Finding Hope

Politics…

Whether we like it or not, politicians are the lawmakers of our country.

For me, the more I watch and observe politicians the more this becomes an increasingly disturbing thought.

But

Hope continues to reign supreme.

Where do I find this hope?

My faith, of course…

But

Also through the amazing phenomena called social networking.

A small number of my real life friends poo-poo social networking because of this or that, but for me, every time one of my social networking “friends” posts a link or a humorous status update or an amazing blog about the current political atmosphere, I am encouraged by their strong voice and hope prevails.

Today’s posts on Political Voices of Women serve as a fine example — no, the posts serve as one of THE BEST examples.

Intelligent women writing with integrity about important issues and making solid points in positive, constructive, and often times humorous ways — good job, ladies! You are the voices that bring hope. You are the voices that make a difference. You are the voices that bring about change.

How nice to go to a website focused on political issues and not feel like I need to take a shower after reading only a small handful of posts and/or commentary.

To the remarkable, intelligent women of integrity posting on Political Voices of Women, you are the Alice Paul’s and the Lucy Burns’s of today.

Keep talking. Keep writing. Keep posting.

My peaceful protest

A few years ago I joined a small group of women in a small town in Montana stand in protest of the war in Iraq every 1^st Monday of the month. Our peaceful protest includes signs and little white Christmas tree lights - one light for each American military death in Iraq. (I don’t think this little town has enough lights to represent ALL of the deaths from this war in Iraq even if each of the 6,000 + residents donated their lights.)

Most of the women in this group are 50 years of age and above. I am in my 40’s and I was one of the younger women! I remember at one of the protests one of the really younger women (in her 20’s!) asked all of us if we were truly making a difference. I understood what she was asking…here we were in this little, tiny town in a state that has more sheep and cattle than it does people, and we were a little, tiny group of women standing on the sidewalk in front of the post office holding signs protesting a war that had more American military personnel fighting in it than we had people in not only our state, but in the two or three states next to us combined. Were we making a difference?

My dear friend Margot Kidder, one of the fearless leaders of our group and the original Lois Lane of the Superman movies, walked by with her sign just as this young woman asked that question. Margie (pronounced Margee) turned so quickly and responded emphatically, “Yes, yes, yes, we are making a difference and we will continue to protest because that’s what we have to do. It’s our right and it’s our voice that is going to make a difference. This country has changed before because of peaceful protesting and it will change again.”

Our peaceful protesting along with many other similar protests happening throughout our VERY politically conservative state helped to defeat long standing, senior Republican Senator Conrad Burns and elect Jon Tester (D). Senator Burns had been deeply entrenched in the Bush administration politics. Over the past couple of years, Senator Tester has been instrumental in the passing of the recent GI Bill, has worked tirelessly for American military veterans, and continues to speak out against the “war on terrorism” in Iraq.

Did our little group protest make a difference? Yes and it continues to do so.

More people are registered to vote in Montana now than at any other time in history. More people came out for the primaries than at any other time in history. And it’s not because of the political ads on TV or in print - those have been around during every election. It’s because of the small groups of people peacefully protesting, peacefully marching in the little, tiny 4^th of July parades that take place each year, peacefully holding screenings of films like Divided We Fall: Americans in the Aftermath, and American Made, peacefully talking with their neighbors they see outside or in the coffee shops or at the grocery store, peacefully sitting at a table passing out bumper stickers and yard signs at their local college, peacefully writing emails, blogs, letters to the editor, etc.

How funny…just as I was typing that last paragraph a film director friend of mine in Los Angeles sent me an email letting me know that the presidential race in Montana is tight - McCain is polling at 49% and Obama at 45%. He was asking in his email what I was going to do about it! (Right on, Lance!) For those that know me, that’s a funny question! I’m not much of a wallflower when it comes to something I believe in. (Lance, who does know me, was asking if as a Hillary supporter I was going to actively support Barack in MT. Lance very actively campaigns for Barack in California.) Yes, Lance…I am actively campaigning for Barack!

