A Salute to Leymah Gbowee, Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Activist, Author

For praying the devil  back to hell, Leymah Gbowee deserves more than the Nobel Peace Trophy. What a formidable woman! Just take a peek:

On Charlie Rose

American Jewish Worlld Service Awardeee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmYZF62dzvI

With other awardees:

The three women from the developing world, Liberia’s President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee and Yemeni women’s rights activist, Tawakul Karman were named by the Norwegian Nobel Committee at a ceremony in the capital, Oslo, on Friday.

The Jon Stewart appearance deserves more comments. Spunky, beautiful, confident! As she rightly puts it and paraphrasing her, why are Americans not speaking out more to right the injustices that threaten this democracy?

Confessions of a Non-”Journal”ist.

What was I thinking a couple of years back when I started this attempt at online journaling? Indeed, I’ve loved putting out my musings out here, but it’s about time I did an introspection. The truth is that a friend had “dragged” me into the idea of expressing my thoughts in this forum. I did feel led to share then and remain excited at the opportunity to still do so now. I know you couldn’t tell my excitement judging from how poorly I’ve kept up. Never one to give up easily on anything I believe in, I refused to just throw in the towel and be done with this journaling thing. Then came Facebook (FB). One of the last of my friends to join, I still don’t do much on it. I love the F2F rather than the FB method of communicating, but I’m also aware of the numerous possibilities of social media. Besides, there’s the danger of being left behind in this fast-paced-all-things-electronic high-tech age. For someone who is yet to move or switch over to the new generation phones–I-phones,Blackberry’s– my story is indeed a sad one. My youngest son looked at me the other day and said, “Mom, how do you survive with that phone?” No kidding! He framed it as a “life and death” issue and after my initial burst of laughter, I got seriously thinking about how I was leaving myself behind . . . or am I?
Since I just got passionate about the most recent Nobel Peace price winners (it’s only been a month plus), I’ve been wanting to come and journal here. But first I had to confront my being a non-journal-ist . . . really in every sense of the word!
There. I’ve come clean. What a relief!

“Why Me?” or “Why Not Me?”: A Believer’s Response to Adversity.

I dare say that for many of us, there is an acceptance that suffering, pain, and misfortune are part of our natural human existence. It is a reality that is confirmed daily through various media: A vacation truck veers off a mountainside, killing all passengers; a boat sinks off the coast of India with 50 drowned; a fatal accident happens at the corner of our seemingly safe local byways, killing two women. Not to talk of the astronomically grand losses of lives in hurricanes, floods, tsunamis, and mud slides. Some of the disasters appear utterly senseless: a doctor’s entire family of wife and two daughters are murdered in their own home in Connecticut; a congresswoman is shot as she dutifully carries out her service to her constituents, six are killed in the melee including an innocent civically-minded nine-year old and a 69-year old federal judge in Arizona. Our family friend’s cousin goes to work in the United Nations Building, Abuja, Nigeria, never to come home again to wife and family. Post the 10th Anniversary of 911, the issue of adversity is global and timeless, yet personal.

Living and Dying. . . The Elizabeth Edwards Way: Ready

It’s December 7th, 2010. Yesterday, I got to learn, like some many others, that one of the bravest and most-admired women this side of eternity had stopped all her cancer treatments. I didn’t miss the fact that she had said at that point with a smile on her face, that we all have to learn to number our days. I was at our Prayer Meeting at church tonight when the Pastor asked for prayers for all bereaved including Elizabeth Edwards’s family. I was taken aback as I had been buried in work all day and hadn’t heard. Elizabeth Edwards had always maintained a special place in my heart for her forgiving spirit. The news of her death brought me back to the blog therefore this night.

Losing Our Literacy

Please rewind to last year. Health care debates. When we thought we had seen some pretty sad images of an uncivil America, little did we know the worse was yet to come. E. D. Hirsch,Jr,. one of our notable critics of American education and schools had written a piece in the Chronicle of Higher Education, which I’ve shared with students about those town hall meetings and the failure of democratic education. While he concentrated more on the linguistic and communication deficiencies of our citizens in those debates, he may as well have honed in to other root concerns– not just the lack of core and common background knowledge but also the inability of so many to discern and critically think for themselves.

“Them and Us”: Real, Authentic, Unreal, Half, Hyphenated Americans and All Such.

In no chronological order, the debate continues:
Texas debated not only its high school social studies curriculum but also the fact of adding President Barack Obama’s name as the “real first African American/Black/biracial” (my terms) president. To some who wanted to add his “controversial’” middle name, just read my earlier blog on the president’s names.
Arizona not only passed its controversial immigration reform bill, but its school board also has now banned “ethnic” studies in all its public schools. NY City was saved from the misdirected terrorist attempts by a Pakistani-American. Ms. Rima Fakih of Michigan became the first Lebanese-American to win the Miss USA pageant and, quite possibly too, the first immigrant to do so. Dr. Rand Paul criticized Pres. Obama’s criticism of BP’s efforts in cleaning up the Gulf mess as “unAmerican.” Last year, Meb Keflezighi, Eritrean-born American, won the NY marathon but his name and identity caused distress to many who quickly questioned or dismissed his significant win as “not really American.” At the Ohio State University’s most recent conference on diversity, race, and learning, an audience and I had a great time debating some of the above assaults on our identities as American.

A Play on Words: Beyond Slogans to Critical Thinking and Speech

I know you’re thinking what I’m thinking: I’m obsessed with words! Not quite so. I certainly am getting more enraged with some people trying to “ram” their beliefs and viewpoints down other people’s throats. Just try and correct my use of that phrase, “ram down the throat”. I know what you’re thinking here too. Only the GOP can use this patented phrase to describe the recently passed health care law! Yes, according to Boehner, Demint, et al, Americans have been shunted, swindled, insulted, disrespected, and ignored by this new law. Who cares that more than thirty two million Americans are being given an opportunity to access “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?” Who cares about such trifling facts?

Just for size, here are a few other terms that are being thrown around for effect: