short notes: will brady's ruminations

A blog adjunct to rondak.org [click on the globe] | Perspectives on: human rights; environmental concerns; life as a visual artist; 21st century feudalism; progressive politics; aboriginal culture; new urbanism; permaculture; sustainable technology; non-traditional families; achievable utopias

2004-11-05

HOMELIFE

Sylvester has diabetes | he's the white and black cat sprawled across the rug | Baby, his Manx companion is seated behind him | He's 8 to 10 years of age | Don't know since Bill got him at the Humane Society and they weren't too sure themselves | Now it's learning all about how to treat feline diabetes and determining whether or not doing everything called for is actually feasible |
The literature suggests, properly treated, a cat with diabetes can live many years | The practical problem is that there is an extra expense to treating the cat, and for someone on a very low income, it might not be possible to take on the additional ongoing expenses |
Euthanizing Sylvester isn't the desired outcome | Maybe the vet can give us some pointers on doing this econmically |

Posted by: Will Brady / 23:23

SECESSIONISTS

The North Shall Rise Again! |
     The United States is no stranger to Secessionist movements | Indeed, the very birth of the nation was, essentially, an act of seceding from the 18th Century British Empire | The Great Civil War of 1860-1865 was fought over a range of issues, the practice of slavery being the one remembered the best, but also over economic and cultural divides |
     Throughout the nation's history, there have been other movements of secession, some not about withdrawing from the nation, but in establishing a different state [e.g. Michigan's Northern Peninsula]
     So it ought come as no surprise that, in this more frenzied time, the call to secede is heard once more | It is heard most clearly in Vermont and, building upon that, Idaho | I expect we shall hear more of the idea in the coming months |
     But it is the Vermont situation that unfolds even as this is written | This weekend, at the Middlebury Inn, Middlebury, Vermont, a "radical consultation" will be held to discuss "The Options Open to Us Now in Planning For Life After the Collapse of Empire" | Facilitated by Professor Thomas Naylor and noted author Kirkpatirck Sale, the "

...underlying premise of RADCON II is that the United States has become ungovernable and unsustainable. If that is indeed the case, then do we go down with the Titanic or seek other alternatives? Among the options to be discussed... are denial, compliance, and political reform, proven to be deadends; revolution, rebellion, and implosion, equally problematic; and decentralization, devolution, and peaceful dissolution..
The Second Vermont Republic is a peaceful, democratic, grassroots, solidarity movement committed to the return of Vermont to its rightful status as an independent republic. The Fourth World, which publishes The Fourth World Review, a periodical inspired by Leopold Kohr and Fritz Schumacher, is committed to small nations, small communities, small farms, small shops, the human scale, and the inalienable sovereignty of the human spirit. "

The outcome this event's deliberations shall warrant review |

THANKS TO: Jason King for bringing this to my attention | FOR MORE ON SECESSIONIST MOVEMENTS check my weblinks page for the letter S | ABOUT THE PICTURE Entitled: "Governed by Consent". this is the top half of an illustrated essay I wrote in 1990 | You can click on the image for a full text version of this essay |

Posted by: Will Brady / 15:45

2004-11-04

ABSOLUTE ESSENTIALS

Well, not really | Leather, and animal skins have been dubbed "...the most delicious way to soften hard surfaces..." by one high fashion decorator in New York | Farther down the column [PERSONAL SHOPPER, by Marianne Rohrlich NYTimes 4 Nov 2004] the cost of alligator skins are quoted as going for "$12,960 a square foot" but one could get a fake; embossed cowhide finished to look like the real thing is $22.50 a square foot" | But why bother? | Even if the alligator is no longer an endangered species, personally, I don't see why it's skin needs to be harvested for high-priced designer uphostered chairs, motorcycle seats or steering wheel covers [alright, so the last one is "simulated"] |

I can, however, imagine a good cooked meal, and the
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services happily provides recipes on some tasty entrees | But raising animals just to line a butt-warmer on a crotch rocket? That seems too much | There are some things we just don't need |

Posted by: Will Brady / 20:48

COMBATTING FORCED PSYCHIATRIC TREATMENT

Human Rights advocacy group warn of Dubya's plans to use psychiatry to force mind control drugs on people |
     The human rights group Mind Freedom, known as the "...Amnesty International of mental health...", has, together with The Law Project for Psychiatric Rights begun a program, The Mind Shield for folks who may end up in a psychiatric facility |
     According to psychologist Al Galves, "The MindFreedom Shield is a quick, cost-effective defense against people being railroaded into using such methods as medication and electroshock to alleviate normal responses to life issues that can more effectively, economically and safely be addressed through interpersonal emotional support and creative action."
     See the MADBOOK entry on Forced treatment and ways to combat it for the entire news release from SCI

Posted by: Will Brady / 19:49

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

The State of Barbarous Ignorance | A duo of videos produced by BBC-2 and online at Information Clearinghouse provide a chilling documentary on what brought us to where we are today |
     Two major philosophical directions, neconservativism and al q'aeda, evolved since World War Two | Both motivate followers on the idea that the world must be protected from "moral decay" | The worship of materialism and of the self, both posited, has brought us to the situation we face in the world today | Yet both work on the premise that we must rely upon the leaders in power would would rule on promises to allay the average person's fears |
     By the late 1960s the influence of both philosophies began to be felt | Controlling information, knowledge, became a part of thier modus operendi | Although in the past such efforts came via book burnings, in the USA the same was acheived by literally throwing away "obsolete" texts from libraries, ostensibly as part of "modernizing" them | This, and ursurpation of the public education system [begun under Reagan, to be accelerated with No Child Left Behind] Together with then directing that culturally conservative religious dominate educational procresses would help neocons to control the spread of knowledge and of critical thinking [just like the European Dark Ages]
     The end effect has been, ironically, to create the nightmares that freightened people fear |
     But knowledge cannot be eradicated | And while this brief note doesn't identify what went on simultaneous in the Middle East, other places document this |
     Information Clearinghouse provides these two BBC-2 don't-miss videos explaining the development of these twin movements | Maybe we'll see it on the History Channel, but why wait? | Go see them now |

Pix credit: Theocracy Watch: The Rise of the Religious Right, photo of a March 25, 2001 book burning in Butler, Pennsylvania | RESOURCES: American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom | THANKS TO: Moon of Alabama for the link |

Posted by: Will Brady / 07:39

2004-11-03

PROBABLE OUTCOMES

Need a truck? Got any wood?
Cynically speaking, I expect we will need a lot more of these in the next four years, since it's certain a whole lot of metaphorical bovine byproduct will be coming our way

Thanks, by the way, to everyone for voting

DATELINE: ENGSOC- New England Sector | 02-11-04 | I know it ain't over yet | There's likely to be lawsuits about voter harssment, illegal denial of voting, voter fraud more questions raised about Diebold [and other] electronic voting machines, both because of "glitches" and due to the lack of enough voting machines to serve the demand | These shall likely wrangle their way through the courts interminably, whether or not Kerry concedes to Bush |
     We still have unanswered questions, allegations and charges from the ENRON-Bechtel-Halliburton-Nortel-Quest-Global Crossing-Carlyle Group [and who knows how many others] financial scams and [possibly] outright thefts of American resources to sort out | Litigation and independent investigations [some of them acknowledgedly conspiracy theory laden] are already going on with these |
     There's still John Ashcroft at Justice [can we start calling it Ministry of Truth now, rather than have to wait?] | And Colin Powell's son, Michael, at the FCC who is trying to both give away access to free speech [unless you happen to own a corporate media giant] and restrict the internet | There's the forced drugging fanatic tag-team of E Fuller Torrey + Sally Satel driven so-called "mental health" screening for all USA citizens thing to deal with [in the Soviet Union they called dissent "creeping schizophrenia", going by yesterday's tabulated votes, that includes maybe 46 to 48% of all the voting population]
     And of course, more mundane things; livable wages, health care, the plan to eviscerate Social Security | Gosh, I could go on | In short, it may not be a pretty four more years, but it sure won't be boring | Maybe hand me the Xanax now and get it over with |
     But wait! ...there will be more | For there will, indeed come a day [no tellin the exact day or year] when those ardent supporters will grasp that they'd been hoodwinked, cheated, lied to, stolen from and betrayed | And they will want something done about it | History has shown that when mass epiphanies such as this occur, the outcome isn't pretty |
     Stay tuned |

Posted by: Will Brady / 10:17

COGENT PLANNING
I write this without knowing what progress has been made in counting the voter tally since 2100 hours [+5 GMT] so I don't know if the plan is enactable |
But the site author of Zen of Design clearly and succinctly [short when seen as a position paper] outlines his objections to Bush, as well as providing a framework from which to make thuoghful decisions about a range of subjects important to our nation's future | To give you a sense of underlying point of view, he notes

"Politically, I’m a liberal on social and civil concerns, tempered by fiscal conservatism. My brand of fiscal conservatism is different than the Republican party’s, I’ll grant. Taxes aren’t an issue for me - I don’t mind paying my fair share. Just don’t spend my money on stupid shit, and don’t max out the USA’s credit card so a huge hunk of my future tax bill isn’t flushed down the national toilet paying off interest of debt."

