Podcast Central: Marriage Equality, John Walsh, the State Senate and More!

I've been seriously negligent on my LeftAhead promos here on RyansTake, so here's a batch of our last few.

• Interview with Boston City Councilor Steve Murphy. We chatted lots of Boston topics, but also focused in on the proposed Suffolk Downs casino. Here's your chance to see what the President of the Boston City Council thinks about that, including whether or not the entirety of Boston should be able to vote on it, or just East Boston. I'll spare folks my thoughts on that matter, because if you're here, you probably know it already.
• State Democratic Party Chairman John Walsh. We love having John Walsh on and it always makes for a great show. He went over the strategy for this year's elections and I loved his thoughts, toward the end of the show, on the brewing Tierney-Tisei congressional race, which promises to be a doozy. Let's just say Tisei, the 'moderate' got behind the Blunt amendment... 
• Mike and I on the Republican Reality TV Primary, especially Santorum and Romney. Mike's always amazed that our pundit-like shows often do as well as shows with good guests, but I'm not as surprised. We had a lot of fun with this one, and people like fun. Plus, we're totally better pundits than most of the bobble-heads from CNN and Fox News.
• Freedom to Marry Board Member, Rev John Buehrens. Buehrens brings a national perspective as a 9-year member of Freedom to Marry, one of the chief national organizations fighting for marriage equality across the country. He's also a local UU minister, who just so happened to chair the national organization for a while.
  
  He brought even more insight into the state-by-state battles going on in Maine, Washington, Maryland and elsewhere than I expected -- so if these are on your radar, definitely check it out. He also brought in a fascinating understanding of where marriage equality, partisan politics and religion intersect, and how that influences the battle. This show shouldn't be missed.
• State Senate Candidate Mara Dolan. Our show with Dolan today was great. She is clearly a very credible candidate, with a wide policy background, as well. I was very pleased to hear that she understands the fact that the "MBTA issue" is a Beacon Hill issue as much as anything else.
  
  If you're from the 3rd Middlesex District, this is a can't-miss show, and even if not, you should still check it out, because these races have impacts that are far more wide-sweeping than their own borders. 

Of #OccupyBoston, Mooninites and #Sinkgate

The Boston Police Department's theft of #OccupyBoston's kitchen sink (sigh... the jokes just write themselves) is really just the latest in police overreaction in a long series of Boston Police are-you-kidding-me? overreactions. My friend put it well when she wrote on Facebook,

"okay, the occupiers probably shouldnt have blocked the police van. but, in their defense, the police PROBABLY SHOULD BE SPENDING THEIR TIME ON SOMETHING OTHER THAN A SINK. jussssst sayin'."

And I'm not even so sure they were wrong to block the van for the limited amount of time that they did. After all, they're living indefinitely protesting there, and dishes need cleaning.

So, how bad are the cops? Be it trying to arm every Tom, Dick and Harry in the force with military grade semi-automatic weapons, under the guise of 'preventing terrorism,' or essentially shutting down Boston because of a cartoon movie viral media campaign, it's clear the old fogies of the Boston Police and the status quo's forces that be just don't get what motivates or entertains anyone with a living pulse who thinks life's worth living.

When you think of it, there really are a lot of similarities between what happened when the Mooninites rocketed our city -- by being hung up on a couple walls to market a movie -- and #OccupyTogether movement itself.

Whether it's people wanting to amuse themselves with entertaining adult cartoons, or creating a positive atmosphere of freedom to fight for our rights to have a slice of the American Dream, it's all about people carving out a place for themselves.

And seemingly every time it happens, the elites of the world miss the 'joke,' metaphorical or otherwise.

So, in that regard, the Boston Police stealing the kitchen sink is emblematic with what's wrong with the city, government and mainstream society at large. It's the silly and serious merging all at once, crossing the poli-pop streams, amounting to something that's laughably stupid and insulting all at the same time.

They call the protesters dirty hippies, but as the protesters gain steam, they strip away their ability to stay clean, hoping normal people watching this stuff on the local news won't know any better.

Meanwhile, the protesters are nonviolent, peaceful and fighting for the rights of every American who's ever known what it's like to worry about putting food on the table, paying rent, finding a job or having adequate (or any) health care. The police are getting spooked by ghosts that just aren't there.

These politicians, corporate powers and police officers doing their dirty work don't respect or understand younger people and those struggling to find their way in this life, and they aren't even trying.

