Hypocrisy driven by Fear

During the Bush administration I have seen the same faces protesting in the suburbs of Philadelphia, in center city Philadelphia, Washington DC and NYC. It was not just the war on/in Iraq that took us to the streets but the warrantless surveillance of citizens, Guantanamo, torture of prisoners,water boarding, women rights to choose, gay rights -to name a few- Simply put, we spent 8 years protesting beginning with the shameful fiasco of the 2000 Election
We were good at pointing out lies and injustice and making our voices heard (well, at least we tried).
Today we Have the man we voted for and the whole world knows that he inherited Bush's mess. But today president Obama is a Noble Peace Prize winner and while some of us argue that we should not criticize him - as he does all he can and perhaps he knows things we don't know and that's why he is sending 30.000 more troops in Afghanistan - most of us agree that he does not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. But here is where the hypocrisy surfaces: Among all of us only a minority has the courage to openly criticize our President for accepting this prize or better, for not openly criticize the Nobel Prize Committee and this pisses me off!

The bottom line is that the people with whom I have protested for justice for 8 years are adopting the Right Wing attitude that their man they put in the White House in 2000 and 2004 could not do anything wrong and since he was the President and the Commander in chief should no be criticized. They didn't. Republicans stick for each other, no matter what!
The argument today from the quiet Left is that we shouldn't give anything to the Sarah Palin's crowd. This argument does not make us better than those we criticized.
Sticking for each other - no matter what- is not the voice of justice. By continuing doing so, we are losing our collective voice I once believed was never to be called hypocrisy driven by fear.
We must stand for Justice, no matter who is in power.
Will you again SPEAK OUT?

Forever after

A few days ago a woman from my past approached me during the intermission of a concert I attended, just as I was thinking that I can be among hundreds sharing same interests in a town I lived for many years and yet not see a soul I knew. One person instantly brought back memories of places and events many of them I did not want to remember, yet without them I would not be where I am today.
I am grateful for being alive and for my experiences.
She told me of the unexpected death of an old friend's son, a young man in his '30 a couple of years ago on Thanksgiving day. I cannot imagine the pain of losing a child and today for many people it is a sad day.
As President Obama will soon announce his decision to send more troops in Afghanistan
I share William River Pitt's "Unhappy Thanksgiving"
I don't mean to rain on your parade but my friends the reality of more casualties is there and we cannot, should not ignore this. On this Thanksgiving day listen to the wish that will always be in my heart. If only, we all could say NO to wars !
This would be one of the greatest experience we could happily share.

Racism is here to stay

After a while, lies become legends and no matter what, no matter how big is the question mark for some, people believe and lies stay. Most of those morons are not being brainwashed, they just repeat what they hear from their political party. Arguments/proofs? They have none, except for being racists. But don't hold your breath, you will never hear this from them, unless caught on tape. This video was recorded during our protesting Palin/McCain when they came to Media. "You were even born in America" said one of their supporters to me. This woman was right, I was not born in America but she had no reason to believe this, unless if any American who speaks with an accent is not an American born. In any case, does not matter if I am American citizen, does not matter if I have the right to vote and if I pay taxes. Morons and racists fall into the same basket. Bill Maher is right, if we do not stop the lies we are in deep shit. The hatred towards our President is real and I am convinced that if the color of his skin were the same as mine questioning his birth certificate would not exist. Shame on those who call themselves "Patriotic" while teaching hatred to their children! Those children will be our America of tomorrow. Racism is here to stay.

To this, I say never!

when I volunteered to work on Howard Dean's campaign and joined the hard core liberal-democrats of "PhillyForDean", I also joined many on a long bus drive to Iowa. This was January 2004. Today I am still a democrat but I am aware that some of us have left he party to become independents. After so many deceptions we went through, I do not blame them. But when one of them recently contacted me and told me that she could not openly speak about being a democrat because of her personal relationship with a die-hard conservative and suggested that I should embrace the differences for the sake of debates and/or possibly reconciliation, to this I say, never!
I find outrageously hypocrite for someone to pretend and/or hide beliefs in order to please someone else and I cannot comprehend anyone having a personal relationship with someone with such deep political differences. Sad to say, but too many people do not see the reality that politic touches their life from the morning they wake-up to the time they go to sleep, in their own life at home, from the toothpaste they use, the food they eat, the car they drive and the air they breathe ( to name a few.)
What is the name of a die-hard conservative who fights against the big corporations making money at the expense of the tax-payers, who opposes making riches richer and who supports the rights of every citizen to be treated equally and have access to health insurance (even if not affordable)?
I choose not to lose time in debating. Too busy fighting for what I morally believe is right.

Food, Inc. and me

Today I saw a documentary which made me ashamed to belong to the human race. the way we dare treating animals for our own consumption, manipulate food for profit without caring of the negative effects on future generations and abusing our planet. Ten years ago, I chose to become vegetarian not just because of the growth hormones ( rBGH or rBST)given to animals and which I did not want in my body, but I came to the intelligent conclusion that I did not need to eat meat to survive. Today more than ever I am outraged that our society believes that animals are here for us to kill and eat. But for those who believe that this is the case, I urge them to watch the documentary, they may change their mind.
As if fattening and killing animals were not enough, the food industry is killing us all, bit by bit by destroying vitamins in the food we eat. One has to look at a company such as Cargill which "threatens the environment in both the United States and abroad. It has spilled toxic waste into the San Francisco Bay, violated the Clean Air Act with harmful emissions, and deforested key habitats for endangered species in South America."
It is time to wake-up, don't you think? That is if you care.
In a few weeks I will get to work and enlarge my vegetable garden. I am grateful to have a garden to begin with and if you do not, I urge you to buy from your local farmers and support the farmer markets which accept food stamps ( a great suggestion that was given to the audience watching the film).
Organic food being - usually- more expensive, should be available to all!

Evolution?

The day all newspapers in print will come to an end will be a sad day for many who cannot afford to buy a computer. Some will say that similar argument was made when telephones began to be a familiar tool of communication, yet in 2009 I personally know of people who still cannot afford the basic price of a monthly telephone service and/or a subscription to an Internet provider.
But when that day arrives more than the underprivileged will feel a void. Don't get me wrong, I love technology but I know what happens when I begin to read News online. One link takes me to another and in no time (in my mind only)I have traveled through many sites, readjusted the pillow on my back several times, drank many cups of coffee, went down an up the stairs more than once taking short breaks in frustration, when I cannot find the words I need in writing a letter to the Editor. Yes, I prefer to find my newspapers at my front door everyday and I cannot imagine a world without them. But again, there is a bit of romanticism in my thinking as I look at a photograph of a Paris café on my wall, a table with two coffee cups next to the daily "Le Monde" all facing the cathedral. Sigh....

With "progress" we are reshaping our way of doing and thinking but I am not so sure that the inevitable changes of our "physical" brain should be associated with "evolution" - as we know it- in our Prozac society. Our evolution is producing so many addiction disorders that soon we will ran out of alphabet letters to name them. IAD anyone?

Finally, a voice I like to hear!

I heard that citizen George W. Bush will be touring here and there giving private speeches to selected groups of business people. First trip: Canada, and 10 trips in a row, and making mucho amount of money! Are those people nuts? or do they want to learn how to destroy their businesses, the way he destroyed our country? Yuk! just thinking of the sound of this voice make me sick!

This evening, our new President Barack Obama gave his first Address to congress. I was glued to my chair. Finally, a voice I like to hear and a President I respect and trust to do the best he can for our country! A friend of mine said that he will be a failed president - although he likes Obama- and when I hear such prediction within such short time since the inauguration, it makes me angry that some people have such negative attitude and yet nothing to back it.
Obama's speech was strong, positive and encouraging, and this is what our country needed to hear. He did not tell us anything we did not know about our economy and that it will take sacrifices from all of us until things get better. But he also followed on his promises during his campaign, from energy efficiency, health care and education reforms, ending the war on Iraq and eliminating Bush's tax-cuts.
Obama does not have a magic wand but without unity between both parties, his task won't be easy. Just watching the floor of the chamber, unity was missing although I was surprised to see McCain applaud on the subject of ending the war on Iraq. Speaking about McCain I cannot help thinking that he is a sour loser. Have you seen his face lately?

And then came the response from the republican party, delivered by Governor Bobby Jindal begging his republican friends that if the GOP lost their trust, they should NOW trust their party again! This jerk is one of the republican Governors who are rejecting help from the government although they need the money for their own people! Spending is not the answer- he said- but tax-cut is the only way to go!
Bottom line is that Republicans cannot swallow the pill of defeat and no matter what Obama says, no matter what he does or ask, the GOP (as a whole) will not work in unity with the Obama's administration. May be, sooner that later, President Obama will borrow Bush's line: My way or the highway! And I will like to hear that voice!