Poet's Nook: "Child" by e.alexander

I heard it somewhere
Or perhaps read it some time ago
That one can tell of the state of a nation
By the simple observation of how the children
Are treated, cherished, loved, protected.


My heart cries not from sentimentality
But from an elixir of anger, despair & loss
Couched in our cruel indifference and blindness
We tarry on with our disconnected- stylized lives.. comatose
Shielded from the wailing and thrashing of our children..destroyed
By the scarlet hands of marooned fools we thoughtlessly
Call by a multitude of innocuous names (security forces, peace keepers..)


Frame misery, death, heart-break, a sea of tears
Around your child, niece, nephew, little cousin or friend
With arcs of wild brutality cascading on his/her little form
Last gasps taken, eyes glazed as their soul flees this dungeon of human convention…as
Pitiful reports from the field speak of the “necessary price to pay”
As mothers clutch their hearts, wrecked by love dying and dead before their hollowed eyes.

What are we becoming?
Why are we allowing ourselves to be stripped of our humanity?
Where is the indignation not to mention the exclamations of Truth to Power?-
Led to our slaughter by the numbing themes of Entertainment Tonight, CNN & ESPN (?)
While oceans away a farmer and father of two from Korea laments,
"All we have to eat are these watermelons. Once they are finished, that's it".

Delve into a child’s eyes
And be silenced by the magnitude of what’s found there.
In Ghandi, we heard, “We must become the change we wish to see”
All intentions and talk are hollow graves awaiting our fall
Cease, reflect and act upon righteous seeds without fear
For there is much to do and undo for our mutilated innocents…..


This is my prayer.

Top 25 Censored Stories of 2006

#1 Bush Administration Moves to Eliminate Open Government
#2 Media Coverage Fails on Iraq: Fallujah and the Civilian Death

#3 Another Year of Distorted Election Coverage

#4 Surveillance Society Quietly Moves In
#5 U.S. Uses Tsunami to Military Advantage in Southeast Asia

#6 The Real Oil for Food Scam

#7 Journalists Face Unprecedented Dangers to Life and Livelihood

#8 Iraqi Farmers Threatened By Bremer’s Mandates

#9 Iran’s New Oil Trade System Challenges U.S. Currency
#10 Mountaintop Removal Threatens Ecosystem and Economy

#11 Universal Mental Screening Program Usurps Parental Rights

#12 Military in Iraq Contracts Human Rights Violators

#13 Rich Countries Fail to Live up to Global Pledges

#14 Corporations Win Big on Tort Reform, Justice Suffers

#15 Conservative Plan to Override Academic Freedom in the Classroom

#16 U.S. Plans for Hemispheric Integration Include Canada

#17 U.S. Uses South American Military Bases to Expand Control of the Region

#18 Little Known Stock Fraud Could Weaken U.S. Economy

#19 Child Wards of the State Used in AIDS Experiments

#20 American Indians Sue for Resources; Compensation Provided to Others

#21 New Immigration Plan Favors Business Over People

#22 Nanotechnology Offers Exciting Possibilities But Health Effects Need Scrutiny

#23 Plight of Palestinian Child Detainees Highlights Global Problem

#24 Ethiopian Indigenous Victims of Corporate and Government Resource Aspirations

#25 Homeland Security Was Designed to Fail 

-MixMasterE

Musings

 




I have named the destroyers of nations:
comfort, plenty, and security -
out of which grow a bored and slothful cynicism,
in which rebellion against the world as it is,
and myself as I am,
are submerged in listless....

self-satisfaction.

-John Steinbeck

.....2 minutes of silence...

                      http://adbusters.org/campaigns/twominutesofsilence/

Remembering Gary Webb by MixMasterE

Gary Webb, the Pulitzer-prize winning journalist who exposed evidence that the CIA supported the importation of cocaine into the United States which fueled the crack-cocaine epidemic in many US cities in the 80's/90's, died less than a year ago from an apparent suicide. His book, 'Dark Alliance" was blistering and sent shockwaves through the African-American community and sparked rallies, protests, and demonstrations. What African-Americans knew all along was vindicated by congressional investigations and two CIA Inspector General's reports released in 1997 and 1998.

http://www.gnn.tv/videos/viewer.php?id=30&n=1

http://www.mega.nu:8080/ampp/webb.html

This is no aberration. This twisted involvememt goes all the way back to 1947 when the CIA was formed. If this sounds like some vacuous conspiracy theory, perhaps a more mainstream source can aid in this matter: The Congressional Record: http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/1998_cr/980507-l.htm

More footnotes here: http://ist-socrates.berkeley.edu/~pdscott/q.html
http://www.newscentralasia.com/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=1476
http://baltimorechronicle.com/2005/091505Hogue.shtml
http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2005/8/7/161354/7903
http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=377

Guiding Posts

I love quotations. Like a Japanese haiku poem, they can instill deep reflection and an altered way of looking at the world ( and at oneself as well ). In few words, the vastness of Life becomes apparent. Or, to quote a famous Dharma saying," One drop reveals the ocean"...