If it doesn't fit in with what's gone on in the past, like having a one day march instead of a long-term assembly, having a job instead of desperately looking for one in the midst of a job crisis for those out of work, or using viral marketing instead of paying millions for expensive ads, the old world not only doesn't understand it, but sees it as a threat and attacks it.

This time, far from attacking some stupid viral marketing campaign, we are the Mooninites -- and we're working with a political, corporate and police establishment that has yet to realize life has past them by.

According to Globe, Menino "supports" #OccupyBoston -- even as he tries to evict them

I don't know where to begin with this article.

Mayor Thomas Menino, who has previously expressed support for the Occupy movement, tells WCVB-TV (http://bit.ly/uwJs97) that he wants to have the legal tools to have dozens of tents in Dewey Square Park removed.

The fact that they suggest Menino's supported the movement is bizarre, in the extreme. Ordering police to mass-arrest protesters isn't "supporting" them.Telling protesters that Civil Disobedience has no place in Boston isn't "supporting" the protesters. About the only thing you can say about Menino's support is at least he hasn't allowed the BPD to give any Iraqi veterans brain injuries, like in Oakland, though even in that case, veterans in Boston were injured due to needless police brutality.

Menino's been somewhat constrained from lashing out at the Occupy movement in Dewey Square by popular opinion and the movement's strength, but let's not kid ourselves here, he's been wanting to get rid of them for quite a while now.

Want to see how much Menino "supports" the protesters and movement? Just watch this segment from WCVB's "On the Record," starting at about 2:50. It's a mutual sneer-fest. He (and they) hate the Occupy movement. Menino even goes on to compare Occupy Boston to the Tea Party -- and gives praise to the Tea Party!

So, Boston Globe, this online story is officially the ranks of Fake News.

A Report from Occupy Boston

Yesterday's events were fairly mellow, but the crowds were huge and the momentum is clearly building.

While the bulk of the people camping out were twenty somethings and college students, it's clear the movement itself is much larger than that.

People run the gamut in age, race and ideology, but are friendly and welcoming. I'd say upwards of half the total people there were seniors and young families, many with kids, so it's not just college students and twenty somethings, even if those are the biggest groups camping out.

There's also a wide variety of backgrounds, from Cornell graduates with degrees in engineering to the unemployed and everything in between.

It's a little crunchy granola, but you can't help but feel empowered and inspired by the people participating together in the movement. There's a real sense of community in "Tent City," not to mention the sense that everyone is a part of something much bigger.

Everything was very peaceful and people were greatful that the police have been accommodating thus far. There were certainly constant efforts to keep it that way, with lots of self policing and reminders from members of the community if you were doing something that could attract police attention, even mundane things like not leaving room to pass through the sidewalk.

There's also worries that the Mayor's recent antagonizing comments could change things in regards to the police. The protesters are prepared for that, but have made every effort to avoid it.

They've kept the camp contained to just the square, even though they're at capacity in "tent city" and would like to expand to more of the greenway. There's been little impacts on traffic and lots of effort has been made to keep things safe and sanitary - both of those issues have entire working groups dedicated to them.

Yet, there are also daily work shops for legal training so people know their rights and know what to do if the situation changes and there are arrests. Numbers are given out on who to call if legal help is needed and people are told to write it down on there persons, not just their phones (which can be confiscated), should they think there could be arrests.

Getting Involved

There's going to be a 3pm march today sponsored by several organizations, including labor. It will start with students at the band stand on the Commons at 2pm (gathering at 1:30) and from there, meet with the rest of Dewey Square and the unions for the big 3pm effort. There should be literally thousands of people there.

The General Assemblies are daily at 7pm and are a true experience in democracy to be witnessed. Specifics can be found at the Occupy Boston website beyond that.

These are great opportunities to come and be a part of it all - one of the 99% - as the normal go of things is a much quieter, more subdued affair, with some work group or presentation usually going on every hour or so, but otherwise just lots of people gathered in clusters, holding signs or doing other mundane things.

Those quieter moments are what you make of them. If you want to stay busy, you need to get involved and volunteer.

There's dedicated areas to get involved in their working groups, find out more information, a place to stay at night or grab something to eat.

If you come in to visit, consider bringing some donations, like food and water. At the General Assembly, the food services group specifically asked for vegan salad dressing and a large coffee maker. These are the things that keep people - and therefore the movement - going.

A Boston Earthquake?

Given what's happened in Haiti, I remembered reading about the potential dangers of a Boston Earthquake not long back. I decided to do a little google search - and, indeed, Boston and the New England region aren't so safe from quakes as we'd all like to believe.

