[sudo-discuss] my experiences with "crime" in oakland [part 1 of ?]
rhodey
rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
Mon Nov 18 22:54:56 PST 2013
> How many Oaktown homies [sorry if that phrase bugs anyone, I got it
> from someone who used it to refer to themselves and their friends]
> have ever gotten within a mile of Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park? (home
> of a bunch of well-known VC firms)
If you have to excuse your choice of vocabulary it is probably best to
chose again. Now please excuse me while I crawl back into my digital
world of definite, actionable semantics.
--
-- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙
On 11/18/2013 09:54 PM, GtwoG PublicOhOne wrote:
>
> To cut right to the chase here:
>
> What does it take to run a gang? The same skills it takes to run a
> small business. Buying "product" wholesale and selling it retail,
> keeping track of inventory, hiring and firing, bookkeeping, management,
> marketing, and dealing with the "competition."
>
> I'd bet the price of a house, that easily half of the gang-bangers in
> Oakland are kids with serious entrepreneurial smarts who are locked out
> and shut out of legitimate business activity by way of:
>
> Racism: the obvious one.
> Classism: never underestimate this one.
> Illiteracy: call it by name, and fix the schools.
>
> So: what does someone do with a serious talent if they're denied every
> opportunity to use it legitimately? They use it wherever they can.
> "Product" is "product." Sales are sales. Externalities are
> externalities, plus or minus washing the blood off the street.
>
> How many Oaktown homies [sorry if that phrase bugs anyone, I got it from
> someone who used it to refer to themselves and their friends] have ever
> gotten within a mile of Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park? (home of a bunch
> of well-known VC firms)
>
> What do you think the VCers would say if a half dozen Oaktown homies
> showed up in their waiting room one morning?
>
> Maybe it's time to find out.
>
> Challenge #1: Raise a million bucks for a local microenterprise
> development fund. Set up a microenterprise incubator. Find and fund
> kids who no VCer would touch. Go into the schools and make it known.
> Sign up at-risk kids early, before they switch off inside and opt into
> crime-world. That means starting in middle-school, possibly elementary
> school. Tutor them if needed to get their literacy skills up to par.
> Hook them up with small business mentors and encourage them to teach
> others in turn.
>
> Challenge #2: Start a local currency that works like Ithaca Hours
> (labor-based valuation). One of the strongest correlates of poverty
> (hence crime) is the absence of turnover of dollars in a local economy.
> In Marin County a dollar changes hands on average 33 times before it
> exits the county. In East Oakland, a dollar changes hands on average
> TWICE before it exits the community. Forget the "pirate" bullshit: the
> purpose of local currency isn't to duck The Man, it's to strengthen the
> local economy by encouraging circulation of money locally. Do what works.
>
> Next installment:
>
> How to set up a microenterprise lending system and start a bank.
>
> Yeah I'm as serious as a heart attack about this.
>
> -G.
>
>
> =====
>
>
>
> On 13-11-18-Mon 8:35 PM, Sonja Trauss wrote:
>> oh.
>>
>> Guaranteed basic income, that does NOT increase if you have children.
>> You receive it starting at, say, 22. No earlier.
>>
>> There are org.s that are working on advocating for it. I guess I
>> should start volunteering more.
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 8:30 PM, rhodey <rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>> wrote:
>>
>> There is a class of discussions I feel comfortable having on a public
>> mailing list and a class of discussions I feel more comfortable having
>> in person. While I agree that race and age are relevant factors in
>> being
>> the target of crime, the target discussion is not a discussion I'm
>> interested in having or intended to spur.
>>
>> What I'm more interested in exploring is the preventative measures
>> that
>> can be taken to decrease crime at the society level and how Sudo Room
>> can lend a hand.
>>
>> --
>> -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙
>>
>> On 11/18/2013 08:17 PM, Sonja Trauss wrote:
>> > no way man! your age/ race / gender is super relevant I think
>> for how at
>> > risk you are for being hassled, and in what way.
>> > I think gender is the most important. Super crazy people and females
>> > will rob ladies, but crazy people, females AND healthy, red-blooded
>> > American bullies will rob boys. I would bet $70 that the three
>> times you
>> > were robbed, if I had walked by that corner instead of you, your
>> robbers
>> > would have said "hey girl, can I go w chu"? to me and I would
>> not have
>> > been robbed.
>> >
>> > I also think it gets less fun to rob men as they get older.
>> >
>> > David - you're black, do you have any info on the relative
>> safety from
>> > mugging of black women and men?
>> > I would expect the same dynamic to play out - it's not that fun
>> to rob
>> > women, it's not as cool of a story. What about the relative
>> safety of
>> > black and white men? I think white men and women imagine they
>> would be
>> > safer in a black neighbourhood if they were black, but I don't
>> believe
>> > that. I'm pretty sure the main victims of black criminals are other
>> > black people.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 7:59 PM, rhodey
>> <rhodey at anhonesteffort.org <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>> wrote:
>> >
>> > I am sincerely sorry that I've made you uncomfortable. It was my
>> > intention to share an experience that better helped me
>> understand
>> > motivations for crime, not an experience with other ethnic
>> groups.
