My condolences to the Zinn family.
(Thanks, too, bOINGbOING.net)
Howard Zinn, RIP
If you don't know of him, and you call yourself "an American," there is a huge gap in your education. Read up, my friends.
A collection of beautiful, wonderful works from all around the real world. Really.
- Mark
- Central, Massachusetts, United States
- I like using ellipsis... My monicker represents my keen awareness of my limitations... ... the suspense is killing...
Thursday, January 28, 2010
HOWARD ZINN, RIP
My condolences to the Zinn family.
If you don't know of him, and you call yourself "an American," there is a huge gap in your education. Read up, my friends.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
"We the corporations" | Move to Amend | Please Sign this Petition...
On January 21, 2010, with its ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations are persons, entitled by the U.S. Constitution to buy elections and run our government. Human beings are people; corporations are legal fictions. The Supreme Court is misguided in principle, and wrong on the law. In a democracy, the people rule.We Move to Amend.
We, the People of the United States of America, reject the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United, and move to amend our Constitution to:
- Firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.
- Guarantee the right to vote and to participate, and to have our votes and participation count.
- Protect local communities, their economies, and democracies against illegitimate "preemption" actions by global, national, and state governments.
Signed by 30,977 and counting . . .
Initial Signatories:Adrienne Maree Brown, Ruckus Society
Alec Loorz, Kids vs Global Warming
Andrew Kimbrell, International Center for Technology Assessment
Andy Gussert, National Trade Activist
Anne Feeney, musician
Baldemar Velasquez, President, Farm Labor Organizing Committee
Ben Manski, attorney, Exec. Director, Liberty Tree
Benno Friedman, photographer
Benson Scotch, former Staff Counsel to Sen. Leahy, U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
Bill Fletcher, Exec. Editor, BlackCommentator.com
Bill McKibben, founder, 350.org
Bill Moyer, Backbone Campaign
Brad Friedman, Publisher, The BRAD BLOG
Brad Thacker, Be The Change USA
Brett Bursey, Exec. Director, South Carolina Progressive Network
Brett Kimberlin, Director, Justice Through Music
Brian McLaren, Christian activist & author
Carl Davidson, Progressive America Rising
Carolyn Oppenheim, Shays 2
Charlie Cray, Center for Corporate Policy
Chris Kromm, Executive Director, Institute for Southern Studies
Dal LaMagna, founder, Tweezerman, Inc.
Dave Wells, formerly Board of Directors, Sierra Club
David Cobb, initiator of 2004 Ohio Recount
David Gespass, president, National Lawyers Guild
David Korten, author of When Corporations Rule the World
David Rovics, musician
David Swanson, AfterDowningStreet.org
David Wells, Jr., Nashville Urban Harvest
Dean Myerson, Executive Director, Green Institute
Diane Wittner & Margaret Flowers, Chesapeake Citizens
Dr. Jill Stein, candidate for Governor of Massachusetts
Ed Garvey, attorney at law, editor, FightingBob.com
Emily Levy, Velvet Revolution
Fran Korten, Editor, YES! Magazine
Frank Arundel, activist
Gary Zuckett, WV Citizen Action
George Friday, National Coordinator, IPPN
George Martin, United for Peace & Justice
Georgia Kelly, Praxis Peace Institute
Glen Ford, Executive Editor, BlackAgendaReport.com
Greg Coleridge, NE OH American Friends Service Committee
Howard Zinn, historian
Jackie Cabasso, Executive Director, Western States Legal Foundation
James Gustave Speth, Distinguished Senior Fellow, Demos
Jan Edwards, writer
Jane Anne Morris, author, Gaveling Down The Rabble
Jeff Cohen, founder, FAIR
Jeff Milchen, founder, ReclaimDemocracy.org
Jeffrey Short, Ph.D., Pacific Science Director, OCEANA
Jerome Scott, League of Revolutionaries for a New America
Jill Bussiere & Sanda Everette, Co-Chairs, Green Party of the U.S.
