I really wish I had registered to vote in San Francisco Or at least I wish I read The Chronicle Or watched local news (and I wonder why I'm always so out of the local loop) because then I would’ve known about this, about Proposition C before
If San Francisco voters approve a Feb. 5 ballot initiative that would restore operating power of Alcatraz back to the city and county of San Francisco, it could possibly open the doors for a “Global Peace Center,” the final iteration of Mill Valley resident and Light Party founder Da Vid’s ambitious renovation plan for the island tourist attraction.
“I think people are sick of seeing the negative connotation of a prison on Alcatraz,” said Vid, who helped spearhead a campaign that garnered 20,000 signatures for the initiative, allowing it to appear on the February ballot. “This is just the beginning. We have people who think when this project is finished it will be the eighth world wonder.”
Alcatraz is currently administered by the National Park Service under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior. If voters approve the initiative, Vid said, the next step would be to work with city officials to identify funding sources for the island complex. Vid said proposed plans for the island include a statue of St. Francis, a multimedia entertainment center and a world cultures conference room.
Vid said he is working close with Native Americans — who hold Alcatraz in a sacred context — on developing the project.
Marshall Jack, a member of the Paiute and Washoe tribes, said the Global Peace Center would be a “win-win situation.”
“It is an opportunity for Native Americans to give back to the world,” said Jack, also known as Golden Eagle. “This project is a step in the right direction, to show that people of different backgrounds can work together to make something beautiful.”
The path to the Global Peace Center has plenty of barriers. Any motion to remove property from the National Park Service would have to get approval from Congress, and proposed alterations to the Alcatraz prison complex, which is a National Historic Landmark, would have to get approval from California’s Office of Historic Preservation.
The overhaul could also alarm environmentalists concerned about damage to the numerous bird habitats on the island, said National Parks Service spokesperson Rich Weideman. Weideman also said that recent work done to restore Alcatraz’s historic gardens would be derailed by the change.
Fisherman’s Wharf merchants, who base much of their marketing around Alcatraz merchandise, would not be pleased with the change, said Fisherman Wharf Community Benefits District spokeswoman Karen Bell.
-LA Examiner
The idea is the brainstorm of the Light Party's founder, Da Vid
(Oh, so that’s the Light and Freedom Party that’s always on the ballot. Good to know)
From the website:
Alcatraz, a former Federal penitentiary and a sacred site for First Nation people, is currently administered by the Department of the Interior. Through a political process, be it an initiative, an act of Congress or direct purchase of the island, we have the means and opportunity to transform Alcatraz Island into a Global Peace Center.
The choice is simple, do we really want an old and decaying prison to continue to be a prominent landmark for the San Francisco Bay Area, or do we want to take this opportunity to create a New Alcatraz, one which will mark a new emerging paradigm committed to progressive, enlightened values ?!
San Francisco, the "Geneva of the West" and a major center for the rapidly emerging Pacific Rim community of nations, is ideally suited for this majestic and noble project. From the signing of The United Nations Charter to the present day peace movement, San Francisco, the City of St. Francis, has a storied history as a progressive center for spiritual enlightenment, environmental awareness, and an engaged socially conscience populace and business community.
The Alcatraz Conversion Project involves removing the main prison block and in its place, we envision constructing an International Conference Center For Non-Violent Conflict Resolution, along with the Harmonium, an aesthetically beautiful multi-faceted geodesic dome. The Harmonium will employ advanced three dimensional holographic sound technologies and other special effect technologies which will which will promote and elicit a deep meditative, transpersonal and transcendental experience! An Ascension Experience!! In addition, we envision a dramatic Statue of St. Francis, welcoming all to the San Francisco Bay Area plus an Alcatraz Museum which will archive the long and short term history of THE ROCK.
The Global Peace Center, based on the geometry of the Hexagram, will be magnificently landscaped, and redesigned with graceful curves by removing its jagged cliffs. A permanent MEDICINE WHEEL and a LABYRINTH will be constructed, thus providing sacred sanctuary and ceremonial spaces. The island will be an international showcase for sustainable energy technologies, ie: solar, wind and ocean thermal generated energy systems.
We believe The Alcatraz Conversion Project will activate the creative spiritual and business intelligence of the Bay Area and beyond, and serve as a powerful, catalytic statement that will "Inspire, Delight, Heal and Enlighten". Through this process we will re-consecrate Alcatraz Island as a sacred site, and thus acknowledge the Native American people, while simultaneously giving birth to a new and peaceful paradigm for all humanity.
IN SUMMARY: The Alcatraz Conversion Project is both a challenge and a golden opportunity to initiate a tremendous community project, one which has the potential to positively transform the energy of the entire Bay Area and the world and thus catalyze a Global Renaissance.
The Opportunity Is Here..The Choice Is Ours To Make...
"Where There Is Vision , We, The People Prosper
Yup. Seems about right. I can see it now, instead of people calling it The Rock we'll soon have The Crock (there was no way I could pass up something like that)
In case you’re interested in or have the belief that
"Majestic in its Simplicity, Revolutionary as a Political Metaphor, The Global Peace Center Proclaims Global Renaissance!
A New Epoch! A Time of Enduring Peace for All Humanity...
By Converting Alcatraz Island, a place of pain and suffering,
Into a "JEWEL OF LIGHT". We will activate Powerful Forces for Cooperation, Reconciliation & Healing
You can visit the Global Peace Foundation website here
(and if you’re really, really really into it you can watch an 81 minute Alcatraz Conversion Interview here. Have fun)
Oh Goddess, I really do love this city sometimes.
[found on Wonkette ]
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