stuff and random things

My last tribe & testament

chaiguy — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 06:04:45 GMT

I, Chai Guy, being of sound mind and body do here by bequeath control of my entire social networking empire (to include Tribe, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Blogger, Yelp, Flickr, Youtube and Friendster as well as any future sites I may join) in the event of my untimely death, to my very dear friend Da Bomb. The monetary value of these accounts shall be considered $0.00 and she may administrate them in any fashion she sees fit, including wholesale or partial deletion of said accounts and content contained wherein, and to include the uploading of new content or altering of existing content. In short, no one shall bitch. moan, whine, complain or otherwise act like a little crybaby should I depart this earth before they do.

Burning Man to go Non-Profit 501c3

chaiguy — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:24:22 GMT

"Oh yeah, that’s what we’re working on. Next year will be our 25th — the silver jubilee if it were a marriage. The event is replenishing itself. Unlike a lot of things, it’s not defined by just one age cohort. It’s thriving. I’ve no trouble imagining it lasting another 25 years and more. We’re in the process of shedding the corporation into a non-profit in order to help take care of the employees who have been with us for so many years and allow them to advance in leadership and responsibility in our absence. We’re involved in a reorganization from top to bottom; it’s going to be very interesting." - Larry Harvey Just think, you may someday be able to volunteer and write your entire burn off as a "Charitable Contribution" on your taxes! YES! http://burncast.blogspot.com/2009/07/bmorgs-all-twitter.html http://burncast.blogspot.com/2009/07/bmorgs-all-twitter.html

Matthew Shepard, Bitter Sweet Victories

chaiguy — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 19:20:13 GMT

The Sweet: Yesterday The House of Representatives passed a bill expanding federal protection against hate crimes to disability, gender, and sexual orientation. The bill, which was approved by a margin of 249-175, passed in a sharply-divided partisan vote. An overwhelming majority of Democrats supported the measure, while most Republicans were opposed. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/04/29/house-passes-hate-crimes-bill/ The Bitter: As the House of Representatives debates an expansion of hate crimes legislation, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) has taken the rhetoric to a new level, claiming that those who say Matthew Shepard was murdered in Wyoming for being gay are perpetrating a "hoax" on the American people. "I also would like to point out that there was a bill -- the hate crimes bill that's called the Matthew Shepard bill is named after a very unfortunate incident that happened where a young man was killed, but we know that that young man was killed in the commitment of a robbery. It wasn't because he was gay. This -- the bill was named for him, hate crimes bill was named for him, but it's really a hoax that that continues to be used as an excuse for passing these bills," http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/29/virginia-foxx-story-of-ma_n_192971.html I stayed up very, very late last night, thinking of Virginia Foxx's statements, reading things from other people who feel the same way. How can you believe this was a hoax? How can you believe that Matthew Shepard was not brutally beaten, tortured, and left to die, for 18 hours tied to a fence simply because he was gay? Is it because you can't get your mind around that fact or is because you feel that it's somehow ok to single out a gay person to torture and murder provided you take $20 from them in the process, since we'll be able to prosecute them for robbery? The murderers provided a "Gay Panic" defense. The murderers girlfriends stated, under oath, that they had planned to seek out a gay man to rob that evening. They conspired together (in the bathroom) to pretend to be gay to lure Matthew away from the bar for the purpose of attacking him. Please help me understand. I'm glad this bill passed, but sick to my stomach over the fact that one of our elected leaders has the audacity to question the validity of this heinous crime in front of the victim's mother. (Matthew Shepard's mother was present during this speech). Really Representative Virginia Foxx, how dare you? I'm dedicating this day to Speaking about Matthew Shepard, The Laramie Project and your LIES to the American People. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Shepard http://www.tectonictheaterproject.org/The_Laramie_Project.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/29/virginia-foxx-story-of-ma_n_192971.html

Valentine's Day!

chaiguy — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 04:05:27 GMT

I've been really depressed lately, maybe it's the economy, maybe it's my lack of a social life, or my Seasonal Effectiveness Disorder kicking in, or just a combination of all 3. I'd really like to see some of you party monsters in a setting which is conducive to actual conversation and sharing. I'd like to actual look into your eyes, and not your avatar on a screen for a change! I would LOVE-LOVE-LOVE to see your bright smiling face at this little get-together this Saturday, February 14th, we're calling it "Looking 4 Love" it's a Twitter meets Valentines Day Scavenger Hunt, it's going to be really fun, but don't get hung up on the twitter thing, it's just an excuse for us to get together and have a great time. On our last scavenger hunt there were several people who were completely unaware that we were even playing a game, and those people had a blast. Style Points will be in full effect, so come correct, and be ready to have an experience. Oh, and tickets are selling out, there are only a few left at the discounted prices. We've got some at $10.00 and some $5.00 for those of you feeling this economy. We have some truly beautiful prizes and if you're very lucky, you might even find LOVE! Cause what the world needs now... Is LOVE, SWEET LOVE! http://lookingforlove.eventbrite.com/

Watcha Y'all Doin' for Valentine's Day?

chaiguy — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 09:45:17 GMT

Lonely? Single? Looking for love? Come join us for a Valentine's Day event like no other. Meet and tweet with us on Saturday, February 14th in Los Angeles, California for a heartfelt afternoon of food, friends, fun and a little "Love On The Run". We'll be mixing it up with drinkies, sweet nothings and candy hearts in a "Love" themed web 2.0 meets real life scavenger hunt. Meet some new peeps, enjoy some old favorites, and re-discover your love affair with this beautiful City of Angels that we are blessed to call home. This event is strictly park-and-play (no driving during the event required), so you're free to imbibe (BYO or crawl the pubs along the way -- provided you're 21+ and have ID, of course). We want everybody to shine so costumes are encouraged. But don't say we didn't warn you: you can really get wild and wonderful -- oh dear Heavens, yes. But don't forget to wear your comfortable shoes! We'll be walking and or taking public transportation. This event will team singles with other singles. If you happen to be part of a couple, we'd love for you two to join us in the fun! Just let us know so that we can group you accordingly. And please: just keep your perpetual smugness at being able to snag a mate to yourself. ;-) To participate all you need is LOVE -- oh and $10.00 to help us pay for some fabulous prizes for our scavenger hunt, which you will probably win because you are so clever and hawt! You'll also need a few more things to make the magic happen and so here's a checklist: * Cellphone -- make sure it's charged! * Digital camera -- make sure it's got fresh batteries! * One Metro Day Pass per person. * Twitter account to pick up some of the clues to the scavenger hunt. It's been forever since we've seen you, and remember your New Year's Resolution to spend more time with us this year? Let's not disappoint. We promise you'll have a great time with lots of chocolate kisses and maybe a few real ones. So don't stand us up (again!), PayPal your cash today, and we'll have a big heart-on for you! See you on Valentine's Day! Follow us on Twitter (@Looking4Love) for updates leading up to and throughout the event.

