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<br>
To cut right to the chase here:<br>
<br>
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."<br>
<br>
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:<br>
<br>
Racism: the obvious one.<br>
Classism: never underestimate this one.<br>
Illiteracy: call it by name, and fix the schools.<br>
<br>
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.<br>
<br>
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)<br>
<br>
What do you think the VCers would say if a half dozen Oaktown homies
showed up in their waiting room one morning?<br>
<br>
Maybe it's time to find out.<br>
<br>
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. <br>
<br>
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. <br>
<br>
Next installment: <br>
<br>
How to set up a microenterprise lending system and start a bank.<br>
<br>
Yeah I'm as serious as a heart attack about this.<br>
<br>
-G.<br>
<br>
<br>
=====<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 13-11-18-Mon 8:35 PM, Sonja Trauss
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:CAEMAOD4bpELA=YFakNBvNCdexjmuweSJzFK-SNuv+PPC10PMcQ@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div>oh. <br>
<br>
</div>
Guaranteed basic income, that does NOT increase if you have
children. You receive it starting at, say, 22. No earlier. <br>
<br>
</div>
There are org.s that are working on advocating for it. I guess I
should start volunteering more. <br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra"><br>
<br>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 8:30 PM, rhodey
<span dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org" target="_blank">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0
.8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">There is a
class of discussions I feel comfortable having on a public<br>
mailing list and a class of discussions I feel more
comfortable having<br>
in person. While I agree that race and age are relevant
factors in being<br>
the target of crime, the target discussion is not a
discussion I'm<br>
interested in having or intended to spur.<br>
<br>
What I'm more interested in exploring is the preventative
measures that<br>
can be taken to decrease crime at the society level and how
Sudo Room<br>
can lend a hand.<br>
<span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><br>
--<br>
-- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙<br>
</font></span>
<div class="im HOEnZb"><br>
On 11/18/2013 08:17 PM, Sonja Trauss wrote:<br>
> no way man! your age/ race / gender is super relevant
I think for how at<br>
> risk you are for being hassled, and in what way.<br>
> I think gender is the most important. Super crazy
people and females<br>
> will rob ladies, but crazy people, females AND
healthy, red-blooded<br>
> American bullies will rob boys. I would bet $70 that
the three times you<br>
> were robbed, if I had walked by that corner instead
of you, your robbers<br>
> would have said "hey girl, can I go w chu"? to me and
I would not have<br>
> been robbed.<br>
><br>
> I also think it gets less fun to rob men as they get
older.<br>
><br>
> David - you're black, do you have any info on the
relative safety from<br>
> mugging of black women and men?<br>
> I would expect the same dynamic to play out - it's
not that fun to rob<br>
> women, it's not as cool of a story. What about the
relative safety of<br>
> black and white men? I think white men and women
imagine they would be<br>
> safer in a black neighbourhood if they were black,
but I don't believe<br>
> that. I'm pretty sure the main victims of black
criminals are other<br>
> black people.<br>
><br>
><br>
><br>
><br>
> On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 7:59 PM, rhodey <<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
</div>
<div class="im HOEnZb">> <mailto:<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>>>
wrote:<br>
><br>
> I am sincerely sorry that I've made you
uncomfortable. It was my<br>
> intention to share an experience that better
helped me understand<br>
> motivations for crime, not an experience with
other ethnic groups.<br>
><br>
> Retrospectively I'd rather not have answered the
last question because<br>
> it wrongly places focus elsewhere.<br>
><br>
> --<br>
> -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙<br>
><br>
> On 11/18/2013 07:50 PM, David Barthwell wrote:<br>
> > To all the people sharing fun stories and
uplifting anecdotes about<br>
> > encountering black people in Oakland: Let's
not forget that there are<br>
> > actually some on this list. In fact, I'm
one of them!<br>
> ><br>
> ><br>
> > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 7:36 PM, rhodey <<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>><br>
</div>
<div class="HOEnZb">
<div class="h5">> > <mailto:<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>>>>
wrote:<br>
> ><br>
> > Oh yes, it is worth noting that I'm a
white male in his early 20s.<br>
> ><br>
> > --<br>
> > -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙<br>
> ><br>
> > On 11/18/2013 07:12 PM, Sonja Trauss
wrote:<br>
> > > this reminds me of a comment I
overheard on the bus when I<br>
> lived in st<br>
> > > louis:<br>
> > > "I'm getting that government
money man, fuck street money, it<br>
> > ain't even<br>
> > > worth it."<br>
> > ><br>
> > > ps are you a boy or a girl?<br>
> > ><br>
> > ><br>
> > > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 6:55 PM,
rhodey<br>
> <<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>
<mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>><br>
> > <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>>><br>
> > > <mailto:<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>><br>
> > <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:rhodey@anhonesteffort.org">rhodey@anhonesteffort.org</a>>>>>
wrote:<br>
> > ><br>
> > > Receiving and contemplating
the perspectives of others<br>
> is one<br>
> > of my<br>
> > > favorite ways to burn
metaphorical CPU cycles. The level of<br>
> > respect I<br>
> > > show for differing
perspectives is something I hope to<br>
> never be<br>
> > > content with, that is to say
I believe it's an endless<br>
> process<br>
> > and I'm<br>
> > > still working on it. I have a
tendency to keep my head<br>
> stuck in<br>
> > > projects and have realized is
that I've been holding out on<br>
> > sharing<br>
> > > many of my most valued
perspectives, more specifically my<br>
> > experiences.<br>
> > > It is my hope that through
sharing experiences we can better<br>
> > > understand how to conduct
ourselves within Sudo Room and how<br>
> > we Sudo<br>
> > > Room can better conduct
ourselves within our local<br>
> community.<br>
> > ><br>
> > > I arrived in the "bay area"
May 1st by way of some<br>
> airport in New<br>
> > > England, in search of
hackers, activists and uncomfortable<br>
> > > experiences. After subletting
an apartment in the<br>
> mission for<br>
> > all of a<br>
> > > month I moved to West
Oakland. Since arriving in Oakland<br>
> I've been<br>
> > > robbed three times, to me
each experience has been<br>
> indescribably<br>
> > > educational in its own way.
However, my first crime related<br>
> > experience<br>
> > > in Oakland was not a crime at
all.<br>
> > ><br>
> > > There is a corner store
within ~6 minutes walking<br>
> distance from my<br>
> > > apartment by West Oakland
BART called Happy Times. To me<br>
> it is<br>
> > usually<br>
> > > a liquor store, but this day
I felt like working through the<br>
> > night so<br>
> > > I bought 2 large redbull
energy drinks. Walking home<br>
> holding the<br>
> > > redbull as best I could in
one hand I passed two<br>
> African-American<br>
> > > youths, one female, one male
and both no older than 17. We<br>
> > passed each<br>
> > > other and at this time I was
about 20" from home then from<br>
> > behind me I<br>
> > > heard "hey man, can I get a
redbull?".<br>
> > ><br>
> > > I turned around to face the
two of them with a bit of a<br>
> guilty<br>
> > smile<br>
> > > on my face, after all who the
fuck really needs 32oz of<br>
> redbull?<br>
> > > Caffeine, other energy
drinks, productivity and I all<br>
> get along<br>
> > > swimmingly, all the better if
I can help someone else get<br>
> > things done.<br>
> > > "Sure" I said, followed by
"make good use of it" in an<br>
> attempt<br>
> > to make<br>
> > > the situation more casual. I
walked up and handed him the<br>
> > redbull, his<br>
> > > face lit up, he went nuts.<br>
> > ><br>
> > > **and I quote** "Oh man!
Asking is so much better than<br>
> stealing!"<br>
> > ><br>
> > > The smile stayed on his face
as he continued celebrating,<br>
> > exclaiming<br>
> > > all possible iterations of
the above statement as I<br>
> stood their<br>
> > > dumbfounded. This continued
for minutes until we parted<br>
> ways,<br>
> > up the<br>
> > > stairs and into the house I
could still hear him talking<br>
> with his<br>
> > > friend.<br>
> > ><br>
> > > This was certainly not the
first time he'd been told of this<br>
> > > sentiment, but after ~17
years of living it was the<br>
> first time<br>
> > he had<br>
> > > ever believed it. There are
at least 3 other experiences I<br>
> > would like<br>
> > > to share in time, but for now
I'll leave it at this.<br>
> > ><br>
> > > --<br>
> > > -- rhodey ˙ ͜ʟ˙<br>
> > >
_______________________________________________<br>
> > > sudo-discuss mailing list<br>
> > > <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>><br>
> > <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>>><br>
> > <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>><br>
> > <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>>>><br>
> > > <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss"
target="_blank">http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss</a><br>
> > ><br>
> > ><br>
> >
_______________________________________________<br>
> > sudo-discuss mailing list<br>
> > <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a><br>
> <mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>>><br>
> > <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss"
target="_blank">http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss</a><br>
> ><br>
> ><br>
> _______________________________________________<br>
> sudo-discuss mailing list<br>
> <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>
<mailto:<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>><br>
> <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss"
target="_blank">http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss</a><br>
><br>
><br>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
</div>
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<pre wrap="">_______________________________________________
sudo-discuss mailing list
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org">sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss">http://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss</a>
</pre>
</blockquote>
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