So Much Good Stuff
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It’s Asheville Film Festival time again. For five years running, our mountain metropolis has hosted this highbrow event. Get your tickets as early as you can, or you’ll be out on the street with the rabble. Maybe that’s where you like it, but I’ll be in the cozy confines of a couple flicks tomorrow.
There’s been a lot of good stuff piling up on the blogosphere and my email inbox that I’ve been meaning to pass along. Here’s a selection:
- Asheville’s Women in Black has been holding their silent vigil for six years now. Six. Years. Clare at Asheville on the Ground says,
“Since November, 2001, Asheville Women in Black have gathered in silent community at Vance Monument downtown each Friday from 5-6 p.m. Week after week, regardless of weather, we have stood together. And we will be there again this Friday marking our sixth year of silent witness. We invite all women to come, to stand with us, to grieve together for our sisters who have been raped, tortured, or killed—for those held in concentration camps and refugee centers, for the women locked away in our prisons. Grieve with us for all women who have been disappeared, or whose loved ones have vanished for speaking out or organizing for change; stand with us for women who suffer the violence of poverty while the weapons makers flourish and the arms merchants thrive; stand with us for all who have no safe and certain home place, or those whose homes have been demolished by fires or floods or soldiers of occupation. Grieve for the theft of our sons and daughters into the armed forces; for the poisoning of our mother Earth by the weapons industries, and the extortion by taxation that fuels militarism at an intolerable cost to social services and environmental protection.”
[...]
“Join with us Friday and help us make a powerful presence to mark our sixth year.”
- The War in Context is the best local blog you’re not reading. Go check it out.
- Jason over at Ashvegas went on a ride-along with an Asheville Policeman last week, and he’s written up parts one and two of his experience at his site and at BlogAsheville. This is an excellent glimpse into Asheville’s finest and Asheville’s underbelly.
Part One, Down and Out in A-Town, here
Part Two, Eff the Police, here
I’m going on a ride-along tonight, and Zenography is doing it sometime soon as well. If you’re over 21 and you’ve never been arrested, then you can do it, too. We’re hoping a lot more Asheville bloggers will join us in offering a different perspective on crime and enforcement.
- The inimitable Dennis Kucinich is coming to town on Sunday. He’s doing a public appearance at Malaprops from 6pm-7pm, and there’s a fundraiser later. It’ll likely be a mobscene, so get there early. Kucinich’s presidential bid only has a few more weeks left in it, so catch this liberal luminary while he’s still on the road. Kyle Cogburn notes,
“By coming to Asheville, the Congressman hopes to increase the number of votes that he picked up in the 2004 Buncombe County Democratic primary. In that year, Kucinich received the most votes of all the Democratic candidates for President in Buncombe County.”
Contact Buncombe County Young Democrats at KCogburnATgmailDDOOTTcom to learn more.
- Hawt fashions hit the street tomorrow.
- Republican candidate for Congress, Carl “Army of” Mumpower, attacks his fellow Republicans for criticizing the Democratic incumbent, Heath Shuler. I’m not making this up. Here’s the press release from eCarl:
“11th District congressional candidate Carl Mumpower (R-Buncombe) has taken his Republican primary challengers to task for failing to get behind Congressman Heath Shuler’s (D-Swain) illegal immigration initiative. “That 80% of the Congressman’s votes are in support of Speaker Pelosi’s liberal agenda does not distract from what I view as a principled and courageous effort to fight back against an out of control illegal immigration problem across the nation.”, said Mumpower. “Pessimistic predictions on the Congressman’s ability to bring his illegal immigration bill to passage say more about sour grapes over being beat to the punch by Shuler’s management team than the nonpartisan support this effort deserves.” Shuler’s bill targets those who employ illegal immigrants and helps beef up border patrol and country wide intervention efforts. “Employer support for illegal immigrants is the greatest law breaking scheme in America’s history – this is a time for getting behind an authentic conservative action by our elected Congressman.”
- Undercover Blue sent word that Republicans are strapped for cash:
“Faced with lingering debt and a losing fundraising battle, House Republicans are recruiting a slew of self-funding candidates to run in many of their top races this election cycle.
At least seven candidates with the ability to self-fund millions have stepped forward in key districts for the GOP so far, and more could be on the way.
[...]
The NRCC had nearly $4 million in debt and $1.6 million in cash at the end of September, and it has raised about three-fourths of the DCCC’s haul this cycle.”
Meanwhile the DCCC is going to send most of its money to challenge incumbents. Guys like Shuler, who’s raised nearly a million dollars already and who doesn’t have any serious challengers, are going to be asked to take care of themselves while the D-trip works on winning all the races that were close in ’06.
