December 04, 2008
What happens
when literally thousands of community, immigrant, and minority groups unite to protest
one titanic corporation? In the case of CVS Caremark versus the extraordinarily
encompassing Change to Win consumer advocacy force, we’ll have to wait and see.
So far it
appears that both sides are prepared for more than just a street fight. The
claims waged by Change to Win – that CVS policies are negligent, predatory, and
discriminatory – are serious ones. And while the pharmacy behemoth has faced harsh
allegations before, execs might have met their best-organized opponent yet.
Like their
affiliates did in other major cities, this morning, in a conference room above
Downtown Crossing, Boston
representatives from Change to Win, the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Jobs with Justice, Community Labor
United (CLU), and the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA)
coalition stepped up on their soap boxes.
On the table beside
them, activists had piles of expired products that they claim to have bought at
Boston CVS stores this week. The organizers were noticeably riled but also composed;
after months of researching and calculating this full-steam offensive, it was time
to strike.
CLU Organizing
Director Darlene Lombos, who arrived with her under-the-weather newborn
strapped to her chest, blasted CVS Caremark for keeping MinuteClinics out of
immigrant locales. Jobs with Justice organizer Russ Davis took it further: “We’re
putting CVS on notice,” he said. “We intend to hold them accountable.”
There are far
too many allegations leveled in Change to Win’s report to mention them all here.
Researchers packed a lot of damning and disturbing stuff in the 48-page
document; from the chain’s reluctance to put 24-hour stores in communities of
color, to how CVS blocks condom access in those same neighborhoods.
It must have
felt refreshing for these folks to finally lash out. I’ve been calling Change
to Win since November for a sneak peek at this report, and they’ve been hush.
Unfortunately, though, for them, CVS got an early whiff and concocted a defense.
In a statement
that begins “CVS Caremark respects the history and mission of the NAACP,” Spokesman
Michael DeAngelis countered: “The allegation that we concentrate stores in
white neighborhoods compared to our competitors is simply untrue;” and “Our
policy is to remove items before the expiration date.”
Among other statements,
DeAngelis also trumpeted the age-old CVS response about their disproportionate
affixing of black products with anti-theft devices: “We carry a variety of
ethnic products in our stores and ethnicity plays no role in loss-prevention
procedures…The fact is that products are given security tags based on theft
rates.”
This won’t be an
easy battle for either side. For CVS, there’s the possibility that consumers might
start paying attention for once (though that’s unlikely). For Change to Win,
there’s the inevitable irony that comes from complaining about CVS while at the
same time asking for more stores.
Whatever happens,
hopefully this bout will attract heavy press. Especially around here, as CVS
started in Lowell as a convenience store back in 1963, and currently operates
its customer service department out of Rhode Island. Certainly, there should be
an element of hometown shame kicking around.
To their credit –
the Boston Globe has been on this
story for months. In an excellent August 16 article titled “The price is right –
mostly,” correspondent Mitch Lipka dropped some shocking numbers: “CVS Caremark
corp., the nation’s biggest pharmacy chain, was fined more than $275,000 since
January 2007 for nearly 2,800 alleged violations of Massachusetts rules on pricing accuracy – by
far the most penalized of any retailer in the state.”
While CVS will
likely dismiss Change to Win and continue paying fines and penalties, there
might be too much evidence here for them to play dumb. In the least, this united
front and large-scale approach should get do-gooders some leverage at the
corporate table.
But the rest is
up to everyone who Change to Win ultimately represents. Will people rise
against CVS (or at least pursue further lines of inquiry), or will this hard
work devolve into something like the left’s never ending war against Wal-Mart?
December 04, 2008
Epic poster by NASA....
Three weeks ago, 30+ members of my family headed to Cape Canaveral, Florida to see my uncle, Stephen Bowen, take his first flight into space aboard the space shuttle Endeavor.
The astronaut's families are treated to tours, mission briefings and free admission to the Kennedy Space Center the day before the launch. (IMAX!)
On the day of the launch, huge tour buses brought us all out to Banana Creek, a viewing area 3 miles away from the launch pad.
I imagine any space launch is a site to see, but we had the opportunity to see a night launch, schueduled for 7:55 on November 7, 2008.
Countdown clock at Banana Creek
Aaaand the launch...
My craptacular video does not serve the experience enough justice, especially in the sound department. I also obviously stopped paying attention to my camera about 20 seconds in, as you can see by the loss of a subject in the shot.
But basically, night turned to day and it was really really really loud. And so awesome.
