Mary's Be a GoodDog Blog

Monday Blues

2012-01-30T13:34:00.000-06:00

this pic and the ones above it are from the calendar.

If only i had had a big stab wound

2012-01-27T19:50:00.001-06:00

"maybe then the police would believe i had been raped. "
dang

i hate it when the police do not believe a woman.

how many students have made the effort to report--with ALL THAT ENTAILS-- then the police, after grilling her several times, do not even interview the alleged perpetrator--do NOT EVEN INTERVIEW HIM!

(answer: too many)

We have really great police officers, and we have untrained or noncaring ones.
if they only knew the enourmous didfference they make.
also,
how am i able to say, sure , yeah, excellent choice, to report this crime--
if there is a 50-50 chance the CRIME VICTIM will be treated like a liar. and the perpetrator is not even given the tiny little fear of a police officer or detective interviewing him.
I thought that was something they like to do? Scare, trick, shame, cajol a rapist into admitting something that will get the case some justice.

i wont leave a mark dagnabit

give me all your money. (don't fight him, just give him your money!)

give me your purse.

cry sometimes, laugh somtimes.

Maybe the fact that the TV sensational anchors only report the 2% of weird cases, troubled reports, sociopathic liars, and smarmy stuff--completely ignoring the EPIDEMIC of sexual violence-- is one reason....

Irish Water Spaniel Dog: Stunning. Sweetest Hypoallergenic Friday

2012-01-27T12:39:00.000-06:00

OK, an Irish Water Spaniel is a glorious dog. the Calendar has this picture:

and an Irish Water Spaniel Puppy:

looks a little like howard stern, but better looking.

http://www.akc.org/breeds/irish_water_spaniel/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Water_Spaniel

"The colour is liver/puce and has a very definite purple hue unlike the colour of any other known breed...IWS have several distinguishing characteristics which place them among the more unique of all breeds: The topknot of long, loose curls growing down from the head which often covers the eyes; a "beard" growing at the back of the throat often accompanied by "sideburns"; and a curled, liver ("puce")-colored coat. The most distinguishing characteristic of these dogs is the smooth "rat tail", completely free of long coat except at the base where it is covered for 2-3 inches with curls. The face is entirely smooth-coated and, unlike the poodle, should require little or no trimming to stay that way. An IWS is ruggedly built with webbed feet to aid in its powerful swimming. Altogether, the IWS presents a picture of a smart, upstanding, strongly built but not leggy dog, combining great intelligence and rugged endurance with a bold, dashing eagerness of temperament.

They are the largest of the Spaniel group. Dogs range in height from 22 to 24 inches (56–61 cm), and weigh 55 to 65 pounds (25–30 kg). As their name would imply these dogs love water."

Rest Your Eyes, Refresh Your Heart, Clear Your Ears

2012-01-26T09:47:00.001-06:00

I have just the thing. Give yourself permission for four and a half minutes to sit, listen, watch,
It Is OK to Be Here. You Are A Child of the Universe.
All is well.

The flint hills of kansas are my back yard HERE

they call it flyover country...

2012-01-25T22:01:00.001-06:00

I've counted 20 jet contrails in the skies here in flyover country during the Rush Hour.

flyover country

short cut?

Kansas Country Highway Sunset

2012-01-25T21:22:00.000-06:00

The clouds got better and better. Will post a video tomorrow.

A Season for Nonviolence: 2012 at K-State

2012-01-24T15:50:00.000-06:00

Walk a Path of Peace.

A Season for Nonviolence 2012: The anniversaries of the assassinations of Mahatma Gandhi (January 30) and Dr. Martin Luther King (April 4) mark the bookends of the 64 days of the Season for Nonviolence. Find out more at the beautiful National Site: http://www.nonviolenceworks.com/

click to enlarge poster

A Season for Nonviolence began in Los Angeles, inspired by the 50th memorial anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi (January 30, 1998) and the 30th memorial anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (April 4, 1998). At that time, task forces in 111 U.S. cities and 10 countries formed a network to nurture the spirit of nonviolence in our communities and to demonstrate that every individual can move the world in the direction of peace through their nonviolent choice and action. That network continues to grow. A Season for Nonviolence is currently in its 14th Season.

Kansas State University Nonviolence: HERE

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. ……Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The ultimate measure of a person is not where one stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where one stands in times of challenge and controversy. … Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant… Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him… …… Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny…. www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/ Peace is not merely a distant goal we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal… ……Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As you press on for justice, be sure to move with dignity and discipline, using only the weapon of love. Let no man pull you so low as to hate him….……

KC Star Story: Gay Teen and T-Shirt Dispute

2012-01-24T15:34:00.001-06:00

The KC STAR Story here made me think about how people with differing views can work/communicate together, agree to disagree, live their lives and then
And Then:
There is always the idiot who just wants to
get ugly, call names, start trouble, and show the inner bully.
sigh...

excerpt from story by LEE HILL KAVANAUGH

"... As president of her high school club, the Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) at Blue Springs South, Bailee liked the idea of having T-shirts made like other student groups. But she didn’t want a racy one. “One of the girl’s sports teams, I think it’s soccer, has a T-shirt that says, ‘Girls do it in the grass 11 ways,’ ” Bailee said. “My mom wouldn’t ever allow me to wear that.”
She found a slogan with a deeper message on the Internet: Why is it that as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands? The dozen members of the club loved it. Bailee handed the design to her principal. The next day, he gave it back, with his signature of approval. She emailed her order for a dozen shirts from Rod’s Sporting Goods in Blue Springs. A clerk told her they would be ready in a week..."

Lara Logan Educates About Long Term Effects and PTSD After Sexual Assault.

2012-01-24T15:09:00.001-06:00

Update: Rape victims are often told, "you should be over it by now..." or, "It's been a year, move on--" but those who have suffered ANY trauma, real, deep trauma--know that the Post Trauma Stress can be so heavy that it indeed becomes a matter which must be addressed medically and psychologically.
I have worked with rape victims who were basically told by the police
that "it wasn't a real rape" or "it isn't worth pushing an investigation" because she wasn't bruised and bloodied, or because she waited too long to report the crime, or because she took a ride home (merely to GET home, smiling, hoping he did not realize she knew she was raped, hoping she could just softly, quietly slide away to safety) ...any way, here is the Latest from Lara Logan:

Update: Lara Logan Says effects of sexual assault Do Not Go Away... HERE
CBS 60 minutes video below) and story HERE. Lara Logan Feared Death: Update May 1, 2011: On cbs 60 minutes, Lara Logan indicates that she believed she was going to die during the sexual assault and beating in Egypt's Tahrir Square. "She was set upon by a mob of several hundred men. She said in an interview with Scott Pelley that 'there was no doubt in my mind that I was in the process of dying. I thought not only am I going to die, but it's going to be just a torturous death that's going to go on forever.' After being rescued, she returned to the United States and was treated in a hospital for four days..."
"Ms. Logan, a CBS News correspondent, was in the square preparing a report for “60 Minutes” on Feb. 11 when the celebratory mood suddenly turned threatening. She was ripped away from her producer and bodyguard by a group of men who tore at her clothes and groped and beat her body. “For an extended period of time, they raped me with their hands,” Ms. Logan said in an interview with The New York Times. She estimated that the attack involved 200 to 300 men."

Journalist Amand Lindhout's
Somalian Kidnapping horror story HERE

It never ends.

"CBS News correspondent Lara Logan was assaulted and sexually abused by an Egyptian crowd last week during the celebration of President Hosni Mubarak's decision to step aside. Logan, a veteran foreign correspondent, was covering the jubilation in Tahrir Square for "60 Minutes" on Feb. 11 when "she and her team and their security were surrounded by a dangerous element amidst the celebration," CBS News said in a statement published on their website today.

lara logan picture apparently taken just minutes before violent attack

"In the crush of the mob, she was separated from her crew. She was surrounded and suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and an estimated 20 Egyptian soldiers," according to the CBS statement.

quote from http://abcnews.go.com/US/lara-logan-hospitalized-sexually-attacked-egypt-protesters-celebration/story?id=12925235

more video and story here at NPR.

Sadness. I pray pray pray that the use of the terms in the report of this assault--indicates that the crimes committed against her were on the least violent in the spectrum.

And
These two stories show how the modern media is used to react instantly or even smear in insane and appalling ways after events: (Because sexual assault is always about getting attention, right)

click on pic to enlarge twitter feed.

http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/259833/appalling-reaction-outrageous-crime

second post here:

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/rape-myths-misogyny-political.html

http://michellemalkin.com/2011/02/15/cbs-news-reporter-lara-logan-sexually-assaulted-beaten-in-cairo/

Updated info from The Daily Mail, London Times and Daily Beast:

From the Daily Mail: “More details have emerged of Lara Logan's terrifying ordeal at the hands of a frenzied mob. The 39-year-old foreign correspondent for CBS News show 60 Minutes was separated from her film crew in Cairo on February 11 and surrounded by as many as 200 men in Tahrir Square at the height of the anti-Mubarak demonstrations. According to one source, reported in The Sunday Times newspaper, sensitive parts of her body were covered in red marks that were originally thought to have been bite marks. After further examination they were revealed to be from aggressive pinching. It has also been revealed that she was stripped, punched and slapped by the crowd, which was labelling her a spy and chanting 'Israeli' and 'Jew' as they beat her.And medical sources have revealed that marks on her body were consistent with being whipped and beaten with the makeshift poles that were used to fly flags during the demonstration. An unnamed friend of the reporter told The Sunday Times: 'Lara is getting better daily. The psychological trauma is as bad as, if not worse than, the physical injuries. She might talk about it at sometime in the future, but not now.'

