Latest news with #FLAG
Los Angeles Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
FLAG once again proves that not all punk band reunions are created equal
There was something in the air at Punk Rock Bowling in Las Vegas last weekend. No, it wasn't the sound of distorted guitars, punk rockers puking or Nazis getting punched in the face. Though there was plenty of all of that. It was the buzz surrounding FLAG, the most talked about band at the annual bowling tournament and music festival, now in its 25th year. FLAG is the hardcore supergroup composed of four former members of Black Flag — Keith Morris, Chuck Dukowski, Dez Cadena, and Bill Stevenson — and Stephen Egerton, Stevenson's longtime bandmate in the Descendents. It had been six years since the last FLAG gig, which was also at Punk Rock Bowling. But this was more than a reunion show. It felt like history in the making. It started Saturday with a panel discussion led by Fat Mike of NOFX at the Punk Rock Museum. Surrounded by photos of their younger selves taken by the late Naomi Petersen, all five members answered questions from Fat Mike, who introduced FLAG as 'the best version of Black Flag I've ever seen.' Fat Mike asked each participant to name their favorite album or song, which became something of a referendum on the band's volatility on and off the stage, with musicians cycling in and out of the band. For instance, Henry Rollins, the band's best-known vocalist, was Black Flag's fourth singer. 'When people say, 'Oh, Henry is my favorite. Ron [Reyes] was my favorite,'' Cadena said, 'usually, that's the first gig that they saw.' 'Why is it a contest?' Morris asked. 'Each one of us contributed in the way we contributed. We each had our own personality.' That those personalities frequently clashed with the band's enigmatic guitarist and songwriter Greg Ginn is the story of Black Flag. Extreme music attracts extreme people. What's unusual about these clashes is that they continued long after Ginn pulled the plug on his own band in 1986. For instance, in June 2003, Rollins and Morris played Black Flag songs together — just not at the same time, Morris clarified during the panel — to raise money and awareness for the West Memphis 3. It's probably not a coincidence that later that summer, Ginn put together a Black Flag reunion of sorts at the Hollywood Palladium. The problem? It featured musicians who'd never been in the band and they played along to prerecorded bass tracks. The shambolic set wasn't well-received. These shows were also a benefit — for cats — launching a veritable cottage industry of CAT FLAG T-shirts. In December 2011, Morris, Dukowski, Stevenson and Egerton played together for the first time at the Goldenvoice 30th anniversary show at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, where they were introduced as 'Black Flag.' The old friends had such a blast playing together, they decided to keep it going. Cadena was added to the mix and they played Black Flag songs under the banner of FLAG. The coming-out party for this lineup was an incendiary set at the Moose Lodge in Redondo Beach in April 2012. Again, it's probably not a coincidence that Ginn subsequently 'reunited' Black Flag and initiated all kinds of legal activity against his former bandmates. At the heart of the issue was who could use the names FLAG and Black Flag. At the end of the day, the courts ruled that FLAG could continue. Mike Magrann, vocalist and guitarist for L.A. punk band Channel 3, saw both bands play that year. 'It was puzzling,' Magrann said of Black Flag's set, 'because they weren't honoring their legacy. When FLAG played, they played those songs the way they sounded back then. It brought back that feeling of being a kid on the side of the pit. The real threat of violence is right there. It was unbelievable!' That ineffable feeling of danger is what drew so many people to FLAG's Memorial Day performance. Fans came from all over the world just to see the show. Joey Cape of Lagwagon wrapped up a solo tour in Japan and flew directly to Punk Rock Bowling. Like Cape and Magrann, some of the most hardcore fans were musicians who'd been inspired by Black Flag when they were young. David O. Jones of Carnage Asada drove in from L.A. with Martin Wong, who organized Save Music in Chinatown, and Martin's daughter, Eloise Wong of the Linda Lindas. They returned to L.A. immediately after the show because Eloise, who is graduating from high school, had a physics test the following morning. FLAG made it worth the trip. The band ripped through 22 songs, starting with 'Revenge' and mixing crowd favorites like 'My War' with deep cuts such as 'Clocked-In.' Morris held the microphone with both hands like he was blowing on a bugle and urging the crowd to charge. It was easily the rowdiest pit of the festival, and it swelled to nearly the length of the stage with a steady stream of crowd surfers being passed over the barricade: old men, young women and even small children. During songs like 'Gimme Gimme Gimme,' 'Wasted' and 'Nervous Breakdown,' the roar from the crowd was almost as loud as the band. There wasn't any banter from the usually loquacious Morris. Toward the end of the show, he simply said, 'Thank you for your participation,' and launched into the next song. After the obligatory performance of 'Louie Louie' at the end of the set, the players took their instruments off the stage and were gone. Fans young and old looked at each other in disbelief, their lives changed, their DNA forever altered by punk rock. FLAG had done it again. They played the songs the way they were meant to be played. They honored their legacy. It will be a tough act for Black Flag to follow. In recent years, Black Flag has been much more active. Inevitably, that means more changes to the lineup. Earlier in May, Ginn announced Black Flag will be touring Europe this summer with three new members: all of them young musicians, including a young woman named Max Zanelly as the new vocalist. Once again, the internet flooded with Black Flag memes keying on the considerable age gap between Ginn, who is 70, and his new bandmates who look many decades, if not generations, younger. Wong, who knows something about the power of young musicians to change the world, is hopeful. 'Everyone wins when there's more good music in the world,' Wong said. 'In a perfect world, the new Black Flag lineup will get Ginn stoked on music and push him forward. But if that doesn't happen, we get FLAG, the best Black Flag lineup that never happened.' While Black Flag prepares for its new chapter, is this the end of the road for FLAG? 'I don't know,' Stevenson said after the panel at the Punk Rock Museum. 'We always have fun when we get together. You can tell we love each other. I'm sure we'll do more. At some point, one of us will be too old to do it, but so far that's not the case.' Jim Ruland is the author of the L.A. Times bestselling book 'Corporate Rock Sucks: The Rise & Fall of SST Records' and a weekly Substack about books, music, and books about music called Message from the Underworld.
WIRED
18-04-2025
- Business
- WIRED
DOGE Has Access to Sensitive Labor Department Data on Immigrants and Farm Workers
Leah Feiger Vittoria Elliott Apr 18, 2025 6:00 AM Three DOGE associates have been granted access to systems at the Department of Labor housing sensitive information on migrant farm workers, visa applicants, and more. Photograph: from Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at the Department of Labor (DOL) have access to systems that house sensitive data pertaining to immigrants, sources tell WIRED. This access comes as President Donald Trump's administration has continued its crackdown on immigrants around the US, and DOGE has played a key role in collecting personal data on them. WIRED previously reported that Miles Collins, Aram Moghaddassi, and Marko Elez are all DOGE operatives embedded at the Labor Department. Collins has access to the DOL's National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP) system, according to sources with direct knowledge. This program offers funding to organizations that work with migrant and seasonal farmworkers, as well as organizations working on the state level to support job training for low-income farm workers. Last year, the program disbursed $90 million in grants. Anyone legally allowed to work in the United States and who meets the program's criteria is eligible for support. 'When I say 'migrant and seasonal farm workers,' that does not mean somebody who just arrived from Venezuela or something. It means essentially people who are authorized to work in the United States,' says a DOL employee familiar with the program. 'Maybe there's some misunderstanding even among the DOGE guys.' According to the source, access to the NFJP's system could provide the Social Security numbers of every person who is a beneficiary of the program, as well as what kind of services a beneficiary received. (Social Security numbers are assigned to US citizens as well as immigrants legally residing and working in the country.) This kind of data, says the source, is normally 'very, very controlled.' Instructions to grant Moghaddassi access to data from the DOL's Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) reporting system were also viewed by WIRED. FLAG is responsible for a number of initiatives, including wage protections for foreign workers and visa programs for foreign and temporary workers. Data on visa applicants maintained in FLAG systems, sources say, could include names, work addresses, work history, phone numbers, email addresses, and an 'alien registration number,' which is an identifier assigned to foreign nationals by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). These numbers can be found on green cards, or permanent resident cards, and employment authorization cards. Permanent Labor Certifications (PERM) are also available in the FLAG system. The certification, according to the Labor Department's website, 'allows an employer to hire a foreign worker to work permanently' in the US. The instructions to grant Moghaddassi data access to FLAG appeared under a heading that reads 'OIG access level,' which likely refers to the DOL's Office of Inspector General. The OIG at the DOL, according to its website, 'investigates fraud, waste, and abuse related to the department's programs, including the foreign labor certification programs.' FLAG is the application portal for these certification programs. Larry Turner, the former Inspector General at the Department of Labor, was fired by Trump in January as part of a broader purge of the position across more than a dozen agencies. Trump has since nominated Anthony D'Esposito, a former US congressman from New York, for the job. DOGE's access at the DOL also encompasses data that, while not directly immigration-related, could be used in conjunction with data that is. Collins, Moghaddassi, and Elez all have access to the DOL's Reentry Employment Opportunities (REO) program, WIRED has confirmed. This program at the DOL provides funding for people who were incarcerated and supports job training and other employment services. While the REO database isn't immigration-specific, the data from REO could be cross-referenced with other datasets to figure out the immigration status of formerly incarcerated people benefiting from the program. If DOGE were to find crossover, a source at the agency tells WIRED, this 'would fit so neatly with their messaging about immigrants being criminals and abusing government services.' (Despite claims from Trump's administration, there is no evidence that immigrants present threats to 'national security' and 'public safety' or that they abuse government services—in fact, research shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than people born in the US.) Moghaddassi, Elez, and Collins did not respond to requests for comment. Neither did the Department of Labor. Moghaddassi and Elez have also appeared as DOGE operatives at other federal agencies and have connections to Musk. Moghaddassi has worked at a number of Musk's companies, including X, Tesla, and Neuralink; according to previous WIRED reporting tracking DOGE operatives, he has also been linked to the Treasury Department and DHS. Elez, a 25-year-old engineer who has worked at Musk's X and SpaceX, has also appeared at the Treasury and Social Security Administration. While at the Treasury, WIRED reported, Elez had both read and write access to sensitive Treasury systems. Elez briefly resigned from DOGE after racist comments posted by an account he was linked to were discovered by The Wall Street Journal. Elez returned to DOGE after Musk and Vice President JD Vance posted in defense of him on X. Elez is also staffed at DHS, according to Politico, as part of the administration's effort to bring together data from a number of government agencies to streamline and systematize DHS enforcement and deportation. Elez, despite his initial resignation from DOGE, has seemingly been tasked with a number of unusually sensitive assignments: He is also part of the DOGE team working on a system to sell the $5 million visas that Trump calls 'gold cards.' Elez is on this team with Edward Coristine, the young DOGE operative known as 'Big Balls.' Coristine also has his hands in many agencies and recently appeared at the Labor Department, sources tell WIRED. Coristine is another key DOGE staffer planted at DHS. He has also appeared at the Office of Personnel Management, the United States Agency for International Development, the Department of Education, the General Services Administration, and the Small Business Administration. Coristine did not reply to requests for comment. 'This is an administration that is happy to go after people with legal status if it dislikes something else about them,' says Victoria Noble, a staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. 'It's just one more source of information that allows this administration to target people who are here legally, but target them for deportation or other more advanced investigations.'
Technical.ly
30-01-2025
- Technical.ly
Closing the aviation gender gap: This high school drone program is opening career pathways for young women
High school drone pilots are taking to the skies as part of a program designed to close the gender gap in the aviation industry. While the aviation industry provides fast-growing opportunities for young people to get involved, a stark gender disparity has prevented women from fully benefiting from this expanding industry, according to Janeen Peretin, an administrator at Baldwin Whitehall School District. To combat that in the local Pittsburgh region, Peretin founded Fly Like a Girl (FLAG) Drone Academy alongside Kristin Deichler of South Fayette School District and Emily Sanders of Beaver School District in 2023 to increase young women's access to careers in drone technology and aviation. Since then, dozens of girls have learned to fly drones through the program and some have gone on to become certified drone pilots — paving the way for possible career opportunities in a male-dominated field with a strong local industry. 'We thought, let's bring awareness to the students that this field exists and that there are so many possibilities within the field,' Peretin told 'Then, let's also try to move the needle a little bit with the number of female certified drone pilots.' FLAG Drone Academy is a free program helping high school girls in the Pittsburgh area pursue careers in drone technology and aviation by providing hands-on training, mentorship and the opportunity to obtain FAA Commercial Drone Certification. The Moonshot Grant-funded program has had three cohorts since it launched, pulling in students from McKeesport, Ambridge, Beaver, Baldwin and South Fayette High Schools, among others. Molly Fircak, 18, is a senior at Baldwin High School who participated in FLAG's first cohort back in the summer of 2023. She said the program changed the trajectory of her career aspirations, opening up whole new possibilities for her. 