Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Activism, bush regime, government corruption, impeach bush, politics
My friends with the Nevada Desert Experience began their Sacred Peace Walk last Tuesday, March 27, beginning in Las Vegas and ending 69 miles away at the Nevada Test Site Tomorrow. They are keeping up their blog with each day’s journey account. At the test site, there will be a rally and action denouncing current nuclear plans and other warmaking preparations at the Test Site and propose alternatives for the land and industry. There will also be an optional action on Monday, April 2nd to reach out to the Test Site workers.
This is an annual pilgrimage to draw attention to the nuclear dangers that continue to threaten our sacred planet and the community of life.
The 2007 Sacred Peace Walk will have a special interfaith focus commemorating Sr. Rosemary Lynch’s 90th birthday, Mohammed’s birthday, Palm Sunday, April Fools Day, and early celebration of Passover, Buddha’s birthday, and the full moon.
As the walk has progressed, they have made various stops in places like the Atomic Testing Museum.
I often wish I live closer to where I work and that may become a reality at some point in the future, however it’s not that simple. We own our property in West Jordan, which is about 12 miles from the center of Salt Lake City (which is also where I work). To sell our property and find a comparable property closer to work is practically impossible. We could downscale to a less “involved” property, but our dream is to have our property be a community center for activism. Thus our decision to stay put – at least for the time being.
West Jordan is far from “sustainable”, as sustainable standards go, however it’s possible to get around without a car and be able to meet just about every need.
For example, from my house in West Jordan, which is on the far east side of the city limits, close to the Jordan River and almost to Midvale, I can walk, take the bus (at least for now until the routes are changed AGAIN) or use my bike to take advantage of these West Jordan services (all within 1-2 miles):
From my house in West Jordan, it is also easy to go the other direction without using a car to the next community, Midvale, a historic little town, where there are tons of local businesses, including a used book store, restaurants, and a variety of other merchants.
Of course there are larger chain stores to use within these boundaries without using a car, but the list above reflects the locally owned merchants and services.
In my search for information on sustainable cities, I have heard about the new Daybreak Development, owned and being developed by Kennecott Land (a division of Kennecott, the largest copper mine company in the world), which will include 15,000 – 20,000 homes and is being built on a sustainable community model. I’m still examining that project before weighing in on my opinion of it. I have also found this article on what constitutes a Healthy City. West Jordan has some of these characteristics, but still has a long way to go. From the list below, I can safely say that West Jordan has characteristics #2, 6, 9(one of my favorite characteristics about West Jordan) and parts of #1, 3, 4(it’s hard to identify a “downtown” to West Jordan), 5, and 7.
1. Fixed transit, preferably rail, above and below ground. Subways along all major travel corridors; buses or trams on all secondary corridors
2. Mixed-use, mixed-income neighborhoods
Mixed-use neighborhoods solve many urban ills. By intermingling commercial, residential, and civic functions in the same neighborhoods, you reduce dependence on automotive transport, since destination facilities are always close at hand: one can walk to the market, the salon, the library, the bar, school or university, administrative offices, what have you. This means denser development is possible without reducing living spaces (you reduce street pace, space dedicated to the automobile, instead); it also means more tax money for more amenities and social programs, since streets don’t pay taxes and parking lots don’t pay much tax, but homes and businesses do. Yet, since there is less road infrastructure to build and maintain, and utility infrastructure is more efficiently configured (eg. 100 feet of sewer pipe serving hundreds rather than tens of users), such neighborhoods need less tax money to support their basic functions. This means one could then either lower taxes, or apply them to more desirable civic amenities, such as parks, squares, concerts, etc. More people walking also increases community feeling, reduces opportunity for crime (“eyes on the street”), and allows for more interaction among the citizenry. It increases ridership on public transit, making it more efficient.
Mixed-income neighborhoods not only increase urban variety by mixing types and sizes of housing; they also increase the cohesiveness of a community. People from different walks of life come to meet and know each other, however superficially, and are thus less likely to make political or personal decisions based on stereotyped views. Rich, poor, and middle can discover common ground and not base their attitudes toward each other on envy, disdain, or spite. It’s a matter of hybrid vigor: purebred ideas, like purebred animals, tend to be delicate, weak, and subject to “genetic” infirmities. We learn not by congregating with those similar to us, but by meeting those who are different. You could say it’s the sexuality of the intellect: just as animals who exchange genes evolve into more efficient forms more rapidly than those primitive creatures that don’t, so do societies whose members exchange ideas, social concepts, personal philosophies, what have you–even just gossip.
3. Buildings of different age, condition, and size
4. Living spaces everywhere, especially near downtown
5. Large or small public squares at all significant intersections
The automobile has arrogated nearly all public space in the US to itself. It has stolen from us the places where we used to be able to meet and mingle as human beings, and replaced them with channels for sealed metal cells whose operators stare grimly straight in front of themselves as they manipulate the controls of the car. We need to have places where we can be people together, whether we talk to one another or not, where we can pass among each other on our way to our daily chores, acknowledging our common humanity with a glance or a nod or a word; places where we can linger if we feel so inclined, where we can enjoy the day and partake of a feeling of community, a feeling that we’re all in this together, helping each other, tasting life together, creating the city. Places that we feel we won, as individuals in a polity, and that we do literally own. Public space: our space. Not some landlord’s or management company’s.
Public squares, unlike public parks, are also thoroughfares for pedestrians, and usually support businesses on their perimeters. They acknowledge that we all bear responsibility for the working of our society, and that we all take pleasure in it too. Motorists isolated in their cars will never feel this way–the car is sold by fostering the delusion that is frees one from responsibility. People crossing each others’ paths in a square may not speak to each other, but they know that they occupy common space.
6. Lots of people coming and going (immigrants, people moving in from other places, and people moving out to other cities)
7. Street trees and rooftop gardens for pleasure, and to ameliorate temperature extremes and reduce need for HVAC
8. Light rail or a rapid train connection to the airport. Freight and passenger rail depots in town
9. Working farms adjacent to or (better yet) within city limits
The farther food is grown from town, the more it costs and the worse it tastes. Local farming means less fuel and road use, which is good for the earth and reduces need for taxes to support road infrastructure and fuel subsidies. Shorter transport times means food can ripen longer on the branch, so it tastes better and is more nutritious. The necessity to fit farms into numerous smaller spaces in town means fewer big agribusiness operations making their money on economies of scale; instead you have a greater number of small producers, which would lead to more variety of food, more accommodation to local tastes, and more competition (thus better service and lower prices), as well as making commercial organic farming economically feasible. This would again reduce stress on the earth and help minimize dependence on petroleum. Urban farmers’ markets bear all this out, providing higher quality food than the supermarkets, yet charging less for it.
Also, the presence of farms provides green space for the citizens and reminds them that all, regardless of pretensions, are tied to the earth.
10. Shops that open onto the sidewalk, not onto parking lots. All automobile parking is underground or mid-block, not between street and shop
Shops that open onto the sidewalk encourage pedestrian traffic, and pedestrians are better able to window shop than drivers. Walking of course is exercise too, and people who are walking are more likely to meet or make friends or other social, even commercial, contacts than drivers can. More pedestrian traffic therefore makes for a healthier and richer city. Shops set back behind vast parking lots foster the delusion that they are separate from the city and bear no responsibility to the community that supports them. They practically require driving, which increases civic infrastructure costs and increase social isolation. Sidewalk shops encourage friendly social contact and simply make life more pleasant.
Putting parking in mid-block structures or (better yet) underground accommodates those who must or prefer to drive without fragmenting the city to make room for vast parking lots.
There have been articles and posts in various sources that indicate a U.S. Military engagement against Iran could happen soon.
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Activism, government corruption, iran, iraq war, military, politics
The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) keeps making changes. Over a year ago it completely did away with the bus route on the street in front of my house, running north and south between two TRAX stations. Finally they added a regular route, running every 1/2 hour east and west on the street about 1/4 block away from my house, to and from the TRAX station.
But now UTA wants to change everything AGAIN and raise the fare! As I understand what is listed as the changes, one of them will be totally cutting out the bus route added near my home, making it difficult for me to use mass transit easily. Many folks I know who use mass transit regularly will also be affected negatively by the proposed changes. I don’t mind paying a higher fare IF the service is better. These changes do not reflect better service, in my opinion.
To that end, UTA is seeking public comment – please provide your input!
At BYU — in the heart of what has been called the reddest county in the nation — the mere possibility of Vice President Dick Cheney coming to campus is getting some blue blood boiling.
Cheney is scheduled to be Brigham Young University’s keynote speaker at this year’s graduation ceremonies. While it is a day of celebration for many, some BYU administrators and faculty, alongside parents and students, are expressing displeasure with the VP’s visit.
Despite the opposition, BYU spokeswoman Carri Jenkins said that there are currently no plans to eliminate Cheney as a part of the graduation ceremonies.
BYU Marriott School professor Warner Woodworth said that he has received e-mails from all over the world expressing dismay over Cheney’s visit.
Woodworth said that some of those e-mails came from parents and LDS stake presidents, particularly in Latin America, expressing anger that Cheney — whom they called a “warmonger” — will be representing their children and their church.
Woodworth said that administrators, faculty and even some students and parents are refusing to attend graduation ceremonies if Cheney is speaking. Pickets and other forms of protest are also being planned, he said.
Nephi Henry, a BYU student who will be graduating next month, is working with other students in organizing opposition to Cheney’s visit.
Henry said his group felt that it was not appropriate for someone of such an “inflammatory” nature to be at BYU. Henry criticized the move to have Cheney because the vice president does not meet the university’s policy on speakers having “a good public reputation and a moral private life.” Additionally, he said the invitation violated BYU’s policy of political neutrality.
“It certainly looks like the church is endorsing someone of a highly patrician political nature,” he said.
Woodworth also expressed concern over Cheney’s fitness to speak to graduates at commencement ceremonies. He said that Cheney’s moral values were not in line with what BYU represents.
“Cheney’s coming here is a contradiction of what we’re trying to do,” he said. “We represent an institution of peace, he represents an institution of war … an institution of deception and outright lies.” he said.
Despite the harsh criticism that Cheney’s invitation has generated, some students and faculty members don’t feel that sit-outs and pickets are appropriate.
BYU law school alumna turned Ph.D. student Betsy Fowler took a more cautious approach to the debate.
“A university is a forum for ideas. While members of the university community have the right to make a statement by not attending, personally I think it is too bad that professors would elect not to support their students whose work and dedication this commencement is intended to celebrate,” she said.
BYU professor of Spanish and Portuguese Ted Lyon is among those who are very displeased at the scheduling of the vice president. While Lyon is not planning to sit out, he does believe that if a political message is going to be issued, then it is necessary to issue a political message on the other side. “I’m suggesting that we invite Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama,” he said.
Lyon said that he has been included in e-mails involving more than 200 students about the vice president’s visit. Lyon said the messages had a tone and tenor of “we want our graduation to have a spiritual tone, not a political tone.”
Henry said that he is leaning toward a boycott of his own graduation if Cheney speaks.
Copyright © 2007 Daily Herald and Lee Enterprises
Boo, Hiss……..
Women’s group plans to endorse Clinton
NEW YORK (AP) — The political arm of NOW, the National Organization for Women, will endorse Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential bid on Wednesday, according to Democratic officials familiar with the plan.
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Clinton will join NOW president Kim Gandy to accept the endorsement, which will take place at Washington’s Sewell-Belmont House, the historic home of the National Women’s Party.
“The NOW PAC is excited to close out Women’s History Month with news that’s sure to energize women’s rights supporters across the country,” Gandy said in an e-mail statement.
Clinton, a New York senator, has made a deliberate pitch to women voters since launching her White House bid in January. Earlier this month, her campaign unveiled “Women for Hillary,” an effort to recruit women voters to talk up Clinton’s candidacy to other women. A separate, Web-based component targeting younger women, http://www.icanbepresident.com , is another part of the outreach effort.
Clinton advisers point to 2004, when about 9 million more women than men voted in the general election.
Founded in 1966 by activist Betty Friedan, NOW is one of the oldest and best-known feminist advocacy groups in the country.
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NEW YORK (AP) – Democrat Barack Obama has picked up the endorsement of Sheila C. Johnson, the ex-wife of media pioneer Robert Johnson who is backing rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential bid.
“Barack Obama’s campaign of change brings hope to America,” Sheila Johnson said in a statement Tuesday, praising, among other things, the Illinois senator’s opposition to the Iraq war. She also announced she will co-host a luncheon fundraiser for Obama in Washington April 19.
Robert and Sheila Johnson co-founded Black Entertainment Television in 1980 and sold it to Viacom for $3 billion in 2000, making them among the few black billionaires in the United States. The couple divorced in 2002.
Sheila Johnson now runs Salamander Hospitality, a resort and retail chain, and is president of the Washington Mystics basketball team.
Her spokeswoman, Martine Charles, said Johnson has supported both Hillary Clinton and former President Clinton in the past but shifted her allegiance to Obama after meeting with him to discuss issues facing the next president.
“She was really taken with him and thinks he has a fresh perspective on how to bring change to the country,” Charles said.
Asked whether her former husband’s decision to back Clinton had any bearing on Sheila Johnson’s decision, Charles demurred.
“She’s a woman who thinks for herself,” Charles said.
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WASHINGTON (AP) – Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani is running ads on conservative talk radio shows in a direct appeal to the Republican voters who could determine the fate of his presidential campaign.
The 30-second spots are airing during Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity shows, popular broadcasts with the conservative base of the GOP. The campaign would not reveal the cost of the ad campaign but said the ads were running nationwide.
Giuliani is leading the Republican field in national polls of Republicans. But he is still viewed with apprehension by social conservatives over his past support for abortion rights, domestic partnership benefits for gay couples and gun-control measures.
The radio ad avoids those subjects.
“My campaign is about leadership and optimism,” he says in the ad. “We need strong leadership to stay on offense in the war against terrorists. We need supply side policies and reduced government spending – fiscal discipline – to keep the economy growing.”
The ad directs listeners to his new Web site, JoinRudy2008.com.
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CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – One of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s top supporters says if the Democrat wins the White House, he wants to be part of her team negotiating peace in the Middle East.
Bill Shaheen, a second-generation Lebanese American, last week joined Clinton as co-chairman of her national and state campaigns. He told The Associated Press on Tuesday that reports that he withheld his endorsement until he was promised an ambassadorship were wrong.
“Did she promise (an ambassadorship)? No,” Shaheen said. “That’s not how I work. I don’t think Senator Clinton is thinking that far down the road and I would be disappointed if she was.”
Shaheen met with bloggers after a news conference announcing his endorsement last week. One blog, GreenMountainPolitics1, quoted Shaheen as saying Clinton promised to make him her Middle East envoy.
“The only thing I made Hillary promise in return for helping on her campaign is that she will send me over to the Middle East to help her work for peace in the region,” blogger Chris Stewart quoted Shaheen as saying.
In an interview Tuesday, Stewart said Shaheen never used the word “ambassador.”
The blog BlueHampshire quoted Shaheen as saying: “I said if I do all this for you, I only want one thing: I want to be on that team that brings peace to the Middle East. I believe in it. I don’t need to get paid. I just want to be on that team.”
Mike Caulfield, who posted the BlueHampshire entry, said his quotes are accurate and Shaheen did not say Clinton had made any promises.
“My impression is that he was not presenting it as a quid pro quo,” Caulfield said. “He never said anything about what Hillary said back to that.”
Shaheen helped run Jimmy Carter’s presidential campaign in 1976 and went to the Palestinian territories last year as an election monitor for the Carter Center. Shaheen, whose wife served three terms as governor, is considered one of New Hampshire’s political kingmakers and helped run the New Hampshire campaigns of Al Gore and John Kerry.
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WASHINGTON (AP) – The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee is endorsing John Edwards in his presidential bid.
Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., said in a statement released by the campaign that Edwards is “the kind of man I want as my president.” Obey, who has served in Congress for nearly 40 years, cited Edwards’ initiative on health care, education and Social Security.
Edwards said in the statement that he was honored to have Obey’s support.
“Dave is a good friend and a true leader on the important issues facing our country – improving our schools, guaranteeing quality, affordable health care and protecting our natural resources,” said the former North Carolina senator.
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Associated Press Writer Philip Elliott in Concord, N.H., contributed to this report.
Healthier lunches from the ground up: City Academy students operate their own garden and food store
Before this year, healthy eating didn’t mean much to Melissa Powell, a junior at City Academy in Salt Lake City.
She ate where it was convenient — the nearby McDonald’s or chips and soda from the gas station.
But now you will find her eating sushi made with organic vegetables, fresh fruit smoothies and other healthy items available to students at the school through a student-run lunch “store” dubbed City Academy Creations.
Schools all over the nation are making efforts to become healthier through vending choices and healthy breakfast and lunch options. And when City Academy, a charter school, moved to its new building downtown, it chose to ditch the vending machines altogether and provide its own healthy affordable goods.
The school recently received a $1,350 Community Garden Grant from the state health department to establish what the school calls a “full circle garden” that will contribute to the school’s store.
Spearheaded by Shea Wickelson, the school’s food science teacher, the garden is run by students who cultivate tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots and strawberries to sell in the school store for lunch.
And the students are the chefs, farmers and marketers — hence the name “full circle.”
Wickelson said the key to success is price and convenience. A sushi roll goes for a mere $1.50, and a fruit smoothie is only a buck. The store also sells things like squash and lentil soup, fresh fruits and apple pie. What students don’t grow themselves, they buy with the proceeds.
“It’s so much fun to be in (the kitchen) and working,” said Toni Albam, a seventh-grader. “It gives you some responsibility and job experience — it’s pretty cool.”
“I just think it’s a really great opportunity to have kids think about where food is coming from — to think about what’s in their food and be on another side of those choices and have them be faced with that sort of decisionmaking,” Wickelson said.
Students also have learned how to run cost analyses, nutritional analyses and create food business models. The students decide what to sell, what to charge and how much profit they make — which also covers supplies needed for the food science classes.
“For me it’s about the kids doing authentic work — where they learn not just about something but by actually doing something — it is deeper kind of learning,” Wickelson said.
Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor 
