Today's 'featured" news story is on the release of a man from Libya by the Scottish Government from a prison where he was sentenced to serve a life sentence. The man has cancer and is expected to die within 3 months. We know he was convicted for blowing up a transcontinental flight.
My problem with how the media is covering this is that story is being presented without context.
We/the U.S./Reagan blew up some boats off the coast of Libya. They retaliated and blew up a night club, La Belle Disco, killing two U.S. service men and a civilian and wounded many dozens of people. We attempted to assassinate Mumamar Qadaffi in a strike on Qadaffi's home that did not kill him but did kill his infant daughter. Several Libyans then were then involved in the bombing of the flight that was exploded over Lockerbee, Scotland.
Read a recount of this tit for tat escalation that helped no one but killed hundreds. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1653848.stm
Reagan chose to engage in Israeli style "diplomacy" -- i.e. assassination of a a country's leader. The U.S. and most western govenments have chosen not to engage in assassination of leaders as it elevates the person in power to a symbolic level akin to that of a regal status where the person and the government or country are all the same.
If memory serves me, this was also the time the French did not allow overflight and an "errant" bomb fell on the lawn of the French embassy in Libya. This instance of neener, neener, neener with bombs illustrated a level of in your face immaturity that is intensely troubling and frightening beyond words.
This is akin to the problem implicit within the use of drones. It personalizes war to the level of assassination. To have to have no contact with the people you kill was a trajectory started with the use of aerial bombings. But this trend has expanded to the point that no support staff at all has to walk among the people who will be bombed. This is supremely arrogant. Our technological capability has evolved to a level where we cannot justify its use and maintain any sense of humanity. We must do things entirely differently.
My suggestion, train and disperse an educational militia primarily composed of women into areas of conflict and work with the women of the area to solve base level problems that percolate up through society to create international conflict. Raging Grannies and CodePink Women and Women in Black would be a good population from which to initially draw for the corps.
Women, wake up, we have to change all this.
Peace.
Showing posts with label media. Show all posts
Showing posts with label media. Show all posts
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Wooing the Blogging Mama Demographic -- my notes on Hybrid Media session
I am so amazed by the energy put into commercial support of this conference. That is both good and bad. Corporatization (is that a word?)-- changes the game.
----------------
Panel:
redbook, essence, bravo
Lisa Stone (moderator), Stacy Morrison, Lesley Inckney and Lisa Hsia
----------------
Bravo -- old media &. new media
revenues from this
also learning how to monetize and grow the audience
project runway (Hsia)
1-2 % respond in most interactive polls
98% respond to bravo and project runway
-------
Redbook -- diary of V. Diary of E. biggest draw. 2nd referer after giveaways. authentic -- comments have to
2nd largest web mag. property.
but if you like redbook please buy one once in a while.
--------
Time Warner/ Essence not as restrictive as they once work. have loosened up.
media is inherently is grassroots now
malest oldest rooms she's ever been in.
-------
fox & nbc
huloo (spelling?)
trying all the new ad models
kaboodle -- hearst
redbook
i only want to make the best mistakes
essence
try telling these old male folks that they will
never be dominant
never be perfect
-------
constant effort to tell personal stories
-----
sex life roadtest
take it to tv
----
shoot em up kill em
romantic comedies
oscar winners
-----
recruiting bloggers
creating an ad network
--
ivillage = nbc = fox
-----
innovation
corp. won't do quick......
time warner wants to own twitter not use it
smaller network and just do it
it's not don't do it
it is you have to wait
redbook reaches across the country evenly
except washington and oregon
not just shoes and cosmopolitan
thinks that redbook is a family magazine
change the font - lose the audience
she is a professional empath.
she represents an openness to every idea
but she has to censor 25 % of her self
-----
use versus be the media
-------
would be nice to have mega corps change from support incubation .....rather than just buy/own......
