G20 Afterglow: Breaching the Event Horizon

Looking over the city at sunrise Friday, wondering if there'd be columns of rising smoke, and there wasn't: Priceless.

Drove into the city Saturday to attend a BaconPalooza at Shadyside's Harris Grill, with some uncertainty about what we'd find on The Day After. We found Pittsburgh, same as it ever was.

We did learn that it's a tactical error to drive through Bloomfield during their Little Italy days; my GPS wasn't clever enough to avoid that. The streets were crowded with booths and businesses and the Sons of Italy, with nary a black hoody or zip-tie handcuffs in sight.

The BaconPalooza was as advertised; we had shrimp-n-bacon, bacon perogies, bacon wings, bacon sushi, and a few slices of a Bacon Explosion (which was really good). We had bacon cupcakes from CoCo's Cupcake Cafe, also excellent. We did not venture into the chicken-friend bacon.

We met Pittsburgh blogger Mr. BaconPants, who unfortunately does not have his signature trousers for sale yet, but hopes to shortly.


We realized we had a shopping target of opportunity, so we went to the Apple store on Shadyside's main drag to get some replacement ear buds. There was a queue of people standing in the rain to eat at Pamela's. We saw plywood sheets on a few storefronts but there was no other indication that on Wednesday, people weren't certain what Thursday would bring.

In the week prior to the G-20, PghComet cleverly pointed out that anticipating the G-20 was like being at Nags Head and wondering where the hurricane was going to hit.

To me, the G-20 seemed like an event horizon; all planning, concern, etc. went as far as Thursday, and no further. Now we're over the horizon, and there's a day or so of the "sweet spot" familiar to survivors, followed by a too-quick return to the nagging details of life: money, health, politics, war, plumbing, logistics, car pools. Here we go Steelers, here we go...

There were a few blog posts during the G20 and the "sweet spot" that I really liked:

• RiffRaffGregg offered a world leader's guide to Pittsburgh.
  
• Eve identified the silver lining: the G20 sharply reduced vehicle traffic and bikes took over. To repeat her question, how can we plan for this more often?
  
• Illyrias compared the G-20 experience with damages caused in Superbowl celebrations.
  
• I enjoyed Infinonymous' wrapup, as well as ALL of his G20 posts, most excellent
  
• 2PoliticalJunkies assigns responsibility to Luke in a great column, but I really don't think Luke thought this up - he just handed his city over to the professionals, who applied the Miami model, which is what we just saw- the military application of superior firepower, airpower, information, and control. Sonic weapons, tear gas, n'at. Downtahn shock and awe.
  

Best G-20 Burgh Photo/shop

Originally seen at ThatsChurch, from Burgher Magnus Patris' blog, we have this:

It's an excellent bit of work. Only Pittsburgh can turn a Greenpeace protest at a world economic conference into the backdrop for a sports discussion.

The G-20 is a lot like Death

The approach to the G-20 was a lot like Death.

It's unavoidale, it's going to happen, and there's uncertainty — except for those people who are absolutely certain, and even among that population there's conflicting views. They can't all be right. Somebody must have the wrong expectation. It's not personal.

It could be a big bad thing; it might be a pleasant, nice thing. Everybody's got their own theory, ranging from Cassandra to Pangloss. You don't get to see what it's going to be until you put some skin in the game and wait for The Time.

The G-20 has come and gone. Turns out it was not a disaster. It was probably a good thing for the city. An 8 out of 10.

My compliments to the organizers, and to all the people who stayed home.

G-20 Alternative Press, CyOps, Weather

This is apparently being circulated on the Web as a commentary on some protester's perception of Pittsburgh's welcome:

The Paris of Appalachia. You won't see that on Bill Flanagan's website.

There is a G20 Anarchist schedule of events posted online. I suspect it's not a complete list.

There's going to be an Anarchist G20 streaming radio station. Contrary to expectations, Lynn Cullen will not be hosting.

Big march on Thursday.

Friday morning has widely distributed protest activities until 1130, then another march.

Cyber War in Pittsburgh

Geek-wise, you've got to love that they're using a Google Map to coordinate possible protest sites. Web 2.0 certainly provides new tools for decentralized, anonymous coordination of activity. It makes me wonder how (traditional, non-political) criminals are using the new tools for their purposes, because I believe that the unintended effects of a change usually exceed the intended effects.

The web is every con-man's dream, of course, and there's no reason to take this map at face value. It might be misdirection, and if so - it's clever.

Using public infrastructure makes it open to surveillance, interference, and interruption. I think this moves PsyOps into CyOps.

So what's the legal status of online domestic counter-intelligence operations? (Maybe PG-Plus knows.)

G-20 Weather Forecast

The weather forecast is disappointing. I'd been hoping for solid rain on Thursday and Friday.

Flanagan's Folly and Open G20 Questions

I'd like to repeat some value-added content from an earlier blog post. This does not mean that I'm embracing content recycling, or that I'm looking for an easy blog post; it's just that the questions remain open.

These questions matter (to me) because in a democracy, government action doesn't just appear from the heavens as a fait accompli. Decisions are made by elected officials, and implemented by careerists. Nobody shuts down a city without the people knowing who made that decision, and holding them accountable. That's the American way.

The alternative, where unidentified, unelected government agencies/ officials take unilateral action and impose their whims while the hoi polloi "Make the best of it", is totalitarianism. Seeking cover by hiding behind "G20 partnerships" and the Allegheny Conference is a sham.

Flanagan's Folly

Does anybody really believe this was Bill Flanagan's decision? Who voted for Bill Flanagan? What's his authority/ power base/ funding? Can he shut down streets when he wants to, because he thinks "earned media" is good for us?

Who is Bill Flanagan?

• Executive Vice President for Corporate Relations at the Allegheny Conference on Community Development
  
• Publisher of the Pittsburgh G-20 Partnership Web site
  
• Host of Our Region’s Business, a Sunday-morning business affairs program co-produced by the Allegheny Conference and Cox Broadcasting
  
• Chief Public Affairs Officer for the Pennsylvania Economy League--Western Division, Pittsburgh Regional Alliance and Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce
  
• Executive Director of Pittsburgh 250 (the birthday party)

I understand that everybody needs their bowl of rice, but Mr. Flanagan's got some major action going on. He should be the focus of a future Rick Sebak video! Maybe he can get the bike trail completed at Sandcastle.

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G20 Questions

I get that some details are tightly held for security reasons; none of these questions are security issues. It's too easy too hide behind "security" and "partnerships".

Philosophically, if we tolerate the (current) totalitarian approach and don't insist on democratic transparency and accountability, we're making the Anarchist's argument for them.

Here's my questions that I'd love to see answered, preferably before the G20:

• Who actually said "yes" to having the G-20 in Pittsburgh? What elected official is responsible for bringing it here?
  
  
• What elected official is responsible for public safety in the streets of Pittsburgh - is it Luke Ravenstahl (city), Dan Onorato (county), or Ed Rendell (state)?
  
  
• Why is Pittsburgh planning on a much smaller police presence than either London or Italy used for their G-20 meetings this year? Who decided to adopt the Rumsfeld Doctrine downtown?
  
  
• Was Pittsburgh the first city offered the G-20, or the eleventh?
  
  
• Will the people/government that agreed to host the G-20 be responsible for the impact of their decision, and reimburse lost salary to low-income workers (voters) who lose days of paid work because of the security zone?
  
  
• Post-G20 Follow-Ups: What actual work was done here, or was this just a photo-op? How many injured, dead, arrested? What's the economic impact of closing downtown? What's the loss of property and/or life in protests?
  
  
• In the midst of a mayoral election campaign (which is supposedly not decided yet), why isn't there a significant discussion along these lines?
  

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G-20, Governance, and YouTube

Self Governance 2.0

The Simpsons and the G20 from Sticks N Stones on Vimeo.

I do not agree with the Anarchist position. I do appreciate a clever communique, and I appreciate an attempt at rhetorical persuasion rather than rioting. This is very well played.

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PG Plus: Cyril, PSO, Luke-Bob-G20

I must admit, they've got me moving closer to subscribing to the Post Gazette Plus. A dollar a week isn't too much, but I'm afraid I may never get out of it, like my ancient AOL account that I'm still paying $4.95 a month for, since 1993-ish.

I feel like a sucker giving up my info and my money for something I haven't seen, and I also feel like these headlines are a bit sensational in order to induce subscriptions. It's like I want to know, but I don't want to feel like I've been played as a chump by the barker teasing with, "hey, step right up, come and see the precious secrets, get your added-value web content right here, right now, for the low cost of only one dollar a week, step right up." Maybe I'm just projecting.



Click here for other Post Gazette Plus posts.

