No Peace Yet, Just #45, and on why NOT to "work together"

I haven't written in way too long and it is high time because it is 2017 and we still don't have Peace. Instead we have #45. I don't like to say his name, I am writing about the person currently in the White House some of the time since January 2017 who I doubt will bring peace because such people like to be war presidents so they can get a second term. I want to post something to have it available because #45 will probably try to take away net neutrality because it will threaten him too and THIS is a Facebook post which is making the rounds and deserves permanent homes to remind people of the threat which #45 poses:

This is where I stand.
To me, FB is a useful vehicle for passion and activism. I believe that our 45th President, his Cabinet and administration, and the majority of Republicans in Congress are a real and active threat to the 99% of Americans WHO ARE NOT MILLIONAIRES OR BILLIONAIRES. Some people are saying that we should give #45 a chance, that we should "work together" because he won the election and he is "everyone's president." This is my response:
•I will not forget how badly he and so many others treated former President Barack Obama for 8 years.
•I will not "work together" to privatize Medicare, cut Social Security and Medicaid.
•I will not "work together" to build a wall.
•I will not "work together" to persecute Muslims.
•I will not "work together" to shut out refugees from other countries.
•I will not "work together" to lower taxes on the 1% and increase taxes on the middle class and poor.
•I will not "work together" to help Trump use the Presidency to line his pockets and those of his family and cronies.
•I will not "work together" to weaken and demolish environmental protection.
•I will not "work together" to sell American lands, especially National Parks, to companies which then despoil those lands.
•I will not "work together" to enable the killing of whole species of animals just because they are predators, or inconvenient for a few, or because some people want to get their thrills killing them.
•I will not "work together" to remove any persons civil rights.
•I will not "work together" to alienate countries that have been our allies for as long as I have been alive.
•I will not "work together" to slash funding for education.
•I will not "work together" to take basic assistance from people who are at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder.
•I will not "work together" to get rid of common sense regulations on guns.
•I will not "work together" to eliminate the minimum wage.
•I will not "work together" to support so-called "Right To Work" laws, or undermine, weaken or destroy Unions in any way.
•I will not "work together" to suppress scientific research, be it on climate change, fracking, or any other issue where a majority of scientists agree that Trump and his supporters are wrong on the facts.
•I will not "work together" to criminalize abortion or restrict health care for women.
•I will not "work together" to increase the number of nations that have nuclear weapons.
•I will not "work together" to put even more "big money" into politics.
•I will not "work together" to violate the Geneva Convention.
•I will not "work together" to give the Ku Klux Klan, the Nazi Party and white supremacists a seat at the table, or to normalize their hatred.
•I will not "work together" to deny health care to people who need it.
•I will not "work together" to deny medical coverage to people on the basis of a "pre-existing condition."
•I will not "work together" to increase voter suppression.
•I will not "work together" to normalize tyranny.
I will not “work together” to eliminate or reduce ethical oversight at any level of government.
•I will not "work together" with anyone that thinks its OK to put a pipeline to transport oil on Sacred Ground for Native Americans.
•I will not "work together" with any proposed legislation that threatens marriage equality for all.
•I will not "work together" with anything or anyone that threatens the rights of LGBTQ individuals in any way.
This is my line, and I am drawing it because "winning", "being great again", "rich" or even "beautiful" means nothing when others are sacrificed and our most important Democratic Institutions are being devalued, disrespected, attacked and undercut in the process by the holder of the highest office in our land.
If you agree feel free to copy and re-post (this results in larger numbers of people seeing a post), and if you want, sign your name below ours. Also, if we have left anything out, feel free to add it to this list.
Signed by and with:

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Tweeting a good FORusa.org blog link

Think USA should attack Syria? Plz read: On United States Intervention in Syria! | Fellowship of Reconciliation: http://t.co/1g12Yjwoi7

— Kate Anne (@PeaceHugs) September 5, 2013

Open Comment to US Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, NY 5 CD

President Obama has given us an OUT, if we can get our congressional representatives to listen to the American people who believe in peace. The following was posted on US Representative Gregory W. Meeks's Facebook page, under some MLK 50th Anniversary photos. Please say something to YOUR congress member about #NoWarWithSyria.

Please say NO to the President's request for confirmation of a surgical strike. A humanitarian crisis should not be addressed by compounding it. Dr. King would be appalled. Go read HIS Nobel Peace prize speech or the speech he gave at Riverside Church about Vietnam. Do not, please, allow the President to add "deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars" as "Returning violence for violence multiplies the violence." We must not multiply the evil. Please listen to Martin Luther King Jr. and say no to President Obama.

PS I live in your district by Jamaica Ave in Richmond Hill. Please represent me and the views of the majority of the US people. Think of what MLK would do and vote NO on more violence and killing to say that killing is wrong. Yes we need "appropriate action" but it is diplomatic nonviolent action, NOT more killing, that makes sense. More atrocity compounds atrocity. PERIOD. Whether Syrians are killed by chemical weapons or bombs, they are equally dead. Peace please. Thank you!!!

*** Pleased be moved to ACT in "the Fierce Urgency of Now" to say to your own congress member, "Represent me: Say NO to more killing and violence. To follow atrocity with more atrocity makes no sense and sends no logical message."

Thank you.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Peace TODAY and Every DAY - RALLY wherever/whenever

Woke up feeling ill but still hope to attend a #NoWarWithSyria peace event at Time Square today. We need peace not bombs in Syria. Check out a FB invitation for NYC but it contains event information for other cities' events today as well.

And remember to contact the White House Comment Line 202-456-1111 (or via 202-456-1414 if it is busy) to speak up for PEACE and a BLUE LINE for Diplomacy and Peace instead of killing more Syrians because Syrians have been killed.

No more violence leading to more violence. As Michael Franti said in his Bomb the World peace song:

We can chase down all our enemies
Bring them to their knees
We can bomb the world to pieces
But we can't bomb it into peace

Please let the President know that it takes a bigger man and country to work hard FOR PEACE.

Blessings to my NY Fellowship of Reconciliation and other peace friends and family!

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

War is a Racket - Veterans Day, EVERY Day

War is a racket, possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. ~ Major General Smedley Butler 1935

John Fugelsang posted the above today, the expanded "War is a racket" quotation -- for Veterans Day and true EVERY DAY. Remember it: War is a racket.

I posted this over at QuickTakes.org, too: Worth reminding people again and again.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

The Human Costs of War: A tribute to the Winter Soldier

Produced by Chapter 39 Veterans for Peace [Cleveland & NE Ohio], this is powerful, graphic and eye-opening. Think of it before voting for anyone talking about a war on Iran. It closes with some potent thoughts:

"If there is a sin superior to every other, it is that of willful and offensive war."
~ Thomas Paine, American Patriot

"War is an instrument entirely inefficient toward redressing wrong: and multiplies, instead of indemnifying losses."
~ Thomas Jefferson

"He who is the author of a war lets loose the whole contagion of Hell, and opens a vein that bleeds a nation to death."
~ Thomas Paine

May the innocent find peace...
May the dead find grace...
May the wounded find healing & comfort....
May the homeless find shelter...
May justice find the guilty...
May America find salvation and forgiveness

Gifts of Awe: GiftsOfAwe

Ken Cory remembers our past spiritual history and has established a new Facebook group: GiftsofAwe:

Welcome to GiftsOfAwe

This group is made up of folks from all walks of life who have come together through their interest in creation spirituality. Many have read the works of Matthew Fox, who first coined the term, but certainly it is not a requirement to join the group. This is an inclusive group of people who share their hopes and dreams, their joys and sorrows, artistic endeavors and spiritual gnawings. In the introduction to Fox's book, ORIGINAL BLESSING, he states, "community is people building something together." It is a fitting description of the spirit of this list.

Awesome -- Thanks, Ken. Blessings, friends. Let us gain strength and sustenance through each other. Let us learn, grow, and continue to do the work *God* has given us to do. Amen -- BLAGT in abundance, in peace, Kate Anne <==looking forward to some wondrous adventure and discussion

With God's help,  we can find more of our old friends and gain new ones.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Post election thoughts

While the GOP takes over the House, the Dems still maintain the Senate and the Presidency. Instead of concentrating on healing wounds and creating jobs here, President Obama is off the India, Korea, "the East", and I am upset. Is this how he repays the unions who worked for Democratic candidates? Let's give away more jobs to India and the like!!?!!

I wish President Obama would concentrate more on OUR country first. I want what other countries have: affordable education and healthcare. I want peace and prosperity for Americans. Forget the warfare (albeit it is the one industry we seem to still have) and selling armaments to countries so they can threaten others. He should be listening to Dennis Kucinich.



And let the Bush ten-year tax cuts expire. If everyone can get a cut on the first $250K, fine, but otherwise, I/we can and should live without a cut which only adds to the deficit. Our vision should be jobs and peace and affordable education. Here. Now. For everyone. Not just a good life for the top 1% or 2% but for ALL of us. (And that means our seniors, too: preserve Social Security by raising the cap -- forget about raising the retirement age or gambling SS$ on Wall Street. It is insurance, not an investment program.)

