From: "Jeff Stark" <jstark@nonsensenyc.com>
Subject: nonsensenyc: 7.9 to 7.15
Date: July 9th 2010

Friday, July 9
* Kickstarter Film Festival, Brooklyn
* Underground Rebel Bingo, Brooklyn
* The 90s Sing-Along, Episode III: Return of the Mack, Williamsburg

Saturday, July 10
* Ruby Streak Trapeze/The Velveteen Rainbow, Brooklyn * Flux Factory party, Long Island City
* Hal Robins Dinosaur Tour, Manhattan
* Sweater Club/Maximum Stache Premiere With Tayisha Busay, Brooklyn * Radiohive Benefit, Brooklyn
* The Christina and Fritz Live-In Installation Plus Outrageous Hat Hair Experiences, Manhattan * The National Diet of Japan, Manhattan * Hey, I'm Walkin' Here! Staten Island

Sunday, July 11
* Prjctns: A Motion Picture Reading Series Summer Finale, Manhattan

Tuesday, July 13
* Benefit Party, Manhattan

Wednesday, July 14
* Skits'N'Tits, Manhattan
* A Picture of Haiti: Six Months Later, Manhattan * Secret Societies Lecture and Absinthe Tasting, Brooklyn

Thursday, July 15
* City of Light, City of Darkness: Panel on the Paris Underground, Long Island City * Cramp-us: Aloha from Hell, Brooklyn
* Impose Magazine Party, Brooklyn

Wishlist
* Dirty Rainbow

Spectre
* Share Alike

Learning
* DIY Paper Engineering

Help
* New Editor search

NOTE: For some navigation help, or an explanation for what this is all about, scroll all the way down to NONSENSE. You'll find snarky editorial comments and little bits of praise littered throughout this list. These nuggets are marked with all caps, like this: NOTE. Also, we make a lot of mistakes, especially with dates; you should always double check our work. And you can donate to this project at nonsensenyc.com/special.

XXXXX COVER ART XXXXX

Shirtless dude pop and locking to Notorious in front of a Hummer on Avenue A

XXXXX FRIDAY, JULY 9 XXXXX

Kickstarter Film Festival

Kickstarter will host its first-ever film festival, a night highlighting the very best of the site's film and video projects. Partnering with Rooftop Films on the roof of the Old American Can Factory at the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, we'll screen 90 minutes of footage from feature films, stop-motion animation, documentaries, theater, art, dance, and more.

Some of our favorite local food projects will cater, from pies to artisanal sodas to fresh foods grown in Kickstarter-funded urban farms. There will be a live band. This will be fun.

With the Woods, Battle of Brooklyn, Little Brass Bird, Staring at the Sun, Flood Tide, Chess Movie: The Story of I.S. 318 - The Best Jr. High Chess Team in the Country, A Short Lecture of a Different Time, Somatic Natural History Archive, Lake Beast, Jens Pulver: Driven, and In Transit.

Old American Can Factory
232 Third Street, Brooklyn
8p doors; $10
646 596 9536
rooftopfilms.com/2010/schedule/23-kickstarter-sneak-previews

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Underground Rebel Bingo

Rebel Bingo fuses the elderly kitsch of bingo with the booze, glamour, and mayhem of rock 'n' roll. Expect the sexiest, livest, balls-out party you're not allowed to talk about.

Rebel Bingo was started by James Flames and Freddie Fortune in the basement of a disused Church Hall in the East End of London. These two nightlife gladiators wrestled bingo from the arthritic grips of old folks homes, and the sticky paws of summer camp. With blood, sweat, and tears, they created a brand new form of bingo … a bingo that lives in the spirit of music, alcohol and mayhem.

Since then, Rebel Bingo has grown into a cult religion. Every week, thousands of people descend on secret venues around England to drink, dance, draw on each other, and win prizes. On July 9, the madness is coming to NYC for the very first time.

The Underground Rebel Bingo Club
buy tickets for location, Brooklyn
10p-4a; $10
ticketfly.com/purchase/event/8397/tfly
rebelbingo.com

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

The 90s Sing-Along, Episode III: Return of the Mack

90s costume contest and hip hop dance off with prizes. Don't Be a Menace afterparty by DJ FullTimeFun and Alain D. The 90s are unstoppable these days. Back by popular demand ... the 90s Sing-Along, Episode III (Return of the Mack). 2.5 hours of nonstop, heart warming, fist pumping, boy band dancing, cheesy rap booty shaking and angst filled shouting music videos. I've added a ton of new songs to the line up of videos while keeping a few of the audience favorites from 90s Sing-Alongs past. Come relive the 90s and rediscover all those one hit wonders you haven't heard in over 10 years but for some reason still know all the words to anyways. As always, 90s music videos will be projected on screen with subtitles for everyone to sing-along to together. No microphones. No requests. No having to wait your turn to sing.

Legion
790 Metropolitan Avenue, at Humboldt Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn L train to Graham station
9p; $free
21 and over

XXXXX SATURDAY, JULY 10 XXXXX

Ruby Streak Trapeze/The Velveteen Rainbow

Come and see exciting new aerial and ground acrobatic works by: The Amazing Amy, Paula Oleska, Somjen Frazer, Rachel Cohen, Gretchen Sampsen, Jennifer Myers, Arantza Barrios, and Lauren Rile Smith.

All proceeds for this event will go directly into our work-study program. This means that you can make a big difference, enabling folks to continue to train -- regardless of income -- just by bringing your radiant self, and your supportive friends.

220 36th Street, suite A-503, Brooklyn
8-10p; $15

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Flux Factory party

Flux Factory is throwing a party. The theme is burlesque-World Cup-double birthday-toga party. We’ll have kickin’ video art projections by John Kilduff, an upside down room by Matthew-Robin Nye, delicious dancefloors, and surprises. With DJs Charlos, Tinseltown, and Inside François.

39-31 29th Street, LIC
9p-late; $5 door, donation bar
fluxfactory.org

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Hal Robins Dinosaur Tour

From Zero Boy: I am trying to put together a two-hour tour of the dinosaur wing with my pal Hal Robins. He is a founder of the Church of the Sub-genius. If I can get more then 10 people to commit then we can afford to get Hal here for this one of a kind event.

Hal is all about the dinosaurs. He wrote a book called the Dinosaur Alphabet. So I am trying to get at least 10 people to commit to coming to meet us at the Museum at 2p. You pay your admission and then hopefully give Hal a tip after. He will talk and answer your questions there at the museum. This is an informal event -- we are not part of the museum. Email me at if you want to come and I will send you more details.

American Museum of Natural History
79 Street and Central Park West, Manhattan 2-4p; pay what you want admission to the museum plus tips for Hal ($10-20 suggested) RSVP to zeroboyzeroboy.com
amnh.org
boingboing.net/2007/01/15/the-dinosaur-alphabe.html laughingsquid.com/a-conversation-with-hal-robins/

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Sweater Club/Maximum Stache Premiere With Tayisha Busay

You're invited to a double feature of Sunny Day Production's new episode of Sweater Club and Ryan Garretson's Maximum Stache with special musical guests Tayisha Busay. Imagine a dumpy, bright-eyed version of Mr. Rogers' nephew. Now hand him the most forgettable kid's public access show in the country. Welcome to Sweater Club.

Falstino and Wynegard are cops. You can tell by the hair on their face. When it comes to the job, they're the best there is ... at sucking. Stare in awe at this lo-fi wonder-romp of idiotic misadventure. From the Ghostwood Development Project comes Maximum Stache- because there's no such thing as too much.

Tayisha Busay is like a Bat-Mizvah where all the 13 year olds get trashed for the first time. Synchronized choreography, like Broadway and the fly-girls, Tayisha Busay is classy-trashy fun.

Arch Collective
18 Wyckoff Avenue, entrance on Troutman, Brooklyn L train to Jefferson Street station, M train to Knickerbocker station 9p doors, 10p show; $free
jarrod.zayasgmail.com
sunnydayproduction.com"
vimeo.com/12349751

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Radiohive Benefit

On July 10, 1399 Pacific Street in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, will be transformed into a multi-chambered Hive of delights and surprises, designed to elicit giddy laughter, thoughtful pauses, and serious rump shaking. DJs will spin, a photo booth will photo, a kissing booth will kiss, and a story booth will let you tell your own tale. Homemade magic from Brooklyn's own Sister Liquors, beer, wine, and maybe some moonshine will round out the evening. On the turntables: Sister Sundown from Tom Tom Magazine, DJ HaHa, and Mdot. Deep in the Heart of Brooklyn, Radiohive will be mustering all of its collective brilliance and wit.

1399 Pacific Street, Brooklyn
10p-late; $10 suggested

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

The Christina and Fritz Live-In Installation Plus Outrageous Hat Hair Experiences

This is the first ever total immersion experience from HiChristina. Tonight enter a wacky new universe on Eldridge Street in the LES. On the other side of the tape, Christina and Fritz have created a living installation with lots of ready-made experiences. Choose a chair: the massage block, the hair cut stool, the confessional curtain, a get-served-a-drink chair, an exercise corner, and other stools for the bold or curious. Enter the room and peer from afar or don one of several different hats and cross through the looking glass. Be a servant, a piece of furniture, an uncle, a best friend, a grandma, or invisible: put on the hat with the role that fits your mood at the moment. Trade hats with new friends. Welcome to the fun -- a surreal playhouse with Christina in kitchen utensils and Fritz in velvet rainbow sparkler. A docent will be prepared to answer questions and point out interesting features. All sequins, all the time.

HiChristina
163 Eldridge Street, Manhattan
10p; $10, BYOB
Hichristina.com

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

The National Diet of Japan

With the Undergroundzero Festival at P.S.122. Aztec Economy (Hot Noir, Oktobership, Lavaman) present a new performance exploring old school Nintendo, rabbit-centric allegories, the human digestive system and a rural American approach towards Japanese culture. The result is a 45 minute journey through the body-politic employing blasphemy, ritual, and Bugs Bunny.

P.S.122
150 1st Avenue, at 9th Street, Manhattan 5:30p both days; $20 tickets, $15 online with discount code BRIDGE10 ovationtix.com/trs/cal/203/1278014400000/prm/

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Hey, I'm Walkin' Here!

