This first weekend after a “highly divisive” Election, let’s look for the small blessings
that are all around us, and remember that many more values and goals unite Americans
than divide us. (Our means may differ, for example, but who doesn’t believe that protecting
lives and families is a core value?) Mediators know that people of good will can — eventually
— forge common solutions from common goals.
DeVar Dahl finds his inspiration close to home:
homemade bread
a pound of butter
softens by the stove
the narrow place
between my neck and my collar
November wind
autumn sunet
the ripe rose hip
begins to pucker
from A Piece of Egg Shell, an anthologyof by Calgary-Canada-based haiku poets
(Magpie Haiku Poets, 2004, email cover art by Ken Richardson
credits: “homemade bread” — WHC World Haiku Review 3-2;
“the narrow place” – Snapshot Press Haiku Calendar 2003
by dagosan:
progress –
leftside backache
moves to the right
[Nov. 6, 2004]
New York state has declared February 15th to be an annual day of commemoration for Susan B. Anthony, the women’s rights pioneer who fought for the right to vote. An abolitionist, Anthony was also instrumental in securing property and employment rights for women. (pressconnects.com/AP) Anthony’s struggles show that it may take a very long time, but the U.S.A. usually corrects its civil rights inequities. (go here for a discussion of the importance of the women’s vote in 2004)
Michal Moore offers “17 Reasons Not to Slit Your Wrists,” including “most importantly, over 55 million Americans voted for the candidate dubbed ‘The #1 Liberal in the Senate.'”
Jim Moore offers the “Five most important things the Democrats did wrong,” including a failure to present a coherent philosophy and authentic values, and to trust the American people by telling them the truth. (Naturally, we have opined on what Dems did wrong and need to do.)
Quoting Jason Kottke, who reminds Democrats that they have no special wisdom and that “we’re all stupid,” Ernie Svenson thinks America’s problem is that it treats politics “like a team sport.” I think that analogy is a little bit off: it is perfectly possible to engage in a team sport and still treat the opponent with respect, even though contests are hard fought and rivalries deep. The teams know they’ll meet again, this season or next, and need to understand the opponent’s stengths, weaknesses and game plan, and respect the rules of the game. The problem is not that Americans engage in politics as if they are on teams — being on a team that shares your view of the world is not necessarily a bad thing. The problem is playing politics like a blood sport, where the other side is seen as less-than-human and available to use as prey.
Ya know, something is very wrong with (1) the copyright law community or (2) Google algorithms, when f/k/a is the #1 result for the query fair use parody 17 usc 107 transformative value>, based on one piece posted here on “haiku and fair use.” On the other hand, it’s kinda cool that we came in 2nd, behind a preschool webpage, for the topic “seat belt poems.” (our post here)
Fed84 thinks a prescription-addicted mom should be able to keep the minvan she used for pharmacy pickups and to drive her kids to school. We, and the 8th Circuit, concur. United States v. Dodge Caravan, No. 03-1925 (8th Cir., Oct. 27, 2004) (Melloy, for Smith, J.J., Collotan, J. dissenting).