Kiddie Rocker Dan Zanes Tears It up For DDDB
The rain on Saturday didn’t put a damper on the Develop Don’t Destroy fundraiser at the Hanson Place United Central Methodist Church in Fort Greene. Dan Zanes, the ex-Del Fuegos front man who’s reinvented himself in recent years as the Bard of Brooklyn, entertained 1,400 of his fans, young and old, to raise money for…
The rain on Saturday didn’t put a damper on the Develop Don’t Destroy fundraiser at the Hanson Place United Central Methodist Church in Fort Greene. Dan Zanes, the ex-Del Fuegos front man who’s reinvented himself in recent years as the Bard of Brooklyn, entertained 1,400 of his fans, young and old, to raise money for DDDB’s fight against Bruce Ratner’s proposed Atlantic Yards development. We’ll be interested to hear from people in the audience about the non-entertainment portion of the event. Were there many speeches other than Buscemi?
Dan Zanes Packs the House [DDDB]
It’s called grassroots organizing, dumbass.
yeah, anonymouse, you are so right. the cheering during parts of the speech must have been in support of Ratner. whoops! and i mean, who would have thunk it an informational speech at a benefit for a group involved in a big development fight. how…strange!
The crowd at this event was large not because people oppose Ratner, but because the performer is popular with kids. Hence, the turnout is in no way evidence that the opposition is large or growing. People would have attended even if it had been hosted by Ratner himself. The aforementioned 15-minute speech reminds me of how faith-based homeless shelters force their clients to attend a sermon before being fed. From the poster’s frustration, it seems that it did little more than annoy the crowd.
anony mouses.
“Dan Zanes lives in a $3 million+ town house in Cobble Hill and his wife is worth a small fortune (he ain’t livin’ on Del Fuegos money). Why doesn’t he sell his house, buy a fixer-upper in Bed-Stuy for $500K and donate the profit to DDDB? Limousine liberal anyone?”
ok. this is relevant? you must think so. so lets talk about some other relevant and related issues.
Bruce Ratner is a billionaire, has a multi-million dollar brownstone on the upper east side and rides in a limo. CHECK.
Same for Michael Bloomberg and Dan Doctoroff. CHECK.
Bruce Bender, million dollar home in Park Slope. CHECK.
Jay-Z, millions. CHECK.
so by your logic, you oppose Ratner & friends.
thanks for clarifying.
additionally, those who suggest that a single event raising 17k or up is a paltry sum–well I’m glad you aren’t my accountant.
If DDDB brings in such a pittance how is it that they’ve been going strong for well over two years now?
as adn said, argue the merits and issues, otherwise what you make relevant will bite you in the ass.
oh yeah, attack Dan Zanes at your peril. have you ever been kicked to death by thousands of 4 year olds?
nice post adn! couldn’t have said that last part better.
i mostly went to the zanes event for my son and the music. but i’ll tell you: it was pretty incredible. i was impressed with the organizers (though, candace, come on, you can’t do a 15 minute speech in a room full of 5 year olds. that was utterly clueless).
but the crowd was absolutely enormous and people were basically turned away at the door. i think it’s clear, at this point, that this dddb thing is producing a significant new movement and political reallignment in this part of brooklyn. people who poo poo it because it didn’t raise enough money, they are missing the point. find me another local political fundraiser event that brings out that big of a crowd. you can’t. dddb is reinvigorating local politics, which is good. because brooklyn is mostly run by a bunch of hacks and losers and they could use some new oversight.
likewise, the idea that it is somehow hypocrtical or contradictory to have personal wealth and fight against what you see as bad development is just completely ridiculous. this is the kind of ad hominem argument that is degrading american political discourse across the board. you guys should be ashamed for trying to turn the issue into a personal attack on the organizers. why don’t you try arguing on the merits of the ratner plan or the deficiencies of the dddb argument? why is it always about this guy daniel or now abut dan zanes brownstone and wife? is that all you’ve got to argue on? if so, it makes the ratner project even more suspect to someone who is just coming into this.
“Oh yes — it does suck that DDDb doesn’t make $1 million dollars at every fund raiser it holds.”
Exactly! That’s why their fight to stop, downsize, or stall this project is doomed to fail. Simply put, they lack the funds for a fight of that magnitude.
The only ones who may oppose this project are those that are pure of heart and have taken a vow of poverty. Any other criteria you sourpusses care to add?
Oh yes — it does suck that DDDb doesn’t make $1 million dollars at every fund raiser it holds.
Don’t Run Wild!