Hey, I'm Walkin' Here! is a group of folks who just like to walk as they make a series of treks around the five boroughs. Our founder is currently walking to Oregon but we're going to take it easy and spend Saturday walking from Harlem to City Island. In between we'll be seeing a nice cross section of the Bronx. City Island stops include the beach, the Nautical museum and a lobster shack. Bring a suit if you want to swim. No need to pre-register -- just show up ready to walk 14 miles.

Meeting at the southeast corner of 125th Street and Lenox Avenue, Manhattan 10:30a; $free including museum but not optional seafood dinner nedwalkgmail.com
imjustwalkin.com

XXXXX SUNDAY, JULY 11 XXXXX

Prjctns: A Motion Picture Reading Series Summer Finale

Bowery Poetry Club presents the summer finale of Prjctns: A Motion Picture Reading Series, the only event showcase in NYC spotlighting practices specifically at the intersection of performance, poetics, and the moving image. Join us at 6p for performances by multimedia artist Adam Pendleton and poet-performer Nada Gordon, an evening of reading, film, and performance that nods in part at early 20th-century practices of live film narration like Benshi in Japan and Gavrilov Translation in the USSR, while also incorporating contemporary post-production video editing techniques as well as electronic strategies of appropriation and misuse like data sculpting, browser poetry, and computational aesthetics.

Curated by Paolo Javier and Jeremy J F Thompson Prjctns presents a multidisciplinary ensemble of poets, filmmakers, musicians, performance artists, scholars, critics, and editors who reposition the reading series as a multi-genre platform.

Bowery Poetry Club
308 Bowery, between Houston and Bleecker. Manhattan 6-7:30p; $6
autotypograph.com/projectionssummerfinalerelease.html

XXXXX TUESDAY, JULY 13 XXXXX

Benefit Party

For the feature film We Are the Hartmans, a comedy about the fight to save the last suburban rock club.

Hosted by the fabulous, funky, irresistible dynamic duo: Mr. Showbiz Murray Hill and Linda Lucious Simpson. Featuring Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping, DJ Vajivin, Black Taxi, Love Pirates, and Jah Stix. Delicious and Delectable Raffle Prizes sure to please everyone!

Don Hills
511 Greenwich Street, Manhattan
7p-midnight; $15 (cheaper than Imax) in advance, $20 door 21 and over

XXXXX WEDNESDAY, JULY 14 XXXXX

Skits'N'Tits

This ribald comedy variety show features nearly naked beauties and clothed comedic characters alike in a series of sketches, stand-up, videos and more. The show is always packed so get there early for a seat! This month: Todd Barry, Laurie Kilmartin, Tom McCaffrey, Julie Atlas Muz, the ChiChiones, Mike Amato and more. Hosted by Shappy Seasholtz, starring Diane O'Debra, Steph Sabelli and Jessica Delfino. Don't miss it.

308 Bowery, at Bleecker Street, Manhattan 10p-late; $8 door

***** Also on WEDNESDAY *****

A Picture of Haiti: Six Months Later

Six months after the earthquake that devastated Haiti, as the rubble and human needs have slowly shifted out of media focus, we want to get smarter about what's happening on the ground, what projects are really making a difference, and how we can support them. So we've invited representatives from organizations working across the spectrum to speak from their perspectives: from several of the top NGOs working in Haiti to artists and grassroots organizations developing solutions to some of the most urgent needs of water, housing, and medicine. And we invite you to join us.

Funds raised by the event will support a long-term clean water project in the Central Plateau sponsored by charity: water and Partners in Health, and Swoon and Ben Wolf's Konbit Shelter project, which seeks to build durable community shelter in the community of Barrier Jeudi before the rainy season fully sets in.

Featuring: Charity: Water, Clinton Foundation, Partners In Health, and Swoon, Ben Wolf, and Konbit Shelter. Afterparty with DJ Dhundee, a silent art auction organized by Swoon and Ben Wolf, Haitian food, mango juice, and rum.

Honey Space
148 11th Avenue, between 21st and 22nd streets, Manhattan 6:30p doors, 7-8p presentations and discussion, 8-10p party; $30 donation honey-space.com

***** Also on WEDNESDAY *****

Secret Societies Lecture and Absinthe Tasting

Join us in a celebratory toast to symbolic action and modern revolution. This July 14, we will be celebrating the 1789 storming of the Bastille and dismantling of the monarchy in style -- with Absinthe cocktails, seasonal snacks, French pop, and a discourse on Secret Societies by a special guest lecturer.

Madagascar Institute
217 Butler Street, Brooklyn
7:30-10p; $10 includes snacks and a special cocktail of your choice eventbrite.com/event/745198910

XXXXX THURSDAY, JULY 15 XXXXX

City of Light, City of Darkness: Panel on the Paris Underground

As part of Flux Factory's Going Places (Doing Stuff) III, urban explorers Moses Gates and Steve Duncan will present adventures from far-off Paris. Though it's known as the City of Light, there are 170 miles of absolute darkness that exist under the city -- a network of limestone quarries dotted with WWII bunkers, ossuaries, unofficial art galleries, and other assorted surprises colloquially known as the Catacombs. It is home to a subculture of people of all ages, interests, and nationalities who make a hobby of exploring and utilizing these and other hidden spaces throughout Paris -- the Cataphiles.

