if you need help with logistics of building that community site talk to me. i’ll help in any way i can.

peace.
oh yeah, a small distinction. i am not educating people…as such. i am educating myself and doing it out loud. a lot of people connect to that and learn…but that has as much to do with them as it does my intent. probably much more to do with them, actually.

and of course i appreciate the links.

I also never meant to sound like I was “lashing out”–I was merely talking. Disregard, please, if you find my arguing offensive.

1) What came to me was that “junkie” was an easy derogatory slur for her.

I do have a lot of contempt for Cindy McCain and her ilk, so that comes through. I have never liked it when spoiled, upper-class junkies invade NA/AA with their privilege, therapists, characteristic bourgeois hysteria (what will the neighbors/garden club SAY???!) and conspicuous lack of arrests/jail time. As good-looking, affluent, pampered folks, they gobble up the attention that rightly (in my pseudo-Marxist opinion) needs to go to the poorer addicts with little or no privilege.

[Speaking of which, I say "junkie" primarily to puncture the ego of that kind of person, on purpose. Rich folks are designated "addicts" who are "ill"--while poor people are simply "junkies"... I consciously and deliberately reverse those labels.]

Also, I am profoundly skeptical of ANYONE who conveniently scurries into treatment right after being caught stealing (or whatever it is)….I’ve often been stuck sponsoring these people and they usually are not all that committed to sobriety; rehab was simply a legal dodge. If Cindy turns out to have been rather slack at it (as Kitty Dukakis was, during a previous presidential campaign), please remember these words. I’ve actually laid a bet on it.

Someday, I’ll have the nerve to talk more about the Hollywoodization of the 12-steps, but I’ve been too scared to write that post so far. When I do, I’ll let you know.

2) Yours clearly desires a larger platform, and I don’t know that my comment thread is adequate

I don’t have many readers; it’s kind of embarrassing, actually. (And as you can see, I don’t say these things very well, which is why I try to create new allies. Not working, is it?)

3) How many Chicano/Chicana elders do you sport on your blogroll?

Only one that I am aware of, and that is pretty bad. Learning Spanish would help! My granddaughter, I’m pleased to say, IS learning Spanish! So, I think future generations will also learn from my errors.

4) My reference to ghettos was to old people’s blogs and writing, which so far seem consigned to a tiny, closed corner of the net. It’s interesting that these blogs seem pretty diverse (race, religion, ethnicity) but have in common that they are all by OLD PEOPLE… which has made me wonder about style, language, writing, internet access, and many other factors.

5) Your suggestion is very good. The problem with old people is getting them online; there is also a parcel of old folks who will get online, but have a fear of posting replies. (let alone starting a blog themselves!) Not sure why, but trying to figure that one out. Some write fabulous, long emails, too, so it isn’t that they can’t write.

Sorry if I came off as trolling or as trouble-making, that was not my intention. Thank you for your patient interaction and your time.

And, like so many other folks, I love your blog.

1) As an ex-addict, I have the right to call C. McCain a junkie. (I thought you knew this, due to the piece of mine linked at Feministe some time ago, so sorry for that assumption.) This word also reflects my considerable anger that CM was allowed to walk away from her junkie-inspired thieving without being charged with a crime, while her husband supports Draconian laws against drug-users, even pot-smokers–and by all accounts, Cindy has never objected. One set of laws for Cindy, another for everyone else.

That’s not what came through to me. What came to me was that “junkie” was an easy derogatory slur for her, which I am surprised at given your past.

I was referring to the Left in general, which I am old fashioned enough to believe is ONE cause (Daddy Karl said history moves in one progressive direction, dialectical materialism, yada yada; right or wrong, I tend to operate that way because old habits die hard). But yes, it applies to every movement, of course.

What I’ve noticed recently is how respectful the Right is, to THEIR elders. This is because they think tradition is largely a good thing, whereas the Left, in general, seems to think tradition is something to overthrow/condemn.

As I said, I do celebrate elders. In the Chicano Movement and community, elders and tradition are very important.

How many Chicano/Chicana elders do you sport on your blogroll?

