Amsterdam is not Sodom & Gomorrah

NRC/international: A 25-year-old film student from Amsterdam has taken on Fox News anchor Bill O'Reilly over his misrepresentation of the Dutch capital.

It is a much-belated response, but 25-year-old Robert Nieuwenhuijs' July 27 video reply to Fox News' description of Amsterdam as a "cesspool of corruption" has nevertheless become a hit on the video-sharing website YouTube.

[Robert Nieuwenhuijs] saw the show on YouTube and felt affronted by O'Reilly's Amsterdam-bashing. He decided to post a video reply on YouTube, calling it . He looked up numbers about drugs use from American and Dutch national surveys and made some striking comparisons.

Dit is echt zo geweldig gedaan!!! The truth about Amsterdam! Makes me proud that I was born there!



Cross posted at Blazing Indiscretions and with some edits at Antemedius. Hat tip to 24oranges.

Freedom Glory

When you discover that you're a day behind for the week,
When you realize that it's Friday instead of Thursday
What do you do?

Post a music video called "Freedom, Glory, Be Our Name..." Duh!

Ben & Jerry's lets it drip, drip, drip

Who knew? Ben & Jerry's ice cream supported waterboarding?

Barack Obama Letter

Dear Friend,

If you’re like most Americans, there’s nothing more important to you about health care than peace of mind.

Given the status quo, that’s understandable. The current system often denies insurance due to pre-existing conditions, charges steep out-of-pocket fees – and sometimes isn’t there at all if you become seriously ill.

It’s time to fix our unsustainable insurance system and create a new foundation for health care security. That means guaranteeing your health care security and stability with eight basic consumer protections:

• No discrimination for pre-existing conditions
• No exorbitant out-of-pocket expenses, deductibles or co-pays
• No cost-sharing for preventive care
• No dropping of coverage if you become seriously ill
• No gender discrimination
• No annual or lifetime caps on coverage
• Extended coverage for young adults
• Guaranteed insurance renewal so long as premiums are paid

Learn more about these consumer protections at Whitehouse.gov.

Over the next month there is going to be an avalanche of misinformation and scare tactics from those seeking to perpetuate the status quo. But we know the cost of doing nothing is too high. Health care costs will double over the next decade, millions more will become uninsured, and state and local governments will go bankrupt.

It’s time to act and reform health insurance, drive down costs and guarantee the health care security and stability of every American family. You can help by putting these core principles of reform in the hands of your friends, your family, and the rest of your social network.

Thank you,
Barack Obama

Iran, this revolution‌ will be televised!

Please visit the new blog Iran, this انقلاب‌ will be televised! and support the Iranian peoples as they struggle for what is rightfully theirs to have; a new government.

Darkness to light- Jonestown is back

And in a surprise to everyone present, Her farewell speech was chock full’a Status Quo Wingnut “Pay Attention to Me” Paranoia (Here’s an Excerpt)-

Friends, and fellow Self-Righteous, Mud Humping, Haven’t a Fucking Clue About Jack Shit Creationist Whack Jobs, I stand before you today, Proud. Proud to know that I, like you, am not a Mean Old Liberal Meanie Pants. Proud to know that I am not part of the Elite Establishment Hell Bent on being Really Mean, and Nasty, and Hurtful toward people like Myself who are simply trying to Improve their Standing in life by Grifting the plethora of Mouth Breathing Goobers in this country Desperate for a Messiah, No Matter How Absurd, to save them from the Mundanity of their Sad, Meaningless Lives.
(Read the rest at Jonestown...)

my fellow americans

anyone else notice the uptick in murders, assaults and break ins lately? economic downturns do tend to move populations in that direction- especially given the housing situation. there was an article from colorado that highlighted troops who have come home from iraq and afghanistan and their propensity towards violent crimes. it's an interesting and fairly scary read.

which got me musing about how truly violent a nation america is- and has been from the start. for the most part, the nation hasn't warred on itself- officially- but there is the daily violence of citizen against citizen that goes on. the ugly, hate filled rhetoric we witness on the internet and the tv news shows bombard us with overt and subtle messages that it's an 'us against them' world.

which doesn't bode well for this country. i hope that there won't be an all out civil war again in this country in my lifetime. i do see it coming though. it isn't enough to agree to disagree anymore- opposing sides line up like gladiators and tear each other down- for now it has been fairly verbal. with the advent of the 'birthers' and the 'tea bag parties' though, what was underground has bubbled to the surface. the left is woefully unprepared and make no mistake- it will be a war of ideology- and perhaps geographic area. i have no words of wisdom other than- forewarned is forearmed. keep eyes open and just know what is coming. americans are violent folks.
"

What a Better "War on Drugs" Could Look Like

The Merida Initiative, a 3-year, $1.4 billion counternarcotics aid package, is the US's current program of assistance to combat the drug-fueled violence that has turned Mexico into a war zone. It tries to help Mexico take the offensive and win the fight against the powerful drug cartels by strengthening the Mexican police and military. That is the same sort of strategy as is Plan Columbia, a strategy reaffirmed by Bush in the 2008 National Drug Control Strategy.

However, the Merida Initiative won't likely have a meaningful, long-term impact in restraining the drug trade and drug-related violence as it is currently set up, according to a paper published by the US Army War College entitled "Mexico's Narco-Insurgency and U.S. Counterdrug Policy." Because it focuses primarily on security, enforcement, and drug prohibition issues, the Merida Initiative fails to give adequate attention to the deeper structural problems that fuel the situation.

Those problems include

* official corruption,
* widespread poverty and inequality,
* weak governance,
* high demand for illegal narcotics in the United States, and
* the flow of illicit arms across the U.S. border into Mexico.

Because these factors have frustrated Mexican attempts to rein in the cartels so far, it's quite likely that they will also limit the effectiveness of the Merida Initiative.

To make U.S. counternarcotics policy fully effective, it is absolutely necessary, the study says, to create a more holistic and better-integrated approach to the "war on drugs." This would go beyond the politically popular aspects of counternarcotics-like drug prohibitions--and attend to the root issues: honing in on more controversial issues like guns and the US demand for street drugs.

The focus needs to include

* anti-corruption initiatives,
* economic and social development,
* institution building, and
* efforts to restrict U.S. domestic demand and lessen illicit arms trafficking into Mexico.

Because international drug trade is so entrenched, even a "perfect" counternarcotics strategy will not work in the short-run. Results will be seen only on a long-term basis.

Summary of the paper: "Mexico's Narco-Insurgency and U.S. Counterdrug Policy"

Author: Hal Brands. You can download the PDA of the paper here.

Tell Reid: No vacation for the Senate before health care reform passes.

TAKE ACTION!!!

President Obama has made it very clear that passing meaningful health care reform is his top priority this summer - but on July 23, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the full Senate wouldn't vote on a bill until the fall.

This is not only disrespectful to the millions of Americans who can't afford private insurance, it's bizarre considering Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced just days prior that she would keep the House in session through it's August recess if that's what it takes to pass a bill.

So what's the problem in the Senate?

The problem is Montana Democrat Max Baucus.

We already have a good health care bill in the Senate from Sen. Kennedy's HELP Committee - a bill that includes a public option. We need the Finance Committee to pass a bill that will fund the HELP Committee bill, and Baucus says he needs time.

Time is one thing. But it's well known that Baucus is planning to pass a bill that won't include a public option. And Reid shouldn't let him.

Sen. Reid shouldn't give Sen. Baucus the time he needs to eviscerate real health care reform - not when Americans' lives are on the line.

Sign this petition today to tell Sen. Reid: Don't let the Senate take a vacation until it passes meaningful health care reform that includes a public option.

YOO HOO

Unconvicted war criminal John Yoo probably thought he'd be getting out of the limelight when he temporarily relocated from Berkeley, where he holds a tenured professorship at prestigious Boalt Hall School of Law, to the friendlier surroundings of Orange County and little-known Chapman University. Alas, it was not to be. (Link)

Gospel Music Giant: Horace Boyer 1935-2009

From The Lead: Horace Boyer, editor of the Episcopal Hymnal, Lift Every Voice and Sing, a beloved musician who loved teaching others to sing with passion, enthusiasm and excellence, has died at age 74.

I found YouTube links to two songs featuring the Boyer Brother --



You can also listen to "Going Back To God"

A small dose of reality for A Small Dose of Reality

A LETTER TO A SMALL DOSE OF REALITY...

Dear BG,
Your "New Preamble to the Constitution" is steeped in soft-shoe racism and ignorance, but there I go repeating myself.

You say there are those among us that are changing the heritage of our nation... Who's changing the heritage of this country? (Maybe it's you.)

HERITAGE:
1. Property that is or can be inherited; an inheritance. 2. Something that is passed down from preceding generations; a tradition. 3. The status acquired by a person through birth; a birthright: a heritage of affluence and social position. SYNONYMS: inheritance, legacy, tradition.

~~~

What if we, which is within our rights, decide to leave our inheritance to a traditional Latino/American family, or an African/American family or a Jewish/American family or a Muslim/American family or a Russian/American family or a mixed race American family, etc? Bet you never thought of that one did you?

~~~

INHERITANCE:
-The rules of inheritance differ between societies and have changed over time.

Inheritance of what, stolen land? Inheritance of property (land) is one thing, but inheritance of ignorance is the death knell for the republic, or even for democracy.

~~~

LEGACY:
1. money or personal property left to someone by a will. 2. something handed down to a successor.

You're repeating yourself.

~~~

TRADITION:
1. The passing down of elements of a culture from generation to generation, especially by oral communication. 2. (a) A mode of thought or behavior followed by a people continuously from generation to generation; a custom or usage. (b) A set of such customs and usages viewed as a coherent body of precedents influencing the present: followed family tradition in dress and manners. 3. A body of unwritten religious precepts. 4. A time-honored practice or set of such practices. 5. Law. Transfer of property to another. A specific practice or thought pattern of long standing.

~~~

You do realize that our "traditions" were either stolen, co-opted or developed using the talents, blood sweat and tears of our ancestors, don't you?

~~~

ARTICLE X:
"This is an English speaking country. We don't care where you are from, English is our language. Learn it or go back to wherever you came from!"

