In Honor of the Holiday

This guy doesn't need a costume.

The best carved pumpkin I've seen this year.

Ahhhh. Who's the cutest logger on the planet?

You Are Not Alone

Message from the CLANDESTINE REVOLUTIONARY INDIGENOUS COMMITTEE-GENERAL COMMAND of the ZAPATISTA ARMY OF NATIONAL LIBERATION MEXICO.

October 30, 2006.

To the people of Mexico:
To the people of the world:
To the Other Campaign in Mexico and the other side of the Rio Grande:
To the entire Sixth International:

Compañeros and compañeras:
Brothers and sisters:

It is now known publicly that yesterday, 29th of October 2006, Vicente Fox’s federal forces attacked the people of Oaxaca and its most legitimate representative, the Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca (APPO).

Today, the federal troops have assassinated at least 3 people, among them a minor, leaving dozens of wounded, including many women from Oaxaca. Dozens of detainees were illegally transported to military prisons. All this comes in addition to the existing total of deaths, detainees and missing persons since the beginning of the mobilization demanding that Ulises Ruiz step down as Oaxaca’s governor.

The sole objective of the federal attack is to maintain Ulises Ruiz in power and to destroy the popular grassroots organization of the people of Oaxaca.

Oaxaca’s people are resisting. Not one single honest person can remain quiet and unmoved while the entire society, of which the majority are indigenous, is murdered, beaten and jailed.
We, the Zapatistas, will not be silent; we will mobilize to support our brothers, sisters and comrades in Oaxaca.

The EZLN’s Sixth Commission has already consulted the Zapatista leadership and the following has been decided:

First: During whole day of November 1, 2006, the major and minor roads that cross Zapatistas territories in the southwestern state of Chiapas will be closed.

Consequently, we ask that everyone avoid traveling by these roads in Chiapas on this day and that one make the necessary arrangements in order to do so.

Second: through the Sixth Commission, the EZLN has begun making contact and consulting other political and social organizations, groups, collectives and individuals in the Other Campaign, in order to coordinate joint solidarity actions across Mexico, leading to a nationwide shut-down on the 20th of November, 2006.

Third: the EZLN calls out to the Other Campaign in Mexico and north of the Rio Grande, so that these November 1st mobilizations happen wherever possible, completely, partially, at intervals or symbolically shutting down the major artery roads, streets, toll booths, stations, airports and commercial media.

Fourth: The central message that the Zapatistas send and will continue sending is that the people of Oaxaca are not alone: They are not alone!

Ulises Ruiz out of Oaxaca!

Immediate withdrawal of the occupying federal forces from Oaxaca!

Immediate and unconditional freedom for all detainees!

Cancel all arrest warrants!

Punish the murderers!

Justice!Freedom!Democracy!

From the North of Mexico.

For the Clandestine Revolutionary Indigenous Committee-
General Command of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation.
For the EZLN Sixth Commission.

Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos

Mexico, October, 2006.

Translation: Radio Pacheco

For more information, please see Narco News and IndyMedia and read the BBC's summary of what the protest is all about. All of this started because some teachers decided to go on strike for better pay and textbooks. Sappho and Supergirlest have excellent posts up also. If anyone knows of any other links to news sources, please leave them in the comments.

Think this kind of state sponsored repression can't happen here? Think again.

(Photos: AP)

For Daniel

The trouble around difference is really about privilege & power-the existence of privilege & the lopsided distribution of power that keeps it going. The trouble is rooted in a legacy that we all inherited, and WHILE WE'RE HERE IT BELONGS TO US. It isn't our fault. It wasn't caused by something we did or didn't do. But now that it's ours, it's up to us to decide how we're going to deal with it before we collectively pass it along to the generations that will follow ours.

- Allen G. Johnson

98

October 1

Sergeant Denise A. Lannaman
Sergeant Mario Nelson
Corporal Chase A. Haag
Captain Justin D. Peterson
Lance Corporal Christopher B. Cosgrove III

October 2

Sergeant Joseph W. Perry
Private 1st Class Michael K. Oremus
Specialist Justin R. Jarrett
Staff Sergeant James D. Ellis
Specialist Raymond S. Armijo
Specialist Kristofer C. Walker
Private 1st Class Satieon V. Greenlee
Staff Sergeant Joe A. Narvaez
Corporal Aaron L. Seal

October 3

Staff Sergeant Jonathan Rojas
Staff Sergeant Daniel Isshak

October 4

Corporal Benjamin S. Rosales
Lance Corporal Edward M. Garvin
Staff Sergeant Christopher O. Moudry
Specialist George R. Obourn Jr.
Specialist Timothy Burke
Private 1st Class Dean Bright

October 6

Lance Corporal John Edward Hale
Corporal Bradford H. Payne
Corporal Nicholas A. Arvanitis

October 7

Specialist John Edward Wood
Sergeant Lawrence Parrish
Corporal Carl W. Johnson II
Sergeant Brandon S. Asbury

October 8

Lance Corporal Derek W. Jones
Captain Robert M. Secher
Private 1st Class Shane R. Austin
Lance Corporal Stephen F. Johnson
Lance Corporal Jeremy Scott Sandvick Monroe
Specialist Timothy Fulkerson

October 9

Private 1st Class Shelby J. Feniello
Lance Corporal Jon Eric Bowman
Private 1st Class Phillip B. Williams
Sergeant Julian M. Arechaga

October 11

Sergeant Justin T. Walsh
Captain Shane T. Adcock
Sergeant Nicholas R. Sowinski

October 12

Sergeant Gene A. Hawkins

October 13

Lieutenant Johnny K. Craver
Private 1st Class Kenny F. Stanton Jr.
Private 1st Class Thomas J. Hewett

October 14

Private 1st Class Keith J. Moore
1st Sergeant Charles M. King
Staff Sergeant Joseph M. Kane
Specialist Timothy J. Lauer
Sergeant Jonathan J. Simpson
Airman 1st Class Leebenard E. Chavis

October 15

Sergeant Jr., Lester Domenico Baroncini
Private 1st Class Stephen Bicknell
1st Lieutenant Joshua Deese
Sergeant Jonathan E. Lootens
Captain Mark C. Paine
Sergeant Brock A. Babb
Lance Corporal Joshua M. Hines

October 17

Specialist Daniel W. Winegeart
Staff Sergeant Ronald L. Paulsen
Specialist Joseph C. Dumas Jr.
Corporal David M. Unger
Corporal Russell G. Culbertson III
2nd Lieutenant Christopher E. Loudon
Staff Sergeant Ryan E. Haupt
Sergeant Norman R. Taylor III
Petty Officer 1st Class Nathan J. Frigo
Staff Sergeant Garth D. Sizemore
2nd Lieutenant Joshua L. Booth

October 18

Sergeant 1st Class Daniel A. Brozovich
Jose R. Perez
Staff Sergeant Jesus M. Montalvo

October 19

Lance Corporal Edwardo Lopez Jr.

October 20

Staff Sergeant Kevin M. Witte

October 21

Lance Corporal Eric W. Herzberg
Sergeant 1st Class Tony L. Knier
Corporal Joshua C. Watkins
Lance Corporal Nicholas J. Manoukian
Lance Corporal Nathan R. Elrod
Lance Corporal Clifford R. Collinsworth

October 22

Specialist Nicholas K. Rogers
Sergeant Willsun M. Mock
Specialist Matthew W. Creed
Specialist Nathaniel A. Aguirre
Major David G. Taylor

October 23

1st Lieutenant Amos C. R Bock
Hospital Corpsman Charles O. Sare
Lance Corporal Richard A. Buerstetta
Lance Corporal Tyler R. Overstreet
Specialist Carl A. Eason

October 25

Private 1st Class Donald S. Brown
Sergeant Thomas M. Gilbert
Private 1st Class Daniel B. Chaires
Lance Corporal Jonathan B. Thornsberry
Petty Officer 2nd Class Charles V. Komppa

October 26

1st Sergeant Ricky L. McGinnis

October 27

Luke Zimmerman

Iraq Coalition Casualty Count

"Amid all this violence, I know Americans ask the question:

Is the sacrifice worth it? It is worth it." - George W. Bush

"We are standing up, and the sacrifice is worth it." - George W. Bush

My Happy Post

Supergirlest recently reminded me how important it is to remember what makes us happy, particularly when the current state of the world looks so dreary. So, in her honor, and also for my own benefit, here are ten things that make me happy:

1. Apple-blossom scented springs
2. Picking wild blueberries
3. Inner-tubing the Walla Walla River in July
4. Spanish guitar music, especially Boleros and Trios
5. Butterflies
6. Used book stores
7. Loose-leaf teas
8. Pan dulce
9. My maternal grandmother's whistle
10. Soft flannel pajamas

Anything make you happy today?

Liars.

(huge tip of the hat to MoxieGrrrl)

In Translation

For those of you who may have missed it, the Decider addressed the nation today. Click, click click right over to norbizness and read the best interpretation of his speech I've seen yet.

I'm Sure

Of All The Nerve

Michael J. Fox made this heartbreaking TV ad:


and then Rush Limbaugh accused him of faking for the camera.

I've despised Limbaugh ever since my mother forced me to listen to his incessant, hateful diatribes during my grade school years. Unable to drive and still legally and financially dependent, I was subjected to the "EIB" network in the car and in the kitchen. In between the blah blah blahs, I was deeply annoyed by the callers who identified themselves as "Ditto Heads," as if they were proud of their elite membership in the club of idiocy. Even when I didn't understand the political ranting, I still hated the sound of Rush's voice, drumming on and on with sweeping generalizations of verbal vomit.

And then there were the long, holier-than-everyone soliloquies, where he basically just said the same thing over and over and over and over again.

I remember loving the sweet satisfaction of the moment I worked the "So, I guess Rush Limbaugh is a drug addict" comment into a routine telephone comment with my mother. I loved the hypocracy of his confession. Substance abuse is a flaw of the weak minded, he had said, all the while abusing his own drug.

I've become numb to the dribble, and it's been long enough now that no one I know (except my mother) takes him seriously. So, I leave it up to Media Matters and FAIR to keep up with the daily inconsistencies, contradictions, and fabrications.

But this time, he's gone too far.

Not only does Rush owe Michael J. Fox a formal apology, but he owes an apology to every single individual who is living with a progressive neurological disease for which we have no cure.

UPDATE 10/27: My friend, The Poetry Man, has written a must-read poem in honor of this asshole. He speaks for me.

I Heart David Sedaris

Last night I took a break from studying for my midterm exams and went to hear one of my favorite authors read some stories that, because of subject content, won't ever be aired on This American Life. I can't believe that I allowed myself to practically forget how therapeutic it is to laugh until your stomach hurts.

Invest in your own stress relief by picking up previously enjoyed copies here. You won't be disappointed.

Happy Dad Birthday

Thanks for always finding ways to inspire us to find the humor in life.

When you put these glasses on at the Portland Saturday Market

and started dancing around, I was laughing so hard

that I couldn't hold the camera still!

I love you, Dad. Hope you find time to take

a well-deserved nap today.

Blasphemy

The devil and destroyer of communities across America is so desperate for a good PR campaign that they have resorted to paying such a firm to pose as a blogger.

In other news, check out this internal "for management distribution only memo" documenting Walmart's new salary caps. Even Wal-Mart's supporters have had it and are cutting all ties to the big-box retailer.

For Professor Zero

I recently discovered this blog, and have been mesmorized ever since. The author writes in the memory of Paulo Freire, who said:

In order for this struggle to have meaning, the oppressed must not, in seeking to regain their humanity...become oppressors of the oppressors, but rather restorers of the humanity of both. This is the great humanistic and historic task of the oppressed; to liberate themselves of their oppressors. Oppressors who oppress, and exploit and rape by virtue of thier power, cannot find the strength to liberate either the oppressed or themselves. Only power that springs from the weakness of the oppressed will be sufficiently strong to free both.

Be inspired. Go read the Professor's blog.

Dr. M. L. King, Jr., Republican?

Some wackos are saying so.

A Primer

This book needs to be circulated all over Capital Hill. Click here to read the latest.

A New Democratic Low

"The state attorney general's office is investigating a letter received by some Southern California Hispanics that says it is a crime for immigrants to vote and tells them they could be jailed or deported if they go to the polls next month." Read the rest of the AP story here.

Of course, citizens can vote in any election, regardless of where they were born, but an official-looking letter, in Spanish, threatening jail or deportation for doing so, could certainly keep many naturalized citizens from finding their local polling places.

Bitch PhD said, "I hope this bullshit gets heavy regional news coverage. And I hope it pisses off the people it was meant to scare, and that they turn out in droves at the polls."

Took the words right out of my mouth.

Update: California GOP leadership calls for its own candidate to drop out of the race! And...News travels fast! Keith Olbermann featured this story on Countdown 10/19/2006!

It's Official

Go read the tombstone of the Bill of Rights at Quaker Agitator, the sharp commentary of Chuck at The Divided States of bu$hmerica.

"It is a rare occasion when a president can sign a bill that he knows will save American lives. I have that privilege this morning."---George W. Bush

Off topic but important, none the less: The one bill that made it to his desk that did meet this qualification, the legislation supporting stem-cell research, he chose not to sign. Maybe what he meant to say was that it is a rare occasion when a president gets to sign a bill that historians will one day identify as the single piece of legislation that took the state of American freedom and democracy from bad to worse.

Today in History

John Brown, a white abolitionist, was admant in his refusal to stand idly by and watch the perpetuation of slavery. In spite of the fact that he was never financially successful, even filing for bankruptcy, he is know for giving land to fugitive slaves. He also participated in the Underground Railroad, and, in 1851, halped establish the League of Gileadites, an organization that worked to protect escaped slaves from slave catchers.

Frederick Douglass stated that, "though a white gentleman, [Brown] is in sympathy a black man, and as deeply interested in our cause, as though his own soul had been pierced with the iron of slavery."

On this day, in 1859, John Brown led the raid on the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. He believed that armed revolution was necessary to permanently end slavery in America.

After the trial that convicted him of treason and sentenced him to death by hanging, Henry David Thoreau said, "No man in America has ever stood up so persistently and effectively for the dignity of human nature. . . ."

Sunday's Public Service Announcement

H.R. 418 - The National ID Card legislation.

What does the registry mean?

Warrentless Wire Tapping Approved by Congress.

Rocky Mountain High

Yes, it's happening in Colorado. No, it has nothing to do with elevation.

Go here to watch the campaign ad in which God tells Moses that a state minimum wage increase, adjusted annually for inflation, would be a catastrophe.

You just can't make this stuff up.

H/T Musings of a Working Mom.