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Post One Nation Working Together

Thanks to the Transit Workers Union local Woodside bus, I was in Washington DC Saturday to stand up for peace and justice, jobs and education: the change we voted for, part of the One Nation Working Together Rally 10-2-10. Mine are simple photos -- we were back pretty far. Loved being there none-the-less but photos were "from a distance" but prove I was there. I went looking through others Flickr photos, playing their slide shows, picking favorites. You can peruse at your leisure and pretend you were with Molly Charboneau, her friend Patty and me.



My Set

Tony Bowles' set

William Angus's set

CodePinkHQ's set

Cheryl Biren's set

SEIU-ULTCW's DC set and
SEIU-ULTCW's LA set

Patrick Crowley's set

Mar Is Sea Y's set

NYSUT's set

RAPurple's set

UPDATE: Some on Democratic Underground

Looks like the corporate media is ignoring it -- not enough tea was served. Pity. Richard Trumka and Harry Belafonte were terrific speakers. Wish I could have heard more of the speeches but hopefully will catch more at the FreeSpeechTV.org archives, thanks to Laura Flanders and Thom Hartmann and their efforts at documenting the rally.

Post rally and a grueling DC metro mess, I am relaxing/recovering -- but have to do a couple of loads at my local laundromat, if the weather holds out.

Peace hugs,

Kate Anne

To-Do List and Blue Roots Radio and Blog

It is one of those August weekends when I am at home and attempting to focus on my to-do list. One item was finally to write out my dad's recipe at QuickTakes.org: Francis's Crowd Pleasing German Potato Salad that my son has requested again and again -- more recipes to come. There are

photos to download and upload;
music to add to my iPod;
papers galore to sort, file and/or respond, or recycle and
housework to be done.

In the meantime I am listening to some music and Sunday spiritual talks AND intermittently checking out the blog at BlueRootsRadio.com -- great music there, too, by clicking that little blue radio on the right hand corner. (Feel welcome to join us for blogging, music, and friendship.) I'm connecting to friends and to music and to order and to PEACE. Lots to do for peace, personal and political. It is all connected. Peace to us all!

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Medea Benjamin speaks at the United National Peace Conference 7/23/2010

True Patriotism: Bring the troops home and spend the money on our libraries, education, jobs -- Code Pink's Medea Benjamin at the United National Peace Conference 7/23/2010 [under five minutes]:



Speak up -- "Funding the war is making us poor". Tell our Congress critters: "You are unAmerican if you are taking our tax dollars to bomb people overseas instead of using it to fund our local programs."

Check out Mediasanctuary's page on YouTube for lots of good treats from the Conference.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

For a Nuclear-Free, Peaceful, Just and Sustainable World

Sally with Elaine, Sarah, and Mark Klein
The International Conference for a Nuclear-Free, Peaceful, Just, and Sustainable World has begun at the Riverside Church, New York City. Suddenly I was re-energized as I stood in line with Mark, Elaine, and Sarah Klein who got us to sing Down by the Riverside -- with an extra chorus sang for the benefit of a Japanese video. Doretta and Lucille marked the beginning of the Green Line and we got in and I found myself seated by Sr. Eileen Storey's friend Anne Montgomery and Catholic Worker Kathy Boylan as the First Plenary began.

Vinie Burrows at the Conference

Vinie Burrows gave a dramatic rendition of Martin Luther King Jr.'s words, Terumi Tanaka gave a Hibakusha Testimony, and my old FOR friend Ibrahim Ramey, now of Washington DC, spoke On Martin Luther King's Dream and Ours. I tweeted comments (as PeaceHugs) through the evening, but Ibrahim's closing remarks were apt but a little long for a tweet, almost a poem:

We have dreams to dream
We have work to do
We have a world to transform
Let's get busy....

Zia Mian impressed me in his talk. He said it isn't just nukes, it is the war mentality -- the use of force, violence, weapons -- and who decides. How we relate to nature and the planet. Profitability: who makes it and who takes it. Another quotation, I tweeted: Keeping some nuclear weapons in case someone cheats is not our vision of abolishing nukes.

I also tweeted on John Burroughs remarks: Hearing John Burroughs I see Obama's nuclear policy is abominable - obamanable? Peace means NO nukes.

Catherine Lecoq sang and Natalia Mironova spoke. We ended with Tomas Magnusson, Vision of a Nuclear Free World which made me tweet: Language is devalued. Despite the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty the US proliferates.

Ami and Ibrahim Ramey

Despite the serious topics, it was good to be with people of peace -- old friends and new. And yes, as Ibrahim said, Let's get busy. (For those who care to stream or download them, the plenary sessions are available both live and later via the Riverside Church website.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Peace Action this weekend -- and Everyday

There's a peace and nuclear disarmament conference at Riverside Church this weekend culminating in an interfaith convocation on Sunday at the United Nations church center -- 777 UN Plaza at 44th St. and First Ave, Noon to 1 PM, then a Rally and March at Time Square area (7th Ave, South of 41st), and a Peace and Music Festival at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (47th St. between 1st and 2nd Ave.) 4-6 pm. BECAUSE

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that." - Martin Luther King, Jr.

"When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it?" -- Eleanor Roosevelt

We must remind President Obama (and Congress) of that, and remind him of the vision of Martin Luther King, Jr. who called for peace and for ending war so as to spend money on HELPING people. Let us remind President Obama/Congress that ...

"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." -- MLK, Jr.

Out into the streets Sunday -- and everyday -- for peace and justice and a better world.

(And yes, I wear peace buttons and actions buttons as I walk in mid-town Manhattan amidst the tourists -- not just on rally days.)

We must be the change we wish to see in the world, Gandhi said. Be peace. Be as positive as we can be to bring some much needed light to this world. Do what we can to change the world this weekend and every day.

I am trying. Please join me.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Disarm Now! For Peace and Human Needs

I've been quietly seeking peace, de-stressing and meditating. There is much more to be done on that front but I am also far enough along to reach out in a gentle way to get back into blogging peace. (I have been tweeting it as PeaceHugs, fyi -- and offering QuickTAKES on peace and various subjects.) I am looking forward now to the conference at the end of the month at Riverside Church which seeks to get the US and other nations to Disarm Now! For Peace and Human Needs - April 30-May 1st. There will also be a special May 2nd March - Rally - Peace Fair to promote awareness. Now is the time to talk up both of these events and what they represent: peace, justice and a nuclear free world. Please spread the news and the links. Thanks, and...

Peace hugs,

Kate Anne

Celebration of the World March for Peace and Nonviolence

The World March for Peace and Nonviolence was here in NYC last week and the march was celebrated at an event Dec. 2nd at All Souls in Manhattan, sponsored by their Peace Task Force and co-sponsored by other groups including Fellowship of Reconciliation, Peace Action for New York State, Metro New York Religious Campaign Against Torture, Code Pink, and Brooklyn For Peace. Joe Friendly filmed the event and made this composite video which portrays the good flavor of the evening's 2+ hour program in only 11:17 minutes. Thanks to All Souls Unitarian Church for hosting and Joe Friendly for filming -- and of course the World March for Peace and Nonviolence for marching!

The downer for the evening was the Afghanistan surge announcement -- and the fact that this long announced event conflicted with the United for Peace and Justice impromptu rally at Time Square to oppose the surge. Both events were for peace and sanity and NYFOR's listserv let their members and friends choose. Ah for the ability to bi-locate! And whether or not you were at either event, please stay in touch with peace happenings via the FORpeace.net blog, the United for Peace and Justice website, and reading CommonDreams.org regularly.

Yes, I took some photos -- downloading them is on my "to do" list.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Obama: Courage to Rethink Afghanistan?

Rumor of Afghanistan troop increase continues, but I join with Ray McGovern (as well as producer Robert Greenwald) in urging the President to Rethink Afghanistan [see the film segments on the website] and know that this is HIS Kennedy moment (read the McGovern article).

Obama may also wish to ponder the words of W.E.B. Dubois:

"Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow...."

Please call the White House Comment Line at 202-256-1111 to convey YOUR thoughts. Please, President Obama, Rethink Afghanistan -- troops out, diplomacy now, aid to assist reconstruction, money for helping people there AND at home.

Thank you.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Forgiveness and The Better World Project

With so much to do to make the world a better place and a New York Fellowship of Reconciliation meeting tonight where we plan to discuss the topic of Forgiveness, I googled and was led to find the perfect auxiliary material for tonight: The Better World Project's forgiveness quotations. What a positive healing site and example of forgiveness and compassion. The website is dedicated to the memory of a beautiful young activist Emily Rachel Silverstein (1989-2009) who was murdered on April 9, 2009. She was studying Arabic and planning to work on peace issues. Read her bio -- and gain sustenance from her life and the people who are making something positive out of her leaving at such a young age:

In her all too brief life, Emily did so many amazing things to try to make her wish for a more peaceful, just and sustainable world come true. Please don't let our Emily be forgotten. Help spread a message of hope for a better world.

