As someone who's only just starting to recover from a week of consumptive coughing, and whose office currently sounds like "a TB ward" (the words of my editor), I am sympathetic to the statewide LD1454 campaign, promoting the Paid Sick Days Bill.

I don't know what I would have done if staying home last week would have meant either: a) being fired, or b) not being able to pay my rent. But for lots of low-wage workers, in Maine and nationwide, staying in bed and watching Veronica Mars isn't an option -- for fear of pissing off their employer, or losing a whole day's wages.

And that sucks not just for the sick waitress, or cashier, but for the consumers who come into contact with them, and for their co-workers, who run an increased risk of getting sick. (Case-in-point: My TB-ward of an office.)

That's why a coalition of labor and social justice organizations, including the Maine Women's Lobby, the Maine State Nurses Association, and the Maine AFL-CIO launched the Maine Sneezes campaign, complete with three eye-catching ads that highlight the grossness of sick food-service workers. (My favorite shows an image of a menu board, advertising specials such as "Strep Steak" with "a small sneezer salad.")

The campaign is aimed at publicizing the Act to Care for Working Families, which passed through the Labor Committee last fall, and which the state House could take up as early as next week. The bill would require companies that employ 25 or more workers to offer five paid sick days to their employees. Business organizations aren't too keen on the idea. Stay tuned. And remember to sneeze in your sleeve.

2/28/2008 11:23:28 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

The people have spoken, and Delia W. Oman, whose Perfect Woman Project I wrote about a couple weeks ago, has her work cut out for her.

"The winner...has been contacted and agreed to participate," Delia tells me in an email. "This week, I began the process of deconstructing what he's requested. On Friday, I will begin to construct my new identity. From then until May 18, I will BE the new Delia, day in and day out until the project ends."

She's writing about the process on the Perfect Woman blog, where she's also accepting tips and suggestions on how to make the transformation. Here's an excerpt:

TO DO LIST
Things I definitely plan to change:
1.  workout daily - I plan to do running, weightlifting and yoga
2.  lose 4 lbs.
3.  get my hair done like Jennifer Aniston
4.  get my gap fixed (probably something temporary)
5.  wear light makeup
6.  work on a tan
7.  buy some new bras that show my breasts off more (maybe pushup bras)
8.  work on not being bossy (try to be aware when I am and change my behavior)
9.  before I assert myself question my beliefs (so I don’t err on the side of thinking I’m right all the time)
10.  send out my birthday gifts and cards on time!  get things fixed around the house  (there are two lights out in the kitchen right now…)
11.  try some video games and find a couple I really like
12.  go to the movies more often
13.  be more hard lined about illegal activities (however, I want to make sure this doesn’t conflict with “nonjudgmental”)
14.  stop having drinks with friends (can still go out but just stick to water? or should I stop going anywhere where they serve alcohol?)
15.  write to Alan and get to know him so I can try to love him (don’t know how much control I have over this one)

Things I may change:
1.  join a sport
2.  get collagen for my lips (it’s temporary, 3 months, but I’m not sure it will help me have a “nice face”)
3.  stop calling and writing my dear friend so I’m not a cyberspace cheater (the only problem is that this is a little in conflict with “stands up for and defends the ones she cares about” and “responsible”… maybe I can do it in a responsible way)

Things I’m reluctant to change, but willing to consider:
1.  get botox (really this just grosses me out)
2.  get a nose job (the women he mentioned all have distinctive noses, so I think mine is fine)
3.  try a cigar (I think this was just an option not a suggestion)

This is just my simple lists.  I’ll make my decisions by Monday (with help from all of you!) 

What it Means to be Perfect Woman:  I’ve got to build a whole person out if his description.  This brings up a lot of questions.  What does Delia do for a living?  What’s her house like?  Who does she hang out with?  How does she dress?  What kind of car does she drive?  What does she like to eat?  How did she grow up?  Where did she grow up?  What does she do for fun?  Who are her friends?  Where does she hang out?  Is she a morning or night person?  Where did she go to school?  What did she study?  Does she like dogs or cats?  There are many things that make up a person.  I’m have to do a bit of imagining, constructing and conjecture.  Feel free to give me suggestions or advice.

