"Don't hate the media-- be the media!"

I embrace this approach to life. Indeed, I have been involved in DIY media for most of my life-- primarily at the (often) brilliant community radio station known as KBOO.

I guess that I want to try to put ideas out there in just about any medium that I can-- hence, I will try my hand at blogging. Goddess knows I have read a few.

So on this, my maiden blog post, I wanted to share my thoughts on solidarity, perhaps the most important concept to embrace at this time.

We certainly are in perilous times. Indeed, that Niemoller quote* doesn't feel very distant.

We should encourage and foster solidarity at every opportunity, because our lives really do depend on it.

Did anyone else notice that a 4-star general was fired for "sexual misconduct" of an undisclosed nature? Say what? Since when does that happen (okay, last time was 10 years ago)?

There's a whole lot of bad will between civilian and military pentagon personnel.

There's a whole lot of bad will between the current administration and the CIA (it's not nice to out your operatives).

There are some interesting high-level tensions happening in that game they play in D.C.. To bad how they play effects each and everyone of us. As for me, I want nothing to do with them. I want to see us outgrow the US government. They have a history of torture, rape, genocide and other nastiness that just doesn't stop.

Oh, and Bush's poll showings are slipping. While on the one hand this makes me ecstatic, on the other, it worries me--because this administration will stop at nothing to distract people from the evil fucking things they do. Anyone see yet another Reichstag smoldering?

We don't need them.
We need each other.

It's time to practice solidarity like our lives depend on it.

*"First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist -- so I didn't speak up.
Then they came for the Social Democrats, but I was not a Social Democrat -- so I didn't speak up.
Then they came for the trade unionists, but I was not a trade unionist -- so I didn't speak up.
Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew -- so I didn't speak up.
Then when they came for me, there was no one left to speak up for me."

-- Rev. Martin Niemoller, 1945

(There are many versions of this quote, seems to be some arguement over the order in which the lines came... funny how much folks like to argue... still, in every version I have seen, the meaning is clear-- Why wait? Practice solidarity now!)