View allAll Photos Tagged progressive
Progressive Field, Home of the Cleveland Indians. What a beautiful ballpark and while I was bummed about not getting a sunlit field, look at that sunset!! Out of 30 MLB ballparks, this is the 23rd ballpark that I photographed. _DSC4715A
This is stitched together from 4 different photos.
This is from the June 14, 2008 game. The mighty Cleveland Indians fell in extra innings to the San Diego Padres in an interleague game, 7-2.
Photo taken from Section 572, Row X, Seat 14.
Progressive Field / Cleveland, OH
Dedicated to our friends in Comancheria.
The title is " American Dystopia" but frightened by Homeland Securitate we changed title to much moderate one.
Guantanamera, rrrrrrraaaaa-rraaa-rraaa guantanamerrrrrrrrra, rrraaaa-rrra etc.com
Elwood L. Robinson, Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs at Cambridge College in Massachusetts since 2012, has been elected Chancellor of Winston-Salem State University by the Board of Governors of the 17-campus University of North Carolina. UNC President Tom Ross placed Robinson's name in nomination today (September 26) during a special meeting of the board, held on the campus of WSSU. Robinson, 58, will assume his new duties January 1, 2015, succeeding Donald J. Reaves, who announced last spring that he would step down as Chancellor on December 31 after eight years in the post.
In recommending Robinson to the Board of Governors, Ross said: "I am thrilled at the opportunity to bring a talented North Carolinian back home. Elwood Robinson is going to be a phenomenal leader for Winston-Salem State University. He brings to the job a real passion for higher education and three decades of progressive leadership experience as a faculty mentor, department chair, dean, and provost. Much of that experience was gained at North Carolina Central University, his alma mater. He is a proven leader who promotes innovation, collaboration and an unwavering commitment to academic excellence and student success. He also understands WSSUâs proud history and its potential to play an even larger role in the life of this city and this state, so I am delighted he has agreed to join our leadership team."
Cambridge College is a private, not-for-profit institution offering undergraduate, graduate, professional degree and certificate programs through schools of Undergraduate Studies, Education, Management and Psychology & Counseling. Geared toward working adults, most courses are taught evenings and weekends, with many blending onsite and online components. It enrolls more than 5,000 students across its main Cambridge campus and seven regional academic centers in Massachusetts, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, California and Puerto Rico.
As Cambridge Collegeâs chief academic officer, Robinson has advised the president on matters of educational policy and the development of teaching and academic programs. He also has managed the school's academic planning and program reviews and overseen its regional academic centers. Under his watch, the teacher education program has achieved national accreditation and the College has forged an innovative partnership with Granite State College in New Hampshire to offer online programs â the first private/state partnership of its kind in New England. In addition, the American Council on Education has awarded Cambridge a grant to establish an Innovation and Change Lab designed to increase the number of first-generation and nontraditional students earning college degrees.
A native of Ivanhoe, NC, Robinson graduated magna cum laude from North Carolina Central University in 1978 with a degree in psychology and then earned a masterâs degree in the field from Fisk University in Tennessee (1980). After completing a pre-doctoral internship at Duke University Medical Center, performing rotations in neuropsychology, psychiatric inpatient and behavioral medicine and health psychology, he earned a doctorate in clinical psychology from Pennsylvania State University (1986). He later completed his clinical training as a research associate at Duke University Medical Center (1990-1993).
Robinson joined the faculty of NCCU in 1984. In 1993, he was named Director of the Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) Program, which provides research training opportunities for students and faculty from minority groups underrepresented in the biomedical sciences. He directed the federally funded program for the next 11 years, establishing collaborations with several major research universities, expanding course offerings, and mentoring more than 100 MARC Scholars. Remarkably, 80 percent of those scholars entered graduate school and 40 percent have achieved doctoral degrees.
From 1993-1996, Robinson also served as chair of NCCU's Psychology Department. During his three-year term, he instituted a new clinical masterâs program, developed a faculty development program, increased external funding, and improved graduation rates by 25 percent. Concurrently, Robinson directed NCCU's Alcohol Research Center, funded by a grant from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. A collaboration with predominantly minority and research-intensive institutions, the center provided support to faculty interested in alcohol-related research.
In 2006, Robinson was named founding Dean of the NCCU College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, where he oversaw nine departments, five centers and over 200 faculty and staff. Over the next six years, he generated over $15 million in federal grants and other external funding, achieved accreditation for 16 programs, established a Department of Social Work, secured funding for a $1-million endowed professorship, and developed a national partnership with the Institute for Homeland Security and the Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium. He remained in the post until he left North Carolina for Cambridge College in 2012.
Active in professional and civic organizations, Robinson has received numerous awards and honors over the course of his career. A former National Institutes of Health Fellow, he has received the Sigma Xi Award (1995), the Omega Psi Phi Founderâs Award (2007), an Image Award from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (2003), and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine (2012). He has served on the boards of the YMCA of the Greater Triangle, the Center for Child and Family Health, and the Uplift Foundation, and has served as a delegate for the People to People Citizen Ambassador Program to China, Egypt and South Africa.
Robinson is married to Denise Robinson, a 1978 NCCU graduate and former elementary school teacher. Together, they have two children: Chanita Robinson Coulter, a graduate of North Carolina A&T State University and school teacher living in Charleston, SC; and Devin, a student at NCCU.
The University of North Carolina
The oldest public university in the nation, the University of North Carolina enrolls more than 220,000 students and encompasses all 16 of North Carolina's public institutions that grant baccalaureate degrees, as well as the NC School of Science and Mathematics, the nationâs first public residential high school for gifted students. UNC campuses support a broad array of distinguished liberal-arts programs, two medical schools and one teaching hospital, two law schools, a veterinary school, a school of pharmacy, 11 nursing programs, 15 schools of education, three schools of engineering, and a specialized school for performing artists. The UNC Center for Public Television, with its 11-station statewide broadcast network, is also under the University umbrella.
Winston-Salem State University
Located in the central Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, Winston-Salem State University (www.wssu.edu) enrolls nearly 6,200 students in 43 undergraduate and 10 graduate programs. Founded in 1892, WSSU in 1925 became the first African American institution in the nation to grant elementary education teaching degrees. Today, WSSU's award-winning Motorsports Management major is the nation's first bachelor of science degree program dedicated to motorsports management. WSSU is the third-largest producer of nurses in North Carolina, the Smithsonian Institution has named the Diggs Gallery at WSSU one of the nationâs best regional, contemporary African American art galleries.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
Concerning its air force, Argentina had been a very progressive country and one of the first movers on the South American continent. The Air Force's history begins with the establishment of the Army Aviation Service's Escuela de Aviación Militar (Military Aviation School) on 10 August 1912. By the 1940s there were several air units in the Army and the Navy; the first step towards an independent force came on 11 February 1944 with the establishment of the Aeronautical Command, which would go on to become the Argentine Air Force on 4 January 1945, an independent force on par with the Army and the Navy.
One of Argentina’s fighter mainstays was Curtiss’ export model of the Hawk 75H. Basically it had a lower rated Wright Cyclone engine and a non-retractable streamlined main undercarriage. It also lacked the characteristic extra cockpit side windows of the P-36 models. With its non-retractable undercarriage it was also somewhat lighter and easier to maintain than the P-36.
This simplified Hawk 75H model had a larger range than its more powerful ‘sisterships’, but it’s maximum speed was some 50 km/h less than that of the standard P-36. Except for the Model 75H, other export versions with a non-retractable undercarriage were designated as Hawk 75M, N. O and Q.
