Dennis Knight's Open Salon Blog

Million Hoodie March - For Trayvon Martin

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 16:03:04 -0400

Robert Kennedy speaking, after hearing the news of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,

“I'm only going to talk to you just for a minute or so this evening, because I have some -- some very sad news for all of you -- Could you lower those signs, please? -- I have some very sad news for all of you, and, I think, sad news for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world; and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and was killed tonight in Memphis, Tennessee.

“Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort. In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it's perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in. For those of you who are black -- considering the evidence evidently is that there were white people who were responsible -- you can be filled with bitterness, and with hatred, and a desire for revenge.

“We can move in that direction as a country, in greater polarization -- black people amongst blacks, and white amongst whites, filled with hatred toward one another. Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand, and to comprehend, and replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand, compassion, and love.

“For those of you who are black and are tempted to fill with -- be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man.

“But we have to make an effort in the United States. We have to make an effort to understand, to get beyond, or go beyond these rather difficult times.

"My favorite poem, my -- my favorite poet was Aeschylus. And he once wrote:

“Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget

falls drop by drop upon the heart,

until, in our own despair,

against our will,

comes wisdom

through the awful grace of God.

“What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love, and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.

“So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King -- yeah, it's true -- but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love -- a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke.

“We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times. We've had difficult times in the past, but we -- and we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it's not the end of disorder.

“But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings that abide in our land.

“And let's dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world. Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people.

“Thank you very much. ”

_{_{Thank you Zuma}}

The Power of Peaceful Revolution

Wed, 9 Nov 2011 10:11:25 -0500

“Peaceful protest and non-violent resistance say, ‘We’re demanding a better world, beginning with ourselves.’”

As outcries against inequity and injustice become global, we must hold fast to the spiritual nature of non-violent revolution. If we do not, our peaceful demonstrations will all too easily devolve into the same destructive entity we’re confronting.

Empathy for our neighbor’s needs and a longing to see every person’s troubles remedied as fully as our own, can conquer the bigotry that prefers combat over conversion and choosing sides rather than winning hearts.

Greed is an ill without a cure. When it has possessed a system of government, that system cannot simply be adjusted. It must be renewed at the foundation.

Compassion must fuel policy. Requiring just wages, just profits, and just taxation are heart concerns - not temporary political appeasements. Government can be generous as well as prudent. And it must be, if it is to endure.

The desire to share with others and seek proportionate prosperity must begin with individuals. We cannot expect any system of government to be more caring than we are, nor can we tolerate one that is less.

Violence is never an option to those who understand its perpetual pernicious nature. The power of influence is greater than the wielding of authority, for winds of change can blow through the tiniest cracks in the fiercest of battlements.

What unites us is our humanity, a shared existence on this Earth, inhabiting an increasingly populated planet, and a common life that breathes and feels and needs, regardless of race, religion or national pride.

We want a better world, not simply a more efficient government. We want to be better people as much as we want to be a more prosperous people. We must learn to rejoice in our neighbor’s well being as much as in our own.

We want to leave a world for our children where dialogue, discussion and action respond to dissent rather than oppression or suppression of ideas. We want future generations to see that love is greater than hatred and that generosity towers over greed.

Peaceful protest and non-violent resistance say, “We’re demanding a better world, beginning with ourselves.”

We’re not simply seeking change we can believe in, but change that all people can happily live with.

So You Don't Like President Obama. You Still Need to Vote.

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 14:09:06 -0400

Many Democrats and Progressives (especially those who registered in the last Presidential election) have signaled their intent to boycott the upcoming midterms in November.

This would be a terrible mistake.

It’s true that discouragement and disillusionment have taken a huge toll on the liberal base.

And for valid reasons.

Listening to candidate Barack Obama campaign, many of us hoped we were electing an idealist. Soon after the swearing-in we realized we actually elected a pragmatist.

We wanted Bobby Kennedy.

We trusted there would be investigations into the previous administration’s crimes against its citizens—as well as its disingenuous justifications for a preemptive war in Iraq. What we got was Gerald Ford pardoning Nixon.

We were deeply disappointed with the soaring rhetoric of the Presidential campaign being reduced to political compromise and justification of broken promises:

• The troops that remain in Iraq.

• The private meetings with the health care industry that were not televised live on C-Span.

• The President’s failure to demand a genuine public option for America’s poorer citizens.

• What happened in regard to the closing of Guantanamo.

Add to this, that the Obama administration has kept us entrenched in Afghanistan, fighting a war we cannot possibly win—at a human and fiscal cost that is growing more repugnant to the masses by the day.

As a result, Liberals have become like the Biblical Israel.

Soon after being released from their cruel bondage in Egypt, these folks forgot just how bad it really had been.

Do you remember just a few years ago when speaking dissent against the ruling party was inviting investigation and even arrest?

Do you remember an administration and a Republican controlled Congress that showed utter disregard for the Bill of Rights, using national tragedy as a way of instituting xenophobic control over its citizens while systematically stripping away their liberties?

Do you remember how America went from receiving nearly global post 911 sympathy to being despised and distrusted, as a result of our arrogance and cavalier disregard of human rights, the U.N. and the Geneva Conventions?

Do you remember how patriotism was redefined to Nixonian levels and how even firefighters were discussed as potential recruits to spy on citizens, and note “subversive” materials in homes during the course of their work?

Do you remember the recent economic collapse being compared to the Great Depression as a result of policies that favored the richest few while indenturing the middle class and the poor?

Do you remember just how close we were to having a moral, “us against them” Theocracy rule this land?

Our complaints against the Obama administration may be valid, but allowing Republicans and Tea Party-ers to win in November will usher in times too horrible to imagine.

Never forget: These are the same folks, holding the same philosophies, who brought us the previous nightmare.

You may argue that November represents a choosing between the lesser of two evils. So be it.

You may also resent being lectured by the President when he says, “People need to shake off this lethargy. People need to buck up”—especially when it is his administration’s compromises that have helped fuel the malaise.

I believe the Obama administration has done much to reverse policies that were destructive and divisive, while trying to salavge a desperately ravaged economy. You may disagree.

But, if for no other reason than self preservation, get to the polls and vote this November to keep the jack booted, liberty overthrowing, rights dismissing, rich enslaving the poor, moral divison-ist, homophobic, xenophobic, preemptive war justifying folks, out of office.

If you can’t vote with the same eagerness you felt in 2008, then in the name of all that is holy show up and vote against everything that would destroy the ideals you wish the Obama administration would actually fight for.

Your future depends on it.

“Decisions are made by those who show up.”

OS: In the Name of God, Please Just Stop!

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 19:08:20 -0400

This is the internet people. The internet is overrun with folks living out their issues online. It’s a breeding ground for socially challenged individuals who love finding ways to antagonize others.

Online forums are like Happy Meals for contentious misanthropes who spend most of their waking hours surfing the web.

It’s the price we pay for free speech.

If you don’t want to become like them, then for God’s sake stop acting like a bunch of howling monkeys flinging their poop at each other.

Stop the malicious back and forth.

Stop the, “He said, she said.”

Stop the, “But she hit me first!”

Stop the, “I’m going to tell teacher on you!”

Stop the, “It’s time we rallied to protect so and so!” campaigns.

Please stop flooding the feed with this stuff.

All of our blogs come with a delete button. If you don’t like comments delete them. If you don’t like certain bloggers ignore them.

But in the name of God please stop the childish school yard behavior.

If you “left” OS for whatever reason, please stop coming back to antagonize others using an “alter” ID.

It’s not cool or cute or clever to use a fake ID to confront someone about anything. It’s cowardly, no matter how you justify it. Worse still when you come back with a “alter” gang. Either come back as yourself or not at all.

If you’re offended by a post, a comment, or a blogger, grow up for God’s sake, and learn to ignore them.

Quit playing the victim. If you’re the one keeping the issues front and center with yet another post describing how you or your friends have been abused, that’s not victimization. That’s participation.

“But I was wronged!” you say. Yes. You and thirty million other people. Every day. But this is the internet, for Pete’s sake. It’s not like they stole your food ration while you’re starving in the Sudan.

