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Lori Perdue: the Art of Politics (and vice versa)
Two of the poems Lori read at Busboys and Poets last night resonated with me; I hope you appreciate them as well. -- Karen
Driven 9/25/06
One handed freestyle keyboarding and talking on two cell phones at once, she is driven, on a mission.
She catches my eye.
The buttons on her jacket are mis-aligned, making her collar jump up on one side.
She is unaware of her visage, she is driven, on a mission.
She hangs up the phone in her hand and places it on the table beside her computer,
Seamlessly sliding into another conversation, another gear, another thought process, talking into the phone balanced in the crook of her neck.
She squints at the screen of the laptop in front of her, clicks on something, passes on the retrieved information to whomever exists on the end of the sound wave, and signs off.
Letting the phone slip from her shoulder to her waiting hand, she ends the call with a practiced thumb and the slightest of glances at the tiny screen on the face of the device, and expertly drops the phone into the unfastened pocket of the ill-buttoned denim jacket.
From click to click she flows.
To the computer from the phone she goes.
Both hands now on the keyboard she changes focus again, pouring her energy, without pause into the document in front of her.
I shake my head, trying to suppress an involuntary giggle that wants to bubble up through the uncontrollable grin on my face.
She is driven, on a mission, with a vision.
My motion, my vibe, my giggle stifled to a sigh, something catches her eye.
And she smiles, realizing that she was caught multitasking,
It is the work of Peace and she is basking
In doing good things without asking.
She is building bridges, herding cats, putting out fires
And raising a voice of truth above the rumble of liars.
She types through the grin, which is deservedly wry
Her steady forward pace nullifies the march of time
Promoting change, improving people’s lives
She is driven, on a mission
A phone rings, she again slips into one handed freestyle keyboarding and with a push of a button she is communicating on two fronts at once, once more.
And the smile leaves her lips, but not her eyes.
If
If we can look each other in the eye and not blink at definitions
Then we can see another soul free of suppositions
We could stop wounding using difference as ammunition
We could eliminate fear, seek honest resolution.
Step boldly toward societal evolution.
If we can look each other in the eye and not blink at definitions
We could combine our voices and our forces and realize a revolution.
If we can look each other in the eye and wish no harm to the soul inside
Then we can change the world, reverse the tide.
We could gather our children to our sides, lift our empty, open hands high
We could raise our voices and call for peace, equality, an end to genocide.
If we can look each other in the eye and wish no harm to the soul inside
Then we can wave our flags and proclaim our pride.
If we can look each other in the eye and justify the means and the ends
Then we could take hearing the truth without all the spin.
If we could look each other in the eye and justify the means and the ends
I wouldn’t feel the need to remind you why the Bill of Rights was penned.
And in the fight to keep those rights it will not be the words of our enemies that are remembered,
But rather, the silence of our friends.
~Lori Perdue
And now, of course, we will all be gossiping around the edges trying to figure out if we might somehow perhaps be able to recognize the person described in the first of those two excellent poems...
Struggle to Find Fresh Troops for Iraq Buildup
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17550827/
:-) I'm not going to 'gossip around the edges....' The first poem is about Karen... or, if not, then there is a Karen clone running around out there....
In any case, Lori Perdue is a wonderful poet, and I hope Karen will pass on my kudos....
Lori,
Great poems. The first poem is definitely Karen. And the "If only's" in your second poem left me with a lot of those same feelings.
Thanks for sharing them with us.
The first poem is, according to Lori, about all of the women she has been privileged to work with, including Gael Murphy, Ann Wright, Medea Benjamin, Tina Richards, Leah Bolger, and others. Lori herself is on the list. And sometimes, I am too.
The second poem is based on a quote from Martin Luther King.
I am at a dinner and planning session for the DC-based peace movement tonight; we are discussing Tina's media opportunities as she tells her powerful story and tries to get Congress to do the right thing and end this war.
From far away and knowing almost nothing of the people here, from the very first lines of the first poem, I too, thought of Karen. Thankyou Karen. Thanks is too small a word for you. I've been overwhelmed by your verbatim reporting from a range of venues and wish I could do something to help you in your quest. Thanks to Lori for the two poems. The second resonates because, like you, I'm always wondering "If only....".
In these worst of times, we get to cross paths in tiny ways, with the very best of humanity. Thankyou to all who are trying to right the injustices of today's world.
woz,
You inspire me too. We all play a role. I cannot tell you how warm and fuzzy I feel when I come to this blog! This is family.
And if you want to know why I especially feel good about it now, see this thread from yesterday and today:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/3/9/15957/13061
woz...
Jesselyn was interviewed for Australian media. MIght air soon. I have a feeling it's thanks to your work.
So thanks!
I think Lori is the one from Camp Democracy who shared her poems the night of the Peace march at Busboys. Yes?
Even amazing delivery. How long has her ability to tap into powerful words, in that way, been explored and expressed?
Lori is a veteran and member of Vets for Peace. She is a poet too, and a Mom. For Camp Democracy, she showed up and was doing the press and media within minutes.
I think she's pretty amazing, but then, so many are.
This is totally OT, but since this is part of what Lori is fighting against, this "news" is oddly on topic at the same time....
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070311/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_iraq
Bush: 8,200 more troops needed for wars
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay - President Bush asked Congress on Saturday for $3.2 billion to pay for 8,200 more U.S. troops needed in Afghanistan and Iraq on top of the 21,500-troop buildup he announced in January.
{{{More sickening detail on link. Herr Boosh wants a few more troops added to his request for 'just a few more for just a little while longer to complete the task....' Some for Afghanistan, some for Iraq... (No mention of "support personnel" which means that number would almost certainly more than double, just as 21,500 troops means added "support personnel" - mercenaries - technically means 48,000 bodies.) Aren't there enough Halliburton-DynCorp-KBR or Blackwater mercenaries (among other mercenary corporations which technically means their own private army is profiting at taxpayer expense) making vastly higher monthly salaries than US troops available to do this alleged "training" (meaning guarding oil wells and pipelines and corporate oil interests, not to mention 'guarding' new prisoners they apparently plan on taking, if the article is correct)? WHAT is it about this administration that they are so deaf, dumb, and blind to reality?!? There is no "mission to accomplish" in Iraq that can result in anything remotely 'honorable' for the simple reason that the invasion was a war crime, the occupation is a war crime, and Herr Boosh is not listening to the overwhelming majority of citizens and US military troops who have said "Out of Iraq! Stop the War!" Herr Boosh's war was lost before it began for the simple reason the invasion was a war crime, just as all acts of aggression under the Geneva Conventions are war crimes, no matter which country does it!!! HOW does the commission of a war crime mean they can achieve any kind of 'honorable victory?!?!?' Or, since DimWit knows this latest request for even more troops will be met with a flat 'no' that the 'compromise' will be 'settling for' 21.500/48,000 warm bodies who have the potential to get killed for lies and oil... which means Congress Critters will - AGAIN - appease the spoiled brat and give him precisely what he wants...?!?}}}
Interesting article for those who don't want to lose track of Rove and Cheney now that Libby got nabbed:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1497142.ece
Karen,
I just read through the comments on your thread at dkos. Some folks clearly just wanting to continue the argument to get the last word.
The Richards/Obey interaction just exemplifies the frustration we're all feeling with trying to get to the same place in different ways. And that place is out of the mess that the Republicans got us into.
There are no good answers. There are no good solutions. Every option out there leaves Iraq in desperate straights and our troops - indeed our army - weakened, sickly and vulnerable.
It would be nice if all those folks arguing with you about Richards would focus their anger toward impeaching this president, rather than wasting a lot of time giving Richards the Cindy Sheehan treatment.
WE are in an awful place with this war, and we are all in it together. The frustration is all of ours (except maybe the republicans', and that traitor Lieberman's).
We need a solution, and I don't honestly see any way out of this mess, without getting rid of Bush.
Karen. Thanks for the link. What an amazing outburst to have been caught as it was, huh? There certainly are frustrations from every side and these days we have so many different groups discussing the same issue in different ways - is it any wonder that only the talk happens. September 8, 2008 for complete withdrawal. What an excellent 59th birthday present for me. It is still too far, but if the troops start decreasing immediately it should give us some hope of achieving the deadline.
Sparrow. Thanks for telling me that someone here has interviewed Jesselyn. I read Jesselyn's book and approached a range of media outlets to investigate. I also approached Law Faculties at all of our universities, so this issue could be written into their courses. The problem was that I did all of this over December and January. At this time all the regulars are on summer holidays.
Angry Crowds Protest Bush During Latin American Tour
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/031007G.shtml
Some arrived clutching banners telling "Mr. Butcher" to go home. Others brought effigies of "The Warlord" dangling miserably from a hangman's noose. A handful dressed up as the grim reaper, while some women paraded through the streets with stickers of George Bush and Adolf Hitler placed tastefully over their nipples.
{Other descriptions of other protests, too.}
Another Blue Dog Democrat NOT supporting escalation (at least in February)
Rep. Baron Hill (IN)
IRAQ WAR RESOLUTION
(Washington, DC) - Mr. Speaker, our brave men and women in Iraq have answered every call, accomplished every task, won every battle. Our brave men and women in Iraq have fought valiantly. They have executed their mission with quiet dignity and with honor that is worthy of our praise.
In looking back at all that our military has done, there has been no task that these brave men and women have not accomplished. They have risen to every occasion. However, we are not here today just to applaud our troops' performance. We are here today to ask if the surge direction that the President is taking us is the right direction for these brave troops. Is it the right direction for our country, and is it the right direction for the people of Iraq? The answer is unequivocally ``no.''
For the last 4 years of this conflict, the President has relied on the judgment of his military to execute this war and to follow their advice. Now at this critical hour, he has chosen to ignore their expertise and advice. The Joint Chiefs have unanimously disagreed with the surge.
General James Conway, commander of the Marine Corps, is quoted as saying, ``We do not believe that just adding numbers for the sake of adding numbers, just thickening the mix, is necessarily the way to go.''
General John Abizaid has met with every divisional commander and asked, ``If we were to bring more American troops now, does it add considerably to our ability to achieve success?'' They all said ``no.''
General Colin Powell has said the surge will not work. General Wesley Clark, Ambassador Holbrooke, Oliver North, Michael Vicker, Lawrence Corb, Richard Haas, have all said the surge will not work. And the list goes on and on and on.
Why does the President, Mr. Speaker, choose to ignore expert after expert, soldier after soldier, who say the surge will not work? Even General Petraeus has said, and I quote, ``The way ahead will be neither quick nor easy, and undoubtedly there will be tough days. We have a determined, adaptive barbaric enemy. He will try to wait us out. Any such endeavor is a test of wills and there are no guarantees.''
Mr. Speaker, former Secretary of State James Baker has said, ``There is no magic bullet to solve the problem of Iraq. No single answer. No quick fix.'' From this microphone over the last 2 days, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have tried to frame this debate about success and failure in Iraq.
That debate is for another day. Today and tomorrow, the debate is about the wisdom or the lack of wisdom for the surge. The President and the members of his party today need to listen to the experts who they have relied upon in the past. To do otherwise, casts doubts about who the President is listening to.
Mr. Speaker, I firmly believe that this surge in the troops is the wrong policy at the wrong time, in the wrong war. The actions that need to be taken to help the Iraqi people and ultimately bring our brave men and women home safely is not as simple as rushing more troops to the front lines.
Mr. Speaker, a while ago I heard my good friend and colleague from Indiana speak about how the Iraq Study Group actually said that a surge is something that probably is necessary.
But there is more to the story than just a military surge. They also recommended that there has to be economic surge, and diplomatic surges, not just military. I talked to one of the Iraq study members just yesterday, who told me that a military surge by itself will not work.
The military has done all it can do, and they have done it very well. Now is the time to move in a different direction, Mr. Speaker. Vote for this resolution. Vote ``no'' to the surge.
There are peace rallies here next Sunday and Monday (Seattle).
What's going on elsewhere?
Well. NMP. I am not sure WHAT is happening on March 17 here in DC, but it involves the Pentagon and ANSWER, the World Can't Wait, and the rest of the usual suspects.
There does not appear to be any governing mind at work on it, but lots of good folks are passing around what MIGHT be intelligence anyway.
Rumor has it Freepers will appear and "protect" the Vietnam Memorial from our dirty hands. Since we will have many actual vets with us, ownership of the Wall might be under serious negotiation. If not contention.
I'd like to see something a little more imaginative and inspiring than the usual stuff. We shall see. Ideas are beginning to flow.
Carol and woz,
thanks for the support on the Kos thread and I agree; it is so deeply sad to see the arguments as well as the energy that goes into perpetuating them.
I often wonder why so few can see the whole picture and why so many feel a side has to be right so another side can be wrong.
In the case of Obey vs. Richards, the only right solution is further dialogue, and good listening. More civility and less acrimony.
And the best result of THAT would be to bring the soldiers home.
Karen
Yes - I haven't heard all the details here yet - good luck!
There is another smaller group of brave people who have already been going to Ft. Lewis where the Stryker brigade leaves from. They easily face arrest. Lots of young people too!
Bin Laden turns 50 today, if he's really alive. When he turned 40, he was given a white stallion. According to this terrorism expert, Al Quaida is hardly dismantled and perhaps a bigger threat than ever. Today marks the two year anniversary of the Madrid bombing, and people there have fallen silent. There are triggers for antagonizing Al Quaida, such as trials that are coming up. This is pretty sobering to read.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/focus/story/0,,2031290,00.html
Is this real? Chavez and crowds yell "Gringo Go Home" from across the river from where Bush shakes a round silver musical instrument and Laura Bush and Condi Rice dance the samba with a group of teenagers.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2031173,00.html
Posted by: not my president at March 11, 2007 12:47 AM
This is exactly what the sane among us after 9/11 were worried about.
Totally off topic, but everyone needs a good chuckle sometimes!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyLaUx6IObc
Carol, That is hysterical!
On bin Laden--I cannot help but think how much we are (in official Washington) back on the hamster wheels we were on before 9/11.
The House leadership is deal-making and desperate for a win, rather than a solution.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/10/AR2007031001300.html
Bush et al are doing PR again rather than fighting for what they say they believe: homeland security
(What happened to "We're going to hunt him down"?)
The peace movement is in agreement on what should happen (troops home now), but not on how it should happen.
I look up at the skies often and wonder when it will be brought home to us mere humans living in the shadow of the worst administration in US history that, in nature, there are no rewards or punishments, only consequences.
I will go back to the spider video now and select my own drug of choice...
Karen, I had to wonder the same thing after reading nmp's article above at 12:47.
It feels like it's only a matter of time. I guess it's always only been a matter of time, but the "spring offensive" rumors really bring it home. Then will they impeach Bush?
I'm headed for my hammock....
Our fullpage, color ad denouncing the troop escalation comes out in the newspaper today. It will have between 500 and 700 co-signers (moi being one). I have not seen the ad yet - I have to go out and buy paper.
Stay tuned for continuing coverage...
There are peace rallies here next Sunday and Monday (Seattle).
What's going on elsewhere?
Posted by: not my president at March 10, 2007 10:55 PM
@@@@@@@
Here is the listing page for the 4th anniversary events at United for Peace and Justice:
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/calendar.php?sortby=&caltype=51
More on the attorneygate scandal -- Rove may yet turn out to be the key to bringing this corrupt administration down:
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/031107Z.shtml
A coda to a previous blog threader:
--------------
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Former Sen. Thomas Eagleton had the last word at his own funeral Saturday, urging his friends and family in a farewell letter to "go forth in love and peace - be kind to dogs - and vote Democratic."
Eagleton, who resigned as George McGovern's vice presidential nominee in 1972 after it was revealed he had been hospitalized for depression, had written the two-page, single-space, typewritten farewell months ago. He died March 4 at age 77.
Eagleton posthumously told the more than 1,200 family members, friends and political leaders at his funeral Mass that he was shaped by a saintly mother, a "magnificent trial lawyer" father, and early exposure to wide-ranging political views, from Socialists to racist preachers.
The former Navy man said he was most proud of introducing the amendment that ended the Vietnam War, and his original version of the War Powers Act to re-establish shared war powers of the president and Congress. He later refused to sign the watered-down version.
He said he didn't miss the Senate once he left it, except for the debate on the "horrible, disastrous Iraq War that ... will go down in American history as one of our greatest blunders ... and as a curse to our Constitution when Attorney General John Ashcroft attempted to put a democratic face on torture."
A Roman Catholic, he criticized the church's veer to the right, in which "we seem to have merged God's power into political power."
The crowd of dignitaries at St. Francis Xavier College Church at Saint Louis University included Sens. Harry Reid, Ted Kennedy, Joe Biden, and Dick Durbin; and former Sens. John Danforth, Walter Mondale and Dale Bumpers.
"I join with everyone here in mourning this loss," Kennedy said. "His was a life well lived. He set the pattern for what a senator should be."
Eagleton was remembered for his hearty belly laugh, his eccentricity and sense of humor, his generosity, and the courage to take an unpopular stand.
Friend Louis Susman said Eagleton easily could have won a fourth term in the Senate, but retired from an institution that had been "ruined by the money chase," and become too partisan.
He called Eagleton a "giver, not a taker, who never wanted anything in return except friendship."
Okay, enough of this crap. Let's all demand that neocon shill Alberto Gonzales' immediate resignation.
---------------
The Failed Attorney General
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/11/opinion/11sun1.html
During the hearing on his nomination as attorney general, Alberto Gonzales said he understood the difference between the job he held — President Bush’s in-house lawyer — and the job he wanted, which was to represent all Americans as their chief law enforcement officer and a key defender of the Constitution. Two years later, it is obvious Mr. Gonzales does not have a clue about the difference.
He has never stopped being consigliere to Mr. Bush’s imperial presidency. If anyone, outside Mr. Bush’s rapidly shrinking circle of enablers, still had doubts about that, the events of last week should have erased them.
[snip]
We opposed Mr. Gonzales’s nomination as attorney general. His résumé was weak, centered around producing legal briefs for Mr. Bush that assured him that the law said what he wanted it to say. More than anyone in the administration, except perhaps Vice President Dick Cheney, Mr. Gonzales symbolizes Mr. Bush’s disdain for the separation of powers, civil liberties and the rule of law.
On Thursday, Senator Arlen Specter, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, hinted very obliquely that perhaps Mr. Gonzales’s time was up. We’re not going to be oblique. Mr. Bush should dismiss Mr. Gonzales and finally appoint an attorney general who will use the job to enforce the law and defend the Constitution.
---------------
because absolute power corrupts absolutely,
Otter
I can't decide if this will make you laugh or cry.
Either way...click at your own risk.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAtSQQaWJ-0