PREDICTIONS FOR 2014

1. The human race will survive another year-barely.
2. Tom Cotton, right-wing, tea-bagging, Republican, from Arkansas, will lose his bid for the U.S. Senate. If he should win, I'm moving to a different foreign country.
3. I see the Republicans trying to buy another election.
4. The Pope is saying all the right things. Let's hope, in the New Year, he starts doing all the right things.
5. The biggest story this year will be Japan. Unfortunately, not sushi. Nuclear.
6. I'm thinking maybe this year, Obama will wake up.
7. It's pretty much the same thing year after year: The rich keep getting richer, and the poor just keep getting it. It's about time for that revolution.
8. Hot Springs Village, land of the right-wing Republicans, will be sold on E-bay to the highest bidder. The money will be used to bail out Bush and Cheney, who will be jailed for war crimes. Don't argue with the crystal ball.
9. I've been too easy on right-wing, Christian, Republicans. This year I'm putting it on them. No holds barred.
10. THE New Year: America cannot survive by promoting economic greed, violence, and intolerance. Our resolve must be strong and enduring: Where there is hatred, we must counter with love; where there is intolerance, we must speak of Christ's overwhelming acceptance of everyone; where there is suffering, we must show compassion; where there is violence, we must stand firm in our commitment to peacemaking; and where there is injustice, we cannot be afraid to step forward and expose it. For it is in peeving those who would attempt to control us that we gain everlasting satisfaction.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.”
Friedrich Nietzsche

10 Hopeful Things That Happened in 2013 to Get You Inspired for What’s to Come | Common Dreams

10 Hopeful Things That Happened in 2013 to Get You Inspired for What’s to Come | Common Dreams

The New Year. Same old struggles.

NEW YEAR BENEDICTION

May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you’re wonderful, and don’t forget to make some art – write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. May your coming year be a wonderful thing in which you dream both dangerously and outrageously.I hope you’ll make something that didn’t exist before you made it, that you will be loved and you will be liked and you will have people to love and to like in return. And most importantly, because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now – I hope that you will, when you need to be, be wise and that you will always be kind. And I hope that somewhere in the next year you surprise yourself.
Neil Gaiman

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Mumford and Sons - Awake my Soul

Walter Brueggemann The Power of Lament (Psalms)

Mumford & Sons - Lover of The Light

SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER

ON PONDERING LAMENTS

We celebrate your steadfast love.
We praise you for your mercy.
We count on your faithfulness,
    We celebrate and
        praise and
        count on.

And then the world does not work right.
   We find ourselves unsafe and anxious,
    caught up in greed and selfishness,
    beset by a culture of violence and threat.

We wonder about the mismatch
     between you and our creation.

Mostly we trust,
     down deep we sometimes do not.
We risk truth-telling
     about your absence and silence and withdrawal.

We do such truth-telling,
    telling it to you,
  you...absent, silent, withdrawn.
  You we address, you, our only hope
     in this world and in the world to come.

Prayers for a Privileged People, Walter Brueggemann

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Don't exist.
Live.
Get out, explore.
Thrive.
Challenge authority. Challenge yourself.
Evolve.
Change forever.
Become who you say you always will. Keep moving. Don't stop. Start the revolution. Become a freedom fighter. Become a superhero. Just because everyone doesn't know your name doesn't mean you don't matter.
Are you happy? Have you ever been happy? What have you done today to matter? Did you exist or did you live? How did you thrive?
Become a chameleon-fit in anywhere. Be a rockstar-stand out everywhere. Do nothing, do everything. Forget everything, remember everyone. Care, don't just pretend to. Listen to everyone. Love everyone and nothing at the same time. Its impossible to be everything,but you can't stop trying to do it all.
All I know is that I have no idea where I am right now. I feel like I am in training for something, making progress with every step I take. I fear standing still. It is my greatest weakness.
I talk big, but often don't follow through. That's my biggest problem. I don't even know what to think right now. It's about time I start to take a jump. Fuck starting to take. Just jump-over everything. Leap.
It's time to be aggressive. You've started to speak your mind, now keep going with it, but not with the intention of sparking controversy or picking a germane fight. Get your gloves on, it's time for rebirth. There IS no room for the nice guys in the history books.
THIS IS THE START OF A REVOLUTION. THE REVOLUTION IS YOUR LIFE. THE GOAL IS IMMORTALITY. LET'S LIVE, BABY. LET'S FEEL ALIVE AT ALL TIMES. TAKE NO PRISONERS. HOLD NO SOUL UNACCOUNTABLE, ESPECIALLY NOT YOUR OWN. IF SOMETHING DOESN'T HAPPEN, IT'S YOUR FAULT.
Make this moment your reckoning. Your head has been held under water for too long and now it is time to rise up and take your first true breath.
Do everything with exact calculation, nothing without meaning. Do not make careful your words, but make no excuses for what you say. Fuck em' all. Set a goal for everyday and never be tired.”
Brian Krans, A Constant Suicide

WOUNDED WARRIORS

I am a little dismayed and sad about all the plea's I see on TV to help our wounded service men and women. I thought the military prides itself on taking care of its own. Apparently the government does not share that sentiment. We pay taxes, a lot of taxes. I was under the impression that our tax dollars were to take care of the men and women who are injured while serving in the military. Apparently, I'm wrong in assuming that. Now they are pleading with us to contribute more for their care. While I totally and unequivocally believe we should take care of them, I believe it is the governments responsibility to do so. Perhaps the next time our leaders believe we should go to war, they might consider the cost. Or if they want us to take care of them, regarding the taxes we pay, charge us less. Oh, we'll take care of it, like we always do, but it should not go unnoticed how irresponsible our elected officials have become regarding our entrance into armed conflicts and their responsibility for the outcome.They work on behalf of us, but apparently they can't get 'er done.

New Year Revolutions

New Year's is a good time to make some changes. Recommit. Redo. Step up. Talk the talk. Walk the walk. To make a long story short, it's time to get off our asses and move forward.
Some of my New Year Revolutions:  2014
     1. I hope the President gets with it. I hate to have to start a revolution. I'm getting to old for that crap.
     2. I would like for Hot Springs Village to turn Democratic, become for liberal, more diverse, more human.  But I doubt that's going to happen. Not without the above revolution.
     3. I hope the economy gets better for the poor. i.e. more jobs, better pay, universal health-care, but I doubt any of those things will happen, not without the above revolution.
     4. This New Year, I'm going to start playing an instrument. Maybe a tambourine. For Hire: Mr. Tambourine Man and The Revolutionary Troubadours. 
     5. Exercise is a must, as is eating better. Two things get in my way: laziness and fried chicken.
     6. Someone asked me the other day if I was ready to meet my maker. I said no, not if I'm expected to be dead at the time. Besides, I got a revolution to start. I don't think that was the answer she was expecting. 
     7. I'm thinking of starting a soup kitchen. A lot of people are hungry around here. Words aren't very filling.
     8. I'm hoping to start my second book, I just can't come up with the title. I'm thinking of The Bible, by The Peever. Surely that copyright has run out.
     9. I'd like to dump all the tea-baggers and their tea bag talk into Lake Ouachita, but I hate to pollute it.
   10. Well, anyway, Happy New Year's. Remember, if you drink, don't talk.

Holy Words of Mass Destruction | Common Dreams

Holy Words of Mass Destruction | Common Dreams

MORE OF THE SAME NONSENSE.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life. I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life." I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I've learned that I still have a lot to learn. I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”  

Maya Angelou

CHRISTMAS, the VERY NEXT DAY

Had we the chance, we would have rushed
   to Bethlehem
                           to see this thing that had come to pass.

Had we been a day later,
        we would have found the manger empty
                    and the family departed.

We would have learned that they fled to Egypt,
     warned that the baby was endangered,
    sought by the establishment of the day
       that understood how his very life
            threatened the way things are.

We would have paused at the empty stall
    and pondered how this baby
            from the very beginning was under threat.

The powers understood that his grace threatened all our
   coersions;
they understood that his truth challenged all our lies;
they understood that his power to heal
    nullified our many pathologies;
they understood that his power to forgive
    vetoed the power of guilt and
       the drama of debt among us.

From day one they pursued him,
    and schemed and conspired
    until finally....on a gray Friday......
            they got him!

No wonder the family fled, in order to give him time
                  for his life.

We could still pause at the empty barn--
   and ponder that all our babies are under threat, all the
   vulnerable who stand at risk
                       before our predators,
our babies who face the slow erosion of consumerism,
our babies who face the reach of sexual exploitation,
our babies who face the call to war,
    placed as we say, "in harm's way,"
our babies, elsewhere in the world,
     who know of cold steel against soft arms
      and distended bellies from lack of food;
our babies everywhere who are caught in the fearful display
      of ruthless adult power.

We ponder how peculiar this baby at Bethlehem is,
       summed to save the world,
                    and yet
we know, how like every child, this one also was at risk.
          The manger is empty a day later...
             the father warned in a dream.
Our world is so at risk, and yet we seek after and wait for
      this child named "Emmanuel,"
   Come be with us, you who are called "God with us."

Prayers for a Privileged People,  Walter Brueggemann

CHRISTMAS BENEDICTION

Jesus, the Light of the World, as we celebrate your birth . . . . may we begin to see the world in the light of the understanding you give us.  As you chose the lowly, the outcasts, and the poor to receive the greatest news the world had ever known, so may we worship you in meekness of heart.  May we also remember our brothers and sisters less fortunate than ourselves in this season of giving.  
Amen

Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Christmas Canon (Video)

CHRISTMAS PRAYER

A Christmas Prayer from Walter Brueggemann

In violence and travail
We give you thanks for the babe born in violence.
We give you thanks for the miracle of Bethlehem, born into the Jerusalem heritage.
We do not understand why the innocents must be slaughtered; we know that your kingdom comes in violence and travail.  Our time would be a good time for your kingdom to come, because we have had enough of violence and travail.
So we wait with eager longing, and with enormous fear, because your promises do not coincide with our favorite injustices.
We pray for the coming of your kingdom on earth as it is around your heavenly throne.
We are a people grown weary of waiting.
We dwell in the midst of cynical people, and we have settled for what we can control.
We do know that you hold the initiative for our lives, that your love planned our salvation before we saw the light of day.
And so we wait for your coming, in your vulnerable baby in whom all things are made new.
Amen.

Christmas in Community | Common Dreams

Christmas in Community | Common Dreams

CHRISTMAS EVE PRAYER

NEWBORN BEGINNING....
after CAESAR

The Christ Child is about to be born,
       the one promised by the angel.
  Mary's "fullness of time" has arrived.
Except that the birth is scheduled
       according to the emperor:
   A decree went out that all should be numbered.

Caesar decreed a census, everyone counted;
Caesar intended to have up-to-date data for the tax rolls;
Caesar intended to have current lists of draft eligibility;
Caesar intended taxes to support armies,
     because the emperor, in whatever era,
         is always about money and power,
             about power and force,
             about force and control,
                and eventually violence.

And while we wait for the Christ Child,
   we are enthralled by the things of Caesar---
       money...power...control,
          and all the well-being that comes from
          such control, even if it requires a little violence.

But in the midst of the decree
   will come this long-expected Jesus,
       innocent, vulnerable,
       full of grace and truth,
       grace and not power,
       truth and not money,
       mercy and not control.

We also dwell in the land of Caesar;
   we pray for the gift of your spirit,
   that we may loosen our grip on the things of Caesar,
   that we may turn our eyes toward the baby,
              our ears toward the newness,
              our hearts toward the gentleness,
              our power and money and control
                      toward our new governance.

We crave the newness.
     And while the decree of the emperor
         rings in our ears with such authority,
     give us newness that we may start again
                 at the beginning,
     that the innocence of the baby may
          intrude upon our ambiguity,,
     that the vulnerability of the child may
          veto our lust for control,
     that we may be filled with wonder
          and so less anxiety,
       in the blessed mane of the baby we pray.

Walter Brueggemann, Prayers for a Privileged People

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart...filled it, too, with melody that would last forever.”
Bess Streeter Aldrich, Song of Years

CHRISTMAS

Christmas. I don't think much of shopping, or presents, or all the hoopla centered around our present day version of commercial Christmas. Christmas helps me to think about a turning away from buying things; turning away from Herod, Caesar, Tiberius, Pontius Pilate, the Pharisees, purveyors of doom and lost hope, toward a new King. Born not in a grand hotel, but in a dirty, filthy stable; born not to rich parents, but to lower class citizens; born not to enslave people and make them work 60 hours per weeks, but to free them; born not to limit possibilities, but to increase them; born not to make the rich richer, but to praise the poor; born not to withhold health-care, but to make it available to everyone; born not to allow people to go to bed hungry at night, which one in four children do in Arkansas, but to demonstrate God's abundance to feed everyone; born not to praise government with senseless slogans and flags, but to confront a government and its leaders who have lost their way and are no longer responsive to its citizens needs and well being. Christmas is a time of change. It is really the biggest change that the world has ever seen. Nothing was the same after that first Christmas. There was a new King, not fancily dressed or living in a huge house, but one living on the street, feeding the hungry, clothing the poor, healing them, giving them hope. I like to remember Christ at Christmas, not all the fancy renderings. He was the greatest revolutionary to have ever emerged, demonstrating the power of a people who need to believe in themselves, but more importantly, believe in the power and guidance of God's abundant goodwill. So this Christmas, and the next, and the next, make sure we don't make it about buying things, but about changing things.

Signs of the Times | Common Dreams

Signs of the Times | Common Dreams

Believe it or not, right-wing Republicans believe these people are getting rich. We should stand them out there for a while. They wouldn't last a day. Darn.

CHRISTMAS BENEDICTION

So, to those of you who celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a good one. I hope you find a way to give something, however small it may be. I hope, for at least a fleeting moment, you can find some peace with yourself. And I hope love, unrelenting and unrestrained, fills your heart.

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Sarah Jarosz - "Kathy's Song"

SUNDAY MORNING SERMON: Walter Brueggemann, "Imagining Life from God and Back to God...

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Sarah Jarosz "Ring Them Bells" : The Americana Sessions

SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER

We Are Takers

You are the giver of all good things.
All good things are sent from heaven above,
rain and sun,
day and night,
justice and righteousness,
bread to the eater and
seed to the sower,
peace to the old,
energy to the young,
joy to the babes.

We are takers, who take from you,
day by day, daily bread,
taking all we need as you supply,
taking in gratitude and wonder and joy.

And then taking more,
taking more than we need,
taking more than you give us,
taking from our sisters and brothers,
taking from the poor and the weak,
taking because we are frightened, and so greedy,
taking because we are anxious, and so fearful,
taking because we are driven, and so uncaring.

Give us peace beyond our fear, and so end our greed.
Give us well-being beyond our anxiety, and so end our fear.
Give us abundance beyond our drivenness,
and so end our uncaring.

Turn our taking into giving … since we are in your giving image:
Make us giving like you,
giving gladly and not taking,
giving in abundance, not taking,
giving in joy, not taking,
giving as he gave himself up for us all,
giving, never taking. Amen.

--Walter Brueggemann, from Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: Prayers of Walter Brueggemann.

CHRISTMAS

Christmas. I don't think much of presents, or carols, or shopping. Christmas helps me to think about a turning away from Herod, Caesar, the Pharisees, purveyors of doom and lost hope, toward a new king. Born not in a grand palace, but a dirty, filthy stable; born not to parents of the ruling class, but to simple, lower class citizens; born not to enslave people, but to free them; born not to limit possibilities, but to increase them; born not to make the rich richer, but to praise the poor; born not to withhold health-care, but to make it available to everyone; born not to allow people to go to bed hungry at night, but to demonstrate abundance in God's grace and goodwill; born not to praise government with senseless slogans and flags, but to confront a government and its leaders who have lost their way and are no longer responsive to its citizens. Christmas is a time of change. It is really the biggest change the world has ever seen. Nothing was the same after that first Christmas. There was a new king, not fancily dressed or living in a big house, but one living on the street, feeding the people, healing them, giving them hope. I like giving thanks to Christ at Christmas. He was the greatest revolutionary to have every emerged, demonstrating the power of a people who only need to believe in themselves, but more importantly, to believe in the power and guidance of God's abundant grace and love.

