Here's what happens when this irresponsible Congress railroads a profoundly important bill to serve the mindless politics of a midterm election: The Bush administration uses Republicans' fear of losing their majority to push through ghastly ideas about antiterrorism that will make American troops less safe and do lasting damage to our 217-year-old nation of laws -- while actually doing nothing to protect the nation from terrorists. Democrats betray their principles to avoid last-minute attack ads. Our democracy is the big loser.
[...] We don't blame the Democrats for being frightened. The Republicans have made it clear that they'll use any opportunity to brand anyone who votes against this bill as a terrorist enabler. But Americans of the future won't remember the pragmatic arguments for caving in to the administration.
They'll know that in 2006, Congress passed a tyrannical law that will be ranked with the low points in American democracy, our generation's version of the Alien and Sedition Acts. [full editorial here]
The new law denies habeas corpus rights, allows the President to "establish specific permissible interrogation techniques," and redefines "enemy combatants" beyond the established definition to include noncitizens living legally in the States or elsewhere (that is, if they're found to be an "enemy combatant" under criteria defined by the president or secretary of defense).
What's especially troubling is Bush et al's disdainful view of the Geneva Convention. It's almost as if he considers it some type of laughable document, and you should see how testy he becomes when confronted by its standards. Today, some of the "coercison" techniques [read: torturing] now being performed by US soldiers on opponents are the same ones that convicted Axis soldiers of war crimes 50+ years ago.
One day I'll have to explain to my child why my country ignored basic human rights to fight a so-called war on terror. I'm literally speechless, watching these politicians legitimate these atrocities.
This last week on Bill Maher's Real Time there was a good discussion on religion and politics (with mention of the new documentary Jesus Camp). On the panel was FOX news reporter (and fundy) Sandy Rios, Muslim Scholar Reza Aslan, and actor Bradley Whitford.
ASLAN: [overlapping] Whether you believe it or not – whether you believe it or not, God doesn’t make you a bigot; God doesn’t make you a misogynist. I mean, people – people are just bigots and misogynists.
RIOS: That’s true.
ASLAN: The thing about religion—
MAHER: Right.
ASLAN: [overlapping]—is that it is – it provides a powerful language through which you can justify any ideology. [applause]
WHITFORD: Anything.
ASLAN: Whether ideologies of peace and tolerance or ideologies of fanaticism. And what we really need to do is, those of us – like Bradley was saying – those people who represent the vast moderate majority of people of faith, who get—
WHITFORD: Need to speak up.
MAHER: Right.
ASLAN: [overlapping]—get drowned out by this very loud, obnoxious voice of extremism and violence—
WHITFORD: [overlapping] Of condemnation and separation.
ASLAN: [overlapping]—it’s hard to make ourselves heard. But, you know, we really need to work harder. We really need to make sure that our voice actually matters. [applause]
Mark your calendars, I'm about to praise our Conservative PM, Stephen Harper.
Today I got a cheque for almost 500 dollars -- a governmental refund from the exorbitant landing fee I paid for my Permanent Resident application last May.
So ... well ... thanks, Mr. Prime Minister. That cheque will be definitely be put to good use.
My clumsiest dear, whose hands shipwreck vases, At whose quick touch all glasses chip and ring, Whose palms are bulls in china, burs in linen, And have no cunning with any soft thing
Except all ill-at-ease fidgeting people: The refugee uncertain at the door You make at home; deftly you steady The drunk clambering on his undulant floor.
Unpredictable dear, the taxi drivers' terror, Shrinking from far headlights pale as a dime Yet leaping before apopleptic streetcars— Misfit in any space. And never on time.
A wrench in clocks and the solar system. Only With words and people and love you move at ease; In traffic of wit expertly maneuver And keep us, all devotion, at your knees.
Forgetting your coffee spreading on our flannel, Your lipstick grinning on our coat, So gaily in love's unbreakable heaven Our souls on glory of spilt bourbon float.
Be with me, darling, early and late. Smash glasses— I will study wry music for your sake. For should your hands drop white and empty All the toys of the world would break.