Local scientists have been bringing up the inevitability of a reasonably bad Boston Earthquake for more than a decade now, but given what's happened in Haiti, maybe more people in Boston will be willing to look into it? Why Boston in particular -- and not all of New England? Well, Boston is particularly at risk. From the link:

Our earthquake threat is made more pressing by what distinguishes Boston among American cities: its elegant brick-and-mortar architecture, which in many cases sits on loose, unstable soil. Experts also warn that the city's aging infrastructure and utilities -- sewer mains, gas lines, bridges, and overpasses -- are rife with vulnerabilities.

When people think of Boston, it's important to think of a city that is much larger than it's 18th Century map -- the city has been greatly expanded through the use of landfills. This is particularly relevant because during earthquakes, landfills liquefy. Yes, liquefy. Anyone care to take a guess at what the Back Bay would look like after the buildings in it fall apart as the ground below liquefies? It could be a disaster.

All that said, it's not all bad. Thankfully, not all the buildings, even in the areas built on landfills, are especially dangerous. Anything built after 1973 should be solid, because that's when Massachusetts adopted the same seismic building codes that existed in California. The skyscrapers, by and large, should be okay. The Big Dig's got the latest technology in dealing with that threat, so that should be relatively safe. Even the oldest homes in suburbs surrounding the city should escape the worst, because most of them are built on solid ground.

These kinds of dangers are hard to plan for and even harder to justify major expenses in fixing -- because one never knows when the next, big Earthquake will strike. However, Boston's had them in the past -- Earthquakes as high as 6th magnitude or higher -- and not particularly long ago (1755 was the last bad one -- and there was one in 1638 that was even worse, in the 7s). Scientists think Boston's only likely to get a bad earthquake every couple of centuries, but it's not an exact science -- and it's been a few centuries already.

At the very least, this is something worth thinking about -- even if it's something as simple as offering carrots to property owners to test foundations, many of which in Boston are in such bad shape already that it may not even take an Earthquake to cause homes serious structural damage, as foundations settle. It's actually happened to homes in Boston already. Given that knowledge is power, it's always a distressing fact that the City of Boston knows so little about what's below the ground. At the very least, we need to know that -- not only to plan for any future seismic activity, but for all the other myriad problems old pipes and rotten foundations can cause.

Going Global

• Fake News Alert: Globe can't get past Gov's finances in article about Governor House Hunting. Shocker. The guy hasn't considered his Milton home home since he built the Richmond estate. Swapping the Milton digs for a comfortable condo within walking distance of the State House is a no brainer -- and not a real money-saving move. Luxury condos in Boston by the Commons don't go cheap.
• How does Globe come by the following sentence in Menino charter school article?
  

  Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who for years has expressed deep reservations about one of the most fundamental innovations in public education, abruptly shifted course yesterday and said he wants to turn the city's poorly performing schools into new charter schools.

  What makes Globe writer Michael Levenson or his editors experts in "innovations in public education?" Stick to the facts -- Menino's robbing Flaherty's chief education proposal.
  

• Times taking bids for Globe. I hereby offer my official bid of $.01. Any higher takers?
  

Holy Mackerel!

A Sam Yoon story not about fundraising? What is going on at the Globe? It's like they want to stay in business or something.

Flaherty Podcast

Mike and I had City Councilor - and candidate for Mayor - Mike Flaherty on LeftAhead today for a full podcast. As I did with the Sam Yoon segment, I let Mike do most of the talking - as he's lived in the city for almost as long as I've been alive and clearly has a better grasp of all things Boston.

I will admit, I knew very little about Flaherty before the segment, viewing him as the stereotypical machine union guy. Assumptions are a dangerous thing. Despite the city and state temperature at the time, he was the first person on the city council to come out for marriage equality over domestic unions or more overt forms of bigotry. Like Yoon, Flaherty makes the clear case that Menino's had 16 years to do something about the city's problems in education and violent crime, with no real improvement.

I was particularly impressed with Flaherty's handle on violence - he was very specific there and explained just why and how the violence rate spiked and how he could actually go in and fix it. I don't know if I've heard a better explanation. It should have been an incredibly wonky conversation, but he's certainly not the mumbling type and explained things in such a way that anyone would get it. As he made his case, it quickly became clear that his prosecutorial background was an asset. His most damaging line on the Mayor -- the fact that during Menino's tenure, approximately a thousand people have been murdered in the streets of Boston.

