I also got my “V for Vendetta” mask, and saw the related movie.
2 minute read
May 25, 2008, 5:39 PM
Yeah, my Guy Fawkes masks arrived on Friday. I had them delivered to the house, and they were in a smaller box than I expected, but it works. Anonymous has grown accustomed to how I look in the bandanna, so it’s time to mix things up a bit. And for the next Anonymous raid, which is going to be pirate-themed, a Guy Fawkes mask looks more pirate-like than anything else I can think of. Plus there’s a party store in a shopping center right around the corner from where I live, and there are a lot of pirate things there. I think this might just work, don’t you know.
And on Saturday, Jeff, Isis, and Isis’s daughter all came over to my house, and, after getting Chipotle to go, we sat down and watched V for Vendetta, which Isis has on DVD. What an amazing movie. Watching the movie really brings a lot of why it’s a popular choice for Anonymous into perspective. With constant video surveillance, the V masks made everyone look alike, thus surveillance-proof. Just like we do for the Scilons. In fact, they showed a huge mass of people all wearing Guy Fawkes masks at the end of the movie. Plus the special effects were awesome, as they blew up the Palace of Westminster at the end of the movie.
And of course, it was a quite appropriate setting to watch the movie in, since I have a V for Vendetta mask hanging from the wall for now:
Continue reading…A belated reportback is better than no reportback at all, I suppose.
9 minute read
May 25, 2008, 5:29 PM
Hey, I’ve been busy. So sue me. But I must report back that Katie and I had a great time last weekend. We went all over the place, and had a great time.
However, it started out somewhat rough – Katie took the train up to DC, specifically the Cardinal. And it was late. According to AmtrakDelays.com, on May 16, the eastbound Cardinal, train #50, was an hour and 42 minutes late arriving in Staunton, where Katie got on. Then at Union Station, where I was waiting for her, the train managed to rack up another 44 minutes of delays, and thus ended up getting in at 8:21 PM. That would make it two hours and 26 minutes late. This thing was supposed to show up at 5:55 PM, which would have fit my schedule quite nicely. Leave work, take Metro to Union Station, wait a few minutes, get Katie, and then ride back to Glenmont. However, I found out about the Staunton delay from Katie well in advance, so no problems there. I compensated other places as far as that delay went, and ended up staying later at work, since there were a few things I needed to take care of anyway, and planned to arrive in time for the new delayed arrival. Okay.
So arriving at Union Station, I got in, and immediately checked the boards to see what the deal was. Another delay. Lovely. So I ended up just kind of wandering around Union Station for the next two hours, as I had nothing else to do. I was totally unprepared for a longer delay. However, I did have my iPod, and so at least I got to listen to Randi Rhodes (now on Nova M Radio!). And with headphones on was how I passed a good hour or so of that delay, as I went in and out of stores, seeing what amused me. I also managed to find a relatively quiet corner of the station to make a phone call, finding out about how things were going on the train from Katie. That quiet spot ended up being in a far corner of the parking garage, interestingly enough. But hey, it was nice out, so it worked. I got to watch train movements north of the station, and found out that the initial delay was due to weather, and then heavy rail traffic caused the delays closer in. Okay. Beyond the control of either one of us. What are you going to do, I suppose.
Categories: Activism, Amtrak, Arlington, Arundel Mills, Katie, Project Chanology, Security, Washington DC, Wikipedia
I can’t believe I bought one of those “V for Vendetta” masks…
< 1 minute read
May 17, 2008, 11:38 AM
I can’t believe it – I bought one of those “V for Vendetta” Guy Fawkes masks. One of these:
Yes, after having been to three of these things, I admit – I run with Anonymous, at least during their street protests. And with the next event having a “pirate” theme, I figured it was time to finally buy one of those things, since the V for Vendetta mask looks more pirate-like than anything I could come up with.
All I know is, it’s going to be so fun. I really enjoy myself at these Anonymous events. It’s a great cause, and these people are SO fun!
Categories: Project Chanology
“Operation Fail Game” appeared to be a success, and it’s weird to see my two protest crowds only blocks away from each other…
7 minute read
May 11, 2008, 11:41 AM
Saturday was the day that the DC chapter of Anonymous was putting on “Operation Fail Game”, the May protest against the Church of Scientology. The title of “Operation Fail Game” is a twist on Scientology’s “Fair Game” policy, where anyone opposing Scientology is considered fair game for harrassment by the Church.
Our protest was supposed to start around 11:00 at Dupont Circle, march up to the Hubbard House, and then go from there to our usual location in front of the Founding Church of Scientology at the intersection of 20th Street, R Street, and Connecticut Avenue NW.
That didn’t go according to plan, because when I got to Dupont Circle just after 11:00, the place was deserted. Where were all the Anons? I rode the Metro in from Wheaton with several other Anons, and so I knew I wasn’t going crazy. We all took an opportunity to mask up at this point, though, since the idea is to be anonymous, and arriving already masked up is considered somewhat important. One difference between masking up for Anonymous and for black bloc: I wear my glasses for Anonymous, but not for black bloc. Anonymous isn’t the kind of deal where I’m afraid that my glasses might get messed up, but black blocs have a much bigger potential to turn ugly. After everyone masked up, I basically took charge in figuring out what happened. I first called Isis. She was at the Hubbard House. Then I called Jeff. He was at the usual spot. Not being quite sure where the Hubbard House was, we ended up going to the usual spot, in front of the Church of Scientology building.