Because if you are like us, you spend hours each day reading email but don't find the time to read books. DailyLit brings books right into your inbox in convenient small messages that take less than 5 minutes to read. This works incredibly well not just on your computer but also on a Treo, Blackberry, Sidekick or whatever the PDA of your choice. In the words of Dr. Seuss: Try it, you might like it!
I'm having a daily dose of Emily Dickinson every morning at 7:20am.
There's 200+ choices -- tell me which one you chose for your daily dose.
Lately I'm realizing more and more that I'm not a very good friend. I just don't have the energy these days to put in the time to maintain many of my relationships. Usually I'm at school before 8am, sometimes not home until 5/6pm -- leaving me time to do housework, mark more papers (ugh), or think of ways to avoid finishing that final chapter of analysis for my thesis (that was due a MONTH ago).
I don't go out for coffee dates, lunches, or movies all that often anymore -- mainly because I'm not very catchable for these dates, or I'm just notoriously bad at returning calls/emails. It's nothing personal, I just get caught up sleeping or cleaning or just zoning out watching the second episode of Grey's Anatomy I snagged online (4 days before it "officially" airs!). My "cave time" (ie., staying at home) has increased exponentially.
So, if you know me off this blog -- in the infamous "real life" way -- don't feel personally affronted if I'm incognito. Blame my pregnancy hormones or that I'm sleeping and not screening your call or that I'm hiding my expanding girth from the public eye.
Yes, I'm aware that I'm blogging about my anti-social ways in a public forum -- so no, I'm not blind to that irony.
This story is floating all over the liberal blogs today -- compare the US edition of Newsweek to all the International versions of the "news" magazine:
It's subtle, I know, but can you catch the difference? Compare the international cover story to the domestic cover, and you might be able to understand why Bush and his cronies are able to get away with as much as they do.
If I ever leave Canada, I'm going to have to get the CBC on satellite. There's no going back to US networks or media for me. Gotta get the Mansbridge fix.
(Now that I got your attention -- it's not my opinion, but these nuts:)
The Pro-Life Action League sponsored a conference this past weekend in Rosemont, Illinois, criticizing the use of birth control. The conference, called “Contraception is Not the Answer,” brought Christian conservatives together to extend the anti-abortion movement, organizing against all methods of artificial reproductive control. Joseph Scheidler, the leader of the Pro-Life Action League, explained the need for this shift in the movement to the Chicago Tribune, saying “contraception is more the root cause of abortion than anything else.”
The conference presented participants with several arguments against artificial birth control, including claims that birth control promotes sexual promiscuity and decreases the birth rate, Chicago Tribune reports. Damon Clarke Owens, president of New Jersey Natural Family Planning and a conference participant, adds that contraception changes the act of sex between a man and a woman into something other than a “unconditional gift to self” by rejecting “God’s gift of children,” according to the Chicago Tribune. Others falsely claimed that contraception doesn’t always prevent conception and must therefore be considered abortion.
While driving home this afternoon, Jerry and I passed by a church that is known for their cheesy signage out front. This week's sentence sermon read: "Body Piercing Saves Lives" or something like that. As usual, it produced a groan from the two of us. Another past gem of this church was "God Reads His Knee-Mail." Oy.
Apparently the disturbing trend of sign sermonizing is fairly rampant these days -- here's an article that addresses the issue back home in the South.
Almost every week for 18 years, Betty Willis and Nancy Van Dusen have met on the front lawn of Upsala Community Presbyterian Church in Sanford, Fla., for what they call their "sign ministry."
On Monday or Tuesday mornings, they approach opposite sides of a small steel-and-concrete structure and begin spelling out sometimes humorous, sometimes inspirational sayings that can be read by passing motorists on State Road 46-A.
Willis' recent postings include "Live Your Life So You Don't Have To Hide Your Diary," and "God Does Not Have a Plan B." Van Dusen's include "An Idol Is Anything I Love More Than God."
[...] When the Bible speaks of "signs and wonders," the marquee outside Upsala and scores of churches across the nation might not have been what the scribe had in mind. But churches spanning denominational lines see these billboards, especially those along high-traffic streets, as "sentence sermons," providing an opportunity for drive-by evangelism.
What are some of the painful cliched signage you've encountered?
Bill Clinton bitch-slaps a FOX "News" reporter -- read about it here or watch a clip here.
The reporter of the interview, Chris Wallace, is so comedic that he really belongs on a Comedy network, and not on a supposed impartial news channel. Then again, this is Faux News we're talking about.
I'm keeping an eye out on YouTube for clips to post, but until then, go download/watch/read the transcript of the interview over on Crooks and Liars.
UNITED NATIONS - Chile's President Michelle Bachelet said Thursday her decision to allow the government to distribute free morning-after contraception pills to girls as young as 14 was a matter of "equality" within Chilean society.
"Equality means that for a person who does not have choices, who does not have options, we have to give them these options," Bachelet told The Associated Press in an interview on the sidelines at the United Nations General Assembly.
The Chilean government's decision in early September to begin offering the morning-after pill free of charge in public health clinics triggered sharp criticism from the Catholic Church — long one of Chile's most powerful institutions — and the conservative political opposition.
[...] "We will focus more on sexual education, on prevention, and have a whole range of alternatives that include abstinence, natural methods and a contraceptive program. At the last we have the emergency pill, because it is for that — an emergency," she said.
[...] Such sentiments, as expected, provoke a strong reaction from Chile's Catholic Church.
The Church calls the morning-after pill a deceptive form of abortion. Shortly after the pill program was introduced on Sept. 2 in Chile, the country's Episcopal Conference issued a statement saying that the policy was reminiscent of public policies "established in totalitarian regimes by which the state aimed to regulate the intimate lives of its citizens."
Cabal dismisses such talk.
"What is at the core of the debate is whether religion can trump science and scientific evidence," she said, dismissing critics' arguments that the pill is tantamount to abortion. "Important international institutions such as the World Health Organization have established that emergency contraception is a form of contraception, not abortion."
For Bachelet, the question of teenage pregnancy is a problem that drains the country's resources and must be at the center of any women's health policies. She quotes government studies indicating that almost 14 percent of Chilean women are teenage mothers.
For that reason, the Chilean government program of distributing the morning-after pill is an essential role for the state, she said, though the final decision must be made by the individual.
"The state only gives the option. The person decides by their own values, by their own beliefs," she said. "We don't impose anything on anyone."
Is this a life or is a sitcom without the laughs? [via]
I can relate. I've often thought I'm part of some cosmic sitcom, complete with theme music and laugh track. Of course, obsessively knowing episodes of Seinfeld doesn't help, neither does having an overactive imagination.
I haven't had too much to say lately. Work's been busy, trying to get my square-peggedness into the round mold of a regular schedule. Last night I went to bed at 7pm. (it's true!)
Since I'm not very talkative these days, I'll leave a few links below that I've been meaning to post about, but don't have the energy to dedicate a lot of time to ranting and/or raving about.
The Death of a President -- a new documentary that is causing waves in the States, because it shows a mock-assassination of GWB, and asks the question, "What if the President was assassinated?" It won a major award in Toronto last week, and I'm hoping it'll play here in Saskatoon.
Your Body and Your Government -- a funny little YouTube video discussing a new chip that enables your vagina to become a "gateway to information." It'd be funnier if it wasn't such a possibility these days. "After all, a man knows best!"
The Wal-Mart Letter -- asking the mega-corporation to ban selling the Bible.
We make this request after careful consideration, having examined numerous passages in the Holy Bible that are repulsive, stridently offensive and/or illegal. The following five examples reveal the obscene nature of this book and help you to understand why we are making this request.
The letter is in reaction to Wal-Mart's stance on banning other books it finds too offensive, such as Jon Stewart's America. Read the whole of the petition (and sign it!) here.
How to make your own baby slings -- anyone with a sewing machine and a touch of domesticity want to help me make a few of these? Pity your poor, non-sewing-inclined friend, will ya?
Come as you are -- a Salon article about Mark Driscoll's hip-yet-patriarchal church in Seattle.
Following Driscoll's biblical reading of prescribed gender roles, women quit their jobs and try to have as many babies as possible. And these are no mere women who fear independence, who are looking to live by the simple tenets of fundamentalist credo, enforced by a commanding husband: many of the women of Mars Hill reluctantly abandon successful lives lived on their own terms to serve their husbands and their Lord.
Thanks, but no thanks. It's just a "new verse, same as the first" type of idea -- I always find it interesting (and somewhat horrifying) when old ideas are masqued under a new guise. (which could explain my choice of thesis topic) Let's just say that I was already not a huge fan of Driscoll before this article, and after reading it, I'm even less of one.
My application for Permanent Residency is finally finished its processing! Now all that's left is to be called for an interview downtown -- I could be a Permanent Resident of Canada within the next month or two!
This is a huge weight off my shoulders. I'll keep you posted on when it's finally made official.
By the way, tomorrow is Talk Like a Pirate Day -- arrrrrr! Do you think my students would appreciate their lessons in Communication more, if I talked like a seafarin' matey?
is the title of Julia Sweeney's latest one woman play-turned-book project. (there's a clip of the show here) You remember her, she was Pat on SNL and did another one-woman show called "God Said Ha!" a few years ago.
Since that time, she's been working on this latest project, and I've been anxiously awaiting its release, mainly because I like her voice and candor when it comes to dealing with difficult issues -- whether its family dynamics, overcoming breast cancer, or dealing with issues of faith.
There's finally a set release date for her new book -- it's coming out at the end of next month. I'm really looking forward to it. In fact, she wants to send it out to 500 people before it's generally released to the public. Guess what? I'm one of the 500! I woke up to this in my email box:
Rebekah,
You are so in my 500 club! Thanks for writing. I will email you on or before Oct. 13th to let you know how to order. Then I'll just ask that you send me a confirmation email when you get it -- but I'll tell you all that later. Have a great Sunday and thanks for writing.
Julia
How cool is that? There may be a few more spots left on the 500, so if you're interested, check out her website for details.
Women are no longer able to get tubal ligations at Catholic-run St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Humboldt, Sask. The sterilization procedure had been banned at the hospital since the end of June, following a decision by the hospital board.
Now, a local family physician, Dr. Carrie Levick-Brown, has launched a petition to try to get the ban overturned."My initial reaction was somewhat of shock, disbelief and perhaps a group of people had been rushed into a misguided decision," she said.
Levick-Brown said a patient who had given birth via a caesarian section had requested a tubal ligation and was turned down.In the operation, a woman's fallopian tubes are blocked, tied or cut to prevent conception.
"We were told that could not be performed in our facility. And at that time I realized that no, there wouldn't be any backing down on this policy. And this was their actual decision," she said.
Levick-Brown said she was told the ban was imposed because the hospital board felt it needed to follow the Catholic health ethics guide more closely. The Catholic Church is opposed to sterilizations.
Hospital board chair Jerome Strasser said the hospital is obligated to follow the Catholic health guidelines.
What do you think of this? This is the only area hospital in this rural part of Saskatchewan, so are they obligated to provide requested health services for their patients, or is their first obligation to Catholic teachings? If the latter, than should this hospital continue to receive funding from the province, or should it be privately funded? To evoke a cliche I despise, this is indeed one slippery slope.
Curiously, I wonder if the hospital has similar objections to or bans on vascetomy procedures. If not, then tell me that this battle over reproductive rights isn't really about reducing women to being fetal incubators.
I'm not a fan of the insipid estrogen-laden program The View, but I've read several stories/blogs concerning this recent exchange between the newly-hired Rosie O'Donnell and the perkily-attractive-yet-scarily-fundamentalist Elizabeth:
[If you don't remember, Elizabeth is the same pretty face who has NO IDEA how contraception works, and had a rather embarrassing temper-tantrum about EC a few months ago (see here).]
But back to Rosie -- from the Alternet article that first pointed me in the direction of the above exchange:
In the video, O'Donnell notes that radical Christianity is as threatening as radical Islam -- eliciting ooohs and ahhhs of horror from the facial-ed faces of her co-hosts. One notes that radical Christians don't want to kill us.
