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Jeannine Wilson (USA)
Veralynne Pepper (USA)
Pip Wilson (Australia)

Carpe diem!

Seize the day with more than 150 articles at Wilson's articles department





This blog is dedicated to the 353 victims of the SIEVX disaster,
and casualties of poverty and authority all around the planet

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	:: N		12:27 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Mad Cow Linked To Al-Qowda

	:: Pip		12:01 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Christmas flash mobs


Santarchy celebrates ten years of Yule mobbing.

	:: Pip		11:54 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Non-military uses for NASA


"NASA -- A new window to the universe has opened with today's release of the first dazzling images from NASA's newly named Spitzer Space Telescope, formerly known as the Space Infrared Telescope Facility ..."
Source

	:: Pip		11:36 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Stuff


Some interesting holiday reading for me has been Twilight of the Neocons:

" ... the signs that the neocons are on the losing end of the battle have become fairly evident in recent weeks:

"The administration has welcomed Libya back into the community of "civilized" nations, on terms that can only help solidify Col. Ghadafi's dictatorial regime. The deal is about as textbook a case of realpolitik as you will find outside the archives of the Kissinger NSC.

"Jim Baker has returned to the diplomatic circuit, with the speculation being that his assignment is to liquidate not only Iraq's debt but also the neocon illusion of remaking the Middle East into the Community of Israel-Recognizing Nations.

"The rumor mill also has uber-neocon Paul Wolfowitz departing the Pentagon in February. Can Doug Feith -- the other half of the necon Laural & Hardy act, be far behind?

"Bush rolled out the red carpet -- with a 19-gun salute no less -- for Chinese prime minister Wen Jiabao, then explicitly warned Taiwan not to ditch its allegiance to the increasingly fictional notion of "one China." So doing, he completely ignored the howls of protest from neocon punditry that he was selling Taiwanese democracy down the river.

"The public sniping at the administration by said punditry has become distinctly more direct, with both Newt Gringrich and Bill Kristol harshly criticizing the White House -- if not yet the president who lives and sometimes even works there ..."

	:: Pip		1:55 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac December 25, 1914 | Silent Night, Holy Night

One of the most heart-warming true Christmas tales I've heard

1914 Just after midnight on Christmas morning, the majority of German troops engaged in WWI ceased firing guns and artillery, and commenced to sing Christmas carols. Crossing the No man's land, they traded gifts with the enemy forces that faced them. An estimated two-thirds of the British/German front line held local ceasefires. And the top military brass were not happy about it at all, making sure it never happened again.

At certain points along the Eastern and Western fronts, the soldiers of Russia, France, and Britain even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing. The British responded in places with carols of their own. Those German soldiers who understood and could speak English called across greetings to 'Tommy' (the popular name for the British private); similar greetings were shouted over to "Fritz".

At the first light of dawn, many of the German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approach the Allied lines across no man's land, calling out "Merry Christmas" in their enemies' native tongues. At first the Allied soldiers suspected it to be a trick, but soon climbed out of their trenches and shook hands with the German soldiers. The men exchanged presents of cigarettes and plum puddings and sang carols and songs; the Christmas Truce lasted a few days.

Meanwhile, Scots and Huns were fraternizing in the most genuine possible manner. Every sort of souvenir was exchanged, addresses given and received, photos of families shown etc. One of our fellow offered a German a cigarette; the German said, "Virginian?" Our fellow said, "Aye, straight-cut." The German said, "No thanks, I only smoke Turkish!"
Captain Sir Edward Hulse, Bart., 2nd Scots Guards

The Germans, whose nation had originated the tradition of bringing Christmas trees into their houses and decorating them (introduced into England by Queen Victoria's Consort, Prince Albert) brought Christmas trees into their trenches and dugouts in various places, and had decorated some parts of their parapet.

We got into conversation with the Germans who were anxious to arrange an Armistice during Xmas. A scout named F. Murker went out and met a German Patrol and was given a glass of whisky and some cigars, and a message was sent back saying that if we didn't fire at them they would not fire at us.Edward Hulse, a 25-year old lieutenant in the Scots Guards, writing in his battalion's war history

The truce was fully publicised from the moment news of it reached home. Throughout January 1915 numerous local and national newspapers in Britain printed letter after letter from soldiers who took part; in addition they ran eye-catching headlines ("Extraordinary Unofficial Armistice", "British, Indians and Germans shake hands"), and even printed photographs of the Britons and Germans in No Man's Land. Germany also gave the event press publicity, though on a smaller scale and for a shorter period of time.

