Mail Bag On Bush

Last screening: coffee and cigarettes by Jim jarmusch. Viewed the film because it was said to be about a bunch of cool people having cool conversations in different casual settings. Reminded us of what we are trying to do with Transcendence Television, the reality show, that's the running name now. But after 36 minutes I turned it off. Forced, stilted, transparent, insulting it was so bad, utterly meaningless. I had such hopes for it. how can you ruin such a brilliant idea as a movie about coffee and cigarettes? But it is everything that we are trying not to make. It has illustrated for me clearly that we are on the right path with this non-reality reality-show idea. Let it be real. Just real. No planning shit. No telling people to improv shit. Just catch the action and emotion of the human experience in the moment and edit it all together. show us what we are.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
And now for a few from the mail bag:

From New York City

<<From: Nicole Henderson
New York, NY
Sent: Friday, November 05, 2004 11:03 AM
Subject: I wanted you to know.

I am writing this letter to the people in the red states in the middle of the country -- the people who voted for George W. Bush. I am writing this letter because I don't think we know each other.

So I'll make an introduction. I am a New Yorker who voted for John
Kerry. I used to live in California, and if I still lived there, I
would vote for Kerry. I used to live in Washington, DC, and if I
still lived there, I would vote for Kerry. Kerry won in all three
of those regions.

Maybe you want to know more about me. Or maybe not; maybe you think
you know me already. You think I am some anti-American anarchist
because I dislike George W. Bush. You think that I am immoral and
anti-family, because I support women's reproductive freedom and gay
rights. You think that I am dangerous, and even evil, because I do
not abide by your religious beliefs.

Maybe you are content to think that, to write me off as a "liberal"
-- the dreaded "L" word -- and rejoice that your candidate has
triumphed over evil, immoral, anti-American, anti-family people like
me. But maybe you are still curious. So here goes: this is who I
am.

I am a New Yorker. I was here, in my apartment downtown, on
September 11th. I watched the Towers burn from the roof of my
building. I went inside so that I couldn't see them when they fell.
I had friends who were inside. I have a friend who still has nightmares about watching people jump and fall from the Towers. He will never be the same. How many people like him do you know? People that can't sit in a restaurant without plotting an
escape route, in case it blows up?

I am a worker. I work across the street from the Citigroup Center, which the government told us is a "target" of terrorism. Later, we found out they were relaying very old information, but it was already too late.
They had given me bad dreams again. The subway stop near my office
was crowded with bomb-sniffing dogs, policemen in heavy protective
gear, soldiers. Now, every time I enter or exit my office, all of
my possessions are X-rayed to make sure I don't have any weapons.
How often are you stopped by a soldier with a bomb-sniffing dog
outside your office?

I am a neighbor. I have a neighbor who is a 9/11 widow. She has
two children. My husband does odd jobs for her now, like building
bookshelves. Things her husband should do. He uses her husband's
tools, and the two little girls tell him, "Those are our daddy's
tools." How many 9/11 widows and orphans do you know? How often do
you fill in for their dead loved ones?

I am a taxpayer. I worked my butt off to get where I did, and so
did my parents. My parents saved and borrowed and sent me to
college. I worked my way through graduate school. I won a full
tuition scholarship to law school. All for the privilege of working
2,600 hours last year. That works out to a 50 hour week, every
week, without any vacation days at all. I get to work by 9 am and
rarely leave before 9 pm. I eat dinner at my office much more often
than I eat dinner at home. My husband and I paid over $70,000 in
federal income tax last year. At some point in the future, we will
have to pay much more -- once this country faces its deficit and the
impossible burden of Social Security. In fact, the areas of the
country that supported Kerry -- New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts -- they are the financial centers of the nation. They are the tax base of this country. How much did you pay, Kansas? How much did you contribute to this government you support, Alabama? How much of this war in Iraq did you pay for?

I am a liberal. The funny part is, liberals have this reputation for living in Never-Neverland, being idealists, not being sensible. But let me
tell you how I see the world: I see America as one nation in a world
of nations. Therefore, I think we should try to get along with
other nations. I see that gay people exist. Therefore, I think they should be allowed to exist, and be treated the same as other people. I see ways in which women are not allowed to control their own bodies. Therefore, I think we should
give women more control over their bodies. I see that people have awful diseases. Therefore, I think we should enable scientists to try to cure them. I see that we have a Constitution. Therefore, I think it should be upheld. I see that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Therefore, I think that Iraq was not an imminent danger to me. It seems so pragmatic to me. How do you see the world? Do you really think voting against gay marriage will keep people from being gay? Would you
really prefer that people continue to die from Parkinson's disease?
Do you really not care about the Constitutional rights of political
detainees? Would you really have supported the war if you knew the
truth, or would you have wanted to spend more of our money on health
care, job training, terrorism preparedness?

I am an American. I have an American flag flying outside my home.
I love my home more than anything. I love that I grew up right
outside New York City. I first went to the Statue of Liberty with
my 5th grade class, and my mom and dad took me to the Empire State
Building when I was 8. I love taking the subway to Yankee Stadium.
I loved living in Washington DC and going on dates to the Lincoln
Memorial. It is because I love this country so much that I argue
with my political opponents as much I do.

I am not safe. I never feel safe. My in-laws live in a small town in Ohio, and that town has received more federal funding, per capita, for
terrorism preparedness than New York City has. I take subways and buses every day. I work in a skyscraper across the street from a "target." I have emergency supplies and a spare pair of sneakers in my desk, in case something
happens while I'm at work. Do you? How many times a month do you worry that your subway is going to blow up? When you hear sirens on the street, do you run to the window to make sure everything is okay? When you hear an airplane, do you flinch? Do you dread beautiful, blue-skied September days? I don't know a single New Yorker who doesn't spend the month of September on
tip-toes, superstitiously praying for rain so we don't have to relive
that beautiful, blue-skied day.

I am lonely. I feel that we, as a nation, have alienated all our friends and further provoked our enemies. I feel unprotected. Most of all I feel alienated from my fellow citizens, because I don't understand what you are thinking. You voted for a man who started a war in Iraq for no reason, against the wishes of the entire world. You voted for a man whose
lack of foresight and inability to plan has led to massive
insurgencies in Iraq, where weapons are disappearing into the hands
of terrorists. You voted for a man who let Osama Bin Laden escape
into the hills of Afghanistan so that he could start that war in Iraq. You voted for a man who doesn't want to let people love who they want to love; doesn't want to let doctors cure their patients; doesn't want to let women rule their destinies. I
don't understand why you voted for this man. For me, it is not
enough that he is personable; it is not enough that he seems like one of the guys. Why did you vote for him? Why did you elect a man that lied to us in order to convince us to go to war? (Ten years ago you were incensed when our
president lied about his sex life; you thought it was an impeachable
offense.) Why did you elect a leader who thinks that strength
cannot include diplomacy or international cooperation? Why did you
elect a man who did nothing except run away and hide on September
11?

Most of all, I am terrified. I mean daily, I am afraid that I will not survive this. I am afraid that I will lose my husband, that I will
never have children, that I will never grow old and watch the sunset in a backyard of my own. I am afraid that my career -- which should end with a triumphant and good-natured roast at a retirement party in 2035 -- will be cut
short by an attack on me and my colleagues, as we sit sending emails
and making phone calls one ordinary afternoon. Is your life at
stake? Are you terrified?

I don't think you are. I don't think you realize what you have
done. And if anything happens to me or the people I love, I blame
you. I wanted you to know that.

From Holland, the Netherlands:

Hey fishy,
 

Mail Bag About Bush

Last screening: coffee and cigarettes by Jim jarmusch. Viewed the film because it was said to be about a bunch of cool people having cool conversations in different casual settings. Reminded us of what we are trying to do with Transcendence Television, the reality show, that's the running name now. But after 36 minutes I turned it off. Forced, stilted, transparent, insulting it was so bad, utterly meaningless. I had such hopes for it. how can you ruin such a brilliant idea as a movie about coffee and cigarettes? But it is everything that we are trying not to make. It has illustrated for me clearly that we are on the right path with this non-reality reality-show idea. Let it be real. Just real. No planning shit. No telling people to improv shit. Just catch the action and emotion of the human experience in the moment and edit it all together. show us what we are.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
And now for a few from the mail bag:

From New York City

<<From: Nicole Henderson
New York, NY
Sent: Friday, November 05, 2004 11:03 AM
Subject: I wanted you to know.

