I’ve been saying for some time that it isn’t enough to rail against the conditions in the concentration camps currently being filled with those seeking asylum in the U.S. We need to propose some solutions. Today I received a communication that offers solutions–or at least ways in which we can support those attempting to institute measures to end the atrocities in these camps. Here is a link to view what is happening in the camps–many of them run by a big-time contributor to Trump and several senators as well as a list of things you can do to help.
Some excerpts from the link above:
But why are these camps any different from the detention centers we’ve been hearing about for the last year? Elizabeth C. McLaughlin explains why:
“These concentration camps (let’s call them what they are) will be under the control of the Department of Homeland Security, but within the Department of Defense. Unlike ICE facilities, which allow site inspectors inside, there will be no inspection of military-run camps.
The military will be able to deny access to anyone it chooses. No media. No oversight. Lawyers will not be allowed in. Human rights monitors will not be allowed in. The camps will also be protected airspace, meaning that no drones can fly over them to take pictures of what’s going on inside. The Trump administration will be able to conduct itself in whatever way it wants to without anyone knowing what’s going on inside.”
Why did we never hear of events like this in our history classes? I have never before heard of this massacre that makes me ashamed of a country that I thought was supposed to represent all races and economic levels equally. Our present government is not a joke. It is a travesty. And reports like this make me realize this is not the first time that monumental injustice was the status quo. If we let the concentration camps at our borders and further expulsion of those long-time residents contributing to our society and their separation from their children, then we deserve what is going to happen. There are now more Americans deserting the U.S. and moving to Mexico than Mexicans moving to the states. When Bush was elected, I said I was never coming back to the states until he was out of office. Looking at the Republican Party today, I have to say he was a saint by comparison. Shame on you on every front, Trump administration. If Karma is real, I can’t imagine your afterlife!!!
Forgottenman posted an interesting blog yesterday and updated it tonight with a couple of new video links, including a video of Robert Reich on the topic given above in my title and another commentary by Trae Crowder.
HERE is the link to forgottenman’s blog post. Once there, you will find the links to Robert Reich and Trae Crowder as well.
Democratic congressman Joe Cunningham interrupted a house committee hearing with a 120-decibel airhorn after a Trump administration official insisted air-gun testing to locate oil underwater would have no impact on whales, who rely on echolocation to hunt and communicate.
Dumbing Down
I bailed on calculus but I excelled at long division.
Illustrious in wood shop, I flunked nuclear fission.
Knights in suits of armor were never quite my thing.
I never learned to play an instrument. I do not sing.
My illustrious school career came by fits and starts.
Loved auto mechanics. Couldn’t hack the arts.
I admit I’m not well-rounded. I studied what I liked,
and after school was over, I skateboarded and biked.
I never was a bookworm. I had no use for culture.
I had no fear of teachers who hovered like a vulture.
A comic book inside a textbook made for pleasant reading.
I only paid attention to what I would be needing.
The same is true now that I’m grown. I skip over the news.
I have no need of knowing about Arabs, Serbs or Jews.
I fixate on my own needs. I can’t bother with the rest.
I read enough to pay my bills and pass my driver’s test.
What more is necessary? I have TV and my phone.
When I am ensconced in them, the world leaves me alone.
I’m tired of ecology and its boring explaining,
so voted for a president who is more entertaining.
Now that news is comedy, it holds my interest well.
Who believes those scientists who ring the warning bell?
When the air’s too bad to breathe, I’ll simply stay inside
watching news on Stuppid that is more bona fide.
(Click on the Stuppid URL for a list and description of “fake news” news sources and some of the biggest disinformation posts. Chilling. )
Prompt words today were bail, division, illustrious and armor.
https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2019/03/17/rdp-sunday-bail/
https://fivedotoh.com/2019/03/17/fowc-with-fandango-division/
https://wordofthedaychallenge.wordpress.com/2019/03/16/illustrious/
https://onedailyprompt.wordpress.com/2019/03/17/your-daily-word-prompt-armor-march-17-2019/
The Spoils
Walking is elemental. We do it night and day,
but if they could, they’d meter it and we’d have to pay.
They charge us for our water, but so far air is free.
Until they find a way to own it, they will let us be.
Every element on earth is one they’d like to own,
but how to possess all of it so far is still unknown.
They find new ways to own us and to control our voting.
They open up our coffers and soon they’re busy toting
all of our resources off to their own coffers
so they can sell it back to us, slaves to their pricey offers.
If there were a tournament for greed and avarice,
it would be one our billionaires wouldn’t want to miss.
Golf might be their game of choice or perhaps chess or tennis.
The rules would be cut-throat, and their game plan full of menace.
But no matter what their plots to gain chess pieces or ball,
no matter what their motivation to possess it all,
no matter what the game or how many players are in it,
all the rules would ensure our president would win it!!!
Prompt words today are walk, meter, tournament and elemental. Here are the links:
https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/rdp-saturday-walk/
https://fivedotoh.com/2019/03/09/fowc-with-fandango-meter/
https://onedailyprompt.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/your-daily-word-prompt-tournament-march-9-2019/
https://wordofthedaychallenge.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/elemental/
My friend Marti sent me this excellent article that I have to send on to you:
I spent the first half of 2015 pregnant and then I had a “late-term abortion.”
My husband and I decided early that year to try to start a family. I succeeded almost immediately in getting pregnant. There was obviously a healthy mix of excitement and terror. While it happened a little quicker than we anticipated, we wanted our baby.
As the months went on I consumed books about pregnancy and the first year of parenthood. I took my vitamins, I ate well, and I barely even missed my former creature comforts like wine and soft cheeses. We did the genetic testing and everything looked great. We learned we were having a girl. We started our baby registry and had chosen her name. It was shaping up to be a typical first pregnancy, right down to the occasional panic attack about our changing reality.
On June 18, 2015, we were scheduled for our 21-week ultrasound. I remember the date because it was our anniversary and we thought it would be a fun way to kick off our weekend together. As the ultrasound wore on the tech became increasingly less chatty and more serious, until finally she left the room with a picture she printed from the ultrasound machine. She was gone for what felt like an excruciatingly long time. When she finally returned, she informed us the only information she was allowed to give was that a high-risk OBGYN would be contacting us soon and we needed to see her as soon as possible. Shortly after our ill-fated ultrasound, we received a call from the high-risk OBGYN and scheduled an appointment for the following week. (More)
Click on the URL below to read the rest of the story:
photo from Rolling Stone
lifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown 