Hi Ron Greene: I follow your blog because you once wrote about Downtown Streets team of San Rafael and I was tracking that here in Palo Alto; oddly I stole a page from your play book in that I have covered nine straight Gunn of Palo Alto football games, as a writer and bad cellphone photog, for my wordpress blog Plastic Alto; I am also influenced by “When The Game Stood Tall” book by Neal Hayes movie by Laura Dern et al. And I use “took a knee like Chris Ryan” as a metaphor even though he does not exist; he is Hollywood’s white saintly version of Maurice Jones-Drew if you excuse the plot-spoiler. Drew meanwhile has a cameo as the Ghost of Touchdowns Past.
My jazz treatise stands at 24,776 words.
I bought the book on Thelonious Monk by Robin D.G. Kelley because it mentions Danny Scher and the concert he presented on October 27, 1968; she has his yearbook, the Madrono as a cite.
I mean to ring Danny on this account.
I think and this is the next day — god love it, thank you, for the extra two days and counting of this — music being a sophisticated form of counting — that I did actually just push thru the 25,000 word count for my epic, what’s it called again “Jazzscribe contrafacts” — interro, interro — my leaving this or approximately this on Danny’s pseudo-office voice mail:
Hi, Dan. Danny. It’s Mark Weiss. From Earth-wise Productions and Artist Management, in Palo Alto and this is just to say that I just yesterday or Monday procured a copy of Robin D. G. Kelley’s book on Thelonious (although I pronounced it “thelonius”) Monk, very specifically because you are mentioned in the index, and four citations, one, for your yearbook, one the flyer and two for an interview I guess she — I presume it’s a she, Robin could be a “he” — did with you. You had told me the anecdote, about Monk playing at Paly and in fact I had seen the link on line but now I own the book. It sold another copy. But bottom line is
(then I jumped up, bought a chocolate milk Horizon Organic, here at Peets, paid cash, dude named Brendan with “juanita” on his neck, which made me suss a minute of Lowell George Little Feat Fat Man in the Bathtub, with the blues, you moan, all dat and back to)
I wrote twenty five thousand words about the history of jazz in Palo Alto. I have this construct I refer to WOGS it stands for Wong, Olaine Gioia and Scher. I want to produce a panel discussion for Palo Alto History Association and I would have — I wrote this in residence, like an intern, at PAHA, going thru their files — you, Herb Wong, Jason Olaine and Ted Gioia come speak — of course Herb Wong has moved on to further-fetched venues, uh, he passed away, I wrote this about a year ago. Anyways i know you are a very busy man but if you get a chance to ring me back six five oh three of five et cetera.
so that’s exactly 400 words putting the whole thing to like 25,000 and two hundred. Yesterday and apropos of Monk Scher Kelley I fact-checked or was really just searching for place and realized I had written thelonius and went back in there to fix that and worried that it would oddly re-format, it does that. Not sure why. Of course the 25,000 words includes entire sections that repeat, like in a jazz score, maybe or so sez me; it’s probably closer to 10,000 and that doesn’t even include any actual research, besides the clips and my own memories. Also, I am trying to identify 500 Palo Alto jazz memes, people, places venues, things, events, and so far I have I think about 250. Somewhere I say “Helen Sung is a Palo Altan by marriage although it’s actually her cousin Juliet Lee sister of Yu-Jean Lee the artist that is married to Andres Fajardo of Palo Alto they live in Philly now with two kids, they call chi-lombicans”. Makes me want to go back and check.
I wrote song for sung and fixed that. Weird stuff this.sun ra at 100. sun ra C?
I noticed that the New York Times, on my stupid smart phone none the less, made mention of Taylor Swift “1989” selling 1.3 M in the first week, and then stopping at the Starbucks on Alameda de Las Pulgas in Menlo Park to check my email on my laptop — after sneaking away to see the Bill Murray as saintly Viet Nam Vet but not quite a Jonathan Lethem story Melfi movie “St. Vincent” not the singer who hangs with David Byrne and not the scene from “Inside Llewyn Davis” but not far from it, especially the closing credits coda synch license of Bob Dylan “Shelter from the Storm” — and bought the cd, for $12.95, tax deductible, especially if this Curtis McMurtry Rachel Garlin at Stern Ballroom actually happens.
This debate has taken center stage in the industry thanks to the decision by Taylor Swift to remove her entire catalog from Spotify. Calling streaming outlets like it “a grand experiment,” Ms. Swift told Yahoo in an interview last week: “I’m not willing to contribute my life’s work to an experiment that I don’t feel fairly compensates the writers, producers, artists and creators of this music.”
“Shake it Off” track number six is closing on 300 million youtube plays:
Two hundred ninety Amazon reviews
2.
A hard copy of the Chron meanwhile left at Peet’s has an Amoeba ad featuring Primus new studio cd, first in “nearly 20 years” “Primus & The Chocolate Factory With The Fungi Ensemble”
even in that context when they say “Charlie” song title I think Charlie Hunter not Charlie and The Chocolate Factory Willie Wonka and I know I’m not alone.
