The Rag Blog | The Latest in News and Views from the Progressive Front

James McEnteer :
Wall-to-wall deja voodoo

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Walls can’t stop ideas. A wall itself is an idea, or rather, an admission that the builder of the
wall has run out of ideas.

Mexico border fence: making good neighbors? Image courtesy of Human Rights Watch.org.

By James McEnteer | The Rag Blog | October 27, 2015

QUITO, Ecuador — From the start of his presidential campaign Donald Trump has hyped his idea of a giant new wall along the Mexican border to keep out undesirables. Because, you know, “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” Trump has repeatedly emphasized that: “It’s going to be a real wall. Not a toy wall like we have now.”

Trump’s proposal is not merely a xenophobic waste of billions, it isn’t even original. In 1992, six national election cycles ago, Pat Buchanan, another Republican nativist, campaigned for the GOP presidential nomination with the same idea. Buchanan thought a fence, and maybe a ditch, along the border, would stop the flow of drugs and “illegal aliens” into the United States.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Border Wall, Donald Trump, James McEnteer, Rag Bloggers, World History | Leave a comment

Thorne Dreyer :
RAG RADIO PODCASTS | Deepa Iyer, Carmen Tafolla & Gregg Barrios, Margaret Randall, Michael Hurd, Ed Sanders, Atash, Jim Hightower, Richard Zelade

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

We discuss racial justice post-9/11 and African-American history in Texas, get the lowdown on Labor Day, visit with a beatnik legend, learn about Austin in the Jazz Age, and listen to classy world music and world class poetry.

Shady characters. Gregg Barrios with Thorne Dreyer at the KOOP studios, Oct. 16, 2015. Photo by Roger Baker / The Rag Blog.

Interviews by Thorne Dreyer | The Rag Blog | October 27, 2015

The following podcasts are from recent Rag Radio shows. The syndicated Rag Radio program, produced in the studios of Austin’s cooperatively-run KOOP-FM, has an international audience and has become an influential platform for interviews with leading figures in politics, current events, literature, and cutting-edge culture.

∗ Racial Justice Activist Deepa Iyer, Author of ‘We Too Sing America’

Read the show description and download the podcast of our October 23, 2015 Rag Radio interview with Deepa Iyer here — or listen to it here:

∗ Texas Poet Laureate Carmen Tafolla & Gregg Barrios, Prominent Poet, Playwright & Critic

Read the show description and download the podcast of our October 16, 2015 Rag Radio show with Carmen Tafolla and Gregg Barrios here — or listen to it here:

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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Atash, Carmen Tafolla, Deepa Iyer, Ed Sanders, Gregg Barrios, Interviews, Jim Hightower, Margaret Randall, Michael Hurd, Podcasts, Rag Radio, Richard Zelade, Thorne Dreyer, Tracey Schulz | Leave a comment

Aaron Schnautz :
METRO | ‘The Challenger’ is a newspaper published by Austin’s homeless

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Since they have no office, staff meetings are held under a giant oak tree in front of City Hall.

Every Sunday Challenger staffers gather to discuss stories for next week’s issue. Photo by Aaron Schnautz / The Rag Blog.

By Aaron Schnautz | The Rag Blog | October 26, 2015

AUSTIN — At the corner of Guadalupe and Cesar Chavez streets in downtown Austin, there is a giant oak tree in front of City Hall that offers a shady resting place — and a place to watch the bustling city spring to life. Hundreds of cars, including a number of shiny Porsches and BMWs, pass by, many with the windows down and the music up. Joggers aim for the paths along Lady Bird Lake and impatiently wait for the traffic lights to change. Families pop in and out of the nearby boutiques.

But this oak tree isn’t just a great vantage point to watch Austin and its citizens, it also provides something else: Every Sunday afternoon it becomes a meeting place for people publishing a special newspaper — one produced by Austin’s homeless population.
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Posted in Metro, RagBlog | Tagged Aaron Schnautz, Alternative Media, Austin Homeless, Journalism, Metro, Rag Bloggers, The Austin Advocate, The Challenger Newspaper, Valerie Romness | 3 Comments

The Rag Blog :
METRO EVENT | Remi Kanazi, Palestinian-American poet and human rights activist

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Alice Embree

Event: A Night with Remi Kanazi
What: Poetry and conversation
Date: Friday, October 30, 2015
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Where: ART 1.102 in the School of Art, UT-Austin
Address: San Jacinto and 23rd Street, Austin 78712
Admission: Free and open to the public

Event: Houston Solidarity Action
What: Demonstration
Date: Sunday, November 1, 2015
Time: 2:30-5:30 p.m.
Where: General Consulate of Israel
Address: 24 Greenway Plaza, Houston 77046
Admission: Public welcome

AUSTIN — Remi Kanazi, Palestinian-American poet and human rights activist, will read poetry from his new book, Before the Next Bomb Drops: Rising Up From Brooklyn to Palestine, at 6:30 p.m., Friday, October 30, 2015, in the auditorium of the UT-Austin School of Art (ART 1.102), at the corner of San Jacinto and 23rd Street.
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Posted in Metro, RagBlog | Tagged Houston Demonstration, Metro, Palestinian Solidarity, Poetry Reading, Remi Kanazi, UT-Austin | Leave a comment

Mike Klonsky :
Obama’s choice for Education Secretary worse than Arne Duncan!

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

John King’s top-down imposition of corporate-style reform policies has led to a revolt among parents and teachers in New York.

Teacher and parent groups in New York have demanded State Education Commissioner John King Jr.’s resignation. Photo from Education News.

By Mike Klonsky | The Rag Blog | October 26, 2015

“Throughout his term in New York, John King was notorious for his complete disconnect from parents, teachers, and school officials. Our only hope is that this bizarre move by the White House will have the same effect across the country, spreading the Opt Out movement to every corner of the nation.” — NYSAPE

CHICAGO — President Barack Obama’s choice of John King to succeed Education Secretary Arne Duncan couldn’t have been worse. Why did he do it? It’s hard to find a more reactionary and divisive thinker or practitioner than King in all of Obama’s realm.

As New York’s Education Commissioner, King’s top-down imposition of corporate-style reform policies, including Common Core testing mania, has led to a revolt among parents and teachers. If anyone deserves major credit for sparking the growing parent opt-out movement which has now spread nationwide and represents the biggest single threat to Obama’s own ed policies, it is King.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Arne Duncan, Common Core, Educational Reform, John King, Mike Klonsky, Public Education, Rag Bloggers, Secretary of Education, Standardized Testing | Leave a comment

Lamar W. Hankins :
We must act on Islamic State genocide

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Alice Embree

There should be little doubt that the Islamic State has committed genocide; its leaders regularly admit to that continuing war crime.

Islamic State fighter.

By Lamar W. Hankins | The Rag Blog | October 25, 2015

“This is genocide.” Every time I read those words, I hear them in the solemn and sonorous voice of Edward R. Murrow, who began his World War II broadcasts from England with “This is London.” But what I am referring to here are the massive killings by the Islamic State of Kurds, Shias, Sufis, Christians, Yazidis, children, journalists, those deemed guilty of apostasy, women who do not submit to being raped, and many others whom the Islamic State considers infidels or pagans.

Because the nature of most of these groups was discussed thoroughly by Steve Russell in a Rag Blog article last year, I recommend looking at what he wrote then if you have questions about who they are.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Genocide, ISIS, Islamic State, Lamar W. Hankins, Radical Islamists, Rag Bloggers, United Nations, War Crimes | 3 Comments

Roger Baker :
What’s up with the global economy, and where do we go from here?

Posted on October 24, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

A deflationary spiral, such as is now becoming evident globally, acts as a natural poison.

Political cartoon from Secrets of the Fed.

By Roger Baker | The Rag Blog | October 25, 2015

It now appears that the grand yearly addition to total human wealth, the global GNP, is no longer growing. If so, this means the world is headed toward a global deflationary spiral, a contraction in the global economy similar in nature to the trade slump that spread globally during the era of the Great Depression.

There really is no other explanation but a global trade slump that can account for the steep decline in the prices of basic essential commodities like oil and copper, and also the decreased demand for shipping capacity reflected in the Baltic Dry Index.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Deflationary Spiral, Global Economy, Marxist Analysis, Rag Bloggers, Roger Baker, U.S. Economy | 8 Comments

Kate Braun :
Samhain, or Halloween, begins ‘the time of
no time’

Posted on October 24, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Also called Third Harvest and All Hallows Eve, this is a fire festival and should be celebrated outdoors.

The wise old Crone is depicted here as one the three stages of the Goddess. Image from RosesCrystal.

By Kate Braun | The Rag Blog | October 24, 2015

Saturday, October 31, 2015, is Samhain, which you may also call Halloween, Third Harvest, and All Hallows Eve. This is a fire festival and should be celebrated outdoors if at all possible. Be sure to have a visible flame, whether a bonfire or some candles or a smaller fire in a cauldron or barbecue grill. It will be important to save the ashes from your fire, too. When they are cool, spread them over the garden as this blesses the land.

