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Travel As A Political Act
Rick Steves is a local travel guru who has a PBS series called "Europe Through the Backdoor." He started as a backpacker and advocates budget travel as a way to be "close to the ground" and meet real people, rather than traveling in a four-star bubble lacking in real local character. He also feels that we sometimes can better understand our own country and culture after leaving it. He shares examples of the value of travel broadening your perspective and how important in a post-9/11 world that is, especially when we live in a society that's using fear as a tactic to confuse us, and powerful people profit from our confusion.
Rick opened up his travel agency (which looks like a miniature train station) to phone callers for progressive candidates during the last election, and he is outspoken in his views that we should not be "Ugly Americans," either personally or collectively, through our behavior and policies nor should we insulate ourselves.
I have excerpted sections from an interview with Rick which appeared in last week's Seattle Times as Rick was preparing to speak at Town Hall here.
RS: When I talk about travel as a political act I'm talking about how travel can change your perspective in a way that when you get home, all of a sudden you're more difficult to con...I'm saying when you travel, you find smart people who would not trade passports. You have people who are ethnocentric like you and I are, but they find other truths to be self-evident and God-given.
..Slow service is good service, instead of fast service is good service. Tolerance of alternative lifestyles. I think in Europe they've learned that society has to make a choice: you can tolerate more alternative lifestyles or you can build more prisons. And they always remind me how good we are at incarceration. We're four percent of the planet with more than a quarter of its prisoners.
If you're traveling in India, don't assume you know what pain and love and the value of time is. If you're a famous rock star, don't hang a baby out the window in Berlin. When Americans go to the Brandenburg Gate ... it frustrates those guides, because all they want to know is "Which balcony did Michael Jackson hang his baby out on?"
MR: Don't you think the teen beauty-pageant finalist's incoherent answer about why Americans can't find America on a map says all we need to know about our ignorance of the rest of the world?
RS: (Laughs.) I love that, too. That clip would not surprise people -- not even in Europe, in the developing world. It's not a fair example of an American, but you can make a case that we think we're a hub and everything relates to us. And the rest of the world interacts with each other, with or without America, which I think is real interesting. One of the most poignant moments I had last year was in Morocco, looking at a beautiful square in Tangier realizing these are successful affluent people going places and they neither emulate America or dislike America. America doesn't even enter into their awareness. And I thought that's a beautiful thing.
MR: You're suggesting actually learning about a culture before invading it? I mean traveling to it.
RS: Yeah, I'm saying if everybody traveled before they could vote, we would not be outvoted in the United Nations routinely 130 to 4. We would not go into wars alone. We would work better with the rest of the planet.
(more interview and photos below)
MR: What have you observed first-hand to be the effect of the Iraq war and our current foreign policies on the way people treat American travelers?
RS: People in most countries know from first-hand experience that you can elect a person that's an embarrassment, so they cut us some slack.
MR: We don't have to see Europe through the back door now because they hate us?
RS: No, they don't hate Americans. People love Americans. Some people go over there and want to put their judgments on other people to tell them how to do things right. Europeans don't need other people to tell them how to do things right and wrong. And they don't take very well to it. As long as you go to a country with a wide-open enthusiasm and an open mind and an interest in giving some of their ways of living a whirl, they love to have you visit. ...
MR: How does travel help?
RS: If you travel to Iraq you'd be less likely to bomb a wedding party just because one guy in the crowd was tall. I've traveled across the Middle East. I've traveled in Kurdistan in eastern Turkey and Afghanistan, and it changes the sadness of being able to look at a bombing like a video game.
MR: Are you recommending then that Americans travel in the Middle East?
RS: I think if the world knew what was good for it, it would establish a fund to pay for Americans all to have a free trip for six weeks, anywhere they wanted around the world upon graduation. It would be the best investment the world could ever make. Because right now an America that is threatened by, fearful of and misunderstands the rest of the world is a costly thing on this planet.
RS: Other people don't walk around with T-shirts that say "Proud to be Norwegian." It's inconceivable that a Norwegian or a Belgian or a Portuguese person would walk around with a T-shirt that says Proud to be Norwegian or Portuguese. Americans walk around with T-shirts that say essentially "America, love it or leave it." "America, right or wrong." "God bless America." When somebody to me says "God bless America," I think, well what about everybody else? I would advise people not to wear an American flag, because the American flag has been hijacked. It doesn't symbolize America anymore. It symbolizes an American war around the world. That's not my opinion. That's what it means when people see that. That's changed a lot lately, and that saddens me.
RS: I used to think the world was a pyramid with us on top and everybody else trying to figure it out. And I really traveled believing I could just share with people all the beauties of American culture, and I don't believe that anymore. I like my way of living, but I don't think that other people want to copy it.
RS:What I try to do is get people to travel in a way that takes advantage of that experience to let them better understand the world, broaden their perspective through travel, to look at America through French eyes. I mean, for America to say that the French are surrender monkeys really shows what little we know about the French. Half of all their men between 15 and 30 were casualties after WWI. They lost as many people as we lost in the Vietnam War, many times on a single day. And they have one quarter of our population. There's a country that knows what war is like.
America, frankly, doesn't know what war is like. We don't have many living memories right now of what a serious war that the Europeans have experienced is. Consequently, we've sanitized it. And Europeans have many more powerful reminders of how war can devastate a society. Consequently they're inclined to find alternatives to war a little more aggressively than we are.
RS: If I grew up in some middle American state and never left the country, was surrounded by people that never left the country, I would be scared to death of Muslims. I'm not scared to death of Muslims.