It is emails like my director friend Lance Mungia’s today that inspire me to keep standing strong, to keep using my voice and to keep peacefully protesting and it’s stories like the one I’m about to share that continue to reinforce the words Margie stated a few years ago to that young 20-something-year-old girl.

In 1983, I traveled as a cast member in Up with People. A few days ago another alumni from Up with People sent me two links to a story I found incredibly inspiring. The friend who sent me the links traveled in Up with People in the 1970’s. For those of you not familiar with Up with People, the organization started in 1965 during a turbulent time in the United States and became fully recognized as a nonprofit organization in 1968. It started because a small group of people believed peacefully “protesting” violence in the world by means of music and song could make a difference. And they believed that the greatest impact would be made if the music and song came through young people brought together from all over the world to travel as a cast and get this…stay in people’s home as they traveled all over the world with their musical show!

You may be wondering what Up with People, Margie Kidder, Divided We Fall: Americans in the Aftermath, peaceful protesting, and elections all have in common. The incredible story contained in these links brings it all together. With the upcoming presidential debate at the University of Mississippi, please take the time to learn about its history and why THIS debate at THIS place is so significant.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/sep/14/new-era-takes-root-at-ole-miss/

http://www.djournal.com/pages/archive.asp?ID=187521

The presidential debate at the University of Mississippi is going to be truly historical. So much history has been made so far in this election…

But

In regard to peaceful protest and how it works to change the world, I believe the story contained in the two links speaks volumes.

I encourage each of you to read the stories and then as you watch the presidential debate on TV, give thanks to those that protested before us. And then keep running with the baton that has been passed to you. As my friend Lance wrote, his 4-year-old daughter needs me. She needs you. She needs each one of us to keep peacefully protesting because as Margie so powerfully stated, protests have changed this country in the past and they will change it again.

While I no longer live in the earlier mentioned small town in Montana, I continue my peaceful protest.

My peaceful protest is in each call I make on behalf of the Obama campaign, each email, blog, and letter to the editor I write, each sign I post and carry, each time I talk with a friend about Divided We Fall: Americans in the Aftermath, each 4^th of July parade I march in, each time I pray for peace, each time I encourage people like Valarie Kaur to keep staying strong in her life, each time I see something special in film directors like Sharat Raju and Lance Mungia and I take action to get to know them as people and friends, and each time I write a blog people I don’t even know may read.

I shall continue to protest and I shall vote because a shockingly small group of incredible women won that victory for me 80 years ago.

And

I know I have victories to win for others.

Harold Koh, Dean of Yale Law School, recently told this year’s incoming students:

“When I was graduating from college, heading off to England on a scholarship, a family friend came to me at graduation and congratulated me on my accomplishments. My older sister, who was standing next to me, waited politely until the friend left, and then she asked, “What accomplishments? You have no accomplishments. All you have done is go to school!” She said, “There are many people who have no schooling but have made genuine accomplishments; and there are many people with world-class schooling but no accomplishments. And the difference between them is that those who have really accomplished something know what they stand for.”

Smart sister.

Standing for human rights, a change in America’s foreign policy, the end to genocide, peace in the world, and much, much more,

~ Penny

Net neutrality: Why you should give a damn

Guest author and friend, Michael Janover, contributes an interesting and thought provoking blog today on Net Neutrality. You may also find Mike’s article published in the Rocky Mountain News.

Net neutrality: Why you should give a damnBy Michael Janover

OK, I’m old. I was around when Channel 2 went on the air in Denver in the early 50’s and brought us Blinky the Clown. It was exciting. Television. In Colorado!

In the mid-60s, cable TV and the dish staked their claims, and folks in the mountains could finally see Star Trek and Mary Tyler Moore. A whole new world was opening, no longer limited by four or five basic channels. Cable and satellite promised real choice. Hundreds of channels! Wow! You could see anything!

So what happened to all the choices?

Why is it that TV and the movies are always the same old, same old?

