for Adams State University.  In September 2015, after his employment at the university had ended, he launched WatchingAdams.org.  On October 12th, Ledonne posted a series of articles on the site criticizing the pay disparity between faculty and the administration and alleging that the university had violated the Colorado Wage Act by not making timely payments to adjunct professors.

Two days later, University President Beverlee McClure issued a “No Trespass Order” to Ledonne.  The order declared that for “an indefinite period of time,” Ledonne was prohibited from being on Adams State University property and that his presence on campus “would result in his immediate arrest for trespass.”

In an attempt to justify the ban, university officials, including McClure, made multiple unsubstantiated public claims that Ledonne had engaged in “harassment,” “direct and indirect threats,” and “terrorism.”

“Throughout the course of the litigation, Adams State University was not able to produce a single piece of evidence that Danny Ledonne ever engaged in any threats of violence, direct or indirect, toward anyone or anything at the university,” said Silverstein.  “The University had no legitimate basis for banning Mr. Ledonne from campus, nor did university officials have any factual basis for the stigmatizing and derogatory characterizations of Mr. Ledonne that they communicated to the university community and the public.”

The ACLU of Colorado filed suit in February challenging the campus ban.  As depositions were about to begin, the parties participated in a mediation before a former federal judge that resulted in a settlement agreement, which was finalized and signed last week.

“We hope that, as a result of this lawsuit, Adams State University recognizes that the public areas of its campus are a valuable cultural and educational resource not just for ASU faculty, staff, and students, but also to the residents of the greater San Luis Valley,” said ACLU cooperating attorney Reid Neureiter of Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell LLP, who represented Ledonne on a pro bono basis.  “We also expect that Adams State will take appropriate steps in the future to ensure that any person subject to being barred from campus will receive fair notice and a reasonable opportunity to challenge the decision before an impartial decision-maker.”

“I sought this legal action to challenge the university’s heavy-handed attempt to discourage me and others who disagree with the administration from speaking out.  I could not have done so without the incredible support and assistance of the ACLU of Colorado, and the pro bono lawyers from Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell,” said Ledonne. “I am very satisfied with the settlement and look forward to continuing my work in this community.”

Ledonne was represented by cooperating attorneys Neureiter, Kayla Scroggins, and Kendra Beckwith from Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell and Silverstein and Sara Neel from the ACLU of Colorado.

Gun Ownership vs. Gun Murders

The Philosoraptor ponders the connection here...

Straight Outta Options

In a country of almost 320 million people, these are the two that a money-fueled government of the corporations has selected to rule you. You may now have the privilege of vigorously debating between them for the next five months.

Please dispense with any notion that you have an alternative. If you do, you will be told that one or the other of these two choices is so inherently terrible that you must choose the other. And until things change, this will keep happening every four years.

Suffering Through This Election

A Democracy Knock Knock Joke

Cruz and Fiorina are Not Quite Human, Too!

Disguised as normal-people-human types, Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina are running for president and vice president!  But are they really reptilians, androids, space aliens or something else?

GOP Female Voter Non-Starter Kit

Everything you need to keep women from voting for your party or candidate!  Includes the Woman Card, a Legitimate Rape Kit, and Binders Full of Women!

The Address that More than 285,000 Companies Call Home

Clinton Endorsed by Koch?

"In a double whammy to Republicans, billionaire industrialist Charles Koch — one half of the evil Koch Brothers duo — said in an ABC interview that will air on “This Week” on Sunday that Hillary and Bill Clinton were better presidential material than most Republicans."  (source)

This is hardly the kind of endorsement that most progressive Clinton supporters want, but certainly one that vindicates what Sanders supporters have been saying all along regarding Clinton's appeal to corporate interests rather than popular ones.

George Clooney, Enabler

"George Clooney may be helping Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton raise millions for her campaign and for her party this weekend — but he agrees with her rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, on one point.

Sanders has criticized such fundraisers as "obscene." When asked by "Meet the Press" moderator Chuck Todd to respond to Sanders' criticism of the fundraisers he is holding for Clinton, the actor and activist responded, "Yes. I think it's an obscene amount of money ... The Sanders campaign, when they talk about it is absolutely right. It's ridiculous that we should have this kind of money in politics. I agree completely."

On Friday night, Clooney co-chaired an event in San Francisco to raise money for the Hilary Victory Fund. To get a seat at a roundtable with George Clooney, his wife Amal and Hillary Clinton, as well as a prime spot at the dinner, a couple would've had to pay or raise $353,400."  (source)

New World Record for Super Mario Bros. Speedrun

Speed Runner "Darbian" from Virginia, USA has improved on his previous world record by 167 milliseconds, completing the game on a Classic NES without any tool assists at 4:57:260. He has announced to the world, "I have reached my potential in this category - I'm done! My quest is over."

History is full of people who forge ahead and innovate or create something new, and that's important. Yet in the tradition of the Zen arts, there is also something to be said for someone who is willing to go back to a previous challenge and dedicate themselves completely to it, attaining something close to the definition of "perfection."

As an added bonus, watch Darbian's heart rate monitor double as he reaches the final stages and realizes he may beat his own world record!

The Man Who Knew Tetris

Bill Murray channels everyone's favorite puzzle game.

If Kubrick Worked for Disney...

Stanley Kubrick was one of the most iconic and visionary filmmakers who rejected the studio system for most of his professional career.  But what if Kubrick was offered full creative control over projects and properties of the Disney Studio?  We contemplate those possibilities in this series of movie posters...

Star Wars: Millenials Awaken

My own personal fan theory...

The Legend of Fucker

Recently, I replayed the Nintendo 64 classic, "Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time."  Just for fun, I named the hero (usually known as Link) by the name "Fucker."  This frequently led to amusing results.

...

Frog Fighter II

Bash the warts off your opponents as your favorite videogame frogs in a ribbitting battle royale!  Can you name all their original games?  And who will win each hopping match-up?