I am writing this letter to the people in the red states in the middle of the country -- the people who voted for George W. Bush. I am writing this letter because I don't think we know each other.

So I'll make an introduction. I am a New Yorker who voted for John
Kerry. I used to live in California, and if I still lived there, I
would vote for Kerry. I used to live in Washington, DC, and if I
still lived there, I would vote for Kerry. Kerry won in all three
of those regions.

Maybe you want to know more about me. Or maybe not; maybe you think
you know me already. You think I am some anti-American anarchist
because I dislike George W. Bush. You think that I am immoral and
anti-family, because I support women's reproductive freedom and gay
rights. You think that I am dangerous, and even evil, because I do
not abide by your religious beliefs.

Maybe you are content to think that, to write me off as a "liberal"
-- the dreaded "L" word -- and rejoice that your candidate has
triumphed over evil, immoral, anti-American, anti-family people like
me. But maybe you are still curious. So here goes: this is who I
am.

I am a New Yorker. I was here, in my apartment downtown, on
September 11th. I watched the Towers burn from the roof of my
building. I went inside so that I couldn't see them when they fell.
I had friends who were inside. I have a friend who still has nightmares about watching people jump and fall from the Towers. He will never be the same. How many people like him do you know? People that can't sit in a restaurant without plotting an
escape route, in case it blows up?

I am a worker. I work across the street from the Citigroup Center, which the government told us is a "target" of terrorism. Later, we found out they were relaying very old information, but it was already too late.
They had given me bad dreams again. The subway stop near my office
was crowded with bomb-sniffing dogs, policemen in heavy protective
gear, soldiers. Now, every time I enter or exit my office, all of
my possessions are X-rayed to make sure I don't have any weapons.
How often are you stopped by a soldier with a bomb-sniffing dog
outside your office?

I am a neighbor. I have a neighbor who is a 9/11 widow. She has
two children. My husband does odd jobs for her now, like building
bookshelves. Things her husband should do. He uses her husband's
tools, and the two little girls tell him, "Those are our daddy's
tools." How many 9/11 widows and orphans do you know? How often do
you fill in for their dead loved ones?

I am a taxpayer. I worked my butt off to get where I did, and so
did my parents. My parents saved and borrowed and sent me to
college. I worked my way through graduate school. I won a full
tuition scholarship to law school. All for the privilege of working
2,600 hours last year. That works out to a 50 hour week, every
week, without any vacation days at all. I get to work by 9 am and
rarely leave before 9 pm. I eat dinner at my office much more often
than I eat dinner at home. My husband and I paid over $70,000 in
federal income tax last year. At some point in the future, we will
have to pay much more -- once this country faces its deficit and the
impossible burden of Social Security. In fact, the areas of the
country that supported Kerry -- New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts -- they are the financial centers of the nation. They are the tax base of this country. How much did you pay, Kansas? How much did you contribute to this government you support, Alabama? How much of this war in Iraq did you pay for?

I am a liberal. The funny part is, liberals have this reputation for living in Never-Neverland, being idealists, not being sensible. But let me
tell you how I see the world: I see America as one nation in a world
of nations. Therefore, I think we should try to get along with
other nations. I see that gay people exist. Therefore, I think they should be allowed to exist, and be treated the same as other people. I see ways in which women are not allowed to control their own bodies. Therefore, I think we should
give women more control over their bodies. I see that people have awful diseases. Therefore, I think we should enable scientists to try to cure them. I see that we have a Constitution. Therefore, I think it should be upheld. I see that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Therefore, I think that Iraq was not an imminent danger to me. It seems so pragmatic to me. How do you see the world? Do you really think voting against gay marriage will keep people from being gay? Would you
really prefer that people continue to die from Parkinson's disease?
Do you really not care about the Constitutional rights of political
detainees? Would you really have supported the war if you knew the
truth, or would you have wanted to spend more of our money on health
care, job training, terrorism preparedness?

I am an American. I have an American flag flying outside my home.
I love my home more than anything. I love that I grew up right
outside New York City. I first went to the Statue of Liberty with
my 5th grade class, and my mom and dad took me to the Empire State
Building when I was 8. I love taking the subway to Yankee Stadium.
I loved living in Washington DC and going on dates to the Lincoln
Memorial. It is because I love this country so much that I argue
with my political opponents as much I do.

