Every once in a while an idea gobsmacks me with its brilliant simplicity. Meet Knitting Liberally:
These little works of art, knit with yarn donated by Webs, are awaiting their trip to the New England Learning Center for Women in Transition (NELCWIT), where they will be distributed to the children they serve as part of our Knitting Liberally Giving Project.
Today was the due date for turning in the toys. However, if you did not quite make it in time, but will be finished with your cuddly submission by the end of the week, contact us and we will work out a plan to get your toy before we deliver them to NELCWIT.
Thanks, everyone, for donating your hard work, talent and time to this project!
Bill Scher, of Liberal Oasis, was telling me about this at Take Back America, and I just think it’s a brilliant way to tap into under-served networking potential and also find a like-minded pal group in your community among whom you can talk politics and life and…well, pretty much what we do here every Saturday morning. Just imagine for a moment what a great community network could be built out of a few building blocks set into place in your area.
And then I started spinning off potential ideas in my brain as I was driving home from TBA:
– Community Cooking And Serving Liberally — a group that could volunteer at a local soup kitchen a couple of times a month.
– Cooking Liberally — just your regular old cooking club, monthly get-together with folks who want to talk political activism.
– Golfing Liberally — you won’t find me there (I suck) but there are lots of folks who love it.
– Bowling Liberally — you could have your own team for the local bowling league. Or two.
– Reading Liberally — projects to do readings at local libraries, hospitals or to seniors at nursing homes who are often incredibly grateful for visitors.
– Liberally Cleaning Up Our Environment — an environmental group that cleans up streams, roadways, plants flowers and all sorts of other community projects.
– Gardening Liberally — plant an extra tomato plant or two, or some cucumbers and donate extra produce to folks who need it at the homeless or battered women’s shelters.
It’s an endless list of potential. And it all spins off from the original Drinking Liberally – which is a genius idea in its own right. Just one little idea that could…and did, and is still doing. Thought we could talk about other potential ideas this morning about things to do in your own community — or things you are already doing. Pull up a chair…
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Good Morning!
Great ideas! And good morning to all.
Christy!
well, besides drinking liberally and bitching liberally…
The gardening liberally: in my area there’s a county organization that has the food bank and other services. They have been doing “the Gleaning Project” where people donate their extras from the garden to the food bank. Some farms have donated a couple of acres for folks to work, others have done community gardens. Church groups and individuals are involved.I know that the Islamic Center in town is one of them.
Now that Mr. Rev. is retiring at the end of this month I’m hoping that he will help organize this effort for our congregation to get involved. It can take all forms from extras from your own home garden to plowing up unused or under used land and putting in crops. Great project for intergenerational summer activity.
How about “Swinging Liberally”, a club for former Democratic governors. :-)
Bringing twolf1 Coffee and Doughnuts Liberally
and right wing preachers—don’t forget them. ouch.
Grand ideas! How about “Visiting Liberally” for checking in on retired folks who are a little frail?
Totally Off-Topic: Our grandson, Daniel, was brought home in an ambulance yesterday. He’s now five months, and four days old and has successfully had heart surgery. Many more trials in his young life, but we are rejoicing in getting him to this point.
that’s really cool. Great idea.
(((grand wee TexasEllen!!)))
May it be much much easier and healthier from here on.
What RevDeb said. I hope he grows healthy and strong.
Our Doug and Luca have spent the last five months in a Ronald McDonald house.
Various groups come in and cook so that meals twice a day are available. This would be a good project for a Cooks Liberally group. They also might go for a “Runs errands liberally”, too.
thinking about the wee grand TexasEllen, how about
Babysitting liberally?
Larry “Tappin’ My Toes For Blow Jobs In Airport Bathrooms” Craig is retiring, did you hear?
Caretakers Liberally, give a break to someone who is primary caretaker.
Great news about your grandson TexasEllen.
AAHHhhhhhhhh, stuff i love talking about…
As a former and perhaps future “communitarian”, i have seen some of these ideas in practice as volunteer “commune” outreach programs. Twin Oaks in VA has a long history of providing adult literacy programs to neighboring communities. East Wind in MO has the largest Library in the county, and offer lending cards.
But the best system i’ve seen in place is Time Banks, which use Time Dollars. As an alternative form of currency and community building, it is unparalleled. Edgar Cahn is a personal hero of mine who wrote a life-changing book called No More Throw-Away People.
their website:
http://www.timebanks.org/
Cheers and good morning to ya!
Good morning Christy. Anything done liberally is a good thing. ;-)
Good morning.
I’m stting here with y’all, drinking coffee liberally.
TexasEllen, Great news & I hope your grandson continues to get better. My son had hernia repair surgery when he was 2 months old, and one of the other babies in the room was exactly his age but had had open heart surgery. It’s quite an ordeal.
Good idea! Sometimes, just getting a few hours to yourself can be sanity making for young parents. Some years ago, I was involved with a group that “babysat” Alzhiemer’s patients who were still at home. This isn’t as much fun as taking care of little ones, but the care-givers are eternally grateful, and supporting them is of real value.
Bear in mind that the ________ liberally groups are about social networking as well as an activity so there have to be opportunities for gatherings.
just sayin’
No, but that’s good news of course. I guess he knows he won’t be re-elected. But it’s weird he could hang on for so long. IOKIYAR.
Great idea, Millineryman – though as someone who did the duty for a parent with dementia, my greatest help were the couple of my mom’s friends who would run the errands, pick up the Rx, do grocery shopping and spend a bit of time talking to my mom so that I could just take a shower(I could not leave them to take care of her alone — that would have been too much).