My daughter just spent a month in Morocco living in a village, having a life-changing experience as a 17-year-old, and she knows that people in Morocco regardless of their religion get out of bed in the morning, and they just want to live a good life. They have no ideas in their mind to hurt America. They like our music. They don't like our wars. They want to be left alone. They don't dress up with their whole heads covered up. They look just like our kids. They have different religious traditions.
MR: So mere exposure to Islam reveals that Muslim fanatics are about as exceptional as Christian fanatics?
RS: Exactly. I mean if all you know about Islam is what you've learned from American media, it's not much different from what Muslims have learned about Christians from Al-Jazeera.
Seattle Times reporter was Mark Rahner
Photographs taken by D. Grieser in Istanbul & Paris
I love your photos DiAnne!
When I was in Prague last year, I spoke with a couple from Iowa who said their neighbors were all Bush supporters. They travel all the time, unlike those neighbors, and said that they could actually see the effects of our policies abroad.
Should I go?
It's just been confirmed: Karl Rove, recently retired Chief of Staff for President Bush, and architect of his two presidential election victories, will speak at the legendary Evans-Novak Political Forum on September 25th.
This is your last-chance invitation to join Bob Novak as one of just 70 insiders eligible to attend Karl Rove's talk -- and to gain insights that directly affect your profits, decisions, and power.
No sound bytes will report what Forum speakers reveal about Bush Administration strategy.
No newspaper reports will cover what Forum experts say about immigration, the economy or battle plans for the 2008 presidential race.
But as one of the 70 insiders permitted to enter, you'll know everything -- in time to align your business decisions, investments, and political alliances.
CLICK HERE to Reserve Your Seat Today!
Bush nominates ex-judge for attorney general
Michael Mukasey in line to succeed Alberto Gonzales
WASHINGTON - President Bush on Monday nominated a former federal judge as his choice to replace Alberto Gonzales as attorney general.
Michael Mukasey appears unlikely to face a bruising confirmation battle in the Democratic-controlled Senate, but the White House denied that Bush chose Mukasey because Democrats last week threatened to block a more partisan nominee.
White House press secretary Dana Perino said such bluster from Capitol Hill does not weigh in on the president’s deliberations.
more...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20809762/
Former Mexico pres. calls Bush 'cockiest guy I've ever met'
WASHINGTON (CNN) – The two leaders shared a border for six years, but former Mexico President Vicente Fox gives a tough assessment on President Bush in a new book out next month, according to U.S. News and World Report.
In "Revolution of Hope," set to hit book stores October 4, Fox calls Bush "the cockiest guy I have ever met in my life," and is sharply critical of the president's Iraq policy and his immigration stance, according to the magazine.
Though he describes warm relations with Bush, Fox in the book also calls the president's Spanish skills "grade-school" level and says, "I can't honestly say that I had ever seen George W. Bush getting to the White House."
-snip-
The autobiography is co-written by Robert Allyn, a Texas-based political consultant who has advised both Fox and Bush.
– CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/09/17/former-mexico-pres-calls-bush-cockiest-guy-ive-ever-met/
This is why I was so deadset against Sarkozy. France is climbing on the bandwagon to nuke Iran's nukes.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/97755432-04B2-4703-90B0-C38A1DD6683F.htm
I guess I had better head over there again!
Iraqi government didn't renew its contract with Blackwater.
http://www.metimes.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20070917-104636-2327r
Read how creepy this "world's largest mercenary army" is!
Hillary Clinton's health care plan came out today and Obama and Edwards have already revealed theirs. I'm going to read them today, since I'm not working, and see who is most likely to keep me employed.
DiAnne -
Thanks for sharing the story about Rick Steves. He's such an inspiration, both in his travel philosophy and in his politics.
Just like Rick, I am a former Republican turned into a progressive, and just like him, it was my travels in Europe that made it happen.
I attended his talk at the Los Angeles Times travel show twice, and his talk is very popular, even though here in Red California, some people start to leave his show whenever politics starts to come up.
It's been four years since my last European journey, and I need to squeeze something in, real soon. But these days, I find it difficult to even take in a long weekend road trip, much less a week in Europe.
Posted by: not my president at September 17, 2007 10:59 AM
Sarko really wants to be the "Coalition of the Willing" - guess our wine-pouring into the sewer really scared him.
Looks like we may lose Australia and maybe Japan from the coalition, but W has nothing to worry about, as South Korea and Taiwan are set to join.
A good panel on Maher's show discussing the Petraeus testimony; Carl Bernstein, Rep. Jan Schkowsky and Drew Carey:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujmk0ToP7xA
Bush finally met with some bloggers
http://infidelsarecool.com/2007/09/14/bush-meeting-bloggers/
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/09/17/bush-meets-with-right-wing-mil-bloggers-at-the-white-house/
Wingnut bloggers, of course
Bumper sticker seen today in MA:
American flag. In the upper left, where the stars should be, there's instead:
THINK ________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
and below the flag:
IT'S PATRIOTIC
mbk
Thanks! Here is kind of an image that is similar. I'm going to put it on our website (SMP). Thanks again!
Was anyone able to confirm what Joe Klein said on Hardball about Petraeus getting a phone call from the White House criticizing his testimony?? I could find no reference to this in any media story.
BTW I also heard somewhere that Petraeus has political ambitions....
test comment
Since our Commander-in-Chief so prefers to follow his military's advice...
Abizaid: World could abide nuclear Iran
By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer 23 minutes ago
Every effort should be made to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, but failing that, the world could live with a nuclear-armed regime in Tehran, a recently retired commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East said Monday.
John Abizaid, the retired Army general who headed Central Command for nearly four years, said he was confident that if Iran gained nuclear arms, the United States could deter it from using them.
"Iran is not a suicide nation," he said. "I mean, they may have some people in charge that don't appear to be rational, but I doubt that the Iranians intend to attack us with a nuclear weapon."
