So it looks like I won't be involved in the "Decameron, Revisited" as previously posted. I will instead be working in a Capital Fringe Fest show titled, "Telemonster". The showdates are July 25th, 27th, and 28th at the DC Art Center Theatre.

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My bike is in the shop till Wednesday. Lame, I know. The front breaks were squeaking horribly, and the fork kept bouncing whenever too much pressure was applied to the lever. No amount of adjusting or cleaning seemed to do anything, which probably means either the brake shoes are old and overused or the wheel is untrued. The shop I took it to was a definite last choice, "Spokes, Etc." in Vienna. Their mechanics are assholes, always talking to you like you know nothing about bikes and as if they have no time for you.

So while I do miss my steed, I turned my loss into an opportunity and walked to the metro this morning. It was a great day for it too, though no one else seemed to think so, evidenced by the lack of anyone else walking. I thought for a minute about all the people who drive to the metro even though it's so close to their houses, just because they can't stand a 30-minute walk, or are afraid of getting sweaty. But then I wondered if it was more than that. Maybe it's the status of driving everywhere that keeps people from trying alternatives. I mean, people in the Mclean/Falls Church area tend to be pretty wealthy, and they tend to have no shame in showing it off. An automobile is the perfect opportunity to do that. In a sane society, such vanity and waste would be chastised and those people shamed into walking, or biking, or (GASP!) taking the bus. But in the bizarro logic of the rich and mighty, being able to drive any kind of car for even a short distance is a way of showing off one's prosperity. And as anyone who's ever lived in NOVA, who isn't a total dooshbag (they do exist!) can tell you, the opportunity to put your wealth on display plays a big role in how people socialize around here.

Truly a shame. Because let me tell ya, if I had the money to spend on a "luxury" SUV, I'd buy one of these sweet babies right here.

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This was a disturbing bit of news off the British press today. I don't know what the hell the Army was thinking in concocting such a plan. Luring an adversary out of hiding under the guise of a truce in order to kill them is horribly dishonest. In fact, if I remember correctly, it was the same dirty ruse used in the film Braveheart by the pro-English barons to lure William Wallace out of hiding. Did Bush, or some lackey general, see that movie and think, "Hey! What a great idea!"? Were they aware that the spirit of the film implied that such actions are immoral?

Reading about a trick this dirty forces us to look at the occupation of Iraq in perspective. So often we've seen terrible images, or read horrific stories, of atrocities committed by one faction or other of an insurgency that seems to direct its rage in many directions once. The corporate media presents the United States as being stuck in the middle of a sectarian war, like some referee in a boxing match. But when you read about things like this, or this, you begin to see that the intense hatred felt by Iraqis for the occupation indeed has a context.