NEXTSTL POST NAILS IT ON NORTH COUNTY TRANSIT CENTER

Great article on North County Transit Center.

https://nextstl.com/2016/03/north-county-transit-reconfiguration-symptom-not-treatment/

EDIT/PS:  Optinstl doesn't always agree with Nextstl but they are always a good source of info.  Metro DOES need to focus on the areas like North County that are mostly transit dependent.  But Nextstl also seems to support Cortex, which is the biggest waste of money and a giant boondoggle that really only benefits Cortex itself.  The CWE metrolink serves this area just fine. (Regardless of Cortex being non-profit entity, nothing they are proposing there is going to fundamentally change the area. Like Ballpark Village, it will just pull business away from previously existing local businesses, and it is unlikely that it will flourish- if it does indeed flourish at all- for more than a decade.) 

Was just reading this post on Cortex.  https://nextstl.com/2016/03/202424/

 We heard Field Foods was going to be the economic saviour with a grocery store two years ago. Fields is a Boston investor's high end boutique grocery store that got a $12 million dollar grant for the food desert in Peabody Clinton area, NOT the Lafayette Square area. And while the cashiers and other low paying staff come from the area, the management and executives are all from Boston- or were when the store first opened in January 2014. The store has hardly lived up to any of its' promises in terms of sales tax revenues, and mostly seems to compete with locally owned Culinaria downtown.

And remember when Lofts were going to revitalize downtown?  A lot of DINK'S (double income no kids) moved down there, and shocker, the area is declining again as they have kids and move back to the suburbs or more kid-friendly areas of the city.  

The only thing that is going to revitalize St. Louis is a living wage and development in areas that need jobs and public transportation.  Anything North of Delmar, for starters.

KIRKWOOD DEATH; LOOP TROLLEY; NORTH COUNTY TRANSIT CENTER

I assume this fatality was either a cargo train or Amtrak.  However, this would be the second time in two weeks that someone has been hit on the tracks. (See last post.)

http://www.kmov.com/story/31501918/emergency-crews-responding-after-pedestrian-hit-by-train-in-kirkwood

For the most part, train tracks are privately owned and leased.  If you have ridden on Amtrak you learn this, because they have to stop A LOT for cargo trains, and local Metrolinks.  Not all of the tracks are well maintained, and Amtrak often has to stop or has problems due to problems with the tracks.  Sometimes these are long waits because they have to wait for the track owning companies to come make the repairs.

No entity that is private and for profit is going to put safety first. No entity that is funded by government money but not publicly owned is going to put safety first. Railroad tracks, like public transit, should be owned by the public and maintained at the highest standard.  Amtrak is completely subsidized by the government.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-industry-standard-should-be-safety.html


The Loop Trolley has encountered another error.  Shocking (*sarcasm*).  The main focus is on the fact that cars might be hit.  With that narrow a margin, this screams "pedestrian injury/fatality." PLEASE REMEMBER that the Trolley got a big chunk of money for "urban revitalization" (http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-loop-trolley-sucking-up-more.html).  Originally the Trolley was to run down Forest Park Parkway.  But to keep the Urban Circulator funds, they had to re-route the trolley through an "urban area"- in this case, the part of the Loop in the city.  (Let's not forget that this Trolley is about making sure no local "park and ride" and rural tourists have to set foot on a Metro bus to go drink beer and eat cheeseburgers at Blueberry Hill. That is ALL this trolley is really about.)

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2016/03/18/trolley-tracks-east-of-skinker-may-be-too-tight-for-comfort

I find the city and county planners, street services, and MODOT, do be completely blind to pedestrians and pedestrian safety.  The lights at the corner of Skinker and Delmar are a perfect example.  (I haven't actually been at that corner in awhile, completely avoiding it even if I had to go to the Loop by turning on Olive or Vernon, since I am always coming from the north.  So maybe they fixed it. I doubt it.  I pointed it out to them a few times when I first moved back here.)

Stand at any of the corners and watch the light sequence.  In each cycle there is a 30 second or so period where traffic is only moving from two directions- meaning no left or right turns.  The car traffic has usually slowed at this point.  During this time there is  the inevitable crossing of pedestrians against the light, because of the lag. There is also a turn light that comes up during this time, which adds to the confusion.  I can't recall which direction now, even though I used to encounter it daily a few years ago.   Day and night I've seen near misses as someone comes speeding to catch the light before they think it is going to change, and pedestrian confusion-  that is, stepping out into the walkway because the instinctual, intuitive understanding of how traffic lights are normally sequenced, and not expecting that out of sequence turn light.

(There is one turn light that looks like it was added much later than the rest.  At one point I made a little diagram of where the light needed to be sequenced. I'm pretty sure it was the right turn onto Delmar from northbound Skinker, and the lag was the north-south flow of traffic on Skinker.  But I can't recall exactly and have no idea where those notes are.  This is all from memory.)

Even with all the focus on Washington University students- many of whom walk and bike in the area, and live in the Loop- the people that make all the decisions do not walk or use public transit.  You need nothing more than a heavy snowfall to prove this.  The ploughs come out immediately, and the streets are clear. But all the snow is piled up on the sidewalks.  Even in the Loop and other areas with heavy foot-traffic, shoveling sidewalks is the responsibility of the property owners and businesses.


North County though, has to be the worst in terms of street planning and pedestrian safety.  To get to the new North county transit center on foot- and a lot of times it is faster to walk from your last connection than wait for a bus- you have to walk on a shoulder.  The bus stops in front of Centene have no shelter and trash cans.  The bus stop across from Centene-- west/south side- is on the shoulder and then there is a slope into a little ditch before the fence separating the 270 freeway.  Super fun to stand there at night. (Again, *sarcasm*.)

(http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/metro-does-not-take-responsibility-for.html)

It's always strange to me, when people talk about our "infrastructure".  Only in the last two hundred years have roads been mostly for something other than pedestrians.  Their were pedestrian fatalities from carriage accidents, but certainly not as many.  Horses in a wooden carriage versus horsepower and 2000 pounds of metal are a very different situation for the person on foot.