2/28/2008 10:54:09 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

We just received word that the Kennebunkport selectmen will take up Laurie Dobson's writ of indictment -- which calls on local police to arrest President George W. Bush and Veep Dick Cheney if they come to town -- tomorrow night. It's earlier than Dobson expected; she says they must want to "tamp down" the issue as quickly as possible.

The selectmen's meeting will take place tomorrow, Thursday, February 28, at 7:00 p.m., at the Village Fire Station, 32 North Street, in Kennebunkport. Dobson plans to attend the meeting, and speak during the public comment period.

2/27/2008 5:12:25 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [1] |  

The bandwidth limits of a hearing room in Boston were stressed to the breaking point Monday, bought up by a large corporation, with the intended side effect that the voice of the people was silenced. In a terrible twist of irony, this was exactly the problem those silenced people wanted to complain about - net neutrality.

Some Mainers were among those shut out of the Federal Communications Commission hearing.

Check out the report by once-and-future Mainer Mike Miliard here, complete with a glorious photo of some of the people paid to occupy seats to keep activists out. (Hint: they're not the ones so passionate and informed about the issue that they drove several hours to talk to government officials about it. They are, instead, the ones sleeping in the front row whose undisturbed slumber barred the informed travelers from petitioning their government to redress grievances.)

2/27/2008 2:23:27 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

SPACE Gallery, February 25

(Note: pic not from this show.)

What better opener for a revivalist stoner rock band than a... lesser-known, sensitive, atmospheric singer-songwriter act for post-adolescent couples to canoodle to? This is the inauspicious position Black Mountain places Justin Vernon and his band, Bon Iver, in every night. If Monday night and web consensus is any representation, the group consistently hold their own, even at SPACE Gallery, where a crowd of 200 + quiet breakup songs is rarely an optimal formula.

Vernon seemed well enough aware of this precarious position to adapt his music for a rock crowd without betraying its wintry essence. His voice, more of a whispery falsetto on Bon Iver’s fine debut, For Emma, Forever Ago, takes on a forceful tenor on stage. It sacrifices a bit of the delicacy of Bon Iver’s humbler tracks (“Blindsided”), but the crowd-silencing tricks he pulled out with each song - a gorgeous multi-part harmony opening “Lump Sum,” some great solos from each of the three band members - not only compensated for anything wanting, but are forcing me to second guess my favorable-but-dismissive opinion of the band’s album.

Black Mountain, on the other hand, didn’t need to compromise a damned thing. They played relatively straight versions of nine of the ten songs on their latest epic, In the Future, with a couple of likeminded jams from their (even better) self-titled debut in for good measure. The whole band seemed to be in top form. Singer Amber Webber struck a fascinating figure at center stage. She seemed pretty disaffected at times - initially, the songs where she had little to do but handle a tambourine made her presence distracting - but her trembly yet massive vibrato complicated that notion, making her seem more the Chan Marshall or Bjork of the band.

By the time I cozied up to that distinction, Black Mountain were unstoppable. As the set wore on and loosened up (most of the 6+ minute songs came later on), this became the kind of concert you could watch for hours. Set highlights included “Druganaut,” with its porn-soundtrack tempo and relentless hooks, and the mammoth, emotional “Don’t Run Our Hearts Around.” That these were the two tracks from the band’s debut isn’t really a coincidence - it’s a much more liberal and unpredictable affair than the great but stubborn In the Future - but Black Mountain’s newfound focus on atmospherics further improved the songs.

All said, phenomenal show. Excellent sound quality (particularly impressive given the major highs and lows of BM's tunes), a one-song, 17-minute encore, etc., and the best Monday night Portland will see in a long time.

2/27/2008 11:46:07 AM by Christopher Gray | Comments [0] |  

At last Thursday's public hearing of the Maine Citizen Trade Policy Commission, the commission heard a lot of people give their thoughts on free trade in general as well as more specifically about a free-trade proposal with Colombia, demanded by the president in his State of the Union address last month. (You remember, the one in which he told Congress - the elected representatives of a country facing more national debt and more consumer debt than ever before in our history, a country trying to pay for two wars in the Middle East and the one at home against non-rich people, and a country hated around the world - that our union would "remain strong.")