Reminds that Ann Hagedorn — and by the way I read four whole pages today of her “Savage Years” about 1919 with Woodrow Wilson on the cover the part about Einstein and Eddelman I think the Brit looking at the Solar Eclipse — says that in writing books the chapter titles become key; I took a picture of her digits the old school kind pointing at her title page in the Iraq contractors book. Worst or most subtle preview here, third attempt.
(see also: Jessica Hagedorn the Asian culture critic “Charlie Chan is Dead” and Fred Hargadon the former dean of admissions at Stanford; see also Dao Strom versus Elizabeth Strout is it? Shelfmates for life).
edit to add or subtract: fact-checking yields the sad fact that Fred Hargadon who was dean of admissions for Stanford and then Princeton for 15 years EACH passed away early this year, at age 80 leaving two sons, Steve and Andy — the center on our 25-3 1981 Gunn Titans hoopsters and something not sure what of a Dartmouth guy — and five grandkids. I profiled him for the Gunn Oracle in 1981. http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S38/99/07K19/index.xml?section=topstories
I gotta be the only person who knows now both Ann Hagedorn (it means “Hawthorne” like in the scarlet letter and yes she was wearing red when we met) and Andy Hargadon; Terry my Terry the artist and arts commissioner Terry Acebo Davis knows the Japanese American Jessica Hagedorn by marriage. This drifted from somewhere previous, none too swiftly. So Charlie Chan is dead and so is Dean Fred. When he passed thru the pearly gates a chant went up: we got in!
and1:
Rowing Coach, Dartmouth College (1986-87)
Freshman coach of Dartmouth College Rowing Team—placed 3rd in Nationals. that’s Andy Hargadon not Taylor swift-boating, of course or off course as the case may be
Eoanthrophus will triumph finally over Homo sapiens
Mencken, 1926
Horse-man
Weiss, 1984 & 2014
According to a notebook I dug out of storage yesterday which would be also known as November 10, 2014, these are the classes I took towards fulfillment of my English major at Dartmouth:
English 5
English 9
English 23
English 52
English 40
English 42
English 41
English 15
English 54
English 66
English 75
English 18
I think the first six are more accurate than the second six. Partly this was a long of my record, and partly advance planning.
English 5: Professor Loomis, introductory, about half the freshman took this; if you got below 550 on SAT you took English 3 Remedial; we read “Paradise Lost”; in Animal House Don Sutherland teaches this and writes SAT and AN. Then bites an apple.
English 9 – must be Freshman seminar, with David Shapiro, on Marlowe. Mary Morgan (Finegan) I ran into in the lobby of freshman office and her comment about Marlowe convinced me to switch from my intended — about Untouchables of India, which I now think of as dalit – to this. I did exceptionally well; my professor presented one of my ideas at a conference. I don’t think I kept to that standard as I continued reading, sadly.
English 23 Sophomore fall no clue.
English 52 sophomore spring no clue.
Summer of 1984, sophomore summer, my sixth quarter and fifth and sixth courses I took interweaved American poetry and American prose, with Horace Porter, James Melville Cox and drama. Eng 40 and Engl 42
Junior Fall, 84F, it says English 41.
Junior winter I worked on the Dartmouth full-time, as Literary Director. Our Editor in Chief, Karen Jay Garnett took a leave term to work on Governor Clinton’s staff so I did most of the reporter training and assignment, very nearly like Editor and Chief yet not. I remember assigning Rob Fields ’85 to go out to Cornish and interview Louise Erdrich, unless that was the previous summer.
English 66
English 75
one of these might be Chauncey Loomis, senior fall seminar on Faulkner, I did quite poorly. The other might be Tom Sleigh on poetry reading, I did so-so.
I think English 18 was one of those quasi-mandatory course on the history of the language per se. the teacher, a female, rara avis that, made a little joke about lexicon and semantics: the lexicons sat near the back, the semantics up front.
Other teachers not quite matching to my grid: Donald Pease, Lou Renza. Saccio — Shakespeare. I don’t think I took Noel Perrin but was riffing on something he wrote “Giving up the Gun” not sure what my parody — this is just last week — was to be. Obscure reference either way.
Barbara Dimmick was not my teacher but I briefly befriended on a campus visit and escorted her, courtesy of Athletic Director Josie Harper to a hockey game in which #10 Dartmouth upset #1 Boston College, 4-3 as we gabbed about books. Something about horses, and wood-working.
I spoke to Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevans this morning and got quite a kick out of it. Five pound weight in the jock, inside joke inside joke. I said the shibboleth greeting from our generation — his ’77 to my ’86 and he had a sister Moira I studied with, ’87 — and he said “Love it!” but did not repeat the offending chant.
When I met the author, investigative reporter and former San Jose Mercury police reporter Ann Hagedorn yesterday at Coupa Cafe on Ramona she asked me why I was toting a pocket version of H.L. Mencken “Prejudices” the one with the Paul Rand cover and I showed her some markings from that era. Oh that I had time to actually re-read all this; David Shields said that the act of remembering is a type of composition and as such, a fiction.
