The Scary Business of New Beginnings...

They say you should do something that scares you everyday… Well, check!!

Moving they say is among the top traumas a person can experience, and prior to a couple weeks ago - this whole business of moving out and giving up everything I own was a great conversation piece that inspired only release and celebration...and zero fear.  Then suddenly one day recently, that all changed.  Everyday since has been an exercise in recalling the meditative and spiritual work of this year - and remembering to breathe.  The challenging asanas I've pushed myself in yoga all year to do, I call on now as practice in the asana of release.  Funny that I find myself clinging so tightly now just as I'm about to let go. 

I heard Rev. Bacon say in an interview with Oprah last week that change is like the tumult in a plane.  Pilots explain that when the craft is about to break through the sound barrier the cockpit shakes the most and the body of the craft is at its most unstable.  I love this.  Kind of like the constricting  trauma of the birth canal before air and light; but this new analogy is serving me right now. I'm breaking through the sound barrier - my apartment is the cockpit, and I'm wanting to grip for security before releasing to the cruising altitude on the other side.   Deep and interesting process to observe on a daily basis.  

I'm now at the 2 week mark and I FEEL my body poised and sharply focused on the task at hand.  There is not a single moment for renegotiation left.  It's do or bust. And I'm doing this most involved work WHILE preparing for immediate travel and 3 exhibitions!  Of course.  Hahaha.  But stoop sales are the biggest 'DO' right now and I don't particularly enjoy them because I feel like I'm in a fish bowl brandishing my panties for the world to stare at!  That said - I've been ushered prior into this process by the presence of friends and family so I could get my feet wet.


But unlike those other days where we've had mini impromptu stoop parties, today I had my first solo stoop sale and it was not only a real physical work out, but a true test of breathing away the histrionics, overcoming the fears and getting necessary work done.  I set this all in motion when I decided to release my life here in New York,  and so I have to go through these logistics - which are hardly as romantic as the reasons or the stories behind them. 
       
So...I didn't have the hand holding today that  my little heart yearned for, but such conditions yield deep spiritual truths about where to hold energy and how to stand in an exposed vulnerable space with your center in tact.  It's not easy watching people assess the worth of your belongings...that for you  are so rich with sentimental value.  But with each breath, I experienced the liberty that this entire move is ushering me towards.  And added to that, I was called and visited by sweet souls all day who delivered gems of deep encouragement for this soul work.  Even the guys in the clothing store across the street watched my stuff for me when I had to walk away or show someone my stuff for sale inside the apartment. It's remarkable how sweetly held I was by strangers and new neighbours and passersby who questioned and then celebrated my reasons for my move. It emboldened my sense of courage to continue, to sit in my fish bowl and get about the business of releasing my things, my emotional attachments, my fears, my ego...

These moments are the practice for when I am untethered and on my way to Sierra Leone at the end of the year.   This is the TRUTH right here.  Wow.  Yemaya. 

Humbled • Scared •  Determined • Grateful. 

Appeals for the Life of a Friend

Dear friends and family,

This is a very sober and unfortunate reason for an appeal for help.  But hope is strong.

An old friend of mine Neesha Cameron (from my Sandals days in Jamaica) was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer last fall.  Unfortunately she has taken a turn for the worst in the last days and her family, friends, acquaintances and
beyond are pulling together resources in every way possible to raise funds for her treatment. 

I know a lot of emails like this float around - often about people we don't know
but I am personally asking you to assist any way you can for someone I do know. 

She is a warm and beautiful person with a young daughter who needs her to beat this thing.
And seriously - no amount is too small and you can donate anonymously.  Anything you can give will help - it adds up!

She has been flown Mexico to receive specialized treatment from a highly reputed

practitioner of holistic care for cancer treatment, Dr. Castillo at his clinic in Tijuana*

Contact Info for more info on how to help:

The Cameron family - and primarily Neesha's sisters Orianna and Nekoda can be reached at the
email addresses below:
 
Oriana Cameron:
orianajam@yahoo.com

Nekoda Cameron:
empressnekoda@yahoo.com

Friends are also working on fundraising events in Jamaica and New York for Neesha.

For fundraiser details
• to get involved • offer sponsorship • goods for auction • direct donations • etc  :)

Raxanne Chin

(who is physically with Neesha in Jamaica now assisting in her care)
[of Femheka Design/SaveOurJamaicaFoundation]:
raxannchin@gmail.com

Linda Virtue  

[from KayUnger]: 
Ljasvirtue@gmail.com

We are also brainstorming a fundraising fashion event to raise funds for 2nd and 3rd treatment sessions for Neesha
later in the summer.  

News to follow...

--- 

I have also attached a PDF doc with more extensive information about the clinic in 

Mexico, the costs of treatment and accommodation with applicable links to treatment info, testimonials from past patients, and also more contact info for the Cameron Family.**  

---

 
There are a few ways online to donate:

1)
You can directly donate (and anonymously if preferred) via
https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/eKA86?psid=7742d7d00058434193a71ffa2eda8b7c

2)
You can send a donation via Paypal to her sisters using this merchant account email address: empressnekoda@yahoo.com

3)
Ladies you can purchase mascara from the MaryKay Foundation where 50% of proceeds
will go to the Neesha Cameron Fund (see/click flyer attached)

flyer design by kgn6/danae grandison

---

Remember any amount will help.

If you cannot donate at this time, you can emit positive wishes for this goal to be met by sharing this with others.


PLEASE  send this out to anyone you know who can assist in any way.
Blog it, Facebook it, Tweet it, Digg it - however you share information widely. 

We can't take for granted that no one will respond.  If everyone gets one person to donate - that's HUGE.

She is in severe pain. 
This is URGENT. 
It can't be said any other way...

Deep thanks to you and endless gratitude for however you can help.

Love • Light • Gratitude • Life
Berette


*About Dr. Castillo - He was awarded the 2006 GOEH ( Global Organization for Excellence in Health). Dr Castillo combines the best of both worlds. He provides the patient with the benefits attained form both areas of western medicine and holistic treatment. The objective of the therapies that Dr. Castillo administers is to prolong and improve quality of life as much as possible by putting into remission, or stabilizing the patient's condition.I.M.A.Q.

**PDF Info Download with more info

SeBiArt at Bookophilia

Hey guys - super quick post to let you know I have work up at this cool bookstore in Kingston, Bookophilia from now through June.

You know I'm into community/art/edu programs and so I've committed proceeds of all sales to go to two organisations I support in Jamaica.  

One you've heard about here before, Studio 174 is run by Rozi Chung (hey that rhymed!! haha).  It's located on Water Street, downtown Kingston, and the art and educational programs there are provided for free to inner city children in need.  Many of the art workshops are focused on community beautification mural projects that also serve to improve the face of downtown Kingston.  S174 is in partnership with INSCAPE Foundation - an organization providing free clinical psych and art therapies to inner city citizens in stress.  

Rozi Chung(left) with S174 students, and Dr. Tammy Haynes of INSCAPE (far right blue shirt)

S174 studio workshops and exhibition space

I was recently introduced to yet another really great organization on my recent trip to Jamaica.  Run by Roslyn Ellison, Trenchtown Reading Center is now nearly 20 years old.  It's located in the heart of Bob Marley's old home town and has on offer free classes, reading and music sessions, and the most AMAZING library for the children of Trenchtown to enjoy.  

 

TTRC kids

Roslyn Ellison with TTRC kids

Proceeds from sales of my pieces at Bookophilia will go to both Studio 174 and Trenchtown Reading Center.  Please drop by if you are on the island, or pass the word around.  Thanks so much.

RELATED JOURNEY POSTS:

Jamrock Talk, Jamrock Walk (Oct 2011)

BIG PICTURE fun on the Rock (March 2011)

SUPPORT POST: Death of the Diva

What is a diva?

Answer (from Wikipedia):

A diva (English pronunciation: /ˈdiːvə/, Italian: [ˈdiːva]) is a celebrated female singer. The term is used to describe a woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, and, by extension, in theatre, cinema and popular music.

Okay.  So we know who those are - the far and few between who happen to be celebrated.  But we also know the new divas...the Kardashians, the Hiltons, or others who I can't name because frankly I just don't pay close enough attention.  

I'm not an avid TV viewer, I go for days, sometimes weeks without touching the clicker.  This wasn't always the case.  There was a time, back when television and cable programming had more 'original', and gasp (!), creative content, and less mind-numbing carnivals* showcasing the most base of human behavior under the heading 'reality'.

At the heart of this soul crushing content is not the celebration of women but the degradation of them.  And though many of us protested this shift that has now become the norm; the reality IS, that this demeaning content 1) entertains the masses, 2) catapults many a vapid being to undeserving supernova stardom from such spectacle, and 3) creates associations for all womanhood that serve more to undo the triumphs for equality and respect so hard won.  The new diva represents nothing of any progressive use, and so hurts those of us who have something inspiring, magnificent, or unique to offer. As performer/actor/DJ Amanda Seale (formerly known as Amanda Diva) aptly notes "we're put in this corner where I may have to be less than the woman my mother raised me to be".

This concern is at the heart of her new one-woman show now up in New York, Death of a Diva, directed by Roger C. Jeffrey.  Roger is a dear friend, past dance teacher of mine, and an accomplished dancer and choreographer.  He has deep social concerns for women, youth, racial inequities, and matters of the soul - he's a gapminder, who works always with superior talent.  So no surprise to me that he's a part of a most meaningful project written and performed by this accomplished female talent.  Seale's conscientiously written work tackles the attack on the image of women in all media and  appears to be every bit as heightened, intelligent, and damn funny in her performance.

Seale takes the stage this month offering ideas, and stories of the woman and the diva, through voices of multiple characters in this performance, each of whom will provoke thought and reopen active dialogue on what appears now to be a frighteningly passive issue.  This is too good, and too important to miss. I mean really, have we killed the diva?!

Amanda Seale's Death of a Diva plays:

March 23rd - April 1st 

at The Helen Mills Theater, NYC

135 West 26th Street (btw 6th & 7th Aves) 

Get Tickets HERE!!

Why do women look so silly on Reality TV?

Support Video:

March 5th, UPDATE:  

ADD'L Performance dates and Venues:

Sat 3/3: Death of the Diva at NCCU Durham, NC 7p

Tues 3/13: Death of the Diva FREE live sneak peak! 8-10p @ Bleu Violin (116/5th ave) spec perf by: Kimberly Nichole

Thurs 3/15: Death of the Diva FREE live sneak peak! 8-10p @ Free Candy

Fri 3/16: The Schomburg Museum presents: Theater Talks w/ Amanda Seales hosted by Elon James (Time TBD)

Mon 3/20: NYU for Women's History Month Events presents: Death of the Diva

*(for further reading that supports this gripe - please see my favourite article ever written on the matter: I'm A Culture Critic...Get Me Out of Here! by James Wolcott, Dec 2009)

Walking Impressions for Inspirational Flight, with a whole lotta Leica

Back in October that photographer friend of mine I recently posted about, Christian Macauley, and I spent a day getting inspired. First he met up with me at the PDN Int'l PhotoPlus Conference and Expo at the  Jacob Javits Center. It's a sort of capitalistic-anxiety-inducing-soul-sucking-goodie-coveting-"shit-I'm-poor"-yet-thoroughly-exciting event where you get to look, touch, test, and learn about the latest photo, video, printing, and  software tools, as well as marketing services newly available to image makers. 


Armed with my floor map and exhibitor list - off I went for my industry  education and the free goodies! I'd hoped to sit in on a seminar or two but the whole thing got a bit overwhelming after a while, so off we went. 

Composite Source: YellowKorner

Christian took me walking through SoHo and we stopped in this pop up gallery set up by YellowKorner, a British company specifically aimed at making photographic prints more accessible to buyers of lesser means than trust fund babies.  Pop up galleries are the coolest concepts I think - they are to visual artists what low cost old warehouse spaces and self-publishing programs are to musicians...in a way: prime spaces (on short n' free or barter loans, or leases) to exhibit work in a gallery setting, sans the politics and prohibitive costs or commission fees for the artists.  

Anyway - there were some great prints on display, but one image/artist, Kourtney Roy, held me spellbound and sent me rushing to the nearest bench, to jot down my reactions in my little journal that I carry with me at all times.  Since photography is typically prohibited in exhibition spaces - I needed to write something to remind me of this work and what I felt upon seeing it.   I am thoroughly moved by artists who can produce a simple image that induces complex emotions or projections from the viewer.  I felt her image accomplished this perfectly - or at least, it did so for me... and the fact that it was a self portrait killed me all the more.

 



Heart reaching into the 'guess' of an event 

- prior - now - or about to happen,

The hanging pause of the story of two...

Who falls, who catches, who fails, who saves?

Deal, Dare, or Damage?

Is there Death, Ownership, or Love?

Another stop along the way was a thing of wonder, a prime example of reasons to LOVE LOVE LOVE New York: The Levi's/Leica Workshop.

 

 Located where the Deitch Project used to be, :(, Levi's®, along with sponsorship by Leica, opened up a temporary space for photographers to utilize an incredible wealth of equipment PLUS studio space...FOR FREE!!!

photo & logo composite: http://workshops.levi.com

The list of cameras included the Nikon D series, the Canon EOS-D series, and of course a range of film and digital Leicas - including the  $30,000 monster body Leica Camera AG S2 and  fitted with the Summarit-S 1:2.5/70 mm lens. Other vintage/film cams on hand were the Hasselblad 500 series and the Mamiya RZ67 Pro II. There was an open white studio space, plus a cheesy basement set - both of which you could use with your choice of Profoto monolights, modifiers, and power packs; make up stations for M.U. artists and models; MAC G5 work stations with 30" screens for post-production work; and printing stations for fine art prints, etc.  It was QuiTe incredible.  All you had to do was sign up in time, book the space, and the camera you wanted to use, and voila!  No deposits even (while in house)!  The insurance on this friggin deal must have been INSANE!  You could even sign out cameras to shoot on location - for a mere $100 refundable deposit for 24 hours! 

Wha-HUH????!!!!!  

photo source: Camera Monster

I thank my lucky panties that I got to squeeze in two sessions before it got too crazy in there.  I opted to shoot with the Leica S2 which I couldn't believe was available both times.  And you know - I couldn't take myself too seriously with it all. I decided, rather than to use this opportunity for work, to just have fun; so I called up some friends to 'shoot the shit' - hahaha. No major planning, no stress, just show up to the studio where all was on hand PLUS the Bentley of cameras in my hand (that creates images with pixels the size of a fucking fist ), and here's the silliness we got up to: some friendly portraits, fashion fun with an African feather headdress (JuJu hat), and a music bubble session Las Vegas 70s style - heeeheee.  Gotta love New York!  Thank you Christian!!! And thanks Michael, LaLa, Justin, Yolanda, Manny and Kevin!! It's all coming back to me now - I CAN'T BELIEVE I shot with that thing! :D

Michael Gilbert, founder of Language of Opposites

NB.  If you're reading this on Facebook you may need to click "view original post" to see all media in this post.

SUPPORT POST: Another Modern Salone Pilgrim

So by now you know that every now and then I just HAVE to drop a word about a friend/fellow artist/seeker/human being who is on their own  inspiring journey.  Another such soul is MyronChristian Macauley.  Yes - um we have the same name, AND we come from the same country, Sierra Leone, AND, AND, he's a photographer and a fine one at that. 

MCM image from Marc Ecko ad campaign in Europe

A mutual friend  - also a photographer and restaurant owner, Sean John, introduced us some years ago and I've been an admirer of Christian's vision ever since. I've heard him refer to the body of his work in a nutshell as a hybrid of fashion and fine art photography...well...with a big helping of spiritual mysticism I might add.  His images have a dreamlike, ethereal quality that is attempted by many image makers today but rarely accomplished to this standard. Rather than one-dimensional aesthetic imagery, I think Christian produces mentally and emotionally provocative beauty.  

He recently put out a coffee table book, Modern Man in Search of Soul, Pub. MCM Collective, July 2010, currently available on Amazon.com, and at Bookophilia (if you're in JA) which showcases some of his best mystical work chronicling his creative and personal  spiritual journey over the past seven years in Thailand, Brazil, Kenya, India, and Greece. 

During my last stop in New York I made it a huge priority to get the book for my library. I ran over to Sean's spot, Spur Tree, to meet up with Christian and Danae Grandison of (book designer from KGN6 Design  and business partner for the MCM Collective)to get my copy.  Of course there's no big mystery why I'd love it (having been on my own version of Eat, Pray, Love for the past year and a half!), but trust - if you flip through this journey, you'll be transported further than any plane can take you.  

Here's a video from MCM's journey:

Modern Man in Search of A Soul from ofa on Vimeo.

Footage and reactions from a recent Pop-Up Gallery show in SoHo:

You can find more about him here:

-JAMATI

-The Observer

-MyronChristian Macauley blog 

You can buy your book at these places too:

-Greenlight Bookstore 

(Fort Greene, Bklyn - in store)

-Georgia Salon 

(Nolita, NY - in store)
www.georgianyc.com

-Studio Museum of Harlem (NY)

144 West 125th Street

(212) 864-4500
-MCJ bookstore 

(Nolita, NY - in store)
www.mcnallyjackson.com/

K&M Camera 

(Tribecca, NY)
www.kmcamera.com‎

RELATED JOURNEY POSTS:  The Wanderer: And Old Path to Renewal (Feb 2010)

                                                Marathon for Stillness (March 2010)

                        SOLE of REDEMPTION: Majesty of the Little Things (May 2010)

The e-Con Highway

Money or the lack of money fuels fear, power, fear, greed, fear, control, then fear again, and thus the need to be released from all these things via distraction, and preferably inexpensively and free of consequence.  Welcome to the convergence of the information highway and the super-cause way of acceptable corruption of our minds, imagination, politics, media - de facto - our society.  The loafers often found at this intersection are 'we' the addicted apathetic consumers of the 'have it your way right away' gimmick that holds no truth for anything worth a fuck in this world; but if packaged correctly and flashed before our eyes quickly enough with as few informative words as possible, won't  be unwrapped or checked for ingredients, but rather gobbled up at the drive-up window before speeding off again to the next.

Everything is about economics - everything in this world whether we want to believe it or not, is about money.  And while there are streams of exits we could jump off on in response to that remark, I mean only to focus right now on the economic con of politics and the frightening reality, that it is now nearly entirely driven by private funds/interests/agendas that all boil down to getting more of OUR money whilst giving us less, and, less of an explanation for the shit deal. 

Let's break it down shall we. The borders set up all over the world that are more heavily controlled than ever before, have more to do with controlling the movement of consumers, and the overhead costs of running countries than it has to do with...terror and those who are marketed as the purveyors of it.  Immigration control is a financial concern first and foremost isn't it?  Running a country is running a business, essentially.   Cut overheads, secure the fixed capital which includes land ownership (for majority shareholders) and its use, control distribution, keep the cogs maintained and oiled, upgrade where you can and especially in areas where wear-and-tear can break down the machine, outsource and delegate expensive industries, create cost effective partnerships and efficiency, and increase rest/rejuvenating spaces to keep customers and in-house staff and shareholders healthy...and happy to come and happy to stay without incurring debt.  These are some the basics - often spoken of politically as health care, immigration, education, infrastructure, treaties and trade, bills and legislative laws, environment, etc, etc, etc...etc.  We get emotional and rightfully impatient about these issues because the business is 'us', and the business practices must adhere to the inalienable and indisputable edicts of fair conduct and human rights - and our day to day lives incur immediate data on how well the business is serving our lives; and if the current faltering comforts of living don't change in 2.5 nanoseconds - somebody has got to go down...now. 

Well, I rant on not from a place of financial comfort - I'm an artist, and all the risk that that implies.  But I fancy myself a crude analyst as well, in that I need to distill, compare, correlate, and stratify, in order to understand the macro and the minutia so as to nullify the mind-numbing fear that would certainly result if I didn't.  And THIS my friends is EXACTLY what I'm not supposed to do.  Of course not.  Not in a world that is currently driven by a new culture of attention deficiency that keeps us apathetic rather than critical; overwhelmed from too much information rather than energized by it (guilty here - often guilty!); and thus too tired and happy with our shiny-flashy-media-filled-giggle-toys to be bothered with a thought, let alone act of revolution.

Now I'm no revolutionary.  I love my toys.  And I take lots of pictures so you can look at them on your toys!  I've never held a picket sign or attended a march.  I've been a petition signer, or a volunteer in various relief or art organizations, and ah...that's it folks.  But I do choose to create this much of a footprint here on this blog as my act of revolution - to simply say, I'm on to you funding-machine mutherfuckers!  People, let us not kid about the topic at hand, politicians don't have that kind of money, the private sector does.  I have maintained in private company for some time now that I can barely watch or read the news anymore because it has become oh-too-common, or dare I say, lazy, to blame them - or at least to blame them solely.  The real blame for me lies with the greedy land/big biz/corp owners who amalgamated this paradigm we live in to keep us brilliantly distracted, and now the politicians need them to fund their campaigns the way Zuckerberg had fun creating networks.  Do you see the connection?  We're not so powerless you know - in so far as being able to demand differently anyway. Look at the landslide win that seated a black man in the Presidential office! The trouble is we don't use this voice consistently.   We won't pay attention to any serious issue without it being packaged the same way the private sector packages the merchandise we like to buy!  And who's going to pay for that kind of marketing for financially restricted politicians?  Bingo guys!  The private sector - now having racked up nearly $2bn in campaign spending tomorrow to get your vote or to stop your vote.

Anyone familiar with third world politics, directly or indirectly, can say a thing or two about that slippery slope.  There is a type of corruption that exists in other parts of the world, that no matter what you say, I'm sorry, has never had the privilege of existing here in the US of A.  It's in fact what the nation was founded on, in part, right? Earning your fortune the new fashioned way - by working hard for it, rather than having it by connection, lineage, or sponsorship - like the old monarchies the founding fathers split ways with.  And yes, I am aware that the unfair edges and slopes have been around from jump street everywhere and will be - but that super highway I mentioned at the top of this post just got tilted to a near 72° angle in the last year and if this upcoming election and the wealthy finger-pointing-parties keep tipping it with no intervention from us, it'll hit 96°, and um...that's what you call a free fall.  How did it become so acceptable for people have to use such obscene amounts of money just to convince us to support improvements to our lives?  How did we become so fickle and short-sighted?  Where did the critical conversation go, and the analytical look at the long-sighted plan - or rather the real understanding of work, sacrifice, investment and timely care for sustainable growth?  These are the things that keep a  country evolving, and keep social activism...well...active. 

Now this is all just a general gripe, I don't have all the details of the successes and failures by our current President Obama.  But I do have enough in my noggin to know that his agenda for this country has more to do with the long view improvement plan for us shareholders.  And a personal favourite of his record is that this man holds the correct group responsible; the greedy corporations who sunk our globally collective ship, dried out the land, and sped away atop it, in their gold encrusted Bentleys.  And if you've been paying close attention and doing your cog part in this, some of that has been immediately effective.  But because everything didn't and isn't happening in 2.5 nanoseconds - we're ready to push out the folks who are helping the fella we were so wet for just a mere two years ago. And why, because we have a mid-afternoon-biscuit-and-scones party with no real or current responsibilities or accountability who can spout off risk-free criticisms without cited support and without real refute.  And why again, because they lost money when he charged their friends for greed.  And....WHY would WE side with that gripe of theirs???  It's the most incredible thing to me really.  That all said - I also worried during the elections in 2008, when we saw so many come out in droves to support Obama's proposed policies. Yes, he put a grassroots money cap on how much could be pledged to his campaign...but I wondered what we didn't see...and if he pushed forward with his plans with any integrity - surely this would piss off a few of his new rich friends.  And so...in some cases...it seems this has come to pass...

We live in a nation that should be leading in a good handful of industries, not least of all technology, manufacture, and green energy and we don't have a foothold in any of these - because that other late afternoon party with their pots of money thought it better to export...(why bother list them when the only competitive ones remaining are showbiz and the military)...nearly ALL our industries to other nations to cut overhead costs here.  Hence no jobs.  Hence no 2.5 nanosecond economic or employment rebound.  Hence our faltering infrastructure with few remaining experienced/skilled/trained labor to address it.  Hence unhappy shareholders.  Quite simple really, and not such a smart way to run a business is it?  Rather, a stupid and shortsighted way for you and me, while their pockets get longer under the cutting table in the stretch-custom-fitted-G5-winged-Bentley taking off from our barren highway for a weekend in Dubai!

Yep this is a long one, and I don't get so political usually and I know I often give you pics too (back to that next time, I promise)  - but for God's sake people, use your voice while we still have a bit of a lean on this slope.  Barrack Obama still has the office for another two years, and what he is able to do while there is quite dependent on these elections.  So yes, this started actually as a spontaneus gripe, but has turned into a plea for you to vote today. It's harder for any of us to speak up when we're piled up over the edge of any highway if it leads us to nowhere, or worse, veers 96° down.

-Voting Offices in New York   

-Voting Offices by State

-President Carter on the Supreme Court's decision to legalize private funding for political campaigning,"It's legalized bribery"

-Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (The Supreme Court Rules No Limit on Corporate Funding of Political Campaigns, Jan 2010)

Addendum provided Nov 4th, by a dear friend T.S. - thanks.  A perfect site of factoids with links to bigger chunks if you feel like informing yourself further...

- What the Fuck Has Obama Done So Far Dot Com