How could I forget to mention my summer guilty pleasure?! Big Brother 8 has started again, and I couldn't be happier! The best part is that instead of the 24/7 feed, I can watch live happenings on Showtime!!! I am so stoked!
Peace.Love.Live.
JPB
So for the moment, I don't have much to say. I am trying to decompress from a long week...My vacation is only 2 days away and it seems like a lifetime! So, for now, I rest and leave the blogging to those that have the energy.
Peace.Love.Live.
JPB
The recent Supreme Court decisions....
Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School Dist. No. 1
(basically overturning Brown v. Board of Education)
Morse v. Frederick
(limiting the First Ammendment Rights of Students)
and..........The secrecy of the current administration
Cheney asserts that he is not part of the Executive Branch
Have all given me pause. I am reposting the video 14 Characteristics of Fascism narrated by Mike Malloy, from Air America Radio
I'll let you be the judge...my mind is already made up!
Peace. Love. Live.
My partner and I went to see Sicko last night. As with any Michael Moore movie, we were prepared to deal with the emotional issues that come with his documentaries. What we were not prepared for was the ANGER that came with the rest of the emotions.
I can't even begin to give this documentary the justice it deserves. I can just encourage all of you out there in cyberworld to go see this film, and then get involved in changing the landscape that allows this health care system to run over people instead of helping people.
Peace.Love.Live.
The official trailer for "Sicko" follows:
Composer Karl Jenkins (Diamond Music) founded this group to delve into a deeper inner sanctum. The music of this group is haunting, and the lyrics sung are of a language only known to Karl himself, in order to showcase the human voice as an amazing musical instrument. It is mystifying to sit and listen to this group, though you have no idea what is being said, the music surrounds you and you are immediately transferred to a place of tranquility and solitude.
It shows the true meaning behind the saying that "music is a universal language". Along with its calming effects, the music intertwines a variety of world sounds from African to Arabic. This music transcends all genres and ideologies, allowing the listener to gain whatever perspective they need from religious to meditative.
This first video is the original release from the first Adiemus album entitled "Songs of Sanctuary", released in 1995 (main vocals my Miriam Stockely). This song was also the theme song for Delta Airlines.
This second video "Cantus (Song of Tears)" is one of my favorite songs from Adiemus (there was no official video for this release.)which was from the second CD release from Adiemus titled, "Adiemus II: Cantata Mundi" in 1997.
Both albums include the London Philharmonic. I hope you enjoy this different musical journey. It certainly is a pleasure to introduce Adiemus to a larger audience.
Peace.Love.Live
JPB
PS. These songs give me a feeling of peace and liberation. Considering the "place" where I currently reside, having this tranquility allows me to maintain a bit of sanity, where there otherwise may be none. The calming effects this music has on my soul, quiets the beast within and renews my spirit.
Next up in music from the edge: Ronan Hardiman
The title says it all. Most of us are afraid of change, and I guess I would have to include myself in that group.
I guess what frightens me most about change is the "unknown." There is no longer stability and consistency. Even though I don't care much for change, I think that I manage through the process very well, once I determine that I can no longer resist it.
So changing for me is hard - in the beginning...then I find it a challenge.
Challenge is easier. So as I embark on this new challenge, I will embrace the change that is to occur. I am at a crossroads. Only God knows what is in store for me.....
Since I have decided to have a point with most of my blogs (though I am sure there will be some that have no point at all..), this one came to me while I was sleeping.
One of my favorite songs is "Is this the World We Created" by Queen from the album "The Works" released in 1984 (most famous for the song "Radio Ga-Ga"). Anyway, I bought this album (on tape) from Camelot Music at Chapel Hill Mall, in Akron, Ohio. I put this tape in my Walkman and was completely mesmerized. Not only did most of the songs on this album have a strong political message, but it rocked! (If I remember correctly, this tape stayed in my Walkman for about a year, until I had played it so much that the tape wound itself around the turning parts).
So back to the dream I had. For some reason - and it doesn't happen often - I dream in "music" and this was the soundtrack to my dream. Needless to say, I felt the need to write about it....and find a youtube video that would give justice to both the song and my dream sequence. This video comes quite close.