(((((hugging TexasEllen’s grandson)))))
Love the ideas. I need more liberal friends. Although, I don’t feel as isolated and frustrated as I did in 2003-2006. Remember those days? We were called unpatriotic, America-haters and much worse. It was nearly impossible to find anyone who agreed with you. I think that tide has turned, but those were difficult days. Liberal blogs saved me.
you could babysit a flock of kids to the courthouse while you update your voter registration? :)
Babysitting Liberally could be done as a play group with Liberally members for each family being given the morning/afternoon/evening off. Good for the kids, good for the Liberally members, good for the families served.
btw I admit to dyeing eggs liberally this morning *s*
My cousin is dealing with that right now, and it’s gotten to the point where she had to put her mom in care facility due to her other medical conditions. I can understand the concern about not wanting to leave from what my cousin has told me.
Hi ho, everyone. But this morning, Christy in particular. What an awesome post! A little stroll down memory lane for me re all the things I used to do and don’t do any more. I was a terrible knitter! But what a great idea jogger. Really gonna think about this. Especially the reading idea.
Wee bit off topic: I was at Take Back America and met our Christy face to face. She’s real! You’da been proud of her, too, pups, as she facilitated the panel that included John Conyers. Her own speech was fab. And get this! I overheard Bill Moyers say that he reads her on FDL. Yowza!!
it isn’t easy
Great point, also it will help with sharing solutions if the group goes out and does one on one work in the community.
various shades of blue I trust.
During that period, I formed a great deal of respect and affection for Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre.
Or shades of gray, such as tabby, battleship… *g*
ooo, Barbara — give, give..give all the details!! Those of us who were not able to attend WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING!
How so, I’m not familiar with the book.
Ok, ok.
How ’bout “Republicans Are Full of S#@t and Destroying Our Country, Literally”
What’s that? It has to end in ‘liberally’?
My bad; please ignore the above.
Well, for starters, spending four days in D.C. officially launched the new group “Spending Liberally.”
Mr. Rochester, who is both the villain and a little bit of positive figure in the book, tries to marry Jane(who has been the lonely orphan and his illegitimate child’s governness), all the while he has been keeping his demented wife locked upstairs with her own caregiver. His wife on two occasions in the book tries to murder him.
Morning all…
How ’bout:
– F*cking liberally–projects taken on ’bout once a month at a local__________ (fill in the blank)
…(apologies…mind’s definitely in the gutter…*G*)…
Hi Redd. I knew you would do well.
Is there any available video of your session?
A good way to start is to look at your community and find a niche to fill. Talk to community leaders, clergy, barbers and beauticians to see what they hear as something that is lacking. Or stories they may have heard about issues that have fallen through the cracks.
Interesting dynamic there, I know it’s a classic novel, I never knew anything about the characters or story. Thanks.
I made a fast trip through MO to my parents’ home in southern Illinois. The folks along the Merrimac River SW of St. Louis (and elsewhere in southern MO and IL) are all “sandbagging liberally.”
When the water is rising, there’s no point in sandbagging conservatively.
Here’s another link to river conditions around MO and IL.
This might solve a lot of our problems: voting liberally.
Peterr, what a horrible mess! There will be Cleaning Up Liberally needed
Good Morning on this 47th yr of my birth today. As a mother of 3 beautiful & brilliant teenagers, as a vet, a wife of 25yrs, who took the oath to defend the Constitution against foreign and domestic enemies want a birthday wish, my wish is for all of those basterds exposed, brought to the light of Justice. You all have brought me so much these last few years with an “administration gone wild” I am going to go sailing today on the SF Bay, “my husband is a jewell”. I am greatful for him, my children, family, friends, the earth and you. We all know what needs to be done. Our electives are not moving..this upsets me. I feel time is of the essence. The boys need to be stopped now. What’s a women to do? Sorry for any spelling errors, not my strong suit. Again, thank you and may you all have a beautiful, loving day. You all have brought so much info and insight in these very distrubing times, in my lifetime anyway. Hope, Humanity, kindness and understanding is what I thought America was all about. An Awakening is happening here and around the world. Let’s hope we can stopped them now before it goes any further. Peace, Health, and Love to all of you and yours. Oh, and thanks again…
The meme is cute, but as I don’t do bars / drinking it never appealed to me.
Lunching liberally?
Cafe liberally?
I can see how the drinking thing works because a bar is a easy place to find and hang out at and someone is making some cash there so they support it.
Happy birthday, Timewatcher. Sounds like you have a great family & have planned a wonderful day.
Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday Timewatcher
Good Morning Christy and Firedogs,
but Christy, you say . . .I don’t know any/many libruls in my area, it’s still pretty red, somewhat apathetic, whatever
start with the local Democratic Party
or a down ticket candidate’s campaign hq
is your community currently organizing against something ? folks here are fighting against a landfill and a power tower array, lots of potential there
and these are older lists, but here are some regional blogs which usually lead to more local blogs
dfh’s by state
lefty blogs
I want to Thank You All Very much, you all have brought me so much…
happy Birthday and many more.
Enjoy the sail and what a perfect way to “fee” the lovely earth we live on.
Fair winds and following seas and always a clean wake!
Cleaning up after a flood has got to be worse than almost any other disaster. Tornadoes, earthquakes, and hurricanes all tear stuff up and toss it around, but floods seep into every little nook and cranny of everything as they do so.
And floods are slow. Folks have seen these floodwaters rising for the last four days, they’ll watch them crest over the weekend, and they’ll watch them drop during next week. Finally they’ll see their mud-covered communities emerge from the waters, inch by inch.
The cleanup will be a summer-long event. Unless, of course, this happens again with another big rain event before the summer is over.
(((TexasEllen))) if it is any comfort to ya, the strapping 17 year old now snufflin’ away in the next room started life at home as an ambulance baby
Happy Birthday Timewatcher
I never was one to celebrate my own birthday as being born into an unjust word is rationally not something to be celebrated, because all you do is struggle to make it a better place against so many forces who are ruining things.
And no being an old timer, birthdays only remind me how few I have left. hahahaha The suffering and frustration will be coming to an end.
Happy Birthday! Come back and talk to us!
I need to go through my notes and write about the TBA Conference. It’s an awesome experience. If you could drive and stay with friends and not attend the gala dinner, it would be closer to affordable. I will have to save up bunches o’loose change to be able to go again.
This year the gala dealie honored Norman Lear for his lifetime of progressive activism and generosity. An amazing and articulate man.
In 2004, the honoree was Eliot Spitzer. He gave a brilliant and riveting speech. Dynamo. So sad, so sad.
None of the almost-ready-for-prime-time-presidential candidates made it. Rumors kept floating that Obama might come, and the excitement around that was palpable. Among the roughly 2,000 people in attendance, there was a strong bias toward Obama. Sensed that from many of the speakers as well.
Speakers included (((Christy))), (((Jane))), John Conyers, David Sirota, Naomi Klein, Barbara Ehrenreich and Bill Gates Sr. (doing a session together, which was a very tense pairing!), Jesse Jackson (who seems to have donned the elder statesman mantle and was powerfully subdued), Robert Greenwald, Donna Edwards, Majora Carter (google her — she’s phenomenal), Van Jones (powerful presence), Cenk Uygur, Eric Boehlert (Media Matters), Michael Hirsh (somewhat defensive senior editor at Newsweek), Jack Layton (Canada’s New Democratic Party), Matt Stoller, David Cole, John Podesta and so many more that I can’t remember at the moment.
During Jane’s panel, Robert Greenwald was told that the dude videoing the session from the back of the room was from Faux Gnus. He did an absolutely brilliant job of excoriating O’Reilly and Fox and had all of us (roughly 100 at this session) turn around and wave to the camera. Opportunistic parasites abound.
Great liberal ideas. Democracy and citizenship are not spectator sports. Involvement is the key to civic responsibility. The powers that be would rather have the public doped up with meaningless diversions, reality tv, spectator sports, booze and pharmaceuticals. Keep them stoned on unreality and uninvolved.
What a great summary.
Perhaps you can write up a more lengthy report highlighting what you think TBA can accomplish and how it will do that.
Imagine if those people mentioned were the talking heads in the MSM instead of the idiots we are subjected to? What different country we might have.
Barbara,
Were there any far left people represented as panelists or was it mostly “libruls”?
another way to meet fellow travelers
Viewing Liberally – attend a premiere
for anyone who watched Moyers last night – here’s the website for the film, and where it’s playing
Body of War
Congrats on Mr. Rev’s retirement in the near future.
Just an FYI for everyone…RevDeb you made me think of it with your post…
Most municipalities who are faced with empty and abandoned lots have incredible expense in keep those lots clean and keeping the grass cut. Often, for free or next to nothing (like a $1 lease), municipalities will allow local groups to garden those lots , as long as the gardeners keep them clean and maintained — usually with a “pretty lookable” garden to the street side and or residence side(s) of the lot.
Groups can plant these lots with produce and donate to a local food pantry. Additionally, it is a great opportunity to involve a youth group in the area, like Big Brothers/Big Sisters or Boy and Girls Clubs of American. The best resource for community gardening in the world is the Association of Community Gardeners:
http://www.communitygarden.org/
Enjoy their resources.
They are headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.
I am currently taking a class by their organization on community gardening.
Anyway, planting lots in municipal possession is a win-win. The city saves money and can put tax dollars towards something other than lawn cutting and trash removal from these lots. Local pantries of shelters get fresh produce. Some kids get an intergenerational experience of hard work and giving to others…the community gardeners get some food too…
That film will be a shocker. It should be required viewing in all high schools.
I love knitting blogs but dare not visit too often because I can get lost for hours following one link to another. It’s endless. What I noticed is how many knitting bloggers lean liberal which makes it even more interesting for me.
You just reminded me, you can host a screening at your house from a great selection of films from Brave New Films.
I had a screening for Irag for Sale, and it was a interesting evening. I should do it again.
I have always been amazed at the amount of street trash in some areas and the absence of same in others.
Why are some people such slobs with their wrappers, bags, coffee cups, drink bottles, cigarette packs, butts, and so forth and others seem to respect the environment / the commons space we all live in?
How much of the mess is attributable to not have places to put all this street trash? And how much is simply the fact that people are slobs? It horrible and annoying. Why are we so destructive of the environment on all levels?
In the summer, there were some interesting outdoor screenings in NYC on the walls of buildings… some adjacent to empty lots, others adjacent to large roof tops.
What a fun idea for a summer evening. Who needs a theater when you have a wall and a projector!
Taking the dogs out for their morning walk in the backyard, I saw my first robin of the year! Bad news – there are areas with over 1′ of snow on the ground. Hope the early birds can find berries.
Interesting question. Fair to say, there weren’t many barely-left-of-center folks present. And where there was anything even close to moderate, there was always someone in Q&A pulling hard to the left. Norman Lear pondered out loud about the disappearance of “liberal” in favor of “progressive.” A number of union-affiliated speakers. People who are in the trenches doing the hard work (Majora Carter and Van Jones for starters). So theorists and do-ers. Wealthy elites and just-plain-folks. Blue and white collars. White, brown, black skins.