Argentina bought 29 Hawk 75O’s, intended for rough-field operations and ease of maintenance. An additional 20 were licence-built by Fábrica Argentina de Aviones (F.M.A.) in Argentina in 1940. Also, the Curtiss Hawk 75H demonstrator NR1277 (c/n 12328) was eventually sold to Argentina. Standard armament was one 11.35 mm and three 7.65 mm Madsen light machine guns, plus provision for up to 10 bombs of 30 pounds each on underwing pylons.
By 1942 it was already clear that the Hawk was not a sufficient contender, so Fábrica Argentina de Aviones was requested to develop an indigenous fighter with superior performance to the Hawk.
The result was the I.Ae.26 ‘Aguja’ – a compact fighter aircraft of conventional construction, with an all-metal construction (except for fabric-covered rudders), a retractable landing gear, fully closed cockpit and powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1830-G “Twin Wasp” radial engine, which was built in license, e. g. for the I.Ae.24 ‘Calquin’ light bomber which was under development in parallel. Overall, the Aguja resembled much the Australian CAC ‘Boomerang’, even though the aircraft were not related at all.
The Aguja made faster progress, though, and the first prototype took into the air on 1st of September 1944 – revealing several flaws like poor directional stability and a landing gear cover design that would flutter and vibrate at certain speeds.
It took until April 1945 and two more prototypes to rectify the problems – by the time the Aguja was already outdated, but the Fuerza Aerea Argentina nevertheless ordered 50 aircraft in order to replace the totally obsolete Hawk 75O fleet, which still was Argentina’s fighter backbone.
Service aircraft received an armament of four fixed 0.5” (12.7mm) machine guns in the wings, as well as underwing hardpoints to carry bundles of light bombs or two bombs of up to 500 lb (227 kg) caliber.
The Aguja was not the quickest aircraft, but it was easy to handle and operate, and it proved to be very agile at low altitude, so that the type was primarily assigned to ground attack duties. The true interceptor role was issued to 30 Fiat G.55As, that were bought from Italy in 1947, together with 15 G.55B trainers – but a year or so later Argentina returned about half of the aircraft to Fiat. Hence, the Agujas had to fill this gap.
Several I.Ae.26s even saw “hot action” and took part of a series of air-to-ground attack missions during the 1955 ‘Revolución Libertadora’.
The vintage Hawks still soldiered on, though - the last Argentinean Hawks remained in active service until November 1954, but some were kept airworthy until the early sixties, when all piston-engined aircraft, including the Aguja, were replaced by jet fighters, e .g. the Gloster Meteor.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 27 ft 11 1/2 in (8.53 m)
Wingspan: 31 ft 8 1/2 in (9.68 m)
Height: 12 ft 6 in (3.81 m)
Wing area: 188 ft² (17.5 m²)
Empty weight: 5,373 lb (2,437 kg)
Loaded weight: 7,699 lb (3,492 kg)
Powerplant:
1 × Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp radial engine, 1.200 hp (895 kW)
Performance:
Maximum speed: 305 mph (265 knots, 491 km/h) at 15,500 ft (4,730 m)
Range: 930 mi (810 nm, 1,500 km)
Service ceiling: 29,000 ft (8,800 m)
Rate of climb: 2,940 ft/min (14.9 m/s)
Wing loading: 34.2 lb/ft² (167.1 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 0.16 hp/lb (256 W/kg)
Armament:
4× 0.5 in (12.7 mm) Browning machine guns,
plus a total ordnance of up to 500 lb under the outer wings
The kit and its assembly
This whif is the result of a totally wrong idea and execution… actually, the Aguya was supposed to become a Japanese IJN fighter, based on an Italeri La-5FN!
But the more I worked on the conversion, the less Japanese it looked, and once all aerodynamic surfaces were modified and the it still looked rather Russian or even American, I decided to drop the IJN idea… and at that point all interior surfaces had already been painted in Aodake Iro! :-/
I tinkered a bit around with the cowling, shortening it, but that did not help. So I looked for a fundamentally new ‘Plan B’ and eventually settled on Argentina as land of origin/conception – and switched the engine to a Twin Wasp from a Matchbox Privateer maritime patrol bomber.
Other ingredients include:
• Propeller, probably from a Fw 190, mated with a spinner from “somewhere else”
• Stabilizers from a Hobby Boss P-39, reduced span
• (Clipped) Tail fin from a Huma Me 309 to match with a…
• Tail rudder from a Heller P-51D
• Main wheels from a Revell Fiat G.50
The Italeri La-5FN’s wing tips were clipped, too, so that all wing surfaces ended up with a square shape – it changes the overall look of the Lavochkin considerably?! But it’s certainly NOT Japanese…
For the rather narrow and oval Twin Wasp instead of the round Shvetsov ASh-82FN the fuselage flanks had to be levelled and the original exhaust slits were faired over. A new exhaust with a flame damper (from a vintage Airfix Bristol Blenheim, maybe 30 years old!) was added under the fuselage.
The neat cockpit was taken OOB, I just added a box behind the seat and a new sight, the pilot was only used for the beauty pics (and the canopy had to be cut into pieces to allow an open position).
Painting and markings
Well, instead of an IJN aircraft something from Argentina… I used the typical I.Ae.24 bomber livery as design benchmark, since I wanted a camouflaged aircraft – these were finished with all-green upper sides (rather a bright, green tone, not a dull olive drab) and light blue undersides, with a wavy waterline. Not really fancy, but I wanted to keep the concept up.
Basic tones are Humbrol 117 (FS 34102) and 65, both were shaded with various tones for some contrast and weathering – the major body sculpting had sucked up a lot of the La-5’s rather delicate raised panel and detail lines.
Decals were puzzled together from various sources. The Argentinian insignia actually belong to a Mirage III (Carpena sheet), the squadron badges are Polish pre-WWII decoration and the codes were made with single decal letters from TL Modellbau and Xtradecal.
Well, a whif which resulted from a total conceptual crash during the WiP. Still, it’s exotic and plausible, since Argentina developed several interesting and progressive aircraft in the 40ies and 50ies, so the Aguja is, in the end, and effective tribute. ;)
- Photos by Damien Conway.
Shining Light on Secret TPP agreement & calling on Congress to
STOP Fast Track
For Immediate Release: Day before Wikileak of TPP Document - 13 Cities
Mobilized to Shine a Light on Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership "Trade"
Deal Telling Congress "Don't Fast Track a Train Wreck - FLUSH the
TPP!"
CONTACT: Bill Moyer 206-356-9980 | bill@backbonecampaign.org
| or Eric Ross 805-776-3882 | eric@backbonecampaign.org
| 805-776-3882 | VoteNoFastTrack.org
SEATTLE - On Tuesday evening citizens in Seattle and 12
other cities appeared on overpasses and roadsides to pull the
Trans-Pacific Partnership, aka TPP, out of the shadows and into the
light of public scrutiny. From Dallas to DC, San Diego to Seattle,
Tucson to Detroit, Baltimore to Bellingham, Spokane to Chicago
people took their messages to interstate overpasses, prominent
monuments, and busy city streets using coordinated daytime and
nighttime, high visibility tactics.
They deployed giant banners saying No New NAFTA, mobilized LED light
panels saying "(thumbs up) Democracy, STOP The TPP," and projected with
spotlights messages like "Don't Fast Track A Train Wreck." These
coordinated citizen's actions coincided with ongoing TPP negotiations
taking place in Salt Lake City, Utah from November 12-24
and today's anticipated release by Congressperson Rosa DeLauro and
George Miller detailing the growing opposition to "Fast Track" among
Congress, and preceded today's surprise release by Wikileaks of a leaked
chapter of the secretive "TPP" agreement. [Here
is Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch initial interpretations of the
chapter on intellectual property.]
The TPP has been called NAFTA on steroids, a "Corporate Coup," and
concerned citizens from across the nation are calling on Congress to
"Flush It!" and to oppose President Obama's request to renew "Fast
Track" authority to commit our country to this secretive agreement that
has less to do with trade, than it does with dismantling any domestic
policies that undermine future profits for transnational capital and
corporations.
Bill Moyer, Executive Director of the Backbone Campaign stated "Only a
bought a sold government would sign a treaty that sacrifices our
capacity as communities and country to pass laws for workers benefit,
and the protection of our communities and our natural resources."
The Trans-Pacific Partnership has been negotiated under secrecy for 3
years. Obama is now pushing to have it swiftly approved to much to the
dismay of members of Congress, most of whom haven't even been allowed to
see the text. While Congress is constitutionally required to negotiate
any international treaties, Fast Track or granting Obama Trade Promotion
Authority would forfeit the Congress' responsibility and the public's
right to weigh in on the TPP negotiations.
Perhaps in response to growing citizen outrage letters were release
today from both Democrats and Republicans challenging President Obama's
request for renewal of Fast Track authority. [From Today's Public
Citizen announcement: The
151-signature DeLauro-Miller letter, additional
letter from Democratic Ways & Means members, One
of two letters, this led by Representative Walter Jones (R-NC)]
One of the illuminated messages on Tuesday read "Corporate Tribunals
WTF?" This referred to how the TPP would give more power to corporate
interests including the ability for foreign companies to sue for
taxpayer compensation if any domestic law diminished the company's expected future profits.
Masked as a trade deal, the agreement has been negotiated under
supervision of 600 unelected corporate "trade advisors" while the text
has been hidden from members of Congress, the press, and the public.
What has been learned about the TPP has come through leaked texts, and
is alarming to members of Congress worried about sovereign powers being
negotiated away, public health officials, labor representatives,
environmental groups, and advocates of consumer issues.
"The TPP, the largest ever of it's kind, is a race to the bottom
international agreement on domestic and international policies of food
safety, internet freedom, medicine costs, financial regulation, and the
environment," says Kristen Beifus, executive director of Washington Fair
Trade Coalition."
Trade Justice organizations have declared December 3rd a "Global Day of
Action Against the TPP to resist toxic trade agreements." Citizens are
urged to take action in their own community, contact their
congressperson, and learn more about the TPP's dismantling of democracy
by visiting VoteNoFastTrack.org.
Citizens can find out where their congressperson stands and tweet them
Tuesday's coordinated actions were organized by the Backbone Campaign,
which specializes in "amplifying citizen engagement with creative
tactics and artful activism" in collaboration with Public Citizen's
Global Trade Watch, PopularResistance.org, Fair Trade Coalitions in
Washington and Oregon, and more.
The coordinated day of action follows on the heals of an action in
September when to the surprise of secret service, members and allies of
PopularResistance.org and the Backbone Campaign "redecorated"
the United States Trade Representatives office by scaling the building
and unfurling giant banners demanding a release of the TPP text. The
Backbone Campaign is grateful to Wikileaks for beginning that process.
View the growing collection of photos from the 11-12-13 actions HERE.
To speak with organizers of yesterday's day of action please contact
Bill Moyer at 206-356-9980 or Eric Ross at 805-776-3882.
Info and Collaborator Web Sites:
Thanks to our many awesome collaborators both mentioned and not!
Watch
Coalition
Coalition
Brigade
Diego Overpass Light Brigade
Rising Tide
Talking Points
###
Backbone Campaign's mission is to provide creative strategies, artful
activism trainings, and creative action support to progressive
activists, organizers and organizations around the US and beyond in
order to invigorate and nurture a people-power, community-based, and
internationally-networked nonviolent social movement for human rights,
thriving communities, and ecological well being. Backbone Campaign's
vision is a world where human dignity, community resilience, and
ecological well being is built upon a foundation of democratic
economic and political systems and diverse, thriving culture where
human rights, the rights of communities and nature are truly
inalienable and honored.
The More the Merrier. A photo of my Grandfather with five of his grandchildren there were still four more yet to come.
2022-03-10, Thursday.
Line-up:
- Ixtar / Freestyle @ 11:30am
- Doc Darkside / House @ 01:00pm
- Nina L / Progressive @ 02:30pm
First Thursday: 9/3/2015
Photos by Jennifer Hughes
Alien She
Sep 3, 2015 – Jan 9, 2016
Alien She, curated by Astria Suparak + Ceci Moss, is the first exhibition to examine the lasting impact of Riot Grrrl on artists and cultural producers working today. A pioneering punk feminist movement that emerged in the early 1990s, Riot Grrrl has had a pivotal influence, inspiring many around the world to pursue socially and politically progressive careers as artists, activists, authors and educators. Emphasizing female and youth empowerment, collaborative organization, creative resistance and DIY ethics, Riot Grrrl helped a new generation to become active feminists and create their own culture and communities that reflect their values and experiences, in contrast to mainstream conventions and expectations.
Riot Grrrl formed in reaction to pervasive and violent sexism, racism and homophobia in the punk music scene and in the culture at large. Its participants adapted strategies from earlier queer and punk feminisms and ‘70s radical politics, while also popularizing discussions of identity politics occurring within academia, but in a language that spoke to a younger generation. This self-organized network made up of teenagers and twenty-somethings reached one another through various platforms, such as letters, zines, local meetings, regional conferences, homemade videos, and later, chat rooms, listservs and message boards. The movement eventually spread worldwide, with chapters opening in at least thirty-two states and twenty-six countries.* Its ethos and aesthetics have survived well past its initial period in the ‘90s, with many new chapters forming in recent years. Riot Grrrl’s influence on contemporary global culture is increasingly evident – from the Russian collective Pussy Riot’s protest against corrupt government-church relations to the popular teen website Rookie and the launch of Girls Rock Camps and Ladyfest music and art festivals around the world.
Alien She focuses on seven people whose visual art practices were informed by their contact with Riot Grrrl. Many of them work in multiple disciplines, such as sculpture, installation, video, documentary film, photography, drawing, printmaking, new media, social practice, curation, music, writing and performance – a reflection of the movement’s artistic diversity and mutability. Each artist is represented by several projects from the last 20 years, including new and rarely seen works, providing an insight into the development of their creative practices and individual trajectories.
Artists: Ginger Brooks Takahashi (Pittsburgh), Tammy Rae Carland (Oakland), Miranda July (Los Angeles), Faythe Levine (Milwaukee), Allyson Mitchell (Toronto), L.J. Roberts (Brooklyn), Stephanie Syjuco (San Francisco) and more.
Archival Materials from: dumba collective; EMP Museum, Seattle; Interference Archive; Jabberjaw; the Riot Grrrl Collection at the Fales Library & Special Collections, NYU; and many personal collections.
Collaborative Projects and Platforms include: Counterfeit Crochet Project, Feminist Art Gallery (FAG), General Sisters, Handmade Nation, Joanie 4 Jackie, Learning to Love You More, LTTR, projet MOBILIVRE-BOOKMOBILE project, Sign Painters and more
Women’s Studies Professors Have Class Privilege / I’m With Problematic, from the series Creep Lez, Allyson Mitchell, 2012.
Altered t-shirts with iron-on transfer and vinyl letters. Courtesy of the artist and Katharine Mulherin Gallery, Toronto.
Alien She is curated by Astria Suparak and Ceci Moss, and organized by the Miller Gallery at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh
Holding Sway: PNCA Faculty and Alumni Exhibition
Sep 3, 2015 – Oct 18, 2015
Opening Reception Thursday, September 3, 2015, 6-8PM
With the first Pacific Northwest College of Art Faculty Biennial to be held in our newly renovated historic Federal Building at 511 NW Broadway, now named the Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Center for Art and Design, we sought to do something that would not only highlight the artists, designers, and scholars who make up the faculty at PNCA, but also to showcase the scope of contemporary art, craft, and design created by alumni from PNCA’s Bachelor of Fine Arts and Masters of Fine Arts programs. The result is the first ever PNCA faculty and alumni exhibition titled Holding Sway.