James M. Cullen, editor of The Progressive Populist
Jim Hightower, author, columnist, and radio commentator
Joel Bleifuss, Editor & Publisher, In These Times
John E. Peck, Executive Director, Family Farm Defenders
John Nichols, Washington Correspondent, The Nation
John Rensenbrink, President, Green Horizon Foundation
John Stauber, author, Weapons of Mass Deception
Jonathan Frieman, Co-founder, Center for Corporate Policy
Jonathan Tasini, candidate, U.S. Senate, NY
Josh Healey, Youth Speaks Josh Lerner, The New School for Social Research
Josh Silver, Executive Director, Free Press
Judith Pedersen-Benn, Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community
Kai Huschke, Envision Spokane
Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County
Karen Dolan, Cities for Progress
Katherine Forrest, MD; Co-Founder, Commonweal Institute
Ken Reiner, inventor and founder, Kaynar Corp.
Kevin Danaher, Executive Co-Producer, Green Festivals
Kevin Zeese, Executive Director, TrueVote.US
Leah Bolger, CDR, USN (Ret), Bring the Guard Home! It's the Law.
Lewis Pitts, Lawyer, Legal Aid of NC
Lisa Graves, Executive Director, Center for Media and Democracy
Lori Price, Managing Editor, Citizens for Legitimate Government
Luis A. Cuevas, National Director, Progressive Push
Makani Themba-Nixon, Executive Director, The Praxis Project
Margo Baldwin, Publisher, Chelsea Green
Mark Crispin Miller, author, Fooled Again
Mary Zepernick, Program on Corporations Law and Democracy
Marybeth Gardam, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
Matt Nelson, Just Cause
Matt Rothschild, Editor, The Progressive
Maya Schenwar & Matt Renner, Truthout
Medea Benjamin, co-founder, Code Pink
Michael Albert, Z Communications
Michael Bonnano, OpEdNews
Michael Marx, Corporate Ethics International
Michael Shuman, attorney, economic, author of "The Small-Mart Revolution"
Mike Ferner, President, Veterans for Peace
Mimi Kennedy, actress, activist
Miriam Simos, Starhawk, activist and writer
Nancy Price, Alliance for Democracy
Nick Pavloff, Jr., Gulf of Alaska Aleut from Kodiak Island
Norman Solomon, author, co-chair, Healthcare Not Warfare campaign
Patrick Reinsborough, SmartMeme
Paul Saginaw, founder, Zingerman's, Inc.
Prof. Peter Gabel, School of Law, New College of California
Prof. Victor Wallis, Managing Editor, Socialism & Democracy
Rabbi Arthur Waskow
Rabbi Michael Lerner
Rep. Michael Fisher, House of Representatives, Vermont
Rev. Edward Pinkney, Black Autonomy Network Community Organization
Rev. Lennox Yearwood, President, Hip Hop Caucus
Richard Mazess, Prof. Medical Physics, UW-Madison, CEO of Lunar Corp & Bone Care Intl.
Riki Ott, Executive Director, Ultimate Civics
Robert McChesney, professor, co-author, The Death and Life of American Journalism
Ronnie Cummins, founder, Grassroots Netroots Alliance
Sally Castleman, Election Defense Alliance
Sam Smith, Editor, Progressive Review
Sarah Manski, CEO, PosiPair.com
Shahid Buttar, Rule of Law Institute
Ted Glick, climate change activist
Ted Nace, author, Gangs of America: The Rise of Corporate Power
Thom Hartmann, nation's #1 nationally syndicated progressive talk show host
Tia Oros & Christopher Peters, Seventh Generation Fund for Indian Development
Tiffiniy Cheng, Executive Director, A New Way Forward
Tim Carpenter, Executive Director, Progressive Democrats of America
Tom Hayden, activist
Ward Morehouse, chair, National Lawyers Guild's Committee on Corporations* organizations listed for identification purposes only
via movetoamend.org
An end to false, flag-waving patriotism. Let's vote back to basic democracy. And remember:
“…there is no Form of Government but what may be a Blessing to the People if well administred (sic); and I believe farther that this is likely to be well adminstred (sic) for a Course of Years, and can only end in Despotism as other Forms have done before it, when the People shall become so corrupted as to need Despotic Government, being incapable of any other.” (From Benjamin Franklin: Speech in the Convention on the Constitution, unpublished, September 17, 1787)
And Jefferson knew it too: “I hope we shall... crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and to bid defiance to the laws of our country.”
~ Thomas Jefferson, letter to George Logan. November 12, 1816
Friday, January 22, 2010
Take back Government OF, BY and FOR the PEOPLE...
