Steve Weissman :
We are all Charlie, even as political hacks steal Charlie’s soul

Posted on January 18, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Within days, the French political elite and their international allies were using the tragedy to sell new policing measures.

luz holds charlie cover

A tearful cartoonist Luz (Renald Luzier) shows Charlie Hebdo cover at press conference in Paris, January 13, 2015. Photo from Getty Images / CBS News.

By Steve Weissman | Reader Supported News | January 19, 2015

∗ French-based journalist Steve Weissman joined legendary satirist Paul Krassner and The Rag Blog‘s David Hamilton as Thorne Dreyer’s guests on Rag Radio, Friday, January 16. The topic: “Blasphemy, Satire, and Charlie Hebdo.” Listen to the podcast here:

DORDOGNE, France — The Islamist terrorists who killed 12 cartoonists and journalists of Charlie Hebdo took only their lives, which was more than horrific enough. But within days of the massacre, the French political elite and their international allies added to the crime, setting out to steal the soul of an incomparable group of free thinkers in an effort to sell new policing measures.

Proudly left-wing, anti-racist, and against all forms of authoritarianism, the mischievous French anarchoids at Charlie Hebdo have long embodied the real meaning of free speech — and not some abstract notion that loses all meaning when mouthed by people who hate what the satirical weekly represents.
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Rabbi Arthur Waskow :
Is murder a ‘sacred practice’ in ALL religions?

Posted on January 17, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Why are there streaks of both blood and love in the histories of religious communities?

crusaders and muslims

“Saracens and Crusaders.” Illuminated manuscript from Les Grandes Chroniques de France.

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow | The Rag Blog | January 18, 2015

The murderous attacks in France last week have called forth a mixture of horror, outrage, disgust, and fear — all legitimate responses.

One response has been to claim that Islam is — uniquely — a religion of violence, terror, and war. Another has been to claim that the perpetrators of these murders, though they claimed they were acting for the honor of God and of Islam, were acting falsely, betraying the Islam that is entirely a religion of peace.

Both these responses evade the truth.
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Dan and Christy Foster :
METRO | The unforgettable voice of John Clay

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

John Clay, whose unique musical vision reflected a vicious honesty tempered only by his darkly innocent sense of humor, is dead at 74.

john clay 63 McCulloch thiher rally crp

John Clay performs on the UT-Austin campus in 1965 at a rally for Gary Thiher, SDS candidate for student body president. Photo by Jim McCulloch.

By Dan and Christy Foster | The Rag Blog | January 14, 2015

AUSTIN — Austin lost its most unique and unforgettable voice when John Clay died Wednesday, December 17, 2014, at the age of 74. Intense, direct and fiercely distinct, with a vicious honesty that was tempered only by his darkly innocent sense of humor, John had an innate ability to capture so much of life in such a very few words even though many of his songs, like “West Texas Memories,” were notorious for length.

Epic numbers like that brought listeners along for a seemingly endless ride through the flatlands of memory that in the end turned out to be over much too soon. Some, like “Mr. Bowly’s Still” or “The Meter Reader” were deliciously compact vignettes, like Thurber with a southern accent, or cummings with capitalization, set to music.
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Lamar W. Hankins :
Assault weapons regulation and the ‘Charlie Hebdo’ killings

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

I have yet to hear or read a persuasive rationale for anyone in civilian life needing an assault weapon.

assault rifle

Come and get it! Assault rifle for sale at Illinois sporting goods store. Photo by Scott Olson / Getty Images.

By Lamar W. Hankins | The Rag Blog | January 14, 2015

The recent mass killings at the offices of the French publication Charlie Hebdo brought to mind what I learned on a trip last summer while traveling around rural upstate New York with my wife. We noticed a good many yard signs demanding the repeal of the SAFE Act. As soon as we could get internet access, we checked out what these signs were about.

We learned that in December 2013, the New York State Legislature decided that some new gun regulations would make the state safer for its citizens and visitors. It passed the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act of 2013, referred to as the NY SAFE Act.
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David P. Hamilton :
Muslims in France: A little context

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

You can’t generalize with much accuracy about Muslims in France, no more so than about
Christians or secularists.

