my flickr feed has been a bit constipated until now. here are a few picts that i finally uploaded...

i saw this in my inbox and chuckled. lightly humored activism brushes this grain of grass in the right way...

COME MEET SANDOR KATZ, AGRI-ACTIVIST & AUTHOR OF THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE MICROWAVED: INSIDE AMERICA’S UNDERGROUND FOOD MOVEMENTS.

When: June 8th 7-9pm

Where: The Tank, 279 Church Street between Franklin & White
No cover charge, but donations to offset our food costs are encouraged

"Sustainability is Participation," is Sandor’s motto, so please come participate in Eating Liberally’s book party for Sandor. Hear his vision for a sane, humane food chain, and share some sustainable snacks with us!

A sampling of Sandor’s candor:

“Our food system, in which barely one percent of the people produce food for the other 99% to eat, is producing diseased people, diseased land, diseased animals, and diseased economies. We must break out of the restrictive and infantalizing role of consumer. We are all inherently capable of producing food. More of us must make that a focus in order to create better food choices.”

From Amazon:

An instant classic for a new generation of monkey-wrenching food activists. Food in America is cheap and abundant, yet the vast majority of it is diminished in terms of flavor and nutrition, anonymous and mysterious after being shipped thousands of miles and passing through inscrutable supply chains, and controlled by multinational corporations. In our system of globalized food commodities, convenience replaces quality and a connection to the source of our food. Most of us know almost nothing about how our food is grown or produced, where it comes from, and what health value it really has. It is food as pure corporate commodity. We all deserve much better than that.

In The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved, author Sandor Ellix Katz (Wild Fermentation, Chelsea Green 2003) profiles grassroots activists who are taking on Big Food, creating meaningful alternatives, and challenging the way many Americans think about food. From community-supported local farmers, community gardeners, and seed saving activists, to underground distribution networks of contraband foods and food resources rescued from the waste stream, this book shows how ordinary people can resist the dominant system, revive community-based food production, and take direct responsibility for their own health and nutrition.

this post has multiple titles... ;)
What a week for NYC Coworking; Coworking at the Tank NYC; it's time to build cafeBricolage; Future of Coworking Manhattan...

Back in December, at the end of year Tech Meetup, I innocently jumped onto the microphone and predicticed there would be, unlike the cube farms today, there will be more organic office environments. The man who got on the mic after me said that the city will have more sunshine studios... little did i know that his firm invested heavily in sunshine... in the end, the only thing i care about is building interpersonal relationships that foster the growth of self and community. if sunshine can do it great, but the real importance is on organic, self-sustaining structure.

the past few weeks have been quite interesting for the coworking community in NYC. on 23 jan, charlie introduces a long conversation to the NextNY community about the future of NYC's startup community. Then on 2 Feb, fellow buckeye, Nate Westheimer, posts his's interpretation of Coworking and calls it cafeBricolage. I blog saying the Tank NYC wants to do this; Nate and I talk about our communal interest and agree to wait until after 28 Feb's Next NY event.

then on Monday, Business Week posts an article; it hit Boing-Boing on Tuesday, and on Wed nextNY hosts Big Apple 2.0 – New York’s Present and Future as a Startup Hub. thursday night ABC News runs an evening news segment talking about alternative working spaces featuring my buddies at 116 west houston. finally on friday, 1 March marks the six month anniversary of Brooklyn Coworking and the one year anniversary of Jelly NYC; Nate announces it's time to pull the trigger on cafeBricolage and solicit support; at the same time, David Chen posts to the NextNY list with his desire for NextNYCoworking.

There are several reasons why this timeline is important...

• One, i'm excited to see the history!
• Two, i think we have reached a critical mass of ideas and support.
• Three, there is enough room for everyone.

In my eyes, Wed's nextNY meeting was cathartic and progressive. The drinking session / post-meeting conversations was more progressive than any other tech meeting i've seen since moving to the city... one group to my right wanted to set up a quarterly review to compete with tech-crunch, and a bunch to my left started debating the exact location of a future cafe shop. when everyone left, i knew what should happen... EVERYTHING!

for the past two days, conversations on and off the nextNY list have floated a multitude of ideas. if the nextNY community is truly representative of "the next generation of digital movers and shakers," this is going to be one heck of a year for NYC... heck, even have my fellow DrupalCamp buddies are itching for another Barcamp... everyone now see the importance of building a social technology community...

...but this community doesn't need "leaders," it needs stewards who will facilitate conversation, creation, and community.

why am i making this so damn long???

at the beginning of feb, when nate published his cafeBricologe manifesto, i was relived and scared - relieved to know that someone else was thinking the same thing; scared to think that after working on idea of "coworking" that someone would attempt to brand it something else... alas, i am way over that now, but i am not over the notion that these are two separate ideas... they are one in the same... born from the fruit of inspiration for the productive soul.

according to tara hunt, paris is about to open up an OpenSpace cafe. this space, partly funded by the city and private enterprise, comes after much sweat and tears from the progressive technology community in Paris. from eailer document seems to be exactly what cafeBricolage is attempting to create. sadly from my own research into locations, people don't understand, let alone want you to have a space..

after having agents question our frequency of elevator use, (shish, this is nyc... elevators were made to go up and down...) i threw up my hands, not in discuss, but in discovery... after the 2006 election i had one of many ahha moments, i came to the understanding that we aren't talking about the meat and potatoes, which has led me to launch my global research project - on the luck of seven. i am now overwhelmed and have less time to make the outreach that i once had done. coworking and it's derivatives must happen, they are the counterculture to the walled gardens everyone calls cubicles!

where does the future nyc coworking community stand???

the most reasonable location that combines the elements of a cafe, manhattan accessibility and reasonable availability - you shouldn't look any further than the tank. the tank nyc is home to nyc's hope, and the world's up and coming performing and visual arts. formed shortly after the 2004 presidential campaign, the tank bounced from location to location. finally, firmly rooted it self in the basement of collective unconscious.

after several of my posts to the nyc dorkbot and a few political email lists, Mike Rosenthal, the Tank's Managing Director, called me and we have since entertained/discussed/planned on utilizing the Tank's daytime hours for a productivity space. outfitted with a mini-cafe, sound system, projector, stage, tables, couches, and with ready access to the subway - the tank is a perfect fit for productivity...

the original idea would have limited the use only to paying members, but that quickly evolved into if the concept if "coworkers" could find 100 people to donate a $1 dollar a day to the Tank, the space would pay for itself... if you cared to break it out even further and with a reasonably large pool of people could be cut even further...

members of this Coworking @ the Tank would have three extended benefits from normal tank membership:

1. daytime use of the the space.
2. the ability to host one happy hour a month.
3. the ability to host one evening of programming pending the tank's calendar.

pictures of the tank do not accurately represent the current layout, but if you've noticed they are hosting quite a few salons. (see saturday's event) mike and i have had two "come to jesus" meetings, but with mike becoming the managing director and my recent propensity to lift off for European conferences our momentum has stalled a bit...

if you are looking for an immediate cafe like atmosphere/solution, i am more than willing to assist in building a solid relationship with the tank. before i leave for SXSW and then Europe, a tuesday or wed happy hour would be great!

what's needed? for this to move forward there needs to be five stewards who are willing to shape coworking at the tank or any other similar location... also understand that this group would have practical knowledge in building and setting up an infrastructure ready to prep for a future laid out in Nate's call to arms cafeBricolage post...

consider this a study group to build the future...

this article has been post on the nextNY email list, click here to see comments...

Technorati Tags: barcamp, boing boing, brooklyn, brooklyn coworking, coworking, digital ecology, drupalcamp, economy 2.0, future of cities, jelly nyc, new york city, nextNY, not an alternative, social entrepreneurship, sustaninability, the tank nyc

Where were you during the first controversy of the 2007 Presidential election? Better to also ask, what side were (or as some continue to ask, are) you on? The situation faced by blogger Amanda Marcotte is not an easy one... She held her line and was then held to a cross by conservatives. If your interested in hearing what she has to say, join us on Saturday for an evening of political conversation and inebriation with blogger Amanda Marcotte!

CAMPAIGNING, BLOGGING AND FIGHTING BACK: Netroots Activism in Presidential Politics
Saturday, March 3 @ 7pm (facebook invite)
The Tank
279 Church Street between Franklin and White
8-10pm Happy Hour with free drinks & drink specials

Pannelist: Amanda Marcotte, Scott Shields, and Ari Melber
Moderator: Nancy Scola

It was no surprise that the first major “controversy” of the 2008 campaign revolved around bloggers. Now that the dust has settled from the John Edwards blog flap, come hear the inside story and discuss what it all means for progressive politics, netroots activism and fighting the hypocritical right-wing noise machine.

Join us this Saturday at The Tank for a night of conversation, drinking, and networking. Panel discussion at 7pm, followed by free drinks and drink specials until 10pm.

If you're looking for background on how this "controversy" came about, read Lindsay Beyerstein's salon.com article.

