Dry Acid: Count Sticky & The Upsetters

Fire from the Mountain

"The Guard hated fire because it brought people together. Fire incites, integrates, unites; because fire gives you courage; because fire makes you feel more protected, stronger. As if the flames were a kind of company." - Omar Cabezas

Photo cred Candace Shankel

Onra: The Anthem

Solidarity with Wisconsin!

As we speak, tens of thousands of people are out in the streets of Madison Wisconsin, protesting the right wing's latest assault upon worker rights. Newly elected governor Republican Scott Walker has created legislation which would take away state employees' rights to collective bargaining. It would break the backs of public employees unions.

Gov. Walker has said that his decision will help trim the budget deficit by $137 million. In reality, the Gov. is just playing politics. It would gut much of the flow of money for Democratic candidates, which receive millions from union support. Gov. Walker's proposal would not effect firemen and police officers, who typically vote Republican. In addition, he has passed tax breaks for the wealthy elite, only furthering the deficit. Other right wing governments have taken similar steps to subjugate workers, such as those in Ohio and Indiana.

What I think is most sickening is that Governor Walker's proposal furthers the myth that public employees are to be held responsible for the deficit and the recession. It's teachers, park rangers, and other workers who are to blame for the nation's economic woes. It's not the thieves on Wall Street who actually got us into this mess.

For more information visit:

- http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/whats-happening-wisconsin-explained

- http://blog.aflcio.org/

To take action:

- https://www.facebook.com/maydayunited

- http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/08/24/895947/-Boycott-Koch-Products

(Photo from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/us/17wisconsin.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=wisconsin%20protests&st=cse)

"It is difficult to start a revolution, more difficult to win it. But it is later, when we have won, that the real difficulties begin." - The Battle of Algiers

Congratulations Egypt!

Boycott Domino's

I love pizza and pizzerias, which is why I loathe Domino's. I'd rather order from a neighborhood pizzeria like Pizza Pizza in Mount Vernon. At a neighborhood store, you can actually get to know the people making the pizza and there's a lot of local character too. When I'm buying from a local store, I know my money is going back into the community and not into the greedy hands of some suit like Domino's founder Tom Monaghan. Mr. Monaghan is famous for supporting right wing fundamentalist Catholic groups, which have an anti reproductive and gay rights agenda. With Domino's, it's the same shitty pizza as everywhere else. Like many other big chains, the workers get treated miserably. It also disgusts me how, in their advertising, they perpetuate the myth that farm work is done by one kindly white man, as seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t23sgF4Bl7c

It gets on my nerves when my friends order from Domino's. We go to school in New York for fuck's sake, there's a pizzeria every block.I also expect more from people at Sarah Lawrence because I thought this was supposed to be a progressive liberal arts school.

So if Domino's is the only place to order pizza when it's 2am on a friday night, I don't order. In a time when our money is basically our mouth, it's important to think about what our business is really supporting. I can eat something else that night, my principles are more important than pizza.

El Ekeko

I picked up an image of "El Ekeko" the other day while I was walking around Jackson Heights. He is a saint from the Andean highlands. The roots of his worship are found in indigenous Incan culture. The story of the modern Ekeko is that he was a poor merchant who travelled from town to town, and after years of hard work became wealthy. Followers usually have a statue they attach trinkets to. In return for the trinkets, El Ekeko will bring abundance and fortune to his followers.

"If you tremble indignation at every injustice, then you are a comrade of mine."

Insufficiently avant-garde. If the Jam played today, you def couldn't see a band like this with a good review on Pitchfork or the Fader!