Jim Jackson,Tolerance, & Teddy Bears

My friend Jim Jackson died last night. He was one of the most tolerant people I ever knew. I wish he were here to see the two stories below. He would have done a parody of them that would be biting, funny, with a strong message about ignorance and fear, but would somehow humanize all parties including the ignorant and the fearful. We’ll miss you Jim. Thanks for the caring, the perspective, and the laughs. You helped us see a bigger part of the picture and helped turn rage into compassion.

Gillian Gibbons, let her 7-year-old pupils name a class teddy bear Muhammad and got 15 days in jail in Sudan. She could have gotten 40 lashes and months in jail. “‘She got a very light punishment," said Rabie A. Atti, a government spokesman. ‘Actually, it's not much of a punishment at all. It should be considered a warning that such acts should not be repeated.’" . . . clerics have been driving around Khartoum with megaphones, blaring that the government should whip Ms. Gibbons and Muslims should take to the streets.” British Teacher Found Guilty in Sudan By Jeffrey Gettleman

What if she’d named that teddy bear Jesus instead of Muhammad? I’m sure some local clerics would think she’d be risking the fires of eternal hell for taking Jesus’s name in vain, which would be a lot worse than some Muslim whuppin. It woulda been fine with me if she’d a named him Virgil. It would have been fine with Jim Jackson if they'd a named him Jim.

Another example of tolerance & enlightenment that has been reported in the news was an email by, Arkansas state Sen. Denny Altes, R-Fort Smith about undocumented aliens-" We are where we were with the black folks after the revolutionary war. We can't send them back and the more we piss them off the worse it will be in the future. So what do we do,". . . . "I say the governor needs to try to enforce the law and sign the letter of understanding... and at least we can send the troublemakers back. Sure we are being overrun but we are being outpopulated by the blacks also. What is the answer, only time will tell." Meanwhile, Dr. Joycelyn Elders’s visit to Northwest Arkansas went unnoticed. See, Deciding What's News and What's Not

Jim would have known what to say about this to lessen the rage and help us learn from it. I don't.

James R. Jackson James Royce Jackson, 65, died Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007, of ALS at his home in Fayetteville. He was born in San Diego, Calif., on Oct. 6, 1942, the son of Royce and Pearl Elizabeth Newman Jackson. He grew up in Paul's Valley, Okla., where he was a clarinetist and drum major in the school band and became an Eagle Scout. He earned a B. A. in philosophy from Southern Methodist University in 1965. He served in the Peace Corps at the health training center in the village of Ramanagaram in Mysore State (now Karnataka ), India, from 1965-67. Upon his return, he was drafted into the U. S. Army and served in Vietnam. He wrote an engaging memoir about those two disparate experiences," Two Corps: Peace and War. "With other returned Peace Corps volunteers, he worked in the Model Cities Program in Texarkana in the early 1970 s, where he met and married the mother of his children, Virginia "Ginny"M. Neely, who died in 1997.

He moved to Fayetteville in 1973 to attend law school at the University of Arkansas, and earned his J. D. in 1976. He was particularly interested in environmental law and in mediation as an alternative to litigation. He practiced law for 15 years in Fayetteville and Springdale, then enrolled in the library and information studies program at the University of Oklahoma, earning his M. L. I. S. degree in 1992. He worked in the Rogers Public Library before joining the faculty of the Young Law Library of the University of Arkansas School of Law in 1996 as a law reference librarian. He was a Matthew Bender Fellow and a member of the American Association of Law Librarians and the Native American Librarians Association.

A kind, thoughtful, loving and compassionate man with a quiet and reserved manner, Jim had deep and wide-ranging intellectual interests; he was a gifted poet, a creative artist, a skilled and hilariously funny storyteller, a talented musician, and an inspired teacher. But the role he loved most and what he may have been best at was being a father. His children meant everything to him, and he was a completely caring, engaged, involved and loving parent.