I heard President Obama say, when one of the highway bonds was up for the voters, "This is what we do- we build roads and bridges."  (Or something like that.) True.  But no one in the world has more than 65 years of experience building and maintaining roads solely for use of the internal combustion engine.  In this country the population of people and the amount of cars on the road doubled since the 1970's and we are only now seeing what a mistake it was to ditch the railroads for trucks and public transit for private automobiles.

All one has to do to see how blind to pedestrians the planners are is go look North County Transit Center. (Or Maplewood. The worst, in my opinion, as detailed in the optinstl link above, and here again: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-industry-standard-should-be-safety.html)

These planners and city leaders, and most of the Metro executives, have never ridden the bus except on rare occasions, and seem to walk only for exercise or because they have dogs, and usually then, only in their own neighbourhoods.  (And sidewalks are often missing in areas that were "developed" after the 1950's.  Who needed them right?  We will all just drive a block to the store or park, etc.)

If St. Louis monitored pedestrian traffic as much as car traffic, there would be sidewalks and lighting in most parts of North County (and south and west county, too, actually).

There is nothing more troubling than seeing people with small children standing out on that shoulder in front of Centene, or the many other bus stops just like it.

And this last schedule change seemed to bring a higher than usual amount of bus stop closings.  I'm all for efficiency, but I don't trust the way Metro does things.  For example, on Chambers they are eliminating two bus stops.  On paper it makes sense.  But these two bus stops sit at the bottom of two hills, right where an apartment complex is.  That means that the people in wheelchairs or with health issues will have to go up the hill to catch the 61.

Route changes should not be made by asking the advice of random people motivated enough to go to one of the meetings, or briefly surveyed at Open Houses, even if they are held at transit centers.  Metro should have neighborhood liaisons that are employed or compensated by Metro to determine and tailor public transit to the community's needs.

Please, call Metro today and tell them what you need for a better, faster, safer transit experience: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/what-metros-new-survey-should-be.html

Call Metro every time you ride!

SHOOTING AT BUS STOP

Too many guns, not enough school or civic opportunities, too great a racial divide between North and South, too many young people that don't see a good future for themselves and decide to take what power they can.  More cops aren't going to solve the problem. 

http://www.kmov.com/story/31482991/3-teenagers-shot-at-north-st-louis-bus-stop

METRO NEEDS BIG CHANGES

"Big Changes to Buses" comes the headlines today.

http://www.kmov.com/Clip/12282774/big-changes-coming-to-metrobus-routes-monday

http://www.nextstopstl.org/17968/metro-releases-new-north-county-service-plan/

They change the buses all the time, but it never makes anything better.  This is because Metro does not do enough research on what transit riders need, and when they do, it's the wrong way.

Their blog congratulates holding FOUR "open house" transit meetings.  Four.  To change the entire bus system.

At least they came to the transit centres.  But it is still not enough.  They really need to have someone out every day, soliciting information from passengers, and they need to have surveys.  (You can always volunteer the OPTINSTL survey information when you call them. http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/what-metros-new-survey-should-be.html)

I also find it amusing that they always congratulate themselves for figuring out that North County is the most transit dependent area.  The focus is always on "reducing traffic congestion".  Very few people with cars are going to give up driving to ride the sloooooow buses.  The train, maybe. But only to and from work and ball games.   Of course, most of the money for the North County Transit Center came from funding to reduce traffic congestion and emissions. 

Well, at least they are trying to appear like they are trying, and who knows? Maybe they really are. But four open house meetings? How many people decided these changes? It can't be more than 200.  Hardly representative or comprehensive.

I still don't see how they can live down the shame of buying those used Grand buses.  Love seeing them break down (*sarcasm*), and other than peak times, and between Mid-Town and Arsenal, they never seem very full. Remember how that was going to reduce congestion on Grand? Right.

It's up to the transit rider to call them, email, and generally communicate EXACTLY what we need to make public transit serve us, instead of the other way around.

Oh, and those sidewalks on Pershall, make sure there is plenty of lighting, too.  That whole area along 270 is a nightmare for pedestrians, on the Pershall and over on the other side, on Dunn.  If you live in North County you know how many accidents go unreported.  This one wasn't.  A transit friendly city is a pedestrian friendly city.  That would mean that the planners and designers and engineers and executives would need to ride transit and do some walking.

More people are going to be walking over to Clocktower Aldi's and the Wal-mart, and down to the Home Depot on Halls Ferry.  Don't just build the transit center and leave it, like you did in Maplewood for 7 years.  Put in the sidewalks NOW.

http://www.kmov.com/story/31467896/pedestrian-suffers-serious-injuries-after-being-by-car-in-north-county

ACCIDENT AT SWANSEA METROLINK

EDIT 17 April 2016: This accident is now a fatality. http://www.bnd.com/news/local/article71885612.html

I missed this in the news on March 6 and it does not appear to be widely reported.  A man was struck by a train and his foot was severed and neck broken after a train ran over him at Swansea.

I keep checking the dates on these stories.  It's not on any other news stations that I could find, and it isn't on Metro's Blog.  In the old days, every news story contained the details of what happened- when, where, etc.  Is this some new development in an old accident case?  Or did this just happen on March 6th? These are the only two stories I could find:

http://www.kmov.com/story/31399856/family-members-of-man-hit-by-metrolink-train-speak-out

http://www.kmov.com/story/31467300/witness-failure-in-alert-system-allowed-man-to-be-run-over-by-metrolink-train 

KMOV video is freezing my computer, so I will try to watch later and see if the video segments have more details. 