Can I go OT? The new talking point irt the Passport breach is that all that the worker could see were things like SS# of the candidates, nothing that could lead to dirty tricks. And they keep repeating this line. Is this ringing true with anyone? All that security to protect SS#s? I know identity theft is a problem but millions of people have access to that info. I personally have access to the SS#s of around 1000 people. No screen pops up warning me ‘not to go further without good reason’. That’s a bullshit description of what’s in that file. And I’ve heard it 3 times already.
And, who the hell would risk their job to look at someones SS#? Where’s the curiousity factor in that? They wanted to see how many 6’s were in the number? If they wanted to steal someone’s identity, I don’t think they’d pick Barack or Hillary.
I’ve been to screening like those before, they are a lot of fun.
Why are we so destructive of the environment on all levels?
Maybe because so many of us fail to see our connectedness with anything outside of our own little bodies/egos?
We fail to see the continuing consequences of our thoughts and actions.
I think that is why we love to join Liberal Groups. The act of joining a Group forces us to be a part of something bigger. Focuses us on the communal and not just the individual.
Also, why FDL has such great appeal.
Sorry, I guess I didn’t hit the reply button. This is in response to SanderO at 71.
Hi Sander! and morning everyone else. :)
Re: Knitting Liberally. Next month in Hyde Park, NY there will be a community project knit-in in honor of Eleanor Roosevelt. Remember the pictures of her knitting at the U.N. ? Never an idle moment.
Silverleaf sponsors a semi-monthly Crafting Liberally event here in NYC
Christy,
When I was a kid, my Mom was a regional organizer of a charity that made toys for children in burn units in Children’s Hospital’s around the nation. The toys had to be made of special fabrics and filler, approved by the doctors of Children’s Hospitals around the country. I loved sitting in on her weekly group and putting fill into each toy, being a part of making the toy come to life. As a child, I thought it was so neat I was giving comfort to another child.
Evidently, studies showed that the children in burn units healed faster because they had something to touch and make them smile especially when human touch was not possible because of the health threat of infection or damage to healing or grafts.
Thanks. Another interesting idea, SanderO. I was focused primarily on the separate sessions (multiple plenaries and many, many breakout sessions), but you raise a good point re summarizing the impact of the event as a whole. Well, more than the event. The Campaign for America’s Future (which sponsors the TBA event) is a powerful force in the struggle to right this wobbly nation. Check them out here:
http://www.ourfuture.org/
Over and over again at the conference, I heard animated discussions about the intention to form coalitions, coordinate the battle against the right, consider economies of scale so we don’t have little pockets of protest and activism operating in vacuums.
BTW, Majora Carter and Van Jones received the Paul Wellstone Citizen Leadership award, making this Minnesotan mighty proud and once again nostalgic for the loss of Wellstone.
Yes, talking to myself. Just realized that intentional movement toward coalitions and communities brings this full circle to Christy’s post. There is power and support in community. Paul Wellstone and Saul Alinsky: organize, organize, organize.
That’s what I was trying to say.
Think you said it better. Thanks.
I love these positive Saturday Morning threads.
We all need positive vibes.
This is a description of our fallen soldiers:
Looks like Bush can have his romantic experience after all.
Send Bush to Iraq Liberally?
Doesn’t work.
If you haven’t seen it, Pat Buchanan turns his racist white underbelly up in the air for all to see.
Witness the dying gasps of t-GShe old confederate mindset.
Truly despicable.
“Black America should be grateful”.
-G
Bucahan’s link.
-G
I could write quite a bit on this. But I do no want to overtake the thread. To answer your question is a complicated one. Years in the trenches of housing projects has shown that community beautification and community gardening can bring change and “set right” attitudes about the responsibility to the world around you. Beautification and sustainable gardening create hope, and healthy attitudes (like self-esteem), basic to the foundation of caring for oneself and for the environment. So, I do not spend too much time on the question(s) but more time on the systemic issues by building hope and healthy attitudes within communities where the trash and the neglect tend to build. For those of us who have been given the gift to care and to have resources to keep “it beautiful”, enjoy working towards change through community gardening.
If one has never “seen beautiful and clean”, has never been taught “how” to care then it does not happen. Those of us who have been taught “stewardship of the environment” have the opportunity to pass that gift on…Another “knowledge is power” dynamic…
Why I notice as well, as many “trashers” may have new shiny cars and their own personal appearance is sharp and neat, but they have no trouble opening their car window and tossing “rubbish” out onto the street.
When I walk my dogs I usually try to pick up a bit of rubbish and the droppings of other dogs not disposed of by slobs. I often think that the trashers simply think that picking up is a job that some people do for a living. Frankly I never understood the head space.
You are so correct.
If all one knows is hunger, it’s difficult for them to imagine anything else.
I suspect that the reason why the left can’t change the direction of this nation and hold onto power, is because their paradigm is antithetical to the consolidation of power.
The left paradigms only can flourish in true democracies. And we don’t have anything close to that. We live in hierarchical structures and power is concentrated at the top and that means the left notions will only come forth from enlightened benevolent “leaders” in a top down anti democratic manner.
Until we have a true democracy, the left will always be dis empowered.
Reminds of a line from a Keb Mo song:
Everyone likes the party, but no one wants to clean.
Any other Keb Mo fans out there?
eggs are boiled. and thanks for the idea RevDeb, I will do shades of blue this year (your idea intrigues MM, many possibilities with a tjanting and a close eye on dye time but shades of gray for next year)
Klynn! keep going on, it’s a wonderful idea and adaptable in any community. And an idea with a very real bounty — and what are the downsides if you have a committed crew at the center?
