Super Pal Universe at Pioneer Farms!
October 06, 2008
Here they are Saturday at Pioneer Farms with the Biscuit Brothers after the SPU show!
posted by Sara Hickman at 10:30 am
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Blog Action Day!
Far too often, these are flat fact, numbers that wiz by.
On Blog Action Day (Oct. 15), Austin bloggers, podcasters and videocasters will devote 24 hours to capturing the face of poverty in Austin today, focusing on the personal story behind the facts of living in poverty. A core team will focus on a street retreat immersion effort, delivering updates via Twitter, small video updates & audio segments, as well as scheduled webinars. By engaging with stories from a wide variety of voices & mediums, online readers in Austin will be immersed in an experience of what it means to live in poverty in Austin today.
Working side-by-side with Mobile Loaves & Fishes and Capital Area Food Bank, there are 3 objectives for this project:
* Raise community awareness of the personal aspects of living in poverty in our hometown
* Communicate a unified call-to-action across a variety of organization working with poverty in Austin, spotlighting specific ways to face poverty in Austin
* Engage the broader Austin community in how to respond to these stories, harnessing our city's unique imagination & creativity
We need your help to make this happen:
* Sign up to blog for at least one hour during Blog Action Day (Oct. 15) - just go here and sign up:
http://www.doodle.ch/participation.html?pollId=kyawmrma58rxup99
* Consider joining us for some or all of the street retreat immersion effort - if you want more info or want to be involved, just email me
* Expand the network for this effort - forward this email to at least 10 friends in Austin who might want to join us on Blog Action Day (Oct. 15)
Our neighbors who live in poverty conditions are people just like us, with stories to share. You can be a conduit for sharing those stories - just say YES to being part of Blog Action Day (Oct. 15), raising your voice to poverty in Austin.
P.S. - if you want more info, you can visit the following sites:
* Blog Action Day:
http://blogactionday.org/
* Mobile Loaves & Fishes:
http://www.mlfnow.org/site/PageServer
* Capital Area Food Bank
http://www.austinfoodbank.org/
posted by Sara Hickman at 09:36 am
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Thomas Sutherland, and a list of happiness
October 03, 2008
restaurant when a friend gave me a bracelet to wear on behalf of an hostage in Lebanon named Thomas
Sutherland.
When I got signed to Elektra, I was still wearing the bracelet, and asked if I could record a song I had
written for Tom called "If We Sent Our Hearts Over Now". When the answer was "yes", I knew, then,
that I wanted a photo of the bracelet inside the cd booklet. I had made tee shirts with Tom's face on
the front, and lyrics from the song on the back, and I would give them away for free at shows, hoping
to spread the word of Tom's, and other hostages, plight. I sang the song on the radio whenever
I could, and talked about why it was important to speak out on behalf of these men. I even had the
opportunity to talk to one of Tom's daughters via phone while at a radio station, after she heard me
talking about him and she called in!
I was living in Los Angeles with Marty when the news came in. Tom was freed! I was coming home from
an outing, walking up to the front door, when Marty swung the door open from inside, a huge grin on
his face, and announced this happiness to me. I couldn't believe it! He said, "Look! Tom's on t.v.!"
And, sure enough, there he was, talking with reporters; I stood in stunned silence as I heard Tom's
Scottish brogue. There he was. Whole and well and smiling. Marty was beaming as he held me in
his arms and my face shining. Tom was coming home! And then, joy of joys!, several months later,
back at my home in Dallas, Tx, a sunny little yellow cottage, the phone rang, and this time, when
Marty handed it to me, it was Tom on the other end.
Through tears of relief and disbelief, I heard the voice of a man I had never met, but someone
who I had grown to love and fervently wish freedom would be granted...and, listening to him
thank me for my service on his behalf blew me away. I was totally speechless. And, without hesitation,
I mailed Tom his bracelet....two bracelets, actually, for the first one had worn through and I had had
a second one made during the five or six years I had worn it...I laid the broken one gently in a box
next to the whole one, both floating on layers of white cotton, and mailed them off to Tom.
A symbol that he was loved but no longer bound.
Well, after all these years, 17 years?...Has it been so long?...I am, finally, headed to perform in Ft. Collins,
where Tom and his wife, Jean, reside. All these years we have exchanged letters and Christmas greetings,
but I have never met Tom in person. I am hoping that tomorrow night or Saturday morning, I will
get to hug Tom's neck and share a laugh, even if only for one brief moment. I may get to meet a living hero
and hear his brogue in person!
Other happy thoughts:
Painting rocks. I've painted Diego the dog and last night, a bunny for a friend of iolana's, and a nesting bluebird for
Denise and a red cardinal for Charlie. River rocks are so smooth under fingers and make excellent palettes!
I have a set of 10 rocks that will be in a show at the Austin Museum of Art, starting, I believe next week, as part of
an exhibit on chairs by Damien Priour.
The weather has cooled. This always makes our little dog, Lucky, so perky and mischievous. You know fall is on the
way when her squeaky hot dog is heard squeaking first thing in the morning: it is time to play! Ah, fall!
I have met five different transgendered people in the last six months, all at different events, and none of them know
one another. I feel like God is raising my level of awareness around this issue because it was an area of life I knew
very little about. I have grown to really appreciate the hardships and lonliness many of them endure to
become who they feel they are.
The shows at McDavid Studio in Fort Worth and at the Blue Door in OKC were two of my best ever, and I want to thank
Chip, Kristin, Sam, Steve and Rob for all their musicianship. And I am so grateful to Pam and Doug and all the crew at McDavid
because I feel like it will be my new Caravan of Dreams home...Just a splendid hall and night and audience at McDavid.
And the next night, staying with Mark and Deborah---we were treated like royalty with all of Deborah's amazing
homemade foods and the feng shui of their beautiful, calm and loving home---right after an amazing time
at the Blue Door. Greg Johnson is just about the best brother you could wish for in this biz...I always laugh out loud
when I see him walking towards me because he is my lucky Leprechaun---mischievous and boyish and fun to
catch up with about the world of music and musicians. He LOVES music, I tell you what.
MUSIC FOR LIFE FINALE---at the outdoor Scholz's Beergarten in the heart of downtown Austin, a place where politicos
go after legislative sessions at our capital....The finale was an awesome capper to a year long series of conversations,
performances and talks on the death penalty. We had Kinky Friedman (who will be getting a very long, grateful love
letter from me---Kinky had me in tears with his eloquent, thought filled essay and his serious tone. No joking around.
