Chris Baker’s Trifecta of Ridiculousness

1. On Tuesday this week Chris Baker of conservative talk radio station KTLK calls Barack Obama a “little bitch.”
2. On Wednesday of this week Chris Baker promotes a video of a pastor who calls Barack Obama’s mother “trash.”
3. Also on Wednesday of this week Chris Baker’s co-host Langdon Perry says Magic Johnson faked having AIDS, and Chris Baker agrees.

This woman in Lakeville today. From The Uptake:

Gayle Quinnel, a John McCain supporter says at a McCain Rally that “Obama is an Arab”. She is quickly corrected by John McCain who takes away her microphone.

Quinnel of Shakopee says she obtained the information on Obama being an Arab at “her local library” and from a pamphlet obtained at a local McCain campaign office (provided by a fellow volunteer not the campaign itself).

She has taken it upon herself to redistribute the information as widely as possible by making copies of the pamphlet and sending it to random names in the phone book.

I love how John McCain, refuting her statement, says that Barack Obama is “a decent family man, a citizen” as if Arabic people are not. Hello, fearmongering!

My antidote to that little old lady from Shakopee is this little old lady from Texas.

My head, it explodes. 

1

Rainbow Families, our friendly neighborhood LGBT family organization (which became the Midwest office for the Family Equality Council just this summer), is having a its annual fundraising gala, the Fall Colors Masquerade. Saturday, 10/11, 7:30pm, at Solera. $50. For the low low price of $200, you can attend the VIP portion of the event which starts at 5:30. Semi-formal. “Masks encouraged.” I’ll be there, probably sans mask.

David already gave you the scoop on the Saint Paul Art Crawl.

Women Stand Up! A Comedy Cabaret - Stand-up Comedians Colleen Kruse & Miss Shannan Paul; Brave New Workshop Veterans Shanan Wexler & Katy McEwen doing sketch comedy; Fringe Favorite Storyteller Allegra Lingo; Legendary Poet and wit Phebe Hanson; and the Comedic Chanteuse Stylings of Diana B. Wilde. $20 or $15 with a Fringe button (this is the annual benefit show, so prices are a little higher than usual). Saturday, October 11, at Bryant Lake Bowl. Doors open at 9:30 p.m.; show starts at 10 p.m. For tickets and info call the box office at 612-825-8949 or visit www.bryantlakebowl.com.

Pillsbury House Theatre proudly presents Non English Speaking Spoken Here: The Late Nite Series on Saturday, October 11. Preshow reception begins at 8pm followed by the performances at 9pm. Non English Speaking Spoken Here: The Late Nite Series is curated by Laurie Carlos and co-curated by e.g. bailey. Performances are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets can be purchased at the door the night of the performance or online. All performances take place on the Pillsbury House Theatre mainstage at 3501 Chicago Avenue South in Minneapolis. This weekend’s lineup includes: Pramila Vasudevan, kim thompson, Katie Ka Vang, and Tou Saiko Lee. [complete details on the series and on this weekend's event] [purchase tickets]

This last one is mostly a reminder to myself that I have punches left on my Brave New Workshop Punchy Pass and I want to see The Lion, the Witch, and the War Hero; Or is McCain Able? before the run ends on November 8th. Need to see it before Election Day. That last weekend of shows could be pretty painful to sit through. Buy tickets online or call the box office at 612-332-6620.

1

• It seems to me that the sort of person that would go to The Shout House wouldn’t so much be the same sort of person who hangs out on Twitter, but that could just be the circles I run in. If you are on of those people, you can now follow the Shout House on Twitter: @ShoutHouseMpls.
• Also on Twitter, @barackobama_mn, if you’re into that sort of thing. Which lead me to the Minnesota Tax Plan Challenge, which will show you (very roughly) how your taxes will be affected by each presidential candidate’s plan (assuming either of them could manage to get their plan passed intact).
• Per electoral-vote.com, here’s how Barack Obama and John McCain are trending in Minnesota. Sorry, Greg, no numbers for Bob Barr. Also, pretty good (non-partisan) news summary on the front page there. Worth a daily visit.
• Twitter again: @techkaraokempls. The Tech Karaoke craze is sweeping the nation and Minneapolis is one of six chapters nationally. Next event is Friday, 9pm, at the U Otter Stop Inn. Open to all. [facebook event] [facebook group] [facebook fan page]
• At Minnov8, Court Paves Way for Publicly Owned Broadband. This is big. Not surprising that smaller, more rural communities with little access to broadband are leading this charge.

0

It’s time again for a weekend of art with the Saint Paul Art Crawl Fall 2008.

A magical place where people will give you free wine, beer, and food and all that they ask in return is that you criticize their art and wander around their homes aimlessly.

Well, that and buy some art if you like it.

I usually show up with my posse that’s known as “Hey, it’s those Internet people.” and I’ve purchased something every year and end up meeting some really cool people. I even tend to get an interview or two, just for good measure. So if you’re an artist or know artists I should check out please let me know.

It’s a great time.

Times: Friday October 10, 6-10 pm - Sat October 11, 2-10 pm - Sun October 12, noon-5 pm
Places:Buildings

As usual, if you want to go or if you’re going to be there hit me up DM style and let me know.

We can walk around together saying “I don’t get it”.

1

If you’re not at the bloginar or observing Yom Kippur, try this on Thursday.

Beyond the Pure: Readings by Writers of Color, is returning to The Carol Connolly Reading Series at Intermedia Arts (”Minnesota’s first and only ongoing series of public literary readings whose mission it is to provide a platform for writers historically excluded from traditional literary settings.”).

Beyond the Pure: Readings by Writers of Color
Thursday, October 9, 2008
7:00 PM at Intermedia Arts
2822 Lyndale Ave S, Minneapolis
Admission by donation; wine & beer reception to follow

Curated by Julie Bates & Carolyn Holbrook; hosted by Carolyn Holbrook

Featuring:
IBé was born in Guinea, and grew up between Sierra Leone, Chicago, St. Cloud, and the Twin Cities. Quite naturally, he lives in the Middle of the Atlantic…with a mailing address in Minneapolis, MN. Among others, he writes about the African Experience, both in Africa and in America. Bridge Across Atlantic, his first collection of poems, is a small dose of these stories.

BAO PHI has been a performance poet since 1991. A two-time Minnesota Grand Slam champion and a National Poetry Slam finalist, Bao Phi has appeared on HBO Presents Russell Simmons Def Poetry, and a poem of his appeared in the 2006 Best American Poetry anthology. He has performed in venues and schools across the country, from the Nuyorican Poets Café to the University of California, Berkeley. Currently he continues to perform across the country, remains active as an Asian American community organizer, and works at the Loft, where he creates and operates programs for artists and audiences of color.

SUN YUNG SHIN is a 2007 Bush Artist Fellow for Literature and author of the collection of poems Skirt Full of Black (Coffee House Press 2007); co-editor of Outsiders Within: Writings on Transracial Adoption; (South End Press 2006) and author of Cooper’s Lesson (Children’s Book Press 2004), a bilingual Korean/English illustrated book for children. She’s currently working on her second book of poems with the working title The Invisible Choir and a memoir of her immigration and naturalization. Her website is www.sunyungshin.com.

Funds for this activity are provided by the COMPAS Community Art Program through a grant from the McKnight Foundation. The Carol Connolly Reading Series is sponsored in part by The Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts, DreamHaven Books, Patrick’s Cabaret, SF Minnesota, and the University Club of Saint Paul.

Intermedia Arts on: [web] [facebook]

2

When: Thursday, 10/9, 5pm
Where: Sweeney’s Saloon
Who: Special guests Chuck Olsen (on behalf of TheUptake.org) and WCCO’s Esme Murphy
Who Else: Anyone within reach of the word “bloginar”

A “bloginar” is an evening of live, in-person, information and conversation between bloggers of all kinds.

Kinda short notice, I know. But what else were you gonna do on Thursday? All y’all east siders better be there. I’ll be honest, I might not have made it all the way over there from Eden Prairie just for this event, but since I coincidentally have another thing in Saint Paul later on Thursday anyway, I’ll be there for the first 90 minutes or so. Come say hi!

The last event’s format went something like: mingling, Q&A, prizes, CBS local ad network pitch. I imagine this one will be similar (but if there are no prizes, don’t blame me). Complete details here. Chuck will talk about how to get involved as a citizen journalist, Esme will talk about blogging and covering politics online, and there will be a short SEO workshop. Mingling from 5-6pm, programmed discussion from 6-7pm. Make sure you RSVP.

Also see @wccobloginar on Twitter for details. The info is there, even if you’re not a Twitter user. If you are a Twitter user and have questions for Chuck and/or Esme that you’d like to submit, use the hashtag #bloginar.

5

Along The Greenway, originally uploaded by epmd.

Go smoke some pot, hippies. I’m gunna go dump some paint in the river now.

7

Last night at 8:45, fifteen minutes after the first debate for this year’s US Senate race, I received an email from the Dean Barkley campaign proclaiming: “Dean Wins First Debate.”

I am signed up to get these emails, so obviously I’m sympathetic to the Independence Party. But I’m also a fan of realistic outlooks. “What a brazen assertion,” I thought. “Surely we won’t know who won the debate until the pundits have their way with it.” I had seen the debate, so while I could see no clear winners, Dean Barkley certainly hadn’t lost.

(Oh yeah, that’s right. I watched the debate last night. It wasn’t on teevee, but perennially relevant citizen news source The Uptake broadcast the whole thing via streaming internet video. They were the only ones.)

