tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58704193297317956012024-03-14T08:19:59.929-07:00Nonviolent Revolutionariesdedicated to those courageous individuals dedicated to manifesting positive change without the use of violence...@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-77176403862938822592014-09-15T14:01:00.000-07:002014-09-15T17:32:25.363-07:00Stop ISIS Peacefully - 7 Nonmilitary ConsiderationsKelly Hayes-Raitt is a citizen journalist who has reported from Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and the West Bank. She has started an <a href="https://www.blogger.com/petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-isis-peacefully" target="_blank">online petition</a> to be delivered to President Obama and the U.S Congress outlining 7 nonmilitary actions that can be taken to stop ISIS nonviolently. Ms. Hayes-Raitt lays out her 7 points in her MoveOn.org <a href="http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-isis-peacefully" target="_blank">petition</a>:<br />
<br />
<i>To President Obama and the Members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives:
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>Before we commit to a limited, “support" troop reinvasion of Iraq,
can we please hit the pause button and consider non-military options?
Yes, ISIS, a brutal offshoot of al-Qaeda that stretches from the
Mediterranean in northwest Syria to the Persian Gulf in southeast Iraq,
needs to be stopped. The questions are how and by whom. The U.S. has
many options. Will you exhaust them all before you send our men and
women back into battle? </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><br />Please consider the following 7 points to stop ISIS peacefully:
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>1. Consider all the steps between doing nothing and dropping bombs.
The world witnessed a miraculous example of successful diplomacy last
summer: It was considered a “done deal” that Washington would unleash
limited bombing on the outskirts of Damascus to punish Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad for using chemical weapons. Then a seemingly
off-the-cuff remark by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry set in motion a
diplomatic solution that resulted in Assad turning over his stash of
chemical weapons, thereby successfully ridding the world of one of the
last major caches of chemical weapons – and avoiding more casualties on
America’s conscience. Disarming proved to be much more successful
“punishment” than bombing.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>We realize this tactic worked because Obama’s threat to bomb Syria
was perceived as real. Could this tactic work again? Or are you
planning to reoccupy Iraq? We implore you to employ non-military
options first.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>2. Stop considering Syria and Iraq in separate vacuums; a regional
viewpoint is necessary. For example, the regimes of Syria’s Assad and
neighboring Iraq’s Nouri al-Maliki (who has just retained political
power by being named vice-president) are allied. They share a common
opposition to ISIS. Yet, the U.S. funds the Iraqi government while also
funding fighters who oppose the Syrian government, ignoring that some
of those opposition fighters affiliate with ISIS and spill from Syria
into Iraq. Thus, American tax dollars support opposition fighters
trying to undo a government supported by American tax dollars!
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>3. Stop justifying military funding, arming and intervention in
Syria or Iraq by referencing human rights abuses. Yes, it’s
excruciating to view photos of hundreds of children gassed to death and
not want to punish, but the larger truth is every side in Syria and Iraq
are engaged in human rights abuses. Adding more troops, guns or
military money does not suddenly make governments, soldiers or
insurgents more humane.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>4. Work regionally to cut off supply routes of weapons. Fewer
weapons means less fighting and fewer casualties – and fewer generations
of traumatized children raised to believe violence is the only option.
Syrian rebels’ weapons flow through Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq. The U.S.
should be a leader in negotiating a regional effort to stem this flow
of weapons; instead it provides weapons to Syrian fighters assuming
they won’t land in ISIS fighters’ arms.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>5. Dry up the black market for crude oil and gas. After
benefitting from oil and gas takeovers in eastern Syria, ISIS has seized
oil facilities in Mosul and Kirkuk and is selling the Iraqi crude at a
deep discount on the global black market, raising $3 million/day and
making it the wealthiest terrorist organization on the planet. It’s
estimated they could make $1 billion/year.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>6. Engage the United Nations. The U.S. is about to assume the
presidency of the U.N. Security Council. ISIS creates an unusual
opportunity for opposing factions to work together: Iran, Iraq, Syria,
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the Gulf States and the U.S. and its western
allies all see ISIS as a security threat. On Sept 24, the Security
Council will consider a U.S. proposal to “prevent and suppress” the
recruitment and travel of foreign fighters to join terrorist groups. It
is estimated that 12,000 rebels from 74 countries have joined extremist
groups in Iraq and Syria. While stemming the flow of fighters is a
good step, it is open to abuse. And it’s a bit like the Dutch boy with
his finger in the dike. Better to engage the U.N. in pressuring
countries to stop arms movement and black market oil purchases. Uniting
opponents to ISIS is a unique opportunity to get these countries to
suspend their proxy wars.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>7. Stop doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome.
Iraq didn’t have any terrorist groups until after the U.S. invasion.
Al-Qaeda bubbled up in 2004. If 100,000 U.S. troops couldn’t wipe out
al-Qaeda in Iraq, why do we think we can now without another full-scale
war? Targeted precision strikes lead to political instability and the
perpetuation of extremism.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>Are these suggestions more complicated? More time-consuming? More
challenging? Yes. But they are far less destructive for Iraqi, Syrian
and American children forced to grow up assaulted by war.
</i>
<i><br /> </i><br />
<i>Thank you for your consideration. </i><br />
<i> </i><i> </i><br />
To this I would add an 8th point, which is to try to engage in a dialogue with the Imam leader of the Islamic State, <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-27801676" target="_blank">Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.</a> We must find a way to see the humanness in each other. This is best done human to human.<br />
<a href="http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-isis-peacefully" target="_blank"><b><br /></b></a>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-isis-peacefully" target="_blank"><b>SIGN THE PETITION</b></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.neverbetter.com/product/another-american-for-peace-bumper-sticker/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.neverbetter.com/product/another-american-for-peace-bumper-sticker/" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAP1MvDEHOUDXeQ_S0dFClclapztbZ_ndofTkmO-q6VPnpzMY_aNHOFZeVAZqDQyAIFE-x1iZ0JSO31sOYIyWBTTM6TE75ebof7pw9WuSbZexT51QE2GDUjaax_-G7jYR3aL-1KZ_CcJI/s1600/Another_American.png" height="165" width="200" /></a></div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-2568081548043350972014-08-20T20:51:00.000-07:002014-08-20T20:53:37.870-07:00August 2014: Tens Of Thousands Of Nonviolent Israelis And Palestinians March For Peace Much has been written about rockets being fired at Israel by Hamas and bombs being dropped on Gaza by the Israeli government, the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians and the pain it causes.<br />
<br />
Did you know that this month, August 2014, there were at least two rallies for peace that drew 10,000 people in Israel? There are so many people on all sides who realize the use of violence and destruction will never bring a solution, it will never bring peace.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheO8EW7hEPk-2C_TUXgSIkXpZpb1DSCoXHxDjcy3m90Hysv6mEkeF2Sqe0ZH8rGm4AOF1SBtvImMo1fovZGat6wU_FEBp4ilTU-CvLVuOVbFm9RdltvfN852UGVVZlEkGiKQDrFCvzWJk/s1600/tamra_protest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheO8EW7hEPk-2C_TUXgSIkXpZpb1DSCoXHxDjcy3m90Hysv6mEkeF2Sqe0ZH8rGm4AOF1SBtvImMo1fovZGat6wU_FEBp4ilTU-CvLVuOVbFm9RdltvfN852UGVVZlEkGiKQDrFCvzWJk/s1600/tamra_protest.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Activestills.org</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
First, <a href="http://972mag.com/nstt_feeditem/photos-10000-hold-anti-war-march-in-arab-town/" target="_blank">as reported by Faiz Abu-Rmeleh at 972mag.com</a>, approx. 10,000 people marched in the northern Israel Arab town of Tamra in on Saturday, August 2nd. Palestinians took to the streets in a peaceful protest in solidarity with the innocents being oppressed in Gaza. Children symbolically carried dolls wrapped in cloth with with red stains and photos of the victims of the recent violence.<br />
<br />
Then, on August 15th, over ten thousand Israeli Anti-War activists peacefully descended into Rabin Square in Tel Aviv to demand that the government stop the violence being perpetrated on the people of Gaza stop immediately.<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://972mag.com/nstt_feeditem/photos-10000-hold-anti-war-march-in-arab-town/" target="_blank">Tikkun Daily</a> reports:<br />
<br />
<i>Tonight’s rally, sponsored by a number of left-wing groups in Israel,
including the political party Meretz, overwhelmed those extremists who
showed up with the volume of participants. </i><br />
<i></i><br />
<i>Organizers of tonight’s protest had the following message for Prime
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who many protesters addressed with chants
of “Bibi, go home”:</i><br />
<i>
</i>
<blockquote>
<i>“The next round of fighting can be prevented. No to the
way of wars – we must have a political solution. After an agonizing
month of war and death, in the face of mounting waves of incitement and
hatred, which increasingly tear up the Israeli society, we stand up to
demonstrate for peace and for democracy.”</i></blockquote>
<i>
</i><i>Israel and Hamas in Gaza are currently in the midst of a five-day
ceasefire as officials from both sides try to hammer out a long-term
truce, which will likely only be secured with an end of the blockade in
Gaza. It’s precisely this point which famed Israeli novelist David
Grossman addressed, telling the crowd, “We won’t be able to breathe
deeply in Israel as long as people in Gaza feel choked.”</i><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHomixu_tp_2Yk8BuuRPPYjjqqI9P2Z_U7ZFncIGZU7bR6D5mHo82YfRRea3cr7lmvk4bLT8QF84u_bcQt4HUT8CFAlHKl2UlZmbznTqtsvsQTI7rgEnFuxRRDfAklb3UKUyJNwFXZZRo/s1600/Israel-Gaza_Protest_Tel_Aviv.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHomixu_tp_2Yk8BuuRPPYjjqqI9P2Z_U7ZFncIGZU7bR6D5mHo82YfRRea3cr7lmvk4bLT8QF84u_bcQt4HUT8CFAlHKl2UlZmbznTqtsvsQTI7rgEnFuxRRDfAklb3UKUyJNwFXZZRo/s1600/Israel-Gaza_Protest_Tel_Aviv.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: Reuters</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Deep gratitude for all of the Nonviolent Revolutionaries on both sides of this conflict for seeing beyond the anger and embracing the human in each other. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-5057677057538521502012-08-18T13:59:00.000-07:002012-08-18T14:14:38.968-07:00Pussy Riot Punks Putin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQOnfj6sN97RE0EAyhlHefuCJyvfMatdtSn3m_8GNnRxxAHWk1Ig1R1q71rMDgKcOesOWWTlJ8kI6JXaB_k2LE28l-4lMks42Z-MtkB9pX2nP0CjXu3SOGJAjUmuXD7E6yV5dNa3lAmDo/s1600/pussy-riot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQOnfj6sN97RE0EAyhlHefuCJyvfMatdtSn3m_8GNnRxxAHWk1Ig1R1q71rMDgKcOesOWWTlJ8kI6JXaB_k2LE28l-4lMks42Z-MtkB9pX2nP0CjXu3SOGJAjUmuXD7E6yV5dNa3lAmDo/s320/pussy-riot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Three members of Russian punk group Pussy Riot were sentenced to <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57495199/russian-female-punk-band-pussy-riot-found-guilty-of-hooliganism-over-putin-protest-at-church-site/" target="_blank">two years in prison</a> for performing a song protesting President Vladamir Putin at the Christ The Savior Cathedral on February 21st. Cited for 'hooliganism', Friday's verdict has drawn criticism of Putin's heavy handed tactics continually stifling dissent in Russia.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0cUzVCw1rHif_K7BwpGaFbBExDX2A_Grgr5KZEsX5OcZgAGWYVkA8RgK9BEKWv4pBUZ7NL0z7_kOqOo0E_p166xaQSOzPj_1WgG_bKkrKAyBwEUUWou1WeA88KN4nvfhDteYkQmJoVCo/s1600/Anthony-Kiedis-of-Red-Hot-008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0cUzVCw1rHif_K7BwpGaFbBExDX2A_Grgr5KZEsX5OcZgAGWYVkA8RgK9BEKWv4pBUZ7NL0z7_kOqOo0E_p166xaQSOzPj_1WgG_bKkrKAyBwEUUWou1WeA88KN4nvfhDteYkQmJoVCo/s200/Anthony-Kiedis-of-Red-Hot-008.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photograph: Mudrats Alexandra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets to rally (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.477326408958474.110242.100000433574982&type=1" target="_blank">Chicago</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/freepussyriot/status/236506639476355073/photo/1" target="_blank">New York</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/424888970880304/" target="_blank">SF</a> ) in Free Pussy Riot protests, calling for the charges to be dropped. Celebrities have also voiced made their opinions known, Anthony Kiedis, lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, wore a Pussy Riot T-Shirt at a show in Moscow to show <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/jul/24/franz-ferdinand-chili-peppers-pussy-riot" target="_blank">support</a>. Ad Rock from the Beastie Boys showed up to DJ a <a href="http://www.spin.com/articles/beastie-boys-ad-rock-djs-riot-grrrl-classics-pussy-riot-benefit" target="_blank">benefit</a> and other rock stars Peter Gabriel, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/video/2012/aug/07/madonna-russia-pussy-riot-video?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3486" target="_blank">Madonna</a>, Sting, and <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/08/16/paul-mccartney-writes-letter-of-support-to-pussy-riot/" target="_blank">Paul McCartney </a>have spoken out in support of Pussy Riot, free speech, and the importance of dissent.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJPc11sM0lE4nDxvV4HU3LUyNIBRzTxdZcPZHzQQCjS-0qgOlUKja2AuiXCafgYTfHsqnIzbEvPAAp5nu3OHLXfYSe6p2fMKHTDP5n4OsKL7VddA2QsORT-MMka8qmW7ewSaHyRd9xyJ4/s1600/pussy_riot_hooligansim_2012_8_16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="(Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images)" border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJPc11sM0lE4nDxvV4HU3LUyNIBRzTxdZcPZHzQQCjS-0qgOlUKja2AuiXCafgYTfHsqnIzbEvPAAp5nu3OHLXfYSe6p2fMKHTDP5n4OsKL7VddA2QsORT-MMka8qmW7ewSaHyRd9xyJ4/s320/pussy_riot_hooligansim_2012_8_16.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On Saturday, benevolent Orthodox cleric, Tikhon Shevkunov, who is widely believed to be President Vladimir
Putin’s spiritual counselor, said on state television that his
church <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/russian-orthodox-clerics-say-they-have-forgiven-the-anti-putin-feminist-rockers/2012/08/18/dc639c7a-e92c-11e1-9739-eef99c5fb285_story.html" target="_blank">forgave</a> the singers after their “<a href="http://freepussyriot.org/content/lyrics-songs-pussy-riot" target="_blank">punk prayer</a>”. Archpriest Maxim Kozlov agreed, but also said, "“We are simply praying and hoping that these young women and all these
people shouting in front of the court building, committing sacrilegious
acts not only in Russia but in other countries, realize that their acts
are awful,” he said. “And despite this the church is asking for mercy
within the limits of law.”<br />
<br />
In a further development, former world chess champion and Russian opposition leader, Garry Kasparov, <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/08/17/chess-champ-garry-kasparov-they-were-trying-to-break-my-leg.html" target="_blank">tells</a> Eli Lake how he was beaten and arrested at the sentencing of Pussy Riot. Kasparov faces the <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/9484871/Pussy-Riot-Garry-Kasparov-faces-jail-threat-over-claim-he-bit-policeman-after-arrest-over-demonstration.html" target="_blank">threat of jail</a> himself over the incident.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Punk Prayer - Pussy Riot (<a href="http://freepussyriot.org/content/lyrics-songs-pussy-riot" target="_blank">lyrics</a>)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ALS92big4TY" width="560"></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<i>However you feel about what Pussy Riot did or where they did it, these ladies deserve some props for expressing their point of view in a courageous and evocative way in a place where it's not that safe to do so. They may have to do some time, but they do so having accomplished their mission... speaking truth to power with the voice of the oppressed, pushing the limits of freedom of speech in places it needs to be pushed, and showing the world with their words and Putin's actions just what a punk he is.</i><br />
<br />
Mother Jones Magazine has been keeping the story updated <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/what-is-pussy-riot-explained" target="_blank">here</a><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMen5LXtSHKGc44n2zUvIN5By10yI74t9TdcBftYm_mztkSuXBgRJSQB1LW3s6QV79_SUJbgGcKwD37nlsLs3K_vuZ-hbV3u0Y9sAki5rTdREX9gVW182crAW7EvEAQt2hA4gNLR6CxKo/s1600/pussy-riot-court.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMen5LXtSHKGc44n2zUvIN5By10yI74t9TdcBftYm_mztkSuXBgRJSQB1LW3s6QV79_SUJbgGcKwD37nlsLs3K_vuZ-hbV3u0Y9sAki5rTdREX9gVW182crAW7EvEAQt2hA4gNLR6CxKo/s320/pussy-riot-court.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="http://freepussyriot.org/">FreePussyRiot.org</a> is also keeping close tabs.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/PutOutPutin" target="_blank">Free Pussy Riot Now facebook page</a> <br />
<br />
<a href="http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2012/08/18/what-pussy-riot-teaches-us/" target="_blank">What Pussy Riot Teaches Us </a><br />
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_531159104"><br /></a>
<a href="http://freepussyriot.org/content/lyrics-songs-pussy-riot" target="_blank">Pussy Riot Lyrics</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Nonviolent Revolutionaries Maria Alekhina, Ekaterina Samutsevich, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisUNhoufLqtLUgib4_cV5zy9CNFpSHKz3D4hV_2Rt-0geMghbqh4kj7iUWryShHDD94rMsNyhyvNy40-SZS9NIXi5mZOX2RCqOoYuCSp1xJ5J6411W_wSFyypD6M_eqIbdzLYAK2HQvfQ/s1600/free_pussy_riot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisUNhoufLqtLUgib4_cV5zy9CNFpSHKz3D4hV_2Rt-0geMghbqh4kj7iUWryShHDD94rMsNyhyvNy40-SZS9NIXi5mZOX2RCqOoYuCSp1xJ5J6411W_wSFyypD6M_eqIbdzLYAK2HQvfQ/s320/free_pussy_riot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-1160478523955221522012-04-15T16:20:00.015-07:002012-04-16T09:43:40.519-07:00Jackie Robinson Changed More Than Just A Game<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCDDbK5-S7xUZtyp2j1u8aThx4iR9917kTdLBNp_zvpAD1RPvZIE2_6tJiVR8m5mni8GQAnTZi4lCh5dg8cV8CK8_yIOSvoOejCklIU19Cpzxpo89BnPjbBoonIgLwjvPsrdWbZ6UfSfQ/s1600/Jackie.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 258px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCDDbK5-S7xUZtyp2j1u8aThx4iR9917kTdLBNp_zvpAD1RPvZIE2_6tJiVR8m5mni8GQAnTZi4lCh5dg8cV8CK8_yIOSvoOejCklIU19Cpzxpo89BnPjbBoonIgLwjvPsrdWbZ6UfSfQ/s320/Jackie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731781707079177314" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Today is <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/jrd/">Jackie Robinson Day</a>!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.jackierobinson.com/">Jackie Robinson</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> stepped onto the Ebbets Field baseball diamond for the first time on April 15, 1947 as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers, desegregating the 'national pastime' and <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1146492-what-jackie-robinson-means-to-america-65-years-later">forever changing</a> the landscape of the game of baseball and American culture as a <a href="http://latinorebels.com/2012/04/15/65-years-today-in-on-a-baseball-field-in-brooklyn-jackie-robinson-helped-to-change-america/">whole</a>.</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">So began the Hall Of Fame career of a <a href="http://life.time.com/culture/jackie-robinson-classic-and-rare-photos/#1">legend</a> whose exceptional skill set on the field were matched with equally exceptional courage and dignity in the face of brutal racial intolerance and ignorance directed at him... not just from the stands or the opposing dugout, but even within his own clubhouse.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEJtyNf3kOc-udEXViyVY1EVsrmSp3Tst60vb743QX6uAWui3ON21SXXqQ_emg6G0XHjjGXt2csG8EK6vwMoQVK6fonxcVrHlmWJBtZF_fOTPgW3fvf-fZB6t8MfOPFZsTtue-ACym9zk/s1600/Jackie_Robinson_Branch_Rickey.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEJtyNf3kOc-udEXViyVY1EVsrmSp3Tst60vb743QX6uAWui3ON21SXXqQ_emg6G0XHjjGXt2csG8EK6vwMoQVK6fonxcVrHlmWJBtZF_fOTPgW3fvf-fZB6t8MfOPFZsTtue-ACym9zk/s200/Jackie_Robinson_Branch_Rickey.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731732869274854146" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">In late August 1945, Brooklyn Dodgers club president and general manager, Nonviolent Revolutionary </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branch_Rickey">Branch Rickey</a><span style="font-style: italic;">, had a long conversation with Jackie wanting to know if he would be able to take the racial abuse he was sure to be subjected to without fighting back. "Are you looking for a Negro who is afraid to fight back?" Jackie asked. Rickey replied that he was looking for someone "with guts enough not to fight back." Jackie agreed and Rickey signed him to a contract for $600 a month.</span><br /><br style="font-weight: bold;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />"I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me ... all I ask is that you respect me as a human</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> being." -Jackie Robinson</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeSyqepAcQjgnzpXqz0XOzY3X7cjKL95yxtNIjhqOo_GXVcBR1oOJMbz6zGERyAhfT9SEq-Ood8PPjQISquQsrkmJhyphenhyphenyL5wcV7YmkINDUoy4J35MTZAX1H_X53YmJZAz9nTVSe_VEMK9A/s1600/jackie_robinson_pee_wee_reese_statue.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 148px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeSyqepAcQjgnzpXqz0XOzY3X7cjKL95yxtNIjhqOo_GXVcBR1oOJMbz6zGERyAhfT9SEq-Ood8PPjQISquQsrkmJhyphenhyphenyL5wcV7YmkINDUoy4J35MTZAX1H_X53YmJZAz9nTVSe_VEMK9A/s200/jackie_robinson_pee_wee_reese_statue.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731746906614868930" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Jackie was constantly subjected to abuse throughout his career, but he did find allies amongst his peers, namely Dodgers teammate </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pee_Wee_Reese" title="Pee Wee Reese">Pee Wee Reese</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> coming to Robinson's defense with the famous line, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." In 1948, Reese put his arm around Robinson in response to fans who shouted racial slurs at Robinson before a game in Cincinnati. The moment is immortalized with a statue by sculptor William Behrends, which stands today at KeySpan Park in Brooklyn.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AfQm64i_qYua8Hs868uONHRlMdqSKKwVKr0jcOX_5gMhCJgT_eI6R0h6g3yC1_7BiEYEr7xNfoteAH-Wa26HWBtNdza9nMvL8Zwbk6KAnLL153spKHOvt6n6LSAkMvRzNzvEjrRU3Vs/s1600/Jackie_Robinson_Allen_Ginter.jpg"></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Robinson played for the Dodgers for 10 years and was the also the first African-American elected to the MLB Hall Of Fame in 1962. He exhibited the combination of hitting ability and speed which exemplified the new era. He scored more than 100 runs in six of his ten seasons and helped the Dodgers to a World Series victory in 1955. The clip below of Jackie stealing home is the most well known of the Series:</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6XY-XshGhMU" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div></div></div><br style="font-style: italic;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Highlights of Jackie to </span><span style="font-style: italic;" class="st">Woodrow Buddy Johnson & Count Basie</span><span style="font-style: italic;">'s 1949 song</span><br />"Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?":<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/48JCQnXwUK8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4R6ZosUoX1HrujXyAmXIBrhkLfA_hD0sHTqMzWSpjeOo0ZzjgmAMTF8KUaG-u9JM4muXjQR2aFRxlaH5siLMi2DRxE7hKsJjotO8uGg_0APTRZ8sw3OCqiO_txI7puXOOM5f3LYUpHA0/s1600/jackie_robinson_martin_luther_king.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 127px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4R6ZosUoX1HrujXyAmXIBrhkLfA_hD0sHTqMzWSpjeOo0ZzjgmAMTF8KUaG-u9JM4muXjQR2aFRxlaH5siLMi2DRxE7hKsJjotO8uGg_0APTRZ8sw3OCqiO_txI7puXOOM5f3LYUpHA0/s200/jackie_robinson_martin_luther_king.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731754281046508194" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">“There's not an American in this country free until every one of us is free.” -Jackie Robinson</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />After his baseball career ended Robinson continued to work as a </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.solipsis.com/jackierobinson/civil_rights.html">civil rights activist</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> working tirelessly for equality. </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://nonviolent-revolutionaries.blogspot.com/2012_01_01_archive.html">Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> said that Jackie was "a legend and a symbol in his own time", and that he "challenged the dark skies of intolerance and frustration." (Dr. King was still a college student when Jackie took the field on April 15, 1947).</span><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic;">The clip below is of Jackie speaking at a civil rights rally in Birmingham, Alabama:<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GmJ4LZcYiH0" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj_pehyphenhyphenmTYoJ0e58YITSb1gZHg-G_Daw-pTBO2ydswu6KwjojKWfumTsp1sPG_DsHkSVjWSaD8E_mKkCwUjo8u2TDHd19TI8onGicAS9no7sTL81qG7yGdBsqfyC3EMu6Dtm31ElPoLU/s1600/3531266901_08965f225f.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj_pehyphenhyphenmTYoJ0e58YITSb1gZHg-G_Daw-pTBO2ydswu6KwjojKWfumTsp1sPG_DsHkSVjWSaD8E_mKkCwUjo8u2TDHd19TI8onGicAS9no7sTL81qG7yGdBsqfyC3EMu6Dtm31ElPoLU/s200/3531266901_08965f225f.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731762801640879170" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">On the 50th anniversary of Jackie's debut for the Dodgers the league took the unprecedented step of retiring his number 42 throughout all of baseball helping cement his legacy as the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=OM3aoVibcws">pioneer</a> who helped pave the way the game (and world) is today. In honor of his achievements his number is displayed in every Major League Baseball Stadium. That year also many players began the tradition of wearing number 42 on April 15th to honor Jackie.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">10 years later MLB celebrated the inaugural </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120415&content_id=28741544&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb">Jackie Robinson Day</a><span style="font-style: italic;">, celebrated every year on April 15 at ballparks around the country.</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><br style="font-style: italic;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Current players share their views on wearing number 42:</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/L2bmQ9m-3QQ" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/What%20Jackie%20Robinson%20Means%20to%20America%2065%20Years%20Later">What Jackie Robinson Means to America 65 Years Later</a><br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Robinson">Jackie Robinson Wikipedia Page</a><br /><a href="http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jackierobinsonbaseballhofinduction.htm"><br />Jackie's Hall Of Fame Induction Speech</a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Other quotes attributed to Jackie:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgpvN4NsaxuXTOuX15zJlYPEyHMXbf-bmHg0Hby34U-802DW51_6BjatkZS6b8m5SkcUQK87qbjxD-CBWpcsYo-trJVCxnDMLuhdMP1VvORxl0W8wpOA5brq4LXS9ZRuPie_m5CZNM6mU/s1600/Jackie_56.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 223px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgpvN4NsaxuXTOuX15zJlYPEyHMXbf-bmHg0Hby34U-802DW51_6BjatkZS6b8m5SkcUQK87qbjxD-CBWpcsYo-trJVCxnDMLuhdMP1VvORxl0W8wpOA5brq4LXS9ZRuPie_m5CZNM6mU/s320/Jackie_56.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731778124431091106" border="0" /></a>“Life is not a spectator sport. If you're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just<br />watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life.”<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgpvN4NsaxuXTOuX15zJlYPEyHMXbf-bmHg0Hby34U-802DW51_6BjatkZS6b8m5SkcUQK87qbjxD-CBWpcsYo-trJVCxnDMLuhdMP1VvORxl0W8wpOA5brq4LXS9ZRuPie_m5CZNM6mU/s1600/Jackie_56.jpg"></a>“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”<br /><br />“I guess you'd call me an independent, since I've never identified myself with one party or another in politics. I always decide my vote by taking as careful a look as I can at the actual candidates and issues themselves, no matter what the party label.”<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AfQm64i_qYua8Hs868uONHRlMdqSKKwVKr0jcOX_5gMhCJgT_eI6R0h6g3yC1_7BiEYEr7xNfoteAH-Wa26HWBtNdza9nMvL8Zwbk6KAnLL153spKHOvt6n6LSAkMvRzNzvEjrRU3Vs/s1600/Jackie_Robinson_Allen_Ginter.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 195px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AfQm64i_qYua8Hs868uONHRlMdqSKKwVKr0jcOX_5gMhCJgT_eI6R0h6g3yC1_7BiEYEr7xNfoteAH-Wa26HWBtNdza9nMvL8Zwbk6KAnLL153spKHOvt6n6LSAkMvRzNzvEjrRU3Vs/s320/Jackie_Robinson_Allen_Ginter.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5731779802623423442" border="0" /></a>“The right of every American to first-class citizenship is the most important issue of our time.”<br /><br />“I don't think that I or any other Negro, as an American citizen, should have to ask for anything that is rightfully his. We are demanding that we just be given the things that are rightfully ours and that we're not looking for anything else.”<br /><br />“Civil rights is not by any means the only issue that concerns me--nor, I think any other Negro. As Americans, we have as much at stake in this country as anyone else. But since effective<br />participation in a democracy is based upon enjoyment of basic freedoms that everyone else takes for granted, we need make no apologies for being especially interested in catching up on civil rights.”<br /><br />“I won't 'have it made' until the most underprivileged Negro in Mississippi can live in equal dignity with anyone else in America.”<br /><br />“It is up to us in the north to provide aid and support to those who are actually bearing the brunt<br />of the fight for equality down south. America has its iron curtain too.”<br /><br />“Negroes aren't seeking anything which is not good for the nation as well as ourselves. In order<br />for America to be 100 per cent strong--economically, defensively, and morally--we cannot afford<br />the waste of having second-and-third class citizens.”<br /><br />“Negroes aren't seeking anything which is not good for the nation as well as ourselves. In order<br />for America to be 100 per cent strong--economically, defensively, and morally--we cannot afford<br />the waste of having second-and-third class citizens.”