Tag Archives: politics

Marriage Equality: Way To Go Washington State!

Posted on
1

You know, I haven’t been very pleased with the government here in Washington State lately. (Just one example.)

But, this morning I woke to some good news for a change.

Via The Seattle Times:

Historic Senate vote clears way for gay marriage in state

The state Senate passed legislation Wednesday night that would legalize gay marriage. The bill now goes to the House, where it’s expected to pass easily.

It’s always puzzled me that in a country where heterosexual marriages end in divorce 50% of the time, heterosexuals somehow still think that only heterosexuals should be allowed to marry.

Happily, Washington is poised to become the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage, and I only hope that that number will continue to grow.

TED Talks: Peter van Uhm: Why I chose a gun

Posted on
3

I’m continually surprised by how many times I’ve recommended TED Talks — those incredibly thought-provoking, inspiring, often moving products of the various TED conferences held around the world — to people who have never heard of them, for I find them so thoroughly accessible, with each talk lasting no more than 18-20 minutes.

I mean, we can all find time for a few of these a day, or more scattered throughout the week. Right?

Well, it’s been a while since I last posted a TED Talks video, and today I’ve got a juicy one for you.

This was a challenging video for me, as I suspect it would be for most of my fellow peaceniks. The assertion made by Peter van Uhm, Chief of Defense for The Netherlands, that guns and armies are necessary tools for peace, rubs me the wrong way. And yet, having been raised Jewish, I carry the inherited trauma of the Holocaust, and I’ve struggled my whole life with the question of whether or not violent military action is justifiable in order to save people from oppression or genocide.

Now, I don’t agree with everything that Mr. van Uhm says, but I admire the TED organization for inviting him to speak and present his case, and he does so eloquently, with great sensitivity, and with great respect for his fellow TED presenters and attendees, who are trying to make the world a better, more peaceful place via a variety of other means.

Occupy Bellingham Getting Evicted

Posted on
Reply

As I type this, the Occupy Bellingham encampment in our Maritime Heritage Park is preparing for a forced eviction scheduled for 9am, a few minutes from now. Bellingham, Washington, a city of only 80,000, might not be a mighty metropolis and media hub, but our hearty occupiers have been camped out since October.

It is with deep regret that, for a variety of reasons, I am unable to join my fellow 99%ers this morning in person. And so, I offer up this blog post of solidarity, my humble effort to spread the word of this injustice, knowing, as I do from visitor stats and such, that I’m fortunate enough to have readers from all over the world, from the west coast of the U.S. to the east, from the west coast of Canada to the east, from England to The Netherlands, and all the way to India.

Lame Duck Mayor Dan Pike, whom I praised so highly for his stance against the coal terminal project, has ordered the eviction on the grounds that there have been complaints from neighboring businesses and reports of damage to park property, namely the grass where the tents are pitched.

I did stop by the camp before I went to work this morning, and was told by the brave souls there that they’ve been doing near constant outreach to nearby businesses, checking in with them to make sure that they aren’t disturbing anyone, and the occupiers have been planning on repairing any damage to grass or other park property, though they insist that the damage is minimal.

Meanwhile, Occupy Bellingham’s lawyer insists that the eviction is a clear violation of First Amendment rights, and he plans to take legal action against the city on behalf of the occupiers.

For anyone interested, you can follow today’s events via Ustream and on Twitter via #OccupyBellingham.