Originally written [Brian May & Freddie Mercury] to address the issues of starvation and poverty in the developing world, this song was adopted by various causes since, including: LiveAid, Greenpeace, WorldAids, and Unicef. The message of this song is as powerful, timely and universal now as it was 23 years ago. The images in this video use past and present events to bring this song into the new millennium.
Is This The World We Created?
Just look at all those hungry mouths we have to feed
Take a look at all the suffering we breed
So many lonely faces scattered all around
Searching for what they need
Is this the world we created?
What did we do it for?
Is this the world we invaded
Against the law?
So it seems in the end
Is this what we're all living for today?
The world that we created
You know that every day a helpless child is born
Who needs some loving care inside a happy home
Somewhere a wealthy man is sitting on his throne
Waiting for life to go by
Is this the world we created?
We made it on our own
Is this the world we devastated
Right to the bone?
If there's a God in the sky looking down
What can he think of what we've done
To the world that he created?
First...I have an amazing crush on Billy Joe of Green Day. But this version of John Lennon's classic song is moving. I actually cry...seriously, the message.
This song is included in the benefit CD to help in efforts in Darfur. Watch this video. It says it all. My heart hurts. God help the people in Darfur. We must help the people of Darfur!
Please be generous in your donation. It only takes a few moments and can help save lives.
http://www.savedarfur.org/
Peace. Love. Live.
JPB
And goes, and goes....
Then stops....then goes again, and again....then stops....
this is basically life.
We go and we go and we go...then we stop, reasses, then go again and again and again. We never really just STOP. We are basically the "period," at the end of the sentence. Just a brief pause to finish a thought, then ....on to the next sentence. We need more than just a brief pause. We need a vacation. I don't know what this would be considered in grammatical terms (other than maybe a "quote")...
Alas, the real point of this post is the failure for an organization to realize what talent it possesses in its people. At this time, I am not at liberty to talk more about this, but I think if organizations spent more time assessing their "talent," and rewarding them accordingly, they might find that Generation X'ers would respond. Failure to do this, and the Gen X'ers jump ship.
And it goes...and goes...ang goes......
One of my favorite songs from Olivia's blockbuster album Physical, released in 1981.
Originally recorded by Cliff Richard in 1974, Olivia decided that she needed to put this song on her album to highlight what she felt was a severe consequence to our use of pesticides in our farming. This message wasn't the first environmental message to meet our ears from Olivia, but it was one of the most haunting. ONJ was also an environmentalist before it was "cool" to be...and she lives what she preaches. Silvery Rain stands as a testament against crop dusting, but as the video shows, can definitely be tied to the climate crisis - all things are tied together.
I have included the video....it show’s Olivia's playful side, as well as images of Olivia that you might never have seen otherwise. However, nothing is more powerful than the lyrics. By the way, this videogram won a Grammy in 1982 for best long form video (I think it was also the 1st video Grammy ever given!)
Written by: Hank Marvin (more on this story later)
Butterflies danced on invisible strings
Showing wings they borrowed from a rainbow
And a blackbird on high sang a praise to the sky
While a light aeroplane sprayed the fields
With a silvery rain
Furry backed bees with a tireless drone
Never moan, they're happy to be working
And a grasshopper green could be heard but not seen
While a light aeroplane sprayed the fields
With a silvery rain
Fly away, Peter, fly away, Paul
Before there's nothing left to fly at all
Take to the sky, higher than high
Before the silvery rain begins to fall
Nothing moves now but the swaying ripe corn
Not a dawn is greeted with a bird's song
There's a feather or two from a bird that once flew
Before a light aeroplane sprayed the fields
With a silvery rain
Fly away, Peter, fly away, Paul
Before there's nothing left to fly at all
Take to the sky, higher than high
Before the silvery rain begins to fall
Fly away, Peter, fly away, Paul
Before there's nothing left to fly at all
Take to the sky, higher than high
Before the silvery rain begins to fall
Reading through my latest copy of Rolling Stone Magazine, I came across a great article by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., entitled What Must Be Done. This article chronicles the real cost of denying our interdependence on foreign oil and the major subsidies that go to the major oil and coal companies.