Demi,
In this day and age of teevee even the poorest urban dweller sees what a clean environment is like. Tossing trash into the street is a very conscious gesture and is made regardless of hunger.
I have no idea who Keb Mo is and if they are a pop group, I most likely will never listen to them. hahaha
EPA had a campaign back in the 70’s during it’s birthing years called “Pick up after each other!”
EPA even ran great commercials on TV pretty much depicting the scene you just described…Someone of influence, who should “know better but just does not care” type of scene.
When I am in your shoes, outside poverty, and see disregard, I say something to the individual and point out that what they just did is a crime. Then I wave my cell phone…
EPA should bring the campaign back…a retro so to speak…
Elliott:
I don’t think I referenced a problem with the “center”. Goodness, if one is not willing to work with a committed group “in the center” on something as simple and beneficial as community gardening and beautification then this country is really in trouble. We all need to get our hands dirty in the soil, dig in and plant hope. ALL.
The common environment is an interesting problem for the “city”.
We all recognize for need for energy efficiency and the need to capture alternate energy.
Yet the policy of the NYC department of buildings is very much anti these strategies especially as it pertains to all the roof top real estate. How odd is that?
With the ability to cover the flat roofs with solar collectors and wind generators, these are mostly out lawed because of “landmarks” and other aesthetic considerations. If you can see it and it doesn’t look “pretty” it’s pretty much a non starter.
Greg,
Comments are closed to Buchanan’s op piece. I can’t imagine why.
Good Morning everyone….. going to get a cuppa ….. anyone want a refill… fresh ground French Roast made in a French press…
Keb Mo is a person…(Kevin Moore), folksy blues artist. During Katrina, he worked with Harry Shearer to get stuff donated directly to victims, not through the big agencies which took forever to get stuff to them.
And, teevee is not reality. It’s not educational. Seeing something good on tv doesn’t inspire people to go out and be/do. That’s just my take on it.
My comment about hunger was supposed to be metaphorical.
oh, you didn’t. Sorry didn’t mean to imply that.
It came from me thinking the only way it wouldn’t work is if there weren’t a core group there to hold it together through every patch.
In Europe I notice shop keepers are more vigilant about maintaining the commons in front of their establishment.
Here in the states people seem to assume that cleaning is for the city or the government to do.
We don’t seem to accept the notion of our responsibility to the commons as much as they do in other parts of the word.
NYC will change their tune because, NYC will fall behind other cities. Those flat roofs in other cities are in the process of getting solar. The savings on the environment and $$ resources will be amazing.
The market will push it…The economy will pushit…have hope and keep fighting.
Tere are also new solar technologies coming in the next year which will allow for solar with little to no affect on a buildings appearance. So within a year, their argument will be moot.
The meme about “bling” was spread through the media. The media stood up hip hop sensibility. People ARE learning things from / via the media.
Hip hop started in the Bronx and spread around the world. How would you account for that?
that would be
“rough patch”
I am pressing for this, but NYC is so slow to adapt and there are so many rich people who could care less and are concerned about pretty which they feel adds to the value of their property.
Real estate is extremely powerful in nyc.
I am sure the comments section would look like a Klan rally.
Time for some letters to MSNBC and Keith O.
-G
What an asshole Buchanan is. As usual, he’s missing the whole point on why black Americans are pissed off and where their anger is coming from. To say (***Rush Limbaugh did the same thing recently on his show) that it’s really the whites who have suffered is pure bullshit.
***he told the story of how at one job in his life he was hated and ridiculed and how outstanding white men at this place were replaced with women. Oh please! *playing the world’s smallest violin* Spit.
My early morning walks through the streets of Piscopanio Crete…. you had the city workers picking up trash rolling carts with brooms and such…. each shop and restaurant keeper was washing off their front patios and walks…
During the high tourist season…. this was their time for the community without dealing with tourists…. felt like I was intruding….
Hip Hop is one type of music I don’t listen to.
Sure Pop Culture is shared by the media, but I was talking about Values not be learned from watching tv.
I don’t think people learn to be better individuals that way.
That’s what I was trying to say.
I’m waaaaaay out of touch with pop culture.
chez cbl loves Keb Mo !
I did that. Sorry!!
I am way out of touch with pop culture. As I settle into my sunset years the classics seem to have the most pull culturally.
Never the less, pop culture is how new ideas are spread these days. That’s where it’s at.
I think that all ideas and especially progressive ideas have to be spread virally through new media. TeeVee is hardly going to do it since it is mostly at the service of crass commercialism.
A couple of weeks ago on Pull Up A Chair, I share that the company I work for encourages employees to meet other folks by asking them a series of questions.
The young ones asked me questions like Whats your favorite type of clothing? Uh, I dunno. What’s your favorite sitcom? Don’t watch that kind of tv. (They’ve never heard of C-Span), What’s your favorite group? Don’t have one. It always makes me feel like an old fuddy duddy fogey.
OMG, I guess racism is alive and well.
Well, when you can “power your building with solar and have a meter feeding out to the power company and turn your building into a power generator that puts money back in your pocket…it changes one’s mind…Who wouldn’t want the power company sending them a check instead of a bill. Money talks and solar is money. It will happen. The solar money will talk. Have hope… Besides, the market is going to demand it. All your multinational corps and real estate companies will have to if they want to continue trade/work in other countries because the regulatory measures out there are measuring global carbon foot print, not just the affect in just one country. Keep the hope in alternative energy and maybe look for other venues to focus your great attitude on alternative energy, like housing projects or something.
ahhhh….She just wants to dance!
nice! thanks for sharing that.