I ran into the developer John McNellis at Peets then walked him back to his office and thereby was afraid to drink my coffee for fear that someone had tampered with it, talk about paranoid. Well Andy Grove said you have to be a little paranoid to survive here.
Notes:
1. I miss-spelled Dimmick earlier but so did ABE books. Her book gave birth to the horsey theme here.
2. Ann Hagadorn signed my copy of “the Invisible Soliders”: To Mark, The or True cafe genius! Great to meet you! Ann Hagedorn 11/10/14; I also bought her 1919 book;
3. Titi Rosenbloom wife of my neighbor the commissioner and MIT Harvard double Eric Rosenbloom in walk in to Oren’s at 11:11 on 11/11. Daughter in tow. Veteran’s Day school holiday perhaps. I said “hag sameah” or “hag sameach” and she replied, tho jewish or jewess “Happy Veterans Day”. But not for Buddy.
4. about 100 words ago, around 650 to the current 750, i thought about not writing more but adding more links as a composition. I thought about sending the link to the wordpress blog Plastic Alto to both Hagedorn and Dimmick. adding links is a type of composing.
5. This is out of bounds slightly but somewhere in my archives I have a file on rock band Third Eye Blind or 3EB and when they played the Cub in Feb 1995 they left behind in the green room a set list that include “semi-charmed” but what makes it nearly relevant is that the verso had an ink drawing of a horse. By Steven? By Kevin? By Ariel? I wonder.
6. Yesterday at Coupa before I met Ann I was chatting with an Argentinian who said he is a Columbia ’90 or so and has an uncle who is a 10-rated Polo player. In Polo, or so I recently caught whiff of, most players are ranked between minus-2 and 0 and world class players can go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and sometimes 10.
7. For the record, if that’s what you call this, I am eating a chicken schnitzel at Oren’s and using their wireless, pass word abuhassan or I am using the wireless and eating schnitzel.
8. Beyond the two Hagadorn, I also from FOL bought for $2 The Irony Tower by Andrew Solomon about Soviet artists in time of glasnost as compared to McPhee from a decade or so earlier. I left two stacks of other titles I wanted but had to show even the smallest amount of discipline. I took photos. I also bought the Robin Kelley book on Monk which I had only sussed online because it mentions Danny Scher, excuse to ring him.
9. Not sure I can finish both schnitzel-pieces but don’t want to schlep it around all day either. Hard to people-watch over the cheaters; digging the soundtrack, jazzy lounge or loungy jazz;
10. should I mention here Curtis McMurtry may do a show in Palo Alto via Earthwise 11/21/14 maybe at Stern Ballroom Palo Alto. A Texan at least, if that connotes horses. Murray Bowden. Gordie Quist.
11. Not sure where this fits, here or above, but of course in the Shakespeare class with Saccio and TK, we would have glossed the famous “My kingdom of a horse”, a history. Richard?
12. Not sure if Greg Brown drew horses — Lockhart drew fowls — as did, famously Oliveira — but he had a lot of critters; this fits here only with the Weissian scrawl
Ann Hagadorn, shown here at Coupa Cafe in Palo Alto, in red, she and the room, has written an important book about privatization of the military in U.S.
1. the first part; Or, The Pledge
THE director of the Secret Service has resigned after, among other problems, the revelation that, in a visit to Atlanta on Sept. 16, President Obama rode in an elevator with a private security contractor who was carrying a gun and had an arrest record. The episode raises a crucial question: How thoroughly does the government vet the private security contractors that an increasing number of agencies employ?
That is Ann Hagedorn’s lead in a recent NYT op-ed.
She has a book out about the topic, outsourcing or privatizing our military.
She was once a police reporter for the San Jose Mercury, when it was Knight Ridder and respectable, and covered the East Bay. (She says, in an exclusive Plastic Alto interview conducted today at Coupa that she recalls Randy the Japanese cop reporter for PTT when I was an intern there, in 1984, Higara? Higashi? Anyhoo, he said he hated journalism and I should try to do something else, over beer).
She is speaking tonight in ten minutes for an hour at Books Inc.
This could change your life, our country, nothing else ever does.
2. the second part; Or, The Turn
When I met the author, investigative reporter and former San Jose Mercury police reporter Ann Hagedorn yesterday at Coupa Cafe on Ramona she asked me why I was toting a pocket version of H.L. Mencken “Prejudices” the one with the Paul Rand cover and I showed her some markings from that era. Oh that I had time to actually re-read all this; David Shields said that the act of remembering is a type of composition and as such, a fiction.
I ran into the developer John McNellis at Peets then walked him back to his office and thereby was afraid to drink my coffee for fear that someone had tampered with it, talk about paranoid. Well Andy Grove said you have to be a little paranoid to survive here.
Notes:
1. I miss-spelled Dimmick earlier but so did ABE books. Her book gave birth to the horsey theme here.
2. Ann Hagadorn signed my copy of “the Invisible Soliders”: To Mark, The or True cafe genius! Great to meet you! Ann Hagedorn 11/10/14; I also bought her 1919 book;
3. Titi Rosenblum wife of my neighbor the commissioner and MIT Harvard double Eric Rosenblum in walk in to Oren’s at 11:11 on 11/11. Daughter in tow. Veteran’s Day school holiday perhaps. I said “hag sameah” or “hag sameach” and she replied, tho jewish or jewess “Happy Veterans Day”. But not for Buddy.
