Intro: biking back home to 8 High St on the path on a Friday afternoon – 8-year olds on ebikes, pedestrians crossing streets at will, the abundance of the freedge

5m: excerpt from UVA prof Peter Norton’s book, “Fighting traffic: the dawn of the motor age in the American city”
https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/when-cities-treated-cars-as-dangerous-intruders/?utm_source=pocket-newtab

11m: and for a balanced media, a pro-car song:  Johnny Cash sings One Piece at a Time

16m: My friend and imprisoned pen pal Peter “Pitt” Mukuria on Abolition https://www.prisonradio.org/commentary/the-meaning-of-abolition/

18m: Coming back from KY in early August, I met Peter “Pitt” ‘s mom Eunice, in Richmond VA  (and his dad).  She shares her love for her son and challenges of the situation, and gratitude for a supportive community.  Eunice also mentioned to me, after the interview, that Peter’s case was one of 3  similar cases in a short time span in their area, where someone was killed during a police car chase.  One of the deaths was of a police officer, after which the township changed their policies around the police giving chase.

27m: Buffy Sainte-Marie sings Starwalker

30m: mad rush bike ride from the Mukuria’s back to the train station, about 16 miles away, on the north side of Richmond.

34m: On the train I met Annie, a UMass grad student designing plastic polymers so they will break down.

38m: Pulaski Park (downtown Northampton) volunteer weeding times – last Sunday, this coming Sunday morning.  Thanks Paige Bridgens for tending to this public space, and guiding us on renovating a space that was planted with native perennials but is now being strangled with weeds.

39m: Catherine Orland, a former housemate from 20 years ago is back East for a visit.  5 years ago she became a park ranger/ interpreter, working on a curriculum re immigration, among other things.

49m: WMSURJ monthly meeting coming up . Find out about their Indigenous Reparations campaign.  Here’s a link to a video from the Hassanimisco Band of Nipmuc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9UyuhGsVfE

50m: A child was hit by a man in a truck last week in Florence between the community gardens and recreation fields.  Hit n run.  The child is ok.

51m: I did some Saturday night stalking, with a yogurt container of water, of 4 neighbor kids who were throwing food from the Freedge at our fence. 

54m: The Impossible Dream, sung by Jack Jones