There is so much flak for what seems would be a fine Presidential appointment. The nation's Chief Executive, Barack Obama, is often characterized as Spock, a Vulcan who is almost virtually void of emotion. It is said that our current President is practical. He acts on logic. Yet, this supposed intellectual individual has, at times, seemed ready to do other than what most think reasonable. Mister Obama has not appointed the truly best Sheriff for towns throughout the country, Elizabeth Warren..
More than a month has passed, actually now it has been two. In the third week of June, I heard the song in my head for the first time. With each day that passes the volume increases. Friends, family, and familiars were privy to what has been a curiosity for me. Still haunted by what I know needs to be shared farther and wider, today I tell you my tale. The story begins with two Florida Democrats. Each aspires to fill the one open United States Senate seat. The date; June 22, 2010. I was amongst those invited to attend the initial Meek Greene debate.. The place? The Palm Beach Post headquarters. The time? Midday. The reality realized and the reason my mind marinated in the melody titled It's About Time. Today, Democrats, Progressives are not as they were.
"I don't really want to stop the show,
But I thought that you might like to know," That the choice becomes clearer.
"So let me introduce to you
The one and only" Carole Kaye, Candidate for Florida House District 86
Local Election Days are upon us. For months now candidates for elected office have roamed their regions. Everyday people have had ample opportunity to meet, greet, and yes, even eat a meal with aspirants. Often, one challenger's name is better known. He or she may be an incumbent, or closely associated with one. Consider the Florida House race in District 86. Dissimilar Democratic candidates Carole Kaye and Lori Berman appear on the ballot. Who are these office seekers? What will they do for my community, commerce, our children, and me? Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, and parts of Boca Raton constituents, who have not made politics their lives, search for answers as they travel to the polls.
Citizens are inundated with "information." Posters dot the landscape. Banners fly on Boulevards. Constituents don pins and place placards on their lawn. Windows and automobile bumpers have not escaped unscathed. Today, the message heard on avenue is "The time is now." Indeed, it is. Early voting began on August 9 and will continue through August 22, 2010. In Florida, while technically Primary Election Day is August 24, 2010, in reality it is today. In Palm Beach County House District 86, Primary Election Day is the final deciding date. Democrats with different styles compete for state House 86 seat. There is no Republican challenger in this race. The winner of the Primary will represent South Palm Beach County communities. Yet, many people do not feel equipped to decide. Whom might I cast a ballot for, the much lauded Lori Berman or the lesser known, highly qualified, Attorney, Educator, and person who for years has shared and cared for my backyard, Carole Penny Kaye.
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.
This world in arms is not spending money alone.
It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children.
This is not a way of life at all in any true sense.
Under the clouds of war, it is humanity hanging on a cross of iron. ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower, speech, American Society of Newspaper Editors, 16 April 1953
I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity. ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower
The United States Military Industrial Complex has might. General and former President Eisenhower understood this. He warned Americans. Abundant might does not make right; it only advances the notion of righteousness. Patriotism is promoted through militarism. His words fell on deaf ears. The sound was hollow in contrast to the drone of drumbeats. At the time, Americans were as they are today; dedicated to the customs we think characterize democracy.
We see this in many a war and peace policy. Questions are asked of the government and the people. Testimony is taken. Think tanks assess Foreign Policy. Conclusions are drawn and decisions made. Still, in 2010, a few within the electorate wonder as General Eisenhower had.. With Al-Qaida Fading, Why Expand the Afghan War?
The day was Sunday, August 1, 2010. Former Fed Chairman, Alan Greenspan appeared on Meet the Press. When asked to discuss the Congressional debate on tax cuts, the man known to move markets, a person who leans to the "Right," offered a decisive decree. In direct disagreement with Republican officials and the profitable corporations that fund countless political campaigns, Mister Greenspan declared, "Look, I'm very much in favor of tax cuts, but not with borrowed money. And the problem that we've gotten into in recent years is spending programs with borrowed money, tax cuts with borrowed money, and at the end of the day, that proves disastrous. And my view is I don't think we can play subtle policy here on it."
This statement was as a slap in the face to corporations, or more correctly to the tycoons who head these firms. Multi-millionaire media moguls might understand this best. These television and radio Executives experience firsthand that influence over an industry can translate into influence over an outcome. Cable News Network Chief Officers are among those who actively make use of this truth. Tax cuts expired? "Never;" say network Administrators and the newscasters such as Allan Chernoff, who do their bidding.