Here are a few of my favorites:

George Orwell

Circus dogs jump when the trainer cracks his whip, but the really well-trained dog is the one that turns his somersault when there is no whip.

Aristotle

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

Gandhi

Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.

Voltaire
As long as people believe in absurdities, they will continue to commit atrocities.

Sami Abdul-Rahman
Conquerors always call themselves liberators.

Louis Brandeis
The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well meaning, but without understanding.

Albert Camus
There are causes worth dying for, but none worth killing for.

Albert Einstein

"It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder."

Ruben Feldman Gonzalez

The only way to end all wars is the inner peace of each one of us.

Richard Feynman

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool.

Michael Franti

"You can bomb the world into pieces, but you can't bomb it into peace."

Thucydides, Greek historian

The strong do as they please; the weak accept what they must.

Martin Luther King
I never intend to adjust myself to the madness of militarism

Martin Luther King Jr.

Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

War is a poor chisel to carve out tomorrows.

James Russell Lowell
He who is firmly seated in authority soon learns to think security, and not progress, the highest lesson of statecraft.

George Orwell
"In times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act"

Bertrand Russell

Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so.

Robert Louis Stevenson

The cruelest lies are often told in silence.

The Ramayana

Three things are real: God, human folly, and laughter. Since the first two are beyond our comprehension, we must do what we can with the third.

Bertrand Russell

A good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge

Bertrand Russell
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt.

Albert Schweitzer

Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.

Peter tosh

"Live for yourself you will live in vain Live for others and you will live again"

OneLove

:::MME::

Homage To A Master by MixMasterE

Stolen King /// © Kadir Nelson /// Courtesy of Art of Color

one ever feels his twoness-an American, a Negro;
two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings;
two warring ideals in one dark body,
whose dogged strength alone keeps it
from being torn asunder.~W. E. B. Du Bois (http://www.duboislc.org/html/DuBoisBio.html)

W.E.B Dubois was arguably one of the greatest intellects of the twentieth century. His deeply penetrating socio-cultural critiques which affected social and political movements worldwide, are still illuminating and indispensable. Below is just a small sample of this man's rare genius.

On Individuality
“The main thing is the YOU beneath the clothes and skin--the ability to do, the will to conquer, the determination to understand and know this great, wonderful, curious world.”

Du Bois On Du Bois

“I am one who tells the truth and exposes evil and seeks with Beauty for Beauty to set the world right.”

On Civilization
“...In the civilized world each serves all, and all serve each, and the binding force is faith and skill, and the skill is bounded only by human possibility and genius, and the faith is faithful even to the untrue.”

On Art and Beauty
“Art is not simply works of art; it is the spirit that knows Beauty, that has music in its soul and the color of sunsets in its headkerchiefs; that can dance on a flaming world and make the world dance, too...”

On Human Nature

“Human nature is not simple and any classification that roughly divides men into good and bad, superior and inferior, slave and free, is and must be ludicrously untrue and universally dangerous as a permanent exhaustive classification.”

On Time

"Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow. Today is the seed time, now are the hours of work, and tomorrow comes the harvest and the playtime."

On Determination

There is in this world no such force as the force of a person determined to rise. The human soul cannot be permanently chained.

On Tragedy

"Herein lies the tragedy of the age: not that men are poor — all men know something of poverty; not that men are wicked — who is good? Not that men are ignorant — what is truth? Nay, but that men know so little of men."

Click here for his e-books: http://www.thalasson.com/gtn/gtnletD.htm#letD

Thieves We Trust by MixMasterE

Wall Street. The very name commands awe and respect for the intrigues and shadowy nature of its present and past. Most folks, despite the scandals spanning decades, believe that Wall Street is geared toward ordinary investors and that stocks offer a universal path to wealth creation. This myth is highly advantageous for the powerful and wealthy institutions and individuals. The hardcore truth is most Americans have more debt on their credit cards than money in their mutual funds. Barely a third of households hold more than $ 5,000 in stock. Close to 90% of stock market gains consistently go to just the top 10% of households. Yet, when shit hits the fan it is often ordinary investors who feelthe sharpest pain - pain that many will cope with well into retirement.

Is the system rigged to favor the disgustingly rich?

Check out the following Frontline documentary and draw your own conclusions.

You can read the transcripts here, or even better watch the entire program online here. It is highly recommended for anyone that does any investing, especially if you have any lingering beliefs that the system is even remotely fair or honest.

Also, Doug Henwood released his book "Wall Street" to download for free. It is a definite eye-opener: http://www.wallstreetthebook.com/

Musings

Ghandi's Truth by MixMasterE

Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)--his singular existence has torched countless souls and social movements with a simple yet paradigm-shifting message of non-violence (love-in-action). In the oppressive and divisive heat of British conquest and imperialism, a diamond heart was molded and released upon the world and into the hearts of countless sojourners.