Anyway, the commission - a group of state officials, with a couple of "regular people" mixed in - voted to oppose the deal, but that will not mean much in DC.

But the hearing gave me an opportunity to put together a few ideas that I had never really connected as clearly as I did that night. First we have to start with the idea that "free trade" means "trade without tariffs." Here are Dubya's thoughts on the matter, from the selfsame State of the Union I mentioned earlier: "Many products from these nations [Colombia and Peru] now enter America duty-free, yet many of our products face steep tariffs in their markets. These agreements will level the playing field."

But tariffs have a purpose - to protect the companies that abide by the rules countries make. Here in the US we make rules and laws to protect the public interest, like vehicle-emissions standards, labor-relations laws, environmental-impact regulations. If companies operate here in the US, they have to abide by those rules. Companies that don't have to pay tariffs to the government when their foreign-made goods are imported. It is a way to compensate our government - our society - for not having followed the rules. (Before you get too angry, let me admit right here that many tariffs are manipulated by well-connected lobbyists to protect politically "special" businesses here in the US, or to force punitive expenses on companies elsewhere who might deign to compete. But let's move on, in a world where tariffs do what they're supposed to, and are not misused.)

So when companies in Colombia, which are not subject to American labor standards, American environmental rules, and the like want to send their goods here, they have to pay us to do it. (There's another fudge - American consumers who buy those goods pay the tariff in increased prices passed on by the importers. Effectively, we pay our own government for the privilege of buying goods made where people don't play by our rules.)

The US has a couple of options, and we have clearly taken one of those and discarded the other. Rather than trying to get others to adopt environmental standards and labor rules like our own, and rewarding those countries with reduced tariffs after they make the changes (and in some sort of sensible proportion to the degree to which their rules are like our own), we are removing the barriers entirely, even for goods made in countries with no environmental protection, no protections for workers, and no human-rights respect.

Then, we argue, as Bush does, that we have to bargain with those countries to lower their tariffs, to "level the playing field." But the problem is not that the tariffs are out of balance because of those countries' choices - it's because of our own. We have removed our protections, we have un-leveled the playing field ourselves.

2/26/2008 5:57:31 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

So far, four candidates have announced their intent to run for the state House seat currently occupied by Representative Anne Rand, a Democrat (who plans on running for state senate). The district encompasses Munjoy Hill, the Old Port, and part of the West End.

The candidates are:

Munjoy Hill activist Ed Democracy, who is running as a Democrat.

Former Portland School Committee member (who lost his seat in last fall's election) and Green Independent Ben Meiklejohn.

Sandy Amborn, another Green Independent -- meaning that there will be a primary between Amborn and Meiklejohn. Not much of a web presence for her yet, aside from discussion on As Maine Goes.

Peter Doyle, a Republican who was vocal during the King Middle School birth control brouhaha.

2/26/2008 10:44:12 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

Laurie Dobson of Kennebunkport, an Independent candidate for the US Senate, on Tuesday will ask the selectmen of Kennebunkport to issue arrest warrants for President George W. Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney. Dobson, who supports efforts to impeach both men in connection with lies told in the run-up to the Iraq War and violating Constitutional protections for American citizens, says that since Congress won't act, private citizens need to.

Dobson, a former member of both the GOP and the donkey party, is seeking the seat now held by Susan Collins, which is also being sought by US Rep. Tom Allen. Both of them say impeachment is not the right choice. (Other candidates in the race, Democrat Tom LeDue who is challenging Allen in the Dem primary, former Dem-turned-independent Herb Hoffman, and former Dem Ed Cohen who is challenging Collins in the GOP primary, are in favor of impeachment.)

Dobson's request will be to the Kennebunkport selectboard, which may vote on the issue itself or send the question to voters at Town Meeting or a secret ballot. The town of Brattleboro, Vermont, has already addressed such a question and its residents will vote on issuing arrest warrants on March 4. (Bush has never visited Vermont while in office; that effort seems to guarantee he'll never show. But if his dad's vacation hometown takes a similar step, the snub will be unmistakable.)

