Monday, April 22, 2013

Boston Marathon bombing hits home


Spartan Daily



Boston Marathon bombing hits home



by Margaret Baum Apr 17, 2013 10:15 pm Tags: 1996 Summer Olympics, Atlanta, Boston Marathon







Margaret Baum is the Spartan Daily Executive Editor, her column appears every other Monday.





I was sitting down eating lunch on Monday when I got a news alert on my iPhone. The alert said two explosions had gone off at the finish line of The Boston Marathon.



I remember that moment very clearly. In a single moment my heart sank.



I remember scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed just moments before I heard the news of the explosions. A friend that I had gone to college with in Boston right after high school was running the marathon that morning. She had already posted some photos of herself in Boston that morning.



My first thought was to go to her page and find out if she was OK. By the time I found her page again, I was relieved to find that she had finished and already left the area before the bombs went off.



My mom told me, "I never thought this would happen in Boston." I know that sounds like one of those things that people always say whenever there is a tragedy, but this felt different.



My phone started ringing off the hook with calls from family and friends. My Facebook feed was full of posts from people I know on the East Coast and all around the country.



This incident really hit home for me. I love Boston. I know that everyone loves their favorite cities. For me, Boston was home. I lived there for two years. I went to school there. I often dream about going back there. It is the place I started my adult life.



After high school, I felt the need to get away and start over and Boston was the place where I decided to begin a new chapter of my life.



Boylston and Newbury Streets were two of my favorite places in the city. I often went to the movie theater on Boylston Street or would window shop or grab ice cream with friends on Newbury Street.



Even though I wasn't physically in Boston that day, part of me is always there. Sometimes I still feel like the wide-eyed 18-year-old girl I was then, exploring the city and taking in all the history it had to offer.



I have this connection to the city. It is a connection that can never be broken no matter how long I stay away. I've heard numerous heart wrenching stories about the bombing on Monday and mine seems minuscule compared to some of the others, but it is my own.



I had a strange feeling that this event had a familiar feel to it, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was. It finally all made sense to me yesterday morning as I was streaming the White House Press Conference on my phone.



I have read a lot of stories about Monday's incident. Many of these stories describe how the bombs were made.



A New York Times story posted on Tuesday read,"The explosives that killed three people and injured more than 170 during the Boston Marathon on Monday were most likely rudimentary devices made from ordinary kitchen pressure cookers, except they were rigged to shoot sharp bits of shrapnel into anyone within reach of their blast and maim them severely, law enforcement officials said Tuesday."



As I continued reading that story, it was the next line that really hit home for me. "The pressure cookers were filled with nails, ball bearings and black powder, and the devices were triggered by 'kitchen-type' egg timers, one official said."



It reminded me so much of another bombing that I remember vividly. I was a young girl at the time and there was no way I could understand what happened then.



I was just 12 years old when it happened. My parents and I had been staying at one of my father's friends homes in Atlanta, Georgia for the Summer Olympics.



I don't remember our entire trip, but I do remember parts of the night of July 27, 1996.  I remember waking up right around the time that reports later said the bomb went off.



I walked into the room where my parents were sleeping. I woke my mom up and said, "Mom, I can't sleep and I don't know why." I was so freaked out for some reason.



I never knew why or how I woke up that night. Eventually we turned on the TV to hear the news of what had happened at Centennial Park.



I only slightly understood, but I knew it was something bad and I knew that people had gotten hurt. I don't remember the explanation that my parents provided. I do remember a few of the questions that ran through my head that night.



Why did this happen? Why would someone do this? Why would someone want to hurt people?



Now that I'm quite a bit older, I see things differently, as I should. I still have those questions floating in my head, but my perspective has changed.



I have felt a range of emotions over the last few days.



I realized that as people often say, things like this do happen and they can happen everywhere.



Does that mean everyone should live in fear? I don't know that I have the answer to that. I certainly would understand if some people didn't run marathons or races out of fear of similar incidents. Personally, I will go on living my life as I always have.



I will always have a special place in my heart for Boston. As I told my boyfriend last night, "Boston was the place I started my journey that led me to where I sit at this moment."



My condolences go out to everyone affected by this tragedy.



In some ways I am still that 12-year-old girl. I won't say that I understand why some people do the things that they do. Seeing the photos and hearing the stories of this tragedy made me physically ill. I wondered why someone would do something like this. I always ask myself that question when our nation faces a tragedy such as this one.



Looking back, I asked myself the same thing in Atlanta as a little girl and once again on 9/11.



I may never fully understand why things like this happen.



As a journalist, I haven't had to deal with reporting on tragedies such as these but I know that someday I might.



I believe that from a journalistic standpoint the best thing that can be done in a tragedy is to get information out to the public as soon as possible. I strongly believe that and were I among the journalists reporting on this tragedy I would try my best to do just that.



One thought on “Boston Marathon bombing hits home”





Ted Rudow III, MA on April 22, 2013 said:

They have sown violence and will reap violence.They reap the whirlwind! "Where did we go wrong?" the parents ask. "How could my little darling do this?" Very easily. There are lots of kids out there who are really tormented and , but because their parents are not there for them and don't take the time they need to comfort and take proper care of them, they're pushed over the edge and end up doing such horrible things. They're the product of a nation that has forgotten just where their values are meant to come from. They have turned to money, power and Hollywood for answers, and have been found wanting.



Now the gruesome toll of school shootings involving children who gained access to guns is leading some parents to add another, potentially awkward question about guns to the list. After all, guns, mostly handguns, are present in an estimated 40% of U.S. households. And according to the National Center for Health Statistics, 5,285 kids aged 19 years and under died in gun-related deaths in 1995, the most recent year for which statistics are available.



It's time for parents to wake up to the plight of their children! It's time for parents to see just where they are letting their children go by means of their selfish interests and by not taking time for the kids. Let this be a lesson on taking the time needed to minister to your kids. Do something now, today.



Ted Rudow III, MA









Spartan Daily





© 2013 The Spartan Daily

Serving San Jose State since 1934

Frank Capra

Frank Capra
Thsank you, Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA for this wonedrful reminder of a wonderful life: ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ is a 1946 American drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, that was based on the short story “The Greatest Gift”, written by Philip Van Doren Stern in 1939, and privately published by the author in 1945. This is director Frank Capra’s classic bittersweet comedy/drama about George Bailey (James Stewart), the eternally-in-debt guiding force of a bank in the typical American small town of Bedford Falls. A desperate George appeals to Potter for a loan. Potter mockingly and coldly turns George down, and then swears out a warrant for his arrest for bank fraud. A flood of townspeople arrive with more than enough donations to save George and the Building and Loan. This is the most wonderful life in the world– thankfulness and being content. It’s full of lessons on fighting, on perseverance, on pouring time into others, on inspiring confidence, not giving up, on ...

