Also I should note (perhaps again, my memory of such things sucks – it’s [...]]]> Changes…
I changed the theme, upgraded to the newest WordPress, am tweaking the theme, brought the images over from my old theme (Cutline 2.0) to the new theme (Atahualpa). I also noodled around fixing or removing old broken links, updating the site structure, etc.

Also I should note (perhaps again, my memory of such things sucks – it’s genetic, Dad can tell the same story 200 times like it was brand new – I told Hanne she can smack me if I do that too much) that my project, Master of the Hidden Cottage, where I was going to do more rigorous footnoted activist essays that demonstrated Taoist principles, has really just fallen flat. (The web site’s still there but the registration’s expired.)

I occasionally have the passion for a good rant (as you know), but really putting it all together and making it rigorous (and perhaps ready for publication in print) is something I just don’t seem to have the enduring passion for.

Still, I learned a lot about affiliation and planning and blog customization and so on from it, so that was fun. Also, it kept me out of the business of ranting on my personal blog, which had an added benefit, I think.

I seem to be changing my attitude about activism. I’ve been less and less inclined to have a public opinion (I don’t see any reason to delete old posts yet, but I do feel like I don’t need to write new ones), less and less inclined to rant about it. I have been doing comments-style activism from time to time, mostly on Metafilter where I find that there’s enough mutual respect for those kinds of comments to not be immediately dismissed even if they dissent. Usually. But anyway, I haven’t written a really good rant in the activist mode on this blog for a great while and I think I may be almost done.

Also the last RaceFail (2009) really didn’t work out well for me personally and while I’m kind of of the opinion that it probably wouldn’t have anyway even if I had self-silenced, I think that I’d like to stay out of those if possible. So I’m putting you all on notice. If you figure I’ll wade right into this year’s Racefail and draw some fire, go looking for that from some other stooge.

In work, I am “being groomed for leadership”, which is pretty effin’ weird if you ask me, but I do think I am cut out for it, and in the long haul it supports our long-range plans to try to emigrate to Canada (or perhaps one of the other commonwealth countries – who can say until we get there?). Canada would prefer that IT geek applicants have advanced leadership experience. Who knows? I may get there.

Finally, it looks like Hanne is making a new career direction too – toward food – event catering, teaching, etc., and if you know her and are interested, by all means check out her blog (or her website as a whole)  as she develops opportunities and ideas. I think I may settle mostly into that sort of thing here too, but my own much less frequent experimentations and acquisitions, or writing about my tasting of Hanne’s experiments and recipe developments. Of course she also has 2 non-food books under contract, so it’ll be a little while before that all settles out, and I can’t imagine her, eventually, NOT writing books about food, but we’ll see, of course.

1. 2nd gravlax, 2nd update: The thicker of the two pieces turned out fine with just a thorough rinse. I do think the Charcuterie book’s advice about texture is key here. 1a. Also, I ordered that book from Atomic Pop, so we’ll [...]]]> Various updates, including another about the 2nd gravlax, the letter I wrote to the president, etc.

1. 2nd gravlax, 2nd update: The thicker of the two pieces turned out fine with just a thorough rinse. I do think the Charcuterie book’s advice about texture is key here.
1a. Also, I ordered that book from Atomic Pop, so we’ll see it soon. Also, an order for The Whole Beast, which was not available at the library, came through there and we are both thrilled with and curious to try about 50% – 75% of the recipes in there. It’s definitely not run of the mill food, but mostly has to do with eating offal for which, with respect to organ meats, I already have a passion.

2. Looks like the Administration changed its tune with respect to the VA insurance proposal (about which I wrote a letter to the President). I am pleased to see spokespeople using my vocabulary from my letter. In truth, I think my letter was just part of an onslaught he probably got and was just part of the statistics, but it’s cool to feel like I have a personal effect on it all.

