A Very Gay Transcript

A heads-up: a web/e-mail friendly transcript of the Very Gay Podcast is available at my YouPublish site: A Very Gay Transcript. It’s available (like the podcast itself) for anyone to use, under a Creative Commons license.

That is all.

A Totally Gay Podcast

I was recently interviewed by Nine Moons founder Rusty Clifton about my being gay and active in the church — and about California's Proposition 8. If you've got 45 minutes, give it a listen…

Listen to the podcast…

NB: This post is cross-posted from Nine Moons: A Totally Gay Podcast, please join us over there to comment!

On Veteran's Day …

My family is light, when it comes to veterans… and perhaps this isn't all that unique — but I can't name a single ancestor who's been a veteran. My great-grandfathers on both sides weren't alive during a war … and both grandfathers were too young for WWI and too old for WWII. Dad was too young for Korea and too old for Vietnam. So it shouldn't be surprising that I never really thought to much about veterans, as a kid.

That is, until junior high… the junior high I attended used the ASVAB test (a standardized military aptitude test) to gauge school successes on a number of fronts. For their generosity in providing the test, the military was given access to our scores. I scored in the 99th percentile. Unsurprisingly, I was soon barraged with all sorts of recruiting proposals. I wasn't hip to the idea, so I registered as a conscientious objector. The proposals stopped almost immediately.

It was also around this time that I became politically aware… and fell in love with a number of more liberal causes (no nukes, the Dukakis campaign, and the like), and any appreciation for our veterans was sidetracked by a certain level of distrust.

Fast forward a few years, and today I can't help but tear-up when I think of the sacrifices asked of our armed services — and the invaluable part they play in our enduring freedom. Don't misunderstand: I'm still very leery of the military-industrial complex, and an ardent opponent to our current military engagements. But I learned somewhere in the intervening years that I could hate a war without hating our soldiers.

So today, on Veterans Day, I'm thinking of our men and women in uniform. And I'm grateful. Thank you.

NB: Yes; I re-wrote the post completely. I can only think that maybe I was tired or hungry when I posted the original.

A Cycle of Violence

Over the years, I've had the… um… opportunity to interact with police in a variety of situations. Traffic violations, calls for support when kids were trespassing in our condo's pool, city functions, and just out on the beat. And while a few have sported "tough guy" attitudes (lamentable for any civil servant), they've all been professional. A few, even, have even been spectacular. So when I hear stories of police brutality I am immediately of two minds: "the story's being blown out of proportion" and "authority breeds unrighteous dominion".

But some times — on rare occasions — I'm of only one mind. Take a look at this footage:



Now read the follow-up story in the New York Post (not known for an even-handed approach). Here's more about the Pogan assault at the Smoking Gun. If you're not familiar with Critical Mass, they're an amazing grassroots cyclist empowerment organization. There's even a small Salt Lake City chapter.

I Voted!

Okay, folks... time to belly-up to the bar. Time to be heard... to do your civic duty. Time to vote.

Yes We Can

Please watch:

http://www.dipdive.com/

Then, tomorrow (Tuesday), please vote.

If you're in Salt Lake County, you can find your polling place, here:

https://secure.slco.org/cl/elections/index.cfm

I Voted Early... You Should Too

Here in Salt Lake county — as, I'm certain, it is in many parts of the country — it's possible to go to designated early-voter polling stations and cast your ballot. So I found out where I could vote early, and headed down and cast my ballot.

Election night (next Tuesday, November 6th) is, of course, the traditional time to vote. But why risk not voting because some emergency or other? Why fight the crowds? I voted early in the primaries... I did it again in the generals… and I'll likely vote early every chance I'm given.

So how'd I cast my ballot? Well, I spoke at-length before on the options, here's where it all fell:

Salt Lake City Mayor — I voted for Ralph Becker
Salt Lake City Council, District 4 — Luke Garrott
Vouchers — Against
Safety Department Bond — For

On the District 4 seat, I voted for change. It was a tough call, and I won't be in mourning if Nancy is reelected. On vouchers, I was only mildly against them until I went to a pro-voucher open house hosted by a dear friend. It was there that my mind was set against the whole program. I wish I weren't running out the door, or I'd spend more time on the issue. Maybe I'll revisit it tonight.