The Iranians are aware, he said, that the United States has a far superior military capability.
"I believe that we have the power to deter Iran, should it become nuclear," he said, referring to the theory that Iran would not risk a catastrophic retaliatory strike by using a nuclear weapon against the United States.
"There are ways to live with a nuclear Iran," Abizaid said in remarks at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank. "Let's face it, we lived with a nuclear Soviet Union, we've lived with a nuclear China, and we're living with (other) nuclear powers as well."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070917/ap_on_go_ot/abizaid_iran
test
Is it getting testy around here?
Just FYI...
I was trying to back some things up in preparation for setting up a prototype of the DCP 2.0 upgrade and inadvertently changed something. Hence the unavailable blog this afternoon / early evening.
The blog is back. The forum is not.
I'll keep you posted.
Posted by: dwahzon at September 17, 2007 09:02 PM
Thanks, dw.
Posted by: mbk at September 17, 2007 02:04 PM
Here in Red California, the canton is more likely to display "PRAY" or a cross.
Thanks for sharing!
The forum's back now as well.
Have fun.
Posted by: Matthew Carnicelli at September 17, 2007 08:10 PM
Thanks for that article, Matthew. It has been my point of view ever since Bush started throwing verbal taunts into Iran. To my mind, that would have sent them scurrying to be able to protect themselves against Bush.
And nmp - I couldn't work out why I didn't trust or like Sarkozy; why he was such a bad choice. He'd have gone into Iraq with Bush. Of course.
And DiAnne
Excellent pics and interview article. Had I known about the GAP year that's sponsored by various western governments, Australia included, I'd have encouraged my sons to do it. It's for people aged 17 to 25. My cousin's grandson is in Scotland working as a volunteer right now. And her granddaughter is in England. No doubt they'll be able to travel in Europe whilst they are there. I think that they do get some time off. They chose places that would be within their comfort zones, I think.
United States doesn't sponsor anything like a Gap year, though I suppose a person could work at The Gap (or MacDonalds) to try to save up a bit for college.
Do we still have the Peace Corps or anything? One can join the military and then later probably one of those sadistic mercenary units like Blackwater.
I guess we have the Boy Scouts. Do we have ANYTHING the rest of the western world has? I feel so jealous sometimes. I've been surfing around on music and networking sites & life goes on with or without the United States nowdays, it seems.
I want to go to Europe even if the dollar is only worth 70cents and will sing on the subway for my supper if I have to. All I ask is one week. Never mind about jetlag - I'll just stay up.
Dwahzon
Thanks for all you have done over time. I am in awe of your technical skills and the time you have put in to help. It is appreciated & I have not said so enough!
More Americans Watched Dem Response Than Bush On Cable Nets
TV Newser | September 17, 2007 07:36 PM
Network Time Program Viewers
FNC 9:00 Bush Address 745,000
FNC 9:19 Dem. Response 813,000
FNC 9:24 Analysis 512,000
Network Time Program Viewers
MSNBC 9:00 Spec.Prog. 470,000
MSNBC 9:01 Bush Address 455,000
MSNBC 9:20 Dem. Response 446,000
Network Time Program Viewers
CNN 9:00 Bush Address 454,000
CNN 9:20 Dem. Response 507,000
CNN 9:24 Larry King 400,000
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/ratings/bush_reed_analysis_the_cable_numbers_67115.asp?c=rss
Student Tasered after asking Kerry questions
GAINESVILLE -- (AP) -- A University of Florida student from South Florida was Tasered and arrested Monday when he attempted to speak at a forum with U.S. Sen. John Kerry after the question and answer session had ended, university officials said.
Andrew Meyer, 21, asked Kerry why he did not contest the 2004 presidential election, which he lost to President Bush, and why there had been no moves to impeach Bush.
http://www.miamiherald.com/466/story/241219.html
Rossian
Even though you are in Australia you beat most of us to the punch on these amazing stories!
I have spent too much time on the internet this 3 day weekend but my husband was laid up with sciatica (we didn't know what it was til today) and I kind of had to hang around.
Learned plenty of things I could have lived without, like most of us!
Dwahzon
Thankyou for fixing whatever it was. I thought it was me!
Katie Couric Repeats Bush Talking Points
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9XXUyWTA1g
NMP the GAP program was started in the UK a long time ago. Young adults go to a distant community as a volunteer. In some places they get a very small wage. In the poorest places they get their lodgings, and their return fare.
What I truly love about it is that they live with the locals. Most are carefully matched with their communities. There are countries all over the world where people need assistance. A lot of young people find themselves teaching English.
When I read all about it I wanted to do it, but I'm a few years beyond 25. I'll look for the sites and post them.
Woz
I am 55 years old. I would LOVE to do a Gap year!
Maybe I can do it at 66 when I retire!
Here's an American program - and I actually fit into the age group on this one.
http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/who_volunteers/default.asp
Posted by: not my president at September 17, 2007 10:08 PM
Boy Scouts are not even applicable for the likes of Larry Craig and Mann Coulter, btw. So it's not a universal option.
Posted by: not my president at September 17, 2007 10:27 PM
Darn I have been off line all morning trouble with my internet connection.
Probably friking Georgie, tasering my box
Sorry some of this is all Caps.
GAP
GAP Activity Projects (GAP) Ltd. is an educational charity, registered in the UK, that offers 17 to 25 year olds the opportunity to live and work overseas for up to a year, as a volunteer.
GAP's MISSION : GAP provides a distinctive year out experience for individual young volunteers through a journey of discovery that fosters independence, helps others and promotes global understanding.
GAP IS A JOURNEY.
IT’S AN OPPORTUNITY TO CHALLENGE YOURSELF, GAIN INDEPENDENCE AND DISCOVER THE WORLD.
IT’S A CHANCE TO LIVE AND WORK IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY AND CULTURE, TO TAKE A BREAK FROM STUDY, GROW IN CONFIDENCE AND WIDEN YOUR PERSPECTIVES.
IT’S NOT A REPLACEMENT FOR SCHOOL OR UNIVERSITY, BUT A CHANCE TO GAIN LIFE SKILLS.
GAP IS ABOUT VOLUNTEERING FIRST, TRAVELLING SECOND. ACCOMMODATION, FOOD AND IN MOST CASES, POCKET MONEY, WILL BE PROVIDED.
YOU NEED TO BE MOTIVATED, RESILIENT, ADAPTABLE, RESOURCEFUL AND COMMUNICATE WELL.
WE GUARANTEE YOU AN INTERVIEW. 80% OF APPLICANTS ARE OFFERED A PLACEMENT.
YOU WILL BE MADE AN INITIAL OFFER IN AUGUST AND CONFIRMATION OF YOUR HOST WILL BEGIN IN OCTOBER. ONCE YOU’VE ACCEPTED AND PAID YOUR DEPOSIT, YOU’RE A GAP VOLUNTEER!
YOU’LL GET A COMPREHENSIVE BRIEFING PACK AND GAP WILL HELP YOU PREPARE EVERYTHING BEFORE YOU LEAVE.
YOU’LL BE ON A GAP GROUP FLIGHT.
IN MOST COUNTRIES, YOU WILL HAVE AN ORIENTATION ON ARRIVAL. YOU’LL ALSO BE VISITED ON YOUR PLACEMENT. GAP HAS 24 HOUR SUPPORT SHOULD YOU NEED IT.
GAP IS ABOUT GROWING UP, MATURING AND ACHIEVING SOMETHING UNIQUE.
IT’S ABOUT HELPING OTHERS AND LEARNING ABOUT YOURSELF.
GAP IS NOT A HOLIDAY. IT’S THE BEST YEAR OF YOUR LIFE.
Ally
Well we do have Jesus Camp for the youth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_EKHK1C2IE
Unfrikingbelievable
"I've done it plenty,"
I bet he has, president of a youth athletics organisation. A******
Federal Prosecutor Arrested In Child Sex Sting
Prosecutors said Atchison flew from Pensacola, Fla., to Detroit on Sunday intending to have sex with the 5-year-old girl.
He is president of the Gulf Breeze Sports Association, a youth athletics organization.
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/14132485/detail.html
Darn I have been off line all morning trouble with my internet connection.
Probably friking Georgie, tasering my box
Posted by: rossiann at September 17, 2007 10:48 PM
No rossi - I thought it was me! It was a technical glitch and our expert technician dwahzon fixed it for us.
Ramstad Bows Out, Declares Seat ‘Wide Open’
Susan Davis reports on 2008 congressional races.
“I’m burned out, I’m tired,” Rep. Jim Ramstad (R., Minn.) said as he announced he won’t seek a 10th term in the House. “I still have the passion for politics but I want to go home.”
Ramstad, the sixth incumbent Republican House member to retire since the party lost the majority last fall, said his suburban Minneapolis district is “wide open” and predicted a competitive race next year. “It’s not a safe Republican district,” Ramstad told reporters this afternoon.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2007/09/17/ramstad-bows-out-declares-seat-wide-open/
World could live with nuclear-armed Iran: Abizaid
September 18, 2007 - 10:05AM
Every effort should be made to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons but, failing that, the world could live with a nuclear-armed government in Tehran, a recently retired commander of US forces in the Middle East said today.
John Abizaid, the retired army general who headed Central Command for nearly four years, said he was confident that if Iran should gain nuclear arms, the United States could deter it from using them.
"Iran is not a suicide nation," he said.
"I mean, they may have some people in charge that don't appear to be rational, but I doubt that the Iranians intend to attack us with a nuclear weapon."
The Iranians were aware, he said, that the United States has a far superior military capability.
No rossi - I thought it was me! It was a technical glitch and our expert technician dwahzon fixed it for us.
Posted by: woz at September 17, 2007 10:55 PM
Thanks Dwah, cursed Georgie all morning
oops
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/world-could-live-with-iranian-nukes-abizaid/2007/09/18/1189881472279.html
All these things are written about the lunatic resident of the WH. Who protects him from ever seeing how much he is despised by the whole world?
Iraq punishes US firm over 'random' killings
September 18, 2007 - 6:22AM
Employees of a US security firm face prosecution in Iraq after a Baghdad shooting in which 11 people were killed.
Iraq has withdrawn the licence of Blackwater, one of the biggest foreign security contractors in Iraq.
An Iraq Interior Ministry spokesman said guards working for Blackwater opened fire when mortar rounds landed near their convoy in west Baghdad's Mansour district yesterday.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/us-firm-killed-iraqi-citizens/2007/09/18/1189881464222.html
They moved quickly there did'nt they, contractors are not protected against prosecution.
Rice to talk about Blackwater with Maliki
WASHINGTON, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she would call Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to "express regret" over the deaths of Iraqi civilians.
Rice would "express regret for the loss of innocent life," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said during a media briefing. The department's Diplomatic Security Bureau is investigating the Sunday incident in which employees of a U.S. private military contractor Blackwater, protecting a State Department motorcade, apparently came under attack and fired back, killing a reported 11 people.
McCormack asked that conclusions not be drawn until the investigation was completed.
"There was a loss of life here. There was a firefight. We believe some innocent life was lost," McCormack said. "Nobody wants to see that. But I can't tell you who was responsible for that."
Read more: http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2007/09/17/rice_t... /
Will Iraq's Blackwater Ban Raise Troop Levels in Baghdad?
By Rob Kall
After a firefight, allegedly involving blackwater, which produced 8 civilian deaths and 14 wounded, Iraq has "withdrawn Blackwater's license to operate in Iraq. Will the ban have teeth? and, if thousands of blackwater security and mercenary workers have to leave, or can't work, will General Petraeus have to INCREASE troop deployments to Baghdad?
http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_rob_kall_070917_iraq_bans_blackwater.htm
Hey, that guy trying to solicit A FIVE YEAR OLD,,,
Isn't he the same Atchison that helped purge US Attorneys?
"John David R. Atchison, 53, an assistant U.S. attorney from the northern district of Florida,"
I can't remember faces anymore, they all look like monsters.
I noticed Jean Shaheen may run for Senate against Sununu.
We could pick up some seats if all goes well (those who favor Dems).
My mom had an interesting theory about perverts and the GOP the other day.
Rossi will like this one.
Namely the GOP is purposly promoting sexual deviants in their ranks because they are 'controlable'.
It almost makes sense, which is totally scary.
Homeland Detains Music Scholar
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/9/17/135336/923
I guess that title also says that they "Go Gestapo"
My God - she is an expert on the composer who wrote "Pomp and Circumstance" - you know the stately song we march down the aisle to when we graduate?!
Christy
That isn't so far off. They screen the CIA for deviants so they can't be blackmailed. Maybe they encourage them for the GOP so they CAN.
My God - she is an expert on the composer who wrote "Pomp and Circumstance" - you know the stately song we march down the aisle to when we graduate?!
Posted by: not my president at September 18, 2007 12:00 AM
Where are the tv cameras and voices about this outrage? I am so sad for this woman, her students and America.
The morons in the gestapo are going by looks, nothing else. And their lack of intelligence would not be able to separate physical differences at all.
I so wish you would impeach Bush so that the world can be free of him.
Hopefully this article has put me off chocolate! Well, depending where the cocoa is grown. Must make a call to Cadbury.
The sinister story behind chocolate
Steve Chalke
September 18, 2007
CHOCOLATE is regarded as a treat, a sweet luxury often given as a gift. But that is only part of its story. The rest is more sinister. Two hundred years after the British Empire abolished the slave trade, nearly half the world's chocolate is made from cocoa grown in Ivory Coast, West Africa, where tens of thousands of children are forced to work on plantations as slaves.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/sinister-story-behind-chocolate/2007/09/17/1189881428732.html
Must make a call to Cadbury.
Posted by: woz at September 18, 2007 12:52 AM
The best darn chocolate in the world.
Off topic again. However, it is about travel and different destinations.
Mystery illness strikes after meteorite hits Peruvian village
September 18, 2007 - 2:06PM
Villagers in southern Peru were struck by a mysterious illness after a meteorite made a fiery crash to Earth in their area, regional authorities said today.
Around midday Saturday, villagers were startled by an explosion and a fireball that many were convinced was an airplane crashing near their remote village, in the high Andes department of Puno in the Desaguadero region, near the border with Bolivia.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/a-case-for-mulder-and-scully/2007/09/18/1189881490291.html
Made the Aussie Headlines
Police state ...
Police shoot student with stun gun
AN AMERICAN university student was held down and shot with a Taser stun gun by police in the middle of a question-and-answer session with former presidential candidate Democrat John Kerry.
Footage of yesterday’s incident at the University of Florida has appeared on YouTube and has already attracted more than 66,000 views.
In the clips, a young man asks Senator Kerry why he didn’t dispute the results of the 2004 election, while four uniformed officers stand behind him.
After he asked Senator Kerry if was a member of the same secret society as US President George W. Bush, who won the election, the officers tried to remove him.
He was then dragged towards the back of the lecture hall before being held to the ground and hit with the Taser.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bVa6jn4rpE
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22439742-2,00.html
I know rossi. Horrible. Someone posted that this morning (our time). Under whose authority? Frankly, we're no better in Australia, with the police bullying and beating protesters who were not doing anything violent. At least it was caught on camera.
With this one, I imagine JK is furious about it. I just listened to a writer who was interviewed on the Newshour. He says that the internet is responsible for people no longer thinking or reasoning. No longer acting with any intelligence.
We've all become narcissistic in that we choose only communications with people who reflect our views. We would benefit much more from the intelligent reporting in the MSM - you know - he mentioned the Wall Street Journal, which is now owned by Murdoch! I guess we know which side of the fence he sits.
I tuned out to most of the interview and certainly wouldn't recommend the book, since I was not impressed with the arrogance of the writer who knows far more about me than I do.
Naomi Klein - Speaking about The Shock Doctrine at a benefit event for the CCPA - Part 1:
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/naomi_klein_videos/
You can watch videos from other CCPA events at www.youtube.com/policyalternatives
nmp - you're a speech therapist - what do you think about this article? If it was April 1st, I'd know what to think. However, the brain is truly amazing, although I thought accent was what you are surrounded with as a baby and toddler.
Boy wakes up 'posh' after surgery
September 18, 2007 - 6:45PM
A 10-year-old boy has woken up with a posh English accent after undergoing life-saving brain surgery.
William McCartney-Moore's usual northern England accent was replaced with a much more refined tones complete with elongated vowels after he had an operation to remove fluid on his brain.
William, who is from York, needed the surgery after falling ill with a rare strain of meningitis last March.
"He survived the operation and the most amazing thing is that he came out of surgery with a completely different accent," his mother Ruth McCartney-Moore told the York Press newspaper.
"He went in with a York accent and he came out all posh.
"He no longer had short 'a' and 'u' vowel sounds. They were all long."
Mrs McCartney-Moore said doctors initially thought her son was going to die.
He lost everything, she said, including his ability to read, write and recognise different objects.
But William began to recover after the operation and was out of hospital in about a month.
"We went on a family holiday to Northumberland and he was playing on the beach and he said, 'Look, I've made a sand castle' but really stretched the vowels, which made him sound really posh," Mrs McCartney-Moore said.
"We all just stared back at him - we couldn't believe what we had heard, because he had a Yorkshire accent before his illness.
"He had no idea why we were staring at him - he just thought he was speaking normally."
Doctors said changes to people's accents after surgery were rare.
The central speech centre of William's brain could have changed, they said.
AAP
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/boy-wakes-up-posh-after-surgery/2007/09/18/1189881506933.html
I know rossi. Horrible. Someone posted that this morning (our time). Under whose authority? Frankly, we're no better in Australia, with the police bullying and beating protesters who were not doing anything violent. At least it was caught on camera.
Posted by: woz at September 18, 2007 04:12 AM
Dog found skinned, beheaded and pawless
AN 11-year-old boy's gruesome discovery of a tortured dog in suburban playing fields is the latest in a string of animal cruelty cases including a sexually abused dog and skinned cat.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22440575-2,00.html
Makes you proud to be an Australian does'nt it
Kurds declare "oil independence"
Iraqi Kurds fed up with the bickering in Baghdad and the failure of the central government to pass a comprehensive hydrocarbons law have virtually declared their independence signing new oil contracts with western companies and legislating their own oil law in August in the Kurdistan Regional Parliament. Iraqi Oil Minister Minister Hussain al-Shahristani, has declared the contracts that the Kurds signed null and void while the Kurds have called for his resignation… The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) signed a production-sharing contract with Hunt Oil Co. of Texas, U.S., the first such deal since the Kurds passed their own oil and gas law....
http://www.uruknet.de/?p=m36373&hd=&size=1&l=e
Bush-linked Texas company signs oil deal with Iraqi Kurds
Earlier this month, the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq announced that it had signed a production-sharing deal with Texas-based Hunt Oil. The move is an indication that Western oil companies, frustrated over the delay in the passage of a national oil law by the Iraqi government, are moving to make deals with regional bodies to get access to Iraq’s vast oil reserves. As significant as the deal itself is the identity of the company involved. Ray Hunt, the CEO and president of privately held Hunt Oil, is a close confidant of President Bush and a prominent figure in the US political and intelligence establishment...
http://www.uruknet.de/?p=m36371&hd=&size=1&l=e
I thought yes, I thought no, and then I thought again, But I just had to because I cannot tell her she is wrong, and the sadness is profound, and brings me so much shame.
The threat to world heritage in Iraq: heritage destroyed
As news filters through of the damage done during the US-UK military campaign in Iraq, we shall be posting details of damage to monuments, archaeological sites, museums, and libraries as they come in. As with many media reports during the conflict, they are often impossible to verify independently, especially in the absence of visual documentation. If you know of additions, corrections, or clarifications from reputable sources please email either or both of us at the addresses below.
http://users.ox.ac.uk/~wolf0126/bombed.html
No Past, No Future...
Is there anything in Iraq that the Americans have not destroyed ?
Anything at all ? And you dare wonder why I detest you so much...And you have the audacity to come to my blog to question me about my origins, my location, my ideas, my roots, my sense of belonging... What kind of a race are you ? What kind of a people are you ? Yes, I said people not government. I am not politically correct. Your government is part of you and you are part of it. Like it or not. And don't come and tell me in your sheepish ways that I know all too well : " Oh, but I did not vote for this one" (...) I know, I know, some of you are good people... I know, I know, America is not a homogenous group... I know all that shit. It does not make one iota of difference in my life and that of other Iraqis. I no longer give a damn about your nuances, your political leanings, how good or how bad you are...It is meaningless to me and to countless others. Our lives have been ruined, totally ruined...We do not give a fuck about your nuances. And all I know if that you have destroyed my country. Beyond repair. The past - you have looted and destroyed. Trying to erase our collective historical memory...Our roots, where we came from, what our ancestors did, their achievements, their trials, their statues, their writings (... ) You wanted regime change in Iraq - you got it. You also changed us, me, beyond anything I can recognize...I never hated you before. Today I do. I really hate you. You collectively disgust me. Even our ancient Mesopotamian deities and spirits are disgusted with you. Every single letter of the Alphabet is disgusted with you...
http://arabwomanblues.blogspot.com/2007/09/no-past-no-future.html
Amre El-Abyad said...
Ramadan Kareem Ya Layla
"A Sumerian Cuneiform that you have looted and destroyed".
I just wonder why such horrible crime against human heritage hasn't turned U.N, UNESCO upside down, and outraged all those civilsed sophisticated art lovers.
When the Talibans destroyed the Buhdist statues, the entire world was charged against Muslims who were wrecking the common heritage of humanity-but when the Americans wreck, destroy and lute the world's greatest and oldest heritage, the issue is regarded as trivial.
All the peace lovers, NGOs, Fuckin international community, global citizens, students, animal lovers and bird watch organizations, dont find the crime much worthy their attention.
you said it once in reply, we are the black sheep.....I would rather go for being a black slave in South Carolina in 1854 than being an Arab in 2007
18/9/07 1:43 AM
IN CASE OF MARTIAL LAW, BREAK GLASS
September 17, 2007
Reprinted from MOUNTAIN SENTINEL
Bush now has the ability to declare martial law at his own discretion, and in so doing dissolve the other branches of government, throw out the constitution, and suspend elections. He appropriated the right to do this largely by executive order. He can declare martial law whenever he deems there is sufficient cause; cause being an act of terrorism, an economic crisis, an act of war, civil unrest, or a natural catastrophe. For more information about the executive orders and legislation granting Bush these rights, please watch the short video at mountainsnetinel.com (What We Choose to Ignore), or visit the US Martial Law Timeline.
