Saturday, August 18, 2007

Who Will Fill This World?

Who Will Fill This World?

I sit in the grey rainlight wondering,
Amidst clouds of pillowed steel,
Reading my peers and feeling,
I breathe in the angst like burned steel in this air,
Feeling a tentative green ghost waiting to be born,
A future we might yet bear to fruition,
A whiff of hope drifting up from my cup,
Of ginger-peach iced tea.

When you remember everything good in life,
Isn't it the moment someone you cherished cradled you,
Stroked your hair or hummed gently holding your hand?

What I know is that using anger like a tool burns you,
From the inside out it eats you alive,
It doesn't matter if you're an entire culture or a lonely heart,
It will make you its breakfast lunch and dinner,
As surely as this world spins 'round the sun -
I've seen it happen with my own two eyes.

We were great as a nation and as a people,
At those moments we were most filled with these things -
Dreams, hope, inspiration, compassion, vision.

What I know is that love fills you,
Feeds you and nourishes you and gently guides you,
And if you want to revere the past and those who went before,
Let their angers subside and yours as well,
Get closer to your ghosts in the memory of those moments that glow,
When they dreamed and loved and accomplished,
Give your ghosts a real future -
By dreaming and loving and accomplishing.

Tearing down takes moments,
Building up is always the real work.
What is it you birth?
Who will fill this world?

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
© 08/18/2007

Words are the mind's bridge - it's connection to all the universe.
Love is the heart's bridge - it's connection to all other souls.
Loving words can work miracles.


Friday, August 17, 2007

Thursday, August 16, 2007

08/16/2007 PDI-Cast podcast

PDI-Cast08162007.mp3
Progressive Fest Illinois is coming soon.

Podcast awaiting Ourmedia upload from Internet Archive...

Well, the podcast is on its way - I found that you could use Ourmedia for web-hosting our feed free of space and bandwidth restrictions and at no cost.

!However!, it can take up to 24 hours for the media file to cross-reference from the Internet Archive to Ourmedia - which HAS to happen before I can link the podcast into our blog feed here on this blog.

As soon as the cross-reference completes, I'll publish the 'cast. *Mental note: get the stuff submitted to Internet Archive the day BEFORE you want it up on the web.*

Dan

PDI-Cast will soon be back - and REALLY podcast.

I'll have the first installment of PDI-Cast posted here at the PDI blog by this morning late. This time, I have a much better idea how to get it out to the podcast world. (I have a nice, Progressive mentor helping me and pointing me to many, many great podcasting resources. Thank you, Jenny!!!)

This will be a rough 1st edition, not advance-written or practiced, so bear with me. The 'cast will get better with time.

I'm also working on tools to allow other members to collaborate on producing new shows going forward.

We'll also in time have the option of recording the show from a Skype free webcast conference call at some point in the future, which will also allow us to bring on guests from around the web, and do online interviews and more.

Eventually, we can add our own musical theme, sound effects, and other items.

A video-cast may even be possible, but we need to learn to walk and trot before we start running marathons.

The subject of the 08/16/2007 will of course be Progressive Fest Illinois. What better way to kick off the 'cast?

While you're waiting for me to get this podcast published, try downloading the free Golden Ear - an easy to use old-school style podcast receiver; styled to look like an retro radio and designed to be as easy to use. (Other podcast clients and software are available HERE - there are feed-readers for all sorts of devices and operating systems available.)

I'll be looking forward to working with my fellow Co-Chair, Hal on some of our upcoming podcasts very soon.

This is going to be great fun!

Dan

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

DAN RATHER REPORTS' to Present Conclusive Evidence of Touch-Screen Voting Machine Failures

Source: http://www.bradblog.com/?p=4949

BLOGGED BY John Gideon ON 8/12/2007 7:12PM
'DAN RATHER REPORTS' to Present Conclusive Evidence of Touch-Screen Voting Machine Failures
Hour-Long Special This Tuesday Night to Expose Startling New Information, Including Filipino Sweatshops Where Faulty ES&S Systems Are Produced
VIDEO PREVIEW: Workers Paid Less Than $2.50 Per Day, Quality Control Consists of 'Shaking the Machine to Check for Loose Screws'...