3. I am feeling either content or bored, I can’t tell which. I think more content than bored. I am a little worried about the economy and whether my company will decide I have a job any tomorrow, but whatever, I guess. I mean, my family will pull together like we always do if necessary. Otherwise, gardening is hard work but rewarding (didn’t have to do it in the old house) and work done stays did as Hanne sometimes says. Work proceeds as a daily fight for scarce resources and a daily fight to be heard among a throng of qualified technical experts. I did finish a draft of a 24 page white paper (technical paper) about our Kerberos configuration Friday and have already received a lot of compliments over it. And my boss who is not always effusive about praise has recently been praising me for doing my job well. No speculation as to why this upturn of praise, but I’ll just keep on truckin’ and hope it reminds people that I’m a good, retainable employee.
Honestly given the folks they end up retaining when they lay me off (I’ve been laid off twice in my life so far), I am more and more privately convinced (I mean it is convincing even my lizard brain of this) that choosing who gets laid off is much more a matter of politics and charisma than skills, loyalty and productivity.

4. Facebook: Meh. Twitter: Ew. LinkedIn: Meh. LiveJournal: Good to read, but not so often do I contribute. This blog: Cool. The old social networking MOO: Meh. Activism: Meh (with a side of thinking about writing about it anyway, privately). Not that I necessarily want a more socially exciting life, not that I necessarily don’t want one, but meh. I am feeling like I should have maybe a few more local friends I see regularly, but I am also enjoying having time alone to do me-things at my new home which is quiet and protective even if it’s still in Charm City (note the irony in my voice here).
I should say that I do enjoy Facebook – it’s cool to be hooked up to new and old friends and to know what they’re up to and I update occasionally. But it’s not very compelling for me. Same is true for LinkedIn.

5. I also feel retired. From the circumstances that necessitated my shutting up and leaving the activist circuit for a while. I’ve been through this kind of mental/emotional withdrawal before when I “hung up my spurs” as a vigilante troller type (7 years ago? 10?). Part of this feeling just has to do with where to put the excess energy that used to go outward. I want to put it to some good use, but honestsly I won’t have really withdrawn/retired/left the scene until I figure out something else to put it to, so for now that’s the house, my family, food explorations, etc. Inward instead of outward.

6. Since my post in which I used “loyalty oath”, “witch hunt” and “howling mob”, I am left with a few interesting impressions. (a) Plenty of folks disagreed with me about “loyalty oath” and “howling mob” but I don’t recall getting negative feedback about “witch hunt”. Interesting. (b) “howling mob” is easily taken as being animalistic, and plenty of folks disagree with my usage of it in that post. It wasn’t meant as an animalistic phrase and I can’t find a good etymology that includes an exclusively or explicitly animalistic interpretation/derivation. Wind howls, mobs howl, animals howl. I guess that’s the link (in set mathematics, essentially, though I know what we’re actually talking about here is emotional meaning and understanding), though it’s tenuous. I wonder if there are other phrases that are/were not derived from racist or other power/privilege-bias systems that aren’t okay now. I did see someone discussing “chink in the armor” on the new racism-101 livejournal community as if it were bad (that is not its derivation at all). I think we have to be extra extra extra careful of meanings an possible (mis)interpretations now. Especially me.

I want to declare publicly that while I am Hanne Blank’s partner, her words are hers and mine are mine. Any conflation of the two is solely the responsibility of the conflater.

Otherwise, I need to take leave of the discussions about activism, race, racism, etc. These discussions are getting too hot [...]]]> It’s been an informative few days.

I want to declare publicly that while I am Hanne Blank’s partner, her words are hers and mine are mine. Any conflation of the two is solely the responsibility of the conflater.

Otherwise, I need to take leave of the discussions about activism, race, racism, etc. These discussions are getting too hot for my blood. I may return to the discussions later or I may not.

I understand it did well in China, despite a boycott cum possible PR stunt by a Chinese designer.

