IN GAZA

IN GAZA

IN GAZA

By John Curran

I heard of this mythical country where the only problem seems to be the ancient peoples who have lived on this land for centuries. Only fairly recently has a new country showed up here with a mandate for a chunk of this land. This was based on a world mandate allowed after this new country’s own peoples had been through their own modern day horror show, the Holocaust. And so, with this, and feeling rightly justified in at last having their own much deserved homeland for their peoples, since then this new country has been growing increasingly irritated and put out at having to share this land with other ancient peoples.

Now this new kid on the block so to speak, has over this recent time of seventy years or so, been getting armed to the teeth, in fact has created the most powerful military force in this mythical part of the world with the substantial assistance of the victorious Western powers. In this any and all collective guilt; lets face it the Holocaust was no small change; is assuaged. Tons and tons of weaponry continually being delivered to the new kid  because “nobody kicks us around anymore. It is us now who do the kicking”  And this seems to be the new style of play. The team captain, Bibi, quite the player, somehow never draws the ‘go directly to jail’ card whenever he plays Monopoly.

Nobody knows how he gets away with it but, in interview, surrounded by all those generals, you can maybe figure. And be assured by Bibi that there is no starvation of the Palestinian peoples, no sad choice between a slow death or a fast one, ‘cuz none of this is actually happening. Bibi says what these ancient peoples need to do is just quit complaining and trade in that damn donkey cart for a nice red Tesla. I mean gotta figure, lot of real estate potential in that beachside strip, what’s it called, I only hear it every day. But I don’t believe it. They shoot them in the head? Children?

The Spectacular Oregon Coast

The Spectacular Oregon Coast

Editor:  At a recent town hall with Oregon Democratic U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley I picked up a magazine entitled, “The Oregon Treasures Quest.” The magazine is printed and published by Jeff Merkley’s team. The magazine is available through his office and at his town halls. Jeff, a lifetime Oregonian drew from his life in Oregon to put together a magazine that  highlights one significant landmark from each Oregon county with great pictures and a short blurb on each site. After enjoying Jeff’s publication I thought I should spend a few minutes talking about Oregon’s iconic coastal landmarks. I have been fortunate enough to spend many years living and exploring Oregon’s Pacific coast. Below I’ve listed several highlights of Oregon’s Hwy 101.

D. S. Mitchell

A Bit of History

The Pacific Coast of the United States is magical. Massive  rock formations,  dramatic vistas, magnificent bridges, and miles of expansive beaches.  I was born in this “Pacific Wonderland” and every once in a while I like to tell my friends around the world about this amazing place I call home. I grew up in Portland, Oregon. Went to Shattuck grade school, Lincoln High School, and Portland State University. I remember long lazy summer vacations at my family’s beach shack at Rockaway Beach.  Our little surf shack was the hub of activity for many summers of happy memories. We would take short trips around the area, roast marshmallows, fish the coastal streams, dig clams on brisk mornings, build sand castles and access quiet picnic spots along the beautiful beaches of the central Oregon coast.

Until very recently I was a full time coastal resident.  I lived at a spectacular spot between Gearhart and Warrenton, called Surf Pines.  It’s a delightful place with wide views of the Pacific, small lakes, and wildlife galore. It was such an exciting place to live, a delight of both man and nature made wonders. Driving Sunset Beach up to the Peter Iredale watching the spectacular 4th of July fireworks. Ahh, what a life.

Since I lived just south of that gritty river town Astoria, once called the “evilest place on earth”  it is a good place to start.  I love Astoria and its spectacular setting, and conversely its seedy edginess.  A town of hills and stairs.  A river town where many men are still fisherman and loggers. Where upscale cannabis shops and day spas co-exist with topless bars and closed storefronts. Astoria is both charming and seamy. Astoria is slowly shifting from blue-collar working class to professional class.  A place where Victorian houses both grand and simple cling to a rocky hillside at the convergence of bay, river and ocean.  A town quietly searching for its future.

“The Bridge” is the Astoria-Megler bridge. Starting in California, and all up the coast you will see many beautiful historic bridges, but it isn’t until you reach Astoria, Oregon that you see the spectacular grand jewel of coastal river bridges.  At Astoria the Columbia River joins the ocean.  “The bridge” spans 4 miles across one of the nation’s greatest river systems, joining Oregon with her northern sister state, Washington. The Columbia bar was long known as the “grave yard of the Pacific” because so many ships sank off its coast as they attempted to cross the bar into the greatest river of the west.  A drive across this landmark structure literally takes your breath away.

The Astoria Column is a 125 foot column.  Half a million visitors tour the site annually. The column stands on a cleared hilltop that rises 600 feet above sea level.  The column is one of the most recognizable monuments on the Oregon coast. Dedicated in 1926 the column was modeled after Trajan’s column in Rome, Italy.  The Astoria column is decorated with a detailed spiral frieze of Astoria’s history. The column was treated to a much-needed restoration a couple of years ago, but that inner spiral staircase is still stomach turning, if you get up that damn thing, the views from the top are heart stopping; Young’s River and Bay, the Pacific Ocean, the Columbia River, Cape Disappointment. Jaw dropping.

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Jeopardy

Jeopardy

Jeopardy

 

By John Curran

 

Yeah I used to be kind of a news junkie, more like a news nerd actually, but truthfully now its come to such a point that I am just losing interest, brother. Not that I ain’t there. Make no mistake concerning the big picture, when that clarion trumpet calls, I will be there. But for now, and its not more than a sad reflection of the times, that I find my mind wandering now and wondering how many minutes until Jeopardy. I used to love Jeopardy, I’m finding that now, I still do. And ya know, Jeopardy is, has been, and probably always will be, just the greatest damn game show ever. But there was a time, going back to just the last year and for the three years preceding, so four years back, when I was living my life without Jeopardy.

I had no TV. It was a magic time, a time when I became re-inspired as a painter and was again feeling it and doing real serious stuff. It was great. Really great. See I’d left my old place in Texas feeling kind of  burned out after a long number of years there. I’d been doing painting there. I’d been in a great Art program and had been doing good work with this group, even making money selling, complete validation, the pride of that. But real art reflects off the real life I feel and towards the end of all these years in Austin I was getting stale. The life was getting stale in many ways correspondingly. When a problem came about at this time with my local housing arrangement, I jumped at the chance to make a change. And so, not knowing nothing or nobody I came up here to Portland, Oregon and was provided with a decent little one bedroom single guy apartment in an area spinoff of the main metropolis. A small apartment complex, it had kids, that was new. A lot of these places don’t allow kids, or so it seems. It was a small place and what with that it soon became common knowledge that I was a painter. A like artist guy. That definitely raised some eyebrows, people be funny, but it didn’t bother me as far as my work was concerned. I was suddenly so totally back again into what was really some of my best painting ever.

The Afghan sisters who to me were the most beautiful girls I had ever seen, a lineage that carries on in spite of a sad history of repression. I love the way their large family, four girls, two older brothers, mother and father, carried on in their Muslim traditions in the midst now of living in this the modern American society. I was inspired by their obvious love for each other as a family and I’ll say this, the beauty of the Afghan woman is ….Anyway, the two middle sisters came to me early on and they had two paintings that they had done. I think one painted the pizza pie and one painted the cat. They wanted to see if I wanted to buy them. I really did like the cat, it was amateurish but yet…there was something there and hey, what’s five dollars for a piece of original art, acrylic on canvas? The other, naw, but both were pretty good. Ya start somewhere. I’ve still got the cat. It’s a sort of a centerpiece, people comment on it, how like what a great painting it is. I think so too.

 

Trump’s Mental Illness Has Not Improved

Trump’s Mental Illness Has Not Improved

Trump’s Mental Illness Has Not Improved

 

By D.S. Mitchell

 

Way Back Then

Way back, in 2016, twenty-six thousand (26,000) psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers signed a petition stating that Donald Trump has a “dangerous mental illness, and is not fit to lead the United States.” Dr. John Gartner, formerly of  Johns Hopkins University, now in private practice, stated that he felt he “had an ethical responsibility to warn the public of Donald Trump’s mental illness.” Well, not only have the American people ignored the information from the experts, but they have elected this crazy idiot twice. So, who are the crazies? While that is a serious matter, I’m not prepared to address that here today. What I want to talk about the danger of a man like Donald Trump holding any elected office, much less president of the United States.