A truly wonderful father, grandfather, husband and friend, Jim is survived by his wife, Barbara G. Taylor of the home; his son, Keefe N. Jackson of Chicago; his daughter, Margaret "Margot"E. E. Jackson of Fayetteville; his step-daughter, Jennifer E. Enos and husband Henry of Springdale; his step-son, Lev K. Desmarais and wife Joanna Richardson of Parker, Texas; three grandchildren, Corinne T. McKimmey, Nathan T. Enos and Kailani R. Enos; a brother, Stephen K. Jackson and step-brother, J. Michael Taylor, both of Oklahoma City; several aunts, uncles and cousins, numerous friends, worldwide, and by Sophie Fluffy Dog Jackson, who is also a member of the family.

He was a Senior Dharma Teacher in the Kwan Um School of Zen, and he and his wife Barbara founded the Morning Star Zen Center in Fayetteville in 1986. A memorial service will be held in Fayetteville within the next few days at a time and place to be announced, and a forty-nine-day ceremony will be held on Jan. 16, 2008.

The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, contributions be made in Jim's memory to the George A. Strait Minority Scholarship Endowment, American Association of Law Libraries, 53 West Jack son Blvd., Suite 940, Chica go, IL 60604; to the Friends of India, 34915 Gordy Road Laurel, DE 19956; to the Kwan Um School of Zen, 99 Pound Road, Cumberland RI 02864; or to another char ity. Arrangements were by Moore's Chapel. To sign the online guest book, visit http://www.mooresfuneralchapel.com/index.cfm

Armor

I have lived through others far too long.
Lancelot carried my honor
and Guenevere my guilt.
Mordred bore my sins.
My knights have fought my causes.
Now, my brother......I shall be . . .
king.

Arthur spoke these words to Sir Kay after Sir Perceval had shed his armor in the wonderful baptism (immersed-not sprinkled) scene in Excalibur. This allowed him to find the grail and the secret that Arthur had lost-that he and the land were one. When Arthur drank from the chalice, he was also was reborn and the land with him. Arthur had not known how empty his soul was “until it was filled.” Upon this realization he put his armor back on.
May we all be monarchs who know ourselves, remember the secrets, bear our own stuff, and know how to properly dress for the occasion at hand.

Chuck Norris Tells America How It's Gonna Be? Good God! Sweet Jesus! Mike Huckabee?????

"You are what you pretend to be, so be careful what you pretend to be." Where have I heard that before?
We don't need to pretend that Huckabee is dangerous-he is.
Huckabee's shadow tells us a lot more about him than the "nice guy" persona he usually shows us. See, also , The dark side of Mike Huckabee The national media seems to have a crush on our ex-governor, but here in Arkansas, we know better. By Max Brantley and
Huckabee: Guantanamo Not As Bad As It Seems. Virgil: Huckabee Is As Bad As He Seems.Thanks to Gena.

In Victor Rabinowitz’s Day, Giants Walked the Land and Lawyering Was Fun.

Victor Rabinowitz died yesterday. Unlike the political hacks and corporate lackeys on our Supreme Court, he represented people with names. Some of those included Dashiell Hammett, Dr. Benjamin Spock, Julian Bond, Daniel Ellsberg, Paul Robeson (click here to hear him sing Joe Hill), the Rev. Philip Berrigan, Rockwell Kent, and Alger Hiss.
Thanks for standing by other giants and for having fun.

Virgil thanks Dr. Steve for the info & the caption.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanks to TENNESSEE GUERILLA WOMEN for Alice's Restaurant (MP3) -- Happy Liberal Thanksgiving!

“it is the Alice's Restaurant Anti-Massacre Movement, and all you got to do to join is sing it the next time it come's around on the guitar.”

Click here for access to the WKRP Turkey Drop.

Click here for Being Thankful and Giving Thanks
Speaking of being thankful, and giving thanks, Cousin Jim reported that he had the best thanksgiving in recent memory. It seems that Rev. Sandi tricked him into helping the FUMC folks put together meals and then helping Steve deliver them to those who couldn't get out. Jim enjoyed the experience and learned a lot from his co-workers and, even more from those who were "served." He actually got outside himself and gained some needed perspective. The experience enhanced the rest of his day spent with family and friends. He's thinking it would be good to do such things regularly, and not just on holidays. I think he's right. I hope he and the rest of us do it. Jesus, and Buddha, for that matter, were largely about compassion and empathy and not about rules and beliefs.

Bush Drinking Again?

Thanks to Gena

The Generalissimo Francisco Franco Is Still Dead.

Spanish dictator Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still terminally dead. Or is he? "Viva Franco!" . . . One Spain, one flag! Immigrants out! Spain is Catholic, not Muslim!"

Mom Plays Santa-Have Fun, A Merry Christmas, and Be Safe, But Lock Your Drawers.

If Hillary's a (rhymes with bitch), what does that make us?

"A line from Christopher Buckley's Boomsday comes to mind: 'The pro-choicers and women's groups would chew off my dick'. But, so it seems, there's a shortage of outrage here." from Patti's "If Hillary's a (rhymes with rich), what does that make us? - Leonard Pitts Jr."

Albert Brumley Flew Away 30 Years Ago, But He's Still With Us.

Just turn your radio on.
Thanks to niece Bev & Cathy for the info.

Rev. Sandi added this:

From Then Sings My Soul

Albert E. Brumley was born on a cotton farm near Spiro, OK in 1905. The medium of radio was gaining popularity as he grew up, and one of the most requested songs was a sad ballad called “If I Had the Wings of an Angel” which said: Now if I had the wings of an angel, Over these prison walls I would fly, I’d fly to the arms of my poor darling, and there I’d be willing to die.

One hot Oklahoma day, Albert was in the fields picking cotton and singing his song. The thought of flying away suddenly seemed quite appealing to him, and he began composing “I’ll Fly Away” on the spot. “I was dreaming of flying away from that cotton field when I wrote ‘I’ll Fly Away,’” he later said. The middle verse of Alberts’s song echoes the old prison ballad when it says: When the shadows of this life have grown, I’ll fly away; Like a bird from prison bars has flown, I’ll fly away.

It's Me Again Margret

"You ain't gonna miss me Margret-I know that, but I'll miss you!"

What Would Jesus Buy?

Davy Crockett's Political Advice Followed By All.

“ . . . kiss and slabber their children, wipe their noses, and pat them on the head; this can not fail to please their mothers, and you may rely on your business being done in that quarter. Promise all that is asked and more. if you can think of anything. Offer to build a bridge or a church, to divide a county, create a batch of new offices, make a turnpike, or anything they like. Promises cost nothing: therefore, deny nobody who has a vote or sufficient influence to obtain one.
Get up on all occasions, and some times on no occasion at all, and make long-winded speeches, though composed of nothing else than wind,-talk of your devotion to your country, your modesty and disinterestedness, or on any such fanciful subject. Rail against taxes of all kinds, office holders and bad harvest weather, winding up with a flourish about the heroes who fought and bled for our liberties in the times that tried men's souls. T o be sure you run the risk of being considered a bladder of wind, but never mind, you will find enough of the same fraternity to keep you in countenance.
If any charity be going forward, be at the top of it, provided it is to be advertised quickly; if not, it isn't worth your while. None hut a fool would place his candle under a bushel on such an occasion. These few directions, he assured his listeners, would do the business. Then, when elected, why, a fig for the dirty children, the bridges, the churches, the taxes, the offices, the subscriptions, for it is absolutely necessary to forget all these before you can become a thoroughgoing politician, and a patriot of the first water." DAVY CROCKETT GAVE THE LITTLE ROCK BOYS A TREAT-sketch of David Crockett was copied from the Arkansas Gazette of April 20, 1930-based upon material gathered by F. W. Allsopp, business manager of the Gazette for his book, Myths and Legends of Arkansas. Thanks to Sam & Rufus.

The Huckster

“ . . . It all began 16 years ago for Mike and me. Huckabee, in his political debut, was preparing to become the Bible-thumping, abortion-decrying Republican challenger to U.S. Sen. Dale Bumpers, the Democratic incumbent. With a playbook straight out of James Dobson, he tried to portray Bumpers as a pornographer for his support of federal grants to the arts. More important, Huckabee revealed an enduring weakness as glaring as that other Arkansas governor's fondness for women. Huckabee seems to love loot and has a dismissive attitude toward ethics, campaign finance rules and propriety in general. Since that first, failed campaign, the ethical questions have multiplied. In the 1992 contest with Bumpers, Huckabee used campaign funds to pay himself as his own media consultant. Other payments went to the family babysitter. In his successful 1994 run for lieutenant governor, he set up a nonprofit curtain known as Action America so he could give speeches for money without having to disclose the names of his benefactors. He failed to report that campaign travel payments were for the use of his own personal plane. After he became governor in 1996, he raked in tens of thousands of dollars in gifts, including gifts from people he later appointed to prestigious state commissions. In the governor's office, his grasp never exceeded his reach. Furniture he'd received to doll up his office was carted out with him when he left, after he'd crushed computer hard drives so nobody could ever get a peek behind the curtain of the Huckabee administration. . . .” The dark side of Mike Huckabee The national media seems to have a crush on our ex-governor, but here in Arkansas, we know better. By Max Brantley

Are We What We Pretend To Be?

"You are what you pretend to be, so be careful what you pretend to be." Kurt Vonnegurt

Let's pretend to still be the United States of America which honors courage and respects individual freedoms of movement and thought and life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Let's continue to pretend to be a country that takes the moral high ground and condemns torture.

"Give Me My Freedom For As Long As I Be." And When I Die-Blood Sweat and Tears

Lee Scott Makes $11,500/hr? That's More Some Wal-Mart Employees Make in a Whole Week.

On This Day In History-Kristallnacht

"It's generally regarded as the beginning of the Holocaust - although that is, of course, an oversimplification. But on this day - the gloves came off. It was a nationwide attack on Jewish synagogues, businesses, homes. The destruction was massive. The message was clear. The attacks were meant to LOOK spontaneous, but they were directed from Goebbels and Hitler. The police were told not to interfere. Only Jews were arrested."

God Bless Lawyers.

"Thousands of black-suited lawyers facing police batons and tear gas to protest the declaration of emergency rule have become Pakistan's political conscience.
Enraged by President Pervez Musharraf's assault on independent judges, the legal community has eclipsed discredited opposition parties as the torchbearers for democracy." Lawyers: Pakistan political conscience By MATTHEW PENNINGTON

There are some bad lawyers, but over all, they get a bum rap. In many countries, including this one, lawyers are on the front lines protecting what freedoms we have left. The Bushite, Chamber of Commerce, Insurance-Drug Industry lackies who blame lawyers for the devastation their own corruption and greed create should hang their heads in shame. Keep fighting lads & lassies of the bar. You might also say a little prayer or whatever you do for Pakistan and the USA.

Men Of Zeal Without Understanding.

"The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning, but without understanding." -- Louis Brandeis dissenting in Olmstead v. United States (1928)

If You Ever Had Any Doubt That Giuliani Is A Shallow, Self-Important, Manipulative, Demagogue, Who Appeals to Our Basest Thoughts & Fears, Regardez.

Pat Robertson Sells Soul -- Endorses Crossdresser Giuliani
See, also,
Pat Robertson: Weather Forecaster, Strongest Man Alive, and Pillar of Christian Love & Tolerance & Followers
and
Pat Robertson Endorses Giuliani; . . . By Michael Cooper

Porter Has Flown Away As He And The Willis Brothers Predicted (Click Here To Hear Um)

"Though Mr. Wagoner never achieved the sort of country music sainthood accorded Hank Williams, Johnny Cash or Willie Nelson, his pure adherence to traditional forms became esteemed. Waylon Jennings once said, 'He couldn’t go pop with a mouthful of firecrackers.'” Porter Wagoner, Singer, Dies at 80 By DOUGLAS MARTIN
Lester Moran once said, "Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, now there's a pair of big uns."

You were a big un on your own Porter. Thanks for the music and the duds.

Bloody Dollars

These blood sucking bastards. A generation ago Ed Sanders was singing about folks like this, but this latest lot appears to be silver bullet proof. For a trip down memory lane, listen to Ed sing The ABM Machine aka Are You A Vampire Melvin Laird? There are a bunch more of Ed's dandies at No One Likes Everything, but as a comment mentioned the Iliad is missing.