4) “Granted, my post really sort of featured the younger view”

I think this is the aspect of your piece I responded to. You jarred me, taking the side of the popular majority, which you don’t usually do.

This sounds like you expect me to write from a contrary stance, which I do not. I write my experience, which I’ve done above. So I am doing what I always do. Your expectations have been jarred, that’s all. Contained in that post are all the reasons why I do speak from that vantage point. It’s not arbitrary and it’s not ageist. Maybe you should reread it.

And my point is, whether you think older people are running the joint or have all the money (I’d argue the majority of old people in the world are poor, but yes, many are rich, often simply due to the fact of years of accumulation and inheritance)–here on the net, it’s a very segregated world. And I guess I was asking, what can we all to do to help change that? If anything? Nobody seems to CARE, I suppose, is my point.

Yet, you come to the one post I’ve seen lately talking about age/youth and the relationships…and lash out at me? That seems an odd way to “help change” things. I see my post as an attempt to begin that help. Not perfect, didnt say all the things that would please any one person, but at least I’m talking about it. And as I said in my last comment, stick around. In ten years I”ll be older. I’ll be writing different things.

(update: I guess it is valid to come to this post and argue it as an attempt to change things, now that I think about it. I just think that the energy could be put to better use, given your objectives. I can really only write from my vantage point. But yours! Yours clearly desires a larger platform, and I don’t know that my comment thread is adequate.)

And when you wrote that certain old people do not deserve any respect (and I didn’t really see you explaining which ones DO, although you took pains to say which ones DO NOT–this was why Dianne’s comment that there are no elders left, made total sense after reading yours)… well, that just bolsters the status quo, as I see it. And the net result is that old people are intimidated re: blogging.

I may be kind to older people just because they are old, and I may protect them. That type of respect I will give them just for being aged. But…I won’t automatically heed all they say or expect it to reek of wisdom. I will listen, I will seek the wisdom there because it can be contained in but a few words, and without being dressed up. So I do give respect in that sense. But as I said, ignorance and idiocy can reside in the elderly. As a child it was important for me not to give automatic deference. It would have ruined my soul. I hope you get what a lot of my story was about. It seems you did not.

And as far as me listing what types should be listened to? My blog is not what you think it is. I do not tell people what to do and they listen. Again, I’m just sharing my experience. And if all I share in this one writing is which people I found it important NOT to listen to…it’s a good start. And again…there is a reason the story takes that shape.

Blogging is intimidating for older people…we’ve agreed on that. But I’m not sure what you imply. That all the action in the wolrd goes down on the Internet? And if older people don’t get on the Internet, they do not exist in the world? Hmmm. I guess I just dont see it that way. Many people do not blog on the Internet. And I agree with the inevitable conclusion: The Internet is NOT representative of society. I’ve said that many times myself. But I see a solution for you and your issues. You seem empassioned and strong. Good qualities for someone who will forge a new place for their issues. I’ll come back to this.

When one doesn’t know all the ins and outs of a language (and the internet DOES have its own language), of communication and signals (do I really have to explain this to someone who addresses bilingual issues so consistently in his writing?),

No, you don’t. Nor do I see the point of what you are saying. I don’t understand a lot of new internet lingo, either! I don’t use a lot of what is thought “cool” in that sense, I don’t care either. I make up my own lingo! And my readers come along with me.

I don’t understand polish blogs or iranian blogs or lots of blogs that speak in other languages. Yes, there is access issues. But what should be done? I can’t ask the Polish and Iranian or Japanese bloggers to blog in my language. So I have to pick an area and study it if I want access. Right?

Or if someone came up to me and asked me I would help them understand anything I could.

I took Spanish classes, you know? Nobody started explaining to me what Spanish meant, I still dont understand lots of Spanish. I do feel left out, and that is my own culture! So what do we do to help me understand all the Spanish I don’t understand? Is that your responsibility? Not in my eyes.

And I am about social change, I do not stay in my little assigned ghetto. I see these self-contained ghettos as very damaging (another reason I asked about the blogroll) and just another form of segregation that must be broken down.