I didn’t find many of its tropes tired. If anything, the Kung Fu stuff, the Chinese stuff, I thought was definitely in keeping with the Kung Fu Movie traditions and also some of it was quite lovely.

Even [...]]]> I liked it.

I understand it did well in China, despite a boycott cum possible PR stunt by a Chinese designer.

I didn’t find many of its tropes tired. If anything, the Kung Fu stuff, the Chinese stuff, I thought was definitely in keeping with the Kung Fu Movie traditions and also some of it was quite lovely.

Even the anti-fat sentiment was clearly the characters’ problems. Po, the panda in question, voiced by Jack Black, gets fitter and more flexible and definitely more kick-ass but his shape doesn’t change, and the characters who oppose his shape either get over themselves or get their butts whupped. There were some tired tropes in the storytelling in that respect, but I also think that in the end the story redeemed itself (no, not all fat people/pandas are fat because they eat when they’re depressed or stressed).

So yeah, I liked it.

Stick that in your pipes and smoke it, alla youse who think I am only negative-man.

I hope that it’s doing more folks than just me good, but it is doing me good to articulate myself and some of my beliefs about being an ethical [...]]]> I have at least four more Tao of… posts to write. I’d planned to write 8 and I’m sticking to that promise, both for symbolic and thematic reasons.

I hope that it’s doing more folks than just me good, but it is doing me good to articulate myself and some of my beliefs about being an ethical activist/warrior.

I have been reading and rereading bits and bobs of this year’s cultural appropriation discussions and I am left with some questions.

These are questions posed by me (a PoC, an antiracist activist, a civil rights activist, a cultural diversity activist and an arts activist – among other activisms) to a wide audience, of course, because I’m publishing them to the Internet, but they are specifically aimed at folks who are also pursuing antiracist agendas and who are making policy about cultural appropriation.

I live in hope that I will one day feel like I don’t have to remind anyone about my zero tolerance regarding disrespect. If you have something to say, say it respectfully, do your homework, and try not to soil yourself.

Various relevant assumptions I’m making are:

• We are all clear that cultural appropriation is a tricky issue with many nuances that it seems like no one gets entirely right (even PoCs). Even so, we are tired of having the same tired argument year after year and would like to see some progress made.
• We are aware that the world is a vast and varied place and that so far, no philosophical utopia has ever been applied successfully to entire countries, let alone the world.
• We know that when we are born we are not given a contract that stipulates equal access to all resources. Similarly, there is no extant contract that promises us that the world at large will be fair. It will not set aside specific resources that are earmarked for us.
• We accede that it is possible for folks who are community outsiders to get it right – to blend their goals, lives, agenda, creativity, whatnot with a community they were not born to, do their thing and get out or stay without offending any/many people. (A lot of people have trouble with this and have trouble acknowledging that it happens all the time around us as our culture assimilates and emphasizes interesting, engaging things, so if you can’t agree on this, please don’t come here and try to argue it with me.)
• We know that cultures and subcultures have their own rules and baselines and there is no quality of these sorts of rules (not even love, not even justice) that inherently makes every culture and subculture embrace them. That our particular rule (e.g. thou shalt not commit cultural appropriation) is just or fair doesn’t mean that every world culture and subculture will embrace it and respect it.
• We know that celebrated civilizations, countries, cultures seem to thrive on: art, culture, diversity, variety, change, dynamicism, dialogue, difference, flexibility, derivation, mixing and remixing of ideas, concepts, facts, fiction. Civilizations, countries, cultures seem to fail when they squelch these things.
• We’ve seen that sometimes when individuals attempt to transgress boundaries, they create a lot of change, some of its effects are good, some are bad, some are neutral.

In no particular order, an incomplete list of questions about where we’re going and how far we plan to go:

• If the idea from our cultural appropriation dialogues and diatribes is that cultural appropriation is simply wrong and should be avoided at all costs, where do we go to get sources and inspiration for creativity?
• If there are no white people who can manage to do it right, are we planning to let them do it at all? Some folks are saying that PoC don’t have the opportunity to make what we need to make happen, happen (i.e. PoC folks who want to work against cultural appropriation in their work don’t get publication opportunities). So how do we surmount that problem and get the right ideas, concepts and other products of our creativity out into the limelight?
• If instead the idea from our dialogues and diatribes is that it’s okay for white people to do attempt to do cultural appropriation, but we get to yell at them for it, how long do you think they’ll keep trying? Do you think it’s possible that we’ll squelch all attempts by being interpreted as being ungrateful or dangerous?
• How do we do our best to or guarantee that when a good piece of cultural appropriation happens that it’s celebrated? How do we make sure every antiracist activist everywhere gets that message and stops crucifying the creator who had the audacity to try and succeed?
• How do we tell when a problematic work has still done good for us and our cause (of righteous fairness and justice)? How do we celebrate or promote that work without having the hypocrisies bite us in the ass on the way out/way forward?
• How do we define good or problematic (or any other value judgment of) cultural appropriation? What is our yardstick? How do we make sure we’re all using the same measuring device so that our message is clear, distinct and consistent?
• If we squelch all creativity in this arena, what are we left with? PoC with good ideas who can’t publish and white people with good ideas who won’t (because we’ve convinced them it’s too dangerous to try)?
• Are we resolved not only to squash appropriation out complete in contemporary efforts, or are we also going to get revisionist on our own history?

Simply, what are our next steps, and how fascist are we planning to get about it?

Note: Though fascism is an extremely problematic and potentially insulting charge, I use it from the perspective of a warrior. If I decide to ally with the prevailing movement to flame asses off in defense of the evilness of cultural appropriation, I want to evaluate how far we’re planning to go with this, so I can make an informed decision. The question is meant as a direct question and an honest one. Tell me and I’ll decide whether I wish to lend a shoulder. It’s possible to answer the question in the negative as in “I do not intend to or wish to be fascist at all in this effort.”

Otherwise known as, “If you can’t take the heat…”

This one, the second principle, gets tied to Earth in the I Ching, which stands in part for infinite resources and capacity, and some interpret it also as a symbol for unconditional love.

As [...]]]> If you haven’t the strength for the discipline or responsibility of warriorship, you shouldn’t be fighting.

Otherwise known as, “If you can’t take the heat…”

This one, the second principle, gets tied to Earth in the I Ching, which stands in part for infinite resources and capacity, and some interpret it also as a symbol for unconditional love.

As a warrior, you have the primary duty to be responsible to the folks you with whom you fight.

When I assign responsibility in these words to you, the warrior, I am not considering the cheesy, sneaky, weasel answer that the oppressors started the fight by exploiting you or the people you are defending.

You and I both know that’s not true. Very few people do not fear change. If you challenge the status quo, no matter how exploitative it is, you are causing innocent or potentially innocent people trouble. If you do that challenging, no matter how just or right that challenge is, you are starting the fight, even if it’s for everyone’s own good.

Let me break this down. If you are following my warrior’s code, I expect you to display these characteristics at the absolute least:

• Dedication
  Not only to the cause you fight for but to the folks you impact with your passion and your power. It’s vital that you are dedicated. If possible be as dedicated to those you fight with as you are to those you admire or possibly even those you love.
• Strength
  To last, to stay honorable and true, to stay accessible and responsible to these same folks. But strength also to know when enough is enough, when you’re through, when you’re almost exhausted, and strength enough to withdraw with as little collateral damage as possible.
• Commitment
  To the cause, to the fight, to the same people. If you are staying in the fight, you must be invested in it. Try not to do your fighting part time or when rushed. Give it your full attention, and only commit words to paper/blog/journal or actions to the world when you have the time and focus to do it right.
• Accessibility
  Once you’ve waded in and brought your violent upheaval, you must have the fortitude to remain accessible to reactions you engender.
• Responsibility
  You must responsible for your words and actions. If you brought it, then you are responsible for the ramifications of your actions. When you get to the point in a fight where you are out of energy and must withdraw, do that withdrawal with as little collateral damage as possible. You are responsible for that fight for at least as long as you are in it, because you started it.
• Responsiveness
  As part of your accessibility, it is your duty to be responsive. It is your duty to receive and accept criticism, and digest it. You need not respond, and you may find it wisest not to, but you must be responsive enough so that your opponent(s) know(s) you’re there.
• Respect
  Always respect. If you cannot respect your opponent, you should divorce yourself from the fight and leave the fight for another warrior who can summon up this basic requirement.
• Fairness
  Another one you should leave the fight over if you cannot provide it. Fairness is required for equitable conclusions. If you cannot remain fair, you cannot be respectful and if you achieve change it will likely only be resentful change that will not last. You might as well have not bothered to fight.

