Posted 9:58 PM by Andrew Faehnle
audio post powered by audblog

Posted 12:07 AM by Andrew Faehnle
Prose and Consqeuences
Discuss

Here's some debate about NYC's Ballot Issue 3, which, if passed, would eliminate party primaries in certain elections in favor of a primary en masse, open to all candidates and voters. The top two vote-earners then move on to the general election in November. Read about Christian and me (two guys you wouldn't wanna meet in a dark voting booth) duking it out ideologically. This is the first time in ages that I can remember having serious differences of opinion over a political issue. Most of my friends and I tend to vote (and think) similarly. I don't know anyone else who is for "Yes" on 3.

I'll bring you some post-vote analysis when the news breaks.

CMinusRocks: fairly unbiased: http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/feature-commentary/20031020/202/575
CMinusRocks: totally biased: http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/feature-commentary/20030616/202/423
p0pcult: i think party primaries are a bad thing
CMinusRocks: as ideas, I agree
CMinusRocks: however, the way new york politics operates now I think they are necessary
p0pcult: why?
CMinusRocks: just because parties are gone doesn't necessarily mean voters are going to educate themselves anymore
p0pcult: i agree wholly with that statement
CMinusRocks: a democratic primary allows voters to pick among candidates who are at least similar in some ways
p0pcult: most people who vote (which is always less than 50%) are self-educated anyway
p0pcult: the people who aren't educated are generally the ones who also don't vote
CMinusRocks: if a politically uneducated voter had to pick between a whole multitude of candidates, things get messy - and what the voter knows about a candidate comes from what they see (ads by the candidate)
p0pcult: furthermore
p0pcult: the people who end up in the final november election should be the two who earned the most votes
CMinusRocks: yes, that's what I'm having difficulty with
CMinusRocks: I agree with that last thing you said
p0pcult: and also most people who vote are educated
CMinusRocks: but I think non-partisan politics at the moment would give the upperhand to republican candidates, such as bloomberg, which I don't want
p0pcult: and also the fact that campaing finance is screwed up shouldn't affect this vote
CMinusRocks: I also think there are more democrats who vote party-line than republicans
p0pcult: i think it would increse the number of votes republicans earned, but not by enough to affect the outcome of races
CMinusRocks: and I think without a party line to vote on, there would be no ONE DEMOCRATIC candidate, and instead 2 or 3 strong ones factioned off by race or neighborhood
p0pcult: yes
CMinusRocks: you would have a strong latino candidate, a strong black candidate, and a strong liberal-white candidate
p0pcult: and if they earned fewer votes than their republican counterparts, then the people have voted republican
CMinusRocks: yes, and this is where my personal politics come into play - I DON'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN!
p0pcult: i don't either
CMinusRocks: I'm voting more on my personal politics, than what I think is best for NYC democracy
p0pcult: but i think that good democracy is more important than my personal politics
CMinusRocks: I guess that's where I'm different
CMinusRocks: good democracy is a noble thing, but damn it if we have more republicans running things this country will continue going to hell
CMinusRocks: not that I necessarily think a democrat would do that much better
CMinusRocks: I just fear those repubs
p0pcult: so you don't believe in democracy if it allows republicans to get elected?
CMinusRocks: that's where spending limits come into play
CMinusRocks: I WOULD vote for question 3 if there were spending limits, which there are not
CMinusRocks: there are only fundraising limits
CMinusRocks: so a rich candidate has a natural advantage
p0pcult: but you're still ignoring that demographics of voters
p0pcult: especially in nyc
p0pcult: they tend to be educated
p0pcult: and vote as educated people
CMinusRocks: but I think there are a lot of fairly non-educated democratic poor who vote party line
p0pcult: how many poor people vote?
CMinusRocks: I guess we would somehow need to see a statistic on this
p0pcult: yea
CMinusRocks: uh, at my schools in the bronx there were always people there voting - and they weren't exactly very wealthy
CMinusRocks: I think you and I conflict on what we think the 'average new york voter' is
CMinusRocks: and that's a really difficult thing to guage
p0pcult: sure, but what percentage of the district population did they represent?
p0pcult: it is a densely populated area
CMinusRocks: ok
p0pcult: parties are a huge problem in american politics
CMinusRocks: oh I agree
p0pcult: by saying no to 3 you reinforce the two-party system
CMinusRocks: but they've been around so long it becomes problematic just to get rid of them
CMinusRocks: it's true
p0pcult: no to 3 mans no to 3rd party candidates
p0pcult: *means
CMinusRocks: but I think allowing non-partisan elections is just going to keep getting more bloombergs elected - people who basically buy their way into office
CMinusRocks: that's why I'm torn on this issue
p0pcult: see
p0pcult: i think that once the field to entry is leveled, then people with non-party-line ideas can come in and i think that this will revitalize the electorate
p0pcult: give politics fresh ideas
p0pcult: force candidates to evolve
CMinusRocks: you certainly look optimistically upon politicians and politics!
p0pcult: no i don't
CMinusRocks: I guess I'm a bit more pessimistic about how things would actually play out
p0pcult: not at all
p0pcult: in fact what i am saying is that if someone comes along with a good idea, the other candidates will have to copy it
p0pcult: it's like evolutionary adaptation
p0pcult: they will mimic to survive
CMinusRocks: I think parties also hold candidates acccountable to their peers within the party, to some degree
CMinusRocks: no matter what, affiliations will form, and you might get 3 or 4 alliances (parties without the party-ness), kind of like in European elections - and I think that is good
CMinusRocks: but I think finance reform needs to happen first in order for the goodness of non-partisan elections to shine through
p0pcult: finance reform will never happen
p0pcult: until
p0pcult: someone gets elected without being beholden to moneyed interests
CMinusRocks: I disagree - I think it might happen to a small degree
CMinusRocks: and it can definitely happen more easily on a local level (as opposed to a national level)

Posted 9:14 PM by Andrew Faehnle
Share Music

I believe in filesharing.
And I believe in Halloween.
I went as a pirate:


Christian took the picture.


And for anyone who wants a tshirt like mine, here is the logo for free.
Make your own, and spread the word.

I used Avery's InkJet T-shirt Transfers, which worked easily and inexpensively.

If every .mp3 pirate and filetrader in America wore this emblem on election day--this Tuesday,
we'd send a strong message to Congress about information freedom, intellectual property law, and our wintry discontent with the music industry. Think of it as "virtual voting." Show Congress the power of 'net Democracy.






This work is dedicated to the
Public Domain.


Afterword

CMinusRocks: do your dots in the SHARE MUSIC logo have any significance in terms of the way they are arranged? because they certainly don't look like an A
p0pcult: http://www.catb.org/~esr/hacker-emblem/
CMinusRocks: a good question with an even better answer
CMinusRocks: awesome
p0pcult: yea
CMinusRocks: How did you get the logo to transfer to your t-shirt?
p0pcult: i was wrestling with how i wanted to do a "logo" for the idea of sharing music
p0pcult: and i was reading slashdot.org
p0pcult: and saw this piece there, and it was like, "aha!"
CMinusRocks: seriously - it's perfect
p0pcult: i bought a box of avery inkjet tshort transfers from staples
p0pcult: *tshirt
CMinusRocks: I'll have to get some of those
p0pcult: $20 for 18 full-page transfers
CMinusRocks: works well?
p0pcult: easy
CMinusRocks: sounds great
p0pcult: did you ever play the "game of life" like on the mac or older computer systems?
CMinusRocks: nope
CMinusRocks: is that what that logo is?
p0pcult: basically where you can arrange these colored dots that evolve
p0pcult: based on a simple algorithm
p0pcult: that logo, the "glider" never dies and keeps moving around the screen
p0pcult: so it also kinda connotes evolution
CMinusRocks: nice
p0pcult: as in, the RIAA can stop p2p networks, but something new will come up to replace them
CMinusRocks: that's brilliant
p0pcult: yea
p0pcult: it's perfect
p0pcult: i want to see everyone in a "share music" tshirt they made for themselves
p0pcult: so we can establish a visual presence
p0pcult: everyone fileshares
p0pcult: and there are few people who feel it is wrong
CMinusRocks: I will definitely make clothes and wear them
p0pcult: right on