11 Mar 2013     15:19









Sunday, April 21, 2013

Fracking

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/21/18735610.php






Fracking

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Sunday Apr 21st, 2013

The chemicals used in fracking are highly diluted and natural gas is clean and abundant and fracking will provide many needed jobs. The promotional language that fracking has been unrolled across our nation. One of my biggest concerns is what fracking does to air quality. Our other Western states like Colorado showing that drilling and fracking operations are almost always accompanied by spikes in ground-level ozone -- smog.





Of all human cancers, bladder cancer is the one most likely to recur. Atrazine is one of the weed killers that we use in the United States and it's either the number one or number two weed killer. And interestingly it's banned for use in the European Union. Look it as an issue of a woman's reproductive rights. You know, a woman's body is the incubator and the first environment for a child. And that surely the flipside of Planned Parenthood is to be able to plan a parenthood and carry it out without other people's toxic chemicals interfering with it.



So do chemicals, like people are they innocent until proven guilty? Are they allowed on the market first until we can prove by dying or by harmed children that the chemicals should not be on the market? Or are we going to create precondition to say that before a chemical can be marketed you have to demonstrate through careful testing that almost certainly no one is going to get hurt.



Ted Rudow III, MA

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Wake up!

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/16/18735289.php




Wake up!



by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )



Tuesday Apr 16th, 2013







They have sown violence and will reap violence.They reap the whirlwind! "Where did we go wrong?" the parents ask. "How could my little darling do this?" Very easily. There are lots of kids out there who are really tormented and , but because their parents are not there for them and don't take the time they need to comfort and take proper care of them, they're pushed over the edge and end up doing such horrible things. They're the product of a nation that has forgotten just where their values are meant to come from. They have turned to money, power and Hollywood for answers, and have been found wanting.







Now the gruesome toll of school shootings involving children who gained access to guns is leading some parents to add another, potentially awkward question about guns to the list. After all, guns, mostly handguns, are present in an estimated 40% of U.S. households. And according to the National Center for Health Statistics, 5,285 kids aged 19 years and under died in gun-related deaths in 1995, the most recent year for which statistics are available.



It's time for parents to wake up to the plight of their children! It's time for parents to see just where they are letting their children go by means of their selfish interests and by not taking time for the kids. Let this be a lesson on taking the time needed to minister to your kids. Do something now, today.



Ted Rudow III, MA

Wake up

Friday, April 19, 2013

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Friday, April 19, 2013Wake up

Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA



They have sown violence and will reap violence. They reap the whirlwind! “Where did we go wrong?” the parents ask. “How could my little darling do this?” Very easily. There are lots of kids out there who are really tormented and , but because their parents are not there for them and don’t take the time they need to comfort and take proper care of them, they’re pushed over the edge and end up doing such horrible things. They’re the product of a nation that has forgotten just where their values are meant to come from. They have turned to money, power and Hollywood for answers, and have been found wanting.

Now the gruesome toll of school shootings involving children who gained access to guns is leading some parents to add another, potentially awkward question about guns to the list. After all, guns, mostly handguns, are present in an estimated 40% of U.S. households. And according to the National Center for Health Statistics, 5,285 kids aged 19 years and under died in gun-related deaths in 1995, the most recent year for which statistics are available.

It’s time for parents to wake up to the plight of their children! It’s time for parents to see just where they are letting their children go by means of their selfish interests and by not taking time for the kids. Let this be a lesson on taking the time needed to minister to your kids. Do something now, today.









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Friday, April 12, 2013

Avoid being another domino in superpower’s game

Friday, April 12, 2013

02:00 RSS Archive


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Friday, April 12, 2013

Avoid being another domino in superpower’s game

Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA



They have been a prey to America, and have been battered about and besieged on all sides, economically and militarily. So as Iran has been a tool in a hammer, it shall also endure suffering and pain, and attack by America. This shall drive a great wedge between America and Europe. But this tool is not enough to balance things, and as has been written by the journalists, Iran knows it shall be targeted, as Iraq was targeted and as Libya was targeted.

Those that are targeted and have been targeted have a unity in that they have been victimized by this threat, this superpower, America. So listen not, hearken not to those that cry, “Peace, peace,” for there shall not be peace. There shall not be one world brought about through peaceful means. But there shall be one world that is a result of war, economic collapse and disasters.

The Arabs and Muslims of the world think it’s unjust–and they’re right! The U.S. is simply picking on a stubborn little trouble-making individual and country which most of the rest of the world doesn’t like either, so they figure they can get away with it without any big problems. If that domino falls, then you may well see some Arab and Muslim nations fall as well, further polarising the world.




Poor plaintiff’s right to attorney

Saturday, April 06, 2013


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Poor plaintiff's right to attorney

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Friday, April 05, 2013







Poor plaintiff’s right to attorney







Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA







Of the 2.2 million inmates in the United States, more than sixty percent are members of racial and ethnic minorities, and the law puts a disproportionate number of them on death row. That Supreme Court decision, Gideon, 50 years ago said, “You have the right to an attorney in a criminal case, even if you cannot afford it.” When the justices ruled in Gideon’s favour, hundreds of prisoners who also had been denied their legal rights were freed or given new trials and our current system of public defenders was born.

For decades the poor had really been very vulnerable in our criminal court system and frequently faced very severe punishments alone. What Gideon did was basically say that our constitution requires that we treat people equally when their life and when their liberty is at risk. And it changed the way we thought about counsel for the poor in this country. We have tolerated extremely bad lawyering in these cases.

The average disbarment rate in most states is about one percent of lawyers. In Washington State, one percent of lawyers end up disbarred or suspended. But the “Seattle Post-Intelligencer” looked at all the 84 cases that resulted in death sentences and found that 20 percent of those cases involved lawyers who were later suspended or disbarred.







©2013 thedailystar.net. All Rights Reserved

«

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

PENINSULA PEACE AND JUSTICE CENTER


PENINSULA PEACE AND JUSTICE CENTER

www.PeaceandJustice.org   www.facebook.com/penin.pjc







A free community forum ... Timely and insightful

I R A N



Iran Presidential elections in June ... Will the democracy movement re-emerge?

Economic sanctions inflict pain ... On ordinary people.

A belligerent anti-Iran resolution in the US Senate ...  And 65 Senators endorse it.

Still in the crosshairs ... Who might pull the trigger? And when?