For one thing, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) made it possible to merge control of the television and film industries into fewer and fewer networks. What started out as infinite possibilities gradually became three super networks. These entities gobbled up the studio system and the cable channels. Creative decisions were gradually assumed by corporate boards that prefer safe, tested and bland to innovative, daring and dramatic. It’s one of the reasons hard news became infotainment, and rich, life-changing drama is now “reality” programming.

Too much creative control is in the hands of too few people who aren’t creative.

The beginning of the 80s was the start of the Computer Age. I went out and bought a Kaypro, a clunky box, with black screen and glowing green text. It was great. Totally cutting edge.

Computers became more wonderful with color graphics and the mouse thingy, but the most amazing and subversive change was INTERNET. In a few short years, it turned the planet into one big neighborhood; and with broadband access, it also offered interactivity.

We are no longer simple couch potatoes in front of the living room TV. Today, we’re interactive potatoes and use computers to communicate, shop, or read and comment about everything from elections to Dancing With the Stars. We converse with people around the country and world as if they lived across the street. How quaint and microscopic those “hundreds of channels” seem now.

Blogs and YouTube are the new political language. They were vital in the Writer’s Guild’s recent successful struggle with management - the very people who own the mainstream media. Truth is, the Internet does more to democratize the world than any of the wars currently being waged. It truly offers an infinity of choices that TV can’t deliver, and freedom of interactivity that telephones only dream of.

Something this massive and good just begs for someone to control it, don’t you think?

Well, that group has surfaced. It’s not the Chinese government, not even your government. No, it’s the telecommunications companies. The same folks who offer you three-tiered packages of programming instead of just charging you for the shows you want to see; the same people who offer expensive long distance packages when you can do better for next to nothing over the Internet; and the same people who want immunity from prosecution for accidentally illegally wiretapping millions of our phone conversations.

Since the telecoms deliver the Internet to you, they think the government should grant them the power to control how you use it. They want to make more money and put limits on what you see and how you see it. In their world, websites should be charged for the privilege of being seen by their customers. And sites should pay extra for making it possible for consumers to download their material faster (– by removing the telecom’s artificial restraints). Failure to pay these tolls results in your site not being seen, or in ultra-lengthy download times that drive impatient users elsewhere.

Imagine going online to CNN or to download music or watch an old TV show, but the feed is so slow that it no longer works properly. The grass on your lawn is growing faster. Why? Because someone didn’t pay tacked-on fees to the local cable or phone company, and the feed was restricted.

The Telecoms are spending millions to convince Congressional candidates that giving them control makes for a less expensive, better Internet. As you read this, they’re donating money like there’s no tomorrow, because after this election, the new Congress will be forced to decide if Telecoms should be given this power.

“Net Neutrality” basically means “Leave the Internet alone,” and it’s the battle cry for those who think handing over management and control of information to a few mega-corporations is the worst possible idea.

Net Neutrality isn’t another “nutty left wing crusade.” Internet giants like Google and Microsoft, consumer advocates such as Consumer Reports, small businesses who might be relegated to the slow lane, and iPod users who might find it harder to download tunes — all want to maintain Net Neutrality.

“Maintain” is the magic word. Net Neutrality doesn’t ask for new regulations; it only wants to be sure that the freedom we already have is preserved. If you believe in a true open market and don’t want to give your freedom of choice to some corporate Big Brother, if you don’t want your Internet experience censored or restricted, if you enjoy watching YouTube or visiting Facebook without limitations - you probably support Net Neutrality without even realizing it.

It’s time for you to speak up and ask a few questions. Now is when you have the clout. Does your Senate candidate support maintaining freedom of the Internet - or increasing profits for the Telecoms? If you don’t know, find out.

For more detailed information on the fight to save the Internet, please check out www.freepress.net/files/nn_fact_v_fiction_final.pdf, a fact sheet put together by Free Press, the Consumers Union, and Consumer Federation of America.

Michael Janover grew up in Denver and went to school and graduated from CU in Boulder in 1967. He’s been a WGA writer since 1978, worked for HAWAII 5-O, Wide World of Disney and wrote THE PHILADELPHIA EXPERIMENT while in Hollywood. He also helped start the Colorado Film School in Aurora.

Bloggers Unite for Human Rights: 10 Female Human Rights Heroes

In the midst of some of the world’s most darkest of times, a few seek to bring light.

Women have LONG played a significant role in human rights activism, yet historically receive much less attention than their male counter parts.

So, today…

As bloggers all over the world unite for human rights…

I direct your eyes

And your attention

And your heart

to 10 women you may or may not have heard of

And to the causes for which each woman either fought with her life

Or fights with her life now.

1. Harriet Tubman

Abolitionist :: Humanitarian :: Union Spy

Having escaped from slavery herself, Harriet Tubman made 13 dangerous missions to free 70 slaves through the “Underground Railroad” - safe houses set up by antislavery activists; aided John Brown in recruiting men for his raid on Harper’s Ferry; was the first woman to lead an armed exhibition in the war; guided the raid on the Combahee River liberating more than 700 slaves; and in the post-war era she fought for women’s suffrage. Harriet Tubman was a woman of great courage, faith, and determination to help change the world for the betterment of all man and woman kind and she was a great humanitarian hero. To learn more about HarrietTubman, visit www.harriettubmanbiography.com.

2. Margaret Utinsky

War Hero :: Nurse :: Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient

Married to a civil engineer working for the U.S. Government in the Philippines, Margaret Utinsky enjoyed her life in Manila. It was the 1930’s and her husband had a good job. However, as the world began to change in the 1940’s, so did life in the Philippines. When it became clear that the Japanese were going to attack the islands of the Pacific, the U.S. Government ordered all American wives back to the States. Only Margaret refused to leave her husband. When her husband was relocated to work on Bataan, Margaret stayed behind. In December of 1941, as the Japanese invaded the Philippines and occupied Manila, Margaret hid in her apartment for more than 10 weeks. Eventually obtaining false identity documents, Margaret began to work for the Red Cross and began to search for her husband. Seeing the conditions of the captured soldiers who survived the Bataan Death March and learning of the death of her husband, Margaret set about to save as many of the POWs as she could. Recruiting and organizing a team of helpers, Margaret and her network began smuggling food, medicine, shoes, and money for the captured men being held by the Japanese in Camp O’Donnell and Cabanatuan . Through Margaret’s and her team’s work, hundreds of lives were saved. This life-saving work was not without danger. A number of Margaret’s team members were captured and killed. Margaret, too, was captured, beaten and tortured, but she would not reveal any of those within her network and she was eventually released. Escaping to the mountains near Bataan, Margaret continued her work as a nurse with the Filipino forces moving from camp to camp to help everyone in need. Upon the American liberation of the Philippines, Margaret returned to the United States where she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and would write a book, Miss U, detailing her life story. To learn more about Margaret Utinsky, visit World War II Remembered.

3. Irena Sendler

Champion of Children :: Rescuer :: Order of the Smile Recipient

Appalled by Hitler’s holocaust, Irena Sendler set out to save as many Jews as she could in her native Warsaw, Poland. As a social worker, Irena first began documenting Jewish families as having highly contagious diseases so the Nazis would not visit the families. However, when the Warsaw Ghetto was built and all Jews were walled off from the rest of society and systematically killed, Irena came up with a new plan. Organizing a team of 20 rescuers, Irena worked out ways to not only enter the Ghetto herself, but for her team as well. During her many working visits inside the Ghetto, Irena convinced as many Jewish families with babies and young children as she could to give up their young ones to Irena and her team. All counted, Irena and her fellow rescuers smuggled 2,500 Jewish children out of the Warsaw Ghetto and out of certain death at the hands of the Nazis. Finding homes with non-Jewish families, convents, and orphanages, Irena also documented each child as being Catholic. Careful to never reveal their true identities and names to anyone, Irena vowed to herself that she would one day work to reunite the children with their families. To keep the records of each child’s true name safe, Irena wrote the names on slips of paper, placed the papers in jars, and buried the jars in one of her team member’s yard. Irena was eventually caught and beaten by the Gestapo. Even with both feet and legs broken, injuries that would leave her crippled for life, and sentenced to die, Irena never revealed any information. Successfully escaping from prison, Irena was hunted by the Gestapo until the end of the war. True to her word, Irena dug up the jars and set about finding children and families. Sadly, many of the families were killed by the Nazis, but those that survived were found by Irena and reunited with either their children or their relatives children. Irena Sendler died this week at the age of 98. She is a hero of not just 2,500 Jewish children, but of all the generations of their children. To learn more about Irena Sendler, visit Life in a Jar.