Posted 9:18 PM by Andrew Faehnle
If It Smells Like Puke, Don't Worry

Today was the first "bad" day of the school year.

Today was the first day this school year in which I felt that I failed in my mission as an educator of and advocate for children.

Mitigating circumstances had put me a crappy mood the moment I set foot in school. I knew that this emotional poision would cloud my ability to experience success with my students; I recall telling myself, "don't be in a bad mood, you'll have a bad day." But it was not to be.

Then, Quadasha arrived, late, halfway through first period, when she was supposed to take a make-up test for my class. I could see my hole day slowly expiring before my eyes. Last week's playful sarcasm had turned bitter. The words were the same, but intonation tells a second story. I was nasty.

By 9:05, every excahnge between me and a student was only successful in deepening my disillusionment.

605's near-perfection and amazing effort and results weren't enough to lift my spirits. After lunch was no better. I spent the last two periods of the day (as well as afterschool detention) choosing the wrong battles, picking the unnecessary fights. By the time 8th period rolled around, my head felt like it was trying to have a baby.

710. The specialist of special ed. Marvin, who has been trying to "create a new life form" in order to receive the reward I promised him of a Game Boy Advance SP, believes he has met with success. (To clarify the aforementioned deal: last week, Marvin asked, "If I create a new life form, will you get me a Game Boy Advance SP?" Imagining that the toy would be the least of his rewards, I replied, "sure," at which point Marving begged me to go back to his homeroom after school to examine a "life form" he had "created." Do not get the idea that I am teasing little kids by creating unrealistic expectations for them and baiting them with a proverbial carrot. Marvin proposed the deal.)

Today, Marvin carried a plastic container of some putrid-looking red chunky liquid into class. I could tell that this was the purported "life form." Marvin said that Life Form One had some problems, but that this was Life Form Two, and that, "If it smells like puke, don't worry."

I didn't bother to examine Life Form Two.

Posted 8:15 PM by Andrew Faehnle
This is Torture

Speaking of isolation:

I STILL DON'T HAVE A FUCKING KEY TO MY CLASSROOM! In my room: various chemicals some of which have safety ratings of 3 (of 4, higher being more dangerous), 27 iBooks, tons of teaching supplies, lots of chemistry equipment. And three cabinets that won't open.

You know those shitty little keys that lock up desk drawers and file cabinets? They are the bane of every teacher's existence, because at the end of each year, no one fucking remembers to turn in those goddam tiny keys. Which would be okay if teachers weren't so fucking overzealous about seniority. When a veteran teacher retires, the remaining teachers will pounce on anything they can get: physical plant, furniture, supplies, parking spots, you name it.

But no one wants to move a desk. Because every room has one. And the veteran teacher never turned in that shitty litte tiny key.

Hence, my problem: three cabinets worth of who-knows-what? in my classroom. And most importantly, I can use the storage space. And since, despite this being my fourth week of work this academic year, I STILL DON'T HAVE A FUCKING KEY TO MY CLASSROOM (see above), I seriously began to doubt I'd ever see the inside of these cabinets unless I made it my mission to.

Ingredients:

-Hammer
-Elbow Grease
-Liberal sprinkling of curse words

Mix. Results vill vary.

Behind door number one: lots of mouse poop and about three reams of ancient 11"x14" construction paper that had been chewed half to dust by Trevor. (The mouse who lives in my room.)

