Good morning!

I was curious yesterday how my blog has changed from a few years ago to today. Strictly speaking I was only curious about my writing. Not my writing style but the actual length and content of my writing.  My big question was this: “Was I personally writing more back then?” I was nervous that I wasn’t giving enough of myself to this blog as I used to.

I thought that I was writing a lot more years ago, but when I went back and looked, what I found I didn’t expect. Yes, I did personally write more but most of my writing was blog comments to my readers, with very little writing in the form of “topic content”. (And I rarely re-posted articles) Only a few paragraphs there. That surprised me. I had envisioned that I was writing long, flowing, content full writes. Nope, I wasn’t.

No wonder I have felt that writing my blog takes me so much more time than it used to. It actually does. I am actually spending more time reading and doing research than I used to, and I am writing a lot more.

But wait a minute, let me correct myself. What I should really say is that the daily write is longer because I am not only doing my monologue (most of the time. {Or is it sometimes now?} ), but there is more content to copy and paste, and more readers to respond to, than let’s say 3 years ago, or even 2.

My writing also changed when I turned into a political animal during the 2008 elections. I became involved in the election, and turned into a major news junkie who just couldn’t get enough. And because I began to include more writes from other authors, I of course had to link back and give credit.

And I began to write more about the happenings in the world and less about the happenings in my life. And that itself is more difficult, in more ways than I need to say. Let’s just say that it takes more focus and brain power.

And even now, logistically I do more. It takes quite some time to link all of my comments in response, back to your original comments. I like doing this though because it helps my readers be able to stay easily connected with whatever is said between me and my readers. The reality is I am giving more…a different kind of more, than I used to.

It may look like it is easy to pull it all together and post every morning but I can tell you it isn’t. Some days are easier than others and some days the format just wants to do it’s own thing, and I’m constantly adjusting. It can be a bitch, especially when I am on a time constraint. But I deal as best as I can. But hey, the bottom line is, I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t love it.

So why am I telling you all of this? I really have no idea. I guess I just found it interesting to go back, way back, and read. And I wanted to share with you what I discovered. And then well…my fingers just kept tapping every other thought that came after, so I HOPE you don’t mind.

So now you have it; the backside of a blog view in a nutshell :) I’m done.

so what about today’s topic?

I’m going to be brief and just blog a few sentences on “kindness”.

I am still so impressed with the Wisconsin protestors for sticking with their beliefs by fighting for their rights. And evidently so is the pizza man. Ian’s Pizza in Madison, got bombarded the other day with over 40 phone calls from supporters who wanted to buy pizza for the protestors who were demonstrating a block away at Wisconsin Capital.

I am guessing the Owner Ian Gurfield, was inspired by the local and country wide hospitality that he decided to join in on the fun and support the protestors himself, by giving out free pizza to those walking into his pizza parlor.  Gurfield gave out the next 600 slices free to the protestors who packed his parlor.

Kudos to the supporters and Gurfield for their kindness and generosity!

…….

Josie: Thanks for posting the article. The other day Shawn posted about the poisonous vaccines that have been given to humans. So of course our four-legged furry friends would not be treated any better. The Rabies vaccine is the only one that we give Lucy every three years. And I’m hesitant to do that but like for cats it is the law. Do you have anything that you can post about vaccines for dogs? I would appreciate it! Thanks.

Emily: This one was cute. How are you? You have been posting these little funnies for me and my readers for quite some time now but I have no idea who you are as a person.

Tiffany: I think your “feeling” is correct. My gut was more like me in my haste yesterday morning. What can I say..this girl is not always right on. :)

Readers: What’s on your mind today? Care to share? Blog me.

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2011

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Thank you all for the Valentine wishes – I HOPE that everyone enjoyed themselves!

Nawzad, Lashkar Gah, Shulgareh, Kushka, Mazar-E-Shaif, Chaghcharan: My concern is always for women and especially women when it concerns their rights, or should I say lack of rights. And I am being gentle here. Perhaps I should be blunt and say that I am especially concerned for women who are treated with less respect than animals, less rights than animals, women who are abused, raped and murdered, simply because they are women.

I perused the net reading the latest articles about Egypt hopeing that I would read something that broached the subject of women and their future now that Mubarak has resigned as president. Nothing was mentioned. It’s all about the men, their quest, their needs.

It wasn’t until I googled “How will Egypt’s revolution affect women?”, that I found anything. And even then, it was slim pickings. It seems there is much talk about everything else, and very little on how women will fare in this country’s fight for democracy. Just whose fight is it?

Will It Get Worse for Women in Egypt After the Protests?

“I’d rather have Mubarak than an Islamic government,” a woman in the street wearing a full black niqab told NOS, a Dutch news service yesterday. Seeing the fear in her eyes makes it hard for me to feel excited for the revolution. Though there has been footage of women in the streets, looking through most recent photos from Cairo, I see an ocean of men. (Read more on women in the Egyptian protests in Slate.) Women appear to be almost completely absent from any wide-angle shot you see of the protests at this point, and those I do see are often in Western clothes, speaking to the cameras with American and English accents. They are not representative of the majority of Egypt’s women, who are working class and in hijab.

Though Mubarak has been in power for too long, and violated the human rights of his people, for the average Egyptian woman, there is the potential for things to get far worse. The position of women in Egypt has already declined in the past two decades.

You could blame it on the stagnant economy, which could of course be blamed on Mubarak’s bad policies. On even a normal day, thousands of men loiter in the streets of downtown Cairo. Young and unemployed, most have never had a normal sexual partner. This kind of young, male frustration manifests itself in religious devotion, aggressive sexual harassment, or both. The Egyptian streets have become increasingly conservative, and women, in turn, have covered up.

Look at photos from 20 years ago and you’ll see women in skirts that show their calves, their hair and make-up done. These days, the women’s car (I dare you to ride in the men’s section during rush hour) on the Cairo subway smells from the sweat trapped by layers of black polyester. Subway reading material of choice is the Koran, held open and aloft by black-gloved hands, read through eye-obscuring lenses. And 85 percent of Egyptian women have had their clitorises removed, a practice that Suzanne Mubarak campaigned to end, citing its African, rather than Islamic origins.

Once Mubarak is gone, the climate of the country will still be frustrated and devout. The real will of the common Egyptian could be dangerous to women. A recent public opinion survey in Egypt showed that 80 percent of men think it is OK for a husband to beat his wife for speaking to another man, one-third of men and women believe that it is OK to resort to violence if a woman refuses sex. Acid attacks and honor killings are already far too commonplace, but they have been condemned by the current administration. A new government could turn a blind eye to domestic abuse or even worse. The new government will have to actively engage women in the political process in the increasingly hard-line country to keep their oppression from seeming democratically sanctioned. Revolutions have begun like this in other countries—Iranian women certainly thought they were getting something far different for themselves when they took to the streets to depose the corrupt Shah—only to leave women suffering and invisible behind metaphorical and literal curtains when the dust settled.

Jessica Olien is a Washington D.C. based writer.

Kushka and June: I can only imagine what happened to Lara Logan was devastating. And yet I know this is something that Muslim women deal with everyday. Thank you to the women who helped her. I too wish for a quick recovery for Lara Logan. Perhaps although her experience was incredibly horrific, she will pull out of it stronger, and something good will come from it in some manner. I wish her well.

In similar vein, I read this:

Still, in what is coming across to many as offensive, or even a sick joke, a journalist named Nir Rosen called Logan a “war monger” who would probably become a “martyr” for having been attacked.

Rosen, 33, Tweeted: “Lara Logan had to outdo Anderson [Cooper]. … Yes yes its wrong what happened to her. Of course. I don’t support that. But, it would have been funny if it happened to Anderson too.”

Although some of the comments subsequently were removed from Rosen’s Twitter page, Jeffrey Goldberg, a correspondent for The Atlantic wrote: “Rosen found humor in the fact that Logan was sexually assaulted in Cairo. Apparently, Rosen doesn’t understand much about violence against women; he also doesn’t seem to understand much about Twitter.”

Of course it is a man who finds humor in the brutal abuse of women. Sickening.

Readers: Not only are Egyptian men guilty of the above abuse, but Egypt also has a sexual harassment problem. In a 2008 study, 86 percent of women said they had been harassed on Egypt’s streets—any woman walking through a crowd of men in Egypt braces to get groped.

Men abuse women.

(Not “All” men. That’s for you men out there who are new to my blog; to my writing, and are maybe feeling a little defensive)

We see it happen. We talk about it, and hear about it, right here on my blog.

American women are not immune from the abuse. Yes, the abuse can be and is very brutal. And yes the abuse can be more subtle, more sly, more covert, than the abuse of Muslim women. But non the less, abuse is abuse in any form, and abuse is here too.

Physical abuse is obvious and hard to miss. The interesting thing is, so many American women don’t realize it, but on a daily basis we are dissed just because we are women, and men think of us not as equals. Things are said and done by men to women, that wouldn’t happen, if a man instead of a woman was in the equation. Even in humor, as I mentioned above, women are the brunt of jokes. We just have to pay attention and notice the nuance, or it will surely, slyly slip past us. And it does slip past many women.

While pondering the plight of women, while feeling once again frustrated and at a loss of what to do, I thought to myself yesterday, ”If men don’t give a shit about women here in our own country…if men don’t support and protect and honor and respect women right here in our own country, why  would they ever give a damn about women half way across the world in Egypt, or Iraq, or Iran or…that they have absolutely no connection to?” You already know what the answer is.

So when we talk about men standing up in support of women….when we talk about men taking a stance and refusing to buy oil in countries such as Iraq, unless they demanded that the men treated their women as equal, we can say almost without doubt, “I’m sorry, but it’s not going to happen. I’ll say it again,  ”If men don’t give a shit about women here in our own country…if men don’t support and protect and honor and respect women in our own country, why  would they ever give a damn about women half way across the world in Egypt, or Iraq, or Iran or…that they have absolutely no connection to?”

So your sentiment Lashkar Gah, “…Thus muslim world women are being oppressed by Western men equally as they are by muslim men”, I’m sad to say,  is right on.

Still in spite of it all, I have not lost HOPE.

Lisa: I am disgusted by how we treat animals, our meat that provides us nourishment (?) in big factory farms. And people eat way too much meat per week. If people just ate less meat per week, and purchased only good quality meat (organic/grassfed) demanding only the best quality, we could put these big farms to rest. But cheap is what people go for.  You are what you eat is something that not enough people take to heart. Thanks for posting.

Doug: This was such a disappointing article to read. I signed that petition and this morning I have been reading even more about the monster Monsanto. Maz is right when he says that we shit on our own range. And we’re eating all of the shit. This won’t be the last of my writes concerning Monsanto. Thanks.

Victor: Thanks for expressing your loving words in recognizing all that your sister and women do. You are a wonderful brother.

Peace out.

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2011

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Acts of racism is something that takes place on a daily basis. Some acts are blatant…in our faces, and some we have to really pay attention…really notice the nuance to see the everyday acts of racism that are there, but are delivered with much more subtlety.

I discovered one of these subtle acts recently.

“Just noticing…”

• …that there are companies, that you and I may support, that do not want the black business.

In recognition of BHM I wanted to publish this article that lists some of these companies, so that OTWS and concerned whites could boycott them.

Companies that do not want Black Consumer businesses (NUD)

Tom Joyner wants this information to reach his listeners. You have probably heard of ‘NUD’ as a result of the Tom Joyner morning show related to Comp USA.

NUD (Non Urban Dictate) is the acronym for a very subtle and little-known marketing term specifically directed toward people of color. ‘Non Urban Dictate’, these three words essentially mean that a company is not interested in the Black consumer. A NUD label means that a company does not want their marketing and advertising materials placed in media  that claim an urban audience B (Black folks) as their main target.

There are legitimate reasons for companies not using urban radio. It may be that  Blacks don’t index high in certain categories or that a company’s strategy is  to market to the Black consumer down the road after they have established a  strong position in their primary target. But, NUD usually means that a company is not interested in the Black consumer. Companies evade discrimination liability by embracing it as theory rather than policy.

As a service to Black consumers, the Urban Institute will list all companies that have a NUD policy. Armed with this information, we feel that Black consumers will be able to make informed buying decisions.

Here’s a list of Companies with NUD policies:

1. Starbucks

2. Jos. A Bank

3. Comp USA

4. Weight Watchers

5. Keebler

6. Life Savers

7. Continental Airlines

8. Northwest Airlines

9. America West Airlines

10. HBO – Apollo Series

11. Paternal l Importers

12. Calico Corners

13. OMScot

14. Pepperidge Farms

15. Ethan Allen

16. Busy Body Fitness

17. Mondavi Wines

18. Builders Square

19. Pottery Barn

20. Lexus

21. Aruba Tourism

22. Ciba Vision

23. KinderCare

24. Grady Restaurant

25. Eddie Bauer

26. Don Pablo

Please spread this information on to any other consumer that you consider a friend and advise them to do likewise. Remember, you CANNOT act wisely unless you are informed wisely.

The Urban Institute

2100 M Street, NW.

Washington

Companies Not Interested In Black Consumers

************

Readers: I am one that has never heard of NUD. This is a good one to not only  ”just notice” but one that you can take action too. As I mentioned above, not only blacks, but other concerned OTWs and whites can take this information and be able to make informed decisions. So…now you know. And now you can choose to not give any of your business and support to the list of companies above.