BENEDICTION

MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Thomas Merton

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Chloe Agnew / Celtic Woman - ''The Little Drummer Boy''

SUNDAY MORNING SERMON

 "That is why all around the world there is such conflict and turmoil in these days. It is because God is doing a new thing. The power of the gospel is at work breaking up old forms of power, permitting new possibilities, letting the weak ones have power, letting the sad ones laugh, letting the sick ones hope, letting the hungry ones eat."

Walter Brueggemann

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Mannheim Steamroller "What Child Is This? (Greensleeves)"

SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER

We are your people,
mostly privileged
competent
entitled.
Your people who make futures for ourselves,
seize opportunities
get the job done
and move on.
In our self-confidence, we expect little
beyond our productivity;
we wait little for
that which lies beyond us,
and then settle with ourselves
at the center.
And you, you in the midst of our privilege,
our competence
our entitlement.
You utter large, deep oaths
beyond our imagined futures.
You say – fear not, I am with you.
You say – nothing shall separate us.
You say – something of new heaven and new earth.
You say – you are mine; I have called you by name.
You say – my faithfulness will show concretely and will abide.
And we find our privilege enabled by your purpose,
our competence shaken by your future,
our entitlement unsettled by your other children.
Give us grace to hear your promises.
Give us freedom to trust your promises.
Give us patience to wait and
humility to yield our dreamed future
to your large purpose.
We pray in the name of Jesus who
is your deep yes over our lives.
From Prayers for a Privileged People

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Terrorist', noun: 1. Someone my government tells me is a terrorist; 2. Someone my President decides to kill.”
Glenn Greenwald

Airstrike in Yemen Worst Attack in over a Year | Common Dreams

Airstrike in Yemen Worst Attack in over a Year | Common Dreams

GETTING READY FOR CHRISTMAS

I DIDN'T POST THESE THINGS FOR YOU TO LIKE, OR EVEN TO AGREE WITH. I POSTED THEM TO PREPARE YOU MENTALLY FOR THE GREAT CHANGE.  

"For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace."

Tom Waits - Day After Tomorrow

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Colorful demonstrations and weekend marches are vital but alone are not powerful enough to stop wars. Wars will be stopped only when soldiers refuse to fight, when workers refuse to load weapons onto ships and aircraft, when people boycott the economic outposts of Empire that are strung across the globe. ”
Arundhati Roy, Public Power in the Age of Empire

IT'S ANTI-WAR DAY

Ten reasons why I don't like war:
1. Nothing good ever comes of it.
2. People die.
3. It can end up being evil and bringing out the worst in people.
4. Terrorism is always involved.
5. If war involves terror, we should not engage in it.
6. It's negative and bad for everyone.
7. It relies on killing to win.
8. Fathers, mothers, sons and daughters die.
9. Children, friends, grandmothers and grandfathers die.
10. It fuels the Osama bin Laden hiding in all our hearts.

CIA, Caught in Colossal Lie, Lost Agent in Iran in 2007 | Common Dreams

CIA, Caught in Colossal Lie, Lost Agent in Iran in 2007 | Common Dreams

Lies. Lies. Lies. Makes for a sorry government.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Just because something isn't a lie does not mean that it isn't deceptive. A liar knows that he is a liar, but one who speaks mere portions of truth in order to deceive is a craftsman of destruction.”
Criss Jami

Raw Deal | Common Dreams

Raw Deal | Common Dreams

Any deal Paul Ryan is a part of is a deal we don't want.

SHORTS

-I've been crawling my way towards sanity an inch at a time. It's a slow trip.
-I've seen the light. Or it could have been the light pollution coming from Little Rock.
-If you've crossed this path before, you're hopelessly lost.
-The Alchemist wasn't near as smart as I am. I've found a way to change lead to gold. Start with gold.
-The Arkansas Electric Coop keeps lobbying us to tell legislators that we need to continue burning coal in order to have cheap electricity. So I guess we have a choice: cheap electricity now, or doom future generations to climate disaster. I don't have any grand-kids, so.........
-We could elect more dummies to Congress, but I think we've covered that.
-The great AA slogan: One Day at a Time. I'm down to One Hour at a Time.
-Heaven is up there, hell is down there. I don't buy it. They are both right in front of you. Make the choice.

THE COTTON REVOLUTION

IF COTTON BECOMES A U.S. SENATOR FROM ARKANSAS, THE REVOLUTION IS ON.

JESUS WOULD JUST SAY NO. NOT IN THIS HOUSE.

There's a lot of craziness in the world, and most of it seems to be in Arkansas. Legislature is working on a bill to allow people to carry guns in church. Need I say more?

WORDS: Sarah Jarosz - "1,000 Things"

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent”
Victor Hugo

'Dumb' & 'Cruel': Budget Deal Attacks America's Most Vulnerable | Common Dreams

'Dumb' & 'Cruel': Budget Deal Attacks America's Most Vulnerable | Common Dreams

Here, let's screw you, right a Christmas time.

Domino's Fires Workers Seeking Living Wage Because, What, They Expect A Living Wage? | Common Dreams

Domino's Fires Workers Seeking Living Wage Because, What, They Expect A Living Wage? | Common Dreams

Say goodbye to Domino's. Hello Molly O' Brien's.

Surveillance Is Theft: World's Leading Authors Protest NSA | Common Dreams

Surveillance Is Theft: World's Leading Authors Protest NSA | Common Dreams

On The Nickel ~ Tom Waits - 1979 live

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“When someone works for less pay than she can live on — when, for example, she goes hungry so that you can eat more cheaply and conveniently — then she has made a great sacrifice for you, she has made you a gift of some part of her abilities, her health, and her life. The 'working poor,' as they are approvingly termed, are in fact the major philanthropists of our society. They neglect their own children so that the children of others will be cared for; they live in substandard housing so that other homes will be shiny and perfect; they endure privation so that inflation will be low and stock prices high. To be a member of the working poor is to be an anonymous donor, a nameless benefactor, to everyone else.”
Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America

ARE YOU PART OF THE CURE, OR PART OF THE DISEASE?

 * Do you practice what you preach, or preach and preach and preach?

 * Do you teach racism to your children?

 * Do you promote and demonstrate violence over negotiation, compromise, and non-violence?

 * Do you take and never give?

 * Is your mouth constantly moving and the words generally useless?

 * Does your life mean more to you than the next guys? Are you one of those types that put a battering ram in front of your truck or car to make sure the other guy gets the worst end of the deal?

 * If you know another person is struggling, do you offer to help?

 * Do you think any less of a person living on the street? Do you see them as failures? Do you see them as human beings?

 * Do you think you can mend your broken heart with revenge?

 * Is your way the only way?

It’s your choice. Are you part of the cure, or part of the disease?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Karl Marx got a bum rap. All he was trying to do was figure out how to take care of a whole lot of people. Of course, socialism is just “evil” now. It’s completely discredited, supposedly, by the collapse of the Soviet Union. I can’t help noticing that my grandchildren are heavily in hock to communist China now, which is evidently a whole lot better at business than we are. You talk about the collapse of communism or the Soviet Union. My goodness, this country collapsed in 1929. I mean it crashed, big time, and capitalism looked like a very poor idea.”
Kurt Vonnegut

Three Ways the Super-Rich Suck Wealth Out of the Rest of Us | Common Dreams

Three Ways the Super-Rich Suck Wealth Out of the Rest of Us | Common Dreams

I'm feeling a little queasy.

BENEDICTION

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Mumford & Sons - Roll Away Your Stone (Live At Red Rocks)

SUNDAY MORNING SERMON

"Can you imagine land given to landless people? Not: can you implement it, can you plan it, can you achieve it?--only: can you entrust possibilities to God that go beyond your own capacity for control and fabrication?
The New Testament is not different. The people around Jesus are filled with the grudging hesitance of "yes, but." Jesus comes and says, Can you imagine a dinner for all? Can you imagine a blind boy to see? Can you imagine a prodigal welcomed home? Can you imagine a Pharisee reborn into childlike innocence? Can you imagine lepers healed, widows cared for, poor people made first-class citizens? Of course, it was judged impossible, but Jesus ran powerfully ahead of such fear."