The following Websites have excellent archives of his work:

Ghandi Resources


Ghandi Resouces II

  

~MixMasterE

Musings

Love the earth and sun and the animals,
Despise riches, give alms to everyone that asks,
Stand up for the stupid and crazy,
Devote your income and labors to others,
Hate tyrants, argue not concerning God,
Have patience and indulgence toward the people,
Take off your hat to nothing known or unknown,
Or to any man or number of men,
Go freely with powerful uneducated persons,
And with the young and with the mothers of families,
Read these leaves in the open air,
Every season of every year of your life,
Reexamine all you have been told,
At school at church or in any book,
Dismiss whatever insults your own soul,
And your very flesh shall be a great poem.


Whitman, Walt
1819-1892 American Poet
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/whitman/

Eduardo Galeano Speaks by MixMasterE

I have been a fan of Eduardo Galeano ever since I read his book "Upside Down" in which he revealed the inhuman conditions and radical inequalities that sustain the mirage of the New Economy ( See http://www.salon.com/books/review/2000/10/12/galeano/ ).


I particularly enjoyed reading his insights in this interview:




His brilliant mind burns through the many illusions that surround and bombard us on a daily basis. In Upside Down, we are taken on an excursion of joy, pain and the paradoxical absurdity of the human condition. A force to be reckoned with, Eduardo Galeano is a true warrior/rebel soul.

Musings

"Isn't it the moment of most profound doubt that gives birth to new certainties? Perhaps hopelessness is the very soil that nourishes human hope; perhaps one could never find sense in life without first experiencing its absurdity"

-Vaclav Havel


(Thanks GW....I knew you were good for something....)

-MixMasterE

Poet's Nook: "A Letter from Brooklyn" by Derek Walcott

An old lady writes me in a spidery style,
Each character trembling, and I see a veined hand
Pellucid as paper, travelling on a skein
Of such frail thoughts its thread is often broken;
Or else the filament from which a phrase is hung
Dims to my sense, but caught, it shines like steel,
As touch a line and the whole web will feel.
She describes my father, yet I forget her face
More easily than my father's yearly dying;
Of her I remember small, buttoned boots and the place
She kept in our wooden church on those Sundays
Whenever her strength allowed;
Grey-haired, thin-voiced, perpetually bowed.

"I am Mable Rawlins," she writes, "and know both your parents";
He is dead, Miss Rawlins, but God bless your tense:
"Your father was a dutiful, honest,
Faithful, and useful person.
"For such plain praise what fame is recompense?
"A horn-painter, he painted delicately on horn,
He used to sit around the table and paint pictures.
"The peace of God needs nothing to adornIt, nor glory nor ambition.
"He is twenty-eight years buried," she writes, "he was called home,
And is, I am sure, doing greater work."
The strength of one frail hand in a dim room
Somewhere in Brooklyn, patient and assured,
Restores my sacred duty to the Word.
"Home, home," she can write, with such short time to live,
Alone as she spins the blessings of her years;
Not withered of beauty if she can bring such tears,
Nor withdrawn from the world that breaks its lovers so;
Heaven is to her the place where painters go,
All who bring beauty on frail shell or horn,
There was all made, thence their lux-mundi drawn,
Drawn, drawn, till the thread is resilient steel,
Lost though it seems in darkening periods,
And there they return to do work that is God's.

So this old lady writes, and again I believe.
I believe it all, and for no man's death I grieve.

Creeping Fascism In The USA by MixMasterE

"Sure we'll have fascism in America, but it'll come disguised as 100 percent Americanism."
-Huey P. Long


"Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power".
- Benito Mussolini


Recently, I have been somewhat preoccupied with the notion of fascism rearing its ugly head in the US in a more sinister yet altered form such that most people will not be able to admit that it is an impending threat. I am no conspiracy theorist or reckless alarmist, however, I am noticing something in our media and in the way in which this Administration in particular is attempting to stack the deck against the decent, hard-working citizens of this land. What's more alarming and chilling is the fact that a lot of people are hanging their critical faculties out to dry and mindlessly ranting off spoon-fed information hot off the military-industrial/corporate press. Indeed, anti-intellectualism is as robust and arrogant as ever.


Check out the following link and draw your own conclusions:

http://www.oldamericancentury.org/14pts.htm

http://www.publiceye.org/eyes/whatfasc.html

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Fascism/Fascism.html

http://adbusters.org/the_magazine/62/Creeping_Fascism.html

http://www.buzzflash.com/farrell/04/09/far04031.html

An unsettled mind is one of our greatest assets. Bertrand Russell speaks of  truth and opinion in the quest of finding meaning in this world when he says,


"The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd; indeed in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind, a widespread belief is more likely to be foolish than sensible."

Stay alert.