DON’T FORGET BURMA NO. 55…
0230 by Jeff Hess
6 January 2008
6 January 2008
TIME POWER: TODAY…
0001 by Jeff HessToday, as I go about my tasks, I’ll think about: When Benjamin Franklin was twenty-seven years old, he felt a great need to improve his life and decided to identify the most universal of all truths.He identified twelve and called them virtues: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility and chastity. He took these to a Quaker, who said, I think you should add a thirteenth: humility. p.32
5 January 2008
MY COMMENTS…
1536 by Jeff Hess
Part of being a good citizen of the blogosphere is visiting, reading and, most importantly, taking the time to leave a comment on other’s blogs. It’s all about the conversation. In the interest of setting an example I’ve decided to link to those blog posts that have compelled me to leave a comment.
5 January 2008
MUCKING OUT THE BLOGPILE…
1400 by Jeff Hess
I’m constantly tossing interesting websites into what I call my blogpile. Some of them find their way here in the form of regular posts, but more often than not they languish and get buried deeper in the pile. The end result is that I have to go back and do a bit of shoveling. Today’s item is Merry Christmas, Rabbi!
5 January 2008
WHAT THEY SAID…
1357 by Jeff HessIowa is but a small representation of the change coming. Bush, Rove and Cheney have taught all of America how to be afraid, confusing the “wars” they fought decades ago with the “war” they are fighting now. I don’t need a daddy like Giuliani to protect me, nor do I need a mommy like Clinton to tell me to take my health insurance whether I like it or not. America needs leadership again – not shameless pandering, triangulation and poll-based policy proposals designed for only 51 percent of Americans.
A lot of people (both political and in the press) are very afraid of the Iowa results – that noise we hear is the sound of the walls built between us by politicians and angry boomers crashing down. My spirit was lifted this morning upon seeing my generation finally step up to the plate to reject the current status-quo in our politics. Obama will win – only those afraid of it refuse to believe it. an Andrew Sullivan reader
5 January 2008
5 January 2008
5 January 2008
FROM THE SANDBOX…
1200 by Jeff Hess
Old Blue: Christmas wasn’t, and it was. The past weeks have been all about a slow journey to a new assignment. I’ve run into a number of people who I’ve already met, and gotten to know a few new people during the journey of less than two hundred miles. It has taken that long to go such a short distance. On Christmas Day, the journey finally ended. CPT…
5 January 2008
FROM MY DAD…
0800 by Jeff Hess
I could never bring myself to forward all the email jokes, cartoons and other Internet comedy that land in my inbox. But then I started posting the ones my dad sends me. Judging from my comments and emails, my dad has become one of my greatest blogging assets. So for your morning blog chuckle I present: From My Dad.
20 WAYS TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY LEVEL OF INSANITY…
16. Have your co-workers address you by your wrestling name, rock bottom.
17. When the money comes out the ATM, scream “I won! I won!”
18. When leaving the zoo, start running towards the parking lot, yelling “run for your lives, they’re loose!”
19. Tell your children over dinner, “due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go.”
20. And the final way to keep a healthy level of insanity: share this list with a friend and make them smile.
5 January 2008
GOOD AFTERNOON MYANMAR…
0430 by Jeff Hess
In the early years of the last century, the only recourse Communist leader Vladimir Ilyich Lenin had while he was living in exile for influencing politics in Russia was the writing of letters. At the beginning of this century pro-Democracy revolutionaries from Myanmar have a wide range of high-tech solutions for communicating.
The exiled Myanmar network Democratic Voice of Burma said Thursday it was starting daily broadcasts to pro-democracy activists at home, a sharp increase from its current one-hour-per-week transmissions.
The Oslo-based network’s radio, television and Internet reports were crucial sources of information for protesters inside Burma, and also helped get information out of the largely closed country, during a pro-democracy uprising in September that was brutally crushed by Myanmar’s military government.
The network’s chief editor, Aye Chan Naing, said daily satellite broadcasts of about an hour would begin Friday, and would include reports from inside Myanmar, also known as Burma, as well as news from the outside world that is likely to be censored by Myanmar’s military regime.
“It’s going to make quite a difference for the people of Burma, who don’t get other information,” Naing told The Associated Press.
What information would you want them to broadcast?
