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Section One: Table Notes
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( PLEASE NOTE: These notes have not been edited by the speakers and should not be taken as an accurate expression of the speakers’ meanings. ellen)
At the Table on Monday, 6/19/06
Shari Able, Cheryl Hayden Mira Rodwan, Gerry Kraus, Marvin Kraus, Steve Slack, Lisa Haglund, David Rosenberg, Daisy Quarm, Mike Murphy, Ellen Bierhorst, Londo Slack,
Vlasta Molak, Susan Rivers-Payne, Chad Benjamin Potter, Mr. G.
News: Announcements:
Londo Slack went to day camp at the new U.C. Recreation Facility. Dodge ball...arts & crafts... outside games ... lunch... swimming pool, snack... Self defense instruction.
Vlasta: one enchanting evening at Mike Fink boat, fund raiser for Gaia Oasis. come at 6:00 for the buffet dinner. Next Monday. 26 June. Susatinable redevelopment of the heart of Cinti.
Song: "Come follow follow follow..." round.
Preamble read by Mira Rodwan.
Gerry: today at finance committee at council the issue of reinstating the Office of Environment Quality was brought up. Crowley has been promoting it. John Cranley, dem cand. for congress, as well as 3 dem. colleagues (Bortz, Burding, thomas) plus Republicans Ghiz and Monzell, all voted not to support an office of environmental management as a budget priority. Tabell out of town; Cole not on lthat committee.
I was waiting to hear Cranley's position on this before supporting him for Congress.
They don't consider this as a top priority for the city.
Marvin: see "An Inconvenient Truth". Al gore's movie on Global Warming. Gore is charming, down to earth, funny... Well attended. At Mariemont Cinema; also at AMC on the Levee.
todd Portune. fund raiser. Wednesday.
Mira: group tickets available for Inconvenient Truth. ... Take Back America called me re. Chabot's voting for cut backs in education support. I called. They took my name. I think maybe they are starting to be worried.
ChaD: I have a temp job. Survey's at Glenway Kroger on Children's Art supplies. You get a $10 gift certificate just for doing the survey. Tell friends to come. You must have children 2 - 12.
Topics:
- should we support the Dem. Party? todd Portune.
- Take back America conference last week. Vlasta.
- Daisy's trip to Central America
- Marvin: crack down on illegal immigrants in Butler Co., on NPR this evening
- Shari: the gov't. Any time anybody sues the government... these cases cannot be tried in a court because of national security issues. Suits re. war in Iraq. Apparently the government always gets its way.
David Rosenberg: new rules
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN BUTLER CO
Marvin: the sherrif decided to call attention to the failure of the fed. gov't to enforce the immigration lawas. So he is incarcerated them, even though it is a fed. offence, not a local one. The bureau of immigration does not consider it important enough; but rather the priority should be to seek out terrorists. He is charging the fed. gov't the $$ for the prisoners.
Ellen:
Daisy: to agree with Ellen's analysis. Many of the Republicans really are doing well with the cheap labor, not wanting to enforce these lawas. yet certain states are getting large numbers of these immigrants, straining budgets, ... workers having harfd time getting jobs.
for a long time I thought there was no good answer, solution to this problem. One the one hand we should support the immigrants who are already here, they are humans. Yet it seems wrong to say "open all the borders". We can't take in the whole world.
I just got back fromn El Salvador. 6.5 million El Salvadorans in El Sal., and 2.5 million El Salvadorans in the US! One thing that came clearer. Hunger Trumps Fear. Alwayas. No matter what we do to enforce the border, we just make it tougher, and it does not discourage immigration. People will find a way, no matter what we do. It would take tremendous expenditures to have a strong border that would keep jpeople out. the real solution is not stepped up enforcement, but having a foreign policy that promotes development rather than underdevelopment in Latin American and the rest of the world, to make staying at home more attractive. What we are doing is the opposite.
Mike I agree with Ellen and Daisy. I would add: we do need to go to a borderless world, at least economically. Used to have a peasant economy in the rest of the world; subsistence farmers, work year round. Can live without city jobs. We have devastated peasant economies; we have globalized the world. McDonald's is everywhere. An American created a ranch in Brazil the size of Connectcuit. Raising beef for McDonalds. ... Immigrants are economic refugees. We have a musical chair system. The media don't realize there is a squeeze involved. the music stopps and everybody scrambles for a chair. Solmebody loses. this is the way global capitolism works. Economic refugees.
So let's make it a borderless world economically. You must go beyond whatever the Dem or Rep are saying today. We would just be fools to ask the Dems for these kinds of p olicies.
jGerry: question: Daisy, is the reason why people are coming from El Sal. to US that people are starving?
Daisy: I don't think people are actually starving to death, but they don't have a way of making a living where they are. The IMF and World Bank, and recent CAFTA has changed trade so that in rural areas they can still farm for own needs, but ability to sell surplus on the market so they could pay school fees, buy shoes, etc. Living in 3 rm. cinder block houses, one elect. light, cook on wood stove. 2 or 3 sets of clothes. US imported crops are cheaper and flood the market. US government subsidized produce.
Because of globalized world trade, Chinese workers competing with the El Sal. factory workers.
El Sal. has a lower min. wage in rural areas. So some factories are moving to rural areas. but the wage is so low! Like $87/month, and cost of living about what it is here.
Mr. G: in jest, here's a solution. Offer statehood to Mexico. they probably would accept it.
20 million in Mex. City. total pop ...?
Marvin: there were Hispanic people in Hamilton interviewed. They are frightened of going on the street lest they be arrested. Police cruisers in neighborhood, Hamilton police trying to be friendly to the Hispanics living in Hamilton to encourage them in the community. Trying to improve relations.
Shari: people in this country, e.g. Mississippi delta, who are starving. In the sixties the food stamp program got started ... now they finding out they have an obesity problem because people buy wrong types of food with the food stamps. I would like to see more done in this country to make it possible for the poor here to advance themselves.