4. Alice Paul 5. Lucy Burns

Suffragists :: Leaders :: Committed to Equality

Knowing how government affects our daily lives, real life suffragists Alice Paul and Lucy Burns fought with all of their might to win women the right to vote in the United States of America. Taking on not only Washington D. C. politicians and President Woodrow Wilson, but the National American Woman Suffrage Association founded in 1890 by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns successfully led the campaign that brought the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1920 giving women the right to vote. However, in doing so Alice and Lucy discovered just how determined many men — and women — were to prevent this from happening. At times fighting with their very lives, these courageous women and their team of fellow suffragists soldiered on. Lobbying, picketing, organizing demonstrations and parades, the suffragists including Alice and Lucy were eventually convicted and incarcerated for obstructing traffic. As an act of protest of their conditions and treatment while incarcerated, Alice Paul began a hunger strike and a number of her fellow inmate suffragists followed suit. Having used the press for the demonstrations and parades, Alice Paul was a known figure. When news of her hunger strike and an order for her to be force fed leaked to the press, pressure on President Wilson and Congress mounted. Committed to see women have an equal vote in how America’s government runs, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns fought with their lives to make this world a better place for all women who would come after them — a place where your daughter(s) have an equal voice to your son(s). To learn more about Alice Paul and her legacy,visit the Alice Paul Institute. To learn more about Lucy Burns, visit the National Women’s History Museum.

6. Zainab Salbi

Survivor :: Humanitarian :: Builder of Lives

Having survived bombs in Iraq and living under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, Zainab Salbi escaped from Iraq knowing something better must be ahead of her. Discovering other women whose lives had been torn apart by war, Zainab began reaching out to these women in all ways she could. Seeing a great need for women who survive war, Zainab founded Women for Women International in 1993. Along with co-founder Amjad Atallah, Zainab worked to build the organization into a place where women would help women become stronger. Since its opening, more than 93,000 women have been served through Women for Women International’s various programs. To learn more about Zainab Salbi and her work, visit Women for Women International.

7. Esther Chavez Cano

Care Giver :: Advocate :: Champion for Women’s Rights

1993 brought a wave of violence against women and young girls to Juarez, Mexico — a town bordering El Paso, Texas. With more than 400 + women and young girls having been brutally raped, murdered and some disappearing, surely one would think that law enforcement would be working all that much harder to stop the violence and bring the killers to justice — if justice on earth is possible for the horrendous nature of these crimes. But, to this day, the law has turned a relatively blind eye to stopping the violence. Seeking a way to help the victims and gain stronger rights for women, Esther Chavez Cano started the Casa Amiga Rape Crisis Center in Juarez. Amazingly, in this community of 1.5 million, Casa Amiga is the ONLY facility of its kind created to female victims of rape and violent crimes. Last year alone, Casa Amiga provided help for 1, 172 new cases and served 5,803 clients. With a small, mainly volunteer staff, Casa Amiga is a light in a very dark place for women. To learn more about the work of Esther Chavez Cano, visit the Casa Amiga Rape Crisis Center.

8. Mutabar Tadzhibaeva

Activist :: Prisoner of Conscience :: Noble Peace Prize Nominee

Founder of the national Uzbekistan movement, Civil Society, Mutabar Tadzhibaeva is currently in prison in her native Uzbekistan serving an eight year sentence for 13 counts of economic and political counts against the Uzbekistan government. Detained in October of 2005 on her way to an international conference on human rights defenders,Mutabar’s trial began on January 30, 2006. Being forced to sit in a cage throughout her trial, Mutabar was also denied access to private meetings with her attorney, files associated with her case, and sufficient time to review material pertaining to her case. In 2005, when the Uzbekistan government forces fired into crowds of unarmed protesters, killing hundreds, Mutabar Tadzhibaeva’s human rights work increased and she became more vocal. After giving a radio interview in which she condemned the government for their harrassment of human rights activists, Mutabar’s own well being began to be threatened. To learn how you can speak up for Mutabar and demand her release, visit Amnesty International.