So there you go: I voted early, and you should too!

Today's the last day for early voting in Salt Lake county, but your own locality may be different.

Zip It!

Ever wanted to get to know your neighborhood better? I mean really really well? I did... so I typed my zip code into a form over at ZIPskinny, and got an eye full.

How does your ZIP measure up?

I Voted Early!

It's primary season across the state of Utah, and in Salt Lake City, there are two races that have my attention. Mayor and City Council District 4. Districts 2 and 6 are also open, but they're not my concern.

I've already discussed the hard time I've had choosing who'll get my vote this year… and now, well, now I've pulled the lever.

For mayor, Ralph Becker has my vote. He's a little more progressive than I am, but he's even-headed and will do (I pray) a fine job. In the end, I just couldn't get over Keith Christensen's money trail or a smattering of other issues. Buehler and Wilson never had my votes — one's too conservative and the other doesn't have the depth of experience nor the grasp of the issues needed for a mayor.

For City Council, I voted for Brian Doughty. I haven't decided whether I want him as my final vote — but I definitely want him in to stay in the running while I make up my mind. It's a hard race, really. Councilwoman Saxton lost my vote a while ago when it was made apparent that we have differing opinions on several key issues. Which leaves me with Garrott and Doughty. Luke Garrott has the chops, for certain, but he's got a rep for being caustic — and that won't fly on the council. Brian Doughty doesn't have the policy experience I'd prefer, but he's got the personal skills you just can't pick-up on the job.

So there you go.

To find out where you should be voting tomorrow, check the Salt Lake City Votes site. For other municipalities, you'll need to check with your County Clerk (PDF, sorry).

And here's a how-to site for using the state's electronic balloting machines.

UPDATE: You probably already know this, but for mayor, Becker and Buehler have moved on to the general elections... and in the 4th district, Saxton and Garrott have advanced. I'm happy to see — at least among primary voters — overwhelming support for Becker... Bewildered that Nancy did as well as she did… Sad that Brian didn't advance. He had a strong showing, though, for having no name recognition. That's little consolation, though.

Act Today: Utah Legislature Poised to Gut Animal Torture Law

Today's special session of the Utah legislature features a bill that didn't pass this spring "because of time constraints" … but now may pass with its teeth removed.

Read this short Deseret News article about the animal torture legislation... Then look-up your legislators here... Then call the main Senate (538-1035) and House (538-1029) switchboards and leave a message asking that they pass the law with the first-offense felony provision in-tact.

Just did it myself. Dead simple. They'll ask for your name and phone number in addition to the message.

UPDATE: Utah Senate sent bill to committee... which means it won't be voted on until 2008. I don't know enough about the proceedings to label this move "clever" or "cowardly". The cowardly scenario is that people opposed to the bill didn't want to be seen voting against it, so delayed the vote until there was a lot more confusion. The clever scenario is that it was delayed to secure more time to get the votes needed. It's the right thing to do… so be sure to continue to hound (pun intended) your representatives on this one.

Geeking the Fed

An explanation of recent Federal Reserve Bank actions that even I can understand.

So... Who Are You Voting For?

It's coming up on election time in Salt Lake City — primaries are September 11th — and I'm still completely at a loss this year. Now, I'm hardly the political neophyte. I'm active in local politics and was publicist for a candidate running for the US House a while back. But this year is going to be tough for me...

The candidate pools for Mayor and for City Council District Four are — how shall I put it — uninspiring.

Now I stick by the comment I made over at Pete Ashdown's site a while back, that the caliber of candidates I see in Utah elections is — time and again — exceptional. In fact, except for the rarest of cases (Senator Chris Buttars, I'm looking at you) our elected representatives comport themselves with dignity and execute their duties with grace and skill. They are exemplars of citizen government. Now, I don't agree with all of their policies, but nor do I fear that Utah will soon become Louisiana or California. So, while I'm uninspired, I'm not exactly in sackcloth and ashes.

So what's my beef?

Let's take the Mayor's race. There are currently four viable candidates: Becker, Buhler, Christensen, and Wilson. Each are vying for office in a city whose liberal leanings have nothing on Berkeley California, but are still way left for Utah. Moreover, each must contend with Mayor Anderson's considerable (and contentious) legacy. Salt Lake City is — whether you like it or not — a profoundly different place than it was just eight years ago. And that's in large part due to Rocky's leadership and his leadership style. I don't envy the next mayor — who must rebuild the myriad bridges singed, burned, or completely incinerated by this administration… or who must attempt to own and enlarge upon the amazing greening of city government that Rocky fostered. The shoes left to fill are both large and uncomfortable.

Ralph Becker — Ralph has the political experience needed to navigate city government, and the planning and policy experience to do it well. But his politics are a little too progressive for me and he lacks the personal warmth that will make conveying his policy vision to the public and his allies/adversaries on the City Council, on the Hill, and in the County Government difficult. In short, he's a gifted policy wonk who comes off a little, um, cold.

Dave Buhler — Dave is running as the Mormon-friendly "anti-Rocky". I don't much care for his politics, but his approach seems genuine. He's a Big Money Republican… and I think that's because he truly believes in that approach. He'll do well with the Hill because he's one of them. And he's known to be a good administrator. I don't fear his politics because his vision for Salt Lake City will likely be tempered by the City Council and a heavy-hitting, vocal, and persuasive activist community.

Keith Christensen — Keith is warm and approachable and knows the issues. He has the administrative chops for the office and the connections to make rebuilding bridges, if not easy, at least manageable. He's also, inexplicably, the hand-picked successor to Mayor Anderson. On the other hand, he's Big Money's favorite. And whereas Dave's approach to Big Money seems to be genuine (if just a little doctrinaire), Keith's approach lacks that "fresh-laundered feeling". To be blunt, with Keith I feel like I'm being snookered — but it feels so good.

Jenny Wilson — Jenny comes across as an import with MADE IN TAIWAN stamped on her back side — which is odd, as she has deep roots in the city (her father was a beloved Salt Lake City mayor in his day).

Jenny recently returned to the valley after doing time in the hallowed halls of academia and cutting her teeth on the fringes of Big Name™ politics — followed by a short stint in the County Council. With such an impressive resume and all the fashionable slightly-left-of-center sound bites, you'd think she was the Second Coming (and looking at the polls, others certainly seem to think that, too). But she doesn't know the district, is a zero on the issues, doesn't have the substantive experience needed to be a solid mayor, and fails to impress when asked the simplest questions in forum after forum. She is a shell of a candidate just aching for someone else to pull the strings.

… So there you go. I'm stuck between Becker and Christensen. Not a terrible place. But I'd rather, well… I'd rather have someone I can actually root for — not just vote for.

For another's perspective, you should check-out the answers to Pete Ashdown's questionnaire given by Becker, Buhler, Christensen, and Wilson. In the end, Pete endorses Ralph Becker.

Of course, this isn't just a mayoral race.

Three City Council chairs are up for re-election, including District Four — which is my district. In that race there are five candidates: Brian Doughty, Carol Goode, Luke Garrott, Jack Gray, and the incumbent Nancy Saxton. Goode and Gray have both run previously (I believe several times, each, actually), but I've yet to see any campaign literature. So it's hard to judge them, except to say that they don't appear to be viable candidates.

I've been lucky enough to speak at-length with each of the other candidates. Yet, as with our mayoral candidates, I'm at a loss. Each have their strengths — but in this year's election, I'm finding it difficult to overlook any of their deficiencies.

Brian Doughty — Brian is a good-natured man with a solid head on his shoulders. He's running because it's a chance for him to make the world a little better. And I like that about him. But he has absolutely no experience and his grasp of the issues is tentative. If this were a smaller town's council seat in question, I'd vote for him in a heart-beat. But he's not prepared for the big time. Put him on a city board or a community council and he'll be ready to run in a couple years.

