Getting To What We Want From Where We Are Pt 1

Have you ever felt disappointment?

If you’re a living, breathing human being of course you have! The difference between how we react to it is what distinguishes success from failure in achieving life goals. Well…I may have assumed a bit here. The first thing we need to have ARE life goals.

So if you want something how do you go about getting it? Mind you I have much higher goals in mind than material acquisitions. This is such a consumerist society that even those part of the underclass get the latest gadget, shoes or electronic goods. The issue is whether that energy was spent doing something that builds wealth and sets you up for a higher quality of life or if you end up digging a hole to fall into.

1. The first step is changing one’s mindset.

Not only to be more positive but to think in the long term. That disappointment is an indicator that we want to reach for something. Now whether it's beneficial for us is another issue entirely, but in general terms it's an opportunity to aim higher. One popular interview question asked is, “Where do you see yourself in five years.” When I researched techniques there were a list of acceptable answers all related to telling a potential employer that time would be spent with them of course, but that was never my intention. I was always going to be on the lookout for a better position. How many of us get complacent, thinking long term employment at one job looks good on a resume? There’s something to be said for stability – if you’re looking for that type of job at that type of company and expect to live that type of life. That also worked until five years ago. Or less.

As we see in this volatile market all of the old rules are out the door. People who would have stayed in positions have been downsized. The ones who’ve stayed are doing the work of three now. Many positions are gone forever and will never return.

Education is very important. Typically that would mean a degree from a nationally accredited program. That’s an important caveat to mention as there’s been an explosion of degree mill schools that basically print up a diploma if someone’s willing to pay for it. Employers have apparently been flooded with unqualified graduates who don’t have basic skill sets. At the other end of this are the school snobs who place importance on those graduating from name schools. Everyone can’t attend a name school. Some may have to think prudently, attending a smaller school or gasp! Community College before transferring to a larger state or private university. Some institutions are simply coasting on their reputations and may not provide much value to an individual and their specific needs.

Others may be best served learning a trade or starting a business. We shouldn't limit ourselves in anything that we do. There’s more to education than sitting in a class, however. Keeping up with changes in technology and trends in society is equally as important. For example there’s are early adapters of these changes and there’s everyone else. There’s people who may be highly skilled in their area of expertise who flourished under the old system but are not able to incorporate newer methods. Like social media.

It is now required for Public Relations specialists to know this medium. It’s also necessary for those who were relying on their government or private industry position that hadn’t originally required much more than a high school diploma (and the means to pass an exam). As more of those positions people assumed they’d have for life are eliminated (I mean who thought a Post Office would ever close?) those that cannot adapt will be left behind.

For example, the blogging platform has been available for a few years now. Many journalists have incorporated blogs into their work out of necessity. Citizen journalism is going to continue to grow as newspapers and magazines struggle to operate under the old model. Their overhead is killing them: the expensive rent of prime real estate to house employees, the expense accounts and other perks are destroying their bottom line.

There’s another aspect that hasn’t been discussed. These entities have been actively engaging in employment apartheid for years. When a company has intentionally hired a majority one gender, one race, one or two ethnicities within that race construct, with similar mentalities they’re not really interested in reaching a wide and diverse population. They expected the larger audience to be serviced by a small minority. So as that very narrow appeal has shrunk it can no longer support such segregation. Hence certain companies have gone under or have to consolidate. Thinking of it strictly in terms of survival it is how it should have been a long time ago. Eventually their “preferred” population would not hold the same clout or retain the necessary numbers to sustain the business model. So I have little sympathy.

Now this is where the adapters of technology and trends come into play. Once the basic skills required have been obtained adding the flourish is easy. In the case of news media stories that didn’t have “value” to some - more likely it was a case of intentionally ignoring things – we can now cover them. Whether it’s an individual who decides to start a blog and write about it or directly hiring a skilled professional who has been downsized we can now ensure the diverse population has a voice. That’s a powerful thing.

• What ways can we begin to think outside the box?
• Where do you see needs are not being met?
• Have you thought of an area that’s lacking but are waiting for someone else to address it?

While Obama Gives Lip-Service To Our Reproductive Rights We Must Communicate More Effectively With Our Elected Officials

The following note I'm enclosing at the bottom of this post was a response to the Feminist Advisory Board for Obama regarding a letter that was sent to the President asking for a public statement denouncing the murder of Dr. Tiller. A form letter response was sent with a generic "thank you" but it was non-committal. Like race relations (the denial of racism, anger over accountability) control over a woman's reproductive rights is constantly being challenged. Usually it's by the same people - except for some fools who work against their own interests. This is part of a larger movement from those armed and racist who want to want to see women chained to the house and blacks sent back to Africa. After his huge mistake defending black woman betrayer/hater Skippy Gates don't expect President Obama to say anything that will further incite the angry white men with guns. In fact he has flipped from his earlier decision to lift the ban on abortion funding by letting the fundamentalists (which includes Democrats) dictate the terms of our healthcare coverage.

From CBS News - - President Obama on Tuesday said he would "rather not wade into" the issue of whether or not health care reform should include federal funding for abortions. 

The president told CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric that he is "not trying to micro-manage what benefits are covered." 

My reply - If you're in charge you tell your subordinates what is on - and off the table for negotiation. You don't leave it up to the whims of others.

"I'm pro-choice, but I think we also have the tradition in this town, historically, of not financing abortions as part of government-funded health care," he said, adding: "My main focus is making sure that people have options of high quality care at the lowest possible price."  

If you are in support of something you should be all-in. There are no ifs, ands or buts. In trying to get this health care plan -which is now being called a health insurance plan passed, if it's nearly gutted and ineffective it's DOA for all of us non-politicians who don't have their plan. Or their cheap rates.

Coming on the heels of the most recent vote by the House Energy and Commerce Committee to pass an amendment excluding abortion services from the "essential" health benefits package as defined by the government it would seem Obama is NOT IN SUPPORT OF ABORTIONS for any woman who can't pay for one. So low-income workers, immigrants, youth and the usual marginalized population are going to be (*&$ out of luck unless some private funding will cover these costs. What's next on the chopping block....birth control pills?  

We have so many forces in opposition to any progress we must strategize how we approach tackling them. Our goals must be firm. We're going to have to FIGHT people because they are not giving an inch. Obama doesn't have our backs any more than his backside is being covered. He will cave unless we make it a disadvantage for him to do so. Here is one suggestion on how to approach politicians that I think may prove useful:

"Don't read too much into the response you got to your letter. Most congressional offices have standard replies as well. The best way to get a more personal response is to put more than one issue into a letter that you write. Still, more than likely some staff member is writing that letter due to the number of letters members of congress get and I assume that the Presidency is the same way.

I have to say having interned in a congressional and a senate office has deterred me from writing letters and even signing many petitions non-anonymously to it because I know how these offices process the information and I ALMOST completely agree with their methods - they get so much mail and petitions that its hard to deal more personally with what they receive. But, I do wish that more members would read at least some constituent letters and maybe even choose to respond to a few - from my knowledge I know of some members who respond to Tweets and FaceBook messages but unsure about older forms of communication. I have heard that the President does read like 3 letters a day to keep himself grounded (his words). So I don't know if we should give up on letters completely.

Honestly, I have not found an effective method of reaching out to my representatives. The best I have observed is trying to get a meeting with that member or a staff person and doing so constantly. This is hard though because if you get on their "bad side" they do not take your issues seriously. So I'm still trying to figure this out myself. Also with the President its not like you can get a meeting with the POTUS with out donating money to his party and winning that random drawing to have "Lunch with Obama."

To close, didn't expect to say all this, maybe we as a group can organize to meet with our representatives in person during recess sessions - especially summer recess - in the future over an issue. Also, many members participate in local events at this time and it is the best way to try to connect with them (but I am also from a small state that if you are somewhat involved in any industry the member covers you have met and interacted with them. So they are generally more responsive). Anyway, I do think that especially in the age with all of this technology, that nothing beats face to face.

