Mooseknuckler Cycling Alliance

Argh, I am bloody tired and I haven’t even had a beer yet.

Kevin, the big “K”nuckle, and I have ridden two nights in a row. I’m not sure if it is the cold or the fact I haven’t ridden more than one day a week for about a month but damn it is kicking my ass. I guess that is a good thing.

Tonight was the first time I have had both my lights charged and ready to go for a ride. The combination is excellent there aren’t any blank spots or guessing where the trail is. I have always felt iffy on turns with just one light on the bars, but having one on my helmet takes care of that moment when you are looking down the turn but haven’t moved the bars yet. I also found the Cygolite halogen bulb compliments the Princeton Tec light perfectly. The halogen has that nice warm light feeling and the PT blows through everything with helicopter search light precision.

Not riding this weekend seems to have motivated me to get out and do some pedaling. I’m loving every minute of it. Now that Kevin has a light the Alliance isn’t limited to riding Sundays only. Now if we can just get those other bastards to buy a light…

Ride more, Drive even less.

You may have missed it in the fine print. Phone companies like Verizon and AT&T reserve the right to block your free speech and terminate your cell phone services “for any reason or no reason.”

Not scary enough? Here’s the shocker. There are no laws that prevent these giant companies from censoring your speech on their networks. Fortunately, some in Congress are calling for an immediate investigation so that they can stop censorship on cell phones and the Internet … forever. But they need your support. Now.

Tell Congress to Protect Free Speech
on Our Cell Phones, the Internet, Everywhere!

Recently, Verizon censored text messages from NARAL Pro-Choice America. In an op-ed in the Washington Post this week, NARAL’s Nancy Keenan joined with Roberta Combs of the Christian Coalition to call on Congress to convene hearings on whether our laws guarantee the free flow of information everywhere.

“Free speech shouldn’t stop when you turn on your computer or pick up your cell phone,” they wrote. “Recent actions by the nation’s biggest communications corporations should be of grave concern to all who care about public participation in our democracy.”

Sen. Byron Dorgan just responded — calling on Congress to convene hearings to keep the Internet and cell phones free of gatekeepers. Tell your members of Congress to stand with Dorgan and stop cell phone censorship:

Tell Rep. Jim Matheson, Sen. Robert Bennett and Sen. Orrin Hatch
to Stop Cell Phone Censorship

There is an urgent need for Congress to take action now. We simply cannot trust phone companies to protect our most precious democratic freedoms.

Thank you,

Ben Scott
Policy Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net

1. Read the Washington Post op-ed at http://www.freepress.net/news/27062

2. See what people are saying about Verizon’s recent efforts to block text messaging at the Free Press Action Network.

Tis the season to ride at night and freeze your ass off. I did just that last night. We went up the infamous Green Canyon trail. It’s been about 6 months since I’ve ridden at night or charged my lights. Luckily I had one that held throughout the entirety of the ride. My handlebar light was pretty much shot as soon as I turned it on. It was cold, we were ill -prepared and we did it anyways. Sounds like a Mooseknuckler ride.

I spent this past weekend in St. George. My bicycle never left the roof rack. I had gone down to help Mr. Gurr out with the Tour de St. George and hoped to be able to do a ride or two while I was down. Instead I helped out with the Tour and spent time with friends. The lack of riding made me especially motivated to get out last night and I have everything ready to go again tonight. If only I could find some toe warmers…

Peace. Love. and Revolution.

I stumbled upon this site this morning http://www.ski-epic.com/amsterdam_bicycles/. It’s interesting how something so normal elsewhere is considered such an oddity, hassle and inconvenience in the states.

Long live bicycles.

Have you ever been so fed up with the evening news that you wanted to throw your TV out the window? Instead of tossing your TV, try whacking Rupert Murdoch.

Today, Free Press launched “Whack-a-Murdoch” — a challenging Web game that’s your chance to drop the hammer on Big Media moguls and consolidation.

Play Whack-a-Murdoch

While Whack-a-Murdoch is just a game, media consolidation is a problem that requires urgent action. Right now, the Federal Communications Commission is rushing ahead with sweeping changes to media ownership rules that would allow Big Media to get even bigger.