I was kind of happy to see Al Franken pivot from his performance at Farmfest, where he talked about Norm Coleman almost exclusively, to talk about himself and how he would act and vote as a senator. Still, he was woefully deplete of specifics–but to be fair, so was Coleman.

Coleman, for his part, was also just as focused on Franken as on himself. He was also shoving his face in Al Franken’s face every time Franken gave an answer. It looked like a weird attempt to distract Franken and get him to screw up, which did not happen.

One thing struck me, however. Both Coleman and Franken were really happy talking about themselves and each other–and Barkley. But when they talked about Barkley it wasn’t the same, “He’s unprepared, he’s divisive, he hates America/seniors/students/our troops/our economy/etc” that characterized the barbs about the other two. No, it was all positive: no fewer than twice did Norm Coleman actually preface a statement with the words, “Dean is right.”

This was a very peculiar strategy, considering Barkley is polling at 18-19% (depending on which poll you look at). In the first days of October, for an independent candidate, polling anywhere near close to 20% is what is known as “striking distance.” And he seems to be pulling from both Coleman and Franken.

So, the way I see it, this race is Franken’s to lose. He attacks Norm Coleman, ignores Dean Barkley, and keeps himself nebulous at his own peril. I hope, for the sake of casting an informed vote, that Franken sheds some more light on himself.

But as for the debate? In a three-way tie, the guy who is told he’s right the most times wins. So whaddya know, Dean Wins First Debate.

0

Hey, I guess some marketing braniacs have decided that nothing represents hockey better than a cuddly stuffed animal on skates. The mascot, Nordy, has a mullet, a tattoo of an “M” on it’s forehead,  wears the number 18,001, and is being called a hybrid of several animals. 

You can check out the Wild fan site and see what the fans are saying,  Should the Wild have a Mascot?.  Sasquatch is one of the few mascots people actually wanted.

I think Nordy is pretty lame looking and I don’t know a single fan whom actually wanted a mascot. (sasquatch comments aside) I get the feeling we’ll be seeing Nordy stuffed animals released just in time for the holidays.  So is this just another sales gimmick?

As far as I’m concerned they might as well have chosen My Pretty Pony.

So what do you think?

3

• CANDO has a new website. CANDO = Central Area Neighborhood Development Organization. [Where's the Central neighborhood?]
• The Twin Cities Media Alliance is having its first ever membership campaign. If you join now, you’ll be a founding member (oooohhhh, aaaaahhhhh </Smurfs>). Donations accepted online. You can mail your check to their offices but honestly, if you’re reading this blog, I’m assuming you can manage the online thing. If you want to spread your local independent media love/dollars around, MinnPost would love to take your money, as would the Center for Independent Media which operates MnIndy and its sister sites. Personally, I’m discontinuing my Minnesota Public Radio membership. I’m not sure that indy media is my #1 priority, but I’d consider either (or both) of these two outfits a fair swap for MPR.
• Several bike-related items via Bicycling in Minneapolis:
  1. The West River Parkway and 2nd Street SE bike paths under the I-35W bridge have reopened.
  2. According to this Census 2007 Report (pdf), Minneapolis bicycle mode share increased to 3.8%. That’s up from 2.5% in 2006. We’re still #2 to Portland, which has a bicycle mode share of 3.9%. Y’all are riding your bikes more just because your competitive, right?
• The 8th Annual Twin Cities Book Festival is next Saturday, 10/8, 10am-5pm at MCTC. Exhibit info here. (via @alexisthegirl)

0

Stone Arch Bridge

I call it real purrty.

I’ve always loved the beauty of the Stone Arch Bridge and whenever I’m in the area,day or night, I make it a point to walk across the bridge and enjoy the views. 

Uploaded on October 1, 2008
by epmd

1

During the TCMA Fall Media Forum breaks today, Erica and I took the opportunity to tour the Post Secret exhibit mere hours after it opened.

Already there were entries in guest book from Chicago and North Dakota from visitors who claimed to have driven to Minneapolis just to see the exhibit.

Frank Warren’s community art project invites people to anonymously share a secret on a postcard and send it to him. This traveling exhibition of 400 postcards illustrates the poignant secrets we never voice. In many cases, the illustrations on the postcards are just as compelling as the secret.

‘Sometimes when we think we are keeping a secret that secret is actually keeping us.”
Frank Warren, the founder and curator of PostSecret

We had the opportunity to eat lunch with someone from the Library staff (please help me with her name), who told us the library “edited” (her correction to my terminology of “censored”) the selections to remove the f-word and they kept the more risque secrets up higher in the displays to shield them from the innocent children.

I heard Frank Warren speak at SXSW last year. His story is a phenomenal one, and checking out the secrets online is equally poignant. But seeing these secrets in real, physical life is a head-trip.