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African lades in Place Blum. Photo by Sally Hamilton / The Rag Blog.

By David P. Hamilton | The Rag Blog | January 12, 2015

It is impossible to generalize about Muslims in France. Anyone who speaks of some unitary “Muslim community” in France is spouting nonsense. This is most commonly heard as, “Why doesn’t the Muslim community condemn these terrorists?”

It is often stated that Muslims make up about 8% of the population of France, a total of 5-6 million people, comprising “the largest Muslim population in Europe.” This is usually spoken in slightly shocked tones by Americans. But who are these Muslims? Actually, the statistics concerning them are somewhat obscure and slippery.
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Paul Krassner :
‘Charlie Hebdo’ : Killing cartoonists

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

It’s an awesome outrage. Of course, some dinosaur Republicans might try to blame Obama.

je suis charlie

“I am Charlie.” Screen grab from Charlie Hebdo‘s website,
January 7, 2015. Image from BBC News Europe.

By Paul Krassner | The Rag Blog | January 7, 2015

This massacre is an awesome outrage, even to liberals and conservatives alike, although some dinosaur Republicans might try to blame Obama. It’s a horrendous violation of semantic principles, such as “The menu is not the meal” and “The map is not the territory.” As an atheist, I perceive the irony of those assassins shouting “God is great” to justify their insane act in the name of a deity that I believe doesn’t exist.

And what could happen in America? Security guards protecting the Onion offices? Treat Funny or Die as Islamic marching orders? Invade the cyberspace of NBC for broadcasting Saturday Night Live until it morphs into Saturday Night Dead, if it’s not already deceased?
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Harry Hurt III :
Let us now praise famous men: Remembering Mickey Leland, and opening the door to Cuba

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

My dear friend, the late Houston congressman Mickey Leland, once declared: ‘I am as much a citizen of the world as I am of this country.’

harry and fidel sm

Harry Hurt III and Fidel Castro display each other’s books in Fidel’s Havana office in March 1983. Screen grab from television footage.

By Harry Hurt III | The Rag Blog | January 7, 2015

“Hello, Harry. This is your nigger congressman Mickey Leland. You want to go to Cuba?”

It’s a Monday morning in mid-March 1983. I’m at my writing desk in a rental house in Houston, trying to think up story ideas for Texas Monthly magazine. Mickey’s proposition almost sounds too good to be true. I immediately commit without bothering to get approval from my editor in Austin. Four days later, we’re on a private jet to Havana with a Houston television crew and three of his congressional staffers.

The official purpose of our Cuba trip is to negotiate the release of two American prisoners, a young white couple who hail from a Republican congressional district in north Houston. The Cubans suspect they’re marijuana smugglers, but there’s no hard evidence against them. Their plane crashed on the island, and the husband had the presence of mind to torch it before they were captured.
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Alice Embree :
METRO | Honoring the enduring courage and generosity of Rev. Bob Breihan

Posted on January 6, 2015 by Thorne Dreyer

Spiritual counselor and social activist Bob Breihan is celebrated on the occasion of his 90th birthday.

bob breihan with Alice and Thorne

Rev. Bob Breihan, center, with The Rag Blog‘s Alice Embree and Thorne Dreyer, at his 90th birthday party. Photo by Carlos Lowry / The Rag Blog.

By Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | January 7, 2015

AUSTIN — Rev. Bob Breihan sported a black top hat — with the words “Can you believe it?” — at a party held for him on Sunday, January 4. A large gathering of family, church colleagues, and long-time friends came together at the University Methodist Church in Austin to celebrate his 90th birthday.

Bob Breihan was a prominent voice in the 1950s movement to desegregate Austin, a courageous advocate for reproductive rights, and a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War. Between 1960 and 1980, Bob Breihan was director of the Methodist Student Center on Guadalupe — a place that opened its doors to young people who were part of the political and social movements of the day.
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Alan Waldman :
The 27 best films I saw in 2014

Posted on December 31, 2014 by Thorne Dreyer

My favorite 2014 movies include ‘The Imitation Game,’ ‘Boyhood,’ and ‘A Place at the Table.’

