When The Revolution Comes

Apparently it will be televised... or at least filmed for later broadcast

(I was going to post this last night but the whole SB aftermath seemed more pressing)

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised


The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (a.k.a. Chavez: Inside the Coup) is a 2002 documentary about the April 2002 Venezuelan coup attempt which briefly deposed Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. A television crew from Ireland's Radio Telifís Éireann happened to be recording a documentary about Chávez during the events of April 11, 2002. Shifting focus, they followed the events as they occurred. During their filming, the crew recorded images of the events that they say contradict explanations given by Chávez's opposition, the private media, the US State Department, and then White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer. The documentary says that the coup was the result of a conspiracy between various old guard and anti-Chávez factions within Venezuela and the United States.
Filmmakers Kim Bartley and Donacha O'Briain were inside the presidential palace on 11 April 2002 when Chávez was deposed and two days later when he returned to power, recording "what was probably history's shortest-lived coup d'état.



Chavez The Film

Viva Hugo.
(what can I say? I'm a sucker for a Trot)

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The Bridge and Me

In my research, aka trying to figure out what the Bridge actually was and if I was using it correctly, I stumbled across the wikipedia article for a film based on Scientology called, interestingly enough The Bridge. Apparently it was highly controversial and was posted as a free download but then mysteriously it was removed and the director disavowed it and removed all references to it,in what I can only think was suppression by Scientology and thus a great conspiracy and so worthy to be shared and brought into light. I'm not vouching for the quality of the film but if Scientologists hate it then it must be worth sharing.
Anyway here is the wiki article

The Bridge "was the "first feature film" about the Church Of Scientology. While it is set against the background of the Church of Scientology and the Sea Org, the characters and situations depicted are fictional.

"Diane Wheat", portrayed by Carole Smith, is a Scientologist who becomes disillusioned with Scientology over the course of the film. A parallel plot follows the father of another Scientologist who attempts to get his daughter to leave Scientology (the father is played by Tom Padgett). The story touches on such Scientology-related issues as the suppressive person doctrine, the state of Clear, security checks, disconnection, Scieno Sitter, and the Church's secret upper level teachings, including the story of Xenu, as well as including a reference to the South Park episode: Trapped in the Closet.

The film ends with a written dedication: For all who speak out - for those who have been silenced.
Former Scientologists were involved in the production of the film.The movie utilized some clips from the Scientology-produced video, How to Use Dianetics: A Visual Guidebook to the Human Mind,as well as archival footage of David Miscavige.

The film was shot over a five-day period at a hotel in Memphis, in order to avoid what the production team thought could be potential interference from Scientologists.
The film was shown on October 16, 2006 as a feature presentation.
The film was initially released as a free download over the Internet in September 2006. The film credits stated: The Bridge' is licensed as royalty-free digital media, and may be distributed online for personal viewing without permission. All offline distribution rights are reserved by Brett Hanover.

Within a few weeks of its release, Hanover removed The Bridge from its public distribution sites. He stated on his website, that "due to copyright issues, I ask that this film be withdrawn from circulation... Do not contact me concerning this film, I am no longer supporting it". The removal was reported by Jeannette Walls, in an MSNBC gossip column. (3rd item)

Hanover's web site no longer contains any reference to the film"

Well here it is, “The Bridge”


And here is Scientology and Me

"a controversial television documentary conducted by reporter John Sweeney, which aired on the BBC programme, Panorama on 14 May 2007. The programme gained particular controversy before and during filming due to unresolved differences on content and approach between Sweeney's production team and Scientology members, who did not want detractors or enemies of the church, who were included in the aired version to be interviewed in the documentary"

you may remember it from that clip where the reporter goes absolutely crazy and gets really angry but it's much more than that- watch the full Panorama episode here

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Things to Do this Week

the second week of October beginning tonight, the 8th

Monday: Holly Golightly at The Echo, Me First & the Gimme Gimmes Plus Black Fag (Black Flag Tribute) at the Knitting Factory, Justice at The Henry Fonda, "Night Shapes" at the Goethe Institut Los Angeles-"The pope comes to town for the evening and stirs things up in Berlin in the edgy comedy " or "A double feature. First, Dreams to Remember: The Legacy of Otis Redding (2007, David Peck, Phillip Galloway), featuring 16 full-length Otis performances, including his last-ever performance two days before his death. Plus, Stax Revue 1967, recently unburied from Norwegian TV vaults, this look at the long-lost European TV Stax Revue 1967 is the only known full-length film covering “the tour that sparked the soul revolution” — starring Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Arthur Conley and Booker T. & the MGs. Discussion between films with Zelma Redding and Stax session musician Wayne Jackson of the Mar-Keys." at the Egyptian Theatre with Two screens: the Lloyd E. Rigler Theatre and the Spielberg Theatre.

