USA: Opt out of phone books and yellow pages

I sure hope this works! I get 6 of these tree-murdering useless things per year, some from phone companies I don't even use. It's past time to be able to opt out. Some companies are cutting old-growth forest for phone books, which is obscene.

Berok and Chacon - underwater scene

Berok and Chacon, from Spain, painted this lovely 11 x 7 meter mural recently, which includes an amazing octopus. Lucky guys had a lift too.

"Don't Talk to the Police" by Professor James Duane

Even if you're innocent and not under suspicion, you can be jailed for things you say to police. Just don't talk to them without a lawyer by your side. Even when you're just a witness, even when you are the one who called the cops, you can be arrested or prosecuted later for things you say.

Don't talk to the police without a lawyer, because [paraphrased]:

1. It can't help you. They can arrest you no matter what you say -- and probably will. What you tell police can't be used to help you at trial. Save it for court. Don't try to talk your way out of something after the police show up.

2. It's possible to admit you're guilty or say something incriminating, even by accident. Save it for court.

[It also doesn't help to admit guilt when the cops insist that they will go easier on you if you confess. So many kids fall for this one! It's just a lie they tell you in order to get you to self-incriminate so they won't have to prove anything. Cops can lie to you, but it's easy to get thrown in jail merely for lying to them (ask Martha Stewart). This is particularly true for the Feds. Some people would also get off on bad busts except for the fact that they admitted they were guilty to the police.]

3. Even if you are innocent, if you make a mistake when telling your story -- even by accident -- you could get convicted later as a result.

4. Even if you are innocent and tell the truth and only the truth, you might still give the cops information that could get you convicted in court. Prosecutors need to convict someone, so they look hard for someone no matter how far fetched the case may be. The 5th Amendment protects you from incriminating yourself, but only if you don't do it. Keeping your mouth shut is the only way to be sure. Innocent or guilty, the 5th protects you. Don't waste what little protection you have by talking.

5. If you talk to the police, regardless of what you say, they could easily remember what you said badly, exposing you to the possibility of being wrongfully convicted in court.

6. Even if you are videotaped.

7. Especially if the authorities then turn up someone with even mistaken or unreliable evidence that contradicts your statements.

[Tip: Television has nothing to do with real life and it may be entirely misleading about police and court procedures.]

[And last but not least, the big lie that will not die: Undercover police and informants can lie when you ask them if they are the police. There is no magic police deactivation phrase!]

: Thank you very much officer, but I can't talk to you without my lawyer here.

Albus Cavus in DC

Jam at an intersection in Columbia Heights in Washington DC on Sunday, November 9, 2008.

Participating artists: Tim CON (DC), Decoy (DC), Billy Mode (MD), VJ (DC), Owel (DC), Gaia (MD), Leon Rainbow (NJ), Will Kasso (NJ), Demer (NJ), Peter Krsko (DC) - on flickr.

10,000 hours = expertise

Malcolm Gladwell explains the relationship among effort, talent, and success. What looks like genius can be explained to some extent by practice. Early successes mean early parental support.

BBC - Election night in Chicago USA

This video is the best one I've seen so far from that hopeful night.

The NYT spoof - Yes Men and others claim responsibility

We've seen The Yes Men in action before, and they are some of the coolest pranksters ever.

President-elect Obama's first YouTube address

It's a new day in American leadership, and what a difference. Let's hope Congress gets behind him and that his economic interventions work.

Of course, the idiots are freaking out too. So now is the time to step up our intolerance for hate speech and racist attitudes. It's not something we just have to put up with, it's a tiny cowardly minority with big mouths.

Election night photos in Chicago

My photos of the election night rally in Chicago didn't turn out as well as these did, but this slide show shows the crowd and the new first family, and it gives you a real sense of what it was like on the ground. It is being reported that 250,000 people were there at the rally in Chicago with us, although most of those folks would have been outside the park itself where you can't see them. This wave of humanity you can see is the first 40,000 or so who made it inside.

It was a trip leaving the park. Everyone was especially polite -- in a state of shock really. Optimistic shock, but definitely stunned. We walked for a dozen blocks in a crowd as far as you could see of quiet happy people. No cars. Every once in a while a wave of happy shouting would pass over us. I've never seen so many happy, relaxed, well-behaved cops in my life. I've never felt safer in a big crowd.

Now, perhaps, a change for the better is in the wind. Let's all hope so.

A NYTimes parody

Too funny. Must be a cynical week all over. Rumor is these folks not only spoofed the NYT but they also printed hard copies and distributed them in NYC, so be on the lookout if you're in the City.

Thanks to Katie for the tip

LULZ: Onion satire on YouTube

YouTube Contest Challenges Users To Make A 'Good' Video
via Boing Boing

Bombing Beirut

Stone, graffiti pioneer from Germany, recently went to Beirut Lebanon to work with writers there. Previously you'll recall Stone organized two big events in Cuba with Os Gemeos, Won, Neon (Germany) and Cemnoz -- altogether more than 25 writers from Germany, Brazil, and Cuba.

BLF and Wachovia Bank (RIP)

Rezine69 Light Graf Exhibition

President elect, Barack Obama

Yes We Did.

Here are some excellent photos from the campaign.

I participated in the election-night rally in Chicago (thanks, Killian!), and I'll post a few photos from it in a day or two.

Refa One: Obama train

A Brand New Illustration by Oakland Artist "Refa One" Depicting Obama. This is the Latest Subway Car illustration from the popular Series "Train of Thought".

Title: "The Winds of Change" (ObAmA)
Medium: Permanent Ink, Pigment Pens and Marker Illustration
Size: 8 X17 inches (framed)
Price: $350.

Signed Prints:
8 X 17 inches $50
5 X 11 inches $25

contact: refa1@hotmail.com

A.K.A. Graffiti - Oakland California - August 2008

At FIVEten Studio with Peeta (check out his new canvases) and TDK crew and performers of many kinds.

Photos by Peeta, Kemrexx, and Susan Farrell. Regrettably these are not all the items in the show, but here are some of the more photographable highlights.


Dream.TDK RIP

Peeta

Peeta

detail

Vogue

Vogue

Low Rider, parked


Peeta

Low Rider with Vogue paint, character

Vogue

Merx

Merx

Merx

Merx

Peeta

Vogue

Banksy talks about his endangered piece in London

Pretty funny and profound stuff. It turns out the Royal Mail is the complainant and the defender claims it's theirs and it's advertising. Banksy is not amused.

On Oct. 23, the Council of Westminster in London ordered the removal of a 23 ft (7 m) Banksy mural -- reportedly his largest work in central London -- claiming that it encourages graffiti.

In an exclusive statement to TIME, the mysterious guerrilla prankster has responded to the council's decision. "I don't know what next door is complaining about -- their building is so ugly the 'No Trespassing' sign reads like an insult," the statement reads, referring to Royal Mail, a tenant of the building that has sought the mural's removal.

NYC high school rents out its graffiti roof room

This is the same space I posted about a while back, Seward Park High School in NYC, that let some of the Kings come in and paint. This article explains the rooftop space's influence a bit more and mentions in passing that it's also a rentable party space. Support their school and the Old School at the same time. Sweet. Open air.

Video the Vote

A great idea: Put an army of citizen reporters out there with video cameras and thus monitor the voting irregularities online. It might not protect against the ballot boxes that get dropped in Florida swamps, but at least we'd get that license plate number.

Tim O'Reilly: Why I support Barack Obama

(via BoingBoing)
This is great info with very interesting links to other stuff. My favorite reason here:

9/11, The War in Iraq, and the Growth of Authoritarian Government

Perhaps the most frightening thing about 9/11 is how easily we, as a nation, forgot who we are and what we stand for. We threw away the sympathy of the world by acting as though the threat of terrorism justifies the abandonment of human rights. The false intelligence and the lies that linked Iraq with the terrorists of 9/11, the abuses in Guantanamo, the drumbeat of fear that was used for political gain, all lost us the respect and moral leadership we once enjoyed. Meanwhile, Americans gave up freely the liberties that were the very foundation of our nation and made us a model for the rest of the world.

We need a clear break with that sordid epoch. John McCain is as outraged by Guantanamo as Barack Obama, but he continues the misplaced focus of American foreign policy on Iraq. And he seems to share the Bush administration's idea that terrorism is the greatest threat facing this country.

Barack Obama has outlined a commitment to extricate ourselves from a colossal foreign policy mistake. This plan, derided as naive by the Republicans, is in line with the wishes of the Iraqis, and will allow us to realign our foreign policy priorities to deal with far more substantial threats to our national interest.

But more importantly, it is itself a strategic move in "the war on terror. " By invading Iraq, we created a haven for terrorism that didn't previously exist. Even worse, we gave them exactly what they wanted, an enemy that could serve as a recruiting tool.

And we played completely into their hands here in America as well! What, after all, is the goal of terrorism? To disrupt the society of an enemy by creating an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty.

Al Quaeda no longer needs to do anything to create that atmosphere of fear. Our government does that for them! From the horrific -- abuses of civil rights that undermine fundamental constitutional freedoms -- to the ridiculous -- what Bruce Schneier has so ably criticized as security theater that has increased the costs and inconvenience of travel while providing no added security, the Bush administration has acted the puppet to Osama bin Laden's game plan.

On the internet, we know how to deal with people who try to disrupt our activities. While griefers are not the same as terrorists, the same principle applies. We say, "Don't feed the trolls!"

Even without any overt action, an Obama presidency will undermine the aims of terror by providing a clear break with the past, a break with the policies that have made America more of a target for terrorism than we were before 9/11.

My hope -- and I'll admit that it's only a hope -- is that Obama is smart enough to know, like Roosevelt, that "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself," and will use the power of the presidency to reverse the fear-driven policies of the past seven years.

Perhaps the most alarming aspect of what has happened in those years is the way that fear has been used to claim extraordinary power for the Presidency. Those of you who know my background know that my degree is in Greek and Latin Classics. So it's perhaps forgivable that historical parallels with ancient Rome are quick to come to my mind. The claims of the Bush administration to be above the law, its claims that the threat of terrorism demand the suspension of civil liberties, are eerily reminiscent of the events that led to the end of the Roman Republic. Faced with an invasion by pirates (the terrorists of 68 BC), Pompey the Great was given extraordinary powers. Within a decade, Rome was a dictatorship, led by the one Senator who had supported Pompey's exaggerated claims, Julius Caesar.

Of course, we are a long way from that point, but the drift of our country towards authoritarianism is alarming. John McCain has been trying to paint Obama as the candidate of big government. Yet it is the Right, not the Left, that is bringing us the biggest, most powerful, most centralized, and most intrusive government that America has ever seen. Many members of the technical community have libertarian leanings; you should vote for Obama for this reason alone!

I don't see evidence in Obama's platform that he has come to explicit grips with this issue. But it is seems far more likely to me that any Supreme Court justices he appoints will be more inclined to stop this mad slide towards an authoritarian society than the candidates who might be proposed by John McCain. I do know that the technological sophistication and political predilections of Obama's advisors will be to warn of the slippery slope that awaits us if we continue down the path of fear, with the tools of technology applied to end freedom rather than to increase it.

Pop Lockin'

via BoingBoing

Bando on Flickr

Bando has long been considered one of the most influential style masters since Dondi. He wrote in NYC, Paris, and London in the 1980s with CTK and the Chrome Angels.

Thanks to Rough for the heads up.

Election maps, USA

Here are a bunch of election maps from various sources shown on one page from Yahoo. You can see that things are looking good for Obama, but that there are a bunch of battleground states that could go either way. Your vote will matter more this year than ever, especially if you're in a state where the count is close. It isn't over until it's over. In lots of districts the race will probably be decided by a few hundreds or thousands of votes.

Some reports are coming in about the touch screen voting machines changing votes. This seems to be a calibration problem. Be careful to check your results on those before you finalize your vote. If you're more than 5 feet tall, it's easy to hit the wrong candidate with your finger, just like on ATMs. Report any problems at the polls and to reportvotingproblems.org.

Expect long lines in some places and take something to entertain yourself. Expect idiots to try to discourage you and fool you into not voting by trying to get you out of line somehow. Expect to get lies on flyers and mailings. Whenever the vote is tight this kind of discouragement happens to try to get people to give up. Most of that stuff is illegal, so report it as best you can.

Save the Banksy campaign

Not surprisingly, citizens would rather save that Banksy (see previous post) in London rather than let the authorities whitewash another masterpiece. Bristol saved one of theirs this way, so who knows. You'd think the Tate Modern would step up to defend it given their recent focus on street art.

Here's the email address in a usable format: planninginformation@westminster.gov.uk

Here's a photo of the work in question