Our ancestors, for your information, were all from different lands (aliens), aside from the traditions of the aboriginal North Americans (which we've been content with simply destroying) and whom, by the way, did not speak a lick of The King's English, until that is, they had to speak it to protect themselves from English speaking barbarians!

~~~~

IGNORANCE: the state in which one lacks knowledge, is unaware of something or chooses to subjectively ignore information.

Ignorance is a tradition most utilized by we the people.
It will be to the detriment of her sovereignty if it remains thus.

Letter to the RNC from thepoetryman

To whom it may concern at the RNC,
I have, for some time now, watched you go from outright lies and fear mongering, straight into bigotry, obfuscation, outright lies and fear mongering. Will you stop at nothing short of treason? Is that your plan, to destroy America? If not, there is little evidence to the contrary.

Your new site, GOP.com (the blog in particular), has this in red on the front page-
5/15/09 Update: What you see here is a placeholder between what was and what is to come for GOP.com. Don't get too used to this page--the complete rebuild is around the corner. Soon we'll have a new look and a more enjoyable, modern, open and participatory way to share our ideals with the Country.

What I see is a placeholder between the truth and deceit,
What was the GOP and what has become of the GOP.
What I see is a placeholder between the people and the facts,
A wall of separation so thick your constituents are as blind as justice.
Duped by the modern GOP, no longer the party of Lincoln, Roosevelt, Ike and Dewey.
No. This new party has morphed into something akin to a Dominionist frat house…

It is not your website that you need rebuild; it is your party.
It will take great courage and willpower to bring the GOP back from its collapse;
Back to a more enjoyable, modern, open and honest party,
But it is something that must be done to be the party of the open door;
The party of liberty, the party of equality, the party of bipartisanship,
and the party of opportunity for all.

I wish you luck with such a tall order, but I’m an optimist.
I just know that you can take back the GOP from the charlatans that have surreptitiously slipped it from out of your hands.

Sincerely,
Mark Prime

entitlement

mmmm.... the computer gods hate me. i wrote a post last night and apparently, it didn't schedule. c'est la vie. i'll give it a go and see if i can put most of it back. i am not an overly social person- never have been- so it's through that lens that i view the world and american culture at large. lately, however, i have been out and about more having people from hubby's work over and us visiting with family and friends. from what i can see- american culture is in real trouble.

whoever i talk to- no matter where i go- at the grocery store; on the phone; via email; in person- folks have been complaining about the same thing- entitlement. there's this feeling of entitlement. people my age or older complain about the younger folks wanting the good life but wanting it handed to them as if they are owed. they want the house, kids, car, gadgets- but don't want to work for it. and yet, almost to the person, these younger folks have it. why?

ahhh..... this is where the story gets good- the folks who are complaining continue to hand it to them. almost to a person, the folks i have talked to have purchased or given these folks exactly what they wanted so as not to let their children's children suffer. uh huh. so, my thought on the bigger picture- i don't see anything in america changing anytime soon.

the lack of introspection and the ability to see that you are the issue and you are creating the problem- well, it perpetuates the other's feeling of entitlement. and let's face it- the folks who feel entitled in positions of power aren't anymore inclined to give up their lifestyle than the young folks who misuse public assistance because they want to stay at home and play house without working for it. and we complain a blue streak. and we perpetuate the problem....

Don't blink...

Assennara [Arab Israeli journal] learned from reliable sources that the Israeli government in the late 50s and early 60s prepared a plan to limit the "birth rate" of the Arabs who remained in the country [after the 1948 war] in an effort to solve the demographic problems resulting from the increasing growth ratio among Arabs; which the Israeli government though of as a security danger that threatened the demographic balance in the country.

There will be a day that all that is left is one Palestinian woman holding her baby at gun point on the beach and the paper will read... Palestinian woman swears to drive Israel off the map...__TnHilltopper

Glenn Greenwald lays the truth down and slams the door on the rest...

Saturday July 18, 2009 07:19 EDT
Celebrating Cronkite while ignoring what he did

"The Vietcong did not win by a knockout [in the Tet Offensive], but neither did we. The referees of history may make it a draw. . . . We have been too often disappointed by the optimism of the American leaders, both in Vietnam and Washington, to have faith any longer in the silver linings they find in the darkest clouds. . . .

"For it seems now more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate. . . . To say that we are closer to victory today is to believe, in the face of the evidence, the optimists who have been wrong in the past" -- Walter Cronkite, CBS Evening News, February 27, 1968.

"I think there are a lot of critics who think that [in the run-up to the Iraq War] . . . . if we did not stand up and say this is bogus, and you're a liar, and why are you doing this, that we didn't do our job. I respectfully disagree. It's not our role" -- David Gregory, MSNBC, May 28, 2008.

When Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Halberstam died, media stars everywhere commemorated his death as though he were one of them -- as though they do what he did -- even though he had nothing but bottomless, intense disdain for everything they do. As he put it in a 2005 speech to students at the Columbia School of Journalism: "the better you do your job, often going against conventional mores, the less popular you are likely to be . . . . By and large, the more famous you are, the less of a journalist you are."

In that same speech, Halberstam cited as the "proudest moment" of his career a bitter argument he had in 1963 with U.S. Generals in Vietnam, by which point, as a young reporter, he was already considered an "enemy" of the Kennedy White House for routinely contradicting the White House's claims about the war (the President himself asked his editor to pull Halberstam from reporting on Vietnam). During that conflict, he stood up to a General in a Press Conference in Saigon who was attempting to intimidate him for having actively doubted and aggressively investigated military claims, rather than taking and repeating them at face value:

Picture if you will rather small room, about the size of a classroom, with about 10 or 12 reporters there in the center of the room. And in the back, and outside, some 40 military officers, all of them big time brass. It was clearly an attempt to intimidate us.

General Stilwell tried to take the intimidation a step further. He began by saying that Neil and I had bothered General Harkins and Ambassador Lodge and other VIPs, and we were not to do it again. Period.

And I stood up, my heart beating wildly -- and told him that we were not his corporals or privates, that we worked for The New York Times and UP and AP and Newsweek, not for the Department of Defense.

I said that we knew that 30 American helicopters and perhaps 150 American soldiers had gone into battle, and the American people had a right to know what happened. I went on to say that we would continue to press to go on missions and call Ambassador Lodge and General Harkins, but he could, if he chose, write to our editors telling them that we were being too aggressive, and were pushing much too hard to go into battle. That was certainly his right.

(Read the rest...)

Palin Poetry?

John Lundberg has a wonderful piece up on The Huffington Post called: Sarah Palin, The Anti-Poet.

After reading it I thought I'd add my two cents...

~

Calling what Sarah Palin spits out of her bungling maw should never be considered poetry. Ever!

Aside from "repetition"
She displays nothing that nears poetry.
No form, no rhythm, no rhyme nor reason.
No ambiguity, symbolism, or irony.
No other stylistic elements.
No metaphor, simile or metonymy.

She is rhythm(less), meter(less), thoughtless,
And without an nth of metrical pattern.
Her words possess no alliteration,
Assonance nor form!

_________________________________________________________________

The distinction between historian and poet is not in the one writing prose and the other verse... the one describes the thing that has been, and the other a kind of thing that might be. Hence poetry is something more philosophic and of graver import than history, since its statements are of the nature rather of universals, whereas those of history are singulars. ~Aristotle, On Poetics

A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world, and stop it going to sleep. ~Salman Rushdie

There is poetry as soon as we realize that we possess nothing. - John Cage
_________________________________________________________________


Sarah Palin"s the antithesis of a poet. She's a blank sheet of paper waiting to be written upon or discarded altogether as contrivance. ~thepoetryman


Below is a video featuring Sarah's speechwriter and it certainly gives valuable insight as to why she was always so "poetic" in her speeches. Seriously. Watch it and see for yourself...

The Death of Why?: An Interview With Author Andrea Batista Schlesinger

The topic below was originally posted on my blog, the Intrepid Liberal Journal.

The phrase “knowledge is power” is a cliché in our culture. Yet as often as we hear it from others or speak it ourselves, how often have we contemplated the process of acquiring knowledge? Is there a blueprint for obtaining knowledge and wisdom? Are we encouraging children to be intellectually curious or merely teaching them that every question has an instant and obvious answer?