<br /><br /><br />Career Numbers:<br /><br />Batting average- .311<br /><br />Hits- 1,518<br /><br />Home runs- 137<br /><br />Runs batted in- 734<br /><br />Stolen bases- 137 *including 19 steals of home<br /><br />6 time All Star ('49-'54)<br /><br />1947 Rookie Of The Year<br /><br />1949 MVP@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-27210039612182079792012-03-24T16:45:00.007-07:002012-03-24T17:46:24.588-07:00The Power Of Vulnerability... Brené Brown Breaks It Down<span style="font-style: italic;">There is nothing more paramount to the progress of the Nonviolent Revolution than recognizing the need for authentic connection, yet so much of the prevailing cultural norms tend to lead us away from such connection.<br /><br />With violence and competition heavily ingrained into our society, we have been conditioned to believe that making ourselves vulnerable for authentic connection translates to weakness, that strength is best projected with an inflexible force of will. In truth, these strategies of projecting strength are disconnecting behaviors, nothing more than weakness posing as strength.... and what of the idea that vulnerability = weakness?<br /><br />"</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage</span><span style="font-style: italic;">", is how Professor Brené Brown</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> likes to put it</span>....<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Zc_06ubGEIerB9H7DuWd7GDYIgId2VuI3tRDmAB7qwBi2pSDM4-T6zVWUT1nuJVUZPLqEVnb6Q8ZIZ_1l8OhGP1CCtaRQ3nnb9gD-V5YsvXlSo-46DvnCXPjuNGNY9_XDmQno60uKTk/s1600/brene_brown.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Zc_06ubGEIerB9H7DuWd7GDYIgId2VuI3tRDmAB7qwBi2pSDM4-T6zVWUT1nuJVUZPLqEVnb6Q8ZIZ_1l8OhGP1CCtaRQ3nnb9gD-V5YsvXlSo-46DvnCXPjuNGNY9_XDmQno60uKTk/s200/brene_brown.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5722930571952448050" border="0" /></a><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.ted.com/speakers/brene_brown.html">Brené Brown</a> </span><span style="font-style: italic;">is a research professor at the University of Houston, she has spent the past 12 years</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> studying empathy and shame, courage and vulnerability, and the need for human connection. The videos below are of Ms. Brown speaking at TED Conferences, sharing what she has learned through her research by telling her compelling story and attempting to answer the important questions she is asking:</span><br /><br />"How do we learn to embrace our vulnerabilities and imperfections so that we can engage in our lives from a place of authenticity and worthiness? How do we cultivate the courage, compassion, and connection that we need to recognize that we are enough – that we are worthy of love, belonging, and joy?"<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">"<span style="font-weight: bold;">Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity, and change.</span>" - Brené Brown<br /><br /></div><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><object height="374" width="526"><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgcolor="#ffffff" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2010X/Blank/BreneBrown_2010X-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/BreneBrown-2010X.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=1042&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=brene_brown_on_vulnerability;year=2010;theme=what_makes_us_happy;theme=how_the_mind_works;event=TEDxHouston;tag=communication;tag=culture;tag=psychology;tag=self;tag=social+change;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" height="374" width="526"></embed></object><br /><br /><br style="font-style: italic;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-style: italic;">In this powerful follow up to 'The Power Of Vulnerability' Ms. Brown addresses the topic of shame, calling it an 'epidemic' in our culture:</span><br /></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">"<span style="font-weight: bold;">Empathy is the antidote to shame.</span>" - Brené Brown<br /><br /><object height="374" width="526"><param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2012/Blank/BreneBrown_2012-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/BreneBrown_2012-embed.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=1391&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=brene_brown_listening_to_shame;year=2012;theme=master_storytellers;event=TED2012;tag=brain;tag=culture;tag=psychology;tag=self;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;"></object><br /><object height="374" width="526"><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgcolor="#ffffff" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2012/Blank/BreneBrown_2012-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/BreneBrown_2012-embed.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=1391&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=brene_brown_listening_to_shame;year=2012;theme=master_storytellers;event=TED2012;tag=brain;tag=culture;tag=psychology;tag=self;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" height="374" width="526"></embed></object><br /><object height="374" width="526"></object></div>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-59614171907036728622012-03-08T20:20:00.036-08:002012-03-11T14:17:28.801-07:00Amnesty International Celebrates 50 Years With Bob Dylan Tribute<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUT5rmfi-GLxCFhw3uENdP5YyQqNZ_vunf-da4KCOC8YzQv0ovBRqUWBz3M2iX27xiXYpBnXKafC-XTC4eJTHSLj6qJ1o8xXT01pVEv1Y9tSiekb0Gx1nyl3NwVVJAWfscGdScJ-f-QC8/s1600/dylan-chimes-of-freedom.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUT5rmfi-GLxCFhw3uENdP5YyQqNZ_vunf-da4KCOC8YzQv0ovBRqUWBz3M2iX27xiXYpBnXKafC-XTC4eJTHSLj6qJ1o8xXT01pVEv1Y9tSiekb0Gx1nyl3NwVVJAWfscGdScJ-f-QC8/s200/dylan-chimes-of-freedom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5717750940614323090" border="0" /></a>To celebrate their 50th anniversary, Amnesty International has it covered by releasing <a href="https://www.facebook.com/amnestyusa?v=app_115392725211599">"Chimes Of Freedom"</a>, a 4 disc set and tribute to the music of Nonviolent Revolutionary Bob Dylan. The <a href="http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2011/12/stream-amnesty-internationals-bob-dylan-tribute-al.html">collection</a> features 80 musicians covering 76 songs from Dylan’s vast catalog.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amnesty.org/">Amnesty International</a> is a global organization whose mission is to conduct research and generate action to prevent and en<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT6Cd_-v46kHNiWtLtyUZYJRVrgz4B29wkcGYqEyLHYw1aQAAL_u0NbzOd-WHgI7h9scBsCg6y7syPXGIj-JDjOs1gozoapcAoSDuMIDbJkSHXkP2x-z9YRo1E6H_EAKhOj8MqyN3vErk/s1600/amnesty_international.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 116px; height: 112px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT6Cd_-v46kHNiWtLtyUZYJRVrgz4B29wkcGYqEyLHYw1aQAAL_u0NbzOd-WHgI7h9scBsCg6y7syPXGIj-JDjOs1gozoapcAoSDuMIDbJkSHXkP2x-z9YRo1E6H_EAKhOj8MqyN3vErk/s200/amnesty_international.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5717754066748727986" border="0" /></a>d grave abuses of human rights and demand justice for those whose rights have been violated. Amnesty uses the <a href="http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/">Universal Declaration of Human Rights</a> as its guide. It is only fitting that such an organization would choose an artist such as Dylan to highlight as Dylan’s music has been a forceful voice for human rights and freedom over much the same span of time.<br /><br />Here is a young Bobby D with fellow Nonviolent Revolutionary Joan Baez at the March on Washington, August 28th, 1963:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/WLwHnNybADo" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqbR3v4Mn7T5ha_AAVnOSScqeUuGG9w5I1U5In58HGyACXjQ8JqhCv-4iF_xM0NAWNr1HNVf3082BAD1zRUHFHzHwHaukWdEHhERjEBvezdleyM7MvL3YMLhfFruIzNWdNVimfbH6_iHA/s1600/bob_dylan_really_young.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqbR3v4Mn7T5ha_AAVnOSScqeUuGG9w5I1U5In58HGyACXjQ8JqhCv-4iF_xM0NAWNr1HNVf3082BAD1zRUHFHzHwHaukWdEHhERjEBvezdleyM7MvL3YMLhfFruIzNWdNVimfbH6_iHA/s200/bob_dylan_really_young.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718747297200720898" border="0" /></a>Bob Dylan is probably the most covered solo artist in history. His music has been covered by artists as diverse as <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxHIVxz1K5M">Rage Against the</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxHIVxz1K5M"> Machine</a>, the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7-Xut_P7rk&feature=related">Grateful Dead</a> and the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7zWOH7ZmKs">Jerry Garcia Band</a>, the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7FgZhLl7i4">Ramones</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZfVbvSVUbw">White Stripes</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9R1sFwTWJLY">Johnny Cash</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XflcAgfs15c&feature=related">Pete Seeger</a>, and the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWec5d3rkYH9BJYyYv86OkzkzHgJsYdeh7C-8ZzN5AzE52iB-U4fDIChFR81Ejej9nRE5gnEqEf1nP9_2Khe2CG97U7iXN5AvFdkll1TvIE9TaANM5pRYqPzCAXzpM3b54W7ft3J2wxvM/s1600/bob_dylan_young.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 133px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWec5d3rkYH9BJYyYv86OkzkzHgJsYdeh7C-8ZzN5AzE52iB-U4fDIChFR81Ejej9nRE5gnEqEf1nP9_2Khe2CG97U7iXN5AvFdkll1TvIE9TaANM5pRYqPzCAXzpM3b54W7ft3J2wxvM/s200/bob_dylan_young.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718747721497085570" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emlbdTluHVk">Clancy Brothers</a>. Some of Dylan’s songs were made famous not by Dylan himself, but by other artists. Jimi Hendrix released his version of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEKeekluMoI">All Along the Watchtower</a> about six months after Dylan released the original version on the album John Wesley Harding. Hendrix’s adaptation became a top 20 hit and was voted Rolling Stone magazine’s 47th greatest song of all time. Manford Mann’s version of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liIQLIx2Onw">Quinn the Eskimo</a> reached #1o on the U.K. Singles Charts and was a top ten hit in the U.S.. The Byrds’ cover of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPqAvgN6Tyw">Mr. Tambourine Man</a>, which topped the Billboard chart in 1965, is credited in part with starting the genre known as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_rock">folk rock</a>.<br /><br />Dylan himself has, according Rolling Stone magazine, “remained, along with James Brown, t<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WA-qgLm2T619cpGDjU-Olg57aI-hSwv43coNxdDw5QMUc5UfS4jz9U1Yh0cwMWgXciDtm5VyE677pu9pd63v-IikSvPwHL76oIS_bVfNgbmlkrQ82pGW5452rDyoOJbm4hm-PAmK-Q4/s1600/bob_dylan_70s.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 99px; height: 144px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WA-qgLm2T619cpGDjU-Olg57aI-hSwv43coNxdDw5QMUc5UfS4jz9U1Yh0cwMWgXciDtm5VyE677pu9pd63v-IikSvPwHL76oIS_bVfNgbmlkrQ82pGW5452rDyoOJbm4hm-PAmK-Q4/s200/bob_dylan_70s.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718144137788232034" border="0" /></a>he most influential American musician rock & roll has ever produced.” His passion for civil rights has been expressed most succinctly in his music. His early songs were adopted by many in the civil rights movement. Songs such as <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCZWv5U5wJ4">The Times They are A’ Changin’</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aB8kSNlz2A&feature=related">Masters of War</a>, and most famously, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSBFga6j2yI&feature=related">Blowin’ in the Wind</a>, could be considered a major part of civil rights and peace activism soundtracks. Sometimes Dylan’s lyrics were powerful appeals for nonviolence. At other times, they were potent calls to action and outraged observations of egregious abuses of power.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4cZhr2oJCvHhtKkDKkHZHgS0JFmeAGNfc_7Rx9A41UCZdNfqXe9I2ULdRMkobxy0_9w0cKf9FIaPdIttwC8aKiF7FLZIiWubBAT1A7kl613EJTXZH6hFkOA3N5vMD4ke-EfpALUin2CA/s1600/bob_dylan_80s.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 145px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4cZhr2oJCvHhtKkDKkHZHgS0JFmeAGNfc_7Rx9A41UCZdNfqXe9I2ULdRMkobxy0_9w0cKf9FIaPdIttwC8aKiF7FLZIiWubBAT1A7kl613EJTXZH6hFkOA3N5vMD4ke-EfpALUin2CA/s200/bob_dylan_80s.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718748387729968610" border="0" /></a>Two Presidents of the United States have stated that they were inspired by Maggie’s Farm: <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2002/">Jimmie Carter</a> and <a href="http://www.bobdylan.com/users/sadiransonpolizzotti/blog/if-not-maggies-farm-then-where">Barack Obama</a>. President Carter said, “I grew up as a landowner's son. But I don't think I ever realized the proper interrelationship between the landowner and those who worked on a farm until I heard Dylan's record, ‘I Ain't Gonna Work on Maggie's Farm No More.’ So I come here speaking to you today about your subject with a base for my information founded on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhold_Niebuhr">Reinhold Niebuhr</a> and Bob Dylan.” The fact that two Nobel Laureate Presidents are inspired by the work of Bob Dylan shows just how influential his music has been to the nonviolent movement.<br /><br />On December 10, 1977, Amnesty International was <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1977/press.html">awarded</a> a Nobel Peace Prize of its own because, “Amnesty International fights for man's right to freedom of conscience, in other words, to a life in "internal" peace.”<br /><br />Dylan fans everywhere are stoked that Amnesty International is recognizing Dylan's body of <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAyfbvQ2oZwuJaZLVwbwfwbbcXtqy4ykc2rwLeYLViBht_6QUNE1u23O60_CEXk2qA27j8aIuZ7ylbSq4wpm_x9lK-u1dmQ7UMB8y35rNz1GG3iLOI2n8uZkw_C6gkO4guJEx-IVbIjVw/s1600/bob-dylan-90s.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 125px; height: 129px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAyfbvQ2oZwuJaZLVwbwfwbbcXtqy4ykc2rwLeYLViBht_6QUNE1u23O60_CEXk2qA27j8aIuZ7ylbSq4wpm_x9lK-u1dmQ7UMB8y35rNz1GG3iLOI2n8uZkw_C6gkO4guJEx-IVbIjVw/s200/bob-dylan-90s.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718748971632831730" border="0" /></a>work with the release of this diverse collection of covers by such an amazing array of artists celebrating its 50th anniversary! Artists contributing to the compilation include Ziggy Marley, Sting, Steve Earle, Joan Baez, Sinéad O'Connor, Michael Franti, and Pete Seeger.... all Nonviolent Revolutionaries we hope to one day feature on this blog.<br /><br />This is an excellent collection of music that funds an incredible organization. If you want to do your part in preserving human rights, <a href="http://www.amnesty.ie/dylan">purchase it</a>.<br /><br />Here are few of the videos featuring artists covering Dylan songs on 'Chimes Of Freedom':<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JAht51_HFTA" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JZqD3P2eIts" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/I2wvaWTTmz8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6rulv6xBYKU" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pmmLWsAvoj8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pKwLZfsTMd4" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/qXZS0sITJaM" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Fc0UPCmSM_E" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-70823226391249967762012-02-27T12:22:00.043-08:002012-04-09T12:39:14.160-07:00Bills Who Know... Moyers And Maher Aren't Afraid To Say It<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGzuj7MPayjEqXAQruwHhU4ssCArec4PxHHgDaMO2DxhtsKH6d1lQg00yu68IdAdg_KLgVXPi_-YpGgUfG1RgvMO2SEqhkxwZk9NpM-zVS-a9YcdNAWk0yXxlT1WQ3ufuQ3ugCt2v-O2U/s1600/Bill_Moyers_Bill_Maher.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 165px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGzuj7MPayjEqXAQruwHhU4ssCArec4PxHHgDaMO2DxhtsKH6d1lQg00yu68IdAdg_KLgVXPi_-YpGgUfG1RgvMO2SEqhkxwZk9NpM-zVS-a9YcdNAWk0yXxlT1WQ3ufuQ3ugCt2v-O2U/s400/Bill_Moyers_Bill_Maher.