The Campaign to Legalize Democracy is circulating a petition in response to yesterday's ruling that legalized unlimited political bribery by corporations in the USA. Signatories include Bill Moyer, Howard Zinn, Jim Hightower, Billl McKibben, and Tom Hayden."We the corporations" (Thanks, Rodney!)
We, the People of the United States of America, reject the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United, and move to amend our Constitution to:* Firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.
* Guarantee the right to vote and to participate, and to have our votes and participation count.
* Protect local communities, their economies, and democracies against illegitimate "preemption" actions by global, national, and state governments.
via boingboing.net
... gotta go to work now...
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Aughts Be Gone!
Farewell, aughts! Illustration above by David Silverman (Thanks, David!).
via boingboing.net
Happy New 2010 to all our family, friends and colleagues!
Peace and Love!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Thanks to my Alma Mater...
... A great lunch meeting with Bob Appis, Class of '88, hosted by Eric Gustafson, Director of Advancement at Ana Maria College in Paxton, MA.
Bob Appis is the owner of a restaurant in Ogunquit, ME called "The Egg & I" and is a traditional stop for many vacationers to the Maine Coast.
Bob's entrepreneurship and love of great motorcycles was fun to experience and I learned a lot from him and the others there.
Thanks Bob and Eric!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Book of Odds - The Odds of Everyday Life
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via bookofodds.com
This is a winner: the odds of finding a cool site like this are probably a billion to one, unless one listens to public radio during their commute home, like me! Check it out!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
CEO Compensation heading off the chart...
via awesome.good.is
...this controversial chart illustrates one way of considering the relationship of CEO salary to the working poor. But is there a correlation? Is each a victim of globalization (If making too much jing can be bad for one's Self/Soul.) What do you think? The source (AFL-CIO) seems dubious in that they have a vested interest in portraying the gap as something which requires amelioration. It is time the oppressed stand up and take leave of the status quo. A thought.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Some sites of interest to me today:
I love, love, love Hubble anything. An incredible creation and man:
http://hubblesite.org/gallery/album/entire/hires/true/
I’m excited to be able to try this “WAVE” thingy:
http://mashable.com/2009/10/01/google-wave-get-started/
Absolutely stunning in the scope of humanity:
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/china_celebrates_60_years.html
Great list to add in to make Twitter even more fun and overwhelming!:
http://sneerwell.blogspot.com/2009/10/10-firefox-addons-and-plugins-for.html
THIS is going to be fun:
http://www.readwriteweb.com/readwritestart/2009/10/6-great-twitter-quiz-and-polli.php
THIS, uhhh, not so much:http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.org/blog/2009/50-awesome-open-courses-for-web-writers/
Follow me virtually everywhere:
RealSocialSecurity.com | OmniNetMark.com | MarkLaPete.com
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Thursday, May 21, 2009
Eye tracking study reveals 12 website tactics
Eye tracking study reveals 12 website tactics
Eye tracking studies have revealed valuable information about how people read and interact with websites. One study, Eyetrack III, published a summary of their eye tracking results for news sites.
While this is just one eye tracking study focused on a particular type of site, I think there are instructive nuggets here for any informational website.
Very useful information! This article is great because it clearly, concisely enumerates the highlights of the actual study in popular langauge practically anyone can understand. Including me, of course!>)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Let's all "Give it Up" for El Sistema USA...
... a great way to give a little to gain a lot, a lot, a lot! Please donate.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
To Fire the Imagination...
... it is Music. Intelligence. Art. Life. And Love too. I see Cities of EcoPods coalescing vibrantly. Terra-forming.
Cred: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
sandmars_mro_big.jpg 2037×2532 pixels
Friday, April 17, 2009
A Cat's Bitter Disappointment After Sneaking Up On Pigeon
Check out this website I found at digg.com
this is VERY funny!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Ugh...
It's Scutigera Coleoptrata Season!
Maggie Koerth-Baker is a guest blogger on Boing Boing. A freelance science and health journalist, Maggie lives in Minneapolis, brain dumps on Twitter, and writes quite often for mental_floss magazine.
Spring is in the air. The plants are sprouting. That last pile of snow on the shady part of your neighbor's lawn has successfully melted. And your bathroom is alive with terrifying, multilegged creatures that look like this:
Yes, it's active season for everybody's favorite arthropod, scutigera coleoptrata, aka the house centipede. One of these bad boys scuttled across my bathroom floor just last night. My cats, which were born in the South and are still somewhat disappointed by Minnesota's distinct lack of huntable palmetto bugs, think this is great. I'm less enthused. But I figure that when life hands you horrifying household pests, the least it can do is make them interesting.
With that in mind, I present:
Four Facts You Didn't Realize You Wanted To Know About That Thing Living Behind Your Toilet1.Scutigera Coleoptrata are Not Your Fault
Stop beating yourself up. Unlike, say, cockroaches, house centipedes aren't hanging around because you didn't clean the kitchen. At least, not directly. Scutigera coleoptrata feed on spiders and insects--they're actually pretty beneficial if you're willing to do the devil's arithmetic here and decide that you'd rather have one fast-moving centipede than a colony of roaches. That said, leaving crumbs and half-eaten sandwiches about does create a nice environment for s. coleoptrata's food to grow in. So it might not hurt to clean.2. Scutigera Coleoptrata are Efficient
They're actually capable of eating several other bugs at once, noshing on one meal while holding onto another with one of their 30 legs. They usually hunt at night, waiting for prey to get close enough that they can jump onto it, lasso it in, or whip it into submission.3. Scutigera Coleoptrata are Not a Toy
House centipedes do their hunting via a set of venomous front legs. The good news: They won't come looking to start a fight with you and, most of the time, even if you do egg them into attacking, they won't be able to break your skin barrier. The bad news: That's only most of the time. S. coleoptrata has apparently successfully stung humans before. Not life-threatening, it's supposed to feel a lot like a bee sting.4. Scutigera Coleoptrata Will Not Forget This
Photo courtesy Kenta Hayashi
Unlike a lot of household pests that can be expected to die shortly after breeding, s. coleoptrata can live as long as seven years. There's a distinct possibility they've been in your house longer than you have. During that time, they can grow to be as big as 1.75 in. long. Unsurprisingly, getting rid of them isn't easy. Sticky traps are often recommended, but the house centipede can escape those by simply breaking off the stuck legs and growing them back later.
via boingboing.net
... and compassion for all.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Break up the Big Banks...
... Let's start the breaking up party...
... Break up the Big Banks, Big Pharma, Big Oil, Big Cars. Repay the debt you have caused for our country. Then we'll start reducing Big Government.
... Support A New Way Forward...
On Saturday, A New Way Forward is sponsoring a nationwide day of action to demand that our leaders (1) nationalize (2) reorganize, and (3) decentralize the banks as a first step toward building a more just economy.
On Saturday, come to a rally near you for speeches, street theatre, petition gathering, and phonebanking to Congress. (I'll say a few words at the New York City rally.) Add your voice to this growing movement to demand our tax dollars be used to fix our problems, rather than preserve the fortunes of those who created them.
http://www.anewwayforward.org/rally-list.php
If you can't come, make sure our Senators and Representatives hear us by signing our petition to Break Up the Banks:
http://www.democrats.com/break-up-the-banks
... Break up the Big Banks, Big Pharma, Big Oil, Big Cars. Repay the debt you have caused for our country. Then we'll start reducing Big Government.
follow me in the virtual:
http://twitter.com/numbone
http://numbone.posterous.com/
http://numbone111.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Won't be fooled again...
William K. Black suspects that it was more than greed and incompetence that brought down the U.S. financial sector and plunged the economy in recession — it was fraud. And he would know. When it comes to financial shenanigans, William K. Black, the former senior regulator who cracked down on banks during the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s, has seen pretty much everything. Now an Associate Professor of Economics and Law at the University of Missouri, William K. Black tells Bill Moyers on the JOURNAL that the tool at the very center of mortgage collapse, creating triple-A rated bonds out of "liars' loans" — loans issued without verifying income, assets or employment — was a fraud, and the banks knew it. 
Bill Moyers Journal . William K. Black: CSI Bailout | PBS via pbs.org http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04032009/watch.html
... Break up the Big Banks, Big Pharma, Big Oil, Big Cars. Repay the debt you have caused for our country. Then we'll start reducing Big Government.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Do NOT miss this...
... get it on DVD. I mean it: BUY a copy of this movie. Then watch it repeatedly. Live fully. Love forever.
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