Category Archives: Uncategorized

Rainbow Gathering Police Presence

Posted on July 7, 2008 | 5 comments

The police presence at the Rainbow Gathering this year was quite unsettling. There is always some type of police presence near the Gathering and sometimes within the Gathering, but this year seemed to be heavy on that presence (at least in my limited experience – this was my 4th Gathering since 1998). On our way in to the Gathering on July 2 and out of the Gathering on July 6, through the mountain dirt and gravel roads, we saw people pulled over and dogs searching cars in numerous spots. There were reports of people being cited for things like not using turn signals to turn onto dirt roads from other dirt roads, not applying brakes properly on curves, and not adhering to the 20 mile per hour speed limit, even if they were just one mile over that limit.

During the evening meal circle on Thursday, July 3rd, I noticed federal law enforcement walking around the circle:

These officials had on black gloves.

Shortly after that there was a commotion from the forest at the edge of the meadow. People were screaming that the police had opened fire in Kiddie Village. What we learned was this:

Apparently an undercover police officer had identified one individual who had been offering him marijuana and when the undercover office called for reinforcement to arrest the individual, the individual resisted arrest. This resulted in other Gathering participants surrounding the police, from what I hear. I was not in the area nor did I witness the actual incident, so I am not sure exactly what happened, but from eye witnesses I heard nothing of Gathering participants throwing sticks or rocks as the news reports indicate, in fact, quite the opposite. What I did hear from a friend who was there and witnessing it all is that the police opened fire at peoples’ feet with pepper spray pellets and rubber bullets and then fired the same projectiles directly at people’s bodies. The reports indicate that they did this with children in the area and one child was hit.

Here is a photo of my friend’s left side from being hit by the police shooting:

There were many more reports and accounts of police brutality.

Fortunately, people who witnessed the event provided documentation.

Here are links about the incident as told on live radio to We The People Radio Network which had a reporter attending the Gathering with equipment like a satellite phone on which she could call in about this particular incident and other Gathering happenings:

http://mp3.wtprn.com/Kelton/0807/20080703_Thu_Kelton1.mp3
http://mp3.wtprn.com/Kelton/0807/20080703_Thu_Kelton2.mp3
and has posted this photo:

and a link to a blog that had a post on the incident and also has really nice updates on the Rainbow Gathering:
http://adap2k.blogspot.com/2008/07/rainbow-family-attacked-by-feds-peppers.html
and has this audio:
http://adap2k.blogspot.com/2008/07/audio-rainbow-family-attacked-by-feds.html

I have not yet seen anything appear on You Tube.

Here is a link to Pinedale Online which has been reporting regularly on the Gathering:
http://www.pinedaleonline.com/news/2008/06/RainbowFamilyGatheri.htm
Its photo page is here:
http://www.pinedaleonline.com/news/2008/06/VisittotheRainbowCam.htm

Here is a link to a blog that has been offering updated information when possible:
http://wyominggathering.blogspot.com/

I will update this particular post as I obtain more information. I was part of a recording myself by an individual gathering audio information on his recorder.

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged Activism, community, government corruption, peace, police brutality, rainbow gathering

National Rainbow Gathering: Fun and Facts

Posted on July 6, 2008 | Leave a comment

I am back from 4 days in the Wyoming Mountains from the Annual National Rainbow Gathering. Over the next couple of days I will have stories and photos to share. I wanted to write in tonight, however, as a heads up that I will have an account of what happened with the police action on July 3rd, that is being reported in the news as an “assault by hippies” on law enforcement, which is a myth.

Stay tuned….

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged Activism, civil rights, community, government corruption, peace, police brutality, rainbow gathering

Reusing “stuff” to create

Posted on June 29, 2008 | 1 comment

A few weeks ago, Tom got me several packages of burnable DVD’s so I could burn slide shows and photos. When I opened the package I found these little clear plastic discs. I’m not sure why they were in there, but I got an idea. I told Tom I wanted to make peace earrings out of them and together we did. He had all this colorful wire from the inside of phone coil that he had saved and we used it to wrap around the plastic discs and also to create the stems in the middle of them, forming the peace symbol. Here is a photo of the disks and the coil:

Here is a photo of three pair of thefinished earrings:

Not only are they colorful and sturdy, they are light weight. AND they are made from reused “stuff” that would have otherwise ended up in the garbage – I even reused the earring hooks from old pairs of earrings and earrings that I had lost one of a pair. The earring holders on which they are hanging I had obtained from a yard sale awhile back.

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Elegy to George Carlin – an original piece by Utah poet

Posted on June 28, 2008 | Leave a comment

My friend Eileen McCabe wrote this piece. She was scheduled to perform it at the Utah Arts Festival last night. She altered the F-word, although she “had every intention of performing it with glee” (her words) at the Festival.

George Carlin said “F**k Hope”

“F**k Hope?”
F**k no, George!
You gave me more hope than
any holy trinity of bloviating control freaks.

Hope and ranting rage
against Nixon, Reagan, Catholic dogma and injustice.
Hope and the courage to be despised and taunted
and alone in the support of principle.
Hope and permission to commit trespass
and sit in lockup under guard of gas masks and attack dogs.
Hope and the knowledge of the effect of language
to push boundaries and open hearts.

Hope isn?t the milk and cookies before bedtime
that lures you into a false sense of security.
Hope is the rudderless, whiskey-barrel boat
that sails on a windy wing and a prayer for guidance.
Hope lies not in feel-good speeches and on-line petitions
but in feather boas and bombast, human shields and barricades.
Hope is that itching, fist pumping irritation
that upthrusts middle finger and taunts you into action.

We used to shout at Nixon, ?Make Love not War!?
Let us joyfully copulate with hope;
make lots of little hopes
little black, brown, red, yellow
pink, blue and white hopes
who will go and f**k more hopes
till we breed away lethargy and despair.

Rest in hope, George,
and rest in peace –
as if that were possible.
F**k.

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged anti-war, life, peace, politics

In Memory of George Carlin – George Carlin on Age

Posted on June 28, 2008 | Leave a comment

George Carlin on age

IF YOU DON’T READ THIS TO THE VERY END, YOU HAVE LOST A DAY IN YOUR LIFE. AND WHEN YOU HAVE FINISHED, DO AS I AM DOING AND SEND IT ON.

George Carlin’s Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m four and a half!’ You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a half, going on five! That’s the key

You get into your teens, now they can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m gonna be 16!’ You could be 13, but hey, you’re gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21 YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You’ve built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80’s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30 ; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn’t end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; ‘I Was JUST 92.’

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. ‘I’m 100 and a half!’
May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG
1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay ‘them.’

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop’ And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER :
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,but by the moments that take our breath away.

And if you don’t send this to at least 8 people – who cares? But do share this with someone. We all need to live life to its fullest each day!!

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged life, living, philosophy

US Mayors Agree to Phase Out Bottled Water

Posted on June 27, 2008 | 2 comments

Former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson began the crusade to eliminate bottle water in government facilities a few years ago:

[Salt Lake City Mayor] Rocky [Anderson] targets waste of bottled water

(http://www.polarisinstitute.org/salt_lake_city_mayor_rocky_anderson_targets_waste_of_bottled_water)

Posted December 18, 2006 in [Water]

Doug Smeath – Deseret Morning News

Rocky Anderson is taking his fight for a more eco-friendly Salt Lake City to a new enemy: bottled water.

In a letter sent to members of his cabinet last month, the mayor asked that departments stop handing out bottled water at meetings and interoffice events.

The letter does not rise to the level of an executive order or a new policy. Rather, it asks for voluntary cooperation.

“The environmental impacts surrounding the production, shipment and disposal of bottled water do not fit within the city’s goal to conduct itself in an environmentally sustainable way,” Anderson wrote.

According to his letter, more than 1.5 million barrels of oil are used to produce the plastic bottles for individual-serving water each year. A number of environmental Web sites corroborate that figure.

“Add to that the tremendous amount of fuel needed to transport it from the bottling line to the store shelf, and it is clear why bottled water has been described as the most inefficient method for transporting water in human history,” he wrote.

He cited a study by the Container Recycling Institute reporting that eight of 10 plastic water bottles end up in landfills rather than being recycled. There is no reason to use bottled water, Anderson wrote, in places like Salt Lake, where tap water is safe and clean.

Not to mention cheaper. Anderson’s letter estimates water is up to 10,000 times costlier when delivered by bottle rather than by tap.

The letter encouraged department heads to invest in water pitchers and reusable cups so that staff members can easily drink tap water in meetings. E-mail: dsmeath@desnews.com

It’s not just the impact of the waste of bottles from bottled water, it’s also about the production and the resources that are used to produce and transport these products. With oil prices at an all time high, it’s ludicrous to keep using oil to produce such “commodities”.

There is a site called Knock Out Bottled Water where you can see businesses in Salt Lake City that have pledged to not sell those products, has a page of resources, and links to Think Outside the Bottle.

Additionally, you can take the Individual Knockout Bottled Water Pledge.

Kudos to Mayors across the U.S. who are taking action on phasing out bottled water in their cities:

Published on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 by Agence France Presse

US Mayors Agree to Phase Out Bottled Water

The US Conference of Mayors on Monday passed a resolution calling for a phasing out of bottled water by municipalities and promoting the importance of public water supplies.

The vote comes amid increasing environmental concerns about the use of bottled water because of its use of plastic and energy costs to transport drinking supplies.

The mayors, meeting in Miami, approved a resolution proposed by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom along with 17 other large-city mayors to redirect taxpayer dollars from bottled water to other city services.

“Cities are sending the wrong message about the quality of public water when we spend taxpayer dollars on water in disposable containers from a private corporation,” said Newsom.

“Our public water systems are among the best in the world and demand significant and ongoing investment.”

According to the activist group Think Outside the Bottle, more than 60 mayors in the United States have already canceled bottled water contracts.

“It’s just plain common sense for cities to stop padding the bottled water industry’s bottom line at taxpayer expense,” said Gigi Kellett, national director of the Think Outside the Bottle campaign.

“This resolution will send the strong message that opting for tap over bottled water is what’s best for our environment, our pocketbooks and our long-term, equitable access to our most essential resource.”

The American Beverage Associations called the resolution “tainted with hypocrisies and inaccuracies.”

“While some mayors oppose the use of bottled water by city governments, most mayors across America gladly welcome bottled water when disaster strikes,” the industry group said in a statement.

“Our beverage companies continually come to the aid of communities ravaged by floods, fires, hurricanes, other natural disasters and compromised municipal water systems.”

The group said plastic water bottles “are 100 percent recyclable, making bottled water one of the few fully recyclable consumer goods.”

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged environment, natural resources, oil, politics, recycling, reducing, reusing

Green Party of Utah Joins Call to Greens for Collection Effort for Homeless

Posted on June 25, 2008 | Leave a comment

MEDIA RELEASE – GREEN PARTY OF UTAH

PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATING CONVENTION TO HIGHLIGHT HEALTH CARE, HOMELESSNESS, ENVIRONMENT, DRUG REFORM, IRAQ WAR

COLLECTION EFFORT FOR UTAH SHELTERS AND FOOD BANKS WILL BE HELD LOCALLY

Contact information: Deanna Taylor, 801.631.2998, gpu@gput.org

Green Party of Utah Delegate to Attend National Meeting in Chicago; Food and Clothing collection efforts will take place in Chicago and Utah; Presidential Candidate to be nominated

06.25.07 Salt Lake City – The Green Party of the United States Annual National Meeting, “Live Green Vote Green”, will be held in Chicago July 10 – 13, where the candidate for President for the GPUS will be chosen. The convention will serve as a public forum for discussion on a variety of major issues including nuclear power, single payer health insurance, homelessness, the war on drugs and the Iraq War.

Moab Green Party Local Member Harold Shepherd will be representing the Green Party of Utah at the Convention. “I am very excited to be a representative for the GPUT,” says Shepherd, a consultant for Red Rock Forests in Moab and Executive Director for the Center for Water Advocacy. “Utah is one of the states that is being hit most directly with climate change, energy development, water conflicts and other environmental and social justice issues and is far behind most other states in addressing these issues. I think the GPUT and the National Green party have a chance to be leaders in going beyond mere talk and actually reversing the tide of the social and environmental crises in the West.” Shepherd has over 25 years working with Indian Tribes, conservation organizations and activists on water and natural resources related topics.

Pat LaMarche of Maine, 2004 Green Party Vice Presidential Candidate and 2006 Candidate for Governor of Maine is launching a collection effort for homeless shelters during the National Convention for Chicago shelters. Utah will join that effort locally.

“Political parties have a tendency to drop into a location for a gathering or convention, occupy some of the more affluent areas of the city and completely overlook the constituency in that area that most needs a better government. I’m proud that every time I’ve put out the call to my Green counterparts around this country to help others in need; they have responded quickly and generously. I can’t thank the Greens of Utah enough for answering this call,” says LaMarche, author of Left Out in America: The State of Homelessness in the United States, which tells the stories of many homeless Americans during her 14-day journey in homeless shelters throughout the country where she witnessed firsthand the condition of the homelessness crisis.

“Homelessness effects everyone,” states Deanna Taylor, Co-Coordinator of the GPUT. “The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates approximately 600,000 families and 1.35 million children experience homelessness in the U.S., making up about 50 % of the homeless population,” explains Taylor. “According to its 2007 report, The Road Home, Utah’s largest homeless shelter, all shelters served an unduplicated 3, 862 individuals for a total 222,581 nights of shelter last year. The total number of shelter nights is up by 8,207 from last year.” Taylor further adds, “There is no reason why anyone should be without food, clothing and shelter. This is not only a problem, it’s an epidemic that must be addressed by our leaders, our communities, and our citizens taking action to demand a system where homelessness becomes an issue of the past.”

The GPUT is joining the national collection effort to collect items for local shelters and food banks by asking Utahns to bring clothing, personal and food items in labeled bags or boxes during July to The Free Speech Zone, 411 South 800 East, Salt Lake City or The Utah Peace House Project, West Jordan (call ahead – 801.631.2998) or arrange a drop off/pick up by calling 801.209.0219 or 801.631.2998 or writing to gpu@gput.org

2008 Green National Convention: Live Green, Vote Green http://www.greenparty2008.org

Green Party News Center http://www.gp.org/newscenter.shtml

Green Party of Utah http://www.gput.org, http://www.desertgreens.org

Contact: Utah: Deanna Taylor, 801.631.2998, gpu@gput.org

Maine: Pat LaMarche, 207.671.0190, patlamarche@hotmail.com

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Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged 2008 elections, drug reform, environment, Green Party, green party convention, health care, homelessness, iraq, peace

Volunteers needed in Utah for petition drive

Posted on June 25, 2008 | Leave a comment

I am helping with the Utahns for Cynthia McKinney campaign in an effort to get her on the ballot in Utah as an Independent Candidate for President of the United States.

Utah requires 1,000 signatures of registered voters. We must complete the drive by August 15th to allow time for certification of the signatures.

We need volunteers. If 20 people volunteer, each will only have to obtain around 60 signatures.

If you value choice for voters and can volunteer, please contact me by email – deanna@desertgreens.org.

Category Archives: Uncategorized

Rainbow Gathering Police Presence

National Rainbow Gathering: Fun and Facts

Reusing “stuff” to create

Elegy to George Carlin – an original piece by Utah poet

In Memory of George Carlin – George Carlin on Age

US Mayors Agree to Phase Out Bottled Water

[Salt Lake City Mayor] Rocky [Anderson] targets waste of bottled water

(http://www.polarisinstitute.org/salt_lake_city_mayor_rocky_anderson_targets_waste_of_bottled_water)

US Mayors Agree to Phase Out Bottled Water

Green Party of Utah Joins Call to Greens for Collection Effort for Homeless

Volunteers needed in Utah for petition drive

Support Green Candidates!

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