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Category Archives: Rag Bloggers
Bob Feldman : Union Growth in Texas Followed by Crackdown, 1940-1953
After a 1953 CIO-led strike in Port Arthur, Texas Gov. Allan Shivers, here shown addressing a campaign rally in Austin, led a move to make membership in the Communist Party illegal. Image from AlternativeHistory.com.The hidden history of Texas Part 12: … Continue reading
Anne Lewis : UT-Austin Ponders Privatizing Staff
Members of the Make UT Sweatshop-Free Coalition gather at the UT-Austin Tower Wednesday, February 6, to protest the University’s consideration of job privatization for staff members. Photo by David Maly / The Horn.‘Culture war’ at UT-Austin: President Powers considers privatization The … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Anne Lewis, Bill Powers, Campuses, Higher Education, Labor Unions, Outsourcing, Privatization, University of Texas, UT-Austin
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Nancy Miller Saunders : They Tried to Tell Us
Vietnam veterans testify at the Winter Soldier Investigation in 1972. Image is a screen grab from the film, Winter Soldier, produced by the Winterfilm Collective.Winter Soldiers:They tried to tell us We as a nation did not want to know the … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Nancy Miller Saunders, Peace Movement, Vietnam, VVAW, Winter Soldiers
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RAG RADIO / Thorne Dreyer : ‘Austin Noir’ with Musician and Author Jesse Sublett
Musician and author Jesse Sublett, on right, with Rag Radio host Thorne Dreyer, in the studios of KOOP-FM in Austin, Texas, Friday, February 1, 2013. Photo by Charlie Martin / KOOP.Rag Radio podcast:‘Austin Noir‘ with musician and writer Jesse Sublett, author … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Austin Musicians, Authors, eBooks, Grave Digger Blues, Interview, Jesse Sublett, Podcast, Rag Radio, Thorne Dreyer
2 Comments
IDEAS / Bill Meacham : Free Will or Free Won’t?
Image from InspireD2.Free Will or Free Won’t? Human beings act on their desires and beliefs, and the way we predict what people will do is not by examining their brain waves but by understanding what they want and what they … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Bill Meacham, Consciousness, Free Will, Ideas, Neuroscience, Philosophy
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FILM / Jonah Raskin : ‘Django Unchained’ is Quentin Tarantino in Blackface
Django Unchained:Quentin Tarantino in Blackface At times, the movie seems like an advertisement for integration on the bounty hunting circuit, and for friendship between a black and a white man who both kill without compunction. By Jonah Raskin / The … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Django Unchained, Film, Jonah Raskin, Quentin Tarantino, Slavery, Westerns
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BOOKS / Ron Jacobs : Dave Zirin, the Man Who Politicized the Sports Pages
A look at Dave Zirin’s latest:The man who politicized the sports pages No longer can owners, managers, and commissioners argue that sports and politics must and should be separated. The taboo has been trashed. The silence has been shattered. By … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged American Society, Books, Dave Zirin, Hunter S. Thompson, Journalism, Ron Jacobs, Sports
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Jean Trounstine : Yoga Behind Bars
Image from the Prison Yoga Project.Yoga behind bars With over 2.2 million behind bars, can the ancient practice help break the cycle of recidivism and improve overall quality of life for prisoners? Here’s why prisons are willing to give yoga … Continue reading
Alan Waldman : ‘Waiting for God’ is My Favorite TV Sitcom Ever!
Waldman’s film and TVtreasures you may have missed: Graham Crowden and Stephanie Cole are priceless as feisty seniors in an English retirement home. By Alan Waldman | The Rag Blog | February 6, 2013 [In his weekly column, Alan Waldman … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Alan Waldman, British Television, Criticism, Vintage Television, Waiting for God
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Bob Feldman : Labor Unions and the Communist Party Are Active in Texas, 1930-1940
Emma Tenayuca, leader of the pecan shellers’ strike at the age of 21, stands on the steps of San Antonio’s City Hall in 1938. Tenayuca was also active in the Communist Party in Texas. Image from the Institute of Texan … Continue reading
Lamar W. Hankins : Sanitizing Black History Every February
Rosa Parks, agitator. Image from Jezebel.Sanitizing Black history every February Rosa Parks had a life-long history of activism against injustice, but school children are seldom told the true story about her life of agitation and struggle against oppression. By Lamar … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Black History, Civil Rights Movement, Lamar W. Hankins, Rosa Parks, Slave Rebellions, Slavery
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Roger Baker : Can TxDOT avoid financial disaster? / 2
Agency in denial: TxDOT and financial reality. Is a change of direction in order? Image from Cypress Creek Mirror. By Roger Baker | The Rag Blog | February 1, 2013 “Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt.” — Mark Twain … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Roger Baker, Texas Economy, Texas Politics, Transportation, TXDot
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