Go review the rest yourself at his entry titled An enthusiastic support of Kerry

Posted by: Will Brady / 01:42

2004-11-02

CONDUITS TO SOCIAL CHANGE

Moyra wrote me recently with this: "What is your interest in homelessness...? It is not a subject that a great many people gravitate towards" | It got me thinking | Basically, I don't know as I've been asked what motivates me to do the work I do, or even ~ how do I frame my point of view about societal problems | Given the time and context of the question, my response seemed to speak to broader concerns than that which she asked | This is what I wrote back

I have a long standing, very strong, and abiding interest in social justice | With that comes a real awareness of disenfranchised souls, and how society regards and treats them |
arret!

In the work I do, I meet many who are far beyond the mainstream, including people with no discernable domicile | My "day job" is, essentially, advocating for people with psychiatric disabilities; listening to, investigatingand working to resolve, grievances from clients who are housed at a maximum security inpatient psychiatric facility | At times, my work takes me beyond the confines of place | No surprise for everyone's lives are intertwined, and thus related |
In this work I've gotten close to people who later went lost | Some who died frozen in empty buildings, or under bushes in a pool of their own body fluids | This summer a man was found drowned | With each one of them, their

loss was great, for, psychically, each of them were rather like family | Not everyone dies | Some remain at the edge of the world, yet trapped with not apparent ability to be released and to once again [or sometimes ~ for the first time in their life] grow |
I don't know as I can say, specificially, what "gravitates me towards" what I do, or even how I think and reflect upon the state of the world right now; homelessness being but one manifestation of gross and cruel injustices heaped upon all of us, not only those with no specific place to live | It is the homeless, however, who perhaps not only bear the brunt of, but live daily with, the manifestations of those injustices |
Aside from that, I really do not fathom or understand why it is that so many people veer away from interacting with people who are clearly not mainstream |

So I write about this, and at times, do photography and painting | The objective being that each of us with even a glimmer of awareness, are thence obligated to try to awaken the rest of society's citizens so that social wrongs might one day be righted | we are, essentially, conduits to social change, and I pray humanity hears whay has to be said, pays heed, and does something about injustice | The failure so to do, not only speaks poorly of society, but of those who know that probelms exist that need be addressed, yet do little or nothing about them |

I have no intention of being one of those who neither says nor does nothing

Posted by: Will Brady / 13:54

LEST WE FORGET || ...

VOTE TODAY!

If you have trouble on Election Day, call (866) OUR-VOTE, set up by the
Election Protection Coalition / People For the American Way
To report election fraud, voter harassment or other voting irregularities visit Vote Watch 2004

Posted by: Will Brady / 12:00

LESSONS FROM HISTORY

The 1948 election polls by Gallup, Roper, and Crossley all forecasted that Republican Thomas Dewey would beat Democrat Harry Truman. The Chicago Daily Tribune even printed a headline stating that Dewey had won.

Posted by: Will Brady / 11:45

AT THE POLLS

It's a heavily Democratic town so I don't know | Except for the time the town voted to put sewers on Main Street voter turnout was higher than I've ever seen it | It's a real social occasion in town, with each party setting up booths for coffee and snacks | Felt bad for the Republican booth folks | Poeple weren't even going over to eat their pumpkin bread [I did] On the other hand, our town is one where the Dems and GOP co-mingle | Chris Dodd voted here [as you can see below] The police were here to manage traffic, which was necessary | The only pollsters at the site this morning are canvassing for Love Makes a Family and want to know how people stand on gay marriage | The Heinz Warnecke statue in front of Town Hall might suggest what kind of results their poll got, but you never know | Now it's just to wait it out | The pictures give a glimpse of this morning's activities |

Hi George!

Lines like this almost never happen in this town

I'd vote for these guys

Politician kissing babies at the door
Disclosure: It's Dodd's daughter

"My husband is gonna kill me if he sees this"

Working Together

Posted by: Will Brady / 11:41

MAKING VOTES COUNT || THE DIEBOLD APPROACH

THANKS TO Dave at Space Coast Web / Blog

Posted by: Will Brady / 11:38

2004-11-01

LEST WE FORGET || ECONOMIC TREASON

On November 2nd, VOTE!

Posted by: Will Brady / 14:29

THE DAY OF THE DEAD

This is a universal day to honor those who have crossed to the Spirit realm | Mexicans call it "Día de los Muertos" | In Poland it's "Zaduszki" or "Dziady" | A curious [though not unusual] blend of Pagan and Christian religious ceremony | Generalizing broadly, the holiday's activities consist of families (1) welcoming their dead back into their homes, and (2) visiting the graves of their close kin | This is not a dismal observation, but

one of celebration | This observation is "...magickal and special, the time of spirits and souls, divination and remembrances..." |
     It is, nevertheless, "... a solemn celebration, for it is believed that at this time the souls of the dead return to visit their homes. At twilight the family lights candles, to shine a beacon to the souls as they return..." |
     The Day of the Dead can range from being a very important cultural event, with defined social and economic responsibilities for participants, to being a religious observance featuring actual worship of the dead |
     One practice, observed across cultures, Anglo Americans

would do well to pay heed to, even to emulate and practice | Namely, when preparing the feast, to share the bounty with the poor and disadvantaged | Denice Szafran, writing about Zaduszki, says the poor

"...played an important part in the faith- life of the community. Most often, people were beggars not because they didn't feel like working or settling down, but because they were .... special, touched lightly by the hand of the divine. It was said that they more than most talked to the spirits, and connected with the souls .... it is my opinion, shared by few, that this tradition arose around those individuals who were nomad types, the (for want of a better term here) saintly folk, and around those as well that were "different", not in their appearance, which by virtue of being alone and without a home was naturally disheveled, but different in the sense of being ... less worldly, less preoccupied with the material plane, those for whom talking to the Mother was an accepted everyday occurrence, those who heard voices and saw spirits. Shamanic? Perhaps. I think more than likely, though, now we call them "developmentally disabled" and try to treat this gift as if it were a curse instead..."

Some believe that the ceremony and ritual can be a means of seeking guidance and wisdom from our ancestors | Given that in this nation we face a profound decision tomorrow, it seems also prudent to seek the wisdom of the ancients so as to thoughtfully direct us to pursue a more harmonious future |
Following in the tradition of this occasion, the American Friends Service Committee [the Quakers] have chosen to hold a nationwide Election Eve Candlelight Vigil | To hold our nation in the light | To show that democracy matters | To call for clean elections | To remember the things we all need to care about — peace, justice, security | Click on the banner below for details |

Other Sites: Okana's Celtic and Polish Traditions |Ricardo Salvador on Mexico's Day of the Dead | Candlelight Vigil Plans || Image Credits: [clockwise from candle] 1-Print Artist clip art | 2-Photo modified in Photoshop by yours truly | 3-Dziady sculptures by Robert Koenig, village of Dominikowice in Poland | 4- Graffiti art from a wall in downtown Kansas City, MO, posted by HeaTheN WoRLD Art Gallery | 5-Film frame from Day of the Dead / 1957, photograph © Lucia Eames dba Eames Office |

Posted by: Will Brady / 13:25

NECESSARY DISTRACTIONS

Fun with Grapes | Back in 1994, when "the internets" were still a neophyte thing [at least for the public] Patrick Michaud published the results of a duplicatable experiment using the common seedless white grape |
Using only "locally available funds and equipment" [honest you can do it in your kitchen, the research demostrated a unique pyrotechnical phenomenon exhibited by this ordinary snack food source |
Mr. Michaud speculated that the experiment was a relatively safe procedure, but since it may involve combustion, some caution is advised before deciding to do it at home |

Posted by: Will Brady / 06:18

EMINEM'S ENDORSEMENT

Rapper Emimem slams Bush
A call to arms, of sorts | Mobilize against indifference, greed, war lust, racism |

Calling for Dubya to "...grab an AK-47 and fight your own war ..." and "no more blood for oil"

Not subtle, by a long shot, but does it need to be?

Posted by: Will Brady / 02:18

DRUG WARS || MEDICAL EXPERIMENTATION

Mandated military use of Anthrax vaccine is now illegal | Federal district court rules anthrax vaccine not safe and effective, rebukes FDA |
Blue Lemur reports that the

District of Columbia Federal Court issued a long-awaited ruling on the licensure of the anthrax vaccine, ruling that the vaccine had never properly been tested or approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and that its mandated use by the U.S. military was voided without informed consent.
     The outcome is the product of a suit filed by six anonymous servicemembers, some of whom became ill after taking the vaccine, which asserted that it was unsafe and never properly licensed.
In his ruling, United States District Court Judge Emmet G. Sullivan rebuked the FDA for allowing the use of an untested vaccine.
     “By refusing to give the American public an opportunity to submit meaningful comments on the anthrax vaccine, the agency violated the Administrative Procedure Act,” Sullivan wrote in his conclusion.
     “Congress has prohibited the administration of investigational drugs to service members without their consent,” he added. “This court will not allow the government to circumvent that requirement.”