- Speaking of Shuler, he’s rapidly outdoing the Taylor bacon train: “Representative Heath Shuler today announced that he has secured a federal appropriation of $3,733,000 for the North Carolina National Guard’s Asheville Field Maintenance Facility.”
Don’t get me wrong. This is good bacon. It’s just interesting that Taylor claimed a freshman Congressman wouldn’t have any pull to bring federal dollars to the district. Taylor was wrong.
- George ‘the’ Bastard has noticed that Ron Paul supporters are bad drivers.
- The Bill of Rights (one of fourteen originals) is on display at UNCA’s Ramsey Library. Very cool opportunity.
- Thunder Pig is highlighting the worst, most disturbing, sycophantic musical group in the history of the world, The Right Brothers. This video will make you feel sick to your stomach, but you won’t be able to turn away.
Lastly, Chasing The Bread Truck turned us on to this hilarious set of images and captions from an old JC Penney’s catalog. Go have a laugh.
6 Comments
November 9th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
You’re right; this was a bunch of good stuff. Will you post photos of the Women in Black vigil?
“Zell Miller: riiiiiight!”
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November 9th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
Shuler voted tomake changes to the AMT. His people say in a press release:
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November 9th, 2007 at 5:31 pm
Rock and Roll, good. TRB, Bad….but hey if I was factually challenged and needed a catchy tune to help me remember what it is I’m supposed to think and say I would find this “tune” helpful…
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November 9th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
The Asheville Film Festival is cool. I watched “Ghost Town” this afternoon. Great movie filmed at Ghost Town in the Sky last November. I did a little work on the movie so my name is in the credits. Also published the novelization by Bob Terrell.
And Saturday night, my short film “The Amazing Flying Chair” plays at the Asheville Rejects Film Festival (the alternative fest in town).
Fun weekend!
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November 10th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
You’re wrong about the “few weeks” for Kucinich’s campaign. I think he was out actively campaigning for delegates until at least the California primary, which is one of the latest.
For the record, of course, Kucinich got the most votes in Buncombe in a caucus – an under-publicized, not-on-election-day, just-party-regulars-so-John-Edwards-should-do-great affair. JE did do great – I think he won the majority of convention seats across the state, as you would expect, but the turnout was so small that Kucinich supporters could make a huge impact. So he won Buncombe and (I think) Madison counties, and came in second or third in the district.
It’s going to take a lot more organization to get delegates for Kucinich this year, unfortunately. We’ll be voting for president at the same time we’re voting in three highly visible primaries – governor, lieutenant governor, and U.S. senator.
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November 10th, 2007 at 9:59 pm
Kucinich also did well in, of all places, Ashe County up in the TN/VA corner.
I was in Buncombe HQ for another event when the Kucinich people were planning how to win a delegate in 04 primary caucus. I told Edwards people what was going on. I knew most of them because up to a week or two before then, my husband had been fundraising for JRE and leading trips to New Hampshire and SC and organizing weekly phone banking as an Edwards full-time volunteer.
For this event, he was working for Patsy at the HW. It didn’t take much observation to realize these Kucinich supporters were very organized and that they were going to do very well (unless the Edwards people quickly got off their duffs and did some phone banking and strategizing). But they did nothing, expecting the rank and file primary-voters to do what they’re told without having to be told.
So, the laziness and arrogance of WNC old school Democrats was behind a major Edwards embarrassment.
So, you may wonder, did these good ol’ boy types make it up to Edwards? Did they work twice as hard for him after that? Did they fundraise for him more or go on more road trips like the ones my husband had led? Of course not.
They kicked Progressives out of the Democratic HQ. That’s right. They didn’t do a caucus GOTV effort for Edwards. Therefore, the Progressives who did so for Kucinich must pay. Up until I left NC in July 07, as far as I know, that lockout is still in effect.
How could big D Democrats be so little d undemocratic, you ask? Because the Buncombe County Democratic Party doesn’t run that building. The “courthouse gang good ol’ boys” (including the great recently-lauded Otto DeBruhl) run that building. You thought it was a democracy?
Well, you were wrong. See, a small group of people put up the money to buy the building so they’re not so naive as to let a lease be written that gives control of the building to the county party’s elected officials. No, they always maintain their power just for situations like this.
I wonder if Terry Bellamy got to use that building? Somehow, I don’t think so. But that’s another story.
(And I’m guessing that gang will die before they ever “forgive” progressives for voting according to conscience, for working hard in a democratic fashion to support a perfectly legal and moral candidate.)
And as long as the WNC unprogressive so-called Democrats keep using undemocratic ways to control the Democratic Party, Progressives will be retaliated against every time they try to accomplish something in a legal and upright manner.
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