(After being taken to the Four Seasons hotel, she was treated and sedated by the hotel doctor. Within hours of the attack she was was flown out of the country and spent five days in a New York hospital.) Witnesses say the mainly peaceful protests to end Mubarak's rule had taken a more violent turn after the Egyptian president announced his resignation. The military presence controlling the amount of people entering Tahrir Square seemed to evaporate, and an angrier element had flowed in. Miss Logan was attacked around 1am as she filmed in the square. Egyptian state media had been publishing negative stories about foreign journalists, with many reports alleging that many Israeli spies were masquerading as news crews. Days before her attack, Miss Logan had been held in Alexandria on suspicion of being foreign spies.

“ Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1358944/Lara-Logan-attack-Stripped-punched-whipped-flag-poles.html#ixzz1EhjdwGw2

Responses, videos and extended coverage click here

UPDATE: Nir ROsen has resigned. http://www.politicsdaily.com/2011/02/16/nir-rosen-resigns-from-nyu-after-trashing-lara-logan-on-twitter/
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2011/02/16/lara-logan-assault-for-female-reporters-the-added-peril-of-tur/

http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/02/the-creepiest-thing-nir-rosen-ever-said/71398/

Shedding Tears for Elizabeth Smart: Now Engaged.

2012-01-20T20:05:00.001-06:00

By the Grace of God? Now Elizabeth Smart is engaged. Did you shed tears as you followed the unspeakable ordeal she endured? When I first mentioned her in this blog, it sweemed there was a spate of kidnappings in the news. Young children ripped from their families into a world of torture. How would they ever recover? What of the ones never found? The unimaginable pain and unending prayers of families who still wait; (my guess is, almost hoping their child is in the arms of angels rather than living a life in evil's hands...)

elizabeth smart engaged photo story here

Redux.
There is healing, and moving on for some.
As you watch the video below, ponder
how over the years, as you have heard of various horror crimes, in particular those involving kidnapping and torture of children--
how much you wanted to know
that if ever a child was found, was saved--that she would be whole again, that s/he would be healed. Stronger than ever. That s/he would not be permanently wounded.

Elizabeth Smart, taken at age 14 at knifepoint from her bedroom, gave us some comfort
as she shared
factually, simply, graciously
with great insight and humble wisdom
her Moving On
and her confrontation with the criminal...

She has started a foundation--" I think one of the biggest ways to overcome any trial in life, to heal from any any kind of experience is by helping those around you --because by lifting those around you up
you end up lifting yourself up as well..."
here is the video
This is actually the moment many of us have waited for many times, for those we will never meet, for those we have prayed for. This is what by Grace we hope the recovery from monsters looks like.

My Fantasy Backyard Has This Birdbath

2012-01-20T15:35:00.000-06:00

Painting by Thomas Cole American painter 1801-1848

The Titan's Goblet detail oil on canvas at the metropolitan museum of art

click to elarge

Beams of Light will fill your head

2012-01-17T13:29:00.004-06:00

Barnlight catbeams moonbeams couchlight

Lyrics Melancholy Man moody blues

I'm a melancholy man.

That's what I am,
All the world surrounds me,
And my feet are on the ground.
I'm a very lonely man,
Doing what I can,
All the world astounds me,
And I think I understand.
That we're going,
To keep growing,
Wait and see.

When all the stars are falling down,
Into the sea and on the ground,
And angry voices carry on the wind.
A beam of light will fill your head,
And you'll remember what's been said,
By all the good men this world's ever known.
Another man is what you'll see,
Who looks like you and looks like me,
And yet somehow he will not feel the same.
His life caught up in misery,
He doesn't think like you and me,
'Cos he can't see what you and I can see.

When all the stars are falling down,
Into the sea and on the ground,
And angry voices carry on the wind.
A beam of light will fill your head,
And you'll remember what's been said,
By all the good men this world's ever known.
Another man is what you'll see,
Who looks like you and looks like me,
And yet somehow he will not feel the same,
His life caught up in misery,
He doesn't think like you and me, A melancholy man.
'Cos he can't see what you and I can see. A very lonely man.

When all the stars are falling down,
Into the sea and on the ground,
And angry voices carry on the wind.
A beam of light will fill your head,
And you'll remember what's been said,
By all the good men this world's ever known.
Another man is what you'll see,
Who looks like you and looks like me,
And yet somehow he will not feel the same.
His life caught up in misery,
He doesn't think like you and me,
'Cos he can't see what you and I can see.

Love to Ian

2012-01-17T04:43:00.000-06:00

I saw my Friend

(some many months had passed
since last we’d shared a beer

and something in these Flint Hills
of an evening

full of setting orange sun and owls’ calls

I took his shoulder to cry upon

(standing in the eastside market
holding our season’s best cantaloupes,
“the first ones that really taste like cantaloupe”
he said
before remarking that

I probably didn’t know

what kind of spring it had been

That night I held my Love
(he held me tightly too, as we held our Friend in our heart and realized

we will never know a spring like that

losing a son

losing a child

Pain pushes you off of the earth

(lifts

you away
everyone
left below in the fluff

Grief unveiled
encircles you

you follow, spiraling

hawk

rising on the thermals

God calling

(We loved our friend that night,

standing in the Zeandale kitchen

where Dave had
graced us
with his real good self and his two Little Ones.

The love in our prayers—
may it help you to stand.)

Morning

Birds

Songs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XElufx73iRM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_ts1aW1Hwg

Ian's story HERE

Hiking in the Flint Hills: Prudence Come Out to Play (Konza Prairie Rocks

2012-01-16T20:21:00.002-06:00

and home again to lovely female cardinal

Dear Prudence

Songwriters: Mccartney, Paul; Lennon, John;

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play? Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day

The sun is up, the sky is blue It's beautiful and so are you

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play?
Dear Prudence, open up your eyes Dear Prudence, see the sunny skies The wind is low the birds will sing
That you are part of everything Dear Prudence, won't you open up your eyes? Look around round

(Round round round, round round) (Round round round, round round) Look around round round
(Round round round, round round) (Round round round, round round)
Look around
Dear Prudence, let me see you smile
Dear Prudence, like a little child
The clouds will be a daisy chain
So let me see you smile again
Dear Prudence, won't you let me see you smile?

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play?
Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It's beautiful and so are you
Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play?

John Lennon

Title IX: Sexual Assault on Campus, Advocacy, and the Perils of Reporting

2012-01-16T01:07:00.001-06:00

Yikes! Everything is changed.
I am going to spell it out. [tomorrow]

But first, let's see what people are saying:

http://www.publicintegrity.org/investigations/campus_assault/articles/entry/1946/
includes video from crime victim and excerpt: "...Unsatisfied with the school’s response, Dunn hoped to find an ally in the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. The office, referred to as OCR, enforces Title IX, a federal law requiring “prompt and equitable“ action in response to reports like Dunn’s. The statute is intended to protect students’ right to an education without the hostility of sexual harassment or assault. But in a decision that left her feeling betrayed again, the enforcement agency said it found “insufficient evidence” that the University of Wisconsin had been less than prompt. ..The university’s explanation for taking nine months was “reasonable” and it took “interim steps” including a no-contact order “to protect and prevent harassment” of Dunn, OCR found. The school ultimately cited a lack of eyewitnesses and the role of alcohol in deciding not to file disciplinary charges against the accused student.

Rights and regulations
http://www.securityoncampus.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=44&Itemid=27

http://www.kasap.org/news/beyondtheballcourtusingtitleixtostopsexualassault.html

http://title-ix.blogspot.com/

http://www.northnet.org/stlawrenceaauw/title9.htm

in the beginning:
http://yaleherald.com/topstory/breaking-news-yale-students-file-title-ix-suit-against-school/

Confidentiality and advocacy are irrevocably changed.

((New National Guidelines have been implemented here at K-State for responding to reports of rape and all sexual assault. The new guidelines include sexual assault as a severe level of sexual harassment under Title IX Regulations. This means that reports of sexual assault must be investigated by the university to a degree that protects other students from individuals who may pose a threat. Here at K-State, reports of Title IX violations may be made at the K-State Women’s Center in Holton Hall. The Women’s Center works with the Office of Affirmative Action in Anderson Hall to ensure swift, discreet, and equitable action in these criminal complaints. ))
For more information about Title IX and sexual assault complaints, contact the K-State Women’s Center, The Office of Student Life (Holton Hall), or the Office of Affirmative Action.

the document that started the changes:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/dear_colleague_sexual_violence.pdf

http://www.aclu.org/files/pdfs/womensrights/titleixandsexualassaultknowyourrightsandyourcollege'sresponsibilities.pdf

Flint Hills Farm at Winter's Dusk

2012-01-10T17:27:00.001-06:00

and more HERE

Benny and Joon's Can't Find My Way Home -- Joe Cocker

2012-01-07T17:41:00.003-06:00

Johhny Depp was younger then...

Can't find my way home...

poignant song in soundtrack from "benny and joon"

Joe Cocker's versions of a real good song.

from the movie:

click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYVkdk9eIGE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZnVhTJ5II0&feature=related

young johnny depp
bLIND Faith, 1969, madison square garden:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHhF2jMSxY0&feature=related

and

alison krause:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV3u6kS2mmE&feature=related

eric clapton and yvonne elliman:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-wvfsGV1sE&feature=related

lyrics CANT FIND MY WAY HOME
STEVE WINWOOD
WORDS AND GUITAR MUSIC HERE
Come down off your throne and leave your body alone
Somebody must change
You are the reason I've been waiting so long
Somebody holds the key
Well, I'm near the end and I just ain't got the time
And I'm wasted and I can't find my way home
Come down on your own and leave your body alone
Somebody must change
You are the reason I've been waiting all these years
Somebody holds the key
But I'm near the end and I just ain't got the time
Oh, and I'm wasted and I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way homeBut I can't find my way home
But I can't find my way home
Still I can't find my way home
And I ain't done nothing wrong
But I can't find my way home

Cat at Sundown and Farm Apocolypse

2012-01-06T12:57:00.000-06:00

Art is everything and everywhere. Sundown on a farm is golden.

sun makes everything golden.
the paint is actually very pale yellow.
please click to view large

winter corn

Martin Luther King Jr -- A Day On in Manhattan Kansas

2012-01-05T10:41:00.003-06:00

Here is the Community Calendar Schedule of Events, as well as links and information about how to volunteer. As usual, there are a LOT of MLK activities....Mark your calendars now and share these listings with your family, coworkers & friends!
K-State's activities in observance of Martin Luther King Week:
http://www.k-state.edu/diversity/2012MLKWeekPoster.pdf

K-State Announcements of MLK Campus Events with descriptions:
http://www.k-state.edu/today/announcement.php?id=1792&category=events&referredBy=K-State%20Today%20Home

The University also has posted the Manhattan Community's MLK Events on this website:
http://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/jan12/MLKCommCalendar.html

January 16 BEACH MUSEUM Tribute to MLK:

http://beach.k-state.edu/calendar/325/martin-luther-king-day-on-event

Don't Forget: January 26 - K-State's MLK Fellowship Luncheon and Speaker
Make Martin Luther King Day a Day ON-- (See past years click HERE and HERE and HERE)
We have both Manhattan Community and Kansas State University Calendars/Events.

Martin Luther King Celebration in Manhattan Kansas
Schdule of Events

Click Pic to enlarge

How to Volunteer for a Day ON MLK

Migrating Geese in 2012 Over the Flint Hills

2012-01-04T14:52:00.001-06:00

Too Beautiful. Early morning; in one video below you can see the ones heading west meeting up with those returning east after encountering hunters.

Many migrating geese videos at my youtube channel, 77katydid.

More Geese click HERE http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/massive-snow-geese-and-canadians.html

the ones heading back east have been shot at. I think they are making a higher pitched honk.

RT News: Truth or Manipulation, Bias or Sensational Global Ratings Ploy?

2012-01-02T18:38:00.004-06:00

Have you watched RT News yet? For the past few months its edginess, limit-pushing, almost amateurish, interviewing-the-blogger-on-the-street approach has caught my attention. Also its BLAtant (way beyond) slant in stories that seem to be driving to a goal. Also its provable untruths. also the propaganda-like tone when reporting the baldfaced lies...but when that is not happening, it's as good and boring as network...

(Does Making f\Fun of the fake News create an extra Steven hawking ish TimeLike dimension folding in on itself?) *

here the mysterious calabai yau

and more here BELOW

***

Tonight,
January 2 Monday?
(i guess:
i show up for work and no one is there. parking lot so empty i thought they moved the cotton bowl up or Prez Kirk was being nominated for a Peace Prize or somesun...)
So
a weeknight around 4:30, when other news is not on yet, [and
again later at 9 and 10 and 13:30],
RT NEWS comes on (on one of the three PBS stations [no cable here, just a digital antenna that allows the big three nets, the cw, coupla local, and 3 pbs choices)

RT news is fun to watch. on all ends of the various spectri,
it is allowing full throated opinion to be expressed. The only problem is that when News starts to do that, eventually the facts can get lost. in a general direction...

tonight i laughed as they reported that
The Giant Occupy Demonstrations in the US in over 100 cities
were
IMMEDIATEly shut down by teh "U.S. Government"--
wow.
really? So i want to have some relaxation tonight and write about the rest of the newscast--i think you can watch the whole episode from tonight on youtube/ HERE

SO 15 minutes ago, while i am getting out the computer, writing a few lines,
YIkES!~ NBC NEWS has a story about: RT news...
about RT news! (THAT IT IS BASICALLY RUSSIAN CABLE- watch RT news: HOW LITTLE Americans know about everything, like JAY LENO ON THE STREET-
"stories you might have missed while trying to enjoy the holidays- that's why you should leave the news to us.." brian Williams, january 2, 2012 nbc news

I AM GOING TO GET FOOD.
THEN, come back and tell you the stories. holy moley! guantanimo, obama, sudan, syria, israel. turkey, iran, and a quote from one US Colonel who wholeheartedly supported candidate Obama:

"He didn't just embrace Bush's policies--he kissed them on the lips and ran with them..." Col. Morris Davis, who calls the recent drone attack on an american, Murder...

The I'm Too Sexy for my Glasses reporters at RT are reporting anger that President Obama is signing an order to allow Indefinite Detention of those individuals, even Americans, deemed troublemakers.
They then go on to report that this has Sparked Civil UpRoar across America!
Wow ! Really?

yikes; Here

There is also a story about the downfall of the Euro, and a picture of what looks like an Altar and a Giant EURO symbol suspended, surrounded by stars...by the way, in this RT video the netherlands', Romano Prodi could be Robin Williams' fraternal twin brother...

ok you go watch the youtube version and i will take a lil nap.

*

'Homer discovered a third dimension in
Treehouse of Horror VI. For us, CERN scientists could be close to
confirming the existence of extra dimensions beyond the
classical four (length breadth, dept, and time). '

"Physicists probing the origins of the cosmos hope that next year they will turn up the first proofs of the existence of concepts long dear to science-fiction writers such as hidden worlds and extra dimensions.And as their Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN near Geneva moves into high gear, they are talking increasingly of the "New Physics" on the horizon that could totally change current views of the universe and how it works."..."Parallel universes, unknown forms of matter, extra dimensions... These are not the stuff of cheap science fiction but very concrete physics theories that scientists are trying to confirm with the LHC and other experiments."

I'll take you there: Staple Singers Redux (January means MLK and fresh start..)

2012-01-02T10:37:00.005-06:00

I know a place
I'll take you there...
Aint nobody cryin'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9rh3JTvvlk (with pictures embedded at bottom of post)

Mercy.
Full Length Version no pics click to listen

Oh . . . mmm
I know a place
Ain't nobody cryin'

Ain't nobody worried Ain't no smilin' faces Mmm, no no Lyin' to the races
Help me, come on, come on Somebody, help me now
(I'll take you there) Help me, ya'all (I'll take you there)
Help me now (I'll take you there)
Oh!
(I'll take you there) Oh! Oh! Mercy! (I'll take you there) Oh, let me take you there
(I'll take you there)
Oh-oh! Let me take you there!
(I'll take you there)
Play your, play your piano now
All right
Ah . . . do it . . . do it
Come on now
Play on it, play on it
Daddy daddy daddy
Ooh, Lord
All right now
Baby, easy now
Now, come on, little lady
All right
Dum-dum-dum-dum
Sock it, sock it
Ah, oh, oh!
I know a place, ya'all
(I'll take you there) Ain't nobody cryin'
(I'll take you there) Ain't nobody worried
(I'll take you there) No smilin' faces (I'll take you there) Uh-uh
(Lyin' to the races) (I'll take you there) Oh, no

Oh!
(I'll take you there)
Oh oh oh!
(I'll take you there)
Mercy now!
(I'll take you there)

I'm callin' callin' callin' mercy
(I'll take you there) Mercy mercy! (I'll take you there)
Let me (I'll take you there) Oh oh! I'll take you there
(I'll take you there) Oh oh oh oh Wanna take you there!
(I'll take you there)
Just take me by the hand
Let me
(I'll take you there)
Let me, let me, let me lead the way
Oh!
(I'll take you there)
Let me take you there
(I'll take you there)
Let me take you there!
(I'll take you there)
Ain't no smilin' faces

(I'll take you there)
Up in here, lyin' to the races (I'll take you there)
You oughta, you gotta gotta come let me, let me
(I'll take you there) Take you, take you, take you over there
(I'll take you there)
Ooh!
Oh! Oh!
All right
(I'll take you there) Oh-oh! All right! (I'll take you there)
Oh! Oh!
(I'll take you there)
Mmmm . . . ah
Oh! Yeah!
(I'll take you there)

Whoa!
(I'll take you there)
Let me lead the way
(I'll take you there)

mavis wins click HERE

Oh, Lawd.
Hep me

Stax records 1972 Staple Singers
view more click HERE

touch a hand make a friend HERE

Peace and Love in the New Year

2012-01-02T10:30:00.002-06:00

Put on your seat belt for 2012--wouldn't you say?

sweetest donkey HERE

Stalkers and Peepers Commit Murder and Rape: How Many Times I Gotta Tell Ya?

2012-01-01T19:45:00.006-06:00

Update: on the TV news tonight, it was reported that Kawon Higgins

murdered Amanda Bonner, then killed himself.

It was also reported that he was the father of her two children.

Two bodies found in Manhattan Kansas. One was a young woman who reported to police and her neighbors in fear regarding a man who was bothering her, peeping into her house. The story is reported in the Manhattan Mercury here. Katherine Wartell writes,
"The Riley County Police were called to 715 Yuma Friday afternoon and discovered two bodies. Police called the deaths suspicious. The neighbor ...told The Mercury Saturday that there had been a history of harassment between the woman and a man whose body was discovered at the same time. Authorities identified the deceased as Amanda Bonner, 23, of 715 Yuma Street, and Kawon Higgins, 26. The bodies were discovered Friday afternoon..." Apparently the woman called the police over a dozen times regarding this man.
The story went on to report that the young woman's tires had been slashed (as had those of her boyfriend) and that a restraining order had been placed against Higgins.
Amanda Bonner had two children.

In the Manhattan Mercury article, the neighbor of Amanda Bonner is quoted as saying, " A peeper doesn't stay a peeper. I've made complaints to everyone trying to get something done."
It reminded me
of an incident years ago where the K-State Collegian reported lightheartedly that a peeper was "flashing" his genitalia through KSU Hale Library window. He or someone matching his description had committed a crime against a student in Leasure Hall after hours within a day or two of the first "flashing".
The collegian reported it almost as a joke. He masturbated and flashed his genitalia, so it was funny, right? Except that when the young student trapped in the room with him tried to leave, he held the student down with the force of of his body. She had his blood and skin under her fingernails, her arm ended up in a sling, she feared death as she tried unsuccessfully to escape. But he was reported as a "flasher."

The FBI indicate that most serious violent crimes are committed by men who once committed lesser crimes like peeping, stalking, flashing, harrassing.
When will we take this type of violence seriously?

Last night there was a video on the Topeka evening TV news regarding an event about Ending the Violence. These events abound, and you may have participated in these events or at least listened to the reports for years, for scores of years, for generations now.
People gather with quilts, or t-shirts, or poems, or photos, and tell about the survivors-- or the dead, the lost, the heroes; at times they tell about people who were not listened to, people who were frustrated and filled with anger or grief or terror.

Riley County Domestic Violence Awareness Event HERE

Take Back the Night Tshirt Event click HERE

I've begun to feel that the good these events do is only for those involved;
i have diminishing hope that they serve an educational or preventative value that is significant. Those who are violent (Here and HERE) rarely change. It is good for those who suffer through the dealing with monsters to hear the stories of others, to know they are not alone.
It is good for their children to hear how they suffered for love of them; how much honor we owe them; how brave they were.
But things are not changing. How many times do violent men have to charm their way out of a jail sentence before we lock them up?

I just saw on the evening news about a Dallas Cowboy Football player (Jason Witten) who did a good thing, made a nice event for children who suffer from the cycle of relational violence. It was the next-to-last story--and at the end of the newscast everyone then put up their best "three words" on a card, like "treat everyone nice" and "live love laugh" and "hope is good" --and after it ended, with the newscaster all warm and fuzzy, the very next images flashed on the TV screen from the network were the jarring words, SEX - REVENGE - MURDER - etc. filling the screen; interspersed with scenes of almost naked bodies, blood, and evil grins.

It was an ad for the next show.

Lady Gaga Is Neither...

When we feed our children

deliberately or with casual indifference

scenes of torture, death, rape, harrassment, and power

mixed with

sexuality, having friends and acceptance, and being cool,

we set them up.
We are setting up our children for failure and sadness.

More on the topic:

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/dont-hurt-people.html
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/topeka-domestic-violence-and.html

If they're gonna drink, at least do it in a safe place!
If they're gonna smoke at least make them smoke filters!
If they gonna make babies, click HERE

Time to take a sick day...

Raptors in the Flint Hills of Kansas: Hawk Country on New Year's Day

2012-01-01T14:32:00.000-06:00

A magnificent Bald Eagle sat in the Eagle Tree this morning and i wanted to bring a steak offering in exchange for the beauty of sun lighting up the Grand head.
As i'd approached the eagle tree, i looked, as always for a raptor; the tree is one mile from my house and as i neared, i realized there was indeed a bird there-- but it was growing larger, LARGER in my sight-- an eagle!? Yes!
(click here for a previous Bald Eagle viewing)

I was on a tight schedule (sigh) and only grabbed 2 distance pics. However, on the way home i took the following photos of a red-tailed hawk between the eagle tree and the homestead.

The untouched photos (canon) are followed by a few altered posters and the sunset is from this past week.
Click on the pic to view large please.

hawk habitat

More eagle and hawk photos throughout this blog,
for example, HERE

Hawk Poster by MTodd feel free to download and print yourself a copy...

Cat Loves a Party: Adios, 2011

2011-12-27T14:25:00.001-06:00

Oh Fluffy.

Cat as painter's muse HERE

Spielberg Shows Again The Insanity: War Horse the Movie (and A Play with Puppets) note to self--Respect for Those with No Choice

2011-12-26T00:40:00.003-06:00

Enjoyed War Horse on its Christmas opening day. Although i must admit, in my wizanning age, i want the good ending to hurry along. I don't mind in sports having a touch-and-go game, i prefer it (probably because it is a game and does not really matter)--

but in hearing a tale of love and separations and loyalty, of war and insanity and pain and suffering, of honor and justice and balance,

i Really want the balance to return quickly. What a wimp i have become.

Steven Spielberg has become the master of showing the inanity and weird madness of War. Senseless: "RULES" of War! Humans as lemmings or a tide; so many bodies sacrificed, moistening the sand that a wave may yet make it to the goal...

There were many scenes of beauty: the young Joey and his mother interacting on the lush hillside; the aching scenes of those on the edges of war's evil, a young girl and her grandfather in Holland; the unhurried camera catching the light, pain, suffering and love in the eyes of people and horses throughout the film.

There were scenes of poignancy,

ultimately the understanding of the son and the father of the grotesqueness of war; rather than a pride in one's accomplishments. [Aquitting oneself well in hell is still to witness the unspeakable.] i was struck by the portrayal, a layer without words,

whereby the father may no longer suffer being an embarrassment, a failure in the eyes of the son
who now understands that the normal sensitivity of a good human is mortally wounded by surviving war's evil.
However, the original War Horse was a child's book, and many scenes in the movie are a bit hyperbolic, allowing the movie to remain at the fantasy level of a young reader. Good!

One other "lesson" that i think is
Important-
it is a great responsibility to make the Choices for those with no choice, or whose choice has been taken away. i.e., When men decide to put horses into a war, they either basely assume that horses are property with little meaning, or they make the grave decision to accept responsibility for the lives and deaths of sentient creatures, consequenses of such a decision.

From last year:

(Redux)

Startlingly real puppets of horses, (Video HERE) made by two men from South Africa, may be the hook that entices one into (adapted for stage by Nick Stafford) the story, WAR HORSE by children's writer Michael Morpurgo. More about the play here.

The story:

Wiki say: "In Devon at the outbreak of World War I, Joey, young Albert Narracott's beloved horse, is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. Joey serves in the British and German Armies, befriends Topthorn (another army horse) and gets caught up in enemy fire; death, disease and fate take him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in No Man's Land. But Albert cannot forget Joey, and, still not old enough to enlist in the army, he embarks on a dangerous mission to find him and bring him home to Devon..."

CBS Sunday Morning Show had a spot about the stunning "puppets" of horses used in the play. You MUST watch some video (below) of this.

Also, the bit speaks to the staggering loss of life in WWI and American Civil War --of horses, who "had no choice".. excerpt: " World War I was the turning point, when tanks became the war horses of the 20th century. And even though the tank on stage is made of aluminum and plastic, and the horse is a puppet, we comprehend what a terrible turning point it was...

"Tanks, I mean, they simply rolled over people, and they rolled through wire, and they obliterated

horses," said author Michael Morpurgo. "And it was that clash, then, of flesh and metal, of the machine and humankind, really, and we saw it with our own eyes, really, that this is the horrible future."

..."Their plight was total innocence. They were simply being used, exploited, for cavalry and for pulling ambulances, for pulling guns, they were simply being used and sacrificed."The numbers are staggering: Ten million soldiers died in WWI, and it's believed about the same number of horses.

The story of "War Horse" is actually two stories - one about horses, the other about the extraordinary puppets that seem like living, breathing, feeling creatures on the stage. They were created by South Africans Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones..."

Morpurgo's novel, "War Horse," is the National Theatre of Great Britain's most successful production ever, and opens this week at New York's Lincoln Center.

“He possessed beauty without vanity, strength without insolence; courage without ferocity; and all the virtues of man without his vices” Lord Byron

More horses HERE and HERE

Some horses from Manhattan here:
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/perspective-changes-everything-horses.html

Sweetest Donkey, er, Burro, uh, Ass, --Coyote Watchdog

2011-12-25T10:50:00.003-06:00

I heard from my farmer friend that a donkey will protect sheep from coyotes. When a coyote comes around, the little burro just trots up to look at it.

No matter where it goes around the sheep, the donkey will follow it around looking at it. Hilarious!

I have some video i will post later of this MAGnificent little donkey, who lives in the Flint Hills of Kansas. I passed by the lovely creature on the road a few miles from my house, and yes, it was at a farm where i often see lambs and sheep... The face of this particular burro is Priceless. click on pics to enlarge, some are very big files.

Sweetest Donkey

See more donkeys with Warm Breath HERE

The Real Santa (Redux) Note to self: I mean St. Nick!

2011-12-23T10:36:00.002-06:00

In early grade school, i was teased for saying "Santa" had brought me such and such a gift. I looked at everyone and said, "Well, St, NICK!
FuC'ryinOutLoud...
i also believed there was a species of reindeer that could fly. Like, they had a flying squirrel, right? And i had pictures of Flying Lizards.

flying lizards

And, there were magical things in the world i did not know fully-yet- So, Flying Reindeers were one of my last myths which made me happy. I was seriously disappointed when i realized "they" were not pulling my leg when i was being disabused of my wonderful vision and indoctrinated into the oh-so comforting world of logic...

What makes Santa Claus Real?

The Real Santa

Christmas Approaches by mary todd

Don't let anyone tell you

that love has no trials.

Love is what is left after the trauma; pain, suffering,

sacrifice; wounds which seem to be unbearable,

heartbreak which seems to wend its way deeper and

deeper into

one's heart.

I know that the Power of Love exceeds all things.

Love allows Hope to live and Faith to endure.

So when the dark comes, say hello; this trial will pass.

When it seems as if you will die of sorrow, allow reason to rest.

Peacefully Go to the Center of Sorrows.

Love will bring you back

The real santa by mary todd

Weakness or Strength?

Sometimes your biggest weakness can become your biggest strength. Take, for example, the story of one 10-year-old boy who decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident. The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master. The boy was doing well, so he couldn't understand why, after three months of training the master had taught him only one move. "Sensei," the boy finally asked, "Shouldn't I be learning more moves?" "This is the only move I know, but this is the only move you'll ever need to know," the sensei replied. Not quite understanding, but believing in his teacher, the boy kept training. Several months later, the sensei took the boy to his first tournament. Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match. Still amazed by his success, the boy was now in the finals. This time, his opponent was bigger, stronger, and more experienced. For a while, the boy appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the boy might get hurt, the referee called a time-out. He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened. "No," the sensei insisted, "Let him continue." Soon after the match resumed, his opponent made a critical mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly, the boy used his move to pin him. The boy had won the match and the tournament. He was the champion. On the way home, the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the boy summoned the courage to ask what was really on his mind. "Sensei, how did I win the tournament with only one move?" "You won for two reasons," the sensei answered. "First, you've almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. And second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm." The boy's biggest weakness had become his biggest strength. Shalom u'vracha!

Snow Cats HERE

Love Endures All Things

At a fundraising dinner
for a school that serves children with learning disabilities,
the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended.
After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection..Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do.

Where is the natural order of things in my son?'
The audience was stilled by the query.
The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.'

Then he told the following story:
Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' I knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but as a father I also understood that if my son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play.. The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'
Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart. The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three.

In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field.. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I waved to him from the stands.

In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again.
Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.

At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?
Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.
The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.

As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.

The game would now be over.
The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman.
Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game......
Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates.
Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first!
Run to first!'
Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base.
He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.

Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!'
Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base.
By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball .. the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team.
He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.

All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'

Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
Shay, run to third!'

As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!'
Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team.

'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.
Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making me so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!

Love and Mrs. Leonard

I grew up knowing I was different, and I hated it. I was born with a cleft palate, and when I started to go to school, my classmates - who were constantly teasing - made it clear to me how I must look to others: a little girl with a misshapen lip, crooked nose, lopsided teeth, and hollow and somewhat garbled speech. I couldn't even blow up a balloon without holding my nose, and when I bent to drink from a fountain, the water spilled out of my nose. When my schoolmates asked, "What happened to your lip?" I'd tell them that I'd fallen as a baby and cut it on a piece of glass. Somehow it seemed more acceptable to have suffered an accident than to have been born different. By the age of seven I was convinced that no one outside my own family could ever love me. Or even like me. And then I entered the second grade, and Mrs. Leonard's class. I never knew what her first name was - just Mrs. Leonard. She was round and pretty and fragrant, with chubby arms and shining brown hair and warm dark eyes that smiled even on rare occasions when her mouth did not. Everyone adored her. But no one came to love her more than I did. And for a special reason. The time came for t;he annual "hearing tests" give at our school. I was barely able to hear anything out of one ear, and was not about to reveal yet another problem that would single me out as different. And so I cheated. I had learned to watch other children and raised my hand when they did during group testing. The "whisper test" however, required a different kind of deception: Each child would go to the door of the classroom, turn sideways, close one ear with a finger, and the teacher would whisper something from her desk, which the child would repeat. Then the same thing was done for the other ear. I had discovered in kindergarten that nobody checked to see how tightly the untested ear was being covered, so I merely pretended to block mine. As usual, I was last, but all through the testing I wondered what Mrs. Leonard might say to me. I knew from previous years that she whispered things like "The sky is blue" or "Do you have new shoes?" My turn came up. I turned my bad ear to her, plugging up the other solidly with my finger, then gently backed my finger out enough to be able to hear. I waited and then the words that God had surely put into her mouth, seven words that changed my life forever. Mrs. Leonard, the pretty , fragrant teacher I adored, said softly, "I wish you were my little girl"

Some people understand life better, And they call some of these people "retarded"...

At the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100-yard dash.

At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a relish to run the race to the finish and win.
All, that is, except one little boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times, and began to cry.
The other eight heard the boy cry.
They slowed down and looked back.

Then they all turned around and went back......
every one of them.
One girl with Down's Syndrome bent down and kissed him and said, "This will make it better." Then all nine linked arms and walked together to the finish line.
Everyone in the stadium stood, the cheering went on for several minutes.

People who were there are still telling the story........

Why? Because deep down we know this one thing:
What matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What matters in this life is helping others win, even if it means slowing down and changing our course.
"A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle"

The Sweetest Santa by mary todd

Burning Hut
The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements and in which to store his few possessions.

But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened; everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. "God, how could you do this to me!" he cried. Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him.

The weary man asked his rescuers: "How did you know I was here?"
They replied: "We saw your smoke signal."
It is easy to get discouraged when things are going bad. But we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, the next time your little hut is burning to the ground -- it just may be the smoke signal that summons the grace of God.

Now that my house has been burned down,

I have an unobstructed view of the rising moon.

Traditional Buddhist wisdom.

A Beautiful Santa Claus (the real santa by mary todd)

not the real santa

The Real Santa by Mary Todd

The Power of Love Exceeds All Things.

Sweetest Santa by Mary Todd

found this HERE

DO NOT JUDGE (Writer Unknown)
Pray don't find fault with the man who limps
Or stumbles along the road,
Unless you have worn the shoes he wears
Or struggled beneath his load.

There may be tacks in his shoes that hurt,
Though hidden away from view,
Or the burden he bears, placed on your back

Might cause you to stumble, too.
Don't sneer at the man who's down today,
Unless you have felt the blow
That caused his fall, or felt the same
That only the fallen know.
You may be strong, but still the blows
That were his, if dealt to you,
In the self-same way at the self-same time
Might cause you to stagger, too.
Don't be too harsh with the man who sins,
Or pelt him with words or stones,
Unless you are sure, yea, doubly sure,
That you have no sins of your own.
For you know, perhaps if the tempter's voice
Should whisper
as soft to you
As it did to him
when he went astray,
'Twould cause you to falter, too.

more flying squirrels HERE

99% of us around these parts: We Are Rich

2011-12-22T15:12:00.003-06:00

Clean water, oh yeah baby.

Soft toilet paper, YESS!

Electricity ROCKS!
I love my little heater.
Pets that i am not hungry enough to EAT.
A truck that works! Almost all the time!
I can go read at the library every DAY!
I can wash my dishes way better than when i am camping.
I have more clothing than i can ever wear out.
i cannot even count the poeple that i care about
and
they care about me too.
I can find ways to help out.
I can go to church or NOT anytime i want.
I can CLOSE my door, lock it,
and NOT ANSWER IT!!!
I can Go gather firewood without being raped.
Granted, going on a date or out into the scene has its risks...
But only because i don't carry my gun on a date?

Life is really Good for most of us.
And

if you think

there will ever be a time when there are no super rich
and no poor folk

then, you must not believe
in soulless evolution; there is no moral right and wrong rich poor better greedy kind generous wealth only passing along the genes my friend...

So, if you are not
HERE or HERE,
COUNT 'EM!!!

Joyce Rupp Christmas Blessing HERE

Scariest Short Horror Film (19 Seconds) of 2011

2011-12-22T03:33:00.001-06:00

Holy Moley. [The only thing scarier is HERE]

Sandusky HERE

Adam Sandler, Hanukka, and Reign Over Me

2011-12-20T21:39:00.004-06:00

Bonus video: Watched, At his best, Adam Sandler debuting The Chanuka (Hanukka) Song
on Saturday Night Live [ Peaking comedically?

--But beyond his completely natural comic genius, I remember the movie he and Don Cheadle did, a really good movie, Reign Over Me, Sound track AMAzing,
and adam sandler moved into acting. (here)

Listen, See
Betty Lavette cover The Who's Rein O'er me (Sidebar) or at end of post below.

