President Barack Obama's Address DNC 7.27.2016



"We all need to be as vocal and as organized and as persistent as Bernie Sanders' supporters have been during this election."

Vice President Joe Biden's Fiery Address DNC 7.27.2016



“Malarkey”
Vice President Joe Biden, referring to Donald Trump’s alleged concern for the middle class.

Our Revolution


Larry Sanders cast his official vote from those for Sanders Abroad for his brother, Presidential Nominee Bernard Sanders 7.26.2016.

Popular Votes Total for Bernie: 13,168,222
Popular Votes Total for Hillary: 16,847,084

Yesterday Bernie Sanders officially conceded as he gave his electoral votes to Hillary Clinton. In so doing his remarkable campaign has come to an official end. Today the sadness sunk in for me. Bernie got so close. The votes short could easily have been made up from votes tossed or lost, and of course from Independents who were not eligible to vote in primaries in so many states, including our own here in the Land of Enchantment. 

Bernie supporters knew all along of an obvious bias for Clinton coming directly from the democratic headquarters as well as the mainstream media. Too late in the process this finally got exposed. The media started to question it's own reporting and tried to make up, while the chair of the democratic party, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, due to exposure of damaging e-mails via Wikileaks (Russia?) finally, under pressure, stepped down just before the convention. Now she may be in trouble for her re-election to the senate and given her support of TPP I am not sorry for her.

So with deep sadness I mourn the loss of my vision of a Social Democrat for President of the United (or divided) States. This would have been a president not swayed by corruption, a president not filled with lies (Bernie has not yet been caught with his pants on fire) but a Jewish president with a heart big enough to hold concern for the Palestinian people. A president for the working class people and the poor, not only the upper middle, professional class and rich. A president that wold have pushed for a green economy and opposed TTP and fracking for real. A president that would have understood the dire urgency of climate change and toxic load on our environment. It would have been a damn interesting experiment. It could have been so very exciting to see those changes we hold so dear for so long in our heart become reality. Solar power for all, certainly in our mostly sunny state. Our national lab focused primarily on the developing of green energy, rather then in service to the weapons industry. A living wage that would stimulate our local economies. Last, but not least health care for all, rather then a give-away to the pharmaceutical industry. 

The reality Social Democrats or Bernie supporters envision is not extreme, rather it is a reordering of our values, of our priorities with the recognition that the top 1%, the cream of the cream, profit from the current system unfairly, while the poor  and working stiff have it too tough. The system is rigged in so many ways, it needs an overhaul badly and the majority of Americans seem to agree on that, if not the remedy.

Besides policies there is the simple human factor, men like those Sanders brothers, able to cry in public, because we no longer belong to a patriarchal system of thought that equates emotions with weakness and strength with dominance and bullying.

Bernie, as I like to refer to him affectionally, not disrespectfully, has been nothing but a model of civility and eloquence, even under an enormous amount of pressure. The work to steer the US back toward the left and progressive values will continue. Bernie started the Sanders Institute, this e-mail was sent out yesterday.


"Our work will continue in the form of a new group called Our Revolution. The goal of this organization will be no different from the goal of our campaign: we must transform American politics to make our political and economic systems once again responsive to the needs of working families." 

Minimalism I II III




They Are Back!

Our Espanola Break Dancing Troupe


On my way to the Santa Fe farmers market today


suddenly a commotion and here they are


dazzling us with their athleticism


10 Minutes max


of impromptu street performance



Veteran Break Dancing Kid, now 7 years old.


Pure Joy

To Be Young, Gifted & Black - Nina Simone


Recording Session: Live, 1986 in Zuerich, CH, Released by the Estate of Nina Simone
The times seem to be demanding the voice of experience of pain by the one and only Nina Simone.

Nabbed


On our walk to our park early this morning, I noticed a woman clad in turquoise turn away and leave a free library box painted in like turquoise tone. Curious of course, I had to stop and check and lo and behold look what I found, two books authored by our own local writer, teacher and blogger Miriam Sagan! I could not resist, I nabbed one, Gossip, filled with essays appropriate for my current attention span. 


I used to be a voracious reader, surely must have read more books then anyone in any of my classes, but these days with eyes troubled when having to focus, not to speak of the mind, reading books has become more a chore, many near my bed not read, yet. I managed to have read already about flirting and middle aged love in Gossip. My solemn intent is to return Gossip to our free library soon along with some of my books in need of being held in new hands and appreciated by curious minds.


Repurposed dispense boxes of periodicals now defunct make for great Little Free Libraries.


Love free, love books, love the spirit of generosity and adventure.


For the month of July, Miriam Sagan invites submissions to her blog on the theme of LETTER TO MY YOUNGER SELF
True to form, I am ruminating on the above.