Twin Peaks San Francisco Sunrise (HDR time-lapse) from Chad Richard on Vimeo.

Thank to Eliot Chang for sharing this!

"You are wrong, and I don't know what you're talking about" (Part III)

For the next few weeks I moved the X-Wing frequently so that it would not even be on a street being checked each day. I printed my receipt for the DMV appointment and taped it to the inside of my windshield next to the note requesting pity from SF parking enforcement. And then the day arrived.

The DMV is an incredible place that seems to be a a strange timewarp-delay of 20 years, no matter the decade. The technology in this office was clearly a product of the 1990s including large projection televisions with static, MSDOS running on nearly every computer monitor, massive copy machines, and a 4-foot stack of boxes filled with staples. I could see that the desktop behind the counter closest to me had an extension for zip-drive disks. Everyone was dressed in plaid or bright pastel blouses.

Everyone has to come here at some point. The DMV is one of those pieces of the American experience that still unifies the public with a shared identity and nemesis (read, "nation building"). And it has a remarkable capacity to strip even the most determined individual of the reason and patience they might exhibit in all other aspects of their life, so that you inevitably find yourself sputtering half-conceived nonsense in protest of just about everything. A line stretched out of the front door, everyone appeared to be either angry or anxious, and only 2 of the 30 windows showed any sign of activity. How this widespread phenomenon has persisted against all probability since Man first had to register the first wheelbarrow with his tribal accountant, I will never know. But I am certain that if we could make citizens at the DMV feel loved and appreciated, the quality of our entire political culture, national democracy and positive views of government would increase a hundred fold.

45 minutes later my number was called over the loudspeaker. I approached Window#19 with deep breaths and explained my predicament one more time. And then something new, and sweet, and unexpected happened.

"Oh, wow. That sucks. We should probably apologize for that."

"Oh my, is that.... is that an apology?"

"No, it was an observation."

"Oh," I considered. "Well, would you like to apologize then?"

He thought for some time. "Um, yeah, OK." And just like that, he turned back to his green-text computer screen to finish processing my request, his cheeks undoubtedly blushing behind his frightening scraggly beard.

I felt vindicated and light of heart. Within moments this man had produced for me the registration for which I had longed for so many months. With the X-Wing's legal recognition in hand, I left the crude place and pranced forth into the sunlight with great hope. I could now drive without risking arrest, and my misunderstood offenses would be forgiven. I was vindicated, and I was free.

Briefly.

What a US default would mean, and why you really need to care

*I'm going to preface this with a request. If anyone reading this can provide me with a good explanation of the GOP perspective, I will be incredibly grateful.*


The general media has thrown around words like “apocalypse” and “destitution” and “bluff” in the face of federal default, while a minority of the GOP has seriously suggested that it could even be a good thing for the nation – an opportunity to sober up government and reduce unbalanced spending.

That sounds nice, but absolutely absurd. I don’t mean to be partisan most of the time, but with an honest look at our prospects in the wake of 4 failed negotiations this week, there isn't really an alternative. Yes the government spends A LOT of money, and Yes it needs reforms to reach sustainable limits, but the debt ceiling is now too serious a trigger to be used as a bargaining chip in budget negotiations.

BOND RATINGS (OH HOW EXCITING)

If the federal government fails to pay its dues and the US bond rating is reduced from AAA to B-plus, you can bet your ass we’ll have a fiscal crisis on our hands, as well as a tremendous shockwave throughout the entire national economy that would almost certainly cripple any recovery that we’ve managed to eek out so far.

Clearly the GOP/Tea Party Caucus has never taken a course in macroeconomics (which from me is saying something!) You see, it’s not just about a decreased bond rating from Moody’s – most people don’t even know what that means. Those that do increasingly counter that these large rating agencies gave companies like Leman Brothers high marks before their inevitable collapse, and so why should anyone trust their ratings now?

Digestible explanation of international austerity and debt, or "The myth of Austerity"

Okay, so this may not seem to have a lot to do with LOCAL politics - but trust me, it does. (And even if it didn't it's still worth your 5 minutes!)

Mark Blyth is a professor of International Political Economy at Brown University and faculty fellow at its Watson Institute for International Studies. He is writing "Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea," forthcoming from Oxford University Press in 2011.