The faculty and alumni of PNCA are among the nation’s most rigorous thinkers and practitioners. While as a group they are diverse in their creative endeavors, they are united in their drive for a continual exploration of creative practice. The strength of the creative community formed by the cultural producers of PNCA’s faculty, alumni, and students can be witnessed in the range and depth of work presented in Holding Sway.
Accompanying Holding Sway is a companion publication featuring fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and criticism by PNCA faculty and alumni.
- Photos by Damien Conway.
Shining Light on Secret TPP agreement & calling on Congress to
STOP Fast Track
For Immediate Release: Day before Wikileak of TPP Document - 13 Cities
Mobilized to Shine a Light on Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership "Trade"
Deal Telling Congress "Don't Fast Track a Train Wreck - FLUSH the
TPP!"
CONTACT: Bill Moyer 206-356-9980 | bill@backbonecampaign.org
| or Eric Ross 805-776-3882 | eric@backbonecampaign.org
| 805-776-3882 | VoteNoFastTrack.org
SEATTLE - On Tuesday evening citizens in Seattle and 12
other cities appeared on overpasses and roadsides to pull the
Trans-Pacific Partnership, aka TPP, out of the shadows and into the
light of public scrutiny. From Dallas to DC, San Diego to Seattle,
Tucson to Detroit, Baltimore to Bellingham, Spokane to Chicago
people took their messages to interstate overpasses, prominent
monuments, and busy city streets using coordinated daytime and
nighttime, high visibility tactics.
They deployed giant banners saying No New NAFTA, mobilized LED light
panels saying "(thumbs up) Democracy, STOP The TPP," and projected with
spotlights messages like "Don't Fast Track A Train Wreck." These
coordinated citizen's actions coincided with ongoing TPP negotiations
taking place in Salt Lake City, Utah from November 12-24
and today's anticipated release by Congressperson Rosa DeLauro and
George Miller detailing the growing opposition to "Fast Track" among
Congress, and preceded today's surprise release by Wikileaks of a leaked
chapter of the secretive "TPP" agreement. [Here
is Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch initial interpretations of the
chapter on intellectual property.]
The TPP has been called NAFTA on steroids, a "Corporate Coup," and
concerned citizens from across the nation are calling on Congress to
"Flush It!" and to oppose President Obama's request to renew "Fast
Track" authority to commit our country to this secretive agreement that
has less to do with trade, than it does with dismantling any domestic
policies that undermine future profits for transnational capital and
corporations.
Bill Moyer, Executive Director of the Backbone Campaign stated "Only a
bought a sold government would sign a treaty that sacrifices our
capacity as communities and country to pass laws for workers benefit,
and the protection of our communities and our natural resources."
The Trans-Pacific Partnership has been negotiated under secrecy for 3
years. Obama is now pushing to have it swiftly approved to much to the
dismay of members of Congress, most of whom haven't even been allowed to
see the text. While Congress is constitutionally required to negotiate
any international treaties, Fast Track or granting Obama Trade Promotion
Authority would forfeit the Congress' responsibility and the public's
right to weigh in on the TPP negotiations.
Perhaps in response to growing citizen outrage letters were release
today from both Democrats and Republicans challenging President Obama's
request for renewal of Fast Track authority. [From Today's Public
Citizen announcement: The
151-signature DeLauro-Miller letter, additional
letter from Democratic Ways & Means members, One
of two letters, this led by Representative Walter Jones (R-NC)]
One of the illuminated messages on Tuesday read "Corporate Tribunals
WTF?" This referred to how the TPP would give more power to corporate
interests including the ability for foreign companies to sue for
taxpayer compensation if any domestic law diminished the company's expected future profits.
Masked as a trade deal, the agreement has been negotiated under
supervision of 600 unelected corporate "trade advisors" while the text
has been hidden from members of Congress, the press, and the public.
What has been learned about the TPP has come through leaked texts, and
is alarming to members of Congress worried about sovereign powers being
negotiated away, public health officials, labor representatives,
environmental groups, and advocates of consumer issues.
"The TPP, the largest ever of it's kind, is a race to the bottom
international agreement on domestic and international policies of food
safety, internet freedom, medicine costs, financial regulation, and the
environment," says Kristen Beifus, executive director of Washington Fair
Trade Coalition."
Trade Justice organizations have declared December 3rd a "Global Day of
Action Against the TPP to resist toxic trade agreements." Citizens are
urged to take action in their own community, contact their
congressperson, and learn more about the TPP's dismantling of democracy
by visiting VoteNoFastTrack.org.
Citizens can find out where their congressperson stands and tweet them
Tuesday's coordinated actions were organized by the Backbone Campaign,
which specializes in "amplifying citizen engagement with creative
tactics and artful activism" in collaboration with Public Citizen's
Global Trade Watch, PopularResistance.org, Fair Trade Coalitions in
Washington and Oregon, and more.
The coordinated day of action follows on the heals of an action in
September when to the surprise of secret service, members and allies of
PopularResistance.org and the Backbone Campaign "redecorated"
the United States Trade Representatives office by scaling the building
and unfurling giant banners demanding a release of the TPP text. The
Backbone Campaign is grateful to Wikileaks for beginning that process.
View the growing collection of photos from the 11-12-13 actions HERE.
To speak with organizers of yesterday's day of action please contact
Bill Moyer at 206-356-9980 or Eric Ross at 805-776-3882.
Info and Collaborator Web Sites:
Thanks to our many awesome collaborators both mentioned and not!
Watch
Coalition
Coalition
Brigade
Diego Overpass Light Brigade
Rising Tide
Talking Points
###
Backbone Campaign's mission is to provide creative strategies, artful
activism trainings, and creative action support to progressive
activists, organizers and organizations around the US and beyond in
order to invigorate and nurture a people-power, community-based, and
internationally-networked nonviolent social movement for human rights,
thriving communities, and ecological well being. Backbone Campaign's
vision is a world where human dignity, community resilience, and
ecological well being is built upon a foundation of democratic
economic and political systems and diverse, thriving culture where
human rights, the rights of communities and nature are truly
inalienable and honored.
Fossil of the Day Award by Climate Action Network, December 9, Monday of the second week of COP25 in Madrid.
#FossiloftheDay - US-3 FOSSILS!
🇺🇸 US for blocking #lossanddamage finance and insisting on playing a role in posing hurdles through a seat in ExCom
🇺🇸🇦🇺US & Australia for not contributing to the GCF on finance day
🇺🇸🇨🇦US & Canada for continued fossil fuel extraction
🏆#RayoftheDay🏆
🇩🇰Denmark for being a real climate champion, issues progressive climate law that's binding in line with #1o5C with a section about global cooperation to play a leading role and engage actively to deliver commitments including #finance
==Official Award citations==
Today we have a special star for Fossil of the Day! The United States (US) managed to get its name on three fossil awards in one day! This country is really making its best effort to be the worst for future generations and vulnerable communities worldwide!
The US is doing great at getting its name down in history as the frontrunner in destroying planet earth. Is it possible that it is hiding a Planet B somewhere for us or is it just enjoying leading the world peeps to mass suicide?!
==Fossil one==
So today we award fossil number one to the US for insisting to stay in the process just to block money while refusing to pay its share for causing all the loss and damage painfully felt by poor and vulnerable people worldwide through droughts, heatwaves, hurricanes, fires and other extreme weather events.