'I probably wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for the program,' Fircak said. Like many other students in FLAG, Fircak entered the program with little to no knowledge about the aviation industry, but after learning how to fly the drone and participating in several activities FLAG offers she started to think there might be a space for her in the field. Now, Fircak hopes to combine her certification with her passion for photography. She plans to study videography or cinematography in college and is already building her portfolio by using her drone to take photos for her school and the construction company her mom works for. 'Students have been almost fearful to pick up the controls the first time we go out flying,' Peretin said. 'But then to see them move from that state of nervousness and fear to one of confidence, both when they're flying and then engaging with each other …that's been fantastic.' Students can obtain certification that opens up job prospects Around 60 students have participated in the academy since it launched in 2023, with five girls obtaining their FAA certification. Throughout the program, students learn about drones and how to fly them as well as their various applications across different industries. For example, the program has featured career speakers such as local police officers, private pilots and military personnel. Students have also had the opportunity to visit with professionals who put on drone shows for Kennywood and the Pittsburgh Pirates, Peretin said. The focus on real-world skill building is crucial to FLAG's mission to change the long-term opportunities for women in aviation. The percentage of active pilot licenses held by women in the US increased from 6.6% in 2013 to just 10.3% in 2023, according to a 2024 report from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). While the number of female pilots has doubled in the past decade, from about 39,000 to nearly 83,000, gender representation in other aviation professions lags even further behind. For drones specifically, the percentage of female pilots also currently hovers under 10%, with women only making up about 8% of total drone pilots in the US, according to 2023 year-end data from the advocacy group Women and Drones. That leaves a big gap for opportunities in financial upward mobility. Not only is the commercial drone market projected to grow to over $14 billion in the next five years, according to Fortune Business Insights, but the lucrative jobs that come with that are often male-dominated. Women in aviation are disproportionately represented in lower-paying jobs, like customer service, flight attendants or administrative positions. This gender disparity in such a fast-growing sector contributes to a pay gap, where men oftentimes make more money because of their dominance in higher-paying technical roles. Why is there a deficit of women and girls in the aviation industry? A complex system of compounding barriers is to blame, according to a 2022 report from the Women in Aviation Advisory Board. Girls under 10 years old often lack industry role models in media, toys and cartoons. This absence of visibility and lack of targeted STEM education compounds throughout girls' teenage years, contributing to a lack of confidence that they could enter the industry. Early exposure to aviation and ongoing engagement are essential to the recruitment of women in the industry, which is exactly what FLAG sets out to do, Peretin said. At the end of the program, students have the opportunity to sit for the Aeronautical Knowledge Test and earn their FAA certification. So far, the five girls that have gone on to earn their certification are using their new skills to give back at their high schools and start building a portfolio for potential careers in the industry. Despite student wins, FLAG's future remains uncertain FLAG students have gone on to work as interns in the commercial drone industry, like Pranita Chakkingal, 16, a junior at South Fayette High School and an intern for Lori Paluti with Pittsburgh Drone Services and FLAG instructor. Chakkingal was inspired to participate in the program and earn her certification after learning about the lack of women in aviation. Gender disparities in STEM is something she's been passionate about from an early age and it's a personal goal of hers to 'inspire other young women,' she said. Both Chakkingal and FLAG student Fircak said the program changed how they saw themselves, helping them build confidence and discipline. 'Taking the test is definitely one of my proudest accomplishments,' Fircak said. 'I definitely do feel like I have more confidence, and I feel a lot better about my future, my skill set and what I can do with it.' Peretin said she and her collaborators hope to continue the program and another cohort is tentatively planned for May but continued funding is not certain. In the meantime, educators in participating school districts are bringing drone programming to students of all genders. For example, educators at Baldwin High School just started the second semester of a drone course that all students can participate in. 'While the [FLAG] program has been great, and we've been able to impact a handful of students through it, I didn't want the program itself to be a barrier for anybody who might be interested in learning more,' Peretin said. 'Our hope is that these districts that have participated in the program…can take this model that we've built and bring it back to their home districts.'
