The story of Tomas Young is one of the forgotten warriors of American wars of occupation.Wars that are illegal and immoral and do nothing to bring honor to this nation. Wars that disgrace our concept of democracy and the false belief that we give a damn about the troops.
Americans want their troops to come home to waiting families, all smiles and joy. They want to hear how it was an honor to "serve" their country. And now they're expected to ease back into civilian life and pick up where they left off.
Remember all those yellow ribbons on the bumper sticker with the words "SUPPORT THE TROOPS"? What did they actually mean? They mean about as much as someone coming up to a combat veteran, tortured by the memories of carnage, to say "thank you for your service". Do you really think that's what they want to hear? Do you think a veteran of combat wants thanks for killing other humans, for witnessing the death of children and other innocents, for seeing good friends killed and maimed? Maybe Americans could ask us how they might help. What we need. Patronizing bullshit slogans do nothing for the welfare of returning troops. Parades last an hour or so and then what?
For all those who think men like Tomas Young are going to be taken care of because it was part of the nation's promise, get real. I always ask the patriotic flag waving war mongers if they're going to be there for the troops paralyzed or missing limbs in twenty years. Will they still be around to cheer the veteran with a TBI and the nightmares of PTSD?
Tomas Young is the new Johnny Got His Gun. If we could we would put him off in some obscure room hidden away from the rest of us. He reminds us of what we have done in our zeal for wars. He reminds us there are horrible costs to the glory of war.
Tomas enlisted just days after the attack of 9-11. His intent was to go to Afghanistan to fight against those who attacked his country. Instead in 2004 he went to Iraq. He went to a war based on lies and illegal and immoral. Only a short time after entering Iraq he was shot with his spine severed. He was paralyzed from the waist down. On his return to his country he found inadequate and overwhelmed care at the VAMC. On one occasion he went to a VA ER with a swollen and painful arm. He was given narcotics for the pain and sent home. The swelling was caused by a clot that dislodged and caused a stroke. That caused Tomas to lose control of his upper torso. He could no longer feed himself or clothe himself. His life went from bad to worse.
Today Tomas has stated he will "go away" in the near future. He's tired of the struggle that will be unchanged for the rest of his life. His doctors give him no hope of improvement. Tomas intends on refusing nutrition and fluids. He intends on killing himself.
There will be some who will condemn this decision. Let them be in Tomas' situation for a week. Let them face the hopelessness of a body they can no longer control and pain that is constant. I understand his decision completely. I've spent the last 40 years with one foot in the here and now and one foot living and reliving the 13 months of my war. The images are horrific and they never change. What I did and what I saw will never change. There were many times I thought eating a gun was the best way to end the moral and emotional agony. Now, my body has started to fail me and those thoughts are back. I can only imagine the agony Tomas has had to endure. I can understand his decision. I wish him peace.
For those who have failed to carry through on the promises made to the sons and daughters you sent to your senseless wars, I curse you. From the Congress and Presidents to the comfortable rich and middle class ....I curse you. All you who have let yourself forget the veterans of your stupid wars deserve to burn in hell. Many of you consider yourself righteous and spiritual but you lie to yourself. Like Dylan sang in his masterpiece, MASTERS OF WAR, I will rejoice the deaths of all you who have been part of the killing fields of war. And those who remained silent are as guilty as those who demanded the wars go forth in all their death and destruction.
Saturday, March 23
Tuesday, March 19
March 19, A Day of American Shame
What was accomplished? Ten years ago today George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and Colin Powell started the war in Iraq after blatantly lying about Saddam Hussein having "weapons of mass destruction". Nearly 4500 Americans died by the time the war was declared over. Millions of Iraqis have been killed as a result of the war starting. Most died as a result of American arms, many died due to the sectarian violence the American occupation created. Thousands upon thousands of the Iraqi victims have been children.
American occupation of Iraq was a matter of the Cheney Cabal wanting to control the oil in the ground of Iraq. It has the second largest oil reserves in the world and Cheney and his stooges were salivating. The largest American embassy was built. Schools and hospitals were built and paid for by American taxpayers but never used. Billions after billions were spent every month to support the war. Paul Bremer lost approximately 8 billion dollars in cash sent to Iraq for expenses to work with local Iraq leaders. He also decided native Iraqi seeds should be replaced by American seeds courtesy of companies like Monsanto. Depleted uranium has left a trail of health problems wherever we used it. And we used it everywhere. The symptoms of radiation poisoning were among the signs found in local areas of Iraq where the weapons of DU were used. Childhood cancers and birth deformities skyrocketed in number wherever the DU was used.
We can't understand the cost to the Iraqi people unless we have family in Iraq. Dr. Dahlia Wasfi has family there. She saw the costs up close the two times she journeyed to Basra to visit family. She continues today speaking about the costs of this unnecessary and illegal war. This immoral war.
We can understand the costs to American troops who faced multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. PTSD, TBI, MST and horrible physical wounds are the costs. Poor care due to lack of funding is the cost. The military hides behind the acronyms. They don't like to say MST (aka Military sexual assault) is rape perpetrated against female and male troops by troops in their own branch of the military. The don't like to say post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will cost this nation in multiple ways costing billions of dollars. They don't like to say traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the signature wound of the two wars and will affect the lives of young men and women for the rest of their lives.
At the time of the war's start millions marched in the streets around the world in protest. Once it started the bulk of the American peace movement seemed to wilt away in a depressive state. Only a mother, Cindy Sheehan, seemed to revive the movement temporarily. Young veterans like Kelly Daugherty and Garrett Reppenhagen saw the truth and organized to oppose the war. Old veterans like Bill Perry, Stan Goff and Dave Cline spoke out and organized opposition. The religious community failed to respond with few exceptions. Student movements were non-existent with few exceptions. The immorality of the war was seldom challenged by most Americans.
The mainstream media followed along like pet dogs to be the megaphones for the American occupation. They got in bed with the military by means of "embedding" themselves with units. But only units the military wanted them to be with. Their reports were boosterism and jingoism. Dhar Jamail was the true voice of the war. He reported on Fallujah and other atrocities of the war. He refused to embed. Dhar and a few brave whistle blowers exposed the torture chambers of the American government. Water boarding was highly publicized but rapes and brutal physical assaults were hardly mentioned except by reporters such as Dhar. Water boarding was not new. I saw it used on a patrol in Vietnam against a female informant who balked in taking us to a suspect enemy hiding place.
Americans have been told our war is over in Iraq. Ask the Iraqi people if that's the case. We left behind a puppet government afraid to leave the security of well entrenched compounds. In the streets there's chaos with lack of security, lack of electricity, lack of potable water and an ever increased risk of danger to women. Sectarian violence and fanaticism by religious zealots makes it dangerous for any female to journey outside the home without male companionship and without her head covered.
The tragedy of our war in Iraq hits hard here in this nation but it hits much harder in Iraq. Iraqis can truthfully say they were better off under the boot of Saddam Hussein than under the alleged democracy we imported. A people that once loved the American people now look at us with suspicion and anger for what we brought them. And reports from criminals like Dick Cheney stating they'd "do it again" and admitting they wanted Iraqi oil can only make this nation seem criminal and immoral. This nation will never admit the war was illegal just as it never admitted the illegality of Vietnam.
March 19th should be a day of shame for Americans. Not a day to look back in triumph and satisfaction.
American occupation of Iraq was a matter of the Cheney Cabal wanting to control the oil in the ground of Iraq. It has the second largest oil reserves in the world and Cheney and his stooges were salivating. The largest American embassy was built. Schools and hospitals were built and paid for by American taxpayers but never used. Billions after billions were spent every month to support the war. Paul Bremer lost approximately 8 billion dollars in cash sent to Iraq for expenses to work with local Iraq leaders. He also decided native Iraqi seeds should be replaced by American seeds courtesy of companies like Monsanto. Depleted uranium has left a trail of health problems wherever we used it. And we used it everywhere. The symptoms of radiation poisoning were among the signs found in local areas of Iraq where the weapons of DU were used. Childhood cancers and birth deformities skyrocketed in number wherever the DU was used.
