"Hands" by Jewel

Song: Hands
Author: Jewel

If I could tell the world just one thing
It would be that we're all OK
And not to worry 'cause worry is wasteful
And useless in times like these
I won't be made useless
I won't be idle with despair
I will gather myself around my faith
For light does the darkness most fear

My hands are small, I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken

Poverty stole your golden shoes
It didn't steal your laughter
And heartache came to visit me
But I knew it wasn't ever after
We'll fight, not out of spite
For someone must stand up for what's right
'Cause where there's a man who has no voice
There ours shall go singing

My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
I am never broken
In the end only kindness matters
In the end only kindness matters

I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
We are never broken

We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's mind
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's heart
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's eyes
We are God's hands
We are God's hands

Water

This picture was sent to me via an email from Asheville PARC (People Advocating Real Conservancy).  It is a picture of the source of my drinking water.  I love my drinking water here in Asheville, even with the fluoride and chlorine in the water.  I think it tastes pretty good, and I know it is from the rain that falls locally, and there is no industrial plants near the source of our water, and there are no other cities using our water first.  After we are done with our water, it gets treated and then put into the French Broad river.  Newport and Knoxville are two cities who re-use our water via the French Broad river.  It is not as good for them as it is for us.

And today, Asheville's water is under threat.  A local Representative is threatening to privatize our water system, and rumor has it that the water is needed in the eastern part of the state for fracking.  I will fight this.

Here is the email message I got about this:

Control of Asheville's water is under threat!

A legislative committee in Raleigh is considering forcing the City of Asheville to transfer control of its water supply to an outside agency.

While the Asheville system serves customers throughout Buncombe County, the majority of customers live in Asheville.

Still, we may find ourselves at the mercy of people who did not pay for the system, we cannot vote for or against, or hire or fire.

At the same time, in a separate committee, a majority of these same legislators are working on a process that could lead to privatization of water utilities all over the state.

We are told the two are unrelated...

The first meeting of the committee eyeing Asheville's water is in Raleigh on Monday, Jan. 23rd.

The second will be in Asheville sometime in late February.

There will be a third and a fourth, and then the committee may put forward legislation that takes away control of our water and gives it to someone else.

This is wrong, and it must not be allowed.

Visit www.ashevillewater.blogspot.com for more information and ways to get involved.

You can listen to the first meeting on Jan. 23rd starting at 2 pm, by going to the City of Asheville website, www.ashevillenc.gov, and clicking on the "NCLEG.NET" button.

Upcoming events in the Asheville area this week

Occupy Asheville camp, January 29, 2012

UPCOMING EVENTS

01/30/12 DEMOCRATIC PARTY CAMPAIGN/JOB FAIR
If you would like to work or volunteer for a campaign in 2012, come out to the Bar of Soap on Merrimon Ave. near UNC Asheville between 7 and 9 PM. This event will focus on state and local races in 2012.  There will be District maps, lists of races (with declared candidates), and lots of room to discuss how to help folks find the work they want in the various campaigns this season. All of our local candidates are invited to attend as well and will hopefully be there to talk with you.  

 
02/01/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
River Canoeing Adventures and a brief update from Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson, about the new French Broad River paddling camps.  Social is at 7 PM and program starts at 7:15 PM.  Location is Unitarian Church at 1 Edwin Place in Asheville.

02/02/12 VETERANS FOR PEACE MEETING
Time is 6:30 PM and location is VFP HQ at the Phil Mechanic Studios: 109 Roberts Street (the corner of Haywood and Roberts), Asheville. VFP CHAPTER 099: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/

02/04/12 MARTIN LUTHER KING BREAKFAST - BLACK MOUNTAIN
The Rev. Aubra Love is the keynote speaker for the Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast in Black Mountain, NC on Saturday, February 4, 2012, at Camp Dorothy Walls, AME Conference Center. All are invited and encouraged to attend.  For more information, please contact Tom Cannon, MLK Breakfast Committee (828)778-7166.

02/04/12 NO WAR ON IRAN DAY
A Call for a National Day of Actions Nationwide to say: NO WAR, NO SANCTIONS, NO INTERVENTION, NO ASSASSINATIONS! Plan a street protest in your location.  

02/04/12 GREEN PARTY MEETING
The Buncombe County GREEN Party's business meeting is free & open to the public. It will be held from 10AM to noon, upstairs in the Fortune Building, 729 Haywood Rd., West Asheville. Contact Ronald @ 828-LUCK180 or Larry @ 828-225-4347 for more information.

02/04/12 PEACE CONCERT
Cecilia St. King is a Peace Troubadour (www.ceciliastking.com).  Her concert will last an hour and a half -- Saturday, February 4, 6:30 PM at Bo Thomas Auditorium at Blue Ridge Community College in Hendersonville.  She is sponsored by the Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence -- is very interfaith and is being sponsored by the United Religions Initiative of Henderson County in celebration of Global Interfaith Harmony Week sponsored by the United Nations.  Do Come!

02/05/12 BUSKERS FOR CHANGE
A benefit for the buskers of downtown Asheville as well as the Asheville Homeless Network.  Performers are Matt Getman, Sparrow, Fox Black, Nathan Robicheau & Kayvon Kazemini, Drayton and more.  This event is not during your normal business hours for Rosetta's Kitchen.  Rosetta will be providing a cauldron of delicious soup.  Time is from 6 to 9 PM.

02/10/12 UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH MOVIE NIGHT
The movie “A Sense of Wonder - the Rachel Carson Story” will be shown at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Asheville at the corner of Edwin and Charlotte Street.  Time will be 7 PM.  Donations accepted.  Contact David Williams for more information at devwilliams@juno.com.

02/17/12 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL EVENT
Marjory Wentworth, who is the co-author of Taking a Stand, The Evolution of Human Rights, will be speaking about a book that she co-wrote with former Amnesty Prisoner of Conscience, Juan Mendez.  Méndez is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and boasts a long and fearless legal career as a human rights defender. Marjory Wentworth is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet whose books of poetry include Noticing Eden, Despite Gravity and The Endless Repetition of an Ordinary Miracle. Her award winning book Shackles, is a children's story. She is the Poet Laureate of South Carolina.  It's open to the public and free!  Starts at 7 pm.  Location is Malaprop's Bookstore & Cafe in downtown Asheville.

02/17/12 WNC PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY MEETING
Bring a brown bag lunch around noon. The meeting will officially start at 12:30 and end about 2:00.  Physicians, health personnel and, yes, everyone; all are welcomed at our monthly meetings!  DIRECTIONS:  (Location is in vicinity of Veterans Hospital) Proceed east on Tunnel Rd./US 70 (away from downtown Asheville) to about one short block prior to the Blue Ridge Pky overpass. Turn right (south) on Pleasant Ridge Dr., then turn right on the second street, Wagon Rd., then immediate left on Birchwood Lane to #18 on the left side of the street. For more information contact Dr. Terry Clark, Chair, 633-0892 or Dr. Lew Patrie, 299-1242.

02/18/12 SKILL SHARING SCHOOL
On Saturday, February 18th, Transition Asheville's Skill Sharing Action Group is co-hosting an all day free skill share at UNCA's Highsmith Union. Please follow this link for more information and to fill out a brief questionnaire about a skill you have to offer on the 18th, other skills you have, other places you might be interested in sharing your skills, and skills you have an interest in learning more about.  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/embeddedform?formkey=dEZLM29tZjBpa3BldG9oaGFHQmNZeGc6MQ    We thank our partners for distributing this survey through their networks: Transition Asheville, Freeskool Asheville, the True Nature Country Fair, ASHE (Active Students for a Healthy Environment), the UNCA Student Environmental Center, and Wild Abundance (the organizers of the Firefly Gathering).  The School is from 9:30 to 5:30 PM and location is UNCA Highsmith Union.  For more information:  http://transitionasheville.org/event/skill-share-school  

02/23/12 MOVE TO AMEND MEETING
Time and place TBD.

02/27/12 to 03/11/12 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL DAYS OF ACTION AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE USA

03/07/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
The Executive Director of Riverlink will discuss current initiatives, including the use of oil eating bacteria to help clean some of the French Broad riverfront soil.  Social is at 7 PM and program starts at 7:15 PM.  Location is the Unitarian Church at 1 Edwin Street in Asheville NC.

03/13/12 - 03/15/12 CARING FOR CREATION WEEKEND AT CAMP JUNALUSKA
Dr. Bill McKibben, environmental author and founder of 350.org, will be a featured presenter at Caring for Creation 2012 March 13-15, 2012, at Lake Junaluska. Caring for Creation, a faith based eco justice event, will explore ways individuals and churches can become more environmentally conscious and good stewards of God's Earth.  Named for the safe level of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere, 350 parts per million, 350.org is an international grassroots campaign that aims to mobilize a global climate movement. For over 20 years, McKibben has been environmentally active, releasing over a dozen books and various articles examining climate change.  More information at this link:  http://www.lakejunaluska.com/caring-for-creation/  

03/17/12 WNC PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Bring a brown bag lunch around noon. The meeting will officially start at 12:30 and end about 2:00. Physicians, health personnel and, yes, everyone; all are welcomed at our monthly meetings! For more information contact Dr. Terry Clark, Chair, 633-0892 or Dr. Lew Patrie, 299-1242.

05/01/12 OCCUPY CHICAGO
Adbusters has issued a Call to Action to Occupy Chicago for the G8/NATO summit this coming May:  “Hey you redeemers, rebels and radicals out there, Against the backdrop of a global uprising that is simmering in dozens of countries and thousands of cities and towns, the G8 and NATO will hold a rare simultaneous summit in Chicago this May. The world’s military and political elites, heads of state, 7,500 officials from 80 nations, and more than 2,500 journalists will be there.  And so will we.  On May 1, 50,000 people from all over the world will flock to Chicago, set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and #OCCUPYCHICAGO for a month. With a bit of luck, we’ll pull off the biggest multinational occupation of a summit meeting the world has ever seen.”

05/11/12 to 05/12/12 ALEC SPRING MEETING
Spring Task Force Summit Meeting in Charlotte NC.  “ALEC, ALEC, YOU CAN’T HIDE, WE WILL FIND YOU NATION-WIDE!”

05/18/12 to 05/21/12 NATO and G-8 SUMMIT IN CHICAGO
“Won’t you please come to Chicago, for the help that we can bring?  We can change the world, rearrange the world, it is dying - to get better.”

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ONGOING EVENTS
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SUNDAY
Episcopal Peace Fellowship holds a weekly vigil from 4:30 to 5 PM at All Soul's Cathedral.

TUESDAY
Veterans for Peace have a weekly vigil at 4:30 PM at Pack Square, Vance Monument

WEDNESDAY
Haywood Peace Vigilers have a weekly vigil at 4 PM at Haywood Country Courthouse in Waynesville.
Asheville Cop Watch meeting at 5 PM at Firestorm Cafe.

THURSDAY
Asheville Homeless Network meeting at 2 PM at Firestorm Cafe.

FRIDAY
Women in Black have a vigil at 5 PM at Pack Square (Asheville) on the first Friday of the month.
Women in Black have a weekly vigil at noon at the Old Courthouse in Hendersonville

SATURDAY
Transylvanians for Peace and WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have a weekly vigil at noon in front of the courthouse in Brevard.

OCCUPY WALL STREET ASHEVILLE
Go to www.occupyasheville.org for more information, or call 888-378-0788. Information on Occupy Asheville late breaking events:  http://occupyasheville.org/calendar/.  General Assembly will be held at 6 PM on Tuesday and Thursday and at 3 PM on Saturday.  Location TBD.

PROTEST THE DNC!
Already, organizations and Occupy movements across the country are making plans to mobilize to be in the streets of Charlotte during the DNC. For more information on the Coalition to Protest at the DNC and to find out how your organization can join, please visit http://protestdnc.org.

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ACTIONS AND READINGS
*******************************************

Take action:  Sign a petition to stop SOPA and the money the vote on SOPA brings to US Congress members.

Our nation's laws can't be bought. Tell Congress to give back the MPAA’s dirty SOPA money:   

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Take action:  No immunity for mortgage banksters:

The Obama Administration has been working on a sweetheart mortgage fraud settlement with the big banks, but attorneys general in several states are pushing back.

Encourage leading attorneys general to stand strong.

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Take action:  Sign the statement letting Schneiderman know that if hejails Wall Street lawbreakers, the American people have his back.

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Take action:  The Town of Chapel Hill: End theunconstitutional limits on the use of public places in Chapel Hill

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TRANSITION ASHEVILLE DISCUSSION GROUPS FORMING NOW

Coming soon to your neighborhood!  Learn why the transition movement is sweeping the world.  Discussion groups are forming now for the Transition Handbook and Transition Companion! The Transition Handbook is the vision for the future:  Hope instead of fear - learn how we can create the kind of future we want to see.  The Transition Companion is the latest book by Rob Hopkins, reporting on all the wonderful activities that have and are taking place in all the Transition Initiatives around the world - chock full of great ideas!

CONTACT INFO:  To join the Transition Handbook discussion Group: Contact Stan Corwin colnstash@att.net or 254-3515.

To join a Transition Companion discussion group, find the one nearest to you:

Discussion group West - contact Chas Jansen cjansen@mtsu.edu 768-1449

Discussion group North - contact Maureen Linneman reenielin@gmail.com 254-9115

Discussion Group East - contact Stan Corwin colnstash@att.net 254-3515

(Handbooks and Companion books can be purchased from Stan Corwin)

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First we take Manhatten

First We Take Manhattan
REM

Leonard Cohen

They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom

For trying to change the system from within

I'm coming now I'm coming to reward them

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

I'm guided by a signal in the heavens

I'm guided by this birthmark on my skin

I'm guided by the beauty of our weapons

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

[Lyrics from www.EasyLyrics.org]

I'd really like to live beside you, baby

I love your body and your spirit and your clothes

But you see that line there moving through the station

I told you I told you I told you I was one of those

You loved me as a loser but now your worried that I just might win

You know the way to stop me but you don't have the discipline

How many nights I prayed for this: to let my work begin

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

I don't like your fashion business, mister

I don't like these drugs that keep you thin

I don't like what happened to your sister

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin (chorus)

And I thank you for those items that you sent me

The monkey and the plywood violin

I practiced every night and now I'm ready

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

Remember me, I used to live for music

Remember me, I brought your groceries in

It's Father's Day and everybody's wounded

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

[Lyrics from www.EasyLyrics.org]

I don't like what happened to your sister

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin (chorus)

And I thank you for those items that you sent me

The monkey and the plywood violin

I practiced every night and now I'm ready

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

Remember me, I used to live for music

Remember me, I brought your groceries in

It's Father's Day and everybody's wounded

First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

Energy and resources

How we get our energy to function in this modern age shows a real lack of respect for the environment.  So does our quest to get materials for our consumer products.  It also shows how we are destroying our planet - and thereby committing mass suicide.

Coal ash spill in TN in 2008

 Cooper mine in Utah
Open pit copper mine run by London-based mining conglomerate Rio Tinto/Kennecott in Bingham Canyon, Utah.  It is the world's largest open-pit mine and has created the world's largest mining-related water pollution problem. (Photo: arbyreed)

Fracking in Washington County, PA

 

Gas explosion

A massive fire is roars through a mostly residential neighborhood in San Bruno, Calif., Thursday, Sept. 9, 2010. Firefighters from San Bruno and surrounding cities are battling the blaze that started on a hillside and is now consuming homes in a residential neighborhood. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

Coal pollution in China

Mountain top removal in West Virginia

Polluted water

Coal pollution in the USA

Fracking

Just a week after Halliburton had refused to release information on its hydraulic fracturing fluids to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the company promised to disclose the chemicals generally associated with fracking—and it announced the creation of a new, safer fluid.

Nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl

Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico

Cumulative BP oil slick footprint as of July 16, 2010 (graphic: SkyTruth.org via Flickr)

Oil spill

Red Tide: 
Fertilizers in the gulf of Mexico

Making war possible....

Chuck Brodsky "We are each other's angels"

Obama

For anyone on the left who's tempted to relapse into 2008 euphoria by the president's early-campaign turn to rhetorical populism, this remains as true as it always was: Obama is not your ally who's been co-opted; he's your enemy who is co-opting you.  — John Caruso

Protest and actions at the DNC in September 2012

Subject: Elena Everett is the state contact for those groups interested in joining the broad coalition to protest at the DNC in Charlotte

I hope all is well for you all as we move into 2012 - what's sure to be an insane political year.  I've been working with a number of groups in Charlotte, the South, & across the country to start to form a coalition of independent organizations to work together to coordinate plans, actions, and activities for the DNC in Charlotte this year.

We are formally launching the coalition on January 18 at a press conference in Charlotte. We currently have 30 organizations from around the country, and 8 prominent social justice leaders who have endorsed the coalition.

Below is the Call to Action & the Principles of Unity.  All groups are asked to endorse the call to action & the principles, they would then be invited to have up to 2 folks on the steering committee of the coalition.  The primary goals are to help facilitate communications between groups, help to promote each other's events, and to coordinate some larger events, outreach, and media messages together.  Please give me a call with any questions.  I'd be happy to talk to anyone at more length about the coalition.
Take care,
Elena Everett

---------- Forwarded message ----------

TEXT OF THE CALL TO ACTION & CHARLOTTE PRINCIPLES SEPTEMBER 2012: COALITION TO PROTEST AT THE DNC IN CHARLOTTE, NC

We Demand:
Good jobs for all! Economic justice now -- Make the banks and corporations pay for their crisis!
Money for education, health care, housing and all human needs, not for war and incarceration!
Justice for immigrants and all oppressed peoples!  Stop the raids and deportations!

In September of 2012, the social justice movements of the United States have an opportunity and obligation to use the spectacle of the Democratic National Convention as a platform to raise people's demands for justice on the world stage.  Progressives from around the state, from across the South and from all over the country will converge in Charlotte to oppose policies of the Democratic Party and their banking cronies. Charlotte is the "Wall Street of the South."  With the world headquarters of Bank of America and the East Coast headquarters of Wells Fargo, it is the second largest concentration of finance capital in the U.S., after New York City.

We need a people's movement for justice for the 99%.

Economic crises at home and abroad intensify while jobs and vital services have been cut at municipal, state and federal levels. The Democrats and Republicans are pushing austerity programs while simultaneously brokering deals that bail out and benefit banks and large corporations.  Public workers in North Carolina and Virginia are denied their right to collectively bargain, and workers elsewhere across the country are seeing this right under attack. Under the Democratic Party, the reach of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) expanded and deportations skyrocketed. U.S. wars abroad have extended and the US continues to spend billions in Afghanistan and Iraq. U.S. war drones fly over the Middle East and Africa. Antiwar and international solidarity activists are targeted in FBI raids and Grand Jury witch hunts while we continue to fight for freedom for long-incarcerated U.S. political prisoners like Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu-Jamal. We have seen a rise in bigotry and political targeting of Muslim and Arab people. We want to see justice and equality for Black, Native, Latina/o peoples, for women and for LGBTQ peoples.  We must call for a moratorium on foreclosures and evictions! We oppose the attack on our planet by big corporations; we must continue the fight for environmental justice and demand our right to a healthy air, land, and water.

Now more than ever we need a powerful mass movement that can challenge the pro-war, pro-Wall Street agendas of the two corporate parties. We see the seeds of this movement all around us.  Join the Coalition to Protest at the DNC to plan actions and events that will take place during the convention. Read through our Principles of Unity (adapted from the St. Paul Principles & Chicago Principles). Then begin working with us to develop plans for Charlotte, as we come together in resistance to the economic crisis, the banks, the wars and all the attacks on working people!