Wednesday Apr 3rd, 2013

I phoned and support what they express! They have been a prey to America, and have been battered about and besieged on all sides, economically and militarily. So as Iran has been a tool in a hammer, it shall also endure suffering and pain, and attack by America. This shall drive a great wedge between America and Europe. But this tool is not enough to balance things, and as has been written by the journalists, Iran knows it shall be targeted, as Iraq was targeted and as Libya was targeted.

















A conversation with

Dr. Ali Ferdowsi

Prof. of Political Science, Notre Dame de Namur Univ.

Native of Iran





Tuesday, April 2, 7:00 PM

Community Media Center, 900 San Antonio Road, Palo Alto

Full details - including how to watch online - are here





< < < < < < > > > > > >





Up next from PPJC

JOYSTICK WARFARE

The Legality and Morality of Combat Drones

A talk by Paul George, PPJC's Director

Tuesday, April 16, 7:00 PM, Cupertino















Endure suffering and pain


http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/03/18734619.php





Endure suffering and pain

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Ted Rudow III, MA )

Wednesday Apr 3rd, 2013
They have been a prey to America, and have been battered about and besieged on all sides, economically and militarily. So as Iran has been a tool in a hammer, it shall also endure suffering and pain, and attack by America. This shall drive a great wedge between America and Europe. But this tool is not enough to balance things, and as has been written by the journalists, Iran knows it shall be targeted, as Iraq was targeted and as Libya was targeted.



Those that are targeted and have been targeted have a unity in that they have been victimized by this threat, this superpower, America. So listen not, hearken not to those that cry, "Peace, peace," for there shall not be peace. There shall not be one world brought about through peaceful means. But there shall be one world that is a result of war, economic collapse and disasters.

The Arabs and Muslims of the world think it's unjust--and they're right! The U.S. is simply picking on a stubborn little trouble-making individual and country which most of the rest of the world doesn't like either, so they figure they can get away with it without any big problems. If that domino falls, then you may well see some Arab and Muslim nations fall as well, further polarizing the world.

Ted Rudow III, MA

We treat people equally?

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/04/03/18734616.php






We treat people equally

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Wednesday Apr 3rd, 2013 

Of the 2.2 million inmates in the United States, more than sixty percent are members of racial and ethnic minorities, and the law puts a disproportionate number of them on death row.

That Supreme Court decision, Gideon, 50 years ago said, you have the right to an attorney in a criminal case, even if you cannot afford it. When the justices ruled In Gideon’s favor, hundreds of prisoners who also had been denied their legal rights were freed or given new trials and our current system of public defenders was born



For decades the poor had really been very vulnerable in our criminal court system and frequently faced very severe punishments alone. What Gideon did was basically say that our constitution requires that we treat people equally when their life and when their liberty is at risk. And it changed the way we thought about counsel for the poor in this country. we have tolerated extremely bad lawyering in these cases.



The average disbarment rate in most states is about one percent of lawyers. Washington State, one percent of lawyers end up disbarred or suspended. But the “Seattle Post-Intelligencer” looked at all the 84 cases that resulted in death sentences and found that 20 percent of those cases involved lawyers who were later suspended or disbarred.

Ted Rudow III, MA

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

10 years into the Iraq war

Thursday, March 28, 2013

01:57

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013







10 years into the Iraq war

Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA


The U.S. seems to have a hard time figuring out reasons for its wars, especially the ones it wages on Iraq, so it keeps changing them until it finds something that will stick and sound reasonable and justifiable. Wars require creative marketing, you know. For this second Gulf War, the U.S. started off trying their best to tie Saddam to Osama bin Laden’s outfit so they could pin part of the blame for 9/11 on him.

Something like two-thirds of Americans believe Iraq either staged the 9/11 attacks or played some sort of role in the attack behind the scenes, or that some of the 9/11 hijackers were Iraqis! That’s not the case at all, but it just goes to show that if you keep repeating a lie often enough, people will eventually believe it!

Words have power, both for good and bad, especially when spoken by the president. Teddy Roosevelt used to call the presidency a “bully pulpit,” a place where a good leader could preach moral values and principles. Of course, it can also be a place where an unscrupulous or immoral leader can promote bad values, ungodly principles, and war, which has also been the case.





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Saturday, March 23, 2013

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Peninsula readers' letters: March 19



From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   03/18/2013 06:30:36 PM PDT

March 19, 2013 6:21 AM GMT

Updated:   03/18/2013 11:21:21 PM PDT


10 years after



Dear Editor: The U.S. seems to have a hard time figuring out reasons for its wars, especially the ones it wages on Iraq, so it keeps changing them until it finds something that will stick and sound reasonable and justifiable. Wars require creative marketing, you know. For this second Gulf war, the U.S. started off trying its best to tie Saddam Hussein to Osama bin Laden's outfit so it could pin part of the blame for 9/11 on him.



Something like two-thirds of Americans believe Iraq either staged the 9/11 attacks or played some sort of role in the attack behind the scenes, or that some of the 9/11 hijackers were Iraqis. That's not the case at all, but it just goes to show that if you keep repeating a lie often enough, people will eventually believe it.



Words have power, both for good and bad, especially when spoken by the president. Teddy Roosevelt used to call the presidency a "bully pulpit," a place where a good leader could preach moral values and principles. Of course, it can also be a place where an unscrupulous or immoral leader can promote bad values, ungodly principles and war, which has also been the case.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto, CA









Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Prospect of Palestinian settlement diminishing

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/03/21/18734024.php






Prospect of Palestinian settlement diminishing

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Thursday Mar 21st, 2013







Ted Rudow III, MA

While America’s need to forge Israeli-Palestinian peace has never been lower, the obstacles have never been higher: Israel has now implanted 300,000 settlers in the West Bank, and the Hamas rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza have seriously eroded the appetite of the Israeli silent majority to withdraw from the West Bank.

While there may be fewer reasons for the U.S. to take risks to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there is still a powerful reason for Israel to do so.

The status quo today may be tolerable for Israel, but it is not healthy. And more status quo means continued Israeli settlements in, and tacit annexation of the West Bank. That’s why I think the most important thing Obama could do on his trip is to publicly and privately ask every Israeli official he meets these questions: Please tell me how your relentless settlement drive in the West Bank does not end up with Israel embedded thereforever ruling over 2.5 million Palestinians with a colonial-like administration that can only undermine Israel as a Jewish democracy and de-legitimise Israel in the world community? I understand why Palestinian dysfunction and the Arab awakening make you wary, but still. Shouldn’t you be constantly testing and testing whether there is a Palestinian partner for a secure peace?









