Monday, October 13, 2003

Every Voice Counts QUOTE OF THE DAY "This," cried the Mayor, "is your town's darkest hour! The time for all Whos who have blood that is red To come to the aid of their country!" he said. We've GOT to make noises in greater amounts! So, open your mouth, lad! For every voice counts!" - - Dr. Seuss (from "HORTON HEARS A WHO") KNOW YOUR HISTORY - OCTOBER 13th 1909 -- Francisco Ferrer, founder of the "Modern School" movement, is murdered in Spain by the Catholic Monarchists. Educator, rationalist & founder of the public school, "the escuela moderna," free of (& opposed to) the influence of State, religion & dogmas. The Catholic church, monopolizing "education " in Spain, hated Ferrer. An anarchist militant & free-thinker, he was blamed for the upheavals during the "Tragic Week" in July in Barcelona (though he was not there). Massive demonstrations took place in Europe protesting his execution, warning that Francisco Ferrer would be avenged, with denunciations of the church & assurances his work would be continued. On July 28, martial law was declared throughout Spain, & a brutal military suppression continued until September. Anyone deemed dangerous to the government was jailed. Francisco Ferrer was found late in September & thrown in the dreaded fortress of Montjuich in Barcelona. A hurried trial ensued, in which he was accused of fomenting the insurrection. Ferrer had very little, if anything, to do with the uprising, but false evidence & forced confessions were produced. The government also believed Ferrer had instigated the assassination attempt on the king in 1906 & wanted revenge.  Ferrer was put to death by firing squad on October 13, 1909. With his execution, Ferrer became a martyr for free thought. In Great Britain, George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, & Sir Arthur Conan Doyle protested with Peter Kropotkin & others. In capitals throughout Europe, demonstrations were held. Violent confrontations between protestors & the police occur in Paris, where over 500,000 people turned out. In Argentina, a meeting improvised by the F.O.R.A. (the Federation Obrera Regional Argentina) brings out 20,000 workers & results in a General Strike which begins tomorrow & lasts until October 17.   More On Francisco Ferrer at: http://www.socsci.kun.nl/ped/whp/histeduc/radicaled.html RHINO HERE: You may know Jim Hightower as a national radio commentator, a columnist, or as the bestselling author of If the Gods Had Meant Us to Vote They Would Have Given Us Candidates. But before all those vocations, Hightower served the state of Texas for 2 terms as Agriculture Secretary where he observed closely the of corporatization of that state's government by Karl Rove & Dubya. Today's RHINO'S BOTTOM LINE is an excerpt from Hightower's latest book, Thieves in High Places which is subtitled, They've Stolen Our Country and it's Time to Take it Back. The chapter is called "Don't Be An Idiot", in which he explains that "the original Greek word "idiotes" referred to people who might have had a high IQ, but were so self-involved that they focused exclusively on their own life and were both ignorant of and uncaring about public concerns and the common good." He makes a strong argument that each one of us must speak out against injustice. Before the excerpt, I've linked to an excellent interview with Hightower from BUZZFLASH. For more info on his books, CDs, or his monthly newsletter, "The Hightower Lowdown", visit http://www.jimhightower.com Jim Hightower talks about his new book, "Thieves in High Places: They've Stolen Our Country and it's Time to Take it Back" A BUZZFLASH INTERVIEW, August 21, 2003 As a former statewide office holder in the Lone Star State, he well knows the Bush Cartel is nothing more than a contemporary incarnation of the Barbary Pirates. That's why he subtitled his book: " They've Stolen Our Country and It's Time to Take It Back ." To Hightower, the GOP is really the GKP, the Grand Kleptocratic Party, composed of corporate fat cats, right wing think tankers, empire builders, extremist media barons and "just plain greedheads." Of course, Hightower also uses his scalpel to lacerate Democrats who live in the shadow of the Republicans. This ignominious group of timid, reactive politicians, he calls "Wobblycrats." Hightower lost his statewide office in Texas a few years back as a result of dirty tricks carried out by Karl Rove and a rogue FBI agent. But Jim's not the kind of guy to get discouraged. He's the ultimate populist optimist. He believes in the greatness of America and its people, but he also has learned -- from watching the Bush Cartel at work -- to always keep one hand guarding his wallet. Otherwise, he knows, the "thieves in high places" will pickpocket him through tax breaks for the rich and taxpayer money spent on corporate welfare. Sound familiar? Read The interview at: http://www.buzzflash.com/interviews/03/08/21_hightower.html 7:57:36 AM    comment

RHINO'S BOTTOM LINE - Don't Be an Idiot Don't Be an Idiot by Jim Hightower, (Excerpted from his book, "Thieves in High Places: They've Stolen Our Country and It's Time To Take It Back ") The greatest offense against our society these days is not any one law or a particular assault on our freedoms. Rather, it is the persistent, insidious effort by those who shape our culture to reduce the American citizenry to idiots. From corporate advertisers to political sermonizers, from boards of education to the entertainment programmers, their goal is idiocy. By "idiots," I'm referring to more than the constant charge that we're all a bunch of dummies. That's just manufactured media fluff. Far from being a nation of numbskulls, people (and especially young folks) are smarter than ever. But to what end? The original Greek word "idiotes" referred to people who might have had a high IQ, but were so self-involved that they focused exclusively on their own life and were both ignorant of and uncaring about public concerns and the common good. Such people were the exact opposite of the Athenian democratic ideal of an active citizenry fully involved in the civic process, with everyone accepting their responsibilities to each other and all of humankind. This is the ideal that Jefferson and Madison built into our own nation's founding documents, the ideal that Lincoln embraced when he spoke of striving for a "government of the people, by the people, for the people," the ideal that Justice Louis Brandeis was expressing when he wrote that "The most important office" in our land is "that of a private citizen." Be an involved citizen? Forget about it, Jake. Don't waste your time. Get a job, keep your head down, play the lottery, don't be different, take a pill, watch "reality tv," buy things, play it safe, live vicariously, don't make waves, pre-pay your funeral. Oh, and on those big questions - such as economic fairness, going to war, "rebalancing" that liberty/security equation, and the shrinking of democracy itself - don't hurt your little gray cells by focusing on them, for there's not a lot you can do about them, we know more than you do, and don't worry...we'll take care of you. Go about your business - be a good idiot... Read it all at:  http://www.inthesetimes.com/comments.php?id=3D341_0_4_0_C "RHINO'S BLOG" is the responsibility of Gary Rhine. (rhino@kifaru.com) Feedback, and requests to be added or deleted from the list are encouraged. SEARCH BLOG ARCHIVES / SURF RHINO'S LINKS, AT: http://www.rhinosblog.info RHINO'S OTHER WEB SITES: http://www.dreamcatchers.org (INDIGENOUS ASSISTANCE & INTERCULTURAL DIALOG) http://www.kifaru.com (NATIVE AMERICAN RELATIONS VIDEO DOCUMENTARIES) Articles are reprinted under Fair Use Doctrine of international copyright law. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html All copyrights belong to original publisher. Tell a friend about Rhino's Blog 6:40:05 AM    comment

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