Category Archives: violence

I beg to differ..

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President Obama was featured on MSNBC talking about the sexual assaults on college campuses.

One thing that bothers me is the focus on one area of a woman’s life….

But the thing that bothered me the most was when the President said that nations that treat women unequally…do poorly.

I beg to differ.

Our nation being one that has thrived because of women being treated as second class.

When you’re second class, it is easier for employers to justify paying you less…because you’re a woman and your work is inferior, or simplistic (anybody could do *that*), or seen as demeaning (cleaning houses).

The wealthiest of corporations have been built by paying low wages, mostly to women workers…Walmart being the best example of that.

President Obama should understand that, more than most, because of his African American ancestry.  Corporations also were built by paying blacks much less than whites.  Plantations are the best example of that.

Related to this is the Columbia University student who has been carrying her mattress around the school in protest of the schools’ handling of her rape by a fellow student…who still attends the university.

And the NFL spouse speaking out on the code of silence.

Women’s game face – the NFL

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Classic.

I don’t wear makeup anymore, so the ad campaigns for makeup go past me.  Makeup itself is a subject of debate–does it enhance or takeaway from women?

When I wore makeup, I did it daily, even if I wasn’t planning on going out for the day.  I would have been mortified to leave the house without makeup….it was so ingrained in me that I felt naked without it–that I was unacceptable without makeup.

When I began going through this transformation, I got to a point where I said “screw it”, I don’t care what people think anymore.

Walking outside without makeup was a freeing experience.  I no longer felt the chains of someone else’s idea of beauty and that expectation of always being pretty so someone else could feel comfortable.  Craziness, for sure.

And the expense!  Good grief, I looked at prices of cosmetics a while back, and could not believe how freaking expensive they had become.  Take out a second mortgage to pay for them.

Now I am happy that I didn’t expose myself to even more harmful chemicals, via nail polish…not to mention the harmful chemicals associated with makeup. 

It’s too bad that the commondreams report didn’t include the chemical toxicity aspect of the makeup.  There are ways to hurt women without lifting a fist….

 

Syria, again

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So…been thinking about the whole situation in Syria….and I can’t get away from that bad feeling that something is not right.

Last year, the Russians moved warships into the area when we threatened Syria. They are again making statements that we should not mess with Syria.

My gut feeling last year was that if we went into Syria, World War III would break out, bringing Russia and the U.S into war against one another, plus the Middle East.

This year, I am still feeling the same, but now with ISIL, Saudi Arabia is threatened.  And they have threatened us, as well.  Now they have beheaded a British citizen, guaranteeing that the UK will be involved in any effort against ISIL.

And I don’t know what to say.  I hate war, as you all know.  But when diplomatic efforts are ignored or even laughed at, what does one do?

I have always maintained that violence is unacceptable–only in cases of self-defense, with someone coming at you with gun, knife, or fist– is that justified.  Here we have a group that is killing innocent people whom, to my knowledge, have done nothing against them.

I watched DN! the other day with Medea Benjamin (Code Pink) saying how terrible the U.S. is–and believe me, I’ve read People’s History of the United States, so I know we’re no angels–but when do you say that too many people have died?  She did not offer any evidence to the contrary of the innocent people being killed.  Would she have the same opinion of Nazi Germany?  Should we have left them alone, too?  Where is the line drawn?

The timeline on Syria.

There is so much more about the Middle East that I don’t know–the history, for one.  I’m trying to inform myself, but it is not easy.  The Middle East grew out of several of the areas in uproar right now–Syria being one of them.  There’s more history there than we Westerners know–blame that on our isolationist education–a comprehensive history not given nearly as much importance as Math, technology, and repeating facts from memory instead of thinking for yourself, via NCLB and Race to the Bottom.

Last year’s push for war.

Like I said, there is something nagging at me about this situation–something isn’t right.  And I can’t shake that feeling of dread of it escalating into a full scale war with Russia.

 

He sent me flowers today…

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A poem, author unknown:

“I got flowers today. It wasn’t my birthday or any other special day.

We had our first argument last night, and he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt me.

I know he is sorry and didn’t mean the things he said because he sent me flowers today.

I got flowers today. It wasn’t our anniversary or any special day.

Last night he threw me into a wall and started to choke me. It seemed like a nightmare. I couldn’t believe it was real. I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over.

I know he must be sorry because he sent me flowers today, and it wasn’t Mother’s Day or any other special day.

Last night he beat me up again, and it was much worse than all the other times. If I leave him, what will I do? How will I take care of my kids? What about money? I’m afraid of him and scared to leave.

But I know he must be sorry. Because he sent me flowers today.

I got flowers today. Today was a very special day.

It was the day of my funeral.

Last night he finally killed me. He beat me to death.

If only I had gathered the courage and strength to leave him.

I would not have gotten flowers today”.
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Janay Rice

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By now, you all have heard of Ray Rice knocking his then fiancee unconscious in an elevator…and the slap on the wrist by the NFL.  We’ll get to the NFL later… (meanwhile, Mike Ditka is worried about Ray Rice’s income….seriously.  Not concerned about Rice’s violence…just his paycheck.)

But for now, there are plenty of opinions out there–men who come to his defense and women whom have never been in an abusive relationship that don’t understand why Janay stayed.

And the Guardian’s Hannah Giorgis asks us not to feed an appetite for other people’s lurid trauma by watching the video of Ray assaulting Janay Rice, but to focus on her humanity and the humanity of other survivors of partner violence, to defend them from further victimization both from their abuser and from victim-blamers and tragedy spectators.

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Yep.  There was a woman in Indiana whom was kidnapped and the Associated Press ran a story with all the lurid details of the method of bondage, etc.  I got that “ick” feeling of them wanting to titillate the readers who get off on that sort of thing.

And as far as the black thing–I think about what happened in Fort Wayne with the black man making comments about my body parts and my voice being sexy…and blocking my way into the building…he got the message somewhere that it was okay to do those things.  The other black men thought it was okay.  The black women that he had also intimidated and harassed just wanted to keep things quiet–don’t make any waves.  They, too, have gotten the message that they are less valuable and subject to whomever’s sexual advances or intimidation.  They most likely blame themselves for “asking for it”.

And just recently, a judge in Fort Wayne was called on his behavior when he suggested that a woman could be a great “phone sex operator”.   Why did they think this was acceptable?  Because our culture says it’s okay to describe women in sexual terms and see them only as sexual objects.

In this culture of violence and rape, women are still seen as possessions.  Women are still seen as second class–less than.  If she does assert herself, there are ten others trying to quiet her or take her down.  Uppity women are still seen as bitches who need to get laid.  You might recall the posts on Steubenville and others of women who tried to assert themselves or were assaulted while unable to give consent.

So it’s no surprise to me that Janay stayed and even married her abuser.

We have a culture that men feel they have a right to do as they please–whether it be to smack around their partner…or even kill her if she doesn’t do what he wants.  Eliot Rodger’s misogyny is the best example of that sense of entitlement.

And then we have the bullying culture that actually bullies those who stand up for women whom have been raped.

Don’t make any waves.

Don’t upset the status quo.

Don’t question why.

Don’t assert your right to be recognized as a human being.

Don’t ask to be respected when you have boobs and hips and vagina…

 

 

A discussion on population…

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Gene Logsdon has put up a post on his thoughts on population growth and food availability.

It’s a touchy and uncomfortable subject….to say the least.

It brings up eugenics–there are stories out there of people like Bill Gates and the Rockefellers advocating for population control via eugenics and even through genetically modified food.  There is a video out there of Bill Gates advocating vaccines for this purpose.  I don’t know what to make of the video, so I’m not posting it– you’ll have to go find it yourself.

I think advocating de-population is morally and ethically wrong.  We get into the self-righteous, superiority of those who think they are *more special* than the rest, therefore, they should live while others die.

The comments are as interesting as the blog–with one suggesting that the population growth perhaps was a spiritual one of bringing more light into the world….

…with that, I would disagree.  There is so much negative energy on Earth that I would happily volunteer to go right now if God would take me.   Just give me enough morphine to stop my heart, and I’m good to go…

Speaking of negative energy, I was just thinking last night how much I missed teaching.  I enjoyed it and the kids’ earnest quest for knowledge.  I also liked that I didn’t have to put up with office politics nor office gossip.  When I was teaching, I would stay in the room and eat my lunch so I didn’t have to hear the teachers gossip (yes, they gossiped…mostly about stupid substitutes…).  I went in, did my job, and went home while avoiding all of that negative energy.  I didn’t have to put up with the tired questioning of my single status–there is definitely a prejudice against single people in this country.  The downside, of course, is the pay and the work-on-demand instead of a steady schedule.

And if you try to avoid the gossip and cut people off…as some suggest you do…you’re still screwed because the gossips then turn on you as a target.  I’ve actually had that happen to me.  I ended up leaving a good job because of it.

