World leaders are scurrying to the Copenhagen airport like rats fleeing a sinking ship. You’d think they were all in the Maldives right now or something, and they could see the water closing in over their heads (if you’ll permit me to mix a couple metaphors).
I hope there are two main takeaways from this fiasco:
1. We coordinated, we organized, we messaged, we demonstrated, we protested. It ultimately fell short, but we came together in unprecedented numbers and forged a global coalition. That’s a victory in and of itself. Let’s redouble our efforts. Only the most massive global public outcry the world has ever seen is going to push our bought-and-paid for politicians to take real action.
2. Like Naomi Klein just told the folks at the Fresh Air Center, it’s time to “take the kid gloves off with Obama.” As an American who gave not just my vote but my time and money to Candidate Obama, I feel betrayed by President Obama. He has sold us down the river on too many important issues, but none more important than global warming since all the others will be irrelevant in the face of runaway climate change.
Two years of planning, two weeks of negotiations, and all we got was a worse than half-assed deal cobbled together in the last two hours. You could say I’m feeling kinda down. Down, but not out. Obama, Sarkozy, Merkel, Brown – these people were never going to save us anyway. We will save ourselves.
This post originally appeared on Greenpeace International's Climate Rescue Weblog.
12.18.2009
12.16.2009
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Being a Head of State at the Copenhagen Climate Talks
The head of the web communications team at GPI writes an awesome blog that he describes as "a glimpse behind the scenes at Greenpeace and a repository for lessons learned and experiments in online activism and social media."
He wrote a completely amazing post about how a simple, declarative statement such as "All countries agree to phase out nuclear power" can become something so convoluted and mangled throughout the negotiating process that it means very little and achieves virtually nothing. Something like this: "[All countries agree to {consider adopting plans to} {develop multi-stakeholder approaches, with the aim to {take measures to} {have instruments in place to} phase out {inter alia, where possible} nuclear power.]"
Go read the whole post, it's an instant classic and it will tell you pretty much all you need to know about how these types of negotiations work.
He wrote a completely amazing post about how a simple, declarative statement such as "All countries agree to phase out nuclear power" can become something so convoluted and mangled throughout the negotiating process that it means very little and achieves virtually nothing. Something like this: "[All countries agree to {consider adopting plans to} {develop multi-stakeholder approaches, with the aim to {take measures to} {have instruments in place to} phase out {inter alia, where possible} nuclear power.]"
Go read the whole post, it's an instant classic and it will tell you pretty much all you need to know about how these types of negotiations work.
12.13.2009
Oh yeah, by the way
I'm in Copenhagen covering the UN climate summit for Greenpeace. It's been totally exhausting but thoroughly exhilerating. I would love to be updating this blog, especially with pics and videos, but there simply isn't time. We're talking 16, 18 hour days here. So just follow my Greenpeace USA blog, and the Greenpeace International climate blog (technically I'm working for GPI right now), to get the full scoop.
I will post a couple videos here though, cuz they're from yesterday's 100k strong march on the convention center to demand climate justice. I was super proud and inspired by the Greenpeace contingent. We came STRONG. Here's a couple videos, one of the GP contingent of the march in general and one of my favorite float, this puppet master float we had.
I will post a couple videos here though, cuz they're from yesterday's 100k strong march on the convention center to demand climate justice. I was super proud and inspired by the Greenpeace contingent. We came STRONG. Here's a couple videos, one of the GP contingent of the march in general and one of my favorite float, this puppet master float we had.
Htown elects openly gay mayor
Becoming the largest city in the US to do so! Who'da thought Houston would be breaking barriers for LGBT people. But, there it is.
12.10.2009
Joe Vs. Joe
I'm currently in Oslo covering the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony for Greenpeace International, but I felt compelled to take a break from my busy blogging schedule to blog about this.
I do not like Joe Lieberman. I think he's emblematic of everything wrong with our political system in America. I think he's an arrogant, self-serving, bought-and-paid for corporate shill, and nothing more. He is one of the chief obstacles to passing health care reform in the Senate, and he's threatening to stage a one-man filibuster to protect his corporate allies in the insurance industry. Yet in 1995 he actually drafted legislation to stop just such abuses of the filibuster. The man is just as hypocritical as he is narcissistic, it would seem.
Go here to send Lierberman a message asking him to grow a conscience and actually represent the people who elected him rather than the rich corporations who are buying him off.
I do not like Joe Lieberman. I think he's emblematic of everything wrong with our political system in America. I think he's an arrogant, self-serving, bought-and-paid for corporate shill, and nothing more. He is one of the chief obstacles to passing health care reform in the Senate, and he's threatening to stage a one-man filibuster to protect his corporate allies in the insurance industry. Yet in 1995 he actually drafted legislation to stop just such abuses of the filibuster. The man is just as hypocritical as he is narcissistic, it would seem.
Go here to send Lierberman a message asking him to grow a conscience and actually represent the people who elected him rather than the rich corporations who are buying him off.
11.30.2009
"Empires never think the end is near, until the end is here."
Just read Michael Moore's open letter to Obama re: the war in Afghanistan. Powerful message, right on the money as always, from Michael Moore:
Do you really want to be the new "war president"? If you go to West Point tomorrow night (Tuesday, 8pm) and announce that you are increasing, rather than withdrawing, the troops in Afghanistan, you are the new war president. Pure and simple. And with that you will do the worst possible thing you could do -- destroy the hopes and dreams so many millions have placed in you. With just one speech tomorrow night you will turn a multitude of young people who were the backbone of your campaign into disillusioned cynics. You will teach them what they've always heard is true -- that all politicians are alike. I simply can't believe you're about to do what they say you are going to do. Please say it isn't so.
...
With our economic collapse still in full swing and our precious young men and women being sacrificed on the altar of arrogance and greed, the breakdown of this great civilization we call America will head, full throttle, into oblivion if you become the "war president." Empires never think the end is near, until the end is here. Empires think that more evil will force the heathens to toe the line -- and yet it never works. The heathens usually tear them to shreds.
Choose carefully, President Obama. You of all people know that it doesn't have to be this way. You still have a few hours to listen to your heart, and your own clear thinking. You know that nothing good can come from sending more troops halfway around the world to a place neither you nor they understand, to achieve an objective that neither you nor they understand, in a country that does not want us there. You can feel it in your bones.
I know you know that there are LESS than a hundred al-Qaeda left in Afghanistan! A hundred thousand troops trying to crush a hundred guys living in caves? Are you serious? Have you drunk Bush's Kool-Aid? I refuse to believe it.
Your potential decision to expand the war (while saying that you're doing it so you can "end the war") will do more to set your legacy in stone than any of the great things you've said and done in your first year. One more throwing a bone from you to the Republicans and the coalition of the hopeful and the hopeless may be gone -- and this nation will be back in the hands of the haters quicker than you can shout "tea bag!"
Choose carefully, Mr. President. Your corporate backers are going to abandon you as soon as it is clear you are a one-term president and that the nation will be safely back in the hands of the usual idiots who do their bidding. That could be Wednesday morning.
We the people still love you. We the people still have a sliver of hope. But we the people can't take it anymore. We can't take your caving in, over and over, when we elected you by a big, wide margin of millions to get in there and get the job done. What part of "landslide victory" don't you understand?
11.21.2009
Totally agree
Had no idea this was happening until I read about it in AMERICAblog, but happy to live in the city that has taken this step first:
I am very proud to say that Ross Mirkarimi is my city supervisor — voted for him twice now. He's spoken at a few local Greenpeace events, including a rally outside of a Chamber of Commerce meeting last week.
The day after that rally we did a floating balloon banner inside the Chamber's conference at the ritzy Fairmont hotel. Check this out:
Don’t have your cat declawed in San Francisco, or West Hollywood, or you could face fines up to $1,000 and six months in jail. This month, the city by the bay became the first major metro area in California to outlaw the veterinary procedure, and was soon joined by Santa Monica, Berkeley and Beverly Hills. Los Angeles is expected to enact the ban next week.
"It’s a form of animal cruelty," San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, a major supporter of the ban, tells PEOPLEPets.com. "It would be unconscionable to ignore that fact."
I am very proud to say that Ross Mirkarimi is my city supervisor — voted for him twice now. He's spoken at a few local Greenpeace events, including a rally outside of a Chamber of Commerce meeting last week.
The day after that rally we did a floating balloon banner inside the Chamber's conference at the ritzy Fairmont hotel. Check this out:
11.09.2009
Free live Pixies tracks!!!
You gotta cough up an email address, and it has to be valid, but otherwise completely free live tracks from a show The Pixies played in Paris. The tracks are meant as a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the classic album Doolittle, which the band is playing in its entirety on their current USA Doolittle Tour.
11.03.2009
Final tour wrap-up
Sadly, this is my last post on the ship tour. I’m back in San Francisco. The tour wrapped up in the Cook Islands on October 21st. We ended the tour by hosting an “open boat,” where a couple hundred locals and tourists got the chance to tour the Esperanza, and by holding a press conference to inform local journalists about what we accomplished out on the high seas.
We also met with some folks from the Ministery of Marine Resources in the Cook Islands. It was a pretty exciting meeting for all of us, because just the week before we had busted the Koyu Maru 3, a Japanese ship we caught fishing in Cook Islands' waters illegally, as you might recall. The Cook Islands has started a formal investigation of the vessel with their counterparts at the Fisheries Agency of Japan, and this is sure to knock Japan down a peg at the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) meeting this December, as they've enjoyed a squeaky-clean record until now.
The tour was a really amazing experience for me and I thought I’d share a few last videos.
We saw an abundance of amazing marine life, including dolphins, whales, flying fish, seabirds, and more. Here’s a video of a baby whale shark we encountered one day:
Our helicopter, Tweety, is an invaluable tool that we use to scout out the open water, document pirate/unlicensed fishing, etc. I went on one early morning heli flight to search for another two Japanese longliners, which we suspected might be fishing in the Cook Islands' waters with their sister ship the Koyu Maru 3. We didn't find them, but I put this video together anyway because I think it's interesting how a heli flight gives you a whole new perspective on just how small the Espy really is in relation to the deep blue sea:
We also met with some folks from the Ministery of Marine Resources in the Cook Islands. It was a pretty exciting meeting for all of us, because just the week before we had busted the Koyu Maru 3, a Japanese ship we caught fishing in Cook Islands' waters illegally, as you might recall. The Cook Islands has started a formal investigation of the vessel with their counterparts at the Fisheries Agency of Japan, and this is sure to knock Japan down a peg at the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) meeting this December, as they've enjoyed a squeaky-clean record until now.
The tour was a really amazing experience for me and I thought I’d share a few last videos.
We saw an abundance of amazing marine life, including dolphins, whales, flying fish, seabirds, and more. Here’s a video of a baby whale shark we encountered one day:
Our helicopter, Tweety, is an invaluable tool that we use to scout out the open water, document pirate/unlicensed fishing, etc. I went on one early morning heli flight to search for another two Japanese longliners, which we suspected might be fishing in the Cook Islands' waters with their sister ship the Koyu Maru 3. We didn't find them, but I put this video together anyway because I think it's interesting how a heli flight gives you a whole new perspective on just how small the Espy really is in relation to the deep blue sea:
Lastly, I shot this video tour of the ship, which is pretty self-explanatory:
Oct. 24th 350 event on the steps of the Sydney Opera House!
I was on my way back to the States after the ship tour when Oct. 24th rolled around, which just so happened to be the largest day of climate action in history. I was lucky enough to be in Sydney, Australia. The event there was amazing, right on the steps of the iconic Opera House. I shot some video to share:
That’s Lord Mayor Clover Moore, Sydney’s first publicly elected female Lord Mayor, you see speaking in the video.
The culmination of the event was a group of people spelling out “350” with blue umbrellas. I got this shot of them while they were still organizing the umbrella-holders, but you can still make out the numbers pretty well:
Here’s me doing an obligatory tourist shot with the crowd and Opera House:
That’s Lord Mayor Clover Moore, Sydney’s first publicly elected female Lord Mayor, you see speaking in the video.
The culmination of the event was a group of people spelling out “350” with blue umbrellas. I got this shot of them while they were still organizing the umbrella-holders, but you can still make out the numbers pretty well:
Here’s me doing an obligatory tourist shot with the crowd and Opera House:
High seas action
I have been a bit remiss in wrapping up the ship tour here on LookAtTheWeeBeasties, so allow me to do so now.
We spent the last few days of the tour in high seas pocket number 3 (see a map of the high seas pockets here), looking for fishing vessels that are threatening the future of the Pacific. We had absolutely no problem finding them.
On Thursday, the 15th, we found a Taiwanese long-liner, Kai Jie No. 1, that had no license to fish in the waters of any Pacific island countries. This does not make it illegal for them to be fishing on the high seas, since these waters belong to no particular nation, but this is one of the main ways fishing fleets get around the regulations that Pacific island countries are introducing to better manage their tuna stocks.
We spoke with the captain of the vessel and explained that what he was doing was decimating the tuna stocks that Pacific island nations rely on and asked him to pull in his line. When he refused, we took action. We went out and, using a special contraption designed by our fitter from the first leg of the tour, Jono, to hold the line up out of the water, we went down the long-line and removed the bait from their hooks.
I shot this video of the action, in which our resident marine life expert, Gabe, explains more about the process:
This ship may not have been a pirate fisher in a legal sense — though it was operating in an area known to host a lot of the region’s illegal fishing — but it was certainly plundering the Pacific. That’s why we’re trying to shut down the four high seas pockets to all fishing.
The next day we spotted yet another unlicensed Taiwanese long-liner fishing on the high seas. It might seem fairly unlikely for us to come across so many ships in an ocean as vast as the Pacific, but when you consider that these ships are part of a massive fleet of more than 1,300 long-liners — and that’s just the Taiwanese fleet — you begin to realize how big the problem is and why we keep encountering them.
Again we went and spoke with the captain, passed him information about our campaign and the science showing that Pacific tuna stocks are in bad shape, and asked him to stop plundering the Pacific. He also refused to haul in his line, as you’ll hear our translator Tan-chi tell us in this video:
Riding along to speak with this captain had a pretty big impact on me. As you could see, the captain of this ship was quite an agreeable guy who seemed genuinely interested in what we had to say. He sat and read our campaign materials for several minutes. I thought he looked very sympathetic, for lack of a better word, when he sat down and read those campaign materials (despite the fact that he first snapped at the crew who had lined up on the ship's railing to watch us and speak to us).
The captain was even very hospitable towards us: when we refused the grape sodas he offered after reading our literature, he insisted we take them so vehemently that he actually threw them onboard our boats.
All of which made me realize: This guy is not our enemy. Neither is his crew. He is just a guy like me, trying to get by but — albeit with a job that I would not call easy by any means. So I want to be very clear in making this distinction: We are not trying to set ourselves up in opposition to this hard-working captain and his crew.
If anything, I'd say we're on this guy's side, in a manner of speaking. As Tan-chi translated for us in the video, the economics of the situation make it impossible for this captain to stop fishing and head back to port. And that’s what we oppose and are trying to change. You can read more about this situation — the vicious cycle of fishing in the Pacific and the diminishing returns these vessels are producing as Pacific fish stocks grow more and more depleted — in this blog by Karli, our onboard campaigner.
We spent the last few days of the tour in high seas pocket number 3 (see a map of the high seas pockets here), looking for fishing vessels that are threatening the future of the Pacific. We had absolutely no problem finding them.
On Thursday, the 15th, we found a Taiwanese long-liner, Kai Jie No. 1, that had no license to fish in the waters of any Pacific island countries. This does not make it illegal for them to be fishing on the high seas, since these waters belong to no particular nation, but this is one of the main ways fishing fleets get around the regulations that Pacific island countries are introducing to better manage their tuna stocks.
We spoke with the captain of the vessel and explained that what he was doing was decimating the tuna stocks that Pacific island nations rely on and asked him to pull in his line. When he refused, we took action. We went out and, using a special contraption designed by our fitter from the first leg of the tour, Jono, to hold the line up out of the water, we went down the long-line and removed the bait from their hooks.
I shot this video of the action, in which our resident marine life expert, Gabe, explains more about the process:
This ship may not have been a pirate fisher in a legal sense — though it was operating in an area known to host a lot of the region’s illegal fishing — but it was certainly plundering the Pacific. That’s why we’re trying to shut down the four high seas pockets to all fishing.
The next day we spotted yet another unlicensed Taiwanese long-liner fishing on the high seas. It might seem fairly unlikely for us to come across so many ships in an ocean as vast as the Pacific, but when you consider that these ships are part of a massive fleet of more than 1,300 long-liners — and that’s just the Taiwanese fleet — you begin to realize how big the problem is and why we keep encountering them.
Again we went and spoke with the captain, passed him information about our campaign and the science showing that Pacific tuna stocks are in bad shape, and asked him to stop plundering the Pacific. He also refused to haul in his line, as you’ll hear our translator Tan-chi tell us in this video:
Riding along to speak with this captain had a pretty big impact on me. As you could see, the captain of this ship was quite an agreeable guy who seemed genuinely interested in what we had to say. He sat and read our campaign materials for several minutes. I thought he looked very sympathetic, for lack of a better word, when he sat down and read those campaign materials (despite the fact that he first snapped at the crew who had lined up on the ship's railing to watch us and speak to us).
The captain was even very hospitable towards us: when we refused the grape sodas he offered after reading our literature, he insisted we take them so vehemently that he actually threw them onboard our boats.
All of which made me realize: This guy is not our enemy. Neither is his crew. He is just a guy like me, trying to get by but — albeit with a job that I would not call easy by any means. So I want to be very clear in making this distinction: We are not trying to set ourselves up in opposition to this hard-working captain and his crew.
If anything, I'd say we're on this guy's side, in a manner of speaking. As Tan-chi translated for us in the video, the economics of the situation make it impossible for this captain to stop fishing and head back to port. And that’s what we oppose and are trying to change. You can read more about this situation — the vicious cycle of fishing in the Pacific and the diminishing returns these vessels are producing as Pacific fish stocks grow more and more depleted — in this blog by Karli, our onboard campaigner.
10.17.2009
Whales!
That title is totally misleading, because you will probably be expecting whale photos, whereas you will not in fact find good pictures of whales in this post. This morning, however, the ship was SURROUNDED by them. Seriously, you could see spouts in all directions. We were steaming right through a pod of sperm whales, it was incredible.
We launched the boat and our photographer and videographer tried to get them on tape, but I heard it was difficult for them. I'll check and see if they got anything good, but in the meantime I thought I'd post a couple pics I took.
It's really hard to photograph whales from the ship, unless they come right up to us. This is the best pic I got:
Yeah, that leaves a lot to the imagination. Sorry about that.
We launched the boat and our photographer and videographer tried to get them on tape, but I heard it was difficult for them. I'll check and see if they got anything good, but in the meantime I thought I'd post a couple pics I took.
It's really hard to photograph whales from the ship, unless they come right up to us. This is the best pic I got:
Yeah, that leaves a lot to the imagination. Sorry about that.
Gratuitous sunset blogging
Behold:
Click on 'em if you want to see bigger versions!
And just for good measure, I thought I'd include a sunrise image. I promised a fellow Greenpeacer, the Oceans campaigner who got me on the tour in the first place, that I would wake up and watch the sunrise at least once. Well, I did, and it was cloudy. Still made for a pretty nice photo though, eh?
Click on 'em if you want to see bigger versions!
And just for good measure, I thought I'd include a sunrise image. I promised a fellow Greenpeacer, the Oceans campaigner who got me on the tour in the first place, that I would wake up and watch the sunrise at least once. Well, I did, and it was cloudy. Still made for a pretty nice photo though, eh?
Filming them filming us
So I went quiet for a spell there, mostly because we were in transit for a few days, going to a point about 100km off the coast of the Cook islands where we picked up some journalists from Australia's Channel 7, apparently the most-watched news channel in Australia.
I like this meta-photo of them filming us:
After we picked up the journalists, we went back out to the high seas and resumed the hunt. The girl you see on the phone there is Tan Tan (or Tan2, as she some times writes it to save space), our Chinese/Taiwanese translator. She is at that very moment speaking with the captain of a Taiwanese pirate fishing vessel. The captain refused to haul in his lines and quit plundering these waters, so we went out and removed all the bait from his long-line. My blog on that action is still working its way through the Greenpeace protocol, so I'll just leave it at that and let you check out that post later.
In the meantime, please enjoy, with my compliments, this photo of a totally amazing sky, with the Esperanza in the distance. This was taken from our inflatable boat "The Suzy Q" during said action:
I like this meta-photo of them filming us:
After we picked up the journalists, we went back out to the high seas and resumed the hunt. The girl you see on the phone there is Tan Tan (or Tan2, as she some times writes it to save space), our Chinese/Taiwanese translator. She is at that very moment speaking with the captain of a Taiwanese pirate fishing vessel. The captain refused to haul in his lines and quit plundering these waters, so we went out and removed all the bait from his long-line. My blog on that action is still working its way through the Greenpeace protocol, so I'll just leave it at that and let you check out that post later.
In the meantime, please enjoy, with my compliments, this photo of a totally amazing sky, with the Esperanza in the distance. This was taken from our inflatable boat "The Suzy Q" during said action:
10.10.2009
A heli ride, a buoy on the high seas, and the moons of Jupiter
Don't worry, I'm not going to try and spin some fantastic connection between those three, other than the fact that they all were part of my day yesterday.
It was a long day that started at about 06:30 when one of our onboard campaigners, a Kiwi named Karli, came and woke me up by asking, "How quickly can you be ready for a heli ride?"
"Very quickly!" was my response, naturally.
I jumped out of bed, threw my clothes on, ran up to the campaign office to get my camera, and was out on the heli deck 4 minutes later. I got video of take-off and landing, which I'll edit up and get someone on shore to upload to Vimeo for me. But for now, you may content yourself with these shots:
Here I am looking super tough in my heli gear.
Our pilot, another Kiwi, named Donal.
Here's the Esperanza looking very small and lonely way off in the distance. This was one of the things I was looking forward to the most on the heli ride: This ship has been my entire world for the past couple weeks, but it's a fairly large ship so I don't feel too cramped. Going up in the heli, though, gave me a sense of just how small the ship is compared to the vastness of the ocean.
Here's the Espy looking a little less small and lonely as we approach to land.
It was a long day that started at about 06:30 when one of our onboard campaigners, a Kiwi named Karli, came and woke me up by asking, "How quickly can you be ready for a heli ride?"
"Very quickly!" was my response, naturally.
I jumped out of bed, threw my clothes on, ran up to the campaign office to get my camera, and was out on the heli deck 4 minutes later. I got video of take-off and landing, which I'll edit up and get someone on shore to upload to Vimeo for me. But for now, you may content yourself with these shots:
Here I am looking super tough in my heli gear. 
Our pilot, another Kiwi, named Donal.
Here's the Esperanza looking very small and lonely way off in the distance. This was one of the things I was looking forward to the most on the heli ride: This ship has been my entire world for the past couple weeks, but it's a fairly large ship so I don't feel too cramped. Going up in the heli, though, gave me a sense of just how small the ship is compared to the vastness of the ocean.
Here's the Espy looking a little less small and lonely as we approach to land.The purpose of this heli operation (of course we refer to them as "heli ops," cuz we're that cool) was to look for this Japanese ship that is not licensed to fish in the waters of the Cook Islands, but was doing so anyway. We did not find that ship, unfortunately. But we did spot a little yellow buoy floating in the middle of the ocean.
So when we got back to the ship, we launched one of our Zodiacs, loaded it up with the diving gear, and went to have a look.
Here's the buoy. Looks harmless enough, but this could be a marker for a fish aggregating device, a long-line, or some other really destructive fishing gear.
One of our divers, a Brazilian chap named Gabriel, about to go snorkeling to have a look at the buoy and what it's attached to.
So when we got back to the ship, we launched one of our Zodiacs, loaded it up with the diving gear, and went to have a look.
Here's the buoy. Looks harmless enough, but this could be a marker for a fish aggregating device, a long-line, or some other really destructive fishing gear.
One of our divers, a Brazilian chap named Gabriel, about to go snorkeling to have a look at the buoy and what it's attached to.Turned out the buoy was just attached to a line about 15 - 20 meters long, not a FAD or long-line at all. We hauled it up onto the boat and brought it back to the Esperanza anyway, as it was essentially just a piece of trash floating in the ocean.
This trip was still totally worth it however, because I got to go snorkeling in the Pacific. It was amazing just how clear and blue the water was. Seriously, if a shark had come by, we would have seen it coming a mile away. It's incredible. We were about 5 miles from the ship at this point, so we didn't even have that obstructing our view whatsoever.
The rest of the day went by as normal — answering emails, editing photos and videos, etc. That night, however, we were lying in wait for that same Japanese fishing vessel, as we thought they might have come back under cover darkness, when they assumed we'd have given up and gone away. So there was a need to be extra vigilant, and I was asked to be on watch from 20:00 to 24:00. At first I thought it would be boring, but then I stepped out on to the bridge wings and looked up.
It was a very clear night, so clear you could see the Milky Way. So clear, in fact, that with the aid of our high-powered binoculars, I could actually see the moons of Jupiter. I wish I could have taken photos, but of course they never would have come out. Guess I'll have to keep that view all to myself.
Never did see that Japanese ship, in the end. Still a hell of a day though.
This trip was still totally worth it however, because I got to go snorkeling in the Pacific. It was amazing just how clear and blue the water was. Seriously, if a shark had come by, we would have seen it coming a mile away. It's incredible. We were about 5 miles from the ship at this point, so we didn't even have that obstructing our view whatsoever.
The rest of the day went by as normal — answering emails, editing photos and videos, etc. That night, however, we were lying in wait for that same Japanese fishing vessel, as we thought they might have come back under cover darkness, when they assumed we'd have given up and gone away. So there was a need to be extra vigilant, and I was asked to be on watch from 20:00 to 24:00. At first I thought it would be boring, but then I stepped out on to the bridge wings and looked up.
It was a very clear night, so clear you could see the Milky Way. So clear, in fact, that with the aid of our high-powered binoculars, I could actually see the moons of Jupiter. I wish I could have taken photos, but of course they never would have come out. Guess I'll have to keep that view all to myself.
Never did see that Japanese ship, in the end. Still a hell of a day though.
10.08.2009
Whale Watch
As I sat in the bridge one day on my regular whale watch duty, I pulled out the trusty digital camcorder and shot this quick pan across the bridge windows. This is pretty much what I spend two hours a day doing — staring out at the open sea. It's quite relaxing. I usually don't sit inside though, there are "wings" off of the bridge, and I usually do my watch out there.
Whale Watch on the Esperanza from Mike G on Vimeo.
Of course, I have never seen anything on any of my watches. Aside from the occasional flying fish or seabird, that is. Once when I wasn't on watch I did see a couple dolphins swimming in the distance, so all I could really see was their fins occasionally breaking the water. I also saw some whales spouting waaay in the distance once — actually, we were woken with the news: "Good morning! It's 7:30, and there are whales off the bow!"
I didn't get to go out there and swim with them, but our photographer did:
He wasn't thrilled with the shots he was able to get, but I think they convey the general idea. That being: the photographer is one lucky bastard.
Whale Watch on the Esperanza from Mike G on Vimeo.
Of course, I have never seen anything on any of my watches. Aside from the occasional flying fish or seabird, that is. Once when I wasn't on watch I did see a couple dolphins swimming in the distance, so all I could really see was their fins occasionally breaking the water. I also saw some whales spouting waaay in the distance once — actually, we were woken with the news: "Good morning! It's 7:30, and there are whales off the bow!"
I didn't get to go out there and swim with them, but our photographer did:
He wasn't thrilled with the shots he was able to get, but I think they convey the general idea. That being: the photographer is one lucky bastard.
Swim stop!
I had an hour left to go in my daily watch duty when the captain came to tell me it was time for a swim stop. My first one! Yeehaw!
Swim stop is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. During a slow day, we cut the engines, open the pilot door, and jump out into the blue, blue ocean. I could go on and on about how cool it was to swim in the middle of the frickin Pacific, with no land in sight, but I'll spare you. The pics speak louder anyways (click them to view larger versions):
We also rigged up a diving board and rope swing from the heli-deck, of which I got some good video. One of our engineers was doing flips off of the diving board. I'll post the video whenever I manage to get it up on the net.
It was a pretty amazing experience, I have to say.
Swim stop is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. During a slow day, we cut the engines, open the pilot door, and jump out into the blue, blue ocean. I could go on and on about how cool it was to swim in the middle of the frickin Pacific, with no land in sight, but I'll spare you. The pics speak louder anyways (click them to view larger versions):
We also rigged up a diving board and rope swing from the heli-deck, of which I got some good video. One of our engineers was doing flips off of the diving board. I'll post the video whenever I manage to get it up on the net.
It was a pretty amazing experience, I have to say.
10.06.2009
Take a dive around the Espy's hull!
This is Freddy:
Freddy is our chief engineer. He narrated a video for me that was shot by our videographer, Wooly (whom you all met in a previous post). Wooly wanted to test out the dive camera, as he'd heard it was shooting grainy videos (turns out he just had to take it apart and clean all the salt out), so he dove down around the Espy's hull while we were still in Vanuatu. I thought the footage was pretty amazing, so I asked Freddy to narrate it for us, to let us know what the heck we were looking at. And then I posted it up online.
Have a look:
Freddy is our chief engineer. He narrated a video for me that was shot by our videographer, Wooly (whom you all met in a previous post). Wooly wanted to test out the dive camera, as he'd heard it was shooting grainy videos (turns out he just had to take it apart and clean all the salt out), so he dove down around the Espy's hull while we were still in Vanuatu. I thought the footage was pretty amazing, so I asked Freddy to narrate it for us, to let us know what the heck we were looking at. And then I posted it up online.
Have a look:
Esperanza hull dive from Mike G on Vimeo.
10.04.2009
We've left Samoa
We spent about three days off the coast of Samoa, but are now back on the high seas and returning to our campaign to defend our oceans.
We actually were not asked to do a whole hell of a lot in Samoa. In fact, Samoan authorities were taken by surprise when we arrived so quickly. We were there a little more than 24 hours after the earthquake and tsunami hit. The Samoans were not at all prepared for the disaster — in fact, the minister in charge of the relief efforts had only been sworn in two days prior. That meant that they weren't quite prepared to make use of what we had to offer. But in the end I think we still managed to do a lot of good.
Mostly, they needed our helicopter. Our logistical coordinator, an Aussie named Matt, and our helicopter pilot, a Kiwi named Donal, spent nearly the entire three days on the island. Matt was in their emergency response operations center helping coordinate relief efforts, while Donal was flying all over the place delivering supplies and checking on small villages with no other means of contacting the outside world. For the first couple days, ours was the only helicopter on the island.
Here on the ship, we pumped well over 1,000 liters of fresh water into collapsible jugs and sent them to shore. Donal spent a lot of his time delivering this water to various villages, as most of the fresh water delivery system was swept away by the tsunami. Samoan authorities said that this very likely helped keep several people alive while they were waiting for a steady stream of relief supplies to come in from elsewhere.
Each of these jugs holds 10 liters, and this was just one of 3 loads we sent to shore.
Loading the jugs into one of our inflatables. And yes, I put the camera down after this and helped with the loading.
The boat heads to shore, loaded down with water.
After a couple days of drifting offshore and boating water in, we came alongside the port in the capital city of Apia and gave several barrels of diesel to the Samoans. They'll use the diesel for chainsaws, to cut open houses where people might be trapped, and to remove felled trees, to open roadways and clear debris. They'll also use the disel in vehicles delivering supplies around the island.
The Esperanza at the port of Apia. I took this pic from the port itself, obviously — the only time I set foot whatsoever on Samoan ground. (But hey, I can say I've been there.)
The crane lifts a barrel of diesel off the deck of the Esperanza.
The crane operator, Flavio, a Brazilian, is our bosun (head of the deck crew).
First mate, Oli, and Ron, a deckhand and my bunk-mate, load the barrels onto a Samoan truck.
Australian and New Zealand military forces arrived to help with the recovery, so we put in calls to American Samoa and Tonga, but both said they were okay and did not require our assistance. So we're back out on the high seas now.
I have to say, though I wish we could have gone ashore and helped, I'm still pretty proud of what we did. No one on this ship hesitated for a second to help out — in fact, we were all really eager to go ashore and help, if they'd have let us.
And Greenpeace as a whole did not hesitate either. We immediately broke off our campaign and headed straight for Samoa even before we were officially asked to come help, and various Grenpeace offices made several thousand Euros available to us to do whatever we could. And unlike many other organizations that came to deliver supplies or offer aid, we didn't send a single photographer or videographer to shore to film ourselves doing it. We're environmentalists, but when disaster struck we dropped everything and acted first and foremost like human beings looking out for our fellow man. That made me damn proud.
So I guess I'll close with this shot I took, which I quite like:
We actually were not asked to do a whole hell of a lot in Samoa. In fact, Samoan authorities were taken by surprise when we arrived so quickly. We were there a little more than 24 hours after the earthquake and tsunami hit. The Samoans were not at all prepared for the disaster — in fact, the minister in charge of the relief efforts had only been sworn in two days prior. That meant that they weren't quite prepared to make use of what we had to offer. But in the end I think we still managed to do a lot of good.
Mostly, they needed our helicopter. Our logistical coordinator, an Aussie named Matt, and our helicopter pilot, a Kiwi named Donal, spent nearly the entire three days on the island. Matt was in their emergency response operations center helping coordinate relief efforts, while Donal was flying all over the place delivering supplies and checking on small villages with no other means of contacting the outside world. For the first couple days, ours was the only helicopter on the island.