I am not safe. I never feel safe. My in-laws live in a small town in Ohio, and that town has received more federal funding, per capita, for
terrorism preparedness than New York City has. I take subways and buses every day. I work in a skyscraper across the street from a "target." I have emergency supplies and a spare pair of sneakers in my desk, in case something
happens while I'm at work. Do you? How many times a month do you worry that your subway is going to blow up? When you hear sirens on the street, do you run to the window to make sure everything is okay? When you hear an airplane, do you flinch? Do you dread beautiful, blue-skied September days? I don't know a single New Yorker who doesn't spend the month of September on
tip-toes, superstitiously praying for rain so we don't have to relive
that beautiful, blue-skied day.

I am lonely. I feel that we, as a nation, have alienated all our friends and further provoked our enemies. I feel unprotected. Most of all I feel alienated from my fellow citizens, because I don't understand what you are thinking. You voted for a man who started a war in Iraq for no reason, against the wishes of the entire world. You voted for a man whose
lack of foresight and inability to plan has led to massive
insurgencies in Iraq, where weapons are disappearing into the hands
of terrorists. You voted for a man who let Osama Bin Laden escape
into the hills of Afghanistan so that he could start that war in Iraq. You voted for a man who doesn't want to let people love who they want to love; doesn't want to let doctors cure their patients; doesn't want to let women rule their destinies. I
don't understand why you voted for this man. For me, it is not
enough that he is personable; it is not enough that he seems like one of the guys. Why did you vote for him? Why did you elect a man that lied to us in order to convince us to go to war? (Ten years ago you were incensed when our
president lied about his sex life; you thought it was an impeachable
offense.) Why did you elect a leader who thinks that strength
cannot include diplomacy or international cooperation? Why did you
elect a man who did nothing except run away and hide on September
11?

Most of all, I am terrified. I mean daily, I am afraid that I will not survive this. I am afraid that I will lose my husband, that I will
never have children, that I will never grow old and watch the sunset in a backyard of my own. I am afraid that my career -- which should end with a triumphant and good-natured roast at a retirement party in 2035 -- will be cut
short by an attack on me and my colleagues, as we sit sending emails
and making phone calls one ordinary afternoon. Is your life at
stake? Are you terrified?

I don't think you are. I don't think you realize what you have
done. And if anything happens to me or the people I love, I blame
you. I wanted you to know that.

From Holland, the Netherlands:

Hey fishy,
 

Saw a cool play tonight, called fell in love with a girl. Its theatre season again. I love the little theatres. They are so in your face. There is this girl there who writes plays. She is so smart and funny. I want her. I love that. Reminds you of what you’re really looking for in a girl. You can meet a lot of hot girls. They're the easy ones to meet here in Miami. But how often do you meet one who can go head to head with you verbally. Or make you laugh hysterically. But then the other test is the whole class thing. Cause sometimes you do meet girls who are really smart but they are just so you know street, that they just don't know how to act appropriately. They don't have manners or discretion or diplomacy or grace. That's the tough one. Maybe they’re just too street. We get a lot of that in Miami. Its not like in the northeast. I'd probably be married by now but I just have this image of Julie Andrews in the sound of music. And I just can’t shake it.  

On the plane on the way to Washington DC, just for the night. And appropriately watching a DVD I rented called The War Room. This is the 1991 documentary about how James Carville and George Stephanopoulos engineered the Clinton campaign for president. This is a great movie. Great exploration of American politics. James Carville delivers this really moving speech to his whole crew where he just breaks down and cries once they realize that they are going to win. This guy is my hero. He really believes in what he's doing. You have to see this movie. 

I remember this time well. Me and Shattered were recording a new album, the Aftermath album, our last one. I became a Deputy Registrar with the county that year so I could register people to vote because I hated the Bush years so much. I did everything I could to promote Clinton, every concert we played, every fan we talked to. And after I talked them into voting, I registered them and then tried to talk them into Clinton. Its not like I thought Clinton was all that. I kind of agreed with Mary Matalin that he was always prevaricating and deceiving us all the time---his campaign was riddled with scandal from the moment he announced his intention to become president, but for me personally I didn't care because I felt that almost anyone would be better than George Bush. It was the old school good old boy liars versus the new school young blooded liars.