16 June 2016
ON THE LEVEL
As we get closer to the REAL election horse race, (AFTER the conventions . . . all of them) I plan on being more circumspect on making my POV discernible.
Partly because I have always believed that voting really ought to be a private matter - decision-making wise)
As we get closer to the REAL election horse race, (AFTER the conventions . . . all of them) I plan on being more circumspect on making my POV discernible.
Partly because I have always believed that voting really ought to be a private matter - decision-making wise)
Partly because I also was trained as a "special registrar" (when Myles
Rappaport was Sec'y of State in Connecticut) and had well ingrained the
idea into my brain the importance of being neutral with personal points
of view while signing up people to vote.
Also I count amongst my personal inner circle of friends individuals who align themselves with a wide range of stands within (and maybe sometimes - without) the political spectrum.
I believe it's important that we ALL communicate as civilly as possible on matters concerning pickin' the next CEO of the United States [oops! I'd meant to type POTUS. Damned auto-correct features!]
I shall continue to post items about candidates - presumptive, presumptuous, preposterous and sane alike - but don't even ask where I stand. You can guess but don't ask.me; you may be wrong, but maybe not. Ain't tellin'.
Also I count amongst my personal inner circle of friends individuals who align themselves with a wide range of stands within (and maybe sometimes - without) the political spectrum.
I believe it's important that we ALL communicate as civilly as possible on matters concerning pickin' the next CEO of the United States [oops! I'd meant to type POTUS. Damned auto-correct features!]
I shall continue to post items about candidates - presumptive, presumptuous, preposterous and sane alike - but don't even ask where I stand. You can guess but don't ask.me; you may be wrong, but maybe not. Ain't tellin'.
I'll work at not cross
posting links that are demonstrably partisan, but since these will be
other people's links - none of them are unbiased.
That said . . .
That said . . .
Reflections on the Mass Shooting in Orlando, FL
As a late aged teen I was in one of the (many) pre-liberation police
raids that NYC police regularly conducted in the Stonewall bar. Lucky
for me, it was one of the "benign"
raids, where most everyone was chased out for an hour or so, until the
bar re-opened and allowed all who repaid the admission fee back in.
I marched with a Mattichine Society demonstration at Philadelphia's
Independence Hall with placards on grim but sunny day. We were warned
that the TV cameras recording the event were not the media, but the FBI.
Again, I was fortunate nothing horrific happened.
These were pre-gay rights moments. They occurred concurrent with valiant battles of others calling for equal rights for Black folk, for Native peoples, the disabled and others.
With reports in the past decade of greater
acceptance around the world, a single moment shows clearly how much
farther we need to go before any fundamental acceptance actually occurs.
Broaden the venue (and circumstances) from lone gunman on a shooting spree in a gay bar, to include indigenous people's in the Amazon Basin, their ancestral lands stolen, bulldozed and burned flat; their advocates murdered without investigation.
Include, then, the millions around the planet sold and forced into slavery - the existence of this rampant evil cloaked and disguised behind the sterile bureaucratic phrase "human trafficking".
Pay attention to the many governments around the world determinedly bent on genocide against it's own - be this Myanmar's refusal to acknowledge the humanness of its Muslim citizens; or the People's Republic's concerted effort to eradicate Tibetan culture; or of others - the incursions of the US government into Afghanistan and elsewhere; the barbaric proto-government of ISIS/ISUL casually ruling with fear and beheadings, or the Knesset's systematic destruction of Palestinian lands and people's (whose people, incidentally, include Christians and Muslims alike.)
Take heed of the venal, greedy myopic feudal/corporate lords of this globe, ravenously seizing control of the planet's resources (resources that rightfully belong to everyone on Earth, not just the powerful) and using them for themselves, intent only on their own, gated and walled-in comforts; blithely indifferent to the fact their avarice contributes so much to humankind's spiraling degraded path. . . . And this elite is not blind to the outcomes of their greed - they just don't care.
I could go on. I have identified (or alluded to) only a handful of vast wrongs committed because of ignorance, prejudice and indifference to the suffering of others.
The Revolution to change these evils must come from within each of us. It will not be televised. It shall be global. And above all, if humans are to survive, it MUST occur.
Until it finally comes to fruition, there shall be more atrocities, more sadnesses, more dispair.
I pray we can bear them.
But we must fundamentally change how we treat one another - if we are to survive.
These were pre-gay rights moments. They occurred concurrent with valiant battles of others calling for equal rights for Black folk, for Native peoples, the disabled and others.
With reports in the past decade of greater
acceptance around the world, a single moment shows clearly how much
farther we need to go before any fundamental acceptance actually occurs.Broaden the venue (and circumstances) from lone gunman on a shooting spree in a gay bar, to include indigenous people's in the Amazon Basin, their ancestral lands stolen, bulldozed and burned flat; their advocates murdered without investigation.
Include, then, the millions around the planet sold and forced into slavery - the existence of this rampant evil cloaked and disguised behind the sterile bureaucratic phrase "human trafficking".
Pay attention to the many governments around the world determinedly bent on genocide against it's own - be this Myanmar's refusal to acknowledge the humanness of its Muslim citizens; or the People's Republic's concerted effort to eradicate Tibetan culture; or of others - the incursions of the US government into Afghanistan and elsewhere; the barbaric proto-government of ISIS/ISUL casually ruling with fear and beheadings, or the Knesset's systematic destruction of Palestinian lands and people's (whose people, incidentally, include Christians and Muslims alike.)
Take heed of the venal, greedy myopic feudal/corporate lords of this globe, ravenously seizing control of the planet's resources (resources that rightfully belong to everyone on Earth, not just the powerful) and using them for themselves, intent only on their own, gated and walled-in comforts; blithely indifferent to the fact their avarice contributes so much to humankind's spiraling degraded path. . . . And this elite is not blind to the outcomes of their greed - they just don't care.
I could go on. I have identified (or alluded to) only a handful of vast wrongs committed because of ignorance, prejudice and indifference to the suffering of others.
The Revolution to change these evils must come from within each of us. It will not be televised. It shall be global. And above all, if humans are to survive, it MUST occur.
Until it finally comes to fruition, there shall be more atrocities, more sadnesses, more dispair.
I pray we can bear them.
But we must fundamentally change how we treat one another - if we are to survive.
Social and Economic Injustice
Those same Whores of Babylon who profited by short-selling the USA
citizenry on the stability of the economy in 2008 (and since then), are
now getting ready to screw the citizens of Puerto Rico - and with a vengeance!
http://www.bravenewfilms.org/puertoricancrisis
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groups engage with student audiences. The goal is to provide resources
that accompany Brave New Films’ documentaries and short videos to elicit
conversation, debate and critical thinking.Our guide is designed for a thorough and thoughtful unpacking of our films - Click here for more Details..
Inside the guides you will find: background information, articles, timelines, in-class activities, discussion questions, tips for hosting a screening, as well as ways to get involved. The facilitation guides are free to all educators — all we ask is for information on how you use the guides. Please explore the films below.
Questions, comments, or concerns about the program? Please e-mail educators@bravenewfilms.org.
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