8. Angelica Gonzalez 9. Jennifer Echeverria

Lawyers :: Seekers of Justice :: Human Rights Advocates

As part of a team of lawyers at the Center for Legal Action of Human Rights in Guatemala, Angelica Gonzalez and Jennifer Echeverria provide legal support for families seeking justice for their relatives killed during Guatemala’s internal armed conflict. With many massacres and mass killings — one proven to be carried out by the government in 1982, families of relatives killed in this massacre won a court battle and have been awarded compensation to be paid by the Guatemalan government. With more trials coming against military officers and the former Head of State of Guatemala, threats are now being made against the legal teams. Recently, both Angelica and Jennifer have been threatened to the point of fearing for their lives — simply because they are defending the rights of their fellow man/womankind. To learn how you can speak on behalf of Angelica Gonzalez and Jennifer Echeverria in an appeal for their safety, visit Amnesty International.

10. Betty Makoni

Schoolteacher :: Silence Breaker :: Ginetta Sagan Award Recipient

As a victim of sexual abuse at the age of six and having her mother die three years later from domestic violence, Betty Makoni knew at an early age that her native country of Zimbabwe would not change for women unless violence against women was talked about openly. As a former schoolteacher, Betty knew the importance of education for women in stopping the cycle of domestic violence. In 1998, Betty started Girl Child Network by helping to educate six girls on how to fight back against sexual exploitation, poverty and violence. Since then, more than 500,000 girls in Zimbabwe have been served through the Girl Child Network with 3,000 of them having become doctors, lawyers, teachers and professionals in other areas. Empowering girls to stay in school, covering educational fees and school supplies, and providing safe houses for counseling and rehabilitation for girls who are victims of sexual violence and abuse are only a few of the many ways Girl Child Network has helped and continues to help young girls break free from cycles of poverty, abuse, violence and disease. Demonstrating such a success, the Girl Child Network program is now being replicated in Sweden, Swaziland, Sweden, Canada, South Africa, and the United States. To learn more about Betty Makoni’s work, visit the Girl Child Network.

Each of these women had/have the same number of hours in the day that each one of us has and none of these women achieved/are achieving their goals because they’ve been gifted with some special talent.

Each of these women simply looked beyond themselves to their fellow man/womankind and determined to make a difference for the better.

Each of these women first had a thought and refusing to let fear prevail, each of these women took action for the betterment of others.

In the midst of some of the world’s most darkest of times, a few seek to bring light.

What about you?

Are you of the many?

Or

Are you of the few?

Keeping Jericho Alive!

What an amazing group of loyal fans!

Jericho fans seem to be like no other and I can understand why.

It’s a GREAT show!

Working on two fronts, a Nuts to Nielsen movement and a vast media and press campaign the fans are keeping Jericho alive!

And financially this is no small feat.

Bloggers Unite

From blogcatalog.com:

Join Bloggers Unite For Human Rights On May 15!

Thanks to you, May marks the first anniversary of Bloggers Unite and this time we’re launching an awareness campaign chosen by BlogCatalog members. On May 15, let’s unite for human rights and make a statement that all people are born with basic rights and freedoms - life, liberty, and justice! On May 15th 2008, let’s come together and all blog about Human Rights. There are dozens and dozens of human rights issues that you can write about. The one you choose is up to you.

Topics to Consider The wrongful imprisonment of journalists covering assemblies. Governments that ignore the plight of citizens left tot he mercy of gangs. The censorship of the Internet in order to prevent freedom of expression. Harsh punishments that include torture, forced labor, and starvation. Sexual assault against women by members of military or militia.

Learn More About Human Rights

There are many organizations that promote human rights and work to protect people. We’ve picked three to help you learn more and find breaking topics.

