Entries from April 2009
sent:
reasoning:
instead of just recycling or planting a tree this Earth Day, think about not having sex. because that pleasurable act of human nature can lead to babies, and there are already too damn many of us. <- this type of rhetoric drives me insane. yes there are lots of problems here, compounded by the fact that most are human-created, so let’s not add more to the mix. but too often this rhetoric falls into the territory of “it’s the poor people – they shouldn’t procreate, they are causing all the damage”. birth control has a double-edged sword – it can be liberating and (i hate to use it but…) oppressing. but moreover, the concept of birth is about access – to the physical pills themselves, to the information about the different forms of birth control, and to the concept of family planning.
it is becoming harder and harder to compromise with the logic of overpopulation harms the earth. this point of contention is making it difficult for the reproductive rights and environmental movements, however progressive they may individually be, to ally with each other. if you talk about actively promoting family planning and birth control as a means of population control [environmental movement - Malthus, Ehrlich], there is the danger of discriminating against the poor, and underprivileged – those without access. similarly, you cannot promote family planning and birth control as the ultimate liberator without considering who you are targeting.
i agree that the human-made global warming is having quite an effect on our planet, and adding more people at an exorbitant rate won’t help the matter, however we also need to be looking at the people living here now: how can we reduce consumption or our ‘carbon footprint’? i am nowhere near reconciling or coming to a conclusion to end this physical and sociological fight. i will say that touting abstinence as a form of birth control to help save the earth is logical, but not entirely reasonable. despite the overseeing and overarching umbrellas of religion or global warming, people will continue to have sex – we are too wrapped up in fufilling and enjoying our carnal desires, often so much so many of us probably don’t even know or realize or care that it’s Earth Day.
Categories: sex
recipient:
National Review/ PO Box 667/ Mount Morris, IL 61054-7529
sent:
reasoning:
this is where i live in DC. right across the intersection is Big Bear Cafe, it has all the makings of the perfect coffeeshop – its service is often questionable – but french press coffee, and comfortable wooden tables. it’s a generally sweet place when it’s not too crowded. the farmer’s market is opening in May right in front of the cafe – yeah, i live right across the street from this. sometimes it’s almost too cool. the beautiful ledroit park mural was just completed in the fall, i helped set up the scaffolding for Garin and Bryan. it’s really an incredible piece. i can also vouch for Thai X-ing, deliciously spicy curries at a decent price.
honestly, Bloomingdale was a rough neighborhood to move into, especially when you’re coming in from the suburbs of PA. but i’ve gotten to know many of the people who live on my street, they call me “the bike girl”, its super convenient to downtown and other chill neighborhoods. there’s no stuffiness or pretention – it’s still a mixed area of families, elderly, and young artists/musicians. and there are some really sweet looking rowhomes. please come visit, the places featured in this video are only a little part of all the other cool stuff Bloomingdale has.
Categories: DC · love · urban life
recipient:
Postage Due Unit/ US Postal Service/ PO Box 9998/ Austin, TX 78798-9998
sent:
Washington Post: Peeps Show III
reasoning:
peep dioramas – people are just so creative. the winner: Hopper inspired ’NightPeeps’ is so good, especially when you hear the story about how it was created. some of my other favorites include ‘Mrs. Peepcock, In the
Conservatory, With the Revolver’, ‘R-E-S-PEEP-ECT’, ‘Purple Tunnel of Peeps’, ‘Peeptown Cupcake’, ‘Steve Jobs Presents IPeep Nano’, and ‘Sweet Revenge’. Finally, Peeps have more of a purpose than just to be stretched out and blown up in a microwave. those 3 dots on their face give them such a humanistic quality, i wish real humans came in purple, pink, yellow and blue – our art would (perhaps?) be more endearing and colorful. in the pagan, consumerist American sense of the holiday word -> Happy Easter!