Reaction to the Christmas Truce from various sources came in numerous forms. The Allied governments and military high command reacted with indignation ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

Thanks Baz le Tuff for putting me onto this story at breakfast yesterday.

	:: Pip		2:45 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Don't let Australia send refugees back to torture and death

Howard: Where is your Christian Christmas spirit?



The Australian Government, led by arch-conservative John "Little Johnny" Howard, has notoriously waged a campaign against refugees for some years. The "Liberal" Party's grimy political landscape is littered with such monstrosities as the SIEVX disaster in which 353 asylum seekers drowned at sea (while Howard's mob did nothing to aid them), and the shipping of many desperate boat people asylum seekers to the tiny bankrupt Pacific island, Nauru, which Howard is paying millions to so as to keep these coloured problems away from Australia's mostly uncaring citizens.

In a stroke of breathtaking hypocrisy, while the Oz government travel advisories tell Ozzies that Afghanistan is too dangerous to travel to, that same regime is saying that Afghanistan is safe enough (for tinted people) to return to. And Australia is fully geared up to send refugees back home to the possible torture and execution from which they have fled.

Meanwhile, some 40 imprisoned men, women and children in the Nauruan hell-holes have quite understandably gone on a hunger strike. Blogmanac readers might remember a few months again when asylum seekers at Woomera, a concentration camp deep within the hot desert of mainland Australia, sewed their lips shut in a s8imilar hunger-strike protest. At the time, Howard's mob, and much of the media, represented this obvious act of deperation as "manipulation". The same is happening again.

I confess a personal interest in such matters. For 12 years I filled out application forms for Aghan women and their children at risk of persecution in Afghanistan. Women living in Pakistan and Iran in dreadful conditions, who were unable to return to their beloved Afghanistan, earlier because of the Communists, and later because of the Taliban. I know firsthand the treatment that men, women and children can receive at the hands of warlords and religious/political bastards in that benighted country. To ship back to Afghanistan any person who is in fear of their life is a crime against humanity, and the Blogmanac urges its readers to stay aware of the subject. Stay tuned as we will not be letting this issue go, as Howard would wish.

	:: Pip		2:15 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Clinton was a Halliburton man too

"In a deal cut in June 2000 under President Clinton, the New York Post reports, Halliburton won 11 Navy contracts worth $110 million to build jails at Guantanamo Bay, a base in Kuwait, a ferry terminal on Vieques, an air station in Spain, a breakwater in the Azores and facilities slammed by a typhoon on Guam.

"Though the company is known for its strong backing of Republican candidates, Halliburton contributed over $140,000 to Democrats from 1992-2000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics."

Source

	:: Pip		2:09 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Lenny Bruce Pardoned 37 Years After Death

"Lenny Bruce, the potty-mouthed wit who turned stand-up comedy into social commentary, was posthumously pardoned yesterday by Gov. George E. Pataki, 39 years after being convicted of obscenity for using bad words in a Greenwich Village nightclub act.

"The governor said the posthumous pardon — the first in the state's history — was 'a declaration of New York's commitment to upholding the First Amendment.' ...

"Being dead, Mr. Bruce is not expected to reap any immediate benefit from the pardon ..."
Source

Over the course of four years, Lenny bruce was arrested nine times and prosecuted six times for obscenity violations.
The Trials of Lenny Bruce pardon campaign

	:: N		8:58 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | The P.U. - Litzer Prizes for 2003

Norman Solomon, AlterNet

"The P.U.- litzer Prizes were established more than a decade ago to give recognition to the stinkiest media performances of the year.

"As usual, I have conferred with Jeff Cohen, founder of the media watch group FAIR, to sift through the large volume of entries. In view of the many deserving competitors, we regret that only a few can win a P.U.- litzer."

Read the 12th annual P.U.- litzer Prizes, for the foulest media performances of 2003

Norman Solomon is co-author of "Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn't Tell You."

	:: N		7:59 AM

	:: Veralynne		7:30 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Yep, Right on Time!

From iddybud's blog:

Howard Dean was absoutely preposterous and well out of the mainstream when he said the nation "hasn't been made any safer" since we've caught Saddam Hussein...
Oh, by the way, there's a slim chance that you might be blown to smithereens
later this week...
Oh, but don't let that stop you from getting on the plane to visit Grandma...
Buh-bye! Don't worry!
Have a good time!