4. about 100 words ago, around 650 to the current 750, i thought about not writing more but adding more links as a composition. I thought about sending the link to the wordpress blog Plastic Alto to both Hagedorn and Dimmick. adding links is a type of composing.
5. This is out of bounds slightly but somewhere in my archives I have a file on rock band Third Eye Blind or 3EB and when they played the Cub in Feb 1995 they left behind in the green room a set list that include “semi-charmed” but what makes it nearly relevant is that the verso had an ink drawing of a horse. By Steven? By Kevin? By Ariel? I wonder.
6. Yesterday at Coupa before I met Ann I was chatting with an Argentinian who said he is a Columbia ’90 or so and has an uncle who is a 10-rated Polo player. In Polo, or so I recently caught whiff of, most players are ranked between minus-2 and 0 and world class players can go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and sometimes 10.
7. For the record, if that’s what you call this, I am eating a chicken schnitzel at Oren’s and using their wireless, pass word abuhassan or I am using the wireless and eating schnitzel.
8. Beyond the two Hagadorn, I also from FOL bought for $2 The Irony Tower by Andrew Solomon about Soviet artists in time of glasnost as compared to McPhee from a decade or so earlier. I left two stacks of other titles I wanted but had to show even the smallest amount of discipline. I took photos. I also bought the Robin D.G. Kelley book on Monk which I had only sussed online because it mentions Danny Scher, excuse to ring him.
3. the third part, or The Prestige
Voila; Or, Here I am Read Me; Ann, 2014:08
Reminds that Ann Hagedorn — and by the way I read four whole pages today of her “Savage Years” about 1919 with Woodrow Wilson on the cover the part about Einstein and Eddelman I think the Brit looking at the Solar Eclipse — says that in writing books the chapter titles become key; I took a picture of her digits the old school kind pointing at her title page in the Iraq contractors book. Worst or most subtle preview here, third attempt.
(see also: Jessica Hagedorn the Asian culture critic “Charlie Chan is Dead” and Fred Hargadon the former dean of admissions at Stanford; see also Dao Strom versus Elizabeth Strout is it? Shelfmates for life).
4. the fourth part or tail coda
There is a subtle horse theme trotting across these 888 words, in Ann Hagedorn works pages and projected subset or pseudo reality. Worked for me. Works. Collected. Or scattered. For kicks. Why I cry?
Tail tolled by an idot signifying not thing. Oxbow, Oxford, Ox tail.
Is it a little ironic if you hire a sub-contractor to re-read your collected works and propose a new package?
As a final warning, as Tony Perry of the Los Angeles Times in his review recently in August notes, Hagedorn delves into the evolving relationship between the private firms and the drones that are a favorite way of waging war for the U.S. administration. “Once again,” she/he writes, “the private military and security contractors were entering and locking into markets faster than safeguards and oversight could be established.” Or as Eugene says: I’m not the only crook in the crowd, or I said. Tricky.
Bruce Lee say if you concentrate on finger you miss heavenly glory; Ann say in a book format chapter heads are key, tricks of the dig it all age
I will redact this if needs be,
but my friend and sister in hoops Rachel Garlin reports that the Keith Haring show “The Political Line” at the DeYoung, Saturday thru February 16, 2015 rocks.
She should know because she is a rocker, or at least a new folk, hard folk not quite a folk-punk but rather spunky. In fact Rachel Garlin the former Berkeley High and Harvard ladies basketballstalwart, has a new song about Keith Haring –although to me it sounds maybe a wee bit to much like Natalie Merchant “Hey Jack Kerouac”.
Rachel went to the opening gala and met Julian Cox (he insists he does not follow soccer but played rugby and or has probably never met or read Alan Black, alack) and then Rennee in outreach (Rennee B, as compared to KFOG’s Renee R). Rachel wants to play her new song about Haring at “the Political Line” and maybe some of the publishing to the museum and or the Estate.
Good on Rachel.
Baker of BrandChron cooks up a tale of Haring as not a post-Pop graffito gone mainstream but “as a sort of editorial cartoonist of American culture as he encountered it” which is, come to think of it, or think to come of it, what I am trying to do here at Plastic altlandia.
weird possible seque to When the Game Stands Tall: they made Maurice Jones Drew in the book and real life into a white guy named Chris Ryan.
weirder folk from previous post: I actually did throw out my back
schlepping the up to 99 things I meant to write about or at least count – I am so Jewish — Saturday. Today more sensibly and humbled and brought down a rung or two I carry more like five: Neil Hayes, Shields and Salerno on Salinger, which I’ve already plugged to a Columbia ’93 who works at Microsoft in joint ventures or something and is nephew to a Handicap 10 i.e. world class Argentinian polo player I believe him — I said my three favorite Columbians are Ginsberg, Bill Campbell and Matt Gonzalez;
Or, We Are Broadcasting Live and Want To Hear All of “Yah”
at the bottom i am re-posting Tom Jordan 2 aka Tommy Jordan of Geggy Tah at Earthwise Showcase in 2009, trumpet solo and splits
we are broadcasting live and want to hear all of yah
—– Forwarded Message —–
From: mark weiss
To: Thomas Jordan
Sent: Sunday, November 9, 2014 2:34 PM
Subject: Re: LCV
Tom Nice seeing you.
We actually discussed via email this in Septemer, including that I explained my relationship to Stegner.
Per my voice mail, I’d rather you read my post to Plastic Alto about ARB and my application there.
I stand by this post, although “the Jewish Mafia” is fiction and a joke, but otherwise and all in all it hints at how my membership of Palo Alto City Council probably would, to normal people and actual environmentalists portend good for the Planet. Plastic Alto might be a wee bit too hip for you, and simultaneously, I may be a wee bit smug for a politician or elected official. (I can tone it down). I don’t think I am arrogant. Like I said, it is hard to hear “tone” in email. I think I am actually under-estimated in terms of my aptitude.
Twenty years ago I left corporate America to do something more grassroots and “environmental” and I think Earthwise Productions has been a success in those realms. What is almost never said is that my seeking leadership after 20 years dba Earthwise is a natural (!) progression or evolution and not “I made a lot of money selling this or that and decided to give back” like TD and EF.
Seriously.
I walked to the meeting at RA’s house, others drove. i drive a 4-cyl chevy worth $15,000 not a $100,000 Tesla toy.
And yes Wallace Stegner was my friend and a huge influence. Nancy Packer endorsed me.
The PASZ four, with due respectd, is like an “app” carefully designed to solve a carefully described “problem” but I fear will not actually further Democracy in Palo Alto. It is a sham. More Trotskyite than Jeffersonian, frankly.
I am sorry I was not in better touch with you. Thanks for your support in 2012.
Mark Weiss
re-read this and comment but I’d rather you read “Ghost-dogging and Gehry’d ARB ap” on Plastic Alto.
or as Tommy would say: oohhahhhheeeeeoooohhh yeh yeh!
In this picture please note that both Weiss and his drummer are wearing green
Posted on August 24, 2014by markweiss86
Photo by Terry Acebo Davis
Photo by Terry Acebo Davis
pasting in my submission to Sierra club, minus the actual names and emails of their people
Mark Weiss:
Congratulations on your decision to run for Palo Alto City Council this fall. If you are interested in receiving the endorsements of the Sierra Club and the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), please follow the process described in this email. FYI, candidates that we endorse have won about 85% of the time.
If you are not interested in receiving our endorsements, please let us know.
The Sierra Club and the LCV will jointly host in person interviews. Interested candidates will be interviewed for 30 minutes on Wednesday, August 27, starting at 6:30 p.m. Interviews will be held at the home of D_ and N_ A_ at {#@&^} in Palo Alto.
If you’d like to be interviewed and considered for our endorsement, please respond to the attached questionnaire and return your answers by Thursday, August 21. We ask that you return your responses as an attached file and in the text of your email.
We will give you an interview time after we receive your completed questionnaire. After interviews are conducted, the Sierra Club and the LCV make separate endorsement decisions. You will receive an e-mail on LCV’s endorsement decision the evening of September 8. The Sierra Club’s decision will be made around Sept. 12.
If you have questions, we are happy to answer them. Thanks for your commitment to public service!
D_ O_ and T_ T__l
for the Sierra Club and the LCV
PS 2 attachments, one of which is copied here:
Sierra Club & League of Conservation Voters (LCV)
City Council Candidate Questionnaire
Due by August 21 to {#@&^}@yahoo.com
Candidate Information
Name:
Office being sought: member, Palo Alto City Council
Campaign manager &
Office Address: just me: 1788 Oak Creek Drive #217 Palo Alto, CA 94304
FPPC ID: none
Phone: 650 305 XXXX
Website: none, other than numerous posts at “Plastic Alto” a wordpress blog, aka markweiss86/wordpress
{
Etaoin Shrudlu} at #@&^@hotmail.com. Please do not embed the photo into the email as our layout person can not copy it with the resolution needed for publication. (You can cut and paste as you see fit from numerous selfies and the like on my blog or out there in the blogosphere…)
In answering these questions, please remember that most of our endorsement decision is based upon your environmental accomplishments.
Please provide explanations with your answer and please include the original question with your response. Your response must be returned in the text of an e-mail, and as an attached file. The file must include your name in it. Whatever. Will re-send as such.
Palo Alto Specific Questions
A. Given the attached map’s description of potential future impacts to Palo Alto, and given the growing political awareness of sea-level-rise as an issue needing attention, what do you believe Palo Alto should be doing now in anticipation of this inevitability?
I would underplay this question; It’s a macro-issue and we are micro-dealers. Maybe we should all visit New Orleans. Or Napa. (I went to New Orleans, on business, music business, six times in 2003 and 2004 and not since Katrina. Napa we visited last month — you heard there was an earthquake there, although that is more relevant in disaster preparedness overall than global warming of sea-level-rise per se. Maybe we can dig out the 100 homes we put in Baylands to build Oregon Expressway.
B. Assuming that the Measure D results reasonably reflected Palo Alto public opinion at that time, do you think recent policy changes by the City Council are a sufficient response? If not, please tell us what further steps you believe the Council and Staff should take?
I think Measure D Referendum on Maybell Dense Housing is a red herring. I am not convinced that the voters realize how corrupt and unrepresentative our leadership is. Certainly as someone ringing alarms since at least the 2012 campaign, and arguably since 2009, I hope se. I don’t think response by council is sufficient. It is election-season changing of stripes. Meanwhile, there is a huge scam around flushing the Comp Plan / General Plan into the Bay. We should enforce current and existing Comp Plan.
C. What role, if any, do you believe the City of Palo Alto should take to preserve the 126 affordable housing units in Buena Vista mobile home park? This is a great question. Meanwhile, City Attorney Stump is issuing a gag order to candidates, which I hope to challenge. I’ve been saying for a while that the moral thing to do is enforce the covenant; leadership should broker a deal between the Residents-turning-HOA (and their counsel Winter Dellanback) and the current owner. Give him a fair small profit and buy him out be rid of him. (There is a bona fide deal from a bank to help the residents buy the property, as reported; the landlord is pushing for an upzoning and partnership from a commercial developer.
I would rather speak out and have Molly try to make me recuse. I am not sure her legal grounds, but I will look into it.
General Questions
1. We consider your past record as the best indicator of your future action for the environment. What have you done to protect natural resources and the environment?
I’m on a 20-year conversion and am arguably the most environmental person in the race. My footprint is pretty small. Earthwise Productions is a spin-off of Bay Area Action, by the way. I will elaborate time permitting here.
2. What do you regard as the major environmental and conservation issues facing Palo Alto and the Bay Area as a whole?
I would say it’s still consumerism and greed and the Seven Deadly Sins since time began. Now it’s Income Inequality as described by Robert Reich in his film, contributing factor. I think green-washing more than environmentalism has made more gains since 1992, and especially since David Brower died. I recall hearing him speak circa 1993 at Commonwealth Club, and taking my Dad and him greeting Mr. Goldman (funder of the Goldman Award) who he knew from the Jewish Mafia, and was introduced to. Also, War, this is a problem. I was the only candidate in 2009 or 2012 to try to link the War (Afghanistan, Iraq) to our local actions. Seven thousand dead. Lots of environmental damage as well. (100,000 plus foreign dead).
3. What are the principal areas of the environment that you will work on if elected? How will you deal with them?
I want to add a park at Ventura District, former Fry’s site (current site). Per Quimby and our Comp Plan. We are actually in a parks deficit here and now.
4. Are you a Sierra Club member? Membership is not required for endorsement. I’m gonna fish for an endorsement from Adam what’s his name, the young whiz kid former Sierra Club head, who went to work for Walmart — I know slightly from the music scene. He shared an office in SF with Jordan Kurland. I worked on contract for Helena Norberg Hodge, whose book was published by Sierra Club Books, a division of Random House. I recently tried to get Duane Elgin (Voluntary Simplicity) to stump for me; his son lives here.
Climate Change
5. What else should Palo Alto do to reduce greenhouse gas generation?
Get rid of Jim Keene.
6. What do you do as an individual to reduce your GHG generation?
Ride my bike when I can.
Green Building
7. What more can be done to ensure that all new construction and remodeling incorporate green building principles?
I think “net zero” is a scam. I’d rather see a moratorium on new starts. See my comments on 420 Cambridge.
8. What types of projects would you support to provide people with an alternative to the private auto?
Not über certainly. (Tax them!). I think CalTrain needs some love. TDM’s all over.
9. Where would you include affordable housing?
How about in Milpitas? I’d rather subsidize for teachers, artists and public safety than merely throw a bone to the lottery-winning poor. There are needs more encompassing for gerontology and elders — I know from personal experience, my parents, much more than in 2012 and 2009. But this may be beyond the scope of environmentalism per se.
Open Space & Urban Recreation – Access to Nature
10. How will you ensure that residents in Palo Alto will have access to safe and enjoyable parks and open space?
I am reading the Comp Plan plus the revised Attach on Comp Plan and will report back.
Water Conservation & Recycling, Rivers & Creeks
11. California will continue to face increasing droughts, what is the most important water-related issue for Palo Alto and what policies or actions would you advocate for your city to address this issue? I am trying to get my childhood friend and co-editor of the Gunn Oracle Greg Zlotnick to advise me on all things wet and pure, but so far is not helping me much. I think we could reform agro first.
12. What is your position on stream setback requirements for development? Do you believe current requirements are too strict, too lax, or just right?
Not sure
Wildlife
13. What would you do to help preserve wildlife habitat, wildlife corridors, and in the face of pressures from the growing human population?
Not sure
14. Would you support the development of a bird safe buildings ordinance?
I think this Shani person is engaging and worth hearing out. Not sure.
