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Open Bouquet ...,
Shelters (2) ...,
"Sexual Fantasy" Sculpture Exhibit ...,
Aider la nigérienne Amina Awal ...,
Les analyses du Vagabond ...,
Hell in Shelters ...,
Millions for Reparations March ...,
"The World Journal" ...
The Democracy Now radio program from New York today carried a report about a new radio station that has been set up to beam U.S. propaganda to Iraq, like Radio Marti beams to Cuba, telling Iraqis that they have nothing to fear from a U.S. invasion. The U.S. promises to free the residents of the sovereign state of Iraq, even as it plans to bomb them to hell. The New York Times today reports that the occupation of Iraq may follow the model of the U.S. occupation of Japan after WWII. The U.S., sitting on the second largest proven reserve of oil in the world: SUV owners have nothing to fear for the future.
Harold
alden-conaty@sympatico.ca
In today's 'Guardian Unlimited':
US plans military rule and occupation of Iraq
Saddam would be replaced by General Tommy Franks
***
In Poland the Gauleiter's name was Frank. WM
Sorry Bill -- No offense intended. I didn't really think you were advocating getting rid of the shelters, but I still beg to differ with you.
The way to increase the "security" of shelters for even the most vulnerable is neither more security cameras nor armed guards. The only sure way to make your local shelter more secure, user friendly, and effective is to go to the front desk and say these four words: I'd like to volunteer! I don't know that any shelter would turn you away if you asked to be a friendly visitor once a week, and for that evening your eyes would be an extra set of intelligent security cameras as they see misery and hope of the homeless; your ears could listen for threats as they are attuned to the reality of street; and your lips with the potential to sound the alarm could be a constant source of blessing to those around you.
Some groups want people on their boards who can raise a bunch of money to get stuff and support programs -- I'd like that too -- but more importantly I want folks who will give one evening a week to sit with the families, to listen and to care and to be present with them.
My point was that shelters need the humanizing effect of more volunteers to effectively serve those in need.
IHS and YoursHerb -- the Volunteer solution is practically unrealisable; they'll never be numerous enough and will remain dispersed like dust in infinity. People who are active and numerous enough to make difference are already grouped in organisations, institutions -- people like you, or monks and nuns, socialists, communists, anarchists, you name them. And those people get involved in the clearly visible, catchy issues -- environment, hunger, war and peace... The sufferings that are hidden, discrete will never catch enough general attention to trigger action, interest and change. Have you ever visited slaughterhouses, circuses, isolation cells, etc, where the tormentor is king? You won't get access there. Only the fist of the law can make a difference, insufficient of course, but better than nothing. Coming back to the problems in the shelters: those designated as particularly vulnerable should have their own compartments where control will be tighter. WM
I attended an art show at Gallery See in Toronto last week called "Sexual Fantasy", clay sculpture by Luc Bihan. You'd think I'd know what to expect -- the invitation was explicit. Still, when I entered the gallery and saw the assembled breasts, penises and body parts a barrier went up, that barrier that says, now I mustn't be offended by this, it's probably art. I hate to confess it but it's so. Clay can be an intimate warm expressive medium and with this subject matter I felt equally attracted and repelled. "Breast Tree", almost three feet high, shows female breasts straining and dangling, almost a Christmas tree topped by a grasping hand reaching for the sky. Another sculpture showed two breasts dangling from a plaque like trophies. The work was beautifully executed and full of life but I needed a break! I looked at the drawing portfolio. Each figure was an individual, not an anonymous model, drawn with a vibrant line. An album gave a brief survey of erotic art throughout history, observing that good art always threw the observer off balance (that's how I remember it). It wasn't long before I was putting the work in a context -- the "too real" and "scary looking" breasts started to look humorous -- like those exploding ink bottles and walking pens in the old black and white cartoons of the 20s and 30s. Or they could have been gargoyles, each one with its own personality. Still there were a few sculptures I could not look at, still scary, too real. Is it my female sensibility? Well, I don't want to work too hard, I'll settle for the fun and talent in the ones I enjoyed. There is a line somewhere between raw reality and the artist's intuition and decision. Luc Bihan's magnetism embodies this discord. It should be rewarding to follow the road he takes with his dynamism and talent. His web page address is http://www.lucsculpture.com
Nikole
nikole@idirect.ca
I saw his work and I call him 'Druid-Etruscan' because of his Breton origin and his French - Mediterranean cultural background. WM
Amnesty a mis en ligne une pétition pour Amina Awal, la nigériane condamnée à la lapidation (ne pas confondre avec un cas précédent où la condamnée a été finalement sauvée). La pétition se trouve à l'adresse
http://www.mertonai.org/amina/OpenLetter.htm
Lapider une femme n' a pas de sens , nous sommes au 21ième siècle.