5 January 2008
FROM MY CHAPBOOK…
0400 by Jeff Hess
My name is Jeff Hess and I’m a biblioholic. I own hundreds of books. Not valuable books, mostly Science Fiction paperbacks and text books, tomes rescued by the bag from library book sales. A few years ago, in the interest of not burying myself, I began reading more books from the library and taking notes. My electronic chapbook was born.
This is a passage I copied from Perfume of the Desert: Inspirations From Sufi Wisdom by Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hanut.
“Generosity is to worship Him for love of Himself alone, and not for any benefit or reward.” Rabia p. 78
5 January 2008
5 January 2008
TIME POWER: TODAY…
0001 by Jeff HessToday, as I go about my tasks, I’ll think about: A failing life is a succession of failing days, a paraphrase from Ari Kiev”s A Strategy For Daily Living. p. 31
4 January 2008
4 January 2008
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2030 by Jeff HessOn 4 January 1948, England ended 63 years of colonial rule of Burma. The British Union Jack was lowered and the the new nation’s flag raised in what would become Myanmar. In the 60 years since, the people of Burma-turned-Myanmar faced the long list of challenges of a post-colonial state. Today’s celebration was understandably low-key.
From The BBC:
Military ruler Gen Than Shwe used the occasion to reiterate the government’s determination to continue with its seven-stage roadmap to democracy.
But critics say the plan is just a way to perpetuate the military’s control. They used the anniversary to call for the release of political prisoners.
[Snip.]
He said the people of Burma were working towards “the emergence of a peaceful, modern and developed discipline-flourishing democratic state”.
He stressed his commitment to the democracy roadmap – a process which critics say is entirely controlled by the military and excludes the high-profile opposition figure Aung San Suu Kyi and her party, the National League for Democracy.
The statement suggests the military leadership does not appear to have softened its stance since September’s violent crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners, which resulted in the deaths of at least 31 people.
No mention was made of the protests, nor to Aung San, Ms Suu Kyi’s father and the leader of Burma’s independence struggle.
Happy birthday Myanmar.
May your 61st be better than your 60th.
4 January 2008
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2030 by Jeff HessFirst Lady Laura Bush is not letting go of the Myanmar’s generals. The First Lady took the opportunity presented by Myanmar’s 60th anniversary of its 1947 independence from Great Britain to condemn the generals and their continued oppression of the country’s citizens; specially their treatment of political prisoners.
From The White House:
Today, January 4, is the 60th anniversary of Burma’s independence. Instead of celebrating their freedom, the Burmese people live in fear, poverty, and oppression under General Than Shwe and his military regime. These generals have plundered Burma’s economy and rich natural resources, and a once-prosperous nation now has the lowest GDP per person among ASEAN countries.
Hundreds of innocent people remain in jail – and more continue to be arrested – for exercising their rights to freedom of speech and peaceful assembly. An untold number of Buddhist monks have been banished from their monasteries. Reports suggest that the Burmese army is now massing in eastern Burma, preparing for a renewed military onslaught against Burma’s ethnic minorities. Past offensives have resulted in killings and rapes of civilians, forced labor, crop burnings, and mass relocations.
President Bush and I ask all nations to join in condemning the military junta for its shameful abuses of basic human rights. We urge the regime to fulfill its promises to the United Nations Security Council, and to take more than token steps toward meaningful dialogue with Burma’s opposition.
General Than Shwe must release Aung San Suu Kyi and other democratic leaders, so they can begin the process of national reconciliation. Meanwhile, the United States stands with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all those working to make sure that by the next January 4, the people of Burma will celebrate real independence.
I continue to applaud the First Lady’s actions and statement. It is difficult, however, to not wonder if, in the privacy of the presidential residence, she speaks in the same way to her husband about our country’s political prisoners.
4 January 2008
4 January 2008
MUCKING OUT THE BLOGPILE…
1400 by Jeff HessI’m constantly tossing interesting websites into what I call my blogpile. Some of them find their way here in the form of regular posts, but more often than not they languish and get buried deeper in the pile. The end result is that I have to go back and do a bit of shoveling. Today’s item is A Rabbi of His Time, With a Charisma That Transcends It.
4 January 2008
4 January 2008
FROM THE SANDBOX…
1200 by Jeff HessJosie Salzman: It was crisp and clear with minimal wind. Perfect for flying. A relief for my exhausted mind that wouldn’t be able to take another setback. I had waited long enough. I was finally going to see my husband for the first time since he lost his arm to a roadside bomb. I don’t remember sleeping the night before. There were so many thoughts and fears run-…
