Obama Family Lights National Christmas Tree of Hope

From Denny: This is one of the "lighter" moments of a Presidency... :)

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Bright Sparks of Light, on the Longest, Darkest Night

Well, Winter Solstice is upon us. Not only is it the longest night of the year, it is also a new moon this year, meaning a very dark night

2006 has been quite a dark year: Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, Israel/Lebanon, Palestinian territories, AIDS, etc.

Despite all of this, there is room for hope; the longest, darkest night is the best for stargazing. The Bush Administration is crumbling, something which we hope will result in a major change in course. Support for the war in Iraq reaches a new low. The very exciting developments in Latin America include (among others) the increased integration of the new Cochabamba Declaration. Death penalty executions in the USA were this year the lowest in a decade. The hard work of dedicated activists and brilliant thinkers has had many positive results. The good news and signs of hope inspires me to say: "Merry Solstice"!

Download and watch Biology, Resistance and Restoration: Sustainability as an Infinite Game (Free 51 Minutes, ipod video, zipped 300mb download here). Paul Hawken inspires us to imagine a world of growth without inequality, wealth without plunder and work without exploitation.

Scared Sacred

Watch Scared Sacred by Velcrow Ripper. An amazing documentary that asks the question "Is it possible to find hope in the darkest moments of human history?" Be surprised by the resilience and compassion of the survivors of some of the most awful moments in our memories. Velcrow Ripper takes quite a journey, from the killing fields of Cambodia to NYC just after 9/11, talking to artists in Sarajevo, a Sufi musician and courageous members of RAWAin Afghanistan, and the Bereaved Families Circle in Israel & Palestine. Breathe in suffering... breathe out compassion...

There's bits of Scared Sacred on this episode of Rabble Radio, which is always good for a listen (that's also where I discovered Kobayashi).

Listen to and be inspired by Velcrow Ripper's Podcast, Fierce Light. A good antidote to cynicism without resorting to denial. Interesting, because I'm not spiritual, but this actually reaches out on a very human level, I think. The knowledge of what atrocities and tragedies are occurring around the world sometimes hits at a visceral level, and it is easy to get overwhelmed, and then want to avoid this knowledge, but that doesn't make anything better, it only helps perpetuate a neurotic society.

We need to acknowledge reality, but keep our hope, and perspective, in face of it all. (An excellent read in terms of perspective is False Alarm: The Truth About the Epidemic of Fear by Marc Siegel - I'll review this another time)

More Film Reviews

At the World Social Forum

From the sheer joy and enthusiasm reverberating from the central stage of the opening rally of the 6th World Social Form, you'd never guess that offensive ground operations were continuing unabated in Iraq, or closer still in Haiti U.N. forces were shooting up poor neighborhoods to quell dissent, or Canadians would be in the midst of voting a far-right neo-con to power. "We will not stop," cries a member of Pastors for Peace to his audience of thousands, "Until the walls of the empire fall and until we realize, like you, that another world is possible."

Read the whole thing (It's worth it)

Topics: Activism, Environment