Ok, this a, this is a song, that uh, theres alot of Christmas songs out there, and uh, not
too many Hanukkah songs, so I wrote a song for all those nice little Jewish
kids who dont get to hear any Hanukkah songs--here we go...

Put on your yarmulka, it's time for Hanukkah

Its so much fun-akkah to celebrate Hanukkah,

Hanukkah is the Festival of Lights,

Instead of one day of presents, we have eight crazy nights.

But when you're the only kid in town without a Christmas tree, Heres a list of

people who are Jewish, just like you and me:

David Lee Roth lights the menorrah,

So do James Caan, Kirk Douglas, and the late Dinah Shore-ah

Guess who eats together at the Carnegie Deli,

Bowzer from Sha-na-na, and Arthur Fonzerrelli.

Paul Newman's half Jewish; Goldie Hawn's half too,

Put them together--what a fine lookin’ Jew!

You dont need Deck the Halls or Jingle Bell Rock

Cause you can spin a dreidl with Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock--both Jewish!

Put on your yalmulka, its time for Hanukkah,

The owner of the Seattle Super sonic-ah celebrates Hanukkah.

O.J. Simpson-- not a Jew!

But guess who is...Hall of Famer—Rod Carew--(he converted!)

We got Ann Landers and her sister Dear Abby,

Harrison Ford's a quarter Jewish--not too shabby!

Some people think that Ebeneezer Scrooge is,

Well, hes not, but guess who is: All three stooges.

So many Jews are in show biz--

Tom Cruise isn't, [tacit] but I heard his agent is.

Tell your friend Veronica, its time to celebrate Hanukkah

I hope I get a harmonica, on this lovely, lovely Hanukkah.

So drink your gin-and-tonic-ah, and smoke your mara-juanic-ah,

If you really, really wanna-kah, Have a happy, happy, happy, happy

Hanukkah……. HAPPY HANUKKAH!

from Wiki:
"...Soundtrack
As music was an important component to the plot, various songs were used during different parts of the film, such as Bruce Springsteen's "Out In The Street" and "Drive All Night", and a few songs by The Who, including the titular "Love, Reign o'er Me". The latter song appears on the film's soundtrack along with a cover version recorded specifically for the film by Pearl Jam. Televised trailers features the songs "Ashes" by UK band Embrace, "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers, and "In This Life" by Chantal Kreviazuk. The score was written by Rolfe Kent, and orchestrated by Tony Blondal..."

Happy Holidays, Holydays, Vacation Days, and Snow Days!

2011-12-20T13:26:00.004-06:00

merwwy Chwithmuth.

Some pretty pictures to look at. Sweet things, funny photos are good for your Eyes. For a minute, forget all the horrible posts on this blog...These pics are from the World wide web, the Calendar (see sidebar) or sent in emails. Not my pics, attributions if i found them are in the title.

Jewish collie from the calendar

german shepherd in snow

one of my top five faves from the internets

invisible ski poles

You has a flaver

Holiday dog are HERE

Wishing You Enough

2011-12-20T12:17:00.000-06:00

Wishing you enough time to tell everyone you love

That you Love them.

"Do They Know It's Christmas?" Christians, Materialism, and The Face of Christ

2011-12-20T03:18:00.005-06:00

"Feed the world--Do they know it's Christmastime?"...Band Aid released the song written by Geldof and Ure to raise funds for those suffering from the Ethiopian famine in 1984.
I was walking through a grocery store last week and heard it for the first time in a while; was filled with various emotions.

[Lyrics: at bottom of post]
The poignancy i felt on aisle six was two fold.
One--the lyric, "Feed the World" resonates with the most basic call of humanity; to take care of our fellow creatures, to alleviate suffering, and to connect with others in love and happiness. That each of us cares for others, when there is a need, ensures that all will be assisted. [like in a marriage, if each goes 100% to meet the needs of the other, both end up getting needs met, as my father once taught me...]

more about famine HERE

When i was young and first comprehended human suffering on a large scale, i thought of how hard i would work if it was my sister "over there" or my very own mother! how i would not have stopped until there was food in her hands. Think of your most loved person; if you were made aware that he or she was suffering from lack of food, water, medical care-how urgently would you work to help! In my culture: my Catholic upbringing taught me that indeed, the little kid with flies in his eyes WAS in fact my little brother; that at the end-- when all was known-- i would find that indeed, that woman trying to help her starving children WAS my sister, my mother...

Hence the parable from Christ that helping those in need is in FACT helping Him (click HERE) "..."Come, enter the Kingdom. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was sick and you visited me." Then Jesus will turn to those on His left hand and say, "Depart from me because I was hungry and you did not feed me, I was thirsty and you did not give me to drink, I was sick and you did not visit me." These will ask Him, "When did we see You hungry, or thirsty or sick and did not come to Your help?" And Jesus will answer them, "Whatever you neglected to do unto one of these least of these, you neglected to do unto Me!"

...the focus of a speech by Mother Teresa of Calcutta Given at the

National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC Thur, 3 Feb 1994.

So, number one, i gotta do better

at giving up mochas with fancy sea salt edging the smooth organic caramel

artfully lacing the fine foamy whipped cream on top.

(and Do the visiting birds really need vitamins dusting their sunflower seeds??) How many pairs of shoes might one have before guilt sets in...

But

on a larger scale--

when one ponders the Sudan or the horror of somalia,

more HERE

if one really focuses on the right-now reality of Congo,
or the
daily lives of the oppressed everywhere,
it seems
that Christmas is not only the micro opportunity but
the Macro-opportunity for all who make up the body of Christianity, "organized" adn unorganized--and the leadership, to show what it looks like to walk the walk. That is, wouldn't it be a rush of the miraculous if the utterly hopeless on our Earth were flooded with love and hope and abundance at Christmas? That, no matter how hard times were here and there around the globe, a special effort was made at ChristMassTime to give good things and comfort and glad tidings to those most in need? That we are UNABLE to enjoy goodies and presents and boots and jewels (and food and water) unless everyone has a lil sumsin?

[what would it be like

to airlift millions of blankets

and food and medicine and pillows and

toys and just bomb a country with so much GOODS that there was too much even for stealing

which i think is how we could have Won in Afghanistan...]

You have to think that the poorest, those suffering due to corruption or disaster or crushing poverty would have to look up and say, Now, what is this Christmas??
What engenders this kind of love? Why are you not keeping what you have, the survival of the fittest and all that, why bother to assist us weak ones by sacrificing
your self??

Why should not
the strong and rich and powerful take and keep all they want, in a rolling soulless game of evolutionary gene-pass-along?
Like, isn't there some kind of non-interference clause somewhere?

I know that Catholic Relief Fund has been the most powerful charity

in africa for a long time, particularly involved in AIDS,

and that many charities do a lot of good --but

i think that if the populations at large wanted to, we could BLOW THE MINDS of everyone by Really making something huge happen.

If all those who claim the label Christian
really got serious, gathered together, gave it up--(because beyond that they are REQUIRED to,)
if they felt Utterly Compelled to live as Mother Teresa did, for example, until all were comforted, now
That would be Christmas...

A Real Party!! More Christmas pictures HERE

************************
Regarding the song, Do They Know It's Christmas?--Eventually, the British-American band Foreigner displaced the song at #1 in the UK with their rock ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is" at the beginning of 1985...
Wikipedia gives interesting information about the song: (HERE)
for example, "...
The world's media were in attendance as artists began arriving from 9am. Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Paul Young, Culture Club (without Boy George, initially), George Michael of Wham!, Kool and the Gang, Sting, Bono and Adam Clayton of U2, Glenn Gregory of Heaven 17 (whom Ure personally ordered down) and his bandmate Martyn Ware, Phil Collins of Genesis, Paul Weller of the Style Council, Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt of Status Quo, Jody Watley of Shalamar, Bananarama, Marilyn (who was not invited but arrived anyway) and some of Geldof's bandmates from the Boomtown Rats all arrived. ...... The artists were put in a huge group and sang the 'Feed the world, let them know it's Christmas time' refrain over and over again until it was completed.
.......
Phil Collins arrived with his entire drum kit and waited until Ure was ready to record him over an electronic drum track that had already been put in place. The song ended up as a mixture of Collins' drums and an African rhythm that opens the song, taken from a sample of The Hurting by Tears for Fears.
Ure stated in his autobiography that he was constantly battling with Geldof, the song's lyricist but not renowned for his melody skills, and telling him to leave when he would come into the production booth and wrongly tell the artist behind the mic what to sing. Ure also had to shelve an attempt by the two members of Status Quo to record the "here's to you" harmonies because Parfitt could not hit the note. Rossi afterwards told Ure that Parfitt never sang in the studio, only onstage, and he should have kept him away from the mic. This section was eventually taken on by Weller, Sting and Gregory. However, Quo were able to contribute in other ways, according to the journalist Robin Eggar:^[7]
"Once Status Quo produced their bag of cocaine and the booze started to flow – I brought six bottles of wine from my flat, which disappeared in a minute – it became a party."
Boy George arrived at 6:00 PM and went immediately into the recording booth to deliver his lines. He was rather vocal in his dislike of fellow singer George Michael, some of which is caught on video during the filming of the Band Aid collaboration. While recording harmonies, Boy George openly confused Michael's recorded vocals with the voice of "Alf" (British singer-songwriter Alison Moyet, who did not participate in the charity single). When the engineer correctly identified the voice as that of Michael, Boy George replied "God, he sounded camp. But then he is."
Once Boy George had finished his tracks, Ure had all the vocals he needed and, as the artists began to party and then drifted away, began working on the mix. A B-side, featuring messages from artists who had and hadn't made the recording (including David Bowie, Paul McCartney, all members of Big Country and Holly Johnson from Frankie Goes to Hollywood) was also recorded over the same backing track. Trevor Horn arrived back to his own studio to put this together.