There Goes My Hero

chaiguy — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 18:44:38 GMT

University of Utah student, Tim DeChristopher arrived at the BLM building in Salt Lake City last Friday intending to join some 200 other people protesting the Bush administration’s decision to auction oil and gas rights on federal lands near some of our most iconic national parks. Then he had one of those profound insights that change people’s lives forever. During the auction, Tim purchased the oil and gas rights to 10 parcels of BLM land around Arches and Canyonlands National Parks for 1.8 million dollars that he doesn’t have. He also drove up the bidding on a number of other parcels that he didn’t purchase. Eventually, bidders representing oil and gas companies became suspicious and alerted BLM officials who notified Salt Lake City plainclothes policemen (who were already in the room!). Tim was detained, questioned and then released by federal agents, but may face federal charges. The BLM was offering 131 parcels at the auction on Friday of which it sold 116 including the ones that Tim purchased. The total number of acres offered was 149,000 down from the 360,000 acres that the Bush administration proposed before the public outcry became so great that the BLM scaled back. By the way, the oil and gas rights on those 131 parcels sold for 7.5 million dollars, approximately $57.00 an acre. The price would have been even lower if Tim hadn’t been there bidding. These lands belong to the American people but were being sold-off, at white-sale prices, to Bush and Cheney’s cronies in the Climaticide mafia. Tim’s actions bore immediate fruit: BLM official Terry Catlin said the agency didn’t want to reopen the bidding on the parcels DeChristopher snagged unless all interested parties were able to compete for the leases. That means the parcels won’t be available again until at least February — after Obama takes office — during the next scheduled auction. DeChristopher, who acknowledged upping other bids by about $500,000, said he would be willing to go to jail to defend his generation’s prospects in light of global climate disruption and other environmental threats. “If that’s what it takes,” he said. “At some point we must draw a line across the ground of our home and our being, drive a spear into the land and say to the bulldozers, earthmovers, government and corporations, ‘thus far and no further.’ If we do not, we shall later feel, instead of pride, the regret of Thoreau, that good but overly-bookish man, who wrote, near the end of his life, ‘If I repent of anything it is likely to be my good behavior.‘ “ Ed Abbey To Donate, Go Here: http://www.bidder70.org/

Voting Machines Vs. Slot Machines

chaiguy — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 19:48:42 GMT

click on the photo or go here for the full size pic: http://i41.tinypic.com/zl9cee.jpg

Twitter

chaiguy — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 01:21:28 GMT

Have you tried Twitter? I know, I didn't like it at first either, but I now I find it to be fairly useful. My good friend Tanjab and I sat down recently for a chat about twitter (by the way, she gives good interview!) Check it out on the youtubes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80ATW4EbUNw

This Human Being

chaiguy — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 06:18:46 GMT

This Human Being... is going to be all digital will not walk into a store to buy music or books will have more RAM in his cell phone than was on the first space shuttle is going to have a black president! will grow up in a world that is vastly different than that of any generation before him might someday travel into space might someday visit Mars might see an end to cancer, to AIDS, to war will be loved will be taught love will be afforded every opportunity will be allowed to make mistakes has already broken and healed my heart has given me hope.

Tribe is Supporting "Yes on 8"?!?!

chaiguy — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:57:42 GMT

What the fuck? Tribe is taking money from "YES ON 8"??? Seriously Pincus, what the fuck? You might try emailing him at markpinc@gmail.com to ask the same question.

WASSUP?

chaiguy — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 07:43:41 GMT

wassup for 2008 - must see! http://in.youtube.com:80/watch?v=Qq8Uc5BFogE

Microsofts anti Mac ad was created, on a Mac!

chaiguy — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 20:30:38 GMT

After dumping its $10 million contract with Jerry Seinfeld after just three ads (only two of which even aired) Microsoft has created new ad copy where regular people and a few celebrities say, “I’m a PC!” One problem with the campaign’s credibility: the ad work was created using Macs. Click on the link for the whole story: http://www.roughlydrafted.com/2008/09/19/microsofts-im-a-pc-ads-created-on-macs/

MTV - Not so "Green"

chaiguy — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 21:24:39 GMT

As one would expect, the real “reality” is much less exciting. In fact, as was recently reported by Michael Drake on the Tree Climber’s Coalition site, not only is the show basically scripted and shot in and around civilization, but it also appears to have done a good deal of environmental damage. Drake, along with others living on Boca del Drago Island in the Republic of Panama witnessed MTV clear a large section of rainforest for the set construction. In addition, they also trashed a pristine beach, disturbed a bird sanctuary island “off-limits” to human visitations, and left behind an insane amount of garbage, set debris, and refuse. As Drake wrote, “MTV’s behavior in this situation has been rampantly inconsistent with their self-proclaimed ‘MTV Green Crusade’. I sense a bit of hypocrisy and I question their commitment toward being ‘green’.” http://www.treeclimbercoalition.org/TreeTalk/article.cfm?articleid=156