Here's a photo from behind where we were standing from NASA's site
The pictures of the shuttle, such as this one, are taken by tons of cameras set up on a hill near the launch pad, set to automatically go off during the launch. Even at three miles away on Banana Creek, we could be hit with debris if something went wrong. And even when nothing has gone wrong, with strong enough winds, spectators have experienced acid rain! Luckily this launch went off without a (big) hitch.
Over the next eight minutes, everyone watches in anticipation as the shuttle completes its departure from the Earth's gravity. Five minutes into the flight, the shuttle drops its two solid rocket boosters. At the 8 minute mark they drop the external tank. And at this point the scary stuff is done and we can all go home... STS-126 was off to the International Space Station to perform maintenance and repairs, as well as install a toilet, a fridge, additional sleeping quarters, and a water filtration system. (Yes, the one that turns urine into drinking water)
I highly reccomend seeing a launch someday. You can buy tickets for $20 to view the launch from a place called the Causeway, which is six miles away from the launch pad. Or, just find a beach to sit on. Its awe-inspiring. Either way, NASA.gov has information on all of that stuff.
The shuttle landed on Sunday at 4:25 in California, all crew safe and sound, back on earth. The landing was diverted from Florida due to storms and high winds.
So, how do they get the huge shuttle back to the Kennedy Space Center, you ask? Well, space.com had the answer of course... just strap it to a 747!
this horrible awesome photoshop job also courtesty of NASA.. its worth a chuckle or two
Hmmmm....I wonder if they would hire me as a freelance photo-shopper?
December 04, 2008
CRUEL TO BE KIND
5 years ago
December 5, 2003 | Rebecca Paley profiled Dr. William Rashbaum, a long-time practicing, prominent second-trimester abortion provider.
“Husbands or boyfriends have been known to barge into his office and violently insist their baby not be aborted, to which Rashbaum replies with an equally violent, ‘Fuck you, Charlie, we can abort her.’ He won’t talk to them directly because, he explains, ‘I don’t treat men.’ But as Rashbaum talks privately to a patient...he shows another side, one that can sympathetically navigate highly emotional waters. An unabashed atheist, Rashbaum nonetheless has compassion for the religious conflicts that arise when women are told by priests not to have abortions. Gratitude comes in the form of files that have grown thick over the years with thank-you notes and birth announcements. Small, elaborate, hastily scribbled, or formal, the letters have arrived in many forms but all echo a similar sentiment: thank you for helping us through the most difficult time in our lives.” Read full article
PENTIUM SHMENTIUM
15 years ago
December 3, 1993 | Timothy Gower attended the Harvard Cup Versus Computer Chess Challenge, where Boston-based national chess champ Patrick Wolff was slated to square off against a computer powered by the powerful new Pentium chip.
“Two chess buffs were talking on the elevator at the Computer Museum. ‘Have you heard how the computers are doing?’ one asked.
“ ‘Well,’ the other responded, ‘I heard Patrick Wolff lost his first match.’ The two men arched their eyebrows and nodded.
“...[T]he rumor was true: a chess program called M-Chess Professional, considered one of the strongest programs in existence, had defeated Wolff that morning.
“ ‘I made a boo-boo...,’ Wolff said later. In the middle of executing a series of moves he thought would mate his computerized opponent, Wolff realized that he’d miscalculated...
“Event organizers remained poker-faced, but were undoubtedly tickled. The Harvard Cup is held in large part as a showcase for ever-improving artificial intelligence...Cup co-founders Dan Edelman and Christopher Chabrios spent the preceding week touting the speedy new Pentium computer chip from Intel...that would be driving the software this year. The faster a computer can consider possible moves, the tougher it is to beat. For the US champ to fall early was a sign that the humans might have met their match.
“Wolff was undaunted and unimpressed, however. He played five more games, winning four and playing to a draw in one. ‘I was surprised. I was expecting it to be harder,’ he said afterward. ‘Computers are getting quite good, especially with the Pentium chip. ... But this was way too easy.’ ”
KILLING US SOFTLY
25 years ago
December 6, 1983 | Joyce Millman weighed in on the awkward collaboration between Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson.