G-20 Tent City

Fascinating, thought-provoking comment by the omniscient Bram Reichbaum, located in the third comment on this blog post:

... But as to the City's reputation, one could make the argument that it is the duty of Pittsburgh (if it is to optimize the G-20 opportunity) to pro-actively become as accommodating, impressive, and flat-out cool as possible for every single one of our audiences, even if we were not that way before.

Besides let's face it, the protesters are bound to be more easily impressed with small local niceties than are G-20 principals and finance ministers, who I'm sure hear song-and-dance routines like ours everywhere they go.

Bram raises the intriguing notion that the protesters are our audience along with the media and the potentates. If nothing else, if the protesters are a younger group than finance ministers (which seems likely), then we'll be making a good impression among people who are going to be around a lot longer.


It's an interesting question. Does Pittsburgh profit by establishing campgrounds and positioning porta-potties and showers? Would we get a better outcome if we were welcoming? Would it move the impact of the protesters out of the City proper, and into the County? How do you police a tent city — and how does that compare to the impact of a distribution of homeless people across the city/county?

WWRFD? (What would Richard Florida do?)

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Goofus and Gallant and the G-20

 

Gallant welcomes the G-20 because most of the benefits will accrue to his constituents, while the costs and problems will go to the city. He worries about whether Goofus understands this.

Goofus welcomes the G-20 because he's going to get his picture taken with many important grownups.

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Gallant alerts people to the fact that G20 expenses are exceeding the budget.

Goofus says, I haven't been told about any shortfall, and he likes it when everybody chuckles politely.

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Gallant speaks respectfully to power brokers and looks out for the important details.

Goofus looks out for big airplanes and asks, Is that one from the G-20? Is it?

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Gallant pays attention to what others are talking about.

Goofus likes to make vulgar noises and then ask Who Did That?

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G-20 Pittsburgh: Open Questions at D-30

I would like to offer accolades and commendations to both the Post-Gazette, which has a G-20 "topic" page at: http://www.post-gazette.com/g20summit/, and also to the Tribune-Review, which has a similar G20 page at http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/specialreports/g20/.

Here's a partial / early listing of announced G20 closures:

• Federal courthouse, Downtown: Closed Sept. 23-25.
  
• Pittsburgh City Council offices: Closed Sept. 23-25.
  
• Community College of Allegheny County: Closed Sept. 23-25.
  
• Duquesne University: Closed from noon, Sept. 23-25.
  
• Point Park University: Closed Sept. 23-26.
  
• Robert Morris University: Pittsburgh Center and Bayer Center closed Sept. 23-27. Moon campus will be open.
  
• Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh: Early dismissal Sept. 23 and closed Sept. 24-25 for 13 elementary schools and 14 high schools
  
• City Charter High School: Closed Sept. 24-25.
  
• Pittsburgh Public Schools: All 66 schools closed Sept. 24-25.
  
• West Mifflin Area School District: Closed Sept. 23-25.
  
• Harris Theater, Downtown: Dates to be announced.
  
• Amtrak: No trip can start or end in Pittsburgh from Sept. 24-26.
  

Sunday's The Observer writes about London's G-20 experience.

(coming soon to a Burgh near you)

I read a well-written post by Sue about City Council closing and the impact on lower-paid employees. She says it better than I can:

What about the rest of City employees? The ones making $24,000/year who need to conserve their PTO for their kids sicks days? What about the non-unionized service employees? What about the people who live Downtown (and not just in the penthouses)? ... I saw a press conference snippet of Joanna Doven practically shaking her finger admonishing people to reschedule their medical appointments. She fails to explain how the small business optometrist is going to weather the enforced closure of his practice for a few days. Who pays the "inconvenienced" staff salaries?

The AngryDrunkBureaucrat has a great G-20 Update that synthesizes the state of affairs: no local people know anything. You may think this means Uncle Sam has this covered. Or, you may think that Luke's administration is hosed. Glass half full, glass half empty. We'll see.

To summarize (ie, repeat) my open questions:

• Who actually said "yes" to having the G-20 in Pittsburgh? What elected official is responsible for bringing it here?
  
  
• What elected official is responsible for public safety in the streets around the G20 perimeter - is it Luke Ravenstahl (city), Dan Onorato (county), or Ed Rendell (state)?
  
  
• Why is Pittsburgh planning on a much smaller police presence than London and Italy used for their G-20 meetings this year? Who made that decision?
  
  
• Was Pittsburgh the first city offered the G-20, or the eleventh?
  
  
• Will government be reimbursing lost salary to people who lose work because of the security zone?
  
  
• After the G-20: What work was done here? Or was it a photo-op?

These questions matter (to me) because in a democracy, government action doesn't just appear from the heavens as a fait accompli. Decisions are made by elected officials, and implemented by careerists. Nobody shuts down a city without the people knowing who made that decision, and holding them accountable. That's the American way.

The alternative, where unidentified, unelected government agencies/ officials take action and the hoi polloi "Make the best of it", is totalitarianism. I get that for security reasons, some details are tightly held. It's too easy for a lazy bureaucrat to wrap himself in that blanker. None of the questions above are security issues.

Philosophically, if we tolerate the (current) totalitarian approach and don't insist on democratic transparency, we're making the Anarchist's argument for them.

Here's my G20 Confidence Chart at DaysToGo=30:


Other than that, readers might want to review the "Miami Model" of American police strategy that we're probably about to get a good view of. Here's a story about the Miami Model at the Republican Convention, one year ago. Expect to see: Police control of the news, embedded reporters reporting from the official point of view, unidentified officers, lethal force, and treating dissent and protest as an offense. Chances are they'll treat the Thomas Merton protesters (the local good guys), the Anarchists (their favorite scapegoat), and the transient sociopaths (who'll be in the mix) as one homogeneous group.

The Pittsburgh Organizing Group's Updates ( Update 5, Update 6, and Update 7 ) are online.

This will, I believe, be my last post on the subject of the G20 in Pittsburgh. Thanks for reading.

Pitt Girl Fired at the Ravenstahl Bunker with Dread Lord Zober (Der Untergang)

I must say explicitly that Ms. PittGirl has no connection to this secret video of a staff meeting at the Ravenstahl Bunker.



The people who fired her are idiots. A public non-profit, depending on good will and fund-raising, firing a popular, witty columnist - who continues to publish in a local magazine. Idiots.

Last week, NEED was "Who?" This week, NEED is the clueless outfit that fired PittGirl. Next week, (1) NEED is going to be the outfit that was smart enough to rectify a P-R disaster, or (2) the person who fired the perfect social media advocate should also be looking for work, or (3) maybe not. Life's not fair.

I do like the line in the video about Pittsburgh: Black, Gold, and Green™.
Link to PittGirl's blog: ThatsChurch.com.

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The background video comes from the German movie, Der Untergang (The Downfall) (2004). There's a whole genre of people taking the movie and inserting their own dialogue into the sub-titles. Unfortunately, the mashup sub-titles are generally inappropriate for children.

Example videos include:

• The Spiral This gentleman has built an 11-part series dealing with the recent credit crunch. Well worth watching. My Favorite.
  
• Hitler call Indian Tech Support
  
• Hitler and the Housing Bubble
  
• Revolver Films. YouTube/Netflix won't carry their films, so they've posted this.
  
• Hitler's 787 Delayed
  
• Hitler can't find Wally/Waldo
  
• Hitler reviews Windows Vista
  

What's the G-20 Doing in Pittsburgh? Where's the Emphasis?

Many people ask, What is the G-20 Doing in Pittsburgh?

Generally, these questions develop along the lines of: Why Pittsburgh and why not: San Francisco, Charlotte, Boston, Chicago, Phoenix, Denver, etc? I mean, people understood why it isn't Cleveland - no question. But why not another key city? Why Pittsburgh?

When I ask, What is the G-20 Doing in Pittsburgh?, I'd like to pursue a different line of inquiry. I want to ask,

what are they doing while they're here

that's so special that it's worth shutting down Universities, Businesses, and a City? What are they going to accomplish here that's worth displacing thousands of people's lives?

What global economic improvement will be made here that justifies costing Pittsburgh janitors, cleaners, waitresses, secretaries, maintenance men and other lower-wage earners four days of pay

because their buildings and businesses are closed? What is the new deliverable made here that's worth affecting our air ambulance helicopters? What is the accomplishment that justifies the certain economic costs and risks the possible loss of human life?

There's a few possible perspectives of what gets done at a G-20 Summit:

Column A: The Sanguine View		Column B: The Jaundiced View
Change and progress happens at G-20 Summits. Nothing gets done between Summits.		Change and progress are continually developing, in an ongoing process. Summits are dog-and-pony shows.
Heads of State negotiate, strong-arm, and jaw-bone for their causes at Summits. They play paper-rock-scissors as a tie-breaker.		Qualified staff, bureaucrats, and sophisticated economists do all the work in a continual process. None of them are at the Summit.
Important work only gets done when the Heads of State get in a room together. Their presence is required for progress.		These visitors are politicians, not economists. They're not qualified to set economic policy. The outcome of this facade is pre-coordinated.
These heads of state and their minions do not have video-conferencing or email. They must meet face-to-face.		The G-20 Summit is simply a media opportunity for politicians.

