Thursday Q and A (6.23)

Cornel West
"Dr. West, what are your impressions of fundamentalist Christian cultural and political influence - both here in America and now, the entire world?"

"The religious threats to democratic practices abroad are much easier to talk about than those at home. Just as demagogic and anti-democratic fundamentalisms have gained too much prominence in both Israel and the Islamic world, so too has a fundamentalist strain of Christianity gained far too much power in our political system, and in the hearts and minds of citizens. This Christian fundamentalism is exercising an undue influence over our government policies, both in the Middle East crisis and in the domestic sphere, and is violating fundamental principles enshrined in the Constitution: it is also providing support and "cover" for the imperialist aims of empire. The three dogmas that are leading to the imperial devouring of democracy in America--free market fundamentalism, aggressive militarism, and escalating authoritarianism--are often justified by the religious rhetoric of this Christian fundamentalism. And perhaps most ironically, and sadly, this fundamentalism is subverting the most profound, seminal teachings of Christianity."

Cornel West, Democracy Matters, p. 146

Carlo Maria Giulini (1914-2005)

Carlo Maria Giulini, the 20th-century giant of conducting who considered himself a reverential servant of the great composers, died at age 91 in northern Italy. Bio

Thursday Q and A (6.16)

Alexis de Tocqueville
"Monsieur Tocqueville, since you spent years observing Americans and American penal systems, what would you say your most important observation was?"

"Americans talk very much about individual rights, but real monotony of thought and vigorous independence of mind is rare. Even those who appear to be free-thinkers really look to a constituency and expect one day to be part of a majority. They are creatures of public opinion as much as are conformists - actors of nonconformism in the theater of the conformists who admire and applaud nonconformity of certain kinds, the kinds that radicalize the already dominant opinions."

Tocqueville - Democracy in America (1832)

WRH: The Lie of the Century

Forget the Jackson Smokescreen,

here's the story:
The Lie of the Century

Well, it's finally over. The jury came back on the Michael Jackson case, and as predicted just in time to give the media an excuse to drop all reporting of the Downing Street Memo in advance of the Conyers hearings this Thursday.

I don't even care what the verdict was. Compared to the crime of a President that lied this nation into a war, the Michael Jackson case is a microscopic event. Yet we know the media will attempt to make the verdict the major headline for as long as it takes to trick the American people into forgetting that the President lied us all into a war. They helped sell the lie of Iraq's WMDs to the public, and now they are stuck with the lie and must defend it at all costs. In a way, it is ironic that the same mainstream media that tried to smear the blogs as "journalistically unprofessional" are about to lower themselves collectively to the level of supermarket checkout stand tabloids in their rush to distract the American people from the fact that this war their kids are being killed and crippled in is based on a bunch of deliberate government and media lies.

via What Really Happened:

Thursday Q and A (6.9)

George Orwell

"Mr. Orwell, does the recent American approach of lying its way into conquering Iraq make it a justified, winnable war?"

"It is not a matter of whether the war is not real or if it is. Victory is not possible. The war is not meant to be won. It is meant to be continuous. A hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance. This new version is the past. And no different past can ever have existed. In principle, the war effort is always planned to keep society on the brink of starvation. The war is waged by the ruling group against its own subjects. And its object is not the victory over either Eurasia or Eastasia, but to keep the very structure of society in tact."

PostSecret

Hidden Secrets
posted and blogged

or this one:

Thursday Q and A (6.2)

Buddha
"Your Holiness, in this present moment, how can one rationally come to spiritual discernment of the supposed Christian tradition(s) of tolerance, love and integrity?"

"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it."

What's it Like Outside?

David Lynch's
Daily Weather Report

Rock bands with Integrity v.1

Nine Inch Nails

said on Friday it canceled plans to appear on next week's MTV Movie Awards after the network questioned the band's plans to perform in front of an image of President Bush.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters)

The band was slated to perform "The Hand That Feeds," the first single from its latest album. A Los Angeles Times review called the song "a warning against blind acceptance of authority, including that of a president leading his nation to war."

"We were set to perform 'The Hand That Feeds' with an unmolested, straightforward image of George W. Bush as the backdrop. Apparently, the image of our president is as offensive to MTV as it is to me," Nine Inch Nails' leader Trent Reznor said in a statement posted on the band's Web site.

MTV said in a statement: "While we respect Nine Inch Nails' point of view, we were uncomfortable with their performance being built around a partisan political statement. When we discussed our discomfort with the band, their choice was to unfortunately pull out of the Movie Awards."

MTV is owned by Viacom Inc., the corporate parent of broadcast network CBS.

Who said the organ store at the mall was dead?

Music Store Manager Arrested for Selling Alzheimer's Victim 11 Organs

PORT RICHEY, Fla. (AP) - An Alzheimer's disease victim bought 11 organs in 18 months from a music store manager who convinced the 79-year-old woman she would play better if she had a more expensive instrument, authorities said.

