Politics
Entries related to things political.
This is what democracy looks like
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 02/10/2005 - 09:54During the Republican National Convention, protests sprung up at many places around New York City. As I was heading in to blog about the convention one day, I passed a large demonstration in front of the Public Library.
As the police were dragging people off, some people chanted "Shame, Shame" at the police. Others started chanting, "This is what democracy looks like."
That phrase, "This is what democracy looks like" is one that always sticks with me. To me, it conjures up images of the fight for democracy around the world, whether we are talking about the Bastille, suffragettes, Tiananmen Square, or purple fingers in Iraq.
A Frame for Framing
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 02/03/2005 - 09:11(Originally published in Greater Democracy)
Recently, progressives have discovered ‘framing’, or how to talk about their beliefs in a way that other people will listen and respond. Granted, there are all kinds of bells and whistles about how to do this effectively, however, a friend recently wrote down these thoughts (with a little minor editing of my own) about what we really need to be doing.
Get in touch with your own values; know them well. Engage in respectful discussions with people with different viewpoints. Do not argue. Do not be vitriolic. Express your values and find common ground with the person you’ve been talking with. Shake hands over your newfound friend; go buy him or her a beer. Participate in the local culture. Watch a Sitcom, go to a little league game, attend a PTA meeting, and chat at a beauty salon. Embrace and smile, knowing we are all Americans after all.
"My son’s life was not frivolous"
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Tue, 02/01/2005 - 13:00(Originally published in Greater Democracy)
In today’s New York Times, Robert Pear writes: “that four television networks had turned down its request to run an advertisement opposing President Bush's effort to clamp down on medical malpractice lawsuits.” He noted that the “networks said the advertisement violated their standards for advertising on controversial issues.”
By doing so, the fourth estate is failing its duties to promote public discourse about the issues that are most important to all Americans.
Blogging the French Revolution
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sun, 01/30/2005 - 22:05One of the popular geeky topics over the past decade has been to compare the Internet to the printing press. The printing press brought about a massive cultural revolution affecting all aspects of life, such as government, religion, and literature.
It took a long time for this change to take effect and this month we celebrated the 400th anniversary of the publication of Don Quixote, the second most published book in the world, which Janet Murray traces to the invention of the printing press and hails as the beginning of the European novel in her book Hamlet on the Holodeck.
Online Organizing
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 01/27/2005 - 16:23During 2004, I ran a couple websites that attempted to organize what I considered to be important information online. Continue reading to share some current thoughts on this.
