Sign up for our email list; March Events

To see the email we send out once a month with a listing of our movie nights and upcoming events please sign up for our email list at http://www.ironrail.org/list.php

This is our email for this month:
"Hey there! If you haven't checked out our blog yet, it's worth it. www.ironrail.org/blog

-Movie Nights
-The Gleaners and I
-Hot Fuzz
-Why We Fight
-L.I.E.

-March Events

-Movie Nights are every Tuesday, always FREE, and start at 8pm.
March 4th
The Gleaners and I (2000)
Agnes Varda's no-holds-barred documentary about scavengers and recyclers is an insouciant treat from beginning to end. Inspired by Jean-François Millet's famous painting "Les Glaneuses," Varda strikes out with just a hand-held digital camera in search of the modern equivalent of Millet's grain field gleaners. She finds her quarry at dumpsters, outdoor markets and roadsides across France. A unique film with an unexpectedly obtuse perspective.

March 11
Hot Fuzz (2007)
An over eager top London cop is ready to die of boredom when his superiors transfer him to a sleepy English village to work alongside a blundering but well-meaning young constable. Craving some real action, the big-city bobby may just get his wish when the town begins to stir with a series of grisly "accidents." Is foul play afoot in this seemingly idyllic hamlet? Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead) directs. This is a hilarious movie!

March 18
Why We Fight (2005)
Filmed during the Iraq War, this documentary dissects America's military machine with a keen eye to answering the question: Why does America engage in war? Through personal stories of soldiers, government officials, scholars, journalists and innocent victims, the film examines the political and economic interests and ideological factors, past ad present, behind American militarism. Winner of the 2005 Sundance Grand Jury Award.

March 25
L.I.E. (2001)
A biting and disturbing coming-of-age story. Life is bittersweet along the L.I.E. -- aka the Long Island Expressway -- as suburban teenager Howie Blitzer learns all too clearly. Fifteen-year-old Howie loses just about everything and everyone in the space of a single week, becomes involved in a relationship with a much older man, but ends up finding himself in the process. His mother has just died. His father, a building contractor, can barely keep tabs on his young girlfriend, let alone his own son. Thusly, the teen must navigate his adolescence virtually unsupervised. Floating towards an ill-behaved existence, Howie and his crowd begin robbing houses in the middle-class neighborhoods off the Long Island Expressway. Together, he and his best friend Gary break into a place belonging to an old guy named Big John, a local man who is a respected pillar of the community...

March Events
March 1 - Blair Gimma and Jon Crocker at Py's Makeout Club (1909 Jackson Ave. Apt. A (middle door)) 7PM. $5
Iron Rail acoustic music benefit show.

March 10 - Madeline & Friends and Nana Grizol
An acoustic show at Washington Square Park (at Elysien Fields and Royal) at 4pm which will be a benefit or the Iron Rail Bookstore.

March 17th - Lecture from eco-saboteur and animal liberator Peter Young (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Daniel_Young)

March 26
Captain Chaos and Eric Ayotte and The Let Down at Py's Makeout Club (1909 Jackson Ave. Apt. A (middle door)) 7PM. $5
Captain Chaos is Chris Clavin (Plan It X Records/Ghost Mice/etc.) playing solo. Eric Ayotte is one of the movie guys from the last Ghost Mice NOLA show. Remember how fun that was? This show is an Iron Rail benefit. Be kind.

March 30
2008 Republican National Convention Protest Teach-In
4pm at Iron Rail
Come learn about what will be happening in Minneapolis this September when the Republican hordes descend for their convention. Organize with other New Orleanians to get massive numbers of us up the river to let the republican devils know what we think of them. We will also learn about protest tactics and do some hands-on training about civil disobedience and protest situations.

love,
the iron rail"

volunteering at the rail: a poem

HI, THIS IS THE D-BLOCK. I THOUGHT I WOULD SHARE THIS POEM I FOUND ON THE INTERNET ABOUT SOME OF THE REASONS WHY TO VOLUNTEER AT THE RAIL.

i volunteer at the rail because i'm bored
i volunteer at the rail because it gives me something to do
i volunteer at the rail because it gives me something to care about
i volunteer at the rail to have a secret
i volunteer at the rail when i'm happy
i volunteer at the rail when i'm upset
i volunteer at the rail because it doesn't hurt when i'm upset and thats cool
i volunteer at the rail because i'm sick of life
i volunteer at the rail at the prospect of new life
i volunteer at the rail to keep my mind off things
i volunteer at the rail to remind me of things
i volunteer at the rail words into myself to make things permenant
i volunteer at the rail to keep my blood flowing
i volunteer at the rail so i can write in blood
i volunteer at the rail to be able to lick it off my fingers
i volunteer at the rail to give myself a reason to cry
i volunteer at the rail so that i don't have to cry
i volunteer at the rail because i'm a poser
i volunteer at the rail because i'm twice as original as everyone else
i volunteer at the rail because i feel misunderstood
i volunteer at the rail because you can read me like a book
i volunteer at the rail because i can and because i want to
i volunteer at the rail because i did it first
i volunteer at the rail because it's reckless
i volunteer at the rail to keep myself jumpy
i volunteer at the rail to give me something to look at
i volunteer at the rail because spiderwebs are pretty
i volunteer at the rail because it's beautiful
i volunteer at the rail because there are so many ways to do it
i volunteer at the rail because i can toy with pain without having to be really hurt
i volunteer at the rail because little scratches and volunteer at the rails aren't a big deal
i volunteer at the rail because people pressure me
i volunteer at the rail because it's all the wrong people pressuring me
i volunteer at the rail because it's the one thing that is my own
i volunteer at the rail so that no one has to hear me complain
i volunteer at the rail in the hope that someone will notice that i'm not okay
i volunteer at the rail because i know no one will ever notice because i won't let them
i volunteer at the rail because i'm the happy dumb blonde one with the perfect family
i volunteer at the rail because that's true
i volunteer at the rail because i wish i WAS dumb and ignorant
i volunteer at the rail because i suck at life

Days late and dollars short.

When did antagonism and self-expression become one and the same? When did the generalizing and exclusion of an entire group become our primary method of recognizing a kindred spirit? When did venom and hatred, even when we’re the ones vomiting it out into the world, solve anything?

I am not an activist. I do not associate with any unions, -isms, or causes if I can help it. Maybe I am a misanthrope. Maybe I am naturally averse to groups or organizations. But really, I believe that what I truly dislike are the cultures that inevitably spread like gangrene to encompass these things. I dislike the self-conscious posturing, the inability to co-exist with those who disagree with you on certain key issues, and the ingenuous calls for positive change only while others are watching, or at least listening. I dislike the elevation of the concept of “tolerance” to a meaningless and comic level, as if passionate disagreement and respect for our fellow man (or woman) are mutually exclusive. I dislike the way all these elements work together just to form another “us” (or, when I am on the other side of things, another “you”) with which we can then exclude “them”.

The most common complaint I’ve heard about the Iron Rail, despite the dear (and filthy) place it holds in my heart, is the “clubhouse” feel of it, an air about the place that makes people feel unwelcome who are not of this subculture or that subculture. And while I would like to think that these are just isolated incidents from people who become nervous in proximity to those of us with different clothes or hairstyles, when we set out to purposefully offend (or rather, “challenge”) I can’t help but think they’re probably right. If we take out an ad that depicts violence against cops, aren’t we taking a certain stance on the police (and I’m not assigning blame, as I didn’t say anything and even voted my approval when the ad I’m referring to was being discussed, and we were rushed on the issue to begin with)? If we force people to leave our store or one of our events because we think they’re “pigs” (wishful thinking, in my opinion, to make us feel important as some nexus of the revolution that “big brother” has deemed worth his notice) what does that say? What does it accomplish? Assume they are cops, all we’ve done is reinforce their preconceptions and give them reason to cause us grief when previously we weren’t worth much of their time. Consider if they’re not, and all we’ve done is mistreat a stranger. If a cop wants to participate, I say let them. If they mean us harm, they will visit it upon us regardless.

Which brings me to a similar idea, a hatred of religion (can priests become cops? Man, we’d really hate them.) Offending a Christian is consistently an easy way to get a laugh, and I’ll admit to having told my fair share of altar boy jokes (and pope jokes, and priest jokes, and transsexual nun jokes, and Jew jokes, and an endless parade of sodomy jokes, and… fuck, I’m a pretty terrible person, aren’t I?), but I will forgive myself on the basis of, if anything, scale. If we purposefully put out imagery that intends, or if not intends, then clearly expresses an attitude we know is likely to offend, aren’t we ironically “preaching to the choir”? We can pat ourselves on the back when our like-minded Jesus haters come together under our banner, and equally celebrate that any of those god freaks will likely be put off by our display, the theological equivalent to “niggers not welcome”. Is radical thought meant to only educate and challenge those most likely to have come to its doorstep of their own volition, without our solicitations? If I believe in god (and I do, despite being the world’s worst and most adamantly non-practicing Catholic) am I unwelcome? If I wear a uniform am I not worth engaging?

I think it is inevitable that people of one ideology will be placed into conflict with certain opposing institutions, groups, and philosophies. But instead of generic soundbites, rendering us merely the anarchist counterparts to Ann Coulter, why not focus that rage born from a realization of the way the world should be onto what we are really angry with. Which is another discussion entirely, and a time-consuming one, much more involved and difficult than shaking our fist at what we believe to be an empty sky.

It should go without saying, the but the preceding was the diatribe of myself, and no others bear the responsibility for its content. Any and all feedback or complaints should be directed to Leonella, my secretary and assistant, limber mistress of horrifying acts of what, for anyone less emotionally distant, would be considered love.

-James, beloved curmudgeon, eremite, and some would say, prophet.

ethyl doze the planet in an attempt to keep downtown clean

Pardon Our Regress
(top secret government toppling plans)
Hello, Iron Rail Patrons!
It has fallen to me, as the voice of the internet to announce that the Iron Rail has decided to expand our space to nearly twice the size of the original footprint. Here are some highlights of the expansion you may be interested in!

• Effigy Construction and Burning Room. There will soon be a room with lots of craft and construction materials for you to construct an effigy of anyone or anything. The room will be completely self contained and will fit 2-4 people (including effigy). This room is open for self expressionistic art, gris gris, or mannequin making.
• New Computer Lab. Community members have deemed the Iron Rail an appropriate place for donation of their old computers. Hurray! What does this mean? This means we'll have a dedicated computer lab with up to 10 computers with free internet access.
• No More Myspace. Several collective members have voiced concerns with myspace. These concerns range from the fact that myspace censors speech on their sites to myspace's parent company being FOX, an extremely Right Wing media outlet, enemy of freedom, justice and enemy of working people all the world over. Some collective members would like to eliminate or limit myspace access in the library. If you use the computers in the Iron Rail and would like to comment on the potential elimination (or limitation) of myspace access in the Iron Rail please come to meetings, voice your opinion to the collective member on duty or post as a comment to this blog entry.
• Security Cameras. Security Cameras have been ordered and will be installed in the space. Some of these security cameras will be visible, many of them won't be visible. We will be watching you, so don't try anything.
• Doggie Daycare center. Do you have a dog you like to bring into Iron Rail? Are you just too tired from chilling out all day to give your dog water when you get to Iron Rail? If you answered, "Yes," to either of these questions, you'll be super stoked to learn that soon Iron Rail will have a doggie daycare on premises all the time. You bring your dog in, we'll let it fight with other dogs, bark, and generally not bother collective members or visitors in our secluded doggie daycare space! We'll even give your dog water (heck, we do that already!).

If all this sounds exciting, just imagine the things I haven't mentioned. So many secret suprises and awesome things comin' your way...you just might shit yourself when you find out. HINT: Fiber. ;-)

mst[FREE]k
CoConspirator Tim has arranged for the viewing of MOVIES in the months of March and April. The March Movies ARE:

• 3.4 THE GLEANERS AND I [some will see only junk, and there will be those who see a cluster of possibilities]
• 3.11 HOT FUZZ [Big Cops. Small Town. Moderate Violence.]
• 3.18 WHY WE FIGHT [It is nowhere written that the American empire goes on forever.]
• 3.25 LIE [On the Long Island Expressway there are lanes going east, lanes going west, and lanes going straight to hell.]

And April is RevolutionaryQueerThugRevengeMovieMonth at Iron Rail. Enjoy:

Raspberry Reich, Shortbus,
Holy Mountain, Scorpio Rising,
Boys Beware,
AND MORE

FUCK-U-ARY
This past month has sucked. I turned a frightfully old age. I've fallen off my bike(s) four times, I've gotten sick, better, sick, better and sick again, I've got weird blemishes on my arms I hope aren't Staph (i've been told they aren't), I accidentally took all but two AVAIL songs off my mp3 player, lost use of my phone, and two days ago my bike got stolen with a note saying (bike locked on private fence). I hope this month's better than last.

Rock. The. Fuck. On.
Chuck Ragan (HWM) - See Yourself To The Door
The Unloveables - Dance Party For Two
Deep Blue Something - Breakfast At Tiffany's
Moldy Peaches - Who's Got The Crack?
<3,
COACH

Saturday Night's Alright

Two great events happening this Saturday, March 1st.