Flaherty quickly referenced what I harped on a few days ago, the absurdity that the Boston Police Department was more worried about Mumbai-styled attacks than the murderers currently running rampant in the streets. Whereas I was unsure of whether or not Menino deserved to stay, speaking to his two city council rivals has convinced me that it's time for a fundamental change.

Another impressive area for Flaherty was revenue and funding -- which was surprising, since he's a 'reform before revenue' guy. Normally, that's a lame slogan meant to block change and cut, cut, cut rather than deal with uncomfortable realities. However, Flaherty was one of the first people who have harped on finding efficiencies and actually brought examples and ideas showing how he'd do it. For example, he's not willing to go and ask citizens and small businesses for more taxes now, while the city's universities and colleges are acting the part of deadbeat dads - clearly not paying their fair share, as they gobble more and more of Boston's real estate (Non-property-taxpaying nonprofits now own over 50% of the city's property). Another idea: shift money spent on empty buses to more tutoring or other real school needs -- these empty buses represent at least 5% of Boston's education budget, perhaps more. No chump change.

He's probably not a 'movement progressive' as I like to identify, but he's good on the issues and his detailed knowledge, ideas on crime as well as commitment to empowering Boston through bringing it to the 21st Century were impressive (Voicemail? Statistical analysis? Boston?!). If I could add Yoon's depth on education to Flaherty's commitment to ending youth violence, there'd be a perfect candidate. As it stands, there's at least two people in this race who are ready to bring much-needed change to Boston, with more to come on LeftAhead.

Note: there's a special podcast this Thursday featuring BMG's Sabutai on the convention platform. It'll be live at 3:30, or on the website and itunes thereafter.

Idiotic Policy at Boston Police Dept.

Apparently, leaders in the Boston Police force are so worried about terrorist attacks like the ones that happened in Mumbia, India, that they're arming patrol officers with semiautomatic, military-grade weaponry. Talk about the wrong priorities! Better theory? Bizarre leaders want new toys. I say let them retire.

Seriously, people should be fired over this, especially given the fact that it does nothing to help the *actual* terrorism going on in the city right now - the 70-80 people being murdered on the streets every year. Semiautomatic M16s won't stop or solve those murders; they may just prompt gangs to strengthen their arms. What's worked in the past has been getting the police and city to work with all facets of the community in crime prevention -- something the city, from all the sources I've talked to, has gotten away from in recent years. Anyone want to take a bet that all of these M16s would pay for a hefty chunk of whatever it would take to restart some of the programs that are actually effective in reducing the youth violence that's led to so many murders over the past few years?

It's one thing to have a well-prepared swat team, it's another to arm regular police officers and allow this culture of fear to continue to prompt idiotic high-ranking officers to ignore the actual terrorism going on in this city every week in favor of the imaginary scenarios that are about as likely to take place as a pig that flies. Boston has almost no threat of a coordinated attack -- and a couple of M16s won't protect us from one. In London, most of the cops don't even go around with guns -- and it's a city that's dealt with very-real terrorism for decades. Kudos to the two officers who had the courage to leak this critical information.

Update: Maybe they're worried about Mooninites?

Podcast Schedule Correction

AKA the danger of having two people casting shows at the same time.

Mayoral candidate Flaherty will be on at the normal time on Tuesday, 2:30pm. Shortly after the show is over, we'll post it on LeftAhead.com. But, as always, you can listen to the show live. Go to LeftAhead for more directions on how to do so.

Sabutai will be on Thursday for a special episode at 3:30pm to discuss the Democratic Platform at the platform convention. You can also listen live or go to LeftAhead.com shortly after the show to listen. Additionally, all of our shows are cued up on Itunes, to listen to or download to an Ipod, which is a great way to hasten a commute.

Did you hear Sam Yoon Yesterday?

We interviewed Mayoral candidate and Boston City Councilor At-Large Sam Yoon on LeftAhead yesterday. I mostly deferred to Mike on this show, letting him ask the bulk of the questions, since he actually lives in Boston.

I don't find it useful or all that relevant to make endorsements anymore, but I will say that Sam Yoon makes a compelling case for the need for change. The city's had 16 years of Mayah Menino and what is there to show for it? Indeed, the city's gone backwards in the 2000s. The rate at which kids are killing each other and failing out of school is just unacceptable. So, especially if you live in Boston, give the show a listen and see if Sam Yoon is the candidate for you.