There are no online martyrs and very few genuine online victims. There are, however, far too many folks who want to appear to be one or the other or both.

For God’s sake stop. Grow up. There are always going to be idiots who write rotten stuff. They have that right. Just don’t become one yourself. Stay out of the kerfuffles du jour if you really want to be different.

Not just once. Not just most of the time. But consistently.

Writers must have tender hearts and thick skins. Very thick skins. Bloggers need these things too.

Try this test. See if you can quit writing posts or comments about anyone else on OS unless it’s to direct folks to great work.

Drop out of your gang or club or group. Be brave. If your best friends are acting stupidly, say so. Admonish them to stop acting like spoiled infants or spurned lovers.

But in the name of all that is holy, quit saying you care about this place, or art, or people, if what you’re doing is perpetuating the strife on either side.

Open Salon has the potential to blow the doors off the literary world. There is so much talent here.

Please. Don’t let this place become just another forum where people fight online. Do all you can do to make OS what it could and should be: A repository of literary and artistic riches.

How to Become a Curmudgeon

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 08:01:07 -0500

While many bemoan the fact that people seem to be getting grumpier, I maintain we’re not nearly grumpy enough.

The world is teeming with namby pamby individuals who speak and behave so sweetly it gives the rest of us sugar diabetes just being around them.

These are honey bees who have lost their stingers. They’re neutered and good for little else besides spreading their own special brand of gag-me-with-a-spoon “encouragement.”

If the world needs anything right now it needs more of us to embrace a cantankerous disposition. So here’s some time tested advice on how to become a curmudgeon.

• Stop Listening. Why bother? Do you really think you’ve gotten this far in life without already knowing everything you need to know?

• Cultivate the fine art of impatience. This is harder than it sounds. It’s not enough to simply appear impatient. You must actually be impatient. Under this heading there are many helpful hints:

Look at your watch - often. Looking at your watch every few seconds while someone is talking to you is one of the best ways to demonstrate you’re weary of them yammering.

Learn to tap your fingers on tables in an ever so noticeable “Are you going to go on forever?” manner.

Practice yawning. This not only shows you’re bored, but can cause everyone in the room to yawn and appear bored too. This is a major coup when successfully pulled off.

Learn the staccato timing of saying “mmm hmm.” Inject “mmm hmm” after every few words spoken by whoever is talking. This shows a wicked, “Will you hurry up already” type of impatience, while giving the impression that you’re light years ahead of whatever point your chattering friend is trying to make.

Understand that sighing is a language. Never sigh winsomely. Inhale deeply and then exhale with a snort. If this doesn’t shut folks up they’re not paying attention.

Study eye rolling and eyebrow raising. This cannot be stressed enough. Use a mirror and aim for subtlety. If you can affect these disdainful expressions while dismissively snorting, all the better.

• Become Set In Your Ways. Nothing is less curmudgeonly than being open to change. Under this heading the following points are vital.

Insist on things being done to please YOU. Demand things wherever you are. Food servers, clerks at stores, friends and family members exist to attentively comply with your every whim. “Please” is not in your vocabulary, unless it’s said in a mocking manner. Pretend you are 5 years old, but all powerful.

Practice pouting. Let people learn quickly there will be hell to pay if you are crossed. Make them understand what sort of “wet blanket” they’ll have on their hands if you’re not coddled and sucked up to.

Forget right and wrong. These are subjective terms the weak cling to. It is your way or the highway.

• Argue About Anything and Everything. Even if you agree. Argue anyway. Never miss an opportunity to quarrel. Make up facts and cite imaginary authorities. This is very frustrating to your opponents.

• Be Peevish. Confront the Pollyannas of this world head on. When someone says, “Good morning!” respond with, “What’s good about it?!” If asked, “How are you feeling?” reply with, “None of your damn business.” When someone inquires “What time is it?” tell them to buy a watch.

• Finally - Ignore Your Better Instincts. Perhaps, like me, you see some of these curmudgeonly tendencies in yourself already. But don’t go getting all soft and introspective. If you forsake the crabby and petulant path you’ll just become another touchy-feely, “nice” person. And everyone knows how pathetic that is.