It's Friday in Mississippi...
Monisha Sujan checks in again from Mississippi today for a 5:13 p.m. post on Blog for America
It's Friday in Mississippi...
It's Friday morning and I'm in Starkville in Northeast Mississippi. We've spent yesterday moving from Baton Rouge across the state of Mississippi.
Baton Rouge seemed so overcrowded and desperate before we left. It seems like the city has doubled or tripled in size with some desperate New Orleans residents rumored to be roaming in downtown Baton Rouge in armed gangs, the S.W.A.T. is out and many displaced New Orleans residents are fruitlessly attempting to find a home in Baton Rouge. I'm concerned that the violence wrought by desperation will turn the refugee camp and rescue and recovery staging ground that is now Baton Rouge into a chaotic and violent mess. I'm also fear that the natives of Baton Rouge might react with violence in order to protect their city (I know of many friends buying shotguns). CNN reports late last night seem to confirm my fears.
Click here for the rest.
URGENT UPDATE
I just saw this diary by Armando on Daily Kos:
GOP Agenda in Action - Part II; Estate Tax To Be Voted On Tuesday
Senate Finance Committee members were informed this morning that Sen. Bill Frist will move forward with a vote to permanently repeal the estate tax next week, likely on Tuesday, ThinkProgress has learned.
That is just vile. And, as Armando says, "Callous, worthless, despicable, heartless." Senator Justice Sunday (the original, not the sequel) just did something desperately, miserably un-Christian. From yesterday's Start Making Sense post...
"If someone who has the riches of this world sees his brother in need and closes his heart to him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (1 Jn 3:17). It is well known how strong were the words used by the Fathers of the Church to describe the proper attitude of persons who possess anything towards persons in need. To quote Saint Ambrose: "You are not making a gift of your possessions to the poor person. You are handing over to him what is his. For what has been given in common for the use of all, you have arrogated to yourself. The world is given to all, and not only to the rich."
Additional headlines of interest:
From Howie in Seattle:
Howard Dean Asks Bush to ''show some real leadership''
"Sheehan brings protest here"
One Nation – Two Countries
On My Left Wing:
It's no joke: Halliburton hired for Katrina cleanup by pamindurham Pam is also the author of Contempt for the masses starts at the conservative top. And, in response to my own diary, Disgusted in St. Louis made an important point regarding Dennis Hastert's comment that rebuilding New Orleans might not be sensible...
As the world watches
The "supposed" #3 man in the GOP, the Speaker of the House, the man second in line of succession to the President after VP Dick Cheney, saying the US can't reconstruct (rebuilding isn't sensible) a 500,000 population city in our own country when they have been telling the world how they were going to reconstruct a city of 6 million (as well as a country of 25 million) as a foreign occupier in another country.
In Tikkun, the Jewish magazine/interfaith movement, Rabbi Michael Lerner published an article entitled Hurricane Katrina, God and Social Morality
It didn't have to happen. And it didn't have to result in so many deaths and social chaos. This is the playing out of cosmic karma for ecological, economic and social irresponsibility. Unfortunately, as always the poor deserve it least and suffer most.
In Sojourners, Jim Wallis also addresses the reasons why, in disasters like Hurricane Katrina, those who have the least to lose are often those who lose the most.
Also, if you look at the links at the right side of this page, you will see that I have added links to HurricaneHousing.org as well as the Katrina Aftermath blog. In the comment section here, please let me know about any disaster relief programs that you think deserve a special mention and/or link on this blog.
Finally, on a happier note, a big blog family Happy Birthday to seashell!
Click here for the blog family birthday calendar.
Bushies, I say to you, *Let them eat cake." BUT NOT MINE!
ReplyDeleteFirst to the Deans, the Americans everywhere opening their homes, the nurses, doctors and regular Americans helping the people of NO.
Last to the Bushies and the power structure that helped allow this to happen.
Also first to Jack Cafferty who shows courage in pointing out the elephant in the living room.
Happy birthday, Seashell!
ReplyDeleteA story I've been keeping an eye on, but that may have gotten lost amid the hurricane coverage is that of journalists in Iraq detained and killed by US Forces.
Link to blog entry on DAFD
http://www.dafd.org/csl/node/29#comment-9?PHPSESSID=860f34e51e6d4be3eed6fa52a015ac90
Be back later
Thank you for a group blog wishing me a happy b'day!
ReplyDeleteIt's wonderful to be part of this incredible compassionate, funny and damn smart community.
I went to the library to pick up a copy, finally, of Harry Potter. Wow, is the librarian pi$$ed at Bush. She thinks he made sure nothing was distributed until he was able to get off his ass and get there.
They used 9/11. Let's watch and see how they will use this.
Happy birthday, seashell!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to the calendar, Renee.
Monisha, Do what you can to shake up Mississippi Democrats while you're there!
Renee, thanks so much for the shadow blog. This is my first visit.
ReplyDeleteGreg Palast asks: "Where is our Huey Long?" Great essay ...
http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=453&row=0
Personally, I think our 21st century Huey Long arrived on the scene two summers ago. His name is Howard Dean.
Diary on Kos:
ReplyDeleteGOP Agenda in Action - Part II; Estate Tax To Be Voted On Tuesday
We need to be making a *lot* of noise about this! I'm going to add the diary link to the main blog post here.
On my comment above about Howard as the new Huey Long ...
ReplyDelete... without the corruption, of course.
You're welcome, jc and julie.
ReplyDeleteAnd, *welcome* (the greeting kind), Julie!
Great caller on Air America's Randi Rhodes show hits it on the head --- since the time of Reagan we have surrendered in the war on poverty , we have surrendered in the war on inequality, we have turned our backs to the promise of a shining city on a hill, and we have been sold a bill of goods. The bill is coming due now.
ReplyDeleteNow we are beginning to see the aftermath of what happens to a great country when it is stripped of its humanity, stripped BY ITS OWN WEALTHIER citizens of its greatest strength --- a strong and growing middle class --- stripped of its will to turn and face difficulties, tragedies, economic dilemmas as ONE nation, not a nation of have-nots, haves and have-mores.
The devastation of New Orleans and the death and destruction since Katrina passed through is a direct result of negligence attributable to the defunding of America's public services.
Americans need to wake up and smell the coffee. The conservative credo espoused by those in power will destroy this country. This COULD have been a terrorist attack. When the next attack happens it is clear we will not have the resources in place to manage the damage, the chaos and the uncertainty.
This is a Class War. You can see it in stark detail in the streets of New Orleans. It is time for someone to be accountable...
Thanks for the link, jaxrook.
ReplyDeleteI have always been curious. What is the derivation of your name? It reminds me of Jax beer every time I see it. Which reminds me of New Orleans...
sleepless ~~ unless *somebody* wises up, I'm waiting for ClockWork Orange. . . .
ReplyDeleteRenee ~~ how'd scholl go today?
ReplyDeleteschool
ReplyDeletepuddleriver, uneventful so far. He doesn't really talk about it on his own, and I didn't have a chance to ask with all we have going on here. We still need to get his IEP set up. Right now Demetrius is putting most of his energy into car work and (soon) roof work. Right now what I'm dreading is the possibility of getting one of those urgent calls from the school while Demetrius is up on the roof.
ReplyDeletejax ~~ Never Surrender
ReplyDeleteRenee ~~ You either. Make Demetrius do the roofing at night (just joking) Hang in there.
Nice rant over at Kos by shanikka:
ReplyDeleteNo she didn't no she didn't NO SHE DID NOT.
Condoleeza Rice did NOT actually think that pulling out that she was from Alabama actually made up for the fact that here it is, the end of the 5th day of horror in New Orleans for citizens largely comprised of her own people, and she is JUST NOW (at 4:15 Central) showing up on television to talk about the fact that..(click)
Jax,
ReplyDeleteRight on, man! I feel much as you do. Well said.