Dobson's request reads:
“Shall the Kennebunkport Board of Selectmen instruct the Town Attorney to draft indictments against President Bush and Vice President Cheney for crimes against our Constitution, and publish said indictments for consideration by other authorities, and shall it be the law of the Town of Kennebunkport that the Kennebunkport Police, pursuant to the above-mentioned indictments, arrest and detain George W. Bush and Richard Cheney in Kennebunkport if they are not duly impeached, and prosecute or extradite them to other authorities that may reasonably contend to prosecute them.”

2/22/2008 3:04:54 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

-- Aside from all the new articles, can you discern a difference between this week's print version of the Phoenix and last week's?

-- Also, in This Just In, I take a tour of the new art gallery / tattoo shop in the Bull Moose-Videoport complex (not online yet), as well as the brain of the guy who runs it:



-- In other news, mark your calendars for tomorrow evening's Peninsula Transit Study public forum, which will take place at 7 p.m., at the Ocean Gateway Terminal (across Commercial Street from Franklin Arterial). From the Portland Area Comprehensive Transportation Committee's web site: "PACTS has funded this study to provide the City with an evaluation which emphasizes public and human-powered transit as a preferred feasible alternative to single-occupancy vehicles. The study evaluation will include the potential, methods, and benefits of expanding and optimizing a transportation system for the Portland Peninsula." Basically, the study is looking at ways to decrease the number of cars that drive onto the peninsula each day. Now that local sensible-transportation advocates have made their voices heard regarding larger-scale transit priorities in the region, they surely will want to attend this meeting in the hopes of shaping policy even closer-to-home.

-- If free trade is more your activism bag, make a note of tomorrow night's Maine Citizen Trade Policy Commission meeting, to be held at the South Portland Community Center at 6 p.m. "This hearing is the latest in a series of public hearings around the State...to get input from citizens about how international trade agreements are impacting their lives," a press release reads. District Two congressman Mike Michaud will speak at the beginning of the hearing.

2/20/2008 10:10:45 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

This Thursday marks the last day of National Condom Week (it started on V-Day). To celebrate, and to promote a new condom brand "designed to encourage women to feel more comfortable about carrying and buying condoms," several Planned Parenthood "condom fairies" will be distributing their wares at Old Port bars. Look for them at Bull Feeney's, the Old Port Tavern, Amigos, the White Heart, Brian Boru, and ForePlay (even though it's ladies night, Margaritas said no).

Proper Attire condoms ("Required for Entry") debuted at New York Fashion Week, in keeping with Planned Parenthood's national campaign to market them as hip and trendy (the colorful designs and simple fig leaf motif help with that too). The condoms also popped up at the Sundance Film Festival, where they provided fodder for E! Online's Planet Gossip blog.

Here's an image, courtesy of Planned Parenthood Federation of America:



 The yellow and grey dots are my personal fave, aesthetically speaking.

2/19/2008 12:30:18 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

For reasons we're still unclear on - not that we're arguing - the Bushmills Irish Whiskey company has named Portland (yes, this one) one of three finalists in a nationwide search for a "Twin City" for the 1300-person town of Bushmills, on the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland.

See, it's the 400th anniversary of the granting of Bushmills's license to distill whiskey (perhaps granted on April 20, 1608), and the distillers have sobered up long enough to think of others' interest in the water of life.

They're picking the winning "twin" of Bushmills by popular vote online, so you know it's a real democratic effort. (It may end up being far more representative than November's presidential election.)

So if you're 21 or older, head on over to the Bushmills Web site and vote for the Bushmills Twin City. (If you go to the company's front page, the links there don't work, so you have to go to the exact right page, which we have painstakingly dug up for you.) You can also enter to win a trip to Bushmills, which is actually a very nice place, and very close to some really incredible coastal scenery: the Giants' Causeway.

2/18/2008 2:25:23 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [1] |  

WCYY has moved. Not far, but some. They made a video of it, featuring some of the local folks you can hear. If you haven't seen their faces, it's fun. If you have, you can confirm they're crazier than you thought. We don't know what Rob or Robin really do there - and it appears that the 'CYYers don't either!

Take a look:

2/15/2008 9:57:03 AM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

On days like today, when I wake up late and my contacts feel weird and it takes me 20 minutes to dislodge my car from the snow and then I remember that it's garbage-pick-up day on the Hill so I have to run back inside to get the blue bag (which inevitably breaks as I try to close the plastic drawstring), and all this makes me extremely tardy, I could do with an extra day off.

These folks, who are collecting signatures to make St. Patrick's Day an official holiday, have got the right idea. (Thanks for the tip, Tim!) Especially this year, when St. Patrick's Day falls on a Monday (perfect three-day-weekend scenario, no?). They say it's to honor the spirit of the day, as well as "to celebrate and honor St. Patrick himself. A man once known for driving snakes out of Ireland, St. Patrick now embodies the pride and strength in all who are Irish and in Irish enthusiasts alike."

I say hooray for heritage (I'm exactly 3/8 Irish, according to my father), and for Guinness.

2/13/2008 10:05:37 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

I saw a post on Craigslist today looking for production assistants and crew members for a web-based TV show that will begin shooting in the area this spring. Intrigued, I dug up a bit more info.

Here's how the show's Web site describes the series, which it compares to both Weeds and The Sopranos:

"The Chronicles of Julie is a web-based T.V series centralizing around Julie and Bobby Winters (brother and sister, Julie age 24-30, and Bobby slightly older).This is an ensemble cast with various roles and age ranges of mid twenties to 50 and older...The show is a little bizarre and 'random.' Basically it is about Julie, who has mafia connections from an incident that happened while she was in high school, and the story centralizes around her and her brother’s lives, and a little bit on the mafia side. She is not in 'the mob': but is part of the 'family'."

Reached by email, the show's 27-year-old creator Justine Lynn says that she "had the idea for this series as a full length movie almost 8 years ago. I could never finish a final draft because I just had so many places to go with the characters that 2 hours would not be nearly enough." So she found some local writers to help create dialogue and episodic plot. "Although I have created the characters, and a majority storyline, my team has really made it their own and I am so blessed to have them aboard. I am very impressed at how the characters have grown in such a short time."

Now, after a casting audition to be held in Portland on February 20 (that's next Wednesday; time and location TBA), she'll be ready to start shooting. Lynn hopes to have the first episode available for online viewing by June.

2/12/2008 5:03:25 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

A very cool Google Maps mash-up of Maine's caucus results is being put together by a guy named Bryan. Check it out - you can zoom in and out, and click on markers for each town to see how they voted. (The color-coding is also useful in that regard, and supports the idea that Obama does far better than Clinton in caucus states.)

And as Phoenix blogger Steven Stark has noted, Obama may pass Clinton in the delegate count tomorrow night. He has to, if he's going to take the nomination.

2/11/2008 10:39:47 AM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

Before we head out into the snowy night/weekend, we want to wish all you Democratic Party caucusers a good, um, caucus. As you surely know already, Barack Obama, and Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, will be in Maine tomorrow. (Click the links for more information about where/when.)

When's the last time the state got so much attention from national pols?

2/8/2008 5:30:17 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

I had coffee this morning with US Senate hopeful Tom LeDue, the high school principal from Springvale who will challenge US Representative Tom Allen in the June Democratic primary; the winner of that contest will face Senator Susan Collins in November 2008.

My first impression is that LeDue, 44, certainly has the capacity to give Allen a kick in the pants -- and in a best case scenario (for LeDue, that is), he could change the course of a race people had labeled inevitable. (Independent candidate Laurie Dobson could have that effect as well, if she can develop the political acumen to attract more supporters.)

LeDue will have about 60 people in 45 towns this Sunday, collecting signatures at the Democratic caucuses. He needs 2500 signatures from registered voters to get on the June 10 primary ballot. His biggest challenge right now, by his own admission, is raising cash -- after all, Allen and Collins have raised staggering amounts of money so far in this race, one of the country's most expensive.

"Our system, right now, desperately needs someone from outside the system," he says of the political landscape that he will enter for the first time as a candidate.

