Life, Love, and Liberty

There is another Carnival of Anarchy this weekend, and the announcement by Eugene Plawiuk awaits you below:

Our next carnival will be held the weekend of May 25-27 the theme with be Anarchy and Spirit, that includes religion, spirituality, (such as liberation theology, anti-religion, paganism, gnosticism etc.) as well as art and music.

For example I would refer you to Scriabin as an example of the breadth of this topic…

Scriabin, previously interested in Friedrich Nietzsche’s übermensch theory, also became interested in theosophy, and both would influence his music and musical thought. In 1909-10 he lived in Brussels, becoming interested in Delville’s Theosophist movement and continuing his reading of Hélène Blavatsky (Samson 1977). Theosophist and composer Dane Rudhyar wrote that Scriabin was “the one great pioneer of the new music of a reborn Western civilization, the father of the future musician,” (Rudhyar 1926b, 899) and an antidote to “the Latin reactionaries and their apostle, Stravinsky” and the “rule-ordained” music of “Schoenberg’s group.” (Ibid., 900-901).

I am still pondering what my contribution will be, but I am leaning towards something related to art or music.

This week’s digest is a bit light on the number of categories, but I am starting a song of the week feature. I am turning to more music for solace, in these increasingly destructive political times.

HPV and Corporate Welfare

One minute, the government tells you “don’t do drugs”, and the next moment: they are telling you that you have to do them!

Ron Paul Said It

For once, I am contemplating voting for a Republican.

For Those Interested in Facts: They Hate Our Foreign Policy

Quite a good summary of the anti-imperialist case against the “war of terror”; I mean: “war on terror”

The “Value” of Public Schooling

Jacob Hornberger makes a comparison between the structure of the military and the schooling system.

An Epidemic of Meddling: The totalitarian implications of public health

Live and let live is badly needed.

Swinging, Beautifully

What do you think of when you see this picture?

Song of the week=Bohemian Rhapsody.

I have a thing for Queen. They are a most excellent band!

But I am perhaps most intolerant, not of Christians per se, not of faith, certainly not of radiant self-defined spirituality, not even of organized religion, though I do fully believe more independent spirits and raw human souls and moist sexual licks have been lost to its often narrow-minded and cosmically rigid brainwashing techniques than have ever been saved. But hey, that’s just me.I am most intolerant of, well, of those who allow such intolerance. Of those who would, based on their narrow views of sex, God, love, hope, war, the mind, the Earth, soil and animals and air and water and fire and love and spirit and drugs and guns and dildos, work to legislate those neoconservative beliefs, codify them, make them the law of the land, force their regressive beliefs on everyone else under punishment of violence and beatings and prison. I am, in short, intolerant of intolerance.

Oh, let us be clear. I love diversity, religious pluralism, peace and love and pacifism and good drugs and open-mouthed sensuality, happy to let you believe in any god you like and marry any gender you like and let you love how you will and be in full control of your sex and your body and your mind.

This, to me, is the America worth fighting for. These are the laws I support. Don’t believe in abortion? Don’t understand gay people? Sexuality make you rashy? Think Harry Potter teaches kids evil and witchcraft? Don’t marry a sexy gay witch abortionist. But don’t you dare, based on your limited understanding of God and life, make laws declaring that I can’t.

Mark Morford speaks the language of liberty! I actually have some further thoughts to add on this, but that’ll have to wait until I am less sleepy.

Stay tuned!

Blues Singer’s Woman Permitted To Tell Her Side

CLARKSDALE, MS-Ida Mae Dobbs, longtime woman of Willie “Skipbone” Jackson, called a press conference Tuesday to respond to charges levied against her by the legendary Delta blues singer.

From the Annals of Drug War Absurdity

Yeah, like, ’cause this happens all the time…

Marijuana is apparently a cause of incest, but only if you’re driving!

Because They Can: The Logic of the Torture State

Warning: not a good piece to read if you have a weak stomach.

Speaking of Needless Death and Destruction

Progress Report: Redefining Forward Motion in Iraq

This week’s digest is heavy on the Chris Floyd since I’ve really been enjoying his intensely passionate denunciations of the Bush Administration’s war policy.

The “No Mercy” Doctrine Strikes Again in Afghanistan

Afghan civilian deaths have been making the headlines — at least, on Antiwar.com — more often lately, so I’ve got to wonder if the U.S. government is headed down the same path that the Russians took in the country.

Fallujans Defiant Amidst Chaos

This is an older piece that I uncovered when sifting through some past emails in a cleaning out operation. I encourage individuals to consider donating money to Dahr Jamail’s project since independent reporting and photography from Iraq is very important.

From Cultural Items to Miscellaneous

Real World Politics and Radical Libertarianism

I’d wanted to highlight this in the past, but it slipped my mind. It’s a most excellent piece with one of my favorite parts being:

“One reason people hate privatization is because they think of huge contracts to corporate cronies and Wall Street or the contracting out of prisons to private enterprise – as if a company making money off of people being treated worse than animals is somehow a move toward the libertarian vision.”

Bravo!

Reassessing Political Correctness

More intriguing thoughts from Anthony Gregory.

Talkin’ To The Steering Wheel
When everyday tech is nearly identical to magic, why don’t our little bodies explode?

Mark Morford talks of a sense of wonder about life and human accomplishments.

Just a short digest this week, and you can view it online here.

Brad Spangler lets us know about a triple whammy of anarchist and/or libertarian media fundraising drives. If you’re interested, then here are the three sites:

-Antiwar.com

-Rational Review

-Infoshop.org

I’ve made use of all three sites before, but the one I visit the most is Antiwar.com. It’s a very good site for keeping up with news related to foreign policy.

Love offers the model of perfect communication: the orgasm, the total fusion of two separate beings. It is a glimpse of a transformed universe. Its intensity, its here-and-now-ness, its physical exaltation, its emotional fluidity, its grateful acceptance of the value of change - everything indicates that love will prove the key factor in recreating the world. Our emotionally-dead survival cries out for multidimensional passions. Lovemaking sums up and distils both the desire for, and the reality of, such a way of life. The universe lovers build of dreams and one another’s bodies is a transparent universe: lovers want to be at home everywhere.

-Raoul Vaneigem

Be Nice to Illicit Drug Users

Remove the Drug War Roadblock to Education

Eeek! Cultural stigma directed against the “bad” (as opposed to alcohol and caffeine users) drug users isn’t cool

Lots of Bloody Links

1 Iraqi = 1 American = 1 Englishman, etc…

Theater of Death

Arthur Silber takes the Democrats to task for proposing a plan that doesn’t
really end the occupation of Iraq. Where is the drive for impeachment? Talk
to Dennis Kucinich.

Songs of Death

The Democratic presidential candidates are not looking very good on the
issue of war with Iran; except for Dennis Kucinich. He is the guy I’d like
to see in office, if the Democrats end up winning. I am going with Ron Paul as my favorite Republican. Of course, the
ideal is that the presidency will disappear in 2008

Fallujah Revenge and the War Disease

This is an older article, but I recently watched the documentary, Caught in
the Crossfire: The Untold Story of Falluja, again.
The destruction detailed in it had me turning away from the screen a bit. I
felt like it was important to highlight it, for those who aren’t so familiar
with it.

Beleaguered Iraqis now fear their own security forces more than the
insurgents

Patrick Cockburn is usually a good guy to read on Iraq.

Civil Liberties: From Democratic to Military Dictatorship?

Blueprint for Dictatorship: Recent legislation sets us up for tyranny

America’s Coming Dictatorship: The theory and practice of oligarchical
“conservatism”

Two related articles from Justin Raimando.

Economics Can Be Very Intriguing

Socialism, American-Style: Why American CEOs covet a massive European-style
social-welfare state.

Why pay benefits when the welfare state can pick up the tab? I actually have
only two objections to the welfare state:

1. Its funding by taxation.

2. Its use as a system of social control.

More on that later! Ok, I want to write a blog post about this now

The Goal Is Freedom: Labor’s “Right to a Free Market”

Sheldon Richman provides a more sympathetic take towards labor unions, then
you’d expect, if you view libertarians as “Republicans who smoke pot”

Organized Capital vs. Organized Labor

Kevin Carson adds his two cents!

Musings on Cultural Matters

The Hippies Were Right! Green homes? Organic food? Nature is good? Time to
give the ol’ tie-dyers some respect

Has a shift towards a more environmentally conscious culture occurred? Mark
Morford gives us his take.

Erotic Poetry Time

July Night at Owl Park

I’d like to read more poetry. Would folks be kind enough to give me some
suggestions?

Your Weekly Onion Pick

Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel Or Something To That Effect

My favorite part: “We should go back to my place and do some math. We’ll add
a bed, subtract our clothes, and do other math stuff related to fucking.”

Lol!

Chessic News and Updates

So, I don’t have any chess related links to highlight, but I did want to
announce that I am working on a new chess blog post. It’ll be an exploration
of a romantic/Bohemian chessic spirit. That’s kind of the rough idea I
have; right now.

Just a notice that I’ll be revising past writings on here. I felt a need to let people know since Bloglines may note it.

The Global Marijuana March is happening this Saturday. There will be a march going on in Kansas City with live music to follow.

Here is a message from MoHemp:

When: 05 May 2007, 12:00 PM
Where: JC Nichols water fountain
50w 47th st
Kansas City, MO 64112
United States

I’ll be there to show my support and see who I can meet. I’d like to promote the ideas I put forward in this post, but I don’t know if they are of much use in the present cultural climate. I do think that making people more aware of the right of jury nullification may be the best one to adopt. I plan on doing a bit of research tomorrow, so I can speak to people about it at the event.

Death to the drug war! Ok, that’s my militant war cry moment