We can't understand the cost to the Iraqi people unless we have family in Iraq. Dr. Dahlia Wasfi has family there. She saw the costs up close the two times she journeyed to Basra to visit family. She continues today speaking about the costs of this unnecessary and illegal war. This immoral war.
We can understand the costs to American troops who faced multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. PTSD, TBI, MST and horrible physical wounds are the costs. Poor care due to lack of funding is the cost. The military hides behind the acronyms. They don't like to say MST (aka Military sexual assault) is rape perpetrated against female and male troops by troops in their own branch of the military. The don't like to say post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will cost this nation in multiple ways costing billions of dollars. They don't like to say traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the signature wound of the two wars and will affect the lives of young men and women for the rest of their lives.
At the time of the war's start millions marched in the streets around the world in protest. Once it started the bulk of the American peace movement seemed to wilt away in a depressive state. Only a mother, Cindy Sheehan, seemed to revive the movement temporarily. Young veterans like Kelly Daugherty and Garrett Reppenhagen saw the truth and organized to oppose the war. Old veterans like Bill Perry, Stan Goff and Dave Cline spoke out and organized opposition. The religious community failed to respond with few exceptions. Student movements were non-existent with few exceptions. The immorality of the war was seldom challenged by most Americans.
The mainstream media followed along like pet dogs to be the megaphones for the American occupation. They got in bed with the military by means of "embedding" themselves with units. But only units the military wanted them to be with. Their reports were boosterism and jingoism. Dhar Jamail was the true voice of the war. He reported on Fallujah and other atrocities of the war. He refused to embed. Dhar and a few brave whistle blowers exposed the torture chambers of the American government. Water boarding was highly publicized but rapes and brutal physical assaults were hardly mentioned except by reporters such as Dhar. Water boarding was not new. I saw it used on a patrol in Vietnam against a female informant who balked in taking us to a suspect enemy hiding place.
Americans have been told our war is over in Iraq. Ask the Iraqi people if that's the case. We left behind a puppet government afraid to leave the security of well entrenched compounds. In the streets there's chaos with lack of security, lack of electricity, lack of potable water and an ever increased risk of danger to women. Sectarian violence and fanaticism by religious zealots makes it dangerous for any female to journey outside the home without male companionship and without her head covered.
The tragedy of our war in Iraq hits hard here in this nation but it hits much harder in Iraq. Iraqis can truthfully say they were better off under the boot of Saddam Hussein than under the alleged democracy we imported. A people that once loved the American people now look at us with suspicion and anger for what we brought them. And reports from criminals like Dick Cheney stating they'd "do it again" and admitting they wanted Iraqi oil can only make this nation seem criminal and immoral. This nation will never admit the war was illegal just as it never admitted the illegality of Vietnam.
March 19th should be a day of shame for Americans. Not a day to look back in triumph and satisfaction.
Monday, March 18
Connections to Polarize the 90%
So, just heard about someone I know making a remark the reason a family member couldn't get disability was because "they" only give it to blacks. Yikes! Really?
Here's the facts. Whites on disability outnumber blacks by a 3-1 ratio even when we consider the astronomic unemployment rates for black males. Even when we consider the astronomic wealth disparity between whites and blacks. Even when we consider the percentage of blacks admitted to universities versus whites.
What does this say about us? Maybe we are a racist country? Could be. Since Obama was elected President threats against the Presidency were ten times greater than all other Presidencies. Weapon purchases increased dramatically both times the man was elected. The number of filibusters in the US Senate broke records of all previous Congresses. The number of economic "crises" created by Congress since Obama's elections are unheard of. Never before has simple budget approval for the government to pay its current bills been held up by Congress for political reason. This action resulted in the reduction of the US government's credit rating for the first time in history. Why? Remember back before the first inauguration of Obama, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner stated their primary goal was to make sure he was a one term President. A group of GOP Congress members met before that inauguration to plot the strategy of obstructing anything that might make him look good.
Is this racism or politics of angry white men who lost an election? Why has there been more racially motivated threats and crimes since the man was elected? Why did we see white voters standing in line at their precincts with Obama monkeys on their shoulders?
What's even more telling about the visceral reaction to the black guy being in the White House is by all accounts he's done everything the bankers, brokers and right wing could ask for to ensure the status-quo of the rich staying rich remained in place. He's compromised most of his promises made during his "dream" campaign of 2007. He's alienated even the liberal and progressive base that helped elect him. He was re-elected more out of the fear Romney would be so much worse than confidence he would actually bolster the middle class or champion liberal causes.
Looking at this time of history reminds me so much of the days of the civil rights movement in the late 60s. There is a "new" Jim Crow happening throughout this nation. Code words, overt racist remarks made among white only groups and subtle and not so subtle ways of perpetuating discrimination are easily found everywhere I go. And this racism does not only pertain to the black community. Latinos and Arabic communities have the same stories. Communities of color know there's racism in America.
Voter suppression directed at the communities of non-whites and identified Democratic whites is a repeat of the days of the toll tax and literacy testing that prevented blacks from participating in elections. Targeting of the voting rights laws by states and now in the Supreme Court are attempts to bring us back to the days of segregation. "Illegal" immigration laws are pretense to protect the nation's borders. If that's so why do those laws seem to target only humans with brown skin?
History demonstrates the white aristocracy in this nation has constantly used race as a way to keep the poor and middle class distracted and polarized. But it's not just race. Gay rights, women's control of their own bodies, claims of welfare cheats only in poor communities and religious fanaticism are all used as wedge issues to polarize those not in the upper income brackets. In all the internecine bickering and fighting the poor and middle class have not called out the rich for the incredible disparity of wealth. The richest 2% of Americans hold over 40% of all the wealth. The wealthiest10% in this nation hold 80% of the total assets of wealth.
Companies like Exxon, BP, Goldman-Sachs, Citibank and Chase pay little or no taxes. In fact some of the companies making the greatest profits actually get tax rebates or refunds! The typical American worker pays close to 28% of their income in taxes. That's before paying into health benefits..if available....Medicare and Social Security. Tax loopholes allowing the wealthiest to avoid paying anything, outsourcing jobs but still reaping great profits and all the other government give-aways aren't called welfare. A couple on disability making less than 20,000 each year, living in squalor, eating poorly, unable to get preventative health care are accused of leeching off the taxpayers. They're called welfare queens and resented by some who "work for a living". Who's really the welfare leeches?
So, this rant drifted from racism to economics. It is necessary to see the connection and the manipulation. The poor and middle class are pitted against each other through hateful issues like racism to obscure the deplorable behavior of the plutocrats. They seek to strip all power, financial and political, from the masses. They want to indenture the masses with debt and dependency on working in jobs that barely keep them in homes, buying food and buying on credit. They control the mainstream media. That gives them the power of controlling the information. The power to plant the seeds of hate and consumerism.
If we fail to challenge comments that are palpably racist,sexist or anyway disparaging and polarizing we only play into the plan of the oligarchy that has stolen our democracy and the freedoms alleged to be included.
Here's the facts. Whites on disability outnumber blacks by a 3-1 ratio even when we consider the astronomic unemployment rates for black males. Even when we consider the astronomic wealth disparity between whites and blacks. Even when we consider the percentage of blacks admitted to universities versus whites.
What does this say about us? Maybe we are a racist country? Could be. Since Obama was elected President threats against the Presidency were ten times greater than all other Presidencies. Weapon purchases increased dramatically both times the man was elected. The number of filibusters in the US Senate broke records of all previous Congresses. The number of economic "crises" created by Congress since Obama's elections are unheard of. Never before has simple budget approval for the government to pay its current bills been held up by Congress for political reason. This action resulted in the reduction of the US government's credit rating for the first time in history. Why? Remember back before the first inauguration of Obama, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner stated their primary goal was to make sure he was a one term President. A group of GOP Congress members met before that inauguration to plot the strategy of obstructing anything that might make him look good.
Is this racism or politics of angry white men who lost an election? Why has there been more racially motivated threats and crimes since the man was elected? Why did we see white voters standing in line at their precincts with Obama monkeys on their shoulders?
What's even more telling about the visceral reaction to the black guy being in the White House is by all accounts he's done everything the bankers, brokers and right wing could ask for to ensure the status-quo of the rich staying rich remained in place. He's compromised most of his promises made during his "dream" campaign of 2007. He's alienated even the liberal and progressive base that helped elect him. He was re-elected more out of the fear Romney would be so much worse than confidence he would actually bolster the middle class or champion liberal causes.
Looking at this time of history reminds me so much of the days of the civil rights movement in the late 60s. There is a "new" Jim Crow happening throughout this nation. Code words, overt racist remarks made among white only groups and subtle and not so subtle ways of perpetuating discrimination are easily found everywhere I go. And this racism does not only pertain to the black community. Latinos and Arabic communities have the same stories. Communities of color know there's racism in America.
Voter suppression directed at the communities of non-whites and identified Democratic whites is a repeat of the days of the toll tax and literacy testing that prevented blacks from participating in elections. Targeting of the voting rights laws by states and now in the Supreme Court are attempts to bring us back to the days of segregation. "Illegal" immigration laws are pretense to protect the nation's borders. If that's so why do those laws seem to target only humans with brown skin?
History demonstrates the white aristocracy in this nation has constantly used race as a way to keep the poor and middle class distracted and polarized. But it's not just race. Gay rights, women's control of their own bodies, claims of welfare cheats only in poor communities and religious fanaticism are all used as wedge issues to polarize those not in the upper income brackets. In all the internecine bickering and fighting the poor and middle class have not called out the rich for the incredible disparity of wealth. The richest 2% of Americans hold over 40% of all the wealth. The wealthiest10% in this nation hold 80% of the total assets of wealth.
Companies like Exxon, BP, Goldman-Sachs, Citibank and Chase pay little or no taxes. In fact some of the companies making the greatest profits actually get tax rebates or refunds! The typical American worker pays close to 28% of their income in taxes. That's before paying into health benefits..if available....Medicare and Social Security. Tax loopholes allowing the wealthiest to avoid paying anything, outsourcing jobs but still reaping great profits and all the other government give-aways aren't called welfare. A couple on disability making less than 20,000 each year, living in squalor, eating poorly, unable to get preventative health care are accused of leeching off the taxpayers. They're called welfare queens and resented by some who "work for a living". Who's really the welfare leeches?
So, this rant drifted from racism to economics. It is necessary to see the connection and the manipulation. The poor and middle class are pitted against each other through hateful issues like racism to obscure the deplorable behavior of the plutocrats. They seek to strip all power, financial and political, from the masses. They want to indenture the masses with debt and dependency on working in jobs that barely keep them in homes, buying food and buying on credit. They control the mainstream media. That gives them the power of controlling the information. The power to plant the seeds of hate and consumerism.
If we fail to challenge comments that are palpably racist,sexist or anyway disparaging and polarizing we only play into the plan of the oligarchy that has stolen our democracy and the freedoms alleged to be included.
Sunday, March 17
Random Thoughts Number.....hell I don't know...they're random!
Just a few random thoughts for the day.
My wife came back from a Catholic mass and told me the Knights of Columbus in all their regal glory came to present 924.00 for the parish school. Really??? They spend that much for their costumes making believe they are some royal guard of Christ. These are men in the Catholic Church who refuse to understand Columbus was a participant in the slaughter and enslavement of all the indigenous people he and his minions came across. He was about as Christian as Satan himself as he killed, tortured and enslaved a peaceful population of people. He stole their land and possessions in his obsessive need to bring a large bounty back to his queen.
So why do men in the 21st century continue to honor such a man? Why does the good Christian Catholic church allow and endorse this sect of men who also refuse to view women as their equals?
Another thought occurred to me about the new Pope. He professes to care about the impoverished and most in need. Does this mean he will take some of the huge wealth of his church to a pawn shop or auction to get the money needed to feed the people? Does this mean he will look at the epidemic HIV in parts of Africa and tell the Catholic NGOs and other representatives to provide condoms to help stem the epidemic? Will he look at the Catholic NGOs running health care institutions....like the Sisters of Mercy....or mercenaries...:? Will he demand they cease the harassment of the poor to pay the over-inflated hospital bills? Will he demand they stop charging the poor more for their medical care than any other population group because they lack insurance? I think not.
Another thought. There's a lot of discussion about new spending on mental health care here in Colorado. Thanks in part to the repeated slaughters of children and innocents by crazed killers wielding assault rifles, politicians (and the NRA) have decided the mentally ill need some attention. Of course few are stating the mentally ill are at least ten times more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrate violence. It's the alleged sane among us that are killing wives, children, bosses and any who have pissed them off. It's the negligence of adults who ignore the wars in the hoods of the poor that have gone on since the 60s. They're black and brown kids, so who gives a damn?
But blaming the gun violence and culture of violence on the mentally ill is easier than addressing the reasons for the constant killing or limiting access to assault weapons like most other civilized nations.
I wonder if all this money will go to treating the mentally ill in need of expanded services or if the local centers will carry on with the ineffective care of just providing pills and the discrimination against those without benefits.Working in the field, I sincerely doubt the money will improve the level of care or go to pay staff better or increase staff and lower case-loads.
Ok, another thought. Do the people realize they've been duped into austerity and draconian cuts to programs to help the poor and middle class? Research for TBI has been delayed because of the sequestration initiated by the neo-cons in Congress and acquiesced to by the liberals. Do the people realize state governments are being controlled by these rich neo-cons and they intend of giving the rich 1-2% large tax cuts at the expense of the middle class and poor? They intend on dismantling Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security at a local level as much as they can. They intend on taking over elected local governments like the city of Detroit and replacing the government with "managers" of the neo-con governor's choice. Managers who just happen to have thousands of dollars of liens on his own home. OOPS....how'd that happen? But surely he will bring Detroit out of financial hell better than the elected mayor and city council. Just has to break a few union agreements, take away from the poor and redistribute the wealth and power to the rich. And chase those black folks out of the city.
So, my racing thoughts and tangential thinking really disturb me. I think something's happening here. What is is ain't exactly clear. There's a man over there who tells me "beware".......while we sleep there are dark forces who intend we'll sleep less peacefully and have great anxiety in our lives. They intend on making the majority of us their economic slaves that never question the system of oligarchy. Or is that just paranoia?
My wife came back from a Catholic mass and told me the Knights of Columbus in all their regal glory came to present 924.00 for the parish school. Really??? They spend that much for their costumes making believe they are some royal guard of Christ. These are men in the Catholic Church who refuse to understand Columbus was a participant in the slaughter and enslavement of all the indigenous people he and his minions came across. He was about as Christian as Satan himself as he killed, tortured and enslaved a peaceful population of people. He stole their land and possessions in his obsessive need to bring a large bounty back to his queen.
So why do men in the 21st century continue to honor such a man? Why does the good Christian Catholic church allow and endorse this sect of men who also refuse to view women as their equals?
Another thought occurred to me about the new Pope. He professes to care about the impoverished and most in need. Does this mean he will take some of the huge wealth of his church to a pawn shop or auction to get the money needed to feed the people? Does this mean he will look at the epidemic HIV in parts of Africa and tell the Catholic NGOs and other representatives to provide condoms to help stem the epidemic? Will he look at the Catholic NGOs running health care institutions....like the Sisters of Mercy....or mercenaries...:? Will he demand they cease the harassment of the poor to pay the over-inflated hospital bills? Will he demand they stop charging the poor more for their medical care than any other population group because they lack insurance? I think not.