Door number two: dust and 4 cans of rust-oleum rustproofing spraypaint.

Door number three: a 16-mm film projector and several reels of educational films, including:

-Africa: An Introduction
-Plankton: Life in the Sea
-St. Louis Blues
-"The Eagle Has Landed" The Apollo 11 Story [in color!]

Of course I was incredibly eager to see if the projector worked. [It does.] A couple students were in my room for detention while I was finishing my exploration of the projector, and an idea was born: educational films of the 1950s and 1950s during detention. And a quiz afterword, to see if you were paying attention.

During today's screening of "Plankton: Life in the Sea," W.T. remarked, "Mister Faehnle, I am never gonna talk back in class again. This is torture!"

One point for the teachers.

Posted 7:35 PM by Andrew Faehnle
Living in a Vacuum

Sometimes, when I am at work, it seems like I am not on Earth. I work in a public school. September 11th was my 4th day as a teacher. I didn't know about what happened until well into the afternoon. Out school doesn't have much money, so there are few televisions, and certainly no cable hookups. Most of the computers don't work, so the internet was inaccessible. Currently, the room in which I teach has no windows. And no cell phone reception. Some of the rooms in the school don't even have a phone jacked into our school phone network. I have a small FM radio, but I can barely get reception because of the thick concrete walls that encase the science lab I teach in. The amount of isolation I can endure in one workday is stunning.

But today, it really felt like I was on the moon. I was teaching 710, which is the most special of our seventh-grade special education classes. J, for example, started throwing puches at himself, grunting and yelling, "Uh! Uh! Someone's punchin' me! Unh! Unh! Unh!"

I also witnessed a fight in which the two aspiring pugilists were standing so far apart that neither of the punches landed. They were swinging at air.

But the best was Marvin. Marvin asked me, "Mister Faehnle, what happens if a person eats an eraser?"

"Well, probably nothing, but I don't know for sure." I was puzzled, but I get weird questions all the time, and not just from special ed classes. I envisioned the worst, but dismissed the idea.

"I don't eat erasers any more," Marvin proudly asserted. He was really proud of this fact. I was a bit scared. We got back to business: bridges and how they work.

Marvin again, "Can I have an eraser Mister Faehnle? I made a mistake."

Uhhhh. That is the sound that came out of my mouth as my brain spun frictionless, none of the gears meshing, as I searched for a response.

"No." I looked at his work. Outer space, I tell you: "Marvin, you haven't even written anything on your paper."

Posted 5:09 PM by Andrew Faehnle
Hey

"Virginia."

[Beat]

"Virginia..."

[Beat. A stance & practiced glare.]

Poke, poke. "Psst, he's looking at you." Point.

"Virginia. Take off your jacket."

"No."

"I am not asking you. I am telling you. It's not part of the uniform."

"No."

Jamal: "Just take off your--"

Veronica: "Shut the fuck up! I ain't takin' off my fuckin' jacket. He's not my father."

Holy shit: "TAKE OFF YOUR JACKET YOUNG LADY!" wheredidMr.Thundersoncomefrom?howlonghadhebeenoutsidelistening?thisislikethethirdtimehehascomeintointerruptmylessons.

Me, to Virginia: "Ouch. Bad timing."

"Mr. Gibson I want an incident report. Including the curse words."

"Yes sir."

Thundering: "GET UP, YOUNG LADY, AND BRING YOUR JACKET WITH YOU!"

Leandro, to Virginia, unprovoked: "Yea."

Me, to Leandro: "You stay out of it. This is not your problem."

Jonny, to Leandro, unprovoked: "Yea, keep your mouth shut."

Thunder: "ANYONE ELSE NEED TO COME WITH ME?"