THE OLD WAYS OF PROTESTING ARE NOT EFFECTIVE IN MODERN TIMES

In the Political Activist's Guide To St. Louis ( pag2stl.blogspot.com) I say that violent revolution won't work in a world of 7 billion people and the kinds of weapons that police and the military have now.  We live in a world now where if we are going to survive and thrive, we need people to begin actively running their governments.  Mao once said "all power comes from the barrel of a gun".  That has to change.  Violence just changes the faces in power, not the power itself.

Protests and counter protests, in the past, served to bring large groups of like minded people together, to raise energy, and to spread messages through the media coverage.  That's the plus side, and those things are still effective.

But large protests and counter protests often end up as screaming matches, the arrests only benefit the police and courts, and the real work of educating the general public and making material changes still falls to a few dedicated people who do the solitary work of calls, petitions, education, etc, for weeks, months, years, after the protests are over and most of the people have returned to business as usual.

(The upcoming RNC counter protest in Cleveland bought the police a bunch of fancy riot gear and big budget for the summer:  http://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/uncucumbered/cleveland_prepares_for_republican_convention_riots?recruiter_id=17 )

Instead of counter-protesting when Drumpf or the KKK is having their rally, do it the day or night before, and go to the people that aren't in the KKK.  You will reach more people about your concerns, and likely get the same or more media attention.  And little chance of getting arrested and creating revenue for the cops through arrest fees and fines.  (If you do get arrested PLEASE don't just take the plea and pay the fine, GO TO COURT and challenge everything you can.  Even if you lose you will do the First Amendment a great favour.)

Instead of clumping together and focusing on the idiots that aren't going to change their minds no matter what you say, not too mention making it easier for the police to arrest you, stretch out side by side on the sidewalks, single file.    You will still be protesting, but you will reach more people, and will have time to talk to them because you aren't shouting at the idiots.

I am NOT criticizing people that demonstrate, or shout at the cops or counter protesters (during Ferguson the police were the counter protesters).  It's just that it is not effective anymore. We saw very clearly in Ferguson that they just send in the tear gas and jack up all the fines.

To change things means we need to protest every day, or every week, or every month, to the people in power.  We have to educate the people that aren't paying attention to the issues on how the issues effect them.

For example, if all of the people that counter protested at the Drumpf rally yesterday had held the counter protest Thursday night at rush hour, on the sidewalk, single file, and then the next day during the rally called the Drumpf campaign headquarters here in St Louis, nationally, and also called local representatives and media, and told them why they think Drumpf is dangerous, it would have had greater impact.  It wouldn't have made the same thrilling headline news of bloodied protesters and Drumpf drones screaming "fuck you whore" at counter protesters, but it would have had greater impact on the people who are on the fence or who aren't involved in politics at all.

And in Drumpf's case, it would have been a bummer for him and his supporters.  They WANT a fight. We already know that.  That's all he talks about.  And they love being vilified.  Being met with "crickets" would have been a let-down for Drumpf and his drones.

 As someone who has worked for many years as a receptionist, switchboard operator, desk clerk, etc, I can tell you that the phone is one of the most effective tools of disruption to "business as usual".  And it is invisible to anyone outside of the office.  An overload of phone calls puts massive stress on any government or business entity.  There is no nightly show that is going to run footage of Drumpf's office staff answering angry calls (unless it shuts the phone lines down).

No heroism to bask in on the nightly news, no vilification to uphold, no cross for the martyr to bear publicly.

For example, 35 people were arrested yesterday.  A phone "demonstration" by 35 people for 6 hours, taking in to account breaks for the bathroom, etc, time waiting on hold, etc, could still have made approximately 20 calls each an hour, which totals 4200 phone calls.  This would have taken extra time to prepare 120 short "scripts"- one for each call, or compiling 120 places to call with one script.

So- a list of 120 - the Mayor, the Governor, state and national congress members, Republican party hq's, Drumpf's headquarters, the board members of Peabody Opera House, the local and national media, etc- with the same message "I oppose Donald Trump, do you stand with me? etc".  Which means 120 places getting 35 phone calls each. Or 120 places for each caller- Drumpf's business entities, elected officials, etc- with a tailored message for each place.  35 extra calls over a 6 hour period is a pain in the ass.  Even if you are paid employee, and a lot of the people at the Drumpf offices are volunteers.  Even the most hard-core believer would get worn out if this happened every time Drumpf spoke somewhere.  Especially if the calls asked a lot of questions and requested detailed answers in a calm way.

Getting Drumpf's staff to quit is more effective than yelling at his followers.  Convincing his fellow Republicans to come out publicly against him is almost too easy these days.  And making Peaody Opera House sorry they booked the event would be a cakewalk. And you don't end up in jail and paying out money to the courts.

"Hi I am a registered voter and I was wondering if you could detail for me what era in American History your candidate is referring to when he says 'again?'  When was America great in your candidate's opinion, and why was it great then?  What specifically does he have planned to return our land to -this time in the past considered great-?"

(I took at look at the Drumpf supporters in St. Louis and I assure you that during Reagan's presidency these people were saying the same things they say now- replace "Muslim" with "Iranian".  Remember the Moral Majority?  Phyllis Schlafley hasn't written a new speech in 40 years.  Even from a Drumpf drones' point of view there is no "great" to go back to.   And it is not that hard to manipulate a conversation to get them to admit it.  These people are the ultimate haters.  And most lack the critical thinking skills that their candidate lacks as well.  Try it sometime, it is fun.  Ask leading questions, but frame them in their rhetoric.)

"Can you explain how your candidate's First Amendment rights were violated? I would like to see the First Amendment get a more thorough discussion in his speeches.  What will he do to protect Freedom of Speech?"  (Yes, really. Drumpf said his First Amendment rights were violated in Chicago last night: http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/03/12/3759418/no-one-is-violating-trump-free-speech/)

"What is your candidate's stance on the TPP? Can you explain the TPP to me and how it will effect our economy for the better?"

"Your candidate says he is millionaire, but his tax returns say differently. He isn't evading his taxes or lying about his income is he? Can you explain the discrepeacy?"