Read the whole story | Of course, this story makes me wonder if this is from one of those pesky "activist judges" |

Posted by: Will Brady / 01:57

2004-10-31

WHAT OF THE FUTURE?

I don't profess to be a seer nor a psychic | But I am troubled and concerned about the course of this nation if GWB gets elected this time | Actually, Steve Gilliard has said it better than me, but for the record here's my take on the situation |
     Typically, I would not spend as much time, energy or effort in writing about political campaigns except, perhaps, on a local level | Certainly I'm opinionated, but I believe I've always been clear about this | The things I write about reflect my thoughts, perspectives, values and, at times, the course of action I believe would be most productive for the common good |
     Were this some other year, a different election between differing parties, I would not be so strident in my objections to the current occupant of the White House | Frankly, I'd be happy to party with the guy | But even as fa back as college I had little respect for frat brats and people who could not accept differing points of view | And, frankly, his monomanic perspective worries me | Lets' be straighforward here, he's a dangerous extremist, and not one that Barry Goldwater would approve of, that I'm certain | I agree with Hunter S. Thompson, were Nixon alive, I'd vote for him in contrast to Dubya |
     We'll still have a divided Congress | Thanks to Reagan, Bush Senior and GWB, the Federal Courts are already stacked | And more people ~finally~ appear energized to speak their mind rather than watch World Wrestling Federation, Will & Grace or Design on a Dime | I remain confident that, under a

Kerry administration, dissent, while not entirely welcomed, will, at least, be heard | Given Dubya's handlers propensity to stifle dissent I do not feel similarly comforted were Bush elected in 2004 |
But what of the future? That's what I said I'd write about here | Well, there's lots of work to be done | We need to re-establish our commitment to all citizens, not merely those of privilege | We need to pursue the development of fuel and energy sources other than oil, natural gas, coal or nuclear ...and we need to recognize that other kinds of energy resources are not hippy dippy "alternative" amusements | And we need to focus on getting more disciplined about how we think critically, analyze problems, and cease and desist on

the anti-knowledge attitudes that have been so dominant in this last quarter century |
     Mind you, I don't find Kerry to be any great shake | But he's got a solid, predictable, track record, and I can live with it |
     He's from a family and background of privilege | he does not seem to be any sort of great visionary [I think of Brazil's Gilberto Gil, as a contrast, for example] I have concerns about his corporatist values, am uncomfortable about where he stands on firearms ownership, don't know if he has any real understanding of what the common man and woman in the USA have to deal with on a daily basis, just to get by | But then again, Franklin Roosevelt was patrician and did what needed to be done to help acheive social equity for many in this nation | As to his style of presentation, so he's boring | We could use a boring President right now | I don't like dealing with moodswings ~ or duplicity ~ from someone in the White House | A lust for power is not a good reason for entrusting someone in that seat | That, I believe, is the single motivating factor for Dubya and the rabid pack surrounding him |

     So I'm going with Kerry, reluctantly, but that's my vote | I urge others to get out and vote as well | Oh, and take someone else with you for the ride |

Reporting voting irregularities | If you have trouble on Election Day, call Election Protection at (866) OUR-VOTE | Find out where to vote | To report election fraud, voter harassment or other voting irregularities visit Vote Watch 2004

Posted by: Will Brady / 23:14

WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT

A Note to readers tonight | You may see, briefly, an entry I am working on for 2 November 2004 | This is only a test to see what it will look like |

Posted by: Will Brady / 23:08

LEST WE FORGET || GROSS INCOMPETENCE

On November 2nd, VOTE!

If you have trouble on Election Day, call (866) OUR-VOTE, set up by the
Election Protection Coalition / People For the American Way |
To see the videotape the above picture is excerpted from visit VideoVote.com

Posted by: Will Brady / 17:43

MORE ENDORSEMENTS
Four Words: Bush Relatives for Kerry | In the name of support for democracy, human rights, fiscal responsibility, truce compassion for the poor, and objections to injustice, incomprehending obstinancy, personal megalomania and sheer arrogance and indifference to human suffering [as well as incompetence], Dubya's second cousins [grandchildern and great grandchildren of Prescott Bush] put up a webpage to say they are heartily endorsing John Kerry for President |

Posted by: Will Brady / 04:01

since 12 june 1999