IRON RAIL BENEFIT:
Blair Gimma + Jon Crocker
7pm at Py's Makeout Club
1909 Jackson Ave. Apt A (middle door)
uptown New Orleans

CONSTANCE BOOK RELEASE PARTY:
7pm at Barrister's Gallery
2331 St. Claude Ave (at Spain St.)
bywater New Orleans

Blair Gimma - At the Halfmoon
Jon Crocker - State Route 17

March Anti-Gravity ad.

An invitation to sodomy

Enough of this peace/love B.S... let's talk about hatred. Let's talk about these apple-cheeked clowns in red berets on their mountain bikes, rolling around Bourbon St.: the "Guardian Angels." Who the fuck are you kids? Are you from here? Do you live here? I thought the "Guardian Angels" were supposed to be grizzled ex-gang-members, but all y'all look like national guard rejects from Iowa. Where are the Guardian Angels recruiting from these days, Jesus Camp? Besides looking barely old enough to vote, why are you all 100-pound doofuses with skin the color of the pope's thighs?

Seeing you self-importantly "patrolling" the quarter and the marigny with your color-matched web gear and sheafs of plastic flexi-cuffs calls to mind a cross between mormon missionary boys, eagle scouts, and santa's workshop elves, three demographics that have in common 1.) me hating them and 2.) me wanting to sodomize them. It's one of those complicated lust-hate relationships, and you Cherry Lane paramilitary wanna-bes in bike shorts are all three combined. I don't know anybody who takes you seriously; police certainly don't. They know as well as anyone that you're just amateur-hour liabilities. Who sent you teeny-boppers here to "protect" New Orleans from itself? Go home. Or come by the Rail sometime when I'm working and we'll go out in the parking lot and have a nice old knock-down scrap, and then enjoy angry sweaty sex in the gravel, with your trim, hairy do-gooder ankles flexi-cuffed behind your neck. If this sounds like a good time to you, come holler at me. Otherwise, go get a real job back in whatever whitebread hell-hole spawned you.

Love,

the d-block

odd...walla

this is a special note of thanks for the Iron Rail patron who left their odwalla bottle next to the computer in the library. THANKS!
That last table spoon really hit the spot. I was going to go all the way to whole foods on Magazine for a bottle of odwalla superfood beverage, but this hit the spot!

Right On.

BTW: Didja know that next week's movie is Koyaanisqatsi?

Yes We Can!
-Coach

Next weeks film night

Next weeks film is Koyaanisqatsi, Tuesday Feb. 26.

If you haven't seen it, please come by to check it out. This review from IMDB sums it up fairly well ...

"This movie was designed to have no plot. Meaning is to be created by the viewer, and only the viewer can give value to the images and music. That said, there is a central idea behind the movie, and according to the director it is this: The greatest event in the history of mankind has occurred recently, and has been largely missed by both the media and academia. Beyond the headlines and every day crises of international events, a deeper shift in human affairs has occurred: Humanity no longer exists in the natural world, we are no longer connected to it. It is not that we are now users of technology, but rather that we exist within technology, we are part of it and it is part of us. The natural world now exists only to support the artificial one in which we live."

dainty doo-dads for the despondent

Movie Nights
Tonight, as I'm writing this entry, the folks are over at Iron Rail for movie night enjoying Harlan County USA. If you've fucked up like I have and wish you could somehow redeem yourself from the great fuckup that is missing this week's Iron Rail movie night, be still, dear readers, your chance at redemption comes next week:
Tuesday, February 26, 2008: Iron Rail Movie Night presents Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance.

Iron Rail Shows.
March 1 - Blair Gimma & Jon Crocker blast your ears with sonic sounds rivaling the best coming out of tin pan alley.
March 10 - Madeline Adams & Nana Grizol turn those frowns upside down.
March 17 - Peter Young (recently released political prisoner) spoken word.
March 26 - Chris Clavin shall masquarade as Captain Chaos (with Eric Ayoyye and The Let Down).


Suggestion.
Spend your next birthday listening to Phil Ochs and reading Dostoevsky. Become Raskolnikov.
Phil Ochs - Love Me I'm a Liberal

<3-coach

Arguments for Cannibalism: i

Mikhail Bakunin makes the case:

"[S]ince it has been established that all peoples, past and present, have believed and still believe in the existence of God, it is clear that those who have the misfortune to doubt it, whatever the logic that led them to this doubt, are abnormal exceptions, monsters.

Thus, then, the antiquity and universality of a belief should be regarded, contrary to all science and all logic, as sufficient and unimpeachable proof of its truth... What is more ancient and more universal than slavery? Cannibalism perhaps."

post by: the mighty D-Block

Coming Monday!