They have quotations on Peace there, too, and lots of other good subjects. Spread the word. Share the vision. This is one site that I will be following.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Beyond War, A New Economy is Possible

Yes, there were thousands (not hundreds as AP and Reuters reported) at the United for Peace and Justice April 4th National March on Wall Street, with its commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Beyond Vietnam speech by presenting his vision of a world without poverty, war and racism through the message, "Beyond War, A New Economy is Possible". Long sentence and a long busy week but I have finally uploaded my photos of the march to Flickr and have documented some other good pictures on Flickr from the day because the corporate media did not provide much documentation.

Of particular note is Diane Green Lent's Beyond War set. And Wesley Chen had some great photos in his National March on Wall Street set. Tom Davis from Wilmington DE had some beauties in his set, also entitled, National March on Wall Street. [Be sure to check out his other stuff: wow!] Okay, it was Toronto but Jason Ainsworth documented a Toronto April 4th peace march/anti-war protest. And covering the Friday Wall Street event was a graphic arts student Hushable, who included some National March on Wall Street April 3rd pix along with some pillow fight 2009 pix in her NYC set, but directly at this tagged link.



Howard, Margaret, and Pierre

As for me, on the actual day I was happy snapping photos and happier still to meet up with fellow NYFOR member and playwright Howard Pflanzer. He introduced me to Margaret and Pierre from Baltimore and I wish I had their picture of both of us together but we have a photo of them with Howard. On the march Howard also clued me in on the Stella D'Oro cookie factory strike and boycott, so appropriate to the message of the day and there were members of their union marching. [See strike website for further info.]





NY Fellowship of Reconciliation's Kate Anne

Reaching Battery Park, we encountered Button Buddha (and Buddhist Peace Fellowship member) Ruth Klein who was having trouble displaying her wonderful buttons with the 30 mile per hour gusts of wind. My friend needed me so that is where I ended my march and it was a good place to see other marchers enter the park: thousands, not hundreds. Ah, the corporate media. But let's speak up for truth and a peace economy which values and benefits the working people of the U.S.A. (and the world) more than corporations.




Ruth Klein and button lover
We need money less for Wall Street and more for healthcare, education, and non-armament industry U.S. jobs. If there is no new war then we can shut down some of those armament plants -- and couldn't we put the employees to work doing something else that is life-giving and/or life preserving? We need a good trade policy that keeps good jobs here. Let's demand it. We did on April 4th and we must continue this righteous demand for Martin Luther King's dream for a better America and a better world, without war, poverty and racism.

Amen! And peace hugs,
Kate Anne

PS Just found another good Flickr set from April 4th, that of Michael Borkson of Boston.

A little angelic comfort

Things have been a bit stressful for me, indeed many of us, lately with some financial and health worries and I have been blessed with some healing synchronicity. I discovered author Joan Wester Anderson on Facebook, thanks to her page there being connected with that of Fr. John Dear, former executive director of national Fellowship of Reconciliation. Joan's angel and miracle stories have been a resource for me and my family through the years. It is good to reconnect and see she has some new stuff out. She's even on Twitter and I will have to find and connect with her there. Twitter offers a lot and I'm enjoying the informational and friendship connections.

Find more on Joan here, I've pasted her short YouTube meditation at Quick Takes, and find me on Twitter as PeaceHugs. Let's be comforted knowing that angels and miracles do touch us, perhaps not in big ways very often, but still in all sorts of beautiful and healing ways. In Rogers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song there is an eye-opening song, "A Hundred Million Miracles". Let's go forth today and everyday a little more aware of them. It does our souls well.

Political and peace action work can drain us if we don't maintain our spiritual connection. In my life I have learned that the more angels and miracles I acknowledge and affirm with thanks, the more they multiply. Read Joan Wester Anderson's books for inspiration. I recommend starting with Where Angels Walk, a family favorite.

Peace hugs,
Kate Anne

Peace, Compassion, and Change

While I've been posting a few little Quick TAKES, I am behind on my to-do list and on this Martin Luther King Day holiday I have an interfaith Peace Walk to go to shortly so not much more is going to be done anytime soon. 

Pictures from several peace events, even Christmas pictures, need to  be posted on Flickr. The good news is that just as Christmas happened, peace is happening, even if it isn't happening as quickly as I would want. "It is what it is." The bed will be changed. The mail will be opened. The fake tree will be de-ornamented and taken down. But people first. People need peace. We must be the peace we seek. Take a moment, please, to meditate and/or volunteer service, on MLK Day and beyond. There is a great study guide at Olive Branch Interfaith Peace Partnership which is hosting a Washington, DC MLK Day event tonight. I plan to be there in spirit. And I plan to do more. Study. Learn. Act. (And find time to do enough housework to have personal peace.) Join me. Thanks!!

Peace hugs,

Kate Anne