Peace-making 101:

From Daily Kos yesterday:
What would you do if you found yourself standing face to face with people bearing signs accusing you by name of killing babies and encouraging the shooting of American soldiers?  Might you lose your cool?  Might you get involved in an exchange that would ultimately lead to anger or descend into the [...]

“Selective Service Is Sued by Quaker.”

(Washington Post) July 30 – A Washington state Quaker filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday alleging that the U.S. government is discriminating against him because it will not recognize his status as a conscientious objector on military draft forms.
The American Civil Liberties Union filed the suit on behalf of Tobin D. Jacobrown, 21, in the District’s [...]

Blogging Against Disablism Day.

First, watch this:

If you still don’t get it, watch this:

Kinda says it all, doesn’t it?
So stop saying it, writing it, blogging it, commenting it, snarking it, thinking it, or tolerating the use of it.
OKAY?

Blogging Against Theocracy… sorta.

Today’s the day I’ll post for the now-annual blog-a-bration known as Blog Against Theocracy.
I wasn’t going to do this this year because I haven’t been in much of a mood to post about anything these last few days, and because, frankly, I thought I didn’t have much to add to the conversation.  I still kind of [...]

Yes, I’m a bad Quaker.

I was recently visiting the blog of one of my favorite Quaker authors, J. Brent Bill, and I found a post that started out like this:

“So you’re a Quaker?” I get that question a lot since I travel a good bit schlepping my books. People always seem a bit intrigued — as if surprised any [...]

What he said.

Why On Earth Are Democrats Legitimizing and Empowering Rush Limbaugh?
by Peter Daou
(Huffington Post) March 3 – I don’t buy into this ‘brilliant’ strategy of elevating Rush Limbaugh in the hopes that it will tarnish Republicans.
Focus relentlessly on the disastrous Bush presidency to tarnish Republicans, yes.
Overturn every single illegal and unconstitutional Bush-era policy and [...]

The Agitator writes a letter.

 (This space formerly occupied by a picture of a mushroom cloud.)
To the Editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
In his fawning puff piece espousing the virtues of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton (“A Dangerous Naivete on Foreign Policy,” March 1), columnist Kevin Ferris leaves out mention of one other key quote from Mr. [...]

“Character education” required.

DALLAS (AP) January 27 — The coach of a Texas high school basketball team that beat another team by 100-0 was fired Sunday, the same day he sent an e-mail message to a newspaper saying he would not apologize “for a wide-margin victory when my girls played with honor and integrity.”
Kyle Queal, the headmaster for [...]

What SHOULD have been said tomorrow.

Yes, bad syntax, that, but whatever.
The invocation for yesterday’s festivites in Washington, DC.
A Prayer for the Nation and Our Next President, Barack Obama

By The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire
Opening Inaugural Event
Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC
January 18, 2009
Welcome to Washington!  The fun is about to begin, but first, please join [...]

You wanna know why?

You still need to ask why some of us are still upset about President-elect Obama selecting Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his inauguration this Tuesday?
Stuff like THIS is why:

Let’s see… I want to be sure I’ve got this right…
Rick Warren wants the “Christian men” in his movement to share [...]

Chris Hedges speaks to my condition.

Again.  Us usual.
Why I Am a Socialist by Chris Hedges
(TruthDig) December 29 – The corporate forces that are looting the Treasury and have plunged us into a depression will not be contained by the two main political parties. The Democratic and Republican parties have become little more than squalid clubs of privilege and wealth, whores [...]

Because you might not see this on too many other “progressive” blogs…

What was God getting at?
by Leonard Pitts
(Miami Herald) November 30 – I was crammed into a middle seat. The guy in front was practically in my lap, and I had my arms drawn in tightly as I pecked furiously on the keyboard. God glanced over. “What are you working on?” he asked.
“A column,” I [...]

What I almost said at Meeting today.

Meeting was very full today, and we had lots of visitors as well as old, familiar f/Friends, which is always nice to see.  There was a very positive vibe in the air, aided, no doubt, by the fact that we finally had a bright sunshiny morning here today, after five straight days of rain and yuck.
There [...]

Just call me “Comrade.”

I found out something really interesting this past weekend.
Turns out that, in addition to being a husband, a father, a Quaker, a teacher, a union member, a Phillies’ fan, a proud New Jerseyan, a blogger, a wannbe novelist, and a few other things, I’m also a …

Like, wow.
At least John McCain thinks so.
See, I’m [...]

“About your flair…”

New York Teachers Sue Over Ban on Campaign Buttons
NEW YORK (AP) October 11 – The teachers’ union for the nation’s largest public school system accused the city on Friday of banning political campaign buttons and sued to reverse the policy, declaring that free speech rights were violated.
United Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten announced at a [...]

What we’re up against.

WASHINGTON (AP) September 14 – Activists at a conservative political forum snapped up boxes of waffle mix depicting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama as a racial stereotype on its front and wearing Arab-like headdress on its top flap.
Values Voter Summit organizers cut off sales of Obama Waffles boxes on Saturday, saying they had not [...]

McCain flips on the draft.

At least it sure looks and sounds like it.
In case you missed this…
I caught part of the replay of Olbermann tonight after we got home from the ballpark (Phils win, 4-0!), and heard this  doozy from John McCain:
QUESTIONER:  If we don’t reenact the draft, I don’t think we’ll have anyone to [...]

By your friends, we will know ye…

Dear Sean Hannity:
You should be more careful about the company you keep.
From the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hatewatch  blog:
Best-selling Anti-Obama Fabulist Appears on White Supremicist Radio
Myth monger Jerome Corsi is at it again.
The author notorious for his book falsely vilifying 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry has penned an equally spurious attack on this year’s presumed Democratic [...]

“Why I’m not ‘patriotic.’”

by Matthew Rothschild (in memory of George Carlin)

(The Progessive) July 4 – It’s July 4th again, a day of near-compulsory flag-waving and nation-worshipping. Count me out.
Spare me the puerile parades.
Don’t play that martial music, white boy.
And don’t befoul nature’s sky with your F-16s.
You see, I don’t believe in patriotism.
It’s not that I’m anti-American, but I am [...]

Fear of a head-scarfed planet.

One of my blogging buddies emailed me the other day with a question I need help answering.  She was very concerned about an anti-Muslim web site (no way I will link to it, sorry, but take it from me, it was positively Klan-like) that she’d seen, and about how these sites might effect impressionable folks [...]