Steve: as a Californian. when crops are ready to harvest yhou need a big work force...often work 24 hours, when the crop is ripe. The timing is crucial. Need large groups. Then they go to another farm. What do they go when harvest season is over. Then what? Welfare, ...
If we like inexpensive food on our tables ... it is because of the migrant workers. When you see immigrants being busted for working in construction... we need those people in the fields in order to have the luxurious supermarket that we have.
If California were a nation it would be fifth or sixth in the world re. economny.
David: I've heard somne immigrants say that Agribusiness says they need immigrants to work in fields; migrants say "we could get all the help you need if you pay a decent wage." The business says "we can't afford". I think they are misusing a resource. If they take the natural r e sources and cannot provide work that can sustain a living, then they should not be allowed to use the natural resources. When you look at yields, soil quality, pollution, you see that for food production, the small or midium size farm is clearly best. but the Agribusiness people "externalize the costs".
the permaculture guy says yields are l imited only by the limits of our immagination. If you provide the right crops, inter-crops, you can raise productivity more land more and more. But Agribusiness is lacking in immagination.
the problems in El Salv. are microcosm ... using resources, allowing proprietors to use resources, but don't provide non-proprietors with a living wage.
I don't agree with Mike's conclusions. According to F. M. Lappe, there are enough resources to feed the populationj of EVERY country in the world, including Bangladesh. Instead, proprietors use the resources for their own gain, not to support the population.
Mike calls for ellimination of borders. Ithink you can handle it in a decentralized way. Maybe bioregion organization. Areas that have major geographic borders, like mountains, draininage basins.
Mike I don't think we disagree. If we get rid of NAFTA... a good thing. No disagreement with Frances Moore Lappe. Many good things being said here.
Gerry a lot of this is theoretical. I'd like to tell you about my experience today working at the community flower garden on Victory Pkwy. A McDonald's employee, could hardly speak English, admiring the flowers. Lives Norwood. She was walking, to save money. 4 miles? She seems happy. Maybe her children will become Drs and Lawyers. Anyway, the immigrants are working hard and setting an example of work ethic.
Mr. G.: Swim with manatees in Key Largo a couple years ago. In lagoon. I was able to pet them. ... Want to go back to what Daisy said: the idea of helping ... of going in and making it so they could live at the same standard to here, so you eliminate the desire to come here. I cannot imagine making that work. Do we have evidence that if we didn't go in some place... I m asking did we go in there and fill a vacuum? Or did we push aside progress? Is it heartless capitalism?
Vlasta you must take into consideration the birth rates in these countries.
Mr. G: ... how much to pay in wage. If you fill a vacuum and put something there that wasn't there?
Steve: does Walmart increase their standard of living.
Daisy I saw discount stores in El Sal.
OTHER TOPICS
David: since the whole world is living under one system. So if we pay close attention to our local politics and put our own house in order, could help the whole world.
Progressive argument: Overpopulation is a symptom of povertty. People have many children because they want security in old age, so have lots of children. When people have more security for old age, they lower their birth rate.
TAKE BACK AMERICA CONFERENCE
VLASTA: THREE WONDERFUL DAYS. Every progressive leader was there. Dennis Kuccinich not there. I asked why he wasn't asked. there were 2,000 people. Values: good work, schools over weapons, anti-war.
Hillary Cliknton, John Kerry, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reed the minority leader, Barak Obama.
Invigorating.
Made me almost high.
At one point Hillary was booed because she didn't think there should be a time table for troop withdrawal.
Kerry said he made a mistake in voting for the war. Votge based on misinformation.
So much like Vietnam. You don't stay in a war just because you started it. We need a timetable.
On Social agenda: sounds like New Deal. National Health Care. Should be free schooling. Seems like the Dems there were back to FDR. Encouraging.
Many talks about election fraud.
There were break ins in Ohio Democratic Partyi offices. I didn't read it on the news.
Chatted with Joe Wilson, Valerie Plame's husband. He said these guys get away with murder. He's going after them when they leave office.
(Why was Dennis K. not there?) I asked. They said, "I don't know why he wasn't invited." Dennis was having hearings on these private army people, independent contractors, working in Iraq. they get away with murder. Abuse of Iraqis. Their Security people are armed, and they shoot. Investigation in congress.
they say it is a real danger that Bush will attack Iran.
the greatest concern was on the voting machine issue.
One g roup was urging Gore to run.
Another to promote Russ Feingold to run.
Apparently there is a great d eal of attention in Congress going to the ammendment proposed to make it a crime to desecrate the flag.
... Feingold is amiable, very intelligent. Was the only senator who voted against the war.
(?) No Bill Clinton was not there.
Mike talking about stollen election in Ohio. There is a website www.loveearth.com printing all this news. I still come back to issue of supporting people like Hillary Clinton. ... Kerry could have said great things when running for office, and he didn't. BHAck to Granny D. I am not convinced that the Dems. are worth supporting. Maybe Feingold, Kuccinich are worth it. A lot of blindness. It is our system that is wrong. Our system is determined to defeat us, inequal distribution of wealth. If we don't change the system, we are just foolish.
My solution is to say we need social ownership of the economy, and then democratic control of the economy. I am a socialist, but not like any you have heard of. the workers to have choice of who is the leader... I don't know that this has ever been tried.
Gerry burning flag law... On news showed VFW burning old flags. At the conference, were there any policies they want to push?
Vlasta: yes, "Talking Points" from the Take Back America. A whole book. e.g. National Health Care; make health care available to every American, working and not. Living wage is another. Stop the insane arms build up. Stopping the war. Kerry, Pelosi, Obama all for stopping it.
Also environmental protection. Protection of children; education. Radical compared with the Clinton years.
Susan: very i nteresting talk. I heard this week, thomas Friedman, and the Tappat Brothers("Car Talk"). both suggestion $3 gal tax on gas used to fund alternative fuel ... the Taplpat Bros suggested a graduated tax on gasoline, from $1 ro $6 over 6 years. Give the auto companies a chance to retool their cars to be more environmentally sound. It would make the oil producing countries less desirable for us. Be a big factor to de-escallate the war.
