connecting*the*dots

The longer we drag forward within a partisan run government, the more the Republican Party proves to be vile and full of power mongers.

This particular administration spins faster than a dreidel on Hanukkah and smears more often than a left-hander writing in a rainstorm, but if one can remain objective when studying their tactics, one cannot discount the fact that they’re a well oiled machine, running their party with business-like effectiveness. They’re so organized, they remind me of a hive of worker bees, humming to the whim of the queen, existing only for the future of the hive and a taste of the honey they produce.

This is how they roll — deep and in-tune.

So how do the Democrats stack up?

Bill Bradley recently wrote an opinion of the state-of-the-party in the New York Times, describing political organization in explicit detail; how the Elephants have created a thirty-year strong infrastructure — with defined roles, responsibilities and financing — to further their agenda, while the Jackasses get lost in the tactical arguments of the moment and eat their own in a fight to reach an elected seat. More specifically, the Republican Party has mastered the pyramid organizational structure. They’ve created a template for a replaceable leader at the top of a sustainable ecosystem, built to pro-actively defend their ideologies via responses in a moments notice from any type of Democratic Party or citizen retort.

Democrats, on the other hand, are renowned for tearing each other up during the primary season, unwittingly exposing each candidate to the Republican propaganda machine; a media machine that instills doubt in the minds of the casual electing public with repetitive rhetoric. So without the head-on-a-swivel organization of the GOP, each potential Democratic leader has to build his/her own pyramid of a strategic platform on the fly, sans the years of networking, research and coordination.

The results of such a non-strategy should be obvious. I mean, imagine how well an upside-down Egyptian pyramid would’ve worked out?

The Democratic Party claims to be the party for the common man, but through their actions they actually project the appearance of being selfish and petty. Individually, they don’t seem willing to barter for their place in a sustainable, Democratic Party structure, as they far too often seem overly anxious to take the weight of the world on their individual shoulders.

This me first perception can be illustrated in numerous tangible forms; their website is a classic example:

In the topical, global navigation, one category (People) reads as an attempt to describe the make-up of the Party. Rolling over the navigation nomenclature speaks volumes to their organization as a Party. What the Dems seem to want to do is show people that they have a broad set of programs and focus geared to numerous types of people.

What it says to me is that the Democrats cut the population into discrete targets, placing ethnic groups next to the disabled community; farmers next to Gays, Lesbians, Bisexual and Transgenders, etc. Sprinkle in each religion, old people, small businesses, unions, families, women and students and you have the American mixing pot.

Yeah, right.

Which groups did the Democrats leave out? How about Caucasian, middle-aged men?

By creating this hodge-podge of American faces on a single level labeled People, such a representation in the navigation screams, “Us white guys can help you needy and poor minority slobs out… Vote for us.”

What kind of an inclusive message is that? How does that message leverage the very diversity they’re trying to represent through their party? It fails miserably.

Imagine an African-American, bi-sexual woman coming to the site to find out more about the Party. Wouldn’t she feel a bit more like a cattle poster — with dotted lines drawn on her psyche, trying to leverage her leanest and most tasty parts — than as a partner in a political movement?

What about an atheist, homophobic, union member? Or a young, white metrosexual? Would this unspoken classification of European ethnicity as the default power representation model made someone feel uncomfortable?

Don’t get me wrong, compared to this current administration and the spin cycle of the right, the Democrats are still a beacon of hope… but an asteroid hitting the White House right about now would get the same props from me.

If the Democrats want to expand their reach into the Independent voter arena, they’ll have to start off by throwing their egos out the window, begin working together with a purpose, show some sack by speaking with conviction on topical issues and begin to create some form of a strategic plan to combat those evil, memory laden, pachyderms.

And fix the damn website.

purpose to the point of the matter exists.
the fact that remains is at the top of the list.
which often changes daily,
but somewhat less than before…
our slutting days are over now that we’ve moved up to whore-
ing direct
me to the system’s ways…
direct me to the system’s grays…
expose the in-between wrinkles which make the system pay…
my faux mo fro’ stylin’ has me on a different wave-
length of focus can sprout an early grave-
yard markers can only count so much-
more can be known through a simple touch…
a beat (or two)
a drop (or three)
mirrors in my pupils reflect eternally.

a different type of code.
a bass line to corrode.
the old…
the new…
the positive…
the shrewd…

a la mode.

the context of the game,
acted out in no ones name…
except hours,
spent on the dimes,
exposing the crimes,
a sign of the times,
puffs worth times nine;
algebra’s property leads to mine:

in capitalism, a man’s value is equal to the amount he produces.
yet, production value has been reduced to service (inconclusive…)
a service based economy is ripe for leadership betrayals.
furthering the agenda of an administration which derails:
the creative life juices.
the spirit of the common man.
the community in which he lives.
the extent to which he lends a hand.
all planned…
all plotted…
all groomed…
all hatched…
the test is open book!
the formula is up on the board!
the calculators have been made available!
it’s time to hit a chord:

the bloodsuckers "leverage."
the meek "turn the other cheek."
a third party exists.
exposed for a peek…

a BOO!

According to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, the Nets are on the verge of landing Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and they may be able to pull it off without sending a first-round pick to Portland. If Rod Thorn and Bruce Ratner pull this off, I’m man enough to admit I made a huge mistake creating voodoo dolls of the two of them after they got rid of Kenyon Martin. Why was I so upset? You have to know the pain of a 25-year long Nets fan to even begin to understand.

K-Mart was the heart of the Nets team that made the finals two-years straight. The team was terrible for years prior to him joining the squad. Terrible can’t even begin to describe the team; they had no heart, no sense of pride, with players walking onto the court with “Trade Me” and “All Alone” scribbled onto their sneakers. K-Mart changed that attitude by just stepping on the court. As an athletic rookie with extremely raw skills, he was too loud with too much bravado for most to stomach, but Martin knew what he brought to the team and wouldn’t allow his team to be treated like a bunch of punks by the opposition. When Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson joined the team the following year, the Nets turned the corner for good and became a top-tier club; finally, a winning team, fun at that, to root for.

Last year, during Martin’s free-agent dealings, the Denver Nuggets swept in and out-bid Bruce Ratner for his services, resulting in a sign-and-trade. I went absolutely bonkers, renouncing my season tickets and dipping my game-watching from every game to 75% or so (for those of you that don’t know me, that’s significant). K-Mart’s game is strong, but it was his heart that I instantly missed.

While I still appreciate Martin from afar, I have to admit I was absolutely reactionary about the decision to trade him. The deal landed the Nets three first-round draft picks; two of which transformed into Vince Carter through the trade with the Toronto Raptors. Now, if Chad Ford is right, Thorn and Ratner might land Shareef Abdur-Rahim for nothing in return aside from a $5 million trade exception they landed in the Kerry Kittles trade. That’s ridiculous management. In essence, the Nets added Vince Carter and Shareef Abdur-Rahim, replacing Kerry Kittles and Kenyon Martin… in one year.

Abdur-Rahim has been called soft in the past, but he’s a career 20 ppg/8 rb player. If that’s soft, I’ll take it. And if he doesn’t want to take the big shot, the starting line-up for the Nets is stocked with All-Star talent, I’m sure Jefferson, Carter or Kidd will step up. The soft label is probably due to his defensive game (or lack thereof), but from where I’m sitting he can’t be any softer than Jason "Pillsbury Man" Collins, a 7′ 1" man who can’t average 6 boards in 30 minutes per game, thinks that a charge call is classic defensive intensity and rotates about as fast as a tire with the car in park.

I’ve watched SAR enough times to know that he can bury a team all by himself. He has crafty, juke post moves reminiscent of Hakeem Olajuwon and is consistent with his jumper out to 20 feet. He’s versatile enough to play both SF and PF and makes his free throws at an 80% + clip. SAR is the opposite of K-Mart: quiet, reserved, a stat-filler and, yes, a poor defender who sometimes fades away on the defensive side of the ball. The gamble on him in minimal because the Nets are well coached and in a solid defensive structure; something Abdur-Rahim has never had the pleasure of working within. And since the Nets already have the swagger and filled with star power, his role is more defined.

