Mitch11's Celebration Blog

2024 Update: I no longer think it's a good idea to detect assistive technology usage, even for an ostensibly good cause. The slippery slope is too morally hazardous. —Mitchell If you use a screen reader, please fill out the 2012 WebAIM Screen Reader User Survey . The survey closes on May 25. Sharing for the accessibility nerds out there... At the end of the survey, I added these comments... Let's see if I get a response! When you report the results, I would be curious to know how you solicited people to fill in this survey. Was it just through the WebAIM email list, or did you take steps to get some kind of broad cross-section of users worldwide? In you report, will you analyze possible effects of selection bias in the results? I'm not complaining (all questionnaires have some selection bias) but I would like to hear your perspective on how much the respondents represent the whole world of web users. Also, in a future survey, it would be interesting to use Adobe Flash...

This Contra Costa Times article was the first time I have heard of a "Walmart Grocery" store. http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_20487002/richmond-plans-vacant-grocery-raise-neighboring-concerns A chain store wouldn't be my first choice for our neighborhood, but on the other hand it does seem to be a real grocery store... We need more information. At the Planning Commission meeting we can scrutinize the proposal, demand transparency, and speak out on the issues we care about. Our attendance could really make a difference! The same story played out with a Walmart Grocery in Austin, Texas. As a result of citizen pressure, the over-large plan was modified, but not cancelled... http://austin.ynn.com/content/top_stories/284412/locals-warming-up-to-northcross-walmart The Planning Commission will meet May 3, 6:30pm, in Richmond City Hall, 450 Civic Center Plaza. Cross streets are 25th and Barrett. It is appropriate for both Richmond and El Cerrito residents to atte...

When I was a kid, we sometimes went to the Unitarian church in Yakima. I don't remember it very much, but there was a church hall, and a sermon, and songs I think. It felt good to go and listen. I laugh now when I hear Garrison Keillor's caricature of Unitarians as vague and noncommittal. He's absolutely right, but I would say it another way. The Unitarians I know are highly committed: they are committed to questioning everything, committed to seeking. So that's me in a nutshell - one part of me. I attended York School , a private Episcopal high school in Monterey. I needed and appreciated the rich connectedness at York: connections between people, the tapestries of ideas. At the time if you asked me whether I believed in God, I would say that I always get a glimpse of God through music. This is where I became a singer. We held occasional services in the chapel, but there were no efforts to convert the diverse student body to any religion. Now when I look back, I realiz...

By posting this, I hope I can help you avoid the same "zfsendtotarget" telemarketing scammers that tried to catch me. I submitted the following complaint to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today: The caller said she had information that my computer was infected, and she was calling to help fix it. She said she had a secure code from my computer. She said the secure information had been given to her company from Microsoft. She said her company employs Microsoft and Cisco certified technicians. She reached me on my home landline, which is in the National Do-Not-Call registry. I asked for her name and company. She identified herself as "Rose" from Zion Technology. There was a delay (latency) in the call that sounded like an offshore company. I heard other voices in the background that sounded like a call center. I asked for her company's street or mailing address, or any other contact information she was able to give. I said I believed she was legally requ...

This one is circulating: College senior graduates completely debt-free ... Never mind that it's a professionally shot and Photoshopped image. I do believe in the virtues of hard work and frugality -- but I do not agree with the implication that our collective suffering is caused mainly by a bunch of lazy people on the dole. So anyway, I liked one commenter's reply :) Text of image: I am a sasquatch, living completely debt-free. I pay for all of my expenses by working scale and occasionally tipping off tabloid reporters looking for a Big Foot sighting. I chose to live in a state park instead of a fancy private zoo. I get leftover picnic spreads which cover 90% of my meals, the rest I have to forage for. I live comfortably in the forest, knowing I can't have everything I want. I don't have a credit card or new car, and my Blackberry is as good as dead these days. I get all my news from month old newspapers instead one of those fancy tablets. I'll also have to wait un...

The economy is not a person who needs to "tighten the belt." The economy is a vehicle that can "carry us forward." If government "paves the way" and we workers "energize" the economy with our ingenuity and hard work (not to mention our "drive"), then we will "reach our goals". Naysayers who insist "don't tinker with it" will seem amateurish. Move on, hire a real mechanic. Not my idea... Al Jazeera English: The economy is a 'machine', not a 'body'

I put some thought into last week's Wellstone Club questionnaire. Here are two of my answers. Agree or Disagree? "I would like the Wellstone Club to be more engaged in ISSUE-ORIENTED organizing (in contrast to "electoral" organizing.)" My answer: Disagree I thought hard about how to answer this. I knew what "issue-oriented" meant, but I was unclear whether "electoral organizing" referred to taking sides in elections, or working to improve democratic institutions. So I googled "electoral organizing" and voila, I found the Wellstone Triangle: http://www.organizingupgrade.com/2010/01/fast-forum-electoral-organizing/ So now I can state my views in your terms. I strongly believe that we need to gather passionate people with *somewhat divergent* views, find common ground, then choose candidates and campaigns that most closely match our collective values. So, even though I'd like my issues represented, we can speak even...