P.S. So of course now I remember a way that may be more effective - Doing a policy memo as to why a member or in this case, the President, should support an issue. In the case of congress, their staffers need to do this to their member to co-sponsor a piece of legislation. The letter is short and basically builds a case as to why they should support a bill based on both the merits of the bill and how the bill will benefit/affect the people in their state. I would try this angle - you still may get a form letter back but you may get a staffer that may care enough to either forward this on to the member or tweek it a bit and try to convince their member to co-sponsor that piece of legislation - especially since a lot of the leg work is done for them. Final statement I promise - getting to know staff members in key offices is help ful and probably the best method - it works for the lobbyists." -- from DNMP Politico

Do You Want to Be Strong Or Do You Want to Be Free?

I featured the poem, "The Strong Black Woman Is Dead" by Laini Mataka a few months ago and I'd like to revisit this piece. Here's some excerpts but please go back and read it in its entirety:

On August 15, 1999, at 11:55 p.m., 

while struggling with the reality 

of being a human instead of a myth, 

the strong black woman passed away. 

Medical sources say she died of natural causes, 

but those who knew her know she died 

from being silent when she should have been screaming, 

milling when she should have been raging, 

from being sick and not wanting anyone to know 

because her pain might inconvenience them. 

She died from being dragged down 

and sat upon by UN-evolved women posing as sisters. 

She died from pretending 

the life she was living 

was a Kodak moment instead of a 20th century, 

post-slavery nightmare!

She died from sacrificing herself 

for everybody and everything 

when what she really wanted to do 

was be a singer, a dancer, or some magnificent other.

I'd like to compare and contrast that with the excellent post I read yesterday by Khadija, blog host of Muslim Bushido titled, "The Way of the Sojourner". Here's a summation but the detailed argument MUST be read!!!

A sojourner is free to seek self-actualization and follow her bliss wherever it leads her. The way of the sojourner has NO room for group think or uniformity. The only constants are: (1) freedom of movement, and (2) a commitment to keeping the path open. The sojourner's path is unique for every woman who chooses to walk upon it. She makes the path her own. Her travels are her own.

And to prove that synchronicity does in fact exist Lisa, blog host at Black Woman Blow the Trumpet wrote this essay, "The Eulogy of Black Unity" which I'm enclosing this segment: 

....the death of Black Unity forced us to define ourselves as individuals who fortified the collective, instead of as a collective that defined its individuals.

It was necessary for Black Unity to meet its demise in order for us to understand that it could not be immortal. Special Interest Solidarity demanded that we cremate Black Unity and so we respect its ashes as we gather to give tributes to the legacy that Black Unity left us.

Black Unity lived valiantly and we all benefitted from its longevity. Black Unity functioned ably among us and saved many lives of those who mattered to this nation. Black Unity protected us during a period in our nation's history when we needed it. As Black Unity lost its vitality, black women learned that Black Unity could no longer guarantee protection.

There are quite a few points of intersectionality. Many of us remember what things used to be like (amongst Black communities or relations) and are trying our darndest to return to "paradise". You know I had a conversation with a relative the other day who was still talking about how simply having a college degree provided job stability. I had to show her the actual research from the BLS that stated Blacks with degrees have the highest unemployment rate out of all similarly-educated groups right now. 

That may have been the case for those of her generation. That isn't the case NOW. Some of the positions stated may not necessarily apply to all, but the fact this is the reality for too many women, specifically Black women still remains true. It's time we change that. We cannot take our rightful places as leaders (or free agents) until we do. Do we need reminding of the sacrifices of African-Americans who built this country and the debt owed us. Obama being elected doesn't begin to address that. 

With the pending retirement of Justice Souter, who is erroneously being championed as a "liberal" by some President Obama needs to appoint a strong candidate who has our interests at heart. Further what's so wrong with wanting a Black female Supreme Court Justice when there are numerous qualified candidates who could be a champion, not just for others but for US? With the latest Pew Research Center Report (via Real Clear Politics site) showing Black women as his highest voting block at 69% he OWES US. 

Blacks, meanwhile, had their sharpest increase in voter participation in more than a decade, with 15.9 million casting ballots to make up 12.1 percent of the electorate. Blacks previously had seen their share decline to 11 percent in 2004 after their low turnout in Republican George W. Bush's re-election win over Democrat John Kerry.

But in 2008, about 65 percent of blacks went to the polls, nearly matching the 66 percent voting rate for whites. Black women had the highest rates of participation among all voters at 69 percent; they were followed by white women (68 percent), white men (64 percent) and black men (61 percent).

For anyone to deny that or try to diminish the impact of our (unused) political currency, they are not working in OUR best interests. Even if they look like us. Even if they claim to be our ally. It goes without saying EVERY OTHER GROUP will be lobbying on their own behalf. Why not US? Some of us are too busy trying to save and rescue others (or tell us that WE should be spending all of our time doing so) that's why. Except who will be there for US when WE need saving? In fact many of us need saving RIGHT NOW!

Is Trouble In the Republican Party A Head Fake Or An Opportunity?

I've been tuning out the majority of cable news punditry and other media echo chambers as of late because it's almost all the same sound: the bleating of sheep and other public whining and arguing. The self-appointed voices of the Republican Party are all gnashing their teeth it seems over the fact that Barack & Michelle Obama are in the White House. From Dick Cheney vs. Joe Biden, Rush Limbaugh vs. the world and Glen Beck insinuating we're going up in flames I wonder what utterly ridiculous comment is going to be made next. 

Not that I'm giving the Democrats a pat on the back. They're not 100% in unison and as I've stated in previous posts I'm not sure who is actually loyal to the President for loyalty's sake or personal convenience. It's just that Barack Obama has been in office since January 20th. Today is April 11th. He's been in office for 81 days. Some people act as if it's been years and he's been ineffective or something. I haven't agreed with every appointment or every step but I certainly applaud his efforts in such a short period of time. Besides we should know by now that we are the only ones responsible for saving ourselves like it or not!

You'd think Obama was lying to the public, raiding the treasury, antagonizing our allies, starting wars, playing dumb and being obstinate. Oh snap...that was the last guy in office. So are the Republicans just sucking on sour grapes with the face to match or are the trying to push a meme hoping it gains traction? It's not like they don't have help from the corporate media. From those idiotic political comedy shows that were greenlit for Black male comics who couldn't carry their weight, to the modern day slave catcher routine of the wanna be accountability police sent to trap Obama or the pseudo-intelligentsia writers who spend way too much time discussing Michelle Obama's physicality it seems especially virulent doesn't it?

Of course all of this isn't coming from the Republicans exclusively but when one entity is allowed to go unchecked it opens the door for a flood of negativity and depravity from all sides. If you don't believe me look at the the devaluation of R&B and Rap into the cesspool of coonery and derogatory images that is considered "normal" today. It is anything but. So the question remains whether enough people have gotten fed up with the foolishness of their political party of choice because it was hijacked by a rabid minority or if this is temporary amnesia.

I think for some it's all business as usual. They are protected by the system no matter who's in office and their political party affiliation is more of a device of convenience. Others do lean more towards an ideology but again the bottom line are their creature comforts. It's the hard-core followers who let a line of thinking inform their voting choices as well as those that are easily swayed by charismatic leadership that are the most invested. Believe it or not I'm also certain some just follow the same path as their elders, not really questioning why they think they way they do and assuming it's the only way because it's "what's always been done". 

The culmination of the past eight years has forced many people to reevaluate their choices. It wasn't one borne of an exercise in critical thinking outside the lines of what they thought was the norm either. It was borne of necessity. Since the Republican leadership has decided to push their narrow agenda even further they have so far succeeded in making the party less palatable to some while encouraging others to dig in their heels.

If their agenda is to improve the state of the country and for it to be more efficient what do they have planned to accomplish it? Who are they working with? Where were those voices before this new administration came to power? Or is their agenda strictly to obfuscate?  I don't see any workable coalition, just a bunch of wealthy white men who are using fear and a bullhorn to make themselves richer at the expense of those who haven't seen past their tactics - yet. 

As the Obama approval ratings show those who identify as Democrat and Independent have given a majority of their support. So it seems that if the malcontents of the Republican Party don't find a way to get with the program they're going to be left on the sidelines. Which is why this is a great time for people to set a more reasonable agenda and take the reigns from the grouchy grandpas who are up way past their bedtime. 

