The Herkimer will have all-you-can-eat pig roast and beer for $15 from 5-7pm for the Vikings vs Packers game on Monday, September 8. Game starts at 6pm, despite what the poster below says.

Watch Packers vs Vikings at The Herkimer

(The Herkimer also regularly hosts PackerBar.)

0

Dave Barry on St. Paul:

Anyway, the Republican convention is over, and the friendly, picturesque city of St. Paul now will take down the roughly 63,000 miles of really high security fence that protected the delegates and news media from ever coming into direct contact with the friendly, picturesque city of St. Paul.

I suppose the fence was necessary, but I feel bad for St. Paul. I mean, this is a city with a fascinating history. The first inhabitants were Native Americans, who came here more than 1,500 years ago, then died and formed burial mounds. After that, pretty much nothing happened until this week, when the Republican convention showed up.

This was supposed to be St. Paul’s big moment to shine, but the fence kept most of the visitors inside the convention center. When they left, they were bused out of St. Paul, most of them back to restaurants and hotels in Minneapolis, a fact that really frosted St. Paul’s civic shorts. Minneapolis is St. Paul’s bitter arch-rival city, because Minneapolis thinks it is just so sophisticated and “hip” with its slick Minneapolis ways.

OK, I’m exaggerating. Nobody here is bitter or angry. As far as I can tell, nobody in Minnesota ever gets riled up about anything. Minnesotans really are, as the expression goes, “Minnesota nice.” They are beyond nice. They make Mister Rogers look like Hitler. If you drove your car at 85 mph into a Minnesota family’s house, their reaction, once they pulled you out of the wreckage and gave you some hot cocoa, would be to apologize for building their house in a location that you would eventually want to drive through.

Which may be why no Minnesotan has ever been elected president.

[via]

1

I’m back from Vacation and ready to rock. While on vacation I bought the new Islands CD (which I love) and took a risk on a Muse CD I haven’t listened to yet, but I did sample a few of the songs at the Duluth Electric Fetus and found them interesting.

Did anyone see the Billy Bragg show at the Parkway? What did you think?

Photo Uploaded on September 2, 2008
by katbaro

What’s in your shuffle?

3

MnIndy’s Paul Demko writes up his experience getting detained while covering the protests

Star Tribune says 818 people were arrested over the 4 days of the RNC, including 396 last night

The UpTake’s volunteer coordinator Suzanne was shooting video of a police-protester confrontation when she got caught up in the melée and was arrested.

Video of WCCO photojournalist Tom Aviles being arrested

What’s your story?

4

Watching the last few days of unrest in the Twin Cities surrounding the Republican National Convention unfold, a few things have made themselves evident to me in a way that I’d heard of and thought a little about but never personally witnessed before.

1. Law enforcement may be hurting more than they are helping.
2. Our local independent media’s coverage has been a good complement to the traditional media’s coverage.
3. Volunteer opportunities abound.

Read more

6

John Camp discusses the how-to’s of covering a riot as Main Street Media or a Citizen Journalist and breaks it down into 8 simple rules, How To Cover a Riot.

I find his description of CJ’s pretty amusing “… and the sort of Off-Broadway Media, and the Off-Off Broadway media, and the Far-Off Broadway media.” Heh.

I think his rule #3 could have helped a lot of our local CJ’s that ended up gassed.

3. Always — ALWAYS! — know where the Little Assholes are. Most people in protest mobs are pretty sincere, and don’t want to fight cops or break things. But there’s a subset of most any anti-war mob, the LAs, who are similar to the football hooligans in Britain

 The only thing I can think of that he missed is find a good vantage point and have great equipment, but that’s not always an option.

Anything you can think of that he missed?

3

I have a present for you: it’s a blog post that isn’t about the RNC!

This last weekend, I was invited to attend an event called Solutions Volume 3. The idea was to have a bunch of Twin Cities-based speakers give six-minute-forty-second talks on what they are doing to make the world better. “Great,” I thought, “Hippie Fest 2008.” But I was given free cover and was promised beer, so I couldn’t just skip it. And yes, it kind of was Hippie Fest 2008. But not in the way I thought it would be.

First of all, the event was, according to the email I received:

going to use the space at Intermedia Arts like nobody else ever has. The main program will take place in the Intermedia Arts parking lot, where we will seat about 350. Overflow seating for 120 will be provided in the theater where we will be streaming live video of the event outdoors. This will also be streamed into the lobby/ cafe area for those who’d like to enjoy the event in a less formal setting. The whole facility will be abuzz during the event, providing space for roughly 500 people to experience the event in a multitude of different ways.

At first I rolled my eyes at this, but then I realized the potential: the event is taking place outside so people can enjoy the weather (which was absolutely perfect), but there is also space inside set aside for discussing the ideas (or anything else, really) at the same time as the talks are going on without bothering your fellow audience members. That is a really clever idea.

And I was really looking forward to taking advantage of that (especially as an observer), because I was not only interested in the presentations, but in the reaction of the audience. Unfortunately, this is what awaited me in both indoor spaces for the entire program:

This was a huge bummer. It also glaringly points out that nowhere near 500 people showed up. But it should be pointed out that this is the first year they’ve done it with this setup, so that can be forgiven. Besides, they reached just about 300, enough to fill up the outdoor seating. It did not ruin the event at all!

There were lots of cool things outside. My favorite was a special phone number you could send a text message to and have your text message projected onto the side of a building. Not surprisingly, people used it to voice their political beliefs:

But the award for Most Hilarious Text on the Wall goes to whoever texted “a/s/l”. Classic!

I’m not sure if it was intended to be this way or not, but once they got the text setup working, it was only going for about five minutes. Honestly, I would have had WAY more fun at this event had it just been a text on the wall event.

Ok, so there were speakers as well. Here is a list of projects and organizations presented at this event:

Each speaker was supposed to talk for six minutes and forty seconds. Supposed to. This was the case for the first person only. I’m a big fan of keeping people’s speeches to a minimum length. I think if you’re giving an overview of what you’re doing, five minutes is enough. 6:40 is a generous allowance. But, of course, many speakers blew right past their time allotment, and not with charismatic bluster. Basically, for all the good ideas there was not one ounce of charisma.

Public speaking aside, my favorite was Finnegan’s Irish Amber, which, if you don’t know, is a for-profit beer company that gives 100% of its profits to charity. They also make really tasty beer.

You may be asking yourself, “100% of their profits to charity? Why not just be a nonprofit?” Well, apparently the IRS won’t let you have a non-profit beer company. I think it has something to do with there being so much profit in beer that it would be un-American not to take a slice of that sweet money pie.

My overall reaction to all the speakers’ ideas is a positive one. I’m left scratching my head, however. These are all excellent private sector solutions to public problems, but conventional political thought says hippies (and most of these people did exude “Look at me, I’m liberal!”) are all about Big Government and Government as Solution. But no, these are all people subverting the system, rolling up their sleeves and getting things done on their own with no help from The Man. It was quite heartening.

There was a reception afterwards, which I was unable to stick around for (I’m a popular fellow, after all). Next year I think I’ll keep my schedule open to accommodate that.

[PS: All the photos came from here.]

1

It is hosted by Rainbow Families, but it looks like the gay part doesn’t come in until the end.

This is a topic that people are typically very afraid to discuss. Partly because younger folks tend to think it’s not really a problem. Partly because we’re afraid to offend someone. Partly because we just don’t know how to talk about it. So if you’re at all interested in the topic, I strongly recommend giving it a whirl.

Critical Dialogues: An Examination of Racism and White Privilege in Our Community and Our Families

A four-part training and discussion series addressing issues of racism and white privilege in our community, and in our organization. Each session builds on the other so you must be able to attend all four sessions to participate.

Part One - Monday, September 15, 2008, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
View Jamie Washington’s keynote address from the 11th Annual Rainbow Families Conference in 2006, and critically examine dominant/subordinate group issues in terms of our identities as we commence to challenge racism.

Part Two - Monday, October 6, 2008, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Join in a discussion of three short articles addressing issues of racism and white privilege, along with a brief training segment. Address how these issues impact our lives, our community, and Rainbow Families.

Part Three - Monday, November 3, 2008, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
A facilitated discussion on how to talk to kids about racism and white privilege.

Part Four - Monday, December 1, 2008, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
A final meeting to discuss how we can apply what we have learned to our own lives, to Rainbow Families, and to the LBGTQ community as a whole. This session is very applied and engaging, so feel free to bring example or scenarios that you would like to share regarding these issues.

RSVP: If you are interested in this FREE four part series, please contact Abby at abby@rainbowfamilies.org or 651-644-4848 x200 with your name, email address and/or phone number.

Location: Rainbow Families office, Griggs Midway Building, 1821 W University Avenue, #109, Saint Paul, MN 55104

0

Courtesy of Above the Fold

9

I made it back to the liberal stronghold that is Minneapolis, although it took me longer than normal. Definitely longer than it took me to get to St. Paul this morning. Granted, when I boarded the 94 eastbound bus, it was during rush hour, and coming home, I stopped at Innuendo for Happy Hour first. The 7:46 schedule 94 bus never came, so I caught the 16 instead, at 8pm. It got me to Minneapolis at about 8:45. I probably should’ve waited for the 94 at 8:16, but I figured I’d still get home around the same time.

My overall impression of the day, though, was…meh. In a phrase that would’ve made Yogi Berra happy, “if you didn’t know it was happening, you wouldn’t know it was happening.” Now, that’s not to say that there weren’t events, that there weren’t rallies, that there wasn’t stuff that was newsworthy. What I mean is, if you didn’t live in the restricted area, if you didn’t work near the zone, all you would see is a lot of people, and a lot of cops. In other words, it would look like you were living or working in a city. Now, for St. Paul, that’s a bit of a change. In fact, I’d say that St. Paul seemed a lot more like Minneapolis today, in terms of general activity.