Tuesday- Michael Gerson, former Bush Speechwriter speaks at The Cathedral of Our Lady of The Angels on "Why We Need Heroic Conservatism" as part of Zocalo cultural forum series @ 7, Bat For Lashes(!)(!)(!) at the Troubadour, Ruins, Jesus Makes the Shotgun Sound at The Smell, or Wildboy '74 "Caged kid turns self-help guru, in Eva Anderson's play" at the Bootleg Theatre (also performing on Wednesday)

Wednesday-A Michelango Antonioni double feature at the New Beverly Cinema, Zabriskie Point and Il Grido, Mt. Eerie and The Microphones at the Troubadour, Andras Schiff at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Jose Gonzalez(!)(!) at the El Rey, Band of Horses at Amoeba @ 7, Beirut at the Avalon, Make/Shift contributors at Skylight Books or Revolving Door "an exploration of the complex issues faced by a Melbourne, Australia street sex worker" and The Trials of Darryl Hunt "a portrait of a wrongly convicted man who spends 20 years in prison for a rape and murder he didn’t commit" at A.M.P.A.S. Linwood Dunn Theater.

Thursday- Annie Lennox at the Wilshire Theatre Beverly Hills, What to Do Someone You Love is Depressed at Dutton's Brentwood @ 7, The Tragically Hip at the House of Blues, The Avengers and Pansy Division at Spaceland, Nellie McKay(!)(!)(!) at the Largo, Canned Peaches in Syrup at the Pasadena Playhouse (friday and saturday night as well), at Vroman's Book store James Swain "presents and signs Midnight Rambler, a novel about a serial killer who tortures women and plays the Rolling Stones' 'Midnight Rambler' while doing so" @ 7, Robbie Jensen: Live With a Vengeance! at the Secret Rose Theater or Something Wicked 2007 "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, hosts a dance party/costume contest/auction benefiting AIDS Healthcare Foundation" at the Out of The Closet Thrift Store @ 7:30.

Friday- Baggage Claim at Gardner Stages (saturday also), A Black Trilogy 2007 "Spencer Scott's Call Out My Name, Bill Harris' He Who Endures, and N.R. Davidson Jr.'s El Hajj Malik" at the Stella Adler Theatre, "An Evening with Meshell Ndegeocello " at the Echoplex @ 7, The Black Lips at the Troubadour, Carnivale of the Unassuming at Casa 0101, Chekov Mania: A Russian Vaudeville at The Attic Theatre and Film Center, The Empire Builders at Pepperdine's Lindhurst Theater, The Fastest Clock in the Universe at the Celebration Theatre, Wreck of the Unfathomable at Theatre of NOTE, Out of Thin Air: Tales of a 21st Century Wizard at Actors Forum Theatre, The Love Talker at Hub Theater, Little Secrets at The Space, The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Sacred Fools Theater, Old Actor Fights!! at Elephant Theater, Murky Lake at Atwater Playhouse or Point Break Live! (!)(!)(!) at Charlie O's Lounge (on Saturday as well)

Saturday- A Child's Guide to Common Household Monsters "Are there monsters hiding under your bed? Maybe. Author James Otis Hatch will debunk the myth that monsters are scary" at Barnes & Noble 3rd Street @ 10 a.m., Laser Spectacular featuring the Music of Pink Floyd at The Canyon (28912 Roadside Dr., Agoura Hills), Girlyman (!) at McCabe's, Cut & Paste Digital Design Tournament "Watch top designers in head-to-head challenges." at the Henry Fonda, Shaolin Warriors at Cal State Long Beach's Carpenter Performing Arts Center, Take-A-Hike "Shannon Tweed, Sophie Tweed-Simmons, CCH Pounder and other celebs turn out for this benefit for breast cancer research. Registration at 7:30 a.m.; race at 9 a.m." at Paramount Ranch, West Indian Girl at Spaceland, Without Risk of Excessive Loss at the Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, or Waiting For Godot at A Noise Within.