Cela nous paraît comme une absurdité à nous européens d'entendre une telle chose, nous repensons au temps de l'inquisition alors que notre société se dit être une société civilisée...
Il y a tellement d'incompréhension et d'intolérance dans l'Islam qu'il m'est difficile à moi chrétienne vivant ma foi tous les jours en essayant d'agir pour le bien des autres et pour glorifier mon Père céleste de croire que nous aimons le même Dieu et je ne parle pas de religion (inventée par l'homme et souvent destructrice) mais de notre Dieu ,Maître Souverain de l'univers, Dieu, un Père aimant, seul juge.
Nous savons que suivant notre culture, le mariage à un quonotation différente, je ne me permettrais donc pas de juger la culture nigérienne mais je ne peux admettre qu'au nom d'un Dieu s'Amour appeller Allah pour l'Islam, une femme qui aime au point de procréer soit jugée. Qu'est-ce le mariage si ce n'est d'aimer un seul homme , de lui promettre fidèlité et de lui donner une descendance??? Quel crime cette femme a-t-elle commis??? et lui, son partenaire, qu'en est-t-il? ne faut-il pas être deux pour accomplir un tel acte??? Je suis mère de famille et je peux affirmer que le plus beau cadeau jamais reçu dans ma vie c'est ma fille.
Educatrice de formation, j'ai passé plus de 15 ans de ma vie à m'occuper d'enfants malheureux et je vous assure que c'est très dure d'essayer d'aider un enfant qui ne connaît pas l'amour. Qu'adviendra-t-il de cet enfant, quelqu'un y a penser...sans père, ni mère. Quel avenir lui réserve t-on à cette petite fille, et la descrimination des femmes dans tout cela...
Gisèle
"gisele allard"
Je ne te dirais pas si je suis d'accord ou non avec tes analyses sur le Proche-Orient et l'Irak, parce que mon opinion n'est pas particulierement importante. Et puis, de toutes facons, il est bon que tous les points de vue s'expriment librement. En ce qui me concerne, je ne peux plus être objectif en parlant de ces choses-là, parce que je me sens solidaire des Juifs et des Israéliens. Si je lis dans "Le Monde" que Saddam verse de l'argent aux familles des kamikazes palestiniens, et qu'il s'en vante dans la presse irakienne, ma premiere réaction est de penser qu'il faudrait l'éliminer.
Mais je reconnais que la politique étasunienne est, si on la contempls sur le long terme, aberrante, puisque les Etats-Unis avaient d'abord soutenu ce Saddam Hussein dans sa guerre contre l'Iran...
Jean-Loup
(email withheld by request)
Who pays the families of Kamikazes is irrelevant because those people don't send their close ones to die for money. Religion, despite its importance, isn't a primary motivator either. In all national upheavals religion serves nationalism and not vice versa. Nations hoist religion as part of national identity. If we look at Notre Dame Cathedral, what do we think of first? Catholic Notre Dame or French Notre Dame? As I said before, once Communism fell, religious fervour subsided. The same thing will happen to the Islamic masses. Once the settler-commandos leave Palestinian territory and go back to Israel the Kamikaze drive will stop. Once the Western powers stop hungrily eyeing the oil fields in Iraq and Iran, hatred will end and terrorism will become a distant memory. WM
Hi... I'm writing to chew you out for not getting it... The irony is I agree with you that the homeless guy in your neighborhood, and millions more like him across the nation, need our help. I even agree that shelters, even the best ones are a bad solution to that problem. But for many at least for now they are a necessary evil as they are the only help available. So what's the solution to this problem?
There's a new exhibit at the BU Library (I think it's called "Visas") that details how hundreds of thousands of Jews were spared the Holocaust because a number of bureaucrats from several different nations independently started issuing visas and traveling papers to Jews. These papers were fake but they were blessed lies. Some even continued doing this despite being told to stop by their governments I'm sure their were others in a position to help who saw the atrocity but did nothing but write memos.
I would be interested to hear what you are doing to help your unfortunate neighbor? How often do you set with him at your table to eat with your family. Have you offered him a spare room for the coldest months so that he wouldn't need my help. Are you lighting a candle or just cursing the darkness?
A few years ago, the church I go to (just 10 of us) just started taking food to the state parks where families were camped out for the summer. That lead to opening a small shelter (2 families) for homeless women with children in the church sanctuary (it's house church). Then we went out to the community to recruit families who would take homeless moms and kids into their own homes. Before the state closed our program down because they were afraid of the insurance issues we had as many as 25 Home-Shares a night. Real folks like you who would take a needy family right into their own home. Now we run two house shelters with apartments for 10 families to share with our volunteers and staff.
I visited a Church in LA that made a conscious decision not to remove the boxes where the homeless guys slept from beside their steps but rather to engage in the effort to help him find a better way and a better place to live. That's really thinking outside of the box.
But you wouldn't even have to be that daring -- How about this? Most shelters are woefully understaffed! -- If you and your neighbors would just give a night or two a week to volunteer at the local shelter that would go a long way toward assuring your friend and everyone else would feel valued and be much safer.
I'm really glad you are sensitive to the needs around you and I hope that you will encourage your readers to put works to your words. Thanks for listening to my rant.
Herb Newell
ucb4u@attbi.com
IHS and Yours
Rev Herb Newell
for Friends of the Homeless
of the South Shore
Where did you read that I'm for eliminating shelters? Shelters are not the issue, safety is the issue. Of course replacing shelters with personal charity would be impossible. I just want shelters accessible for those who can't use them because they're dangerous for the vulnerable. Just as women and children have their protection ensured, let's extend this protection to those who are unable to defend themselves otherwise they die inside or outside the shelters. You don't need an army of cops in shelters, just monitoring devices. WM
I would like to know why the American black people are not pissed off at their ancestors back in Africa for selling their relatives into slavery? Why are the blacks so upset at the white Americans for buying them from black Africans who sold them into salvery. For it were the Africans selling thier own people, the whites did NOT force them into slavery. White Americans could not have puchased something that wasn't for sale!! Therefore, the black Africans should be punished for selling thier own people into slavery, NOT the American who bought them. The native Africans were selling their own people for profit. So get pissed off at them, not the white Americans! Have you black people thought about this idea before?
BAMAPOLO@aol.com
I addressed this topic on the Communication Page in the last issue. WM
The reader is invited to visit http://www.daniellesgarden.org and read "The World Journal".
At present, the editorial board is seeking contributions of worthwhile scientific papers, on topics as are listed on the site:
1. Issues concerning the Kyoto Treaty
2. Global warming
3. Stem cell research
4. The ethics of bio-technology
5. The use of plant extracts in pharmacology
It is assured that this effort is for a worthy cause, and I thank you for taking time to visit the site.
Replies to barnett46@hotmail.com.
Sincerely,
(Curator) Courtenay Barnett
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William Markiewicz