“Just as Mac can’t upstage Jack in the video...so he slinks away in defeat on the record. “Say Say Say” and “The Man” are tailored to Jackson like one of his punky, padded-shoulder tuxedos. The former song’s captivating but wispy melody threatens to dissolve under the weight of all the Thriller filler (vocoder, horns...) that McCartney and producer George Martin toss in as homage to Quincy Jones. McCartney sings smoothly, blandly, aiming for Jackson’s artless boyishness. Jackson, however bolsters his part with a dirty, grownup ferocity -- which McCartney can only mimic -- that briefly kicks some life into the song...If McCartney has any dignity, he won’t take on Jackson again -- but since he’s a cagy hitmaker...he probably will. He needs the young blood, the refreshed credibility -- that Jackson gives him. For they're part, Jackson and Wonder are equally affectionate members of this mutual admiration society; after all, they too grew up idolizing the Beatles. And Motown has always had a perverse weakness for pop schmaltz.”
SCHLOCK BLOCK
35 years ago
December 4, 1973 | Jim Sleepe reported on the rift developing between the state and something called the People’s Bicentennial Commission (PBC) over the festivities to be held on the 200th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party.
“Boston 200 is planning to commemorate the Tea Party by herding 3000 spectators into the Congress Street Bridge area to watch that costumed and choreographed National Guard dump something from the 75 foot replica of the Beaver, which will be docked next to the Salada Tea Company’s permanent exhibit and gift shop...[A]ll of the national media will be represented.
“Enter Ted Howard, Jeremy Rifkin, and the PBC, with a one-hundred fifty-foot vessel, the Unicorn, on loan from an unnamed private owner in New York, which they intend to dock next to the Beaver, bearing displays on impeachment and corporate power...A giant puppet of Nixon in royal robes...will emerge surrounded by oil drums and corporate effigies at the head of a noontime impeachment rally marching from Faneuil Hall along the route of the original colonists to the docks, and swarming into the midst of the dancers’ guardsmen’s choreography...
“ ‘Sure, the city’s defensive,’ chuckles Rifkin, ‘But it’s Catch 22; how the hell can they arrest people for being revolutionary at a commemoration of the Boston Tea Party?’ ”
December 03, 2008
Lost's hotly-anticipated fifth season will debut in just over a month. Even though we're wondering how they could possibly top the fourth season, in which the show reinvented itself and refocused its storytelling approach, we aren't going to pretend not to be excited.
ABC has released a few promos for the season, and we can spare your ears the trailer set to a new song by the Fray because there's a more substantive one out that shows a scene from the season's premiere. Don't watch if you don't want to know, but if you do want to know you should be aware that it prominently involves Kate and Aaron. Prepare accordingly!
December 02, 2008
For a group that
struts around condemning pot smokers, the Massachusetts District Attorneys
Association (MDAA) is one wacky bunch of lazy bureaucrats.
The State House
News Service (SHNS) today delivered an expected whopper: Governor Deval Patrick,
Attorney General Martha Coakley, and their incompetent minions can’t, or, more
accurately, are unwilling to, accommodate policy adjustments required by the
passage of Question 2.
Here we have a
typical scenario in which government officials condescend to reporters (and,
ultimately, to the public) as if we have no clue about the difficulty of their
jobs. They’re basically claiming that people don’t understand the logistics
required to get a damn thing done around here.
“There are very,
very significant implementation problems,” MDAA Executive Director Geline
Williams told the SHNS about marijuana decriminalization. Added Berkshire
County District Attorney David Capeless: “There are some very serious issues
which aren’t necessarily going to get resolved.”
This reaction
would be understandable if their attitude was that, despite obstacles,
officials are working hard to move from criminal to civil penalties. After all,
they are required to set up counseling for youth offenders, and to train police
officers not to cuff and stuff pot smokers caught with less than one ounce.
But, instead, district
attorneys are essentially saying that since they don’t approve of Question 2, they’ll
drag their feet as long as possible. Their message: We should leave flawed
legislation in tact for their convenience.
“It seems to me
that the district attorneys are still campaigning,” says Committee for Sensible
Marijuana Policy (CSMP) Organizer Whitney Taylor. “They continue to use ‘The sky is
going to fall’ rhetoric, which is clearly untrue. We wrote this [law] to fit
into the current system. It can be implemented as is.”
We know that –
in the lead up to this past election – district attorneys refused to consult
authorities in the dozen states that have already adopted similar laws. But now
it’s time to sponge the spilled milk and do some research. I’ll make it easy
for them – here’s a web site with resources.
Surely, Commonwealth
officials are not suggesting that the Massachusetts courts and legal system are
less sophisticated than those in Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine,
Maryland, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and
Washington.
Lastly, it’s
time for some legislators to find enough courage to champion this measure. In
addition to the fact that it’s no longer a political liability (65 percent of voters showed
that they tolerate marijuana), this would be a sweet chance for a
representative to prove that he or she can organize within this tragically flawed
bureaucracy.