Another thought. There's a lot of discussion about new spending on mental health care here in Colorado. Thanks in part to the repeated slaughters of children and innocents by crazed killers wielding assault rifles, politicians (and the NRA) have decided the mentally ill need some attention. Of course few are stating the mentally ill are at least ten times more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrate violence. It's the alleged sane among us that are killing wives, children, bosses and any who have pissed them off. It's the negligence of adults who ignore the wars in the hoods of the poor that have gone on since the 60s. They're black and brown kids, so who gives a damn?
But blaming the gun violence and culture of violence on the mentally ill is easier than addressing the reasons for the constant killing or limiting access to assault weapons like most other civilized nations.
I wonder if all this money will go to treating the mentally ill in need of expanded services or if the local centers will carry on with the ineffective care of just providing pills and the discrimination against those without benefits.Working in the field, I sincerely doubt the money will improve the level of care or go to pay staff better or increase staff and lower case-loads.
Ok, another thought. Do the people realize they've been duped into austerity and draconian cuts to programs to help the poor and middle class? Research for TBI has been delayed because of the sequestration initiated by the neo-cons in Congress and acquiesced to by the liberals. Do the people realize state governments are being controlled by these rich neo-cons and they intend of giving the rich 1-2% large tax cuts at the expense of the middle class and poor? They intend on dismantling Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security at a local level as much as they can. They intend on taking over elected local governments like the city of Detroit and replacing the government with "managers" of the neo-con governor's choice. Managers who just happen to have thousands of dollars of liens on his own home. OOPS....how'd that happen? But surely he will bring Detroit out of financial hell better than the elected mayor and city council. Just has to break a few union agreements, take away from the poor and redistribute the wealth and power to the rich. And chase those black folks out of the city.
So, my racing thoughts and tangential thinking really disturb me. I think something's happening here. What is is ain't exactly clear. There's a man over there who tells me "beware".......while we sleep there are dark forces who intend we'll sleep less peacefully and have great anxiety in our lives. They intend on making the majority of us their economic slaves that never question the system of oligarchy. Or is that just paranoia?
Friday, March 15
Goodbye to Facebook
This past week I closed my facebook account. Why? Because FB has become a tool of consumerism and the very world I want to see changed. It consumes time but does little to help affect the changes we need to bring peace and justice to our world. Too many copy and paste news items that are already available to any who seek the truth. Too many box themselves in to only one perspective and fail to understand there are forces needing our attention in person not online. So, there was a choice to spend my time online seeking approval of my thoughts or to venture out into the world and let my voice be heard and to listen to other voices while I look the person in the eye. That's called face to face.
Welcome Jackson Conrad....grandson
Welcome to the world, Jackson Conrad...my newest grandson. I hope the world will become a better place because of you. I hope we will make it a better place for you to live. Some say we should not bring children into a world so hateful and violent. One where 1 of every 5 or 6 children live in poverty and go to bed hungry. One where war seems perpetual. One where humans fail to honor the glory of nature and instead have brought us to the brink of destruction through pollution and horrible ignorance of the environmental damage we do. It is a dangerous world and one that truly needs change. One that needs true peace and justice for all. One that needs true democracy and true freedom.
So, Jackson, we leave a world for you that needs your help when you're able to help. May you grow up with a moral view of the world. A view that doesn't allow all the negatives to overwhelm you. May you become a person who resists against the tyranny and oppression of the materialistic world of corporate and governmental corruption. May you see others as your brothers and sisters and like another JC find joy in humility and helping others.
I wish I could have helped bring a better world to you, grandson. But, I think the world will be better because you have arrived.
So, Jackson, we leave a world for you that needs your help when you're able to help. May you grow up with a moral view of the world. A view that doesn't allow all the negatives to overwhelm you. May you become a person who resists against the tyranny and oppression of the materialistic world of corporate and governmental corruption. May you see others as your brothers and sisters and like another JC find joy in humility and helping others.
I wish I could have helped bring a better world to you, grandson. But, I think the world will be better because you have arrived.
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