/> WHAT WILL BE . . .© Farming is Falling, Effecting Food and Family © Be-Think: February 2005

Monday, February 28, 2005

WITH THANKS TO RUMSFELD, WOLFIWITZ, CHENEY, AND PERLE ©

It was Tuesday, February 22, 2005, and as we all recall, “if it is Tuesday, we must be in Brussels.” We were. We the people of the United States represented by our man, the man that believes that he has a mandate, was there in Brussels. He was speaking on our be-half, or at least on the behalf of those that voted for him. For President Bush rarely if ever speaks on my behalf.

Mr. Bush was asked of his intentions towards Iran now that Iran has announced that they are engaged in nuclear proliferation. Did he trust that Iran was only securing nuclear energy, or did he believe that they were building bombs, bombs that might be used against the United Sates and countries within the European Union? Did he have evidence to support the suspected belief that Iran now holds Weapons of Mass Destruction and if he did, would he authorize military action against Iran? Would he invade a country that he deems an enemy? Would he choose diplomacy instead?

President Bush discussed the concerns for possible United States military action against Iran. He stated that the idea “is simply ridiculous.” However, he quickly added, "All options are on the table." [The Washington Post]

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Saturday, February 19, 2005

BINGES BUILD A BEING, SEPARATE FROM SELF © [CHAPTER THREE]

She sought out food, food, and more food. She was not hungry; well, she was, though not for food. She needed to fill the void, and yet if she felt full, she needed to eliminate that sensation. Her stomach must feel as empty as her being felt; the two needed to be in balance, an empty mind, and an empty body felt best. The eating was not eating it was as breathing. She inhaled her food, quickly, only to throw it all up just as quickly. When she did as she was doing, she felt nothing, and that was good! She thought nothing, well; at least she thought nothing of what she was doing. That was true for a time, though, not true too. She, while engaging in the deed was somewhat separate from herself. She was there and, yet, she was not.

She planned for the process and yet she did not. She imagined what she would eat, and yet she did not. She heard the cautions for what she was doing and for the consequences that these actions would bring, and yet, she did not. It all began and progressed so innocently; it seemed so insignificant; yet it consumed her. Consuming was her cycle. Consuming food, being consumed by food, with food, and in truth, it had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with food; it had to do with feeling full, yet feeling empty. More honestly, it had to do with the fear of feeling full and for the sadness of feeling empty. She did not fear or feel sadness for what was in, or not in her stomach.

Chapter Three in a Series

Friday, February 18, 2005

LITERACY AND THE BUSH LEGACY ©

I am baffled by the Bush budget, by the Bush family legacy, by Barbara, by Laura, and by the manner in which each of these mesh.

I remember a time when Barbara Bush was First Lady. She was outspoken in her strong support of programs that promote literacy. She was quite concerned for the youth of this country; she feared that many young people were growing up in homes where reading and writing were not habits. Mrs. Bush was troubled by the realization that parents were not reading to, or with, their offspring. She concluded that if children did not have literate parents, they were less likely to become literate themselves. She staunchly suggested that America needed to become academically competent, that this must be a priority, a priority within our homes, and a priority for our Nation. Former First Lady Barbara Bush was consumed in her concern, so much so that she decided to publicly promote policies that encouraged families to learn together. Ultimately, she founded The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. Thus, the Bush legacy for literacy began.

Laura followed Barbara. Laura Bush is a teacher, a librarian, and a woman committed to the idea of advancing knowledge. She says of herself, that her “whole life has been devoted to the advocacy of children.” Laura looks at reading and writing in manners that seem more expansive than those of her mother-in-law. For Mrs. Laura Bush the focus on literacy extends beyond the family; our current First Lady speaks of the need to teach reading and writing in our schools.

This Thursday evening, February 10, 2005, Jim Lehrer of The News Hour interviewed Mrs. Bush. He and the First Lady discussed her most pressing concern, improving the lives of boys. Throughout the dialogue, she mentioned that much of what is true for boys is also applicable to girls. In sharing her thoughts, Laura Bush stated that today, many parents are not fully literate. Many parents cannot read or write and therefore they are not able to model these for their children. She offered that many of our young Americans live with single parents, working parents, non-English speaking immigrant parents, parents that cannot or do not actively have the time or ability to teach their young erudition. Mrs. Bush asserted that schools and communities are often a child’s only resource, hence, role models and mentors are, or must be, found outside the home. It is for this reason Laura looks beyond the family in her desire to facilitate literacy. Thus, the legacy continues and grows.

President George W. Bush may be following Laura or as he said at a recent event, they may actually be walking hand-in-hand. In the text of a speech made by the President and reported in The Washington Post, Mr. Bush stated that he and his wife share “the same passion . . . and that is to put systems in place to encourage every child to learn to read.” He went on to say, “You cannot achieve in America if you cannot read. And yet too many of our children cannot read.” Mr. Bush, along with his wife, and mother, chooses to carry the torch of literacy, and the legacy marches on.

"Native ability without education is like a tree without fruit."
Aristippus [Founder of Cyrenaic School of Philosophy 430 B. C.]

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Tuesday, February 08, 2005

1984, 1988, THE BRAVE NEW WORLD, 632 AF (AFTER FORD) ©

Now, two of these dates have passed with little of the predicted fanfare. You may recall the fears and fiction of 1984 by George Orwell; however, do you recall the folly and fortunes told by George W. Bush?

It was 1978, congressional candidate George Walker Bush was campaigning. He went out on the Texas stump and began speaking of the inevitable, the demise of Social Security. He predicted its bankruptcy and stated that by 1988, the system would be “bust!” He was not alone in this fostering of fear; there were others. They focused on the faults within the Social Security system and not the benefits. They each presented these flaws as fatal.

According to many sources, the Economic Policy Institute among them, those fighting against Social Security protections were not the poor, the downtrodden, the disabled, the elderly, dependent children, or those whose income left them little extra for saving. They were not those that needed the protection of a system such as this. For the most part those that protested the structure were persons with ample wealth and prosperity. Their concern was often for having more while here on Earth and leaving more for their progeny. They were interested in their own profits and not in the poverty, provisions, and the potential for those less fortunate. Those speaking out against Social Security believed that any individuals can, and should be able to take care of themselves alone, regardless of the circumstances.

* Please see and hear Former Secretary of Labor, Robert Reich speak on the Social Security Surplus!


To read the text of this commentary, please refer to “Connect the Dots,” a piece published in The American Prospect.


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Wednesday, February 02, 2005

FROM WRITING HISTORY TO RE-WRITING HISTORY ©

“History consists of a series of accumulated imaginative inventions.”
    Voltaire [Author and Philosopher -1694 – 1778]

On Saturday, January 29, 2005, while reading The Los Angeles Times I discovered an interesting article by Peter Wallsten.  Initially, it appeared innocuous, though newsworthy.  First, I noticed a large photograph of Condoleezza Rice; she was taking her oath of office, being sworn in as Secretary of State.  Granted, this event is important; yet, it was not the occasion that intrigued me, the title of this exposé did.  It read, “Recasting Republicans as the Party of Civil Rights.”


I knew that the Republican right was working to write history, paying pundits to promote their propaganda and using taxpayer monies to do so, nonetheless this title implied more.  It seems that the Republicans are not only writing history, now they are re-writing history!


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