For the people that don’t understand or are pretending not to understand, here are some signs of the Privilege:
- you never repeatedly get pulled over for routine traffic stops in your neighborhood
- routine traffic stops never involve more than one police cruiser
- you never match the description
- your automatic response to flashing lights in your rearview mirror is to pull to the curb and make sure your hands are clearly visible
- you have never had utter the following statements:
I am going to reach into my pocket for my wallet
I am reaching into the glove compartment for my insurance/registration - you’ve never thought I should record this just in case something happens
- you’ve never been told you speak really well by a police officer
- you’ve never been asked where you got such a nice car
- you’ve never been told you don’t look like you belong here
Extra Credit Assignment for my History of Comics Class
Although a lot of comics were covered I don’t think enough attention was paid to the improved writing in comics starting in the 80s and moving forward, partially as a result of the contributions of the wave of British writers that brought their dystopian visions of a Thatcherite future to American comics. In 2006 Comic Book Resources vote for the top three favorite comic writers were all British – Alan Moore, Grant Morrison and Neil Gaiman.
Alan Moore was the ‘first comics writer living in Britain to do work in America.’ Moore built a reputation for himself in the UK writing for Marvel UK, 2000AD and Warrior. While at Warrior, he was responsible for a number of titles including Marvelman, later changed to Miracleman for legal reasons and V for Vendetta; which has become one of his best known works. V for Vendetta was influenced by Moore’s pessimistic feelings about the Conservative government at the time. Moore’s work in 2000AD brought him to the attention of DC editor Len Wein who brought him onboard to revive the flagging Swamp Thing title. Moore’s run on Swamp Thing from 1984 to 1987 brought commercial and critical acclaim to the title, revived a number of other flagging supernatural DC characters including Deadman, the Demon, the Phantom Stranger and the Spectre as well as introducing John Constantine who would be spun off into his own Hellblazer comic as part of the Vertigo Imprint. This success brought on a second wave of British writers including Jamie Delano, Neil Gaiman and Grant Morrison.
Grant Morrison gained the attention DC with his deconstruction of the superhero genre in Zenith for 2000AD. Morrison proposed a reworking of marginal character Animal Man, which proved successful enough for him to be handed the reigns for Doom Patrol starting with issue 19. Morrison’s Doom Patrol was known for surreal elements including dadaism and the writings of Jorge Luis Borges. Morrison also continued writing for British indie titles including an anti-Thatcher comic called St. Swithin’s Day for Trident Comics. Morrison was instrumental in the launch of DC’s Vertigo Imprint by having several of his creator-owner projects as part of the launch.
Neil Gaiman was a friend of Alan Moore and started writing comics with Marvelman after Moore’s run was finished. Gaiman wrote three graphic novels with long-time friend Dave McKean that attracted the attention of DC comics. Gaiman’s first title for DC was Black Orchid, this impressed Vertigo comics head Karen Berger so much she offered him the job of rewriting an old character – The Sandman. Gaiman’s Sandman had a 75 issue run from 1988 – 1996 and featured work a number of artists. The Sandman run also included specials comprising of seven short stories and illustrated prose text.
The British influence on American comics continued in the 90s with Warren Ellis. His creator owned work Transmetropolitan is one of the most successful titles for Vertigo. He also brought British success in the 90’s to Image Comics Wildstorm imprint with writing stints on Stormwatch, The Authority and another creator owned series Planetary.
Final Essay for my History of Comics
Evolution of The Bat
Batman was a character created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in early 1939 to meet the growing demand for more ‘superhero’ comics by then National Publications (which would later become DC Comics). Kane’s original drawing for “the Bat-Man” wore reddish tights, boots, no gloves or gauntlets and a domino mask.
Finger suggested changing the domino mask to a cowl and came up with the name of the character’s alter ego – Bruce Wayne. Kane and Finger drew on existing characterizations of aristocratic heroes with a double identity in sources like the Scarlet Pimpernel and Zorro. They also drew inspiration from contemporary pulp sleuths like Doc Savage, The Shadow and Sherlock Holmes. In his 1989 autobiography Bob Kane talked about Bill Finger’s contribution to the creation of the Batman:
“Bill said, ‘Why not make him look more like a bat and put a hood on him, and take the eyeballs out and just put slits for eyes to make him look more mysterious?’ At this point, the Bat-Man wore a red union suit; the wings, trunks, and mask were black. I thought that red and black would be a good combination. Bill said that the costume was too bright: ‘Color it dark gray to make it look more ominous’. The cape looked like two stiff bat wings attached to his arms. As Bill and I talked, we realized that these wings would get cumbersome when Bat-Man was in action, and changed them into a cape, scalloped to look like bat wings when he was fighting or swinging down on a rope. Also, he didn’t have any gloves on, and we added them so that he wouldn’t leave fing
erprints.”
The first Batman story was called The Case of the Chemical Syndicate and was published in Detective Comics #27, May 1939 and featured a remorseless and vengeful Batman killing and maiming criminals. According to Bill Finger this characterizations was driven by the influence of the pulp comics popular at the time. Continuing in 1939 many elements of the Batman mythos were established – the Utility Belt (Detective Comics #29), Batarang and Batplane (Detective Comics #31). The origin of Batman was written in Detective Comics #33 by Bill Finger and depicts a young Bruce Wayne after seeing his parents gunned down by a mugger vowing “by the spirits of my parents [I will] avenge their deaths by spending the rest of my life warring on all criminals.”
1940 saw Batman’s introduction as a solo title and it saw a softening of the pulp characterization, primarily with the introduction of a kid sidekick, Robin. Robin was introduced at the suggestion of Bill Finger as a “Watson” type character with whom Batman could converse. Additionally Batman #1 introduced two nemeses in Catwoman and The Joker, the issue also included a storyline in which Batman shoots and kills some giants. That story prompted then editor Whitney Ellsworth to decree that in future Batman would no longer kill or use a gun. This along with DC Comics post-World War II editorial direction removed the “bleak and menacing world” of the early strips and changed the portrayal to a more respectable citizen and father figure that inhabited a “bright and colorful” environment.
From Batman’s first appearance in 1939 until 1943, Batman was written almost exclusively by Bill Finger, illustrated by Bob Kane and inked by Sheldon Moldoff. In 1941 editor Whitney Ellsworth, anticipating Kane’s inevitable draft, assigned Dick Sprang to work on Batman stories, which DC then inventoried to safeguard against delays. Following the war Sprang along with Sheldon Moldoff and Win Mortimer became ghost artists in the Kane’s style under his supervision.
In 1964 with DC was, according to Bob Kane, “planning to kill Batman off altogether.”
Julius Schwartz took over the flagging Batman titles. Bogged down by a number of characters and themes that had been introduced in the Silver Age comics like Bat-Mite and Ace the Bathound. Schwartz planned to bring Batman back to more detective oriented stories and brought in Carmine Infantino to help with the overhaul. The ‘New Look’ Batman premiered in Detective Comics #327 (May 1964) with Infantino redesigning the Batmobile and modifying the costume to include a yellow oval behind the insignia. Schwartz, was asked to, and introduced some of the camp and characters from the popular television series. However in 1968 the camp aspect had worn thin and the show was cancelled once again causing flagging sales of the comic. Schwartz later noted: “When the television show was a success, I was asked to be campy, and of course when the show faded, so did the comic books.”
In Detective Comics #395 (January) Dennis O’ Neil and Neal Adams came onboard and attempted to according to O’Neil “simply to take it back to where it started. I went to the DC library and read some of the early stories. I tried to get a sense of what Kane and Finger were after.”
This return to ‘roots’ would form the building blocks for the iconic characterizations that have cemented the Batman’s popularity. According to comic historian Daniels “O’Neil’s interpretation of Batman as a vengeful obsessive-compulsive, which he modestly describes as a return to the roots, was actually an act of creative imagination that has influenced every subsequent version of the Dark Knight.”
With this building block the next major benchmark in cementing the resurgence of Batman was Frank Miller’s limited series The Dark Night Returns (February – June 1986) which covers the story of a 55-year old Batman coming out of retirement. This story reinvigorated interest in the character and was financial success. 1986 was also the year Dennis O’Neil took over as editor for all Batman titles. Under O’Neil’s stewardship, Batman #400-407 (February–May 1987), the ‘Year One’ storyline written by Frank Miller and art by David Mazzucchelli, recounts the beginning of both Batman and Jim Gordon’s careers. Batman: Year One has been ranked number one on IGN Comics list of the 25 greatest Batman graphic novels stating “no other book before or since has quite captured the realism, the grit and the humanity of Gordon and Batman so perfectly.”