Me: "Yea, take these two."

ohfuckwhatayearthisisgonnabeanditsonlysecondperiod. "Textbooks, page sixteen. Copytheobjectiveandkeyterms. Hurryup." imsupposedtobeonaprep. whyisntIversonhereanywayohyeahhesgettingmarriedtomorrow. whywasntIinvited? whydheschedulehishoneymoonforthethirdweekoftheschoolyear? wtf?

---

lunch sucked. one of 706 pulled the doorstop out of his door and he still didn't have a key. so he didn't get a chance to eat until eighth period. when the phone rang:

"Good afternoon, this is Mister Gibson."

"Heyit's Dave, are you teaching a class this period?" thatsastupidquestionyoumadetheschedule.

"No. I'm on a prep. Eating my lunch. I still don't have a key to my room. I really need a key, because we have all of the science stuff in my room, including lots of potentially dangerous chemicals. and that science teacher from The High School keeps poking around my room. I'll be right down." goddammitIalwaysforgettopackaspoon: Gibson opened his applesauce cup and "drank" it.

The old IS183 building now houses four schools: MS203 (Gibson's school), PS162or8 (a K through 8 school for kids with severe behavior problems), and two new schools: MS224 (a middle school with a brand-new principal, and only two experienced teachers, the other four being first-years from America's Teachers, a teaching program that served poor urban and rural areas throughout the country) and The High School. It used to be more confusing. Gibson's first year as a teacher, there were only two schools in the building (183 and 162or8), but in addition to IS183 the second floor housed the Manhattan and Bronx borough School Maintenance offices. It was an awful setup: the Maintenance people were right in the middle of the second floor, so if you wanted to go from the north part of the second floor to the south part, you had to go either up to the third floor or down to the first floor and circumnavigate the Maintenance people. They kept the doors to their secion Locked At All Times. You had to go around. Way around.

But, the first year of 203 had been so successful, that Mayor Bloomberg, newly in charge of the Board of Education, oh wait Department of Education, moved the Maintenance people elsewhere and gave the middle part of the building to MS 203 at a press conference. A press conference that Gibson had asked to take his kids to, as a kind of mini field trip for his social studies class, y'know, to see government and the media in action, and also because it was right in the school building. The principal said no way.

But, during eighth period on a Friday, there are more important things to worry about. Like happy hour and finding out who is gonna go. Gibson was cruising through the just-finished middle part of the second floor, on his way down to Dave's office, trying to find Gino. The new layout of the second floor was confusing, not aided by the fact that the organization sheet with all of the teachers' room numbers was very very wrong. All of the listed room numbers didn't exist for the new middle secion. Idle wandering, looking for Gino: heyallfourfloorsofthisbuildinghavedifferentfloorplans. thatsfuckedup. fuckginosgotaclassnow.

"Hey, Gibson, sit down."

"Whats up Dave?"

"I spoke to Thunderson today. He wants to schedule a meeting with you about classroom management. [wtf?] If it's okay with you [wtf?] I'd like to be there." wtfwtfwtfwtf? Dave [wtf] was the building's [wtfwtf] union representative.

"Classroom management? I don't even get a chance to manage my classroom. Thunderson came into my room today. Okay. wait. I was teaching a class, this girl was wearing a jacket, told her to take it off, she said no, started cursing, thunderson heard her and barged in and started yelling."

"Oh, I didn't hear that part."

"Third time this year."

"Wow." Gibson considered Dave a good friend. Dave was a good friend.

"He's always interrupting my lessons."

"That's no good."

"I like to take care of my problems in-house, Dave, and he's making it look to the kids like I can't handle my shit."

"Yeah."

"702, I had them on Wednesday. Edgar Polanco is in that class. I taught Edgar two years ago in the seventh grade. He was sitting silently and taking a test and taking notes. Silently, Dave."

[Beat]

"And Thunderson even said we shouldn't be calling him unless there's a real problem."

"I know, Gibson."

Posted 7:43 PM by Andrew Faehnle
wow this is the coolest thing ever

Posted 7:35 PM by Andrew Faehnle
blogging from my mobile phone