I couldn't believe it!)---the hilarious and jubilant Austin Lounge Lizards, all ablaze in their Hawaiian shirts
and sparkling wit; Shelley King, who has a BROKEN ARM and still played guitar and sang like gangbusters on her song,
"Down", about a man's last day on death row; Jon Hogan, sporting a hat from the Dust Bowl and singing as if he just
stepped out of that era about Matthew Shepherd with his compelling song, "Laramie"; Elisa Turner, a 17 year old
girl who blew us all away with her poignant, telling essay she wrote last year after the Virginia Tech shootings, which she read
right after I sang "The One", a song I wrote from the viewpoint of Seung-Hui Cho's mother. I had to walk backstage
and stand next to empty beer barrells and bawl my eyes out as she read in her calm, fluid voice. Mayor John Cook,
all the way from El Paso, with his lovely wife, Tram, as he sang and spoke out from a Christian stand point...
and leading us all the way, Bob Van Steenburg, VP of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, bringing home
the point there is no need for a death penalty where there is life without parole, when innocent people are being executed
and speaking with clarity and conviction. The place was filled to the gills, and it was a joy to see friends and acquaintances
make new friends and see folks who have a definative Austin tie...thanks, also, to Vicki McCuistion and Mollie Cleveland, both women
who worked very, very hard this last year, promoting and setting up the events. We couldn't have done it without you.
Mostly, a big thank you to the people of Texas who took time out of their hectic lives to come sit in venues across the
state and were willing to share their thoughts, comments, fears, anger and confusion about the death penalty. I wish there
had been a broader range of diverse opinions, but I'm not complaining. I had a vision and the vision came to fruition and the
dialogue is started. I hope it will continue and that in five years there will be a moratorium on the death penalty in Texas.
That is my wish.
posted by Sara Hickman at 04:22 am
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PALIN BINGO for tonight’s debate!!!
October 02, 2008
Print out all 4 cards and pass them around for the debate. Not sure
what the winner gets, but at least you can say that you won.
A funny creative concept!
Love,
Sara
http://palinbingo.com/
posted by Sara Hickman at 09:14 am
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My piece in the Waco Tribune today
September 15, 2008
Let's talk about the death penalty
Monday, September 15, 2008
The Waco Tribune
In the early 1990s, I started correspondence with a man on death row, then visited him in person.
What I experienced shocked me. Instead of an angry human being, I met an intelligent person who seemed broken.
Out of an abused, unloved childhood he had lived the only way he knew how: in survival mode.
Uneducated, drugged up, jobless, he had struck out and viciously murdered a woman. He had spent 20 years on death row when I met him, and he still had no understanding of what it meant to be “productive” or a part of society. Kill or be killed. That is what he knew. Several years later after our meeting, he was executed by the state.
As a society, without a doubt, most of us agree that murdering a fellow human being is a horrendous act. It stains the perpetrator, or even an entire country (think Germany) for life, for all time.
Texas robustly enforces the death penalty. But it needs to ask itself: How does executing another person ever solve anything?
And what about those executed who are innocent? The greatest example that comes to mind is Jesus Christ. Or Bruno Richard Hauptmann (executed for allegedly kidnapping the Lindbergh baby. His wife, to this day, cries out that he was an innocent man).
As a mom and a musician, I wanted to start a dialogue about the death penalty. My hope was to start a dialogue that was open to all in the spirit of healthy debate and information — a forum where people who were opposed to . . . or for. . . or conflicted by the death penalty could meet and discuss the issue without fear or hostility.
In cooperation with the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty I have been staging a series of monthly concerts around Texas to discuss the death penalty.
The next concert is Thursday night in Waco.
Attendees have heard comments from a variety of speakers including El Paso Mayor John Cook, who has joined our tour, singing and speaking and challenging other Texas mayors to come out to the events.
We’ve heard the amazing account of Rev. Carroll Pickett, the death row minister who witnessed 95 executions in Huntsville. He is convinced that at least 15 of those men were innocent.
Please, come express your opinions. Meet family members of murder victims. Meet family members of those executed on death row.
This isn’t easy. In fact, it’s intense.
A closing thought: When Cain murdered Abel in the old testament, God didn’t destroy Cain. He banished him, yes, but he set him out in the world marked with protection that no one would harm a hair on his head.
Why would God do such a thing? I challenge you to start the dialogue and continue the conversation.
Sara Hickman is an Austin-based singer and songwriter.
posted by Sara Hickman at 07:02 pm
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If you have a moment, print this out, sign it and mail it to your officials
local, state and national officials. It seems like a small thing to send a letter, but if lots of us are sending the letters,
maybe we can make a difference.
Love,
Sara
Honorable Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick
Chairwoman, Congressional Black Caucus
2264 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515-2213
Honorable Rep. Kilpatrick,
We are writing you as members of National Alliance for Prisoners' Rights (NAFPR), a newly formed, grassroots advocacy organization whose work is informed by decades of collective experience of prison conditions and efforts to apply universal covenants and treaties to the treatment of incarcerated peoples. We seek your help in investigating and correcting serious abuses which are occurring right here in America, in our own prisons. You have demonstrated a concern for social justice for all citizens and we thank you for your efforts and ask for your help in attaining prisoner's rights.
The problems of the correctional system in the United States have become very serious. It is a failing system.
The United States now incarcerates 1 out of every 100 adults in the country. This is 700 times the rate of imprisonment that existed in South Africa during the height of apartheid. In 2004 the United States surpassed Russia in incarceration rates to become the world leader. With 5% of the world's population and more than 25% of the world's prisoners, there are now more than 2.3 million people inside and upwards of 7 million either on parole, probation or waiting trial. One in every 33 people in the United States is under state control and that number is still growing. We cannot build our way out of this predicament.
The economic burden on the society of such levels of incarceration is huge and the potential of these members of society who are incarcerated is wasted. Over the course of a year 13.5 million people spend time in jail or prison, and 95 percent of them eventually return to our communities. Many of those who are incarcerated come from and return to poor African-American and Latino neighborhoods, and the impact on the stability of those communities has an effect on the health and safety of whole cities and states.
Crime, police and prisons have become one of the fastest growing sectors in the economy and there is pressure to maintain a level of occupancy. There are nearly 5,000 adult prisons and jails in the United States. Approximately 750,000 men and women work in U.S. Correctional facilities as line officers or other staff. Economically deprived areas of the country are confronted with growing pressure to accept the construction of a new facility in their area in order to provide jobs, creating a vicious cycle.
We acknowledge here the enormous role that racism; classicism, poverty, lack of education, and diagnosed medical and mental illness play in mass incarceration. Many individuals with diagnosed medical and mental conditions are inappropriately incarcerated. Most of the imprisoned in the United States are poor, and they are disproportionately African-American and Latino.
Individuals with diagnosed mental conditions could be better
By themselves our high rate of imprisonment and disproportionate distribution profoundly compromise our commitment to the democratic ideals of liberty and equality. But there is more. There is serious abuse taking place in our prisons, even leading to fatality and suicide.
The Commission of Safety and Abuse in America's Crime Police & Prisons, in its recently released findings, reports high rates of disease and illness among prisoners, the increasing use of counter-productive high-security segregation, and other serious problems.