I apologize. My belly, my bloated body, only belatedly do I understand. It never was in the genes. The abundant meat that weighed heavily on my bones was not caused by my chromosomal structure; it was piled on by Congressional and corporately funded campaigns. Mommy and the husband who helped make me, much to my embarrassment, today I acknowledge my error. I was spoon-fed, and not by the two of you. Legislators, Lobbyists, and big businesses that place misleading labels on chemically cooked up cuisines put corn fillers on my every plate. I chowed down. My little body bulged out. From the inside out, I grew bigger and wider.
On the eve of President Obama's birth date, thoughts turn to his time in office. As a man, countless admire the person, Barack Obama, and yet, feel that they cannot fully celebrate his performance. Hope has all but disappeared. Audacity appears vanquished. Still, some are sure that there is reason to believe. People ponder potentials not fully realized. Prospects for change loom large. Several may be shared in the sentiments offered on this auspicious occasion.
Dreams have yet to die. The desire to write to the President on the anniversary of his birth or converse with him personally is strong. Most will only be able to meet Mister Obama circuitously. Nonetheless, millions will try to talk to the man in the White House. People, such as esteemed Educator, Doctor Cornel West has addressed the President profoundly though the airwaves. "One of America's most provocative public intellectuals," West speaks of what is needed for a genuine success. The Princeton Professor ponders aloud; if only President Obama advanced classlessness.
Thomas Paine; Reflections From the Past Essayist, Pamphleteer, Radical, Inventor, and intellectual Philosopher Paine espoused as Fareed Zakaria did today. The two understood and addressed the necessary apprehension for Administrative rule while each concedes the commonweal must care to invest in the greater good. Were we to forget that no man is an island, we will forsake the future as we have in recent decades. Rarely remembered or recited is the founder's resolve to embrace an elected Legislative and Executive Branch. Perchance today, Fareed Zakaria spoke to the practical truth.
In order to gain a clear and just idea of the design and end of government, let us suppose a small number of persons settled in some sequestered part of the earth, unconnected with the rest, they will then represent the first peopling of any country, or of the world. In this state of natural liberty, society will be their first thought.
A thousand motives will excite them thereto, the strength of one man is so unequal to his wants, and his mind so unfitted for perpetual solitude, that he is soon obliged to seek assistance and relief of another, who in his turn requires the same. Four or five united would be able to raise a tolerable dwelling in the midst of a wilderness, but one man might labor out the common period of life without accomplishing any thing. This necessity . . . will point out the necessity, of establishing some form of government to supply the defect of moral virtue.
Once you label me you negate me. ~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard [Danish Philosopher 1813 to 1855]
The much acclaimed Roland Martin, a Cable News Network Analyst, reacted to a partial report. Apparently, Mister Martin, acknowledged for his insightful and provocative assessments, heard but a bit of an edited video and responded on a national stage. Admittedly, barely informed, and unaware of the background, the CNN Correspondent spoke of his antipathy for what he defined as a racist reality. The frequently featured Journalist offered his fervent judgment of Federal Department of Agriculture Director Shirley Sherrod's actions, none of which occurred. On Tuesday, July 20, 2010, late in the afternoon, given an opportunity to listen to and speak with the object of his scorn, Shirley Sherrod, the righteous Roland Martin refused to open his mind and ears. Mister Martin avowed racism is racism regardless of when it occurs or if it is repeated years later. The consequence, tears and fears flourished. These were my own.
For weeks now Americans have watched as the Right Rob Babies of Rations. Today Representative Grayson spoke to this reality. His heartfelt words addressed what he frequently observes. Republican Congresspersons seem to avoid, forget, or have never considered, let alone experienced chronic joblessness, poverty and hunger. With each vote against an unemployment compensation extension, envoys who label themselves "Right" engage in an ethical wrong. Members of the House, safe and secure in their jobs, elite, and esteemed, rob mothers, fathers, and children of the funds needed to purchase food.
It would seem, those on the "Right," through their repeated words and actions, wish to state, "Let them [the unemployed, their spouses and progeny] eat cake." I trust that many in the Grand Old Party think food can be found in the proverbial bootstraps. There is reason to believe that the Republicans think the families of the jobless must have some sort of lifeline to grab hold of. After all, we have heard the sentiment, out-of-work persons must do as Conservatives have; pull themselves up by their bootstraps.
Might we delve deeper into the world of technology. The Ethernet, once ethereal now exists in every avenue of our lives. We have heard the terms; Internet, Intranet, and Extranet. Might do these mean to us personally and professionally? Perhaps, it is best establish a working definition for each of the platforms. Countless experts have written on the topic, the features within the various systems, and the variance in use. Steven L. Telleen, Ph.D., Researcher and former analyst with Giga Information Group in Santa Clara, California explains the distinctions most succinctly. In The Difference Between Internet, Intranet, and Extranet Dr. Telleen writes, "Today I think of Intranets, Extranets, and the Web as collections of content. An Intranet is a set of content shared by a well-defined group within a single organization. An Extranet is a set of content shared by a well-defined group, but one that crosses enterprise boundaries." In an earlier observation, Telleen, stated, "The Web, in contrast, is an unlimited group." In his more recent characterization, that element is unchanged. He does however, assert, "These terms may continue to evolve in meaning."
What is most true, and particularly evident in the Ethernet, change is a constant.
Change and Cyberspace Comes to the Corporate World
Today, in our travel through time and cyberspace, I hope you will appreciate, as I have come to; the study of electricity is analogous to the Ethernet. Each validates the notion transformations are invisible to the human eye. Turn a switch on or off and things happen. Instantaneously, it would seem, if a toggle were moved in one direction the room is filled with light. In another position, darkness pervades. An engine starts or stops. Press the power switch on your computer, or click on your Internet browser, and the world (world-wide-web) opens up and lets you in. We do not necessarily see what occurs; nay understand it. Yet, our personal universe is altered.
In commerce and cyberspace, change occurs in every moment. Internet, Intranet, and Extranet conversions occur all around us and metamorphosis surrounds us. Whether or not we are aware of these evolutions, the progression will affect us. Indeed, it has. Please consider your own corporation and communications within. Electronic mails are ubiquitous. Employees in your office likely scan, share, and collaborate on files. Most companies have a website. More have begun to acknowledge what is inescapable in modern-day societies, Facebook directs more online users than Google.
At present, oil saturates the Gulf Stream. An official six-month cessation of permits for new drilling did not actually affect the industry or government decisions. Despite Moratorium, Drilling Projects Move Ahead. To explain such an authorization and waiver, the Department of the Interior and the Minerals Management Services Division which regulates drilling, pointed to public statements by Interior Secretary, Ken Salazar. He did not intend to forbid all first cuts in the Earth's crust. Absolutely not. The Federal Government approved wells off the coast of Louisiana in June. Regardless of the day, or realities that are anathema to our citizenry, little has truly changed. Today, just as in yesteryear, we, the people of the United States of America, in order to form a more perfect Union, polishpolicies to appear as though our civilization would wish to protect and defend all beings, equally.
On behalf of all people, planet-wide, I wish to present this powerful and thoughtful possibility. With thanks to Robert Redford, The Natural Resources Defense Council, and even BP, without which we, at least in America and hopefully internationally, might never have seized an opportunity to truly reflect on the damage we have caused.
Comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation could create 2 million jobs, cut 2 billion tons of pollution and save 2 trillion dollars.
A bill can create two million American jobsthat can't be shipped overseas and build a domestic clean energy market that will allow U.S. firms to compete in the rapidly expanding global clean tech industry. The money saved comes from cutting our oil imports in half. And by reducing our pollution, we simultaneously address the most pressing environmental challenge of our time -- climate change.
Americans support these goals. To achieve them, comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation must do four things:
Promote investment in energy efficiency as well as wind, solar and other renewable sources of power.
Set a cap on the carbon pollution that is contributing to climate change.
Complement, not discard, existing state and federal efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency has the authority to regulate carbon pollution under the Clean Air Act. And governments in a number of states have taken action already to protect their citizens from rising levels of carbon. Federal legislation should complement these efforts, not compromise them.
Provide the leadership we need to support international efforts to deal with climate change -- real carbon reductions, preserving forests around the world and aid for the poorest and most vulnerable people on earth in coping with the ravages of climate change.
These are the cornerstones of a successful bill that will make our economy stronger and our country more secure. Oil and coal companies are expected to spend millions lobbying to protect their profits and keep the United States dependent on polluting energy sources. The oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexicographically demonstrates the dangers of our dependence on fossil fuels.
Rising global temperatures, even at the lower end of predicted ranges, could cause extensive melting of sea ice and glaciers, widening desertification, sea level rise and other changes that could be potentially devastating for the United States, our economy and people around the world. This year alone, smokestacks and tailpipes worldwide will pump a record 33 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the air, most from the burning of coal, oil and gas. The United States can't wait any longer to curb emissions, reduce our dependence on oil and develop clean energy technologies.
For years now I have been a blogger and avid reader of political blogs. A recent post by an immigration blogger used the title of today's pondering. The point of the other posting was to make politicians (and other people in the nation today) stand up for what is right against what is wrong.
In my childhood, people in my hometown did not allow other people to be mistreated the way we see on the news today. People were allowed to live their lives and work to sustain their families without lots of questions. When people had trouble, they were given aid. If a farmer was ill or injured and unable to plow or harvest his crops neighbors pitched in to take care of the job and insure the success of the farming community.
For more than a century, in unison, the planets' population proclaimed, thankfully petroleum flows. Oil powers our machines. The refined product has helped us manufacture massive quantities of clothing, aluminum sheet, and photovoltaic (PV) solar cells. "Plastics." As was professed in a popular film decades ago, "There's a great future in plastics." Presently, and in the past, BP understood this and much more. The company's Executives knew petroleum could and would provide endless profits, power, and a perpetual presence.
Americans acknowledge there is a problem. Petroleum pours out from a broken pipe. Thousands of barrels of fuel flow freely through the Gulf of Mexico, just as they have for more than a month. Plants, animals, and people are affected. People express distress. Millions are dismayed. What can BP do. Indeed what can any company or citizens do? Most call upon the President. Mister Obama, the electorate pleads, please, protect us. These same citizens ignore that the protection we need is from ourselves. Our present circumstances are a reflection of our past. Many Americans have forgotten an earlier time, when another of this country's Chief Executives attempted to avoid the nightmare we experience today.
Growing up in farm country in mid-America the relationship between seed and crop was more than easy to see in our back fields. The land was rented to local farmers who grew corn, soybeans, wheat and other crops year after year all my time at home. Those farmers saw the proof of the old adage, "You reap what you sow."
A few days ago I was reminded about another similar adage. Those who sow violence (read that any who institute a violent act of any sort) may solve one problem but very likely another issue will arise. The reaction to violence in most human cultures is more and escalating violence.
As you gobble that fine food, be it steak, a frankfurter, roasted chicken, or an omelet, please, sit back relax. Put your feet up and stay a while. I will furnish the entertainment in the form of a film. Meatrix is fun, fascinating, and far from folly. This presentation is playful; the message profound.
You may recall the fairy tales you loved as a child. The plots varied, although all had elements of mystery. Adventures were abundant. Tots were often so engrossed in the tales, they barely noticed that the themes taught a life lesson. Meatrix is as the fables you once anxiously awaited and even asked others to read aloud to you.
I, Betsy L. Angert, wish to extend an invitation. The honor of your presence is requested at AngertCreativeSuites.info. The pages comprise my portfolio. There is no obligation to attend. Not a single event is being held at the site. The cost is free. The dress, casual, formal, even a partially clad person will be welcome. You choose. This party, my portfolio asks only that you come as you are. If you decide to delay a visit or never travel through the portal, all will be fine. Curiosity is all that you might wish to bring.
Within the world-wide-web Angert Creative Suites is as a grain of sand. It stands still. It is silent. Yet, there is sound. The energy of thoughts that gave birth to the portfolio may not necessarily be audible; nonetheless, these ensure that the pages are never stagnant. The hope is that the musings will evoke emotion, empathy or a frosty feeling, either or neither. Indifference is the only response that will cause the host concern. However, that reaction will inspire me.
The waters within Angert Creative Suites run deep. Serenity sits on the surface. It appears in the depths of this sea of work. These analogies are likely a bit too abstract. If you wish to know what might be found at Angert Creative Suites, please file through the folio. Watch the film unfold. If perchance, you are intrigued, take the plunge. Enter the portal known as AngertCreativeSuites.info
Mom hated war. Hated it. In fact, that's why she invented Mother's Day -- to denounce the death and destruction brought by war.
By "Mom," I mean Julia Ward Howe, considered by many to be the "mother" of the Mother's Day tradition in the U.S.
In a tribute to Howe's vision, for Mother's Day, we created a new video that puts the focus back where it belongs: On ending a war.
In 1870, Howe wrote a Mother's Day Proclamation that said, in part:
"Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn
All that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience."
Mom would have hated the Afghanistan war, too. Let's give her what she wants this Mother's Day. If you're on Facebook, share this video with your friends. Or, email it to your friends.
On April 25, 2010, a day before a vote that would decide whether the Senate would debate financial reform, Senator Bernie Sanders spoke of the oft-stated belief, some enormous economic engines are to "Too Big To Fail."
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