If these rules pass, moguls like Murdoch could own the major daily newspaper, and as many as eight radio stations and three TV stations in your city. Often these local monopolists also control national newspapers, popular Web sites, magazines, cable networks, publishing houses and movie studios.

We can stop the FCC and media consolidation by building the movement for a more diverse and democratic media. Free Press is working with our allies to broaden our base of support to include people from all walks of life. We need your help:

Spread the Word: Tell your friends to whack Murdoch and join the movement

When we let a few giant conglomerates control so many outlets, quality journalism turns into junk media, and our democracy suffers. Murdoch’s expanding media empire is case and point. His news programs are a spectacle of beauty queens, right-wing shock pundits and movie stars.

The bottom line? Our democracy can’t survive much longer on Murdoch’s junk media diet. It’s now time for all of us to come together and Stop Big Media.

Thank you,

Timothy Karr
Campaign Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net

1. To learn more about the FCC rulemaking visit www.stopbigmedia.com/=fcc

2. Murdoch paid $5 billion for the Wall Street Journal. But you can invest in a more diverse and independent media for a lot less. Support this campaign with your contribution to the Free Press Action Fund: https://secure.freepress.net/05/whack

Cabaret Punk, if you haven’t heard it there is something grossly normal about you and you should probably get a mohawk or stop watching television. I was over at Kevin’s house sometime last week and Peter, his uncle from Germany, popped in a dvd of the Dresden Dolls live. I have to admit I was mesmerized. A girl on a piano and a guy banging on the drums mixed with aggressive lyrics seemed to be the most amazing music I have ever heard. I have listened to them ever since. Their recordings don’t seem to be as vibrant as the live concert but I still enjoy their music. And it is quite different than most things out there bouncing around in the air waves. I strongly approve.

It seems like decades since I wrote anything here. Where to start…

The most important thing that happened was… nothing happened.

The second most important thing that happened was that the Alliance was out in force on Sunday. After a week of semi-warm temperatures and no snow, we went back up to White Pine. The big “K”nuckle, Ryan, Ryan’s brother Gunner and myself rode the trail. The conditions were great. The day was beautiful, the trail was dry and there wasn’t any snow. The only thing that wasn’t perfect was the fact that the cows had destroyed the trail but that just made things bumpy. nuf said.

The third most important thing that will happen is that I will be in SG this weekend for the Tour de St. George. Mr. Gurr is putting it on and I will be there with bells on to help. Of course, I’ll be squeezing in some rides for myself to round the weekend off.

The fourth most important thing that happened was… again nothing.

Peace my children of evil. May you all die soon.

Thanks to you and tens of thousands of other activists, the FCC has taken the first step in penalizing TV stations that air fake news.

The FCC just fined Comcast for airing several fake segments on its CN8 channel without disclosing that corporations had actually paid for and produced the “news.”

While the fines are a start, they are only the tip of the fake news iceberg.

Tell the FCC to Crack Down on Fake News

Last year, the Center for Media and Democracy captured more than 100 “video news releases” — segments promoting commercial brands and products — that had been dressed up as real news and aired as a part of regular news programming.

They just caught another station in Michigan airing several video news releases in their entirety. WGTU-TV even pretended the publicist narrating the story was one of their reporters.

By disguising advertisements as news, stations violate both the spirit and the letter of their broadcasting licenses. This deception is not only illegal — it’s a serious breach of the trust between these stations and the communities they serve.

Today Free Press and the Center for Media and Democracy filed a complaint with the FCC showing these abuses continue unabated, despite the ongoing FCC inquiry. It’s time the FCC stepped up its efforts. Tell your friends to take action and stop fake news:

Tell Your Friends to Help Stop Fake News

We need your help again to send a strong message to the FCC: Crack down on local news stations that abuse the public trust by airing fake news.

Onward,

Craig Aaron
Communications Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net

1. The latest report — “Know Fake News” — is available at www.prwatch.org/fakenews3/summary.

2. Join the conversation. See what activists are doing locally to stop fake news at the Free Press Action Network: www.freepress.net/action.

3. Don’t forget to tell your friends about this important campaign: www.action.freepress.net/campaign/fakenews3/forward