Category Archives: Rock on-Peace Out

The most thorough, profound and moving defense of Hillary Clinton I have ever seen.


I am no political historian, but as far as I can tell this short essay was the birth of the “Hillary is a Liar” meme. Now to be clear, most conservatives already strongly disliked her. They had been upset with her for some time because she had refused to play the traditional First Lady role. And they were horrified by her attempt to champion Universal Health coverage. But if you look for the actual reasons people didn’t like her back at that time, you won’t see ongoing accusations of her being “crooked” or a “liar”. Instead, the most common opinion seemed to be that she was a self-righteous leftist who considered anyone with other views to be morally inferior. In short, the prevailing anti-Hillary accusation was not that she was unrelentingly dishonest, but that she was just intolerably smug.After the Safire piece however, this all changed. Republicans, who learned from Nixon never to let a good propaganda opportunity pass if they could help it, repeated the accusations of mendacity non-stop to anyone who would broadcast or print them. And if you doubt the staying power of Safire’s piece, type the phrase “congenital liar” into a Google search along with “Hillary Clinton” and see what happens. To this day, that exact phrase is still proudly used by many on the right. This, even though Safire was eventually proven wrong about everything he had written. And despite the fact that he stated himself that he would have to “eat crow” if she were ever cleared, Safire never apologized or even acknowledged his many errors once that happened. Because as we all know, swift-boating means never having to say you’re sorry.

Source: The most thorough, profound and moving defense of Hillary Clinton I have ever seen.

A Two-Mile Beer Pipeline Carries Belgium’s Lifeblood to Be Bottled – The New York Times

Beneath the gilded spires and medieval cobblestone streets of Bruges, the lifeblood of Belgium now flows at more than 1,000 gallons an hour.The turn of a tap on Friday propelled the Belgian city into the future — and sent its citizens to the bar — as dignitaries and drinkers celebrated a momentous innovation: the world’s first beer pipeline.The two-mile pipeline, visible in one spot through a transparent manhole cover cut into the cobblestone, carries beer from one of the country’s oldest still-operating breweries in the center of Bruges to a bottling plant on its outskirts.The project cost about 4 million euros, or $4.5 million. But the brewery discovered an innovative way to raise the funds: promise donors free beer for life.“As far as we know, this is the first time ever that such a thing has been done,” Xavier Vanneste, the director of De Halve Maan, or The Half Moon, a brewery, said in an interview. “It’s an old product, but an innovative project.”

Source: A Two-Mile Beer Pipeline Carries Belgium’s Lifeblood to Be Bottled – The New York Times

The man who ​thinks trees talk to each other | Environment | The Guardian

“Trees may recognise with their roots who are their friends, who are their families, where their kids are. Then they may also recognise trees that are not so welcome. There are some stumps in these old beech reservations that are alive, and there are some that are rotten, which obviously have had no contact with the roots of supporting neighbours. So perhaps they are like hermits.” It sounds like living in a small village – as he does, in Hümmel, near the Belgian border. He writes about the unforgiving woodland etiquette – no one likes a showoff who crowds everyone out and hogs the resources. When trees break the rules, you end up with a “drunken forest”. He describes “upright members of ancient forests … This is what a mature, well-behaved deciduous tree looks like. It has a ramrod-straight trunk with a regular, orderly arrangement of wood fibres.” In Wohlleben’s analysis, it’s almost as if trees have feelings and character. “We think about plants being robotic, following a genetic code. Plants and trees always have a choice about what to do. Trees are able to decide, have memories and even different characters. There are perhaps nicer guys and bad guys.”

Source: The man who thinks trees talk to each other | Environment | The Guardian

Michelle Obama Brings Voters’ Trust to Hillary Clinton’s Campaign – The New York Times

WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama has bridled for years at the confines of life in the White House and has tried to steer clear of the partisan messiness that has consumed her husband and is fueling this year’s bare-knuckled presidential contest.But this week, Mrs. Obama will wade into the campaign fray on behalf of Hillary Clinton, putting her broad popularity and reputation for authenticity to work for a candidate who has suffered from a lack of both.At an event in northern Virginia on Friday, Mrs. Obama will urge voters to register ahead of the state’s Oct. 17 deadline, the first of what aides say will be a series of appearances in the coming weeks in support of Mrs. Clinton.Mrs. Obama’s steps into the campaign spotlight underscore her transformation from a once-reluctant political spouse into a confident public figure, a role she says she has embraced more fully during President Obama’s second term.

Source: Michelle Obama Brings Voters’ Trust to Hillary Clinton’s Campaign – The New York Times

Meet the Characters — (H)afrocentric

(H)afrocentric stars a posse of disgruntled undergrads of color as they navigate their way through Ronald Reagan University.  Follow the self proclaimed radical Black feminist, Naima Pepper (who has a White mama), as she deals with the contradictions of her own life in various ways—lashing out in Tourette Syndrome-like rants about gentrification, white supremacy, and apathy.  Both she and her brother, Miles Pepper, grew up in a mostly White and Asian neighborhood. Miles Pepper reflects a popular culture aesthetic and mindset. As they navigate through the world with their best friends, Renee Aanjay Brown and El Ramirez, their identities and neighborhood start to change in front of their eyes.

Source: Meet the Characters — (H)afrocentric

Don’t let size fool you! Meet Sweden’s tiniest firefighter – The Local

But although Carlsson demonstrably has the physical strength to handle the job, she insists the firefighter vocation is about more than just muscles and body mass.”You don’t just need to be strong, you need to have the right techniques for carrying, for lifting, for carrying big hoses, there’s a lot of technique, it’s not only about being strong,” she explains.Her first job was a call-out to a forest fire, which saw her and the team battle the blaze for 13 hours straight. But although she says she has not yet had to face the classic scenario most people imagine when they think of firefighters – boldly running into burning buildings to save someone’s life – she will be ready when it comes.”I know that I will have this kind of situation sooner or later and I don’t think you can prepare. When I’m on call, you know, it’s a role, it’s not me as my person, it’s a role and I have to act, I have to do my job, that’s what I’m hired for,” she says.

Source: Don’t let size fool you! Meet Sweden’s tiniest firefighter – The Local

The Dancing Medicine. | Rebelle Society

Why, as we grow, do we disconnect from the medicine of our divine, inner child? Why do we block an untamed trust in the wisdom of our non-linear instincts? Why do we stop harvesting the beauty of a flexible mind?

Because society values clear divisions between children and adults. Because we become wounded and afraid. Because we do not want to be rejected.

Source: The Dancing Medicine. | Rebelle Society

Harvard Republican Club Just Did THIS For The First Time In Their History…And Trump Is Furious. – Democratic Review

In every presidential election since 1888, the members and Executive Board of the Harvard Republican Club have gathered to discuss, debate, and eventually endorse the standard-bearer of our party. But for the first time in 128 years, we, the oldest College Republicans chapter in the nation, will not be endorsing the Republican nominee.Donald Trump holds views that are antithetical to our values not only as Republicans, but as Americans. The rhetoric he espouses –from racist slander to misogynistic taunts– is not consistent with our conservative principles, and his repeated mocking of the disabled and belittling of the sacrifices made by prisoners of war, Gold Star families, and Purple Heart recipients is not only bad politics, but absurdly cruel.If enacted, Donald Trump’s platform would endanger our security both at home and abroad. Domestically, his protectionist trade policies and draconian immigration restrictions would enlarge our federal deficit, raise prices for consumers, and throw our economy back into recession. Trump’s global outlook, steeped in isolationism, is considerably out-of-step with the traditional Republican stance as well. The flippancy with which he is willing to abdicate the United States’ responsibility to lead is alarming. Calling for the US’ withdrawal from NATO and actively endorsing nuclear proliferation, Donald Trump’s foreign policy would wreak havoc on the established world order which has held aggressive foreign powers in check since World War II.Perhaps most importantly, however, Donald Trump simply does not possess the temperament and character necessary to lead the United States through an increasingly perilous world. The last week should have made obvious to all what has been obvious to most for more than a year. In response to any slight –perceived or real– Donald Trump lashes out viciously and irresponsibly. In Trump’s eyes, disagreement with his actions or his policies warrants incessant name calling and derision: stupid, lying, fat, ugly, weak, failing, idiot –and that’s just his “fellow” Republicans.He isn’t eschewing political correctness. He is eschewing basic human decency.

Source: Harvard Republican Club Just Did THIS For The First Time In Their History…And Trump Is Furious. – Democratic Review

What Muslim Women are “Allowed” – sister-hood magazine. A Fuuse production by Deeyah Khan.

Since Trump has clearly no idea about Islam and Muslims, I will present is a short list of women from across nations that could help challenge stereotypes of Muslim women. But first, let’s congratulate our athlete, Ibtihaj Muhammad, for creating history by becoming the first U.S. Muslim woman to have won a medal while wearing a hijab (head scarf) in the Rio Olympics 2016. Ibtihaj Muhammad is also considered by Time as one of the World’s Most Influential Women You Don’t Know Yet. History was also made when the dual honor holder Dalilah Muhammad won a Gold medal at the 400m hurdles Olympic event. Until Dalilah Muhammad, this was the only track event to have never been won before by an American woman.This history was made while Trump was busy degrading some of the core American values based on which the constitution of America was established: unity, domestic tranquillity, equality, and liberty. Hopefully by now Trump and supporters would’ve read the constitution – especially after our fallen hero Captain Humayun Khan’s father Mr. Khizr Khan challenged Trump to do so.

Source: What Muslim Women are “Allowed” – sister-hood magazine. A Fuuse production by Deeyah Khan.

Labour Party Is Poised to Back Jeremy Corbyn Again, Even if Britain Isn’t – The New York Times

Mr. Corbyn has said he “hopes Labour M.P.s will recognize the outcome of this election and not walk away.” More likely, they will hope for an early election in which the Corbyn-led party is badly defeated but they somehow survive, resulting in his resignation. But having seized the party machinery, Mr. Corbyn seems unlikely to give it up, even in defeat.In his view, and that of his followers, he is building a socialist movement for the future, and he and his followers regard the centrists, in the words of the former Labour legislator Chris Williamson, as Conservative “sleeper” agents at war not with Mr. Corbyn but with the members of the party themselves.

Source: Labour Party Is Poised to Back Jeremy Corbyn Again, Even if Britain Isn’t – The New York Times