Prospect of Palestinian settlement diminishing

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

22:20

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‘Hefazate Islam a Jamaat ally’


Wednesday, March 20, 2013






Prospect of Palestinian settlement diminishing


Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA



photo: Reuters





While America’s need to forge Israeli-Palestinian peace has never been lower, the obstacles have never been higher: Israel has now implanted 300,000 settlers in the West Bank, and the Hamas rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza have seriously eroded the appetite of the Israeli silent majority to withdraw from the West Bank. While there may be fewer reasons for the U.S. to take risks to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there is still a powerful reason for Israel to do so.

The status quo today may be tolerable for Israel, but it is not healthy. And more status quo means continued Israeli settlements in, and tacit annexation of the West Bank. That’s why I think the most important thing Obama could do on his trip is to publicly and privately ask every Israeli official he meets these questions: Please tell me how your relentless settlement drive in the West Bank does not end up with Israel embedded thereforever ruling over 2.5 million Palestinians with a colonial-like administration that can only undermine Israel as a Jewish democracy and de-legitimise Israel in the world community? I understand why Palestinian dysfunction and the Arab awakening make you wary, but still. Shouldn’t you be constantly testing and testing whether there is a Palestinian partner for a secure peace?











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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

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Peninsula readers' letters: March 19



From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   03/18/2013 06:30:36 PM PDT

March 19, 2013 6:21 AM GMTUpdated:   03/18/2013 11:21:21 PM PDT






10 years after



Dear Editor: The U.S. seems to have a hard time figuring out reasons for its wars, especially the ones it wages on Iraq, so it keeps changing them until it finds something that will stick and sound reasonable and justifiable. Wars require creative marketing, you know. For this second Gulf war, the U.S. started off trying its best to tie Saddam Hussein to Osama bin Laden's outfit so it could pin part of the blame for 9/11 on him.



Something like two-thirds of Americans believe Iraq either staged the 9/11 attacks or played some sort of role in the attack behind the scenes, or that some of the 9/11 hijackers were Iraqis. That's not the case at all, but it just goes to show that if you keep repeating a lie often enough, people will eventually believe it.



Words have power, both for good and bad, especially when spoken by the president. Teddy Roosevelt used to call the presidency a "bully pulpit," a place where a good leader could preach moral values and principles. Of course, it can also be a place where an unscrupulous or immoral leader can promote bad values, ungodly principles and war, which has also been the case.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto, CA









Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.




Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Pope Francis

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/03/13/18733558.php






Pope Francis

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )


Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires has been elected to be the 266th pope of the Catholic Church, taking the name Pope Francis.

When the disillusioned idealistic young son of a wealthy Florentine merchant decided to follow God, evade the draft, leave home and family and live communally in an old deserted chapel in poverty as beggars, he was cursed and beaten by his father, wept over by his mother, rebuked by his friends and condemned by his own church, despised by the despicable, disdained by the vain and spurned by society.



But his humble love, truth and honesty and passion for peace, poverty and the poor soon won his pitiful people the approval of the Pope and the permanent antipathy of the pompous, yet this flower unfolded the far-flung Franciscan Fathers of the future!



The frail forms of St. Francis and St. Clare, also experienced some of the same bitter criticism and even suffered some of the same violent and retaliatory reaction and persecution, denunciation and condemnation that was suffered by their Franciscan predecessors, yet their truth and sample, too, cannot be quenched by tyranny!



While St. Francis was going through the cellar of his father's fabric factory, appalled by the pitiful condition of the poor creatures slaving there to whom his smile and his hand and his love and compassion pierced their darkness with a ray of God's hope. While his poverty-stricken and ragged little band of beggars were wandering through the streets of Assisi singing and praising God in the rain.



Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

when there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

Grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood, as to understand,

to be loved as to love;

for it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying [to ourselves] that we are born to eternal life.





Ted Rudow III, MA

Monday, March 11, 2013

Lessons from ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’

Monday, March 11, 2013

23:43

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Monday, March 11, 2013







Lessons from ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’







Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA



   







‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ is a 1946 American drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, that was based on the short story “The Greatest Gift”, written by Philip Van Doren Stern in 1939, and privately published by the author in 1945. This is director Frank Capra’s classic bittersweet comedy/drama about George Bailey (James Stewart), the eternally-in-debt guiding force of a bank in the typical American small town of Bedford Falls.

A desperate George appeals to Potter for a loan. Potter mockingly and coldly turns George down, and then swears out a warrant for his arrest for bank fraud. A flood of townspeople arrive with more than enough donations to save George and the Building and Loan.

This is the most wonderful life in the world– thankfulness and being content. It’s full of lessons on fighting, on perseverance, on pouring time into others, on inspiring confidence, not giving up, on following your dreams, on bitterness and forgiveness, on trust and faith and love. It is a sweet, touching story of the struggles in life and brings out the need to fight to rise above your circumstances. That’s what we can learn from the drama.





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Thursday, March 07, 2013

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mercurynews.com

Posted:   03/01/2013 06:23:02 PM PST

March 2, 2013 6:44 AM GMTUpdated:   03/01/2013 10:44:31 PM PST





Obama's drones



Dear Editor: Former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs recently revealed he was initially instructed to deny the existence of the Obama

administration's targeted killing program overseas. Even though the administration has since backed down from that stance, it continues to stonewall members on releasing the Justice Department memos explaining the program's legal rationale.



The administration's position was initially that it couldn't even acknowledge there was in fact a targeted killing program. Now its position has shifted slightly and it is saying it can't acknowledge that the CIA has a role in the targeted killing program.



That kind of argument is really beneath our system. And it's certainly true that the Obama administration has continued many of the Bush administration's most controversial and problematic national security policies and, in some instances, expanded those policies.



Said U.S. Sen. Rand Paul: "We're talking about someone eating at a cafe in Boston or in New York, and a Hellfire missile comes raining in on them. There should be an easy answer from the administration on this. They should say, 'Absolutely no, we will not kill Americans in America without an accusation, a trial and a jury.' "



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto

















Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.

Children


http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/03/07/18733269.php





Children

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Thursday Mar 7th, 2013

The United Nations Children Fund, or UNICEF, is accusing Israel of systematically abusing Palestinian children in military custody. In a new report, UNICEF says Israeli forces have subjected detained Palestinian youths to "to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment" as defined by the U.N. Convention Against Torture. UNICEF special representative Jean Gough unveiled the report’s findings.





"We identified a pattern of ill-treatment when children are in military custody, and what we see is that this happens in the first 48 hours. Imagine a child sitting in front of an interrogator without sleeping. So that’s very hard on the child, and that’s difficult for him. So this is where we want to make the changes to make sure that that doesn’t happen."