Batman has been one of the enduring characters in comic for almost 80 years. He is a cultural icon that has managed to endure and evolve. Even though the mythos has remained the same great writing, particularly in the last 25 years, has managed to keep the character fresh and readers interested. There have been slight changes to the costume, a location change and body hair change in the 70s but overall this has been consistently the story of a human character trying bring justice to a dark place.
This is a repost from a indie zine/website called Topsoil that I used to run with Dennis Allen and Lisa Allen-Agostini at the turn of the millennium.
Recipe for a Fig Oil Republic
1 Reasonable Size Republic
1 (step)Father of Nation/ 1 Perpetual Opposition Leader cum Prime Minister (These Ingredients interchangeable)
1 Political Party/fete, Wannabe opposition
1 Handful of ungrateful illiterate black people from Laventille
1 Tall and dark person to identify them
1 Cane Belt
1 Two Seat Powerbase (step)Sister Island
Backbiting, conspiracy and mauvais langue a must
Method:
Mix dictatorship and opposition and let raise for juice for five years. Set crust over bottom of melting pot. Spread layer of humanity. Soak some 90’s cynical indifference.
Place in the tropical sunshine to bake.
Dry mix illegal drug profits, twenty odd years of exorbitant oil revenues. Sprinkle with doomed State Enterprises, religious fanatics with large guns and good legal aid, non-elected Ministers with grandiose personal financial agendas and the island sub-state of psuedo-caucasian BougTowers (just left of Bmer Gardens); blend until the impoverished middle class starts turning vagrants.
Separate into enough servings to feed greedy foreign interests.
Soak cane belt in curry and cheap flour and marinate with duty free imported liquor. When State’s bitter rhetoric rises to the top, separate noisier unmonied dissidents with own agendas (they might sour the whole pot).
Throw everything together and blend with narco-interdiction boat propellers for one election.
Pour over crust and set oven for post colonial. (You’ll know its done when a maxi taxi driver becomes Chief Financial Comptroller of a Transportation Enterprise).
Spice liberally with backbiting, conspiracy and mauvais langue
Serve Cold and Hard to a gullible public that would take anything.
Garnish with bullshit lyrics and small cheap cars.
Makes enough for about a million, million & a half or thereabouts.
Preserve remains with weekly tabloid headlines.
First published Sunday Express, Section 2, September 21, 1997, Pages 2 – 3. Archived here for prosperity.
Save our Savannah – Queen’s Park Savannah
The Savannah is the centre of attention in the week of Carnival, but unless you’re an ardent jogger or use it as a roundabout, it goes completely unnoticed for most of the year.
Queen’s Park is the last savannah of this size – approximately 260 acres – in this country. All the others, like the Arima Savannah, were encroached upon by the growth of the towns around them, and eventually lost huge chunks of their area to industrial or government concerns. The Queen’s Park Savannah, as the last untouched one of its kind, provides both a historical and ecological resource and is currently in danger of what many people see as violation.
At the media launch last month for the Carnival 1998 celebrations at the office of Dr Daphne Phillips, Minister of Community Development Culture and Women’s Affairs, it was announced that a paved roadway would be constructed westwards from the exit of the Savannah stage to Marli Street to facilitate the flow of bands during the Carnival 1998 season. For the remainder of the year the roadway would double as courts for netball, volleyball, basketball or tennis.
This reasonable-sounding suggestion is being met by a united voice of protest from representatives of the Town and Country Planning Division, the Ministry of Agriculture, Citizens for Conservation, the Rugby / Football Union, the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board of Control, Royalians Rugby Football Club, the Savannah Committee and even members of the Carnival Bandleaders’ Association.