Condi Rice Continuing Her Lap Dance of Lies for Bush

Dr. Rice was the solo guest on Rose's show. She is articulate, intelligent and cunning. I'm certain she has many stories to tell - including a promised book about her parents that I'd definitely read. She is an anomaly and would be considered atypical to the usual portrayals of Black women people are used to seeing. She is her own person and doesn't give a damn what any of us think of her. 

For all of her accomplishments she is still stumping for the Bush administration and is a liar liar pants on fire about the events surrounding 9/11 and the takeover of Iraq. I don't care how well she looks as the lies spill from her ruby painted lips, she is still an agent for chaos. The irony is of course her rise in the Republican party would not have been duplicated had she been a Democrat. At least I don't think so. That fact is mostly bitter with little sweetness. She is certainly not unique in that many other minions of Bush did his bidding and the Democrats have their hands just as dirty for rubber-stamping everything. 

It's just Dr. Rice doesn't strike me as someone who does things she doesn't want to do - not unless it will benefit her long term goals. She's no pushover. She supports education across class structures and I hope to find some common ground where other women and even some Black women would be able to work with her. Why? She's a formidable ally. We need those that can hang tough when the rubber meets the road. So here's the interview. Take your medicine in small doses if you must, but I think this is a something to watch all the same.

Cashing In Politically 2009 and Beyond

As we begin this new year people often make declarations of all the things they'd like to accomplish with much fanfare. Often that enthusiasm for making sweeping changes does not include a long term plan. For example when we want to lose weight we tend to think we'll just stop eating x, y or z and think that will be it. For some people that does in fact work, but for others there may be underlying emotional causes. Often a quick fix is not the answer because a successful diet/weight loss plan has to last five (5) years for it to be considered a success. Even some of those reality show contestants on "The Biggest Loser" who won have regained the weight they lost within the first two years after they returned to their 'normal' lives. 

So many of us are counting on the incoming Obama administration to help us kick our political/mental/life apathy habit because we have gone too long trying to exist on too many carbs and not enough protein. We watched too much tv when we should've fed our minds with books. We stopped believing in ourselves and looked to others for validation. It never works in a way that is meaningful to us or sustaining. Whatever can be given can easily be taken away.  

From columnist Wanda Sabir of Wandaspicks:

The shift in consciousness between 2008 and 2009 is something palatable; almost the same type of anticipation greeted the move between centuries, twentieth into twenty-first, 1999-2000. People are planning to be on the Great Mall, standing along the Reflection Pool, in Washington DC, in front of the Lincoln Memorial, just to say they were there, even if they can’t see Obama in the flesh, they will feel Obama in the persons of all assembled. Many people have said that January 20, 2009 is an opportunity to start all over again— nine (9) is the end of the cycle and perhaps the Obama legacy will be one marked by participatory democracy and real change for all Americans, especially black Americans who have been carrying around checks stamped insufficient funds drawn on the bank of democracy and opportunity for too long.

I like the optimism that we as Americans and other citizens of the world have at the end of the Bush reign of terror. We have to live with how we got here and vow "never again". People who know better make better choices. It is not a coincidence that a little over two weeks before the end there's an outbreak of unresolved conflicts manifesting themselves in various ways. It is truly unfortunate but it may signal the acknowledgement that a sweeping shift in the status quo has yet to implemented but is here!  

Obama’s presidency is not the time to sit back and relax. No, it is a time for us to dust off our revolutionary armor, start training again, look at the strategies that worked and what didn’t, reestablishing ties to others and reaching out to like-minded individuals and organizations so that alliances can be developed to strengthen the movement which has been reinvigorated by this man’s personality and leadership—but he can’t, as he says, do any of this rebuilding America, on his own, and if you look at some of his appointees, you don’t want to let him do anything alone.

He has built his administration around those that would seek to take him out politically and undermine his authority. I think that sets a bad precedence as far as fairness and justice goes but it seems the smartest thing to do. I want accountability and I do not expect him to save me but I still think it's kinda pathetic that he has to do that in order to try to do some good. It's not as if those in the Democratic party are all in unison about wanting Obama to be truly progressive. Look how the DLC took Howard Dean out so easily - with the help of corporate media. I wasn't impressed with Gore or Kerry - and let's get real here - do you think these men would know how to hang out with working class people on a regular basis if it didn't involve politics? Those Blue Dog Dems didn't have their arms twisted to tightly to support Bush's policies either. 