WOW! it looks like a fellow new yorker & buckeye is coming to the right track... today, Nate Westheimer posted cafeBricolage — The NYC Solution is a Hot-plate... i'm so excited to see others thinking along the same lines... the following is my comment, and cross posted at blog.coworking.info

nate, this is great... i'm glad to see that you are coming to the same conclusion many of us have been working on for many months... we already have a small space in brooklyn, and several spaces through out the world. SF and Vancouver have the most vibrant spaces, and the paris space is going to be awesome!

through here in nyc, my self and a few others have been working hard - coworking, barcamp/drupalcamps/rootscamp, and blogging liberally - to extend the notion of a progressive new york city...

it's great to see, fellow nextNY are finally coming to the right track. i guess it's time to finally let the cat out of the bag and tell you for the past few months, i've been working with the tank, a creative arts space in tribeca, and we have the framework for the location AND A PHYSICAL LOCATION!!!

roughly, we need 5 people who are willing to shepherd the opening and closing of the tank, and VOLA! you have a access to programming and happy hours at the tank. more details to be ironed out in person...

i won't argue about names or wether or not this is a brand spanking new idea. these are great thoughts that i'm finally happy to see them receive greater acceptance. you have no clue how hard it's been to talk to fellow nextNY'ers and meetup attendants about coworking/cafeBrickologe...

i'm currently in geneva for LIFT and will be back on sunday. the tank and i are planning on having a happy hour to discuss this space and many other ideas in the next two weeks.

come join the ongoing discussion on our global email list.

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Technorati Tags: barcamp, brooklyn, brooklyn coworking, coworking, nextNY, drupalcamp, rootscamp, the tank nyc

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according to an article by michael talbert in abcarticledirectory.com (via slashdot). the net neutrality act is once again in congress. there is no better time than to meet tomorrow to discuss the future face of the internet!

Join Blogging Liberally for a special event with Susan Crawford at the Tank.

January 31th 6pm - 9pm, 2007 - NetNeutrality with guest speaker Susan Crawford- at 279 Church Street (btw Franklin & White, 2 blocks below Canal)

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Technorati Tags: first amendment, online advocacy, net neutrality, save the internet

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The Fight for NetNeutrality is not over. The progressive power gained in 2007 is still subject to the same corporate interest as the last session of Congress. As we settle into another Congressional session, we must be vigilant and ensure that NetNeutrality is a reality.

NetNeutrality is the fight for a neutral Internet. In the world we currently have, no single organization controls the Internet. For the past few years, major media corporations have come to believe the Internet should not be neutral, and should be controlled through corporate benevolence. This benevolence would span every form of entertainment and method of communication you know. Your computer would no longer be a free agent to communicate with whom you desired. From the movies you view to the emails you send, all would have to meet the approval of corporate trusties. Just imagine a world where Internet Service Providers look like cell phone companies - yeah, it's that scary.

A hundred or so years ago, there was a similar debate - to protect our ability to reach for the American Dream, labor unions were created. Then at last year's PDF conference, Congressman Anthony Wiener attempted to moderate Professor Crawford lambasting corporate interest. (download the podcast.) This fight is not just about politics, but a battle for technological control of the Internet. If you are concerned for the future of innovation, you must come and hear Professor Crawford. For anyone who loves gladiator politics filled with facts, figures and concise blows of logic, you must come and hear Professor Crawford. For anyone who cares about the American Dream, you must come and hear Professor Crawford.

This Wednesday come join Blogging Liberally for a special event with Susan Crawford at the Tank.

January 31th 6pm - 9pm, 2007 - NetNeutrality with guest speaker Susan Crawford- at 279 Church Street (btw Franklin & White, 2 blocks below Canal)

In a matter of months, "net neutrality" has gone from obscure telecommunications law provision to one of the hottest topics of debate on Capitol Hill and across the Internet. If you've been wanting to dig deep into neutrality, from its place in the history of the global network to its meaning for the future of communications policy, here's your chance! On January 31, Blogging Liberally will host a discussion on with leading Internet advocate and scholar Susan Crawford (scrawford.blogware.com). Prof. Crawford is an Associate Professor of Law at Cardozo Law School in New York City, where she teaches cyberlaw and communications law. She writes often on communications policy, digital copyright issues and Internet governance, and she is the founder of the annual OneWebDay celebration.

Tags: politics netneutrality freedom first amendment

if you want a quick summation of where the fight for netnutrality stands check out this video.

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Technorati Tags: gothamist, personal demoracy forum, save the internet, technology

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