Most of the protest echoes the sentiment of the 1989 report of the Savannah Committee, appointed that year by Lincoln Myers, a minister in the Ministry of the Environment. It consisted of a wide cross-section of people from organizations including the Ministries of Agriculture and Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs; the Chaguaramas Development Authority; the Institute of Architects; the Chamber of Commerce; the Port of Spain Corporation; Citizens for Conservation; and the Town and Country Planning Division.
The primary mandate of that committee was to examine and make recommendations for the restoration, improvement and preservation of the Savannah, with particular reference to limiting access and use by vehicles and improving its use for recreation and leisure by citizens.
But there is another important aspect of the Savannah: it is one of the largest water catchment areas in Port of Spain. The WASA pumphouses located in the Savannah cap wells that draw water directly from the aquifer and supply the General hospital and Woodbrook. When the Arena Dam is closed to clean up the pollution caused by contaminants in the Caroni River, WASA relies on the Savannah aquifer to make up the shortfall.
The Savannah is a gravel aquifer (an underground basin in which water collects.) There are two basic types of aquifers: gravel and sand. With sand aquifers, water seeps through the topsoil and impurities are slowly filtered out. However, in a gravel aquifer, the filter is virtually non-existent, allowing any surface pollutants to find their way into the water.
If a road is built across to Marli Street, with the associated traffic, vendors, and pollution, as with the other illegal roadway at the entrance to the stage, contamination of the aquifer will increase.
Additionally, there’s a flooding problem, which is caused by improper drainage and compacting of the topsoil. Increased hard surfacing will reduce the absorbency of the topsoil, further aggravating the flooding. There is a 60-foot height difference between the top of the Savannah – the zoo side – and the south side. If the natural run-off of water along Queen’s Park West is redirected by the road, flooding will occur on Marli Street and in Newtown.
At a meeting on August 28th at Stollmeyer’s Castle, members of the 1989 Savannah Committee expressed the opinion that if the project goes ahead, “it will be the end of the Savannah”.
Those at the meeting also agreed that any suggestion of building tennis, netball, volleyball or basketball courts on the proposed road is absurd. Courts in this country have to be built on a north-south axis because of the sun, and a netball court is 108 feet long; that means that 108 feet would be the minimum width of the road. Additionally, the surface of a netball court is hardly suitable for music trucks and steelbands to exit the Savannah.
Christine Millar of Citizens for Conservation summed up the position of the Savannah this way: “The Savannah is sacrosanct, the heart, lungs and soul of the city, and as such it should be preserved and protected.”
A representative of the Cricket Board reported that they are very unhappy about and emphatically opposed to the road, which will bisect one of their cricket pitches. Year after year they have to rebuild their pitches and clean their outfields because of the damage wrought by Carnival parking, litter, steelbands, trucks and other vehicles driving indiscriminately across the Savannah. He feels that the people who use the Savannah for two days at Carnival do so at the expense of the thousands of others who use it for the other 363 days of the year.
A Royalians spokesman explained that for over 25 years they have used their rugby pitch in the area immediately west of the old paddock. They do not want to move. The proposed road to Marli Street will bisect their pitch, a portion of which was already damaged and rendered unusable by the road laid across it last Carnival.
Royalians are emphatically opposed to the new road. Furthermore, they want their rugby field restored. They insist that all sporting clubs and associations must protect their rights to grounds in the Savannah.
Even a member of the Carnival Bandleaders’ Association stated that the issue was not getting bands off the stage, but getting bands onto the stage and exercising the necessary crowd control to speed up that process. In their opinion, the proposed road is not the solution to Carnival’s multiple problems.
Among the recommendations made by the Savannah Committee in its 55-page report in 1989 was that Carnival be given a permanent home other than the Savannah. They also recommended that the relevant authorities institute a system of parking controls, prohibit all fetes in the Savannah, re-grass the Savannah, widen the pitchwalk or provide a joggers’ track and establish a Savannah constabulary. These and other recommendations were presented to the government of the day and each successive government with the same result: nothing has been done.
Members of the various organizations who attended the August 28 meeting have joined together to form the Save Our Savannah Committee, intended to raise public awareness of the plight of the Savannah. National Carnival Commission (NCC) chairman Carlos John confirmed that the NCC and the committee have come to an oral agreement that no roadway will be constructed until a report prepared by the committee is presented in October.
Culture Minister Phillips was continually unavailable up to press time.
The Committee plans to set up a Savannah website as a way of continuing its fight for the “heart, lungs and soul of Port of Spain”. Concerned citizens can offer comments and show their support for the preservation of the Savannah by signing the book at Stollmeyer’s Castle from Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and on weekends 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
HISTORY OF THE SAVANNAH
In 1817 the parcel of land known as Paradise Estate was sold by the heirs of Madame Peschier to the governing body of the day, the Cabildo, for 6,000 Pounds Sterling as a recreation ground for the citizens of Port of Spain. Seven years later, the Cabildo transferred Paradise Estate for 10,363 Pounds Sterling to the Colonial Government and what is now known as the Queen’s Park Savannah was laid out.
In 1882 the Queen’s Park ordinance was passed to regulate the use of the Savannah. Historical accounts mention that besides cricket and horse racing, athletics, football, hockey, polo and until 1936, golf were played in the Savannah.
In 1947, a little over four acres was leased to the Trinidad Turf Club. Three years later, the Grand Stand was erected by the Turf Club, the use of the Savannah extended to official and cultural events and the Carnival parade of the bands took a route through the Savannah.
In 1989, Lincoln Myers commissioned a Savannah Committee to make recommendations for the restoration, improvement and preservation of the Queen’s Park Savannah.
In 1994, the Grand Stand and its environs were put under the jurisdiction of the NCC on the departure of the Trinidad Turf Club to their new Santa Rosa facilities.
Since 1995, the Ministry of Agriculture has replaced some trees and installed cluster gardens, lights and signs.
WHO’S IN CHARGE?
There is no single authority with the final say for the Queen’s Park Savannah.
Instead, there is a bureaucratic morass which involves the Ministry of Works, the Port of Spain Corporation, Botanic Gardens Division, Port of Spain Health Officer, the Ministry of Sports, WASA, NCC and the Ministry of Culture that has resulted in an environmental free-for-all and a proliferation of ad hoc structures in violation of Town and country Planning codes.
The Savannah legislation of 1882 provides for the appointment of an official called the Superintendent of Public Gardens, Grounds and Pasture, with sweeping powers as to the usage of the Savannah. In recent history, the post was held by staff attached to the Botanical Gardens Division of the Ministry of Agriculture. The Botanical Gardens Division currently functions as a de facto Savannah Authority.
Let’s talk about hair, specifically dreadlocks and some of the questions that are asked on a fairly common basis and how they can be construed. For those of you just joining us, I’ve got waist length dreadlocks that I’ve been maintaining since 1997. I’m not a Rastafarian nor is there any cultural significance for my hairstyle. Being in a subset of a minority working in retail in a southern US town has given me an opportunity for a much deeper perspective.
“Your hair is so neat. Do you wash it?” I hear – “I have no context other than people who have appropriated someone else’s culture.”
I personally wash my hair frequently for the sake of my personal well being. During the winter months it could take as long as a day to dry and I have to ensure I keep my scalp moisturised. I also visit a stylist quarterly for maintenance purposes. True Rastafarians are actually fastidious about their cleanliness and some wash their dreads on a daily basis. The not washing dreads is usually synonymous with caucasians trying to affect dreadlocks. Thin, straight hair does not lock easily and usually requires a tincture to begin and maintain the process. Even with the constant application washing is likely to remove the hold.
“Can I touch it?” I hear – “Look at the exotic thing, we are superior and entitled to do what we feel.”
I don’t mind the question so much, but it irks me when the hand is almost or already there. This is a rhetorical question, you don’t really care whether or not I want you to touch my hair. As if by being outside your norm, I have forfeited my personal space. I’ve noticed this behaviour also prevalent with people with tattoos and pregnant women.
“I wish I could do that to my hair.” I hear – “Religious or cultural beliefs will not stand in my way of looking ‘cool.'”
Not content with cultural imperialism has spanned the globe with a powerful, vocal minority telling people exactly how they should look. Encouraging people to conform either through astringent chemical processes, eating disorders or surgical methods, let us claim the identities that remain for our own, no matter the significance.
The number one reason I can’t be a boss – I have simple expectations – you’re getting paid, do your job, if you can’t or don’t want to you do the job find a new one.