"What does your candidate have to say about the Monroe Doctrine?"

"Many African slaves were Muslims, is your candidate going to deport anyone who has a Muslim ancestor?"  
 
These people don't know shit about history or politics.  Make them research the answers. Make them think.

I decided not to go to the Drumpf protest, but I was very proud of St. Louis to see that many people did, even though I am sorry that many were arrested.  I am suggesting though, that courageous, motivated activists channel their energy differently.  MAKE HEADACHES FOR DRUMPF, NOT HEADLINES.

QUESTIONS FOR SAINT LOUIS TEENS

WHAT DO YOU NEED

TO CHANGE THE WORLD?

What would you like to learn that you are not studying now? (Dance, music, acting, filmmaking, astronomy, skating, sculpture, clothing design, baking, ???)

What do you think would make school better for you?

What would make your neighbourhood better for you?

What do you need in your life that you do not have now?

Do you feel like you have a meaningful future ahead of you? If not, what do you think needs to change?

Do you feel that you have something to contribute to the world?

Do you take pride in yourself? In your school? In your community? If not, what would need to happen or change for you to feel proud?

What changes would you like to make in your life? What do you need to make those changes?

Is there anywhere in St. Louis that you would like to go that you have not been?

Anywhere in Missouri that you would like to visit? In the U.S.? In the World?

Are there enough after-school and weekend activities and venues for Teens in St. Louis?

What sort of activities or social events or clubs do you think would reduce crime and gang violence in schools and neighbourhoods?

What do you think would prevent kids from dropping out of school?

Answer these questions to yourself first. Be as detailed as you can in your answers. If you have the courage and the desire, write the answers down, or make a video or audio recording, and share them. Share them with your teacher, or an elected official, or church or community group, or Imagine a Better St Louis or similar organization.

Every great invention, all of our technology, every song, every movie, every social change, everything in human civilization began with a thought.

Don't be afraid to ask for what you need. Youth are the future, and the world looks to you for leadership. Begin shaping your world now, by communicating what you need, and by sharing your solutions to the problems in your community.

“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” – Nelson Mandela

"If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities." -- Maya Angelou

If you want to print this as a leaflet and share it (it's two sided, half a page each side) 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0tAMqly6KVwT0hXYzNyVS11TG8/view?usp=sharing  

Also see this post: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2016/03/solutions-not-cop-outs.html

CHANGES TO OPTINSTL COMING

It is shocking to me how many hits the posts about Ferguson last year still get.  (And how many errors and early information that wasn't verified I posted.  Will do edits with "the cross out line" where I find those errors.)  If you think a  little blog on blogger is a wasted effort, I am here to assure you it is not.  If you have something to say, start a blog.

Attached to this blog is one on Ferguson, and also another one Occupy Your Life (I think I had to spell it occupyurlife in the blogger url).  I am going to moving posts that aren't about transportation to those sites (I'll leave the post with a link to the new location).  I need to get this blog back on track about Metro and public transportation in St. Louis.

I am also working on a printed newsletter and/or "zine" for the STL area, and getting actual domain names and websites, not just Google blogs.  Also in the early part of next year there will be OPTINSTL public actions- meeting places to conduct mass phone-ins, sign petitions, etc.

I fund all of my activities with my own money, and I don't want to get into advertising or sales.  So things can be slow.  But if you agree with anything you read here, as I say in the copyright blurb, go ahead and reprint it.  You don't even have to give me credit (although if you try to pass off exact quotes as yours and someone searches, they will be directed here- so if you are selling something or writing a paper, better cover your tracks).

I think the most important post on this blog is I WANT TO LIVE IN A CITY WITH GREAT PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION:  http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/i-want-to-live-in-city-with-great.html

I hope you do, too, and I hope you will be patient while I try to get things sorted.   In the meantime, call Metro everytime you ride, and make the pledge "5 For 11" - to do five additional actions every month for the social change of your choice, during this year. 

WHY VOTING FOR MICHAEL BROWN JR IS A GREAT ACT OF FREEDOM, AND THE BEST REASON TO VOTE THIS NOVEMBER

EDIT: Consider voting for "Justice For Mike Brown" or "BlackLivesMatter" instead of Mike Brown, in respect to his mother's wishes.

I didn't realize that other people had started the same campaign when I came to the conclusion that the only person to vote for as Prosecutor (McCulloch is running unopposed) was Michael Brown, Jr.

(One link is the leaflet, the other is the original post.)
http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/09/november-4th-2014-vote-for-michael.html
http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/09/vote-for-michael-brown-november-4th.html

But now that the movement has become visible, I found this article about it, and all the (sarcasm alert) "lovely" trolls in the comments.

http://twitchy.com/2014/09/16/furious-st-louis-county-residents-start-campaign-to-writeinmikebrown-for-county-executive/

After responding to all of them individually, and making the same points over and over, I thought I'd just consolidate it all here. 

First, let me explain something about voting in this country that a lot of people don't seem to understand.  Your vote is NOT just a choice about who is on the ballot, IT IS YOUR VOICE TO THE GOVERNMENT.  As far as I know, we are unique in all the world for this.  VOTING and the election process replaced the monarchy.  It was the voice of the individual citizen which is sovereign.  And we have the right to say whatever we want, without fear of government reprisal.  (Well, in theory, anyhow.)

We The People even have the right to vote for someone not on the ballot. We can write-in ANYONE.  You can vote for ANYONE.  (I think Mickey Mouse and Jesus, and during the 1960's, Snoopy's friend Woodstock, are the most famous.)

http://www.dailyprogress.com/news/columnists/mckenzie-from-your-mom-to-hank-the-cat-write-in/article_f377eab4-304a-11e2-b874-001a4bcf6878.html?mode=jqm

And did you know there is a cat that has been mayor of an Alaskan town for 16 years?
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/04/us/alaska-cat-mayor-attacked/

We can write-in the name of a dead man that was killed by the police.  He won't be elected, obviously, or serve in office, but we can tell the government that is who we want to vote for.  That is what voting is in this country.  Who we want, not NECESSARILY who is on the ballot.

This is an unparallelled freedom in this world.  That we have such freedom and power we can legally mock a candidate and the entire electoral process if we choose.

As I said before, I hope the voter turnout this November is 100%.  Not just the African American vote, not just North county and city, but that everyone that is eligible votes.  Let us exercise and protect this freedom.

Your voice is the strongest weapon you possess.  By all means, keep protesting, attending meetings, petitioning, and seeking out leaders that can run for office, but please vote.  Vote to protect your voice.  Vote to make your voice heard. Vote to send McCulloch a message that we want Justice for Mike in that office.

http://www.stlamerican.com/news/local_news/article_5509968c-3e8c-11e4-b8fa-d3c00efcf341.html

Because there have been so many attacks on voter rights, and because there is a chance the Board of Election Commissioners may not officially tally the votes for Michael Brown, Jr.  I suggest you send the BOEC a message BEFORE the election, in addition to calling on them on November 5th (the day after the election) requesting that they uphold the voice of the people and report the number of votes write-in candidates receive, whether those write-ins are living or dead.  It wouldn't hurt to send a letter to the media outlets, requesting that they too ask the BOEC for a tally of all the votes cast, including all write-ins, and not just for those names on the ballot.

Feel free to use part or all of this letter.

Dear Board of Election Commissioners:

You may be aware there is movement growing among voters to write in Michael Brown, Jr. for St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney, against Robert McCulloch, who is running unopposed.

Because the vote is the voice of the people in this country, and not just the means to make a choice from what is on the ballot, we are requesting that you tally and report the write-ins as well as the votes for official ballot choices.

If you are planning to sanction voters for writing in a deceased person, or discredit their ballots, please make public IMMEDIATELY under what terms you are legally able to do this.

LAWLESS BERKELEY COPS AND THEIR TORTURE CELL, AND MAKING SMART REVOLUTION

This is a reprint from personal blog
http://laladyrae.blogspot.com/2014/09/illegal-police-actions-berkeley-jail.html

LAWLESS PO PO

I don't want to write too much on this blog (yet) about my actual arrest and charges, and interactions with the police.  But I do want to briefly consider the Highway 70 and Hanley demonstration.  This was to shut down the highway for 4 minutes.  The organizers declared it a success because the police actually shut Hanley down.  That's really ironic isn't it?  The scene- as briefly as I witnessed before getting arrested- looked a lot like dueling protests.

Here are the people protesting the police and judicial system, threatening to shutdown the freeway.  And here are the cops protesting the protesters, shutting down the adjacent street.  And in terms of presence, the police outnumbered the protesters.  The police brought the potential for much greater violence than the people protesting the police.

"If you want to know who is rioting, look at who came prepared for a riot."

And no government entity had any legal authority to shut down Hanley and restrict the gathering of protesters.  There was no justification for that road block or the re-routing of protesters.  It would have been one thing if they had blocked off part of the street for the gathering and then gone down to the edges of the highway and waited for people to actually try to go out in the street.  But not everyone that was assembling, including me, was there to do something illegal.

And I am not sure there is a Constitutional basis for saying that a highway shutdown is not peaceable assembly.  It may be that there is a legal basis for the police to be dispatched to instead close the highway down for the protest, not the other way around.  One especially jerkish cop said to me in jail "The only time I've seen the highway shut down was for a Presidential motorcade, and that was only for five minutes."

Well, first of all, what is more important than the President?  We The People.  The Constitution, and especially the First Amendment.   Moreover, MODOT's inability to provide structurally sound roads results in a lot of shutdowns for repairs, and in many parts of north city and county the streets are downright dangerous due to repair and lack of proper signs and lights.  I call shenanigans.

And secondly, that Presidential motorcade was one minute longer than the demo was supposed to be.

The police think it is okay to yell at people and order us around and if we don't submit we should expect to face violence or detention, simply for not being respectful?  Well, they had better expect some people to respond in kind, especially when they are breaking the law.  Yes, I am getting right in their face as are a lot of other people.  Too bad.  They aren't Gods. They aren't the Law itself.  They should not have this much power.  And this anger has been burning under the surface for a while, and while Michael Brown's murder set it off, they have done nothing but pour gasoline on it since.

After dealing with the Berkeley police and that jail, I don't think that changing the complexion of the police is enough.  Black or white, it seems largely comprised of bullies and zealous Good Germans. It is a culture of fear and everything about policing is based on fear.  What kind of person is that?  Especially given that the majority of people they deal with are NOT violent towards them.  Yes, they see more of it than they would in their nice white suburban neighborhoods, but the majority of the public they interact with is not equal in the threat they pose to us.

 I want the neighbourhood beat cop back.  And preferably walking or riding around on bikes, getting out and talking to people and getting to know who is who.  The police should know the people that live in their patrol areas.

The people should not be preyed upon by the police.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2014/09/03/how-st-louis-county-missouri-profits-from-poverty/

If taxes don't pay their salaries, and legitimate, fair and equal traffic fines, etc, they should not have the right to jack us up.

BERKELEY JAIL: YOU WILL PAY OR YOU WILL STAY... IN HELL

My cellmate was being held for a $1500 bond from a moving violation and failure to appear.  They set the bond without a hearing, for everyone, and if you don't pay, you don't get out until your court date.  I don't see how that is even legal, to set bond without a hearing or consideration of the person's character or past. (This is something I will be investigating.)

My cellmate was 15 days into a 30 day detention.  They just flat out jack people up.  The conditions are so awful (more on that in a minute) that they know the poor person will do everything they can to come up with that money.

And this is taking away from someone working, or finding work.  This solves nothing. And cops break traffic laws.  I hope all those cameras catch the cops that turn on their sirens just to get through a light (all too frequently talking on their personal cell phones.)  And what about all the lawyers, judges and friends and family of the legal professions that get their traffic and parking tickets fixed, or never even get written?