A little background to substantiate my point of view:
For the past 7 years W. and his party have been blaming everything that has gone wrong in this country on Bill Clinton and the Democratic party, or just flatly denied that there was a problem at all! I guess this administration is of the belief that if they say something long enough and loud enough that eventually people will begin to believe their drivel. It seems as if that strategy worked for a while, but most people are wising up to this fascist’s propaganda.
Now for an amazing revelation:
In the article, I was struck by a few, simple paragraphs that stood out as shining beacons of truth – (something that Robert Kennedy Jr. is able to do so well) placing blame for much of what has happened in the Middle East - and the Iraq war, solely at the feet of the master republican Ronald Reagan….
“Back in the 1970’s, President Jimmy Carter attempted to level the playing field by creating incentives and minimal subsidies to jump-start clean fuels in the marketplace. But then Ronald Reagan took office and ordered the solar panels that Carter had installed on the White House roof torn off. He rolled back fuel standards for automobiles, killed federal incentives that had given America a commanding lead in wind and solar power, and doubled our oil imports. Reagan’s efforts fueled the current oil addiction that has us acting like a crack- house junkie rolling old ladies for drug money. Our jones for petrodrugs has not only superheated the planet, it has embroiled us in the Mesopotamian quagmire and made America a pariah among civilized nations, damaging the cause of democracy across the globe.”
“During the oil crisis sparked by OPEC in the 1970’s, American business and government went into overdrive to promote conservation and develop alternatives to Middle Eastern oil. Between 1977 and 1985, Detroit boosted the fuel efficiency of its automobiles from 18 to 27.5 miles per gallon. Oil use shrank by 17%-while the economy grew by 27%...oil imports from the Persian Gulf plunged by 87%...had we stayed the course, we would have needed to import a single drop of oil from the Middle East after 1986- achieving true energy independence that…would have enabled us to avoid the devastating attacks of September 11th, as well as both Gulf wars.”
(Rolling Stone, June 28, 2007, Issue 1029)
One can argue, using Kennedy’s assertions, that Reagan was the “instigator” that began the devil’s dance in the Middle East, and most likely laid the foundation for the events that led up to and created Osama Bin Laden’s hatred for the United States.
The blame game works both ways, I guess. However, I only like to think of what things could be like today if Reagan would have remained faithful to the initiatives and subsidies of the Carter administration. Our lives as Americans, I feel, would be dramatically different and we would not be sacrificing the lives of our brave soldiers for a war that only benefits the few.
Well, I couldn't be happier! My favorite television show from last season; the highly acclaimed Jericho has finally been renewed! Initially cancelled in April because of poor ratings (I will get back to this in my next blog), a major uprising occurred online and fans of the show began a campaign to save the show.
Well, it looks like it worked! Jericho will repeat the second half of its first season starting July 6 and then will return to the CBS lineup in that time slot for the fall (or so it seems - there is a bit of confusion here about that).
So, to catch up on the first part of season one, you can go to http://www.cbs.com/innertube/player.php?cat=115191&vid=&format=&auto=1 and watch the series on innertube. And for those of you with Comcast cable you can go to your On Demand section, tab under CBS and watch the episodes there as well.
I will keep you posted on future developments as I hear about them. See, it really does pay to speak you mind...sometimes, if you are lucky, someone actually listens!
For more information on Jericho - go to: http://www.jerichorises.com/
To this day, I seriously wonder how and the hell we ended up with this president. I can only assume that the failure of the electorate to even give a shit about what is going on in this country. Now, I understand that most people are busy just trying to make ends meet, working 2 jobs, raising kids - I can forgive that.
What I can't forgive are those friggin' idiots who "proudly" continue to display their ignorance for voting for this idiot of a president. I mean, you see it every day: the bumper stickers proudly stating that they voted for Bush - these are not luxury autos....OH NO....these are the mini-vans: the rusted ones that look like they are only miles away from the final breakdown. These are the people that have been hurt the most by Bush and his anti-family, anti-union, anti-democracy, anti-(insert your own word) policies.
Anyway. I proudly say I NEVER voted for this idiot. I would use more harsh words to describe this pathetic man we call president, but I am a bit afraid of ending up in some concentration camp for dissenters of the government....But I believe that dissent is our patriotic duty, so I do so proudly!
