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Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Open Thread: Get It Off Your Chest
We haven't had an open thread for some time. With all the confusing, complex situations we're witnessing on the planet these days, I thought it was a perfect time to open up the blog to what you're thinking and feeling. Click on the Comments tab and keyboard away. What's on your mind? Any links, videos or images to share? Let it all hang out right here.
July 26, 2006 at 12:11 PM in Open Thread | Permalink
Comments
New to this blog. Very good information. What is on my mind is why Democrats aren't speaking up against the bad attacks on Lebanon. They are bombing ordinary people and things people need to live. Why aren't Democrats leading the way to stop this? Why why why?
Posted by: Miguel | Jul 26, 2006 1:01:52 PM
OK, I'm participating in my own open thread. Check out this video:
Posted by: barb | Jul 26, 2006 1:08:51 PM
Miguel....I soo agree with you....what we are watching is a genocide. In fact we are co-partnering a genocide or republicans and democrats are co-partnering this atrocity. I cannot fathom how one can look at papers, magazines, TV coverage and internet coverage of this destruction and not be saying STOP.
It sickens me.
I want to say this phrase is now more than ever ....
NOT IN MY NAME!!!
ALL THIS KILLING AND DESTRUCTION.
NOT IN MY NAME!!!!
Posted by: meb | Jul 26, 2006 1:53:11 PM
There are so many things going wrong at once it is hard to keep them all straight or know where to begin to try and fix them. It still seems like too many Americans support Bush, his wars and his criminal acts.
I'm trying to think of something positive. Anyone have any positive thoughts? Maybe taking a walk is the best thing to do.
Posted by: Old Dem | Jul 26, 2006 2:31:26 PM
It sucks that Bill Clinton is campaigning for the traitor to Dems Lieberman. I guess he doesn't care that Joe back stabbed him during the Lewinsky thing. Go Lamont! We need some candidates like him here in NM.
Posted by: El Norte | Jul 26, 2006 3:42:48 PM
Old dem: A walk is a good thing.
My way to deal is to say it is out of my control I can do what I can. God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the power to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.
The power in this simple serenity prayer helps me. I try to do what I can for the many horrible situations we are facing.
I can pause and see beauty for others that cannot do that right now. Sounds corny but i can think of the people suffering and try to send love and strength through the energy waves. I can pause and hope that their passage to the other side was a peaceful voyage.
More pain and destruction is coming. It will eventually affect all of us greatly I believe. As Ned Lamont says..we cannot be putting $250 mil a day over to iraq and not feel the result here. The result of health care coverage failing, schools failing, our whole infrastructer failing! I agree we all need some tool to get through what the future holds.
Love the ones your with rings a bell!
Posted by: meb | Jul 26, 2006 4:47:12 PM
Right now I just came in from the rain and thunder and lightening and it was very powerful and beautiful. The smells and sounds and the feel of the big drops on my skin. Wetness is always a blessing in Nm. I thought about how lucky we are to be able to enjoy such simple pleasures while so many are suffering from the bombings and killings supported by our government. We must stop it.
I like to focus on natural things when manmade things get crazy in the world. That beauty is always there for the taking.
Posted by: desert solitaire | Jul 26, 2006 5:13:11 PM
I give myself a daily ration of "dread" input. When I'm about to be overwhelmed, I take that as a signal to switch to action mode and cut off the input. This week's dread input is certainly horrendous with Lebanon, Heather's commercials, Iraq, the environment, Medicare/Medicaid....
This week's action mode included having coffee with someone I'd like to see run for our neighborhood association board, putting out the neighborhood association newsletter, passing a resolution in our neighborhood association requesting that the appropriate authorities work on safer testing procedures for drinking water, working on a project to launch a talk show on radio 1350KABQ.
Somewhat tangentially getting students in my Social Problems class (after reading an article on services in Finland) to defend why they think America is or is NOT the greatest country in the world has been fun. After an initial amount of blustering, I can see they have gotten the message, namely we're not nearly as great as we're made out to be. And, this is also the week when they're writing state legislators about an issue that they think is important - a small step but hopefully small steps precede larger ones.
Posted by: | Jul 27, 2006 7:18:38 AM
Was at the ethics task force meeting yesterday and it was packed. Great to see it. We need to fix our laws or expect more of the same. All are encouraged to support and work with Common Cause on this. If we don't get fixes now we may never get them.
Posted by: Roadrunner | Jul 27, 2006 8:58:14 AM
Good ideas here for dealing with almost nonstop stressful news. Centering, sending positive energy out, cultivating compassion, walking, nature and action. I know if I was't involved in activism I'd be burning up inside. I think every small action helps change things, though change can seem to arrive at a glacial pace. (I guess if the glaciers continue to melt at record pace, we won't be able to use that description!)
Oh, how I ache for a tipping point....
Posted by: barb | Jul 27, 2006 9:44:30 AM
Can you believe the Republicans are still voting against a raise in the minimum wage? Even worse, Heather Wilson and the others voted themselves a pay raise while keeping the "peasants" at $5.15 an hour. I think it's unAmerican, as Republicans are always prone to say.
Posted by: Silver City Jan | Jul 27, 2006 10:04:45 AM
suz how important to be teaching and encouraging the next generation!
Right on!
Posted by: meb | Jul 27, 2006 1:03:23 PM
Here's one from Chaves County. The Chaves County Democratic Party had planned a rally in a city park for several weeks. Attendees were asked to bring a side dish to help out with the food and expense. The city had been informed of this for weeks. Then today, Thursday July 27th, less than 24 hours before the event was to begin the city informed that only the organizers could bring food. Needless to say, this negtates some dishes some people had prepared and puts an economic and logistical crimp in the Rally plans. The city's reason for this late change: they "forgot". Yes, they "forgot" about their rules for weeks until less than 24 hours before the event. Is this incompetence? Or is this the actions of Republican controlled everything in Plantation Roswell.
Posted by: Marc | Jul 27, 2006 8:16:51 PM
