“[I]n times of crisis it’s interesting that people don’t turn to the novel or say, ‘We should all go out to a movie,’ or ‘Ballet would help us.’ It’s always poetry. What we want to hear is a human voice speaking directly in our ear.”
Billy Collins, U.S. Poet Laureate (2001-2003) speaking to the New York Times, as quoted in The Dead Beat by Marilyn Johnson
this diary is dedicated to all who suffer because of war and other disasters
we honor courage in all its forms
cross-posted at DailyKos, Booman Tribune, European Tribune, and My Left Wing.
april is national poetry month
image and poem below the fold
An Iraqi man cries out as doctors treat him following an attack by insurgents near Baquba March 26, 2006. One person was killed and three wounded when insurgents opened fire on a Shi’ite family on a highway 5 km (3 miles) north of Baquba, police said. REUTERS/Helmiy al-Azawi
My Sin
by M. L. Liebler
If I know my angels,
I know what they would say
–Joe Henry
He came to me
In a whisky-blue dream
In midtown Manhattan.
He wasn’t angry anymore.
He seemed happy to find
Me again, my old self.
Picking up his ghost guitar,
He played me a new song.
He played it sweet and innocent.
As if he were the world’s only child,
His whole future ahead,
No pain hidden in that past.
In some undeserved way, I felt
As though he had forgiven me
For the hurtfulness of my words.
His kindness to me was more
Genuine than all of my love could
Ever have been toward him.
In my dream, I found myself running
Back and forth in search of forgiveness,
In search of something greater.
But each time I was returned
To wander out my sin in prayer–
The sleepless turmoil of my penance
Revealed and served.
New York, NY
– – –
put a meaningful magnet on your car or metal filing cabinet
read Ilona’s important new blog – PTSD Combat
view the pbs newshour silent honor roll (with thanks to jimstaro at booman.)
take a private moment to light one candle among many (with thanks to TXSharon)
support Veterans for Peace
support the Iraqi people
support the Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict (CIVIC)
support CARE
support the victims of torture
remember the fallen
support Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors – TAPS
support Gold Star Families for Peace
support the fallen
support the troops
support Iraq Veterans Against the War
support Military families Speak Out
support the troops and the Iraqi people
read This is what John Kerry did today, the diary by lawnorder that prompted this series
read Riverbend’s Bagdhad Burning
read Dahr Jamail’s Iraq Dispatches
read Today in Iraq
witness every day
Click on the candle to copy the image into your own comment (you can leave it on my server), and/or rate this one – not for mojo, but to leave a small mark after taking this moment.
” I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned.”
from Dirge Without Music
by Edna St. Vincent Millay
Iraqi Gunmen Kill Police Commando, Lawyer
Jill Carroll has been released this morning! Yea!
IMPEACH the BASTARD!
NOW!
why do people war and kill?
a child did dare to ask
they want to, said a wizard wise
for war’s a noble task
that makes all men feel big and strong
tall captains of their fate,
this is the only way they know
through violence and hate
but said the child in baffled voice
so many of us die
do they not care about my blood
I want to know the why
so if I die before I wake
I can understand
the need for me to die right now
while I am but a lad
the wizard drew him very near
held him ever tight
someday, he whispered in his ear
we will make this right
Peace
Impeach NOW.
.
The people of a region known as “the cradle of civilization” have rights beyond the human and political to enjoy the blessings of a civil and calm society.
E&P - Two Months After Abduction:Little News, But Hope Remains
In the spirit of doing unto others what we would want done unto us-that is, in the Golden Rule that is found in every major religion – we reach out to Jill’s captors and those who still hold others hostage. May they find a purpose closer to that for which Jill Carroll is now known – constructive, street-level compassion for all the people of Iraq, and an unbiased love for all mankind.
Christian Science Board of Directors
Dems’ Template for Success: Follow Jack Murtha …
LEAVE Iraq to the Iraqis
“But I will not let myself be reduced to silence.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
Light A Candle For
Peace, Tolerance, Understanding
and For The Children – Innocence Lost!
“A patriot is mocked, scorned and hated; yet when his cause succeeds, all
men will join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.” — Mark
Twain
~~~~~~~~
Bill Quigley | Sleeping in Your Car in Front of Your Trailer in Front of Your Devastated Home
Bill Quigley writes: In New Orleans, seven months after Katrina, senior citizens are living in their cars. WWL-TV introduced us to Korean War veteran Paul Morris, 74, and his wife Yvonne, 66. They have been sleeping in their 2 door sedan since January. They have been waiting that long for FEMA contractors to unlock the 240 square foot trailer in their yard and connect the power so they can sleep inside it in front of their devastated home.
~~~~~~~~
“The only difference between Bush and Hitler is that Hitler was
elected.” — Kurt Vonnegut
~~~~~~~~
VIDEO SPECIAL | Katrina Plus Seven Months
A Film by Chris Hume
The latest video in the Hurricane Katrina series by Chris Hume. It has been seven months since New Orleans was nearly wiped out by the storm, and Chris Hume is revisiting some of the people he met the first time, when the city was still flooded and under martial law. Also, a coalition of Iraq War veterans and Katrina Survivors march to New Orleans from Mobile, Alabama, to speak out against the occupation of Iraq and to help rebuild the Gulf Coast.
QuickTime
DSL | 56K
Windows Media
DSL | 56K
RealMedia
DSL | 56K
~~~~~~~~~~
“Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it.”
— Mark Twain, 19th century
~~~~~~~~
Tracking coalition military deaths in Iraq, one day at a time, across the map. Click HERE to see the Flash-Animated Map.
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“Never again shall one generation of veterans abandon another.”
23min Long, don’t know how long it will be up at their site, it was aired last night the 29th.
Wednesday, 29 March, 2006
From Jasmin Buttar
Programme Producer, BBC Newsnight
When the dust settles: Anger from US soldiers back from Iraq
Presented by Jeremy Paxman
US soldiers
We have a powerful film this evening. We follow a group of former US soldiers who have returned from Iraq deeply affected by the experience.
As they march across America to protest against the war they reveal their own experiences of the conflict, make some disturbing allegations about military practices in Iraq and reflect on how it feels to come home.
We’ll discuss some of the issues raised with the former Judge Advocate General for the US Army who is also a decorated combat veteran.
{Click on Report Link in Title, Video Link is on the Right Hand Side Titled ‘Former U.S. Soldiers’!}