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714338050997937570" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Journalist Bill Moyers and Comedian Bill Maher may</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> be Nonviolent Revolutionaries with</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic;">different styles of conveying their point of view to television audiences, but both have been doing it long eno</span><span style="font-style: italic;">ugh now to know how to deliver a compelling perspective. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEkkexZnw6fgZ6oOxBI-c5knErZfUAYiWIpSW-ATmYB1EvFPScSBpXOrShV6y413jaWUVGy_UT8Lhoib4pRVlGk4WiABlZDz5AOPQlFlHmIN6eWknqowrLtsXiLywLcSsoMC5c2JinSiQ/s1600/Moyerscompany.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 152px; height: 100px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEkkexZnw6fgZ6oOxBI-c5knErZfUAYiWIpSW-ATmYB1EvFPScSBpXOrShV6y413jaWUVGy_UT8Lhoib4pRVlGk4WiABlZDz5AOPQlFlHmIN6eWknqowrLtsXiLywLcSsoMC5c2JinSiQ/s200/Moyerscompany.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714333076545571970" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Moyers and Maher continue to remain relevant voices in American </span><span style="font-style: italic;">culture today with their own weekly television sh</span><span style="font-style: italic;">ows. Moyers is back on</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> PBS with a new show called</span> '<a href="http://billmoyers.com/series/moyers-and-company/">Moyers & Company</a>' <span style="font-style: italic;">after a brief </span><span style="font-style: italic;">retirement and Maher is currently in his 9th season of</span> '<a href="http://www.hbo.com/real-time-with-bill-maher/index.html">Real Time with Bill Maher</a>' <span style="font-style: italic;">on HBO.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />Maher and Moyers had a chance to chat on a recent episode of</span> 'Real Time':<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/isgT4dbt5qM" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br style="font-style: italic;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBKAWkt8KRf6RHECDxmBBKX7a5Sv8ycBE-o9Zu0vb2xeSWeVrh2nVxjf5z3eqecUDIfXWL_8R3ckpopavoBjy20WnPut0M1GWvMitvWvP3J52IaubBhRewG25YxfOJWBR2KDuxuODC3M4/s1600/real+time+with+bill+maher+logo.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 76px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBKAWkt8KRf6RHECDxmBBKX7a5Sv8ycBE-o9Zu0vb2xeSWeVrh2nVxjf5z3eqecUDIfXWL_8R3ckpopavoBjy20WnPut0M1GWvMitvWvP3J52IaubBhRewG25YxfOJWBR2KDuxuODC3M4/s200/real+time+with+bill+maher+logo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714335716533091298" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">On both shows the host tackles the issues of today, </span><span style="font-style: italic;">and although the formats are different,</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> neither Maher nor Moyers are</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic;">ever afraid to ask the tough questions, engage in the debate, or offer an opinion (or crack a joke in Maher's case).</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Moyers and Maher each have a history of rabble rousing the minds of the American public. They shake us out of the zombified stupor of the typical lowest-common-denominator commercial television blather and instead encourage creative and critical thinking with lively debates and <a href="http://www.truth-out.org/how-pop-culture-influences-political-expectations/1330185800">discussions with depth</a>.</span><br /><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Maher continues to do many stand-up shows a year all around the country, at one of his recent shows he made news by announcing that he is <a href="http://www.mediaite.com/online/bill-maher-presents-obama-super-pac-with-1-million-check/">donating a million dollars</a> to President Obama's Super PAC... he had some interesting things to say about it on 'Hardball':</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://videos.mediaite.com/embed/player/?content=T8FZLW0B5GN0B5TS&content_type=content_item&layout=&playlist_cid=&media_type=video&widget_type_cid=svp&read_more=1" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="421" scrolling="no" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Well said, Bill.<br /><br />Moyers and Maher each have distinguished careers with defining moments that have informed their perspective. Let's take a closer look:</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><br style="font-style: italic;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ68vQSoFqnk8E7X049uJrtSvJUdkBtaXeN466x70SoEozsECkEmlXthWfsuzejzwsAyShdl7Opn_xSUaUuznWJHSVePKS1qlIgXqoQWOsA_o_EzWJD37yIt306OskhyphenhyphenSjZobDUUFY-iA/s1600/Bill_Moyers.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 165px; height: 61px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ68vQSoFqnk8E7X049uJrtSvJUdkBtaXeN466x70SoEozsECkEmlXthWfsuzejzwsAyShdl7Opn_xSUaUuznWJHSVePKS1qlIgXqoQWOsA_o_EzWJD37yIt306OskhyphenhyphenSjZobDUUFY-iA/s200/Bill_Moyers.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714277083969860050" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Moyers">Bill Moyers</a> served under President Kennedy as </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0gc-YZXvdtlZZfs-etw1EOpuS7npw2K-Gjd_mzw8oQ14aRT4JY49Dx92YfjMPyZ21skYfJ50QSCYZiHjlbtSrH3JEJBojqa9jrxIbEcU6ftiMgdGHunVpsUBzCEWca6o4NOihu_4hLeM/s1600/Bill_Moyers_press_secretary.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 148px; height: 121px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0gc-YZXvdtlZZfs-etw1EOpuS7npw2K-Gjd_mzw8oQ14aRT4JY49Dx92YfjMPyZ21skYfJ50QSCYZiHjlbtSrH3JEJBojqa9jrxIbEcU6ftiMgdGHunVpsUBzCEWca6o4NOihu_4hLeM/s200/Bill_Moyers_press_secretary.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714332218082965250" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Associate and Deputy</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> Director of the newly created Peace Corps from 1961 to 1963. After </span><span style="font-style: italic;">Kennedy's assassination, Moyers worked for President Johnson from 1963 to 1967, serving first as a special assistant, and later as White House Press Secretary.</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Moyers joined PBS in 1971 as host of a news program called</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Moyers_Journal">'Bill Moyers Journal</a>', <span style="font-style: italic;">which ran until 1981 with a hiatus from 1976 to 1977. The show would have another incarnation from 2007 to 2010, and in the years between Moyers would host several other similarly related shows and series touching on important topics with depth and integrity. </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NOW_with_Bill_Moyers">'NOW with Bill Moyers'</a>, '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Angle_%28PBS_series%29">Wide Angle</a>', and 'Moyers On America' <span style="font-style: italic;">touched on political questions of the day</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">while in 2006 '</span>Faith and Reason'<span style="font-style: italic;"> explored the question "In a world in which religion is poison to some and<br />salvation to others, how do we live together?"<br /><br />Moyers may be most loved for his 1988 documentary series</span> '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Myth" title="The Power of Myth">Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth'</a>, <span style="font-style: italic;">consisting of six one-hour interviews between Moyers and mythologist </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Campbell" title="Joseph Campbell">Joseph Campbell</a>. <span style="font-style: italic;">Check out this terrific clip from the series:</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/2F7Wwew8X4Y" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Moyers' influence in American culture has been priceless, his contributions to the debates of the day over the past few decades have always been thoughtful and crafted with an integrity befitting of a top notch journalist.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;" class="sqq">“There is no more important struggle for American democracy than ensuring a diverse, independent and free media." -Bill Moyers</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">................................................................<br /></div><br /><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Maher"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjNHSoEv0a7VK051gKWGUBil6annsP4JSEBEUxpeU4BIYl2Nt0Ax_mahztqMn-hgJyp_v4TvzuafqOYHObWFSt1C3QZKSrMcgFAH7MElpgUy1vMYv70II3K8fKgXdWektKfieeeuyfIeE/s1600/bill_maher.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 90px; height: 90px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjNHSoEv0a7VK051gKWGUBil6annsP4JSEBEUxpeU4BIYl2Nt0Ax_mahztqMn-hgJyp_v4TvzuafqOYHObWFSt1C3QZKSrMcgFAH7MElpgUy1vMYv70II3K8fKgXdWektKfieeeuyfIeE/s200/bill_maher.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714274527452134434" border="0" /></a><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Maher">Bill Maher</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> is an </span><span style="font-style: italic;">animal loving, herb smoking, religion questioning, </span><span style="font-style: italic;">flat out funny</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> bad ass comedian at the top of his game. Starting out in 1979 doing stand-up and a bit of acting, his career as television host took off in 1993 with the show '</span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politically_Incorrect">Politically Incorrect</a><span style="font-style: italic;">' on Comedy Central. The show moved to ABC in 1997</span>. <span style="font-style: italic;">Maher and the show became known for spurring debates around hot button issues and controversial or sensitive topics. It was critically acclaimed during it's run and won many accolades and awards. Here is a clip with Whoopi Goldberg, Gene Simmons, and the late Christopher Hitchens:</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/czu87N2avr4" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">'Politically Incorrect' <span style="font-style: italic;">was cancelled in 2002 after Maher stirred up controversy with these comments:</span><br style="font-style: italic;"></div><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/rNMhNJDRnhU" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-style: italic;">In 2003, Maher took the gloves off for good on HBO by launching 'Real Time with Bill Maher'. By bringing in a whole host of diverse guests to his panel in an hour long format, Bill was able to reinvent the success of 'Politically Incorrect' without having to pander to corporate advertisers. The show has shown it has legs with its continued success... indeed, it's the main reason I have HBO! Thanks to Bill Maher for being unafraid to keep it real!</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">More evidence of Mr. Maher's brand of call-it-like-you-see-it humor...</span><br /><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MmusrhoEPyU" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">“I do think the patriotic thing to do is to critique my country. How else do you make a country</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> better but by pointing out its flaws?” -Bill Maher</span><br style="font-weight: bold;"></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/90RzlUjE_Lo" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">“Non-violence was kind of Jesus’ trademark, kind of his big thing. To not follow that part of it is like joining Greenpeace and hating whales.” -Bill Maher</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: left; font-weight: bold;"><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/udzymvKOyCY" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">“If you’re a Christian and support killing your enemies and torture, you have to come up with a new name for yourself.” -Bill Maher<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: normal;">UPDATE: Excellent write-up on Maher in New York Magazine, <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/bill-maher-2012-4/">"It Won't Hurt You. It's Vapor."</a><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><br /></div><br /><br /></div>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-81002908251693475762012-02-06T04:20:00.000-08:002012-02-06T11:59:26.843-08:00Babylon Beware... Bob Marley's Voice Is Alive And Growing Stronger!<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Celebrating Bob's life and music on the anniversary of his 67th Birthday...</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Nonviolent Revo</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6fV9Dsj6m3Xo7fBX40Vi-9SdHZ-lVQDDLGCr784yPgZ3daW3iC-mvSvp5snqUZFp7Uj0gSc48-_Q7XotSc0s7_GC6qzenVRFjMfTCvHUjhXjBVH1lrW4sr_8TqfyPFPfTui5KDPrAkKA/s1600/BobMarley.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 160px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 210px; CURSOR: pointer" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700274812324693682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6fV9Dsj6m3Xo7fBX40Vi-9SdHZ-lVQDDLGCr784yPgZ3daW3iC-mvSvp5snqUZFp7Uj0gSc48-_Q7XotSc0s7_GC6qzenVRFjMfTCvHUjhXjBVH1lrW4sr_8TqfyPFPfTui5KDPrAkKA/s400/BobMarley.jpg" /></a><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">lutionary <a href="http://http//www.bobmarley.com/">Bob Marley</a> may have left us over 30 years ago, but the vibrations and message of his 'Songs Of Freedom' live </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEispbAOpZShu2r0OBDc3JrWrsaeu98OOqX1kfTYlHN-4KFjfRKqaIyDI9LabF__489_bIDM6RQT5cp9CLRn9i5X0GBixd35bVdMO20Ek8K1CE0yuPw8yJ5PSfOgCSwcCoYdofUvvn6hZC4/s1600/bob_marley"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 147px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700277757852826146" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEispbAOpZShu2r0OBDc3JrWrsaeu98OOqX1kfTYlHN-4KFjfRKqaIyDI9LabF__489_bIDM6RQT5cp9CLRn9i5X0GBixd35bVdMO20Ek8K1CE0yuPw8yJ5PSfOgCSwcCoYdofUvvn6hZC4/s200/bob_marley" /></a><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">on</span> <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">and continue to inspire millions over the world today</span>! <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Even when making a political statement, Bob's music is always emphasizing unity and keeping positive vibrations flowing. </span><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Bob's music shows us how powerful an artist can be. By</span><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"> putting powerful ideas into the world in a creative way and tapping into a universal human connection Bob's art has transformed many hearts, minds, and actions by bringing positive energy to vanquish the negativity....<br />no matter where you are in the world you hear Bob, but dem vibrations seem to have special a special connection with native and indigenous peoples and it is no wonder why...</span><br /></div><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/5NW-GmB2qpw" frameborder="0" width="560" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Bob ascended from the anonymous poverty of Trenchtown, Jamaica to be a powerful voice of the voiceless! Bob's lyrics not only the power of unity and love but also the need for equal rights and justice for all people...</span><br /><br /><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/q7iXcKKpdx0" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">The music of Bob Marley and the Wailers has become a force to be reckoned with now that generations of people have been jammin' together for over 40 years.</span><br /><br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">'Slogans' is a song that is always worth hearing during a political campaign year...</span><br /></div><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6o0FWb62MVE" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">"I'm a living man, I've got work to do" -Bob Marley</span><br /><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/hC_WG4nqgFE" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">You just don't want to hate or kill someone when you are singing, </span><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">"one love, one heart, let's get together and feel alright"</span><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">!