Hi Mike:

So I am sitting here in my soon-to-be-blissfully-obsolete “01.20.09″ T-Shirt, having watched the live webcast of the Inauguration my employer screened in our lunchroom, and still not quite getting back into the normal work routine in the midst of the general excitement.

And at one point, I found myself reminded of reading a rant from you long ago, sharing your deep disillusionment after having put in time and effort, working in snow and rain, campaigning for Bill Clinton, only to have one of his first act in office be to sign DOMA into law.

The reason I was reminded of this was the following site:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/civil_rights/

Third bullet point under the “Support for the LGBT Community” heading: “Obama also believes we need to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.”

Also, fifth bullet point: “Repeal Don’t Ask-Don’t Tell”.

Heck, there *is* a “Support for the LGBT Community” heading on whitehouse.gov.

Just thought this may bring a smile to your workaday… it definitely made me go all misty for a moment. Again.

Nurith

To: Lynette Sweet, Bart Director, District 7

Subject: Reform the BART Police

Dear Ms. Sweet:

I am a resident of BART District 7 and a frequent BART rider.  I’m
writing because of my concern over the recent fatal shooting of Oscar
Grant at the Fruitvale BART station by a member of the BART Police,
which I’m sure is a matter of deep concern to you as well.  I realize
that the public only knows part of the story of this tragedy and the
subsequent investigation, and I realize that the BART Police have a
difficult and important job to do.  Still, even in the videos which
have been circulating, there is strong evidence that unjustified
deadly force was involved.

It is very troubling that a man who had not committed a serious crime
is dead today, and that his young child will grow up without a father.
Above and beyond that, it is troubling that there has not been a
decisive response from BART, and that according to the San Francisco
Chronicle, the officer has not yet offered a statement.

It is certainly of immediate importance that BART respond to the
apparent misdeeds of its officers quickly, and that a thorough
investigation is conducted with appropriate transparency to the
public.  If it is found that the officer is guilty of a crime, it is
certainly important that he be brought to justice quickly.

Above and beyond the immediate investigation, this incident has made
apparent the importance of a broader reform to the BART Police to
institute a greater degree of civilian oversight.  The BART Police is
too large an organization, with too much discretion to use deadly
force, not to have civilian oversight like the other police agencies
which protect the San Francisco Bay Area.  It is not my desire to
impede the important work which the BART Police does, but it is also
only fair that those who are trusted with such broad authority should
be accountable to the public they serve.

Sincerely, and With Grave Concern,
-Michael Prados
Resident of Potrero Hill Neighborhood, San Francisco, CA

As a tribute to AT&T and other telco’s complicity in handing over customers’ data to the NSA without warrants, court orders, or even public acknowledgment, the Billboard Liberation Front has modified one of AT&T’s billboards in San Francisco’s Mission District, at the Northeast corner of Valencia and 14th streets. As of Thursday at 3pm, the modification is still there, although a few letters seem to have been peeled off, as you can see in my picture.

The sign now reads “AT&T works more places, like NSA HEADQUARTERS”

Here is what the BLF’s press release said-

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 27, 2008
San Francisco, CA
http://billboardliberation.com/HQ.html

The Billboard Liberation Front today announced a major new advertising improvement campaign executed on behalf of clients AT&T and the National Security Agency. Focusing on billboards in the San Francisco area, this improvement action is designed to promote and celebrate the innovative collaboration of these two global communications giants.

“This campaign is an extraordinary rendition of a public-private partnership,” observed BLF spokesperson Blank DeCoverly. “These two titans of telecom have a long and intimate relationship, dating back to the age of the telegraph. In these dark days of Terrorism, that should be a comfort to every law-abiding citizen with nothing to hide.”

AT&T initially downplayed its heroic efforts in the War on Terror, preferring to serve in silence behind the scenes. “But then we realized we had a PR win on our hands,” noted AT&T V.P. of Homeland Security James Croppy. “Not only were we helping NSA cut through the cumbersome red tape of the FISA system, we were also helping our customers by handing over their e-mails and phone records to the government. Modern life is so hectic – who has time to cc the feds on every message? It’s a great example of how we anticipate our customers’ needs and act on them. And, it should be pointed out, we offered this service free of charge.”

Commenting on the action, and responding to questions about pending privacy litigation and the stalled Congressional effort to shield the telecoms from these lawsuits, NSA spokesperson [REDACTED] remarked: “[REDACTED] we [REDACTED] condone [REDACTED] warrantless [REDACTED], [REDACTED] SIGINT intercepts, [REDACTED] torture [REDACTED] information retrieval by [REDACTED] means necessary.”

“It’s a win-win-win situation,” noted the BLF’s DeCoverly. “NSA gets the data it needs to keep America safe, telecom customers get free services, and AT&T makes a fortune. That kind of cooperation between the public and private sectors should serve as a model to all of us, and a harbinger of things to come.”

The BLF (www.billboardliberation.com) has been improving outdoor advertising since 1977. Prior campaigns have included work for Exxon, R.J. Reynolds, and Apple Computers.

AT&T (www.att.com) is America’s favorite telecommunications trust. Based in San Antonio, Texas, it has over 300,000 employees and annual revenues of $117 Billion.

NSA (www.nsa.gov) is the largest intelligence organization in the world. Headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, its budget, personnel, products, and services are all classified.