Two different sources, same kind of idea.
Mr. G.: Al Gore... the ozone problem is solved. In the movie. International cooperation can change the environment. big holes in the ozone layer. I started wondering How come I have not heard? At least Al gore thinks it has been solved. CFC I(choloro flurocarbons) in aerosol cans. Freon. So the ozone layer has been healed. Almost. the absence of the bad stuff, together with lots of lightening which creates ozone.
~End of Table Notes.~
I put the Articles section next in today’s edition of the Weekly because there are a n umb er of v ery juicy pieces. Check them out.
Hugs to everyone,
Ellen
Section Two: Articles
Contents:
- Kenyan Muslim woman & American academic both share on “hijab”, the Muslim scarf
- US – Asian Muslim exchange of journalists
- Steve Sunderland on Muslim Mothers’ Against Violence talk before Muse Concert last week
- Arthur Waskow on Prairie Home Companion Movie: America is dying.
- Eye witness report from Baghdad
- John Edwards on Internet Freedom
Anna Sher (my professor daughter) on the Hijab in Kenya
(Anna reads the weekly sometimes... The following prompted by our table discussion.)
“Quick two cents re. Muslims and cloth coverings for women:
While leading a semester abroad program in Kenya (2000, 2002), we would have an (African) Muslim woman who worked in cultural translation speak to our students and answer questions. She explained that in her Muslim community it is believed (and taught) that men have no control over their sexual behavior. Thus, if you reveal your beauty, men may be compelled to rape you. They believe that it is women's responsibility to prevent this from happening, by covering themselves when in the presence of men who are not their sons or husbands. She would then lower her voice and explain that it had a secret benefit for the women by allowing them to travel during the day incognito- even to their lover's abodes (!).
The women were also not allowed in mosques, and so instead they would have all-female parties associated with weddings (and probably other events), while the men did the religious part of the ceremony without them. I attended a few of these wedding parties and was always amazed to see the sexy, Vanna-White-type satin and lace gowns they would be wearing under their buey-bueys (they don't call them burkas there). They then would dance seductively with eachother (including mock intercourse), presumably to teach the young bride how to behave with her new husband. Our teacher explained to us that there were women who were hired to lead this dancing at your party, and that in olden days they acted as sexual tutors to the brides (and were often 'kept on' after the wedding). Although perceived as conservative to outsiders, this clearly was far from a prudish culture. Sexist, certainly, but also acknowledging of women's sexuality (or at least that's my read on it).
This doesn't make me look favorably on the practice of covering, however; firstly, it is a pain (yet another thing to deal with and wash, while the men wear whatever they please) and can be hot in desert climates (some claimed it was a portable shade, however). It was interesting (and sad) to see the pubescent girls try to play the same games they used to while having to constantly fix their head scarves and such. Some of their friends would be wearing them, others not (the ones who hadn't started menstruating), and one could really see how repressive it was. Trying to take a generous veiw: perhaps it was a 'gentle' way to get them to stop playing like children (?). I tried wearing one for a day, and what struck me most (besides that it was a pain) was that I finally had some relief from stares from the men. They certainly went along with the concept that they couldn't control themselves, so covering oneself was indeed your only defense. In one fell swoop- appeared to me to be degrading to both men and women. Sigh.”
Jim Kesner (Who does a great job of “Tri State Treasures”) on US – Asian Muslim exchange of journalists
Building Understanding Between the U.S. & the Asian Muslim World: The East-West Center (www.eastwestcenter.org <http://www.eastwestcenter.org> ) invited eight journalists from South Asian Muslim countries - Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, & Pakistan - to visit the US, and they invited six American journalists to travel east. The goal is to increase understanding of the Muslim world outside of the Middle East. Margaret McGurk, reporter, features writer, & film critic for the Cincinnati Enquirer, is among the six participating US journalists. The other US journalists are from the Dallas Morning News, Detroit Free Press, Foreign Policy, Minneapolis Star Tribune, & Seattle Post-Intelligencer; their job titles include international editor, religion writer, managing editor, senior editorial writer & columnist, & foreign desk editor.
The Asian journalists are currently in the US; they spent a few days in Washington, DC, then 2 days in Cincinnati, and then traveled on Saturday 17 June to spend 4 days in San Jose and San Francisco. On Wednesday 21 June, the homeward-bound Asians and the outward-bound Americans will convene at the East-West Center in Honolulu for a 3-day conference. The US contingent then travels to the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta, for a week, then to the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, for a week, before returning home on Saturday 8 July.
The Asians met with federal officials at the Pentagon and other agencies in Washington, DC. In Cincinnati, they visited the Islamic center, the Freedom Center, Channel 9, and the Cincinnati Enquirer. In California, they hope to meet with Jewish community leaders, journalists, among others.
In Indonesia, the US journalists will meet with government officials, journalists, Islamic educators, and leaders of political parties ranging from radical to moderate. They hope to have time to explore the countries and to meet the people in the cafes and markets. The Dhaka agenda has yet to be established.
Margaret has begun keeping a blog at http://frontier.cincinnati.com/blogs/southasianjournal/ <http://frontier.cincinnati.com/blogs/southasianjournal/> enabling us to monitor her trip and insights. She welcomes readers to post comments & questions on the blog site (you may need to register with Blogger.com <http://Blogger.com> ). Readers can read Margaret's earlier blog entries to learn more background, including the bios of the participants. Margaret plans to post photos and videos on the site.
And, Margaret would be happy to receive emails from readers at margaret.mcgurk@gmail.com <mailto:margaret.mcgurk@gmail.com> . And while she expects to have virtually uninterrupted internet access throughout her trip, she cannot promise unconditionally that she will be able to answer every email immediately.