After your guests have arrived and before the festivities begin, be sure to ceremonially sweep the area in which you will be celebrating. Include your guests in this activity by passing the broom or besom from one to another until all have had a chance to sweep a bit. This symbolizes sweeping away the old and opening the door to the new.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Astrology, Ceremony, Halloween, Kate Braun, Metaphysics, Rag Bloggers, Ritual, Samhain | Leave a comment

Mariann G. Wizard :
Why ‘Black Lives Matter,’ a lot!

Posted on October 20, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Those interested in the reasons for black oppression by the state may conclude that it adds to the corporate bottom line.

Woman at August memorial service for 18-year-old Michael Brown Jr., in Ferguson, Missouri. Photo by Michael B. Thomas / AFP / Getty Images.

By Mariann G. Wizard | The Rag Blog | October 20, 2015

As a jack-of-all-trades writer and 50-year political activist, I’ve spent a lot of time on, and put a lot of thought into, propaganda; all of which, as Bob Dylan sang, “is phony.”

Propaganda includes slogans, songs, graphic images, educational and/or advertising materials, and/or deeds that compel those who see, hear, study, or witness them to consider certain aspects of “reality” in a fresh light. Successful propaganda opens closed minds. Its “phoniness” often derives, in my experience, from its perishability. A meaningful and compelling slogan in one context or season often loses its punch as circumstances change (e.g., “I Like Ike“). You have to have something to put into those opened minds, or they eventually wander.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights, Institutional Racism, Mariann G. Wizard, Racial Justice, Rag Bloggers | Leave a comment

Murray Polner :
The Iran deal and the new, U.S.-inspired Middle Eastern arms race

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Hey, world, step right up: American weapons are available for (nearly) everyone.

Political cartoon by Jim Morin / Miami Herald.

By Murray Polner | The Rag Blog | October 8, 2015

So who won the “war” about the Iran Agreement?

Millions were spent for a stream of ads on TV and radio and in major newspapers in the “war” over Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran. But one day while clicking through TV’s vacuous channels I picked up a local reporter visiting a Midwest diner asking diners what they thought of the Iran deal and was told they had never heard of it.

Back in the world, though, a bruising battle was on. Opponents were indifferent to the possibility of more war, which Obama said would result if the deal was rejected, meaning, I thought, so long as their kids didn’t have to fight. Supporters were branded Israel-haters and worse and several pro-deal Jewish Democrats were told they belonged in the ovens, the familiar consignment of adversaries to Auschwitz.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged American Jews, Arms Race, Iran Nuclear Treaty, Israel Lobby, Middle East, Murray Polner, Rag Bloggers | 1 Comment

Margaret Randall :
VERSE | Tango

Posted on October 7, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Thumbs dance a graceful tango
as right moves left
and left right across keys
in deliberate journey.

I look at the pianist’s feet
upon the pedals,
automatic underpinning,
cellular memory.

I observe the energy rising
from his center
through perpendicular torso,
hands exploding impossible hope.

I search his eyes
Oblivious to mine
because they already inhabit
a timeless destination.
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Posted in RagBlog | Tagged Margaret Randall, Poetry, Rag Bloggers, Tango, Verse | Leave a comment

Elaine J. Cohen :
METRO | The new American ‘internment camps’: A bad idea that doesn’t go away

Posted on October 7, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

‘Family detention’ is just a euphemism for ‘prisons incarcerating immigrant women and children.’

This sign marked the small office of BI Incorporated.

By Elaine J. Cohen | The Rag Blog | October 7, 2015

AUSTIN — According to my well-worn Webster’s, a euphemism is “the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant” and comes from the Greek. For those of us who have been working to change current USian immigration policies, it is a constant struggle to strip away the euphemisms employed throughout the system and lay bare the ugly realities that they obscure.

Who better to recognize and illuminate these euphemisms than the Japanese-Americans who were rounded up and placed in “internment camps” from 1941 until the first days of 1945? It was with this in mind that in early September, RAICES of San Antonio held the conference, “The New American ‘Internment Camps’ — A Closer Look at ‘Family Detention.’” The event was held at Our Lady of the Lake University.
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Posted in Metro, RagBlog | Tagged Elaine J. Cohen, Electronic Surveillance, Euphemisms, Family Detention, Immigration Policy, Japanese-Americans, Language, Metro, Private Prisons, Rag Bloggers, WWII Internment Camps | Leave a comment

Walls can’t stop ideas. A wall itself is an idea, or rather, an admission that the builder of the wall has run out of ideas.