Leonard Peltier is a political prisoner.
This sadly is not news. I first learned about this man in 1982 (or 81 or 83). Of course, it is likely more folks are aware of his situation outside of the US than inside, but that's part of the oppression.
Robert Meeropol of The Rosenberg Fund For Children has written a poignant piece about the importance of family reunions.
During the Rains of March and April in Rhode Island, I missed my Bubbe (grandmother) greatly. She never hesitated to pick up the phone and remind me to dress appropriately, and (more importantly) nurture my son carefully.
I think there are few connections more precious than the love between grandchildren and greatgrands (et al!) and their grandparents.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Happy Birthday, Paul Robeson !
Paul Robeson's birthday is tomorrow. His extraordinary gifts and generosity deserve celebration all year long. Robeson's great mind, heart and body were (and are)beloved internationally. He might be better known in other countries than in the U.S. When I mention his name, often the first response is the song, "Ol' Man River"; but man's brilliance and leadership defy stereotypes.
My grandfather was a professional anti-communist, and someone who was sometimes kind and sometimes cruel. One of his kind acts was to find tickets for my mother and a friend to hear Paul Robeson (at Carnegie Hall?)perform.
"It was like hearing God (god?)sing", is the way my Mom has described it.
For years I was unhappy with Jackie Robinson, because he testified (as did so many) against Paul Robeson. I learned, a few years ago, that Robeson forgave him, and the two had a reconciliation.
Here is the wikipedia entry on Paul Robeson.
Here also is a link to an article about Robeson. I haven't watched the video clips it includes.
Lastly, I want to recommend the Martin Duberman biography of Paul Robeson. I cried many times reading it, and I am aware of its controversies. It is a very detailed, carefully composed, thorough book.
My grandfather was a professional anti-communist, and someone who was sometimes kind and sometimes cruel. One of his kind acts was to find tickets for my mother and a friend to hear Paul Robeson (at Carnegie Hall?)perform.
"It was like hearing God (god?)sing", is the way my Mom has described it.
For years I was unhappy with Jackie Robinson, because he testified (as did so many) against Paul Robeson. I learned, a few years ago, that Robeson forgave him, and the two had a reconciliation.
Here is the wikipedia entry on Paul Robeson.
Here also is a link to an article about Robeson. I haven't watched the video clips it includes.
Lastly, I want to recommend the Martin Duberman biography of Paul Robeson. I cried many times reading it, and I am aware of its controversies. It is a very detailed, carefully composed, thorough book.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Eugene V. Debs: Quote about Moses -- Relevant to Rhode Islanders and Everyone..
Eugene Debs did not say this at a Seder, as far as I know:
“Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. I would not lead you out if I could; for if you could be led out, you could be led back again. I would have you make up your minds there is nothing that you cannot do for yourselves.”
From an address on Industrial Unionism delivered at Grand Central Palace. New York City, Dec. 18,1905.
The Eugene V. Debs Foundation is keeping his spirit alive...
“Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. I would not lead you out if I could; for if you could be led out, you could be led back again. I would have you make up your minds there is nothing that you cannot do for yourselves.”
From an address on Industrial Unionism delivered at Grand Central Palace. New York City, Dec. 18,1905.
The Eugene V. Debs Foundation is keeping his spirit alive...
Saturday, March 6, 2010
My solution to the Israeli-Palestinian problem
This upcoming May 14 marks the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel -- and the 62nd anniversary of the Israeli-Palestinian problem: the problem of two groups of people claiming the same land.
I have arrived at a permanent solution that, while rather radical and expensive, is nonetheless both humane and, I think, workable. The plan is this: we move Israel to Vermont. Basically, we sign a treaty with Israel setting a date for handing over Vermont to the Israelis, provided that the Israelis are willing to hand over Israel to the Palestinians at the same time. Since Vermont is a little bigger than Israel, there ought to be no problem fitting them all in (especially since the Palestinians, who make up about 20% of Israel's population, would be staying behind).
"But," you ask, "what about the people who already live in Vermont? What's going to happen to them?" That can be taken care of easily enough. The federal government will offer to buy the home of anyone living in Vermont, and also offer to pay the cost of their relocation to another state. Specifically, people who own their homes will receive a payment equal to their equity stake in their home, said payment to be no less than $10,000. Thus, if you own your $100,000 home free and clear, the government will pay you $100,000 for it, over and above your moving costs. If your home is mortgaged to the hilt and underwater, the government will pay you $10,000 to take it (and your mortgage debt) off your hands. If you rent, or have no home, the government will pay you a $10,000 Relocation Bonus for your trouble.
How much will this cost? According to the Census Bureau, Vermont has about 300,000 housing units, with a homeownership rate of about 70%. Typical value of a resident-owned house is $111,500, though of course many if not most of these houses are mortgaged to a greater or lesser extent, so call it 200,000 households worth $50,000 each, plus $10,000 each to the remaining 100,000 renter households, for a total cost to the government of $11 billion. This may seem like a lot, but bear in mind that the government currently pays Israel $2.7 billion a year in economic and military aid, a figure that is due to rise above $3 billion dollars a year by 2013. So, for the cost of four years of Israeli aid, we can solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem permanently.
