speaking at this …

i’m the “social media for business” part.

Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal to Host Small Business Town Hall
by Long Beach Post | Staff Reports | 11.02.11 |

http://www.lbpost.com/news/staffreports/12688

11:00am | Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal, in conjunction with the Small Business Development Center at Long Beach City College, will host a Small Business Town Hall, focusing on resources available and state legislation that can help keep businessed afloat in a down economy. Social Media for businesses will also be covered.

The seminar will be held this Friday, November 4, with a networking opportunity from 7:30am – 8:00am, and the program from 8:00am to 9:30am. It is being held at Long Beach City College, Building T, at 4901 E. Carson St.

This event is free to the public, but seating is limited, so those interested are being asked to RSVP here.

occupy oakland attacked with grenades and tear gas

http://www.ktvu.com/video/29587140/index.html

How To Ruin a Movement in One Easy Step, by MTV

they got that to happen mighty quick-like.

MTV’s ‘True Life’ To Explore Occupy Wall Street

It’s one thing to watch footage of the Occupy Wall Street protests on TV and hear the nightly news pundits give their two cents on the global movement. But what if you could live among the protesters and get a real sense of how the Occupy movement is taking shape and why it’s become a phenomenon?

MTV did just that, embedding with the protesters for an upcoming “True Life” special set to air Saturday, November 5, at 6 p.m. ET. “True Life: I’m Occupying Wall Street” will visit the financial district sit-in and profile a group of 20somethings who’ve pitched their tents amid the skyscrapers of Wall Street to see how they’re feeling about the event.

The special episode will take you to the front lines as MTV cameras follow three young people who get swept up in the political movement that has quickly grown into a global phenomenon. Viewers will be introduced to Bryan, one of the leaders of the Occupy sanitation team. You’ll watch as he steels himself against a potential fight with the city when he fears that their request to clean the park is an excuse to evict the protesters.

“This needs to happen now, or it’s over,” Bryan is seen telling his fellow protesters about cleaning up the park before the city’s mandatory deadline, which helps motivate them to collect trash, sweep up and scrub graffiti from the ground with hand-held brushes. “As worried as I was,” he says, “it was amazing to see that as it really came down to the wire, people were willing to just do whatever it took to get the park clean.”

The protests come at a time when the future seems grim not just for the millions who’ve been out of work and looking for jobs for several years, but for a younger generation that is just entering their prime earning years. In fact, 72 percent of young people surveyed by MTV over the past two years are afraid they won’t live up to their potential, with nearly three-quarters of those age 18 to 29 feeling “things are unfair for my generation because we have to start our careers during this economic crisis.”

They’ve found that the game has changed and the old equation for success that promised that college plus extracurriculars, summer internships and huge student loans would lead to a fulfilling job that helps pay off those loans — just doesn’t compute. Many feel as if the rules have been altered on them and that they’ve been cheated.

David Banner, Tom Morello, Kanye West and Talib Kweli have also joined the Occupy Wall Street protesters throughout their month-long demonstration.

The problem for young protesters like Bryan is who do they turn to? Their parents, the government? Many believe it no longer matters who’s in charge in Washington because none of those big money politicians has any answers. That might be why this group sees Occupy as a kind of war their generation must wage, one that might not end soon, but which they support because it allows them to speak out against corporate America and voice the concerns they have about not being able to find work. That also explains why nearly half (45 percent) have postponed a major life milestone (marriage, having children) because of the economy or their employment situation.

- MTV

No real than you are!

Giant Lego man washes up on Siesta Key beach

SIESTA KEY – It’s a publicity stunt, but whose stunt is it?

Washed ashore on Siesta Key Beach Tuesday morning was an 8-foot-tall Lego man, his shirt emblazoned with an enigmatic and grammatically challenged message: “NO REAL THAN YOU ARE.”

Jeff Hindman was walking the beach and first saw the 100-pound figure in the pre-dawn light. Thinking it was marine life, washed ashore overnight and left in the gentle ankle-deep surf, Hindman got closer and discovered the statue was made of fiberglass, like a boat hull.

He took a photo, then dragged the Lego man out of the water and stood it up.

A gathering crowd threw out theories.

An artist’s statement about the human condition in the 21st century? A toy that fell off a boat? A marketing campaign for the new Legoland amusement park near Orlando?

“It doesn’t make sense,” Hindman said.

Similar Lego men with the same grammatical mangling were found on beaches in Holland in 2007 and England in 2008. On the back of the Siesta Key Lego man’s shirt is the name “Ego Leonard” and the number 8.

Ego Leonard is purportedly the name of a Netherlands artist, but it wasn’t clear if that was a real name or if a real artist was behind the work. The header on Leonard’s website, written mostly in Dutch, is “No real than you are” and the home page has a photo of a Lego man.

An email sent to Leonard was answered in the first person.

“I am glad I crossed over. Although it was a hell of a swimm,” the email said. “Nice weather here and friendly people. I think I am gonna stay here for a while. A local sheriff escorted me to my new home.”

Lego executives want no part of Lego man. A spokeswoman for Legoland said the Lego man is a counterfeit and is not endorsed by Legoland or its parent company, Merlin Entertainments Group.

For now, Lego man is in custody. The Sarasota County Sheriff’s deputies did not know what to do with the figure or who to return him to, so he now resides in the sheriff’s office property room. If no one claims him in 90 days, Hindman will become the owner.
Says Hindman: “I’ll put it on eBay.”

- Herald Tribune

bank consolidation 1990-1995