Sunday- Lineage Dance: Skin at the Boston Court Theatre, Q-Tip at the Key Club, Beethoven & Brahms at the Walt Disney Concert Hall @ 7, "Honor" Thy Mother and Father at the Santa Monica Playhouse, Art "Yasmina Reza's examination of art and friendship, translated by Christopher Hampton" at the Laguna Playhouse, Best in Drag Show at the Orpheum "A beauty pageant judged by celebs, including Kathy Griffin. Benefits Aid for AIDS" or Charles Phoenix's Disneyland Tour of Downtown L.A. "Guided tour of "the other Magic Kingdom," with stops at Adventureland (Olvera Street), Fantasyland (Bob Baker Marionette Theater), the Haunted Mansions (Victorian homes on Carroll Street) and more."Meet at Union Station at Noon.


and i'm already exhausted...

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There Are No Gay People in The World of Islam

and by no gay people I mean everyone in Islamic Countries seems at least a little gay.
As I'm sure you've heard Mahmoud at Columbia yesterday asserted that he can't oppress homosexuals because there are none in Iran. Interesting.
Radar however has some rather convincing evidence to the contrary including the documentary Out in Iran which is actually incredibly interesting.
Even the layout of the country, in relation to the Strait of Hormuz seems to imply Iran is the "passive partner" in boi-on-boi fun time. And who knew Tehran is the sex change capital of the world? Here I was thinking about moving and working in Brazil, or just going to Thailand or Trinidad, Colorado. Silly Silly me. Oh well; the more you know.
Maybe such effeminate behaviors and appearances are common in Persia This slideshow from Slate V of Thomas Dworzak showing secret Taliban photographs shows that many of these Holy Warriors may be better than I am at make-up

But to be honest maybe they can't help I mean have you seen the Prophet Mohammed? Sooooo gay. In every one of these images he's literally "flaming" even when he's giving away his daughter Fatima to Ali

seriously do you notice where Ali's hand is in this picture?

(but no I'm not necessarily suggesting the prophet Mohammed was gay. Maybe bi.)
In all serious I thought this was very good stuff to learn about Iran and that maybe I could work there- I do love my queer kids.

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Red Without Blue

This weekend when I was on this internet looking for a apartment listings of someone who wouldn't mind having a transsexual roomate (if you know anything, holla!) when, I don't know if it was Providence, though it would be nice to think so because I don't think I'd have ever found out about it any other way, but one of the google results led to a story in the San Francisco Chronicle about "Identical Twins Walked A Divergent Path." It tells a fascinating story about two male identical twins one of whom grew up and underwent Sexual Reassignment Surgery . As young teens they used drugs after their parent's divorce, and were involved in a dual suicide attempt, which led to a forced separation and I would awesome an awakening and acceptance in Clair of who she really was. It speaks to so many salient points and questions, of identity and family and separation and betrayal. (I highly recommend the video on that page) I feel that through my transition I am, or maybe people believe I am sort of betraying my past and my family and the realness of all our shared experiences as if all we had gone through together was a lie: I can not imagine the isolation and abandonment that could be felt by an identical twin brother. I really hope, and that is one of my great fears that my mom feels like a failure as a mother. Anyway their whole story is so so (amazing) illuminating. And to do this in Montana blows my So Cal mind away. Their story is told in a documentary called Red Without Blue (after the color coding scheme their mother assigned to them when they were young, to tell them apart) screened this year at Sundance where it won an audience award. It seems so real, so powerful and so honest and...I can't even get the emotions out right now. I really want to see this film at a screening (though I'm probably going to end up getting the DVD) And I am so intrigued by Clair (intrigued is my catch all word, in case you hadn't picked that up ) and so proud and happy that it kind of makes me tear up (only a little as I write this-more before.) God bless her. And she's only 2 days older than I am. And my documentarian/cultural anthropologist mind really would love to meet her and get to know her/interview her. But of course it is not just a purely academic quest: I realize more and more how much I would love to have a transgendered friend ( the one I do have is kind of complicated and I don't know if I want to go to a support group) or someone to talk to about this feeling of being an immigrant, not only in society, or of a sex, but most achingly to be an immigrant in one's own body. But you can see the trailer here

Here is the (almost mandatory) myspace page. (and their blog.) Ah I wish someone were to actually respect me for being "powerful." But yeah I feel really connected and I think you should see it. Calpernia thinks so too.

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2 Years Later

As you must know today is the 2nd anniversary of Katrina making landfall. I don't remember exactly where I was but I think I was trying to track down my visa so I could actually go and fly to Italy two days later. I think it was one of those things where I heard there was a hurricane, but there have always been hurricanes, so I didn't really care. I only learned about how terrible it was a few days later sitting in my room in a convent in Italy and reading the horrific news on the Internet. It was such a tragedy and it was so disheartening to see our government fail at the most basic and important thing a government must do; protect its citizens. Instead in those images, with black faces behind wires, America looked like a 3rd world nation. I got into a lot of very heated transatlantic IM arguments with conservative friends. But even then I agreed with Kanye:


When I got back to school, in the spring of 2006, I had the opportunity to take a documentary studies class where we would go down to New Orleans and help the recovery and also document the workers who had gone down to New Orleans to help, what drew them, what kept them going, and try to tell their stories. On our way there, and I know it sounds like a cliche but pictures really don't do the damage justice. It is hard to convey the extent when neighborhoods were just washed away, or the emotional destruction of seeing someone's life in moldy piles still inside their homes, 6 months after the fact.Along with a UNC partner we were assigned to an amazing organization in St. Bernard's Parish called Project H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People in Everyway.) It was created and founded and fully run by college aged kids (some of the best people I have met in my life) who just saw the devastation wanted to make a difference and so came down and started to do anything they could to help making a place where volunteers would come and stay for however long as they felt the needed to, where residents could get supplies, where the H.O.P.E. workers would try to gut their houses and prevent the spread of black mold , while also trying to advocate politically for the return of New Orleans and also help and empower those community partners to do the same.
One thing I will never forget is during our first day there when we were waiting for our rental cars we saw a group of high school students tired and dirty but so excited and motivated who had just spent a week or so cleaning and helping the recovery as well as they could. Our last day there when we as a group when we were going through the security checkpoint in the airport, dirty, stinking, tired and disgusting on the other side of the glass a similar sized group was just getting off a plane carrying their back packs and nalgenes and evidently coming to help the recovery efforts as best as they could. It was quite heartening to watch that the young people were taking it upon themselves to try to help especially in a place that the government had neglected. And the hope that they all had no matter how hopeless or hard the struggle may seem.
Even before I had actually gone down there myself the issues of class and privilege race and environmental justice were so strong and evident and they still are evident of what I consider among the most shameful in our nation's history. 2 years later and nothing has changed. This is the website our class created and though it is over a year old some of the same issues are still right there though people may want to forget or move on.
Here is the documentary that Kelly and I made based on our experiences with Project H.O.P.E. It's probably the thing that I'm most proud of every doing. All the voices you hear* are of those workers who cared enough to come down, as well as some of the stories of neighborhood residents. Though these interviews were conducted, now almost 18 months ago, if you've paid attention to any news you'll see that most of the same issues/concerns/problems have not been resolved. And here's the Project H.O.P.E. website if you're so moved to get involved.

*Though the first track was actually recorded inside a house we were gutting in an attempt to capture that atmosphere.

Gutting Intro (mp3)
The Project H.O.P.E. Project (zip)

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The Future is Now

or the Japanese are crazy.
Many many months ago I saw someplace, maybe on Keith Olbermann, that scientists were predicting that within 20 years robots would have "consciousness" ( if you could still call them robots at that point) but that within 5 years humans would be having sex with this robots. (It lead to me posting an away message extolling the joy and pleasure of unconscious robot sex and our 15 years of it)
Well apparently that day of robot-human intercourse is (already here j/k) a lot closer and probably even closer considering I've had this story for maybe a month now. [UPDATE: and then this has been around for years. who knew?]
The Japanese have created a sex doll (or synthetic human) which sort of blows the Real Doll away and is "almost-perfect, silicon-made [the] Honey Doll is equipped with touch sensors that will make her moan with different sounds...[the] sensors activate an internal MP3 player connected to a speaker located in the head of the doll. You can put whatever sound you want in the player." (you can hear it demonstrated here, if you're into it)

I guess that's a good thing? The whole thing seems creepy, especially a doll that you can make say whatever you want. I never really understood the sex doll thing, though I can understand the loneliness of wanting to cuddle with someone ( I know the desire though not the Freudian fetish), but I am more than okay with anything anyone does, (as long as no one is hurt [against their will].) Seriously who am I to judge? And this documentary that was on the BBC a few weeks ago really gave me a little bit of understanding. Of course the whole phenomenon does speak to issues of fantasy gender roles, patriarchy, desire and pretty much everything it means to be human, and befitting such a topic some artists are exploring that (here's a pretty good article about a Chicago artist and her "Real" Twin)
But what I'm most excited about is the new Ryan Gosling movie "Lars and the Real Girl" which looks amazing and so quirky yet so "full of heart". I love the cast ( I heart Emily Mortimer) and I can't wait to see it ( though I have a feeling in the end he will "outgrow" his need for a "doll" , fall in love with a breathing girl and be "normalized" though of course the alternate would be far more interesting, but what can you expect; it is Hollywood. Watch the trailer here and try to not love it:

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My Heart Is An Idiot: Chunk Three (Finally!)

Here's the third part of that meta documentary My Heart Is An Idiot, which I've been trying to keep up with and keep you posted on. The first minute or so with the pirate jokes is a little awkward and slow, which is kind of ironic since the actual documentary chunk featured is the power of editing, but you don't have to take my word for it...


At the end when he started with that last pirate joke I was going to stop the video and recommend you skip it as well, but it ends up being really sweet and endearing, just like the film-maker. Though did you see how hairy Davey is? Ew. But one of the added bonuses of following this series is that I'm exposed to poetry that I either never knew or disregarded out of hand, like the poem by Robert Frost. I mean I remember Meadow teaching A.J. about it, but those last four lines, simply brilliant.

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I Suppose This is One Way To Feel Better About Yourself

I think this was on Sunday night, when my mom and I were watching something on TLC. I was intrigued by the title I Eat 33,000 calories a day. And the show was...wow, bizarre. They profiled three insanely obese people, a guy who thought he ate about 3,000 calories a day but actually ate more like 14,000, a British woman who eat around 15,000 calories and a man who eat 23,000 calories just in snack food a day. He ate a grand total, of I think more than the titular 33,000 calories a day. An average man is only supposed to eat 2500 calories a day so every day he was eating enough food for two weeks. It was insane, and the thing I noticied is that many of them didn't move to eat, like they were brought their food in bed, and in the case of the woman everything she ate (you could see it all because they laid it out on a few card tables for tv shock value) was all that slightly white brownish fried color. There was nothing green on the table.
And my main questions were how do you get that big? Doesn't normal desire to be attractive and to move, and a basic sense of pride sort of compel you to not eat so much? And how do the get the money for all the food? there's no way they go through probably close to a thousand a week? And why do their families enable this behavior? My mom suggested that if you didn't feed them as much they would get angry, or whatever, but since most of those profiled couldn't walk they couldn't actually do anything in retaliation. I would try to give them normal portions (for a normal size person) and then just sort of refuse to feed them anything extraneous. That way at least they wouldn't be storing so many calories and maybe that would help.

But as many of you may be able to tell from this site I have a few issues food with my weight, and well I was watching this I was eating a salad (at least during the times when my mouth wasn't hanging open in shock) but I realized that I am actually far from fat especially considering my activity level...and the fact I only eat give or take a 1,000 calories a day. And I know its a horrible thing to judge people, which is sort of what I felt when I was watching almost like a freak show mentality, but it does help me to feel better about myself and hopefully they can get some type of health, from somewhere. And with that I don't feel bad about eating those chips...or not as bad I guess, though I do need to do some crunches, ugh...


(but on another night you have a clubhouse leader for stuck in my head song of the day. Get excited people)

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My Heart is an Idiot- Week 2

I thought the videochunks of My Heart is an Idiot were to come out on Monday, and they did but too late for me to post. So I hope you kept an eye on this space like I told you last week, because here is part 2 of the metaness


I love his NPR voice, I just wish his hair wasn't so emo. That quote also really spoke to my philosophical side "in a field I am the absence of the field... wherever I am, I am what's missing." Brilliant. More later as I ponder that

I can't wait for next week's.

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Keep an eye on this spot

I stumbled upon buzzfeed.com and they had "buzz" regarding this documentary. It is ostensibly a documentary about what is love and the nature of love but on the meta level it is a documentary about making a documentary. It's called My Heart is an Idiot and it is being shown in chunks each week. The filmmakers are going to be showing their work as they go along and also listening to suggestions from viewers so it is an incredible idea and project. The website is here and I'll try to keep you posted because I'm really excited about it (and I'm a horribly incurable romantic) Enjoy the first installment

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