</span><br /></div><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_QxiZLNHY6M" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">A personal favorite of mine, nothing breaks it down so hard and yet so irie as 'Babylon System'. </span><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Break it down, Bob!</span><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/X9RwgP26Ipo" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">BABYLON SYSTEM</span> </div><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><br />We refuse to be<br />What you wanted us to be;<br />We are what we are:<br />That's the way (way) it's going to be. You don't know!<br />You can't educate I<br />For no equal opportunity:<br />(Talkin' 'bout my freedom) Talkin' 'bout my freedom,<br />People freedom (freedom) and liberty!<br />Yeah, we've been trodding on the winepress much too long:<br />Rebel, rebel!<br />Yes, we've been trodding on the winepress much too long:<br />Rebel, rebel!<br /><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Babylon system is the vampire, yea! (vampire)</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Suckin' the children day by day, yeah!</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Me say: de Babylon system is the vampire, falling empire,</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Suckin' the blood of the sufferers, yea-ea-ea-ea-e-ah!</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Building church and university, wo-o-ooh, yeah! -</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Deceiving the people continually, yea-ea!</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Me say them graduatin' thieves and murderers;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Look out now: they suckin' the blood of the sufferers (sufferers).</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth right now!</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Come on and tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Tell the children the truth;</span> <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Come on and tell the children the truth.</span><br /><br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Nice! check out this version...</span><br /><br /><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cJtDf3-JQyI" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Bob breaks it down some more...</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/zQGb4WSYa7c" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">The videos below are 2 full shows from 1979 so you can feel dem irie vibrations for yourself!</span><br /><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/4LLd7b79whM" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><iframe height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C2ZASLnuwIk" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD3W0wviadcNTH7ztwpDEzmL3LlM1tfXvrO64Zs482lyjBMpmhC_R_-Mkr1cAP3hfqpeQu32hQM6oxOeqRbibgVRPhVmmGtGpwFtPJz-3zgfcU27lpcWY5tUjmo9KZ4pA-4wkFVLl3-ys/s1600/Bob+1.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 516px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 270px; CURSOR: pointer" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5700276601675240322" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD3W0wviadcNTH7ztwpDEzmL3LlM1tfXvrO64Zs482lyjBMpmhC_R_-Mkr1cAP3hfqpeQu32hQM6oxOeqRbibgVRPhVmmGtGpwFtPJz-3zgfcU27lpcWY5tUjmo9KZ4pA-4wkFVLl3-ys/s400/Bob+1.jpg" /></a><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">May the words and music of Bob Marley and the Wailers continue to be jammin' on into the present and future consciousness of humankind!</span> </div>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-22787318544650229072012-01-16T14:37:00.000-08:002012-01-16T15:56:59.255-08:00'Let Freedom Ring': Dr. King In His Own Words...<span><br /><br />"Blessed are the Peacemakers" -Jesus Christ</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Below are a series of videos of Dr. King's speeches and interviews... the man in his own words. His message through and through is clear, HOW YOU TREAT PEOPLE MATTERS. What doesn't matter is if it's the people next door, in the next city, or on the other side of the world.... we are all interconnected in a deep and meaningful way.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/smEqnnklfYs" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lived and died as a peacemaker, a legendary proponent of equality and justice, and ultimately a servant of love. What makes Dr. King's example so powerful is not just his compelling oratory, but the way in which he carried himself during his time on earth. </span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/130J-FdZDtY" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />While we have come to think of Dr. King as an icon, it is important to recognize that he was a human being, a man not without flaws. Yet, still, this man was able to rise to a calling ahead of his time and far greater than himself in order to accelerate human consciousness with his actions and words.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">His success in this mission remains dependent on those who take his legacy to heart and make the choice to serve love in our daily lives.</span><br /><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xDNV8dxYe-g" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HlvEiBRgp2M" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Not only was Dr. King able to hold the light on issues of racial and economic equality and justice, he was a moral beacon when it came to the folly of war. Dr. King stood up and spoke the truth to the political leaders of his own country. He spoke convincingly and unafraid, opposing the Vietnam War and eloquently linking its depravity with that of racial inequality and poverty...</span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/b80Bsw0UG-U" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Dr. King had the courage to state boldly in a <a href="http://www.ipoet.com/ARCHIVE/BEYOND/King-Jr/Loving-Your-Enemies.html">sermon</a> on November day in Montgomery, Alabama, 1957, </span>"...as I look into the eyes of all of my brothers in Alabama and all over America and over the world, I say to you, "I love you. I would rather die than hate you."...<span style="font-style: italic;">and then he lived those words until his dying day.</span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/aL4FOvIf7G8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Below is a Mini Bio of Martin Luther King Jr. by <a href="http://www.biography.com/people/martin-luther-king-jr-9365086/videos/martin-luther-king-mini-bio-2079122252">Biography Channel</a></span>:<br /><br /><br /><object id="flashObj" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,47,0" height="270" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1"><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"><param name="flashVars" value="videoId=1094034204001&linkBaseURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.biography.com%2Fpeople%2Fmartin-luther-king-jr-9365086&playerID=1027481032001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAA6PL_xMk~,jGNyX3KKlXNx4Jta3h7dYb9BpOaBZDAD&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true"><param name="base" value="http://admin.brightcove.com"><param name="seamlesstabbing" value="false"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="swLiveConnect" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashvars="videoId=1094034204001&linkBaseURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.biography.com%2Fpeople%2Fmartin-luther-king-jr-9365086&playerID=1027481032001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAA6PL_xMk~,jGNyX3KKlXNx4Jta3h7dYb9BpOaBZDAD&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" swliveconnect="true" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash" height="270" width="480"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">My favorite quote by MLK:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxpZ9kyZ0DD9xVlvD3f61Cl6LJFBclU_Uoc0o4thOyY6p6IE3HA1Tr7m6TjXLWkk8hr9w_z1_z4kozyWCD1fNLRJxKLU4dfC0Qu-K_DVWrdAmLt4eNvd0UZYgCCfc_Vx3aKUFD_PKcAww/s1600/King_poster.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxpZ9kyZ0DD9xVlvD3f61Cl6LJFBclU_Uoc0o4thOyY6p6IE3HA1Tr7m6TjXLWkk8hr9w_z1_z4kozyWCD1fNLRJxKLU4dfC0Qu-K_DVWrdAmLt4eNvd0UZYgCCfc_Vx3aKUFD_PKcAww/s400/King_poster.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698364900710002370" border="0" /></a></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Thanks to Amy Goodman for the terrific show today: <a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2012/1/16/special_dr_martin_luther_king_jr">Democracy Now! SPECIAL: Dr. King in his own words.</a><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.democracynow.org/embed_show_v2/300/2012/1/16/story/special_dr_martin_luther_king_jr"></script><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Thank you Dr. King!!</span><br /><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2012/1/16/special_dr_martin_luther_king_jr"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></span>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-89345962479060246132011-12-01T14:13:00.000-08:002011-12-02T21:15:15.932-08:00Aung San Suu Kyi hosts Hillary Clinton in Burma<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiarJKxD_cv6ocJL46eqiAUTOCePE-D5BdVWa_79_GzG6RUxiaiu9QwSNVdTBenpUjnowEv_ogyX_q8Pib7hkg_yTfZdHsHzAHrKv8KUDQleusnoG7_z3yfZZ-e-vUQCPAkcEUFIb2WaJI/s1600/clinton-suu-kyi.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiarJKxD_cv6ocJL46eqiAUTOCePE-D5BdVWa_79_GzG6RUxiaiu9QwSNVdTBenpUjnowEv_ogyX_q8Pib7hkg_yTfZdHsHzAHrKv8KUDQleusnoG7_z3yfZZ-e-vUQCPAkcEUFIb2WaJI/s320/clinton-suu-kyi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5681192237970038354" border="0" /></a><span><span style="font-weight: bold;">"Fear is a habit; I am not afraid."</span><br />-Aung San Suu Kyi</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />Burmese Opposition Leader, </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1991/kyi-bio.html">Nobel Peace laureate</a><span style="font-style: italic;">, and Nonviolent Revolutionary, </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/index.php/burma/about-burma/about-burma/a-biography-of-aung-san-suu-kyi">Aung San Suu Kyi</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> hosted U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton in Burma on Thursday. It is the first time in more than 50 years a diplomat from the United States has <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-12-02/hillary-clinton-meets-aung-san-suu-kyi/3707906?section=world">visited</a> Burma (Myanmar). A couple of weeks ago, President Obama </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/11/obama-confirms-aung-san-suu-kyis-support-of-us-engagement-towards-burmese-reform/">called</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> Suu Kyi to ensure that she was supportive of Clinton's trip.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/burmamyanmar/8898532/Barack-Obama-sees-flickers-of-hope-for-democratic-reform-in-Burma.html"><span>(Obama Announcement)</span></a><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/a/daw_aung_san_suu_kyi/index.html">Suu Kyi</a>, who was </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Burma/Timeline_Burma.html">released</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> last year after having spent most of the past 20 years under house arrest, recently </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15787605">announced</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> that she planned to have her party, the National League for Democracy, rejoin Burmese politics.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Clinton's visit comes at at a time when it appears the new civilian government of the repressive regime is looking to <a href="http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2100949,00.html">reform</a>, although it is still clear there is still a <a href="http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/countries/asia-and-the-pacific/myanmar?id=1011205">long way to go</a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Guardian <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/01/clinton-burma-aung-san-suu-kyi?newsfeed=true">reports</a> that before her meeting with Ms. Suu Kyi, Clinton met with Burma's new President, Thein Sien, saying,</span><br /><br />"I am here today because President Obama and myself are encouraged by the steps you and your government have taken to provide for your people."<span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The video below is of Aung San Suu Kyi talking about her support of the visit:</span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/w-ku_SFkNRo" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">As well as meeting with Ms. Suu Kyi, Secretary Clinton hand delivered a </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.blogger.com/Clinton%20also%20hand%20delivered%20a%20letter%20to%20Ms.%20Suu%20Kyi%20from%20President%20Obama.">letter</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> from President Obama</span>. <span style="font-style: italic;">Noteworthy in the letter Mr. Obama comments that:</span><br /><br />"I have long admired your brave and unwavering struggle for democracy..."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">and</span><br /><br />"Secretary of State Clinton's visit will explore how the United States can support efforts to foster political opening and respect for universal human rights, as well as demonstrate the seriousness of our commitment to helping the people of Burma achieve their democratic aspirations."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">It is my hope that Ms. Suu Kyi takes this opportunity to remind Secretary Clinton that the world has been watching very closely how well the United States government is doing in regards to <a href="http://www.adbusters.org/blogs/adbusters-blog/suppressing-nonviolent-dissent.html">respect for universal human rights and helping people achieve their democratic aspirations.</a> </span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Related Information:</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2011/12/01/hillary-clinton-meets-suu-kyi-in-myanmar?videoId=226081477&videoChannel=1">Reuters: Video</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/press-releases/clinton-s-visit-to-myanmar-should-be-measured-in-human-rights-improvement-says-amnesty-international">Clinton's Visit To Myanmar Should Be Measured In Human Rights Improvement, Says Amnesty International</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57334433/sec-clinton-meets-aung-san-suu-kyi-in-burma/">CBS News Article</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/aung-san-suu-kyi">The Guardian Article</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.readersupportednews.org/off-site-opinion-section/117-117/8696-a-free-woman">The New Yorker: 'A Free Woman'</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.burmawatch.org/index.html">Burma Watch</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.freeburmacoalition.org/">Free Burma Coalition</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/">Burma Campaign UK</a><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Aung San Suu Kyi addresses U2 fans in Denver:</span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/zNWiOLekIpo" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Aung San Suu Kyi adresses the World Economic Forum 2011 in Davos:</span><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TO5uUedqxJk" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-34511406316500286542011-11-20T21:57:00.000-08:002011-11-22T14:02:41.797-08:00UC-Davis Students Embody Nonviolent Revolution<span style="font-style: italic;">On Thursday, November 18th, Lieutenant John Pike of the <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/20/us/california-occupy-pepperspray/index.html">UC-Davis Campus Police</a> made the choice to pepper spray several nonviolent protestors on the UC-Davis Campus. As you can see, the response to this action by those who observed it was immediate and emphatic, but remained nonviolent, finally culminating with the growing group of people chanting, "You can leave! You can leave!"</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, to which the security forces oblige.