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Our ‘Music as Social Action‘ philosophy, as defined by Dave Chege, is perfectly demonstrated throughsource software. This revolution has taken place over the past decade, causing a shift in the way information is traded, making software free andto the public, in design schematics and usage.

Some examples are as follows;

• Bittorrent and Limewire - peer to peer software
• Freeware - free programs for personal and professional use
• Linux - ansource operating system
• Doom - a video game that lends it’s source code to users so they can modify and customize the characters and landscape as they see fit.

I’ve designed this site using this same technology and philosophy in mind. For this reason, the music from this website is free and I’ve personally dedicated revenues from my music to charity.

Our efforts are to apply this philosophy to the music industry, through the non-profit model. In that way, non-profit naturally complementssource software, and, in turn, the effectiveness of the movement is tantamount to our own aspirations as an organization. The comparison is a no-brainer.

We use Wordpress to publish our website - ansource content management system and blog tool, similar to blogger, only it’s works independently off of your website file directory. We applysource Plugins - free tools designed for wordpress websites by software designers.

I’ve updated several of our pages in accordance:

• Events Page - The plugin for our events page uses javascript to illustrate what events are taking place on what dates, with a fully customizable set up. Looks awesome. By Fredrik Fahlstad. Link here

• Gallery Page - This plugin is described as being able to “pull in your Flickr photosets and display them as albums…. a pretty simple template provided, but you can customize the templates 100% to match the look and feel of your own site.” By Silas Partners (Joe Tan). Link here

• Music Page - The Plugin is simply described as an ‘audio player wordpress plugin’. Everyone playing music using Wordpress to publish their website uses this plugin. It’s very simple, and looks tight. By Martin Laine Link here

• Contact Page - This page employs a plugin that “is a drop-in form that allows site visitors to contact you. It can be implemented easily (via QuickTags) within any post or page. Original code derived from Ryan Duff’s WP-ContactForm plugin.” By Chip Cuccio. Link here

• Video Plugin - This feature enables us to posts videos from various hosting sites. It “creates quicktags for embedding… YouTube and Google Video, into WordPress. Uses the ButtonSnap class by Owen Winkler.” By Viper007Bond. Link here

• Spam Blocker - Akismet is it, which comes standard with every Wordpress version I’ve encountered (we currently use Wordpress v2.0.1). It “checks your comments against the Akismet web serivce to see if they look like spam or not….hat tip: Michael Hampton and Chris J. Davis for help with the plugin.” By Matt Mullenweg. Link here

• Recent Posts and Comments - For our sidebar, we use this to “Display Recent Posts, Recently Commented Posts, Recently Modified Posts, Random Posts, and other post listings using the post information of your choosing in an easily customizable manner.” By Scott Reilly. Link here

These software ninjas are taken for granted. I believe it’s vital to give designers and valuable contributions kudos. And where as, to ‘Old Skool’ internet geeks, this post is arbitrary, it’s a dynamic illustration that mirrors our own school of thought, and I give credit where it’s due. Without you guys and girls, this would be very difficult, and way uglier.

In the words of the great Tu Pac Shakur: “You are appreciated.”

No, it’s not another funky, revolutionary, musical movement, ::yawn::, it’s my friend (pictured left), and the Executive Advisor of our Advisory Committee, Richard Prete, who is now contributing content to the Alternative Fuel Source.

This is a major step for AFS. This means AFS is now officially a group blog, with Dave, myself, and now Rich, who’s role is to keep us steeped in political content and focus on issues that we feel are important on national and regional levels.

I want to write about Rich and Dave for a moment, two men who have helped me so much, professionally and personally, that words can only partly describe how valuable they are. They are my brothers, as well as business associates in our upcoming non-profit. I love them, in a strictly platonic, self-secure, guy-love type of way.