Luke Garrott — Luke is a seasoned political junky, and a professor of political science at the U. He's passionate about serving and he's got a grassroots resume that should serve him well. But Luke lacks the finesse that's so important in the collaborative environment of the City Council… and the sense of decorum/chairos that might otherwise render his bite a little more, well, useful. We all appreciate the political bulldog… but this one isn't housebroken.

Nancy Saxton — Nancy has been in office for eight years. She knows how the machine works and she drives with two hands on the wheel. She is a consummate administrator and a savvy public servant with pluck. But she's dead-wrong on issues that are important to me. And not just a little wrong… on the handful of issues that mean a great deal to me, I oppose her almost completely and fail to fathom the logic she's used to come to her decisions.

So who do I vote for? The newbie that might be really good in two years… the wonk who's bound to alienate the people he needs to work with… or the savvy incumbent whose recent policy initiatives make no sense? I guess it's time to take my first impressions and my first round of homework and dig a little deeper...

Who are you voting for?

Renting, Buying, & Bull(pucky)

I haven't been a renter for eight years.

I purchased my first home (a condo), in Provo Utah and subsidized my mortgage with income from renting out my spare bedrooms to BYU students. It was a good purchase and I value what I learned from the experience about paying bills on-time and fiscal health in general… when I sold it, I made paper profit — it sold for more than I bought it for — but lost on the back-end until I factored-in the off-sets from rental income. I was stunned. I had paid more on my mortgage than I had gained in appreciation. Somewhere along the line, I made the common error of thinking that paper profit was the end goal… and believing the myth that buying is always better than renting.

If you're in the market to buy, or if you're in the mood for a reality check, you'll enjoy this amazing calculator from The New York Times, which lets you compare the true costs of renting versus buying. You may be surprised.

As much as I love owning my home, I am a firm opponent of the idea that renters are "just throwing their money away". It's false on its face for the many buyers without the credit to get a good interest rate and those who plan on selling within a few years... but worse, it ignores the value that housing — regardless of whether it's in a rental or not — offers. There's value in having a roof over your head, just ask a homeless person. And unless you own your home outright, you pay for that privilege.

So why the kerfuffle? Three reasons, really: mortgages are big money, home ownership is part (and parcel?) of the American Dream™, and home-buyers are seen as better citizens by all levels of government.

UPDATE: Another article on the problem with the idea that buying is absolutely the best idea for everyone… this time from Get Rich Slowly.

Power to the People

So it looks like local start-up Politic2.0 is launching its next-generation political site this morning with an event they're billing as ConventionNext. Should be interesting to see how it works...

This is what I got in an e-mail from Daniel Holsinger, Politic2.0's president and founder:

Politic 2.0 will host its first ConventionNEXT -- a forum for bloggers to interact with politicians.We have had a tremendous response from the local Utah political community. Congressman Chris Cannon is extremely excited to interact with bloggers. Off-site participants will be able view real time streaming video of the event and ask/vote questions.

1) Please Register at ConventionNext at Politic2.0
2) Apple's video/media player is required for streaming video.

The Agenda

8:50-9:00

Technology Overview, Introductions by Randall Bennett, VP Community

9:00-9:15

Congressman Chris Cannon remarks

9:15-10:15

Questions & Answers with Congressman facilitated by Daniel Holsinger, President/Founder of Politic2.0 Submitted Questions will be voted up/down by on-site/off-site participants (in real time). An alpha version of the question/voting system can be seen at conventionnext.politic20.com after 8:00PM Tuesday night.

( Our interactive question process uses a system like digg.com )

Daniel Holsinger, President of Politic 2.0 will moderate the questions from the voting system, working the questions from the top down. The system will continue to be live and as he finishes each topic, and he'll continue to ask questions from the top.

While this is going on, two other things will be happening:

The bloggers in the room and those paying attention on the net will be encouraged to write blog entries on each of the topics Congressman Cannon is addressing (instead of one big blog entry about the whole thing, although they can do that if they want).

These posts will be automatically discovered by TagJungle and reported to Politic20, causing them to automatically show up on Politic20.com under the topic that is being blogged about. Participants will also be strongly encouraged to participate in rating, writing and commenting on the Politic20 wiki pages about the event.