Reid:
ReplyDelete(WASHINGTON, DC)--“I am surprised at the Republican leadership's insensitivity toward the events of the last week. With thousands presumed dead after Hurricane Katrina and families uprooted all along the Gulf Coast, giving tax breaks to millionaires should be the last thing on the Senate's agenda. I understand that the Senate shouldn't grind to a halt as a result of Hurricane Katrina, but there are issues that are of much greater importance both to the people directly affected by the hurricane as well as the nation as a whole than estate tax repeal.
“This shouldn't even be a choice. Families have been torn apart and homes have been washed in four states. These victims deserve the Senate's time, not the handful of millionaires repealing the Estate Tax will affect. I once again urge Senator Frist to reconsider his decision. Gulf Coast families are counting on us. They are suffering, and they have no where else to turn. We owe it to them to make their safety and survival our top priority, and we should give them nothing less. Regardless of how one feels about the estate tax, we should all be able to agree that the Senate's attention should be on the victims of this crisis.
Crawford Peace House updates (click) This post is from 8/31:
ReplyDeleteCrawford Peace House plans to help Katrina victims - Updated
Despite all the goings on here in Crawford, our thoughts are also on the situation in the Gulf Coast areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina. We want to do what we can to help them with some of the items that were so generously donated to Camp Casey for Cindy Sheehan's action.
We are currently breaking down Camp Casey and inventorying the camping equipment and supplies we have remaining.
Once we know what we have, we will make whatever we can available to those who are refugees from Hurricane Katrina, possibly including accomodating people who have lost their homes.
As soon as we have more details, we will announce them here.
Underwhelming Response in Wake of Hurricane Katrina
ReplyDeleteby Rep Louise Slaughter (click)
Thanks for the redirection to shanikka's post, Renee.
ReplyDeleteI feel precisely as you do Jaxrook, I want all the rat bastards who kowtow to corporate selfishness to take a walk on a short pier. They do not speak for the majority of Americans because a vast majority of us are not members of the elite moneyed class...
One of the comments made beneath shanikka's post was speaking the truth --- someone commented that the regressives will spin this and say, "See? Big government doesn't work. We need to privatize emergency response. We need to privatize government." The poster went on to say when the first words out of George Bush's mouth were for the American people to send money to the Red Cross and the Salvation Army that his reaction was "I don't need my president to tell me donate money. I need my president to tell me what he is going to do, what could be done better and offer some uplifting bromides..."
Hey, Renee,
ReplyDeleteGet real, my friend. Since when have Repugs cared about anyone but their donor base. Repealing the estate tax is a nice little present for the donor base. New Orlinians don't go to $25.000.00 dollar a plate dinners for Repug VIPs. So, who cares about 'em?
BTW at supper my Feaux News junky dad opined that Rudy Julianni(sp?) should go down to take charge in NO. He seemed put out when I agreed that a lot of people are saying this. He then spoke with great anger about how _he_ has heard nothing from the Gov. and the Mayor except complaints. What Corinne and I were discussing earlier this afternoon, that the Repugs may take the oppertunity to crucify the Gov. in her people's eyes and the eyes of the nation doesn't sound quite so far fetched now. What thoroughly vial, hateful, despicable people. I know one shouldn't hate, but I really *do* hate NeoCons!!!
Thanks for the Bushflash link, jax. This one is still my favorite, though
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bushflash.com/idiot.html
Check the Bushflash home page for some good rants about the crappy response to the hurricane by the Bush admin.
"What bothers me the most is all the people who've died unnecessarily," says Ivor Van Heerden, a hurricane researcher from Louisiana State University who ran the exercise.
ReplyDeleteVan Heerden says the federal government didn't take it seriously.
"Those FEMA officials wouldn't listen to me," he says. "Those Corps of Engineers people giggled in the back of the room when we tried to present information."
From the In Box
ReplyDeleteDate September 2, 2005 8:01.14PM
From: Justice For All Moderator (jfa@jfanow.org)
Send to justice@jfanow.org
Subject: CQ: Tennessee v Lane Plaintiff Beverly Jones to be Witness at Roberts Hearing
CQ is reporting that Beverly Jones has been called by the Democrats as
one of their witnesses. Hopefully, her testimony will help elevate the
profile of disability rights during the Roberts hearings. Regrettably, CQ
still uses the term "wheelchair-bound."
Daniel Davis
National Council on Independent Living (NCIL)
Phone: 703-525-3406, ext 26
Both Sides List Witnesses for Roberts Hearings
FRIDAY, SEPT. 2, 2005 - 3:02 P.M.
Edited by Mark Stencel
Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have
released the names of most of the witnesses who will testify about John
G. Roberts Jr. during the Supreme Court nominee's confirmation hearings
next week.
Both sides are calling a mix of prominent party figures, interest
group leaders, lawyers and academics.
Democratic witnesses, which were released Friday, include Carol
Browner, former EPA administrator; John Dean, President Richard Nixon's
White House counsel; and Beverly Jones, the wheelchair-bound plaintiff in
a case in which the Supreme Court ruled state officials had to provide
the disabled access to a courthouse where she worked.
The GOP witness list, released Thursday, includes Richard Thornburgh,
former U.S. attorney general and former Pennsylvania governor; Bruce
Botelho, mayor of Juneau, Alaska, and former Alaska attorney general;
Elsa Cole, the NCAA's general counsel; and Peter Kirsanow, a member of
the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
A total of 30 witnesses, 15 called by members of each party, are
scheduled to testify. In addition, the committee will hear from
representatives of the American Bar Association, which in August gave
Roberts its highest rating.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteFrom the In Box
ReplyDeleteDate September 2, 2005 7:44.46PM
From: Justice For All Moderator (jfa@jfanow.org)
Send to justice@jfanow.org
Subject: NCD Brief on Hurricane Katrina Affected Areas
National Council on Disability on Hurricane Katrina Affected Areas
Basic Info
People with disabilities in the Gulf Coast areas of Alabama, Mississippi,
and Louisiana are experiencing tremendous loss of life and devastation
caused by Hurricane Katrina. Current data indicates that people with
disabilities are now most at risk in this situationand will need recovery
assistance for months or years. A disproportionate number of the
Hurricane survivors are people with disabilities whose needs for basic
necessities are compounded by chronic health conditions and functional
impairments.
For example:
In Biloxi, Mississippi, a city of about 50,000 people, 26 percent of
residents are people with disabilities. This means that there are 10,700
people with disabilities 5 years of age and older who live in Biloxi.
In Mobile, Alabama, a city of 198,915 people, 24 percent of the residents
are people with disabilities. This means that there are 43,000 people
with disabilities 5 years of age and older who live in Mobile.
In New Orleans, a city of about 484,000 people, 23.2 percent of residents
are people with disabilities. This means that there are 102,122 people
with disabilities 5 years of age and older who live in New Orleans.
Who are the 102,122 people with disabilities who live in New Orleans?
About 10 percent (or 12,000) of them are people ages 5 to 20 years old;
61 percent (or 63,000) of them are aged 21 to 64 years old; and 29
percent (or 27,000) of the people are 65 years of age and older.
The 102,122 people with disabilities living in New Orleans include people
who are blind, people who are deaf, people who use wheelchairs, canes,
walkers, crutches, people with service animals, and people with mental
health needs. At least half of the people with disabilities in New
Orleans who are of working age are not employed. Many of the people rely
on a variety of government programs such as Supplemental Security Income
and Medicaid to help them meet their daily service and support needs.