So far, it’s myself, Joseph Liberali (co-founder/Executive Director), Dave Chege (co-founder/Executive Administrator) and Richard Prete (Executive Advisor). As an aside, you may be wondering what the difference is between Executive Administrator and Executive Director, titles that help designate and define our roles in the organzation. The answer is as simple as the difference between Chege and myself (a cheap answer, I know). There are more additions to come, but this is the triumvirate that will keep the website content flowing, and work individually in their own respects, aside from a couple other key individuals to be named once we reach non-profit status.

Dave Chege, book keeper and accountant, is a self taught bass player and super genius. He’s a socially active supernova and was responsible for the promotion and organization of the now defunct independent band, Linus Bell. Kendal describes him as “unstoppable” and that description is humble. I’ve known brilliance, but never like his. I know, between him and I, that we’ll accomplish great things. His ability to interpret and articulate our ideas, practically apply them, and offer efficient additions and business models to this organization has taken this from being a dream, to an impending reality.

He has given me my life’s mission and, simply put, Alternative Fuel Source won’t work without him.

Richard Prete is lead supervisor/ass kicker for Motivational Marketing, Inc. That business wouldn’t be where it is today without Richard’s efforts and innovations. I witnessed his herculean drive personally. His business knowledge is extensive, to say the least, as are his contacts and ability. I’ve had few opportunities to have a friend that’s this geniunely good, for this long. Richard is a political junkie and a staunch supporter of a liberal agenda. He’s a valuable addition, bringing to light many issues that Alternative Fuel Source will be organizing around, his presence here can only make us a stronger, more vibrant personality amongst non-profit organizations.

And then there’s me, the Liberator. I won’t go into detail, I’m egotistical enough. I’ve already plastered my face and name all over every profile we have. I take credit for everything, even if it’s not mine to claim, and at every opportunity, so allow me to be a little modest. I just hope the company I keep and my actions on the ground illustrate who I am, so in that sense, stay tuned.

My name is Rich. Joseph Liberali has asked me to contribute to AFS. I have known Joe (aka Joeylibjr) for almost 15 years. I grew up with him and know when he’s bullshiting and when he’s not. What he’s done over the past 2 years has made me re-evaluate his word.

What Alternative Fuel Source stands for has been his dream, and now it’s reality. I’ve never in my life wanted to believe in someone more than I want to believe in Joe. What I’ve read, seen, and spoken to Joe directly about …… has sold me.

It’s easy to say you’re about something. It’s easy to tell others how you feel, it’s also easy to pretend you do something about it, but from what I’ve seen and read I know there is something different about Joe and the rest of the AFS crew. They’ve actually donated supplies to Katrina victims, they have hosted live events, and they have a brain.

“What will you contribute Rich?”

Well, I’m glad you asked. I consider myself a “political junkie”. I make sure I come home at 8PM EST to watch “Countdown with Keith Olbermann”. I search and catalogue various political news bits and video of things I think are important. Some topics include:

• Global warming
• Fair and hacker proof free elections
• Healthcare
• Education
• Fighting globalization
• Protecting our constitution and our civil rights

I’m not an expert……let me make that perfectly clear. If I can make ONE person research a topic in more detail, I feel better. The only thing I ask is for an informed/respectful debate. I like to think I can google my facts, names, and dates at the drop of a hat…… and I expect that from everyone who retorts.

In closing, I’m here to help start the discussions. This is not a place where your opinion will be bashed without reason. This is not a place where the informed have no voice. This is not a place for talking points. This is ours. Come together, donate, volunteer, share your voice.

We are eagerly awaiting.

With the recent developments at the Alternative Fuel Source, we’re revamping the site content. A lot is being erased and moved around.

In the past it’s been a personal weblog to me, and while I’ll still use this space for communication on that level, I’ve officially set up shop at Upside of the Apocalypse dot com, which is for my own non-profit music and personal blog. The music, as well all the links that were here that are gone, and other content that might have previously been associated with this website has now been moved.

This is an effort to make the site more business oriented. We want to create a forum for individual artists and organizations. We aim to intensify the focus on a non-profit, social agenda and our affiliates, but don’t worry, it’s still us. You can expect great content, but the focus will shift here as we take the next logical steps to obtaining 501(c)3 status and putting together a proper board of directors and advisors.