The event pages on Politic20 will have two columns; the left column will be the wiki side, showing sections for ratings, reviews, comments, discussions, etc. The right column will show the most recent blog posts that are relevant to the topic of the page you are on. TagJungle will also be harvesting links from all blog posts and will be providing Politic20 with lists of the most popular video, audio, documents and urls related to the topic you are viewing. These lists will be displayed above the blog posts from TagJungle.

10:15-10:30

Wrap-up and networking

10:30-11:00

Finish-up blog posts, talk with other bloggers, talk with us about Politic2.0, etc.

Find a Penny...

I have been a fan of abolishing the penny for several years. It costs more to mint than it's worth… it's seldom-used… and it makes the lives of people who use cash frequently (something I wish we all did a little more — but that's another post) unnecessarily more burdensome. But there have always been hurdles in dispatching with the 1¢ peice. Dropping the penny from circulation effectively (albeit on very small scale) raises the prices of everything for the poor of our nation — who disproportionately pay for things in cash. And then there's our nation's love affair with Abe Lincoln, whose face adorns the penny — which pretty much guarantees the coin's future.

So I was pleased earlier this week to read in the New York Times of a proposal put forth by Mr Velde of the Chicago Fed (PDF): keep the penny, but make it worth 5¢, then stop minting the nickel. Voila! We keep Abe in circulation, so there's little need for Illinois' federal delegation to get in a snit; the penny is now worth more than it costs to mint (a good thing™); and all the pennies out there are suddenly worth 5¢ — negating the "cost" of rounding prices that the poor would otherwise incur.

Brilliant.

Now... if only we could get a legislator to move on it.

Urban Wishlist: Traffic Lights

This is a new category... reserved for stuff I'd like to see with regards to urban planning and design.

Traffic lights seem to be handled in many municipalities in a haphazard way: rarely is there consistency visually or systemically. I imagine it's because traffic lights are expensive and difficult to install... meaning that an entire retrofit of a city is not likely to happen. Instead, traffic lights are installed/updated when road repairs make such particularly easy or outright necessary — or when an accident happens, and politicos want to mollify a public uninterested in proper traffic calming programs.

But here's my wishlist, all the same:

LEDs — The new, LED traffic lights are superior in every way to all the other implementations I've seen. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you'd recognize the lights because their comprised of a couple hundred smaller bulbs — and look, for all the world, like bugs eyes. They're bright and easy to discern, regardless of environmental conditions. All traffic lights should be of the LED sort.

Directional Beepers — There's a proper word for these, but I don't know it off-hand. These are the aural cues for the visually impaired. All traffic lights should these to indicate when crossing is permitted.

Crosswalk Count-down — You've seen the crossing signals that feature the 25 second count-down timers? Yup... every intersection should feature these.

Automatic Crossing Signals with the CBD — Central business districts are decidedly places where pedestrian traffic is encouraged/expected. All intersections controlled by traffic lights should feature crossing signals that activate without pushing a button ( though buttons are handy placebos ).

Realistic Crossing Time-frames — When a crossing signal is furnished, lights should be timed such that pedestrians can can actually cross all lanes of traffic in the time allotted. If the intersection is large, pedestrian islands should be furnished at the medians, and time-frames should encourage pausing on the island.

Full-stops — Almost every intersection I've come to switches immediately between RED for one direction of traffic and GREEN for another direction of traffic. I would propose that all traffic should come to a complete stop, with all signals being RED for a beat or two when thru-traffic changes directions.

Extended YELLOW — A recent study ( man! I wish I could find it! ) concluded that an extra 1 second ( it may have been less ) of YELLOW before turning RED would decrease light running by 50%. That's an amazing reduction for such a paltry investment of time.

Controlled Mid-block Pedestrian Crossings — Many CBD blocks feature mid-block pedestrian crossings. Unless required for cross traffic ( say, from a parking garage with a mid-block egress ), these pedestrian crossings should NOT have traditional stop lights. Rather, flashing lights ( YELLOW, or better-yet PURPLE, to differentiate these signals from ones where the power is out ), should be installed. When a pedestrian requests a signal, the light turns from flashing YELLOW/PURPLE to flashing RED. This allow safe crossing of pedestrians as-needed, and protects motorists from malicious button-pushing by passers-by.