</span><br /><h6 class="uiStreamMessage" ft="{"type":1}"><span class="messageBody"></span><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BjnR7xET7Uo" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe> </h6><p style="font-style: italic;">Many have called for the <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/uc-davis-chancellor-katehi-resign-over-pepper-spraying-192900414.html">resignation</a> of UC-Davis Chancellor <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/2011/11/20/4068892/uc-davis-chancellor-linda-katehis.html">Linda Katehi</a> for authorizing the clearing out of the protestors without a real understanding of how the orders would be carried out. Katehi has herself called the actions "<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203699404577048680645518086.html">chilling</a>".</p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">Then, on Friday, as the blog <a href="http://thesecondalarm.wordpress.com/2011/11/20/ucdavis-chancellor-video/">Second Alarm</a> recalls</span>:</p><p>A pretty remarkable thing just happened. A press conference, scheduled for *4:00pm* between the UC Davis Chancellor and police with local press on campus, did not end in an hour, as planned. Instead, a mass of Occupy Davis students and sympathizers mobilized outside, demanding to have their voice heard. After some initial confusion, UC Chancellor Linda Katehi refused to leave the building, attempting to give the media the impression that the students were somehow holding her hostage. </p> <p>A group of highly organized students formed a large gap for the chancellor to leave. They chanted “we are peaceful” and “just walk home,” but nothing changed for several hours. Eventually student representatives convinced the chancellor to leave after telling their fellow students to sit down and lock arms (around 7:00pm). </p><p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/8775ZmNGFY8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe></p><p><a href="http://boingboing.net/2011/11/19/one-day-after-pepper-spraying.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Read Xeni Jardin's eyewitness account.</span></a></p><span style="font-style: italic;">These have <a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/1120/UC-Davis-pepper-spray-incident-goes-viral">instantly</a> become powerful moments in American history showing clearly how effective nonviolent protests can be by shedding light on how (and how not) to treat each other and resolve our differences.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-1122-ucdavis-protest-20111122,0,3394102.story?page=1&utm_source=feedburner&track=rss&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%20latimes%2Fmostviewed%20%28L.A.%20Times%20-%20Most%20Viewed%20Stories%29&utm_medium=feed"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">UPDATE: Katehi apologizes</span></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Thanks to the students of UC-Davis who have participated in these actions of nonviolent protest, whether standing up and chanting or sitting in silence, your actions are being felt far and wide! Thank you for your <a href="http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/8535-focus-uc-davis-students-are-role-models">example</a> and your active part in the Nonviolent Revolution!</span><br /><p style="font-style: italic;"><br /></p><p><br /></p>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-50113690703122276882011-11-16T15:15:00.000-08:002011-11-20T16:41:29.340-08:00Occupy Wall Street Must Be Nonviolent To Succeed<span style="font-style: italic;">Occ</span><span style="font-style: italic;">upy Wa</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYqZvuyx8CUzkaC9Z9LHKyvdixdY6FpLmRI7-fDOn-2svKzHTUpiDDZpL7m_zVtwgKPYoYrM4PR7hxM_oQusFx0aiagWNs3RvkE0XK5_3Efx-q1a-Tiz8SwWM_2fh5l1xF3mpgGQYDlo/s1600/Police-Confront-Oakland-Protesters-With-Tear-Gas-222x160.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 222px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYqZvuyx8CUzkaC9Z9LHKyvdixdY6FpLmRI7-fDOn-2svKzHTUpiDDZpL7m_zVtwgKPYoYrM4PR7hxM_oQusFx0aiagWNs3RvkE0XK5_3Efx-q1a-Tiz8SwWM_2fh5l1xF3mpgGQYDlo/s320/Police-Confront-Oakland-Protesters-With-Tear-Gas-222x160.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675684895721322354" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">ll Street has been a growing movement for a couple of months now, and during</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic;">the past few weeks we have seen <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU9Dx0x9h4A&feature=related">example</a> after <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ublU-VXsxRI&feature=related">example</a> of <a href="http://www.adbusters.org/blogs/adbusters-blog/suppressing-nonviolent-dissent.html">violence by law enforcement all over the country u</a></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.adbusters.org/blogs/adbusters-blog/suppressing-nonviolent-dissent.html">sing force</a> in </span><span style="font-style: italic;">an attempt to crush the spirits of the protesters. </span><span style="font-style: italic;">From <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/15/zuccotti-park-evacuation_n_1094164.html">Zucotti Park</a> in New York City to <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/11/12/watch-live-occupy-denver-reportedly-being-raided/">Occupy Denver</a> to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/15/us-protest-oakland-idUSTRE7AD2C020111115">Occupy Oakl</a></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/15/us-protest-oakland-idUSTRE7AD2C020111115">and</a>, American citizens w</span><span style="font-style: italic;">ith </span><span style="font-style: italic;">weapons are using violence against unarmed American citizens (<a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1087773--is-this-84-year-old-woman-the-new-poster-child-of-the-occupy-movement">an 84 year old woman?</a>) simply attempting to have their <a href="http://motherjones.com/mixed-media/2011/11/video-occupy-oakland-spoken-word">voices heard</a>. However, <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/15">this show of force</a> by the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/keith-olbermann-michael-bloomberg-occupy-wall-street_n_1096898.html?ref=media">pow</a></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/keith-olbermann-michael-bloomberg-occupy-wall-street_n_1096898.html?ref=media">ers that be</a> seems to have only <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/occupy-oakland/ci_19347326">galvanized</a> the movement, </span><span style="font-style: italic;">while also leaving many <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-occupy-future-20111116,0,5328113.story?page=1">wondering</a> what </span><span style="font-style: italic;">to do <a href="http://wagingnonviolence.org/2011/11/forced-eviction-takes-occupy-wall-street-into-its-next-phase/">next</a></span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">but knowing with a certainty that the movement must <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/16-2">continue</a>.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="font-style: italic;" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7hO_CiWcmi__K2qKOGZmmeymmC_ckkIllBitGbtrlT1ynwP3sc-JaXnLQ5MnsXalAwTcj3jItA3vwONWtcx-P5MdKqHJ2q-BvLQvvpqo63xzyM-KllDZPgG7ioSnVEEBgM7VVbIdsDgM/s1600/occupy-wall-st-arrest-wnyc1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 132px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7hO_CiWcmi__K2qKOGZmmeymmC_ckkIllBitGbtrlT1ynwP3sc-JaXnLQ5MnsXalAwTcj3jItA3vwONWtcx-P5MdKqHJ2q-BvLQvvpqo63xzyM-KllDZPgG7ioSnVEEBgM7VVbIdsDgM/s200/occupy-wall-st-arrest-wnyc1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675682633049503234" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Regardless of what happens next, whether action is taken through continued protesting in the streets, voting, or choosing to hit Corporate America in the pocketbook, one thing is for sure.... for the Occupy Movement to continue to be taken seriously by the mainstream and ultimately succeed in it's goals it MUST be <a href="http://wagingnonviolence.org/2011/11/occupy-wall-streets-commitment-to-nonviolence/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+WagingNonviolence+%28Waging+Nonviolence%29">committed to nonviolence</a>!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Why is nonviolence so crucial if the Occupy Movement is to truly </span><span style="font-style: italic;">be a revolution?<br /><br />Rebecca Solnit recently brought some compelling insight to the subject with a piece entitled, <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/14-8">'Throwing Out the Master's Tools and Building a Better House: Thoughts on the Importance of Nonviolence in the Occupy Movement</a></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/14-8">'.</a></span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Solnit does a great job of shedding light on 'People Power' while also giving examples of the futility of violence that ultimately brings a movement down.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Randall Amster also evokes 'People Power', weighing in gracefully with an article entitled, <a href="http://www.newclearvision.com/2011/11/16/power-to-the-peaceful/">'Power To The Peaceful'</a>:<br /><br /></span>"No amount of force can deter people seeking survival, meaning, and the natural longings of hope for the future. “Holding one’s ground” becomes the operative premise — not in an aggressive way that replicates state power but with a presence of body and mind that demonstrates the unshakable force of “people power.” There is no single way to manifest this spirit; for some it is standing firm on the front lines, for others it is rebuilding after a sweep, and for still others it is remaining peaceful and compassionate even and especially in the face of extreme provocation. All are equally powerful tacks.<br /><br />Holding space, inner and outer, is the fulcrum. In the wake of systemic assault, seemingly coordinated at the highest levels and indicative of the elites’ concern about the widening impact of the movement, the spirit of resistance is demonstrated with small acts of bravery and large mobilizations of open defiance. Individually and collectively, the movement bends but refuses to break, absorbing the system’s blows and transforming them into stimuli for evolutionary growth, popular support, and bonds of solidarity. <p>Successful movements throughout history have understood this. It is the essence of nonviolence, to “win over” undecided observers and even antagonists by virtue of courage and compassion. It does not mean that everyone in the movement agrees on tactics or that a pledge of nonviolence ought to be imposed, but rather that the movement as a whole is in fact nonviolent in seeking to overcome the structural violence of a dehumanizing and despoiling system based on avarice and aggression."</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEb2Td8QLEjDkV-zu2auFrruIDuLgchtSA7o3K6260R4rOOVxyqOb6F2fXujkikE4wdCY1aeLn23zD41Ur-7cMIPPe8tt9pSqCmPWLrhyphenhyphenV-fPTv8q9-km_u7xD7TL1WKK8soUEJYbl1dQ/s1600/Francisco_Pancho_Ramos-Stierle.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 168px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEb2Td8QLEjDkV-zu2auFrruIDuLgchtSA7o3K6260R4rOOVxyqOb6F2fXujkikE4wdCY1aeLn23zD41Ur-7cMIPPe8tt9pSqCmPWLrhyphenhyphenV-fPTv8q9-km_u7xD7TL1WKK8soUEJYbl1dQ/s200/Francisco_Pancho_Ramos-Stierle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675681254967091074" border="0" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-style: italic;">Amster goes on to mention Nonviolent Revolutionary <a href="http://wagingnonviolence.org/2011/11/free-pancho-now/">Francisco "Pancho" Ramos-Stierle</a></span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">a peaceful protester <a href="http://www.createawake.com/1/post/2011/11/power-to-the-peaceful-and-non-violent-occupy-oakland.html">arrested as he was </a></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.createawake.com/1/post/2011/11/power-to-the-peaceful-and-non-violent-occupy-oakland.html">meditating</a> at Oscar Grant Plaza in Oakland. Ramos-Stierle now faces the possibility of being <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_19342303">deported</a>.</span></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">Amster is also quoted in an <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_19342303">article</a> in the Mercury News regarding Ramos-Stierle:</span></p><p>"There was an intentionality to what he was doing," said friend Randall Amster of Arizona. "He was attempting to bring peace to a space that had a lack of peace for the past couple weeks."</p><p>Amster called his friend a "very strong nonviolent activist" and a "force of love" involved in causes ranging from nuclear disarmament and environmentalism to immigrant rights and nonviolence in Oakland's Fruitvale district, where he lives.<br /></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">For the Occupy Movement to succeed it must take a lesson from Mr. Ramos-Stierle, whose action of nonviolent civil disobedience was one of intentionally 'attempting to bring peace' and calm energy into an otherwise tense and volatile situation .</span></p><p><a href="http://www.salon.com/2011/11/18/panchos_message_for_occupy_wall_street/"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">UPDATE:</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> Pancho's Message For Occupy Wall Street</span></a>, <a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2011/11/18/occupy_oakland_protester_pancho_ramos_stierle"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pancho on 'Democracy Now!'</span></a><br /></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">The movement as well has to learn from the great Nonviolent Revolutionary Mahatma Gandhi, as seen below, brilliantly explaining what it takes for a Nonviolent Revolution to succeed in this inspiring clip from the film 'Gandhi':</span><br /></p> <p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/e3tjIiWIkAQ" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">Finally, to be a legitimate revolution the Occupy Movement must recognize that every single person involved in law enforcement is a part of the 99%! It is critical for those in law enforcement to realize that they too are being duped by agenda of the corporate ruling class... and therefore make the choice to refuse carrying out further state sponsored violence against innocent people!<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">Just how does a movement of 'People Power' achieve this understanding? With a continued and relentless campaign of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8775ZmNGFY8&feature=player_embedded">nonviolent direct action</a>, that's how. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Indeed, it is the only way</span>.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">Veteran journalist and author Chris Hedges puts it succinctly in his article <a href="http://www.truthdig.com/report/page2/this_is_what_revolution_looks_like_20111115/">'This Is What Revolution Looks Like'</a>:<br /></span></p><p>"The process of <a href="http://www.readersupportednews.org/news-section2/316-20/8473-focus-police-captain-joins-occupy-protest-arrested">defection</a> among the ruling class and security forces is slow and often imperceptible. These defections are advanced through a rigid adherence to nonviolence, a refusal to respond to police provocation and a verbal respect for the blue-uniformed police, no matter how awful they can be while wading into a crowd and using batons as battering rams against human bodies."</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVWmz30E263OyweTMPEuel7HvsHxz8aU4PU6ibFvplxIrDGBH1MlJXbsndqd0BsMmM9pRZDHhju22uvLwOMH1gGAR8hXO8u-BblIQwxfH8TXop8BnI_5cUhJtH6G3egBmirAqmXe5uAoM/s1600/99+hugging+police.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 221px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVWmz30E263OyweTMPEuel7HvsHxz8aU4PU6ibFvplxIrDGBH1MlJXbsndqd0BsMmM9pRZDHhju22uvLwOMH1gGAR8hXO8u-BblIQwxfH8TXop8BnI_5cUhJtH6G3egBmirAqmXe5uAoM/s320/99+hugging+police.