Categories: Project Chanology
It’s like when worlds collide!
3 minute read
May 9, 2008, 8:32 PM
This was definitely a fun day at the office today! I got to meet my predecessor at Food & Water Watch, a woman named Lis. She left so much information for me as far as how to do the job while I got the hang of things, and now I finally got to thank her. Additionally, Leah, a former Food & Water Watch coworker, was also in town, and so with these two visiting, we had a little office get-together after work. So fun. Knowing they were coming, I brought my “duckie” camera to work – the yellow rubber-covered Vivitar camera. And so here you are:
Categories: Silver Spring, Work
What the…?
2 minute read
May 8, 2008, 10:55 PM
Look what my neighbor and I found in front of our apartment complex upon our return from work today:
Categories: Silver Spring
The fact that this primary process is still going on amazes me…
4 minute read
May 6, 2008, 11:42 PM
The fact that the Democratic Party has not yet come up with a nominee amazes me. But what can we say? It’s the first serious female contender for president against the first serious black contender for the same. So unless John McCain wins, we will have either the first woman president, or our first black president. Of course, if Grandpa McCain wins, he would beat the record for oldest elected president. Ronald Reagan was 69 when he was first elected in 1981. Grandpa McCain would be 72 if elected. But we’re not talking about McCain. He’s got his nomination sealed up. Let’s discuss… THE DEMOCRATS!
I first began dissociating myself from the Democratic Party in 2007 after the Democrats took power in Congress and proceeded to be an amazing disappointment. And with the way this election has been handled, I’m quite proud to now call myself an Independent. The hell with the party.
First of all, their system has issues. I never thought I’d be praising the Republicans on something, but they do have a simple, straightforward nominating process. It’s winner-take-all, where the person with the most votes in a given primary takes all the delegates for that state. It’s very similar to our electoral college system in every state except Maine and Nebraska (let’s not even go there on the electoral college – we’re not to that point yet). There are also no “superdelegates” in the Republican nominating process. Thus John McCain has had it all sewn up for months now.
Categories: National politics
There was a downed train on the Red Line this morning… and it was mine!
3 minute read
May 5, 2008, 3:06 PM
What a commute it was to work this morning. Lately, my commutes have been uneventful, but this one was a little more exciting than most. I got on Breda 4051 at Glenmont, the fifth car in a six-car train after missing an eight-car train by seconds. So I boarded 4051, and waited for the train to leave.
*dingdongdingdong* “Step back, doors closing!” Doors close.
*fssh* *clunk*
That clunk sound raised an eyebrow, since it’s not normally supposed to do that. But then the Breda buzz began, and we were off. Wheaton, doors open on the left. Forest Glen, doors open on the left. Silver Spring, doors open on the left. At Silver Spring, the car was full to the point where there are no seats left, but there was no one standing up. Just as well, I suppose.
So then shortly after leaving Silver Spring, we heard a loud clunk, and the train came to a rather quick stop. And we were stopped. The operator was quick to announce, “Train will be moving.” Meanwhile, the train was making some interesting sounds.
*hisssss* *clunk*
*hisssss* *clunk*
Categories: WMATA
And we are once again fully operational. Now I just need something to photograph…
2 minute read
May 4, 2008, 9:16 PM
I finally got a chance to test the new Kodak Z1012 IS camera tonight, and let me say that this is a big leap from Big Mavica. So here’s a quick round of test shots:
Categories: Cameras
I have about 7 GB of SD card volume now – think that’s enough?
2 minute read
May 3, 2008, 2:23 PM
After a trip down to Stuarts Draft on Friday night, Mom and I went to Costco in Harrisonburg to get various odds and ends. Among other things, I got two 2 GB SD cards to use on the new cameras. Thus I have the two 1 GB Polaroid SD cards I bought at Target, the free 1 GB card I got from Kodak along with a fanny pack of some kind (I wouldn’t call that thing a camera bag), and now these two 2 GB ones from Costco. And I hope I’m all set. I get like 200 photos on a single 1 GB card on the Vivitar, and that’s 6.0 megapixels. Then I’ve been too busy to give the 10.1 megapixel Kodak a test run yet (it arrived on Wednesday), so I don’t know about how that will go, but hopefully I’ve got enough capacity now.
That’s the thing about this – I have no track record at all with the Kodak, and then I’ve only done about three photo sets with the Vivitar. That was a test set, then Operation Reconnect with Anonymous, and then counter-protesting the Nazis with my regular activist buddies. Going by Big Mavica’s standard’s doesn’t work, since everything’s bigger now. The Vivitar is 1.5 times “bigger” than Big Mavica, and the Kodak is roughly 2.5 times “bigger” than Big Mavica (remember that the “big” in Big Mavica referred to the resolution). Plus the movies are different, too. The Vivitar shoots in AVI format at 320×240 (Big Mavica shot MPEG), and then the Kodak shoots really high-resolution videos.