I don’t understand why so many people feel it’s ok to do as little as possible to continue getting paid or maybe I do. I’m not talking about my current employer specifically, it seems like a trend almost every where I go. I know that we all have off days but the levels of apathy emanating from people is palpable. I have a theory about this, when I first started working my mother told me that no one was irreplaceable but I still needed to give whatever I was doing my full commitment. I’ve carried that philosophy for almost 25 years. My mother’s work ethic and by extension mine, came from a time when people worked their whole lives for a single company and looked forward to their retirement package and gold watch. I guess it’s hard to commit to a company when more and more frequently they seem to be run by executives looking out for their personal interests and no matter how well or how poorly the company does, they get paid.
I’m guessing the other part of the problem is a natural extension of the everyone gets a trophy mentality. This expectation that you will be rewarded just for participating, has moved off the play field, through schools and pretty much set up shop in the work place. I’m here aren’t I, so pay me. It’s not really a sustainable model. Yes there are always people that work hard but sooner or later those people will leave for one reason or another. Of course this will be detrimental to the company in the long run, but since there is no accountability some executives will continue to get paid until their is no more money to be made and they move on.
Unless it’s your company it’s very easy to find yourself dreading going to work in the morning, every morning. If that’s how you feel it may be time to make a change. You’re not just making yourself miserable, you are more than likely doing the same to your coworkers and creating an ever increasing downward spiral. There will be difficult bosses and office politics, it is the nature of every job, so have to have something that keep you going. What has worked for me is making sure that I continue to do my job to the best of my ability and let that be it’s own reward.
with the impending demise of itools/.mac/mobileme, i realised i need to move all the stuff i’d accumulated in my idisk over the last 15 years (yeah i was early adopter), so for the sake of keeping it on the internet i’ll be posting some it here. not because it matters, but because i can.
My younger daughter is currently attending the Pearson College of the United World College. Every year they put on a show called One World, this year she performs a poem in the first part and then choreographs the closing number. How could I not post it?
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWLzOvCghe8
One World 2012 (Full Show Part 1)
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9w8UHMYKKA
One World 2012 (Full Show Part 2)
Tuesday March 6, 2012 is Super Tuesday. It refers to the date when the greatest number of states hold primary elections to designate the allocation of delegates for the relevant party’s national convention.
I live in one of those states and I’m registered as an independent voter, although in the state of Tennessee you are not required to vote in the primary of your identified party allegiance.
On Tuesday I’ve decided to help the Republican party help chose a candidate. There are currently four candidates left on the ticket but honestly unless something drastic happens before Tuesday, this is a two candidate contest but here are my thoughts on some of the candidates.
I know there are a lot of Ron Paul supporters and they believe he and his message are being marginalized and I think they’re right but honestly if he wanted to truly make the difference he keeps going on about he would have abandoned the entire two party structure and run as a true independent. I think my libertarian friends faith in Mr. Paul as their champion is more than a little misguided. The most fundamental tenet of libertarianism is free will, the right of the individual to do as they please. With this in mind how can the libertarian champion run on campaign supporting curtailing individual’s reproductive and sexual rights?
Where to begin with Mr. Santorum, the obvious joke here would be nowhere that involves any sort of modern thinking on sexuality. There is currently a list of the 10 dumbest things that have been uttered by Rick Santorum and in an effort to be fair, I did some research just to make sure they weren’t being taken out of context and for the most part they’re not. What puzzles me about Santorum and his supporters is how much their moral agenda resembles the same Sharia Law that they purport to be afraid of.
This leaves us with the current front runner for the Republican party’s presidential nomination, Mitt Romney. Before Mitt started pandering to what is passing for the Republican faithful, I think he had a chance with moderates, independents and people on the fence about the current president. In another election cycle with the party removed from the blinding insanity that is likely to destroy them he would be a fantastic candidate, if they let him be himself. Well as close to being yourself as getting elected will allow.
I believe the Republican party is continuing to shoot itself in the foot by pandering to the margins with every passing day in this election cycle someone utters something that sends another potential voter scrambling for whatever the party is not. Hopefully both parties will continue to pander the margins leaving enough of us in the middle to have sensible conversations and make real progress.
