man Im tired, long busy day with lots of running around. A top priority included getting Lord Lib’s piccolo back from the shop.  Tomorrow is first day of rehearsals…. he played the show once before, a few years ago, and they’ve hired him again for another go. He’ll be performing all the flute parts.

Miss Saigon TUTS link. I thought I’d go toobing to remember some of the music. It’s a good show, if you ever have the chance to see it.

He {Director Bruce Lumpkin} says some people consider it an anti-war show, but it is that and more. “It’s anti-war but it’s also a very tragic love story. The two main characters almost make it out; they almost make it work.”

Lumpkin was doing Grand Hotel on Broadway when he first saw Miss Saigon after it had opened on Broadway. “It moved me to tears. It is a beautiful story.” When it closed on Broadway he says he was approached and asked if he thought it could work in the round and he said yes.

“The music is just beautiful. It’s a modern-day rock opera, one of the best.”

He says most people don’t realize that the fall of Saigon happened so quickly, that people had only 17 hours to get out before the Viet Cong came marching down the streets of Saigon.

When he was doing a D.C. production of the play, which is based on Madame Butterfly, the cast had a chance to meet the entire crew of the last helicopter out of Vietnam.

now cross posted at Wild Wild Left (warts and all…lol)

OTW =  Off the Wall .. my series, the first of which is here, having to do with multi-cultural and diversity topics.

NOTE: I decided to make this Part One because I had entirely too much fun googling related topics & pics, and I got a little lost sidetracked. Lol. I have a certain direction I want to take this, but it may take me another week to actually get there! So there will be a Part Two (at least). Thanks for your patience. Heh.

In 1960, when the first wave of Cuban refugees arrived in droves in Miami Florida, I was about 4 years old. So were a number of Cuban children who would become my classmates, age-mates, rivals and friends. I was just a regular ol’, you know, American. My WASP Dad was from Ohio and my Irish Mom, western Massachusetts. Miami was, at the time, a blend of New England transplants, retired New York Jews (Miami Beach), and more. I was considered a bit of a rarity in that I was actually born there, a “native”. The huge intake of hundreds of thousands of Cubans in such a short period of time had quite an impact on the city. Since I was only 4 at the time, what do I know? But trust me, it did.

OTW = Off The Wall, this being the third of a series.

The entrance of Choscal Hospital, in Cite Soleil, which houses one of the ten operating theaters MSF has established in Haiti since the earthquake hit. source MSF

With Haiti Earthquake stories falling off the top headlines, except for stories of US Governors taking in 53 orphans and such, my heart and mind is with the Haitian people and our own MomCat who continues her work there with MSF.  CNN and NPR have had some of the best coverage, as have several other of the non-mainstream and online sources. MSF’s own press releases are some of the most informative. (There’s also have a Facebook group, and Twitter of course).  I’ll share some info and excerpts from Democracy Now below the crease.

I’ve slacked off the past several days, due to multiple distractions. mea culpa. The ever faithful journalists, thankfully, have not.

Murders at Guantanamo by Andy Worthington, published this morning at Common Dreams, discusses Horton’s bombshell piece.

This is disturbing enough, of course, and should lead to robust calls for an independent inquiry, but the problem may be that almost every branch of the government appears to be implicated in the cover-up that followed the deaths.

7PM IMPORTANT UPDATE BELOW

Anyone feel free to join me here. Im thoroughly disgusted with tv. Ill post a few links from some online sources Ive been perusing.

Video from Miami Herald… Haitians react to Robertson’s idiotic remarks. My advice: skip past the replay of Robertson (about the first minute) or just turn down the volume while you get your kleenex.

Big News: Obama Grants Haitians Illegally in U.S. ‘Protected Status’ for 18 Months (ABC News) h/t thank you Dexter!

The announcement to grant “temporary protective status,” or TPS, to Haitian nationals allows immigrants already in the U.S. to live and work freely here until conditions in Haiti improve. After 18 months the status could be revoked.

“This is a disaster of historic proportions and this designation will allow eligible Haitian nationals in the United States to continue living and working in our country for the next 18 months,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced late today on a conference call. “Providing a temporary refuge for Haitian nationals who are currently in the United States and whose personal safety would be endangered by returning to Haiti is part of this Administration’s continuing efforts to support Haiti’s recovery.”

Napolitano estimated that there are 100,000 to 200,000 Haitian nationals currently in the country illegally.

“TPS gives them sort of an intermediate immigration status,” said the secretary. “It allows them — only for a period of 18 months, while Haiti gets back on its feet — to remain in the United States and authorizes them to work during that period, among other things.”

Second installment of my new series. My first one last week is here.

PLEASE read & rec this essay here from davidseth with this ACTION item Haiti: Humanitarian Help, Stop Deportations  AFSC link. I’m also checking in with the Miami Herald periodically for their local news and updates.

Wow this is boggy stuff. I’m in the weeds here! In light of the current disaster with the earthquake in Haiti, which I wrote about yesterday, I thought I’d try to take a look at the area of Asylum.  Others have written essays about the complex political history of Haiti, here, here and here. And here.

I wanted to explore the term Temporary Protected Status, but first I had to see about Asylum. And Refugee.  

What Is the Major Difference Between Asylum and Refugee Applicants?

The major difference between asylum and refugee applicants is that those seeking refugee status  apply from outside the United States.  Asylum-seekers must be in the United States or applying for admission at a port of entry. DoJ Fact Sheet

Credible Fear: An asylum seeker who has a credible fear of persecution or torture is referred to an Immigration Judge to hear and then judge their asylum claims.

Heart weary thinking about our own MomCat and countless others who are working under incredibly stressful and meager conditions on the ground in or near Haiti.

And all the safe people who await word, hoping to hear their loved ones are safe.

I was just in the car with my daughter, this song came on the radio…. made me smile a little.

UPDATE:  Change you can believe in from the Miami Herald:

The Obama administration is temporarily suspending deportations of undocumented Haitian nationals who are in the United States, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said Wednesday at a news conference in Miami.

But there are no immediate indications from the Obama administration that it would grant Haitian nationals Temporary Protected Status in the aftermath of Tuesday’s earthquake.

Better known by its acronym TPS, the immigration benefit is given to certain immigrants in the United States who cannot safely return to their countries because of armed conflicts, natural disasters or other emergencies. Those eligible for TPS are allowed to remain in the United States.

The approval of TPS has been long sought by Haitian activists and South Florida lawmakers.

On Wednesday, South Florida’s three Cuban-American Republican members of Congress — Reps. Lincoln and his brother Mario Diaz-Balart, and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, sent a letter Wednesday to President Obama requesting immediate humanitarian aid for Haiti and TPS for Haitian nationals in the United States.

“How much does Haiti have to suffer before Haitians in the United States are granted TPS,” Lincoln Diaz-Balart told El Nuevo Herald in a telephone interview Wednesday. “The reason TPS exists… as an option for the President is precisely for moments such as this in Haiti.”

4:53 is the official time noted that the earthquake that hit Haiti yesterday. Right around the time that TheMomCat and I were casually commenting here. Weird.

DONATE TO DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS (MSF) h/t randgrither

It is still unclear how many have been killed in the earthquake, which measured 7.2 on the Richter scale, but aid agencies fear thousands are dead.

My daughter and I said some special prayers last night as we snuggled in our warm bed. Empathy. I couldn’t get the idea out of my head of what it must be like for the people there. What a dreadful deep dark night they were facing. Even though there weren’t many photos out yet, I could only begin to imagine. Having been through Hurricane Ike here a couple of summers ago, I at least know the frustration and dismay that comes with no power, no communication, no relief. But we were fine. Can’t even begin to compare. We were able to camp out in (and outside) our old funky but sturdy home, get in our funky little  car and drive back and forth to The Pod for government issued emergency water and supplies, and listen to our Emergency Weather Radio. A walk in the park for us. I cannot comprehend this…

Bodies on the streets

Aftershocks rattled the city of 2 million people as women covered in dust clawed out of debris, wailing. Stunned people wandered the streets holding hands. Thousands gathered in public squares singing hymns.

People pulled bodies from collapsed homes, covering them with sheets by the side of the road. Passersby lifted the sheets to see if a loved one was underneath. Outside a crumbled building the bodies of five children and three adults lay in a pile.

snip

Haitian President René Préval told the Miami Herald that he had been stepping over dead bodies and hearing the cries of those trapped under the rubble of the national Parliament building, describing the scene as “unimaginable.”

“Parliament has collapsed. The tax office has collapsed. Schools have collapsed. Hospitals have collapsed,” he said.

Préval issued an urgent appeal for aid.

Tens of thousands of people appear to have lost their homes and many perished in collapsed buildings that were flimsy and dangerous even under normal conditions.

“The hospitals cannot handle all these victims,” Dr. Louis-Gerard Gilles, a former senator, said as he helped survivors. “Haiti needs to pray. We all need to pray together.”

msnbc source with pics and vids

Andy Worthington guests on on Democracy NOW! Jan 08, 2010: After Years in Guantanamo Prison Without Charge, Future Even More Uncertain for Yemeni Detainees

ANDY WORTHINGTON:  You know, and the Pentagon consistently produces these kind of-this kind of information at useful times. I mean, it really makes me wonder who’s running the show here. Who in the Pentagon is making this kind of material available the day after Barack Obama has backed down on releasing any more Yemenis, which is clearly part of a whole story that makes it more and more difficult to close Guantanamo? Whose side are they on? Whose agenda is being set here?

Here’s the video… thank you edger!

Jan 11 through 22. See my initial essay yesterday. January 22 marks the day that Guantanamo would’ve closed had that been… possible…. according to that 2009 inaugural promise.

Dharma Bums. For the duration of this ten day or so Vigil, I invite you to contribute or participate in whatever way you choose, but I would like to encourage you to attend bloggily in some small or large way.

A very simple thing anyone can do would be to change your sig for the duration.

Another simple thing you could do is to post an Essay on the subject. You can post three per day here y’know. 😉 Surely you’d be willing to devote one to this effort? It doesn’t have to be info heavy or link rich even. Some thoughts, a photo montage or music video or something simple is fine.

Just do it. No Sign Up Sheet or anything. Be excellent.

Attend.

Witness.

No justice, no peace.

When the newly inaugerated President Obama signed that EO ordering the closing of G’mo last January I cheered. Right alongside many here at Docudharma who wrote countless detailed and compassionate essays on the whole subject. I thank you for my education and your vigilance … Jeff Kaye (Valtin), PDND, Buhdydharma, and more.

h/t to jimstaro (he embedded in his comments in his essay), the Miami Herald has this compelling video.

Today marks the first day of the Witness Against Torture effort by these folks who begin today in D.C. with a rally:

Today, activists and Guantanamo lawyers mark the anniversary by demanding that President Obama make good on his pledge to close the prison as first step towards restoring the rule of law. Further, the group opposes any plan for holding prisoners without charge or trial in the U.S. and denounces the White House’s expansion of Bush-style detention in Afghanistan.