Zero Waste and Extended Producer Responsibility
15. Where do the yard-waste and food-waste collected in Palo Alto go, and how effective is this program in Palo Alto? Good question . I wonder somehow. I want to re-read Ecology of Commerce by Paul Hawken.
16. Many waste management companies use organics as daily cover at landfills. This causes methane release. Will you support a statewide ban of organics from landfills and from any form of high temperature energy generation facilities like gasification or incineration of mixed waste? Maybe. Where can I read more?
17. Will you push Palo Alto and Santa Clara County to adopt an ordinance requiring drug manufacturers to pay for programs to collect unused and expired medications similar to the one recently adopted by Alameda County? That’s worth looking into. Reminds me of my former Daily Dartmouth colleague Dan Fagin won the 2014 Pulitzer for science writing about Toms River NJ — he might be a good person to shed light nationally on this issue, assertion.
Campaign Reform
18. Will you support a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United?
I was actually the first person in Palo Alto to go on record on this. I texted Yiaway Yeh then mayor about this, while listening to a lecture by Jeff Clements* (another Dartmouth connection) — that I do not accept campaign contributions, through 2.10 cycles of election and counting –heck, I haven’t spent a dime — are yard signs environmental? — is consistent with my concern with Citizens and McCutcheon. I am by far the cleanest person within 20 miles of this race, and since Ladoris Cordell on this issue. I also asked three candidates to agree to a voluntary cap on spending for this race and so far no takers. Will persevere.
Campaign Readiness –
Tell us about your campaign readiness, including funding, volunteers, and organization. Please bring examples of your prior and current campaign literature.
I have more than 20 endorsements so far:
Matt Gonzalez, former Green Party candidate for Vice President of the U.S, former SF supe, former SF Mayoral candidate.
Chris Gaither, former Palo Alto council candidate
Paul Weiss, big Democratic giver, Jewish community leader, arts philanthropist, my dad, and Rotarian
Greg Brown, artist, former Palo Alto Staff
Terry Acebo Davis, CRONA nurse, artist, former Arts Commissioner
Einer Sunde, attorney, Former Arts Commissioner
Paula Kirkeby, former Arts commissioner
Deirdre Crommie, Parks Commissioner
Hans Delannoy, Peninsula hoops legend, educator, coach
Joe Zirker (Menlo Park) artist
Henry Ford, NFL black pioneer
Rochelle Ford, artist
Etaoin Shrudlu, #@&^ at #@&^
1. Please list your endorsements. If they are on your website – please just insert your URL.
2. Please include below an exact copy of your ballot statement as submitted at filing.
this is pretty close:
I am running for Council in the tradition of Simitian, Fazzino and Yeh, who were student leaders here and evolved into public service. I graduated from Gunn( 1982) and Dartmouth College (1986) where I was an English major but also read philosophy, history and government. My campaign expands on five years of serious study of and engagement with local policy and the growing sense that leadership does not represent the interests of the citizens, and instead has been significantly undermined by special interests such as commercial real estate developers. Much of my 2012 platform was incorporated into the new Residentialist movement, the referendum on housing, and is consistent with the findings of the Santa Clara Grand Jury 6/16/14 about 27 University. I feel that my qualifications and values best represent the rank-and-file citizens here, especially those who are the product of PAUSD schools or are long-term residents. I also plan to draw significant support from environmentalists, parks advocates and the 40 percent of citizens who rent. I advise my fellow Palo Altans to lean in NOW on the Comp Plan ratification process. Why flush 120 years of history into the Bay for short term gain or greed? Plato’s Republic | Plastic Alto with Mark Weiss
I’m doing two versions of this, the speed-ready version, in case you have a 10:30 or so deadline, and 2) the semi-rushed version, in case you mean midnight Sunday, Aug. 24 as your extended deadline. You also have on file my 2012 responses, that I published on “Plastic Alto” the blog, and maybe 2009. Also, I plan to write a general statement defining my 20-year conversion to Green, coinciding with the formation of Earthwise Productions, the small for-profit socially-conscious business of which I am the CEO.
edit to add:
I doubt Adam Werbach is going to endorse me, but I am curious enough to hit him up and report back.
I wrote about “garbage-to-energy revolution” for Worcester Telegram…in 1985.
enclosed is a photo…there are many others.. good night!
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Related
Fire go come say labor
In “art”
Weiss to appear at Elks Club Palo Alto September 22 at 1:11 p.m.
In “art”
I don’t wanna be your hero I just wanna fight like everyone else
In “austistic”
From: Thomas Jordan
To: mark weiss
Sent: Tuesday, September 9, 2014 7:58 PM
Subject: Re: LCV
What was your personal relationship with Wally? Tom Jordan
On Sep 9, 2014, at 5:34 PM, mark weiss wrote:
is your group also by any chance known as the barry goldwater league of conservative -ation voters?
mbw
keep me in mind, as an individuals, for that fifth choice….thanks
i guess i should have played up my personal friendship with Wallace Stegner a bit more…
From: Terry Trumbull
To: earwopa@yahoo.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 9, 2014 5:02 PM
Subject: LCV
Mark-
The LCV board voted to endorse Greg Scharff, Nancy Shepard, Karen Holman, and Cory Wolbach for council last night. We are taking no position on the other council seat.
Thank you for taking the time to respond to our questionnaire, attend our interview, and your commitment to public service.
Terry A. Trumbull
LCV Endorsement Chair
* I corresponded briefly with Jeff Clements a former prosecutor whose brother Ben was my classmate at Dartmouth and he said he could not endorse me because he is on the board of Corporations Are Not People ngo and therefore it would potentially impact his groups tax status, if he were partisan.
Another thing coming to mind: David Oglivy line about in advertising there are poets and killers and the ones who are both make money; also, L_ who said I was more like a Rabbi than a Council candidate.
One of my weirder initiatives is Elisha Cook Jr Day in Palo Alto, in honor of the man who played Wilmer in The Maltese Falcon and an informant in The Big Sleep.
It is a ploy to lure David Packard Jr into my value web.
Also, David Thompson the writer and former Dartmouth professor.
I am incidentally the author and instigator of 3 or 4 other Mayoral proclamations here, including for Jerry Garcia in 2005, by Bern “not a deadhead” Beecham.
that’s a bob marley reference (“No Woman, No Cry”) and will addend later with photos and some thoughts; actually I caught Mrs. Sweat, Dietrich’s mom (#42) with a bouquet for Sonny Boy 2, and might have to lead with that; Terry the father — that is not quite right, but close enough — I have chatted up extensively, but I have not actually been introduced to his wife. Wasn’t sure if there was a cultural gap I was encroaching on if I just stuck my hand out and said “Mark Weiss, Gunn 1982, alumni, not a dad, but seen your son represent us well, thank you!” She did note me aiming her general direction, if I didn’t catch the casual her.
No woman no cry probably also translates as “female person I am addressing you don’t have to cry” every thing is going to be alright. But not, not bloody likely loosely transformed, excepting here in Plasty, as
DEAR SIR,
IN SPITE OF THE UNCOLLECTIBILITY OF THE ENCLOSED, WHICH FRANKLY ARE GAMBLING DEBTS, I ASSUME YOU MIGHT WISH THEM HONORED.
which is actually Marlowe Philip not Marley Bob.
Although I proffered the concept of would Gunn win a game before having to forfeit the season for lack of bodies, I was not, I repeat not advocating any wagering.
I drove Sam home twice of the nine games so far I’ve attended. The second time, Friday, after the home game — compared to I think it was Prospect near San Jose, a longer trip, he recalled that I had given him such a lecture on the very song, and recalled my highlighting as compared to “high-lifing” the lyric about sharing the corn beef porridge or going barefoot.
I am simultaneously, this Sunday – and there is a lyrical thread carried over from previous post, about Sunday a.m. in the Cobain ditty– nursing a cold, watching Niners, screening on mute “The Big Sleep”, taping Niners, writing about all the things I carry intending to read or write about, calling around in aftermath of election and in pre-math of ARB appointments, re-reading my treatise on architecture.
And oddly, or fittingly, if there is not a God there is at least Loki, I pulled my back, lumbar such that I am taking but not over-taking both Tylenol but in generic AND Advil. I was carrying two bags of books, about 50 pounds in one hand and a large but not heavy coffee drink or mocha in the other, then sat on a low couch with bad posture for about an hour or half a Niners game then got up and felt that all-too-familiar-for-fifty-not-49-anymore pain of the back. (Let’s recall we were designed to live in trees and drop dead at 39).
I hope to update this blog with about 6 photos from Friday and finish my list of 99 things that screwed up my back.
I should at least skim if not re-edit the 144 articles on Policy I wrote since July, since declaring my run for Council.
I invited both Beau Brown (Menlo football and basketball, Dartmouth football) and Geoff Parker (Paly soccer and tennis, Dartmouth rugby, both with MBAs, maybe both GSB) to check out Gunn v. Los Altos next Saturday afternoon in Los, to scout the Kasznik for the Big Green. Also Phil Hanlon is coming to town, however that complicates the proposition. It would be fun, just for yucks, to ring Monroe Trout. Maybe a code name or cod name for this project would be Monroe Herring.
Oh, yeah, despite not re-hiring post election Keith Peters did name Noah Riley Gunn quarterback finalist for athlete of the week, but not Guy Kasznik. Both PAW and Mercury had Eli Givens.
1. Lucky Magazine, 4th edited by Jean Godfrey-June nee Watt;
2. The U.S. Constitution, What It Says What It Means;
3. Math In Minutes: 200 Key Concepts Explained in an Instant, esp pp. 58 Hilbert Hotel;
4. Who’s Who In Baseball, 2012 (Justin Verlander);
5. Against Football:
…
99. reusable bag from Grocery Outlet, canvas tote from SWAI 2011, North Face day bag, total weight: approximately 50 lbs, expecting a snow storm, apparently.
and 1:this is cheating, but I am at Peet’s on Uni and came down, despite my grippa to buy KFOG live from Archives 21: Nicki Bluhm, esp.
Plastic Alto with Mark Weiss 