Martin was the beginning of establishing this legacy, all Shareef has to do is play hard and produce. If he does, there just might be an annual trip to The Swamp planned for sometime in late June.

Salaam, SAR.

When I checked my mail the other day and saw a note from Ethan Zuckerman, a smile instantly came to my face. While at Tripod, Ethan radiated a whirlwind of energy and smart ideas constantly spilling out of his large frame and bare feet. Ethan was, and still is, good people. And then I read the email.

Dick Sabot, Ethan’s mentor and my indirect benefactor (without Dick, Tripod would never have been born), had passed suddenly due to a heart attack. My heart dropped a few inches in my chest. While I can’t say I had the pleasure to work closely or develop a strong personal relationship with Dick, the man was inspiring on numerous levels.

More than anything, I remember Dick as a generous person. I can’t tell you how many times he opened his Oblong Road home to "the kids" of Tripod (we were all 20 - 35 years old, living and working in a 3,000 person town with a limited social scene), throwing pool parties and backyard barbeques. And while Dick was refined, he was also extremely laid back. I like to remember him standing poolside donning his casual afternoon attire, enjoying a refreshing drink while two 28 year-old developers chased each other in dripping wet swimsuits, just missing knocking him and his non-Tripod guests over. The non-Tripod folks’ expression dipped for a few seconds; Dick just smiled and continue his conversation.

This weekend, a bunch of ex-Tripoders are migrating up to Williamstown to pay their respects, sampling a tasting of Cricket Creek Cheese, Dick’s most recent entrepreneurial project, and holding a gathering in the muddy fields of a nearby meadow. While Tripod will be remembered by outsiders as the first homepage building and community service, this weekend is an example of the real community aspect of my Tripod experience.

My condolences to the Sabot family; blood and otherwise.

What began last week as a last second decision to weekend in North Carolina over the holiday has turned into a week-long venture of auto breakdowns, family crashing and work transitions.

On the way to NC last week, my A/C craps out only two hours into the ten-hour trip. It was 99 degrees on the highway. By the time I made it to my brothers house, I had a sweat streak living across my chest from the strap of the seatbelt. Of course, no one in town was available to fix an A/C until after the 4th, so my truck didn’t become "cool" again until yesterday.

Since my stay became extended, my brother and his wife had the privilage of hosting Angela and I for an extra 5 days. God bless ‘em. They work so hard and have such different schedules, for them to open up their house for even an extra day, well, it’s going way above and beyond. But man, let me tell you, if I ever catch another reality or home/clothes/appearance make-over show again I’ll kill myself. Time consistently passes in that household with reality blasting from the TV.

So with Bobby Brown dancing on the tube, my truck being serviced and over warm bread, hot coffee and Wi-Fi at Paneras, I continued to work on finishing up TheStreet.com project. All of the second iterations of the behavioral annotations are finally complete, with only the CMS interfaces left to knock out. When I get back to NYC on Monday, I’ll put this puppy to bed and begin the discovery work on my next project.

The crazyness of this last week would have thrown me for a loop a few months ago, but in this time of transitions — me moving to Greensboro and beginning a freelance/consulting practice — I’m getting used to the unexpected. And I’m beginning to like it.

Finally, a voice without an AP or Reuters feed behind it.

Finally, journalism which tells the story without editorial pressure to take advertising into account.

Finally, someone using TV as a weapon against… TV!

Well, it hasn’t come to fruition just yet, but Independent World Television (IWT) is starting to get legs. I’m really hopeful for their efforts (especially after watching their promotional video). If they’re successful in establishing a broadcast channel in enough places around the globe, this would be, unquestionably, the most important addition to the media landscape in years.

If you build it, they will come.