Not sure if the youngsters out there know how big the first Live Aid was. (They re-united The Who and Zeppelin!!! You can't imagine how big that was in 1985.) I remember being glued to the TV and having a huge pit in my stomach because I wasn't there. It was a huge huge event -- so many big names and such hype. I taped as much of it as I could and played it back a bunch of times. It just made me feel so good to hear all these great bands and know that it was for a good cause. I even liked the cheesey video David Bowie and Mick Jagger made of "Dancing in the Streets".

Sometime this decade, I read an interview of Bono talking about how little help it really was. The money they raised -- while very substantial -- just didn't go very far. And, the logistics of getting the food to starving people was extremely complicated.

Sir Bob Geldof is doing it all over again. This time, it's even bigger and hopefully the idea behind it is even more powerful. It's called Live 8 (as in the G8) and is meant to emphasize justice over charity. You can read a brief summary and a list of the line-ups so far at Radio 1. It's going to be in five cities with London as the main venue. The BBC will be broadcasting the whole thing for those of you in the UK or with broadband or Satellite Radio.

Parks are more than just pretty places. They are public space that becomes a place for relationships, organization, and leisure. And, they tend to bond neighbors and people who normally wouldn't get to know each other.