3.01.2016
***** WATCH: Samantha Bee Brilliantly Goes After Democrats Whose Apathy Allowed the Rise of The Donald "You built that," the late night host says.
12.20.2015
***** The American Papers that Praised Hitler
12.11.2015
'But James, there are many activists in Washington DC that you could work with and help. You really should get out and you need to try and find them. There are still some people in town from the Occupy movement for example. You really should try. You really should open your eyes....' My reply.......
'But James, there are many activists in Washington DC that you could work with and help. You really should get out and you need to try and find them. There are still some people in town from the Occupy movement for example. You really should try. You really should open your eyes....'
My reply, in an email, an hour or so later. (It took me awhile after this conversation to adjust to the fact that this young professional who has worked with me in a social work capacity for several years now thanks I am such a functioning idiot, quite literally. And, of course, I may be.):
There may be many, even many many, activists, worthy of the name in DC. Or, I may be correct, that there are 1, maybe two, maybe three worthy the name.
Without question your view is the widely held one and mine held almost by none. But one who has done immense scholarly work on this subject, chris Hedges, who to my eyes is the most important intellectual writing in the world today, his second most recent book, which I finished about a month ago now, is entitled death of the liberal class. I recommend it, and his most recent book, the wages of rebellion, that is, the virtually ultimate price that the true activists have to pay, I recommend those books above the dozens or hundreds of others that I value. In his book, the death of a little class, he documents that beginning particularly with Woodrow Wilson in the early 19 Hundred's the right wing began a campaign that by the late sixties had pretty well located and exterminated those who were worthy of the name activists by any historical measure. And they thereby implemented systems that have pretty well prevented all but one in a million potential True activists from emerging ever since.
This has been my view, to my increasing day by day horror, each day that I have been in DC as an activist for the last 8 years or so. And every week I get More data points that suggest it's worse than I thought it was the week before. What was amazing to me was that in benefiting from the scholarship that hedges shared it was so much worse, so much more systematic, and started so much earlier than I had realized.
In one of the Star Wars movies in an instant, in a coordinated instant throughout the galaxy all but one or two of the Jedi are wiped out. That's basically what has happened and those that consider themselves activists, my brothers and sisters all, today, are the faintest ineffectual shadows of what true activists, those who have the chance of working miraculous change in society, consist of. And even worse, they want not to know how far they are from being what they need. And it is so sad, the future doesn't really matter for old folks like me, but the young ones, don't even want to know what it would take to give themselves a future. They profoundly lack the courage to look in the mirror, to look at history, to realize that they are not measuring up, to give themselves the chance to see that they could measure up if they chose to apply themselves. That may be the saddest thing of all.
I love to try and be, with every breath, and/or to become, one of those one in a million, and try to inspire, support, enable... those who exist or are dying to become.
One of the clear leaders of the Occupy movement from McPherson Square was in town after a year or so two weeks ago. He and I had spent much time together in and around McPherson Square . He looked me up and we shared for about an hour and a half. As he was leaving he looked me in the eye and he said, in my whole life, you are my North Star.
The above was inspired by our brief conversation today. It is certainly not something to which I want or need a reply. FYI.
Enjoy your weekend. James
12.10.2015
Opposing refugee resettlement is giving ISIS what it wants
12.07.2015
***** Hatred of Israel was reported motive for CA attack, but US press ignores the story
12.01.2015
***** I think that kindness, charity, are criminal, self-serving, cowardly luxuries from the over-privileged like me behind which we hide from our moral duty of lived solidarity with the global neediest. I am sorry for this lifelong error of mine.
***** I think that kindness, charity, are criminal, self-serving, cowardly luxuries from the over-privileged like me behind which we hide from our moral duty of lived solidarity with the global neediest. I am sorry for this lifelong error of mine.
11.22.2015
John Pilger: From Pol Pot to ISIS: the Blood Never Dried
11.19.2015
***** I am horrified by the heartlessness that Americans are displaying to our Syrian family. But I must recognize that those showing such apparent heartlessness are also the most educationally, economically, financially, empathically disabled among us. And as usual......