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675694061232847586" border="0" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-style: italic;">Quite simply, the 99% must recognize</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> that <a href="http://gawker.com/5861100/">every single police officer and law enforcement official</a> who puts on the uniform is a <span style="font-weight: bold;">human being</span>, they have families, they have feelings, they have a need for dignity, they do not want to be dehumanized as 'pigs' or humiliated for what they perceive as doing their jobs.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">For the movement to succ</span><span style="font-style: italic;">eed, the 99% must be willing to <span style="font-weight: bold;">empathize</span> with the humanity in those they call </span><span style="font-style: italic;">oppressors and recognize that they are us... and we are them</span>.<br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><p><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-13480680016827648972011-11-07T16:22:00.000-08:002011-11-07T17:22:58.879-08:00Noam Chomsky Accepts Sydney Peace Award<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpjxoNuzVnTdZo58tK2hryqwZXYYjMJKREddFfQWTgDnhTumLPGrlYGrKUxptVZn4AqtvrpOruU6iaQYm4GkbAz5MwoLyP6XiJGk3jFj1rNJbQvYqD_7oHLAFlHa4_CPHcDtz3XY6mAQs/s1600/Chomsky.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpjxoNuzVnTdZo58tK2hryqwZXYYjMJKREddFfQWTgDnhTumLPGrlYGrKUxptVZn4AqtvrpOruU6iaQYm4GkbAz5MwoLyP6XiJGk3jFj1rNJbQvYqD_7oHLAFlHa4_CPHcDtz3XY6mAQs/s320/Chomsky.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672423673128037442" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noam_Chomsky">Noam Chomsky</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> is the 2011 recipient of the </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.sydneypeacefoundation.org.au/">Sydney Peace Award</a><span style="font-style: italic;">. He accepted the award in Sydney, Australia on November 2nd where he also delivered the </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://sydneypeaceblog.org/2011/11/03/2011-city-of-sydney-peace-prize-lecture-by-prof-noam-chomsky/">City Of Sydney Peace Prize Lecture</a><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">In his lecture, Chomsky calls on the idea of 'revolutionary pacifism' espoused by Nonviolent Revolutionary </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.friendsjournal.org/j-muste-20th-centurys-most-famous-u-s-pacifist">A.J. Muste</a><span style="font-style: italic;">:</span><br /><br />"Can we proceed to at least limit the scourge of war? One answer is given by absolute pacifists, including people I respect though I have never felt able to go beyond that. A somewhat more persuasive stand, I think, is that of the pacifist thinker and social activist A.J. Muste, one of the great figures of 20th century America, in my opinion: what he called “revolutionary pacifism.” Muste disdained the search for peace without justice. He urged that “one must be a revolutionary before one can be a pacifist” – by which he meant that we must cease to “acquiesce [so] easily in evil conditions,” and must deal “honestly and adequately with this ninety percent of our problem” – “the violence on which the present system is based, and all the evil – material and spiritual – this entails for the masses of men throughout the world.” Unless we do so, he argued, “there is something ludicrous, and perhaps hypocritical, about our concern over the ten per cent of the violence employed by the rebels against oppression” – no matter how hideous they may be. He was confronting the hardest problem of the day for a pacifist, the question whether to take part in the anti-fascist war."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Chomsky then goes on to detail many examples of how because of "the violence on which the present system is based" things didn't really work out so well for U.S. foreign policy (or it's many, many victims), instead making a much worse mess with continuing consequences.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Read full transcript of Chomsky's speech </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://sydneypeaceblog.org/2011/11/03/2011-city-of-sydney-peace-prize-lecture-by-prof-noam-chomsky/">here</a><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Congratulations to Mr. Chomsky for this well deserved recognition! Thank you for having the courage to continually and relentlessly <a href="http://sydneypeaceblog.org/2011/10/25/chomsky-without-honour-in-his-own-land/">speak up</a>!</span>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-18298019520427769622011-11-03T11:46:00.000-07:002011-11-07T16:07:15.955-08:00New Book Shows Violence Declines As Human Consciousness Evolves<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncclAkkj7yqNOLqxHSDkB2rkwEeXbrL9izl3sC-rCLBIBbLFKnmUli47g4YXLD-ovfsF841jXGwLzWvxxTqERpBFALWlp_O04p36R5F3RqXBvSGeBERM29DoD2WzCOq_HVW_IdGRzgG4/s1600/pinker.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhncclAkkj7yqNOLqxHSDkB2rkwEeXbrL9izl3sC-rCLBIBbLFKnmUli47g4YXLD-ovfsF841jXGwLzWvxxTqERpBFALWlp_O04p36R5F3RqXBvSGeBERM29DoD2WzCOq_HVW_IdGRzgG4/s400/pinker.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670855089080791026" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Although violence is what usually grabs the headlines, a new <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0670022950/thedaibea-20/">book</a> by Harvard Professor Steven Pinker argues that there has never been a safer time to be alive.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br />In a <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/8853185/The-Better-Angels-of-our-Nature-the-Decline-of-Violence-in-History-and-itsCauses-by-Steven-Pinker-review.html">review</a> of 'The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined' the Telegraph UK, asks, </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">"Why has violence declined?" </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">and answers with:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">'Pinker does not need numbers for his answer. As Europe became more urban, cosmopolitan, commercial, industrialised and secular, it got safer. Perhaps as important is the increasing respect for women – “violence is a problem not just of too many males but of too many young males”. </span><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> He does not argue that there is a higher power sending our species in a beneficial direction. The human race has come to share the goal of finding ways of overcoming the universal appeal of aggression. The great social factors in reducing violence, he says, have been the end of slavery, the empowerment of women and the legalisation of homosexuality. Also, contraception has become cheaper, resulting in fewer children to unwilling parents.'</p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic;">In an <a href="http://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2011/11/qa-steven-pinker-0">interview</a> with Pinker, 'The Economist' posed the question</span> "<strong style="font-weight: normal;">Is there any statistical evidence to suggest that violence doesn’t work to provoke political change?"</strong></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">"A study that was published too late to include in my book by two political scientists, Erica Chenoweth and Maria Stephen, looked at the success rate of violent and non-violent resistance movements. It found that <span style="font-weight: bold;">the non-violent ones succeeded 75% of the time</span> and the violent ones succeeded 25% of the time. So it’s not the case that violence never works, nor that non-violence always works, but that non-violence seems to have a better success rate." <span style="font-style: italic;">was Pinker's reply.</span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic;">Read the Washington Post <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/the-better-angels-of-our-nature-why-violence-has-declined-by-steven-pinker/2011/08/17/gIQA0VNmTL_story.html">review</a> of the book. Huffington Post posted this <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/22/world-less-violent-stats_n_1026723.html">article</a>, and Daily Beast has this nice <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/03/steven-pinker-talks-end-of-violence-with-sam-harris.html">write-up</a>.<br /></span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pinker also made a </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/400079/october-18-2011/steven-pinker">recent appearance</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> on the Colbert Report.</span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/steven_pinker_on_the_myth_of_violence.html">Here</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> is a video Pinker speaking on the subject at the TED conference</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">in March 2007</span>.</p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Let there be no doubt that the Nonviolent Revolution is constantly progressing and moving steadily forward as more and more people grow to understand that it is far more beneficial to connect, collaborate, and empathize with one another than harm and destroy each other!</span><br /></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br /></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><br /></p>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-26769580200166632352011-10-16T16:14:00.000-07:002011-10-16T23:16:26.726-07:00King Memorial Dedication A Great Day For Nonviolent Revolution<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiex1QpVlqZqNSF-ktTxVIYldhf8zodK0vDV8bzDtNFBYT1r__0S4TwR3hlCWs7iDdvogvH1c6MH1qEa8s5d5R2nN3rn0LJpalNG_w-7KnyeifgLXdlL-KFAoUNHpuo0z3Zdm6mPol0qK4/s1600/MLK_memorial.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiex1QpVlqZqNSF-ktTxVIYldhf8zodK0vDV8bzDtNFBYT1r__0S4TwR3hlCWs7iDdvogvH1c6MH1qEa8s5d5R2nN3rn0LJpalNG_w-7KnyeifgLXdlL-KFAoUNHpuo0z3Zdm6mPol0qK4/s320/MLK_memorial.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664232943128636834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Today saw the formal <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/thousands-emerge-mlk-memorial-dedication-142538135.html">dedication</a> of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington D.C.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />The Civil Rights Leader and Nonviolent Revolutionary</span> was enshrined on the <a href="http://www.mlkmemorial.org/site/c.hkIUL9MVJxE/b.6284747/k.F1E4/Site_Plan.htm?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=panel&utm_campaign=siteplan">National Mall,</a> establishing his rightful place as one of the greatest leaders in the history of the United States of America</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />How Dr. King lived his life serves an example to us all.<br /><br />He refused to give up amidst great tribulation, he refused to hate in the face of great ignorance and mortal danger, and he refused to back down regardless of the multitude of reasons to be afraid</span></span><span style="font-style: italic;">. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">This Memorial is not just a tribute to to the Civil Rights Movement or how much can be accomplished with nonviolent direct action.... <span style="font-weight: bold;">it is most importantly a vibrant and lasting testament to the power of love. </span>Dr. King did not view those who hated him and would do him harm as his enemies, instead he referred to them as 'brothers and sisters', ending his sermon about <a href="http://mlkonline.com/">loving your enemies</a> by saying,<br /><br />"</span>So this morning, as I look into your eyes, and into the eyes of all of my brothers in Alabama and all over America and over the world, I say to you, "<span>I love you. I would rather die than hate you.</span>" <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />Although the King Memorial is located a short distance from the Pentagon, Dr. King also made it very clear that he </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b80Bsw0UG-U">opposed war</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> as a viable solution for the United States to resolve or reconcile its foreign affairs.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Distinguished guests of the Dedication included Civil Rights leaders </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/13/mlk-memorial-to-be-dedicated-andrew-young-says-king-foresaw-his-death.html">Andrew Young</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> and </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Lowery">Dr. Joseph Lowry</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> and singer </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl7mGE3S1KA">Aretha Franklin</a><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />President Barack Obama gave an eloquent <a href="http://thepoliticalcarnival.net/2011/10/16/video-president-obama-martin-luther-king-memorial-dedication-speech/">speech</a></span> <span style="font-style: italic;">saying,<br /><br /></span>"Dr. King refused to accept what he called the "isness" of today. He kept pushing towards the "oughtness" of tomorrow."<br /><br />.... <span style="font-style: italic;">I just hope the President remembers those words and considers the legacy of Dr. King the next time he assesses the <a href="http://costofwar.com/en/">cost of our current wars</a> or how well <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/30/anwar-alawlaki-usborn-mus_n_988397.html">assassinations</a> and <a href="http://ibnlive.in.com/news/775-civilians-died-in-us-drone-strikes-in-pak/193652-56.html">drone strikes</a> are working to help forward Dr. King's dream.<br /></span>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-86284074935353177022011-10-12T18:09:00.000-07:002011-10-13T11:22:46.324-07:00Nader Gets Behind Occupy Wall Street<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6NNcGanRjFAFXqso3zgdohN8cUUktd5STAsQ0-2xCHhuttEFL-tgu3krs1lSgEMUD694rkdx2eqU5W1bqA36iOc-7B3igSu_InKUmPSE-eppKBfUJC7y_eRxtt4kuQtasHvmKt5f8XAw/s1600/Ralph_Nader.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 169px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6NNcGanRjFAFXqso3zgdohN8cUUktd5STAsQ0-2xCHhuttEFL-tgu3krs1lSgEMUD694rkdx2eqU5W1bqA36iOc-7B3igSu_InKUmPSE-eppKBfUJC7y_eRxtt4kuQtasHvmKt5f8XAw/s320/Ralph_Nader.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662778416806859954" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary Ralph Nader cheers on the Occupy Wall Street Movement</span>!<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">"When the corporate and political bosses hear the rising roar from the people, they start sweating. Now is time to turn up the heat without pausing." -Ralph Nader</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" ><br /><br /><br />Rumble From The People</span><br /><br />October 12, 2011<br /><br />by Ralph Nader<br /><p>Inside the barricading bubbles surrounding the Wall Street plutocrats and the Washington oligarchs who service them, there must be worry. After three years of disclosed “lying, cheating and stealing” as one prosecutor put it, with nary a visible stir from the masses, suddenly the barricades are beginning to quiver.</p> Could this “Occupy Wall Street” challenge in New York City that is spreading to hundreds of communities from Prescott, Arizona to Hartford, Connecticut, be the real thing they have dreaded? Could this be the revolt of the multitudes, the “reserve army of the unemployed?”<br /><br />It is remarkable what a little more than 100,000 Americans, showing up and staying awhile have done in three weeks. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn_bMzG5YHqSsdsjf5tO5GzFS6Z2Wjy9o5-FLBDCbSlEDldVcgTOm2kf8FXnyWOuuGL_fYKBzZVFSWx0EfY3-D6mXP0N2TOWTG4cnuP2n8b9KXfiAOTzrPU4hRgLbRuEfnmYKkrHAM66M/s1600/Wall-St-is-our-Street.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 192px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn_bMzG5YHqSsdsjf5tO5GzFS6Z2Wjy9o5-FLBDCbSlEDldVcgTOm2kf8FXnyWOuuGL_fYKBzZVFSWx0EfY3-D6mXP0N2TOWTG4cnuP2n8b9KXfiAOTzrPU4hRgLbRuEfnmYKkrHAM66M/s320/Wall-St-is-our-Street.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662783138957381570" border="0" /></a><p>They’re rattling the corporate supremacists. They have become a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/13/occupy-wall-street-media-coverage_n_1008860.html">mass media story</a> with columnists, editorials and <a href="http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/politicalcartoons/ig/Political-Cartoons/Demonstrators-vs--Bankers.htm">cartoonists</a> grinding out the ever increasing commentary.</p> <p>There is fascination and curiosity about people who call themselves “The 99 percent!” People are organizing their little societies and 24/7 necessities - food, first aid, shelter, legal advice, music, posters - all without leaders.</p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">The demonstrators are deliberately nonviolent</span> but are angry over deep inequities and entrenched greed and power that are impoverishing and harming millions in need, including hungry children and those without health care. The protesters are keeping the pundits and pontificators guessing about their “real agenda.”</p> <p>Perfect, so far! Keep expanding the numbers of Americans who show up all over, who stay, who discover each other’s talents and the emerging power of the powerless. Go to 300,000, then 800,000, then 2 million and onward. There are 25 million Americans who want work but cannot get it to pay their rent, their debts, their mortgages and their multiplying student loans. While big corporate profits, bosses’ bonuses and tax loopholes for the wealthy proliferate.</p><p>Read the rest at <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/10/11-14">Common Dreams</a></p><p>Visit <a href="http://occupywallst.org/">Occupy Wall Street</a><br /></p>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-13664496404157889362011-10-07T19:10:00.000-07:002011-10-07T20:39:34.032-07:00Three courageous women awarded Nobel Peace Prize<span style="font-style: italic;">Congratulations to these Nonviolent Revolutionaries making it happen in Liberia and Yemen! The courage of these women can't be understated! Thank you, ladies, for representing yourselves as inspiring leaders of the Nonviolent Revolution.</span><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/redirect/links_out/prizeawarder.php?from=/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2011/press.html&object=nobelpeaceprize.org&to=http://nobelpeaceprize.org" target="_blank">The Norwegian Nob</a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGFtM22ZLyzvq26csbSjNmdTS6kbTrHFwYY2bonE_biYlsWc9pnZ3B3kvEQkWQWQvbSeExURVQYd2wqGBf9RYGOtQRRT5oF9TB538HQyHfHo-lLdpe9OY74j31JKTr_yaXg7qEbfezUPk/s1600/Nobel-Peace-Prize-winners-2011.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 379px; height: 228px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGFtM22ZLyzvq26csbSjNmdTS6kbTrHFwYY2bonE_biYlsWc9pnZ3B3kvEQkWQWQvbSeExURVQYd2wqGBf9RYGOtQRRT5oF9TB538HQyHfHo-lLdpe9OY74j31JKTr_yaXg7qEbfezUPk/s400/Nobel-Peace-Prize-winners-2011.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660939273928030770" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/redirect/links_out/prizeawarder.php?from=/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2011/press.html&object=nobelpeaceprize.org&to=http://nobelpeaceprize.org" target="_blank">el Committee</a> has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2011 is to be divided in three equal parts between <strong>Ellen Johnson Sirleaf</strong>, <strong>Leymah Gbowee </strong>and <strong>Tawakkul Kar</strong><strong>man </strong> for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work. We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society.<br /><br />Read the full press release at <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2011/press.html">Nobelprize.org</a><br /><br /><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9npTmJvQUY_nLzsb9zykRN8IaxKAUs1hcrOFl3Y2iv6v9mmrUD4W6nNnGBQfBnVx7tiSqTHKhUrjy71HhJ0v9y3qM4cCuBxy7uKWzcvC5G93Rx-sBni9NlQCv4zakOWOE0c6IUSVmwzQ/s1600/Ellen-Johnson-Sirleaf.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9npTmJvQUY_nLzsb9zykRN8IaxKAUs1hcrOFl3Y2iv6v9mmrUD4W6nNnGBQfBnVx7tiSqTHKhUrjy71HhJ0v9y3qM4cCuBxy7uKWzcvC5G93Rx-sBni9NlQCv4zakOWOE0c6IUSVmwzQ/s320/Ellen-Johnson-Sirleaf.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660950818930239810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ellen Johnson Sirleaf</span> is Africa’s first democratically elected female president. The committee said that since her inauguration in 2006, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Johnson-Sirleaf</span> had "contributed to securing peace in Liberia, to promoting economic and social development, and to strengthening the position of women".<strong></strong></p><p>"We are dancing," Bushuben Keita, a spokesman for Mrs. Johnson Sirleaf's United Party <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/08/world/nobel-peace-prize-johnson-sirleaf-gbowee-karman.html?ref=ellenjohnsonsirleaf" target="_hplink">told The <em>New York Times</em>.</a> "This is the thing that we have been saying, progress has been made in Libera. We've come through 14 years of war and we have come to sustained peace. We’ve already started dancing."</p><p><br /></p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Gbowee</span>, 39, <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ehNYQIr6ICln7vC_Um5BGc4I8d_uJhA6TjJ8oxibxOZMTpsYPzOuX5jVeOC99QmTAhB4eLh_0oZUgadv00MmyFZLQFXBLitkwmqza-tdRI7p2iPR0WSVWtUWsNbykhskq83uSEMZ9Zg/s1600/Leymah_Gbowee.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 236px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ehNYQIr6ICln7vC_Um5BGc4I8d_uJhA6TjJ8oxibxOZMTpsYPzOuX5jVeOC99QmTAhB4eLh_0oZUgadv00MmyFZLQFXBLitkwmqza-tdRI7p2iPR0WSVWtUWsNbykhskq83uSEMZ9Zg/s320/Leymah_Gbowee.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660949565943615458" border="0" /></a>has long campaigned for the rights of women and against rape, organizing Christian and Muslim women to challenge Liberia's warlords. In 2003, she led hundreds of female protesters – the "women in white" – through Monrovia to demand swift disarmament of fighters who continued to prey on women even though a peace deal ending 14 years of near-constant civil war had been reached months earlier.<br /><br />"I know Leymah to be a warrior daring to enter where others would not dare," Gbowee's assistant, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20111007/eu-nobel-peace-prize/" target="_hplink">Bertha Amanor, said to </a><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20111007/eu-nobel-peace-prize/" target="_hplink">the AP.</a> "So fair and straight, and a very nice person."<br /><p><br />It said Yemen's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Karman, </span>known as 'the Mother of the Revolution', had "played a leading part in the struggle for women's rights and for democracy and peace in Yemen" in what was described as the "most trying circumstances both before and during the 'Arab Spring'".<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijiajTRDW7E9ajIMt69RhRH377KtLGM0upvxGAr-ewxgo9Gx9T3Lqihk9X5C2wzG5lRsNWINPEEFvpniV3It0TyrpT3j051gZKoOGB81T1Ga4uUS77vMu4AnsH-5I1mPrCe19Az26Mn-0/s1600/Tawakkul_Karman.png"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 222px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijiajTRDW7E9ajIMt69RhRH377KtLGM0upvxGAr-ewxgo9Gx9T3Lqihk9X5C2wzG5lRsNWINPEEFvpniV3It0TyrpT3j051gZKoOGB81T1Ga4uUS77vMu4AnsH-5I1mPrCe19Az26Mn-0/s320/Tawakkul_Karman.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660950137695785042" border="0" /></a></p><p>"<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/in-yemen-female-activist-strives-for-an-egypt-like-revolution/2011/02/14/ABU99pQ_story.html">Tawakkol</a> is one of the bravest people in this country," said Khaled al-Anesi, a lawyer and pro-democracy activist. "It is not easy for a woman to fight and go to the streets demanding change in a country like Yemen."</p><p>“I am so happy,” said <span style="font-weight: bold;">Karman</span>, speaking by telephone in broken English from inside her tent in Change Square, the nexus of the uprising in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa. “I believe that this award is a victory for the peaceful revolution. It’s a victory for our revolution, for our methods, for our struggle, for all Yemeni youth, and all the youth in the Arab world — in Tunisia, in Egypt, everywhere. I am so happy.”</p><p>“This makes us stronger in the fight for our freedom, for our dignity,” she added. “This will give the people more strength, and to recognize that peace is the only way. That making a new Yemen must come without violence.”</p><p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Karman</span> was briefly detained in January, but protests forced authorities to release her. Since then, Yemen’s uprising has engulfed the country, drawing in hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from all walks of life. Not all youth activist leaders like Karman’s tactics, and some have criticized her openly in recent months. But she nevertheless remains a central figure in the uprising, a loud voice that has called for a peaceful struggle even as government loyalists have fired upon unarmed protesters, killing and injuring hundreds.</p><p>Related articles and videos at <a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2011/10/201110773943904523.html">Al-Jazeera</a> and the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/06/nobel-peace-prize-winner-_n_998563.html#quiz_1614">Huffington Post</a><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-40067823701331411122011-10-05T17:07:00.000-07:002011-10-09T20:53:10.882-07:00Rest in PEACE- Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, Steve Jobs<span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;">Today we mourn the passing of two great Nonviolent Revolutionaries of our time. Two remarkable lives contributing in their own powerful ways to the Nonviolent Revolution!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth</span><br /><br /></span></span>"They had a white section and a colored section. Fred and his wife bought tickets, and they sat in the white section," Huntley said. "That was revolutionary for Birmingham of the 1950s."........<br /><br /> <p>The Rev. Fred Shuttleswor<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0MpiIy40t-8BzqKzjdlQ8IfJCbt0qXbBAH2vQ9NFeqbyLiTVdj7pWDWcpXmHTW2Re03YI3jlrOuaMkf5hwhiTbDBkU-NABKyS90OnWVsztbz9J4PlBmpIOaSGc26HrqCqqZXoIzx5tEk/s1600/Rev_Fred_Shuttlesworth.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 354px; height: 238px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0MpiIy40t-8BzqKzjdlQ8IfJCbt0qXbBAH2vQ9NFeqbyLiTVdj7pWDWcpXmHTW2Re03YI3jlrOuaMkf5hwhiTbDBkU-NABKyS90OnWVsztbz9J4PlBmpIOaSGc26HrqCqqZXoIzx5tEk/s400/Rev_Fred_Shuttlesworth.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660164574291332530" border="0" /></a>th, a pioneer of the civil rights movement, died Wednesday in Birmingham, Ala. Shuttlesworth led Birmingham's battle against segregation — a battle that focused the national spotlight on the violent resistance to equal rights in the South and forced change. He was 89.</p><p><a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/10/05/141083711/rev-fred-shuttlesworth-civil-rights-pioneer-dies">Listen to the story on NPR</a></p><p>See a <a href="http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2011/10/timeline_the_lifework_of_the_r.html">timeline</a> of the life of Rev. Shuttlesworth.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p><a href="http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/10/09-0">In Memorium</a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;">Nonviolent Revolutionary Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth spent his live standing up with love. He was beaten, he was bombed, he was threatened, he was hated for the color of his skin... and through it all continued to be an example of love. Thank you, Rev. Shuttlesworth, for the integrity with which you lived and legacy of how be nonviolent without being passive. </span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >Steve Jobs</span></p><p>"Death is the destination we all share, no one has ever escaped it, and that is as it should be because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It's life's change agent, it clears out the old to make way for the new." - Steve Jobs</p><p><br /></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxKSzcZQxOgptKJVKz-qWOAJGFVHgK481Btc5hnCZewHNicwl2D4Ywth4yjuVjuaNjk1QNCshL03RA_1NHIzjdE4HsLns9SrrF39Z9ShlAjz1DWTNWMj1arje3os6wrfR8qWrWr_mywdI/s1600/steve_jobs.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 232px; height: 154px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxKSzcZQxOgptKJVKz-qWOAJGFVHgK481Btc5hnCZewHNicwl2D4Ywth4yjuVjuaNjk1QNCshL03RA_1NHIzjdE4HsLns9SrrF39Z9ShlAjz1DWTNWMj1arje3os6wrfR8qWrWr_mywdI/s400/steve_jobs.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660209694437553682" border="0" /></a></p><p>Steven P. Jobs, the <a href="http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=AAPL" class="companyRollover link11unvisited">Apple</a> Inc. chairman and co-founder who pioneered the personal computer industry and changed the way people think about technology, died Wednesday at the age of 56.</p><div style="overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; border: medium none;"> <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304447804576410753210811910.html">Read the </a><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304447804576410753210811910.html">article</a><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304447804576410753210811910.html"> at Wall Street Journal</a><br /><br /><strong></strong><strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005</a></strong><br /><br /><span class="messageBody translationEligibleUserMessage" ft="{"type":3}"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA" target="_blank" rel="nofollow nofollow"><span></span><br /></a></span><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;">Steve Jobs was a visionary unafraid, he lived his life as a Nonviolent Revolutionary and we are the better for it.</span></span><span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;"> Thank you, Steve Jobs, for your contribution to</span></span><span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;"> my creative process.</span></span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span class="date"><span style="font-style: italic;">I have used a Mac for the duration of my career as an artist with a computer. This was composed on a Mac.</span></span></p><br /></div>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5870419329731795601.post-29373118285658698172011-09-28T20:12:00.000-07:002011-10-06T09:27:06.334-07:00'Darkness cannot drive out darkness...'<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHncyTWjlKPm1QBg8lR3X-apO-dsAD14Ey0igTddATYRvGW0E7uCKt-sMmPDhFXq_Q51P1u84pJGpmfBuSy6tkwohfwDiiBo8AoNfFNZ-pqeHKIfPvAQjPrVJFITrSjDe9nMYqROKP2c/s1600/King_poster.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHncyTWjlKPm1QBg8lR3X-apO-dsAD14Ey0igTddATYRvGW0E7uCKt-sMmPDhFXq_Q51P1u84pJGpmfBuSy6tkwohfwDiiBo8AoNfFNZ-pqeHKIfPvAQjPrVJFITrSjDe9nMYqROKP2c/s400/King_poster.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5657618404992934770" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvmzHCjJEalsxoQH13XtGkPxrRDUHboMMOkMYWOk87m3FoqpNGBnRgbxa2Fzod7QPk9lG4FPWAJIY2Z8SrT6gaQt8H9UKvnvCmQvtKJgC39ZpJXyr3fgcuHdcWJwfLQ0_iyrnPKRhnFr8/s1600/King_poster.png"><br /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">This image is of Martin Luther King Jr. speaking in Alabama for the Get-Out-The-Vote Campaign in 1966. Accompanied by a quote of his, this poster is hanging in my art studio, it feels an appropriate post to launch this blog.</span><br /><br />The quote is:<br /><br />'The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral<br />begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy.<br />Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it.<br /><br />Through violence you may murder the liar,<br />but you cannot murder the lie,<br />nor establish the truth.<br /><br />Returning violence for violence multiplies violence,<br />adding deeper darkness<br />to a night already devoid of stars.<br /><br />Darkness cannot drive out darkness;<br />only light can do that.<br /><br />Hate cannot drive out hate;<br />only love can do that.'<br /><br />Martin Luther King Jr.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZSh1hCcgVwwUpLpTO2mXM3OF5qb9XLicJlowfHXOmr7D4y4LCNn8b-T66J373sLdps2PF8e8_IuvHKP934KyCfaShI5dSVl8Xl6EIoWkqC6bzrJ_v34almLcEItBgjggQVWBrplk_Rg/s1600/King_poster.png"><br /></a>@ neverbetter.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05172532905866315288noreply@blogger.com0