If you do not have it in you to provide these basic duties as a warrior, please do everyone else a favor and stay out of the kitchen.

I plan to write at least 8 total essays/posts about this topic of being a warrior/activist, and about the ethical framework I find useful as a guiding principle when I fight for social change.

I will tie each major [...]]]> Just to frame the discussion a bit more, let me tell you more about my aims and my plans.

I plan to write at least 8 total essays/posts about this topic of being a warrior/activist, and about the ethical framework I find useful as a guiding principle when I fight for social change.

I will tie each major topic with a trigram from the I Ching.

This is a mapping of my own design, and not normally something I think too carefully about in day to day application of the principles, but may be useful in a metaphorical sense. It is not unknown for me to turn to divination methods when I’m feeling a little lost. Sometime’s it’s the Tarot or western or eastern horoscopes, sometimes it’s the I Ching, so this is as good a time as any, I think, to turn to the I Ching for more guiding metaphors and symbols.

Also, to avoid any discussion of cultural appropriation in my own writing here, I will stick to philosophies that derive from my bloodline cultures and heredity. As I am half Taishanese (Tai Shan is part of Canton), I’ll turn to the Tao, of which I am a scholar, for “eastern” perspectives and I will try to stick to British Isles-sourced “western” philosophy if I speak about “western” concepts. I am aware that similar concepts and principles apply from other cultures, but I will leave it as an exercise to the reader to apply it to their favorite cultures, herditary or not.

Later, perhaps, I will write about aspects of the cultural appropriation debate where I do not necessarily agree with the party line.

For now, let me say this: as a warrior I believe that part of what we as warriors must do is explore the uncomfortable spaces. It is among our duties to challenge the prevailing wisdom, to explore edge conditions and uncomfortable boundaries and establish beachheads where our explorations take us. That it is accepted wisdom that we ought only explore the cultures we can claim birthright to is all well and good, but I believe that that solution will ultimately stunt our cultural and sociological growth and hold us back from further progress beyond a certain point. This is an uncomfortable assertion and I know it. But it is one I believe in, so it is my duty as a warrior to assert it.

More on that later.

With respect to this system of my Taoist interpretation of the wisdom of warriors’ ways, I don’t expect approval or accolades, nor do I seek censure or hostility. Though I suspect I’ll get a measure of all of these and more besides, it is not why I write these words. I write them for my own good (for I know that articulation of these ideas helps me, in the long run, become a better warrior and a better activist, as well as helps me reinforce my ethical framework so that ultimately it will be more automatic in times of duress – this is a good thing).

Should you or any other reader find these ethics helpful, all the better, but I do not expect you to assume my ethical framework or undertake my principles.

What I do expect is that if you claim warrior’s rights or stake a claim to my respect as an activist, that you will follow some self-consistent ethical system that is knowable and reliable, and that if I meet you on the field of battle or much more likely in a real world or virtual debate, that you will be prepared to fight fairly according to that system, because if you don’t, while I will fight fairly according to mine, I can and may choose to fight you to the end of your endurance. I can absolutely promise you that I am capable of that.