And what about the Vermonters who don't want to leave? If they want, they can stay and become Israeli citizens, while still retaining their American citizenship. So they could still move if they decide they don't like being Israelis after all. However, any Vermont resident who remains after Handover Day would no longer be eligible for US government assistance. If they decide to move out of Vermont after Handover Day, they would pay their own moving expenses, and the US government would not buy them out or pay them any Relocation Bonus. Thus, Vermonters would have a considerable monetary incentive to git while the gittin's good. Also, any Vermonter who moves to the United States after Handover Day would relinquish their Israeli citizenship (unless they already had duel American-Israeli citizenship before Handover Day).
Since the Jewish population of Israel is currently around 5.6 million, there's going to be a bit of a housing shortage at first. However, if there's one thing Israelis are expert at, it's building houses. And while the climate of Vermont is not as clement as that of Israel, and the state is landlocked, these would be more than compensated by the fact that the Israelis would no longer be surrounded by (and living among) millions of hostile Arabs. Having the United States and Canada as neighbors would be child's play by comparison.
And that's my solution to the Israeli-Palestinian problem. The Nobel Peace Prize committee can contact me via this blog.
I have arrived at a permanent solution that, while rather radical and expensive, is nonetheless both humane and, I think, workable. The plan is this: we move Israel to Vermont. Basically, we sign a treaty with Israel setting a date for handing over Vermont to the Israelis, provided that the Israelis are willing to hand over Israel to the Palestinians at the same time. Since Vermont is a little bigger than Israel, there ought to be no problem fitting them all in (especially since the Palestinians, who make up about 20% of Israel's population, would be staying behind).
"But," you ask, "what about the people who already live in Vermont? What's going to happen to them?" That can be taken care of easily enough. The federal government will offer to buy the home of anyone living in Vermont, and also offer to pay the cost of their relocation to another state. Specifically, people who own their homes will receive a payment equal to their equity stake in their home, said payment to be no less than $10,000. Thus, if you own your $100,000 home free and clear, the government will pay you $100,000 for it, over and above your moving costs. If your home is mortgaged to the hilt and underwater, the government will pay you $10,000 to take it (and your mortgage debt) off your hands. If you rent, or have no home, the government will pay you a $10,000 Relocation Bonus for your trouble.
How much will this cost? According to the Census Bureau, Vermont has about 300,000 housing units, with a homeownership rate of about 70%. Typical value of a resident-owned house is $111,500, though of course many if not most of these houses are mortgaged to a greater or lesser extent, so call it 200,000 households worth $50,000 each, plus $10,000 each to the remaining 100,000 renter households, for a total cost to the government of $11 billion. This may seem like a lot, but bear in mind that the government currently pays Israel $2.7 billion a year in economic and military aid, a figure that is due to rise above $3 billion dollars a year by 2013. So, for the cost of four years of Israeli aid, we can solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem permanently.
And what about the Vermonters who don't want to leave? If they want, they can stay and become Israeli citizens, while still retaining their American citizenship. So they could still move if they decide they don't like being Israelis after all. However, any Vermont resident who remains after Handover Day would no longer be eligible for US government assistance. If they decide to move out of Vermont after Handover Day, they would pay their own moving expenses, and the US government would not buy them out or pay them any Relocation Bonus. Thus, Vermonters would have a considerable monetary incentive to git while the gittin's good. Also, any Vermonter who moves to the United States after Handover Day would relinquish their Israeli citizenship (unless they already had duel American-Israeli citizenship before Handover Day).
Since the Jewish population of Israel is currently around 5.6 million, there's going to be a bit of a housing shortage at first. However, if there's one thing Israelis are expert at, it's building houses. And while the climate of Vermont is not as clement as that of Israel, and the state is landlocked, these would be more than compensated by the fact that the Israelis would no longer be surrounded by (and living among) millions of hostile Arabs. Having the United States and Canada as neighbors would be child's play by comparison.
And that's my solution to the Israeli-Palestinian problem. The Nobel Peace Prize committee can contact me via this blog.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Ninjanurse: Talking Back to Sarah Palin
The inimitable ninjanurse has written about a little (?) controversy:
The ninjanurse writes frequently for Kmareka.
I have known this writer since 1982 or 1983. We worked at the same health center in Woonsocket for a time(in the late '80's and into the early Clinton period), and I cannot say enough good things about her heart and wisdom and the same for her husband who thinks the internet is a conspiracy not worthy of our energies.
The Huffington Post piece, which is linked to in her essay, has a link to a piece in the New York Times, which is also worthy. I particularly enjoyed the comments which I read some hours ago.
I don’t watch Family Guy, because even though Seth MacFarlane is local, he seems to have been deeply affected by Garfield cartoons. I just can’t get past that. Sorry.
He’s also offensive. I watched part of one episode and it struck me as creepy-racist-misogynist and I only lasted a few minutes. Sorry– I can’t justify it in an argument, it was just an impression. Maybe I’m wrong. Just an opinion.
We don’t all think alike. Sarah Palin took a recent episode of Family Guy as a slam on people with Down Syndrome. Andrea Fay Friedman, the actress who did the voice for the cartoon character, thinks otherwise. She herself has Down Syndrome, but she is an adult and too large to carry around as a prop and old enough to speak for herself. So read what she says here.
You may agree with her or not, but it’s good to remember that people with Down Syndrome are not God’s innocent angels sent here to teach us something about life, but actual people who have their own lives to live. Trig Palin will grow up, and I hope he will have a good life. Sarah Palin better hope she doesn’t pick up the NYT some day and see a best-seller called, ‘Drafted–My Life on the Campaign Trail When Mommy Went Rogue’.
The ninjanurse writes frequently for Kmareka.
I have known this writer since 1982 or 1983. We worked at the same health center in Woonsocket for a time(in the late '80's and into the early Clinton period), and I cannot say enough good things about her heart and wisdom and the same for her husband who thinks the internet is a conspiracy not worthy of our energies.
The Huffington Post piece, which is linked to in her essay, has a link to a piece in the New York Times, which is also worthy. I particularly enjoyed the comments which I read some hours ago.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Naomi Shihab Nye Is Coming To Providence RI In March
I have read some of this woman's poetry and it is extraordinary as is her fiction...I just learned from Debbie Block of this event, and I will even miss one of my son's basketball games if it falls on the same day...
Here is the info I have just received:
AWARD-WINNING POET,
NAOMI SHIHAB NYE,
DELIVERS KEYNOTE AND POETRY READING AT MOSES BROWN SCHOOL
PART OF RAISE YOUR VOICE: EXAMINING CULTURE, CLASH, COMMUNITY AND CHANGE.
Award-winning poet, writer, anthologist, and educator Naomi Shihab Nye will
visit the Ocean State to present ³Everything Comes Next -- Daily Rebirth
through Reading and Writing² on Thursday, March 11, 2010 at 7:00 pm at
Moses Brown School, 250 Lloyd Avenue, Providence, RI at ALUMNI HALL (for
further information re: location call Sandi Seltzer at 401-831-7350, ext.
112). This program is free and open to the public, and is co-sponsored by
Moses Brown School and Cultural Connections, along with fiscal sponsor
International Institute RI and made possible, in part, through a grant from
the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, major funders of the RAISE YOUR
VOICE project.
³Naomi Shihab Nye is a voice that America needs in its times of trouble.
Her clarity combined with her verbal kindness and her knowledge of multiple
cultures provides a strong, audible message that the only hope for
reconciliation and understanding lies in the ideals set by the human heart.²
Billy Collins
Debbie Block
Round River Productions LLC
301 Jacob Street
Seekonk, MA 02771
508-336-9703
508-336-2254 (fax)
debbie@billharley.com
http://www.billharley.com
http://www.myspace.com/billharleymusic
http://www.facebook.com/billharleymusic
Time and trouble will tame an advanced young woman, but an advanced old
woman is uncontrollable by any earthly force.
Dorothy Sayers
Here is the info I have just received:
AWARD-WINNING POET,
NAOMI SHIHAB NYE,
DELIVERS KEYNOTE AND POETRY READING AT MOSES BROWN SCHOOL
PART OF RAISE YOUR VOICE: EXAMINING CULTURE, CLASH, COMMUNITY AND CHANGE.
Award-winning poet, writer, anthologist, and educator Naomi Shihab Nye will
visit the Ocean State to present ³Everything Comes Next -- Daily Rebirth
through Reading and Writing² on Thursday, March 11, 2010 at 7:00 pm at
Moses Brown School, 250 Lloyd Avenue, Providence, RI at ALUMNI HALL (for
further information re: location call Sandi Seltzer at 401-831-7350, ext.
112). This program is free and open to the public, and is co-sponsored by
Moses Brown School and Cultural Connections, along with fiscal sponsor
International Institute RI and made possible, in part, through a grant from
the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, major funders of the RAISE YOUR
VOICE project.
³Naomi Shihab Nye is a voice that America needs in its times of trouble.
Her clarity combined with her verbal kindness and her knowledge of multiple
cultures provides a strong, audible message that the only hope for
reconciliation and understanding lies in the ideals set by the human heart.²
Billy Collins
Debbie Block
Round River Productions LLC
301 Jacob Street
Seekonk, MA 02771
508-336-9703
508-336-2254 (fax)
debbie@billharley.com
http://www.billharley.com
http://www.myspace.com/billharleymusic
http://www.facebook.com/billharleymusic
Time and trouble will tame an advanced young woman, but an advanced old
woman is uncontrollable by any earthly force.
Dorothy Sayers
Monday, February 15, 2010
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