He is a politician but I cannot deny I am overjoyed to have a Black First Lady. This is an opportunity for those who've been denied their due to step up. We have to be extra diligent and on our toes to ensure our political currency has retained its value and not decreased, but we need to be prudent in how we go about it.

From an interview between Ms. Sabir and Eartha Kitt in 2006: 

EK:  "I happen to like this country. Whatever problems we have in the United States of America we can always eradicate. We can get rid of it. We change our president, but you can't change a dictator or a monarch."

WS: It's kind of hard - we've had Bush for two terms now. He can't run again; however ….

EK: "That's only two terms, that's eight years and you've seen what someone does in eight years. … It's one party against another party. They are always so busy fighting each other that nothing ever gets done. At least Bush did something. You might not like what he did or is doing or not (doing); the point (is) we can change things in our own country."

WS: Okay. I'll hold onto that thought (I comment as we both laugh). Can you speak about art and politics and the important role of the artist in the healing of the world, the healing of this nation? Artists have a huge impact on society, and you have had a huge impact on society here and elsewhere. Can you talk about this and the responsibility of artists?

EK: "The responsibility of the artist? The responsibility of the artist is to do your work as best you can and hope the audience gets whatever message you are sending. Some of us are out there just playing a game for money and not saying anything. I have always wanted to not preach, but there is always a message in my act: don't worry about getting old; there is nothing you can do about it, so you might as well enjoy it.

"And don't complain about everything. One of the most horrendous things about us as Americans, in general, that is we complain about just about everything, and all of this negativism is surrounding our 'ism' of power, making it easy for the enemy to look at us and say, 'Those Americans are crazy, they don't even like themselves.'

"We should always be thinking positive thoughts in general to take care of that which we can take care of and to not worry about those things we can't take care of, that we can't do anything about. There is always something positive we can do to nudge things into a more positive direction. But as long as we're negative about everything, believe me, the news - we see enough negativity on the news, without our getting up in arms among ourselves, shouting down the country, shouting down the president. What good is that doing?

"It makes the enemy look at us and say, 'Look at them. They do not even like their own country. They don't even like themselves.'

"It weakens us even more than we have been weakened by whatever actions the government has taken. We're helping whatever it is we are complaining about; we're helping that complaint get stronger in its weakness than we are at making it stronger in a positive way.

"As artists, we should do the best we can and hope for the best. If someone asks me a question like you, I would give you my opinion. I don't believe in getting up on a soapbox against my government or against the president or against …. When I was against Vietnam, I was invited to the White House, and they sat me down at a luncheon with about 49 other women and they asked me asked questions and I gave them my opinion."

Needless-to-say, Kitt's response to the query about the war was met with surprise and disdain, ostracizing her from the government and endearing her to the public for her vocal stand for justice.

EK: "I always speak the truth, even to the newspapers, but I'm not going to shout down my government or my president 'cause we are defeating out own purposes in many ways."

WS: How is that?

EK: Her voice gets stronger and perhaps exasperated. "I just told you, we are helping the enemy. If we want to have some complaint, why not go talk to, what is it, our congressmen - one of these people who represent us. If we complain to them enough, personally, through phone calls and letters and what not, I think we'll get much further.  (We have the power to vote them out of office because let's face it, some of them are working against our interests)

"We can alienate a president to such an extent by shouting out loud, getting on a soapbox, you defeat your purpose with him or her because (the leader could) and most often responds: 'I'm not going to go in the direction they want me to go in; I am going to go in the direction I want to go - like Johnson, who said, 'I'll not be the first president to lose a war.'

"So the more we shouted against the Vietnam War, the longer he wanted it to go on and he did keep it going. There are ways of doing things without getting on a soapbox and shouting out loud and telling the enemy we don't like ourselves."

WS: You have to be strategic and smart.

EK: "Yeah. There is always a way of being diplomatic about everything to get whatever it is you want to get down done. Look at Martin Luther King; he didn't shout. He was very silent. Mahatma Gandhi, he didn't shout and get a stick and start beating people over the head. All he did was go sit down to defy that which was wrong. Gandhi did the same thing."

WS: I hadn't thought about their strategy and our current situation. I just know that the shouting is not working at all.

EK: "It's because you're in a hurry. Everything takes time. You're trying to knock down a wall too quickly. It takes time before these walls can be knocked down, but as long as you're nudging at it your way, like we artists are nudging at it in our way, we have no race, creed, color as far as I'm concerned.

We can all participate. Our roles may be different but we can work in concert with like-minded individuals to take down that wall that Ms. Kitt spoke of bit by bit.

Repost: The Latest Rumblings of War and Social Upheaval Are a Lesson in Dominance That We Should Learn Something From

*** I think this post deserves a second look since it got lost in the Holiday schedule ***

With news of India and Pakistan shoring up their borders after the violence in Mumbai last month as well as the bombings between Hamas and Israel, there will be plenty of commentary, bluster and hand-wringing. About how it's each government's right to defend themselves. About how unfair it is that innocent people die because of war mongering. There are even questions about WHY THESE CONFLICTS continue? Why are the US (and other countries) still in Iraq and what happened to all the oil? 

Personally all the fighting and conflicts make me ill, but I've come to realize that our lives are being impacted whether we choose to engage or not so we'd better pull our heads out of the sand. This isn't just about military actions in foreign countries. It's about home-grown "terrorism" when government declares war on its citizens. How certain groups jockey for power and some of us wonder how those people got to where they are while we're left in the dust. And blamed for being dusty. 

We need to understand all the players and figure out as much of their end game as possible. We need to know who their allies are and where they're getting their financial/political help and who their personal relationships are with. We need to know what the public press release states and accurately guess what the private agendas are. 

We need to know what we want for ourselves, our community and our country and then work on several courses of action. Then we need to decide whether who's going to work within the constructs of the systems in place and who will work outside of them. We need to make sure our plans have some chance of success as well and decide just how far we're willing to go to meet our goal(s). We need our own mentors and allies as well and to find out if we can find common goals. We need to recognize the cog in the wheel and how to grease it or put a wrench in it if necessary.

I don't think being critical of a government's action makes one unpatriotic or against a social/political/ethnic/religious group. It is the act of manipulation and subterfuge to deflect scrutiny to suggest otherwise. It is also a nice strategy at avoiding outside accountability. One thing I have realized this year is that most of us do not know how to think outside the box, think critically at all or are operating out of some level of naivete. I'm including myself in that evaluation. We need to do a lot of catching up but I sense the dumbing down of society greatly benefits those people who are deploying campaigns for world domination.

That domination includes land, natural resources, meme setting, family structure, religion, control of industries, media images, finance, food distribution and everything else under the sun. Those that want control want a permanent underclass of poor workers and higher earners who will fight with their peers over what they see as bread and butter issues that are in fact tools of spreading dissent. Fractured movements can't gain traction.

I'm not exactly sure what the specific solutions are because I think there are many. It depends on the situation and those impacted. I think we have to continue to question things and look for a new way of handling conflicts. We need to gird our loins physically, mentally, emotionally, financially and every other way. We don't need to be perfect, though. Some plans are just meant to be thwarted and subverted. As soon as we figure out what track we're on and how to run that particular race we can decide how best to infiltrate from within and lay waste to it. 

In 2009 we can continue to study how nations rose to power and how they eventually fell, but how certain people within the borders managed to survive while others did not. We can study how social movements gained traction within governments where there was opposition but it was negotiated around. We can also look to see where people won a great victory, had a plan but didn't think beyond that immediate moment in time. Like with Civil Rights where a lot of people are doing worse today than 40 years ago. 

That's why I will pull the theme of the original Matrix film about how humans are being controlled and most people accept the 'program' without question. Those few that don't have to reach out to the resistance, take a pill (which is symbolic for the decision to be free), get out and retrain their bodies and minds for 'war'. Everyone that is still in the Matrix can be used to thwart their efforts and are to be considered their enemies. This is about simultaneously dismantling the system of oppression and looking to free more people. Even after being freed some people will want to go back to mediocrity and ignorance. So being ever diligent and constantly vetting allies for shared goals is always necessary.