Now on with the show....
Peace.Love.Life.
JPB
Le Tigre released "New Kicks" in 2004, as a protest against the imperialist, warmongering George W. Bush. I was in the gym today, doing my shoulder workout when this song began to play on my MP3 player (sorry don't have an IPod - but it works just as good); I thought, "wow, this would be a perfect 'reminder' song to put up on my blog!" So here it is...who says that dissent is dead?
***New Kicks***
Peace Now, Peace Now, Peace Now, Peace Now!
We are gathered here, we come from so many different places.
From different identities, different cultures.
Different backgrounds different religions.
And yet we can gather, under the guides of peace....now...
Peace now!
"We say no to war!"
Peace up, war down!
"We say no to war!"
Peace up, war down!
"We say no to war!"
Peace up, war down!
"We made it. We're here. We're here right now and we're not leaving."
Now I feel you, I feel you people.
Now I feel you, I feel you people.
Now I feel you, I feel you people.
Now I feel you, I feel you people.
Now I feel you, I feel you....
"Now, we have reports that more and more people are just taking on ramps onto the bridge and are just taking it over.. it's just...just..."
"I mean, i'm just like..ahh!"
This is what democracy looks like!
This is what democracy sounds like!
This is what democracy looks like!
This is what democracy sounds like!
"Reports from protests from Amman, Jordan... Amsterdam... and Beirut, Lebanon... East Timor... Florence, Italy...London...Milano, Italy...Paris, France...
In dozens of cities in Spain... Reports in Athens, Georgia... and Austin, Texas... Blacksburg, Virginia... Charleston, South Carolina... Colorado Springs... and
Defiance, Ohio... Denver, Colorado as well as Durango... Geneva, New York and Houston, Texas... Hyannis, Massachussetts...In Hawaii as well...
Lawrence, Kansas... Los Angeles, California... AND I AM ONLY NAMING A FEW!"
Peace...now! Peace...now!
And as Eleanor Roosevelt said...
"It isn't enough to talk about peace, one must believe in it. It isn't enough to believe in it, one must work at it"
And we here today... are working at it!
"Peace is possible, and even necessary. So drop the sword, and pick up the hammer and the saw. And let's build a better world!"
No blood for oil!
We will not be silent!
No blood for oil!
We will not be silent!
"We will not go to war, for a selected president, who wasn't even elected!"
We must stand unbroken, unbound and unashamed
We need healthcare!
We need education!
We need freedom in this nation!
Freedom in this nation!
Freedom in this nation!
Freedom in this nation!
"Thousands of people have taken over 3rd Avenue and are marching north. The crowd stretches at least 15 blocks from 44th street to 59th Street.
The police have just simply... given up."
This is what democracy looks like!
This is what democracy sounds like!
This is what democracy looks like!
This is what democracy sounds like!
peace now
peace now
(repeated behind next lines)
"We will not sell out!
We will not back down!
We will not compromise!
We will go forward,
Until peace is on the world's agenda!"
I started to feel that there were no more heroes in the World.
But Today, I see all the World's heroes standing before me.
"We say no to war!"
No war!
"We say no to war!"
No war!
"We say no to war!"
No war!
******(I didn't recieve permission to reprint Le Tigre's lyrics, I hope that they will forgive me.******
Ok, so I'm going through a tough time right now, and when that happens, I get ONJ crazy. Olivia is a grounding force in my life, she brings me back to earth and reality. The past few years have been very productive for Olivia. She has been touring non-stop, completing new CD's on her new record label, writing new material, staring in movies. She's busier now that she has ever been.
Most people have put Olivia in the 80's bin, and left her there. That is mighty unfortunate. That is why I have decided to add this track here so that you can all see how unbelievably talented and amazing she remains. I found this on youtube (the song "Can I Trust Your Arms" was written by Olivia's daughter Chloe for her CD Stronger Than Before)...her music to animae....amazing!
Enjoy.
Peace.Live.Love.
JPB
So the subject of global warming has finally hit a stride in the last year. Al Gore has done more for the environmental movement than almost anyone. However, while Al was busy in Congress a well known singer/songwriter Olivia Newton-John was actually addressing this problem with her music.