OCCUPY THE DNC!
OCCUPY WALL ST SOUTH!
----------------------------------------
Charlotte Principles
Adapted from the Chicago and St. Paul principles

a.. We are opposed to all forms of oppression. We condemn and oppose racist, sexist, or homophobic demonstrations planned for the DNC.
b.. Our solidarity will be based on respect for the widest possible diversity within the struggle for social, economic and environmental justice. As individuals and groups, we may choose to engage in a diversity of tactics and plans of action but are committed to treating each other with respect and working towards a common goal of peace and justice.
c.. As we plan our actions and tactics, we will take care to maintain appropriate separations of time and space between divergent tactics.

d.. We oppose any state repression of dissent, including surveillance, infiltration, disruption, limiting our action to "free speech zones," and violence, or attempts to divide our movement through the conscious creation of divisions regarding tactics, organization, strategies, and alliances.
e.. Any debates or criticisms will stay internal to the movement, avoiding any public or media denunciations of fellow activists and events.

US Marines murder 24 innocent people, all let off the hook for the crime

Today, the final person to be charged in the Haditha massacre entered into a plea bargain.  

The final US Marine to face charges over the killing of unarmed Iraqi civilians in Haditha in 2005 has pleaded guilty to dereliction of duty.  Sgt Frank Wuterich was one of eight Marines charged with murder or failure to investigate the killings. but now faces just three months in jail.  The charges against six were dropped or dismissed, and one was acquitted.  Sgt Wuterich reached a plea deal to bring an end to the most notorious case against US troops from the Iraq war.  He faces a maximum of three months confinement, two-thirds forfeiture of pay and a demotion to the rank of private.  Before the plea, he faced several counts of manslaughter.

The above quote came from BBC News. 

This is beyond disgusting.  These Marines murdered 24 innocent people after they were hit by an IED.  And now, NONE of these murderous Marines have suffered any punishment, and they are walking around the USA scot-free. 

Here are some video reports on the Haditha massacre.






The US Marines lied about this massacre, and the US military covered it up.  And then they thought so little of the whole murderous incident, they did not even bother to destroy the evidence:

One by one, the Marines sat down, swore to tell the truth and began to give secret interviews discussing one of the most horrific episodes of America’s time in Iraq: the 2005 massacre by Marines of Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha.  “I mean, whether it’s a result of our action or other action, you know, discovering 20 bodies, throats slit, 20 bodies, you know, beheaded, 20 bodies here, 20 bodies there,” Col. Thomas Cariker, a commander in Anbar Province at the time, told investigators as he described the chaos of Iraq. At times, he said, deaths were caused by “grenade attacks on a checkpoint and, you know, collateral with civilians.” 

The 400 pages of interrogations, once closely guarded as secrets of war, were supposed to have been destroyed as the last American troops prepare to leave Iraq. Instead, they were discovered along with reams of other classified documents, including military maps showing helicopter routes and radar capabilities, by a reporter for The New York Times at a junkyard outside Baghdad. An attendant was burning them as fuel to cook a dinner of smoked carp. 

The documents — many marked secret — form part of the military’s internal investigation, and confirm much of what happened at Haditha, a Euphrates River town where Marines killed 24 Iraqis, including a 76-year-old man in a wheelchair, women and children, some just toddlers.

The above information came out in December 2011 in the NYT.

Upcoming events in the Asheville area this week

UPCOMING EVENTS

01/23/12 BUILDING BRIDGES
“Going Beyond Racism through Understanding and Respect”  This Building Bridges session will last for nine consecutive Mondays, from 1/23/12 to 3/19/12.   It will be held at 121 Hendersonville Road, Asheville, which is the new MAHEC campus.  Time is 7 to 9 PM.  Register at www.buildingbridges-asheville.org or call 828-777-4585.

01/26/12 MOVE TO AMEND MEETING
Time and place TBD.

02/01/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
River Canoeing Adventures and a brief update from Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson, about the new French Broad River paddling camps.  Social is at 7 PM and program starts at 7:15 PM.  Location is Unitarian Church at 1 Edwin Place in Asheville.

02/02/12 VETERANS FOR PEACE MEETING
Time is 6:30 PM and location is VFP HQ at the Phil Mechanic Studios: 109 Roberts Street (the corner of Haywood and Roberts), Asheville. VFP CHAPTER 099: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/

02/04/12 MARTIN LUTHER KING BREAKFAST - BLACK MOUNTAIN
The Rev. Aubra Love is the keynote speaker for the Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast in Black Mountain, NC on Saturday, February 4, 2012, at Camp Dorothy Walls, AME Conference Center. All are invited and encouraged to attend.  For more information, please contact Tom Cannon, MLK Breakfast Committee (828)778-7166.

02/04/12 NO WAR ON IRAN DAY
A Call for a National Day of Actions Nationwide to say: NO WAR, NO SANCTIONS, NO INTERVENTION, NO ASSASSINATIONS! Plan a street protest in your location.  

02/05/12 BUSKERS FOR CHANGE
A benefit for the buskers of downtown Asheville as well as the Asheville Homeless Network.  Performers :  Matt Getman, Sparrow, Fox Black, Nathan Robicheau & Kayvon Kazemini, Drayton and more.  This event is not during your normal business hours for Rosetta's Kitchen.  Rosetta will be providing a cauldron of delicious soup.  Time is from 6 to 9 PM.

02/10/12 UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH MOVIE NIGHT
The movie “A Sense of Wonder - the Rachel Carson Story” will be shown at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Asheville at the corner of Edwin and Charlotte Street.  Time will be 7 PM.  Donations accepted.  Contact David Williams for more information at devwilliams@juno.com.

02/17/12 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL EVENT
Marjory Wentworth- Co Author of Taking a Stand, The evolution of Human Rights.  Marjory will be speaking about a book that she co-wrote with former Amnesty Prisoner of Conscience , Juan Mendez—Taking a Stand, The Evolution of Human Rights. Méndez is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and boasts a long and fearless legal career as a human rights defender. Méndez draws on both his expertise and personal experience as a political prisoner to deliver a comprehensive treatment of the core human rights concerns that the world faces today. Marjory Wentworth is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet whose books of poetry include Noticing Eden, Despite Gravity and The Endless Repetition of an Ordinary Miracle. Her award winning book Shackles, is a children's story. She is the Poet Laureate of South Carolina. It's open to the public and free!  Starts at 7 pm.  Location is Malaprop's Bookstore & Cafe in downtown Asheville.

02/18/12 SKILL SHARING SCHOOL
On Saturday, February 18th, Transition Asheville's Skill Sharing Action Group is co-hosting an all day free skill share at UNCA's Highsmith Union. Please follow this link for more information and to fill out a brief questionnaire about a skill you have to offer on the 18th, other skills you have, other places you might be interested in sharing your skills, and skills you have an interest in learning more about.  We thank our partners for distributing this survey through their networks: Transition Asheville, Freeskool Asheville, the True Nature Country Fair, ASHE (Active Students for a Healthy Environment), the UNCA Student Environmental Center, and Wild Abundance (the organizers of the Firefly Gathering).  Time is 9:30 to 5:30 PM and location is UNCA Highsmith Union.

02/23/12 MOVE TO AMEND MEETING
Time and place TBD.

02/27/12 to 03/11/12 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL DAYS OF ACTION AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE USA

03/07/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
The Executive Director of Riverlink will discuss current initiatives, including the use of oil eating bacteria to help clean some of the French Broad riverfront soil.  Social is at 7 PM and program starts at 7:15 PM.  Location is the Unitarian Church at 1 Edwin Street in Asheville NC.

03/13/12 - 03/15/12 CARING FOR CREATION WEEKEND AT CAMP JUNALUSKA
Dr. Bill McKibben, environmental author and founder of 350.org, will be a featured presenter at Caring for Creation 2012 March 13-15, 2012, at Lake Junaluska. Caring for Creation, a faith based eco justice event, will explore ways individuals and churches can become more environmentally conscious and good stewards of God's Earth.  Named for the safe level of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere, 350 parts per million, 350.org is an international grassroots campaign that aims to mobilize a global climate movement. For over 20 years, McKibben has been environmentally active, releasing over a dozen books and various articles examining climate change.  More information at this link:  http://www.lakejunaluska.com/caring-for-creation/  

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ONGOING EVENTS
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SUNDAY
Episcopal Peace Fellowship holds a weekly vigil from 4:30 to 5 PM at All Soul's Cathedral.

TUESDAY
Veterans for Peace have a weekly vigil at 4:30 PM at Pack Square, Vance Monument

WEDNESDAY
Haywood Peace Vigilers have a weekly vigil at 4 PM at Haywood Country Courthouse in Waynesville.
Asheville Cop Watch meeting at 5 PM at Firestorm Cafe.

THURSDAY
Asheville Homeless Network meeting at 2 PM at Firestorm Cafe.

FRIDAY
Women in Black have a vigil at 5 PM at Pack Square (Asheville) on the first Friday of the month.
Women in Black have a weekly vigil at noon at the Old Courthouse in Hendersonville

SATURDAY
Transylvanians for Peace and WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have a weekly vigil at noon in front of the courthouse in Brevard.

OCCUPY WALL STREET ASHEVILLE
Go to www.occupyasheville.org for more information, or call 888-378-0788. Information on Occupy Asheville late breaking events:  http://occupyasheville.org/calendar/. General Assembly will be held at 6 PM on Tuesday and Thursday and at 3 PM on Saturday.  Location TBD. 

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ACTIONS AND READINGS
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Take action:  Sign petition against war with Iran   

We won't wait for the bombs to drop to make our voices heard. Tell President Obama that another war isn't what this country needs!  The crisis in the Straits of Hormuz and reports the US is backing off efforts to stop a military strike by Israel represent a threat to our security greater than that posed by Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program.  Recent history proves war isn't working. We expect the US to use every means at its disposal to prevent a strike on Iran by Israel and pursue a diplomatic resolution to the dispute over Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program.

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Take action:  Write letter to Senator Burr and SenatorHagan against military action on Iran:

I just wrote a letter against war with Iran through the Friends Committee on National Legislation's website.  I hope you'll take a look at their action alert and do the same. Take action now - use the Friends Committee on National Legislation's website.  

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Take Action:  Sign Senator Sander’s petition to overturn Citizen’s United decision.

http://sanders.senate.gov/petition/?uid=f1c2660f-54b9-4193-86a4-ec2c39342c6c

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And here is Rep. Kucinich’s petition on overturning Citizen's United:

Overturn Citizens United: Sign the petition today to support H.J. Res 100. Let us change our campaign financing system so that we can truly claim to be a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

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Take Action:  Sign petition against censorship in Arizona

Banning books. Erasing History. Save Ethnic Studies in Arizona.

Last week, the Tucson school board outraged the nation when they cancelled its high schools' Mexican American Studies program and forcibly banned a series of books dealing with race. The reason? Apparently teaching respect for other cultures amounts to "racial hatred" and is in violation of Arizona's statewide ban against ethnic studies - passed in conjunction with SB1070.  With Latino students in Tucson making up more than half of the student population - educators, parents, and students are fighting back. Can you sign this petition to Superintendent John Pedicone and the school board to reverse the decision to ban the books and reinstate the program?

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Take action:  Protect Egyptian protestors from U.S. weapons

Last year, Egyptian protestors stormed Tahrir square and braved violent government crackdowns. One year later, Egypt’s new military government is still attacking protesters with weapons and equipment that sometimes say "Made in the USA."  As recently as July 2011, the U.S. government authorized the sale of tear gas to the Egyptian military government - despite the fact that since February 2011, the armed forces in Egypt have repeatedly used tear gas and other weapons to forcibly disperse protesters.  Urge the U.S. State Department to stop authorizing the shipment of weapons, ammunition, and equipment that Egypt's government could use to violently suppress human rights.

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Take Action:  Write an email:

A NEW NUCLEAR POWER PLANT 60 MILES FROM ASHEVILLE?  ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF CORPORATE GREED OVER PUBLIC NEED!

A new nuclear power plant is proposed near Gaffney, SC just 60 miles from Asheville.  Below are instructions on how to make a public comment on this proposed nuclear plant (to be called the William States Lee Nuclear Plant or Lee Nuclear Plant) and talking points that you can use.  The deadline for written comments is March 6. 2012.  Always reference document by putting this in the subject line of email or at the top of a written letter:   “76 FR 79228, December 21, 2011”

You can email your comment to:   LEE.COLAEIS@NRC.GOV

You can mail your comment to:
Chief, Rulemaking and Directives Branch       
Office of Administration                                                                     
Mail Stop: TWB-05-B01M                                                                        
US Nuclear Regulatory Commission                                                       
Washington, DC  20555-0001                                                                

TALKING POINTS CONCERNING THE PROPOSED LEE NUCLEAR PLANT

1)  Nuclear Power Is Dangerous:  Radiation exposure damages reproductive cells, immune system—causes genetic mutations and cancer, spontaneous abortion, mental retardation, spina bifida, heart disease, leukemia and more. (National Academy of Sciences, World Health Organization).   The truth is we are all are at risk.  According to the National Academy of Science, there is no safe level of radiation. You cannot taste it, smell it or see it.  Health effects can show up 10-30 years later. The NRC chief reported to Sen. Barbara Boxer in a recent report that 26 million potassium iodide tablets have been distributed to States.  US population is 310.5 million.  The so called 10 mile and 50 mile risk area around nuclear plants doesn’t hold true to the people and children of Belarus, victims of 1986 Chernobyl fallout who are still suffering debilitating diseases as a result of contamination from 124 miles away.  In Japan, Fukushima has sent fallout to Tokyo and Asheville is 3 times closer to Gaffney’s proposed nuclear site.  The NRC quotes the research done from the Chernobyl accident where thyroid cancer in children who ate radioactive food supplies OUTSIDE the safety zones was reported.  There is also Chernobyl Heart, a genetic disorder in which children in Ukraine are born with holes in their hearts.  Is nuclear worth this kind of risk and human suffering?

2) Broad River:  Lee Nuclear Plant would use 47 million gallons of water per day with 75% loss through evaporation. Two large cooling lakes, (one is a 3 day back-up) would steam and cool 2 reactors that produce as much heat as 1200 atomic bombs. Even the NRC calls the Broad River “small” and climate changes suggest possible droughts.  Shut down could happen due to lack of water for cooling; a very dangerous occurrence.  It currently supports a hydropower station, the huge Cliffside coal plant only 16 miles upriver and Summer nuclear plant (1 reactor, 2 more proposed) downstream near Columbia, SC.   After use, water is returned to the river as “thermal pollution” (warm water) which stresses fish, other animals living in the area and negatively impacts the surrounding environment.  The SC Dept of Natural Resources lists the Carolina Fantail Darter fish that lives in the Broad River as “critically imperiled” in South Carolina & warns of “high conservation priority”.

3) Money Problems:  Price tag for the 2 nuclear reactors has grown from $11 to $14 billion.  Duke Power wants customers, 70% in NC and 30% in SC, to pay pre-construction costs through rate hikes in addition to taxpayers shouldering the entire financial risk through Federal Loan Guarantees.  Another Bail-Out in the making! Wall Street won’t invest because as the Congressional Budget Office says, default rate on loans for new reactors “very high well above 50%”. Duke and Progress said their proposed merger was the only way to build more nuclear but the Fed. Govt. has refused the request twice in opposition to such a large monopoly.  The estimated start-up date is from 2018 to 2020.

4) Uranium Mining: Uranium fuel is not a renewable or clean source of energy.  Miners have been diagnosed with lung diseases, cancer. Uranium mining releases radon from the ground into the atmosphere. Mines and mining waste can release radionuclide, including radon and other pollutants to streams, springs, and other bodies of water.

5) Nuclear Waste:  Storing radioactive waste on-site has contaminated ground water at many reactor sites. After more than 40 years of commercial radioactive waste generation, there is no long term location to keep it safe and contrary to many claims, no way to “recycle” it. Out of 104 US reactor sites, 100 have contaminated soil leading to contaminated ground water.  Why will Lee be different?  Nuclear waste remains radioactive for millions of years. This is critical to safety planning. There is Currently 145 million tons of waste at 77 US sites.

6) AP1000 Westinghouse Reactor:  Rep Ed Markey’s statement: “Instead of doing all they should to protect nuclear reactors against seismically-induced ground acceleration, these Commissioners (NRC) voted to approve the acceleration of reactor construction.  They have fast-tracked construction of a reactor whose shield building could ‘shatter like a glass cup’ if impacted by an earthquake or other natural or man-made impact”.  This is a new design, that has never been built, that is proposed for 14 new reactors in the Southeast.

More info:       NIRS.ORG /  NCWARN.ORG  /  BREDL.ORG / CLEANENERGY.ORG / MARKEY.HOUSE.GOV  /  NRC.GOV

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Stay informed to protect Asheville’s water!

Control of Asheville's water is under threat!  A legislative committee in Raleigh is considering forcing the City of Asheville to transfer control of its water supply to an outside agency.  While the Asheville system serves customers throughout Buncombe County, the majority of customers live in Asheville.  Still, we may find ourselves at the mercy of people who did not pay for the system, we cannot vote for or against, or hire or fire.  At the same time, in a separate committee, a majority of these same legislators are working on a process that could lead to privatization of water utilities all over the state.  We are told the two are unrelated...

The first meeting of the committee eyeing Asheville's water is in Raleigh on Monday, Jan. 23rd.

The second will be in Asheville sometime in late February.

There will be a third and a fourth, and then the committee may put forward legislation that takes away control of our water and gives it to someone else.

This is wrong, and it must not be allowed.  Visit www.ashevillewater.blogspot.com for more information and ways to get involved.  You can listen to the first meeting on Jan. 23rd starting at 2 pm, by going to the City of Asheville website, www.ashevillenc.gov, and clicking on the "NCLEG.NET" button.

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Photos from Move to Amend Rally in Asheville on 1-20-12

The rally was held in Pritchard Park, and after three speakers, the protesters moved to the sidewalk in front of the Federal Building.  This was part of the "Occupy the Courts" movement and was organized by the Move to Amend Asheville group and the Nonviolent Direct Action Working Group of Occupy Asheville.  It was a great rally.

Theresa Cusimano

There is but one law for all: the law of humanity and justice. - Jimmy Carter

From an email from SOA Watch:

Those words adorn the wall inside the courtroom of Judge Stephen Hyles at the Columbus Georgia courthouse. And there they remain - strong words that ring hollow in face of injustice, merely adornments.

Theresa Cusimanocrossing the line.

For her act of peacefully crossing the line at Fort Benning, Georgia – a misdemeanor offense - a 6-month sentence was imposed on Theresa Cusimano. Those who train men with guns at the SOA/WHINSEC, those who created those torture manuals, have never had to defend their actions, yet Theresa is being sentenced to six months in prison for nonviolently calling attention to the US military's role in the violence carried out against her sisters and brothers in the Americas. 

Theresa Cusimano wrote the following statement to Judge Stephen Hyles before her sentencing, telling him that his complicity goes on record today as obstructing international justice and U.S. Rule of Law, and that she wished that he had the courage of Father Roy and the honor of being a subversive.:

"22 years ago, Father Roy Bourgeois played a recording of Bishop Romero's final homily from the day before he was assassinated by School of the America graduates. Romero was labeled a subversive for identifying with the poor. Roy was so sure that once Romero's community heard this homily, their hearts would be changed. So he climbed a tree with his friends, replaying Romero's words to Salvadoran soldiers who were being trained at the School of the Americas to kill their brothers and sisters. Roy wore a Navy uniform representative of his military service in Viet Nam. Because of this action, Roy and his friends joined this circle of "subversives" by shining light on the truth of how the
U.S. was spending our tax dollars on its gambling game known as U.S. foreign policy. In this dirty war business "subversives" become fair game for U.S. trained and financed militias while the U.S. continues to profit, sitting back and watching the body count grow, with mass graves filled with hundreds of thousands of mutilated children, raped women and countless, faceless corpses of unknowing communities.

Who are we?

Columbus is a proud community that does not deserve the stain that the Schools of the Americas brings. The Fort's barbed wire fence was not built to aid and abet the U.S. from international accountability for the human rights crimes facilitated by the SOA, violating U.S. statutes requiring transparency, not to mention military ethics. Yet you handcuff, videotape and fingerprint me as a criminal.

It seems we are in a bit of a stalemate. Our prisons are over filled, and our courts underfunded. Yet, you, Stephen Hyles, allow this expensive stalemate to continue. You pretend we are here for trespass, wasting precious resources, ignoring talent and idealism that could be put to better use. Because the Columbus magistrates do not recuse themselves despite their conflicts of interest, because you continue to deny defenses that would allow this debate to come to light. Since international law experts are not granted admission to this hearing, you and I are here today on Friday the 13th... you forced to listen and me sentenced to your prison, as a peaceful protestor. Nowhere else but in Georgia can such extreme sentencing be found to protect a base with a tagline, Maneuvers in Excellence. Is this what you call excellence? I want my tax dollars back. I suppose I should be grateful to make use of my tax dollars in another boondoggle economy that lacks accountability, the U.S. prison system.

I beg your pardon while you make a mockery of justice and we pay the price. General Eisenhower warned us of this stalemate as he left the White House. He warned that the military complex would suck all of the resources our country needed for its people, our schools, our hospitals to fuel its addiction to war. Nobel Peace Laureate Bishop Desmond Tutu begs Americans to, "Stop exporting U.S. warfare." My witness today Judge Hyles, is to hold you accountable, for the schools that will close this year, the veteran benefits that will be too expensive to make good on, the national service programs like AmeriCorps that will be threatened because you sat silent as precious resources fund the renamed School of the Americas in its latest Honduran coup. You may not hold a machete, or ask children to detonate the landmines used in U.S. financed coups with the protections of a soldier trained here, but your complicity goes on record today as obstructing international justice and U.S. Rule of Law.  You have other choices. I only wish you had the courage of Father Roy and the honor of being a subversive.

With employment at an all-time low, who are we to challenge Georgia's largest employer? We are 300 prisoners of our conscience who have served more than 100 years in prison, collectively. We are supported by hundreds of thousands of protestors. Our legislative campaign with no real funding comes within ten votes of inviting accountability. Today you could choose justice, Judge Hyles... it's well within your reach."

*Theresa Cusimano, SOA Watch Prisoner of Conscience, January 13, 2012*

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Before carrying her protest onto the base in November 2011, Theresa addressed thousands of human rights activists at the gates of Fort Benning with a request:

"...Our message is not being heard in Congress, our lawmakers have been purchased by other priorities, so youth and students in the movement ask for you to help us in the Court of Public Opinion and go online to the Daily Show's Facebook page, register in for their Forum. Request that Father Roy be invited onto the Daily Show, and the Colbert Report. Don't stop until we get Roy's voice into the media mainstream, Hardball with
Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow, Keith Olbermann and the Sunday morning circuit. Don't let my civil action go to waste."

"Almost Gone" by Nash and Raymond

A tribute to Bradley Manning, who is a hero of mine.  He has suffered greatly for his release of information about the US Government and US military that the world needed to know.  I wish there were more people like Bradley Manning.

The evil the US did in Fallujah

Of the current problems in Fallujah, the most alarming is a mounting public health crisis. In the years since the invasion, doctors in Fallujah have reported drastic increases in the number of premature births, infant mortality, and birth defects—babies born without skulls, missing organs, or with stumps for arms and legs. Fallujah General Hospital reported that, out of 170 babies born in September 2009, 24 percent died within the first seven days, of which 75 percent were deformed — as compared to August 2002, when there were 530 babies born, only six deaths, and one deformity. As the years go by, the problem seems to be getting worse, and doctors are increasingly warning women not to have children.

Rest of the story here.

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What the American people have done to Fallujah is massively, massively evil.

Protest against the war on Iraq - 9 years ago

Half a million people marched on Jan. 18, 2003, in opposition to the looming war on Iraq—the largest anti-war demonstration in Washington, D.C., since the Vietnam era.

Photo came from an A.N.S.W.E.R. email.

More Ron Paul

This video is on "Humanitarian Bombing" and the hideously evil results.  I don't like Ron Paul's domestic policies, but his positions on war and violence are outstanding in my opinion.  I am so sick of US politicians and Americans who don't give a shit about the violence they visit on other people.  This video includes scenes from the US/NATO bombing in Libya.  It is beyond shameful. 

Excellent ads by Ron Paul

In this first one, Paul tries to show how our occupations of foreign countries is indefensible.



This second ad is about the recent lies concerning Iran.  It reflects on how we were lied into war with Iraq.  It shows how Ron Paul clearly called out this war propaganda back then, and still is today.

Martin Luther King Jr Holiday

Pilgrimage to Nonviolence

By Martin Luther King, Jr.

Excerpted from "Stride Toward Freedom" in 1958

The philosophy of nonviolence - 
Since the philosophy of nonviolence played such a positive role in the Montgomery movement, it may be wise to turn to a brief discussion of some basic aspects of this philosophy.

First, it must be emphasized that nonviolent resistance is not a method for cowards; it does resist. If one used this method because he is afraid, he is not truly nonviolent. That is why Gandhi often said that if cowardice is the only alternative to violence, it is better to fight. He made this statement conscious of the fact that there is always another alternative: no individual or group need ever submit to any wrong, nor need they use violence to right the wrong; there is the way of nonviolent resistance. This is ultimately the way for the strong man. It is not a method of stagnant passivity. The phrase "passive resistance" often gives the false impression that this is a sort of "do-nothing method" in which the resister quietly and passively accepts evil. But nothing is further from the truth.  For while the nonviolent resister is passive in the sense that he is not physically aggressive toward his opponent, his mind and emotions are always active, constantly seeking to persuade his opponents that he is wrong. The method is passive physically, but strongly active spiritually. It is not passive resistance to evil, it is active nonviolent resistant to evil.

A second basic fact that characterizes nonviolence is that is does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent, but to win his friendship and understanding. The nonviolent resister may often express his protest through noncooperation or boycotts, but he realizes that these are not ends in themselves; they are merely means to awaken a sense of moral shame in the opponent. The end is redemption and reconciliation. The aftermath of nonviolence is the creation of the beloved community, while the aftermath of violence is tragic bitterness.

A third characteristic of this method is that the attack is directed against forces of evil rather than against persons who happen to be doing the evil. It is evil that the nonviolent resister seeks to defeat, not the person victimized by the evil. If he is opposing racial injustice, the nonviolent resister has the vision to see that the basic tension is not between races. As I like to say to the people in Montgomery: "The tension in the city is not between white people and Negro people. The tension is, at bottom, between justice and injustice, between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. And if there is a victory, it will be a victory not merely for 50,000 Negroes, but a victory for justice and the forces of light. We are out there to defeat injustice and not white persons who may be unjust."

A fourth point that characterizes nonviolent resistance is a willingness to accept suffering without retaliation, to accept blows from the opponent without striking back. "Rivers of blood may have to flow before we gain our freedom, but is must be our blood," Gandhi said to his countrymen. The nonviolent resister is willing to accept violence if necessary, but never to inflict it. He does not seek to dodge jail. If going to jail is necessary, he enters it "as a bridegroom enters the bride's chamber."

One may well ask: "What is the nonviolent resister's justification for this ordeal to which he invites men, for this mass political application of the ancient doctrine of turning the other cheek?" The answer is found in the realization that unearned suffering is redemptive. Suffering, the nonviolent resister realizes, has tremendous educational and transforming possibilities. "Things of fundamental importance to people are not secured by reason alone, but have to be purchased with their suffering," said Gandhi. He continued: "Suffering is infinitely more powerful than the law of the jungle for converting the opponent and opening his ears which are otherwise shut to the voice of reason."

A fifth point concerning nonviolent resistance is that it avoids not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. The nonviolent resister not only refuses to shoot his opponent but he also refuses to hate him. At the center of nonviolence stands the principle of love. The nonviolent resister would contend that in the struggle for human dignity, the oppressed people of the world must not succumb to the temptation of becoming bitter or indulging in hate campaigns. To retaliate in kind would do nothing but intensify the existence of hate in the universe. Along the way of life, someone must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate. This can only be done by projecting the ethic of love to the center of lour lives.

In speaking of love at this point, we are not referring to some sentimental or affectionate emotion. It would be nonsense to urge men to love their oppressors in an affectionate sense. Love in this connection means understanding, redemptive good will. Here the Greek language comes to our aid. There are three words for love in the Greek New testament. First, there is eros. In Platonic philosophy eros meant the yearning of the soul for the realm of the divine. It has come now to mean a sort of aesthetic or romantic love. Second, there is philia which means intimate affection between personal friends. Philia denotes a sort of reciprocal love; the person loves because he is loved. When we speak of loving those who oppose us, we refer to neither eros nor philia; we speak of love which is expressed in the Greek word Agape. Agape means understanding, redeeming good will for all men. It is an overflowing love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless, and creative. It is not set in motion by any quality or function of its object. It is the love of God operating in the human heart.

Agape is disinterested love. It is a love in which the individual seeks not his own good, but the good of his neighbor (1 Cor. 10-24). 'Agape does not begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people, or any qualities people possess. It begins by loving others for their sakes. It is an entirely "neighbor-regarding concern for others," which discovers the neighbor in every man it meets. Therefore, agape makes no distinction between friend and enemy; it is directed toward both. If one loves an individual merely on account of his friendliness, he loves him for the sake of benefits to be gained from the friendship, rather than for the friend's sake. Consequently, the best way to assure oneself that love is disinterested is to have love for the enemy-neighbor from whom you can expect no good in return, but only hostility and persecution.

Another basic point about agape is that it springs from the need of the other person - his need for belonging to the best of the human family. The Samaritan who helped the Jew in the Jericho Road was "good" because he responded to the human need that he was presented with. God's love is eternal and fails not because man needs his love. St. Paul assures us that the loving act of redemption was done "while we were yet sinners" - that is, at the point of our greatest need for love. Since the white man's personality is greatly distorted by segregation, and his soul is greatly scarred, he needs the love of the Negro.

The Negro must love the white man, because the white man needs his love to remove his tensions, insecurities and fears. Agape is not a weak, passive love. It is love in action. Agape is love seeking to preserve and create community. It is insistence on community even when one seeks to break it. Agape is a willingness to sacrifice in the interest of mutuality. Agape is a willingness to go to any length to restore community. It doesn't stop at the first mile, but goes the second mile to restore community. The cross is the eternal expression of the length to which God will go in order to restore broken community. The resurrection is a symbol of God's triumph over all the forces that that seek to block community. The Holy Spirit is the continuing community creating reality that moves through history. He who works against community is working against the whole of creation. Therefore, if I respond to hate with a reciprocal hate I do nothing but intensify the cleavage in broken community. I can only close the gap in broken community by meeting hate with love. If I meet hate with hate, I become depersonalized, because creation is so designed that my personality can only be fulfilled in the context of community. Booker T. Washington was right: "Let no man pull you so low that he makes you hate him." When he pulls you that low he brings you to the point of working against community; he drags you to the point of defying creation, and thereby becoming depersonalized.

In the final analysis, agape means recognition of the fact that all life is interrelated. All humanity is involved in a single process, and all men are brothers. To the degree that I harm my brother, no matter what he is doing to me, to that extent I am harming myself. For example, white men often refuse federal aid to education in order to avoid giving the Negro his rights; but because all men are brothers they cannot deny Negro children without harming their own. They end, all efforts to the contrary, by hurting themselves. Why is this?  Because men are brothers. If you harm me, you harm yourself.

Love, agape, is the only cement that can hold this broken community together. When I am commanded to love, I am commanded to restore community, to resist injustice, to meet the needs of my brothers.

A sixth basic fact about nonviolent resistance is that it is based on the conviction that the universe is on the side of justice. Consequently, the believer in nonviolence has deep faith in the future. This faith is another reason why the nonviolent resister can accept suffering without retaliation. For he knows that in his struggle for justice he has cosmic companionship. It is true that there are devout believers in nonviolence who find it difficult to believe in a personal God. But even these persons believe in the existence of some creative force that works for universal wholeness. Whether we call it an unconscious process, an impersonal Brahman, or a Personal Being of matchless power and infinite love, there is a creative force in this universe that works to bring the disconnected aspects of reality into a harmonious whole.

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This reading is from The Class of Nonviolence, prepared by Colman McCarthy of the Center for Teaching Peace, 4501 Van Ness Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20016 202/537-1372

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I am posting this piece to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., and all people who struggle for justice via non-violent change around the world.