Let Them Eat Jet Fuel!

ETS!,

I want to write about the incessant airplane noise experienced by people who live on Beacon Hill. This could be a pretty peaceful part of town, but due to the constant take-offs and landings to and from Sea-Tac airport, residents here are constantly interrupted by the loud noise overhead. Since we are on a hill which is 1200 ft. above sea-level, planes that fly over at 2400 ft. barely miss us and the sound can be deafening. The worst part about this is that a dozen or so planes fly overhead in the early morning hours between 4:30 AM and 6:00 AM when most people in the city are sleeping. When I contacted the Port of Seattle on numerous occasions, they claimed that these are mostly Stage 3 aircraft which are supposed to be quieter than their predecessors (Stage 2), but they all sound like jumbo jets to me, especially in inclement weather.

My proposed short-term solution is to have the flights which come in during the early morning hours re-routed over the Industrial District and the Duwamish River where their noise won't be waking anyone up. A longer-term solution might be to re-route all north-side Sea-Tac flights so that the burden of the noise and pollution these craft bring can be spread out more evenly among south-end residents. 3rd runway? Right now I'm not even in favor of the second one!

--Albert Kaufman, Seattle

The Answer Is...

Dear ETS!

Geov's response to Mike Runion's letter in the December 9th Issue brought up some things I have been thinking about concerning the alternative press and the movement.

I think I have to agree with Mike on one point--that I grow tired of articles detailing the horrors of a situation without offering any solutions. It seems sometimes that the alternative press is crawling with everything that is going wrong in our world--corporate greed, government corruption, human rights abuses, environmental destruction, sexism, racism, etc., etc. Which, of course, is a large part of what the alternative press should be doing--exposing the abuses and oppressions that don't get covered anywhere else. Unfortunately, too little space is given to solutions to these problems, too little attention paid to the people who are doing something about these problems, too little time to our victories (few that they are sometimes).

I know, I know--it's not you guys who will lead the revolution, it's us. Your limited role is to help inspire the rest of us to get off our duffs and do something. Letting us know about all the slimy things that corporations/government/media are doing should get us all pissed off enough to do something about it.

But in these cynical and despairing times, the major battle is not to know what the problems are, but to find a way to keep believing we can do something about it. The battle is against being consumed by cynicism and despair, against giving up to the fear that grows around us. The mainstream media keeps us in fear and isolation by pummeling us with images of crime and bloodshed. The left unknowingly does it by constantly reminding us how bad things are without offering a voice of hope.

Eat the State! does a lot of great things. Some of the recent articles on the King County budget, bonds, and other nuts and bolts info on how the system works have been rare and excellent (though I quibble with facts here and there). Sometimes I find the humor enjoyable. But more often than not I find it just as bad as the rest of the left press--dumping problems without looking for solutions. Cryptic comments about "when people stand up to their leaders" et. al. are not enough. The question is how do we stand up to our leaders, and will it do any good?

I'm not looking for cut and dried solutions; nor am I looking for feel-good cheerleading for activists and activist groups. But how about devoting more coverage to what those 800 non-profit groups in the greater Seattle area are doing? How about more discussion about organizing and activism--what works, what doesn't? (The Greenpeace article a while back was not a bad example of what doesn't, how about what does?). When Geov, a founder of ETS!, inspired a group of high-school students to head downtown and speak out at a hearing about advertising in the schools, we didn't hear about it in the mainstream media. We also didn't hear about it in ETS!. We should have.

I know what it's like to work a progressive publication, and I know the last thing you guys want to hear is how you need to cover more of this or more of that. I know you barely have time and energy to do what you do and fit it in the magazine. Getting ETS out every week--and keeping a weekly going--is amazing (and it must be hell). But out here in the audience we are tired and burned out, and desperate for signs of hope.

Otherwise, keep it up. You folks are doing something amazing.

--John Chapman, Seattle

And when you don't reach your goals, when things fall apart, it's easy to give up and say "there's nothing I can do to change things." Certainly our individualist, dog-eat-dog system provides no clues about how to handle failure. Too often we only see what we didn't accomplish, instead of what did. Personal experience has shown me that sometimes we don't find out until years later the real impact we've had or the cumulative effect of our work. If we let ourselves get discouraged and remove ourselves entirely from political work, we may never see any results, because we simply haven't stuck around long enough. Experience provide the best perspective on these things; but, there's only one way to get that kind of experience, and that's by staying involved.

Career Opportunities

ETS!,

The attached article was translated from a shamelessly biased Russian political paper "The Hand Grenade" by Alexei Andrejev.

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen!

I am very glad that I passed the first cut and therefore have the opportunity to attend an interview with your company. I am grateful to be considered for hire at what I consider to be a highly Respected Foreign Firm.

I would like to share a few things about myself. I realize that I only have a few minutes to tell you about myself, so I won't take much of your time.

My experience includes janitorial service, construction work, adult entertainment (video) and photography. I am also somewhat of a semi-professional journalist and a few of my articles have appeared in extremist publications.

I really like working. In fact, work is my hobby, my loyal wife, my passion, and my high school sweetheart. I can say work is all my life. Too bad there are just 24 hours in a day. It's disappointing to me that the union movement achieved an eight hour work day, otherwise I would spend day and night at work. I work well alone or in a group setting. I pride myself in my high tolerance of stupid people within different professions and sexual orientations. I am reliable, decent, and honest.

Besides this, I know three foreign languages, although limited to professional terminology. These facts have lent themselves to various duties, from construction of a liquor plant in Siberia, to hobnobbing in the social communities I have contacts in. My computer background includes MS Word, Excel, and Access. I can work with a licensed program as well as with a pirated one without any shame. I constantly show my unique ability to finish all projects by the deadline--even if it means I'm required to kill the competitor by a radio-controlled bomb, to burn his office, to lead slanderous attacks on him in the media, to give bribes to both left and right, and drink vodka with girls that are representatives of the corrupt Russian establishment. I always stay cool in any situation and want to make things go right; these skills can provide me a fast career in any department of your Respected Foreign Firm.

Ladies and Gentlemen! I think I've described to you my situation enough. And I don't want to occupy your attention anymore--but one final note:

I am sick of all Respected Foreign Firms. It doesn't matter what kind of business they're in. I ask you what business it is of yours that you sell Russians your goods and services in wrappers fabricated to manipulate recipients into some equivalent of your society's warped views of the Quintessence of Happiness, Success, and Prosperity. I am disgusted by your cold calculation, your mercantilism, your bankrupted culture which you call Western Civilization. I am repelled by your craving for a Profit--that is your God. The only God that you worship, you have created from your own hands: bank notes, Visa accounts, seasonal sales, money markets, and interest payments. I may not spew my anger and disgust strongly enough towards you. But the truth reigns supreme. I don't want and won't work for your highly Respected Foreign Firm. I'll be better off happily unemployed.

Fuck you.

Thank you. Have a nice day.

--Margarita Tequilova, Russia, via e-mail