Globe's Weird Yoon Fixation

Why is it that any story the Globe actually prints about Mayoral candidate Sam Yoon is about how Yoon goes outside Boston to raise money? It's actually quite simple: Menino has a gigantic war chest and can raise basically unlimited sums. Few can raise serious money within Boston who challenge Menino because Menino's, um, powerful. Yoon's had some success raising from within Korean American circles around the country because he'd be their first major Mayoral politician. Meanwhile, Menino's tremendous fundraising advantage probably includes more total funds from outside Boston than Yoon's raised altogether, inside or out. No one gives a flying frak about that.

Where's the problem here? Why the obsession? Will the Globe actually print anything about the issues on this race, even on a single candidate? Inquiring minds want to know, but the answers are never going to be found at the Boston Globe.

Wrong on City Council Candidate Bill Trabucco

As a commenter said on my original blog,

I think you are being too harsh….. It is obvious from his 8th grade Science award that he is overly qualified for leadership…..

How true! Also, kudos to Trabucco for coming up with a new campaign political strategy (h/t Adam Gaffin).

Best Political Site Ever!

Bill Trabucco is running for Boston City Council. Go to his site. When you go, you need to explore the full depths of it. There's just so many hidden gems there. My favorite? His "Quotes" section. Which one doesn't belong?

“You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. ”

Abraham Lincoln

" Be the change you wish to see in the world. "

Mohandas Gandhi

" We all take turns experiencing Life, Love, and Sorrow without exception... so therefore, know that you are NEVER alone!"

Bill Trabucco

"Our lives begin to end, the day we become silent about things that matter."

Martin Luther King

HT to Mike for pointing it out to me.

Higginson's Out of State Rep Special Election

It was a huge mountain for Ryan to climb, but hopefully he'll stay active in the community and politics of Boston. While he didn't have tons of polish, he did have some good ideas of where communities and government should be.

We had him on over at LeftAhead, as well as the two heavyweights, Susan and Aaron. I've got to think Ryan pulling out helps Susan, who's from the same area of Boston and has been aggressively pushing for the progressive bloc that Ryan's votes would come from. It's going to be a fascinating race, though, with no clear favorite and two exceptionally well run, strong campaigns.

Read Ryan's press release here, where he expands on his future plans, including his Commonwealth Plan.

Blaming Menino

The candidates are doing it and, honestly, it seems like they kind of have a point. Sorry Mr. Mayah, but it's tough to explain that one away.

Universal Hub's Adam Gaffin On Today's Show

Catch today's podcast? We had Adam Gaffin on from Universal Hub chatting it up. Good stuff.

Here's an Idea

Something's broken with the buses. The Globe notes that most of the buses in Boston's system fill less than a quarter of the bus, some as low as one or two students. Why drop or dramatically alter the busing scheme and spend half the $79 million (9% of the city's budget) on private tutors at schools that aren't performing up to par, increasing school days if need be? $40 million buys a lot of private, highly qualified tutors.

Considering some of these buses are shipping next to no students halfway across the city, that sounds like a way better way to both make sure kids are getting a quality education and making sure the city is spending money efficiently. Otherwise, there's layoffs and everyone loses, including those getting bused, as the bus system suddenly takes up 10-15% of the school budget because of the cuts.

I honestly doubt sending the kids across the city would dramatically improve the education they receive; the very fact that these kids are willing to go that far, and have parents willing to go through that extra mile, suggests that they're generally good students already. 'Bad schools' are schools that just lose more students - students that can't or won't do homework or study because of home life or don't have the tools to learn what they didn't learn whilst in class (everyone has their own pace). Finding ways to get at them, teach them what they need, preferably during school hours, is the way to salvation at schools. That's not going to come from a bus. It's going to come from more hours in school, with guided study sessions that include personal tutoring if need be, so students are learning what they need, when they need it.

Speaking about the Speaker...

Did you catch the latest LeftAhead podcast? No? Well, Mike, Lynne and I chatted up on the Speaker situation as well as the how the Boston Mayoral race is shaping up. Also, next week, make sure to check in for Adam Gaffin from Universal Hub.

Tomorrow's Podcast: Bikes in Boston

Mike, Lynne and I are on with Nicole Freedman, Director of Boston Bikes, tomorrow at 2:30 to talk about biking in Boston and how to improve it, as well as the city's future plans. Biking to work and around town is great for numerous reasons - almost zero carbon footprint, lessens traffic and it's great exercise. Looks to be an interesting show.

Listen live at 2:30 or go to LeftAhead.com anytime afterward.