Ahhh, so threatening is only what threatens us and our children. I see. And threatening to remake America into a Christian theocracy ain't no thang.
I'm amazed at the vitriol that has been spewed on Rosie for her comments from crazy right-wingers (and presumably, a few pissed-off Christians). Radical religion, of ANY stripe, is indeed a negative thing. And Rosie makes some good points in her tirade -- it's true, as a result of an attack that killed innocent people (9/11), our country invaded and attacked is attacking TWO countries where innocent people are being killed. Of course, the people behind these US strikes is a government who feels the need to enforce "God-given" rights of freedom and liberty.
Which is a bit ironic, if you think about it -- We will FORCE you to have a democracy. It's a bit like spanking your kid to teach them that hitting others is wrong. Or lethal-injecting a person to show the world that murder is wrong.
I wonder how long Rosie will last with the "pretty people" on the View. If she's smart, not long.
You have to believe that the nation’s current 8-year prosperity was due to the work of Ronald Reagan and George Bush, but yesterday’s gasoline prices are all Clinton’s fault.
You have to believe that those privileged from birth achieve success all on their own.
You have to believe God hates homosexuality, but loves the death penalty.
You have to believe in prayer in schools, as long as you don’t pray to Allah or Buddha.
You love Jesus and Jesus loves you and, by the way, Jesus shares your hatred for AIDS victims, homosexuals, and President Clinton.
You have to believe a poor, minority student with a disciplinary history and failing grades will be admitted into an elite private school with a $1,000 voucher.
And I mean that in the best possible sense. I've got my fall hair. Since I'm in the Engineering college, I figured red was an appropriate choice for the highlights. My stylist made me a (literal) hot mama with his latest handiwork.
Here's my obligatory plug for the best salon in town -- it's worth every penny, I'm telling ya. Tell Kim I sent you his way.
MESA, Ariz. - A 22-year-old woman was arrested after authorities say she tried to hire someone to kill another woman whose photo appeared on her boyfriend's MySpace.com Web page.
Heather Michelle Kane was booked Tuesday for investigation of conspiracy to commit murder, Mesa Detective Jerry Gissel said.
She was arrested after she met an undercover Mesa police detective at a grocery store, gave the officer $400 and offered to pay an additional $100 once the woman had been killed, according to court records.
The records say Kane gave the undercover officer photographs taken from her boyfriend's social networking Web page of the woman she wanted killed. She also requested a photo of the woman's dead body.
With my real job™ now, the desire to blog is beginning to wan. I blame it on being at school by 7:15 am, when the lights are still turned OFF on the hallways, and it's not very light outside.
So when I saw the WikiHow on How to Dissuade Yourself From Becoming a Blogger, I had to laugh. For those of you who haven't yet succumbed to the blogging bug, there are 4 easy steps to follow:
Find five completely random blogs, and read them daily for a month. After thirty days, you will absolutely dread your self-imposed requirement to read all that dreck. Any blog you create will most likely be on par with what you've been reading. Don't put anyone through that.
Consider that your voice, even if it is truly a good one, is a tiny peep against the massive wave of tripe out there. The odds of anyone you don't already know finding your blog are low.
Write on a regular basis in Wordpad instead. If that doesn't satisfy your urge, and you feel that you must post your blog online, then you might just be craving attention and validation--which you'll never truly find in a blog. If you give up on your Wordpad journal after about three days, you'll do the same with a blog that just takes up server space.
Ask yourself if you really have the time to commit to a blog. What about that treehouse you wanted to build? Or the book you wanted to write? Or the car you wanted to fix up? Or the restaurant you wanted to take your significant other to? Or the new career you wanted to pursue? Instead of writing about pretty much nothing, or whining about all the things you wish you were doing instead, start doing something that'd actually be worth writing about. And if it's really worth writing about, you'll be having too much fun doing it to tear yourself away from it. [via]
This term I'm teaching three undergrad sections, I'm observing an undergrad Interpersonal Communication course, and I'm also auditing a graduate-level Rhetorical Interpretation course. (phew!)
I love it. I love all the teaching experience I'm getting, and I'm really enjoying the new material I'm encountering in the additional 2 classes. That said, part of me realizes that this additional education in communication comes at a price.
A few years ago, one of my English profs lamented the fact that no one in her family or close friends would send her emails anymore -- for fear that she'd proofread them or grammatically-correct them in some way.
That's a bit like the boat I'm in. I know that with this increased exposure to communication courses, I'll become more adept at interpreting others' communication around me, and that ability is going to intimidate some people in my life to not open up too much to me, for fear of any potential analysis I may do.
It's a double-edged sword -- while I value this knowledge and insight into communication processes, I also see some disadvantages (?) of gaining such an ability. Oh well, hasn't stopped me before, and I'm doubtful it'll stop me now.
Required watching for all of you -- Keith Olbermann lays it all out for the President and all the neo-cons who manipulate 9/11 for personal gain:
From Olbermann's timely rebuke:
And there is something worse still than this vast gaping hole in this city, and in the fabric of our nation. There is, its symbolism — of the promise unfulfilled, the urgent oath, reduced to lazy execution.
The only positive on 9/11 and the days and weeks that so slowly and painfully followed it… was the unanimous humanity, here, and throughout the country. The government, the President in particular, was given every possible measure of support.
Those who did not belong to his party — tabled that. Those who doubted the mechanics of his election — ignored that. Those who wondered of his qualifications — forgot that.
History teaches us that nearly unanimous support of a government cannot be taken away from that government, by its critics. It can only be squandered by those who use it not to heal a nation’s wounds, but to take political advantage.
Terrorists did not come and steal our newly-regained sense of being American first, and political, fiftieth. Nor did the Democrats. Nor did the media. Nor did the people. The President — and those around him — did that.
[...]How dare you, Mr. President, after taking cynical advantage of the unanimity and love, and transmuting it into fraudulent war and needless death… after monstrously transforming it into fear and suspicion and turning that fear into the campaign slogan of three elections… how dare you or those around you… ever "spin" 9/11.
Powerful. Watch the whole clip of it here or read its transcript here.
A timely definition, especially considering the President is about to address the nation in the next few minutes. While I don't have cable, I do have C-Span streaming online -- here's hoping Bush does the right thing in his address. (I'm highly doubtful, but I'll listen anyway)
UPDATE: 7:20pm. Well, I hope my unborn babe didn't catch much of the BS that was just shovelled this way.
I've been in Canada for the 4 years since that day -- one Tuesday that changed the lives of many, including my own. It's on days like these that I wish I could be a little closer to my home and my family. Today both my little brother and sister live in NYC -- a sobering thought on an anniversary such as this.
Over the last few years, it's been interesting to observe the response of some people here in Canada to 9/11. I've seen some who really sympathize with what happened in lower Manhattan, the Pentagon, and Pennsylvania that day -- and others who admitted they were actually "happy" to see such an attack happen to the US. (yeah, well, don't get me started on these people)
For me, I'm not sure what words I can say about what happened that won't sound cliched and trite. I do know that 5 years later, the world hasn't changed all that much -- despite the VP's claim the administration is doing a "hell of a job" defending the country.
I've changed, though. I'm not as naive, whether it's in believing my country is invincible or that it is the shining beacon of freedom I was once taught. These days I'm also in the middle of carrying a little one, who has a tendency to make his/her presence known when I least expect it.
On days like these, where we all pause to remember death and destruction -- it's a gift to feel that little life inside.
It has been over four years since the worst terrorist attack on American soil and the only reminder is a big gaping hole in the middle of New York's financial district. Disgruntled family members of the victims want to memorialize the fallen, big corporations want to get back to business, local residents remain concerned over the health risks of living and working nearby, and politicians blather on, afraid of making politically incorrect moves. Everyone it seems is angling for a piece of the multi-billion dollar federal government pie to rebuild the site. BULLSHIT! takes on the fight for Ground Zero from street level to New York's towers of power.
My application for Permanent Residency is finally finished its processing! Now all that's left is to be called for an interview downtown -- I could be a Permanent Resident of Canada within the next month or two!