While he calls Allen "a good man" -- and he gave Allen a very gentlemanly heads up the week before he officially announced his intent to run -- LeDue says his comprehensive take on the issues would be a fresh perspective in Washington.

In a nutshell, LeDue is an anti-war, pro-choice, fiscally minded candidate, who advocates "local solutions to national problems." Oh, and he supports the idea of holding impeachment hearings in the House, which will almost certainly attract some Dems who are disillusioned with Allen's reluctance on that issue. Stay tuned!

2/8/2008 2:28:30 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [1] |  

Munjoy Hiller Justin Alfond, whose major claims to fame include founding the Maine chapter of the League of Young Voters and the Opportunity Maine program, made the rumors official when he announced today that he will run for the state senate seat currently occupied by Ethan Strimling (who is, in turn, running for the US House seat currently occupied by Tom Allen).

If successful in 2008, Alfond would represent the Portland peninsula and much of the area south of Forest Avenue, according to a press release issued this morning by Alfond's communications director (and Phoenix contributer) Tony Giampetruzzi.

Elizabeth Mitchell, daughter of Senate Majority Leader Libby Mitchell, previously announced her plan to run for the seat, but changed her mind at the end of January. Cliff Ginn, who serves as president of the Opportunity Maine board, and as vice president of the Back Cove Neighborhood Association, is running, but doesn't yet have a web presence.

2/7/2008 3:11:38 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

I've been going on and on about the international attention the Portland indie scene's been accruing lately, and we've again hit pay dirt today, as Fire on Fire receive a kind track review from their excellent self-titled EP at Pitchfork this morning. Check it out, up that play count, add comments, etc.

2/7/2008 12:02:04 PM by Christopher Gray | Comments [0] |  

Due to an oversight (and the wonderful preponderance of costume parties at Geno's), I neglected to attribute By Blood Alone member/artist/former Geno's booker extraordinaire Melynda Amann for creating the awesome spaceship that hung at the venue for a time last year, after she created for last May's "Halfway to Halloween Horror Ball: Mars Attacks!" I regret the error, and we wish her well as she undergoes treatment for breast cancer. You can read more about and by her at www.benefitformelynda.org.

2/7/2008 10:46:09 AM by Christopher Gray | Comments [0] |  

In this week's Phoenix, I take a stab at elucidating exactly what's going on with rail developments in this part of the state. One thing that I neglected to mention is that in addition to the proposals that would extend rail service northward from Portland, through Brunswick, and up to Rockland, there is another germinating idea that would take rail travelers up from Portland, through Auburn, and ultimately up to Montreal.

Since the story went to press, I've gotten several news releases from groups that plan to attend next Tuesday's PACTS hearing, where the High-Priority Projects Committee will hear public comment on potential projects, such as widening I-295, or increasing money for public transportation. Environment Maine and Maine PIRG, along with area college students, are planning a 6 p.m. rally at the Metro Pulse (Congress and Elm) before the hearing, and then a group bus ride to the Clarion Hotel on Outer Congress Street, where the hearing will begin at 7 p.m. They plan to advocate for more public transport, and fewer highway-heavy projects.

**UPDATE: Now the League's got a petition too.

2/6/2008 2:36:27 PM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |  

Plum Creek Timber Company and the Piscataquis County district attorney have dropped charges filed against three environmental activists for allegedly trespassing on Plum Creek land. We told you about the incident back in November, in the context of a Congressional proposal that moves toward criminalizing speech and thought - a big change from the norm, which is criminalizing actions. (A brief update on that: Senator Olympia Snowe's office has been ducking our requests for a statement on the bill since November. Drop her a line and let her know what you think. And while you're at it, tell Senator Susan Collins you don't like that she is the lead backer of the bill in the Senate.)

And now back to our show. The three activists, Emily Posner, Alex Lundberg, and John Waters, were issued summonses back in November for their appearance in a parking lot of a Plum Creek office, during business hours, to film exterior shots of the building for a documentary they and their group, the Native Forest Network, are working on about the Plum Creek proposal (see "Up Plum Creek Without a Paddle," by Yanni Peary, November 28, 2007).

