Category Archives: Party On Garth

No Halloween In the Castro This Year? Don’t Stand For It!

I’ve been to the Castro on Halloween several times, and even on years that I don’t decide to go, it’s important to me that I know it’s there, happening. Just over there, being cultural, historical, and wonderful. And I always get to hear interesting and exciting anecdotes from my friends that make it.
Now we’re told the party’s over because, it would appear, of some gang incident that happened last year that didn’t have anything to do with the festivities.
Merchants are being asked to close early. I hope they don’t. They make a lot of money on Halloween. Why should they have to suffer too?

here’s the article in the chronicle about it
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How can we save it guys? I dunno. Seems like we should go straight to Gavin Newsome about it. This is a good issue to see where he’s at on over-reaching blanket bans on public congregation…
It’s like telling the German’s “hey, no Oktoberfest this year.”
Here’s the best quote of the article:

“People are still going to go to the Castro,” said Ted Strawser, founder of the San Francisco Party Party, a group that opposes the move. “Without services, they’re just going to pee in the street, and without entertainment, mischief will occur.”

Updated to provide easy links to The San Francisco Party Party’s website on this issue and its party platform statement.

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A Touching Moment At the Inappropriate Technologies Conference

Sounds like last week’s MUTE/N2K Festival of Inappropriate Technology was a real blast!

Luckily, I was able to relive some of the magic first-hand, as Cory Doctorow sang along with a lovely MIDI rendition of “Warez Dood” (sung to the tune of “Hey Jude”) and explained to me, with a tear in his eye, how the crowd had all stood up and sang together at the end.