I highly suggest you make the trip to check it out.

October 4-November 30
Minneapolis Central Library
Cargill Gallery
300 Nicollet Mall

During Library Hours:
Tues., Thurs.: 10 a.m.-8 p.m.,
Wed., Fri., Sat.: 10 a.m.-6 p.m.,
Sun: Noon-5 p.m.

Cost:
Free

And yes, there are postcards available for you to submit your own secrets.

4

The Fourth Annual Twin Cities Media Alliance Fall Media Forum, which we told you about way back in August, is tomorrow.

Both Erica and I were be there. Be sure to shoot us DM’s if you’re there, and we haven’t met yet (@swirlspice, @perfectporridge).

From the TC Daily Planet:

“Tools for Democracy, Strategies for Change” is the theme of the Twin Cities Media Alliance’s 4th Annual Fall Media Forum, tomorrow, Oct. 4, at the downtown Minneapolis Public Library.

Featured speakers include Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, on how citizens can use new media as tools for participation in electoral politics; Robyne Robinson on how to use mainstream media, and Amalia Anderson of the Main Street Project, on organizing for media reform and media justice.

Afternoon workshop topics will include media justice and media reform; digital skills training, and a talking circle for journalists, participants and bystanders who witnessed the RNC protests.

This event is open to the public and free of charge, but donations are welcome.

Online preregistration is now closed, but you may register onsite on the day of the forum.

On the heels of June’s National Conference for Media Reform and last November’s stirring Life After Newspapers conference, the 4th Annual Fall Media Forum promises to be high-energy and a great opportunity to keep the discussion going about media ownership, net neutrality, citizen journalism’s role/impact at the RNC, and more.

Also, I’m anxious to hear their perspective on the Steve Jobs/CNN iReport citizen journalism debacle from today and any lasting impact given the criticism coming from the MSM and SEC.

1

Music, it is mighty!

There are all kinds of songs in the world and this is a song for Saint Paul.

A Song For Saint Paul - “Can I get a Saint Paul? That’s my team right there . . . ”

I have a fire in the fireplace, a nice chianti freshly opened, and I just added another 230 songs to the iPod.

I am really looking forward to buying the new Ben Folds and the new Michael Franti & Spearhead cd’s this weekend.

What are you listening to?

2

This is just fascinating. Even though the third party candidates weren’t included in this local poll, SurveyUSA is editorializing how much of an impact they could have on the election day outcomes.

Minnesota Presidential Teeter Totter Tips Toward McCain:

In an election for President of the United States in Minnesota today, 10/02/08, 33 days from the vote, John McCain and Barack Obama finish effectively even, according to a SurveyUSA poll conducted exclusively for KSTP-TV in Minneapolis, WDIO-TV in Duluth, KAAL-TV in Rochester, and KSAX-TV in Alexandria.

The nominal advantage today goes to McCain, who is atop Obama 1 percentage point, 47% to 46%, within the survey’s 3.7 percentage point margin of sampling error. But: Compared to an identical SurveyUSA poll 20 days ago, Obama is down 3 points.

How much of this is movement and how much of this is “noise” is unclear. Minnesota behaves unlike other states in some respects. Among women, there is movement to McCain, at a time when McCain is losing ground among women elsewhere. Among voters younger than Obama, there movement to McCain, at a time when Obama is consolidating support among young voters elsewhere. Among voters older than McCain, there is movement to Obama, at a time when older voters elsewhere are sticking by McCain. In Western MN, which abuts the Dakotas, there is movement to McCain. In Northeastern MN, which overhangs Michigan, there is see-sawing back to Obama.

Complicating this analysis is the emergence of a possible protest vote. 12% of Independents, 8% of young voters, 6% of men, 6% of those who almost never go to church, 5% of Conservatives and 5% of Twin Cities voters tell SurveyUSA that they will vote for neither McCain nor Obama, but rather “some other candidate.”

How much of this protest can be attributed to the failure of the U.S. House of Representatives to pass an economic recovery bill, the day before interviewing for this survey began, is unclear. Ron Paul held his campaign “convention” in Minnesota a month ago. Bob Barr and Ralph Nader are on the ballot in Minnesota. Voters who tell SurveyUSA they are for “some other candidate” also tell SurveyUSA they are likely to change their minds.

It is unclear how many actual votes will be siphoned from McCain and/or Obama on Election Day, however, polling results from the Norm Coleman / Al Franken U.S. Senate race in Minnesota, also released today by SurveyUSA, suggest the protest may be non-trivial.

Here’s Bob Barr’s new TV ad, which has a resonating message with a significant percentage of Minnesotans (if they can get past the techno pRon music):

I think the findings above prove that future polls should include Dean Barkley, Nader, Barr and other significant third party candidates.

0