No Presidents Day Sale!!
To show general disdain for the 43 presidents of the United States, Nothing at Iron Rail will be reduced in price Monday. We see the position of president as a little past its time, a little old fashioned. The office was established in the same document which established that people of color were only 3/5s of a person. We just can't get behind that.
Enjoy your three day weekend, unless you're in a third world sweatshop or factory, in which case enjoy your rice.

<3
coach

sinus affliction double feature

Bubba Hotep
Those who came to see Bubba Hotep last night were treated to 89 minutes of a funny 90 minute movie as the DVD ceased to function with 1 minute left in the feature.

Next Week's Movie: Harlan County USA - Follow the plight and solidarity of miners in Kentucky as they unionize and strike. The miners are faced with gun tottin' thugs, pig cops and families struggling to remain strong for them.

New Coffee Machine
I brought my FEMA coffee machine. Its a Mr Coffee. Its never been used for coffee its only been used to keep spaghetti sauce warm at a pop-punk show.


Meeting Tonight
Our weekly meeting is tonight. Join us as we discuss our stolen coins, telephone and why the store opened late today (the blog).

I've Got Lots of Bruises and Cuts from Falling Off My Bike Yesterday
I've got lots of bruises and cuts from falling off my bike yesterday.
Queen Bicycle Race

-Coach.

Please, stop breaking in late at night and stealing our gold coins.

Upcoming Fundraisers to Secure Our Net Worth:

(Last minute! February 22 @ Dragons Den SIX PM! Local music from The Silent Game, Party Time, and Magic Legs. The show will be DONE by EIGHT PM! BED TIME FOR PUNK!)

March at the store!:
- 1st 7PM = Blair Gimma (internet sweetheart) + Jon Crocker (San Francisco)
- 9th 4PM = Madeline Adams (Plan It X) + Nana Grizol (folks from Defiance Ohio and Neutral Milk Hotel)
- 17th 4PM = Peter Young (convicted eco-terrorist, Green Scare political prisoner)
- 26th 7PM = Captain Chaos (Chris Clavin) + Eric Ayotte (Gad About Film Fest) + The Let Down (Hope's wood elf guild of bards and nomads)

In misanthropic solidarity,
Bjõrn

http://www.myspace.com/musicblair
http://www.myspace.com/joncrocker
http://www.myspace.com/madelinesongs
http://www.myspace.com/nanagrizol
http://www.myspace.com/supportpeteryoung
http://plan-it-x.com
http://www.throughtheconcreterecords.com/documents/fuckmyspace1.html

solid waste aftertaste

Hey all!
Since most of the people reading this are people who just happen to open the internet at Iron Rail, let me let you know something. We Love You. Its true. We, the people who take the time out of our lives to open, staff, restock, take care of the books for, sweep the floors of and attend weekly meetings at Iron Rail love you and we love doing what we do for Iron Rail.

Please keep that in mind while you use the space.

Comments & Blog Use!
I've changed the blog's settings so anyone can comment. Even anonymously. So I think you should do that. Especially if you use the computers in the Library Space and want to contribute to the discussion. Its an easy way to let us know what you think without having to be confrontational or any awkward feeling. Sweet!
If you're a collective member or would like to contribute to to blog with your gmail account send me an email and I'll invite you or you can invite yourself. This way you'll never have to sign out of your gmail account!


Bubba Hotep!
We couldn't find a copy of The Dancing Outlaw to show on Tuesday so we'll be watching MY copy of Bubba Hotep, an awesome movie about Elvis' life in a West Texas old-folks home. The King teams up with John F. Kennedy and battles a Mummy bent on consuming the invalid souls of the residents.

Sounds sweet? It is. Bring a friend.

Random Music.
Here are a couple songs I've found in the past week and like.
The Polyphonic Spree - Lithium **Nirvana Cover**
Lil Wayne - Lightin' up my LALA

See ya around! Now why not comment on these issues!?
-Coach

To Catch a Thief

Iron Rail Volunteers report vast sums of what we pay our rent with disappeared into the humid February mist between Closing Thursday and Opening Friday.
Also missing from Ark spaces were a Computer and a CD player.
Obviously the perpetrator hasn't good taste in music or they would have made use of Iron Rail's vast collection of CDs, of which none were missing.
-Coach

Anarchy is Stupid & so are You.

Iron Rail Meeting Update
The weekly Iron Rail meetings have been quite lively recently. The decision coming out of last night's meeting which will most effect library space users is the decision to not allow smoking in the lobby area of The Ark.
Uh Oh! What cha gonna do when the wrath of the Cigarette busting Iron Rail guestapo brings its unrestrained fury down on YOU?
-coach