Hey barbara,
That was not referenced to you — honestly it was about my ability to “hit” tha topic in depth. Love learning everything about TBA. Your postings “put me there”. Please keep writing. I would enjoy learning as much first hand experience from someone as possible.
In Buchanan’s world the white man is the Jew of liberal fascism. I guess Black is the new brownshirt.
The world is stood upon its head with these folks.
-G
You’re working your broad brush pretty hard there, SanderO.
I know plenty of US shopkeepers who care for the sidewalks and streets in front of their businesses, and I’ve seen non-US shopkeepers who appear that they couldn’t care less.
Let’s keep the sweeping generalizations down a bit.
Happy Birthday and have a great day sailing.
I know spelling errors matter to some, but not all of us. Keep writing your feelings and the spelling will take care of itself.
I think we need to do lots of driving liberally for the election. We need to help people get to the polls both during early voting and on election day. We each need to push our local Demo organization to put a lot of work into this idea. We just can’t afford for this election to be close enough to be stolen.
Happy birthday Timewatcher.
Love your grandson liberally, TexasEllen.
Christy/All -
My first thought was that (Community Service) Liberally is a great idea. However, it misses opportunities to connect with people who never meet liberals/progressives/hippies and figure they don’t like them.
People with different viewpoints who work side by side on community projects have an opportunity to learn what they have in common. The most striking example I can think of is the Rainbow Family and a conservative church group working side by side to help Katrina victims:
http://archives.seattletimes.n…..ry=hippies
I would guess that nobody converted anyone else, but it looks like a lot of people in either group won’t be able to think about the ”other” the same way again.
I belong to a group called Single Volunteers that doesn’t require anyone to state their political views. There are other non-singles-specific groups out there, such as Outdoors Maryland, that are the same in this respect.
I still like the idea of liberals working together, but reaching out further will help build a sense of common ground and a sense of community among groups that distrust each other largely due to lack of contact.
(Community Service) Liberally groups might deliberately seek out opportunities to work with non-liberal groups.
gbbalto
gregb at 106:
Exactly my thought. Too bad, I was curious to see the comment reactions.
I belonged to a women’s group called the Sacred Sisters Sewing Circle, we started with some sewing, but it ended up being mainly about sharing, laughing and eating. Then another group was called Women at the Well. Mainly I organized it as a support group for a severely and isolated depressed friend. We met for years and that has slowly faded out. Now a group of us is organizing community gardens. There are many hispanics in our area who are in the crummy apartments on main street. We figure this will be a way to offer them gardens and a chance to interact with more locals.
Well, off to choir. Thanks again for PUAC.
Freedom is on the march in China ….. another reason why I am glad Elmore (boyfriend) will not be broadcasting the Olympics in China
China may ban live broadcasting of Olympics
What is the phrase…… “no one could of predicted?” …. na… I expected the China Olympics will be a mess….
I am nervous that all the liberals will get busy doing volunteer work of some kind with other liberals, when what we really need to do is what YOU do, Christy, publicize the lies, organize to take our government back,
expose the hypocrites, expose the media, etc. There are so few WOMEN doing this essential work…and so many knitting, cooking, golfing, etc. Too many middle-class people have withdrawn from political activism–almost everyone I’ve every known–so that when a picket line goes up in my town, none of them are available.
also:
–F*cking liberals (the L-word as an adjective)
–F*cking liberals (the L-word as a verb…)
and then there’s fuckery in general (as a noun coined by Jame Hamsher…)
…Jane Hamsher…
Oh, don’t be nervous.
We each have wonderful gifts and need to follow our own paths.
Many gifts, one spirit.
On topic maybe-but a little different-Through FDL and Progressive radio and our own E-mail address books it wouldn’t take long before we (as Liberals) could communicate with all the Liberals out there who have a pulse. Most of you have heard of George Lakoff, the guy who described framing an argument, and Thom Hartman wrote a book about cracking the code, both guys talked about how to set up an argument to win the debate. Here is what I would like to see happen-We train ourselves to debate so that when we are on talk radio or talking to one of our friends who are on the dark side, we are able to frame the argument to our advantage. We may not win them all but it may cause a pause or confusion in our opponents. It would certainly give independents something to think about rather than only having their info from Fox or Right wing radio BS. All we need is a few percentage swing in the electorate to insure victory. We need somebody to help us train with techniques and specific talking points so that we feel confident with our facts and presentation. Through the blogs we could really have an advantage here if we got to it. It should be far more effective because there are so many of us, and we could start right away, and we wouldn’t have to depend on paid media to get our message across. What do you all think?
Thanks. I do go on and on, though, when I’m revved about something. When I get a summary written and up on my blog, I’ll post the link here (with Christy’s permission).
great post christy! late to the thread–
texan ellen at 9—hugs to you and your family. My Doctor’s son had heart surgery as an infant, and he is now a healthy, happy 6 yr old……She is a wonderful Doctor and a wonderful Mom.
So, here’s hoping the same for Daniel.
solai,
Thank you for the description. I use these types of things in my Sociology classes. Started in 1972, as a young teacher whose students wanted to know more about the Vietnam War.
….shades of Carter’s boycott of the Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980–for the then Soviets invading Afghanistan…History will come back to bite us in the ass…
What do I think? Excellent! Lakoff is brilliant. Here’s a link to Rockridge Institute, his official web home. Join. Read. Act.
http://www.rockridgeinstitute.org/
OT,
power of narrative regarding IRAN! Great read.
http://powerofnarrative.blogsp…..wrong.html
Here’s another Keb Mo song. One of my favorites. (grab a hankie.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fk5M8Ouocc
Good morning, folks.
We have a group, there’s five us, and we call it ‘Picnic for Peace’. We have had organized picnics, inter-faith choral concert, demonstrations and lately, an energy forum with Federal, state, county & city experts addressing the issues of energy, etc.
We’re doing what we can as a group of five and we have a local following. The core group doesn’t change, because we are very close friends, but we involve the ‘list’ of people in our projects. It seems to work out very well because we don’t worry about a treasury, we don’t take money to keep, people bring their own consumables. We can’t be infiltrated & betrayed, because it’s just the 5 of us gals- REAL PEOPLE and friends.
That makes it as easy as possible in a smaller community (Dover, Delaware only about 35K) and yet, we are always finding new good works to do. The sky’s the limit!!!
Going over to the main gate of Dover Air Force Base today to join up with the Pacem in Terris folks to hold up a BIG banner to remember the 4,000 service persons & Iraqi citizens on the highway side (a knoll) across from the Main Gate of DAFB. This is the base that is the US morgue for all our service people. It will be very respectful and peaceful.
Think peace!
You mean George W. Dickhead isn’t going to lecture the Chinese about the benefits of ‘demwakrashy’?
Sometimes money trumps freedom, I guess.
-G
I know a generalization when I see one and yes that was a sweeping one pun intended. But I from MY experience this rings true and certainly in MY neighborhood it does.
Now, I’ve seen parts of the US where you could eat off the sidewalk, but the only country that was true of was Switzerland. I know another sweeping generalization.
That’s how we communicate Peterr
was it really jane? i first heard “fuckery” from trex, who i thought got it from amy winehouse. but i think amy was not the very first to use the term, just the first to popularize it.
of course, maybe amy got it from jane?
sander0 at 103 says–”Hip hop started in the Bronx and spread around the world. How would you account for that?”
how do you account for do-wop starting in jersey? ha.
I think this is an excellent approach.
Preaching to the choir is one thing, chatting up the enemy is another.
trust me–t’was Jane. I know my Jane…*G*
timewatcher at 50 says-”Peace, Health, and Love to all of you and yours. ”
and the same to you, happy birthday.
that’s amazing! does she know amy winehouse?
probably..Jane knows everybody… you know that…
She’s a freaking Hollywood producer, for chrissakes…Natural Born Killers…with Oliver Stone!!!
wow flutecake at 139–what a vibrant bunch of liberally-doing-somethings!
Thanks for the link. Never heard this man’s work. I think he’s excellent, but I don’t listen to this type of music much.
How many times do we have to hear people sing their heart out about personal suffering, which we then identify with? I don’t mean to put this down, but I have heard this a million times. I got the message. Pete Seeger, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Springsteen, Norah Jones, and so many crooners have said this over and over and over again. Is anyone listening who needs to?
I was referring to how the media is the medium for dispersion of ideas!
In a funk. Overcast, cold, dreary. My immediate boss had to put her 15-year kitty in the hospital a week ago Friday. High white count, low red count. He had been being treated for other ailments. No improvement. Yesterday morning vet called and said Snowflake wasn’t going to make it. Vet offered to let Linda take him home for the weekend to spend some time with him. Linda realized that would have been more for her benefit than Snowflake’s. She was completely overwhelmed with grief, having lost 2 others within the last year. I made the call to the vet saying that she would be there at 4 as scheduled but wouldn’t be taking Snowflake home. Made all the cremation arrangements. I’ve known Snowflake for a long time. Handsome all white love sponge, a real joy to be around. Now at peace with his friends at Rainbow Bridge. I can’t stop crying. I can’t even imagine the grief of those who have lost loved ones in Bush’s fucking war.
I don’t care. And I don’t care for the term actually. I thought it was Pach who liked to use the term so indiscriminately for impact.
IF i heard it right, MoDo is going to be on wait, wait, don’t tell me in a few.
like i said, if i heard it right.
remember what happened when dana perino was on? ’pig missle’, wasn’t that yours christy?
Pach, Trex, Jane, birds of the same feather…*g*
Imagine that those affected number in the 10s of millions when you consider relatives and those in the ME.
It’s sadism on steroids for these bastards. They have no heart.
not to take anything away from jane – but isn’t that a pretty big claim to make without any evidence: that amy winehouse used “fuckery” in a song because she knows jane?
not saying it’s not true, but i remain skeptical. could you give some more info besides “trust me, i know my jane”
sander0 at 152-
i know, i just couldn’t resist.
((((southerndragon))) at 153
from wiki: Jane Hamsher
Per http://www.urbandictionary.com…..038;page=2
Selise,
You are one of the most rational intelligent and thoughtfully careful commenters on this blog. And you are an activist who puts the rest of us blowhards to shame.
I thank, you once, again for your wisdom.
i don’t see any reference to coining “fuckery”
Thank you dmac!!! (blushes)
Internet Movie database: Jane Hamsher
I thought the movie Natural Born Killers was disgusting.
…if am not mistaken, Jane started using fuckery in 2006…
here’s the earliest usage i could find in the google news archive:
Fire-casting an eternal de-fascination with death: writing about the South, and the responsible necessity of reading and knowing black South writing in the quest for Afrikan world salvation and restitution.
From: African American Review Date: June 22, 1993 Author: Cheatwood, Kiarri
my bold.
You mean this movie
“The story was conceived by Quentin Tarantino (and it’s very similar to his “True Romance” script — a sort of modern-day “Bonnie and Clyde Redux”) and re-written by Stone (much to the chagrin of QT). I’m not sure which would have made for a better film but, despite its flaws (which are mainly a none-too-subtle message and too much violence), “Natural Born Killers” is a sort of bizarre, outlandish masterpiece of drugged-out cinema.”
Devotions Written in a Fuckery (1966)
ah ah..great research…so then Jane popularized it, helped along by Amy Winehouse…
which was when amy winehouse released her song: Me & Mr Jones (Fuckery). i don’t know if she writes her own lyrics, though.
ah ah…interesting…FDL, the online think tank goes to work…
“…those who have lost loved ones…” was all inclusive. The number of people who are suffering because of these greedy, power-hungry sons-of-bitches is mind numbing. What’s even more mind numbing is the fact that all this suffering was caused by a relatively few ideologues.
oh, now that’s a hoot!
1993? Really?
Selise
You are Da Bomb.
(I did not coin or popularize that term. :)
Musta heard on on the tee vee.
$75? for that book? if you can find it…
or this take on NBK:
*Spoilers* Some people claim that Natural Born Killers is brilliant criticism of the media obsession with violence. But this contention ignores the actual content of the film. Oliver Stone could have shown his serial killers as vicious, inhuman murderers of innocent people and contrasted this with a morbid media fascination. Instead he lends them justification. The movie portrays just about every victim as someone who deserved to be hurt. Engaging in vicious stereotyping, Stone presents the victims as unpleasant caricatures – dumb rednecks, broken-English speaking immigrants, lazy fat people. The one person that the homicidal lovebirds is also a stereotype. Of course they befriend the old, hallucinogen-using American-Indian – because they’re trendy, dude? Let’s make him an admirable character. Fat, Chinese clerks and “hicks” are uncool, so let’s make it seem like the deserve to die. Instead of twisted,hateful that are corrupted by their misdeeds, their rampage makes them happier and more in love. Mickey and Mallory are made sexy and cool and surreal visuals are bound to entice more impressionable people. Justice is mocked. The police and prison officials are portrayed as brutal, ugly and scowling compared to the GQ murderers. Again, this is not in the media reports within the film but in the “reality” in the film. There is no nuance or subtlety in the film – just overblown performances and visuals. The film says nothing new or specific about the obsession with violence. The proof that the film fails in its message lies in actual real world reactions to it. Some impressionable young people who saw this movie cited it as inspiration for murders that they committed. The film’s “message” is a failure because it inspires people in the opposite direction with horrendous real-life results. The clever message is nowhere to be seen.
My own take on the message of violence is that these esoteric satires are more part of the problem than they are the solution. Wrong approach. I’ll take Ganghi over Tarantino.
Biodun…
Man you got caught in some heroine worship. Give it up and face reality.
Further the term is not very interesting.
How do you feel about the brothers calling each other n****s and women Ho’s?
I don’t care for that perversion either.
or maybe the other way around? i know a lot of people read fdl – but i’d guess not as many as have listened to this album.
i stand by my earlier claim – that it is more likely that trex got the term from amy whitehouse and that’s where jane got it.
of course i could be wrong, especially as i’m only relying on circumstantial evidence. but jane’s many accomplishments do not provide contradictory evidence.
By those standards Catcher in the Rye is a failure because John Hinkley was inspired to shoot Reagan after reading that book.
-G
Frankly… who cares?
Amy Winehouse will probably kill herself with an OD. I wouldn’t even listen to her. I don’t romanticize substance abusers. Sorry.
By that standard YES it is a failure.
How would you feel if you wrote a book which was supposed to have an anti violence message and it inspired a few murders along the way.
This is a tough call, but I would call it not worth the downside consequences if art is inspiring murder.
Call me a prude.
You are a prude.
-G
Abebooks.com has 3 copies in the US listed, 1 at $45 and 2 at $75.
FDL toobz hiccup! double posts!!
My own Jane doesn’t mind me worshiping her…leave me alone…*g* and /snark…
i have no desire to romanticize anyone. it’s just that i’m a little irked when claims are made as fact – when the facts aren’t actually know. especially when we might be creating a false history that leaves trex out. i happen to miss him and am not comfortable with leaving him out of our history.
…so that’s what all this is all about? Now it all comes out? *g* our history? whose history? all history is revisionist history…
FDL has been around for quite a while. I was here when Jane and Christy began. It has evolved and that is not revisionism. You can’t forget what you never knew.
i’m sorry, i don’t understand what you mean by “Now it all comes out?”
Whatever… fawning over humans is not especially attractive. Fawning over ideas is more appealing.
For Loo Hoo:
BLUE CHEESE DRESSING from: Sacred Heart Cathedral
Gallup, NM
8 oz. sour cream – approx. 1 C.
1/3 C olive oil (preferably not one of the cheaper ones)
1 1/2 t. dry mustard (I prefer Colman’s)
1/4 t. ground pepper
1/4 C. lemon juice (approx. 1 med. lemon)
1/4 lb. Roqueford or blue cheese (crumbled)
Combine ingredients & beat well. Add cheese last.
Keeps well in frigerator.
Notes:
1. You can increase quantity of mustard and/or cheese slightly if desired but suggest taste testing after mixing first batch before doing so.
2. I prefer fresh lemon vs. the bottled stuff.
3. It does NOT keep as well as commercial bottled dressings but, if you like it, it won’t have time to go “bad”. *g*
4. Enjoy.
The ID people are simply crazies.
So, a lot of these things exist. Screening Liberally and Eating Liberally are ongoing throughout the country, aas part of the Living Liberally empire. The community service-oriented events for liberals is part of an organization called Democrats Work.
There are some great community-building groups out in meatspace that organize online. It’s one of the more exciting things about our movement.
I’m a member of a Knitting Liberally group over at the knitting online community, Ravelry. I joined to late for the bears, though. I don’t know if knitters and fiber artists tend liberal or not, but there are certainly plenty of us out here!