We already know that Plum Creek is paranoid (see "Plum Creek is Afraid of You," by Dave Brady, December 19, 2007), but now the prosecutor in the case agrees, saying in a letter to Posner that the charges were dropped because "The Defendants left almost immediately after being ordered to do so, plus, any posting was insufficient for Criminal Trespass at that time of day under the circumstances."

While that's a pretty technical way to say "You're allowed to be in a parking lot of a business during business hours," the point is made, and well.

Posner says the group was not taken to jail, and never had to post bail. "We just were detained for a good long while in the cold," she says.

So that's good. But the prosecutor didn't actually drop the charges until she and the others pleaded not guilty and prepared to contest the charges. More official intimidation tactics? Good lawyering? Hopeful prosecution? Or wishful thinking? You make the call.

2/5/2008 2:34:02 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

You may remember the censorship mess the University of Southern Maine got into back in the fall of '06. A brief refresher: the university put up an art show billed as starting a "conversation" about what a "political prisoner" is, and what they stand for, but when that "conversation" started to include police officers complaining to lawmakers about a public university's expression of free speech, the university caved with amazing alacrity, taking down a show planned to run for seven weeks after just seven days. It later went back up at Ubu Studio, without any protests, and then went on tour down the East Coast.

We had extensive coverage of it, which you can read in the links listed a bit farther down. The reason we're telling you about it today is that his work is again showing in Portland, at the Meg Perry Center for Peace and Justice, at 644 Congress Street. It includes some of the works shown in Portland before, and some new stuff never before seen in public.

There's an opening reception tonight as part of the First Friday Art Walk, starting at 6 pm, as well as a February 15 event about the history of SCAR (the Statewide Correctional Alliance for Reform, an activist group in Portland in the early 1970s), including a talk by Ray Luc Levasseur, a co-defendant of Manning's who was also involved in SCAR and spent 20 years in federal prison as a self-described political prisoner (see "Sanford's Son," December 17, 2004, by Rick Wormwood).

Here are the links to the past stories:

"Prisoners of Politics," September 15, 2006, by Rick Wormwood

"Brut Portraiture," September 15, 2006, by Ian Paige

"Whose Art is Next?" September 15, 2006, by Rick Wormwood

"Also Removed," September 15, 2006, by Jeff Inglis

"Liberals Collapse," September 15, 2006, by Rick Wormwood

See a slideshow of Manning's censored work

 

"Censored Artwork Hits the Road," September 22, 2006, by Rick Wormwood

"Painting at 3 mph," September 22, 2006, by Chris Thompson

 

"No Protests for Second Showing of Inmate's Paintings," October 20, 2006, by Rick Wormwood

 

"Art Censored by USM Hits the Road," August 28, 2006, by Jeff Inglis

 

2/1/2008 12:00:02 PM by Jeff Inglis | Comments [0] |  

To put it plainly: the Ani DiFranco show at the Merrill Auditorium last night was awesome.

From the moment she opened her set with "Both Hands" -- "let's begin at the beginning, right?" she asked the audience -- through new political rants and happy songs, and until an encore of "Little Plastic Castle" and "Overlap" (for which she was joined by gay heartthrob Melissa Ferrick), Ani had the crowd on its feet. If there was any doubt that her fans would begrudge Ani her newfound domestic happiness, it was assuaged last night.

And anyway, she's certainly not all hearts and rainbows now that she's a mom. Sure, a couple of her new songs were about healthy relationships and learning to love life, but she's still got that familiar growling rant in her. Several numbers last night -- including one spoken word piece -- took our government and political leaders to task. "What the fuck happened to the separation of church and state?" she mused.

The evening was filled with DiFranco's characteristic chatter with the audience, self-deprecating, giggly, and smart all at once. She looked great, all taut and tiny (and her hot-as-hell drummer, Allison Miller, ain't bad either). Most of all, she was smiling, a lot. Even playing "Shameless," she looked more empowered than angry, rocking around the stage and bouncing her guitar on her leg. The audience was smiling a lot too. And when she talked about Petah, her year-old baby and the source of much of her current joy, they cheered.

2/1/2008 10:04:51 AM by Deirdre Fulton | Comments [0] |