There was lots of conversation. As you walked through the skyway, or rode the bus, you’d hear people say things like, “Did you see that guy with the bullhorn?” or “Man, there were loads of cops in riot gear at the park!” But unless you went looking for it, or by misfortune, lived or worked in the specific areas, it didn’t really affect you.

And there were lots of cops, both in St. Paul and in Minneapolis. At every street corner, there is a police presence. I don’t know that I necessarily felt safer. I mean, no one is going to mug me with a cop right there, but if someone did mug me, I don’t know that the cop would’ve done anything. If I had a placard denouncing the government, I think the cops would’ve done something. Not necessarily violently, but there would’ve been a reaction. I just didn’t feel like they were there to police “normal crime”. You could probably blow a stoplight without too much worry of getting a ticket, unless your car was decorated to protest something.

1

I took a break from work and checked out the crowd gathering in Mears Park, along with the police presence in full riot gear across the street. I didn’t actually go into the park, but stood outside my building on 5th Street, between Jackson and Sibley. The cops were gathered on the corner next to where I was standing, taking up the whole sidewalk (pedestrians were allowed through, but had to step into traffic to get around them). I could also see more riot cops in front of the TPT Building on 4th, by looking down the alley. Vehicle traffic was busy for even rush hour, with extra motorcycle police driving around the block. More than once I saw people get out of vehicles with cameras and other recording equipment and head towards the park while the vehicles waited in traffic.

I couldn’t hear anyone speaking, and only the occasional burst of a siren as they kept traffic flowing.

0

The Rake publishes a Secrets of the City guide for RNC visitors. Folks from Virginia order copies for their delegation. Someone reviews it and, upon discovering the section on gay stuff to do, cancels their order.

Original cancellation request e-mail from Melissa Busse, Bolling’s political director sent to Tom Bartel, of The Rake:

I am so terribly sorry to do this, especially when the both of you have been so “out of your way” helpful, generous and easy to work with. But, we need to cancel the order for 150 of the “Secrets of the City” guidebooks.

Thanks for sending a copy to me so expediently, Tom. Upon looking at it, though, having a section dedicated solely to GLBT will be a BIG problem for many of our folks. We simply can’t hand them out.

Please still bill us for the copy sent along with shipping, though.

Again, I’m so sorry.

Yeah, I’m sorry, too.

(Wait, Tom Bartel was “easy to work with”?!)

1

Jason DeRusha asks if this weekend’s citizen journalist effort is adding any value. He specifically mentions MnIndy and The Uptake. Good — and civil! — discussion in the comments.

Related to Jason’s question, MnIndy and The Uptake both have longer-form pieces up today addressing yesterday’s events. (Note that most of yesterday’s coverage was live, on-the-spot type stuff.) David Brauer’s got them all in today’s RNC-themed Daily Glean. Follow all of his links.

Glenn Greenwald has a long and oft-updated piece at Salon, focusing largely, but not entirely, on the arrest of Amy Goodman from Democracy Now!. And he has this to say on the Saint Paul PD’s press conference:

Interestingly, all of the standard journalists asked very police-sympathetic questions (”how much property damage was done? were all the criminals part of this same RNC Welcoming Group? How many police officers were injured (answer: none)), while all of the independent journalists — such as those from the superb, intrepid site, The Uptake — asked challenging and skeptical (i.e., real) questions.

0

I contacted Damian Goebel at Smart Trips to find out why, not only all the Dero temporary bike racks (which were being touted for providing over 200 more bike parking spaces) have been removed, but some pre-existing bike racks were removed, like the one I generally use at the corner of 5th and Jackson. Damian, the RNC-coordinator for Smart Trips, wasn’t aware that the Galtier Plaza bike rack had been removed, and told me that he’d look into it and get back to me. He also theorized that the rest of the unsecured bike racks were removed because of a fear that they would be used as weapons in any continued demonstrating. He suggested using the racks in the Lowertown ramps. When I hear back from him, I’ll ask about the police removed bikes legally locked to signposts. Did St. Paul temporarily ban bikes from being locked to signposts? I know that in Minneapolis, it’s illegal to lock them to parking meters (although I’ve never seen that enforced), but signposts are fair game.

1

Actually, coming into work today in downtown St. Paul wasn’t really any different than any of the other times I had to come in. I did opt to take the 94 bus, rather than ride the scooter from Minneapolis, and it sounds like a made the correct choice. One of my co-workers rode her bicycle and discovered that all the bike racks around here have been removed. The police are also removing any bikes chained to signposts. She had to lock her bike up in a ramp near Union Depot. The 94 bus ended up being routed around the capitol before coming back over to Cedar, which only added another 10 minutes to the commute. Granted, I don’t have to cross any checkpoints, so it makes things a bit easier for me. I did overhear a woman on the bus say she was a delegate, but I thought it was a bit odd that she was on the bus, and not taking a shuttle from her hotel, or have some other form of transportation.

Overall, nothing really to report so far today. I’ll stroll around a bit during lunch, and see what’s going on in the skyways. After work, I plan on heading to either Innuendo or Camp, and see how the convention is affecting the two downtown St. Paul gay bars.

0