If the law were fair about owing the government money for a crime or illegality, then all those sub-prime lenders would be in jail.  If it were about who owes money people that claimed bankruptcy or didn't pay taxes would be held in detention until they paid or their bankruptcy hearing came up. No one's traffic tickets would get fixed.  No traffic citations would be waived.  To say that it is impartial is bullshit.

And do all these traffic citations make the streets safer?  No.  You just have single mothers that can't pay for insurance and already have a citation, but also have a job, and have to get the kids at school and to the babysitters and then to work, etc.  And if you are driving around you see a cop you might be the kind of person that speeds to get away. Or makes a sudden, unsignaled turn.

All these traffic fines and warrants do is pay for the police.  The jerkish cop that made the Presidential motorcade comment also bragged that it only cost $3.71 a day to house a prisoner.  That comment is disgusting, and while the cash value is likely wrong, they operate like a for profit business.

When I first got there all the men in the other cell were yelling to me that Berkeley was the worst and that it would break the strongest person's spirit.  (They said this kindly, the yelling was because we could not see each other.) After 2 days and nights in there, I don't know how anyone could do 30 days, much less 60 days.

It is Dickensian. It is freezing, probably to keep bed bugs and germs in hibernation as the justification, and to make it more miserable as the real reason.  You only get one very thin blanket.  You cannot use a toothbrush.  Their are no toiletries and they charge you even for sanitary napkins.  (It is Ferguson that is famous for charging an inmate that was beaten by the police for getting blood on the cops uniform, but Berkeley seemed like the same mentality.  Just glad I wasn't beaten. Or molested by one of the cops.)

The bunks are metal.  Two four bed cells and one two bed cell.  A toilet with small sink attached.  No soap or hot water.  If you want water between the three ten minute meal and telephone call times during the day, you have to drink the water from the sink from your hand,  And you can only wash your hands with hot water and soap before you eat and drink.  (One at a time, waiting in the holding cage until the other person is done at the sink.)

The food is barely 900 calories a day.  You get only three of the most awful bread and meat microwaved sandwiches made by Lancashire.  The bread tastes like baked vomit.  You only get water to drink, and you have to leave your styrofoam cup outside your cell.  You get no water between the meal times, which are anywhere between 7 and 9 A.M., 12 and 1:30 P.M, and 8 and 9:30 P.M.

They leave the overhead flourescent lights on all the time.  There is no visible outside light or view of outside, even in the holding cage where you eat and make phone calls for less than 30 minutes every day.

This is mid-level torture, especially with the low calories and cold and difficulty getting real sleep on the metal slabs.

There are cameras in the cell in addition to your cell mate or mates, so when you have to go to the bathroom, you wrap your blanket around you if you want privacy.  And if you are taking a shit you have to wrap your blanket around you, even if you don't care about modesty, because you don't want to flood the cell with stink.  It is so unsanitary but you don't care.  Because the food will make you so constipated that when you can finally shit you just do.

You do not see any clocks or mirrors, and if you wear glasses as I do, you are not allowed to have them.  There is nothing to read, nothing to watch and nothing to hear, other than the cops talking to each other and on their cellphones talking.

At night, there is no one at the desk, and if you need a sanitary napkin, or anything, you have to wave at the cameras and hope someone in dispatch sees you and will send someone up to respond.  Sanitary napkins were not forthcoming during the night hours.

The place is so depressing that I understand why people become suicidal and even kill themselves even knowing they will only be in there for a thirty days, or even a few days.  And while everyone seemed to have someone to call during meal times, I can imagine how much harder it would be if there was no one you could reach because someone had not paid their cell phone bill. (My cell phone was turned off, still is right now, for non-payment, and I was thinking "what if someone in jail could call me for free and got that message?")

In the cell there is phone for collect calls and crime tips only.  The calls are ten dollars for ten minutes and they make the person you are calling give them a credit card number.  When one of the cops that I confronted and who assisted in my illegal kidnapping (they called it detainment and arrest) cut off one of my phone calls (the free calls are on speaker phone, and the person I was talking to made a rude remark about them) he told me "That's not in your First Amendment preamble, You got your free phone call. No more free phone calls for you."  When I got back to my cell I began trying to call everyone whose number I could remember.

(He and another cop also delighted in telling me that my lawyer could call the court, but not the jail, and if a lawyer does come "he might have to wait a long time, if we don't have anyone to bring him up here, cause, you know, we are real busy."  Uh, yeah, looking at or talking on their cell phones.  But actually, they were downright gleeful about it.  They just want your bond money.  They don't give a damn about your legal and human rights.)

While my phone privileges continued at the evening meal break, I had no way of knowing that for the day, and to have the only lifeline to the outside cut off was terrifying emotionally.  (And again, how it legal for them to do this?  Isn't that once again a violation of free speech?  There is nothing in the Constitution that says people can only say nice things about the police.)

I did get out on Friday afternoon.  The whole time I was in there I just kept thinking about James Foley and the others like him, who were in worse condition for much longer than I was, and how he was protecting the First Amendment rights of a people that do not have that in their own country.  I thought about those kids that walked from Central America and Mexico and were sleeping on the ground.  I thought about Nelson Mandela, Bobby Sands, Stephen Biko, George Jackson.

I looked at the woman who shared the cell with me and had been there for 15 days and still had that many to go.

On Twitter yesterday someone posted a picture of Kim Teehan, the Ferguson female officer that took part in the beating of Henry Davis and then made Davis pay for cleaning his blood off their uniforms. http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/08/ferguson-cop-who-charged-suspect-bleeding-her-uniform-now-city-councilwoman 

I wrote "I'd like to send her to Berkeley jail for a while."  But actually, I wouldn't treat her or Darren Wilson that way.  That is inhumane.  It creates nothing but bad feelings AND IT IS JUST WRONG. Especially for traffic fines and warrants!

