Author Archives: bicyclemark

Lame Duck Democracy

For those who somehow didn’t notice, and maybe I can’t blame you since it was so uneventful, the UK had parliamentary elections a few days ago. I’ll not keep you in suspense… labour won. Again. And again. I mean they got less votes, but when you live in a one-party country you can still win with a bad turn out. (sorry Lib Dems, Conservatives, “others” you just don’t count) You thought the situation was bleak in the US, Tony Blair could have gone on television shown his ass, and declared it a campaign — he still would have won. Hooray for democracy.

But wait, it’s not a total sham. I myself stayed up til 3am watching the returns on the BBC. Two major things kept me glued to the telly….

  • 1 – Jeremy Paxman, the very blunt and bold BBC guy, ridiculing Cabinet Member Jack Straw for pretending everything was great when his party had just done pretty poorly.
  • The best was watching the returns per region. I loved hearing the Welsh language announcements and I kept thinking of Eddy Izzard doing his Welsh accent. I also loved hearing the Scottish accents, and generally the random little parties that get like 30 votes being announced. Reminded me of the Monty Python skit… oh.. better save that for the podcast.

    • Generally speaking, the only silver lining is that it was very obvious that people were voting their disapproval at having been lied to about the need to invade Iraq. The only trouble is that not enough of them did it, and as usual – there is no real alternative to vote for.

    Tomorrow on the podcast, bring a pen, we’re learning about the European Constitution and my first hand experience as an EU citizen. The gloves are coming off, Im tired of all the fallacies and half-truths.

    Field of Memories

    Its been over 2 years, but I still go back there. The rims are actually in worse shape then they were back then, as if that were possible. Neighbors still walk through on their way home from work or the supermarket. You still have to be careful that the ball doesn’t roll into the street, in the direction of the Dutch marine base. The students still glance your way as they lock their bikes and head inside.

    Back in the day, this court was bussling with activity on Thursday evenings or whenever our crew decided it was game time. 5 on 5, full court, half court, 2 on 2, we played it all. Rain… wind.. sun.. rain… rain. We played. It was Sweden vs Germany, Ireland vs. Norway, UK vs. Iceland, and of course, US vs. Canada. Man did we get our asses beat by team Canada. They even showed up in uniforms… we were baffled.

    Some traditions never die in international Amsterdam. The pub crawls, the boat rides, the dinner parties, the meetings at Vondelpark. But one tradition that most definitely died after our year graduated, -never again was there a weekly basketball match. Never again was there a crew of people, who no matter how busy, or where their new apartment was, would find their way back to our sacred court for a match.

    But I’m a bit like a ghost. I still haunt the court. I still run up and down and curse the wobbly rim, just like old times. People look over at me with blank stares, looking at the guy playing alone. I sometimes think they might be remembering those days as well.

    People’s Herstory

    Twas the night before liberation day and all through the city, not a creature was stirring, except maybe a Portuguese-American riding back from Rock-n-Roll Amy’s. Some children are probably nestled all snug in their beds, while bm sits at his powerbook and listens to a People’s history of the United States on audio book.

    Perhaps you know of Howard Zinn’s thick but compelling History told from the people’s experiences. Nothing to do with that crap they’re dishing out in American public and private schools. I would know, I went through both and in the end — learned more from the people than from the outdated, poorly compiled history books. But I digress, this audio version is narrated by Matt Damon. I’ve never thought much of him as an actor really, wasn’t he the star in Ryan’s privates? Well, I can say that it’s cool to hear this book narrated by this voice. It’s crisp, familiar, and well.. nice.

    Who would you like to hear narrate your copy of People’s History, or any other book for that matter? I’d want James Earl Jones! When I was little, his voice was the official one of NJ’s phonecompany… Bell Atlantic. It was always fun to hear him whenever you dialed information. Some voices instantly ellicit respect and attention.

    I would also like to add that Howard Zinn himself reads the preface and conclusion, and I’ve heard him on Democracy Now many times. He has a good New England voice. We have a friend in common, so hopefully one day soon, he and I will sit and have a drink. I’d like to hear more of his life and his experiences. I can just picture it; that will be a truely great day.

    Meet the Neighbors #2

    I had written this post and it was good, but Firefox on Mac is giving me troubles. I know! I didn’t believe either. Nevermind that, it’s time for the second installment of the series where I go down my blogroll and talk about people I’ve linked and why.

    So we begin today with And Then, better known as Sylkk. Now let’s be honest friends, Florida hasn’t always been our most beloved state over the years. However they can be quite proud for bringing us this open-minded and kind-hearted blogger. I know about Sylkk because she was linked by mr TheStateImIn himself, which for me is always a good indicator of quality. Her writings about life, love, work, and play are for me always an oasis of warmth. I don’t comment as often as I’d like to, but at the very least I can say it here — I like this blog and the person behind it. Plus, I can remember the first time I saw her photo on buzznet, and it only confirmed how beautiful she is. (remember this isn’t creepy, its just a non-creepy compliment)

    Moving down the list, we come to formerly Staten Island’s.. now Philadelphia’s own Being Christine. I met her through myspace, one of the better online communities out there. Last yearI was lucky enough to meet her at Newark Airport and she drove me to the Bicyclemark Family Headquarters. C writes about working as a social worker in crazy Philly, family, relationships, and her own well-being. There’s always that special place you keep for bloggers you’ve met in real life… isn’t there?

    And well, there you have it, two more of my blog neighbors. See you next time~

    I remember Rwanda

    I just finished watching Hotel Rwanda. I just finished watching Hotel Rwanda. I just….


    People don’t tend to blog about Rwanda do they? I myself find it hard to reconcile the fact that I want so badly to write pages about Rwanda, and yet I want to simply bow my head in shame and say nothing because any attempt to say something noble would be completely useless and insulting.

    I am ashamed Rwanda. I am a European-American… and when I look at you I feel such grief and shame. And yet… when your country experienced such horror. When neighbors killed neighbors. When 1 million corpses of 1 million humans were left to rot in the streets of Kigali, I committed a far more diabolical crime. Just like the journalist in the movie said, I sat home, watched it on TV, thought to myself — That’s Horrible — and then I went back to my daily routine. While I may have been quite young, my western life simply didn’t leave me the time or the will, apparently, to organize a movement demanding that the international community intervene and stop the genocide. Oh yes, it could most definitely have been stopped, but who had time for that… there was Monday Night Football to be watched.

    It is often said that we who live in the rich countries of the world are lucky. We have the “great fortune” they say, “to have such a high standard of living.” But I don’t feel lucky. I look at my hands, and at the hands of all our governments, and all I can see is blood. All I can feel is shame and horror. A good international lawyer could and should probably make such a case, take all the governments of the world, and the people which support them through vote or taxes, and charge them with war crimes. What crime? Watching millions die when we had the power to stop it, and then simply continuing to eat our dinners.