I voted! (With Updates)

Have you?

I'm in district 2228, and I voted at the Multi-ethnic Senior Highrise, at 120 South 200 West — the pink building behind the Salt Palace:

US Senate ( At Large ): Pete Ashdown — Lost to Incumbant, *mumble*
US House ( District 1 ): Steve Olsen — Lost to Incumbant, *mumble*

State Senate ( District 2 ): Scott McCoy — Won

County Council ( At Large ): Janice Auger — Lost to Incumbant, Jim Bradley
County Clerk: Sherrie Swensen — Won
County Sheriff: Jim Winder — Won

District Attorney: Sim Gill — Lost to Lohra Miller
Judiciary: NO on Leslie A. Lewis — Austed

Constitutional Amendment Number 1 ( Tax Exemption ): FOR — Passed

Salt Lake County Prop 1 ( ZAP Projects ): FOR — Passed
Salt Lake County Prop 2 ( Open Space ): FOR — Passed
Salt Lake County Prop 3 ( TRAX & Transit ): FOR — Passed

And while I was there, I shot a few snapshots for the AIGA Polling Place Photo Project.

PS... If you're in Salt Lake County, the County Clerk's elections website is really really helpful.

If You Needed a Reason to Vote...

Time to Vote!

Make a difference!

( Oh, PLEASE make a difference! )

Find polling places in Utah.

Find polling places throughout the US.

Policy Alert: Broadcast Treaty

Found via Luc Latulippe:

An incredibly diverse coalition of high-powered public interest groups, industry associations, and corporations have signed an open letter to the US Patent and Trademark Office rejecting the “Broadcast Treaty,” a US-led UN initiative that could do untold harm to artists, tech and telecoms companies, scholars, and people with disabilities.

Under the Broadcast Treaty, fair use, Creative Commons and the public domain would be trumped by the “broadcast right,” which would be owned by the broadcaster of works. If you got a copy of a work over the air or over the Web that copyright would let you use (because it was in the public domain, because it was factual, or even because the creator had granted you permission), you’d still need to seek permission from the “caster,” who would get a 50-year monopoly over the re-use of copies of the works it transmitted. (my italics)

The proposal to extend this to the Web could put YouTube, Google Video, and innovative podcaster services out of business, by banning or restricting the way that these companies re-use each others’ materials. And if you’re a podcaster accustomed to lifting other podcasters’ material and pasting it into your podcasts, you’ll need permission from the company that hosts the podcasts, not just permission from the creator.

The Webcasting provision has been underwritten by Yahoo and Microsoft, whose advocates at the UN work tirelessly to keep the US on-track in pushing the rest of the world to taking it on board. The rest of the world doesn’t want Webcasting, but it keeps sneaking back into the treaty, over howls of protests from artists and major governments.
Now some of Yahoo and Microsoft’s competitors have woken up to the fact that they’re about to get their lunches eaten for them and have signed onto a letter asking the USPTO to quit handing their doom to a couple of companies.

The letter’s signatories are wonderful, ranging from AT&T and Verizon to Yale, to Dell and Intel, and library associations from the medical librarians to the law librarians and more. Also on the list are TiVo, EFF, Panasonic, H-P, the US musicians’ managers, and many others.

Home and personal networking. Under the current draft of the treaty, the broad scope of the proposed rights, combined with proposed additional rights regarding technological protection measures (TPMs) in connection with these rights, raises questions about whether “casters” would gain the ability to control signals in the home or personal network environment. Such control is without precedent and would interfere with the rollout of broadband and home and personal networking services and limit the development of innovative devices that provide home and personal networking functionality.

Accordingly, the treaty should include a provision excluding coverage of fixations, transmissions or retransmissions across a home or personal network. Further, we should note that many of our group believe that TPM provisions are inappropriate in connection with this treaty and should be excluded from the treaty entirely.

Link to PDF

_________________

I don't have a settled opinion on this... but it certainly needs more attention than it's getting.