>> >
>> > Retrospectively I'd rather not have answered the last
>> question because
>> > it wrongly places focus elsewhere.
>> >
>> > --
>> > -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙
>> >
>> > On 11/18/2013 07:50 PM, David Barthwell wrote:
>> > > To all the people sharing fun stories and uplifting
>> anecdotes about
>> > > encountering black people in Oakland: Let's not forget
>> that there are
>> > > actually some on this list. In fact, I'm one of them!
>> > >
>> > >
>> > > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 7:36 PM, rhodey
>> <rhodey at anhonesteffort.org <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>
>> > > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>>> wrote:
>> > >
>> > > Oh yes, it is worth noting that I'm a white male in
>> his early 20s.
>> > >
>> > > --
>> > > -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙
>> > >
>> > > On 11/18/2013 07:12 PM, Sonja Trauss wrote:
>> > > > this reminds me of a comment I overheard on the bus
>> when I
>> > lived in st
>> > > > louis:
>> > > > "I'm getting that government money man, fuck street
>> money, it
>> > > ain't even
>> > > > worth it."
>> > > >
>> > > > ps are you a boy or a girl?
>> > > >
>> > > >
>> > > > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 6:55 PM, rhodey
>> > <rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>
>> > > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>>
>> > > > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>
>> > > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>
>> > <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org
>> <mailto:rhodey at anhonesteffort.org>>>>> wrote:
>> > > >
>> > > > Receiving and contemplating the perspectives of
>> others
>> > is one
>> > > of my
>> > > > favorite ways to burn metaphorical CPU cycles.
>> The level of
>> > > respect I
>> > > > show for differing perspectives is something I
>> hope to
>> > never be
>> > > > content with, that is to say I believe it's an
>> endless
>> > process
>> > > and I'm
>> > > > still working on it. I have a tendency to keep
>> my head
>> > stuck in
>> > > > projects and have realized is that I've been
>> holding out on
>> > > sharing
>> > > > many of my most valued perspectives, more
>> specifically my
>> > > experiences.
>> > > > It is my hope that through sharing experiences
>> we can better
>> > > > understand how to conduct ourselves within Sudo
>> Room and how
>> > > we Sudo
>> > > > Room can better conduct ourselves within our local
>> > community.
>> > > >
>> > > > I arrived in the "bay area" May 1st by way of some
>> > airport in New
>> > > > England, in search of hackers, activists and
>> uncomfortable
>> > > > experiences. After subletting an apartment in the
>> > mission for
>> > > all of a
>> > > > month I moved to West Oakland. Since arriving in
>> Oakland
>> > I've been
>> > > > robbed three times, to me each experience has been
>> > indescribably
>> > > > educational in its own way. However, my first
>> crime related
>> > > experience
>> > > > in Oakland was not a crime at all.
>> > > >
>> > > > There is a corner store within ~6 minutes walking
>> > distance from my
>> > > > apartment by West Oakland BART called Happy
>> Times. To me
>> > it is
>> > > usually
>> > > > a liquor store, but this day I felt like working
>> through the
>> > > night so
>> > > > I bought 2 large redbull energy drinks. Walking home
>> > holding the
>> > > > redbull as best I could in one hand I passed two
>> > African-American
>> > > > youths, one female, one male and both no older
>> than 17. We
>> > > passed each
>> > > > other and at this time I was about 20" from home
>> then from
>> > > behind me I
>> > > > heard "hey man, can I get a redbull?".
>> > > >
>> > > > I turned around to face the two of them with a
>> bit of a
>> > guilty
>> > > smile
>> > > > on my face, after all who the fuck really needs
>> 32oz of
>> > redbull?
>> > > > Caffeine, other energy drinks, productivity and
>> I all
>> > get along
>> > > > swimmingly, all the better if I can help someone
>> else get
>> > > things done.
>> > > > "Sure" I said, followed by "make good use of it"
>> in an
>> > attempt
>> > > to make
>> > > > the situation more casual. I walked up and
>> handed him the
>> > > redbull, his
>> > > > face lit up, he went nuts.
>> > > >
>> > > > **and I quote** "Oh man! Asking is so much
>> better than
>> > stealing!"
>> > > >
>> > > > The smile stayed on his face as he continued
>> celebrating,
>> > > exclaiming
>> > > > all possible iterations of the above statement as I
>> > stood their
>> > > > dumbfounded. This continued for minutes until we
>> parted
>> > ways,
>> > > up the
>> > > > stairs and into the house I could still hear him
>> talking
>> > with his
>> > > > friend.
>> > > >
>> > > > This was certainly not the first time he'd been
>> told of this
>> > > > sentiment, but after ~17 years of living it was the
>> > first time
>> > > he had
>> > > > ever believed it. There are at least 3 other
>> experiences I
>> > > would like
>> > > > to share in time, but for now I'll leave it at this.
>> > > >
>> > > > --
>> > > > -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙
>> > > > _______________________________________________
>> > > > sudo-discuss mailing list
>> > > > sudo-discuss at lists.sudoroom.org
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>> > > >
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