(The collected sermons of Walter Brueggemann)

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Simon & Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence

SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER

We arrange our lives as best we can, to keep your holiness at bay, with our pieties, our doctrines, our liturgies, our moralities, our secret ideologies, Safe virtuous, settled.  And then you – you and your dreams, you and your visions, you and your purposes, you and your commands, you and our neighbors.  We find your holiness not at bay, but probing, pervading, insisting, demanding.  And we yield, sometimes gladly, sometimes resentfully, sometimes late… or soon.  We yield because you, beyond us, are our God.  We are your creatures met by your holiness, by your holiness made our true selves.  And we yield.  Amen.

NEW CHURCH OPENS IN THE VILLAGE

Welcome to Weik's Happy Hour of Faith. No down and out sermons about sinning. No collection plate. Praying will be encouraged. Changing your life will be demanded. Christmas is a time for change. The world was never the same.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I can believe things that are true and things that aren't true and I can believe things where nobody knows if they're true or not.

I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and the Beatles and Marilyn Monroe and Elvis and Mister Ed. Listen - I believe that people are perfectable, that knowledge is infinite, that the world is run by secret banking cartels and is visited by aliens on a regular basis, nice ones that look like wrinkled lemurs and bad ones who mutilate cattle and want our water and our women.

I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone's ass. I believe that all men are just overgrown boys with deep problems communicating and that the decline in good sex in America is coincident with the decline in drive-in movie theaters from state to state.

I believe that all politicians are unprincipled crooks and I still believe that they are better than the alternative. I believe that California is going to sink into the sea when the big one comes, while Florida is going to dissolve into madness and alligators and toxic waste.

I believe that antibacterial soap is destroying our resistance to dirt and disease so that one day we'll all be wiped out by the common cold like martians in War of the Worlds.

I believe that the greatest poets of the last century were Edith Sitwell and Don Marquis, that jade is dried dragon sperm, and that thousands of years ago in a former life I was a one-armed Siberian shaman.

I believe that mankind's destiny lies in the stars. I believe that candy really did taste better when I was a kid, that it's aerodynamically impossible for a bumble bee to fly, that light is a wave and a particle, that there's a cat in a box somewhere who's alive and dead at the same time (although if they don't ever open the box to feed it it'll eventually just be two different kinds of dead), and that there are stars in the universe billions of years older than the universe itself.

I believe in a personal god who cares about me and worries and oversees everything I do. I believe in an impersonal god who set the universe in motion and went off to hang with her girlfriends and doesn't even know that I'm alive. I believe in an empty and godless universe of causal chaos, background noise, and sheer blind luck.

I believe that anyone who says sex is overrated just hasn't done it properly. I believe that anyone who claims to know what's going on will lie about the little things too.

I believe in absolute honesty and sensible social lies. I believe in a woman's right to choose, a baby's right to live, that while all human life is sacred there's nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system implicitly, and that no one but a moron would ever trust the legal system.

I believe that life is a game, that life is a cruel joke, and that life is what happens when you're alive and that you might as well lie back and enjoy it.”
Neil Gaiman, American Gods

DECEMBER 7, 1941

“Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation
Delivered on December 8, 1941
Mr. Vice President, Mr. Speaker, Members of the Senate, and of the House of Representatives:
Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 -- a date which will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with its government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific.
Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in the American island of Oahu, the Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleague delivered to our Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. And while this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or of armed attack.
It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.
The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian islands has caused severe damage to American naval and military forces. I regret to tell you that very many American lives have been lost. In addition, American ships have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu.
Yesterday, the Japanese government also launched an attack against Malaya.
Last night, Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong.
Last night, Japanese forces attacked Guam.
Last night, Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands.
Last night, the Japanese attacked Wake Island.
And this morning, the Japanese attacked Midway Island.
Japan has, therefore, undertaken a surprise offensive extending throughout the Pacific area. The facts of yesterday and today speak for themselves. The people of the United States have already formed their opinions and well understand the implications to the very life and safety of our nation.
As commander in chief of the Army and Navy, I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense. But always will our whole nation remember the character of the onslaught against us.
No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory.
I believe that I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost, but will make it very certain that this form of treachery shall never again endanger us.
Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory, and our interests are in grave danger.
With confidence in our armed forces, with the unbounding determination of our people, we will gain the inevitable triumph -- so help us God.
I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, December 7th, 1941, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt

MEMORIAL OF WORDS-NELSON MANDELA

“One of the things I learned when I was negotiating was that until I changed myself, I could not change others.”
Nelson Mandela

 

“It is said that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”
Nelson Mandela  

 

“In my country we go to prison first and then become President. ”
Nelson Mandela

 

  “I had no epiphany, no singular revelation, no moment of truth, but a steady accumulation of a thousand slights, a thousand indignities and a thousand unremembered moments produced in me an anger, a rebelliousness, a desire to fight the system that imprisoned my people. There was no particular day on which I said, Henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise.”