Just to tie it together a little bit, local governments are ultimately the agents responsible for administering public and social services. When national governments - or in our case, federal or state governments - cut public services and funding for support programs, it is the local governments that are squeezed most. Many times the services they provide are even mandated by local rules or legislation (i.e. the "independent socialist republic of San Francisco"), and so the services just go unfunded or the localities have to raise finances on their own. In both cases, the public takes it our on the the city/county/district first. No fair!

Urban Art, "Ads can be art too!"

Everyday I am bombarded with advertisements and messages that make me want to buy things (or sometimes not buy things). On my way to work, on my way to the other bus, on my way to City Hall, on my way to the PUC, on my way to the wonderful Turkish kebab shop next to Burger King on Market, on my way home, and while I am sitting still in my chair trying to find information about risk management best practices and public financing. And it sucks.

But sometimes, an ad actually grabs my attention in spite of my best anti-capitalist efforts. Perhaps it is just part of living in a dense city, but it makes me want to carry a camera everywhere I go to capture the failures or absurdities of urban marketing. These are part of my everyday life.

Ellis & Market

Bad News Bears for State's corrections agency, or "MORE Bad News Bears for the State's corrections agency"

The California State Controller's Office this morning released its most recent audit of the CDCR, and it wasn't a pat on the back. The State's prison system has become one of the nation's most expensive and worst funded, and in recent months several internal investigations have been launched to root out misspending and abuses (both financial and physical, which is doubly sad).

In the midst of the State's Realignment, and in the wake of SCOTUS's scathing review and injunction last month, Sacramento is finally taking a critical look at prison-corrections costs and detention policies in an effort to (a) not get sued again and (b) save some much-needed $moolah$.

The report this morning points to "grossly inadequate procedures... for collecting overpayment of salaries and travel advances made through the agency’s office revolving fund", says State Controller Chiang. The audit also identifies several cases of mis-appropriation and abuse of public funds. No good, CDCR. No good.

Quote of the day, or Goat Proletariat

Excerpt from the comment section of a Berkeleyside news article this morning, “Goats reduce fire hazards in the Berkeley hills”:

"In an Animal Farm analogy, the 600 goats should become conscious of the fact that a handful of humans and a few guard dogs are exploiting and enslaving them for their own profit and benefit.  As the vanguard of the proletariat, we in Berkeley should sow dissension among the goats, support revolutionary goat liberation and foment the overthrow of "Farmer Jones."  The exploitation and mistreatment of these proletariat goats has already been documented locally."

"You are wrong, and I don't know what you're talking about" (Part II)

Several days later, the Ante was upped to $180 with a third citation in less than two weeks time. I printed the receipt from my online renewal and taped it to my windshield with a plea to stop issuing tickets. I moved my car frequently so that it was not even on the same street as the parking officers on their daily routes. I submitted a formal protest to SFMTA and assured them that my registration would update in March. "I have an appointment," I pleaded. "They're going to give me me new tags because the old ones just never came." I was skipping lunch for this :/

"Mmm hmmm, so they never came...4 months ago? Whadya been doin' since 4 months ago, hmmm?"

"Trying to get them!"

She scoffed. "I don't think the DMV would do that to you."

Our vacations are never simple

This adventure started July 1, then took a break for this past week while I worked in the city and my car was stuck in Valencia, CA. It now resumes. The last 650-mile leg will start and end ... ... TOMORROW!

"You are wrong, and I don't know what you're talking about" (Part I)

The California Department of Motor Vehicles gave me an early birthday present this year, validating our long unspoken love for one another. But we will get to that.

In October of 2010, the registration for my 1999 Silver Volvo V70 station wagon with turbo and spoiler(yeah!) was scheduled to expire. As often happens in the case of responsible and modern law abiding citizens, the registration was updated, fees were paid, and a receipt of my online activities was delivered to my inbox. The experience was unnecessarily complicated, but no more so than filing the forms in person. The Renewal Notice and instructions thanked me for following the law, and suggested that I allow up to 8 weeks for my Registration Tags to be delivered. And so passed without my consideration, the first of several mythic signs of things to come.