Festivus, the holiday for the rest-of-us

Read all about the sacred holiday of Festivus, invented by George Costanza's father, many Christmases ago (and listen to the audio) ...

	:: Pip		9:27 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Little Johnny's little policies wreak havoc

Howard's Failed Health Policies Increase HIV- AIDS

"After World AIDS Day on December 1st unfortunately all Australia has to report is that the Howard regime's lack of understanding of the issues, and economic bungling, have lead to increasing levels of HIV-AIDS and hepatitis C.

"This outcome has been achieved by an ideological destruction of the successful Harm Minimisation Strategies being replaced with the failing Zero Tolerance debacle as part of the Howard Regime's War on Drugs.

"Now Australia is reaping a harvest of increased disease from the destructive misplacement of funds towards law enforcement, at the expense of medical help for syringe using drug addicts, and a lack of community awareness of HIV-AIDS.

"It is years since the Federal Government has run a campaign fighting the threat of AIDS to the Australian population and Commercial Television is sidelined with shows about how to increase a tear-away housing price bubble by buying more real estate at inflated prices.

"Time is well and truly up for a concerted attempt by the Howard Regime to take off its blinkers and see the destruction that its failing health policies are perpetrating on this country.

"It would appear that the good reputation Australia once had in reducing HIV-AIDS has been squandered by the Howard Regime and it is about time that it got its act together on this issue."
Source: Sydney Inymedia

	:: Pip		12:11 PM

Take a break in Neverland (requires Flash)

	:: Pip		12:33 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac December 22, 1550 | Burial of Richard Plantagenet, alleged son of Richard III

Richard Plantagenet was a poor working man, but perhaps he was the son of a king.

In about 1545, Sir Thomas Moyle began to have built on his estate, a mansion later named Eastwell House. Sir Thomas was surprised to observe that one of the bricklayers, whenever he had a break, would have his nose firmly planted in a particular book. No matter how the nobleman tried to discover the title of the book that held the tradesman's interest, he could not. Soon, he discovered that the book was written in Latin.

When he asked the bricklayer how he came to be able to read in a classical language, Sir Thomas Moyle was told this tale by the man ...

Read on

	:: Veralynne		4:56 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Actions to Take to Make a Difference

Remind us: Why Did the U.S. Government Invade and Destabilize Iraq?

The action is threefold but simple. The action is imperative.

The action is embedded within this flash animation.

Please watch, act, and pass it on.

Thank you.

And thank you, InformationClearinghouse.info.

	:: Veralynne		9:50 AM

*Ø* Blogmanac | Early Inspiration

["Early inspiration" has two meanings here. This article is intended to inspire us early in the presidential campaign and the subject of the article is responsible for much of my own early political inspiration. I can vouch for the validity of the biographical and personality information herein. -v]


A Story to Light the World
by Stephen Dinan
RadicalSpirit.org

Imagine for a moment that you are the writer of a story, a story designed to inspire the hearts and minds of the world. It is to be an epic story with all the necessary ingredients: humble beginnings, a fall from grace, hopelessness, unsuspected twists, and triumph over impossible odds. The point of this story is to show that we are bigger than we think we are. We are not bound by class or appearance or money. We are limited only by our willingness to become an instrument for something larger. A mission. A calling. A destiny.

Let's say this story is addressed to a nation that has become a prisoner of its own successes and is beginning to exhibit all the signs of aging empire: corruption, belligerence, rule by an elite, cronyism, manipulation of the public trust, and self-indulgence. This country has forgotten its principles, its ideals, its very reason for existence. It's lost touch with its mission. Instead of an oasis of idealism, its government and leadership have become a secretive citadel of greed. Its citizens no longer carry the torch of truth. They carry the credit card of the consumer.

Continue for the full, wonderful story

	:: Pip		11:31 PM

*Ø* Blogmanac December 21, 2012 | End of time?

2012 Timewave Zero? The Mayan calendar ends today.

More at this page in the Scriptorium.

Terence McKenna (November 16, 1946 - April 3, 2000), theoretician of consciousness, was the originator of the timewave zero theory, which claims time to be a fractal wave of increasing novelty, which ends in 2012 ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there. (There are lots of links.)