Implications
The total destruction of the physical environment and public/private
infrastructure and communications systems in the Gulf Coastal areas
affected by Hurricane Katrina has life-threatening implications for all
citizens with disabilities, and those without disabilities. The
implications for these people include:
* for people with physical disabilities and who are over 65 years
of age, being unable to leave their homes, group homes, nursing homes,
hospitals without significant assistance;
* for all people with disabilities, being prevented from using any
type of accessible public transportation which in all likelihood do not
exist anymore;
* for people who are blind, being unable to even get around in
their own flooded neighborhoods because they can no longer navigate the
environmental landscape;
* for all people with disabilities driven by floods from
institutions or group homes or nursing homes, needing to be housed in
less than satisfactory conditions with considerably less than the
necessary range of services and supports they need for an indeterminate
amount of time;
* for people with disabilities who have service animals, are
unable to rely on those animals outside of the house or group home
because these animals cannot navigate safely in the flooded streets;
* for people who are deaf, being challenged to access emergency
information through television, radio, TTY, etc. because public
communications systems are somewhat compromised;
* for all people with disabilities, being unable to secure
life-saving food and water because many of them are trapped within the
confines of inadequate supplied shelters, stadiums, etc.; and
* people may have lost or become separated from the drugs they
rely on daily for diabetes, heart disease and other chronic ailments.
Pharmacies in the affected areas may have insufficient stocks of vital
drugs like insulin for diabetics, creating a need to organize efforts to
import and distribute essential medicines in the area. In addition, many
pharmacies have been raided by looters.
Where to go for help?
People with disabilities affected by Hurricane Katrina should try to
contact their local emergency response officials by using the 9-1-1
system. This system will handle voice and TTY callers.
Louisiana government officials advise that in addition to the existing
special needs shelters that have opened in Alexandria and Monroe,
shelters have been opened in two other communities in Louisiana. These
shelters are staffed by the Department of Health and Hospitals and
Department of Social Services. While these shelters are open it is
strongly encouraged that citizens first try to evacuate to the north with
their families and get out of harms way. These are shelters of last
resort and are not for the general public.
At 10:00 am this morning, an additional shelter was opened in Lafayette.
At this time, special needs shelters have been opened in Alexandria,
Monroe, Lafayette, and Baton Rouge. Due to the uncertainty of the damage
that Baton Rouge and Lafayette will sustain from the storm, DHH officials
stress that it is very important to move to a shelter further north in
Alexandria or Monroe if at all possible.
Special Needs Shelters are designed for individuals who are homebound,
chronically ill or who have disabilities and are in need of medical or
nursing care, and have no other place to receive care.
Those seeking shelter will be screened by nurses to determine the level
of care needed. Only people who meet admission criteria can be sheltered.
If their condition is too critical, they will be referred to a hospital
for sheltering, or admission. If their condition is not severe enough for
Special Needs Sheltering, they will be referred to a general shelter.
Special triage telephone lines are being established in each region to
accept the calls of citizens seeking special needs sheltering. Citizens
with special needs seeking shelter must call telephone number in their
area BEFORE attempting to access a shelter. These numbers are listed below.
Alexandria: 800-841-5778
Shreveport: 800-841-5776
Baton Rouge: 800-349-1372
Monroe: 866-280-7287
Houma/Thibodaux: 800-228-9409
Slidell/Hammond: 866-280-7724
Lafayette: 800-901-3210
Lake Charles: 866-280-2711
Special Needs Shelters are not designed for the general public or for
nursing home patients. Nursing homes in Louisiana are required to have
emergency evacuation plans in place that ensure the health and safety of
their residents. In most instances, these plans allow for homes in
affected areas to transport their patients to nursing homes in areas safe
from the storm.
Health officials note that if individuals have health problems that
require medical expertise and must evacuate, it is best for them to go
with family members or caretakers north and west to areas that are out of
harms way. These will provide medical support services only. Because of
limited staffing, those going to a Special Needs Shelter must have a
caretaker to assist with ongoing support and they should bring all
necessary supplies including sheets, blankets and pillows.
Community And Residential Services Association (CARSA), a trade
organization for providers of services with developmental disabilities,
in cooperation with the ARC of Louisiana, the Developmental Disabilities
Council and The Advocacy Center, is available to assist families who may
have relatives who were evacuated from community homes and other service
programs in the Greater New Orleans area.
Families seeking information may call the following numbers for assistance:
CARSA 225-343-8811
The ARC of Louisiana 1-866-966-6261
Developmental Disabilities Council 1-800-450-8108
The Advocacy Center (Baton Rouge) 1-800-711-1696
The Advocacy Center (Lafayette) 1-800-822-0210
How can we help?
(This note was distributed by an Independent Living Center)
Dear IL Colleague,
As you may know, the Centers for Independent Living in Biloxi,
Mississippi and New Orleans have been gravely affected by the hurricane.
In fact the Biloxi, MS center was totally destroyed. Many of you are
asking how you can help. Here is what we have learned from colleagues in
those states.
Sending money is the first priority. Sending supplies to those centers is
helpful too but NOT RIGHT NOW, because they can't get through the water.
Here are the suggested options for right now:
1) Send a check or credit card payment to the Red Cross and designate it
for Hurricane Relief, or designate it for people with disabilities in the
Biloxi/Hattiesburg or New Orleans areas.
2) If you want to send money for the CILs that are dealing with this
disaster directly, here are your options:
For the Biloxi Center, mail the check (payable to LIFE of Central MS and
designated for the Biloxi Center) to:
LIFE of Central Mississippi
754 North President Street, Suite 1
Jackson, MS 39202
For the centers in Louisiana (make checks payable to Resources for
Independent Living - this is a branch of the N.O. center - and designate
for the New Orleans center)and mail to:
Resources for IL
11931 Industriplex Blvd. Suite 200
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
We have also learned from Mack Marsh of the Shreveport Center that
centers in Shreveport, Baton Rouge, and Lake Charles are assisting
evacuees. Mack says they would also appreciate supplies if there is any
way to get those supplies to the centers. His list includes: manual
wheelchairs, hospital beds, adult diapers, bed pads, catheters and other
supplies. The address for the Baton Rouge center is shown above,
addresses for the Shreveport and Lake Charles centers follow.
Southwest LA Independence Center, Inc.
Mitch Granger
1202 Kirkman, Suite C
Lake Charles, LA 70601
New Horizons, Inc.
Jerry Kidwell
9300 Mansfield Road, Suite 204
Shreveport, LA 71118
Coordinated Federal-State-Local response
A coordinated Federal Disability Recovery Plan for Hurricane Katrina
should be immediately developed and implemented. The decisions the
Federal Government makes, the priority it accords to civil rights, and
the methods it adopts to ensure uniformity in the ways agencies handle
their disability-related responsibilities are likely to be established in
the early days of this emergency situation and be difficult to change if
not set on the right course at the outset. This response must include
people with disabilities.
An urgent priority is to provide funds and secure resources that
specifically meet the critical needs of Katrina survivors with
disabilities, help to rebuild the organizations that serve them, identify
accessible temporary and permanent housing and address the specific
requests being made by leaders in the devastated areas and those in the
areas that people with disabilities are being evacuated to. At the
minimum, this response should include:
Accessible Disaster Facilities and Services. Communications technology is
vital for people with disabilities during this disaster to help assess
damage, collect information, and deploy supplies. Access to appropriate
facilities -- housing, beds, toilets, and other necessities -- must be
monitored and made available to individuals with disabilities before,
during, and after a disaster. This access also must be ensured for those
who incur a disability as a result of a disaster.
Accessible Communications and Assistance. As communications technology
and policy become more integral to disaster relief and mitigation,
providing accessibility to the technology for people with disabilities
will be life-saving. For example, people with hearing impairments require
interpreters, TTY communications, and signaling devices. People with
cognitive impairments, such as those with developmental disabilities,
Alzheimer's disease, or brain injury, will likely require assistance to
cope with hurricane-ravaged surroundings and to minimize confusion
factors.