--------
big furry beard
snowboarder
mike dunn
if you see him at a meeting it is going to be big
---------
----------------
Panel:
redbook, essence, bravo
Lisa Stone (moderator), Stacy Morrison, Lesley Inckney and Lisa Hsia
----------------
Bravo -- old media &. new media
revenues from this
also learning how to monetize and grow the audience
project runway (Hsia)
1-2 % respond in most interactive polls
98% respond to bravo and project runway
-------
Redbook -- diary of V. Diary of E. biggest draw. 2nd referer after giveaways. authentic -- comments have to
2nd largest web mag. property.
but if you like redbook please buy one once in a while.
--------
Time Warner/ Essence not as restrictive as they once work. have loosened up.
media is inherently is grassroots now
malest oldest rooms she's ever been in.
-------
fox & nbc
huloo (spelling?)
trying all the new ad models
kaboodle -- hearst
redbook
i only want to make the best mistakes
essence
try telling these old male folks that they will
never be dominant
never be perfect
-------
constant effort to tell personal stories
-----
sex life roadtest
take it to tv
----
shoot em up kill em
romantic comedies
oscar winners
-----
recruiting bloggers
creating an ad network
--
ivillage = nbc = fox
-----
innovation
corp. won't do quick......
time warner wants to own twitter not use it
smaller network and just do it
it's not don't do it
it is you have to wait
redbook reaches across the country evenly
except washington and oregon
not just shoes and cosmopolitan
thinks that redbook is a family magazine
change the font - lose the audience
she is a professional empath.
she represents an openness to every idea
but she has to censor 25 % of her self
-----
use versus be the media
-------
would be nice to have mega corps change from support incubation .....rather than just buy/own......
--------
big furry beard
snowboarder
mike dunn
if you see him at a meeting it is going to be big
---------
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
The Face of the Anti-War Movement Fires Back
The Face of the Anti-War Movement Fires Back - CommonDreams.org: ""
This article perfectly illustrates the problem with the core of the Democratic Party. I will probably vote for Obama, but after the 2006 elections rolled Democrats onto Capitol Hill with a massive mandate to end the war and get control over Bush, and they did nothing, I have little tolerance left. My earlier post today was about Obama potentiall showing mainstream namby pamby Democratic innards beneath his novel filled -with-change veneer. I hope it isn't true. But there are so many of us out there, just like Cindy, who are ready to leave the Democratic Party if there are any smoke and mirror tricks in the campaign that become clear as policies emerge.
It is well worth noting that at least one Cindy Sheehan basher has changed his mind about just who Sheehan is and what she stands for.
I've only met Cindy a couple times myself. She is a very serious person and not the type of person to seek attention for herself. God &/or Goddess bless her for being willing to speak out, continue to speak out, and most importantly, her willingness to act. Pelosi needs someone speaking truth opposing her in her own district. I am very impressed with Cindy for doing this.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Broken-hearted Valentines
Our beautiful action that I spent most of yesterday planning disappeared just like that – POOF – into the ether. Washington closed many of its doors, or they just never opened them today due to “inclement weather.” Here within the ever so rugged and testosterone filled Beltway, inclement must be designated as anything over a half an inch of snow. So Feith, who we lovingly refer to as an LSS, will get off easy this week because the class of his that we had so carefully scoped out an action to occur simultaneously with the free hugs happening in another building on the Georgetown campus and his course had to be cancelled when the campus closed. The Pink students we had coordinated and planned with were so psyched. Maybe they will carry on in their own way and get that war criminal removed from the campus and stripped of his status as a Visiting Professor.
Anyway, that was yesterday, the first thing that happened today as we gathered in the atrium of the Hart Bldg. was to have a female police officer come up to us, as we wished her happy Valentines Day, she responded by saying that there would be no warnings before arrests today because they were short staffed. Huh? Apparently the rights we have and can act upon as well as express are determined by the number of police available to tail us. Most of these cops are okay guys (or gals) but the ever changing “what are we enforcing today” bit gets old. We are threatened with arrest before we have even gathered together to greet those of us who arriving from somewhere other than the Pink House.
We consider ourselves lobbyists – albeit unpaid ones— who are here to get the message of the peace community in the U.S. out to our elected officials. We effectively have no money to buy our way through the closed doors that separate most House and Senate inner sanctums from the waiting/reception rooms. The message we convey has to be transmitted in a memorable way with humor so we do not cry and so as to highlight absurdities and inconsistencies as we speak from our hearts with messages carefully researched and crafted through with both hemispheres of the brain communicating with each other.
Another day, another day of pink for peace-ness, and since it was Valentines Day we had donned our very finest pink clothing and accoutrements and trudged off toward Capitol Hill (Senate side) through slushy, icky snow to give as many Senators as we possibly could a personal “broken heart” valentine conveying our hearts’ conditions as long as this war and ever escalating death counts continue. We also told their Legislative Aids for Iraq, if we were allowed to speak with them, that we wanted them to read and support S121 and S448. When we had delivered that message we then presented the outer office staff with an oral recitation of an original CODEPINK poem.
Violets are blue
And roses are PINK
If you don’t stop funding this war
We will make a big stink.
We made it to lots of the biggies’ offices; I made sure to give my Senator, Kyl of AZ, a Broken Heart Valentine and joined in with Laurie as she conveyed the same message to Lugar Of course other states such as New Mexico, Colorado, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Florida, and California - to name just a few – were also visited.
After finding that every kitchen we might normally eat in in both House and Senate were closed or had gigantonormously long lines we finally managed to grab a bite at the Longworth Cafeteria. Lines were outrageous there too, but we braved them so we could refuel for an afternoon of hearings and gallery monitoring. Although we were stopped by photo op requests a few times. But these requests are so worth it; today we spoke with gentlemen working for Palestinian-Israeli reconciliation that is sensitive to the needs and rights of Palestine and these guys were Jews. Another group was composed of high school senior girls who all wanted to have their pic taken with CODEPINK. I gave out a couple of CODEPINK buttons to young women who promised to wear them with pride. These young women get it. Goddess, it is so good to see young women who are seeing us simply as women exercising our rights and participating. There are no black/white, on/off positions in the real world. Everything is process. We live in an analog world.
After a late lunch as my sisters in peace moved on to attending hearings on Veterans health care, I escaped to the Library of Congress to listen to Amish Hymns recorded by Lomax in the 1930s to get a flavor of the tunes that had been in a part of the world I’m writing some things about. I also ran across some tall stories collected by the WPA from the area where I grew up…. And sure enough I found some very tall tales recorded that were very similar to ones my father teased me with as a child. The one about the “Hoop Snakes” stands out most clearly.
I have to consciously remember to balance the torture and terror awareness and actions carried out to stop the atrocities happening in the world with a bit of humanity. I headed out for the LOC after reading each of the names and really looking at every photo of the Faces of the Fallen that were displayed outside one office. Many Senators and Representatives have put up these displays, but for some reason I was drawn in to one particular set today. It was all I could do to not break down sobbing in the hall. Fortunately a gentleman stopped me as I was exiting the building to talk to me about CODEPINK, the actions to which he’d taken his daughters, and how glad he was that we were here doing this. Turns out he is the Executive Director of the Alliance for Community Media. So we chatted about the importance of community media and how it brings diversity of viewpoints out on to the airwaves that we the people own anyway. We also touched on the valiant struggle Access Tucson has waged as corporatists try to kill it time and again. That was such a highlight of the day. Media. We have to be the media. We’ve forgotten that. The media is a tool of the people. We have to reclaim what is rightly ours. Corporations may have media outlets but we the people are the media and the fourth estate reports to us. Literally. Take ‘em to task and tell them to quit showing infotainment and start giving us real news that matters. If they did that, situations like our illegal and ill-conceived invasion and occupation of Iraq would not have happened.
Power to the Peaceful. Right on.
Anyway, that was yesterday, the first thing that happened today as we gathered in the atrium of the Hart Bldg. was to have a female police officer come up to us, as we wished her happy Valentines Day, she responded by saying that there would be no warnings before arrests today because they were short staffed. Huh? Apparently the rights we have and can act upon as well as express are determined by the number of police available to tail us. Most of these cops are okay guys (or gals) but the ever changing “what are we enforcing today” bit gets old. We are threatened with arrest before we have even gathered together to greet those of us who arriving from somewhere other than the Pink House.