Steve Sunderland on Muslim Mothers Against Violence at Muse Concert
Dear Friends:
The second part of the "Great Peace March" Concert, organized by Cathy Roma, director of MUSE, featured a presentation by a delegation of Cincinnati's Muslim Mothers Against Violence. Cathy introduced them with a powerful quote from Parker Palmer: "Where does one get the courage to sit in the front of the bus?" Cathy added, "And, where is the courage of Muslim Mothers of Violence coming from as well?? Today, to be a Muslim spokesperson means entering an unknown hall, classroom and/or meeting room in a church or synagogue and being prepared to explain not only why someone believes in the Islamic religion but also why this religion is NOT "so violent, so dangerous, so anti-American, etc." Saturday night, the Unity New Thought Unity Church in Cincinnati was filled with strangers who had come to listen to the songs of MUSE, Cincinnati's women's choir, and the amazing voice and music of peace activist, Holly Near. What gave this event its special turn was the introduction of the idea that we, peacemakers and supporters of justice, needed to expand our consciousness to embrace justice for Islam in general and these Muslims in particular.
Implicit in this beginning of the concert was the assumption that Cincinnati was ready to think and act differently toward Islam. Coming 5 years after September 11, years of war, and days after the alleged killing of an Al Queda leader, the talk was overdue in some ways and right on time in another. The continued demonizing of Islam in the media and by world leaders has continued unabated. Only "illegal" immigrants have temporarily deflected the bulk of the American people from focusing hatred on Islam. Similarly, Muslims in our community now understood the necessity of an aggressive educational effort to make clear just where and how Islam was a proponent of peace and against terrorism and violence. The unusual task of going into classrooms and churches to "explain" and "defend" their faith, is seen as a major positive step in building peace in our city and between faith groups. Most of Cincinnati has forgotten about the December, 2005 bombing of one of the mosques in our university community. The crime of placing two bombs continues unsolved. Yet, the need to reach out, to educate, to defuse the abiding fear of Islam and its believers, has spurred these acts of courage.
The first speaker, Dr. Saba Atik khalid, spoke eloquently as a mother and a psychiatrist, about how she was brought up by her parents to believe that justice was the right of everyone and it is Muslims' duty to protect this key value for all. Saba spoke quietly but firmly about her strong disagreement with the distortion of her faith by both so-called Islamic leaders and the media. She told the story of being in the US during the genocide in Bosnia of many Muslim women. She called her father in Pakistan to discuss the horror and was surprised when he said: "You will need to be angry about this massacre even if these people were not Muslim. These are our fellow human beings." Saba said this caught, beautifully, how she was taught the Prophet Mohammad's central teachings. "I protest the distortion of my faith," she said in a quiet and very firm voice, "and I believe that America and Americans are able to speak about the real Islam."
Her colleague, Shakila Ahmed, continued the firm rejection of seeing Muslims as different or strange, although she noted that both the media and the violent leaders gain the greatest attention. "Who knew that 35,000 Pakistanis non-violently protested the Danish cartoons or that the Danish newspaper had rejected cartoons about Jesus just two years prior?" Shakila, her voice rising, and her face reddening, continued to emphasize the basic similar human characteristics of all people, and the support for basic rights and freedoms for all Americans. Placing a beautiful brown shawl on her head, she asked: "Does wearing this head scarf make me dangerous, strange, or less of an American? No!" The point, though, was that as an American she is constantly facing rejection as she practices her faith in public and without any good reason other then prejudice. The damage on American citizens who happen to be Muslims continues to take a toll, she suggested, precisely because fear has overwhelmed reason. "Who speaks for my Islam? Where is my voice of reason and other moderate and non-violent voices and messages being heard?" I sensed both a mounting impatience with the one-sided media coverage as well as a frustration about not being taken seriously as a female advocate. "We have to live in patriarchal societies," she said with a smile, "but Pakistan, Indonesia and other countries have had a women as president. Maybe America could consider a woman for vice-president."
What Saba and Shakila were revealing in stark terms was that they were peacemakers, believing that their faith called them to be fully peaceful, and that they were allies in the efforts to end violence anywhere and particularly in the ways in which Islam was being misused. The shadow of hatred has moved across the Muslim families as danger has replaced invisibility. Now, some Americans are judging, first, who is an enemy and then finding out how mistaken they are. But the damage is chronic and the toll is heavy. Neither woman looked at ease in their presentation. Neither knew just how the audience would react. But quickly the audience sensed their courage, honesty and alliance with justice and rose to their feet to communicate welcome and an invitation to be taught. The anxiety about personal security, the breath held in fearful anticipation, was released. We were able to hear anger, and hope, faith grounded in justice and resentment at cavalier descriptions. Quickly, we became one peace march, one teach in, one boat of Noah and Allah and Jesus, sailing into understanding and promise.
The courage to speak for a peace, these last two nights, came out of a mothers' pain about the death of a loved child and the reality of living in a society that robs other children of trust, happiness, and acceptance. Holly Near and the MUSE chorus gave the evenings a solid anchor of love and boldness. Near is no stranger to the struggle to place the human rights of women at the center of American values. And, MUSE beats the choral drum of beauty and justice with each performance. "We seek to challenge ourselves," one member of the choir said, "and to challenge you, too." What courage does it take to sing in favor of rights for gays and lesbians when the government, federal and state, are manipulating this issue to divide the community? What kind of courage does it take to sing out that "I ain't afraid of your god, but I am afraid of how you use your god to promote genocide?" Fundamentally, these two concerts were planting seeds for newcomers, and adding water for those old times parched by the absence of freedom songs. The march, Holly Near sang so beautifully, continues with no end in sight except the smile and applause of those embracing justice amidst the war. It is Spring in Cincinnati and peace, the color of beauty in a mother's grief and mothers joined together for respect and justice, blossoming.
Arthur Waskow on “Prairie Home Companion” Movie
Dear Friends,
Last night (Sunday) Phyllis and I saw the new film, "A Prairie Home Companion," sired by Robert Altman out of Mother Minnesota, with Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep among an amazing cast.
But more amazing than the cast is the (implicit) theme: the death of America.
