Rip - Edit - Burn

Cross-posted from Tribe.net

The latest edition of the Jack Rabbit Speaks, the official list of Burning Man, mentions our still-in-production-and-upcoming podcast with the Burning Man organization and characterizes our visit to BMHQ as a positive conclusion. We wholeheartedly agree and can't wait to share the results with you.

At the moment Chai Guy and I are in the the midst of putting the material together. Though we are working to upload this podcast in a reasonable timeframe, there are logistical issues due to the physical distance between us (Chai Guy lives in Lake Tahoe, I live in Los Angeles) to be able to collaborate effectively. We are both working fast as we can while still doing our full-time jobs, learning the technical aspects of the producing the podcast and creating a meaningful piece. Please...stay tuned...it's coming soon!

Last Thursday, the show "Only In America" aired on the Discovery Times Channel. Many have contacted us to ask us what we think of the show.

We'd like to take this moment to remind y'all that when we first brought up the issue of Discovery Times Channel's presence at Burning Man, we took issues with commercial media presence at the event, participant's privacy rights and an artist's right and ownership to their art and performance.

We did not set out to be arbiters of taste of this show. Therefore, our main mission in setting up SaveBRC.org is focused on these issues and not about our personal critique of this particular show.

That's our party line and we're sticking to it! Having said that, many of you have insisted! Peee-shaw, girl! What did ya REALLY think of the show.

Well...um...OK...here ya go:

I'm offended by people who are outsiders that try to appear to be an insider. Charlie LeDuff aka "Media Man" (who has provided further evidence that the New York Times isn't worth the paper that it is printed on) pretends to get involved, makes pseudo observations and interpretations and doesn't actually try to feel the environment that he parades around in. Media Man ends up being a saccharin caricature of sophomoric pretense and posture. His show is about himself, not the cultures that he purports to explore.

Of course he had the mohawk before arriving. He had already decided what Burning Man was before he arrived. His mind wasn't open. He wasn't experiencing the now. "Its like Vegas North." Why do small minds have so much trouble understanding what is around them? His mind couldn't see the Temple. Fire breathing wasn't elemental to him, it was a novelty. In Media Man's own words: "The more I see America, the less I get it."

Just my two cents. Your mileage may vary.

Please stay tuned for our podcast: powered by participants and sprinkled with a little bit of playa dust.