***** I am horrified by the heartlessness that Americans are displaying to our Syrian family. But I must recognize that those showing such apparent heartlessness are also the most educationally, economically, financially, empathically disabled among us. And as usual, the most advantaged of us in these categories sit black and blame them rather than rolling up their sleeves to try and help. This blaming of our most disadvantaged white brothers and sisters in America by we more advantaged is why they hate us so much. No, our charity, our crumbs that we allow to fall to them, does not count. Before all of the ugly, fascist takeovers, there was the nice advantaged folks like us. Giving platitudes rather than real help.
***** If you have not yet read the book by Chris Hedges, death of the liberal class, I implore for you to do so as soon as possible. I have just finished it. I am immensely critical, profoundly critical, of the left in this country for its timidity, cowardice, and in action. You may recall.......
If you have not yet read the book by Chris Hedges, death of the liberal class, I implore for you to do so as soon as possible. I have just finished it. I am immensely critical, profoundly critical, of the left in this country for its timidity, cowardice, and in action. You may recall that about me. Hedges has done the scholarship of which I was profoundly unaware. Things are much much much much worse than I had understood. This book provides the hundred year historical underpinnings of how true opposition has been systematically and totally wiped out. Remember how in Star Wars at one point all of the Jedi throughout the galaxies are executed. That's what has happened over the last hundred years. The longer we delay in facing the horrible truth that we are not an opposition, but that an opposition has existed in the past, and learn to stand on the shoulders of the past, we are not becoming the hope that is needed.
Here Are 5 American Leaders Standing Against the Fear of Syrian Refugees Elizabeth Warren, Barack Obama, and three governors push back against the rising tide of anti-refugee sentiment.
11.11.2015
Obama Defied GOP to Make Peace with Iran -- Now It's Time for Palestine
Oberlin College Board of Trustees rejects divestment proposal amidst lack of transparency
11.10.2015
***** When the last Palestinian rights are finally destroyed, once and for all, your human rights will have been totally destroyed as well......
***** Covertly or overtly they were neglect to not band together to stand up for each other's rights to whatever degree was necessary. This is the problem with Palestine and we Americans. Until it is way too late......
***** Covertly or overtly they were neglect to not band together to stand up for each other's rights to whatever degree was necessary. This is the problem with Palestine and we Americans. Until it is way too late we will not face the fact that there is only one set of human rights, the human rights that apply to all of us and therefore are defended by all of us. We are allowing those human rights in the final stages of destruction in Palestine. When we finally look up the human rights of us all will be nothing but feces at our feet. Or rather, choking our throats.
11.05.2015
***** The hunting down and murder of the Jedi. It has happened, here in America, systematically, over the last hundred years. Read the book by Chris Hedges, death of the liberal class. This is no joke. This is where we are.
***** The hunting down and murder of the Jedi. It has happened, here in America, systematically, over the last hundred years. Read the book by Chris Hedges, death of the liberal class. This is no joke. This is where we are.
10.15.2015
***** 1,000 Palestinians Wounded, 24 Killed, Yet Hillary Clinton Laments Only Israeli Deaths
10.12.2015
NPR fails to mention occupation– while Barghouti says in Guardian it is ‘root cause’ of violence
10.09.2015
***** nd. Regarding campus shootings: This is no tragedy. Tragedy is when you have taken every reasonable precaution and things go wrong. Consequence, reasonable consequence, is when you have not cared to take every reasonable precaution. This is no tragedy. It is a crime by we on lookers
This is no tragedy. Tragedy is when you have taken every reasonable precaution and things go wrong. Consequence, reasonable consequence, is when you have not cared to take every reasonable precaution. This is no tragedy. It is a crime by we on lookers
9.25.2015
nd. To the liberal masses that incessantly place all hope for environmental future on the President, Congress, the media, the GOP...: If my parents generation had not risen by the millions to put their life limb and treasure on the line against the Nazis history would not be pointing at FDR, it would be pointing at them. So it will be for us.
To the liberal masses that incessantly place all hope for environmental future on the President, Congress, the media, the GOP...: If my parents generation had not risen by the millions to put their life limb and treasure on the line against the Nazis history would not be pointing at FDR, it would be pointing at them. So it will be for us.