Guest Blogged by John Gideon, VotersUnite.Org

HD Net has announced the content of this Tuesday's "Dan Rather Reports": An hour-long investigative special report dedicated to the failures of touch-screen voting and the companies that make them. Horribly. Here's a piece of their recent media release, and a video preview is posted below...

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HDNet:

What: This Tuesday, DAN RATHER REPORTS presents conclusive evidence of the failure of touch screen voting machines across the country. The episode, “The Trouble with Touch Screens,” is an entire hour devoted to new information on this story. From scientists involved in testing the equipment to manufacturers in third-world countries who shipped these defective voting machines to the United States, DAN RATHER REPORTS will present new information showing that these defective machines may have altered the outcome of multiple elections.

When: Dan Rather Reports “The Trouble with Touch Screens” will air Tuesday, August 14 at 8:00 p.m. ET. The program also airs at 11:00 p.m. ET to accommodate west coast prime time.

This is on HD Net so not everyone is going to be able to see it live but there will surely be copies on-line a day or two after the episode airs, if not sooner.

In the startling preview clip (posted below) notice that the only test performed on the ES&S iVotronic Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) touch-screen voting machines by the people who manufacture the machines in the Philippines is a "shake test" to ensure there were no loose pieces left in the machines. These people who make $2.10 to $2.50 a day and work in what amounts to a sweat shop where cats, rats, and snakes were removed from the basement by the truckload.

And the American who was dispatched to deal with problems at the factory back in 2001 admits that the touch-screens failed and "bubbled" as far back as then. But what has been done about it since?

The machines made by ES&S may not have any screws loose, but the folks who think this is any way to run a democracy certainly do!

A preview clip of the first segment of Rather's report follows...



Updated PFI 2007 Flier

Download a fresh copy of the 2007 PFI Flier here:

http://www.whizzyrds.com/PFI-Flyer-2007-002.pdf

We're at it again! Progressive Fest Illinois is going to rock...

Progressive Fest Illinois will be held at the Marvel Davis farm again this year, Sunday, October 14th from 09:00-18:00. (9:00am-6:00pm)

So far we have Merv Collins for music - and we'll try to get more smaller local bands in between, I think Merv is doing a larger lunch-time set.

Christine Cegelis will be out at PFI this year speaking on Progressive Politics in Illinois and the state thereof around 1pm. (Speaking of your GREAT local speakers...)

Also, we have Mark Burger - Sustainable Living - 2 p.m. (President of Illinois Solar Energy Association, www.illinoissolar.org. )

Additionally, my fellow PDI Co-Chair, Dr. Hal Snyder will speak on Healthcare For All of Us. Time TBD.

We also are looking to have a Progressive Poetry Open Mic somewhere in the line-up. Feel free to e-mail me at "aqmstaffo-at-mailbag.com" if you're a poet and interested in signing up! (We'll also want you to register as an attendee at the PDI website.

At this time, we are still issuing press releases and invitations as well, so be looking here for more news on the upcoming Fest, and expect it to keep getting better year-after-year, because we are sticking to our convictions on bringing this Fest to Illinois Progressives yearly from now on.

Also, please note, attendance is free, but we would really appreciate it if you would pre-register at www.illinoisprogressives.org . Registering helps us gage potential attendance, and therefore pull in better speakers.

Organizations looking to table at the event, we are requesting a flat $35.00 tabling fee to help fund the Fest.

PDI will also accept donations from attendees, however, as we are not yet incorporated, we cant offer you a tax deduction - just the knowledge that your donation will help us continue to grow this wonderful networking and spirit-lifting event.

All the best, and check back weekly for an updated list of speakers and events!!

Dan Stafford
Co-Chair,
PDI (http://www.illinoisprogressives.org)