The grass-rootsy radio program, in the film (not in real life) is playing its last show, its home radio station having been swallowed by a ravenous corporation. And in it the Angel of Death, as a lovely Woman in White, taps on the shoulder of one of the show's most beloved veterans.
Death is all-pervasive, yet the film is funny. I couldn't stop laughing to cry, I couldn't stop crying to laugh. The America that is dying is ribald, sad, sweet, bold, decent, unruly, song-full, tough, eccentric. Yet it is killed. It dies with nary a whimper –- but it dies.
"Is this a great country, or what?" -- Yes, it is. How could such a wonderful country end up with such a terrible government, both the "public" one in Washington that ignores the public interest and the "private" one of corporate ledgers that exercises such power over the public?
In the real America of "Prairie Home Companion," some cops and some soldiers tortured prisoners, but that America would never have tolerated a President who made torture into official policy and openly said that laws forbidding it did not apply to him. Indeed, for violations less atrocious, that America drove a President from office just 34 years ago.
Of course, in the usual paradox of artistic and spiritual creativity, a film about our death MIGHT be a redemptive act of life. Or might not. It's up to us.
Soooooooo -- Is that America dead? Some of us are trying to give it new life. For example:
New energy and new people are joining in efforts to end the use of torture by the US government. Two important events:
1) In the New York Times this past Wednesday, a quarter-page ad on the Op/Ed page carried this message: "Let America abolish torture now – without exceptions."
Among the signers were two Nobel Peace laureates: President Jimmy Carter and (a totally new voice in this discussion) Elie Wiesel. The leaders of many religious organizations – evangelical, main-line Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim – also signed. You can support this statement! (More below.)
2) At the US Mission to the UN next week (May 26), there will be a street action to urge the closure of Guantanamo and an end to US use of torture. You can join in this action! (More below.)
More on the NY Times statement:
"Torture is a Moral Issue.
"Torture violates the basic dignity of the human person that all religions, in their highest ideals, hold dear. It degrades everyone involved -– policy-makers, perpetrators, and victims.
"It contradicts our nation's most cherished values. Any policies that permit torture and inhumane treatment are shocking and morally intolerable.
"Nothing less is at stake in the torture abuse crisis than the soul of our nation. What does it signify if torture is condemned in word but allowed in deed? ..."
Another new voice among the signers was Rabbi Jerome M. Epstein, who (for identification only) was listed as Executive Vice President, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. He joined Rabbi David Saperstein of the Reform movement's Religious Action Center, which had been working on the issue before.
On being asked about the absence of other Jewish signatories, the organizers (National Religious Committee Against Torture) explained that most of its efforts had been to bring in new people, especially among evangelical Christians, and that they had therefore not focused on including The Shalom Center and Rabbis for Human Rights, both of which pioneered campaigns against torture in the Jewish and broader religious communities.
Other signers are listed at the end of this message.
We urge you, our readers, to use this letter as a basis for writing your own metropolitan and communal newspapers.
Why them? -- There is little point in writing Congress at this point, since it recently passed overwhelmingly a law renewing and restating prohibitions on torture – only to sit silent when the President signed it and simultaneously announced he would not feel bound by it.
Even Senator McCain, who had pressed for passage of the anti-torture amendment, acquiesced in this breathtaking violation of the Constitution.
Congress also passed an act abolishing the writ of habeas corpus for Guantanamo prisoners – the one way for them to get legal redress for false imprisonment and torture, and the most sacred protection of freedom in American and British history, going back to the 14th century.
So public opinion needs to raise its head against this moral perfidy. If you click on this address, you can send a letter to the editor that refers to the "Torture is a Moral Issue" statement and joins in it.
http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/tsc/pickMedia.jsp?letter_KEY=487
THIS STRING MUST ENTER AS A SINGLE LINE. Make sure when you click on or enter this it does not have letter-salad from a split line.
style='font-family:Helvetica'>
Meanwhile, Witness Against Torture is sponsoring a NYC teach-in Sunday June 25 and a street action Monday June 26, to end torture & close Guantanamo.
These are the folks (mostly Catholic Worker) who walked across Cuba to Guantanamo and who organized (with CALC-I) an anti-torture, close- Guantanamo action in NYC on May 1. I expect, God willing, to take part on June 26; I hope many others also will.
Shalom, Arthur
TEACH-IN: Sunday, June 25, 6pm-8pm, Judson Assembly Room (Enter at 239 Thompson Street)
Moderated by *Edget Betru*, Organizer, Guantanamo Global Justice Initiative, Center for Constitutional Rights. Speakers: *Sarah Havens*, attorney with Allen & Overy, represents fourteen Yemeni
prisoners at Guantanamo; (invited) George Hunsinger, Director, National Religious Network Against Torture.
Performances by Michael Cates, Pierce Woodward and others /
ACTION: Monday, June 26, 2006- United Nations Day for Victims of Torture; Procession to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations to Call on Ambassador John Bolton to Join the International Consensus to Shut Down Guantanamo *
10:30 am, Gather for short opening ceremony, Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (47th street and First Avenue)
Solemn Procession to Bring **Guantanamo** to the US Mission steps off at 11:00
]
Noon- 1pm, Demonstration at US Mission to the UN, 45th Street between 3rd Avenue and Lexington
For more information, visit -- n
<http://www.witnesstorture.org/> or email Frida.Berrigan@gmail.com
*The activities are being organized by Witness Against Torture, in
concert with Torture Awareness Month, www.tortureawareness.org
<http://www.tortureawareness.org/>*
Eye Witness Report from Baghdad
(Last winter dau. Anna and her partner, Fran took their honeymoon in Patagonia with an “adventure tour” group. While there they befriended this man, Jay, now in the military in Iraq. He writes:)
From: "James Hennessey" <hennesseyjj@hotmail.com>
Date: June 16, 2006 8:30:06 AM MDT
To: fransimon10@yahoo.com, peter@pgwgroup.com, dannyholladay@comcast.net, antares@speakeasy.net, anna@sher.com
Subject: Update from Baghdad
Hey all,
Please accept my apologies for the late reply. Thank you all for your continued thoughts and support!!
I'm about half way through my deployment here and I should be back statesisde in October. I'm really looking forward to the quiet rest. To update you all, I am currently serving as an Operations Officer for Multi National Forces Iraq at Camp Victory Iraq in Baghdad. I work in the Joint Operations Center, which is essentially the nerve center of the war. Things here are very busy and tensions run very high. Lets just say, I could really use a piece of cheese while I relax by that river in Cordoba Pass :) The summer has certainly arrived here and so has the brutal heat. It was 120 yesterday. Life is very routine. Sleep and work, with the occasional interruption of a mortar round. You get used to it though and before long the mortar explosions and gunfire become part of the background noise. I fortunately get to work with several diffferent Nations and the stories shared are great. There are Poles, Aussies, Brits, Koreans, and Italians to mention the largest contigents. I was even surprised to meet Mongolians. It's an international soup. Working with the Iraqis is also very rewarding, reminds me of what I'm here for. The Media paints an extremely skewed picture and that is unfortunate. There are good things being done!
I hope everything is going well for all of you and please know that you are in my thoughts! I would correspond to you all personally but my free time is limited so this is my only alternative.
I'll keep you all posted!
Jay
John Edwards on Internet Freedom
Dear Friend,
When MoveOn and The Christian Coalition agree about something, it's a good bet they're right. Groups as wide-ranging as Gun Owners of America on one side and U.S. PIRG and the One America Committee on the other are fighting to keep the Internet the way it is now - free and open to anyone with access to a computer.
Today, everyone in the world can communicate through the Internet on an equal basis. A small-time programmer like Pierre Omidyar can start an auction site out of his home office and turn it into eBay. A blogger like Josh Marshall can post his opinions on Talking Points Memo and end up attracting more readers than the country's biggest newspapers.
On the Internet, big corporations are on equal footing with everyday people. And it needs to stay that way.
Right now, special interests are pushing bills through Congress that would divide the Internet in two. Corporate deals would determine which web sites would run incredibly fast and which ones would barely run at all. Some users might not be able to access sites operated by regular people.
I don't want Internet service providers to decide which web sites I can look at. And I know you don't either.
Last week, the House of Representatives fell in line with industry demands and passed a telecommunications bill without "net neutrality" protections. That means our only hope of stopping them is in the Senate. Please tell your Senator to keep the Internet the way it is now - free and open to everyone.
Sign the petition now.
Some people fear that creating two tiers of the Internet could allow service providers to shut down web sites whose politics they didn't like. But even if they didn't discriminate based on content, the access fees could marginalize smaller and poorer players.
This is the completely wrong direction. We should be making the Internet more accessible, not less. We should be working to connect rural areas, schools in poor neighborhoods and other areas where people have not yet benefited from access to innovation and technology.
The companies that want to charge for the Internet are running a slick public relations campaign to make themselves look like a netroots operation. That's why the folks on our side need to wage a real - and overwhelming - netroots effort to make sure Congress understands that Americans want to keep the Internet the way it is - free and open to everyone.
I'm turning to you to ask for your help. You know how important the Internet is to free speech, especially political speech. And you know what it takes to turn out the netroots. Let's show them how it's done.
Sign the petition now.
And then, use the Internet to protect the Internet. Please forward this email to your friends and family.
Thank you for taking action.
Your friend,
John Edwards
Help support the One America Committee with a contribution today.
Spread the word. Tell a friend about One America.
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Section Three: Announcements
Support Salonista Vlasta Molak’s Fund Raiser on Mike Fink Monday
Gala fund raiser for Sustainable Renewal of Over The Rhine etc. Monday 6/26
Check our Web site for details: www.GaiaFoundation.net <http://www.GaiaFoundation.net> Buffet dinner will be vegan prepared by Brad Bernstein' best cooks at Mike Fink Boat.
The musical program will include classical romantic piano playing by Dmitri Shelest (he is from Ukraine and plays great). and an exotic trio of flute, drums and keyboard. The party room is on top of the restuarant with a great view of Cincinnati skyline.
Put your money where your mouth is! SUSTAINABLE RE-development of Cincinnati will answer some of our country urgent needs (see the web for explanation (Gaia Oasis and SEARCH). It is combining 19th century historical beauty preservation with 21 century technology, while using human resources who can walk to work from their place in OTR.
At 3 pm the same day (Monday, June 26, 2006) I will be giving a power-point presentation to the Economic Development Committee (Chris Bortz) about Gaia Oasis, SEARCH and Cincinnati Sky Gardens...all described in detail on www.GaiaFoundation.net <http://www.GaiaFoundation.net> I may repeat it at the Mike Fink event later that eveining...at least abreviated version with pretty pictures.
hope to see you on Monday at 3 pm or 6 pm or both.
Vlasta
Join in reading The Decline of US Power by Immanuel Wallerstein at the Lloyd House with Ellen, David Rosenberg, Daisy Quarm, Mike Murphy, and ...? Study his WorldSystem theory. He’s got it all together to understand our world today.
Wednesday evenings 7 – 8 pm. Order the book ($7 on Amazon) or just show up at the Lloyd House. Jump in any time.
June 26
Lecture on “the great Miami — the Other Scenic Riv er”
Land Conservancy of Hamilton Co. Summer meeting
Monday June 26 7-9 pm
Bicentennial Barn on the Great Miami River, 7941 E. Miami River Rd.
\7 pm
Learn about efforts to protect land near your home and across Hamilton Co and how land conservation benefits our quality of life.
Take I 74 W to Rybold Rd. Exit #11; turn onto Harrison Ave, go 2.4 mi down Harrison, Turn R onto E. Miami River rd, go 1.5 mi. N to Barn.
June 26 Monday
Talk: Uniting the Environmental and Labor Movements for Change
Dialog with Larry Fahn, former president of Sierra Club, and Dave Foster, former dir. Of U. Steelworkers’ dist. 11.
7 pm
Schiff Family Conference Center at Cintas Center, X.U.
Brueggeman Center program. Call 745 3922.
Free, open.
Weight Management Seminar
three hour seminar on food and weight management
at Lloyd House. $60. Ellen Bierhorst Ph.D. Holistic Psychologist.
Topics include: addictive food patterns, trigger foods, the chemistry of food craving, the vicious cycle of dieting, self nourishment vs. self “medicating”, the “hypnosis” of impulse eating, tools for recovery, who needs Overeaters Anonymous, Salt-fat-carbohydrates, addiction to the scales, the importance of group support, the role of exercise, etc.
... times to be arranged. Call 221 1289
Movement Class for Everybody with Fanchon Shur
Hello everyone,
We wanted to let everyone know that classes are back onto their regular schedule (After the performance at the Aronof) and will continue through the summer and beyond. The class times are: Monday evenings at 6:30 pm and Wed. mornings at 9 am. Cost is $48 for 4 classes.
Ellen Bierhorst Ph.D. is a holistic psychotherapist with over 30 years experience serving individuals and families. Expert, caring, rapid service. Most insurance plans will cover. Call 513 221 1289. Special areas of interest: issues of young adulthood, couple communication, GLBT, trauma recovery using EMDR, clinical hypnosis, parenting skills, alternative lifestyles, addictions (tobacco, alcohol, drugs, overeating), weight loss. What is "holistic"? Ans: body/mind/spirit; open to alternative healing modalities from chiropractic to homeopathy, acupuncture, etc.
At Freedom Center Now
In Search of Darfur...with Nick Clooney
On exhibit now through July 15, 2006!
"I want your will, your effort and your determination to push for a stop to the genocide," Nick Clooney addressing guests at the exhibit opening reception.
Learn more about In Search of Darfur...with Nick Clooney- Click Here!
Series Premiere!
"Freedom of..." series kicks off this Thursday! June 22 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at the Freedom Center
You don't want to miss this great opportunity to experience the Freedom Center's wonderful Grand Hall—and its amazing view of the Ohio River. Music, light snacks and a cash bar will make this an enjoyable evening - so invite your friends and co-workers! Open to the public, $6 admission fee (Freedom Center Members get in FREE!!)
Learn more about Freedom of Participation...Click here!
Become a member of our Online Community!
Reflect and dialogue on your thoughts, experiences, and actions. We encourage you to join us in making a difference through expressing your views on freedom!
Learn more & register here!
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time is running out...don't miss these great opportunities!
Visiting the Freedom Center this weekend?
View the complete list of Freedom Center Activities - Click Here!
Civil War, a dramatic theatrical concert @ the Freedom Center during Tall Stacks!
Purchase your tickets today!
Parallels & Intersections: Artists Quilt a World Exhibit closing on June 30th!
Learn more - Click Here!
Get involved! Make a difference! Click here to volunteer with local Freedom Stations who are making a difference in regard to contemporary freedom issues.
June 16 AL GORE’S GLOBAL WARMING FILM OPENS AT MARIEMONT
An Inconvenient Truth:
AMC Theatres Newport On The Levee 20 (4.7 mi)
One Levee Way
Newport, KY 41071 Map
12:00pm |
2:15pm |
4:35pm |
7:05pm |
9:25pm
Get Tickets
Mariemont Theatre (7.8 mi)
6906 Wooster Pike Road
Cincinnati, OH 45227 Map
1:00pm |
3:10pm |
5:20pm |
7:40pm |
9:50pm
National Amusements Kenwood Towne Centre (7.9 mi)
7875 Montgomery Rd, Suite L160
Cincinnati, OH 45236 Map
12:00pm |
2:15pm |
4:30pm |
7:00pm |
9:20pm
Dear NRDC BioGems Defender,
The threat of global warming has finally burst into the public's consciousness
with last year's category 5 hurricanes and a steady stream of scientific
studies about the alarming disappearance of Arctic sea ice.
Now we're about to get another wake-up call: a riveting documentary called "An
Inconvenient Truth," which features Al Gore's acclaimed presentation about the
here-and-now realities of global warming.
I've seen Al's presentation and I can tell you it's well worth the price of
admission. It has enthralled audiences around the world and inspired them to
demand change.
NRDC has been fighting for more than a decade to win forward-looking policies
that can defuse the global warming crisis. But we need this film and many more
like it to alert America to the stark choice now facing us: our government can
avert a global warming catastrophe by taking action right now, or condemn our
children to a future of drought, disease, floods and lost ecosystems.
"An Inconvenient Truth" opens in New York and Los Angeles on May 24 and
nationwide in June.
You can watch a trailer of the film and find a theater near you where it will
be playing by going to this link: http://www.climatecrisis.net
I hope you'll see it and spread the word.
Sincerely,
Frances Beinecke
President
Natural Resources Defense Council
July 1
Nutrition Seminar by local D.C.
Hello Everyone,
Dr. Michael Nichols is giving a nutrition presentation based on the ideas of Weston A. Price. If you are not familiar with his work, this is a must see presentation. If you are familiar with his work, how about coming out to support Dr. Michael.
Yours,
Shirley Reischman
-----Original Message-----
From: GateToHealing@aol.com [mailto:GateToHealing@aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2006 3:01 PM
Nutrition 101
The Myths, The Facts, & The Basics
When: Saturday July 1st from 12 to 2 pm
Where: Gateways to Healing
821 Delta Ave., in Mt. Lookout
*Call 513-321-3317 to reserve your space
Cost is $10
What you will learn:
· What are the basics: carbohydrates, proteins, fats.
· What does the phrase, "You are what you eat," really mean for you as an individual?
· What are the myths regarding cholesterol, satruated fat, trans-fatty acids, excitotoxins, and more?
· Is there really a difference between organic and conventional foods?
· Should you take supplements and if so, which are best?
· How to lose weight by eating healthy.
Speaker:
Dr. Michael Nichols, BS, DC, FICPA
Over the past twenty years, Dr. Michael has worked as a personal trainer, nutrition counselor, massage therapist, and chiropractor. He currently is the co-owner of Gateways to Healing, A Center for Wellness, with his wife, Dr. Julie Nichols. He also is an instructor of anatomy & physiology at Cincinnati School of Medical Massage and at Antonelli College. Gateways to Healing was recently voted 'Best Alternative Health Provider' by the readers of CityBeat magazine.
Gateways to Healing
A Center for Wellness
Dr. Michael Nichols, D.C.
Dr. Julie Nichols, D.C.
821 Delta Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio 45226
513-321-3317
Voted "Best Alternative Health Provider" CityBeat 2006
July 6-9, is the Midwest Social Forum.
Although tyranny may successfully rule over foreign peoples, it can stay in power only if it first destroys the national institutions of its own people.
~ Hannah Arendt
JOIN TODAY: LIBERTY TREE Foundation for the Democratic Revolution
June 21, 2006
What's next for the US democracy movement?
The next big thing is the coming of the World Social Forum to the United States. Begun just five years ago in Brazil, the social forum movement is sweeping the planet. Now it's coming to the United States. This past weekend, nearly a thousand participated in the first-ever Southeast Social Forum.
Just weeks away, July 6-9, is the Midwest Social Forum. Liberty Tree will be hosting a reception, as well as six sessions on building a democracy movement in the USA. If you haven't already made your plans to attend, now's the time to do so. The social forum is ~ the ~ place for grassroots progressives to come together.
And there's a lot of progress to talk about. Witness the recent vote by 24 Wisconsin cities to withdraw US troops from Iraq. Witness the recent vote by the citizens of Humboldt County, CA, to establish firmly that in their county, corporations are not persons entitled to constitutional protection.
Of course, there's much more to be done. A century ago Fighting Bob La Follette described the relationship between the war and fascism:
"If every preparation for war can be made the excuse for destroying free speech and a free press and the right of the people to assemble together for peaceful discussion, then we may well despair of ever again finding ourselves for a long period in a state of peace."
Today, with over 2,500 US dead, 20,000 walking wounded, and 250,000 Iraqi casualties, and the Bill of Rights hanging in tatters, the struggles for peace and democracy remain one and the same. We urge you to sign the Voters Pledge for Peace, participate in the July 4th Troops Home Fast, and support the stand of US military personnel in refusing their participation in the illegal occupation of Iraq.
The movement for peace and democracy is growing, and Liberty Tree is a big part of it. If you haven't already checked in to the Liberty Tree network, now's the time to do it. You can start by signing up for future Liberty Tree News updates. And you can invest in the democracy network, and receive the Liberty Tree Journal, by joining Liberty Tree today!
JOIN TODAY: LIBERTY TREE Foundation for the Democratic Revolution
IMPORTANT - If someone forwarded this message to you, you likely are not subscribed to the Liberty Tree News service. To receive the Liberty Tree News, you must subscribe yourself at: http://www.libertytreefdr.org/mailSubscribe.htm
Lloyd House Space Available
2/18/06
Second floor bedroom, gas fireplace, three large windows (2 East, one South), share huge b athroom with laundry, shared kitchen on third floor.
Other Perqs: off street parking, free laundry, high speed internet, living room with piano, TV, DVD, VCR, community iMac Computer. Dining room seats 16+. Veranda off dining room with Hatteras swing, furniture. Easy access to Monday night salon pot luck, Saturday morning Dharma Study group, Sat. evening drumming circle, and ....
The Lloyd House is a stimulating, friendly, multi-cultural environment. Good vibes are required, as is a rock solid financial responsibility. Housemates can be as private or as friendly as they wish. Know anyone who might like to explore this? No undergraduates, no pets, no smoking. Prefer someone who would be interested in participating in the Salon and/or other activities here. $400. contribution to house expenses. Call Ellen: 221 1289
Deadline not until Oct 13
Art Museum Book Sale
accepting donations: books and catalogues on art, travel, fashion, graphic design, photography, cinti. history, architecture, etiquette, illustrated children’s books, cookbooks videotapes, Cds. No paperb ack fiction.
Sale will be Oct 27-29
To make donations call 513 639 2976
Section Four: Books/Magazines/Reviews
Send me the books you are reading! come on! ... I just finished Nick Hornby’s A long way down (listening to CDs in the car)... A psychological novel set in London. Psychologically astute; engaging characters; absorbing plot. When miss my exit on the X way because of the book I am listening to, I know it is a good one.
On the non-fiction front, reading Thinnking Aloud by Walter Carrington, on the Alexander Technique. A blast! Also Anne Wilson Schaeff, Living in Process. Aside from seeming to think she’s the messiah, I think she has some good ideas. Just beginning it.
I will be doing a serious purge of my library. Come and take home books. Dirt cheap! Ellen
The Lloyd House Salon (usually about 15 people) Meets Mondays at 5:45,
EVERY MONDAY, 52 WEEKS/YEAR come hell or high water, as my mother used to say.
We of the Lloyd House Salon gather in a spirit of
respect, sympathy and compassion for one another
in order to exchange ideas for our mutual pleasure and enlightenment.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Our Salon blog is a promising interactive site: http:lloydhouse.blogspot.com
Interactive Yahoo Salon group, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LloydHouseSalon
We had 45 members as of 7/05. How many do we have now?
For Pot Luck procedures including food suggestions, mission and history visit
http://home.fuse.net/ellenbierhorst/Potluck.html .
You are invited also to visit the Lloyd House website: http://www.lloydhouse.com
> To unsubscribe from the Lloyd House Potluck Salon list, send a REPLY message
> to me and in the SUBJECT line type in "unsub potluck #". In the place of #
> type in the numeral that follows the subject line of my Weekly email. It
> will be 1,2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7. This tells me which sub-list your name is on so I can
> delete it. Thanks! ellen bierhorst
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