The Empire State

My license reads: The Empire State.

A building so named: intended to be the world’s tallest.

The history of Venice: A History of an Empire.

The meaning of empire: to whence where wealth is imported.

Perhaps modesty or shame would have intervened in our state’s motto.

If it were named the Empire City building.

The absolutely non-self sustaining aspect of the city.

The strong call to join the Confederacy in the war, in deference to where the wealth was being imported at the time.

All value is labor: Marx. The answer the question: Why import the teeming masses?

New York as the textile center of the New World.

The few if any uses for labor in 2009.

Ten slaves to one citizen: The population of Rome.

Capital as the import of choice.

The self-selecting rich who can afford to purchase Manhattan property.

The Erie Canal was obsolete in 10 years.

Is Albany our new Brasilia? Buffalo our Naples?

The funny thought there is any connection of New York State to New York City. Beyond the suburban tracts silent upon the fertile fields of Long Island? The Hudson Valley.

The writer remarks on the poor agricultural quality of New England. Not called soil where I come from,

The westward movement explained in a time of agriculture.

Fond du Lac Wisconsin founded by a New York Capitalist. Among many towns.

The New York Stock Exchange.

Jew York City. And not in a derogatory way.

The Media Capital of the world. Exporting hegemonic ideas to the world.

The taxi driver who spoke no English. In Amman Jordan. Who nevertheless listened only to American Pop Music.

The world’s largest steel factory. South of 23rd St in Manhattan. c. 1840. With ore from Pennsylvania. Workers from Germany and Ireland. And Africa.

Thinking if we still lived in New Amsterdam. Except perhaps we do.

Brooklyn Naval Yard.

Domino Sugar. To capitalize on the trade from the Caribbean.

A folly: To choose Canada as a spoil of war over the Bahamas to settle the French and Indian War. As the Bahamas accounted for a third of all wealth in North America at that time.

London. Caribbean. New York. London. or Capital. Crop. Labor. Consumption.

Washington DC as the ultimate Empire City.

With a vote in Congress, will the District be forced to change the license from Taxation Without Representation?

Perhaps they can buy Empire City.

Photography: The New Old School?

At a certain moment, what was once special, difficult, and costly becomes mundane. Forgotten. Expected. Remember when long distance meant you stopped whatever you were doing? When a trip in the car was a special day? Photography is now in danger of being swept aside from the popular consciousness.

How can this be, you ask, we are experiencing a profusive explosion of photos everywhere. 15 billion on Facebook alone. Dozens more in each of our phones. Unwary are we also of the literally hundreds of times we will be recorded if we say, go from Grand Central to Times Square to Herald Square on foot.

What becomes ubiquitous falls in value. Just as music now proliferates for many 2, 4, 8? hours a day, it is clear that both our discerning ear and our craft for creation have taken a similarly prolific fall. Few musicians today would ever attempt a Rolling Stones guitar solo, just perhaps as Keith Richards might have barely kept his head above water in the Ellington Orchestra. Now with video and digital snaps, again the ease is taking precedent over craft. You've seen a 1000 photos on Facebook - has a single one arrested you? Can you tell the difference between the Sopranos and Queer Eye? Is one more pleasing to you from a visual standpoint?

No doubt I am overstating the case here. No doubt there are more good shooters than ever before. Yet I stand by my point. Craft and quality have always been at odds in America with volume. Today, volume holds sway. Again.

Would either of these topics be intruiging?
Loss is a 4 letter word.
There is Nothing to Do!

What Is To Be Done?

Whenever the question arises Why did you stop working as an architect? the deepest answer is that I simply, at that time, was too restless to sit in a chair for 10 hours a day. A more active job, one with promise of movement, had allure. I toyed a bit with being a river runner – but between road noise, Red Cross lessons, and sitting (while the world moved by) I moved on. No, I did not expect to land in television. While the job offers very little in mental movement, physically it is quite engaging.

Today, however, no one watches television. The resulting loss of economic status in the industry has sent us from flying first class to coach to not flying at all. Stripped of travel, television production (for my news magazine shows)is now a series of white walled conference rooms, distracted on camera personnel – (no one will deny it is a producer driven arena), and interviewees who end up, after the end of an hour interview, contributing at times 2 sentences. Being present in the interviews, often they are quite interesting and informative. The networks have lost sight of how to present the interest.

A fellow bike messenger in Denver always said “Movement is the democratic universal.” Brilliant of course. But how now does one project oneself in a constructive manner? How does the drive to produce, even if it is only ego, the drive to create, the will to be, and the desire for messianic control – how can this be expressed in today’s world? At the scale of dominance for those of us messianic types?

That’s a serious question. The pace and breadth of the world today is beyond comprehension. The ability of any single individual to influence any aspect of the world beyond your circle of intimates is in doubt. Those that do have wide circles of influence often have wildly thin influence. Think of your B list last week celebrity.

No conclusions here. Addressing the question, stating it, and expanding it to meet the limits necessary for a proper resolution will be our start. Here. Now.

I Am Baaaaaaack

Yes, my blog continues. For you aficionados check out my latest website: http://fredsoffa.com There you will find some videos and a group of currents stills.

I feel the need to brush up and reclaim my writing skills. The blog will be one of my vehicles. Send topical suggestions if you wish. Perhaps I will post written versions of my standup rountines also.

Hope for the best.