We’re here in the halls of power, and the table is set. Despite leaving the Paris Agreement, the US is inviting itself to have a seat at the table despite making it clear they have no intention of paying the bill. The US is trying to bully other countries into letting them stay on the board of the loss and damage Executive Committee, a core institution in the Paris Accord.
Meanwhile, Southern Africa faces its worst drought in 35 years. Eleven million people are facing climate induced starvation.
But what is the US even doing here at the table, it did boast about leaving the Paris Accord, didn't it? They have been leading a pack of blockers, part of the “rich boys club.” If these countries follow the US example, they’ll be forcing those hardest impacted to foot the bill. To that we say: “If you are going to leave, then you gotta get out of the way...."
==Fossil two:==
The second fossil of the day award goes to the US and Australia for withholding their pledges to the Green Climate Fund (GCF)
Back in November, a handful of countries doubled their contributions to the GCF, but guess what? Most contributor countries were not up to the challenge. Two of them even forgot their responsibility to provide adequate and sufficient funding for poor countries: The US and Australia simply decided to turn their back and withhold their pledges, snubbing all the scientists and people in the streets sounding the alarm on the climate emergency.
Other countries including Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Austria, Portugal, Ireland so far have not delivered double the dough and paid for the pollution they created!(we’re looking for countries to at least double their first GCF contribution, in line with their fairshare) So will ministers arrive to the party empty-handed tomorrow? What manners soiled with dirty fossil fuels! Or will they come with the goods, and top-up?
As a reminder, ambitious GCF contributions are key to support vulnerable communities adapting to climate change, and to create the right conditions for enhanced ambition in 2020.
==Fossil three:==
The third fossil of the day goes out to the US and Canada!
Hey Canada! What good is it showing off progressive positions and pushing for human and indigenous rights here in COP25 and violating these same rights back home?!
Yes you, fingers are pointed at you for recklessly approving fossil fuel infrastructure projects that are not in line with the Paris Agreement, such as the TMX pipeline.
US friends of course completely out of tune with science and are moving ahead with dirty projects such as fracking in the Permian Basin. No wonder you were called out as the worst countries in the Production Gap Report.
In the age of climate emergency, the US and Canada need to keep fossil fuels in the ground and respect Indigenous rights and sovereignty. This includes for Canada to reject the Teck Frontier Mine, the largest tar sands surface mine ever proposed.
==Ray of the Day==
Hey Danish parliament wow! Now that´s what we can call climate leadership. They agreed on a Climate Law that is binding for current and future governments and is in line with the 1.5C degrees temperature limit. Basically, Denmark turned science into law!
This law is really cool. It encourages global cooperation and enables Denmark to be a climate leader at the international level and deliver on commitments.
The story is not finished yet. Denmark set the target of reducing GHG emissions by 70% in 2030. Denmark agreed not to play the game of carbon trade to ensure complete environmental integrity.
Each sector is targeted with a strategy, including agriculture, transport and construction. These strategies are set annually in a “Climate Action Plan” based on an independent climate council, which will monitor that targets are being met through action. The Minister of climate has a duty to act on Climate Council recommendations.
Denmark thanks for setting a great example to follow!
About the fossils:
Every day at 18:00 local time you can watch the Fossil ceremony in Hall 4 during COP25.
The Fossil of the Day awards were first presented at the climate talks in 1999, in Bonn, initiated by the German NGO Forum. During United Nations climate change negotiations (www.unfccc.int), members of the Climate Action Network (CAN), vote for countries judged to have done their 'best' to block progress in the negotiations in the last days of talks.
About CAN: The Climate Action Network (CAN) is a global network of over 1,300 Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in more than 120 countries working to promote government and individual action to limit human induced climate change to ecologically sustainable levels.
Attribution: John Englart/Climate Action Network
Operated by: Progressive Travel Inc. Spencer, WI
Built in: 2005
Manufacturer: Van Hool
Model: T2145
Notes:
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Progressive Travel 0519 at the Mall of America north lot on layover during the busy holiday shopping season.
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A local mobilisation of anti-fascists matched in number a national demonstration called by the EDL in Birmingham with around 350 supporters from trade unions, community groups, faith groups and councillors demonstrating their opposition to the EDL in Birmingham.
The 'We are Birmingham - Don't let the racists divide us' rally organised by Birmingham Unite Against Fascism was supported by Salma Yaqoob, Carl Chinn, Roger Godsiff MP, Jack Dromey MP, Rabbi Margaret Jacobi from the Birmingham Progressive Synagogue, Muhammed Sarfraz Madni, Executive Member and Imam from Birmingham Central Mosque and Robert Brenchley from Ladywood Methodist Church.
A statement released by them as well a number of trade union general secretaries said "We, the undersigned, condemn the decision by the English Defence League (EDL) to come to Birmingham on Saturday 11th. October. We believe it is a cynical attempt by the EDL to use the appalling crime of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham to further its own selfish ends. We support and seek justice for all victims of sexual exploitation regardless of their social or ethnic background. We condemn and seek prosecution of all those responsible for these crimes irrespective of their ethnicity or creed."
"The EDL is a racist and fascist group dedicated to attacking Asian people and Muslims. Many former members of the fascist BNP, the Nazi National Front and other fascist organisations are active in the EDL and its splinter groups. These fascists and racists should be condemned and opposed. We must not give a quarter to those who would judge an entire religion, race or nationality by the actions of a few. Islamophobia – bigotry against Muslims – is as unacceptable as any other form of racism. Today they threaten Muslims, tomorrow it could be Jewish people, Hindus, Sikhs, black people, LGBT people, Travellers or Eastern Europeans."
The rally was entertained bands including Thatchers Lovechild, poets an singers as well as speeches from black students, local councillors trade unions, LGBT and disabled activists. The demonstation was also supported and addressed by the local Palestine Solidarity Campaign and a messae of solidarity was read out from Greek ant fascists opposing the the Golden Dawn, a fascist party growing against the back drop of brutal austerity measures in Europe.
Citing the examples of Nick Griffin being expelled from his own party, the BNP and Tommy Robinson resigning from the EDL, UAF pledged to confront racist and fascist organisations wherever they seek to "divide communities" with their "message of hate."
The EDL demonstration was less than an eighth of the size of last year but questions still remain over the policing of the operation. Contraversy hit the press after Bar Risa on Broad Street claimed they were "forced" by the police to faciliate two hours of drinking by the EDL before the demonstration in a move which was widely condemned.
Birmingham Unite Against Fascism became aware of claims that staff at the venue were advised only white staff should work the shift. GMB union called on the bar, which is not normally open at those times, not to open in order to protect all of its staff. Other venues on Broad Street have refused to open for the EDL regardless of police requests.
UAF protesters also condemned what they called heavy policing tactics at the beginning of the day. Despite being in negotiations with the police for weeks and publically calling their demonstration in Victoria Square they arrived to a section 14 notice threatening arrest and a "steel cage" in Chamberlain Square which they sought to force protestors into. UAF negotiated with the police to remove the barriers, allow freedom of movement and march into the square only after they believed the majority of protestors arrived.
Organisers of the UAF demonstration said "The people of Birmingham should not be punished and forced into a cage for standing up to racists in the city. We are surprised the police see the citizens of their own city as more of a public order issue than the EDL."
"When policing the EDL they appear to have undertaken an identical operation as last year, rolling out the red carpet, actively forcing a bar to facilitate drinking for two hours and then allow the EDL to spout their messages of hate by a war memorial of all places."
Last year the EDL caused hundreds of thousands of pounds of damage to the city, racially abused by-standers and even injured police officers during two hours of disorder. The court cases are still ongoing.