• Amnesty International (http://www.amnesty.org/) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights for all. They work to improve human rights through campaigning and international solidarity.
• Human Right Watch (http://www.hrw.org/) is dedicated to protecting human rights of people around the world. They stand with victims and activists to prevent discrimination, uphold political freedom, protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime, and to bring offenders to justice.
• Youth For Human Rights (http://www.youthforhumanrights.org) is an independent non-profit that educates people about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights so they become valuable advocates for tolerance and peace.

We have an entire group discussion dedicated to Bloggers Unite (http://www.blogcatalog.com/group/bloggers-unite) where you can add more organizations that you think are worth including.

How To Join Bloggers Unite!

To join, simply visit the Bloggers Unite page (http://unite.blogcatalog.com/) to get more information. Then, on Thursday, May 15th, write a blog post that shares awareness about human rights.

Your blog post could:

• Have the title “Bloggers Unite For Human Rights” (or some variation).
• include an example of human rights so people can learn about it.
• Explain the importance of human rights and how it applies to everyone.
• Link to one of the sites we’ve listed or the most suitable site for your country.
• And add a link to our BlogCatalog Community Human Rights Awareness Campaign page so we can give you and your blog credit for being part of it.

If you have any questions, please e-mail bloggersunite@blogcatalog.com. And please, don’t forget to tell your friends to blog about this too. Together, I know we can raise awareness and prove bloggers can do good!

JerichoMonster Interview

Last week I was asked to participate in an interview to be posted on JerichoMonster. Grateful for the opportunity and honored by the request, I agreed. Thank you, JerichoMonster to you and to all who organized the first rally to save Jericho. What an incredible job you did and continue to do. More of my thoughts on this in a follow up blog.

Here is the interview (conducted 3/29/08; my answers are in blue):

1. What about Jericho appealed to you and made you such a fan?

I did not watch Jericho the first season it aired. I’m not sure why other than I think it aired opposite a show that I was already interested in or attached to. I first started watching Jericho after I heard on the news that a gargantuan amount of peanuts had been sent to CBS by fans of the show after learning of Jericho’s cancellation. That action caught my attention. I was very impressed with the creativity, but more importantly by the commitment and determination of the fans to be heard. I wanted to know what was so good it commanded this much loyalty.

About That Writer’s Strike at DailyKos…by Alegre

Guest author, Alegre, recently posted this excellent blog on www.womensmediacenter.com. Founded in 2004 as a non-partisan, non-profit progressive women’s media organization by the writers/activists Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan, and Gloria Steinem, the women’s media center strives to make women visible and powerful in the media.

About That Writers’ Strike at DailyKos … by Alegre

March 25, 2008

I work full time, but my evenings are spent writing about and promoting Hillary Clinton on the Internet. Sometimes well into the wee hours of the morning. I may be just a volunteer, but I’m one of millions who is in her corner and working hard to help her make it to the Oval Office.

I’ve been a fan of hers and the remarkable work she’s done over the past 35 years for many reasons. I’ll mention one that’s at the top of my list—her early work with the Children’s Defense Fund after she earned her law degree from Yale. My son was born with developmental delays and has benefited greatly from the programs and laws Hillary helped fight for and put into place that require our public schools to accommodate children like my son. If he had been born 35 years ago he would have been written off as retarded—special education didn’t exist in our public schools. Not so today, thanks in part to Hillary’s work. He’ll start kindergarten with his peers this fall only because of the years of physical therapy and early intervention he’s gotten thanks to people like Hillary Clinton.

I’ve been posting to discussion boards and web logs since the mid-90s, and joined the progressive political site DailyKos nearly four years ago. When I posted my first diary in support of Hillary last June, I thought I’d get my head handed to me by other members of our online community. Surprisingly, my post generated some much-needed discussion about her record and her plans going forward. Since then I’ve been posting on a daily basis, at times challenging something her rivals have said or done. It wasn’t all that bad for the most part—we had great discussions, and I gave as good as I got in the back and forth of it all.