I <3 Tina Fey !!!

chaiguy — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 18:45:55 GMT

"I can see Russia from my house!" http://gawker.com/5049611/tina-fey-as-sarah-palin-and-poehler-as-clinton

Happy Birthday Leonard Peltier

chaiguy — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 21:52:28 GMT

Silence, they say, is the voice of complicity. But silence is impossible. Silence screams. Silence is a message, just as doing nothing is an act. Let who you are ring out & resonate in every word & every deed. Yes, become who you are. There's no sidestepping your own being or your own responsibility. What you do is who you are. You are your own comeuppance. You become your own message. You are the message. In the Spirit of Crazy Horse - Leonard Peltier http://www.leonardpeltier.net/

Grace Vs. Compassion

chaiguy — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:51:10 GMT

I'd like to have Compassion for everyone in this world, but I just can't. I can, however, usually muster up some Grace. Grace does not require me to relate to the other person, I don't have to feel their pain, or even think about what they might be going through. I can give Grace freely, it is infinite, as long as my intentions are true, and my heart pure. Of course, I prefer compassion, I think it helps me grow as a human bean, but when I'm all out of Compassion, I extend Grace. Sometimes when I don't think I have Compassion and extend Grace, I go back and find some Compassion in my meditation, and I'm able to hold both. The hardest person to find either Grace or Compassion for is myself, so knowing this I give myself permission to bestow an extra helping of either or both, whenever I need it. I don't withdraw Grace or Compassion once it's given. If later I'm given new information which causes me to reconsider the validity of my initial gift, I am able to realize that I probably should have given even more. My encouragement to you is to begin offering both more Compassion and Grace in your life. I think you will see the benefits immediately.

American Journalism Is In A Crisis

chaiguy — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 23:46:39 GMT

I know from first hand experience this to be true. If the news can't get a simple story about my friend's birthday party correct (we're not Furries, dammit!) How can they possibly figure out Iraq?? American journalism is in a crisis by Dan Rather I was taught that everybody realized that news was a public trust. But it’s reached the point now where five or six corporations control the mass media in the United States. These international conglomerates increasingly have many more moneymaking interests – they have defense contracts, they run entertainment companies, they have billboards. The corporate interests have such wide-ranging overlap that they need favors from people with power in Washington. Sometimes those powers are from the Democratic Party, sometimes they are from the Republican Party. I think it’s really important people understand that the idea of news being operated as a public trust in the public interest has virtually disappeared. The reason I’m deeply concerned about this is because the press, increasingly, doesn’t have the courage to stand up to government and government propaganda. Or, in some cases, even to report the truth. We’ve now reached the point where I think American journalism is in a crisis. I believe the American people want to stand up to political pressure and say, “Report the news the way we want you to report it and if you don’t, you will be made to pay a price.” It has led to a situation where the red beating heart of a representative democracy, a free press, is run by large multinational conglomerates. They work in myriad ways, particularly in secrecy, and their influence is far too great in newsrooms. I’m confident that if people at large understand that, then they’ll begin to speak out against it and things can be done to eliminate it. The Federal Communications Commission hasn’t been getting heat from the public. They get heat candescently from big media companies, so they work out of public view. The people in government respond to that heat. What we don’t have heat from is the public. http://www.adbusters.org/magazine/78/american_journalism_in_crisis.html

A Film About Advertising

chaiguy — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:36:55 GMT

Peep this: http://web.mac.com/artandindustry.jg/Doug_Pray/Untitled_Doug_Pray_film.html

Joe Cocker has a Mesage for US

chaiguy — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 16:36:01 GMT

Watch this video to find out what it is..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4_MsrsKzMM

Internet Famous

chaiguy — Fri, 23 May 2008 19:00:22 GMT

At least they're finally getting paid for it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muP9eH2p2PI HEY Tribe, When are you going to let me embed videos in this thing, like every other website on the planet?? (special thanks to Special Ops for finding this one!)

fuck you pope!

chaiguy — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 16:35:43 GMT

A quote from the Pope yesterday: "It is a great suffering for the church in the United States and for the church in general and for me personally that this could happen... I am deeply ashamed, and we will do what is possible so this cannot happen again in the future. I do not wish to talk at this moment about homosexuality, but about pedophilia, which is another thing," It is a great suffering for the church and for you personally??? Dude, you don't even know the meaning of the word. The people who suffered here are the kids who were sexually abused by your priests, under the guise of your religion, and who were enabled under an organization that valued the churches reputation and financial assets more than the human lives it was destroying.

You Always Have the Option

chaiguy — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 19:00:16 GMT

You Always Have the Option to Move Forward.

What's Dead but Just doesn't know it yet?

chaiguy — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 19:04:50 GMT

I ran into my very good friend Da Bomb the other day and she was telling me about "Bar Camp" and how one of the most interesting discussions was on Zombie Concepts, in other words, what Ideas, Technologies, or Businesses are already dead, but just don't realize it yet. Here are a few we came up with: Fax Machines Land Lines Incandescent Lighting Pay Phones What are your predictions and why?

Social Misfit

chaiguy — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:14:09 GMT

This weekend I went on a ski vacation with about 20 other people and failed miserably. You see, I don't do well in large groups, and I never have. In school I was terrible at team sports like football, but I excelled at individual sports like wrestling and cross-country. When I won a play writing contest, the entire script was a conversation between two characters. I love people, but I like them in a one-on-one type situation or in a small group like say, 3-5 people. Once the numbers begin to increase, I find it more and more difficult to track the various threads and conversations. I have a hard time remembering people's names, which also makes large groups difficult. Of course I know this about myself so I have all of these little tricks that I use, like splitting the big group up into little groups and moving from one small group to the next, or simply planting myself in part of the room and having one-on-one conversations with whoever chooses to sit/stand next to me. These tricks work great for a party, but become less effective when stretched out over a long weekend. Because I'm an introvert, my batteries get drained in large groups. I usually need to take a break and be by myself and find that 1 hour of group requires about 1 hour of alone time to process. Being locked in a house with 20 people in a remote an isolated area was a recipe for disaster, unfortunately I had gotten so good at my "tricks" that I thought was totally prepared, and that was my biggest mistake. I had no escape valve, I couldn't easily leave the house (it was freezing, icy roads, wasn't a designated driver on the rental car, no place to drive to at night, to sore from learning to snowboard to really walk any distance), I had no hole to go into (no ipod, no headphones and the party was raging too hard and loud to effectively sleep or escape). soooo, I had a little mini-internal somewhat external meltdown which of course my partner ended up taking the brunt of. (sorry sweetie!) Now I'm processing it all, so many thoughts are running through my head like: Maybe I'm just not cut-out to be a part of the big group, you should avoid situations that make you feel uncomfortable or challenged. No, you should embrace these situations and learn to grow into them. I'm interested in hearing how large groups make you feel, and what you do about those feelings. Thanks for listening

The Church of Mac, with The Rev. Doctor Bobby Newton

chaiguy — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 18:11:38 GMT

When Tony told me he was going to do a one man show all about Burning Man, I thought to myself "This has the potential to really suck" but it ended up being one of the funniest, and most heartfelt and accurate depictions on the event that I've ever seen. (and if you missed it then you missed something really special). So when Tony then told me he had a new video podcast coming out, I had high expectations. They were not only met, but far exceeded. His new "ipodcast" as he likes to call it, is an irreverent, funny, yet informative take on the technology and culture surrounding Apple Computers. Take a second to check it out, I think you'll enjoy it! http://www.thechurchofmac.com/index.html You can even subscribe to it via itunes!