i respect and appreciate the comments of maximilian and gina. thank you. what we trying to do is, as both suggested, break the silence that surrounds 9-11, especially here in the states. we are non-partisan. any individuals, organizations, and folks with a particular platform are encouraged to get involved. as we ask is that they try to work through their local libraries, ensure that the events are public, and try their hardest to make sure that the events are free. we are trying to do two things. first, facilitate as many and as diverse voices as possible to speak up on september 11th to talk about issues that matter -- like democracy, justice (thanks alex halavais), and citizenship. second, we believe that these voices must be public and collective. in other words: break silence. encourage voices. encourage public and collective voices. we are working with the assumption that bringing folks together, publicly and collectively, is a good thing. our initial focus is the US. this is where we live and we believe this is especially important for the citizens of the US. but -- important -- all we can do is suggest ways to make this happen and we fully expect the citizens of one town to design one set of speakers and events and citizens in other town pursue a completely different set of questions and topics. we believe that local events should reflect the interests and concerns of local citizens. that's what local democracy and civic engagement is all about. we are suggesting the idea; it's up to local citizens, libraries, and organizations to decide how best to engage one another. regarding maximilian's excellent questions: we completely believe that the september project can, should, and will become international but only if folks from around the world take up the project and tailor it to their own communities. question: what will such a day look like in chile, who had their own 9-11 over 30 years ago, in 1973? question: what will such a day look like in spain, whose citizens, on september 11th, will reflect upon the six month anniversary of march 11th? what will folks do on september 11th in AMSTERDAM? in HONG KONG? in CHIAPAS? in PARIS and ROME? in CANADA and the UK? in AUSTRALIA? the only reason this project is doable is INFRASTRUCTURE. the only way it will succeed in any way that matters is through NETWORKS. but i don't have time to detail this on the list but i will shortly. thank you for the comments. i hope others have additional ones and will voice them publicly on the list. david On Tue, 13 Apr 2004, Maximilian Forte wrote:
This is very interesting Gina, as an interpretation of what I said the original message left unspoken. When I visited the website, I personally got no sense whatsoever of anything you mentioned in your message. Perhaps you have more intimate knowledge of this project. Let me just say that I hope you are right in the interpretation you offered in your message.
In the event that you are correct, and that this is a brilliant project, I would be interested in learning the methods and means by which messages such as yours will be conveyed and coordinated through a vast network of libraries, and who the prime movers will be in ensuring that just such a message gets across.
As for my comment on the exact quote I extracted, I believe that my comment still stands. Anyhow, I very much appreciate your comments. You will be probably be one of the very few with the courage to address this topic on list...otherwise, as you will notice, the silence is deafening.
Cheers,
Maximilian C. Forte
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