Accessible and Reliable Rescue Communications. Accessible and reliable
communications technology is critical to ensuring fast, effective, and
competent field treatment of people with disabilities. Communications
technologies can assist field personnel in rescue coordination and
tracking and can be combined with databases that house information on
optimal treatment for particular disabilities or that track the
allocation of post-disaster resources.
This is interesting...
ReplyDeleteIn the Star Trek universe, New Orleans is a vibrant city in the 24th century with strong ties to its past. Captain Benjamin Sisko, commander of Deep Space 9, grew up there, and for his first few weeks at Starfleet Academy, beamed back for dinner with his family there every night. Viewers saw him return there several times over the years to the Creole restaurant of his father, Joseph Sisko. The elder Sisko was a symbol not only of the continuity of family through the generations—from Joseph to Benjamin to Jake Sisko, Star Trek’s first three generation family—but his restaurant was a symbol of old values and culture that were still important, still necessary in the Star Trek future.
We are reminded of this not only by the recent death of Brock Peters, who played Joseph Sisko, but most of all by the incredible devastation in New Orleans during the last week of August 2005. At this moment, officials are trying to completely evacuate the city. They estimate it will be weeks or months before some of its residents can safely return (others have no homes left to return to), and years before the city can rebuild. Huge amounts of toxic industrial waste carried in the floodwaters may be very difficult and very expensive to eliminate. There is even some question whether the city will be habitable in the foreseeable future, and some have suggested it be totally abandoned.
...
In the Star Trek future, the Federation and Starfleet recognize the common good as a guiding principle. The common good has several aspects. That which we hold in common, including our interrelationships, are part of it. We are dependent on each other, and on our community and our planet. The diners in Sisko’s restaurant eat because someone caught the fish from waters that were protected from pollution and other kinds of damage, even far away. People got the fish from where it was caught eventually to the restaurant. Other food on one diner’s plate may come from many different places, and involve hundreds of people. Each process requires using infrastructure that everyone shares, like roads and water pipes. Each of those people are dependent on others for what they need---for daycare when they’re at work, for health care.
The common good is everyone’s good eventually. But the common good goes beyond interrelationships that benefit each of us directly. The common good means the good of the community, the society, the human family, and all of life. This is part of the value of Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. Diversity means many talents, many potentials and many skills, which makes us more capable and adaptable, and it makes life richer.
Diversity is a value of soul. In the Star Trek original series episode, "Is There in Truth No Beauty," Miranda’s parting words to Spock are: “The glory of creation is in its infinite diversity…” Spock completes the thought: “…and in the ways our differences combine to create meaning and beauty.”
(click for the rest)
I STILL can't register here. I feel like a second class blogger.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone figured out the secret handshake yet?
What makes the "Sign up here" portal open?
Well, Demetrius,
ReplyDeleteI was humming Chim Chim Cheree in your honour.
But now I've moved on to "Up on the Roof" by James Taylor!
LOL
Take care up there because we down here like you just the way you are!
listener ~~ we got Edwin signed up the other night. He's on a mac. He says the problem was (for him) if you don't widen the screen, you don't see the continue button. . . .
ReplyDelete(When you get as far as the NAME YOU BLOG screen, you're registered., you do NOT need to make a blog, lol!)
listener, lol, that's so cool!! (shadow)listener, indeed!
ReplyDelete"listener said.... 9:55 PM"
ReplyDeleteThanks! Being up on the roof is fine. The rear section of the roof is almost flat. The entire rear of the house has been raised to create a shed dormer - creating out of that awkward Cape Cod slanty upstairs an extended master bdr (that we don't sleep in) a full bath (that we don't bathe in) and a dressing room (that we don't dress in). It's *getting* up on the roof that is a problem. The best way is to put the ladder on the front of the house and crawl up the slope on my belly. I've been working on a bigger belly to inprove the contact patch for more traction. ;) But, that's just created *other* problems.
lucky lucky listener. This blog refuses my name and all permutations so I have to sign in as "other."
ReplyDeleteI'm displaced! And on my b'day to boot.