In her book, The Death of Why?: The Decline of Questioning and the Future of Democracy (Berrett-Kohler Publishers), New York City policy expert Andrea Batista Schlesinger writes that,

“Why is the first question most children ask. With this question we express, to the delight and chagrin of our parents, our power.

In my life, questions have always been power. Asking them enabled me to overcome the challenges I faced as a young woman sitting at tables where I didn’t automatically belong.”

Although only thirty-two, Schlesinger has operated in the arena of policy debates locally in New York City and nationally for over a decade. Since 2002, Schlesinger has applied her background in public policy, politics, and communications to transform the Drum Major Institute (“DMI”) into a progressive policy think tank with national impact. During her tenure as Executive Director, DMI created its Marketplace of Ideas series which highlights successful progressive policies from across the country and launched two public policy blogs that reach several thousand readers a day; and embarked on a national program to nurture careers in public policy for college students from underrepresented communities.

Recently, Schlesinger took a leave of absence from DMI to serve as a senior policy adviser to the re-election campaign of New York City mayor Michael R. Bloomberg – a decision that is controversial among New York City liberals like myself. Prior to joining DMI, Schlesinger directed a national Pew Charitable Trusts campaign to engage college students in discussion about the future of Social Security and served as the education adviser to Bronx borough president and mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer.

The one life lesson Schlesinger has learned above all others in her career and promotes passionately her book is that questions equals power. It is Schlesinger’s contention that our culture promotes instant answers at the expense of inquiring.

With this book, Schlesinger has four primary objectives:

1) Convince readers of the importance of inquiry in our democracy

2) Illustrate how the very institutions that should be encouraging inquiry such as schools, the media, and government, the Internet are instead undermining intellectual curiosity in our society;

3) Inspire readers with hopeful examples of people working to restore inquiry to its rightful place of importance;

4) Convey a sense of urgency among citizens to develop effective “habits of the mind” and not be easily seduced by instant easy sound bite answers to complex challenges such as global warming.

Death of Why, is a well researched and scrupulously sourced eleven chapters and 215 pages of text. Where Schlesinger’s book is especially provocative is when she takes bloggers like me to task for engaging in robotic group-think and avoiding engagement with people possessing different viewpoints.

Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo said that,

"The road to wisdom is asking 'why'? Andrea Batista Schlesinger has been asking 'why?" and supplying her own bright and thoughtful answers for long enough so that some of us suggested she write a book. It's foruntate for all of us that her answer was 'why not!'"

The publisher of The Nation, Kathleen vanden Heuvel added that,

"From her start in politics as a teenager Andrea Batista Schlesinger has asked the important questions. Now she asks her most important: are we teaching young people to value inquiry, and if not, what hope can we have for the future of democracy?"

Schlesinger graciously agreed to a telephone podcast interview with me this afternoon about her book. She was engaging and assertive in a conversation that was just over forty-six minutes. Among the topics discussed and debated is her contention that we’re ideologically segregated, her argument that the Internet has reinforced a destructive group think mentality in our society, her advocacy for civics education and objection to teaching “financial literacy” in public schools and we closed by discussing her decision to join Mayor Bloomberg’s re-election campaign as a senior policy adviser.

Please refer to the flash media player below.



This interview can also be accessed at no cost via the Itunes Store by either searching for the “Intrepid Liberal Journal” or “Robert Ellman.”

Howard Dean, M.D. Supports the War Drug

JUAN GONZALEZ: In terms of the—to get back again to other issues right now, I’d like to ask you about the continuation and expansion of the American war in Afghanistan. Do you have concerns about—that this is becoming really President Obama’s war—

HOWARD DEAN: It is.

JUAN GONZALEZ: —and the impact on our country in the future?

HOWARD DEAN: Look, again, you know—and I don’t have to say anything nice; I’m not in the administration. But I’m with Obama on his conduct of the war. I always said, when I was running against the Iraq war, that Afghanistan was different.

Let me tell you what the stakes are now. And what I find incredibly refreshing about this president is he uttered words that Lyndon Johnson never said, which is that we cannot win this war militarily. He knows that from the get-go. Here’s what’s at stake. It’s not just the Taliban. I think we could probably control the Taliban and the al-Qaeda in the Northwest territories by doing some of the things we’re already doing—drones and air power and so forth. Roughly 50 percent of the Afghan people are women. They will be condemned to conditions which are very much like slavery and serfdom in a twelfth century model of society where they have no rights whatsoever. So, I’m not saying we have to invade every country that doesn’t treat women as equal, but we’re there now. We have a responsibility. And if we leave, women will experience the most extraordinary depredations of any population on the face of the earth. I think we have some obligation to try and see if we can make this work, not just for America and our security interests, but for the sake of women in Afghanistan and all around the globe. Is this acceptable to treat women like this? I think not.

AMY GOODMAN: We just interviewed an Afghan parliamentarian, Dr. Wardak. She said the opposite. She said, yes, she agrees with you on the way women are treated, but that this is worsening the treatment, that the increased number of civilian deaths in Afghanistan, the huge number of troops that are coming in right now, are alienating the Afghan population.

The above is an extract from an interview last week on Democracy Now! with Howard Dean, former Governor of Vermont and establishment Democratic celebrity. It was also included in a post at Ten Percent, which I also recommend to readers of The Peace Tree for further context on the escalating, brutal war in Afghanistan.

Cross posted at Antimedius and Blazing Indiscretions.

Photo: Ghazni protest in February against an attack on civilians by coalition forces.

A Jewish Voice for Peace

Jewish Voice for Peace

Jewish Voice for Peace is a diverse and democratic community of activists inspired by Jewish tradition to work together for peace, social justice, and human rights. We support the aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination.

We seek:

* A U.S. foreign policy based on promoting peace, democracy, human rights, and respect
for international law
* An end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem
* A resolution of the Palestinian refugee problem consistent with international law and equity
* An end to all violence against civilians
* Peace among the peoples of the Middle East

We are among the many American Jews who say to the U.S. and Israeli governments: "Not in our names!"

JVP supports peace activists in Palestine and Israel, and works in broad coalition with other Jewish, Arab-American, faith-based, peace and social justice organizations.


FOR A CHANGE IN U.S. POLICY

Jewish Voice for Peace calls for a U.S. foreign policy that promotes democracy and human rights. The United States must stop supporting repressive policies in Israel and elsewhere. U.S. military aid to countries in the Middle East must be based on rigorous enforcement of the Arms Export Control and Foreign Assistance Acts, which mandate that military aid may be used for only defensive purposes within the recipient country's borders, and that aid may not be delivered to countries that abuse human rights.

Under these guidelines, U.S. military aid to Israel must be suspended until the occupation ends, since the occupation itself is in violation of these guidelines. Military aid allows Israel to avoid making serious efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as well as conflicts with its other neighbors. It enables the occupation, contributes to the devastation of Palestinian society and fosters the increasing militarization of Israeli society.

JVP also calls for suspension of military aid to other human rights abusers and occupiers in the Middle East. This aid helps prop up autocratic and repressive regimes, promotes violations of human rights and international law, obstructs democratic movements, prolongs the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and fosters militarism and violence at home and abroad.


FOR PALESTINIAN-ISRAELI PEACE

Israelis and Palestinians have the right to security, sovereignty, and self-determination within political entities of their own choosing.

Israel must end its occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem, completely withdraw from these Occupied Territories and relinquish all its settlements, military outposts and by-pass roads.

Jerusalem has to be shared in a manner that reflects its spiritual, economic, and political importance to both Israelis and Palestinians, as well as to all Jews, Muslims and Christians.

The plight of Palestinian refugees needs to be resolved equitably and in a manner that promotes peace and is consistent with international law. Within the framework of an equitable agreement, the refugees should have a role in determining their future, whether pursuing return, resettlement, or financial compensation. Israel should recognize its share of responsibility for the ongoing refugee crisis and for its resolution.

The parties must equitably distribute water and other natural resources.

Diplomatic negotiations between the two parties must be held unconditionally. Countries other than the U.S. should be involved in peace negotiations. An international peacekeeping force should be established to protect all civilians.


FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

All people of the Middle East deserve the right to democratic participation and equality within their societies, regardless of religion, ethnicity, culture, national origin, language, race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or other status.

Israel must cease its use of military force against Palestinian civilians, including attacks involving American-supplied F-16s and Apache helicopters. Moreover, Israel must stop land seizures; destruction of homes, infrastructure, orchards and farms; arbitrary arrests and imprisonment; torture; assassinations; expulsions; curfews; travel restrictions; abuse at checkpoints; raids; collective punishment; and other violations of human rights.

Palestinians must stop suicide bombings and other attacks on Israeli civilians.

The international community must support Palestinian efforts to promote democracy and human rights, while understanding that this aim cannot be fully achieved under occupation.

Racism and bigotry cannot be tolerated, whether in the U.S. or abroad, whether against Arabs or against Jews.

Here's Where Our Stimulus Money Is Going!

reposted from Grassroots Press, Las Crucis, NM July 14, 2009:

Here is where our stimulus money is going:
Kirtland AFB to Gain 430 Positions in FY10 Force Restructuring

KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. – As part of the U.S. Air Force’s force structure changes for Fiscal Year 2010, Kirtland AFB is set to gain 243 military and 187 civilian positions beginning Sept. 30, 2009.

Many of these additional positions will go to strengthen and support the Air Force’s nuclear mission, either directly or indirectly. The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Kirtland will continue its focus on the nuclear sustainment, acquisition and logistics mission. Reinvigorating the nuclear enterprise remains the service’s No. 1 priority. Through a back-to-basics approach, the Air Force is re-emphasizing accountability, compliance, and precision in the nuclear mission.

Following is a detailed breakdown of Kirtland’s force structure changes by organization:

Unit Name/ No. of Military Positions / No. of Civilian Positions

377th Air Base Wing / 5 / 2
377th Force Support Squadron / 0 / 3
377th Security Forces Squadron / 134 / 0
498th Munitions Maintenance Group / 0 / 2
498th Nuclear Systems Group / 1 / 2
498th Nuclear Systems Wing / 6 / 11
708th Nuclear Sustainment Squadron / 1 / 13
709th Nuclear Systems Squadron / 4 / 14
710th Nuclear Systems Squadron / 10 / 9
898th Munitions Squadron / 3 / 2
Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center / 33 / 86
Air Force Inspection Agency / 46 / 19
Other commands at Kirtland / 0 / 9

Bob Anderson,
Albuquerque

TWIN PEAKS (the giant)

This Twin Peaks scene is what I imagine it would have been like to have been in a meeting with Dick Cheney...

Please forgive me, Mr. Lynch...

"Agent Cooper has been shot and is in the land of nowhere. A Giant appears....

Caught Red-handed: Open Discrimination in Holland

Cross posted at Blazing Indiscretions.

Yesterday, DutchNews.nl ran a story which appeared in the Dutch daily AD about Albert Heijn railway station shops banning Moroccan youth from working in them.

[S]everal branches of AH To Go in Amsterdam and at the Hague's main station include the words 'No Moroccans' in bold letters on a list of times and days when extra staff are needed.

The list was emailed to 31 AH To Go shops on June 4, the paper says. Branch managers who asked if this was correct were sent another email the same day with the text 'urgent, No Moroccans', the paper says.

AH To Go shops are small supermarkets where people can buy a sandwich or salad as well as essential supplies. Albert Heijn is part of the bourse-listed Ahold supermarket group.

If you read further, you'll see it's garnered quite a few comments.

That is REVOLTING.
I have also seen many places where it's made clear only men or young ladies wanted. They put the AGES and AH has done that as well right in the window!

Some aspects of life here are NOT advanced.. and open discrimination is one of them.
++++++++++
It's not only AH there are many other areas racial discrimination is going on (for confirmation please check it with the Human Rights Organizations, the UN department of human rights/Netherlands etc).

Yes, for me also its a shocking news that very openly extreme discriminating employment policies were shown even at the window's)

Discrimination is in every human society,country and continent.It's not only here in the Netherlands.

If the political leadership doesn't realize their responsibilities to unite Dutch Nation under the motto " We are one nation with different colours and traditions",then many more incidents are knocking at our door step. Which will effect every body!

We all have to condemn any discrimination by any one including the criminal acts by any one,with out naming a particular ethnic group.

We all know that whatever our actions or right or wrong,positive or negative at the end we have to receive back good or bad.

We all have to become a nation a force against those elements willing to disturb peace and harmony in our country.

The focus has to be positive,constructive and productive and that's the only way to obtain positive Civic Results.

++++++++++
As always, the Netherlands shows the world that it is a bastion of racism underneath its image of tolerance and weed smoking. Te UB needs to step in and make the Dutch government invest at least 3% of its GDP in anti racism education in schools, universities, workplace. The culture that was at the origin of apartheid and horrors in the spice islands of Asia has a long way to go in educating its Caucasian aborigine population about accepting others. Affirmative action is the only solution: at least 10% of gov employees and professionals in firms should be of non Caucasian origin in the Netherlands for the next 2 decades. The Obama meter says that the Netherlands is 300 year away from having an Obama as a president if things remain as they are.

Yesterday, the site ran an editorial:

Thursday 16 July 2009

The AD's story about branches of Albert Heijn's To Go stores being told not to employ Moroccans is a slap in the face to children prepared to work for less than €4 an hour, says Robin Pascoe.

Supermarkets are currently engaged in yet another price war, based on the myth that food should be cheap.

And one of the results of that is pressure on wages - paying your staff as little as you can get away with and preferring cheap youngsters who earn less than the official minimum wage.

There is a reason, therefore, that Holland's supermarkets are full of teenagers doing the repetitive, physical and never-ending job of stocking the shelves or manning the tills.

Working in a supermarket is very badly paid. As a 17-year-old, you will be lucky to earn more than €3.60 an hour. No tips.

These are jobs which in the big cities at least are largely done by children from an ethnic minority background. Middle-class white kids don't want to dirty their hands for such a trivial amount.

And yet, here we have a company - a division of Dutch Rail - which has decided some of its 'to go' stores at stations should not take on any more Moroccans. And why? According to one nameless individual, customers feel threatened.

There are two main points to be made here. Imagine if the company had said no Jews, or no Blacks, or no Germans? There would have been an outcry.

But no Moroccans? Well, there has been a bit of muttering about taking action against the staff involved and about apologising. But the follow-up coverage has been muted.

And where are the MPs demanding to know why people working for a state-owned company think this is acceptable and calling for heads to roll? Nowhere, so far at least.

It's hard enough to be a Dutch teenager with Moroccan roots in foreigner-hostile Holland. And this ban is not only racist, but it's a slap in the face to a group of youngsters who are prepared to work for such poor pay.

COMMENT: "... prepared to work for such poor pay."

Yeah, you can say that, as if they have a choice. I would suggest the youths are forced to take these jobs because there is nothing else for them.

Mr Pascoe has written about exploitation of workers. And he alludes to xenophobia and racism, but doesn't go deeper; he mentions neither the inherent systemic (covert) white privelege nor the growing Islamophobia throughout the country.

Unity Music Group - Matt Pless - "White Picket Fences"

Unity Music Group held a charity concert to benefit Benny Nickerson in his battle with cancer, and many groups turned out. This is part of the set from Matt Pless. JTMP was there to film it all, and urges everyone to check out and support the Unity Music Group and all the artists who participated. For more information, go to their MySpace site at MySpace.com/UnityMusicGroup.

Imagine Nation - Gustavo

http:/www.jtmp.org Justice Through Music- Gustavo sings his anti-torture protest song at an anti-torture rally in Washington, DC on June 11, 2009.

Standing with Disney Workers

‘We will not eat, meet or stay in the Disney Hotels until the workers invite us back.’ - Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire at a protest for Disney hotel workers rights, July 15, 2009

Cross posted at Blazing Indiscretions.

I love what Bp Robinson said, because his words respect the dignity of the workers who have cared for the delegates.

Elizabeth Kaeton was there, too, and reports that a "somber," lower-level Disney management type accepted the petition. Embarrassing for Disney to get bad PR from this action, no doubt. I suspect the corporate big-wigs are just smiling with relief back at headquarters: Phew! there was no strike!!

But, if the workers had decided to go on strike or had been in the midst of one, what would TEC do/have done? It could have got real ugly quickly. Would the clergy and lay delegates have still supported the workers?