Here on the ship, we pumped well over 1,000 liters of fresh water into collapsible jugs and sent them to shore. Donal spent a lot of his time delivering this water to various villages, as most of the fresh water delivery system was swept away by the tsunami. Samoan authorities said that this very likely helped keep several people alive while they were waiting for a steady stream of relief supplies to come in from elsewhere.
Each of these jugs holds 10 liters, and this was just one of 3 loads we sent to shore.
Loading the jugs into one of our inflatables. And yes, I put the camera down after this and helped with the loading.
The boat heads to shore, loaded down with water.
After a couple days of drifting offshore and boating water in, we came alongside the port in the capital city of Apia and gave several barrels of diesel to the Samoans. They'll use the diesel for chainsaws, to cut open houses where people might be trapped, and to remove felled trees, to open roadways and clear debris. They'll also use the disel in vehicles delivering supplies around the island.
The Esperanza at the port of Apia. I took this pic from the port itself, obviously — the only time I set foot whatsoever on Samoan ground. (But hey, I can say I've been there.)
The crane lifts a barrel of diesel off the deck of the Esperanza.
The crane operator, Flavio, a Brazilian, is our bosun (head of the deck crew).
First mate, Oli, and Ron, a deckhand and my bunk-mate, load the barrels onto a Samoan truck.
Australian and New Zealand military forces arrived to help with the recovery, so we put in calls to American Samoa and Tonga, but both said they were okay and did not require our assistance. So we're back out on the high seas now.
I have to say, though I wish we could have gone ashore and helped, I'm still pretty proud of what we did. No one on this ship hesitated for a second to help out — in fact, we were all really eager to go ashore and help, if they'd have let us.
And Greenpeace as a whole did not hesitate either. We immediately broke off our campaign and headed straight for Samoa even before we were officially asked to come help, and various Grenpeace offices made several thousand Euros available to us to do whatever we could. And unlike many other organizations that came to deliver supplies or offer aid, we didn't send a single photographer or videographer to shore to film ourselves doing it. We're environmentalists, but when disaster struck we dropped everything and acted first and foremost like human beings looking out for our fellow man. That made me damn proud.
So I guess I'll close with this shot I took, which I quite like:
10.01.2009
We're in Samoa to help with disaster relief
We are currently drifting off the coast of Samoa, and have been offering any and all assistance we can to those affected by the tsunami in Samoa. When we heard the news, we immediately put in a call to Samoan authorities and altered course so we'd get there as quickly as possible. We arrived last night and are now working with emergency response teams here to provide whatever aid we can. Read more on my Greenpeace blog.
We are in what's known as Western Samoa, as opposed to American Samoa. Both were hit pretty hard, but Western Samoa was able to fast-track our entry.
I've been in the bridge with the captain all day helping with communications, but we're likely to be here for several days and there's every chance I'll still go ashore and help there. Turns out ours is the only helicopter on the island, and so far that has been the most useful bit of aid we could offer, though we've also taken several hundred liters of fresh water ashore as well, as their water supply appear to be contaminated.
Sorry I couldn't say anything before, but we didn't want to put this news out there publicly until we were sure we'd be able to help.
We are in what's known as Western Samoa, as opposed to American Samoa. Both were hit pretty hard, but Western Samoa was able to fast-track our entry.
I've been in the bridge with the captain all day helping with communications, but we're likely to be here for several days and there's every chance I'll still go ashore and help there. Turns out ours is the only helicopter on the island, and so far that has been the most useful bit of aid we could offer, though we've also taken several hundred liters of fresh water ashore as well, as their water supply appear to be contaminated.
Sorry I couldn't say anything before, but we didn't want to put this news out there publicly until we were sure we'd be able to help.
9.30.2009
The smelly boys' cabin
Genevieve asked me about some of the basics of ship life, and I had intended to talk about that kind of stuff here, but then just sit down and let whatever's on my mind spill out. So here goes:
Some people have awesome sleeping quarters, with only two folks in their cabin and a desk to work at. I, however, am in what has been dubbed "the smelly boys' cabin" — so named long before I came along, I swear.
It's a four-man cabin. I share it with Ron, a deckhand from Fiji; Wooly, our Australian videographer; and Ginam, our Korean translator. Ginam speaks very little English, so he pretty much doesn't follow any of the routines of the ship (he was also very sick until about yesterday). Ron is a good guy, he was one of the first people I met back in Vanuatu because he and I were hanging with the head of the campaign, Lagi, who I met up with when I first got there (Lagi is also Fijian, so Ron was staying in his hotel room, hence I got to know Ron).
Here are the smelly boys' bunks, I'm on the top right, Ron is below me, Wooly has hung that black towel in front of his bunk on the upper left, and Ginam is below Wooly:
David Woolford, aka "Wooly," is an absolute rip. He's a professional videographer who has been on over 20 Greenpeace ship expeditions, though this is his first time on the Espy. He also works as a cameraman for Australian news and TV. Wooly's a super funny and personable guy. He never lets being a grown-up get in the way of a good joke, but he's also extremely professional, very good at his job (the media officer onboard the ship told me that Wooly has a very good reputation), and a pleasure to work with. I've been working on a lot of videos, so I've been working with Wooly a lot. He's definitely one of the people I get along with the best on the ship.
We're woken up every day at 7:30, breakfast is continental style, and then from 8:00 to 9:00 we do chores. You have to sign up for the chores, and there aren't enough to go around, actually, so if I haven't signed up for one that day I either try to help someone else or go sit outside and drink my tea. Here's where I like to sit and do that:
I have signed up to do the toilets a couple times, as my colleagues back on shore told me that was the best way to earn the respect of the crew (it did seem to work). Other chores include laundry, cleaning the hallways, cleaning the mess, etc.
After chores I usually go up to the campaign office and check my email (I'm still at least responding to my regular email, even if I'm not doing much work for GPUSA), write blogs, post blogs, etc. I actually spend most of the day doing this, hence I spend most of my days indoors. Which is a shame. So I get outside as often as I can, just take a stroll around the deck outside. I could sit and watch the ocean forever.
Lunch is at 12:00. At 5:00, which is almost religiously referred to as Beer o'clock on the ship, we knock off for the day and head down to the lounge. Then at 6:00 it's dinner time. After that, we all just kind of lounge around, watch movies on the LCD screen in the mess, or on a projection screen in the lounge. I spend a lot of timing reading, too, of course. So far I've read A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge and 2010: Oddyssey Two by Arthur C. Clarke.
I've only got one book left, but thankfully there is a small library onboard. I haven't looked around it too extensively cuz that's also where the computer for general crew access is, meaning there's almost always someone in there and I like to give them privacy.
I'm hoping they have some philosophy books in the library. Being in the middle of the ocean is making me philosophical. That, and Johnson, who I mentioned in a previous blog post, is a philosophy and theology student, and he and I have had some nice philosophical discussions, mostly about Kierkegaard and Sartre.
Some people have awesome sleeping quarters, with only two folks in their cabin and a desk to work at. I, however, am in what has been dubbed "the smelly boys' cabin" — so named long before I came along, I swear.
The view from the doorway into the smelly boys' cabin.
It's a four-man cabin. I share it with Ron, a deckhand from Fiji; Wooly, our Australian videographer; and Ginam, our Korean translator. Ginam speaks very little English, so he pretty much doesn't follow any of the routines of the ship (he was also very sick until about yesterday). Ron is a good guy, he was one of the first people I met back in Vanuatu because he and I were hanging with the head of the campaign, Lagi, who I met up with when I first got there (Lagi is also Fijian, so Ron was staying in his hotel room, hence I got to know Ron).
Here are the smelly boys' bunks, I'm on the top right, Ron is below me, Wooly has hung that black towel in front of his bunk on the upper left, and Ginam is below Wooly:
David Woolford, aka "Wooly," is an absolute rip. He's a professional videographer who has been on over 20 Greenpeace ship expeditions, though this is his first time on the Espy. He also works as a cameraman for Australian news and TV. Wooly's a super funny and personable guy. He never lets being a grown-up get in the way of a good joke, but he's also extremely professional, very good at his job (the media officer onboard the ship told me that Wooly has a very good reputation), and a pleasure to work with. I've been working on a lot of videos, so I've been working with Wooly a lot. He's definitely one of the people I get along with the best on the ship.
We're woken up every day at 7:30, breakfast is continental style, and then from 8:00 to 9:00 we do chores. You have to sign up for the chores, and there aren't enough to go around, actually, so if I haven't signed up for one that day I either try to help someone else or go sit outside and drink my tea. Here's where I like to sit and do that:
I have signed up to do the toilets a couple times, as my colleagues back on shore told me that was the best way to earn the respect of the crew (it did seem to work). Other chores include laundry, cleaning the hallways, cleaning the mess, etc.
After chores I usually go up to the campaign office and check my email (I'm still at least responding to my regular email, even if I'm not doing much work for GPUSA), write blogs, post blogs, etc. I actually spend most of the day doing this, hence I spend most of my days indoors. Which is a shame. So I get outside as often as I can, just take a stroll around the deck outside. I could sit and watch the ocean forever.
Lunch is at 12:00. At 5:00, which is almost religiously referred to as Beer o'clock on the ship, we knock off for the day and head down to the lounge. Then at 6:00 it's dinner time. After that, we all just kind of lounge around, watch movies on the LCD screen in the mess, or on a projection screen in the lounge. I spend a lot of timing reading, too, of course. So far I've read A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge and 2010: Oddyssey Two by Arthur C. Clarke.
I've only got one book left, but thankfully there is a small library onboard. I haven't looked around it too extensively cuz that's also where the computer for general crew access is, meaning there's almost always someone in there and I like to give them privacy.
I'm hoping they have some philosophy books in the library. Being in the middle of the ocean is making me philosophical. That, and Johnson, who I mentioned in a previous blog post, is a philosophy and theology student, and he and I have had some nice philosophical discussions, mostly about Kierkegaard and Sartre.
We're okay!
You might have heard about the tsunami that hit American Samoa and some neighboring islands earlier today. Just wanted everyone to know that we're okay.
9.29.2009
Tuesday times two
Today is our second Tuesday in a row. We crossed the international date line last night, setting us back a day. Which means I'm back on the same day as all you landlubbers back in America, and am now just four hours behind the Pacific time zone.
I may be back close to American time, but I'm still nowhere near America, as is made abundantly clear by the very international crew we have onboard. My unofficial tally gives us:
Here we are all assembled at the "muster station," a.k.a. the heli-hangar, for the (don't read this part, Gen) abandon ship drill, which we had on the very first day at sea. Safety first.
Here's a better view of the heli-hangar. (Click on any of these images for a larger view.)
Several different versions of English are spoken onboard this ship, but one thing common to many of them is ending all of their sentences with "yeah:" "Dees ees a good idea, yeah?" "I have been sailor for 16 years, yeah?" "I tink dat bird is a member of deh boobie fam-uh-ly, yeah?"
Everyone has dealt with all the time changes and seasickness differently. Our medic swears that Asian and Islander people get way more seasick than Europeans and folks from the Americas. He thinks it's a genetic predisposition. Bearing his assertion out, our Korean translator has not left his bunk for more than 15 minutes this whole trip.
Another guy, Johnson, our Papua New Guinean activist onboard, was pretty violently ill for the first couple days. Then last night he appeared in the mess and got himself a heaping plate of food. We all cheered loudly for him. He finished the whole plate, and I snapped this pic of a very happy Johnson immediately afterward:
That right there, friends, is photographic evidence of the fact that getting over seasickness is pretty much one of the greatest feelings ever.
I may be back close to American time, but I'm still nowhere near America, as is made abundantly clear by the very international crew we have onboard. My unofficial tally gives us:
- 3 Fijians
- 1 Papua New Guinean
- 1 Solomon Islander
- 6 Australians
- 1 New Zealander
- 2 Filipinos
- 1 Chinese
- 1 Korean
- 2 French Canadians
- 1 Argentinian
- 1 Ecuadorian
- 2 Brazilians
- 1 Mexican
- 1 Netherlander
- 1 German
- 1 Dutchman
- 1 other American (who has lived in London since the first Bush got elected)
Several different versions of English are spoken onboard this ship, but one thing common to many of them is ending all of their sentences with "yeah:" "Dees ees a good idea, yeah?" "I have been sailor for 16 years, yeah?" "I tink dat bird is a member of deh boobie fam-uh-ly, yeah?"
Everyone has dealt with all the time changes and seasickness differently. Our medic swears that Asian and Islander people get way more seasick than Europeans and folks from the Americas. He thinks it's a genetic predisposition. Bearing his assertion out, our Korean translator has not left his bunk for more than 15 minutes this whole trip.
Another guy, Johnson, our Papua New Guinean activist onboard, was pretty violently ill for the first couple days. Then last night he appeared in the mess and got himself a heaping plate of food. We all cheered loudly for him. He finished the whole plate, and I snapped this pic of a very happy Johnson immediately afterward:
That right there, friends, is photographic evidence of the fact that getting over seasickness is pretty much one of the greatest feelings ever.
High seas sunset
So I mentioned I was going on whale-watch. Basically, it's exactly what you'd think it is: Sitting on the bridge, scanning the horizon, looking for spouts of water. It's kind of choppy out there though, so spotting spouts would be difficult.
Since we're in transit, we'd like to document as much as we can of the amazing marine life to be found out here in the high seas. Which of course means we're all stoked to hopefully see some whales.
I didn't see any whales, needless to say, or the title of this post would have been something like "I SAW SOME WHAAAAAAALES!" I did however see a couple flying fish. And a type of seabird known as the "boobie." (I also got to listen to the first mate, who is French Canadian, talk about "deh boobie family" at length, which was pretty awesome.)
So yeah, just as I was reaching the end of my watch, I stepped out and noticed this going on:
Not what you'd call a straight up, one-to-one trade for seeing whales, but, mmm, yeah, I'll take it.
Since we're in transit, we'd like to document as much as we can of the amazing marine life to be found out here in the high seas. Which of course means we're all stoked to hopefully see some whales.
I didn't see any whales, needless to say, or the title of this post would have been something like "I SAW SOME WHAAAAAAALES!" I did however see a couple flying fish. And a type of seabird known as the "boobie." (I also got to listen to the first mate, who is French Canadian, talk about "deh boobie family" at length, which was pretty awesome.)
So yeah, just as I was reaching the end of my watch, I stepped out and noticed this going on:
Not what you'd call a straight up, one-to-one trade for seeing whales, but, mmm, yeah, I'll take it.
9.28.2009
I'm on a boat!
Ahoy, mateys. I’ve been on the high seas for a few days now. Life as a sailorman has so far treated me okay – except for the first day, when I tried to eat dinner, got two bites in, and realized food was NOT a good idea.
We’re “in transit” right now, heading from Port Vila, Vanuatu out to the high seas, where we aim to highlight the pillaging of the oceans by commercial fishing fleets. It’s pretty unconscionable – these guys know they’re violating the law (in some cases), know they’re fishing at unsustainable levels (in most every case), and know that their actions today will most likely mean no tuna tomorrow, but they just don’t care. They gotta get that dollar.
Vanuatu was absolutely gorgeous. Did some swimming in the harbor, some kayaking, even jumped off the heli-deck of the Esperanza a few times (yep, that’s “heli” as in helicopter – we’ve got one, and I’m gonna ride in it).
We steamed out of Port Vila Harbor a few days ago. Since we’re in transit, there isn’t much action. I’m shooting photos and videos, and will share as many as I can. Video is tough though, because there just isn’t the bandwidth here on the ship for me to upload videos of my own. Which totally sucks, cuz I really wanted to make a bunch of videos that Greenpeace wouldn’t necessarily want to post. But I will shoot as many “ship life” type videos as I can for use on my Greenpeace blog, so hopefully you can see some of those. And if not, I’ll just have to upload them once I get home — in a month or so. Alas.
You still gotta admit that it’s pretty cool that we live in an age where I can even update this blog at all, given that I’m in the middle of the South Pacific. This data had to travel 36,000 kilometers up to the satellite and back down to Earth again to get to Blogger’s servers. Cool, huh?
So for now, no video. In the meantime, content yourselves with this goofy looking picture of me sitting just above the heli-deck:
As you can see, the water is INCREDIBLY blue. Even my colorblind ass can tell that the water is an amazing color.
Food is decent, people are great, and I’m on whale-watch starting now, so I gotta go! I’ll write more and post more pics later.
We’re “in transit” right now, heading from Port Vila, Vanuatu out to the high seas, where we aim to highlight the pillaging of the oceans by commercial fishing fleets. It’s pretty unconscionable – these guys know they’re violating the law (in some cases), know they’re fishing at unsustainable levels (in most every case), and know that their actions today will most likely mean no tuna tomorrow, but they just don’t care. They gotta get that dollar.
Vanuatu was absolutely gorgeous. Did some swimming in the harbor, some kayaking, even jumped off the heli-deck of the Esperanza a few times (yep, that’s “heli” as in helicopter – we’ve got one, and I’m gonna ride in it).
We steamed out of Port Vila Harbor a few days ago. Since we’re in transit, there isn’t much action. I’m shooting photos and videos, and will share as many as I can. Video is tough though, because there just isn’t the bandwidth here on the ship for me to upload videos of my own. Which totally sucks, cuz I really wanted to make a bunch of videos that Greenpeace wouldn’t necessarily want to post. But I will shoot as many “ship life” type videos as I can for use on my Greenpeace blog, so hopefully you can see some of those. And if not, I’ll just have to upload them once I get home — in a month or so. Alas.
You still gotta admit that it’s pretty cool that we live in an age where I can even update this blog at all, given that I’m in the middle of the South Pacific. This data had to travel 36,000 kilometers up to the satellite and back down to Earth again to get to Blogger’s servers. Cool, huh?
So for now, no video. In the meantime, content yourselves with this goofy looking picture of me sitting just above the heli-deck:
As you can see, the water is INCREDIBLY blue. Even my colorblind ass can tell that the water is an amazing color.
Food is decent, people are great, and I’m on whale-watch starting now, so I gotta go! I’ll write more and post more pics later.
9.16.2009
It's all about racism
I keep saying this, and feel very strongly that it's true: The major motive behind the Teabaggers, the national healthcare protesters, and all of the Republican opposition to President Obama's agenda is racism. It's pretty plain to see, and it's finally a meme catching on in the mainstream media. Here's Olbermann interviewing Markos Moulitsas Zuniga about Jimmy Carter coming out and saying just that:
9.08.2009
Coupla collabs and a brief rant on national healthcare
I've been on vacation in Ireland for the past couple weeks, checking out plenty of the local pubs and hearing plenty of local trad music. I can't count how many times I heard "Galway Girl". It kind of came to define my whole experience in Ireland.
As it turns out, the song was written by Steve Earle and recorded with traditional Irish musician Sharon Shannon. An interesting collaboration, to be sure, between an American country artist and an Irish traditional artist.
So anyway, here I am at my first day back at work and I came across another interesting collaboration I thought I'd share.
R.E.M. has teamed up with MoveOn.org to produce a video in support of national healthcare. To me this is a huge issue. I do think that global warming is the more pressing issue, but if Obama can pull off universal healthcare he will have completed the New Deal and proved once and for all that the Republican anti-government platform is utter horseshit.
That is why the right wing is fighting universal healthcare, folks. They don't really object to universal healthcare — pay attention to their arguments, you won't hear any substantive criticisms against everyone having access to health care, because there are none to be made. All you hear are lies about "Death Panels" and immature, nonsensical insults hurled at Obama like "fascist" or "socialist." This is the last gasp of the racist Republican Party. If universal healthcare goes through, the modern Republican Party is done for, and they know it.
Anyway, the R.E.M. song is pretty good and the video is moving, check it out:
As it turns out, the song was written by Steve Earle and recorded with traditional Irish musician Sharon Shannon. An interesting collaboration, to be sure, between an American country artist and an Irish traditional artist.
So anyway, here I am at my first day back at work and I came across another interesting collaboration I thought I'd share.
R.E.M. has teamed up with MoveOn.org to produce a video in support of national healthcare. To me this is a huge issue. I do think that global warming is the more pressing issue, but if Obama can pull off universal healthcare he will have completed the New Deal and proved once and for all that the Republican anti-government platform is utter horseshit.
That is why the right wing is fighting universal healthcare, folks. They don't really object to universal healthcare — pay attention to their arguments, you won't hear any substantive criticisms against everyone having access to health care, because there are none to be made. All you hear are lies about "Death Panels" and immature, nonsensical insults hurled at Obama like "fascist" or "socialist." This is the last gasp of the racist Republican Party. If universal healthcare goes through, the modern Republican Party is done for, and they know it.
Anyway, the R.E.M. song is pretty good and the video is moving, check it out:
8.19.2009
Music + Activism + Greenpeace
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Woodstock (Aug. 15 to 18), Treehugger.com has been running a series of articles about the spirit of protest born in the 60s and how it has shaped activism today. I wrote a brief history for them about the role rock musicians have played in Greenpeace activism over the years, starting with the benefit concert by Joni Mitchell and James Taylor that started it all, up to today when Anti-Flag is helping us organize young punk rockers at the Warped Tour.
One thing I didn't touch on in the piece that came up in my research, which I think is really awesome, is that Allen Ginsberg was an "early advisor and mentor" to Greenpeace. I'm a big fan of Ginsberg's poetry, so it made me pretty proud to find this out, and I thought I'd share this picture of Ginsberg reading "Plutonian Ode" at a disarmament rally back in the 70s.
I'd also like to give a little plug to the fantastic book in which I found much of the info for the Treehugger piece as well as both pics you see here on this post. It's by Rex Weyler, a journalist and one of the first Greenpeace activists, and it's called Greenpeace: How a Group of Ecologists, Journalists, and Visionaries Changed the World.
The story of how this benefit concert featuring the Jerry Garcia Band came about and was pulled off in just five days is pretty fascinating. You can get a bit of it from my Treehugger post, but you'll have to pick up Rex Weyler's book to read the whole thing!
Photos © Rex Weyler
This post originally appeared on Greenpeace.org/USA.
New Radiohead track
Available for download on RCRD LBL now. It's called "These Are My Twisted Words" and it's a pretty lo-fi, ambient little number. Not a radical departure from what they've done before, but a pretty damn cool track — like everything they've done before.I love me some Radiohead, by god.
8.04.2009
My blog on Treehugger.com in defense of direct action
So last week we did an action at Hewlett-Packard's headquarters in Palo Alto, CA, where we re-branded HP as "Hazardous Products" because of their continued delay in phasing toxic chemicals out of their products.
Surprisingly, we caught a decent amount of flak for it, especially from some fellow environmentalists. I think that's because they are mostly the types of "environmentalists" who sit around reading and writing blogs, maybe following some top enviros on Twitter, perhaps they have even changed their light bulbs to CFLs and drive a Prius. In other words — calling themselves "green" but not really doing shit other than what's easy for them to do.
I'm not saying people shouldn't do these sorts of things — on the contrary, every bit helps. But if you're not familiar with non-violent direct action (NVDA) tactics or environmental campaigning, you probably shouldn't be commenting harshly on what other folks are doing and letting the world know just how little you understand about campaigning.
Anyhoo, I wrote a little post on Treehugger, which had posted a poll asking if these types of non-violent direct actions constitute reasonable means of communication for adults. Fairly loaded question, but I was still surprised by the results, which initially were pretty negative about Greenpeace's tactics. Though of course in the end the poll results ended up very much in support of our action.
Okay, I'll save it. Check the post for more.
Surprisingly, we caught a decent amount of flak for it, especially from some fellow environmentalists. I think that's because they are mostly the types of "environmentalists" who sit around reading and writing blogs, maybe following some top enviros on Twitter, perhaps they have even changed their light bulbs to CFLs and drive a Prius. In other words — calling themselves "green" but not really doing shit other than what's easy for them to do.
I'm not saying people shouldn't do these sorts of things — on the contrary, every bit helps. But if you're not familiar with non-violent direct action (NVDA) tactics or environmental campaigning, you probably shouldn't be commenting harshly on what other folks are doing and letting the world know just how little you understand about campaigning.
Anyhoo, I wrote a little post on Treehugger, which had posted a poll asking if these types of non-violent direct actions constitute reasonable means of communication for adults. Fairly loaded question, but I was still surprised by the results, which initially were pretty negative about Greenpeace's tactics. Though of course in the end the poll results ended up very much in support of our action.
Okay, I'll save it. Check the post for more.
7.27.2009
"Global Warning," by Rhys Darby
This was put out by Greenpeace New Zealand and Rhys Darby, of Flight of the Conchords fame. It's part of a climate campaign GPNZ is running called Sign On. Video is pretty funny, and the site is neat too. Check 'em out!
7.23.2009
Jon Stewart melts my heart
It's funny even though it's so regrettably true...
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Jon Stewart Jizz-Ams in Front of Children - Cap'n Trade | ||||
| ||||
7.20.2009
United Breaks Guitars
Whether or not you like country music, you gotta appreciate this video. This guy, Dave Carroll, witnessed United Airlines baggage handlers throwing his $3500 Taylor guitar around when he was flying from Chicago to Nebraska for some shows. When he got to his destination and pulled out his guitar, it was busted. For the next year or so, dude got the total runaround from United's customer service, until they finally just flat out refused to compensate him in any way. So he vowed to write, record, and film videos for three songs all about how United sux.
The first video, "United Breaks Guitars," is online now, and has almost 3.5 million views so far. Suck it, United.
The first video, "United Breaks Guitars," is online now, and has almost 3.5 million views so far. Suck it, United.
7.15.2009
7.09.2009
Obama is not providing the leadership he promised
Obama is playing politics on several of the key progressive issues — gay rights, the environment, national health care — that he talked a good game on during the campaign last year. We elected him because we though he was a leader, turns out we just got a savvy politician.
So Greenpeace hung this banner on Mt. Rushmore to urge him to be a leader.
Working on this project was very exciting. Also, I personally got two media hits out of it, one via Twitter, and the other (in the Christian Science Monitor, no less, who praise our social media strategy!) via a blog post. Aw yeah.
So Greenpeace hung this banner on Mt. Rushmore to urge him to be a leader.
Working on this project was very exciting. Also, I personally got two media hits out of it, one via Twitter, and the other (in the Christian Science Monitor, no less, who praise our social media strategy!) via a blog post. Aw yeah.
7.02.2009
Amy Winehouse + singing fish = hilariously good times and a new Greenpeace campaign
I'm not making that up. See:
6.22.2009
6.18.2009
Seen today's International Herald Tribune?
A very special edition of the International Herald Tribune has hit the streets today. It's dated "Saturday, December 19, 2009" — the day after the UN climate talks end in Copenhagen — and it reports the news we're hoping to see that day. Check it out:
(Click the image to view the online version of the paper; click here to download a low-res PDF.)
Personally, I'm especially fond of José Chingu's piece on the Amazon. (Because I wrote it.)
Bay Area venues under siege
All ages clubs in the Bay Area are under attack from state regulators at the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC). At issue is a regulation — that is not even part of state law and has never been enforced before — stating that all-ages venues have to get half of their revenue from food sales. And of course these being venues, that isn't always feasible.This SF Chronicle article spells it out:
Bay Area natives probably can recall their first show at the Fillmore, one of San Francisco's most famous music halls and the site of performances that span generations of music - from Jimi Hendrix to The Roots. These days, music fans might go to Potrero Hill's Bottom of the Hill club, the Tenderloin's Great American Music Hall or Cafe du Nord in the Castro.Those are absolutely some of the finest clubs in the city. The Great American Music Hall in particular is one of the most beautiful venues in the world, at least in my opinion. I've seen everyone from Neurosis to Explosions in the Sky and Joanna Newsom there, and the time I got to play there was one of the highlights of my life to date.
Those venues could be forced to close, owners say, if the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, better known as ABC, continues to impose rules that club attorneys argue are legally questionable and often unrelated to booze or safety issues.
From the standpoint of a 7-year resident of San Francisco, it would be tragic if these clubs shut down. It would certainly lessen the appeal of this fantastic city.
And on another tip: Where the hell do these nosy ass bureaucrats get off trying to make life harder for small businesses in these economic times? Talk about tone deaf and heartless.
This video explains the case well too (or in case you can't read):
The Great American Music Hall is asking folks to email the state legislator interviewed in the video, Mark Leno, and "let him know that you support all-ages clubs in their fight against the ABC." Email him here: senator.leno@senate.ca.gov.
The venue is also asking people to buy their "Rock-n-Roll is not a crime" shirt (pictured above) to help defray their considerable legal fees resulting from this nonsense. If you live here in the Bay Area, stop by the GAMH box office to pick yours up — and if you don't live here but want to help out by buying a shirt, email here and arrange to have one shipped to you.
Personally, I'm buying eight. I'll do anything to keep these places in business. I wouldn't recognize this city any more, or feel nearly as comfortable in it, if these places were gone. They're bona fide San Francisco institutions.
6.03.2009
6.02.2009
My new show on BTR! Plus, musings on political music (I couldn't help myself)...
Well, my new show is actually just my old show, Bay Area Music, with a new name and a slightly new format. We're calling the show Wiretap Music on BTR cuz I brought in my partner in running WiretapMusic.com, the Bay Area's music resource, to help DJ my show. Her name is Olivia Parriott and she extends the reach of my show even deeper into the scene.
If you didn't catch the first ever Wiretap Music on BTR show, click here and check it out. We featured an interview with Bonfire Madigan, an inspiring musician who is equal parts activist.
As a web editor at Greenpeace and musician myself, I am impressed by just about anyone who melds the worlds of music and activism. People criticize groups like Rage Against the Machine for putting their politics into their music, but to me that's asinine. Not being political is a stance with political implications all the same.
There's a really cool project here in the Bay Area called ArtfulChange.org that I think is doing cool stuff. I got me one of their t-shirts, yeah boy.
So check out our first Wiretap Music on BTR show for the interview with Bonfire Madigan and check out WiretapMusic.com if you want to see the full interview/profile video that Olivia made.
And remember to listen locally!
5.12.2009
What are the limits of sound?
There's a great remix of TV on the Radio's "Shout Me Out" up on RCRDLBL.com today, check it out: "Shout Me Out (Willie Isz Remix by Jneiro Jarel)".
The remix takes the track in a very interesting direction, stripping the beat down to a playful hand-clap minimalist vibe, and adding in a bunch of trippy noise bursts. RCRDLBL's "MP3s of the Day" email newsletter is so worth it, for little gems like this.
PLUS, when I went to stream the track (it's not downloadable, unfortunately, I'd sure like it on my iPhone), I noticed this quote from TVOTR's Dave Sitek in the band's bio: "A lot of bands have something to say," explains TV On The Radio producer/multi-instrumentalist David Sitek. "We have something to ask."
Brilliant.
4.28.2009
My first Change.org guest blog
I'm going to be guest blogging once a week at GlobalWarming.Change.org, basically on behalf of Greenpeace, but also more broadly on the topic of global warming activism. It's a pretty exciting time to be part of the movement, so I'm stoked to be writing about it on this new venue.
My first post actually doesn't have anything to do with Greenpeace, it's about Tim DeChristopher, the guy who bid on and won over 22,000 acres of Utah land that was being auctioned off in a fire sale at the end of the Bush Administration. Some of the land being auctioned off — to companies who wanted to drill for oil and natural gas, the absolute worst kind of corporate looters and pillagers — was close to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. So DeChristopher stepped up and did the only thing he could to stop the shameless looting: he messed up the whole damn auction, winning several parcels he wasn't going to buy, driving up the price on others, and basically calling attention to what a horribly crass move this was by the Bush Admin.
The good news is that Obama's Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, basically invalidated all of the leases won that day, because the process used by the Bush Admin to select and lease off the parcels was so shady. The bad news is that DeChristopher is still, incomprehensibly, being charged with two felonies and slapped with over $800,000 in fines — for messing up leases that are no longer valid anyway. Pretty bizarre, and rather unconscionable.
But this is a huge opportunity for the grassroots movement in this country to show how strong we are. We'll step up and defend what's right, and we'll deal with the consequences. When brave activists like DeChristopher stand up, we'll get their back. We're determined not to let the powers that be continue to rape and pillage this planet. The best way to demonstrate that determination right now is by supporting DeChrsistopher and his legal defense fund. Go to his site now and donate.
My first post actually doesn't have anything to do with Greenpeace, it's about Tim DeChristopher, the guy who bid on and won over 22,000 acres of Utah land that was being auctioned off in a fire sale at the end of the Bush Administration. Some of the land being auctioned off — to companies who wanted to drill for oil and natural gas, the absolute worst kind of corporate looters and pillagers — was close to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. So DeChristopher stepped up and did the only thing he could to stop the shameless looting: he messed up the whole damn auction, winning several parcels he wasn't going to buy, driving up the price on others, and basically calling attention to what a horribly crass move this was by the Bush Admin.
The good news is that Obama's Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, basically invalidated all of the leases won that day, because the process used by the Bush Admin to select and lease off the parcels was so shady. The bad news is that DeChristopher is still, incomprehensibly, being charged with two felonies and slapped with over $800,000 in fines — for messing up leases that are no longer valid anyway. Pretty bizarre, and rather unconscionable.
But this is a huge opportunity for the grassroots movement in this country to show how strong we are. We'll step up and defend what's right, and we'll deal with the consequences. When brave activists like DeChristopher stand up, we'll get their back. We're determined not to let the powers that be continue to rape and pillage this planet. The best way to demonstrate that determination right now is by supporting DeChrsistopher and his legal defense fund. Go to his site now and donate.
4.23.2009
Imagining a clean energy future
I really dug this action pulled off by my colleagues in Chicago yesterday. They affixed six fake wind turbines to a bridge in downtown Chicago, as a way of helping people image a clean energy future. Really cool idea, I think. This is what our cities will look like in the future, and to me it's beautiful. Hopefully more people saw that yesterday.
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