TIDELC - Total Information Distribution for Every Lowcountry Progressive

TIDELC - Total Information Distribution for Every Progressive in the SC Lowcountry

Revised June 3, 2015

Tide will be built on several basic, fungible units which can be easily shared across multiple online systems and real world formats. The goal is to have units of communication that our partners can efficiently share and distribute in high volume and high speed. Not everything generated will fit in those formats but we’ll have the round holes for these round pegs ready to go. This is a shared effort, so we won’t be attempting to censor or control what gets distributed by who, but we’ll present the information in ready to go bite sized pieces that will work together. 

Blue Sky Posts

The Official TIDWLC Blue Sky Feed- All Our Content will be posted here first and the feed should provide a reliable timeline of our activities.

The core unit of TIDE will be the Blue Sky post, (300 characters, can include links and can be coupled to three images, each with embedded alt text.

 All TIDELC posts should include one or more relevant, locally focused hash tags:

• #chsresists- for all lowcountry resistance information. 

• #TIDELCnow- for real time reports on local resistance and community building activity

• #TIDELCsee- material which may be of use to the progressive resistance and community building community. 

• #TIDELCact- information members of the community may wish to act on within the next 72 hours

• #TIDELCmobilize- information on important community wide efforts needing broad support. 

• There are three legacy hashtags which have been in circulation but which are now being retired: #TIDEsee; #TIDEact & TIDEmobilize

Official TIDE posts will be presented on a dedicated Blue Sky Feed, however there will also be a group of local blue sky activist feeds and accounts united under that will be gathered together. Of course anyone can use these hashtags, however when you leave the vetted feeds, please be aware that this system will be targeted for dysinformation. Be careful if you don’t know the sender. 

We expect all TIDE content will end up on other social media. We’ll have correspondents monitoring TIDE, picking up material and sharing it into those other networks and trying to make sure it gets seen. Blue Sky is the core, but we hope to see TIDE content showing up everywhere. 

Blogposts

TIDELC content from Lowocuntry Up is Good will be posted on the Up is Good Blog - https://lc-up-is-good.blogspot.com/. Other local blogs will have links posted on the Blue Sky TIDELC feed. 

Lowcountry Up is Good  , will maintaining a page with a list of locally focused progressive blogs. Many of these blog entries will be linked to Blue Sky posts. We don’t currently plan to attempt to digest or compile the massive amount of online blog posts into a single newsletter or digest. Blue sky can do that in real time if the right hashtag is used (#chsresist).

Every blog post should contain the most current and precise information available on 

1. Who is presenting the material and how they can be contacted

2. What is being planned, happening or being discussed

3. Where something is happening, including a real address if available, transit access information and parking instructions if needed. Tide activities should be within 30 miles of North Charleston City Hall. 

4. Why this effort is important and justifies involvement. How will it affect the lowcountry's future? 

5. How a person can become involved. How they can sign up. What they might need to bring. Everyone should always bring hydration, a hat and a chair. 

Calendar entries

We’re going to attempt to build a comprehensive calendar as part of TIDELC. Most events should include a link to a Google Calendar compliant event listing so it can be copied to personal and institutional calendars. You can also send an Ical file which we can import which can be generated from any calendar program or website for any event. These calendar listings should include a link to a relevant blog post and the same basic 5W information mentioned above. 

Nothing is more desperately needed than a comprehensive planning and events calendar for the Lowcountry Progressive community and nothing is harder to do. However, we are going to try. The Calendar can be found at https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=1473b164d956fb34540539491edda5684a4672ad29153b2b4b18da4e7a3e3aa6%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FNew_York online. We’ll provide updates as we try to find a way to make it work. Initial plans are to have people create a calendar listing on their own Google Calendar and send it to one of several people working on the calendar to be added. It’s not going to be perfect, so everyone should check Blue Sky for postings under #chsresist or #TIDELCact

Printables & Graphics

TIDE wants to move beyond basic online communication so we encourage people to distribute PDFs for printable information in one of three formats. Each printable should contain a QR code referencing in blogpost or source of furniture information

The three favored printable formats are:

• Quarter Page Post Card, 4.25 x 5.5 inches (This can also be conveniently turned into a postable graphic image for internet use. However printables should be optimized for black and white reproduction so you may want to tinker a bit with your layout and background to produce slightly different looks for printing and online distribution. This image from DSA at right works great online, but black printing on a white background would be preferred for printing. This should be generated 4 up per page to reduce printing costs. 

