Carson's Corner

From time to time we simple like to share a link that we feel is worthwhile. Here is one of those times.

A Day of Service

Here is a great little video carrying a huge message on this important day about Progressive Thinking in U.S. History. Please view and tell your friends.

Moving Forward

Every now and then, regardless of ones personal perspective or objectives, we must take a step back and consider our words. In the case of the word "progressive" I need to write a few lines on exactly what that means to me. Regardless which dictionary you use, the implications of the word are that we are NOT STANDING STILL, but moving forward in a positive direction. Some people try to convince us that moving backward is actually progress. That is simply not true, as movement backward is REgressive. Our founding fathers knew that the document they wrote called The U.S. Constitution, needed to have the ability to change with time. They built into the system devices that would allow for change...always keeping in mind simple objectives and goals that can never be abandoned. These goals include "individual LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS." Notice that "pursuit of commerce, land, natural resources or political power" are NOT among the rights or worthy pursuits upon which our government is based. Therefore, anything that promotes these simple goals should be considered "progressive" and anything that doesn't should be avoided.
Today, I saw a short video by Deepak Chopra that begins a conversation from what I believe is "the right place." It appears below.

"The Conversation": Deepak HomeBase at ABC Carpet and Home, New York City Dec. 21, 2010 from Better Days Productions on Vimeo.

A Word from the President

Since President Obama has taken the time and effort to support and even spearhead a number of progressive initiatives prior to the most recent elections--and he and the Democratic Party have spent a few dollars to make the following video, I thought it was only fair to give him a chance to speak for himself and thank his supporters here:

Sanctioned Prejudice

I'm sure I am going to see some flack for what I'm about to write, but I can't help but say what I believe. During the last presidential elections, I asked my writing students to respond to the question:Which is the greatest prejudice, that against women or people of color?
Most students of my students are under 25 years of age. I'm not sure how that figures into it, since this is not a scientific survey, by any means, but I want to be as thorough as possible. Most of my students do not think that women are subject to ANY limitations in this country. Of course, I do not limit my question to the United States and women from other countries (especially those who grew up or spent time in a middle eastern or African country) see things differently.
I usually ask this question around the time of the birthdays of Martin Luther King Jr. and Abe Lincoln, since I can also ask students to compare and contrast two famous speeches and men, who fought similar battles. Though most know who Abe Lincoln was, and have some vague understanding of what Martin Luther King Jr. fought and died for, none of these same individuals can remember a single woman's name from the Suffrage Movement or knows what the Equal Rights Amendment is.
As the political right and left become more and more polarized in this country, it appears obvious to me that white bigotry is alive and well in our country. In fact, I believe that the questions raised during the Civil War and during any movement that deals with "equal rights," have never been resolved in the U.S.
I know that some think that the Union won the Civil War, and that the question of states' rights being subject to federal control was resolved. However, if you look at our current polarization, we see that this is not the case. Rich white men, primarily from the South, never accepted that they lost the war. This, I believe is at the core of our political problems today. The only difference between the prejudices is that the prejudice against women is largely sanctioned in the U.S. by the greater ignorance of bigotry against people of color.
We continue to hear the call for states' rights and even the voicing of the possibility of "armed conflict" if the spoiled losers don't get their way. Healthcare reform? The vote is in, and does the Right accept it? No, they want to "retake control and repeal Obamacare lock, stock and barrel." The primary moving force behind non-acceptance of Barack Obama's presidency (no matter what he does) is because he is black. It is that simple. White conservative males (by a wide majority) don't like Obama. There is a pervasive, uneasy feeling about Obama being "too uppidy." He is often referred to by the GOP as "arrogant." This is not surprising, but guess who is the person they hate even more than the president. That's right, it's a woman. It is Nancy Pelosi! If you want to get the ire up of a Republican, mention her name.
White bigots, primarily from the Confederate States can't get over the fact that no matter how they try, they can't keep Blacks and Women from running the country. When we hear the call for the "Good Old Days" what are we really looking for? A return to a time when women and blacks were not in charge. That's what I think. Show me where I'm wrong. The GOP needs to stop fighting the Civil War. The Suffrage Movement has already earned women the right to vote and be Speaker of the House, and Secretary of State and Supreme Court Judges. We will never progress as a country, until we see that bigotry is alive and well in the U.S. and is poisonous regardless which group it is aimed at.
Below is a recent interview with Nancy Pelosi. She is allowed to speak for herself. See if you can watch the video without any preconceptions or pre-judgements.

Two important propositions

There are many reasons that you should vote this coming election, but there seems to be two measures on the California ballot that need to be highlighted. They are props 23 and 26.

Words as Weapons

I have been working on a post entitled, Words as Weapons but before I was able to finish it the Democratic Party in California, uncharacteristically came up with a very clever ad proving how manipulation of words and phrases has become the mainstay of the Republican strategy. Meg Whitman is featured, shooting off her mouth with the same tired political epithets and wounding herself in the process. Certainly, I'm sure all of these phrases are taken out of context, but they were probably uttered out of context in the first place. I present the ad here, as the Democrats deserve to have their efforts to amuse us rewarded.