According to Wikipedia, "
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a song written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure in 1984 to raise money for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The original version was produced by Midge Ure and released by Band Aid on 29 November 1984.^[1]
In October 1984, a BBC report by Michael Buerk was aired in the UK, which highlighted the famine that had hit the people of Ethiopia. Irish singer Bob Geldof saw the report and wanted to raise money.^[2] He called Midge Ure from Ultravox and together they quickly co-wrote the song, "Do They Know It's Christmas?".^[1]
Geldof kept a November appointment with BBC Radio 1 DJ Richard Skinner to appear on his show, but instead of discussing his new album (the original reason for his booking), he used his airtime to publicise the idea for the charity single, so by the time the musicians were recruited there was intense media interest in the subject. Geldof put together a group called Band Aid, consisting of leading British and Irish musicians who were among the most popular of the era.^[3]^[4] On 25 November 1984, the song was recorded at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, and was released four days later.^[3]^[5]
The 1984 original became the biggest selling single in UK Singles Chart history, selling a million copies in the first week alone. It stayed at Number 1 for five weeks, becoming Christmas number one, and sold more than 3.5 million copies domestically.^[6] It remained the highest selling single in UK chart history until 1997, when Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997" was released in tribute to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, which sold almost 5 million copies in Britain.^[6]

many versions are viewable at Youtube.

Lyrics:
It's Christmas time
There's no need to be afraid
At Christmas time
We let in light and we banish shadeAnd in our world of plenty
We can spread a smile of joy
Throw your arms around the worldAt Christmas time

But say a prayerPray for the other ones
At Christmas time it's hard
But when you're having fun
There's a world outside your windowAnd it's a world of dread and fear
Where the only water flowing
Is the bitter sting of tears
And the Christmas bells that ring there
Are the clanging chimes of doom
Well tonight thank God it's them instead of youAnd there won't be snow in Africa
This Christmas time
The greatest gift they'll get this year is life
Where nothing ever grows
No rain nor rivers flow
Do they know it's Christmas time at all?

BRIDGE:
(Here's to you) raise a glass for everyone
(Here's to them) underneath that burning sun
Do they know it's Christmas time at all?
END:
Feed the world
Feed the world
Feed the world
Let them know it's Christmas time
Feed the worldLet them know it's Christmas time again

Christmas Blessing from Joyce Rupp click HERE

Nativity scenes HERE

Feed the World.

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/shabby-clothes-make-woman.html

The Face of Christ

A Digital, Facebook Christmas Redux (Note to self: Face to Face and Books are Not Obsolete!)

2011-12-19T20:08:00.000-06:00

A year ago someone made this Digital Christmas Nativity Story. In one year the nomenclature has drastically changed. [The latest is dropping out of facebook, no more tweeting, just get the chip put in your head and you can telepathically connect and "share" music...]
OK this is a cute scrapbook memory of how we learned to do digital. Some of us kick and fight but to no avail...Better on a
large screen? HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkHNNPM7pJA

More Christmas Pictures here and HERE and here.

Me after prime rib and turkey

Good Girl! All good things come to those ...

What have YOU done for Jesus Lately?

See my new shoes??

Pand Christmas Tree

Click to enlarge beauty

Don't forget to help others...

Cold Photos From the Flint Hills of Kansas

2011-12-19T14:47:00.000-06:00

The trees got iced, the birds are knockin' at the door for food, the cats want in at 3 a.m. and dogs don't seem to mind eating frozen items they assume is meat. The Farmers Almanacs seem to be predicting a cold cold winter for most of the country but here in the Great Plains it may just be winter as usual. The following were taken with Canons. heh. Snowy squirrel eating in video below.

Geese in Flight

Farms in Kansas: Beautiful Sunrise, Cows Mooing, and Clouds Screaming Color!

2011-12-18T14:16:00.005-06:00

Even though my fingers were FREEZING i left the pile of warm cozy, ran outside and took some videos (posted below) of a typical fabulous Flint Hills Sunrise. I love the Konza Prairie! I love the Great Plains! (is Great Plain an oxymoron?)

Most Photos are untouched but shrunk.

The morning moon seemed wrapped in a grainy fog.

Dead Sunflowers Reach for Strange Clouds

Sailfish in the Sky.

Click on pic to view large.

The view north.

I will insert the videos after a couple of whimsy moments:

and in the daytime:

very Large File: Bare Trees in Morning Moon Light

The Flint Hills of Kansas: HERE

more moons HERE

Humility is a Shield, Even a Sword: The Tao, Meekness, and Jesus Christ

2011-12-18T13:07:00.004-06:00

God is in an electron, a quark?

cover and attribution at end of post

In the book 365 Tao Daily Meditations*, a great book given to me by a mentor some years ago, i recently read the above and was struck by how much it reminded me of King Herod and Jesus Christ.

In studying the history of Christianity, some remark that the Christ, Jesus, was missed by many because of the humility of Christ. The people of the time were expecting as the Messiah, one with power and Glory. Big Power! Big Materialistic Effects! Overturn Regimes! Bring a giant army!
But in fact, the regime He was overturning was that of selfishness, materialism, blindness to the spirit. So the abject humility of a baby in a feeding trough for animals was too much. The poor, such as shepherds, and the wise, such as the Three Travellers from the East, had no problem recognizing the Creator in the guise of a child. Some strange mystery was unfolding. Some sacred sacrifice was being arranged.

Humility is a great virtue to ponder. Jesus before Herod is the ultimate.

One writer (click here) speaks at length about this event:
"...(3) Luke says that Herod questioned Jesus with many words “but He answered Him nothing” (Lk. 23:9). This silence raises a question. Why was our Lord willing to speak to Pilate and tell him about the nature and purpose of His kingdom but not willing to speak even one word to Herod Antipas? There are a number of reasons why the Savior refused to speak..."

Some mystics write that
every gift or word or grace that Jesus could have continued to give Herod only damned him further.
That is, to continue to give him opportunity to spit, as it were, in the face of his Loving Creator was only to add to his later misery. (e.g., Mary of Agreda)
As the Season for Nonviolence is about to begin, I have been pondering Humility and how it turns the anger, rage, pettiness in another into softer feelings.

(1) The Herod of which Luke speaks is Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great who attempted to murder Christ by having all the male children two years old and under slain in Bethlehem (Mt. 2:1-18). After the death of Herod the Great his kingdom was divided by Augustus and ruled by three of his surviving sons. Archelaus was given the southern area of Herod’s kingdom which included Judea, Samaria and Idumea. Philip was placed over the area of Decapolis, a sparsely populated region that encompassed the eastern section of Herod’s kingdom. Antipas had authority over the northernmost region which included the provinces of Galilee and Perea. In A.D. 6 Archelaus (Herod’s eldest son) was deposed because of his incompetence, severe tyranny and cruelty and was banished to Vienna in Gaul. Therefore, while Antipas and Philip retained their territories, “Archelaus’ domains were reduced to a province under the rule of prefects or procurators.”

Christ Pictures HERE and HERE

December in the Flint Hills: Kansas Winter Distills the Heart into Great Plains

2011-12-15T13:08:00.002-06:00

Geese and hawks, barns and silos, moon and stars, farms and windmills, wildcats, trees and grasses are painterly details for the Great Sky and the Great Plains.

the flint hills of kansas are

to the west of the osage questas

which run through lawrence and

in the middleof the Konza Prairie.

more geese HERE

and HERE

The Flint Hills of kansa are my back yard.

More Flint Hills click HERE and
here:
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/thinking-about-japan-here-in-flint.html

MMOM- Change the Way You Think About Rape: Acquaintance Rape Is A Crime!

2011-12-15T11:44:00.001-06:00

[OK so a fraternity surveys its members to find out who they want to rape. (link is at bottom of post) And can anyone say this is not a problem?]
The MMOM Movement has a simple goal: change the way people think about rape.
Our own K-State Wildcats Against Rape and many many other groups have similar goals.

Please check them out: Here are some excerpts from theMOMM website.

"...It's time to start exposing date rape for what it is: a crime. It's not a "hook up that crossed the line." It's not just "inappropriate" or "her fault too" because she consented to other acts before. No still means no, regardless of what she said yes to before. This epidemic will not be cured by mace and self defense alone. Though well intended, these methods create the expectation for women to prevent rape instead of holding men accountable to not rape. Lets take the blame off the victim and put the shame on the perpetrator.
By joining this movement, you are reinforcing the truth that there is no shame in being a victim. You are telling the world you refuse to tolerate rape and victim blaming. You are committing to no longer turn your back to this issue. Why? Because a campus without rape shouldnt be a privilege...."
and
"...I don’t like the way our society reacts to sexual assault so my film partner and I decided to make a documentary. Our film, “Miniskirts, Mace and Other Misconceptions” (MMOM) dares to change our culture. The creation of this film introduced me to my passion, journalism and my purpose, advocacy. I graduate from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga this December with a degree in Public Administration Nonprofit Management and Communications. I am pursuing a career in journalism and spearheading this movement. Join me!

The Mission of the MMOM Movement is:
To confront sexual assault by starting conversations on college campuses and in our communities to:

•Challenge victim blaming and rape supportive attitudes
•Empower victims
•Educate
•Raise awareness

They have good links on the page, as well.
_______________________________________
W.A.R.: Founding Mission Statement: We all want to live in a society where we are able to trust, be trusted and live outside the confinements of fear. W.A.R. members are taking the initiative to challenge the current environment where 1 out of 4 college women will suffer a rape or attempted rape between the ages of 13 and college graduation. We, K-State men and women, are ready to have our voice heard in the community.

Because of our dedication to nonviolent ideals, W.A.R. has chosen the
representation of Tiananmen Square to illustrate our mission. In 1989 hundreds of college students in Beijing were massacred for nonviolently protesting injustices within their government. When the tanks began
arriving at the scene of the protest, one man stood at the front of the tanks to stop their progression. This one man held up a line of over 17 tanks for a significant period of time. He didn’t carry a weapon.To learn more about this
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/4/newsid_2496000/2496277.stm

Although our name is W.A.R. we are a nonviolent culture-change group. We are not out to patrol the streets, place blame, or 'get those rapists.' Our goal is to change the part of our culture that makes it acceptable for people to take control away from others and behave in a violent, selfish way. W.A.R. may be a small group of individuals but ideals of peace and nonviolence is what gives us hope and strength.

A K-Stater's story about Acquaintance rape: HERE
and the trauma of crime HERE

by the way,
ALL RAPISTS ARE SERIAL RAPISTS. click HERE

if you don't think this is a problem, read this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/higher-education/national-fraternity-investigating-vt-chapter-that-asked-members-who-they-would-like-to-rape/2011/12/14/gIQAS2a9tO_story.html?tid=pm_national_pop

"...MONTPELIER, Vt. — A University of Vermont fraternity has been suspended while school officials, national organization leaders and police investigate allegations that a survey was circulated among members asking them who they would like to rape.

Members of the Sigma Phi Epsilon chapter would not discuss the allegations Wednesday..."

Oh, Really?
Fu'Cryin'Out LOUD

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/rape-reports-are-everywhere-what-do-you.html

Penn State Victims Endure Waiting for Trial; Ask One in Four Women About Post-Rape Trauma

2011-12-14T05:55:00.000-06:00

Sandusky, of Penn State Fame, hired attorneys who Truly care about Justice and Truth.

a hahahahaha heh heh. hahahaHAHAH

OK, they want to get their client off.

They seem to have decided that the information that might come out during a preliminary hearing would be so damning [particularly if there is little space for cross-examination] that the entire population will be tainted, in considering a jury pool.

That is,

that we will all think, Yeah, the guy is as guilty as they come.

--get the trial over with and put him away... SO
let's not do this yet.

In light of the cancellation (waiving) of the preliminary hearing, the media has been putting an issue out there, about the trauma of the victims and how getting ready for a legal proceeding is stressful, traumatic, and puts everything on hold in their lives. *

And I am glad they are talking about this. Because those of us who work in the field know that this is going on all the time. Victims REPEATEDLY prepare for court appearances, preliminary hearing, the trial itself, and the defense attorneys get delay after delay after delay. This helps the defense because--

memories are less clear over time. descriptions change a little bit here and there and defense attorneys put these little changes together and cast them as GIANT lies. The victim must be lying.
people such as witnesses move away. in our little town, if a witness moves away the city attorney may not be able to pay to have them fly back and stay in a hotel for 2 days.
the victim may get tired of all the lengthy delays, her life put on hold, and drop the charges.
the victim may move well through the healing process. During her testimony, she is not crying, she is now strong, no longer traumatized. Defense attorneys use this as proof she is lying! If you don't believe this happens, you need to go to some trials. Here and HERE and HERE ** are some posts from a trial here where the Victim and all the witnesses were basically called liars by the defense attorney. The beginning of this blog, august 2009, has many posts about truth and lying, assault types, etc. etc.

To read the story of a wonderful K-State student--who was drugged, assaulted, raped--, and the legal aftermath, who speaks to this very issue, click HERE

What has struck me about the Jerry Sandusky Penn State Case is how respectfully the victims are being treated by the media. I am glad for that and that many issues are being raised. Because it has seemed to me that people do not want to hear about it, when the subject is women. Across the country and the globe, women are raped in epidemic proportions. And the legal system is not working well in this area.
Many times i have supported a young woman who was told, Again, that the day she had prepared for was postponed.
The legal system seems almost afraid to prosecute rape. maybe jurists believe the TV and think most women are lying. Which is crazy. (lying HERE and more about false reports )

See these posts:
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/ben-roethlisberger-gets-to-play-for-nfl.html
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/rape-reports-are-everywhere-what-do-you.html
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/voting-in-congo.html

* More HERE and also HERE

and as Jennifer Storm said, "...But what about the victims. Imagine the roller coaster these individuals have been placed on over the past years since this investigation began. They have been forced already to recount horrific details of the abuse to their attorneys, both civil and prosecutors, and to a grand jury. But not once yet have they had the opportunity to face Sandusky, the monster in their lives, and tell their truth. Instead, they have had to endure seeing his face on the cover of every magazine, newspaper and TV news and entertainment show. They have had to worry that every time they leave their home they could run into him, as he was until a week ago out free on bail with no restrictions, they have to worry that the media will chase them and expose their identifies. In fact, for one victim who was all but totally exposed by the media, he had to leave his high school as he was being bullied, harassed and threatened horribly.
And

they cannot speak out publicly, for if they do, each and every word they speak will be ripped to shreds in the court of public opinion. If they say one word that is different than their grand jury testimony, their credibility will be attacked, as we have already seen with the star witness in this case.

Yet today,

every one of them was ready to take the stand and face their accuser, they were ready for their day in court but at the last minute, Sandusky had the chance to re-victimize them one more time by taking that chance away from them. Rightfully, some are angry, frustrated, annoyed, upset. They had to go home and now must wait again.

** and more about that trial

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/oh-really.html

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/justice.html

Penn State:
You: http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/penn-state-and-joe-paternos-biggest-sin.html
student riots: http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/penn-state-students-riot-why-rape-of.html
complete grand jury testimony here: http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/allowing-rape-of-boys-by-men-in-charge.html
summary and evolutionary morality http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/penn-state-men-in-power-sexually-and.html

An Arty Christmas at the Strecker-Nelson Art Gallery

2011-12-12T18:14:00.000-06:00

The Art is irresistible this year. Go Downtown to Poyntz and find the Gallery!

Here is teh WatchDog. must click on pic to enlarge

Art Art Art get Art for Ever!

Storytelling, Banjos and Stephen Wade: Oh I was in Love

2011-12-12T18:04:00.000-06:00

Washington D.C. circa 1990: the hottest ticket in town was Stephen Wade and his banjo-laden stories. The Vat Room! Oh what an artist. I was talking to Sally Baily today and she brought him to mind.
Find everything you can, and listen to this Hilarious, Poignant, talented storyteller.
Listen
to Morning Edition Here

http://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Parlor-Stephen-Wade/dp/B0000012F0

http://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Home-Stephen-Wade/dp/B000000MQ7/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi_1
(listen here)

Madonna and Kabbalah, Tim Tebow and Jesus Christ, and The Media as Teacher

2011-12-12T17:59:00.000-06:00

Madonna and Kabbalah (Ooh, sparkly!)
Tim Tebow (God Doesn't Care who wins)
and
the media...
I was just wondering why the media drools, grovels, and Educates us on some things and
haughtily points and laughs scornfully on others.
Just wonderin...

Madonna, left holding a book, seen here in Tel Aviv, enrolled at the Los Angeles center in 1996 at Sandra Bernhard's suggestion. Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, right, were married by a Kabbalah Centre teacher. (Kabbalah Centre / Associated Press)

Friday Friday Sweetest Friday

2011-12-09T15:57:00.001-06:00

Trauma is normal for healthy people after being betrayed and internally battered. It is not normal to hurt another person.

2011-12-09T04:44:00.010-06:00

If you are on a rollercoaster of depression, happiness, normality, freaked-out-ness, anger, hatred, love, anger, sadness, confusion, ok ness, anger, withdrawal, peace, fear--
and that is in the first 10 minutes of the day--
You Are Normal. It means you are a normal intelligent competent person reacting to trauma.
As you continue to heal, you will become Strong at the Broken Place- like a bone does after trauma.

I am going to expand this thought later this week. In the meantime, look at these.

http://www.hopeforhealing.org/

http://nineyearslater9.blogspot.com/2011/12/self-understanding-101-introduction.html

If you hurt people, force, steal, rape, charm, trick, lie--please read this HERE

gravelly Rock and Smooth Blues: Joe Bonamassa on Tom Waits' Birthday

2011-12-07T21:17:00.002-06:00

Joe Bonamassa amazing guitar in a sold-out Royal Albert Hall.
Amazing!
and today is Tom Waits' 62nd anniversary of birth.

Listen to performance of STOP HERE and

tom waits
HERE