I'm more aligned with Column B, the Jaundiced View.

Does anybody believe that the various heads of state are going to wrestle with economic problems and conflicts and come up with solutions - in 36 hours already crammed with greetings, press conferences, formal dinners, and VIP departures? Or do you think the work is already done behind the scenes, using things like video-conferencing, email, and the internet — and the Summit is a formality and a photo opportunity?

The G-20 Summit is a glorified photo opportunity. It cuts both ways; it makes the Heads of State stand up and profess continuing allegiance to the economic policies staked out by the ministers and technocrats, and it lets them get their picture taken standing up for their stakeholders and doing something about the world economy - which in truth, they hold very little sway over.

When the G-20 summit has come and gone, when the kettles are released and the lawsuit settlement negotiations have begun, when the injured are treated and the dead are buried,

what work will have been done in Pittsburgh besides announcements of previously developed positions, and photo opportunities?

Remember how the G-20 coming to Pittsburgh seemed too good to be true? How the news fed our needs? How we bought into our own dream, the basis of every swindle?

IMO, this is a sham. Pittsburgh, like all marks, has been duped because in our own dark place we want to be the showcase of the world, and we've been sold our own wannabe dream. (And we bought it.) If/when somebody dies (police, protester, bystander) what accomplishment will justify their death?

Before John Kerry was a Brahmin, before he was a Heinz, John Kerry was a clever young man who asked: "How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?" That's an excellent rhetorical question. I'd like to ask, "How do you ask a city to risk riots for a photo opportunity?"

I notice that there are some opportunities, such as the World's Fair or the Olympics, that are highly sought after. Venues are claimed years in advance. Cities compete for the privilege of hosting those events. I notice that cities don't compete to host the G-20.

I think the irony meter is probably pegged. Pittsburgh is spreading canvas over construction sites and abandoned buildings to be a good little Potemkin Village, when the G20 itself is nothing but a facade, a setpiece provided so the politicians can preen, posture, and be photographed, in order to advance their own agendas.


How did this fiasco happen to us? I'm thinking Team-Obama was eating Pamela's Pancakes while wondering, Man, the G-20. Where can we stick this turkey? And they looked over at Mr. Rooney and said, "Ambassador Rooney, these are great pancakes. Tell us about Pittsburgh. Maybe we can do something to you for you."

Maybe Cleveland is smarter than Pittsburgh, after all.

Pittsburgh's G-20 and the Battle in Seattle

Ten years ago, protesters at the 1999 World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle overwhelmed local preparations and local police. The clash between the 40,000 protesters and the police resulted in a police panic and a conflict known as the Battle of Seattle.



The Seattle News carries the story that the protesters rioted one day (Nov.30), and the police rioted the next day (Dec.1). The Seattle News said,

Despite months of planning, city and conference officials confessed they were unprepared for the costly protest violence and, by inference, that police intelligence had failed them. But police sources say City Hall had the threat analysis information it needed and chose to disregard it, enacting a less dependable, stand-back plan.

Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper was forced to resign over his police force's use of chemical weapons (tear gas) on the protesters. Seattle Mayor Paul Schell lost his re-election over the insufficient preparations for the WTO meeting.

According to this BBC correspondent's eyewitness report, police had engaged peaceful protestors who were gridlocking streets. At the moment that the police were completely engaged, the "black anoraked anarchists came into play". Police were unable to stop the rioters from smashing windows and damaging property.



I think the most interesting read is the Seattle Police Department's After-Action Report, including this--

In retrospect, SPD commanders put their faith in historical precedent – the Seattle tradition of peaceful protest – in assessing the needs for policing the WTO event. While we needed to think about a new paradigm of disruptive protest, we relied on our knowledge of past demonstrations, concluding that the “worst case” would not occur here.

...In summary, the Department’s planning assumptions and analysis
underestimated the capability of criminally disruptive forces.

According to Appendix C and D of the After Action Report, Seattle had 1200 police officers, and roughly 650 officers from local mutual-aid police departments, for a total of 1850 state and local police. Estimates of protesters have been as high as 40,000.

My purpose in writing is not to be a Cassandra, predicting woe and misfortune. But I'd like to repeat some police staffing numbers I've presented before, and ask some questions.

According to the Beaver County Times, as of August 9th there are 900 Pittsburgh police officers, and 1800 officers committed from other local departments. Pittsburgh Police Chief Nate Harper hopes to bring his force up to 4000 police.

In Chicago 1968, an overwhelmed police force rioted.
In Seattle 1999, an overwhelmed police force rioted.

What happens when an under-prepared and under-staffed police force is challenged by overwhelming numbers of protesters, some of whom are malefactors with criminal intent? The police will draw their weapons and defend themselves. I would too. But it ends up with a body count. That body count is attributable to inadequate prior preparation, and there's usually a politician responsible for that.

Police presence for G-20 meetings in the last year:

• Italy had 15,000 police
• London had 10,000 police
• Pittsburgh hopes to have 4,000 police

Here's my questions:
Why is Pittsburgh police staffing so low for the G-20?
And a few follow-up questions:

• What branch/level of government is responsible for security in the streets of Pittsburgh - not within the closed inner circle, but in the protest areas? Is it the City, the County, the State?
  
• Who is the politician responsible for security in the streets outside of the central perimiter? Is it Luke, Onorato, Rendell, or the Attorney General?
  
• Who made the decision to invite/accept the G-20 in Pittsburgh?
  
• Tell me again - why are we doing this?
  

G-20 in Pittsburgh: Luke's Real-World Moment

July 25 Wall Street Journal: Pittsburgh Scrubs Up for Visit From the G-20

I'd like to follow up on a great post at an excellent blog, Politics and Place. The post is titled, If he Loses, this is how he'll lose. The "he" is Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, and the thing to Lose is the Pittsburgh Mayoral election this November.

P&P describes a reasonable scenario in which Luke's seemingly inevitable re-election may not be guaranteed. Pre-requisites include: Appearance of a single electable opponent (Harris and Acklin are splitting the opposition), Northshore Northside Angst about their legit issues with Luke's administration (accountability, wow!), and a geographic (Southern-Western) strategy. It's an excellent, well considered write-up of a scenario in which Luke's pre-ordained victory might not occur.

If I may, the conditions described set the stage but don't ring the bell; they're necessary but insufficient. For Luke to not be elected, there needs to be an event, either (1) a significant, understandable scandal (a bag of cash rather than complex financial derivatives), or (2) an obvious failure of leadership attributed to the Mayor's office.

Holy Cow, Batman! What's that? The G-20 in Pittsburgh on September 24 and 25th? Zowie!
Here's a few fundamental facts (I invite correction):
The G-20 weren't invited to Ed Rendell's Western Pennsylvania.
The G-20 weren't invited to Dan Onorato's Allegheny County.
The G-20 were invited to Luke Ravenstahl's Pittsburgh.
The Mayor is responsible for security in the streets of Pittsburgh. It's his city.

All the sunglass-and-earpiece-wearing, talking-into-cufflinks guys with their lapel pins are going to be worried about are the VIPs. The responsibility for local peacekeeping lies with local government.

Let me be clear: I don't know anything other than what we read in the media. No insider information. No wink, wink.

If there's a riot threatening the VIPs, then the Spooks will engage and extract the VIPs. If there's a riot threatening to burn the Hilton while the VIPs are away at their secure locations, that'll be an issue for the locals. The Feds will keep their eyes on their responsibilities and avoid distractions.

Will Luke declare an emergency and seek State help? Will the Governor declare an emergency and seek Federal help? Are local politicians capable of making these decisions in real time? New Orleans wasn't.


Consider the July 2009 G-8 summit in L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy. The government had 15,000 police officers standing by. Just a few weeks ago.


Consider the London 2009 G-20.
On March 28, 2009, 35,000 people joined the peaceful "Jobs, Justice Climate" march. On April 1, five thousand people joined the G-20 Meltdown protest outside the Bank of England. Two to three thousand people joined the Climate Camp in the City. There were 10,000 law enforement officers involved.


Here's my favorite story about the G8 Summit in 2001 in Genoa, Italy: 23-year-old activist Carlo Giuliani of Genoa, was shot dead by Mario Placanica, a Carabinieri officer, during clashes with police. Video shows Guliani throwing a fire extinguisher at the carabinieri's vehicle before he was shot and then run over twice by the Land Rover. Placanica was acquitted from any wrong-doing, as judges determined he fired (1) in self defence and (2) up into the sky, but a flying stone deflected the bullet and killed Giuliani. This is brilliant. I guess these things happen. My question is, who's going to be the accountable official at the press conference when this happens in Pittsburgh?

Consider Pittsburgh 2009. The city is smaller, and the area is an non-integrated hodgepodge of too many (130?) municipalities. We have a relatively inexperienced police department and public safety force. The big events locally are Steelers games. We hope to get maybe 4,000 police, but we don't have exact committments yet. At sixty days to go, we just sent out the email asking for assistance. Our police department is not experienced, trained, or equipped to handle this. Neither is the leadership.

I'm sorry to repeat myself, but in the same year:

• Pittsburgh: 4,000 police
• Italy: 15,000 police
• London: 10,000 police.

Why does Pittsburgh need so few police?

Consider Chicago 1968, and look at how Mayor Daley lost control of the police force. Chicago turned into a police riot. Does anybody believe that Luke will be a more effective Commander than Mayor Daley (Senior) if things break bad?

Hey, Pittsburgh Reporters

If I could persuade local reporters to pursue one question it would be: What person is responsible for Pittsburgh public safety during the G-20? Who'll deserve the credit if it goes right, who deserves the onus if it goes wrong? Any answer that sounds like "it's a team effort" is baloney. Accountability goes to one boss. It'd be cool to clarify who that is. I believe it's the Mayor. If I'm wrong, somebody teach me, please. You'd better ask beforehand, because you'll never get a straight answer after.

How Luke Ravenstahl Loses the Election

Absent a dead body, a scandal with a bag of money, or a simply understood swindle, if Luke's going to lose - it's going to be because the Pittsburgh G-20 is a debacle.

If the G-20 goes wrong, it'll be a tragedy. People will die.
That's a lot more significant than what happens to Luke.

If anybody else wants to be prepared to act on the G-20 debacle, they're going to have to be out in front, demonstrating that they would have (1) done it differently and (2) done a better job than Luke. I don't know if either Acklin or Harris have established that they're a better grown-up than Luke. The odds are with them, but they haven't made the case.

I don't think Luke will do well with the G-20. I don't think either of the tenderfoot alternatives have presented themselves as credible protectors of the city, either.

Maybe the only possible winner will be regionalism, the notion that perhaps having 130 municipalities in Allegheny County is counter-productive in the face of real-world events.

University of Pittsburgh G-20 Microsite

Mega-kudos to Pitt for http://www.g20.pitt.edu/, an information source for people coming to Pittsburgh for the G-20, or writing about/ covering Pittsburgh and the G-20.

What an excellent website, driven by an obvious effort into being thoughtful about audience, purpose, and structure. Well organized, easily accessible, and I love - LOVE - how they identify Pitt experts on each of the G-20 countries, that's a killer move.

I love the story ideas under "Pittsburgh Gems", and I'm glad to see the Nationality Rooms addressed. IMHO, the Nationality Rooms show Pittsburgh "getting" diversity way before diversity became cool. I'd like to see each G-20 country visit it's own room, and those that don't have a Nationality room should commission one as a permanent marker of the G-20 summit.

This site is also an excellent resource to anybody trying to recruit somebody to move to Pittsburgh. What an excellent take on the Burgh.

I found this while visiting Nullspace. It's truly an excellent website, and - remarkably - there's no Flash on the homepage! (Sorry to be snarky. I'm just saying.)

My compliments to the folks that designed and delivered this. This is what it looks like to be ahead of the game.

Parsing Anarchist Imagery PG-20RG

Next Week's Anarchist Events

CrimethInc (sic) is an anarchist group that's planning their 2009 convergence in Coraopolis, PA (per Wiki). Another source advertises the Convergence as July 20-26. Here's a Convergence thread. Here's a flyer announcing that the Convergence meets Monday, July 20th, at the Northside Commons, W. North Avenue and Brighton, by the pond, noon to sundown. Here's a syllabus of the seminars and sessions planned.

I am intrigued by (and concerned about) the Anarchist movement and the upcoming G-20 meetings. I think my concern is driven by what I remember reading in school about the beginnings of WW1, sparked by (among other things) an anarchist's assassination of Arch-Duke Ferdinand. When you read political tracts from the 1895-1915 era, you'll see discussion of Anarchists, and it's amazing to me that 100 years later we're encountering forces that, if not the same, at least fly the same banner.

And so I'd like to examine the banners of Anarchy.

Parsing Anarchist Symbols

Anarchists have their own symbols and images, and I've never really paid attention until the G-20 summit in Pittsburgh was announced. The general anarchist symbols are apparently the Circle-A and the Black Flag. These symbols have as much meaning to Anarchists as Donkeys, Elephants, and Uncle Sam do to mainstream politicians. (Credit: Wiki page on Anarchist Symbolism.)

G-20 Anarchist Imagery

In the slick color poster prepared by ResistG20.org there's a few significant icons, including a string of two-color stars. They've got a black star, a red/black star, a green/black star, a purple/black, and a pink/black star.

Various schools within the anarchist movement have adopted their own flags and stars. These flags are bisected diagonally with the black half for anarchy and the other half in a color representing each school's ideas. These color templates are also extended to five-pointed stars representing the same schools of thought.

The Black Star, and a black flag, are traditional symbols of Anarchism. The red star is a symbol of socialism. Mixing the two symbolizes the co-existence of anarchist and socialist ideals within the anarcho-syndicalism movement, and to symbolize the more socialistic means of the movement leading to a more anarchistic end.


The red-and-black flag is the symbol of the anarcho-syndicalist and anarcho-communist movements. Black is the traditional color of anarchism, and red is the traditional color of socialism.


The black-and-green flag is used by green anarchists and anarcho-primitivists. It is generally taken to symbolize a vision of anarchism that focuses on the self-determination of all forms of life (animals, humans, bioregions) and not just humans, hence the green.


The black-and-purple flag is used in association with anarcha-feminism. Unlike other bisected anarchist flags, it does not necessarily represent another form of anarchism, but is used to focus on opposition to the hierarchical patterns of heterosexism, sexism, transphobia, and patriarchy.


Feminist Anarchy may also use the black-and-pink flag, although the latter is more closely associated with queer anarchists. This is somewhat equivalent to the Log Cabin Republicans.


The symbols in the poster represent Anarchy, Socialist anarchy, Green anarchy, Feminist anarchy, and Queer anarchy.

Groups Who Didn't Make The PG-20RP Poster

Anarcho-Pacifists

The black-and-white flag is used by anarcho-pacifists.

Christian Anarchists

Although Christian anarchists may also use the black-and-white flag, they are more likely to use symbols such as this one.

The Curious George Brigade of Crimethinc

The Curious George Brigade is a Queens, NY anarchist collective.

Anarcho-Capitalists

The black-and-yellow or black-and-gold flag is used by anarcho-capitalists and other market anarchists. The yellow is intended to symbolise gold, a commodity of exchange often used in marketplaces unrestricted by state intervention.

Anarchy's Big Mistake

The biggest mistake that the anarchists have made IMO regarding the G-20 is the failure to include Anarcho-Capitalists. If they had just provided even a token presence for the black-and-gold flag, they'd have Pittsburgh marching with them; it's a well-known phenomenon that Pittsburgh can't resist following anything black-and-gold.

The Uninvited

It does not make me feel warm that the Anarchist sub-groups they've excluded are the Pacifists, Capitalists (Go John Galt!), and the Christians.

Propaganda of the Deed

Propaganda by the deed , from the French propagande par le fait is a Anarchist concept that promotes physical violence against political enemies as a way of inspiring the masses and catalyzing revolution.

Propaganda of the deed may take many forms, but in many cases utilizes violence against people seen as threats to the working class. It also refers to the use of symbolic acts of violence against structural targets, in which the act is intended to evoke a broader meaning. This imagery from the poster of people planning action on the target is a depiction of propaganda of the deed.

I am very concerned about this image from the poster, which I interpret as a call to firebomb police cars.


The two primary images in the poster, which are the street crowd around a fire, and the hoodie crowd marching in ranks, are very violent. I hope they embrace inefficiency and fail miserably.


The four hooded figures in a line is a reference to dressing for a "black bloc", which is an Anarchist technique developed since the 1990's. A Black Bloc is a technique for looting, rioting, and street fighting, with the intent of permitting perpetrators to avoid arrest and/or conviction through the inability to differentiate among protesters. The imagery on the poster is a call for preparation for black bloc activities. (Edit)

Some Recent Pittsburgh G-20 Resistance Project (PG-20RP) Updates

• Univ. of Pitt G-20 site
• Anarchist Calendar, including next week's summer camp
  
• Anarchist G-20 'zine for downloading; not a bad primer
  
• A New York City Stalinist front group may be attempting to hijack the opposition
  
• Update 3 Favorite line: Bankrupt City Turns to Bankrupt State to Further Bankrupt Ideology.
  
• Tactical Training Initiative Workshops in Pgh.
  
• the Pittsburgh Principles
  
• Logistics Update, Call for Medics