Culture

Ten Real-World Commandments for Americans by Jim Burklo

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I’m a big fan of Jim Burklo’s “Musings,” often posting them here at Tikkun Daily with his permission. This one reminded me of the Environmental and Social Responsibility Amendment (ESRA) to the Constitution that Tikkun/NSP has been promoting and which once again got introduced in Congress. Check out Jim Burklo’s more individual/personal set of commandments. 1) Thou shalt not separate social from personal responsibility: thou art thine own keeper, and the keeper of thy brothers and sisters, too. 2) Thou shalt provide all children with basic survival needs for health, food, shelter, and safety even if it means bending the rules.

Culture

Is DOMA Done?

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Tonight we’ll celebrate President Obama and Attorney General Holder’s decision to NOT defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in court. Following in the footsteps of former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and then California Attorney General Jerry Brown, the White House announced that the Justice Department could not defend DOMA, in part because “congressional debate during passage of the Defense of Marriage Act contains numerous expressions reflecting moral disapproval of gays and lesbians and their intimate and family relationships – precisely the kind of stereotype-based thinking and animus the (Constitution’s) Equal Protection Clause is designed to guard against.” Could this be the beginning of the end of DOMA? My husband, Derrick and I were married at First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto on April 8th, 1990. As we approach our 21st anniversary, it is stunning to have been witness to the evolution in America on people’s opinions on gay marriage.

Politics & Society

Land of the Free-? Home of the Brave-Yep!

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One of the biggest risks of nonviolent protest is that those whom you are protesting might respond with violence. Ask Mohandas Gandhi and those who struggled for India’s independence. Ask Martin Luther King, Jr., and other African-Americans who joined in the civil rights movement. Such was the case most recently in Bahrain on the morning of February 17th. Yet in 2011 in the United States of America, if you were to engage in a silent and nonviolent protest in front of a major national leader, say merely turning your back on her while she was giving a speech on, say, the importance of free speech, would you expect to be brutally beaten and jailed by her security detail?

Culture

Borders Bankrupt – Who Gets Hurt?

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We got word today that Borders was declaring bankruptcy. I’m the co-owner of a small business and a partner in a small publishing cooperative and I was wondering what would happen to all the books, DVDs, CDs, and other products Borders had “purchased” from publishers but hadn’t yet paid for. Would Borders return those products to us? Would they pay us if they wanted to keep the products? Or, would they hold onto them and sell them and get whatever money they could for them without ever having to pay us?

Islam

Ahmadiyya Muslims Attacked in Indonesia

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I watched in horror as the scene unfolded before me. My friend had contacted me on February 6th to tell me about a brutal attack against Ahmadiyya Muslim Community members in a village in Banten Province west of Jakarta, Indonesia. According to reports, hundreds of people descended upon a house in that village, began attacking the structure and setting vehicles ablaze, and then went inside. Lifeless bodies were soon dragged out of the house and beaten mercilessly by the crowd while police stood by and did nothing. My friend implored me to get the word out about the attack.

Politics & Society

Are We At A Tipping Point? State of the Dream 2011

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For quite a few years, whenever the opportunity has presented itself, I’ve talked and written about the real state of “wealth redistribution” in America. My company, Reach And Teach, worked with HS teacher Tamara Sober and United for A Fair Economy (UFE) to create a web site to help teach a different view of economics than what is found in the typical High School economics textbook. Despite tons of clear data showing how much harm the last 30 years’ of economic policies have caused for the majority of Americans, that data has seemed to fall on deaf ears. Just the other day, though, one of my more socially liberal friends forwarded a story about how the top 1% has seen massive wealth increases in the last 30 years while the lowest 40% have seen not only a drop, but have fallen into the negative wealth zone (owing more money with very little assets). Could this finally be a tipping point?

Culture

I Will Always and Forever Be Your Friend

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Yesterday was a bit of a hard day. I had to do end-of-the-year tax payments and the gozintas and gozoutas for the year weren’t looking very good. Some other stuff was going on that really had me down. Sigh. I had to open up my old email software to find the message from our accountant so I could print out the quarterly payment forms. When I clicked on my “personal” folder it opened to a message from my friend Anna which she wrote to me back in 2004.

Politics & Society

Thanksgiving on the DMZ – Pray for Peace

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I’ve stood in that room, a conference room at the DMZ between South and North Korea. Just inches away from soldiers who might some day be firing at me and my friends, you really get it, you get why you do the job you do, whether it is inches away or miles away from that guy staring through the window. As we head into Thanksgiving weekend, I remember my years stationed in Korea and I worry about all the people, on both sides of the DMZ, and whether South Korea can hold fast, hold off, and not respond to the second serious attack this year by the North. People have died. Many more could.

Politics & Society

I just eliminated the deficit. Wanna try?

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The New York Times has an interactive feature where you can go through and make the tough decisions on ways to eliminate the United States budget deficit. I just solved the problem. You can see the choices I made by clicking here. Beyond armchair budgeting from folks like us, the Times also provides 16 experts with their opinions on ways to eliminate the deficit. Click here to read that article.

Politics & Society

Remember the Solidarity Movement?

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Our partner in peacemaking here in San Mateo CA is heading off to Poland tomorrow to receive the Medal of Gratitude from Lech Walesa for work she did 30 years ago. Freedom from dictatorships, won through the blood, sweat, and tears of many in the nonviolent labor movements both in Poland and around the world, is something we need to remember and celebrate. Today Donna Baranski-Walker is involved in another nonviolent struggle, helping Palestinians rebuild destroyed homes and working to make their communities safe. Will it take 30 years for the world to recognize the value of that work? If you happen to be a young person, in or just out of college, and you’re interning or volunteering for a non-profit organization today, and wondering if what you’re doing really matters.