Letter To The Editor

In a Letter to the Editor, NY Times, 2/09/2017, Charles M. Blow stated that Trump through his speech and actions demonstrates an inability to tolerate any views, or opinions that differ from his own. “His words and his behavior suggest a profound inability to empathize. Individuals with these traits distort reality to suit their psychological state, attacking facts and those who convey them.”

Prone To Gross Exaggeration

The Editorial Staff of Psychology Today threw their sizable weight at the argument, citing “the dangers of his obvious narcissistic personality type and the offensive behaviors that accompany it.”  Behaviors include, but are not limited to, “condescension, gross exaggeration (lying), bullying, jealousy, fragile self-esteem, lack of compassion, and a view of the world that is an “us vs them” view. And the constant boasting, with the overtone that he is the smartest guy in the room, “I’m smarter than the generals.” Or, his classic, “he’s a total loser.”

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What We Could Have Had

We Could Have Had The Bright, Beautiful Black Lady

Kamala Harris, fulfillment of the American dream. Vote Blue 2024 Biden/Harris

What We Could Have Had

We Could Have Had The Bright, Beautiful Black Lady

 

By Cate Rees-Hessel

 

Regrets?

I wonder if anyone that voted for “The Donald” is finally tired of the insanity and has regrets. I recall years ago the Dream Date game – you could get a handsome male or the dud; we sure got The dud. A popular game show allows contestants the opportunity to choose curtains number one, two, or three but beware, a booby prize is behind one of those curtains. We got zonked big time, but unlike that game of chance, the deal those who voted for the orange monster was a deal made with the Devil.

We Had Our Chance

We had the golden opportunity to elect the most accomplished, the most beautiful,  the most gracious, and the most compassionate, and highly intelligent attorney-prosecutor to ever seek the presidency, but those who are ruled by racism and sexism chose the weak wizard behind the ugly curtain. Now we’ve been zonked and I don’t know if I can last another 1270 days. Below are some prevailing truths because we regretfully did not elect the smart, beautiful Black lady to run our nation:

  1. When the tariffs prevent you from getting what you need or want, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  2. When I.C.E. takes your loved ones away, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  3. When you can’t afford groceries, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  4. When your wife, sister, or daughter can’t get medical care, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  5. When none of us have health care, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  6. When the Social Security money we all worked for goes to pay Elon Musk’s debts, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  7. When the war in the Ukraine rages on with no hope in sight, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  8. When we are at war with Iran, including the likely terrorist attacks here, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  9. When children have empty plates to fund a want-to-be dictator’s military birthday parade, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  10. Even though he and “The Donald” have parted ways, the unfettered power given to Elon Musk has already strongly contributed to running our nation into the ground and his new political party as dangerous as he is, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  11. When eggs remain at five dollars a carton, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  12. Biden capped inulin at $35.00; Trump dropped the cap so insulin is now unaffordable for seniors, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  13. When school lunches are cancelled and children go hungry, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  14. When shootings continue to rise, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  15. When Medicaid and Medicare are no more, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  16. When veterans benefits are no more, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  17. When the National Guard is sent into a peaceful protest, remember January 6th; and that we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  18. When the Gulf of Mexico is referred to as the Gulf of America, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  19. When only billionaires get tax breaks, remember, we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady…
  20. When you wake up drenched in sweat from a nightmare because you voted for Trump, remember…we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady. We could have had Kamala Harris.

Deranged and Demented

Shame on the racist sexists who voted a mentally deranged narcissist with dementia back into the Oval Office, along with his slimy new sidekick JD Vance; instead we could have had the bright, beautiful Black lady, as our President. Kamala Harris and the delightful, down-to-earth schoolteacher/coach/governor Tim Walz at her side. This was a pair that I proudly voted for.

A Long Wait

I have been waiting for our first female President since Shirley Chisholm, Geraldine Ferraro, and Hilary Clinton. Richard Nixon predicted in 1970 that within the next 50 years we would certainly elect a woman president. Well, according to Nixon we are past the time to elect a woman president of the United States.

Thank You, Joe

Thank you, President Joe Biden for helping us smash the glass ceiling; making Kamala Harris the first woman Vice President of the United States. Please join me in wearing something pearl white in the honor of the early suffragettes who demanded the right of women to vote, and our recent presidential candidate Kamala Harris.

The Low Road

The Low Road

The Low Road

Editor: A poem for our time. ‘The Low Road’ by Marge Piercy illustrates the necessity for each individual to take a stand against injustice. This post was suggested by Karen Tate, author and podcaster. Get inspired, we need all the soldiers in this war that we can recruit. Remember the June 17, 2025 rally and come out and give the Trump administration the big middle finger to their dangerous and undemocratic policies.

‘The Low Road’

by Marge Piercy

What can they do
to you? Whatever they want.
They can set you up, they can
bust you, they can break
your fingers, they can
burn your brain with electricity,
blur you with drugs till you
can’t walk, can’t remember, they can
take your child, wall up
your lover. They can do anything
you can’t stop them
from doing. How can you stop
them? Alone, you can fight,
you can refuse, you can
take what revenge you can
but they roll over you.

But two people fighting
back to back can cut through
a mob, a snake-dancing file
can break a cordon, an army
can meet an army.

Two people can keep each other
sane, can give support, conviction,
love, massage, hope, sex.
Three people are a delegation,
a committee, a wedge. With four
you can play bridge and start
an organization. With six
you can rent a whole house,
eat pie for dinner with no
seconds, and hold a fund raising party.
A dozen make a demonstration.
A hundred fill a hall.
A thousand have solidarity and your own newsletter;
ten thousand, power and your own paper;
a hundred thousand, your own media;
ten million, your own country.

It goes on one at a time,
it starts when you care
to act, it starts when you do
it again and they said no,
it starts when you say We
and know who you mean,
and each day you mean one more.

 

Progress Report: The Women’s Collective

Progress Report:

“Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor, Your Huddled Masses Yearning To Breathe Free…”

 

Lady Liberty and the 2025 Fourth of July

By Vajra Ma

July 4, 2025, for me was a day of both mourning and celebration. I mourn the accelerating firestorm of Project 2025 (do your research). I celebrate that I spent the day with people who share my view, but also with some who support the acceleration (although I tend to think if they recognized the earmarks of the authoritarian playbook, they wouldn’t). Why do I celebrate that? Because the hope of this nation, indeed the world, is that we came together as human beings across the divide that would conquer us. We shared company, conversation, food, music and laughter across the divide. WE celebrated our common humanity.

But what about the rest of humanity…?

To that end I share this uniting view in “The Women’s Collective”, a pamphlet written in 2017 by my late husband Wolfgang Nebmaier. [excerpt from “The Women’s Collective” by Wolfgang Nebmaier with Vajra Ma, © Shakti Moon Publishing, 2017]

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OPINION: Little Pink Houses

OPINION: Little Pink Houses

 

OPINION: Little Pink Houses

Editor: Millions of people attended No King protests nationwide, and some experts believe that it may have been the largest single-day protest in U.S. history. Reports indicate that more than 5 million people attended the anti-Trump demonstrations in 2100 towns and cities nationwide.

By John Curran

In our little Mayberry sort of town we have protests too-against this idiot and all his corruption. And an outsider might be surprised because Josephine County, Oregon as well as adjacent counties in this part of the state are, and have been been for years very strongly Republican. The majority vote in the 2024 presidential election was a Trump landslide. At the time of the actual election and preceding it, you would see a lot of pro-Trump signs and endorsements in all its various, and at least here, peaceful forms. The killings ain’t got here, yet. But it is getting a little more tense.

We had our fourth major protest on Saturday; the day when the nation as a whole was saying,  Everywhere is protest. Everywhere is outrage. Everywhere the same desire, get the cancer out before it just destroys everything. And of course, easier said than done.

By legal, institutional means, the political system has been manipulated to enable this huge dysfunction to have achieved the position where it can begin to consume the host and that’s pretty galling if ya ask me. The fact that this monster has been created from within; is us, or at least a good portion of us, the worst of us, sickens me. The resulting power mad soulless Babylon becomes unsustainable for the majority where the ‘survival of the fittest’ mentality just leaves the sick, the disabled, and the less than perfect to die. And with that, it’s obvious they don’t care.