This law is
supposed to hit the books 30 days from tomorrow, when the Governor’s Council
finally certifies the November 4 election results. If someone – or, better yet,
all of us – don’t step up soon and express some outrage we’re sure to see the
will of voters be shamelessly disregarded.
December 01, 2008
Fisheries
are dwindling. The acidity
of the ocean is getting worse. Pollution
and dangerous bacteria levels are on the rise. (And, of course, there are pirates.)
The sea is
in trouble. It may not always look like it from the surface, but down in the
dark and chilly depths, it’s more threatened today than at anytime in world
history.
Uxbridge
native Brian Skerry has been an
underwater photojournalist since he was 15, and has been contributing
to National Geographic for more than a decade. Over the years,
his travels have taken him from the Bahamas
to Trinidad and Tobago to
the waters off Scotland,
where he’s submerged beneath the brine to swim alongside sharks and point his
camera at schools of giant squid.
Skerry
doesn’t like seeing his workplace in trouble. So tonight, at the New England
Aquarium (where he’s also an overseer), he’ll be giving a talk, “Crucial
Waters: Reporting On The World's Oceans,” where he’ll show off some of his stunning
photographs as he tries to sound the alarm about ocean degradation and
overfishing.
It starts
at 7 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Register and get more information
here.
December 01, 2008
I’m begging sane
people to avoid the term “Cyber Monday.” In fact, after finishing this blog
post, I promise that I’ll never speak it again either. I only wish that
television reporters would vow to do the same.
Every newscast
that I checked this morning had a segment on this bogus holiday. CNN taught Cyber
Monday preparation tips; FOX 25 News applauded folks for buying useless junk in
this collapsing economy.
I’ve been
thinking about shopping in the past few days since, on the morning after
Thanksgiving with my family back in Queens, I woke up to screaming police
sirens and low flying news choppers.
My aunt, uncle,
and cousin live just blocks from the Green Acres Mall – a spot that was once
locally infamous for moviegoers’ tendencies to fire at the screen, but that has
now won national notoriety for its Wal-Mart customers’ trampling a store worker
in their deadly quest for discount electronics.
It’s never
settling to be so close to such hysterical ignorance. I know that New Yorkers
are known for being rude and angry, but this was extreme. No doubt I’d be lambasting
hicks and rednecks if this happened in the Midwest,
so I’ll give it to my people here: You’re a bunch of damn Neanderthals.
For once I feel
little need to extrapolate on a tragic situation; anyone who can’t figure on
their own that it’s problematic when someone is senselessly murdered for
material objects probably supports the Iraq war and doesn’t read The
Phoenix anyway.
Still, with the
dangers posed by stupid, selfish people physically shopping at stores, one might
expect me to support Cyber Monday – which, the National Retail Association wants
us to believe, is the day when we all log on and spend big.
But I don’t
support this pseudo event, and, more so, I’m worried that it might start appearing
on calendars. The term was forged by Shop.org in 2005 and already it’s a staple
in our annual fluff news cycle.
My apprehension
might seem crazy, but I wish more people had opposed Hallmark’s forcible ushering
of Mother’s Day and Father’s Day into our consciousness. The same goes for
Secretary’s Day; at first we might have laughed, but now receptionists abound
(just like those greedy moms and dads) expect cards and candy.
In the least, if
we must have made up holidays, I would appreciate some fun ones. How about Internet
Porn Thursday or Question 2sday? Cyber Monday is a lazily named, obnoxiously
superficial rallying call, and it should be trimmed from the American lexicon
before it goes the way of “Black Friday.”
It’s time to stand
up for ourselves and rage against consumer culture. So unless you’re looking
for sweet deals from North Face and Amazon, which you can find here, please
join me in the boycott that I’ll be joining right after I buy this
exceptionally priced Sony MP3 player.
December 01, 2008
And now for something completely different. Just before Thanksgiving, the Celtics handed over control of the halftime festivities to the Boston Ballet, who opted not to come out with a straight-up preview of their annual cash cow but instead offered a newly-choreographed routine outside their comfort zone. Perhaps taking a cue from the Celtics dancers, the Boston Ballet company performed an experimental hybrid of sorts -- for music, you'll recognize some Timbaland (via Keri Hilson), some Britney Spears, and a little bit of Nutcracker thrown in for good measure. Dance moves? This is about as close to MTV as you'll ever see the Ballet get. ThePhoenix.TV was there to bring back the highlights:
