Nov 24 2007
Watch out all you freaks and mutants…the moon is full, I just saw it on the horizon, big, orange, and gorgeous!
Keep your eyes on the horizon as it comes to the west-So get outside for a few minutes,
grab a glass of wine, beer, joint, the camera or what have you and go check it out….
Nov 24 2007
1 Doom and gloom plays out on Broadway
By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Writer
Sat Nov 24, 9:02 AM ET
| NEW YORK – It’s a worst-case scenario that became a reality. As the Broadway stagehands strike enters its third week Saturday, there doesn’t seem to be any way out of the thorny, seemingly intractable dispute that has shut down more than two dozen plays and musicals since Nov. 10.
Losses because of canceled performances are in the millions and climbing each day – a disaster not only for producers and theater owners, but for everyone employed in the theater and for those whose businesses depend on curtains going up. Both sides are hanging tough and have not talked for almost a week. The standoff has meant dark theaters during the Thanksgiving holiday, usually one of the year’s best weeks for business. |
Nov 24 2007
Matt Yglesias deliver some great snark with a point, taking on the voice of an Iranian Richard Perle:
[I]t's not clear that a policy of appeasement would be wise. True, we've seen rational leadership even from vicious dictators like Josef Stalin and Mao Zedong, but the contemporary United States is led by religious fanatics, which introduces a new element into the equation. What's more, the USA is the only country on earth to have ever actually deployed nuclear weapons. Indeed, current political elites are so war-crazed and bloodthirsty that they not only engineered the 2003 attack on Iraq — a country that tried to appease the Americans by eliminating its nuclear program and allowing IAEA inspectors to certify that it had done so — but they continue to deny regretting it to this day. And that includes not only radicals like George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, but so-called “moderates” like Hillary Clinton as well.
Well played by Matt.
Nov 24 2007
Just to kill some time before going to work (7 day weeks gets real old, real fast) where the word “you” comes from.
In the 1600’s the letter “y” was a abbreviation for the sound “th”. We’ve all seen the sign saying, “Ye Olde Tavern.” Ye is pronounced The. In reading the writings of Newton you see him use this extensively. He wrote, “…ye and yat“, for the and that.
Now we come to my theory–I’ve never seen this anywhere else–but, I’m sure that some historian has said this before. In writing “thou” in the olden days they would write you. This was adopted and adapted by the general populace as “you”. The change in pronunciation was from the profound influence of the French language on English.
And that is why, to this day, many groups will not use the word “you”. It’s not really true English.
Nov 24 2007
11/16/07 (Berkeley, CA) – The third Friday of every month I have been attending a war protest on the streets of Berkeley, CA. The majority of the protesters are members of the Grey Panthers and/or are from Strawberry Creek Lodge, a nearby retirement community. The rest are random people who heard about this through word of mouth, IraqMoratorium.org or some other organization. For two hours we stand on four corners of a busy street. All the cars honk when they drive by and when they are stopped at the light some people hand out slips of paper with the date and time of the next event. Pedestrians are also given flyers about taking action to end the war.
The most recent IM Day, I brought my video camera and took some footage. First you will hear a song and then there are some interview clips speaking out against the war. Listen to the voices of our elders. These are the real deal DFHs, many protested Vietnam and wars before that. I’m so glad they agreed to be on camera. You may catch a glimpse of Docudharma’s own dharmasyd – who I met after the first IM Day. She is one of the organizers of this monthly action.
Disclaimer: This is the first time I have ever edited a video and put it on YouTube. I was in a hurry to put it together so the quality may suck but the spirit and sincerity of The People still shines through (I hope). If I can figure out the sound editing I will do another version with all the extra footage I have.
Here are some photos from the first IM Day (9/21/07).
Nov 24 2007
Last night I wrote a diary about Hatred. I mentioned a couple of concepts in that diary that I wish to explore today: Safe Spaces/Zones and Hate Free Zones.
When I came out, it was inevitable that everyone would know about me. That had its downside, which is what I’ve largely written about. But it had an upside as well, an incredibly heartwarming one I was able to become a resource for students who desperately needed one. It took awhile for gay and lesbian students to become comfortable with me, but I immediately was contacted by several students who were gender-variant themselves or had relatives who were. Apparently I was the first person any of them had to talk with about it.
Reposted in part from Teacher’s Lounge
Nov 24 2007
A famous US patriot once said “These are the times that try men’s souls.” At the time, he spoke of the events and circumstances surrounding the birth of a nation destined to be defined by the rights and freedoms of the people; a nation led by government of the People, by the People and for the People, where leaders could inspire the People to stand united in spite of differing opinions or particular religious influence.
The advent of the twenty-first century has marked the most severe departure from our founding principles than ever before. We stand on the brink of self-immolation, leaderless and adrift, while selfish, arrogant hypocrites steer our ship of state toward the shoals.Should we fail now to grow resolute and united in our determination to right this ship, we fail not only ourselves but our children, and their children’s children. It is time to look to those children for inspiration and a reminder of what we, as adults, are tasked with as parents and guardians: to create and foster an environment where children can grow to adulthood, secure in the knowledge that we have passed along the best models for ethical leadership and responsible stewardship of this nation that we know how.Nov 24 2007
In China, even if you are a one in a million kind of guy…………there are still a thousand of you.
The other day I wrote a piece that talked a little bit about my general disdain for the complex organisms we know as “Human Beings.” I don’t want to leave the wrong impression, there are plenty of humans I do like.I have nothing specifically against the majority of humans, you understand. And of course, I judge each individual on their own merits. It is just that people who are aggressively normal don’t interest me much. But I strive mightily not to discriminate against them, to treat them differently. There is nothing inherently bad about being normal. Some of my best friends are normal.
I just …um…can’t think of their names right now…..
Nov 24 2007
From the blog Intercontinental Cry, here is a letter from Margo Tamez asking for help for the people of El Calaboz, Texas as the Border Patrol, Army Corp of Engineers, and NSA harrass them to give up their ancestral lands in order for the border fence to be built.
Nov 24 2007
I used to read the comics in the newspaper all the time but now they are all so mind numbingly boring I don’t bother. Does anybody read Dercity? If you don’t check it out he is a gem. I like this one but he is rarely “off.”
I like to read Cary Tennis over atsalon because sometimes the problems people write in about make me realize that I am not nearly as screwed up and shallow as I thought I was. This one tells the sad tale of a 43 year old woman who is beautiful but terrified she is aging. I wasn’t that cute when I was young, so now that I am 43, the whole losing my beauty thing doesn’t seem like that big of a deal. My grandmother, who is 86, says the being old part doesn’t concern her much it is the whole her body is falling apart and she worries she won’t be able to live independently for much longer thing that irks her.
Cartoon fun… I relate to this cartoon, I could see me having a bad day like this… and I love his crappy attitude…
Nov 24 2007
For better or worse, Hillary Clinton's political image is largely dominated by her tenure as First Lady. It seems fairly clear that Hillary was a key, if not the key, advisor to President Clinton on many many issues. And while Tim Russert's questions on documents from the period is not really an attempt to shed light on this, it is rather more of the same gotcha nonsense, it does inadvertently get to a lot of questions about Hillary.
In today's WaPo, Michael Kinsley writes:
[First ladies] must have a better understanding of how the presidency works than all but half a dozen people in the world. One of those half a dozen is Hillary Clinton, who saw it all — well, she apparently missed one key moment — and shared in all the big decisions. Every first lady is promoted as her husband's key adviser, closest confidant, blah, blah, blah, but in the case of the Clintons, it seems to be true.
That seems true to me. But here's the thing – my recollection of the Clinton years had Hillary supposedly playing the liberal in the lion's den of Centrists role in the Clinton Administration. I'll never forget the reaction of Peter and Marian Wright Edelman to welfare reform. Peter resigned his post and Marian Wright Edelman made sure everyone understood how she felt personally betrayed by HILLARY, not Bill. Hillary was to be the liberal conscience of the Clinton Administration. How time changes images. Now Hillary's supposed liberal past is long forgotten. For those who favor DLCism, this is a sign of Hillary's good sense. For those who disfavor it, it proves hillary is a corporatist sellout DLCer. This is a central question about Hillary Clinton. Who could best answer this question? I believe Bill Clinton would be that person. I think it would help us all, and probably mostly Hillary Clinton, if he and Hillary were to discuss her role and views on the Clinton Administration and the issues faced at the time. Release of documents to add to this telling would be even better. I think it is time to tell the story – not of the personal lives of the clintons – but the public policy lives of the the Clintons. Tell us what Hillary did, said, advised and thought. To me it is the most interesting and relevant question of the entire campaign.