So, ok, and with that, our little town on Saturday June 14th, 2025, had its fourth big protest. What was so cool was that it was bigger, louder, and even more jubilant than ever; like minded people coming together, working for a common cause. A friendly smile, a big hug, we are all getting to know each other just a little bit through these protests. In a way, these protests are more like mass unstructured community outings, mostly people of like feelings, but also, just anybody who knows how to act somewhat normal is welcome. So far so good.

And of course it wouldn’t be a proper protest without a few anti-protesters, to keep it interesting. Before a few was all it had been but this time, it was more like Custer’s last stand with Custer telling the dozen or so assembled, “Get out there boys. Damn they’re back again talking all that stuff about rights, and No Kings and all the while criticizing our fearless and duly elected leader. So get your big trucks and your big boots and let’s make some noise.”

“But sir ….theys so few of us it seems, and theys so many of them.”

And damned if he didn’t hear that and think an actual thought….”Yeah, right, I hadn’t thought of that.”

Despite being outnumbered a few of them actually began walking amongst the crowd, but most were content to just drive by in their pickup trucks and blow black smoke and yell, “Fuck you” a lot. The ones walking through the crowd had put themselves out there,  however,  they mostly walked around smirking and saying cruel and demeaning things to people in wheelchairs, slow elderly people with their walkers, or just anybody, who wanted to question their motives. Motherfucker.

But they don’t really deserve any credit for mingling with the crowd. They weren’t really brave as they wanted us to think; ’cause they could pretty well figure that, even though greatly outnumbered they were not gonna be actually threatened or hurt in any way. They would have to be the ones to start it, cause that’s not who we are. Neither are we poor and pathetic, we’re more like powerful now, and getting more powerful everyday. Do you have to wonder why?

 

NO KINGS PROTEST

NO KINGS PROTEST

NO KINGS Protest

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”

                                                                                                                              Steve Jobs

Illegal

Illegal

Illegal

 

By John Curran

Well, it looked like my chimp Charley was leading the charge, as he’d just slipped his leash and was racing on ahead toward where all the people were already gathering on the Courthouse lawn. It was the Protest, and me and my people were following up behind, me pushing Dave in his wheelchair and Darlene and Vajra carrying the signs and cowbells.

I was trying to keep an eye on Charley, my chimp. He’s a pretty good chimp, but he’s a chimp, in a world of humans. But like I said, he’s a cool chimp. I see him over there. He’s gone right over to that shady patch of lawn where two weeks before me ‘n some other fellas had had a drum circle going. That had been at Protest 2. We were now at Protest 3, and it must be said that at Protest 2 we had sat right there where Charley was now and we banged on our bongos and everything had been fine.

Charley hadn’t been at Protest 2, we’d left him at the ranch, he’d thought he was in love with the neighbor chimp. Now he knew better but that’s another story. Now he was here with us and amazingly enough having gone on ahead with my bongo and his bag full of ping pong balls and was now sitting in the very spot where we’d sat for our bongo party.

And then I saw it all. Charley hadn’t been there ten seconds when up walks this uniformed big white dude acting like Security, saying no one was allowed there buddy, you gotta go in front of the wall like everybody else was suddenly being told they had to do. Well, Charley wasn’t having it and went into full on bad chimp mode. He’s a pretty good actor Charley is and when he puts on this one I gotta say, he’s pretty damn convincing. Anyway you shoulda seen that Security guy step back one time and back his big butt slowly, away from Charley. If he’d had a gun he probably woulda’ drawn it.

Anyway, he hooks up with some other ‘Security’ guys down at the far end ‘n they all come up in a bunch but by that time Charley’s gone right up the nearest tree and he’s throwing ping pong balls down on these guys. I decide at this point I better step in here and declare myself. Well, they told me I could probably be charged. I said, “yeah, I know,” that much I know. They were really kinda’ alright though, we all had a laugh, and Charley came down and acted like he was sorry. Very convincing too, was Charley.

And later, nine days exactly, it was reported in our local newspaper that what the ‘Security’ had been doing telling people (and chimps) that they couldn’t sit on the Courthouse grass had been illegal. I showed it to Charley and he just laughed; as if he had known it all along. Pretty convincing ‘n, I ain’t lying, maybe sometimes even a little scary, in that way. I mean, what is really going on, Charley?