Tranquility - A Picture Diary

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Sunday June 02, 2013 · 6:35 AM PDT

2013/06/02 · 06:35

I have occasionally posted images from the family cabin that I share with my three sisters on Norway's southern coast. Recently, it was suggested to me that I should post a picture diary to share the beauty and tranquility that can be experienced there. Well, here it is!

Have a seat and enjoy:

(above shots from earlier summers)

Bigger versions of images: "Right click", then "Open in new tab".

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Friday May 31, 2013 · 9:26 AM PDT

2013/05/31 · 09:26

What a horrible, ugly case!

I have not seen this diaried, so I'll just put out some links and quotes about the East Mississippi Correctional Facility and the class-action lawsuit that the ACLU is bringing together with the SPLC. The inhumane treatment of prisoners is probably prevalent even in publicly run prisons. However, subcontracting prison management and prisoner care to the lowest corporate bidder will certainly not improve on that situation. A prison full of mentally ill prisoners with no, or only sub-standard care will quickly result is a situation akin to hell on earth.

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Tuesday May 28, 2013 · 5:50 AM PDT

2013/05/28 · 05:50

Bill McKibben's name should be well known on these pages. He is tagged in well over 400 entries and is, of course, also a regular poster on this site.

Today it was announced that he has been awarded the Sophie Prize in recognition of his environmental activism and mobilization against global warming.

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Tuesday March 19, 2013 · 6:17 AM PDT

2013/03/19 · 06:17

This morning, I'd like to write a brief post to sum up Senator Warren's astonishing record in the Senate to date. It is only a bit over 10 weeks since she was seated, yet she has already made headlines numerous times in a series of hearings in the committees to which she is a member. You can find her committee assignments here.

As you all know, Senator Warren was on a different path until the early fall of 2011. She had built the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), but strong opposition from the banking sector scuttled her chances to be confirmed as its Chair by the Senate. Thus, she became available to run for Senate in Massachusetts against banking lackey Scott Brown last year.

The bankers must sorely regret their actions these days, as Warren is now in a much more influential position. Follow below the squiggly!

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Tuesday March 12, 2013 · 6:02 AM PDT

2013/03/12 · 06:02

The Bradley Manning trial has been cloaked in secrecy. No audio or video recordings allowed; no transcripts permitted.

Glenn Greenwald and the group he recently co-founded, the Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) have now uncloaked some of what transpires in the court.

This morning, FPF posted an audio recording of Manning's full statement before the court two weeks ago.

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Wednesday February 27, 2013 · 5:23 AM PST

2013/02/27 · 05:23

Elizabeth Warren is on fire, make no mistake about it. It is only two weeks since she took the heads of various financial regulatory bodies to the woodshed in a Valentine Day's massacre - Elizabeth Warren Gets to Work.

Yesterday, it was Chairman of the Fed, Ben Bernanke's turn.

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Friday February 15, 2013 · 4:44 AM PST

2013/02/15 · 04:44

What a blessing Elizabeth Warren's election to the Senate has been. She is wasting no time.

At her first hearing in the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee - which took place on Valentine's Day, she lovingly took the regulators to the woodshed. Various regulators from the FDIC, SEC, OCC, CFPB, CFTC, Fed and Treasury were before the Committee and got to experience the newly minted Senator's sweet demeanor which, nevertheless, carries quite a punch.

The hearing was titled "Wall Street Reform: Oversight of Financial Stability and Consumer and Investor Protections."

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Monday November 05, 2012 · 6:27 AM PST

2012/11/05 · 06:27

Regular news media, pundits and blogs are participating in an effort to conflate the UN and OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe). Given the UN's perceived poor standing with US political institutions and a wide swath of the public, the objective is to discredit the observers as being UN intruders to the US political process and elections. But it is all, to use a recently revived and popular term, malarkey.

We need to quash this right wing meme.

Follow below the squiggle to understand the role of the OSCE:

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Tuesday October 23, 2012 · 7:57 AM PDT

2012/10/23 · 07:57

Is Israel on the path to becoming an apartheid state, or is it already one?

The discussions on this topic have been contentious since President Carter published his book Palestine: Peace not Apartheid in 2006.

However, the time for pretense is now over. A recent survey of the Jewish public in Israel shows a majority support for apartheid policies.

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Monday October 08, 2012 · 5:55 AM PDT

2012/10/08 · 05:55

St. Francis feast day is October 4. Francis of Assisi was the founder of the Franciscan order, and is also known as the patron saint of animals and the environment. Many locations celebrate the Blessing of the Animals, often on the Sunday following October 4.
Yesterday, curly and I took the trip to Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine on the upper west side of Manhattan to witness the service and the blessing. My partner, curly (a secular Jew), has been there several times for this occasion and convinced this atheist to participate this year. And I have no regrets for spending two hours at this unusual service which attracts people of all denominations. The edifice itself is magnificent, I have been inside several times earlier just to admire the architecture of the cathedral, the largest Episcopalian cathedral in the world. But the Blessing of the Animals is quite a spectacle. The music and the performers; it felt like a mix of Cirque de Soleil and the Village Halloween Parade in NYC – see pictures below.

Beautiful music is provided under the leadership of Paul Winter.

Yet, the biggest surprise was the sermon itself – a sermon that was progressive in content throughout. The pastor gently, but thoroughly, ridiculed the GOP meme You didn't build that. I nearly had to pick my jaw off the floor. A truly enjoyable service which had the congregation chuckle at regular intervals. What an antidote to the nonsense spewed by many evangelical fundies.

Pictures below the fold:

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Tuesday July 17, 2012 · 9:24 AM PDT

2012/07/17 · 09:24

Of course, many of you already are - no offense!

Now, if you were expecting to find short-cuts to pecuniary riches, you will be disappointed. Being a political junkie you want to be informed. To stay very well informed. Which is why you are a contributor/member/reader of Daily Kos. But it is hard to keep up in between all other daily duties, whatever they may be, given the incredible amount of content that is published every day, 24/7.

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Thursday May 17, 2012 · 3:00 AM PDT

2012/05/17 · 03:00

And we're not talking about the state.

Today is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia 2012.

If you want to know what is going on around the world to celebrate the occasion, this may be a good place to start - IDAHO.

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Tranquility - A Picture Diary

East Mississippi Correctional Facility - A Cesspool

Bill McKibben Awarded the Sophie Prize

Elizabeth Warren::Ten Weeks Out - 300 Weeks to Go

Bradley Manning - In His Own Words

Sen. Elizabeth Warren Grills Bernanke

Elizabeth Warren Gets to Work

UN Election Observers - NOT!

Israel and Apartheid

An Unusual Cathedral Service

You too, can be a member of the 1% - check The GOS Weekly Review

Today is IDAHO