• Half Page strip, 4.25 x 11 inches, set up for 2 per page when generating the PDF

• Full 8.5 x 11 page

Links to printables can be included in blogposts; calendar listings and blue sky posts. We’ll be able to print these in small numbers on home printers in multiple locations and even run it off on a mimeograph if necessary. We are currently looking for a functional dot matrix printer and memeograph  equipment. 

Short Videos

Videos have proven to be very effective at engaging people in the Lowcountry. Our preferred format will be YouTube shorts, 2 min. Long with the appropriate hashtag. Try to get outside the talking head and go somewhere recognizable to shoot your little video. Here is one which got a good response which we recorded at Pink House. The Beautiful Backyard at Pink House. 

However we expect there to be longer videos including music videos, powerpoint type presentations and other types of video 

Banners, Buttons & Stencils

On June 10 we’ll produce the first set of large banners which can be used at demonstrations, along roadways and in other areas where a simple large format message needs to be deployed. Our current goal is to produce this in both 4 x 15 and 5 x 20 sizes. Larger and other sizes are available, but these two sizes have proven practical and effective with 3 and 4 people being able to hold them up. Of course they can also be attached to fences, posts, buildings and other areas, however they will be a target for MAGA vandalism or arson, so don’t leave your banner unattended 

We’re also going to be producing buttons, Our target size is 2.25 with the design being 2.1 inches in diameter and the round cutout size being 2.5 inches in diameter. Standardizing allows us to run off button designs on home printers and make buttons in multiple locations. 

We’re also planning to begin stenciling T-shirts using spray paint type textile ink. To help make this work, please begin collecting T-shirts. Used shirts are fine. Unprinted ones are best, but in a pinch we can always turn an old printed shirt inside out. It will do for this revolution. We can also use this method to produce small flags on napkins. Napkins and old shirts are easily found at garage sales and thrift stores 

Planned Elaborations

We expect parallel communication networks to develop alongside TIDE as the Lowcountry Progressive movement continues to grow. We won’t control those networks, which will probably include private, encrypted systems. The important thing is to make it possible to share a rich, useful stream of information instead of pouring hours into content only a handful of people see while we spend most of our time picking through paid advertising pretending to be social media, while our friends do the same instead of seeing our content. 

A Human System

While there is a lot of technology involved, TIDELC is really a system of people working together to share the now vast amount of information being generated by a community surrounded by a red state that won’t go down without a fight. We’ll rely on people to link now separate systems like the very active local communities on discord, and substack. These correspondents will take information from TIDELC there and bring what is happening out there into TIDELC. We’ll also have people sharing and commenting on the content on all the networks we connect with. 

A Work in Progress

We are just out of the hospital and trying to connect with a rapidly expanding universe of local activists all of whom know that days matter now and the race to secure and defend “Our Blue Island” against the depredations of Trump, his Billionaire friends and the Petite Oligarchs trying to take over the Lowcountry. The speed of events has far outpaced the traditional glacial velocity of Lowcountry Social life. Slowing down to perfect TIDELC and all the connected systems and people that will be needed to make it work, isn’t going to be an option. Please monitor our TIDELC Blue Sky feed for updates. Search for post tagged #TIDELCsee for things we believe you want to see and #TIDELCnow for real time activities, livestreams and on site reports. 

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Fnally, there is nothing wrong with calling us by phone: 843-870-5299. We answer 24/7 and we know we are all out of time. If we don't do it right, call back. We're old and this is all pretty intense. We’re ready to talk, there are just a lot more of you.

After we’re done talking, we’ll raise the TIDE

William J. Hamilton, III
Attorney at Law
Ex. Director, Lowcountry Up is Good, PAC, Inc.
(843)870-5299
wjhamilton29464@gmailcom