Scott Lewis Heyder, 36, was charged Thursday with felony exploitation of the elderly and held on $10,000 bail at the Pasco County Jail. Pasco County Sheriff's detectives said Heyder sold the woman expensive organs even after her family pleaded with him to stop.
The woman spent about $25,000 on organs and ended up with one worth only about half that, said sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll. She has not received any money back from the music store, he said.

"I think it's unconscionable, especially after the family confronted this sales person and said our mother has mental failings due to Alzheimer's, she doesn't know what she's doing," Doll said.

The Spring Hill woman began buying and trading organs at the Fletcher Music Center at Gulfview Square Mall in 2003 after taking lessons there. Detectives requested that she not be publicly identified, fearing she might become the victim of another financial scam.

Heyder encouraged her to buy an organ for about $1,650, detectives said, and within days he urged her to trade up for an organ costing nearly double. Weeks later, the woman had traded up organs twice more to one costing nearly $5,000 and her family confronted Heyder.

But less than a year later, Heyder sold the woman more organs, the sheriff's office said, including four on a single day in August.

When she was questioned, the woman told detectives she only remembered buying three or four organs over the years instead of the 11 transactions investigators documented.

A telephone message seeking comment was left at Heyder's home and not returned Thursday. Officials at Fletcher's Music also did not immediately return calls for comment.

Meanwhile, a 79-year-old Jacksonville woman suffering from memory loss paid more than $90,000 to a landscaper for yard work, authorities said Thursday.

David Brian Phillips, 26, of Jacksonville, was charged Wednesday with felony exploitation of the elderly, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's office. He was released from the Duval County jail on $50,000 bail.

The woman hired Phillips in 2002 to cut the lawn and trim hedges, along with other maintenance duties, on her Jacksonville property, police said.

Phillips was to be paid about $80 a month, but police said he charged the woman every few weeks for work he had not done.

"I just paid him," the woman told police. "At that time, I didn't have anyone else to do my work."
Phillips could not be reached for comment late Thursday by The Associated Press.

AP-ES-05-26-05 2116EDT

Thursday Q and A (5.26)

Henry Wallace
"Mr. Wallace: having witnessed the violent European fascist uprising of the 1930's & 40's, are there any parallels to be made with America today?"

"The American fascist would prefer not to use violence. His method is to poison the channels of public information. With fascists, the problem is never how best to present the truth to the public but how best to use the news [media] to deceive the public."

Henry Wallace, New York Times, April 9, 1944

It's Official: My Sister is a Terrorist

from Dept. of Homeland Security
Case # 2005OK0536

Dear Ms. Brazieal:
During a screening process on Friday, April 22, 2005, at the Metropolitan Oakland Intl. Airport (OAK), a knife with a 3 1/4-inch folding blade was discovered. Items of this type are not allowed on-board an aircraft or in the sterile area of the airport without authorization.
Bringing prohibited items to the security screening checkpoint, even accidentally, lengthens the security screening process, violates federal regulations and may, in serious or repeat cases, result in monetary penalties and/or criminal prosecution. A list of permitted and prohibited items is available at www.tsatraveltips.us. Please check this list before your next trip.
If you have a question about whether a particular item is permitted, please check our website or contact our Consumer Response Center at 1.866.289.9673. We appreciate your future compliance with all security measures.
At this time, the Transportation Security Administration has determined that this Warning Notice adequately addresses this incident.

Sincerely yours,
Fred H. Lau
Federal Security Director
Metropolitan Oakland International Airport

Lisa says:
About a month ago, I was standing in an astronomically long security line at the Oakland airport, cutting it a bit close to make my flight in time. When I checked my bag through security, they found something suspicious and pulled me aside asking if I had brought a knife with me. I had completely forgotten to remove an expensive wine and cheese knife that had been brought back from France as a gift from a friend.
They quickly directed me to another stopping point where a security officer extracted and recorded all of my personal information. Afterwards they told me I had two options:

1. I could go to the airport gift shop, buy an envelope, stamps and mail it to myself.
2. Check it through at the ticket counter.

Of course, both "options" would mean I would have to que up in the 45 minute security line again. Much to my anger, frustration, and resolve, I had to relinquish the knife because I would not have enough time to make my flight if I had to go through security all over again. Thank goodness it wasn't a family heirloom.
One month later, I received the (above) letter in the mail with a return address from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security:

I think my friend Will said it best who suggested a three-word response to the letter:

Dear Sirs,
Was this ironic?
Sincerely,
Lisa B.

Will went on to note that, "The irony is that THEY are the ones who stole property based on unsubstantiated claims of fear. So who's the terrorist here?"

I must say, I'm quite proud of the letter and plan to frame it. I know for certain that my dad would be REALLY proud of me for being on a government "list!"

Thursday Night Excitement:

Okkervil River
in Portland

Last time here, they were amazing...should be good!

Who will be?

Our Wat Tyler ?

Our John Brown ?