I see certain circles as community. And they need to be strong because the mainstream will not address their issues. Do you call, now, the Afrosphere a “ghetto”? Do you call the Latino community blogs that provide solidarity to each other to address immigration reform because the mainstream doesnt care as much, a “ghetto”??? Do you call the Asian blog circles a “ghetto”? Do you think these communities need to be “broken down”?

Here is the idea I hinted at earlier: perhaps you DO need to make a new community site/blog for elders. As us Latin@s and allies did with The Sanctuary.

Think about it! I think its a great idea! And then you dont have to be so frustrated with others but can use all that brimming bubbling energy to empower you and your cause.

Buena suerte! (”Good luck!”)

1) As an ex-addict, I have the right to call C. McCain a junkie. (I thought you knew this, due to the piece of mine linked at Feministe some time ago, so sorry for that assumption.) This word also reflects my considerable anger that CM was allowed to walk away from her junkie-inspired thieving without being charged with a crime, while her husband supports Draconian laws against drug-users, even pot-smokers–and by all accounts, Cindy has never objected. One set of laws for Cindy, another for everyone else.

2) I consider a blog roll a sort of endorsement. Apparently, this is not what you consider yours to be, so never mind. Mine reflects my interests, politics, job and everything else.

3) And I don’t know what ‘movement’ you are talking about. The movement to bring respect and equality and pride and safety to Mexican Americans and their families? Yes, you are right. There are elders.

I was referring to the Left in general, which I am old fashioned enough to believe is ONE cause (Daddy Karl said history moves in one progressive direction, dialectical materialism, yada yada; right or wrong, I tend to operate that way because old habits die hard). But yes, it applies to every movement, of course.

What I’ve noticed recently is how respectful the Right is, to THEIR elders. This is because they think tradition is largely a good thing, whereas the Left, in general, seems to think tradition is something to overthrow/condemn.

4) “Granted, my post really sort of featured the younger view”

I think this is the aspect of your piece I responded to. You jarred me, taking the side of the popular majority, which you don’t usually do. And my point is, whether you think older people are running the joint or have all the money (I’d argue the majority of old people in the world are poor, but yes, many are rich, often simply due to the fact of years of accumulation and inheritance)–here on the net, it’s a very segregated world. And I guess I was asking, what can we all to do to help change that? If anything? Nobody seems to CARE, I suppose, is my point. And when you wrote that certain old people do not deserve any respect (and I didn’t really see you explaining which ones DO, although you took pains to say which ones DO NOT–this was why Dianne’s comment that there are no elders left, made total sense after reading yours)… well, that just bolsters the status quo, as I see it. And the net result is that old people are intimidated re: blogging.

When one doesn’t know all the ins and outs of a language (and the internet DOES have its own language), of communication and signals (do I really have to explain this to someone who addresses bilingual issues so consistently in his writing?), one can feel left out and confused. I could easily make a list of stuff I don’t understand on the net, but have been too embarrassed to ask. I’m sure I’ve missed a LOT of underlying meanings and implications, since I don’t understand the jokes, the abbreviations, teh reasonz peepul start ritin liek dis. (What?) I’ve been called rude by people who use the word FUCK more than Tony Montana. I just shake my head in amazement. But the NET RESULT is that old people just give up trying to communicate at all. And I am about social change, I do not stay in my little assigned ghetto. I see these self-contained ghettos as very damaging (another reason I asked about the blogroll) and just another form of segregation that must be broken down. This, admittedly, is one of those Age of Aquarius sentiments, and the whole concept is mostly laughed at these days, regarded as another hippie (i.e. OLD PEOPLE) article-of-faith that the young people have discovered was misguided and stupid.

Nietzsche’s Last Man of History: “We know everything that has ever happened, and there is no end to derision.” That is what I see in Blogdonia, and I’d like to change it. I honestly believe an end to the derision will be good for EVERYONE, not just me. Disrespecting the representatives of the past simply can’t be a good thing for the future.

But I guess we’ll see about that, right?

Again, thank you for your thoughtful reply.