Life in the occupied territories has mentally damaged Palestinian children, with 90 percent having experienced several traumatic events. The experiences include imprisonment, inhaling tear gas, nighttime attacks on their homes, Israeli soldiers brutalizing their parents in their presence and Israeli authorities demolishing their homes. So the vicious cycle goes on, and it's one the Palestinians are losing, as they're being ground down, humiliated, and destroyed in every way possible.

Pray for the poor, pray for the peacemakers, pray for protection for the innocent, pray for a solution. According to UNICEF figures, Israel arrests and interrogates around 700 Palestinian children aged 12 to 17 each year.

Ted Rudow III, MA



Saturday, March 02, 2013

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Posted:   03/01/2013 06:23:02 PM PST

March 2, 2013 6:44 AM GMTUpdated:   03/01/2013 10:44:31 PM PST

Obama's drones



Dear Editor: Former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs recently revealed he was initially instructed to deny the existence of the Obama administration's targeted killing program overseas. Even though the administration has since backed down from that stance, it continues to stonewall members on releasing the Justice Department memos explaining the program's legal rationale.



The administration's position was initially that it couldn't even acknowledge there was in fact a targeted killing program. Now its position has shifted slightly and it is saying it can't acknowledge that the CIA has a role in the targeted killing program.



That kind of argument is really beneath our system. And it's certainly true that the Obama administration has continued many of the Bush administration's most controversial and problematic national security policies and, in some instances, expanded those policies.



Said U.S. Sen. Rand Paul: "We're talking about someone eating at a cafe in Boston or in New York, and a Hellfire missile comes raining in on them. There should be an easy answer from the administration on this. They should say, 'Absolutely no, we will not kill Americans in America without an accusation, a trial and a jury.' "



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto



















Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.













Thursday, February 28, 2013

Killing program






http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/02/28/18732904.php





Killing program

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Thursday Feb 28th, 2013 

Former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs revealed over the weekend he was initially instructed to deny the existence of the Obama administration’s targeted killing program overseas. Even though the administration has since backed down from that stance, it continues to stonewall members of Congress on releasing the Justice Department memos explaining the program’s legal rationale.



The administration’s position was initially that they couldn’t even acknowledge that there was in fact a targeted killing program. Now their position has shifted slightly, and they’re saying that they can’t acknowledge that the CIA has a role in the targeted killing program.

But that kind of argument is really—should be—beneath our—beneath our system. But it’s certainly true that the Obama administration has continued many of the Bush administration’s most controversial and problematic national security policies and, in some instances, expanded those policies.





"We’re talking about someone eating at a cafe in Boston or in New York, and a Hellfire missile comes raining in on them. There should be an easy answer from the administration on this. They should say, "Absolutely no, we will not kill Americans in America without an accusation, a trial and a jury."

Sen. Rand Paul



Ted Rudow III, MA

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Cut for the poor

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/02/23/18732644.php






Cut for the poor

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Saturday Feb 23rd, 2013
The word of the month in Washington is “sequestration,” or the automatic $85 billion in spending cuts slated to take effect on March 1 unless Congress reaches a deal. What will those cuts mean in real life for the poor, unemployed, sick and children? The economic group Macroeconomic Advisers predicted that the sequester will slow economic growth by more than half a percentage point and result in the loss of 700,000 jobs.





Critical areas are as follows: 125,000 people will lose Section 8 housing, which is critical housing support for the working poor, 100,000 people who are homeless will not receive the support that they need without a place to go and there won’t be 450,000 AIDS tests. About 500,000 vaccines won’t be manufactured, a million people won’t be able to access community health centers and unemployment insurance for 4 million long-term unemployed will be cut by 10 percent. In terms of education, 70,000 kids won’t have access to Head Start; another 30,000 in terms of child-care assistance.







The reality is that the U.S. government funds its level of activities at the same level of Mexico. The United States has the lowest level of taxation of any developed country in the world. And what that means is that we are underinvesting in infrastructure, we’re underinvesting in education and we’re underinvesting in the key things that fuel economic growth.







Ted Rudow III, MA

Cut for the poor

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Letter: Cut for the poor

February 23, 2013,
Letter


Editor,



The word of the month in Washington is “sequestration,” or the automatic $85 billion in spending cuts slated to take effect on March 1 unless Congress reaches a deal. What will those cuts mean in real life for the poor, unemployed, sick and children? The economic group Macroeconomic Advisers predicted that the sequester will slow economic growth by more than half a percentage point and result in the loss of 700,000 jobs.



Critical areas are as follows: 125,000 people will lose Section 8 housing, which is critical housing support for the working poor, 100,000 people who are homeless will not receive the support that they need without a place to go and there won’t be 450,000 AIDS tests. About 500,000 vaccines won’t be manufactured, a million people won’t be able to access community health centers and unemployment insurance for 4 million long-term unemployed will be cut by 10 percent. In terms of education, 70,000 kids won’t have access to Head Start; another 30,000 in terms of child-care assistance.



The reality is that the U.S. government funds its level of activities at the same level of Mexico. The United States has the lowest level of taxation of any developed country in the world. And what that means is that we are underinvesting in infrastructure, we’re underinvesting in education and we’re underinvesting in the key things that fuel economic growth.







Ted Rudow III



Palo Alto











 







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Thursday, February 21, 2013

Sad litany


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Letter: Sad litany

February 19, 2013, 05:00 AM Letter









Editor,



The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979 in an attempt to prop up a Communist regime beset by civil war. Afghan rebels fought the Soviets to a standstill, wearing them out much in the same way that Vietnamese forces wore out U.S. forces in Vietnam. More than 2 million Afghans were left dead in a war that ultimately saw the ouster from power of the communists, though war continues in Afghanistan to this day.



After more than 33 years of war and chaos, Afghanistan is really a mess. Despite all the American aid and promises to rebuild the country, it’s a wreck. America’s trying to remake the world in its own image with its own form of government, but different peoples and nations simply need different forms of government. War is rarely necessary and never glorious. That’s one thing Americans should have learned from their experiences in Vietnam, and from seeing the daily horror and carnage of that war televised in their living rooms every night.



What a sad litany of carnage, killing, destruction and woe. Such is the history of the supposedly “enlightened” 20th century.







Ted Rudow III



Palo Alto

















©2013 The Daily Journal








War cannot solve anything


War cannot solve anything

The Daily Star
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013LettersWar cannot solve anything



Photo: AFP

Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA
The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979 in an attempt to prop up a communist regime beset by civil war. Afghan rebels fought the Soviets to a standstill, wearing them out much in the same way that Vietnamese forces wore out U.S. forces in Vietnam. More than 2 million Afghans were left dead in a war that ultimately saw the ouster from power of the communists, though war continues in Afghanistan to this day.



After more than 33 years of war and chaos, Afghanistan is really a mess. Despite all the American aid and promises to rebuild the country, it's a wreck. America is trying to remake the world in its own image with its own form of government, but different peoples and nations simply need different forms of government. War is rarely necessary and never glorious. That's one thing Americans should have learned from their experiences in Vietnam, and from seeing the daily horror and carnage of that war televised in their living rooms every night.



What a sad litany of carnage, killing, destruction and woe! Such is the history of the supposedly "enlightened" 20th century!






© 2012 thedailystar.net. All Rights Reserved






Sunday, February 17, 2013

Life and death




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Letter: Life and death

February 16, 2013, 05:00 AM



 

Editor,



During his confirmation hearing, President Obama's nominee for CIA director, John Brennan, forcefully defended the president's counterterrorism policies, including the increased use of armed drones and targeted killings of American citizens. He also refused to say that waterboarding was a form of torture, and he admitted that he did not try to stop waterboarding while he was a top CIA official under President George W. Bush.



Four years ago, Brennan was a rumored pick for the CIA job when Obama was first elected, but he was forced to withdraw from consideration amid protests over his public support of the CIA's policies regarding so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques."



Ron Wyden asked him about the extent of the CIA's lethal authority against U.S. citizens on U.S. soil and abroad. President Obama's Brennan — hit man or assassination czar? This guy has been at the center of a secret process in which the White House decides who lives and who dies around the world every day, and yet the conversation that took place was as though they were, you know, sort of talking about whether or not they're going to add a wing onto a school in Idaho or something. They were talking about life-and-death issues for people who, not only are U.S. citizens, but also live around the world.







Ted Rudow III



Palo Alto











 





©2013 The Daily Journal

 

 




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mercurynews.com

Posted:   02/08/2013 05:50:39 PM PST

February 9, 2013 4:58 AM GMTUpdated:   02/08/2013 08:58:23 PM PST







Life and death



Dear Editor: During his confirmation hearing Thursday, President Barack Obama's nominee to run the CIA, John Brennan, forcefully defended the president's counterterrorism policies, including the increased use of armed drones and the targeted killings of American citizens. He also refused to say that waterboarding was a form of torture, and he admitted that he did not try to stop waterboarding while he was a top CIA official under President George W. Bush. Four years ago, Brennan was a rumored pick for the CIA job when Obama was first elected, but he was forced to withdraw from consideration amid protests over his public support for the CIA's policies of so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques."



This guy has been at the center of a secret process where the White House is deciding who lives and who dies around the world every day, and yet the conversation that took place was as though they were, you know, sort of talking about whether or not they're going to add a wing onto a school in Idaho or something.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto







Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.





Friday, February 15, 2013

War ruins

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Posted:   02/13/2013 06:16:08 PM PST

February 14, 2013 8:15 AM GMTUpdated:   02/14/2013 12:15:11 AM PST









War ruins



Dear Editor: The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979 in an attempt to prop up a communist regime beset by civil war. Afghan rebels fought the Soviets to a standstill, wearing them out much in the same way that Vietnamese forces wore out U.S. forces in Vietnam. More than 2 million Afghans were left dead in a war that ultimately saw the ouster from power of the communists, though war continues in Afghanistan to this day.



After more than 33 years of war and chaos, Afghanistan is really a mess. Despite all the American aid and promises to rebuild the country, it's a wreck. America's trying to remake the world in its own image with its own form of government, but different peoples and nations simply need different forms of government. War is rarely necessary and never glorious. That's one thing Americans should have learned from their experiences in Vietnam, and from seeing the daily horror and carnage of that war televised in their living rooms every night.



What a sad litany of carnage, killing, destruction and woe.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto

War ruins

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From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   02/13/2013 06:16:08 PM PST

February 14, 2013 8:15 AM GMTUpdated:   02/14/2013 12:15:11 AM PST





War ruins



Dear Editor: The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979 in an attempt to prop up a communist regime beset by civil war. Afghan rebels fought the Soviets to a standstill, wearing them out much in the same way that Vietnamese forces wore out U.S. forces in Vietnam. More than 2 million Afghans were left dead in a war that ultimately saw the ouster from power of the communists, though war continues in Afghanistan to this day.



After more than 33 years of war and chaos, Afghanistan is really a mess. Despite all the American aid and promises to rebuild the country, it's a wreck. America's trying to remake the world in its own image with its own form of government, but different peoples and nations simply need different forms of government. War is rarely necessary and never glorious. That's one thing Americans should have learned from their experiences in Vietnam, and from seeing the daily horror and carnage of that war televised in their living rooms every night.



What a sad litany of carnage, killing, destruction and woe.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto











Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.












Saturday, February 09, 2013

PPJC






PPJC

Peninsula Peace and Justice Center

www.PeaceandJustice.org www.facebook.com/penin.pjc





URGENT ACTION ALERT





Tell Congress: Don't Drop the Austerity Bomb!

Stop cuts to social programs





1.Sign the petition to Congress 2. Come to tonight's forum and get informed (see sidebar)





Free Forum Tonight - 2/5



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Background: According to numerous news reports, Congress will let the draconian “sequestration” budget cuts go into effect on March 1. This would be a disaster for working families, the poor and for our country. ( Good background article here.)





The “austerity bomb” – as many analysts have described it – would force immediate and calamitous cuts to crucial programs like education, early childhood health, public safety, and scientific research. The ripple effects of these budget cuts will be felt throughout the economy, especially by middle- and working-class folks.





Instead of cutting vital programs “across the board” – as sequestration envisions – we should be cutting Pentagon pork, ending subsidies to Big Oil and other massive corporations, and closing tax loopholes that benefit only the wealthy and large corporations.



As I phone up to get my support!

The days are coming, that the rich not shine!!!





Action: Please sign and share the petition to Congress: Don't Drop the Austerity Bomb!. Signatures will be delivered to Peninsula & South Bay Members of Congress and to California's Senators.





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Life and death

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/02/09/18731710.php






Life and death

by Ted Rudow III, MA

Saturday Feb 9th, 2013
During his confirmation hearing Thursday, President Obama’s nominee to run the CIA, John Brennan, forcefully defended the president’s counterterrorism policies, including the increased use of armed drones and the targeted killings of American citizens.

He also refused to say that waterboarding was a form of torture, and he admitted that he did not try to stop waterboarding while he was a top CIA official under President George W. Bush. Four years ago, Brennan was a rumored pick for the CIA job when Obama was first elected, but he was forced to withdraw from consideration amid protests over his public support for the CIA’s policies of so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques" an

Ron Wyden was asking him about whether—about the extent of the CIA’s lethal authority against U.S. citizens, on U.S. soil and abroad. President Obama’s Brennan hit man or assassination czar. This guy has been at the center of a secret process where the White House is deciding who lives and who dies around the world every day, and yet the conversation that took place was as though they were, you know, sort of talking about whether or not they’re going to add a wing onto a school in Idaho or something, when they were talking about life-and-death issues for people, not only U.S. citizens, but around the world.

Ted Rudow III, MA



Life and death




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From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   02/08/2013 05:50:39 PM PST

February 9, 2013 4:58 AM GMTUpdated:   02/08/2013 08:58:23 PM PST









Life and death



Dear Editor: During his confirmation hearing Thursday, President Barack Obama's nominee to run the CIA, John Brennan, forcefully defended the president's counterterrorism policies, including the increased use of armed drones and the targeted killings of American citizens. He also refused to say that waterboarding was a form of torture, and he admitted that he did not try to stop waterboarding while he was a top CIA official under President George W. Bush. Four years ago, Brennan was a rumored pick for the CIA job when Obama was first elected, but he was forced to withdraw from consideration amid protests over his public support for the CIA's policies of so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques."



This guy has been at the center of a secret process where the White House is deciding who lives and who dies around the world every day, and yet the conversation that took place was as though they were, you know, sort of talking about whether or not they're going to add a wing onto a school in Idaho or something.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto



Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.

Friday, February 01, 2013

God, women and wars

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God, women and wars

Issues Beyond Palo Alto, posted by Ted Rudow III, MA, a member of the Palo Alto High School community,




God, women and wars















 The Pentagon has officially removed the long-standing military ban on women in combat. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the \


In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.









It illustrates the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellow man. Violence breeds violence, and he or she who lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators. In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.









Ted Rudow III,









Palo Alto












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From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   01/30/2013 07:23:13 PM PST

January 31, 2013 6:3 AM GMTUpdated:   01/30/2013 10:03:26 PM PST









God, women and wars



Dear Editor: The Pentagon has officially removed the long-standing military ban on women in combat. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the move Jan. 24 in Washington.



In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.



It illustrates the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellow man. Violence breeds violence, and he or she who lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators. In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto











Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.

Thursday, January 31, 2013

God, women and wars

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From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted:   01/30/2013 07:23:13 PM PST

January 31, 2013 6:3 AM GMTUpdated:   01/30/2013 10:03:26 PM PST













God, women and wars



Dear Editor: The Pentagon has officially removed the long-standing military ban on women in combat. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the move Jan. 24 in Washington.



In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.



It illustrates the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellow man. Violence breeds violence, and he or she who lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators. In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto











Copyright 2012 San Jose Mercury News. All rights reserved.





Tuesday, January 29, 2013

God hates war

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God hates war







Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA

The Pentagon has officially removed the longstanding military ban on women in combat. Defence Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the move on Thursday in Washington: "It's clear to all of us that women are contributing in unprecedented ways to the military's mission of defending the nation. Women represent 15 percent of the force: over 200,000.



They're serving in a growing number of critical roles on and off the battlefield. The fact is that they have become an integral part of our ability to perform our mission."



In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.



It illustrates the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellowman.



Violence breeds violence, and he or she that lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators.



In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.















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Sunday, January 27, 2013

Violence breed violence


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Letters to the Editor: January 23, 2013







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Letters to the Editor Comments (1)









The Pentagon has officially removed the longstanding military ban on women in combat. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the move on Thursday in Washington

"It’s clear to all of us that women are contributing in unprecedented ways to the military’s mission of defending the nation. Women represent 15 percent of the force: over 200,000. They’re serving in a growing number of critical roles on and off the battlefield. The fact is that they have become an integral part of our ability to perform our mission."

In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.

It illustrate the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellowman. Violence breeds violence, and he or she that lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators. In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.

Ted Rudow III

Violence breed violence

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/01/27/18730884.php






Violence breed violence

by Tedr77@aol.com

Sunday Jan 27th, 2013 

The Pentagon has officially removed the longstanding military ban on women in combat. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta formally announced the move on Thursday in Washington

"It’s clear to all of us that women are contributing in unprecedented ways to the military’s mission of defending the nation. Women represent 15 percent of the force: over 200,000. They’re serving in a growing number of critical roles on and off the battlefield. The fact is that they have become an integral part of our ability to perform our mission."

In being officially allowed to serve in combat roles, women will be afforded opportunities for medals of recognition as well as for advancement to positions they have been unable to pursue.

It illustrate the blatantly hypocritical policies of the U.S. and its allies. I don't believe in war. I don't believe in killing my fellowman. Violence breeds violence, and he or she that lives by the sword shall die by the sword. The true God is a good God who is kind and loving, concerned. God hates war and its rich perpetrators. In some ways, I'm a pacifist, because I believe that God can settle all wars.

Ted Rudow III, MA



Thursday, January 24, 2013

'Way back to true freedom is love'

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Friday, January 25, 2013





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'Way back to true freedom is love'







Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA

A dream of equality, a dream of unity, a dream of solidarity. What a fight, what a battle, as the brothers and sisters lifted their arms, hands raised and clasped together to show their strength and unity and oneness! What a fight, as we marched and protested and sang our songs of triumph and spoke our words of courage! What a fight, as we lifted high the banner of equality -- equal rights for all men and women, regardless of colour! What a fight, as we suffered humiliation and setbacks, degradation and injustice!



What a fight! But we continued on, courageous, strong, united, arm in arm: a force to be reckoned with! What has happened to our oneness? Instead of lifting each other up and giving of our time and strength and energy to make the world a better place for our brothers and sisters, we are now tearing each other down, fighting against each other, killing one another for no reason!



Drugs and violence and crime are taking the lives of our young men and women, ripping apart families, destroying whole neighborhoods and whole cities. I now see that so many of those of the once great nation of America have departed from the way of righteousness and the Love of God. Their way has become dark through their own sins -- greed, selfishness, waging of wars and taking from the poor of the world. The only way back to true freedom and strength, true unity and equality, is through love -- loving God, loving one another, loving the truth.

















© 2012 thedailystar.net. All Rights Reserved











Monday, January 21, 2013

Bad Cabinet picks

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Peninsula readers' letters: January 19

From Daily News Group readers



mercurynews.com

Posted: 01/18/2013 06:35:28 PM PST

January 19, 2013 5:2 AM GMTUpdated: 01/18/2013 09:02:29 PM PST





Bad Cabinet picks



Dear Editor: Mr. Tuck and Mr. Rudow in their different ways were saying the same thing in their Jan. 12 letters. President Obama makes lousy picks for Cabinet posts. Chuck Hagel for secretary of Department of Defense is a joke -- why not Fidel Castro while he's at it? And Jack Lew, a Wall Street pirate, for Treasury Department secretary? He's at least as bad as tax dodger Timothy Geithner, Obama's previous pick.



Hillary Clinton, or Ms. Benghazi, wasn't so great for secretary of the State Department either. And what about Eric Holder, aka Eric Holdout, still stonewalling on Operation Fast and Furious, for the Department of Justice? It is plenty obvious that Obama does not make his picks for Cabinet posts with the welfare of this country in mind.



Obama's unprecedented deficit spending or his support of Islamist regimes in the Middle East are not done with the welfare of this country in mind, nor are his myriad regulations and attempts to cripple the coal and oil industries. A pattern is developing. I wonder how obvious he has to be before even the New York Times catches on.



Jim Kyle,



Palo Alto









Thursday, January 17, 2013

Choice is like a fox watching a henhouse




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Thursday, January 17, 2013

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Choice is like a fox watching a henhouse



Currently President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Jacob Lew was an executive at Citigroup from 2006 to 2008 at the time of the financial crisis. He backed financial deregulation efforts while he headed the Office of Management and Budget under President Bill Clinton. During that time, Clinton enacted two key laws to deregulate Wall Street: the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 and the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000.



Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont criticized Lew’s nomination for treasury secretary, saying, quote, “We don’t need a treasury secretary who thinks that Wall Street deregulation was not responsible for the financial crisis.”



The most destructive deregulation came under Clinton, and Lew was there for much of the deregulation by rule. The unit that he was heading would have not been permissible but for the deregulation of getting rid of Glass-Steagall under Clinton.



We haven’t talked about the fact that he got a huge bonus for helping to destroy the world at Citicorp. And he got it through the bailout of Citicorp by the U.S. government. So he produces disaster, profits from the disaster, we pay him bonuses for causing the disaster, and then we have the absurdity of the president saying that this is a man with a track record of unmitigated success.



Ted Rudow III

Palo Alto





Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Lew's destructive past


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Peninsula readers' letters: January 12



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mercurynews.com

Posted:   01/11/2013 06:50:33 PM PST

January 12, 2013 7:35 AM GMTUpdated:   01/11/2013 11:35:26 PM PST


Lew's destructive past



Dear Editor: President Barack Obama's treasury secretary nominee, Jacob "Jack" Lew, was an executive at Citigroup from 2006 to 2008 at the time of the financial crisis. He backed financial deregulation efforts while he headed the Office of Management and Budget under President Bill Clinton. During that time, Clinton enacted two key laws to deregulate Wall Street: the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 and the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000.



On Thursday, independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont criticized Lew's nomination, saying, "We don't need a treasury secretary who thinks that Wall Street deregulation was not responsible for the financial crisis." The most destructive deregulation happened under President Clinton by statute, but Lew was also there for much of the deregulation by rule. The unit that he was heading would have not been permissible but for getting rid of the Glass-Steagall Act under Clinton. I think we can just expect more of the same overt and covert support of these too-big-to-fail institutions that Lew worked for, with Citigroup being the worst and most disastrous example of that kind of company.



Lew also got a huge bonus for helping to destroy Citicorp, and he got it through the bailout by the U.S. government. So he produces disaster, profits from the disaster, we pay him bonuses for causing the disaster, and then we have the absurdity of the president of the United States saying that this is a man with a track record of unmitigated success.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto


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Lew's destructive past

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Peninsula readers' letters: January 12



From Daily News Group readers mercurynews.com

Posted:   01/11/2013 06:50:33 PM PST


Lew's destructive past



Dear Editor: President Barack Obama's treasury secretary nominee, Jacob "Jack" Lew, was an executive at Citigroup from 2006 to 2008 at the time of the financial crisis. He backed financial deregulation efforts while he headed the Office of Management and Budget under President Bill Clinton. During that time, Clinton enacted two key laws to deregulate Wall Street: the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 and the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000.



On Thursday, independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont criticized Lew's nomination, saying, "We don't need a treasury secretary who thinks that Wall Street deregulation was not responsible for the financial crisis." The most destructive deregulation happened under President Clinton by statute, but Lew was also there for much of the deregulation by rule. The unit that he was heading would have not been permissible but for getting rid of the Glass-Steagall Act under Clinton. I think we can just expect more of the same overt and covert support of these too-big-to-fail institutions that Lew worked for, with Citigroup being the worst and most disastrous example of that kind of company.



Lew also got a huge bonus for helping to destroy Citicorp, and he got it through the bailout by the U.S. government. So he produces disaster, profits from the disaster, we pay him bonuses for causing the disaster, and then we have the absurdity of the president of the United States saying that this is a man with a track record of unmitigated success.



Ted Rudow III,



Palo Alto






























Monday, January 14, 2013

Only solution

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/01/14/18730151.php




Only solution

by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com )

Monday Jan 14th, 2013







With U.N. recognition of a Palestinian state, President Mahmoud Abbas wants official documents to carry a new emblem: “State of Palestine.” But scrapping the old “Palestinian Authority” logo is as far as Abbas is willing to go in provoking Israel. He is not rushing to change passports and ID cards Palestinians need to pass through Israeli crossings.





The Palestinian Authority administers some 38 percent of the West Bank, but Israel maintains overall control over the territory. Abbas has no say in east Jerusalem, annexed by Israel in 1967, or in Gaza, seized by his political rival, the Islamic militant group Hamas, in 2007. Palestinians must pass through Israeli-run crossings to leave the West Bank and also carry an ID card at all times or risk arrest if stopped at an Israeli military checkpoint inside the territory.

The entire world represented at the UN and the leaders of Europe had all agreed on this also. World public opinion had also recognised that this was the only solution: That the Palestinians and their rights should be recognised as an independent Palestinian state on the Israeli occupied West Bank of the Jordan. The name change has even less meaning for Palestinians in Hamas-ruled Gaza. Israel withdrew from the coastal strip in 2005 but continues to control access by air, sea and land, with the exception of one Gaza border crossing with Egypt.

“For me, it’s just ink on paper,” said Sharif Hamda, a 44-year-old pharmacist in Gaza City. “I wished they would save the money they will spend on this and use it for helping needy families.”

Ted Rudow III, MA