What is TEC's and Integrity's policy when vetting convention locations? Before a booking confirmation, do they investigate how the workers' rights are respected by the corporations/municipalities that own/manage the hotels and convention halls? What about assurances of a liveable wage for workers?


From Integrity's blog

You’ve all heard about Disney’s support for LGBT – they’ve were even subject to a nine-year boycott by ultra-conservative American Family Association because of their ‘embrace of the homosexual lifestyle’. But their embrace no longer encompasses their employees – LGBT or straight.

Today Convention was invited to join a rally and march organized by the Episcopal Network for Economic Justice, Disneyland Hotel Workers and Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE) to fight unfair conditions for workers.

If I were to book into one of the Disneyland hotels across the street – just a standard room for one person for one night – it would cost me $310-$425 plus tax. This is not cheap accommodation. Someone earning minimum wage would have to work between 48 and 66 hours just for a room – no food, no tickets. The 2150 employees of the three Disneyland Hotels have been working without a contract since February 2008. These are the people who clean the rooms, cook the meals and carry the luggage. They’re the ones doing the grunt work that makes the magic possible.

Even though Disney earned $1.46 billion in the first half of 2009, and its CEO made $30.6m, Disney plans to reduce benefits for their lowest paid employees. We all know health insurance keeps costing more – but Disney wants its employees to start paying for family coverage, and it wants to reduce full-time positions, thus forcing employees to accept positions with no benefits and no rights.

Several bishops joined the rally at the beginning, including Jon Bruno and Sergio Carranza from Los Angeles who prayed for and blessed the assembled crowd which included workers from other hotels and hospitality businesses in the area. After over a thousand people marched from the Anaheim Arena to the Disneyland gates, they were addressed by both Bishop Gene Robinson and Bishop Barbara Harris who said honest workers should get honest wages, honest benefits and honest opportunities to support their families.

Caroline Hall for IntegrityUSA

Yesterday, I blogged about this action, as soon as it was announced.


Photo credit: Integrity

War & Peace - Gustav Holst

English composer Gustav Holst composed The Planets between 1914 and 1916. The Birmingham premiere of the suite took place in 1918, fifteen years before Pluto was discovered. Though the Planets became by far the most popular work of Holst's and one of the most known pieces by an English-born composer, Holst did not consider the piece one of his finest. Partially because of this, he never wrote an eighth movement, though unexpectedly the IAU relegated Pluto from its status as planet proper in 2006.

Disney Be Faithful to Your Employees

From Anaheim, California - Elizabeth Kaeton blogs at TEC General Convention & will participate today in an action to show solidarity with hotel and convention workers.

This afternoon at 4:30, I will join hundreds of other Episcopalians here at Convention as well as other religious leaders from the area in supporting the Prayer Vigil and March organized by the group "Disney Be Faithful," representing 2150 employees of the three Disneyland Hotels: Paradise Pier, Grand Californian and Disneyland Hotel.

These workers clean the rooms, cook and serve the food, wash the dishes, and carry the luggage.

Disney wants to take away from its employees union family health insurance. They also want to take away full-time jobs, forcing many into positions with no health insurance at all, no vacation and less than full rights.

Disney's net income in the first half of the Fiscal Year 2009 was nearly $1.46 billion. In Fiscal Year 2008, Disney CEO Robert Iger made $30.6 million.

When I signed up to march last Monday, I was approached by one of the organizers with a request I agreed to but I'm still processing.

"Mother," he said (as I winced), "would you stay with us at the end of the march? We're asking some of the clergy to anoint the workers, and it would be wonderful to have you with us."

I was initially taken aback. 'Anoint' he said. What did he mean, really? Did he mean anoint with holy oils or just extend a hand in blessing?

I wanted to make certain I had a correct translation from his Hispanic, Roman Catholic culture to my progressive Western European, Anglo-Catholic understanding.

So, I asked.

"While we are marching," he said softly, "some of the people from Disney will be standing along the sidelines, filming us as we pass by. They will use that film as evidence to get us fired or to have our positions eliminated or downsized."

"You may not be aware, Mother," he said politely, "that for the workers, this Prayer Vigil and March is a big risk. We need to be anointed for the work of justice, after this event, so that we will find the strength to go back to our jobs. Just a little sign from God that He will continue to be with us after the support of this event."

"We know you have probably not brought your oils with you to this place, so we will have some for you. Will you help us? It would mean so much to some of us for a woman to anoint us for the work of justice."

"Anointed for justice."

I continue to find myself deeply moved by that request. There is something that strikes a cord of authenticity with the core values of what the church professes to be, but often is not.

I ask you, wherever you are, to pray with me and for me, that I may be a worthy vehicle of an anointing of God's healing and enabling power upon these workers.

Pray that we may catch a glimmer of God's justice promised of the Realm of God for these workers and their families.

UPDATE

The Reasons for the Action today:

Disney be faithful!
Disney is Faithful to its Shareholders:

• Disney’s net income in the first half of Fiscal Year 2009 was nearly $1.46 billion.
• Disney’s leaders are among the highest paid in the world. In Fiscal Year 2008, Disney CEO Robert Iger made $30.6 million.

Disney, Be Faithful to your Employees:

• Disney wants to take away our union family health insurance. We will be forced to pay up to hundreds of dollars per month for family health insurance. Many families will lose their insurance.

• Disney wants to take away full-time jobs and forcing many of us into “casual regular” positions with no health insurance at all, no vacation, and less than full rights.

Disney, its your turn to be faithful to us!

a nation of saran

as i read through the news or go about my daily routine, i try to wrap my mind around how the human brain works. i still haven't really figured it out. at the risk of sounding 'bushian', i am beginning to believe that humans can be broken down into 'black or white'- meaning those who think and those who don't. how else to explain how a contingent of folks can buy into the idea that it's ok for the government to have a secret organization or two that aren't really accountable to anyone? how else to explain away the support for secrecy and spying and the erosion of civil liberties in the name of security? how else to explain sarah palin fans? i mean seriously.

i like to believe that there was a time when americans would not have ceded their civil liberties so cavalierly; wouldn't have cowered in fear of a phantom bogeyman 'terrorist,' but i believe it was franklin who commented on keeping the republic if we could. we no longer have a republic- if we ever really did in the first place- but many folks are so blissfully unaware. i don't have any answers really- there is a small minority of folks who would fight to the end for truth and building a new republic but the majority rules. we as humans cling to what we know- and at this point, i am inclined to let us. americans want to believe we are still the idea of america- liberty and freedom for everyone who comes here. the reality couldn't be a starker contrast. but we cling...

The Opposite of Peace Is — War?

Been reading a lot about World War II lately. My father fought in that war. He lost the hearing on one side thanks to shrapnel that perforated his eardrum. He lost many of his friends. He nearly lost his life.

But my reason for reading is both greater and lesser than a desire to know a little piece of my father's history: I am writing a novel set in that period.

And today, I came across something that encapsulates very nicely the malaise that the reading of the past several weeks has engendered in me. FTA:

WAR is a racket. It always has been.

It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives.

A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of the people. Only a small "inside" group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few, at the expense of the very many. Out of war a few people make huge fortunes.

In the World War [I] a mere handful garnered the profits of the conflict. At least 21,000 new millionaires and billionaires were made in the United States during the World War. That many admitted their huge blood gains in their income tax returns. How many other war millionaires falsified their tax returns no one knows.

How many of these war millionaires shouldered a rifle? How many of them dug a trench? How many of them knew what it meant to go hungry in a rat-infested dug-out? How many of them spent sleepless, frightened nights, ducking shells and shrapnel and machine gun bullets? How many of them parried a bayonet thrust of an enemy? How many of them were wounded or killed in battle?

Out of war nations acquire additional territory, if they are victorious. They just take it. This newly acquired territory promptly is exploited by the few – the selfsame few who wrung dollars out of blood in the war. The general public shoulders the bill.

And what is this bill?

This bill renders a horrible accounting. Newly placed gravestones. Mangled bodies. Shattered minds. Broken hearts and homes. Economic instability. Depression and all its attendant miseries. Back-breaking taxation for generations and generations.

Maj. Gen. Smedley D. Butler, War Is A Racket

While Japanese farmers, office workers, and civilians were restricted to the grayest of lives by the sumptuary laws enforced before and during WW II, while Japanese intellectuals trembled under the heavy hand of the thought police and suffered torture by the Kempeitai, while Chinese peasants starved and their children were forcibly inducted into the military to fight against superior armies and lose their lives for a pittance, the wealthy crooks who engineered these wars became wealthier still. Come rain or shine, they continued to find ways to profit from the vast human suffering.

George W. Bush paid for the war in Iraq by borrowing billions of dollars from the Chinese. Now your grandchildren will have to repay that debt. I hear some people say Obama is creating a huge debt by borrowing additional monies to stimulate the economy. Unfortunately, the hole that Bush left has to be patched before everything else leaks out of it. And the only way to patch that hole is to stimulate the economy into spending.

People forget that the U.S. economy runs on consumer spending. Before George Dumbya left office, the Iraq war had already cost us three TRILLION dollars. We are bringing our troops back now, but that costs money too. Then there's the issue of reintegrating them into the smashed civilian economy. All the while, the war profiteers like Dick "Dick" Cheney sit back on their seats and bwa-ha-haaa themselves into something like an orgasm. I wish it were an organism. Something intestinal and painful and lengthy.

How many kids have lost their parents in this war? Iraqi kids? Somewhere between one and five million? American kids? Somewhere between three and ten thousand? Nobody really knows. In 2004, when the total casualty figures were around 2,000, Scripps stated that 900 American children had lost a parent to the war. However, the casualty toll has doubled since then, and most of the soldiers in this war have been professional military and reservists, which means they tend to be older, married, and have more children.

How many kids are getting back parents who are not the people they used to be? Broken in body or mind or both? How many kids have to grow up really fast, to become caretakers to their parents instead of being children any more? Smedley Butler was right. War IS a racket.

Blackwater mercenaries made two to three times the salaries of military men for the same work. No-bid government contracts made a lot of people very rich. The wholesale plunder of Iraqi oil made other people (or sometimes the same people) very rich. To us, the taxpayers, is left the broken mess, the debris, the tortured, the cripple, the lame, the halt, the blind, the miserable, people who are still fighting the war in their heads, crying themselves to sleep or drinking or drugging to forget. And they are living among us as are their suffering parents and spouses and children.

The dividends of peace are happy human lives. However, these do not represent adequate profits to those whose greed drives them to profit above all else. And to achieve those profits they will willingly sacrifice every last man, woman, and child of us upon an altar of blood.

The Ultimate Organizer: An Interview With ACORN's Founder Wade Rathke

The topic below was originally posted on my blog, the Intrepid Liberal Journal.

It seems no matter which political party in America holds the majority, a Washington/Wall Street corporate centric axis dominates policy making. Indeed, Illinois Democratic Senator Dick Durbin recently observed that banks, “Frankly Own the Place.” Among liberal-progressive activists like myself, this condition has facilitated a confrontational mindset.

Our experience suggests that the power and wealth concentrated in the hands of a few will not be voluntarily relinquished. Hence, everything from healthcare reform to bankruptcy protection for aggrieved homeowners is perceived by many of us as a high stakes pitched battle between struggling families and feculent corporate behemoths. Although activism has certainly facilitated important victories on behalf of working people, fighting for economic justice often seems analogous to climbing an endless wall.

Veteran activist Wade Rathke has been steadily climbing that wall on behalf of working people for forty-years. As the founder of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform (“ACORN”), Rathke has a unique perspective about what community organizing strategies work best to empower working people that are struggling to save and accumulate wealth. Rathke is also an assertive advocate for welfare benefits on behalf of people out of work. He’s both won and lost more than his share of battles. Both he and ACORN have the battle scars of scrutiny liberals typically receive from standing up for America’s poor and disenfranchised.

In Citizen Wealth: Winning the Campaign To Save Working Families, (Berrett-Koehler), Rathke writes,

“We need to create a national economic and political consensus that increasing family income, wealth and assets is not `welfare’ or an entitlement ‘give-away’ program but an investment in the public good and well-being.”

His book is an accessible thirteen chapters and 171 pages of text presenting his blueprint to organize regular folks to win economic and political power. Rathke’s book also contains revealing anecdotes about ACORN’s negotiations with corporate entities such as H&R Block and their bank, HSBC, to end the predatory practice of Refund Anticipation Loans. Perhaps the most compelling topic in his book is covered in chapter nine when Rathke laments how millions of citizens eligible for Food Stamps, Medicaid and the State Children Health Insurance Program (“SCHIP”) are disenfranchised from participating in the very programs designed to help them.

Rathke has remained involved with organizing activities after leaving ACORN in 2008. He is the founding board member of the Tides Foundation as well as the chief organizer of SEIU Local 100 in New Orleans and publisher of Social Policy magazine. He posts regularly at the Chief Organizer blog.

Rathke agreed to a telephone podcast interview with me about his book and among the topics covered is the meaning of citizen wealth, why economic justice has lagged behind expanded civil liberties for minorities and women, the methodology of ACORN’s approach to fight H&R Block’s predatory practices of Refund Anticipation Loans, the criticisms ACORN and the Community Reinvestment Act have received about the housing crisis and his belief that worker/labor organization is imperative for all segments of society. Our conversation was twenty-eight a and half minutes.

Please refer to the flash media player below.



This interview can also be accessed at no cost the Itunes Store by searching for either the “Intrepid Liberal Journal” or “Robert Ellman.”

"He says again, 'Good fences make good neighbors.' "

Poem
Mending Wall, by Robert Frost

Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,
And spills the upper boulders in the sun;
And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
The work of hunters is another thing:
I have come after them and made repair
Where they have left not one stone on a stone,
But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,
No one has seen them made or heard them made,
But at spring mending-time we find them there.
I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;
And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go.
To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
And some are loaves and some so nearly balls
We have to use a spell to make them balance:
'Stay where you are until our backs are turned!'
We wear our fingers rough with handling them.
Oh, just another kind of outdoor game,
One on a side. It comes to little more:
There where it is we do not need the wall:
He is all pine and I am apple orchard.
My apple trees will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, 'Good fences make good neighbors.'
Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
If I could put a notion in his head:
'Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it
Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
What I was walling in or walling out,
And to whom I was like to give offense.
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That wants it down.' I could say 'Elves' to him,
But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather
He said it for himself. I see him there
Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top
In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.
He moves in darkness as it seems to me,
Not of woods only and the shade of trees.
He will not go behind his father's saying,
And he likes having thought of it so well
He says again, 'Good fences make good neighbors.'

This post is motiviated by a comment on a post today at Lenin's Tomb.

Cross posted at Antemedius and Blazing Indiscretions.

Sunday bandits...

Crashing into the surface of the icy terrain,
liberty gasps in prayer, then splinters,
bowed inward by a moral arrogance
unable to free its own dying plea…

Donald Reeves: 'A Very Dangerous Man'

'Imagination is the word that Reeves uses with most enthusiasm to summarise his work and belief, “the view that there is always something new waiting to be born” — whether in a London parish or a Bosnian town. “And imagination for me is the entry into religion,” he adds, an imagination that combines clarity about where society is and a vision of change.' - From The Times, July 10, 2009

Cross-posted at Antimedius and at Blazing Indiscretions.

In The Times (UK) - a Murdoch paper! - yesterday, there's a profile of Donald Reeves, former vicar at the landmark St James's Church - designed by Christopher Wren - in London's West End, promoting his new book, Memoirs of a Very Dangerous Man. I was a member of SJP for a year in 1999; although Reeves was no longer vicar, his mark on the parish was evident in its inclusiveness in celebrating other faith traditions and in its social justice ministries to the marginalised in greater London. St James's, Piccadilly continues to do good work with asylum seekers. In 1999, we were actively assisting Albanian and Bosnian refugees to adjust to life in a strange city and battling with the increasingly hostile UK authorities to prevent their deportations. One Sunday evening, I joined fellow SJP friends to hear Reeves give a talk at Westminster Abbey about his work, just starting to take root in the Balkans.

So, this post is an appreciation of Donald Reeve's life and work.

(I learned some facts about his earlier life in yesterday's article, too.)

Excerpts from the Times's Turbulent priest who now builds bridges in the Balkans

When Donald Reeves, then Rector of St James’s Church, Piccadilly, was told that Margaret Thatcher had described him as “a very dangerous man”, he remembers being “rather pleased . . . it felt like a natural title”. With it he became part of the prominent Anglican tradition of “troublesome priests”, apt to turn their critical fire not only on the world around them but also on the Church that employs them.

And yet the man who enjoyed excoriating Thatcherite political views and episcopal complacency in the 1980s, emphasises his role these days as peacemaker rather than as trouble- maker. Through the Soul of Europe project that he co-directs, Reeves spends much time in the Balkans, attempting to build durable trust between communities only nominally at peace after terrible conflicts.

He is currently most engaged in Kosovo, talking to local Serbs and Albanians, seeking to “dismantle the fear each has of the other” and to break down the isolation of minorities — in this case the Serbs, and their ancient religious institutions, living under armed guard.

Before his work in Kosovo, he was in Bosnia:

Progress was uneven and inconclusive, as Reeves and his colleagues experienced how deeply rooted was the mutual suspicion and resentment of communities where, within such recent memory, co-existence had been replaced more or less overnight by murderous hatred. They had to listen patiently to “raw memories” and accept that there could be “no short cuts, no quick fixes”.

But persuading anyone from the various communities to engage at all was an achievement in itself, a crucial first step in peace-building that others had failed to try. He is scathing about the official peacekeepers, the cynical UN and EU bureaucrats “with their expat salaries and weekends in Vienna” who feel two years in Bosnia is good for their CV.

Reeves's work to enliven a nearly-dead London parish:

But it was his next appointment, to be vicar of St James’s Church in Piccadilly in 1980, that would really make his name. It was not, at first, an auspicious place, known for society weddings but with little evidence of a congregation rooted in the community: “On my arrival,” he said, “I could see no justification for keeping the church open.”

But gradually he turned it into a thriving institution, closely linked to locals, rich and poor, and, above all, a place for the exploration of ideas.

“Jesus wasn’t exactly into garden parties, He was regarded as a nuisance,” Reeves says. “The churches shouldn’t be creating little managers of sectarian communities but should be places of dissent.” His own dissenting challenge to Thatcherism was overt. He sparked lively debate by preaching against the invasion of the Falklands, and he helped the miners’ wives during their husbands’ bitter strike. But debate across boundaries was encouraged — invited speakers included Norman Tebbit as well as Tony Benn, non-believers as well as believers. And, in anticipation of later work in the Balkans, he began to explore the idea of peace-building, inviting Chinese and Russian visitors. Bishop Trevor Huddleston, a veteran campaigner against apartheid, who lived in the St James’s vicarage for many years, was another significant influence.

Yee Haw

Cross posted at Antemedius and at Blazing Indiscretions.

I lived in Houston for over twenty years and still never cease to be amazed at what happens in the Lone Star State. A few weeks ago, on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, there was police violence against LBGTs in Fort Worth. Now there is this ridiculous - and most likely illegal - police behaviour in west Texas:

At about 12:30 a.m. on the morning of June 29, the five men were placing their order at the Chico's Tacos on Montwood when the two men made their public display of affection, sparking the ire of two contracted security guards at the restaurant, police and witnesses said. After the group sat down, the security guards told them "they didn't allow that faggot stuff to go on there," and made them leave, de Leon said.

An officer arrived at the restaurant about an hour later, after police received five calls, including from the security guards and de Leon. The men were told to leave the restaurant and had anti-gay slurs directed at them while they waited for the police.

"I went up to the police officer to tell him what was going on and he didn't want to hear my side," de Leon said. "He wanted to hear the security guard's side first."

The officer informed the group it was illegal for two men or two women to kiss in public, de Leon said. The five were told they could be cited for homosexual conduct - a charge the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in 2003 in Lawrence v. Texas. That same year, the city of El Paso passed an ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation by employees of the city and by businesses open to the public.

"The security guard received a complaint from some of the customers there," Carrillo said. "Every business has the right to refuse service..."
...
Briana Stone, a lawyer with the Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project, disagrees. She said city ordinance protects people on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation in public places, including Chico's Tacos. Perhaps more troubling, she said, is that the police officer chose not to enforce that ordinance and may have contributed to discrimination.

"This is such a blatant refusal to uphold the law on account of discrimination," she said. "The result is devastating. The police department is allowing that and even participating in it by refusing to enforce an anti-discrimination ordinance, which is what their job is."

Lisa Graybill, legal director for the ACLU of Texas, said businesses can ask patrons to leave for lewd conduct, but those standards would have to apply to all customers.

"If a straight couple wouldn't have gotten kicked out for it, a gay couple shouldn't," she said. "That's general jurisprudence."

This story gives new meaning to the state's tourism slogan used for over twenty years, "Texas: It’s Like a Whole Other Country.” Why don't they just follow Gov. Rick Perry's advice and secede, goddamit!

Something white and sticky to chew on...

"White on white crime is destroying the very fabric of our nation and producing an entire class of white career criminals. While the media is quick to report every little statistic and/or event relating to the black on black crime phenomenon, the words “white on white crime” are spoken with a frequency of slim to none, and slim disappeared when he was two months old, murdered by his depressed mother, wrapped in plastic, and buried in the backyard.

Indeed, many white people pay absolutely no attention to crime or other manifestations of less than decent behavior in their neighborhood until someone of another race arrives on the scene. Crime is a natural characteristic of people of color. In fact, William Bennett, who was the education secretary under Ronald Reagan, the drug czar under George Bush Sr. and a staunch Republican conservative, used his radio show to make the suggestion that if people wanted to reduce crime they could abort every black baby in the United States. However, although it might be reprehensible to some people and totally impossible to pull off, if one was truly interested in reducing crime to an even lower level here in the United States, all one has to do is abort every white baby and exterminate every white man and woman. But to seriously make such a suggestion invites ridicule, hatred, and possibly invoke the ire of some latent white criminals."

"The likelihood of committing and falling victim to crime also depends on several demographic characteristics, as well as location of the population. Overall, men, minorities, the young, and those in financially less favorable positions are more likely to be victimized by, as well as commit, crimes. Crime in the US is also concentrated in certain areas. It is quite common for crime in American cities to be highly concentrated in a few, often economically disadvantaged areas. For example, San Mateo County, California had a population of approximately 624,000 and 17 homicides in 2001. 6 of these 17 homicides took place in poor, largely African and Hispanic American East Palo Alto, which had a population of roughly 30,000. So, while East Palo Alto accounted for 4.8% of the population, about one-third of the homicides took place there."

“A February 1997 report on rape and sexual-based crime published by the United States Department of Justice stated that of the crimes surveyed, 56% of arrestees were White, 42% were Black, and 2% were of other races; though it should be noted that "Hispanic" was not recognized as a racial category, with Hispanics predominantly being grouped together with Non-Hispanic Whites. The report additionally noted that "victims of rape were about evenly divided between whites and blacks; in about 88% of forcible rapes, the victim and offender were of the same race.”

"Overall the financially disadvantaged, males, those younger than 25 and non European-Americans were more likely to fall victim to crime. Income, sex and age had the most dramatic effect on the chances of a person being victimized by crime, while the characteristic of race depended on the crime. In 2005, 27 out of 1,000 African Americans became the victim of a violent crime, compared to 20 out of every 1,000 White Americans."
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And “white-collar” crime (a statistical nightmare for white males being nearly all of those perpetrating the crimes) isn’t even factored in when it comes to causing disadvantage weighing greatly upon the non-white population.

Depending on the statistics and the socio-economic factors we’re all black now, eh?

We are all connected, right? The human race is failing, my friend. Not the black or Latino human race, but the human race….

brotherpeacemaker