Hard as it might be to believe, there is a very real possibility that Bush will exercise these rights before his term ends. All he needs is an excuse. At present, the economy is on the verge of collapse, the Iraqi Occupation is going badly no matter what Bush and his chosen generals say, energy supplies are unable to keep pace with demand, disapproval of the Bush administration is growing, and Bush wants to attack Iran and so complete his Middle East conquest. He has all the reason in the world to declare martial law. All he lacks is a sufficient excuse.
Many people who follow the news are worried that Bush will declare martial law sometime in the months ahead. If natural crises prove insufficient, they are afraid that he will stage another 9/11. The current economic climate is very similar to the climate at the time of 9/11, though the present brewing economic hurricane will be much worse than the dot.com bust. The economic crises we currently face could very well result in bank closings, the crash of the US dollar, and the impoverishment of a large segment of the US population. What is more, with peak oil and the dawn of a new era of energy depletion it is unlikely that we will be able resuscitate our economy once the collapse is complete.
In the past couple weeks, we have heard about nuclear weapons being "mistakenly" shipped across the country onboard B-52 bombers. These weapons, which have a very limited capacity, were accidentally shipped to one of the bases that coincidentally functions as a staging grounds for the Middle East. While it is possible that these weapons were intended to be used for tactical strikes against Iran, I think it more likely that they were going to be used on US troops in Iraq, or perhaps even citizens within the US. A nuclear terrorism attack would clear the way for an immediate attack on Iran and provide a sufficient excuse to declare martial law within the US. (See Was a Covert Attempt to Bomb Iran with Nuclear Weapons foiled by a Military Leak? by Michael E. Salla, M.A., Ph.D.)
This sounds far-fetched and paranoid, doesn't it? Well, word is circulating around Wall Street that billions in put options were made at the end of August. Put options are short term bets that a corporation will do poorly. From the number and size of these puts, some big players are betting that the stock market is going to take a major fall before the end of September. The last time there was a move in put options this large was just prior to 9/11.
(See Dispelling the 'Bin Laden' Options Trades, 'Bin Laden' Options Trades Have Wall Street Whispering, and $4.5b bet on another 9/11 within 4 weeks)
Whether or not there are plans to stage another terrorist event, the fact remains that Bush has cleared a path towards establishing a dictatorship within the US. Given Bush and Cheney's psychological profiles, it is unlikely that this pathway was cleared for altruistic purposes, and it seems equally unlikely that they will not now take advantage of it. Nor did Bush clear this pathway for some future president. Bush and Cheney are both far too selfish and egotistical for that. So it is likely that Bush will walk this path sometime before the next election.
Now the question arises, what will we do if Bush declares martial law and usurps our government?
http://carolynbaker.net/site/content/view/129/
Christy you might want to read Chris Floyds take on 9/11.
Go in and read about all the players American and Saudi and how they are intertwined.
Shadow and Swamp: A Brief Discursion on 9/11
Written by Chris Floyd
Tuesday, 11 September 2007
http://www.chris-floyd.com/
Groovy Tuesday
by The Smithereens
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday.
Even my hangover's fine.
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday.
Hung my mind out on the line.
Tuesday's groovy. Tuesday's groovy.
Now, I know that nothing lasts.
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday,
Everything is not the same.
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday.
Think I'll even change my name.
Tuesday's groovy. Tuesday's groovy.
Now, I know that nothing lasts.
And I can't help it if I'm not the one you need.
It doesn't matter if I'm still the lost ball in the weeds.
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday,
Flower pot, man, looked my way.
Woke up on a groovy Tuesday.
I can see what he can't say.
Tuesday's groovy. Tuesday's groovy.
Now, I know that nothing lasts...
nothing lasts...
nothing lasts...
Makes you proud to be an Australian does'nt it
Posted by: rossiann at September 18, 2007 06:00 AM
They're Australian and I'll bet they wouldn't pass the citizenship test. Creepy.
Believe, don't believe, but Mr. Wallis speaks my will...
The Global Church and America's War
(Jim Wallis, Sojourners)
From my blogs this week, readers can rightly conclude that I believe Gen. Petraeus' claims of modest security gains in certain sectors of Iraq do not justify extending the U.S occupation, especially when four years of occupation of Iraq have not produced the political reconciliation that would be necessary for real security and stability. The fragile security improvements are not sustainable without a political solution, which is simply not forthcoming. And without a clear path to political progress, the realization that what Petraeus proposes, and President Bush will likely endorse tonight, is simply more of the same failed strategy, and a scenario of American occupation in the midst of bloody sectarian warfare with absolutely no end in sight.
And contrary to some comments on this site, I have suggested several times an alternative strategy that would have to involve serious international intervention and regional engagement to secure Iraqi security and stability -- the kind of bold, strong, and creative multilateral strategy that is completely obstructed by the ongoing unilateral American occupation. Permanent U.S. military bases and unique American claims to future oil revenues and contracts for Iraqi reconstruction are among the U.S. prerogatives that would have to be sacrificed for such international solutions to be possible -- along with a massive American financial commitment to rebuild the shattered country that our war has broken. But exercising American responsibility without U.S. control is not likely to occur on the Bush watch. So we can only look and hope for a future change of direction.
But let's turn from politics to theology and ecclesiology. The vitriol against Christian Iraq war dissenters from the handful of neocon war promoters who regularly clog the comments to this site forget both. Both the teachings of Jesus (remember, "blessed are the peacemakers" and "love your enemies") and the rigorous criteria of the "just war" from Augustine and others in the Christian tradition clearly leave believers with at least a presumption against war. And the ignominious origins and now-disputed rationales for this war in particular, along with its enormous human cost, clearly put the burden of proof on the war's supporters much more than its critics -- that is, if we are to be Christians about all this, and not just American nationalists or neoconservative apologists for American hegemony in the world.
That brings me to a second point -- about the body of Christ and our loyalty to the global Christian community. Outside the borders of the United States of America, a vast, vast majority of the world's people are steadfastly against the American war in Iraq and the foreign policies of the U.S. in general. Take out all the non-Christians from that global population sample and among the people of God the opposition remains the same. Even reduce that number to only evangelical Christians worldwide and you are still left with an overwhelming majority of born-again, Bible-believing Christians who are against American policy in Iraq and, indeed, the entire Middle East region.
Because of my work and transatlantic family ties, I travel extensively around the world, frequently talk to others who do, regularly read the international press, frequently host international Christian leaders, and often attend international Christian gatherings. Last week, I wrote on this site about my recent journey to Singapore to join 500 leaders of World Vision from 100 countries. And I will tell you that, once again, the great majority of those evangelical believers, especially from the global South, but also including Europeans, Australians, and even many Americans who work globally, are now completely opposed to the Iraq war, to U.S. policy in the region, and to the way the United States conducts its "war on terrorism." In other words, my experience convinces me that the body of Christ, internationally, is against the U.S. war in Iraq and the whole direction of current U.S. foreign policy. Many Christians I've spoken to go further and say that America's aggressive role in the world today has hurt the cause of Christ globally, especially when an American president dangerously conflates America's role with God's purposes. And if you don't know that perspective, you simply haven't had much experience with Christians outside of the United States.
So if the international body of Christ generally doesn't support America's war in Iraq, or U.S. foreign policy generally, what do some American Christians know that the rest of the global Christian community doesn't? Is the rest of the church just wrong? Do we have access to information that they don't have? (Actually, they have much more access to information and different perspectives than most Americans have, which is a big part of the problem.) What don't they understand that we do? Or, from the perspective of the Christian warriors who try to dominate the commentary section of this blog, what do they know that world Christianity has yet to learn?
Personally, to be frank, I think it is because far too many American Christians are simply Americans first and Christians second. The statement that got the most enthusiastic response in Singapore was not about politics but ecclesiology: "We are to be Christians first and members of nations or tribes second." That simple affirmation, if ever applied, would utterly transform the relationship of American Christians to the policies of their own government.
For all the vitriolic debate about politics this week in relationship to the war in Iraq, I think the real issue is our theology and ecclesiology. Many American Christians are simply more loyal to a version of American nationalism than they are to the body of Christ. I want to suggest that the two are now in conflict, and we must decide to whom to we ultimately belong. That's the real issue.
http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=sojomail.current_issue
Monkey
It kind of ties in with Rick Steves' philosophy. Take away all the Christian warriors and there are plenty of Christians and nonChristians alike who oppose the war, if they are moral people.
Woz
I read the article about the boy changing his accent from street to posh following brain surgery. Some people are better with their mother tongue than their second language after a stroke, but it seems he would have to have had quite a bit of exposure to the "posh" (Oxford-type?) English. By 10, I suppose he could. It's really strange. I'm going to show people at work. Thanks!
Rossian
About the skinned dog and other tortured animals, frequently a kid who does such things is being sexually abused. They may also start fires and bed wet, and can end up being psychopaths and pedophiles themselves. It's a triad of behaviors to watch out for.
Wait... Did you say a boy goes in for brain surgery, and somehow it changed his ACCENT...?
Now that is very interesting.
Rossi,
Don't get me started on the Saudis again. I think it freaks out the others when I start talking about invading people and ripping them from their towers, and kicking the snot out of someone until a bin laden pops out.
F@#$^!#$% Saudis can kiss my a**.
And Ally.
Not sure where you've been hiding lately, but I have been in my shop trying very hard to figure out how to make a go of olive green and baby blue. I knew when I ruined two canvases I would eventually get a good idea.
Well, I quit with the canvas and went with something more like I do on a regular basis, and after I put the two colors on it last night to start it, I realized, I LOVE this piece.
So does the lady who owns the store around the corner, she already offered me $50 bucks for it. And it isn't even half finished yet, still on the easel.
If you don't find an addy for me to send it too, trust me, it will be here till you come for it, cause I will display it myself as an example of my work.
Oh, and Rossi..
Have you thought of what you wanted painted yet...or shall I just make it up...?
If you do not have something specific in mind, then I already sketched out something I think you would like. It also is not on canvas but it is 6 foot tall.
HEHEHE.
Posted by: Christy at September 18, 2007 10:04 AM
Can I get a monkey?
Posted by: Christy at September 18, 2007 10:04 AM
Good for you Christy! Hang on to it for yourself.
One of these days, I WILL head over to Louisiana to take a look.
Thanks!
The first thing that startled me when I traveled abroad in my washed out Levis and Nike's is that other people in Europe were not in "AWE" at having a United States Citizens grace their shores. They weren't as nearly impressed as I was that I had decided to spend some of the money earned in "the greatest country in the world" to come and observe them. I was met with apathy in the U.K., and with hostility in France, and, well, as anyone who has been there knows , with very little patience from the Italians.
Posted by: monkey at September 18, 2007 09:03 AM
Interesting viewpoint.
Fascism will stop at nothing to obtain complete control.
We must not be myopic about this however, as we remember that they are propagandizing every single segment of our society they can.
IMO, CNN has been running a scrolling ticker tape on the bottom of the screen that has the words "Al Qaeda in Iraq", "terrorists", etc. since it was bought out. They are very much playing on the fears of the old, the soccer moms, and the religious.