Nelson Mandela

 

 “We owe our children – the most vulnerable citizens in any society – a life free from violence and fear.”
Nelson Mandela

 

 

BYE. THANKS.

Nelson Mandela, 1918-2013: Anti-Apartheid Icon, 'Now at Rest' | Common Dreams

Nelson Mandela, 1918-2013: Anti-Apartheid Icon, 'Now at Rest' | Common Dreams

WHY OLD IS BETTER THAN YOUNG

- All the fantasies should be over.

- Sex is no longer the main issue. Staying alive is.

- Old makes you eligible for universal health-care.

- You can say anything you want and blame it on old age.

- Old has a certain dignity about it, even if it doesn't look quite as good.

-You've been around long enough to understand that anyone in a white, long-sleeved shirt and tie is either after your money or your soul. Or both.

      -Old gives you certain privileges that the young are denied. Like a discount. Or sample Depends.

HOW TO BUILD COMMUNITY

- Know your neighbors.

- Look up when you are walking.

- Have neighborhood potlucks.

- Honor elders.

- Pick up litter.

- Use the library.

- Say hello to everyone.

- Learn from new and uncomfortable angles.

- Strive for diversity and tolerance.

 

12 Fast Facts About Thursday’s Fast-Food Strike | Common Dreams

12 Fast Facts About Thursday’s Fast-Food Strike | Common Dreams

BYE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS. SAY YES TO COAL.

The Arkansas Electric Coop keeps lobbying us to tell legislators that we need to continue burning coal in order to have cheap electricity. So I guess we have a choice: cheap electricity now, or doom future generations to climate disaster. I don't have any grand-kids, so.........

ADEQUATE HEALTH-CARE IS A HUMAN RIGHT

 I have talked to a lot of people who have been fired from work after they became ill. This is not due to the fact that the boss is worried about catching whatever illness you may have, since most bosses are seldom around anymore, or that your ability to do the work is in any way diminished. It is, however, directly related to the company's health insurance costs and the fact that you are now a liability. And they all seem to have attorneys on board willing to make up some type of mumbo-jumbo excuse that sounds legal. This practice is clearly illegal and a violation of your civil rights, your employment rights, and your human rights. Screw the lawyers. Walk in front of a judge and tell him what happened. Force him to take sides. Than send me your story. I'll be glad to publish it in the name of justice and, if nothing else, a blatant attempt to embarrass the company and the legal system that protects them. Fighting these things alone is difficult and costly. People need to come together to strengthen their position against selfish, cruel, and money-driven business owners. Being profit driven has clouded their humanity. It is time for us to fight back. Unionize, editorialize, and support universal health-care. Why else do you think people with all the money are against these things?

Jim Hightower | Lawmakers who force the poor to take drug tests should be drug-tested

Jim Hightower | Lawmakers who force the poor to take drug tests should be drug-tested

Law makers should be tested for a brain. Drugs would probably help them.

Rush Is Befuddled and Sad On Account of the Marxist Pope, But Catholics Say He Should Stuff It Because Actually the Pope Sounds Just Like Jesus | Common Dreams

Rush Is Befuddled and Sad On Account of the Marxist Pope, But Catholics Say He Should Stuff It Because Actually the Pope Sounds Just Like Jesus | Common Dreams

RUSH WHO?

MESSAGE TO THE VILLAGE POA DIRECTORS

A motion to adjourn is always in order. A MOTION TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION IS NOT.

SUNDAY MORNING HYMN: Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir - Oh Sorrow

SUNDAY MORNING SERMON: The World Belongs to God with Walter Bruggemann

MONDAY MORNING POETRY: Elvis Costello and Mumford & Sons - The Ghost of Tom Joad & Do Re Mi Med...