I have a draft about the Michael Brown, Jr funeral. (I will link here when it is done.)  One thing I was really thinking about afterward was how different the experience of Jesus and religion is in black churches versus white churches.  Same with jail.  The average middle class white person is so terrified of jail and the police, and has so little judicial interaction with them.

In the black community the police are a constant presence.  Like violence.  And poverty.  Even if someone has a stable family and a job, to be black is to be surrounded by young men that were gunned down by street gangs or police (whether unjustly or in the commission of real crime).  And most black folks seem to know at least one person on food stamps, even if that person works full time.

Children grow up seeing more violence than white kids in nice neighbourhoods. When an Adam Lanza commits a random shooting, the children are flooded with psychological support and massive outpourings of community grief and solidarity.  And when a black kid commits a random drive by, it's "oh, those people again."

Interactions with the police are not rare.  And they pose a much greater threat than to the nice white suburbanites.  Like my cellmate's children, hearing mommy or daddy call from jail is not that unusual. Most black folks seem to know at least one person that has been to jail for traffic warrants, and at least one man that has been to prison.

That black culture and white culture are so separated, and that black culture largely evolved in both submission and opposition to white culture, falls squarely in the lap of white history.  The looting in the wake of Michael Brown, Jr.'s murder was nothing compared to white flight. Or the lack of funding for business development and jobs, aforementioned streets, etc.

Moreover, black people DO go to primarily white areas to do menial work, but white people ALMOST NEVER  come to primarily black areas.  If the neighbourhood is mixed, it is because black people moved in.  (Except perhaps Old North, but most primarily black areas have a white flight legacy of white people that were too poor and stuck to be able to move.)  It seems shameful to me that so many white people are afraid of black people, or have such a low opinion, when the interactions are so limited and one sided.

If the black community is violent, the violent police state and jail culture has a lot to do with it. When these white boys do come down to "the hood" they only get the worst because they are all about punishment.  And who doesn't hate their jailers?

The police are all about fear, and they all seem afraid and vulnerable without the instant respect they expect for carrying a gun and wearing a badge.  And I have really been trippin' lately on how their behaviour when one of "their own" is just how they complain about lack of witnesses and information in the black community.  They say that rarely will any witnesses step forward, give them info, etc.  (Again, local beat cops would change that.)

But that is EXACTLY what they have down with Darren Wilson, and all the other cases like before.  No real information.  No trust in the public, just as they say that the public will not trust them.  They say criminals are lawless, yet they act with impunity, They have become the soldiers of the "business as usual" "good ole boy" "Local 1%" fortune.  Chosen for their goose-step and desire to bully and be in control. We have no rights if they suspend them.  They have too much power and they abuse it.

TIME FOR A REVOLUTON

I have totally committed to this "muggle" (non-magickal) world as it is, with all of us a great squeamish mass, writhing in discontent and desire. But I also believe that a real battle is going on right now between the people that see and feel a better life, and those that have no real faith in humanity to sociologically, politically, and economically evolve.

It's a great tug of war, very polarized, because it is such a new world and age, and a really big change with all the old anchors becoming archaic and useless.  And in the past it was always the side that yanked the hardest that won, and that was always through violence and upheaval.  And maybe that was the best solution in the past.  I don't know.  But I don't see it as a good solution now.

Seriously, look at this amazing new world we live in.  This technology I am using now, and space travel, and massive abundance (and waste-- like debt it is a sign of wealth)-- and to have so many people be hungry and sick and thirsty and homeless and without satisfying work, suited to them?  No. Crazy. Ridiculous. And wars and all this violence, and so much of it is really about fighting over who is going to get the greatest share of natural and human resources (labour and consumption, mostly manifested as money).

I feel like we are just really working it out and it is getting really messy because too much of the world's wealth is being withheld from the people that create it. And too much violence in the air.  Just MELT ALL GUNS, and every other weapon. Symbolic step toward eliminating violence. There are enough other things that kill- accidents, disease, etc--that we should be able to find a way to get along without hurting each other and using violence to work out the ways to live together.  But I can't get anyone else to do that unless they freely choose it for themselves. The Duck Dynasties and the Darren Wilson's are part of this world, and I think maybe it is time to start working around them.

Why can't those of us that can see the better world find a way to create it among ourselves?  Maybe it will be the young people, but that is where I want to focus.  Not on more violence. (One of the reasons I love trolling.  A softer bite and no venom.) Anger is passion, I'd rather learn to live with it and soften it   We need anger to create change.  We don't need more violence.  That is a fear based and a self-sustaining cycle.

I think the more people that begin to see that we can have a peaceful revolution and reorganize more equitably, all of us will be able to take advantage of what the world has to offer.  Why can't share and divide up all the work so that everyone can do different things if they want, and constantly be learning new skills?  And others that want to devote themselves to one profession can become the experts and masters to apprentice and journeyman? There is no shortage of WORK.  There is SO MUCH to be done.  It is a shortage of jobs.  It is too much of the profits of labour and consumption being kept by only a few people.

North St. Louis city and county is like concentration camp for African-Americans.  And the poor generally.  This is the place of surplus labour, of the threat of more desperate workers to fill an employees shoes, so that everyone is so desperate they have to be obedient.  A lesser version of the Berkeley jail, or any jail or prison.  But there are a lot programs that could be altered and taken over without violence.  Through massive voting, petitioning, and a lot attendance at community meetings, and applying for grants, engaging committee's and so forth.

I think there are enough grants and funding that if we fought for it we could create a prosperous, safe, city and county, with plenty of room for the capitalists to do their thing, but with more communities like the land trust over in Cherokee neighbourhood,  More like the Hobo University, and Copenhagen's Christiana, and Findhorn.

And more co-ops.  I am working on being the first psychic to win the lottery, and when I do, I want to open up a co-op in at least my neighbourhood, or even a buyer's club, so that people can get off the Wal-mart nipple and keep the money in the community.  (The shorter distance that money has to travel, the stronger it is.) Until I win the lotto, let's start working on reshaping how government assistance comes into poor communities.

Co-ops would save a lot of money from going into corporations like Wal-Mart, and the jobs would be community based and sustaining.  Without an owner or executives there would be no need for excessive profits beyond what was needed to keep it going.  It would be self-sustaining and poor people could afford to eat decently, and not always be so afraid. And if there were soup kitchens and food pantries attached, the homeless and very needy would at least be able to eat, too.

Instead of HUD housing, why not HUD funds to buy people homes?  No more of this fear of where am I gonna go?  And if the co-op was also involved in the housing, maybe even an savings and loan.  I haven't worked all that out yet.

The co-op could sell medical and auto insurance to the community at low cost, and perhaps even have a clinic and dental office, optometrist, etc. And the co-op could offer day care, and while it would require some funding, there is a lot of government money already going to programs like this.

But people aren't allowed to, or don't find a way, to pool together. For instance, you can get the government to pay a friend or family member to care for you if you are disabled, or for child care.  But if the community could set up their own system with that money, and use it to fund a day care where people babysat children as a job instead of an assistance program, that would bring real prosperity to a community.  And a sense of pride.

The local and state governments would see an increase in taxes paid by working people.  The people that live in these "nice" communities and only want to be around other people that are just like them, and that have lives entirely built around the acquisition of possessions and the most luxurious, lifestyle then can acquire, they won't need to worry about people stealing $12 worth of copper wiring, or holding up liquor stores.

 Probably some of that will go on, but I think it will be greatly reduced. Greed does seem to be part of past and current human behaviour. We see looting done by the richest Wall Street Bankers and the greediness of people like the Wal-mart heirs stealing wages from their workers. But the people that are in power now were born in a world that had less than half the population it has now.  All of these technological advances we take for granted weren't invented during their childhood and formative years.  They live in the past.  They won't live forever.  We don't have to get violent to stop the cycle.  We just have to stop it.

We that are poor are able to live on much less, obviously.  But the disparity is too great.  This is too unbalanced.  We The People are going to have to demand more and then manage it ourselves.  Not just assistance, but better wages and better jobs.

It's HOW we are going to demand it that is really being decided.  So instead of this tug of war, I think we need to share our knowledge and ideas with each other, and be smarter and more economical than they are.  And be so sure of the abilities of humans to find solutions that we don't live in the kind of fear as someone that has billions and still doesn't have enough.

The state of the world right now does not even benefit the uber rich.  Not just violence and diseases and crime.  But out planet. Money cannot buy clean water, or more bees, or anything else natural.  The earth,  has millions of degrees hotter, and million of degrees colder.  It is we humans that must keep it within a one hundred degree range, with very specific requirements for air, water, and food.

I don't think violence will wrest the entire world from the clutches of those that will plunder anything to make a buck.  That might take awhile. I think we have to start looking for ways to create parallel worlds.  Like those I listed above.  I like the idea of a Christiana here that has its own police, community based, and centered around a "Peace Force".  Let's have people that only have the job of going out in the community and finding out what people need and helping them getting it.

I don't want to invade everyone's privacy, but I do think all neighbourhoods should have an HOA, and the neighbours get together and work things out and get to know each other.  We need to KNOW each other.  If we are going to give cops the power of a gun and the right to detain people, let's make sure we are keeping an eye on everyone, both the cops and the robbers, and all of us in between.

And we need representatives from each community that go and talk to representatives in other communities.  And perhaps that is what government officials are supposed to be now, but there needs to be some changes.  We have to get MUCH MORE INVOLVED. It can't just be about voting, and then they just decide what happens with our money-- how much the school gets, and how much some private developer gets to build a business that the people that live in the community may or may not want or need or derive any benefit from.

Like Ballpark Village gets these huge tax incentives and credits, and it just put all the little guys out of business.  They say it creates more jobs, but only if we don't lose a bunch as well.  New businesses do not necessarily create more prosperity. And again, how much of that money is going out of St. Louis?

Or the insanity of building a new Metrolink a few blocks from the existing Central West End station, when the North side is so under served by Metrolink? And in relation to how dependent the North side is on public transit, under served generally. (And I am not even going to touch the Folly of the Loop Trolley.)  If it didn't take so long to get to jobs outside of North St Louis on public transit, maybe people could get a second job, or save on daycare.  (And fewer people driving without insurance, but, of course that will cut into all the local police budgets.)

A great public transit system that focused on the people that need it the most would benefit the whole city.  And once there was some business development on the North Side, I'd bet that all these places that are so offended by saggy pants and grillz and whatever else wouldn't see those patrons anymore, anyhow.  If you like to go to a place where "everyone knows your name" and they were playing your song, don't you think other people might like that, too?

The people that are the most loving and spiritually evolved and peaceful, like the Dalai Lama and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., need to create some sort of prison system that does not completely degenerate the humans we have decided to keep alive even though they are being punished by or kept separate from society.  People should be treated with dignity and given DECENT nutrition, sanitary conditions, hygiene, and shelter.

The USA sanctions other countries for less than the conditions of the Berkeley jail and detention until bond is paid.  If an Islamic group were treating people like the Berkeley jail, we would be hearing screams of terrorism and torture.

The protests and the activism of the people is strong enough right now to create real change.  I think start by getting registered to vote, and let EVERY registered voter turn out at the polls this November 4th.   Let's keep fighting for Justice for Mike. Let's work on getting the highway traffic stops turned over to the County PD and/or the Highway patrol.  Let's demand better detention facilities and treatment.  Let's keep demanding economic development. Let's get a $15 an hour minimum wage in St. Louis city and county.

Let's keep going with demands.  Let's do it with wit and cunning, and smarts.  Not violence.  Not fear.

That's their game.