"Let's Talk About Tomorrow" was a song from her album THE RUMOR, released in 1988, which was also accompanied with an HBO special. Unfortunately, this album did not do well (reached only #67 on the Billboard Charts), though I find it to be one of the best of her long career.
This, of course was not the only song in an environmental vein. In 1994, Olivia penned her most intimate CD, and the BEST CD of her career. The title track "Gaia" in Olivia's own words: "Gaia is the spirit of Mother Earth. She is the giver of dreams and the nourisher of plants and young children. This song came to me at 3:00 AM on a cold winters morning in Byron Bay and I was compelled to write and finish it. I feel the spirit of Mother Earth spoke to me. August 1993." Here is a part of that beautiful song, put to a slide show of wonderous images.
Peace.Live.Love.
JPB
This is being reposted from my myspace blog. My hope is that the more people see it the bigger the difference we can make.
Current mood: hopeful
Ok, so now I get political (as if I haven't before!). But this is extremely important to me, so I am going to write about it. I am hoping that I can put this video in my blog (it is extremely moving)...so if I can it will be right next to this message. This important legislation is currently awaiting a vote in the Senate....we need everyone to call your Senators, write your Senators, email your Senators and DEMAND that they support the Matthew Shepard Act.
If you don't know who Matthew Shepard is, I strongly urge you to google his name and read about him and what happend to him, if that doesn't move you to action, I guess nothing ever will.
For those of you who are a bit on the busy side, please visit this link and sign your name to the letter and it will be delivered courtesy of HRC to your respective Senators. Here is the link: http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/campaign/matthew_shepard
Thank you all for your support. Please, please, please pass along this information to everyone you know. I look forward to everyone's comments.
Peace,
JPB
So, yet again, I am going to attempt to write in my blog. Currently, there are many things that are on my mind and driving me crazy. So starting to write about any one of these subjects can get the ball rolling.
I guess I will start with my job search. Basically, it sucks. Not much happening on that front. I guess I am really sick and tired of hearing: "We find you to be extremely well qualified, but have decided to hire someone with more work experience...."
So basically, I am book smart, but not street smart. I guess I wonder how anyone is ever supposed to move forward....everyone wants that person that has the degree, but also wants someone with 5-10 years of experience in that field as well. My question is...how is anyone supposed to get that experience if no one will hire you???
So, as the old saying goes............(I can't remember what the saying is actually), but I will keep pluggin' away. I can only hope there is an organization out there that will just take a chance on me, and realize that they have won the lottery.
Do you ever go through a period in your life when you feel as if you are going nowhere??? That is Pond Water.
Do you ever feel like you are just keeping your head above water??? That is Pond Water.
Do you ever wonder how in the hell you would be able to get out from under all of those Student loans you took out to pay for school so that you could get a better job and provide a decent and hopefully comfortable life for your family......and you are still trying to figure it out? That is Pond Water
Do you ever think....what am I doing here? why did I choose this path? That is Pond Water.
I feel like Pond Water. Not moving, not really contributing, except to the exploding population of mosquitoes......I am waiting to evaporate, so that I can then contribute something....like rain....
Wow...the symbolism.....creepy huh? Well it is what it is...and that is how I feel....Like Pond water...slowly but surely being covered in a green goop and producing nothing but mosquitoes
I haven't posted to my blog in over a year.....Wow!
This year, I plan to use my blog to vent....To let the world know how pissed off I am at this Dictatorship masking as a Republic (namely Bush and his cronies)....Maybe get arrested for voicing my opinion......We'll just have to wait and see...
But as a former political activist (in my early 20's), I now know that I cannot stand by and allow things to happen around me, I need to be involved again.
With the House of Representatives, the Senate, the White House, and the Supreme Court firmly in the grips of W's neocon movement, it is up to US...The people of the United States of America, to hold them accountable.
We are currently in a dark period of one party rule. Where we are no longer governed by the rule of Law, but the rule of "do as I say, not as I do...I know what is right for you...."
I promise to keep posting my thoughts...Though not many people will read them...
It is a small way that I can contribute to the discourse, and hopefully create needed change.....