Categories: Cameras
Looks like Metro might go out to Dulles after all!
< 1 minute read
April 30, 2008, 2:48 PM
Reminds me of that song from Today’s Special that goes, “It’s wonderful news, it’s a glorious day, everything’s fine, everything is okay,” as we learn today that the FTA is going to kick in their share for Metro’s extension to Dulles.
And let me tell you something, too. Having been out that way on a few occasions, getting around out there is a real @#$%$. People drive like idiots out there in Loudoun County, and everything requires driving because it’s all sprawly. Maybe this will cause them to rethink the way they plan out there, and design a more urban setting rather than the suburban sprawl that they’ve got going out there. It would also give the privately-operated Dulles Greenway a run for its money, I’d say. That thing is downright pricey…
Plus that means that if Katie’s up there visiting family, or if Mom has another teachers’ convention up there, or if I want to visit my friend Matthew, I would be able to take Metro right out there. As it is, I pride myself on my own Metro-accessibility. Anytime I have friends over, I tell them to take Metro to Glenmont and then I’ll pick them up at the West Kiss and Ride and drive them the mile and a half back to my house. And with the price of gas anymore, Metro is golden (even if a lot of the seats are orange and brown).
So all in all, not bad. And they’re also going to continue to hold Metro’s feet to the fire as far as maintenance is concerned, so perhaps it will reduce Red Line delays in the end. Should be interesting regardless…
Categories: WMATA
I am convinced that the purpose of the emissions testing in Maryland is for the task of extricating an additional fourteen bucks on top of everything else you have to pay around here…
2 minute read
April 26, 2008, 10:36 AM
Well, this morning, this beautiful April 26 where the sun is shining and the birds are singing, I had to drive down to White Oak to get an emissions test for the Sable. I’m all for keeping noxious fumes out of the atmosphere, but this was pathetic. I’m charged fourteen bucks for a five minute visit with Mr. Personality. Most of this time was spent processing my payment of $14. For the actual test, all I did was drive up to the testing location, turn off the car, get out, he plugs his computer into the car, looks at his screen, unhooks his computer, and hands me an emissions certificate saying I passed. Yaaaaay. No cone over the tailpipe or anything. No computers electronically “smelled” what’s actually coming out of the back end of my car.
This was also one of those things where I spent more time traveling to the location than actually spending time at the location. I always say that any trip, to be worthwhile, should be where the amount of time at the location is greater than or equal to the amount of time spent traveling to and from the location. This did not qualify, especially when you consider that I got stuck behind a roadblock on Randolph Road caused by an accident or something, and thus had to turn around, go down New Hampshire Avenue to White Oak, and then catch Route 29 from there to go up to the emissions testing station.
Categories: Mercury Sable
The Watha T. Daniel Library has actually been demolished…
3 minute read
April 23, 2008, 8:28 PM
I’ve known the Shaw neighborhood in DC for almost four years now due to my patronage of the Infoshop that is located within it. In that time, Shaw has definitely grown up, as the Washington Convention Center is causing gentrification of the area. However, one major sore spot in the neighborhood for as long as I’ve been visiting Shaw has been the Watha T. Daniel Library, which is located directly across the street from the Shaw Metro station. The library closed in 2004 for a reconstruction, and was originally projected to reopen in 2006. That didn’t happen. From its closing in 2004 through about early 2007, the building just sat abandoned.
You may recall that I ran a photo of the Watha T. Daniel Library last May in the Photo Feature, shortly after the fence went up:
Categories: Washington DC
The most disturbing thing about the whole thing was seeing the young child in the crowd wearing that t-shirt…
2 minute read
April 20, 2008, 8:35 PM
Many may have heard about the neo-Nazi group that marched down Constitution Avenue to the Capitol in Washington DC on April 19 as part of an anti-immigration march. I was there, along with all of my usual protest buddies, counter-protesting this march. Of course, I was half figuring that these Nazi whack-jobs wouldn’t even show up, a la July 4 last year, when we showed up ready for action, and they didn’t.
But show they did, and we were ready. We gathered at 14th and Constitution waiting for them, and things got interesting when two members of the Nazi group showed up near the Washington Monument. Three of our people were arrested after someone attacked the Nazis with a banner. Then things slowed down for a while. It ultimately picked up again when the Nazis got started. These white-supremacist nutjobs were outnumbered by police officers protecting them from us, and then we, counter-demonstrating them, also outnumbered them.
Marching to the Capitol, we marched outside the police lines, primarily on the sidewalk, attempting to drown out the Nazis’ message. When they got to the Capitol, they took the center part of the west lawn, and we were in the south part of it. While they gave their speeches, we played Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s I Have a Dream speech over a bullhorn. Hopefully we got our message across that racists are not welcome in our city.
Categories: Activism
And Ride On welcomes Pope Benedict…
2 minute read
April 16, 2008, 7:34 PM
Even though the pope is not scheduled to visit Montgomery County to my knowledge, and certainly not ride a bus in Montgomery County, Ride On is still getting into the whole papal-visit thing:
Categories: Ride On