Bar Crawl Radio

We sat at the bar at 5Napkin on W. 84th Street, and I looked around at a somewhat crowded bar and restaurant and wondered how it is we were all there together as COVID19 swirled around us. But Becky and I are dedicated to podcasting, and so we put our bodies on the line for our loyal listeners and talked about "TINY EVILS." We asked the question that have alluded great minds: Does EVIL exist, and, if so, what is it? And we came up with an answer -- sort of -- and I -- Alan Winson -- revealed my evil act of the day. Stick around to the end of this BCR episode for an evil pleasure of an evil act by a usually good -- nice -- person.

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For this episode, Bar Crawl Radio hosts got acquainted with the hosts of the podcast Angst and Daisies – Steve Saporito and Caroline Aaron. We had met Steve at a huge Saugerties, NY Crafts Fair in early fall of 2019. He shared his picnic table with us. Steve is a most interesting fellow and, I guess, we sounded interesting to him -- and so -- we decided to produce a dual podcast. And a big bonus is that Caroline co-stars in the amazing series The Amazing Mrs. Maisel. So, we talked about that show a bit -- but mostly we had a real bar conversation about politics and family and what's really important in our Trumpish age. We had a bunch of fun.

Recorded at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar on the Upper West Side of Mahnattan. Let us know what you think of BCR -- [email protected]

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There was this NPR report that authoritatively announced that living in owning and living in a house is better in so many ways than renting an apartment. It's healthier -- children are smarter -- one can live in privacy -- adults get involved with the community at higher rates -- and all of that equity is built up Becky and I have lived in a two-room apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side (which I made into three rooms -- two quite tiny -- with a platform for storage) for most of our lives. NPR threw down the gauntlet and we picked it up in defense of our form of city living. We recorded at 5Napkin on w. 84th Street on the UWS.

Let us know which form of living you prefer -- [email protected]

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"Poetry! What is it good for?" is a BCR series focusing on the beautiful and reverberating poetry of our times -- produced by Chris Brandt of Fordham University, English Dept. -- and member of Witness Against Torture. For this BCR episode, Chris invited two members of the inspiring NYC activist performance group The Peace Poets, a "family born of Hip Hop, heart, and hope in New York City." In 2014 their song "I Can't Breathe" protesting the murder of Eric Garner by the NYPD went viral when actor, Samuel L. Jackson, recorded himself singing I Can’t Breathe.

These are most talented and inspiring young men with a mission to expose social problems through poetry and music. This episode includes several examples of their work. Do not miss this one and check out The Peace Poets.

This BCR episode was recorded at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar. Contact us at [email protected]

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Hair Love won a 2020 Oscar in the Animated Short category. It seemed appropriate to think about the many ways that hair invades and controls how we spend our time and shapes our sense of self. And if you start to think about it -- as I did -- it is a lot.

Throwing in a caveat and a correction -- and then a note. Correction: Matthew Cherry directed the heart-tugging Oscar winning animated short "Hair Love" -- not what I said. Caveat: For my relatives in Israel who might still be listening to our podcast -- the choice by some Jewish women to wear a hair wig [sheitel] over one's hair to hide it from the male-gaze, just seems strange to me, and, for me, it's not attractive, as the wigs are clearly wigs; maybe that's the point. Note: This is my observation of a style choice -- not a judgement of a religious choice. It's part of this episode's theme -- humans are weird about hair. Added Note: How about a Jewish Orthodox version of the Hijab as a substitution for the sheitel?

We recorded this BCR episode at 5Napkin on W. 84th Street. James, a dancer and bar keep, told us about a new burger item on the menu -- it was delicious -- and he gave us a lesson in articulation -- it's "man-HA-ten" -- not "man-HA-EN."

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A really wonderful conversation at Gebhard's Beer Culture Bar with three talented NYC musicians about the NYC Jazz scene and why our City is the center of world Jazz. Steven Feifke is a pianist who plays regularly at the Gin Mill Speakeasy. Geoff Burke plays the saxophone and with Harry Connick Jr.. Both have their own bands. And David Pietro--Saxophonist--played for over two decades with the Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra and many other big name artists; Dave is the Director of Jazz Studies at NYU/Steinhardt. Along the way we played samples of gorgeous, rich music created by all three. Becky and I spent a enjoyable hour with these talented, working, NYC Jazz artists. Alan.

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While I was "witnessing" the actions of Witness Against Torture's to end the Guantanamo Prison in Cuba in January this year, I sat down with five W.A.T. members and asked about the experiences that led them to activism.

00:00:00 - 00:17:45 -- Christopher Spicer -- Freelance writer and stay-at-home dad.

00:18:00 - 00:29:50 -- Don Cunning -- Longtime member of W.A.T. and other pro-peace organizations.

00:30:00 - 00:46:10 -- Manijeh Saba -- Recently acquitted in Federal Court for protesting on Supreme Court Steps in 2018.

00:46:25 - 1:30:20 -- Marc Alvarado -- Organizer with the InterReligious Task Force on Central America and Columbia

1:30:25 - 2:11:30 -- Chrissy Stonebraker-Martinez -- Co-Director of the InterReligious Task Force on Central America and Columbia

Be sure to check-out BCR #77 in which Becky and I talked with Chrissy and four other W.A.T. members at the Dubliner Bar in D.C. at the end of their fast and week of protest.

Let us know what you think of BCR at [email protected]

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This will be the second time BCR has covered the Witness Against Torture's [WAT] annual, week-long, January protests against the opening of the Guantanamo Prison at this time of year 18 years ago. We spoke with four members of WAT--two of whom were arrested during the final Fire Drill Fridays in the nation's capital the day before the recording.

For this conversation with members of WAT, we talked more generally about our nation -- who we are in our present state -- and what we might be if the "American [USian] dream were fully realized.

Our conversation -- on a particularly warm night in January -- was held on the porch of the Dubliner Bar. A giant window was opened to the street, so the sounds of the Capital reverberate along with the sounds of DCers drinking Guinness.

Let us know what you think of our programming at [email protected]

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Last week I -- Alan Winson -- spent a few days with a committed group of people. They regularly protest and get arrested in a nearly impossible attempt to end the horrors of Gitmo -- the U.S. prison in Cuba which, after over 18 years, incarcerates 40 Muslim men accused of 9/11 terrorism. Most of these men are innocent and have been exonerated; yet, they remain in an isolated hell in Guantanamo. The court trials they demand are beyond them -- maybe forever -- because evidence of being tortured are being destroyed by our government. The members of Witness Against Torture are special humans. In this episode of BCR, Becky and I talked about their ongoing -- and our limited -- commitment to a cause which is right and noble.

Next week, for BCR #78 we talked with members of WAT about why they protest and the world for which they work.

Email: [email protected]

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