With some obvious mechanical issues, Progressive Rail switcher #36 (Ex-Soo 1400) sits in a parking lot next to the Progressive Rail Distribution facility in Bloomington, MN
Alien She
Photos and Video by Mario Gallucci
Alien She
Sep 3, 2015 – Jan 9, 2016
Alien She, curated by Astria Suparak + Ceci Moss, is the first exhibition to examine the lasting impact of Riot Grrrl on artists and cultural producers working today. A pioneering punk feminist movement that emerged in the early 1990s, Riot Grrrl has had a pivotal influence, inspiring many around the world to pursue socially and politically progressive careers as artists, activists, authors and educators. Emphasizing female and youth empowerment, collaborative organization, creative resistance and DIY ethics, Riot Grrrl helped a new generation to become active feminists and create their own culture and communities that reflect their values and experiences, in contrast to mainstream conventions and expectations.
Riot Grrrl formed in reaction to pervasive and violent sexism, racism and homophobia in the punk music scene and in the culture at large. Its participants adapted strategies from earlier queer and punk feminisms and ‘70s radical politics, while also popularizing discussions of identity politics occurring within academia, but in a language that spoke to a younger generation. This self-organized network made up of teenagers and twenty-somethings reached one another through various platforms, such as letters, zines, local meetings, regional conferences, homemade videos, and later, chat rooms, listservs and message boards. The movement eventually spread worldwide, with chapters opening in at least thirty-two states and twenty-six countries.* Its ethos and aesthetics have survived well past its initial period in the ‘90s, with many new chapters forming in recent years. Riot Grrrl’s influence on contemporary global culture is increasingly evident – from the Russian collective Pussy Riot’s protest against corrupt government-church relations to the popular teen website Rookie and the launch of Girls Rock Camps and Ladyfest music and art festivals around the world.
Alien She focuses on seven people whose visual art practices were informed by their contact with Riot Grrrl. Many of them work in multiple disciplines, such as sculpture, installation, video, documentary film, photography, drawing, printmaking, new media, social practice, curation, music, writing and performance – a reflection of the movement’s artistic diversity and mutability. Each artist is represented by several projects from the last 20 years, including new and rarely seen works, providing an insight into the development of their creative practices and individual trajectories.
Artists: Ginger Brooks Takahashi (Pittsburgh), Tammy Rae Carland (Oakland), Miranda July (Los Angeles), Faythe Levine (Milwaukee), Allyson Mitchell (Toronto), L.J. Roberts (Brooklyn), Stephanie Syjuco (San Francisco) and more.
Archival Materials from: dumba collective; EMP Museum, Seattle; Interference Archive; Jabberjaw; the Riot Grrrl Collection at the Fales Library & Special Collections, NYU; and many personal collections.
Collaborative Projects and Platforms include: Counterfeit Crochet Project, Feminist Art Gallery (FAG), General Sisters, Handmade Nation, Joanie 4 Jackie, Learning to Love You More, LTTR, projet MOBILIVRE-BOOKMOBILE project, Sign Painters and more
Women’s Studies Professors Have Class Privilege / I’m With Problematic, from the series Creep Lez, Allyson Mitchell, 2012.
Altered t-shirts with iron-on transfer and vinyl letters. Courtesy of the artist and Katharine Mulherin Gallery, Toronto.
Alien She is curated by Astria Suparak and Ceci Moss, and organized by the Miller Gallery at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh
Alien She is presented in two parts:
Museum of Contemporary Craft
724 NW Davis
Portland, OR 97209
511 Gallery @ PNCA
511 NW Broadway
Portland, OR 97209
Both venues are open Tuesday through Saturday from 11am to 6pm.
Frank Zappa / Zoot Allures
Titelliste:
Seite eins
- Wind Up Workin’ in a Gas Station – 2:29
- Black Napkins – 4:15
- The Torture Never Stops – 9:45
- Ms. Pinky – 3:40
Seite zwei
- Find Her Finer – 4:07
- Friendly Little Finger – 4:17
- Wonderful Wino (Jeff Simmons, Frank Zappa) – 3:38
- Zoot Allures – 4:12
- Disco Boy – 5:11
Besetzung:
Frank Zappa – Gitarre, Synthesizer, Bass, Keyboard, Gesang
Terry Bozzio – Schlagzeug
Davey Moiré – Gesang
Andre Lewis – Orgel Gesang
Roy Estrada – Bass, Gesang
Napoleon Murphy Brock – Saxophon, Gesang
Ruth Underwood – Synthesizer, Marimba
Captain Beefheart – Mundharmonika
Ruben Ladron de Guevara – Gesang
Dave Parlato – Bass
Lu Ann Neil – Harfe
Sparky Parker – Gesang
Studio: Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, Kalifornien
Cover: Auf dem von Gary Heery stammenden Coverfoto sind (neben Zappa und Terry Bozzio) auch die Musiker Patrick O’Hearn und Eddie Jobson zu sehen, die zu dieser Zeit zwar bereits Zappas neu formierter Band angehörten, jedoch an den auf Zoot Allures veröffentlichten Aufnahmen nicht beteiligt waren.
Warner Bros. Records 1976
ex LP-Collection MTP
#ActOnClimate #RenewablesNow The Vashon community showed up in a big way with short notice to rise up against PSE's LNG greenwashing.
PSE opted to close their doors hours early rather than hear the voices of their ratepayers. 1,300 Vashon residents signed onto a petition to PSE demanding an end to their investments in fossil fuels.
It's time Kimberly Harris stop pushing LNG (a bridge fuel to climate destruciton) and embrace 100% Renewable Energy.
Given that Vashon is the traditional lands of the Puyallup, it is especially important that we act in solidarity with members of the Puyallup tribe. PSE is ignoring the Puyallup who have risen up against building an LNG pipeline on their traditional lands. The Puyallup have communicated this to PSE in hearings, rallies, in the media - and still PSE has disregarded and ignored them.
Carbon-based power is a deadly threat. We demand PSE tp remove their investments in Coalstrip and to join the voices advocating for its closure by 2025. We demand they replace all coal power in their grid with renewable energy sources, energy storage systems and conservation. PSE needs to abandon the dying carbon based power industry and move aggressively to non-carbon solutions. We demand PSE recognize our right to not pay for our own destruction.
We advocate for Vashon residents to reject PSE's LNG greenwashing. As ratepayers, we urge Vashon residents not to sign-up to convert to "natural" gas and instead join the call for 100% renewably-powered energy.
We are against the building of an LNG storage facility and any new fossil fuel infrastructure.
LNG is a bridge to nowhere. We don't appreciate PSE's brazen fetish with LNG which senselessly ignores the devastating climate and environmental impacts associated with its extraction, transport and burning. If they cared about the wellbeing of their customers, PSE wouldn't be making ratepayers foot the bill for such a reckless proposal that only deepens our dependency on dirty and dangerous fossil fuels.
Background on the issue:
Puget Sound Energy (PSE), an Australian-owned utility, claims to be a leader in green energy--but 60% of PSE’s supply comes from coal and “natural” gas, most of it fracked.
Gas has been called a “bridge” fuel in the transition to renewables, but methane released during extraction and transport means it’s as bad for the climate as coal, because methane has 80 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide in the short term.
PSE is building a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility at the Port of Tacoma. The Puyallup tribe is strongly opposed to this LNG project, which is being built on their traditional territory and adjacent to their reservation--putting their communities, waters, and treaty fishing rights at grave risk.
PSE is also planning to convert its Colstrip coal power plant in Montana (the dirtiest in the US) to gas--thus locking the company in, economically, to decades of fossil fuel use...right when we need to move aggressively to clean, renewable energy.
STAND WITH PUYALLUP! SAY NO TO LNG! YES TO 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY NOW!
To join Vashon Islands home-grown artful activism you can visit backbonecampaign.org.
