October 26, 2007 archive

Over the last few years, over 1000 migrants have perished making the hazardous journey through the desert to make new lives in “el Norte.” Some were small coffee growers from Vera Cruz, chicken farmers from Jalisco, or vegetable growers from Guadalajara. Others were indigenous subsistence farmers from the Chiapas highlands no longer able to eek out a living. Still others were Guatemalan migrant workers who could not find work on either side of Mexico’s border and jumped on El Tren de Muerte (The Death Train) in Tapachula for the first leg of their journey, boarding alongside Salvadorans escaping decades of political upheaval and Hondurans escaping crushing poverty.

Between 6 and 7 million people have taken the arduous journey north, many within the last ten years, most of them coming from poor agriultural areas that are no longer able to support their populations. Yet, with all the debate about reforming US immigration policy and securing the borders, we have not heard one solid proposal to address the root causes of this massive migration.

The question of why so many must leave their homes and families to simply survive is rarely mentioned, but remains the missing piece in the comprehensive immigration reform puzzle.

Videos from “how it should have ended”….

NOT VANISHED, JUST OVER-LOOKED

“Viewing Native Americans as a people of the past is the most accessible, convenient perception for Americans.  While I believe it is important to create images that are historically, culturally correct and support the preservation of culture, I also believe it is imperative that a modern, contemporary representation of Native culture needs to surface in the mainstream.

Today, I give you the usual list.

If you like to trade books, try BookMooch.

cfk has bookflurries on Weds. nights
pico has literature for kossacks on Tues. nights

What are you reading?  is crossposted to DailyKos

Democrats from CA want “thought crimes” and transgressive behavior to be declared terrorism.  On 10/23/04 HR 1955 passed in the house by a 2/3rds majority.  I thought this was a joke.  Apparently not…

One of the things I got out of Swim Team was a job.  I was a professional Life Guard and Water Safety Instructor for about 7 or 8 years.

Never had to rescue anybody though I had a supervisor who thought I was waiting too long to save the dog paddling girl who only had a T-Shirt for a bathing suit.  And she was being Black in a pretty white pool.  Not my regular boss the dope smoking Christian so I let it slide but I was pretty pissed off.  She was right by the side and not 10 feet from me, no danger at all.

I picked up a kid out of the gutter at the same pool who I was sure had broken his leg.  Nope.  Bounced right up and giggled.

Good work if you can get it- 2 to 9 and about 50% breaks, harder in the winter when you had to work 12 hour days and teach.  Your job basically is to be an asshole and stop people from having too much fun.  No running, no dunking, no splashing.  It’s Adult Swim because I say so you snotty brat.

I’ve guarded some pretty squirrley places too, above a dam in river water, a pool you had to vacuum every morning because the sport was to heave your beer bottles over the fence and smash them right on the lip of the pool so the shards fell in the water.  Good times.

After all I learned to play very good Pitch.

Cross-posted at Daily Kos
Hello out there! I don’t usually diary because as working mother of young children I am quite busy. But I really want ask this – is stopping the war a priority? I know there is a lot of compelling news today, but hope you will give this subject a moment of your attention. There are protests in 11 cities this Saturday and, on behalf of everyone who is planning to attend, I want to tell you – WE NEED YOU THERE!
http://www.oct27.org/

My sign for this protest reads  – “Stop the war – for their children, and for ours” and I believe this.  We have to stop this war for our children.  We are draining the treasury, we are turning the world against us, we are causing pain and destruction – in their names – and they will pay for it.  I shudder to think the kind of world they will grow up in. 

Perhaps you will say that our energy is better spent combating global climate change – I say that protesting the war will help in this fight too.  Not only by showing our politicians that we Democrats are no shrinking violets, but because going to a protest will make you an activist – one who is willing to go outside their comfort zone for what they believe in, and this carries over into other areas. 

We complain and complain about our representatives continuing to fund the war.  Are they spineless? We ask.  What about all the alleged abuses and countless innocents living and dying in squalor?  What about our soldiers PTSD who are abandoned when they return? Is our government evil?  We ask.  Do they have spines? We ask.

The truth is – we could ask each of these questions about ourselves.  What are we willing to do to stop the war?  We expect our representatives to stand up for us, but we will not even stand up for ourselves. 

Do you think protesting is futile?  Well, if it does no good it is because you are not there.  That’s right!  If you went, the protest would be a success!  Because if you are going, that means that someone like you, somewhere else has seen the light and has decided to go.  If everyone who is against the war marched, we could not be ignored any longer.

I am sorry for the negativity – I know a lot of you out there are going or have damn good reasons not to.  I am discouraged because the entire group of mothers that I organized to march backed out.  They are all against the war, but marching was not a priority.  They are my friends, and I want to understand, but I don’t.

BTW – Bush and Cheney might be ignoring us, but do you think our own candidates are?  Perhaps Clinton/Obama/Edwards/et al. are watching to find out what kind of supporters they’ve got.  We need to let them know that we mean business – that we will not sit around and be fed on chocolate cream puffs while the world is burning down around us. 

It is true that as one person we are each but a drop in the bucket.  In these situations we cannot be more than that – and  that bothers some people.  But I say that this is pure ego and that to get things done sometimes we must move swarm-like with a crowd.  If you want to express your own opinions loud and clear – go out and buy a piece of cardboard and write your thoughts in large, bold letters.  You will be most satisfied when a like minded person gives you the “thumbs up” (or a counterprotestor gives you a different sort of gesture).  And then march.

Please join us this Saturday at noon. For more information see http://www.oct27.org

Today is the fifth anniversary of the death of Senator Paul Wellstone (D, MN). His life and death changed the lives of many people.  He leaves a wonderful legacy. 

I felt like I was represented when he was my senator.  He stood up to the corporate interests, and he had guts. He didn’t test the wind before he took a stand on something. He had convictions and a backbone. Our politicians today can take a lesson out of his book.

Twenty days before his death, he voted against the authorization for Bush to attack Iraq. The following block quotes are from an article posted on  Common Dreams.