So I say to all of these companies: “Just noticing” your subtle discrimination...not judging…But you will no longer get my money anymore. Hey, nothing personal; it’s “just business”.

Peace & Love…

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2011

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning!

Ethel: This one’s for you and all of the Maya Angelou fans, in honor of Black History Month:

Hater by Maya Angelou

A hater is someone who is jealous and envious and spends all their time trying to make you look small so they can look tall.  They are very negative people to say the least. Nothing is ever good enough!

When you make your mark, you will always attract some haters…

That’s why you have to be careful with whom you share your blessings and your dreams, because some folk can’t handle seeing you blessed…

It’s dangerous to be like somebody else… If God wanted you to be like somebody else, He would have given you what He gave them! Right?

You never know what people have gone through to get what they have…

The problem I have with haters is that they see my glory, but they don’t know my story…

If the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, you can rest assured that the water bill is higher there too!

We’ve all got some haters among us!

Some people envy you because you can:

a) Have a relationship with God
b) Light up a room when you walk in
c) Start your own business
d) Tell a man / woman to hit the curb (if he / she isn’t about the right thing)
e) Raise your children without both parents being in the home

Haters can’t stand to see you happy. Haters will never want to see you succeed. Most of our haters are people who are supposed to be on our side.

How do you handle your undercover haters? You can handle these haters by:

1. Knowing who you are & who your true friends are *(VERY IMPORTANT!!)

2. Having a purpose to your life: Purpose does not mean having a job. You can have a job and still be unfulfilled.

A purpose is having a clear sense of what God has called you to be. Your purpose is not defined by what others think about you.

3. By remembering what you have is by divine prerogative and not human manipulation.

Fulfill your dreams! You only have one life to live…when it’s your time to leave this earth, you ‘want’ to be able to say, ‘I’ve lived my life and fulfilled ‘my’ dreams,… Now I’m ready to go HOME!

When God gives you favor, you can tell your haters, ‘Don’t look at me…Look at Who is in charge of me…’

Pass this to all of your family & friends who you know are not hating on you including the person who sent it to you.

If you don’t get it back, maybe you called somebody out! Don’t worry about it, it’s not your problem, it’s theirs.. Just pray for them, that their life can be as fulfilled as yours! Watch out for Haters…BUT most of all don’t become a HATER!

‘A woman’s heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her.’

Maya Angelou

***********

Readers: I think Angelou’s words are so true. And I’m not a religious girl, but that last line really moved me. You? I’ll save any comments I want to address till Monday.

However before I sign off, I did want to respond to Meymaneh and Sar-e-Pol: I too believe Obama is a gift to the world. We have no idea what the state of our country would be, not to mention the state of the world, should he not be our president. And although the racists here in the states refuse to recognize his accomplishments, his influence continues to ripple throughout our country, and the world. Obama’s influence on Egypt is another accomplishment to add to his growing list.

I wish the women of Egypt (and ALL women) the strength and power to achieve equality and rights, and all that they were naturally born to have.

Signing off…

The no holds barred forum is open :) …Blog me.

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2011

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning!

I just discovered this poet: Suheir Hammad. She performs two spine-tingling spoken-word pieces: “What I Will” and “break (clustered)” — meditations on war and peace, on women and power.

In her poems and plays, Suheir Hammad blends the stories and sounds of her Palestinian-American heritage with the vibrant language of Brooklyn to create a passionately modern voice.

Suheir Hammad is the author of breaking poems, recipient of a 2009 American Book Award and the Arab American Book award for Poetry 2009. Her other books are ZaatarDiva; Born Palestinian, Born Black; and Drops of This Story. Her work has been widely anthologized and also adapted for theater.

Her produced plays include Blood Trinity and breaking letter(s), and she wrote the libretto for the multimedia performance Re-Orientalism. An original writer and performer in the Tony-winning Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, Suheir appears in the 2008 Cannes Film Festival Official SelectionSalt of This Sea. She is the Artist in Residency at the NYU’s APA Institute for 2010.

“In these poems, it’s no longer necessary to speak in argument convincing sentences; the fact of her being, speaking, the fact of her family’s, her communities’, the fact of women surviving in Palestine, in Iraq, in New Orleans, is argument enough.”

***********

Readers: I am speechless. As one commentator wrote, “If this does not move you, check your pulse.”

Well…are you moved? Blog me. Tell me your thoughts. How did her poetry make you feel?

Peace & Love, “Live it, Give it”

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

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Thank you for your loyal support!

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