 home
archives
last week
feedback
Rolla Peace News November 21, 2017 |
|
================================= Dear Friends:In this newsletter is: 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THIS WEEK, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2017 2. PLEASE NOTE, VIGIL CHANGED TO WEDNESDAY 3. GREAT RIVERS ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER TO VISIT ROLLA, MON. NOV. 27 4. WHITEWASHING GEORGE W. BUSH 5. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) To Prevent A Nuclear War b) The Zombie Fungus: Scarier Than Donald Trump c) Sexual Predators In Positions Of Power
================================
We vigil for peace in front of the Rolla Post Office THIS WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2017, (otherwise, all subsequent Thursdays until peace is established) from Noon to 1:00 PM. Please try to join us. The temperature is predicted to be in the 40s. If you do not feel comfortable standing with us in front of the Post Office, please consider driving by and showing your support for our message by honking your horn and flashing a peace sign. 2. PLEASE NOTE, VIGIL CHANGED TO WEDNESDAY Because of the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, we will vigil on Wednesday, November 22, instead. Hope to see you there! 3. GREAT RIVERS ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER TO VISIT ROLLA, MON. NOV. 27 Kathleen Henry and Sarah Willey, president and outreach director of Great Rivers Environmental Law Center, will visit Rolla on Monday November 27. We will have an open informal event at Panera from 1:00 to 2:30pm. Please come and meet Katy and Sarah. 4. WHITEWASHING GEORGE W. BUSH Apparently, all a bad president has to do to obtain “elder statesman” status is to lie low for a few years. It worked for Nixon and Reagan, and now W. is being praised to the skies for criticizing Trump (obliquely and not by name). One wonders if Trump was secretly encouraged and supported by the other Republicans because he would make them look good in contrast. Lest we forget, Bush initiated the perpetual war we now find ourselves in (encouraged, no doubt, by the mayhem perpetrated by his Papa in the previous decade). His other misdeeds, as well as those of Nixon and Reagan, are well documented in Rebecca Gordon's excellent article, which I hope you will read. 5. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) To Prevent A Nuclear War b) The Zombie Fungus: Scarier Than Donald Trump c) Sexual Predators In Positions Of Power TO PREVENT A NUCLEAR WAR A lot of folks seem to be concerned that Donald Trump, or Kim Jong-un, or maybe both together may start a nuclear war. So here's an article on how the generals, presumable our last and final hope, may be able to thwart a nuclear war, when some crazy politician decides it's time to launch the missiles. So, how many generals does it take to prevent a nuclear war? — probably more generals than it takes Californians to screw in a light bulb. But, hey, here's a much better way. It's called nuclear disarmament. There's even a draft treaty to rid the world of nukes, waiting for signatures and ratifications. I doubt you will find many generals in favor of this treaty. THE ZOMBIE FUNGUS: SCARIER THAN DONALD TRUMP Anyone remember Robert Heinlein's, The Puppet Masters? Well, here it is, in the flesh — the Zombie Fungus, ophiocordyceps unilateralis — literally tales over an ant's body and controls it. Hey, maybe that's what's happening to Donald Trump. SEXUAL PREDATORS IN POSITIONS OF POWER There's been an awful lot in the news lately about folks in high places abusing their wealth and power to satisfy their sexual lusts. So what else is new? I suspect that humanity (particularly males) are hard wired for sexual greed. In fact, I wouldn't be the first to suggest that the whole point of wealth and power is to satisfy one's sexual cravings. If you don't believe me, hang out with a gang of teenage boys for a while. Well, there are ways to overcome a built-in desire for sexual license. You can threaten people with jail, humiliation, loss of privilege, mutilation or hellfire. Or you can try to teach males to be respectful of females. But, I think in the end our genetic disposition toward wanton sexuality will usually win out. Remember that we are less than a million years removed from our (non-human) animal heritage. As John Gray put it, “Those who spurn their animal nature do not cease to be human, they merely become caricatures of humanity.” (Straw Dogs, p132) For those who wish to transform humanity into something loftier, I believe the first step must be to accept who we are now. Rolla Peace News is distributed by email once a week on Tuesday evenings (except on rare occasions) and is posted on the web at http://tomsager.org (click on Grassroots Rolla: near the top of rightmost column). If you don't wish to get notices of peace events in the Rolla area, let me know and I'll take you off this list. If you want to be added to this list, let me know. Wage peace, Helen helenm (at) fidnet.com ### |