Moses Gates and Steve Duncan will be covering the history, culture, and structures of this underground world in a slideshow presentation, as well as explaining how you, too, can become a Cataphile.

Flux Factory
39-31 29th Street, Long Island City, Queens 8p; $free

***** Also on THURSDAY *****

Presented by Coney Island's Christmas in July:

Cramp-us: Aloha from Hell

A Burlesque Holiday Celebration of Sick Songs and Bad Kids. You're invited to enjoy season's beatings at Cramp-us: Aloha from Hell as part of Coney Island's Annual Christmas in July with Tigger!, the Lady Aye, Bambi the Mermaid, Bunny Love, the Flying Fox, Creamy Stevens, and Julie Atlas Muz. The evening will pay tribute to legendary Cramps frontman, Lux Interior, and keep the true spirit of the Krampus holiday alive in their hearts.

More than just a loving homage to one of rock's finest performers, Cramp-us is the season of giving. That's why in addition to the evening's burlesque/sideshow pageantry, each paid admission will be entitled to an Old World-style spanking from our own in-house, Pagan-inspired, horned, devil beast. It's our gift to you and we like to believe Lux would've wanted it that way.

Sideshows by the Seashore
1208 Surf Avenue, Brooklyn
9p; $10
theladyayegmail.com

***** Also on THURSDAY *****

Impose Magazine Party

Curated by Impose Magazine, the party will turn heavy and psychedelic featuring hypnotic heavy hymns by Thrill Jockey space-rockers White Hills, the veteran stoner prog-rock jamz of La Otracina, and cosmic journeys by the doom of GOD OX and the sparse vibes of Eidetic Seeing. Sure to be a rager. It's gonna be loud -- so bring those earplugs and vibe out. Visuals projections plus downstairs party with DJ Glen Naan-Stop of Viva Radio and the Shank.

Don Pedros
90 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn
8p; $7

XXXXX UPCOMING XXXXX

• Flux Factory's Going Places Doing Stuff all summer
• Mermaid Lagoon: A Benefit for The Oceanic Preservation Society and the Gulf Coast, July 24
• HOPE conference, July 16-18

XXXXX ONGOING XXXXX

Nonsense is too long. The great thing about the internet is that it doesn't really cost much to run long listings and exhaustive descriptions. It turns out that's ... exhausting. After several complaints and a little deliberation, we're trying a new format: On the first Friday of the month we will run updated ongoing listings in each section: events, learning, and help. Other weeks we're going for leaner, meaner sections. If you're desperate for something to do on an off-Tuesday night we suggest you either look back a few issues ago in your inbox, or poke through our online archives, which you can find under the subscribe page.

Also, a note about better rock shows. Nonsense does not straight list rock shows in New York unless they occur in tandem with puppet shows or jump rope tournaments or in subway tunnels or in graveyards. For listings of good shows, especially shows that feature independent bands at quality venues like Death by Audio and those booked by hard-working promoters like Todd P or Sleep When Dead, consult resources like ohmyrockness.com, brooklynvegan.com/, sleepwhendeadnyc.com/calendar/, garagepunknyc.com, and eardrumnyc.com. For the most exhaustive list of underground shows at unusual venues, track down a copy of the extremely useful -- and handsome -- Showpaper.

XXXXX WISHLIST XXXXX

What have you been wishing for? Collaborators, grant monies, a new home? Please send brief listings to Alita at alitanonsensenyc.com. We only list available apartments, lofts, studios, and one-off rentals -- not spaces wanted.

***** ARTY STUFF *****

• Art Outside 2010 in Austin, Texas is seeking musicians, artists and volunteers for their October event: secure.artoutside.org/services/index.php
• Smack Mellon is currently accepting proposals that consider the unusual architecture of the gallery space for an exhibition featuring site-specific projects. Deadline is August 15. Please visit the website for details and guidelines. smackmellon.org/index.php/opportunities/site_92_call_for_proposals1/.

***** MONEY *****

• Dirty Rainbow: Crisis at the Gulf, oil spill documentary: kickstarter.com/projects/1290671600/dirty-rainbow-crisis-at-the-gulf/
• Accepting donations toward a memorial scholarship at SVA: andrew-thornton.blogspot.com/2010/07/one-in-million.html

***** SPACES *****

• Hello! My name is Don, I'm a Brooklyn musician looking for a subletter for my room in Flatbush for the month of August. My building is six blocks from the southeast corner of Prospect Park, close to some great restaurants and 24 hour groceries, a short walk to the Parkside B/Q, and the Church 2/5 train stations. The room is in a three-bedroom apartment, shared with a wonderful professional statue/puppeteer, and also a wonderful tuba player, who does translation work at home. The room is big by Brooklyn standards, has wood floors, AC, a couch, a great big yellow work bench, a separate computer desk, plenty of storage for clothes both folded and hung, and a really comfy queen size bed. My roommates are omnivores, super fun and amiable, but also super busy. There is wireless internet and a computer in the ample common space, a nice kitchen just big enough for two to sit and eat in. The rent is $450, all included. Call me (Don) at 646 243 4211 or respond by email to donzig(at)g mail.com.

XXXXX SPECTRE PRIORITY XXXXX

Before we had a name, the Spectre Event Horizon Group used to meet at a bar to commiserate and trade what our business friends like to call best practices. The group has expanded since then, but it remains focused on smartening the crowd mind. There are no subject limits; our favorite is the incredible sci-fi present, or anything that goes toward a better understanding of human behavior and our universe's ecology. Our simple intent is to connect good minds with as much quality mind-blowing information as we can freely locate and create a space for the informal trade of specialized investigative research, presented for the non-specialist.

The Spectre email list, which is a separate group from this column, is a moderated open forum. People are encouraged to join and to post. The list is compiled for Nonsense by J. Sinopoli. Contact us at spectre.event.horizon.group gmail com or spectregroup.org. Here's some of what came in this week:

***** Share Alike *****

http://spectregroup.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/share-alike/

Earliest Rich People
dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/kropotkin/mutaidch3.html "They have an original means for obviating the inconveniences arising from a personal accumulation of wealth which would soon destroy their tribal unity. When a man has grown rich, he convokes the folk of his clan to a great festival, and, after much eating, distributes among them all his fortune. Like distributions of wealth appear to be a regular habit with the Eskimos, and to take place at a certain season, after an exhibition of all that has been obtained during the year. These distributions reveal a very old institution, contemporaneous with the first apparition of personal wealth; they must have been a means for re-establishing equality among the members of the clan, after it had been disturbed by the enrichment of the few. The periodical redistribution of land and the periodical abandonment of all debts which took place in historical times with so many different races (Semites, Aryans, etc.), must have been a survival of that old custom. And the habit of either burying with the dead, or destroying upon his grave, all that belonged to him personally -- a habit which we find among all primitive races -- must have had the same origin. In fact, while everything that belongs personally to the dead is burnt or broken upon his grave, nothing is destroyed of what belonged to him in common with the tribe, such as boats, or the communal implements of fishing."

Billionaires Pledge 50 Percent Net Worth givingpledge.org/
onlythesuperrich.org/
features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/06/16/gates-buffett-600-billion-dollar-philanthropy-challenge/ "Just over a year ago, in May 2009, word leaked to the press that the two richest men in America, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, had organized and presided over a confidential dinner meeting of billionaires in New York City. With that dinner meeting, Gates and Buffett started what can be called the biggest fundraising drive in history. Their direct target is billionaires, whom the two men wish to see greatly raise the amounts they give to charities, of any and all kinds. They are driving to get the super-rich, starting with the Forbes list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, to pledge -- literally pledge -- at least 50 percent of their net worth to charity during their lifetimes or at death. The 2009 net worth of the Forbes 400 to be around $1.2 trillion. So if those 400 were to give 50 percent of that net worth away during their lifetimes or at death, that would be $600 billion. You can think of that colossal amount as what the Buffett and Gates team is stalking -- at a minimum . First was a March 4 letter that Buffett and Gates sent to the patriarch of philanthropy, David Rockefeller, to ask that he host the meeting. Rockefeller, now 95, told Fortune that the request was "a surprise but a pleasure." The letter of invitation, dated March 24, went to more people than could come. But the hosts and guests who arrived on May 5 certainly had enough economic tickets to be there: a combined net worth of maybe $130 billion and a serious history of having depleted that amount by giving money to charity. The idea of aiming for a 50 percent slice of net worth was pragmatically pulled from the sky, being less than the principals would have liked to ask for but perhaps as much, at least initially, as they can get. The pledges, meanwhile, were never envisioned as legal contracts but rather moral obligations to be both memorialized in writing and taken very seriously. Bill Gates regards the 50 percent as a "low bar" encouraging high participation. People, he thinks, may be drawn in by that proportion and then surprise themselves and find they are giving at higher levels. "This is about moving to a different realm," he thinks, and it will take time for everything to sort out. "Three to five years down the road, we need to have a significant number of billionaires signed up. That would be success." Society cannot help but be a beneficiary here, by virtue of at least some dollars and perhaps many. Nor will it be just the very rich who will perhaps bend their minds to what a pledge of this kind means. It could also be others with less to give but suddenly more reason to think about the rightness of what they do."

Debt Jubilee
jubileeusa.org/
vanityfair.com/online/daily/2009/01/niall-ferguson-america-needs-to-cancel-its-debt.html Q. So I guess the unanswerable question is, what could you do to solve this problem? A. Well I’ll tell you what you have to do -- you actually have to cancel the debt. There are historical precedents for this. Excessive debt burdens in the past tended to be public sector debts. What we’ve got now is an exceptional level of private debt. There’s never been an economy in history that’s had so much private debt. Britain and America today lead the world in the indebtedness of the household sector and the banking sector and the corporate sector. But debt is debt; it doesn’t even matter if it’s household debt or government. Once it gets to a certain level, there is a problem. In the past, when excessive debt burdens were accumulated by government, they tended to do one of two things: either they defaulted -- this is the Argentine solution -- where you say, “Ah, I’m sorry, I’m afraid we’re not going to be able to meet the interest payments this month, and never again will we make the interest payments.” The other scenario is inflation, where t he real debt burden is eroded because the money that it’s denominated in loses value. I don’t think we’re really going to be out of the woods here until something of that sort happens to the huge debt burdens of the U.S. economy.