Categories: DIY · art · food
recipient:
National Organization for Women/ PO Box 1848/ Merrifield, VA 22116-9899
sent:
Houston Chronicle: Lawmaker defends comment on Asians
reasoning:
when Ramey Ko from the Organization of Chinese Americans addressed the Texas State House about voter identification legislation and name ID discrepancy issues (often between legal transliterate names and within the Asian American community, Representative Betty Brown asked “Rather than everyone here having to learn Chinese — I understand it’s a rather difficult language — do you think that
it would behoove you and your citizens to adopt a name that we could deal with more readily here?”. check out the video here.
WHOA. so many things: that she asks Mr. Ko and OCA to behoove “its” citizens, like they have any sort of power or control over the entire Asian American population to urge them to change their names. while i understand Mr. Ko represents the Organization of Chinese Americans, Representative Brown continually asking questions about the Chinese, Chinese names, and elections back in China is another case of ignorant non-Asians assuming all Asians are Chinese. that Rep. Brown just wants people to change their names for the ease of others and the American English system downplays the significance of names and an aspect of one’s identity to the outside world, and maybe even more etymologically and culturally interesting/silly is that Rep. Brown’s name is “Betty Brown”. it’s true that many Asian Americans have casually adopted names like “Stan”, “Robert” or “Sally” so communication with American counterparts is easier, but that is their own choice. i have wondered how my life would be different if i went by my Chinese name “Yiming” instead of Iris. but choice of identification and representation is key here because it’s personal and individual. i watched Affair of the Necklace last night (wouldn’t recommend it except to look at French period clothing and Adrian Brody or Simon Baker with long curly hair), but the story is about one girl trying to restore her family’s name, and thus reputation. while speaking in front of the court, Jeanne de la Motte-Valois pleads ‘Monsieur, you out of all people know the importance of a [god-given] name and a home where it can flourish…’
Statements from Representative Brown’s office initially said the quote was taken out of context, and the “race card” was being used to divert attention from the real issue of voter identification. However, in recent days since Thursday, she has released an apology through her office and through a personal phone call to Ramey Ko. I have to agree with Mr. Ko’s reaction, because an apology about simply the phrasing Rep. Brown used disregards the heavy implication behind her words, even in the broadest terms of cultural and ethnic identity, the ‘minority’ concept, and who is an american. Rep. Brown may not think she’s being racist, elitist, or coming from a position of privilege (race, class, government representative, etc), and that too big of a deal was made out of nothing, but her comments, whether or not implied, point to deeper points of discrimination we all still need to deal with: yes, most people agree that everyone is (for the most part) equal, but past that one thin, superficial line – there is more complex thinking and processing about implications and equality to what extent that still needs to be done.
Categories: american · identity · politics · race
recipient:
The Chronicle of Philanthropy/ PO Box 48/ Boulder, CO 80329-9954
sent:
BBC article: Water cut off in Mexican capital
reasoning:
more and more stories about water shortages, and water cutoffs are popping up, along with scholarly articles that the next resource wars will be over water. i’ve bought into this ‘water crisis -> water war’ concept for quite awhile. but then Slate
comes out with this article Dispelling the Water-War Myth. it summarizes Wendy Barnaby’s essay in Nature that water wars have not happened because countries have worked through their water issues with trade and international agreements. so why all the hysteria? water is certainly a scarce resource, and it is something everyone needs to survive. but the problem of water now and in the coming years/decades/centuries (?) is a combination of geography and then within those geographic areas – who has access to as much water as they need. but how much people need and want is another example of the dichotomy between rich/poor, north/south and white/black. we’re having fights over oil in complex, methodical and ridiculous ways now, so it would make sense for the ‘water wars’ to go the same way as the battle for oil. but maybe what Barnaby’s case studies show is that provisions are being made and set in place (trade and int’l agreements) so we won’t need to resort to arrows and steel armor {i always pictured ‘water wars’ to be set in trojan times}, but to consider access and distribution of water in a civilized manner, instead.
Categories: future · politics · population · sustainability · urban life
