| On April 18, 2006, San Francisco will | | | | determined that the miracles of the natural world |
| commemorate the centennial of the San | | | | be understood, that their truth be accessible to |
| Francisco Earthquake and Fire, an event that | | | | everyone. |
| leveled that city. The number of people who died | | | | In 1927 Arthur Pillsbury completed the invention |
| has never been more than estimated. The other | | | | of the microscopic motion picture camera. Seeing |
| loses of various kinds ran into what today would | | | | the world beyond the scope of the human eye |
| be billions of dollars.On that first day this photo | | | | awakened people to another aspect of nature. |
| was taken from the St. Francis Hotel, showing the | | | | After that time there was an explosion in related |
| city in flames. Less than 24 hours later the St. | | | | research.Pillsbury went on to build the first X-ray |
| Francis would also have been gutted.Behind that | | | | motion picture camera and the underwater |
| crumbling facade of human invention stood a man | | | | motion picture camera opening up more new |
| with an active, analytical mind. One man taking | | | | vistas. Pillsbury refused to patent his inventions. He |
| action would change what others refused to see | | | | wanted their use to become common to all of us. |
| because of those tragic days. Arthur C. Pillsbury | | | | He had solved the problem he identified during |
| would capture in film a lesson that would change | | | | those hideous days when San Francisco |
| all of our lives. The sound and sight of a city | | | | burned.Arthur C. Pillsbury died in Oakland in 1946. |
| burning awakened him to a human truth.The | | | | The scope of human vision had expanded, thanks |
| accompanying photo went out around the globe, | | | | to his inventions and tireless lecturing. He had |
| carrying the enormity of the event to human | | | | made nature visible as it had never been before |
| eyes. As catastrophic as that event was it | | | | but that was not enough. He had not calculated |
| vanishes into nothingness compared to the | | | | for the impact of those greedy for money and |
| specter we face today from our own | | | | power. |
| government.Some disasters are natural; some | | | | Government had not changed; it continued an |
| happen because of what we fail to understand. | | | | upward trend for control coupled with the |
| The San Francisco Earthquake and Fire was an | | | | corruption. Those who profited through |
| event that began as a natural disaster. The plates | | | | generations came to accept this as their |
| of the Earth slipped, readjusting themselves and | | | | prerogative. |
| for hundreds of miles the resultant impact was | | | | We need to see government for what it is; a |
| felt. But that devastation and loss passed the | | | | system that has been converted from service |
| boundaries of what is natural, multiplied by the | | | | provider to wealth source for those who control |
| corruption of San Francisco's government.San | | | | it.Disaster is endemic to all politics and for the |
| Francisco had no disaster plan because the | | | | same reasons. Coupling a lack of accountability |
| corrupt city administration was far more | | | | with the temptation to take always draws those |
| interested in continuing to enjoy the graft and | | | | inclined to steal.Katrina has illustrated just how bad |
| privileges that come with power. Emergency | | | | it can be within our own shores; Iraq has |
| workers were untrained; the preparations that | | | | demonstrated how bad America can be when the |
| had long been asked for had never been enacted. | | | | tools of corruption are applied internationally. |
| Many buildings blown up to create fire breaks | | | | These are not examples of incompetence, rather |
| simply burst into flame, spreading the | | | | they illustrate sophisticated schemes for |
| conflagration and destruction. Both looters and the | | | | converting the institutions of government into |
| innocent were gunned down by the military | | | | profit centers for those holding |
| contingent that would never be held accountable. | | | | power.Government is efficiently doing exactly |
| The corrupt officials also evaded liability. | | | | what those in power want it to do.Our Founders |
| Accountability is something government learned | | | | did not expect this government to last 20 years. |
| to avoid early on.San Francisco survived. | | | | They viewed the government they established as |
| Eventually sanity returned and the people came | | | | a kind of model needing beta testing, expecting it |
| together to rebuild. Sometimes even in the face | | | | to operate within a set of defined and limiting |
| of completely incompetent care the patient lives. | | | | principles.Government is not supposed to be doing |
| The image above was taken by Arthur C, | | | | anything we can do ourselves. In the Bill of Rights |
| Pillsbury on that first day. It was a day that | | | | Numbers 9 and 10 make that clear. So why did |
| changed his life's focus.Pillsbury had just left his | | | | government steadily take over jobs being handled |
| job as the photojournalist at the San Francisco | | | | privately?For the same reason bank robbers rob |
| Examiner to start his own photography business, | | | | banks. That is where the money is. |
| the Pillsbury Picture Company, a month before. | | | | We are unused to the idea that we can examine |
| For the next weeks he caught the immediacy of | | | | government and change the tools we use to |
| events as people struggled to survive and save | | | | carry out what we want done. But that right is |
| what they could from the consuming flames. His | | | | ours whenever we choose; that is enunciated in |
| developing facility, located in Oakland, was the | | | | the Declaration of Independence.The present |
| only one functioning. Orders poured in from | | | | state of government would have shocked our |
| across the globe.Later the same year he used the | | | | Founders.Consider what life looked like to |
| profits from the San Francisco photos to achieve | | | | Founders at the turn of that century.Our |
| a long time goal and bought the Studio of the | | | | Founders lived and died in a world of small shop |
| Three Arrows in Yosemite.Pillsbury was an | | | | owners, farmers, and craftspeople. Homes and |
| engineer who majored in Mechanical Engineering at | | | | businesses provided for their own needs. |
| Stanford He had invented a specimen slicer for | | | | Innovation came with its own rewards and |
| the microscope and circuit panorama camera | | | | problems and people learned by seeing what |
| before leaving college. He was not the kind of guy | | | | worked and what didn't. That is the classical form |
| to settle for systems and tools that did not work | | | | for the transmission of human wisdom, used even |
| as expected. | | | | by chimps with no governmental intervention.The |
| In Yosemite he found other systems that were | | | | tools for government the Founders assembled |
| failing to do their jobs.The Cavalry, then in charge | | | | assumed a population that controlled most of the |
| of the Park, had long made a practice of mowing | | | | infrastructure directly through town government |
| the meadows to provide fodder for their horses. | | | | and through the people's power of purchase. |
| Pillsbury noticed that the number of wild flower | | | | Corporations did not exist in their present form. |
| species was decreasing every year in those areas | | | | Our Founders failed to see the ramifications of |
| and also that the Cavalry was not concerned. So, | | | | allowing legislation that brought the actions of |
| applying his skills as an inventor he built the first | | | | individuals under the control of government. They |
| lapse-time camera to be used with plants, | | | | were imperfect as are all of us. They did not |
| producing the first motion picture image of a wild | | | | hand us a finished product but one that needed to |
| flower gracefully raising its head to the sun. By | | | | be tested and repaired.But some things they did |
| than he had been showing and narrating nature | | | | right.Until the end of the Nineteenth Century all |
| films for two years.Now the wild flowers could | | | | school children studied the Bill of Rights and read |
| speak for themselves.That first lapse-time movie | | | | the Federalist Papers. They knew, therefore, |
| was made to persuade those in power to do the | | | | what their rights were supposed to be. |
| right thing and stop the mowing and move | | | | Understanding the operating principles, as we can |
| towards conservation.Arthur C. Pillsbury believed | | | | see, is a critical factor. |
| that all people need is the truth. If they saw the | | | | When people know it is much harder to delude |
| reality, he believed, they will choose to do the | | | | them. But politicians were persistent. They had a |
| right thing voluntarily. He was right about most | | | | lot to gain.Katrina illustrated a lot of things about |
| people, most of the time.After seeing the film | | | | government today. It took a week from the time |
| those in power stopped the mowing the same | | | | the storm hit to announce plans for |
| day. The year was 1912. | | | | redevelopment; people were still awaiting |
| Most of us do the right thing if we know what | | | | emergency help but 'gentrification' of the area |
| that is. But sometimes failing to do the right thing | | | | was already planned. Today families who have |
| is not a mistake; sometimes there is another | | | | tried to return have been refused access to their |
| agenda. Pillsbury assumed that when those in | | | | homes and property. If you watch what those in |
| power must be mistaken or lack understanding or | | | | power do, instead of believing their rhetoric the |
| simply be too lazy to care. Those were | | | | truth seeps through. Government consumed |
| possibilities that made sense to him; but that was | | | | through taxes the resources that should have |
| an incomplete understanding. When those in | | | | protected New Orleans.What has been proved is |
| power are acting on another agenda they cannot | | | | that Americans would have been better served |
| be changed with the truth.The photo Pillsbury took | | | | to keep the FEMA money within local areas to |
| that you see here, one of hundreds, shows both | | | | fund local emergency services. Because every |
| the power of nature unleashed on a city and the | | | | level of government above the local was more |
| power of corruption by government unchecked. | | | | corrupt in New Orleans last year there was none |
| Most people did not understand the risk they | | | | of the oversight residents expected and believed |
| faced, having delegated that work to the city | | | | they had paid for. Those funds went into other |
| government.Pillsbury learned one essential lesson | | | | pockets. |
| from what he observed. He decided to make | | | | Big government did not come into existence |
| sure that the people themselves had direct | | | | because the people could not find ways to handle |
| access to the information they needed. In 1912 he | | | | their problems as the country grew and the |
| invented the lapse-time camera to connect people | | | | complexity of their society increased. It came into |
| to the world of wild flowers, which had been | | | | existence because those in government were |
| overlooked even by such conservationists as John | | | | greedy and the citizens were both too trusting |
| Muir. Muir's energies were focused on saving the | | | | and did not understand that government is just a |
| Hetch Hetchy, a battle he lost.Pillsbury kept | | | | contracting service center; that knowledge had |
| working. He began lecturing and showing his | | | | been withdrawn.So what can we do to clean up |
| motion pictures. Eventually he would speak at | | | | this mess?Their system has been designed to |
| every major town forum and every university of | | | | create our perpetual and inescapable dependence. |
| note, including MIT. He expanded his lectures | | | | We can change that. |
| every year, adding new films and insights. He was | | | | |