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Benedict Cumberbatch is magnificent in The Imitation Game.

By Alan Waldman | The Rag Blog | December 31, 2014

I saw 27 excellent films in theaters, on cable/dish TV, and via Netflix and Netflix Instant streaming — which is 59% more good movies than the 17 I saw last year. I have been compiling a best films list for more than 20 years, and usually more than half of my selections are foreign, but this time the Yanks predominated.

Once again, the most enjoyable shows I saw were TV series (mentioned below the films list), probably because writers are unfettered there and allowed to do good work. If you click on my name, you will find 23 terrific mysteries and comedies from U.K, Ireland, Scotland, Australia and New Zealand that I reviewed this year on The Rag Blog.
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Kate Braun :
On Winter Solstice, holly invites good fortune
for the coming year

Posted on December 19, 2014 by Thorne Dreyer

This is a time to celebrate newness: a new moon cycle, a new spiritual cycle, a shift of energy.

winter solstice

Winter Solstice. Image from Indian Country Today.

By Kate Braun | The Rag Blog | December 19, 2014

“Od Yavo Shalom Aleinu / Ve al kulam / Salaam Aleinu
ve al kol ha olam / Salaam”

Sunday, December 21, is Winter Solstice, which you may also call Yule or Yuletide. Lady Moon is new on December 21; a new cycle is beginning. Fix a sprig of holly hear the front door; this invites good fortune for the coming year. Including holly, ivy, and mistletoe in your decorations also invites Nature Sprites to join your celebrating.

The longest night and shortest day of the year, this is a time to celebrate newness: a new moon cycle, a new spiritual cycle, a shift of energy, a welcome to more daylight time. This is a fire festival. Yule signifies the return of Lord Sun and fire reinforces his growth. Burn candles, have a Yule Log, cook over open flames outdoors, whatever is easiest for you to do to incorporate fire energy into your celebrations.
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Tom Hayden :
The U.S.-Cuba deal is a victory for the
Cuban Revolution

Posted on December 17, 2014 by Thorne Dreyer

The embargo is going to be hollowed out from within, with American tourist and investment dollars permitted to flow.

Cuba Peace Concert

Cubans celebrate. Image from AP.

By Tom Hayden | The Rag Blog | December 17, 2014

No one in the mainstream media will acknowledge it, but the normalization of American relations with Havana, symbolized by release of prisoners today, is a huge success for the Cuban Revolution.

The hostile U.S. policy, euphemistically known as “regime change,” has been thwarted. The Cuban Communist Party is confidently in power. The Castros have navigated through all the challenges of the years. In Latin America and the United Nations, Cuba is accepted, and the United States is isolated.

It is quite legitimate for American progressives to criticize various flaws and failures of the Cuban Revolution. But the media and the right are overflowing with such commentary. Only the left can recall, narrate, and applaud the long resistance of tiny Cuba to the northern Goliath.
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Ed Felien :
In Minneapolis, demonstrators protest
institutional racism

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Thorne Dreyer

They ask city government to stand at the side of poor people and people of color, rather than standing over them with a club.

demonstrators in minneapolis

Hands up, don’t shoot: Demonstrators in Minneapolis. Image
from myfox9.com.

By Ed Felien | The Rag Blog | December 11, 2014

[Demonstrations in reaction to police killings of young unarmed black men are spreading across the country. Their message: “Black Lives Matter.” Rag Blog contributor Ed Felien reports on events in Minneapolis.]

MINNEAPOLIS — For a couple of hours on Thursday, December 3, an action by a hundred or more brave souls was being televised live. It was thrilling. They began at a Burger King restaurant at 34th and Nicollet with a demonstration calling attention to the need to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, and, then, they marched down the freeway entrance to 35W and down 35W to City Hall.

Their protest turned to police brutality and, in particular, the refusal of grand juries to indict police officers in the deaths of two unarmed black young men: Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in Staten Island.
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