Until about two months ago that is. Things started to go downhill fast. I really can’t put my finger on a cause, but the level of sexism and hostility toward Hillary and her supporters got to be too much.

Jericho: An Hour of GREAT Television!

Negative comments of a hostile or nasty nature left for bloggers are not something I enjoy reading nor are they opinions I respect. With that in mind, I am shaking my own head at my blog today!After the first blog I wrote about the CBS television show, Jericho I received a few very nice emails and a nice comment. Plus, it was a blog read by a significant number of people so I’m hoping that means the Jericho fan base is steadily increasing.

I titled the last blog about Jericho: “Jericho the New 24.” I was not comparing the two television shows, but stating that 24 had, at one time, been an hour of TV when I turned off my cell phone, let all of my friends and family know they were not to call me or stop by, and made sure my dogs had every duty done outside that could be done before the show started. At no time did I ever compare the two television shows in that blog, other than stating that Jericho had replaced that hour of turning off my cell phone, letting the dogs out, etc., that used to belong to 24.

Well…one comment I received on a site in which my blog appeared came from someone not willing to use his/her real name, but blasted me with being “absurd” in attempting to compare Jericho with 24. I didn’t respond to the comment then, but after watching last night’s Jericho episode — I’M GOING TO NOW!!

For those of you watching Jericho on the SciFi channel for the first time, you may not want to read any further.

With the death last night of one of the younger characters, the credits revealing another of the prominent younger actors now being a “Special Guest Star” (Eric Knudson), and the change in time slots (from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM), it appears that the producers are taking the show into a more mature storyline.

Betrayal, corrupt government leaders, killing off beloved characters, secret government workers, nuclear bombs, out-of-control characters in positions of power, the government hunting people down, the introduction of an entity resembling a factual corporation (Jennings & Rall vs. Halliburton/KBR), a hero who embodies both good and bad, and the ever-present office in which those hiding something are always looking around to make sure no one else is looking around — oh, no…doesn’t sound like 24 at all!! Nothing to compare there!

As a filmmaker, I truly appreciate the films and television shows that are able to take me out of the “business” and into the story. Jericho is one of those shows and that is why I am happy to tell everyone about it. 24 captured an audience with excellent writing, acting, producing, directing, and a unique story. With Jack Bauer not returning until January of 2009, Jericho is set even more so now to capture a number of the audience that once faithfully tuned into 24. Hopefully, CBS will market the next three episodes well, run the series again during the summer to capture a greater audience, and then come back in the fall with a full season of episodes. (After the writer’s strike, short seasons, some shows not returning at all, and some not returning for a full year, audiences that generate advertising dollars for the networks deserve to be treated to full seasons of shows next year beginning in September.)

As much as I truly enjoyed the first seasons of Jericho, I am loving the suspense added to this short season’s episodes. Keep ‘em coming! Well, all three episodes left of the season anyway. However, I hope the younger characters/actors continue to be a part of this unfolding story. I enjoy the element of reality they add — kids are left orphaned all over the world because of war right now. How they cope, survive, and integrate into society is very real and full of excellent potential to build on a sub plot.

For those not familiar with the back story of Jericho, the SciFi Channel is airing the first season’s episodes now. Check your local listing for times.

Jericho, CBS, Tuesday nights @ 9/10 — check your local listings.

OR

Watch missed episodes at www.cbs.com/primetime/jericho.

Barack HUSSEIN Obama

Barack Hussein Obama.

Barack Hussein Obama.

Barack Hussein Obama.

Just checking…and nope, doesn’t matter how many times I write it or hear it I don’t feel any fear.

I’m not sure what Ann Coulter and others with similar interests to her are trying to accomplish. Yes, I understand they are fear mongers, but seriously, Hussein is just a name like Jesse or James or Bonnie or Clyde or Al or Capone or Ted or Bundy or Lee or Harvey or Oswald or Butch or Cassidy or Sundance or Timothy or McVeigh or Terry or Nichols and this list could go on and on.

The character behind the name is what matters.

And as I observe the actions of Ann Coulter and the like, I question their character… and intelligence.