Wednesday, June 06, 2012

THE P.C. REVOLUTION IS THE POST CODE REVOLUTION

I USED TO KNOW A SMART OLD Hipster from Hove, Sussex, marvelous roue, a superb graphic artist and cultural mentor who would say "The revolution has happened but it's a long mopping-up operation".

The post code revolution is like that - it's been here all along and is a matter of waking up with a realisation of where one is geographically and demographically. Our internet age bubble enables us to be part of a global community no matter how far flung our location but in the crowded cities it can cast an iridescent hemisphere around us deflecting attention from our immediate environment.
The privilage of anonymity in city life is essential to civilized life but in the face of economic meltdown and the corporationalisation of government (or vica versa) here is an opportunity to seize our lives, as individuals and immediate communities within physical space. To accept responsibility for urban ecology in the fullest sense, to better exploit and integrate with the urban environment, recognise resources at hand, enhance our lives, shop local!!

SEIZE YOUR POST CODE!!! COMMUNITY ACCESS T.V. FOR ALL. Energy autonomy for E1. Hunker down for the ice-age. Less Cars - More open space. Friendlier more vibrant street life.Uncover the conduited rivers of London.. Celebrate local history, resources, character.Bite back.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

EVERYBODY HAS A POSTCODE NOW

THE POSTCODE REVOLUTION OR P.C.REVOLUTION IS ABOUT A NEW LEVEL OF DEMOCRACY FOR THE INTERNET AGE. The idea arose when I was living in Whitechapel E1 and being attacked by immigrant kids every time i left my flat. I realised that the bangladeshi community and somali s and god knows who else were taking care of each other..but we natives were being left isolated in a harsh uncaring environment, The church and the pub no longer held sway in our cities so i thought "How can we conceive of a nurturing community?" and the postcode occurred to me. I went down to the post-office and asked for a map of E1 and was told I would have to pay £55 to a company called Multimap! I was appalled!Our information was being sold off to the highest bidder so that we could be targeted by corporations. Now, guess what? Bill Gates owns the postcode lists! Shocking! I resoklved to attempt to make our cities safer.... read on... Community Access T.V. CATV for E1 ! we all have cameras on our mobile phones, we can make our own local T.V. stations, 24/7.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Sunday walk around the boundary of E1.

The first circum-perambulation of E1 took place on Sunday 6th May and was a roaring success. Beginning at the mid-river boundary on Tower Bridge I set out accompanied by Luke Marcelle northwards (around the Royal Mint) up the Minories to Middlesex street and then onwards - roughly along the city wall - then up Shoreditch high street with a stop at The Dragon Bar for an excellent Sunday Lunch.
We were then joined by conceptualist and painter Brendan Quick for the stint along the Cheshire street railway line until we encountered the impassable barrier of st Mary's Hospital so walked southwards along Bancroft road past the archive and museum of local history (now unfortunately closed).
Brendan left us and turned back at the canal on Mile end road while luke and I followed the towpath then along White Horse Lane to Ratcliffe steps at Limehouse where we trended westwards through Wapping returning to Tower Bridge. Altogether with stoppages the walk took four hours but without these breaks should have taken roughly two hours.
Each part of the walk was very different to the others and was a fascinating and instructive experience of the city's diverse elements.
The next walk will be in the opposite direction tomorrow (Sunday 13th May) at the same time - 12.00 noon from the middle of Tower Bridge. All are welcome to join in.

SEIZE YOUR POST-CODE! THE LAND FOR ALL THE PEOPLE!