Fused Grid: Pedestrian Streets Plus
Cities around the globe progressively apply the Fused Grid model to existing and new areas: they transform the movement network from single-mode to hybrid. Where streets gradually became predominantly vehicular and the network catering primarily to cars, certain portions of it are taken out of service for cars and are given exclusively or mainly to pedestrians. This is an organizing principle of the Fused Grid network model (see photostream and Wiki). In this hybrid system both modes work at their highest efficiency and, for pedestrians, maximum enjoyment.
Progressive Field - Home to the Cleveland Indians. Photo taken on 9/27/2017. Cleveland Indians vs. Minnesota Twins.
Photo take via Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
Operated by: Progressive Travel, Spencer, WI
Built in: ?
Manufacturer: Van Hool
Model: T2145
Notes:
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Seen parked in the large vehicle lot at Mall of America in Bloomington, MN
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BWMC employees participate in a falls awareness campaign. Departments created a poster to educate and inspire patients, employees and visitors to do their part to prevent patients from falling and secure their safety.
Midtown Manhattan
The ground floor interior of the Chrysler Building which the Commission designates an Interior Landmark, has been called one of the great Art Deco spaces in New York City. Built in 1928-30 according to the designs of architect William Van Alen, it provides an elegant and dramatic entrance to one of New York's great skyscrapers which had been dedicated by Walter P. Chrysler to "world commerce and industry." A variety of design features create this effect and enhance its progressive image.
HISTORY OF CONSTRUCTION
The Chrysler Building had its beginnings in an office building project for William H. Reynolds, a real-estate developer and promoter and former New York State senator. Reynolds had acquired a long-term lease in 1921 on a parcel of property at Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street owned by the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. In 1927 architect William Van Alen was hired to design an . office tower to be called the Reynolds Building for the site. Publicized as embodying new principles in skyscraper design, the projected building was to be 67 stories high rising 808 feet, and it was "to be surmounted by a glass dome, which when lighted from within, will give the effect of a great jewelled sphere."
In October, 1928, however, the office building project and the lease on the site were taken over by Walter P. Chrysler, head of the Chrysler Corporation, who was seeking to expand his interests into the real estate field.
Walter Percy Chrysler (1875-1940), one of America's foremost automobile manufacturers, was a self-made man who worked his way up through the mechanical and manufacturing aspects of the railroad business before joining the Buick Motor Company as works manager in 1912. Because of his success in introducing new processes and efficiencies into the automobile plant, he rose quickly through the administrative ranks of General Motors (which had absorbed Buick) before personality conflicts with William C. Durant, head of General Motors, forced Chrysler to leave.
In 1921 he reorganized Willys-Overland Company, and then took over as chairman of the reorganization and management committee of the Maxwell Motor Company, eventually assuming the presidency. This enabled Chrysler to introduce in 1924 the car bearing his name which presented such innovations as four-wheel hydraulic breaks and a high compression motor.
Over 50 million dollars worth of cars were sold the first year, and in 1925, the Maxwell Motor Company became the Chrysler Corporation. Dodge Brothers was acquired in 1928 giving the Chrysler Corporation additional manufacturing facilities, a famous line of cars, and putting it in a position to challenge the leadership of Ford and General Motors.
By 1935, when Chrysler retired from the presidency of the Chrysler Corporation to become chairman of the board, the company was second in the automobile industry in volume of production.
It was while Chrysler was aggressively expanding his corporation in 1928 that he took over the office building project from Reynolds. In his autobiography, Chrysler said that he had the building constructed so that his sons would have something to be responsible for. 6 He could not have been unav^ure, however, that the building would become a personal symbol and further the image of the Chrysler Corporation— even though no corporate funds were used in its financing or construction, lb that end Chrysler worked with architect William Van Alen to make the building, including the ground floor interior, a powerful and striking design.
Work began on the Chrysler Building on October 15, 1928, when Chrysler acquired the lease with clearance of the site. Construction proceeded rapidly; foundations to a depth of 69 feet were completed early in 1929, and the steel framework was completed by the end of September of that year. The design of the building, however, was altered from that for Reynolds. Chrysler, in his autobiography, credits himself for suggesting that it be taller than the 1000-foot Eiffel Tower.
The design of the crowning dome was also changed, and the addition of a spire, which the architect called a "vertex," made the Chrysler at 1046 feet the tallest building in the world at the time. Kenneth Murchison fancifully depicts Chrysler urging Van Alen to win the race to construct the world's tallest building.
Van Alen himself had personal reasons for achieving this goal, as a former partner, H. Craig Severance, was constructing the Bank of Manhattan, 40 Wall Street, at the same time with the aim of making it the world's tallest skyscraper. Thinking that the Chrysler Building would be only 925 feet high, Severance added a 50-foot flagpole to his building making it 927 feet.
Meanwhile, Van Alen designed the 185-foot spire which would make the Chrysler Building the tallest. The spire was fabricated, then delivered to the building in five sections, and assembled secretly at the 65th floor. In November, 1929, it was finally raised into position by a 20-ton derrick through a fire tower in the center of the building, then riveted into place, the whole operation taking about 90 minutes. This engineering feat captured the popular imagination as well as that of professionals, and it helped to further the progressive image of the Chrysler Building. However, the Chrysler lost its height distinction two years later with the construction of the Empire State Building.
The first tenants moved into the Chrysler Building in April, 1930, even though construction was not completed. Formal opening ceremonies were held on May 27, 1930, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the 42nd Street Property Owners and Merchants Association. A bronze tablet was placed in the lobby of the building "in recognition of Mr. Chrysler's contribution to civic advancement." H It may still be seen in the 42nd Street entrance lobby. The building was considered finished in August, 1930, but curiously, the completion date in the records of the Manhattan Buildings Department is February 19, 1932.
The Chrysler Building and Art Deco
Walter P. Chrysler wanted a progressive image and a personal symbol. Van Alen strove to create such an image using the tenets of modernism as he interpreted them. In so doing he designed a building which has come to be regarded as one of the outstanding examples of Art Deco architecture. The ground floor interior is one of the great Art Deco spaces in the country.
The term Art Deco, which is also referred to by several different names such as the Style Moderne and Modernistic, is adopted from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Deooratifs et Industriels Modemes— an important European influence on the American Art Deco style— held in Paris in 1925.
In the period fallowing the first World War, architects in Europe and the United States had begun to simplify traditional design forms and to use new industrial materials in innovative ways in order to characterize the modem age. The Art Deco style seemed to lend itself particularly well to skyscraper design because the skyscraper, more than any other building type, epitomized progress, innovation, and a new modem age. Although the Art Deco style was short-lived, it coincided with a great building boon at the end of the 1920s in New York. The many skyscrapers which were erected in the Art Deco style gave New York and its skyline a characteristic and romantic image, popularized in theater and films, which persisted until the next great building boom of the early 1960s. The Art Deco ground floor interiors of these skyscrapers were equally effective, giving an air of drama to the act of entering a building.
In the Chrysler Building and its ground floor interior, Van Alen used a variety of materials, techniques, and design forms which are characteristic of Art Deco.
Three entrances provide access to the ground floor interior of the building—one each from 42nd and 43rd Streets and Lexington Avenue. The three entrance lobbies lead into the triangular main concourse with two massive octagonal piers. The shape of the concourse and the placement of the piers help to channel traffic efficiently to the four elevator halls. In his autobiography, Walter P. Chrysler claimed that he asked the architect to redesign the lobby so that "when people come into a big building they...sense a change, get a mental lift that will put them in a frame of mind to transact their business.'^* The triangular concourse was the result.
Rich materials, a characteristic feature of the Art Deco style, enhance the spatial effects and enrich the experience of entry. The walls of the entrance lobbies and main concourse as well as the octagonal piers are faced with a type of red Moroccan marble known as Rouge Flarrme.
The marble is distinguished by variegated markings in tones of buff. Complementing the marble on the walls is the yellow Sienna travertine floor set in diagonal patterns—another subtle directional device to guide the user of the building. Shop windows opening onto the entrance lobbies and main concourse as well as directory boards are elegantly framed in "Nirosta" steel, a kind of rust-resistant, chromium nickel steel, manufactured for the first time in the United States specifically for the Chrysler Building according to a German formula from Krupp.
Handsome crenellations of "Nirosta" steel—in characteristic Art Deco forms—surmount these enframements. The entrance doors, as well as the service doors, are also of "Nirosta" steel. Set between the service doors opposite the Lexington Avenue entrance is an information booth of red marble with "Nirosta" steel back rising from it.
One of the most striking and dramatic features of this interior is the lighting system. Vertically-placed panels of polished Mexican onyx are placed in a stepped pattern above the elevator halls and the three street entrances. Vertical reflector troughs of "Nirosta" steel set with lamps are placed in front of the onyx panels. As the light is reflected off these panels it is given an amber glow.
Set in front of the lights marking the entrances are vertically-placed letters forming the names of the streets outside. The octagonal piers in the main concourse also provide a light source. V-shaped recesses lined with onyx contain the same type of vertical reflector troughs and lamps as those over the entrances and elevator halls.
On the ceiling scanning the main concourse and the Lexington Avenue entrance lobby is a large mural by artist Edward Trumbull. The use of such murals was a favorite device of Art Deco designers. In addition to heightening the dramatic effect and enriching the experience of interior spaces, they also were a means of achieving the Art Deco ideal of the unity of design.
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Edward Trumbull (1884-1968) was one of the foremost American moralists of his generation. As a student at the Art Student's League in New York he studied with Robert Raid; in London from 1906 to 1912, he was a student of Frank Brangwyn. Returning to the United States, he was commissioned to do nine panels for the Heinz Administration Building in Pittsburgh.
Among the important ccnmissions of his career, in addition to the Chrysler Building, were murals for: the Pennsylvania State Building at the Panama-Pacific Exposition, the Graybar Building, the Oyster Bar and Restaurant at Grand Central Station, the waiting rooms in Union Station in Washington, D.C., the dining rocms in the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Building, the cafeteria of the Kress Store at 444 Fifth Avenue, and a branch office of the Union Dime Savings Bank at Madison Avenue and 39th Street.
For Inland Steel, he painted "The Story of Steel" which was presented to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. In 1932 Trumbull was appointed Color Director for the art program of Rockefeller Center to supervise more than 40 murals and 50 sculptural pieces.
The mural in the Chrysler Building depicts "the vision, human energy and engineering ability which made possible the structure." The composition is divided into several parts, each with its own theme. A triangular panel placed over the information booth displays a large muscular Atlas figure. Radiating out from this are three bands which follow the triangular form of the main concourse. The first, showing a series of abstract patterns and lines, was supposed to symbolize primitive, natural forces.
The second, depicting construction workers and techniques, has a specific analogy to the construction of the Chrysler Building. The third shews the development of modem transportation with an emphasis on airplanes. Extending outward over the Lexington Avenue entrance lobby is a large panel with a rendering of the b building as seen from the exterior. The warm tones of the mural harmonize well with the rich colors of the marble and onyx below.
The four elevator halls are lined with the same red marble as the entrance halls and main concourse. The doors of the twenty-eight passenger elevators are a strikingly handsome Art Deco design, displaying an abstract lotus pattern executed in metal and inlaid wood veneers. The elevator cabs are of four design types.
All are abstract patterns, again executed in a variety of inlaid wood veneers. The woods include Japanese ash, English gray hardwood, Oriental walnut, dye ebonized wood, stainwood, Cuban plum pudding, myrtle burl, and curly maple. Ceiling fans in the elevator cabs are of metal, also executed in striking abstract designs. The use of such rich materials to create a luxurious and dramatic effect is characteristic of Art Deco.
The curved staircases at the north and south ends of the main concourse lead to the mezzanine at the second floor and to the basement. The use of highly polished black marble on the curved walls heightens the dramatic effect of these staircases. The railings, which follow the curve of the stairs, are of "Nirosta" steel, and the inner railings have zigzag motifs characteristic of Art Deco design set between the balusters.
At ground floor level, the railings terminate in massive red marble newel posts. The steps are of gray and black terrazzo. Handsome molded glass light fixtures hang from the ceilings above the staircases. These ceilings are finished with aluminum, leaf.
All features of the ground floor interior combine together to create one of the great Art Deco spaces in the city and country. The elements of the design and the rich materials are not only characteristic of the Art Deco style but are also same of the finest examples of their type. All appropriately enhance the progressive image of One of New York's finest office buildings.
The Chrysler Building and the Image of Progress
When completed the Chrysler Building was praised as "an expression of the:intense activity and vibrant life of our day" and as "teeming] with the spirit of modernism,...the epitome of modem business life,.. .standjing] for progress in architecture and in modem building methods." Walter P. Chrysler had sought to create the most desirable office building of the day:
The Chrysler Building is dedicated to world commerce and industry. It was created with a desire to meet the demand of business executives of today who, with their intense activities, must have the most favorable office surroundings and conditions.
The need for abundant light and air resulted in a building of fine proportions and great height. The importance of accessibility and transit facilities dictated the location. The desire for the utmost in conveniences determined the inclusion of unusual facilities of every necessity contributing to the contentment and satisfaction of the business man in his office home.
As an environment in which work may be accomplished efficiently and in comfort, it is believed the finished structure establishes a new ideal—one which will stand as a measure of comparison for office buildings of the future.
The Chrysler Building is therefore dedicated as a sound contribution to business progress.
The building had a number of innovative and desirable features. The soundproofed office partitions were of steel made in interchangeable sections so that the arrangement of any office suite could be changed quickly and conveniently. Under-floor duct systems carried wiring for telephone and electric outlets.
The elevators were not only beautiful in design but also,, specifically at Chrysler's instruction, capable of speeds of 1000 feet per minute although city codes in effect in 1930 only allowed 700 feet per minute. The building also had three of the longest continuous elevator shafts in the world. To enhance public access to the building, an underground arcade led to the IRT subway system. The connection was strongly opposed by the IRT, but Chrysler prevailed and the passageway was built at his expense.
In the dome was the private Cloud Club, which still exists, and, in the very topmost floor, a public observatory. On display was Walter P. Chrysler's box of handmade tools, the emblem of his enterprise and personal success. The observatory has been closed for many years.
Conclusion
Critics such as Lewis Mumford who favored the International Style denigrated the Chrysler Building for its "inane romanticism, .. .meaningless voluptuousness,.. ./and] void symbolism^ " but it was these qualities which captured the popular imagination and helped make it one of the most famous buildings in New York. We can appreciate the comments of the editor of Architectural Forum who wrote:
It stands by itself, something apart and alone. It is simply the realization, the fulfillment in metal and masonry, of a one-man dream, a dream of such ambition and such magnitude as to defy the comprehension and the criticism of ordinary men or by ordinary standards.
The Chrysler Building with its ground floor interior remains one of New York's finest office buildings—the elements of its design capturing the eye and imagination of the viewer.
The total design of the ground floor interior helped toe carry out Walter P. Chrysler's aim of dedicating the building to world commerce and industry. With its dramatic effects, elegant materials, and striking ornamental details, the ground floor interior of the Chrysler Building is an outstanding example of the Art Deco style— among the finest in the city and the country.
- From the 1978 NYCLPC Landmark Designation Report