I suppose the questioning of population growth is related to our bad economy…not enough jobs that pay living wages….while jobs are shipped to other countries for even lower wages…and Burger King and their ilk go to other countries so they don’t have to pay their fair share of taxes….while war hawks push us towards another war again…while not taxing the rich….

Yeah, I’m in a negative mood…how could you tell?  😦

 

Israel seeking to cash in on destruction

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If I am reading between the lines correctly, Israel is now seeking to cash in on the destruction it caused to Gaza.  My mind is just reeling. Disaster capitalism at the very worst.  Holy crap.

Yair Lapid announced a “diplomatic initiative” to increase efforts to “demilitarise Gaza and the transfer of authority in the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority (PA) while maintaining Israel’s strategic security interest.”

He called for Egypt to host a conference to be attended by the US, EU, Russia, Jordan, the PA and the Gulf States that would discuss Gaza reconstruction and establish “economic ties between Israel, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab world.”

“The initiative also calls for the involvement of states which will provide economic support for the rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip and the creation of projects which will lead to long term economic cooperation in the region,” the statement from Lapid’s media advisor said –

– See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israeli-minister-calls-saudi-arabia-join-gaza-reconstruction-conference-757495015#sthash.JEM7OSbr.dpuf

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So…we have a bully that bombs the hell out of a place, destroying homes, schools, hospitals…killing women, children, innocents sitting in a cafe listening to the World Cup…who now wants to greedily make a profit off of rebuilding that which they destroyed.

Are you effing kidding me??  WTH?
The writer is perpetuating the lie that Saudi Arabia supported the destruction of Gaza, when King Abdullah made a strong statement to the contrary, and he accused Israel of war crimes.
So I would be surprised if Saudi Arabia would go along with Israel’s scheme.
This also lends credence to Palestinian claims that Israel had no intention on seeking agreement with Gaza on their demands and that they walked away from the negotiating table while Palestinian negotiators were still attempting to reach agreement.  Israel has had other plans all along.
And, as a side note~~~I read that a senior Hamas official’s wife and 7-month-old baby were killed in an assassination attempt.  While I don’t agree with Hamas violence, I do feel for the people of Gaza.  I am so sorry.
If I could, I would help you rebuild with sustainable housing where you could live without worry of being dependent on Israel.  Perhaps earthships would work for you…sustainable housing with water, solar heating, and the ability to grow your food….

A rabbi condemns Carter for defending Palestinians

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This piece is so slanted I nearly fell off my chair reading it….

Rabbi Shmuley chooses to ignore President Carter’s monumental act of getting Egypt and Israel to broker a peace deal…a peace that has lasted decades. And the hostages deal is a cheap shot.  They were deliberately held so that Reagan could claim victory…a piece of history that strangely is never reported by the brain-dead media.

Rabbi Shmuley chooses to ignore the interference of food, water, jobs, paychecks, and the ability to earn a living that Israel has imposed on the Palestinians…leaving them little choice.  He also ignores Israelis’ own bloody history of killing innocents to gain control of what was once Palestinian land.  And he ignores Palestinian wishes for a two-state solution.

Carter states in the video that he does not agree with bad things Hamas has done.

 

 

 

A Jewish voice on Gaza

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DN! interviewed Henry Siegman, a rabbi that represents strong Jewish organizations and what he had to say regarding the bombing of Gaza will blow you away.

For one thing, he doesn’t believe Hamas is any more a terrorist organization than Israeli fighters were when they fought to take the land away from the Palestinians to form their own state.  They killed innocents to take the land away.

And now they want to deny the Palestinians that same right to a land they can call their own without interference by Israel.

While I’m watching this segment, I’m thinking of my continuing studies on religions–just for the record–every single major religion:  Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, has blood on their hands for killing innocents.

“Kill them all, and let God sort them out…”  seems to be a common theme throughout history.

Only, “do unto others as you wish to be done to you” doesn’t quite fit into that thinking.

Self-defense, in my view, is the only legitimate excuse for killing another.  And that is only after all other avenues have been taken–such as diplomacy.  Or poking the stick to keep one at arm’s length.   Trying self-defense without intent to kill (like martial arts).

But diplomacy is becoming a lost art.  It’s easy to just drop a bomb and believe that will end it, but in reality, it just creates more problems.  Peace isn’t easy–compromise and humility are key factors in creating and sustaining Peace.  Being humble isn’t valued in this society–it’s seen as weakness or worse–low self-esteem, when in reality, it is a recognition that we are part of Creation, and even though we are all important in that we bring our own uniqueness to the world, we are also a small part of that world and it takes all of us to make the world go ’round.