We consider ourselves lobbyists – albeit unpaid ones— who are here to get the message of the peace community in the U.S. out to our elected officials. We effectively have no money to buy our way through the closed doors that separate most House and Senate inner sanctums from the waiting/reception rooms. The message we convey has to be transmitted in a memorable way with humor so we do not cry and so as to highlight absurdities and inconsistencies as we speak from our hearts with messages carefully researched and crafted through with both hemispheres of the brain communicating with each other.
Another day, another day of pink for peace-ness, and since it was Valentines Day we had donned our very finest pink clothing and accoutrements and trudged off toward Capitol Hill (Senate side) through slushy, icky snow to give as many Senators as we possibly could a personal “broken heart” valentine conveying our hearts’ conditions as long as this war and ever escalating death counts continue. We also told their Legislative Aids for Iraq, if we were allowed to speak with them, that we wanted them to read and support S121 and S448. When we had delivered that message we then presented the outer office staff with an oral recitation of an original CODEPINK poem.
Violets are blue
And roses are PINK
If you don’t stop funding this war
We will make a big stink.
We made it to lots of the biggies’ offices; I made sure to give my Senator, Kyl of AZ, a Broken Heart Valentine and joined in with Laurie as she conveyed the same message to Lugar Of course other states such as New Mexico, Colorado, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Florida, and California - to name just a few – were also visited.
After finding that every kitchen we might normally eat in in both House and Senate were closed or had gigantonormously long lines we finally managed to grab a bite at the Longworth Cafeteria. Lines were outrageous there too, but we braved them so we could refuel for an afternoon of hearings and gallery monitoring. Although we were stopped by photo op requests a few times. But these requests are so worth it; today we spoke with gentlemen working for Palestinian-Israeli reconciliation that is sensitive to the needs and rights of Palestine and these guys were Jews. Another group was composed of high school senior girls who all wanted to have their pic taken with CODEPINK. I gave out a couple of CODEPINK buttons to young women who promised to wear them with pride. These young women get it. Goddess, it is so good to see young women who are seeing us simply as women exercising our rights and participating. There are no black/white, on/off positions in the real world. Everything is process. We live in an analog world.
After a late lunch as my sisters in peace moved on to attending hearings on Veterans health care, I escaped to the Library of Congress to listen to Amish Hymns recorded by Lomax in the 1930s to get a flavor of the tunes that had been in a part of the world I’m writing some things about. I also ran across some tall stories collected by the WPA from the area where I grew up…. And sure enough I found some very tall tales recorded that were very similar to ones my father teased me with as a child. The one about the “Hoop Snakes” stands out most clearly.
I have to consciously remember to balance the torture and terror awareness and actions carried out to stop the atrocities happening in the world with a bit of humanity. I headed out for the LOC after reading each of the names and really looking at every photo of the Faces of the Fallen that were displayed outside one office. Many Senators and Representatives have put up these displays, but for some reason I was drawn in to one particular set today. It was all I could do to not break down sobbing in the hall. Fortunately a gentleman stopped me as I was exiting the building to talk to me about CODEPINK, the actions to which he’d taken his daughters, and how glad he was that we were here doing this. Turns out he is the Executive Director of the Alliance for Community Media. So we chatted about the importance of community media and how it brings diversity of viewpoints out on to the airwaves that we the people own anyway. We also touched on the valiant struggle Access Tucson has waged as corporatists try to kill it time and again. That was such a highlight of the day. Media. We have to be the media. We’ve forgotten that. The media is a tool of the people. We have to reclaim what is rightly ours. Corporations may have media outlets but we the people are the media and the fourth estate reports to us. Literally. Take ‘em to task and tell them to quit showing infotainment and start giving us real news that matters. If they did that, situations like our illegal and ill-conceived invasion and occupation of Iraq would not have happened.
Power to the Peaceful. Right on.
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