Saturday, May 31, 2003

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“The President is not just ignoring poor people - he is targeting them.”

Bush administration is attacking the poor say Christians -13/5/03

"Christian campaigners in the USA are claiming that proposed regulations by the Bush administration regarding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) amounts to an “attack” the poor. ..."


http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/content/news_syndication/article_2003_05_13_poor.shtml
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"This is not the peace of God that we are seeing built in Iraq. It is the jittery, fearful truce of standoff,
of political tensions pulled so taut that what ensues may not be considered much of a victory in the long run.."



Mennonite Weekly
No Justice In War's Violence



"When celebrations broke out in Iraq on April 9, one was tempted to believe the war was nearing its end, or at least an important turning point. In a little more than three weeks, the military objectives the coalition had set for itself largely were achieved. But the effort to establish an administration of order and integrity in Iraq is only getting started. Moments of great uncertainty are still to come, and success is far from assured."

http://www.thirdway.com/wv/article.asp?ID=251
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Where are the Weapons of Mass Destruction?
Dual-Use Material and the Weapons Search in Iraq

Alistair Miller | 05.07.2003
Tikkun.org


"During 12 years of sanctions on Iraq, the US and Britain blocked billions of dollars in Iraqi purchase orders on the grounds that the sought-after goods could have "dual uses," one entirely innocent and the other military. Today, it appears that the most obvious evidence of dual-use material can be found in US and British arguments attempting to justify the invasion of Iraq."


http://www.tikkun.org/index.cfm/action/current/article/170.html
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Is There Anything Left That Matters?
by Sister Joan Chittister, OSB

Thursday, May 29, 2003 - the National Catholic Reporter

"This is what I don't understand: All of a sudden nothing seems to matter....."

"If the king acts precipitously and the people say nothing, something is wrong with the people.

It may be time for us to realize that in a country that prides itself on being democratic, we are our government. And the rest of the world is figuring that out very quickly...

From where I stand, that matters."


http://www.nationalcatholicreporter.org/fwis/

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ON BEING A DESERT

Being a Desert

There is an ancient teaching that is at the core of true spiritual development: in order to connect constantly to the Light of the Creator we must develop and become like the desert.

The desert is un-owned, open space within which anybody can do anything they want. This is the level to which we are supposed to develop. Being like the desert means that you do not care what people do to you, what people say to you, or what they do not do for you or say to you. It means being free in the deepest sense.

Our nature is usually the opposite of the desert. We are extremely and constantly concerned about what people do, say or even think about us. We are captive to almost everybody, for their actions, words and even thoughts can influence our feelings and life. In order to develop spiritually we need to constantly work on becoming like the desert, feeling open and free like the desert. It is not an easy process but one that not only greatly enables our spiritual development, but also brings to a level of equanimity and peace that cannot be reached any other way.

It is a process that takes constant focus and effort but one whose spiritual and practical effect is immense.

Rabbi Michael Berg


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Gore Vidal on the "United States of Amnesia," 9/11, the 2000 Election and the War in Iraq
http://www.democracynow.org/transcripts/gorevidal.shtml


"...we have a global empire and nobody knows where anything is, nobody knows any languages, so our statesmen go abroad and people laugh at them, because they are so dumb, or seem to be so dumb."

"....In the U.S., everybody listens to 19th Century Fox TV News. In which a bunch of loons just scream and scream and scream. And with each scream they tell another lie. How are we ever going to have an informed citizenry? Which means then how can we have an informed election?"


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".....if we do not participate in an educated democracy, we participate in its demise."


Kilroy's Still Here
by Sean Penn

(Published on Friday, May 30, 2003 as a full-page ad in the New York Times )


http://www.seanpenn.com/kilroy.pdf