XXXXX LEARNING XXXXX

We look for the sort of classes you circled in college course catalogs but never managed to fit into your schedule. And we also look for the kind of things that no college could teach. Cheap and eclectic is the rule, though all rules get broken occasionally, and we especially love workshops, round-tables, and teachers who won't take your work out of your hands and show you how to do it right. One-time listings are categorized weekly, with general recurring classes listed at the end on the first Friday of each month. We thrive on your suggestions, so make sure to tell us about upcoming classes that you think are nifty-keen.

Learning is compiled and edited weekly by Libby Sentz. Send listing suggestions, announcements, and corrections to her at libby(at)nonsensenyc.com.

***** LEARNING: SATURDAY *****

Free: Texts Plus Textures: A Writing Workshop

The intro session of Texts + Textures explores the environment through literature, philosophy, and narrative nonfiction. Even in our image-saturated era, evocative writing is still an effective tool to describe, document, and reframe our understanding of the city. Throughout his writings, French sociologist Henri Lefebvre describes the city as oeuvre; a work of art created by its inhabitants and a collective result of human relations. As such, the urban fabric is both a text to read and to write. In this session, Mimi Zeiger will help you explore your perceptions of the city through a series of writing exercises and a short walk. The Public School New York
177 Livingston Street, Manhattan
1p; $free
nyc.thepublicschool.org/class/1968

***** LEARNING: SATURDAY *****

Free Astronomy

Northern Manhattan Parks and the Inwood Astronomy Project offers free star- and planet-gazing Saturdays in Inwood Hill Park. These free, family-friendly events aim to spread the joys of the evening sky, and help you to learn more about the nature of our Solar System and current happenings in astronomy. Telescopes will be available for your use or bring your own. (The Astronomy Project also offers Stargazing programs in Fort Tryon Park second Wednesday.) Day-length changes as the seasons progress, start times for astronomy programs will be altered to allow for these changes. Please keep checking our listings as we adjust program schedules. Astronomy programs are clear-sky dependent. Call the Inwood Astronomy Project Hotline for updates at 917-529-2359. Inwood Hill Park
Meet place: Payson Avenue at Beak Street, Manhattan. From there, the group will walk to the hilltop Call for time; $free
917-529-2359

***** LEARNING: SUNDAY *****

DIY Paper Engineering

Learn to make your own pop-up creations. You'll create a number of paper decorations and cards for the holidays and learn how to do designs yourself. You’ll also see how paper engineering can be applied to 3D objects. Led by Shelby Arnold, a professional paper engineer and pop-up book designer

NYC Resistor Hackspace
397 Bridge Street, Floor 5
Brooklyn
2-4p; $40
nycresistor.com

***** LEARNING: Also on SUNDAY *****

Free Fiction Writing

Gotham Writers Workshop presents this free fiction writing class, led by Evan Rehill.

McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, Manhattan
6-7p; $free
writingclasses.com/CommunityEvents/index.php

***** LEARNING: Also on SUNDAY *****

Free Swing

Whether you’ve been dancing for years or want to learn how to boogie like a pro, Hudson River Park’s MoonDance is your chance to strut your stuff under the stars. Free swing lessons from Dance Manhattan begin the evening before the David Berger Jazz Orchestra takes the stage. No experience necessary.

Hudson River Park
Pier 54, West Street and 14th Street, Manhattan 6:30 dance lesson; 7-10p live music; $free 212-627-2121
nycgovparks.org

***** LEARNING: MONDAY *****

Free Fitness Mondays

Stop in for a free day of fitness at one of New York City’s 30 Parks recreation centers. Every first Monday of the month, the City’s recreation centers will open their doors for a day of free fitness programs and activities. Take advantage of aerobic classes, yoga, weight-training, cardio machines, and more. Some classes are available for a small fee. Find out more about your local recreation center at BeFitNYC, Parks’ online fitness search engine.

NYC Rec Centers
Citywide
6:30a-9:30p; $free
For times and locations: nycgovparks.org/befitnyc

***** LEARNING: Also on MONDAY *****

The Bartender’s Garden: Cocktails from the Greenmarket

Learn to concoct cocktails with ingredients that are in season--whether juiced, muddled, mixed, or infused (and sometimes even pickled!) This hands-on workshop covers bartending basics such as how to shake, stir, balance, and muddle your drinks; shows how what you make can be dictated by what’s in season, and teaches you how to get creative with a table full of spirits, mixers, garnishes, and more. Led by Jenn Smith.

Astor Center
399 Lafayette Street, Manhattan
6:30-8:30p; $65
212-674-7501
astorcenternyc.com

***** LEARNING: Also on MONDAY *****

Afrobeat Dancing

Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night Swing continues with dance lessons led by Maija Garcia (associate choreographer of FELA!) , featuring DJ Rich Medina with Sahr. Followed by live music with the afrobeat decendant Femi Kuki, son of Fela Kuti. With his high-powered ensemble The Positive Force, Femi updates the classic Afrobeat sound with contemporary beats and lyrics that continue the tradition of speaking truth to power while aiming grooves directly to the pelvis.

Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park
West 62nd Street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues, Manhattan 6:30-7:30p dance lesson, 7:30-10p concert; $17 212-721-6500
midsummernightswing

***** LEARNING: TUESDAY ****

Free: The Science of Pleasure

The Secret Science Club presents “A Sexy and Cerebral Evening” with Yale psychologist and cognitive scientist Paul Bloom lecturing on pleasure.The world of pleasure is mysterious and murky. Seafood lovers glory in devouring raw oysters. People slow their cars to look at gory accidents and enjoy going to movies that make them cry. Abstract art can sell for millions of dollars. Countless men and women like being spanked.

Bloom delves into the remarkable realm of desire, discussing how new research shows that simple pleasures like sex and food are far more complex than scientists ever imagined. The author of “How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like,” Dr. Bloom challenges longstanding explanations of human pleasure as a simple sensory response, arguing that pleasure is linked to our beliefs about the “true nature,” or essence, of things.

Before and after: Groove to ecstasy-inducing tunes; snag a signed copy of Dr. Bloom’s super-satisfying new book, “How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like”; stick around for the bacchanalian Q&A; and try the brain-boggling brew of the night, the “Pleasure Dome.”

The Bell House
149 Seventh Street, Gowanus, Brooklyn
8p; $free
718-643-6510
secretscienceclub(at)gmail.com
secretscienceclub.blogspot.com

XXXXX HELP XXXXX

It is a wonderful thing, to help. Helping strengthens communities and allows you to meet new friends. With that in mind, we look for one-day volunteer opportunities with no long-term commitment required. We want to be open to fresh ideas and think of help in a broad way. These listings could include anything from a large-scale day-long service project to a local theatre company that needs volunteers for load-in; from an artist looking for film extras to a community garden that needs a few extra hands. Our goal is simply to help groups or individuals that serve the greater good in small but significant ways. Unique and interesting job opportunities are acceptable fare for this section as well. Looking for ways to help out? Need volunteers to get your own community project off the ground? Know of any existing opportunities? Send your requests to Rob Voigt at robpastyvoigt(at)gmail.com.

***** HELP: NEW EDITOR *****

Hello there dear Nonsense peeps,

I’ve been editing the help section for coming up on a year now, and I’ve really enjoyed it -- connecting with you all, learning about community orgs in NYC, searching for good opportunities to get out and help -- and I hope you’ve found this section useful in that time. Nonsense is a very special thing and I’m glad to have been a part of it.

Sadly yet gladly, I’ll be leaving New York very soon to go abroad, and so we’re looking for someone new to edit this section. You should ideally have the following: good writing and editing skills; the willingness to commit a consistent few hours per week for at least a year; and some knowledge of the community service scene in the city. You will ideally receive the following: very little pay; a non-tuberculosis-related warm feeling in the chest; and some good ol’ glorious glory … more or less.

Interested persons should write to Jeff at jstark(at)nonsensenyc.com detailing why you are appropriately awesome for this, ahem, “job.”

***** HELP: SUMMERCAMPS *****

If you’ve got some time on your hands this summer, there’s a few cool camps and programs that could use a hand. Check it:

• The Learning About Media Project (LAMP)

The LAMP is a non-profit organization creating a grassroots movement to reform and improve media. This is achieved through free media literacy workshops and public events for youth, parents and educators. During the weeks of July 12 and July 19, the LAMP needs help with day-to-day activities running LAMPcamp, its two-week media literacy intensive workshop for teens in Brooklyn with the Prospect Park YMCA. This LAMPcamp will take place at the Park Slope Armory. Past experience working with teens is preferred, as is a background in media production and a basic knowledge of media literacy. Volunteers would help supervise students as they work on their projects, and assist in teaching them basics of editing in iMovie.

Assistants should have a basic knowledge of media literacy and experience with editing in iMovie and Final Cut Pro. A background in media production is preferred. Volunteers also need to be patient and reliable. The ability to speak Spanish is a bonus, but not required.

Park Slope Armory
15th Street between 7th and 8th avenues, Brooklyn thelampnyc.org/programs

• Computers for Youth (CFY)

Our mission at CFY is to help low-income children do better in school by improving their learning environment at home, and we’re looking for volunteers for our Student Software Team (also known as SST). SST consists of 15-25 low income middle school students from CFY's partner schools in NYC.

Students on SST evaluate and test educational software (think: fun, educational games!) and, then, create engaging presentations on this software to be presented to national leaders in the education field over Columbus Day weekend at Education Executives Day. During their participation in the program, students obtain skills in teamwork, communication, public speaking and computers. Various dates; see link for more information.

bit.ly/cdGBsr

• Youth Action Programs and Homes (YAPH)

Help give kids a strong foundation for academic achievement: the YAPH After School Prevention Program helps underserved children of Harlem develop their academic skills. Volunteer tutors are needed to help for children ages 6 through 12 from 3-6p on Mondays through Fridays through August 20th.

Or, do you enjoy arts and crafts? Singing, dancing, music? Share your creativity with these underserved children in Harlem. Help them develop their artistic talents and express their creativity. Volunteer Instructors are needed to help our YAPH Summer Camp Program for children ages 6 through 12, two hours per week, between 1:30-5p on Mondays through Thursdays.

206 East 118th Street, Manhattan
Ms. Denise Taylor, 212-860-8170
bit.ly/afpy7J, bit.ly/9eut3J, bit.ly/9iPiBZ

• School of the Future

School of the Future is a project about what a school can be, opening this July in Greenpoint. The mission/hypothesis of the future is that the best learners/teachers are the best teachers/learners. We invite anyone to propose classes, workshops, apprenticeships, installations, or moments that add to our active research about how to make a better education. The project defeats the notion that school is as it should be, and to offer witnesses of the school the freedom to experiment with what their learning and teaching process can be. In the process of exploring the possibilities of school, we aim to become a body of unschooled and educated teaching students.

Anyone can propose a class or take one. We need volunteers to help us work with multiple student groups, some K-5, some adult and many in-between. We also need assistants to help teach, to outreach and help us break down and raise the school house that will be in the park each Thursday - Sunday during the month of July. We also need anyone who is interested in building architecture to help us assemble the schoolhouse structure.

Sgt. Dougherty Park
38 Anthony Street, Brooklyn
schoolofthefuture.org
bit.ly/b1gd5T

***** HELP: SOON *****

Entertainers at the Bay Park Center

We’re looking for entertainers of all sorts -- music, dance, art, and so on -- to donate an hour of their time for our clients at our adult day care facility. For the most part our clients are senior citizens that come to our program for socialization and medical monitoring. If you are interested in donating your time and giving back to the community, please contact us.

801 Co Op City Blvd, Bronx
(718) 239-6500
ariboh(at)bayparkcenter.com

***** HELP: SOON *****

Gallery Intern

Cuchifritos, a non-profit gallery in the Lower East Side, is looking for a person to work in our gallery one day per week from 11-6p, opening or MTF. Responsibilities include greeting visitors, answering questions, assisting with openings/installations/mailings/projects and maintaining the exhibition space. This unpaid position is a great opportunity to get experience working in the Lower East Side gallery scene. Gallery Assistant should be able to commit for a minimum of 3 months. It will include varying amounts of administration work depending on what the volunteer wants to do. Freelancers have been a great fit. For more information on Cuchifritos, please visit our website, and if you’re interested send along a cover letter and resume.

aai-nyc.org/cuchifritos
aai(at)aai-nyc.org

***** HELP: SOON *****

Ex-Planet Aid

Have you ever worked for Planet Aid in the US? Were you ever a Planet Aid volunteer? Do you know anyone who was, or is now?

Planet Aid is a large used clothes collection and volunteering charity in the United States, with well-documented links to a controversial organization in Europe known as Tvind, or Teachers Group (TG). Tvind Alert monitors the global activities of the Tvind Teachers Group, and is now seeking information from the public regarding Planet Aid, because it is today widely accepted by local governments, school boards, and even the federal government as a legitimate aid organization, despite highly questionable associations and business practices. It is receiving official support and large sums of public money. Tvind Alert is challenging this uncritical acceptance on the basis of Planet Aid's long and well-documented relationship with the Tvind Teachers Group (which it publicly denies), police evidence in Europe, statements received by us over several years, and other evidence in the public domain.

We are currently gathering testimonials from anyone with recent (within the last three or four years) experience of Planet Aid or its associated organizations (DAPP, ADPP, Hope, etc.), either in the U.S. or overseas. This could be in reference to anything relevant to Planet Aid's finances, its conduct as a charity, its management in the US, its use of foreign labor, its linked colleges, or to activities in the field in developing countries. Can you help?

If you have information you'd like to share, please write a brief one or two page testimonial, and send it to us at the e-mail address provided in the "contact" section on our website. Please include your name and contact details; we will add it to our growing dossier. In order to remain credible, our dossier requires information to be accurately sourced. Your material will be treated as strictly confidential unless explicitly agreed otherwise.

tvindalert.com

***** HELP: SOON *****

Gard’nin’

Get lots of dirt under your fingernails at the Emily Dickinson Reading Garden. Our master gardener needs one or two associates to help maintain over 500 trees, shrubs, perennials, and ferns. Don't know much about gardening? We'll train, and after some time you may be able to create/maintain your own area.

West End Avenue at 96th Street
http://bit.ly/bdJ3kR

***** HELP: UPCOMING *****

• July 17. Handypersons for the Actor’s Theater Workshop. The ATW’s next volunteer info session is on the 17th, and we’re seeking experienced carpenters, contractors, electricians and plumbers for the volunteer team at our award-winning theater company with acclaimed educational programs for families from all of New York's boroughs, Seniors, and homeless children. Use your highly valued skills to enhance and upgrade ATW's beautiful theatre and community center. We look forward to meeting experienced individuals with excellent carpentry and design skills. Please RSVP by emailing outreach(at)actorstheatreworkshop.com or by calling 212-947-1386 ext. 0. In addition, please go to our website actorstheatreworkshop.com, and click on "Volunteer Program" to find out more about our organization and fill out our online application. 1p.

XXXXX NONSENSE XXXXX

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XXXXX END XXXXX

Inventing the details between plans and schemes.