In addition, in recent years there has been a growing trend toward privatization of correctional facilities, with the associated focus on profits, increased rate of violence and with the result of many charges of lowered standards. The shift to corrections as an industry as a business rather than a service of governmental institutions, results in the inevitable push to create more and more prisons and prisoners. Treatment of prisoners tends to decline and abuse of prisoners to increase. In spite of assurances to the contrary, evidence of this continues to mount.
As the Commission noted, some of the people confined in our jails and prisons have committed serious and violent crimes. While we as a society might legitimately imprison them, we cannot allow anyone who is incarcerated to be victimized by other prisoners, abused by officers, or neglected by doctors. As a nation, we are asked to broaden our scope of analysis and compassion to include people who have done terrible things. But we are also called to live up to democratic principles and to assess whether our criminal justice system is operating according to these standards. Is it just? Does it uphold human rights?
We seek a criminal justice system that is driven by hope, fairness, and rehabilitation rather than fear, arbitrariness, and cynicism.
We are asking for your help with the following points:
1) Immediate adherence to International Covenants and Treaties which correlate to prisoner issues and conditions, including but not limited to the United Nation Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR); the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR); the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD); the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT); the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against women (CEDAQ) and the Convention of the Rights of the Child.
2) Protection of prisoners from physical and psychological abuse by other prisoners, as well as by prison staff. Guarantee of community standards of medical care. Uniform standards for prison conditions, which adhere to, the Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, adopted in 1948.
3) Rehabilitation and educational programs, since it has been established that education reduces crime.
4) Parole reform and other measures to reduce recidivism. The United States has the highest rate of recidivism.
5) Immediate, comprehensive and independent investigation of reported abuses by independent third parties entities which include prisoner rights advocates and family members. Access to prisoners by friends and families.
6) Legislation mandating equal requirements in hiring, salaries, and conditions for federal prisons, whether governmental or private and eventual elimination of prisons for profits. Mandated random drug screening for prison staff.
7) End to arbitrary arrests and excessive sentencing, which serve the sole purpose to populate prisons. End to arbitrary and excessive sentencing of children as adults.
8) Reform of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) so that the prisoners and their families are guaranteed lawful protection from physical and medical abuse and neglect.
For years many of us have worked to obtain results through our state correctional agencies, by campaigns, public actions, petitions, letters and calls, and have seen that work ignored, dismissed or trivialized. We believe that you will hear our voices and that you care about true justice. We urge you to conduct investigations and to pass legislation to correct the problems within our justice system.
Please reply to our appeal.
Respectfully,
YOUR NAME HERE
This came to me (Sara) from the
NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR PRISONERS RIGHTS
C/O New Vision Organization, Inc.
BOX 66 BROCKTON, MA 02303
TEL/FAX (508) 941-5367
and these members who sent it to me:
* Idriss Stelley Action &Resource Center (ISARC)
* Black&Brown Equitable Drug Policies Coalition (BEDPC)
* Education Not Incarceration SF Chapter (ENI SF)
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:22 am
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I Thought You Would Want to Know: Facts from Truth Out. Org
September 13, 2008
Friday 12 September 2008
by: Bill Quigley, t r u t h o u t | Perspective
In its 2007 Annual Homeless Report to Congress, HUD reported that nearly one in four people in homeless shelters are children 17 or younger.
Bill Quigley's "Social Justice Quiz 2008" challenges us to look through the eyes of those less fortunate and educate ourselves about how liberty,
opportunity, income and wealth are distributed in the US and around the world.
We in the US who say we believe in social justice must challenge ourselves to look at the world through the eyes of those who have much less than us.
Why? Social justice, as defined by John Rawls, respects basic individual liberty and economic improvement. But social justice also insists that liberty,
opportunity, income, wealth and the other social bases of self-respect are to be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution is to everyone's
advantage and any inequalities are arranged so they are open to all.
Therefore, we must educate ourselves and others about how liberty, opportunity, income and wealth are actually distributed in our country and in
our world. Examining the following can help us realize how much we have to learn about social justice.
1. How many deaths are there worldwide each year due to acts of terrorism?
Answer: The US State Department reported there were more than 22,000 deaths from terrorism last year. Over half of those killed or injured were Muslims. Source: Voice of America, May 2, 2008. "Terrorism Deaths Rose in 2007."
2. How many deaths are there worldwide each day due to poverty and malnutrition?
A: About 25,000 people die every day of hunger or hunger-related causes, according to the United Nations. Poverty.com - Hunger and World Poverty. Every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes - one child every five seconds. Bread for the World. Hunger Facts: International.
3. 1n 1965, CEOs in major companies made 24 times more than the average worker. In 1980, CEOs made 40 times more than the average worker. In 2007, CEOs earned how many times more than the average worker?
A: Today's average CEO from a Fortune 500 company makes 364 times an average worker's pay and over 70 times the pay of a four-star Army general. Executive Excess 2007, page 7, jointly published by Institute for Policy Studies and United for Fair Economy, August 29, 2007. The 1965 numbers from State of Working America 2004-2005, Economic Policy Institute.
4. In how many of the more than 3,000 cities and counties in the US can a full-time worker who earns the minimum wage afford to pay rent and utilities on a one-bedroom apartment?
A: In no city or county in the entire USA can a full-time worker who earns minimum wage afford even a one-bedroom rental. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) urges renters not to pay more than 30 percent of their income in rent. HUD also reports the fair market rent for each of the counties and cities in the US. Nationally, in order to rent a two-bedroom apartment, one full-time worker in 2008 must earn $17.32 per hour. In fact, 81 percent of renters live in cities where the Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom rental is not even affordable with two minimum-wage jobs. Source: Out of Reach 2007-2008, April 7, 2008, National Low-Income Housing Coalition.
5. In 1968, the minimum wage was $1.65 per hour. How much would the minimum wage be today if it had kept pace with inflation since 1968?
A: Calculated in real (inflation-adjusted) dollars, the 1968 minimum wage would have been $9.83 in 2007 dollars. Andrew Tobias, January 16, 2008. The federal minimum wage is $6.55 per hour effective July 24, 2008, and will be $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.
6. True or false? People in the United States spend nearly twice as much on pet food as the US government spends on aid to help foreign countries.
A: True. The USA spends $43.4 billion on pet food annually. Source: American Pet Products Manufacturers Association Inc. The USA spent $23.5 billion in official foreign aid in 2006. The US government gave the most of any country in the world in actual dollars. As a percentage of gross national income, the US came in second to last among OECD donor countries and ranked number 20 at 0.18 percent behind Sweden at 1.02 percent and other countries such as Norway, Netherlands, Ireland, United Kingdom, Austria, France, Germany, Spain, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and others. This does not count private donations, which, if included, may move the US up as high as sixth. The Index of Global Philanthropy 2008, pages 15-19.
7. How many people in the world live on $2 a day or less?
A: The World Bank reported in August 2008 that 2.6 billion people consume less than $2 a day.
8. How many people in the world do not have electricity?
A: Worldwide, 1.6 billion people do not have electricity and 2.5 billion people use wood, charcoal or animal dung for cooking. United Nations Human Development Report 2007/2008, pages 44-45.
9. People in the US consume 42 kilograms of meat per person per year. How much meat and grain do people in India and China eat?
A: People in the US lead the world in meat consumption at 42 kg per person per year, compared to 1.6 kg in India and 5.9 kg in China. People in the US consume five times the grain (wheat, rice, rye, barley, etc.) as people in India, three times as much as people in China, and twice as much as people in Europe. "THE BLAME GAME: Who is behind the world food price crisis," Oakland Institute, July 2008.
10. How many cars does China have for every 1,000 drivers? India? The US?
A: China has nine cars for every 1,000 drivers. India has 11 cars for every 1,000 drivers. The US has 1,114 cars for every 1,000 drivers. Iain Carson and Vijay V. Vaitheeswaran, "Zoom: The Global Race to Fuel the Car of the Future" (2007).
11. How much grain is needed to fill an SUV tank with ethanol?
A: The grain needed to fill an SUV tank with ethanol could feed a hungry person for a year. Lester Brown, CNN.Money.com, August 16, 2006.
12. According to The Wall Street Journal, the richest one percent of Americans earns what percent of the nation's adjusted gross income? Five percent? Ten percent? Fifteen percent? Twenty percent?
A: "According to the figures, the richest one percent reported 22 percent of the nation's total adjusted gross income in 2006. That is up from 21.2 percent a year earlier, and it is the highest in the 19 years that the IRS has kept strictly comparable figures. The 1988 level was 15.2 percent. Earlier IRS data show the last year the share of income belonging to the top one percent was at such a high level as it was in 2006 was in 1929, but changes in measuring income make a precise comparison difficult." Jesse Drucker, "Richest Americans See Their Income Share Grow," Wall Street Journal, July 23, 2008, page A3.
13. How many people does our government say are homeless in the US on any given day?
A: A total of 754,000 are homeless. About 338,000 homeless people are not in shelters (live on the streets, in cars or in abandoned buildings) and 415,000 are in shelters on any given night. The 2007 US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Annual Homeless Report to Congress, page iii and 23. The population of San Francisco is about 739,000.
14. What percentage of people in homeless shelters are children?
A: HUD reports nearly one in four people in homeless shelters are children 17 or younger. Page iv, the 2007 HUD Annual Homeless Report to Congress.
15. How many veterans are homeless on any given night?
A: Over 100,000 veterans are homeless on any given night. About 18 percent of the adult homeless population are veterans. Page 32, the 2007 HUD Homeless Report. This is about the same population as Green Bay, Wisconsin.
16. The military budget of the United States in 2008 is the largest in the world at $623 billion per year. How much larger is the US military budget than that of China, the second-largest in the world?
A: Ten times. China's military budget is $65 billion. The US military budget is nearly 10 times larger than the second leading military spender. GlobalSecurity.org
17. The US military budget is larger than how many of the countries of the rest of the world combined?
A: The US military budget of $623 billion is larger than the budgets of all the countries in the rest of the world put together. The total global military budget of the rest of the world is $500 billion. Russia's military budget is $50 billion, South Koreas is $21 billion, and Irons is $4.3 billion. GlobalSecurity.org.
18. Over the 28-year history of the Berlin Wall, 287 people perished trying to cross it. How many people have died in the last four years trying to cross the border between Arizona and Mexico?
A: At least 1,268 people have died along the border of Arizona and Mexico since 2004. The Arizona Daily Star keeps track of the reported deaths along the state border, and it reports 214 died in 2004; 241 in 2005, 216 in 2006, 237 in 2007, and 116 as of July 31, 2008. These numbers do not include deaths along the California or Texas borders. The Border Patrol reported that 400 people died in fiscal 2206-2007, while 453 died in 2004-2005 and 494 died in 2004-2005. Source The Associated Press, November 8, 2007.
19. India is ranked second in the world in gun ownership with four guns per 100 people. China is third with third firearms per 100 people. Which country is first and how widespread is gun ownership?
A: The US is first in gun ownership worldwide with 90 guns for every 100 citizens. Laura MacInnis, "US most armed country with 90 guns per 100 people." Reuters, August 28, 2007.
20. What country leads the world in the incarceration of its citizens?
A: The US jails 751 inmates per 100,000 people, the highest rate in the world. Russia is second with 627 per 100,000. England's rate is 151, Germany's is 88 and Japan's is 63. The US has 2.3 million people behind bars, more than any country in the world. Adam Liptak, "Inmate Count in US Dwarfs Other Nations'" New York Times, April 23, 2008.
AND IF YOU WANT TO SEE SOMETHING UNBELIEVABLE, watch this about John McCain:
http://therealmccain.com
posted by Sara Hickman at 12:34 pm
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Where Music Comes to Play: The Full Arch of Spirit and Love United in A Day
September 12, 2008
transgendered people meet with their employers in a neutral environment (the Austin Convention Center) so people can discuss what
this means for everyone involved. I'll be bringing songs of love and unification, hope and thought...I'm wearing my new red hair and
a big smile!
And, then, tonight, I am singing for the Ladies of Charity in San Antonio and I will be wearing brightly colored church clothes, my big smile
and dining with women of Christian faith, and sharing stories and songs of laughter and the downtrodden in society; how we can make a difference in
our actions and deeds.
I see this as the symbolic arch of what music can bridge...differences in lifestyle and opinions, and I like to think that somehow what I do
unifies people across those bridges.
God bless everyone in the path of the storm, and may there be adequate shelter and provisions, comfort and safety with not one single soul
hurt or lost. I'm putting that out to the universe because I know it matters to think positive!
XOX
Sara
posted by Sara Hickman at 04:28 am
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September 11, 2008
September 11, 2008
May today be a day of peace within your heart.
May it be a day of forgiving old wounds.
May it be the start of living with joy and
good intent around the world.
May it be a day where people awaken and
recognize what being asleep to hatred has cost us.
May it be a day of serving others with love.
May it be the beginning of walking towards
understanding.
May hands be held.
May hearts be healed.
May governments become humble.
May neighbors celebrate one another.
May life unfold peacefully.
Amen,
Sara
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:47 am
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For children everywhere
September 10, 2008
By Sara Hickman
I pledge allegiance to my family
and to the love that created me
I promise to honor and respect my
liberties at hand
And all that is wondrous in each of us.
To listen, and to be listened to
To help, and ask for help in return
To right wrongs
To be a friend
And to recognize that each and every child is
deserving
of love, shelter, education, healthy food,
freedom from terror and fear
and an entire life of liberty and justice
for all.
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:36 pm
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Letters About Politics: Me and My Mom Discuss Michelle Obama and…
I wrote my mom back with a response, and then, this morning, she wrote me
again, too. I encourage you to read through this conversation and get one going with your own parents
IT ALL STARTED WITH THIS EMAIL FROM MY MOM:
From: Anita Hickman
Subject: Michelle vs. Michelle
To: "Sara Hickman"
Date: Tuesday, September 9, 2008, 4:36 PM
*The following article is worth reading and considering.*
TWO MICHELLES, TWO AMERICAS & SHAME vs. PRIDE
Like Michelle Obama, I am a "woman of color." Like Michelle Obama, I am a
working mother of two young children. Like Michelle Obama,
I am a member of the 13th generation of Americans born since the founding of
our great nation.
Unlike Michelle Obama, I can't keep track of the number of times I've been
proud - really proud - of my country since I was born and privileged to live
in it. At a recent speech in Milwaukee on behalf of her husband's Democratic
presidential campaign, Mrs Obama remarked, "For the first time in my adult
lifetime, I am really proud of my country, and not just because Barack has
done well, but because I think people are hungry for change."
Mrs. Obama's statement was met with warm applause from other Barack
supporters who have also apparently been devoid of pride in their country
during their adult lifetimes. Or maybe it was just a Pavlovian response to
the word "change." What a sad, empty, narcissistic, ungrateful, unthinking lot!
I'm just seven years younger than Mrs. Obama. We've grown up and lived in
the same era. And yet, her self-absorbed attitude is
completely foreign to me. What planet is she living on? Since when was now the
only time the American people have ever been "hungry for change"?
Michelle, ma belle, Barack is not the center of the universe. Newsflash: The Obamas did not invent "change" any more than
Hillary invented "leadership" or John McCain invented "straight talk." We were both adults when the Berlin
Wall fell, Michelle. That was earth-shattering change. We've lived through two decades' worth of peaceful, if contentious,
election cycles under the rule of law, which have brought about "change" and upheaval, both good and
bad. We were adults through several launches of the space shuttle, in case
you were snoozing. And as adults, we've witnessed and benefited from dizzyingly rapid advances in technology, communications,
science, and medicine pioneered by American entrepreneurs who yearned to change the world and succeeded. You want "change"? Go ask the
patients whose lives have been improved and extended by American pharmaceutical companies
that have flourished under the best economic system in the world.
If American ingenuity, a robust constitutional republic, and the fall of
communism don't do it for you, hon, then how about American heroism and
sacrifice? How about every Memorial Day? Every Veterans Day? Every Independence Day? Every Medal of Honor ceremony? Has she
never attended a welcome-home ceremony for the troops? For me, there's the thrill of the Blue
Angels roaring over cloudless skies. And the somber awe felt amid the
hallowed waters that surround the sunken U.S.S. Arizona at the Pearl Harbor memorial.
Every naturalization ceremony I've attended, where hundreds of new Americans
raised their hands to swear an oath of allegiance to this land of liberty,
has been a moment of pride for me. So have the awesome displays of American
compassion at home and around the world. When millions of Americans rallied
to help victims of the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia -including members of
the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group that sped from Hong Kong to
assist survivors - my heart filled with pride. It did again when the
citizens of Houston opened their arms to Hurricane Katrina victims and folks
across the country rushed to their churches and offices of the Salvation
Army and Red Cross to volunteer.
How about American resilience? Does that not make you proud, Michelle? Only a heart of stone could be unmoved by the strength, valor,
and determination displayed in New York , Washington , D.C., and Shanksville, Pa. , on September 11, 2001.
I believe it was Michael Kinsley who quipped that a gaffe is when a politician tells the truth. In this case, it's what
happens when an elite Democratic politician's wife says what a significant portion of the party's
base really believes to be the truth: America is more a source of shame than pride.
Michelle Obama has achieved enormous professional success, political influence, and personal acclaim in America . Ivy League
educated, she's been lauded by Essence magazine as one of the 25 World's Most Inspiring Women; by
Vanity Fair as one of the ten World's Best-Dressed Women; and named one of "The Harvard 100" most influential alumni. She
has had an amazingly blessed life. But, you wouldn't know it from her campaign rhetoric and her griping
about her and her husband's student loans.
For years, we've heard liberals get offended at any challenge to their
patriotism. And so they are again aggrieved and rising to explain away Mrs. Obama's remarks.
Lady Michelle and her defenders protest too much!
TO WHICH I REPLIED:
Dear Mom,
There is a lot to love about this country. I don't think Ms. Obama was "dissing that". I think I understand, and so I have to agree with Michelle Obama, Obama's wife, on why she MIGHT have said what she said that day...
Like her, I see the other side of America, the side that is greedy, that does NOT take care of it's homeless. How America's WAR VETERANS suffer upon returning home (we allow MOLD to grow in their hospitals? We don't help them with their head injuries and their severed limbs?) We have racism, like in Jasper, Texas, when James Byrd is dragged to his death and then Governor George Bush claims he will sign
into law a Hate Crimes bill if only Mrs. Byrd, James' mother will back him on it. She declines because even though it would have honored her son and, possibly, helped lessen further racist crimes, Gov. Bush had inserted a section of the bill that did NOT include crimes against homosexuals as "hateful" (thus, Jenny and Addison could be beaten and killed, simply because they are gay, and there would be no additional addendum to the perpetrator's crimes...) Mrs. Byrd SAID NO because she considers any crime against others because of WHO THEY ARE a hate crime.
Or what about Dick Cheney/Halliburton, and the trillions TRILLIONS of dollars we are in debt for a war that has proven to have been full of lies and misleading idealogy? What about all the lobbyists stuffing our politicians pockets? What about lack of leadership? Isn't that sinful?
What about McCain voting FOR TORTURE when he, himself, was tortured and now wants us to have sympathy for the very thing he endured? Yes, we have seen, also, improvements in technology, science...and, yet, who speaks out on behalf of those suffering for those improvements? The slave workers doing tedious tasks, locked in warehouses, paid insidious wages, to create those computers...Or what about those bananas we eat? American companies
pay workers in South America 6 cents a DAY and workers are forced to live in "company housing"...it is the modern slavery.
Oh, yes, the American people took to New Orleans and responded quickly and diligently. Did the American government? No. And how many years have passed by in that folks are still in that bedraggled city, living in
trailers that harbor FORMALDYHYDE, their real homes still lying destroyed and uninhabitable. Where are our tax dollars going to help one of our greatest cities? Why is the American public not infuriated by the lack of helping their own?
Is "patriotism" blinded by lack of MORALITY? I will take morality over patriotism any day. Otherwise, we have become just like the enemies we claim to wish to deter and abolish.
It is easy to be swept away by what may seem like truth, but it is always best to investigate both sides of everything before jumping on any band wagon and judging by utilizing another's alleged claim to knowledge of the facts.
What I have been saying to audiences lately is this:
Don't vote based on someone's skin color or gender or military history.
Vote with your head, not your heart. Find out everything you can about these politicians because the time is NOW. There is no more time for
bickering and fooling around. There is the truth, and then there is untruth---and it is becoming fuzzier and fuzzier as to what is what.
Do the right thing. I can't tell you who to vote for, but I can tell you this: Vote and vote wisely.
If you don't mind, I would like to post what you sent me on my blog along with my reply to you. Let me know if this is ok. This is the
sort of dialogue people need to see---two sides of the coin...so they can make up their own minds about what they believe to be real.
People ARE hungry for change. People want the government to be "of the people, for the people", not "of the corpocracy, for the corpocracy" any longer.
I fear for what will happen if people do not wake up and use the brains that God gave us to USE.
XOX
Sara
AND THEN MY MOM SAID:
Dear Sara,
I am happy for you to post my email and yours. That is what this
country is all about--individuals being able to speak out in freedom
about what they believe and why.
It is thrilling to see the American public finally taking an interest
in politics after many years of apathy on the part of so many. The
more each of us investigates, reads, searches, listens and responds to
what the candidates are saying and doing and stand for, and to what
they have have said and done and stood for in the past, the more valid
will be the election results.
It doesn't matter so much how each of us decides to vote, but it does
matter that we each vote from a well-informed position.
My early-morning walk is over, the sun's rays are filtering through
the trees, a bird song is echoing off the hills and I am grateful to
have been blessed by the privilege of having lived my life as a
citizen of the great country. With all its problems and failures and
shortfalls, it is still the land of opportunity, the land that for so
many years has said:
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
It's still the land where a black man, raised by a single white mom,
can get a good education, go into politics, and end up as a candidate
for president.
It's still the land where a Navy pilot, who survived five years of
unimaginably wretched conditions as a prisoner of war, can come home,
become a public servant, and end up as a candidate for president.
It's still the land where you and I can get up each day, follow our
own agendas and, given our dreams and abilities, shape our own
destinies.
I believe we both want a leader who will work to make this country
better than it is--one who can best bring about positive change so
that ALL those in leadership positions in Washington work for the good
of ALL the people and not for the benefit of special interests.
Would that all mothers and daughters, wives and husbands, brothers and
sisters, friends and neighbors, teachers and students and others have
such honest discussions as we are having.
Love and blessings . . . Mom
posted by Sara Hickman at 10:58 am
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updated link for SPU “Don’t Mess With Texas” fun
September 09, 2008
posted by Sara Hickman at 10:55 am
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWxjzazIPjU
September 08, 2008
Then get up and DO SOMETHING, just like she did!!!
Now! Go! The time is NOW!
Sara
posted by Sara Hickman at 01:25 pm
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COMPILATION CD FOR OBAMA!!!!!!
September 05, 2008
posted by Sara Hickman at 11:44 am
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Heart Lash Out At McCain Campaign’s Use of “Barracuda”
ludicrous context. By the way, I'd like to say: McCain, You're no John Wayne (in response to his claiming to be a maverick. I'm really getting mad now. WHO IS
BUYING INTO ALL THIS MISLEADING BOLOGNA????)
Sara
Read on FROM ROLLING STONE ONLINE:
Heart Lash Out At McCain Campaign’s Use of “Barracuda”
9/5/08, 9:05 am EST
Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin has the nickname “Barracuda,” which inspired the use of the Heart song of the same name during Palin’s speech at the RNC on Wednesday night. Heart sent out a statement Thursday afternoon announcing they had sent a cease-and-desist letter asking the campaign to stop using the song. “The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission. We have asked the Republican campaign publicly not to use our music. We hope our wishes will be honored.” Their wishes were not honored, as after John McCain’s RNC-ending speech last night, Palin joined him onstage to the sound of “Barracuda.” This set off Nancy Wilson, who told EW.com “I think it’s completely unfair to be so misrepresented. I feel completely ###### over.” Soon after, they issued another, more scathing statement:
“Sarah Palin’s views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song ‘Barracuda’ no longer be used to promote her image. The song ‘Barracuda’ was written in the late ’70s as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women. (The ‘barracuda’ represented the business.) While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the RNC, there’s irony in Republican strategists’ choice to make use of it there.”
Heart are the latest rockers to butt heads with whoever chooses John McCain’s musical selections. Jackson Browne, John Mellencamp and members of Boston have all lashed out at GOP candidates for using their music without permission.
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:15 am
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John McCain’s Speech
But, mostly, there wasn't anything McCain said about HOW he would change the government, or stand up to corporate America OR help get things "back on track" and to the "basics".
He did say that Sarah Palin has "worked with her hands and nose..." which made me laugh out loud because it came across completely unintentional and innocent..so I wasn't laughing
at him, but more so, understanding that he's just not a public speaker and was doing the best he could and it was a comical slip...he then corrected himself quickly to
move on to say Sarah has worked with her hands and KNOWS etc.
Also, I think Presidents should have to be diplomats and bi-partisan and speak at BOTH conventions, or not speak at all. It is dangerous, especially watching Bush with his strange leer,
talking about how McCain was strong enough to stand up to attacks by the Vietnamese so he'll certainly be able to stand up to attacks by the extreme liberal left.
A President no longer seems to have the fortitude and wherewithall to be a leader for ALL of America, and we are perilously close to a corpocracy that will lock the door and throw
away the key for good.
Obama may not have certain experiences (Sarah Palin definately has more government experience), but I will give you this. There is something about him that rings true to me.
I pray to God that he speaks with determination, honesty and clarity about the change he will bring to Washington---that he lays out facts and plans, no matter how boring that is to
the American people---because this is, indeed, the time, and it is now or never.
posted by Sara Hickman at 05:08 am
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MY THOUGHTS on the RNC and why you should call in on behalf of these protesters
September 03, 2008
And may I say that the RNC on tv comes across as the worst sort of propaganda. I don't know about you, but I kept finding my mouth
dropping open...not from disbelief, but because I was falling asleep from the relentless malarky. Look, I don't have anything against John
McCain (except the way he talks about his wife is atrocious and inappropriate, so I wonder how he talks to his daughters. And the women
on his staff?) but to hear President Bush verbally attack those of opposing positions is so small minded, and to hear the audience roar
with appreciation has me completely worried about this country. This "us" and "them" mentality has got to stop. Although there was
some of the same tom foolery at the DNC, I HEARD Obama clearly say, "Let's stop the accusations of who is less patriotic and get to the core issues."
I'm reading "What is the What" and if you haven't read it, give it some of your time. If only because it is the reality of what happens to human
beings when governments/tribes/people get out of control and wreak real havoc without care for the outcome or longterm damage.
I tell you, this moment in history for the United States is crucial---the tipping point. If we continue to let corporations rule this country, I am
afraid all of our democracies will continue to decline and we are headed for a world in which there will be little chance of turning the tide.
This is the moment to speak out. This is the moment. And I say this as a woman with a smart head on her shoulders and experiences in the
world of corporate power, the worlds of those who have not, and those on the brink of becoming those who will have not.
CALL IN ON BEHALF OF THE FOLLOWING:
Action Alert: RNC Protesters and Journalists Arrested in St. Paul
From http://community.freespeech.org/action_alert_rnc_protesters_and_journalists_arrested_in_st_paul
Hundreds of protesters were arrested at Republican National Convention yesterday and on Sunday.
Journalists were harassed and arrested as well. Amy Goodman, Nicole Salazar, and Sharif Abdel Kaddous of Democracy Now! were arrested. Nicole Salazar was violently tackled by a Minneapolis Police officer (even though they were in St. Paul and video shows that the police knew she was a reporter); Salazar and Abdel Kaddous are now facing felony charges for "participating in a riot" and Goodman faces misdemeanor charges for obstructing a peace officer for asking the police why Salazar was being arrested.
Protect Free Speech and Independent Media!
Call St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman at 651-266-8510.
Call the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 x 0.
If you get no answer, keep calling!
Demand that those arrested be released and that the police cease all harassment and detention of peaceful protesters.
More Info:
http://tc.indymedia.org/
http://twitter.com/coldsnaplegal
http://theuptake.org/
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:12 am
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I’ll be sworn in tonight at City Hall in Austin!
September 02, 2008
Tonight I'll be sworn in at City Hall at 6 pm because I have been appointed by Councilwoman Laura Morrison to be on the Austin Music Commission. AMC is dedicated to informing
the City of Austin of the needs of our city's musicians and their families. I promise to do my best to speak out on behalf of US!
Waiting for the pilot of the Super Pal Universe footage; we are in the final stages of editing and I'm going to go over it with a fine tooth comb and make a few changes. Yes, I am a
taskmaster because these kids have worked super hard and dagnabit, I want this thing to be EXCELLENT before anyone sees it.
Waiting on the almost completed edit of the performance of Poor David's Pub...it will be released soon as a live DVD/CD! I sat down with Russell in Dallas last month and we talked through
edits, so looking forward to that arriving so I can make sure it, too, is tee-ri-fic before it goes to press.
Excited to have Shulz's Beer Garten here in Austin to come onboard as the venue for our MUSIC FOR LIFE Finale on October 1. Please come out and be a part of this year long event that is coming
to a close. This month we are in Waco (Oct 18) with the Austin Lounge Lizards! The Mayor of El Paso, Mayor John Cook, will most likely also be coming, as well as speakers, and I'll perform, again;
our finale will have Kinky Friedman, Terri Hendrix, Shelley King, me, the Mayor of El Paso and, hopefully, a very special surprise guest...along with speakers, who once I know who they are, I'll list here.
Brownies starts back up today. iolana's third year AND she's in third grade. We love her teacher. This should be a great year for her!
Junior high is a big change for all of us, but I think it is kickin' off alright for Lily. Riding the bus has been something I didn't think would be a part of our family life, but it seems to be working out
alright. And Lily has some really amazing teachers, too. She is very happy with her language arts teacher and is looking forward to Japanese Fine Arts. I hope to find some time to start watching the
Rosetta Stone we bought at Christmas so I can learn some Japanese phrases...
THIS WEEKEND:
Labor Day: Went with my family out to a lakehouse on Lake Travis where we cavorted in the sand, sun and surf in kayaks and with fishing poles, chips, root beer and tofu pups (vegetarian
hot dogs.) Here's something anyone who likes to fish probably already knows: fish do not like veggie dogs on the hook.
Came home from Boston, here's the follow up:
On the plane ride home from Boston, I lost half of my back molar. It just cracked in half. Don't worry! It didn't hurt, but boy-oh-boy, is it jaggedy! I don't know if I swallowed half of my tooth or what.
Somewhere, out there, is half a tooth....
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Club Passim: There were people present! Roger, my brain, was relieved! And people had REQUESTS! So I performed "Salvador" and "Best of Times" and everyone in attendance were very PRESENT. I had a good time
talking to Jeff afterwards. He was very enthusiastic! Thank you, Jeff! David Mauzy sent his friend, Tiffany, and her partner out to the show...I wish I could have talked with them afterwards. I'm glad they could come
out! Thanks, David!
THURSDAY: Hung out with Laurie. I actually relaxed and got a pedicure. Then, Laurie needed to get a bunch of school supplies for kids because her assistant, Debbie, is a social worker, too, and helps kids prep for school, so Laurie and I
went to Staples and used Laurie's coupons to buy enormous quantities of goods to help these kids. I was zooming around the store with a big cart getting folders, scissors, crayons, erasers, pencil sharpeners, and Laurie was zooming in the other direction getting pencil boxes, paperclips, filler paper, notebooks, you name it. We stopped at another store where she purchased some bedding goods and then to TJ Maxx before stopping at an Italian restaurant, where we met up with Danny Click (musician/great guy) to eat dinner. By then I was ready to hit the hay! I did end up sauntering over to the piano bar and singing "When I Fall In Love" with the pianist. That was fun! He told Laurie I was pretty good!
FRIDAY: Boston Children's Museum: FANTASTIC! Lots of families, lots of children, wonderful sound system, and all bundled under a HUGE white tent (with WINDOWS!) and a "Tower of Friends" (what I called the
giant wooden sitting area), singingand dancing along. I hope to get my music into the gift shop at BCM because it is a SUPER DUPER museum. Thanks to Club Passim and Charlie for getting me in the summer sing-a-long series!
I'd love to return next year. I really need to do a "Mother Hugger" tour because, I swear, hugging and connecting is really the best part of what I am blessed to be able to do...
Fox Run (Sudbury, MA): Fantastic, as always. I met Shelley, a sweet woman and her husband, Brett (who I kept calling RHETT until I realized there was a "B" sound before the "R" sound...doh!) and my mom's awesome
friend of 45 years came out with her neighbor of 40 years! and towards the end of the show there was a group of six folks who had smiles like Cheshire cats and I had to jump in and smile with them.
Smiliness rules, especially SINCERE SMILINESS! Neil did a superb job on the live sound and recorded the performance, so maybe there's something I can upload to the website...who knows?!
Adam Klein (formerly of WBOS, where I met him so many years ago) came out and that just made me hap-hap-happy! Thank you, Adam! Danny Click opened the evening: great guitarist, super spirit.
He used to play with Jimmy La Fave, and he is going to be playing slide on "State of Emergency", a song I wrote for Wendy and Mike, a couple who have two children that are autistic. Mike wrote a book
about autism and asked me to write a song that they can include on a cd in the back, so after reading his book, there was no way I wasn't going to write a song for them. Thank you, Neale, for helping us
get Danny on tape!
Staying at Fox Run is really nice because they provided me with my own room/bath, they have excellent snacks (they have DRAWERS OF ORGANIZED snacks, I am not kidding you), they also have HEALTHY snacks
(grapes, peaches, juices, water...) and Laurie and Neale are very good folks. So is Deb, their assistant. And their dog, Carrie, looks like a tiny wind up mop, all white and furry/hairy with a dot of a black nose and two
shining eyes hidden in all the wispy bangs. Sudbury is just a gorgeous, old old town. Many of the homes were built in the 1700-1800's, and the lazy lawns full of flowers and trees and everything so
well-kept and loved. I walked around in the little downtown areas and meandered in and out of shops, eating, finally, at the Lotus Garden, reading a local paper about homes for sale. They call them "antiques", not "old houses."
So I ate and fantasized about living on property with an old red barn and a creek and having a horse or two. Nice way to relax.
READING:
I'm currently reading "What is the What" by Dave Eggers.
Last book I read was "Twilight" by Stephanie Meyers and "The Vampire Armand" (Anne Rice).
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:52 am
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Here I am…At Club Passim…in Boston…in the back…waiting…
August 27, 2008
Tick tock.
Hmm. I wonder what John Gorka is doing tonight? What is Carole King doing tonight? What is Annette Funicello doing tonight? Is Annette Funicello still alive? Am I spelling her name right? Do I get pre-show jitters? Yes. Will I throw up? No. Did I have a lovely salad? Yes, I did. Is my rental car fast? Yes. Will I get a speeding ticket? No.
Especially since that last one in New Mexico. Will I sell cds tonight? I hope so. Is anyone reading this blog entry? I don't know. Do I care? Yes, indeed, I do care!
You know, this seems like a good time to have another conversation with Roger, my brain. It's been such a long time that I've gotten to actually noodle
on my blog. I think I will noodle now.
ME: Roger. Wake up.
ROGER: Uh, HELLO. I'm obviously wide awake. I'm doing all the typing, sister.
ME: Don't get smart with me.
ROGER: I'll be smart with you because I am you, you nitwit.
ME: Nitwit! Hey, that reminds me. You know the word "nimrod"?
ROGER: I already know what you're going to say.
ME: Look, I know you know, but let's say someone from the intergalactic galaxy of the internet surfs on by and stops in and thinks, "This is odd. A woman who talks to her brain and shares the conversations. Hmm. I shall have a look-see!", then I think it is only appropriate you let me spell out what I was going to say.
ROGER: Be my guest. I'm still way ahead of you, though. I'll be typing it before you think it.
ME: STOP IT! Ok. (Regaining composure, fixing hair.) Back to what it was I was going to SHARE with everyone. "Nimrod" was a dumb king. Did you know that?
ROGER: Why must you ask me if I know something when I already told you I do?
ME: It's a figure of speech. I mean, a figure of typing.
ROGER: I've got you typecast. Ha ha ha! (You can't hear this, but my brain is laughing very loudly at me inside my head.)
ME: You've lost your mind.
ROGER: Ahem. I think it would be YOU that has lost your mind.
ME: I'm going to tell everyone what you just thought.
ROGER: No, you won't.
ME: You're right, I won't. I'm going to report on something else. Like how nice the soundman, Scott, is here at Club Passim. How parking to perform here costs $30, so I better sell at least two cds tonight to pay for that.
ROGER: Stop worrying. Just get out there and have fun and think how lucky you are that your fingers work.
ME: That's true. I'm glad I can play the guitar. I just feel old sometimes.
ROGER: Think about the fact that there will always be someone older than you. Do you hear them complaining?
ME: No, but they aren't inside my head having these crazy conversations with me. Maybe if they were in here with us they WOULD be complaining.
ROGER: Yawn.
ME: This greenroom is an office with a curtain covered in fruits, right next to the bathroom. I have a funny job! I never know what to expect one performance to the next.
ROGER: The elderly couple on the plane today was very kind. Remember them? They were older than you. They shuffled when they walked and they STILL used their manners.
ME: That's true. They were so sweet. They both had white hair. The little old man had an orange pillow he brought to sit on. That was cute. And then he carried all his wife's belongings. They were like high school sweethearts. Only with wrinkles.
ROGER: That's going to be you any minute.
ME: Where does the time go?
ROGER: Speaking of going, why don't you go to the bathroom before you go up on stage so you won't have to take a break?
ME: Good idea. Remember that time in the Lonestar Dub Band, when I played keyboards in that reggae band, and I wore a leather mini-skirt and fish net
stockings and had to leave the stage to go pee? Greg, the leader, was looking at me all cross-eyed as I said "Excuse me" in his ear, hopped off the stage,
and then came back. They were still playing the same song and I just jumped up and started jamming again. Good trick, really! Good thing reggae is so long!
Whew.
ROGER: You better make a set list.
ME: You're right. Ok, I'll get off the computer now and hope when I walk out there that there will be 50 people in the audience.
ROGER: 50?! Don't you want more?
ME: Well, at this point, I'm hoping for 50. It sounds deadly quiet out there. I'm sure my booking agency will find out about this and it will be
back to the bunker for me. How'm I gonna get people out to hear me?
ROGER: Don't fret. Someone will read this entry and give you some ideas. Surely, SOMEONE will read this drivel.
ME: Hey!
ROGER: (Low cough) Sometimes I forget we're attached, you know. I have a mind all of my own, really.
ME: (Rolling my eyes.)
posted by Sara Hickman at 04:09 pm
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Great speech, Hillary!
August 26, 2008
speak.
But...when Hillary spoke tonight, I was proud. I was laughing out loud ("Traveling Sisterhood of the Pantsuits!") and finding myself teary
eyed over references to women's rights and the history of the suffragettes.
As some of you know, I haven't always been much of a fan of Hillary's, especially after meeting her two years back; I was really
disappointed when I found her to seem even more stoic, more of a political player, in person. I hadn't walked into the dinner, then,
expecting that of her....I don't know who I thought I was going to meet, but I felt sad when I walked away that night.
And now...she is warm. She is wearing orange, a color of hope, of the sun. Her being out there in among us all these last 18 months brought her to who
she really is, who she really can be. A beacon of beauty. And I sincerely mean that in the deepest sense of
the word---someone who has grown, grown in wisdom and thought, and recognizes the power of her gifts, of her unique position and
how that position can actually change lives...and by changing lives, she can help to change this world.
I felt she "passed the torch" beautifully, as well, on to Barack, and she did so with grace, humor and intelligence---Molly Ivans would
have been proud, and I was very much missing Molly tonight! (As well as Ann and Liz and all the great Texas women of wit and umph!) The references---
"Were you in it for me ... or for the soldier, the young woman with cancer, the single working mom just making it---?" and her closing with a nod to my favorite heroine,
Harriet Tubman, cheered me and thrilled me to no end in that she married the concept of an African-American AND a woman in one fell swoop: reminding
us that Harriet carried on, never giving up, even in the darkest of night...moving on even as "the dogs were barking, the torches were coming closer"---Hillary
implored us to keep believing, keep struggling and fighting for freedom!
I am off to Boston. Come out and celebrate with me at Club Passim tomorrow night...or Friday afternoon at the Boston Children's museum, or Fox Run on Friday
night!
Pray for my friend, Wendy, as she undergoes surgery on Thursday morning.
Pray for my safe travels so that I can return home to my husband and daughters....
Pray for sanity, for reason, for healthy debate and dialogue and growth in this country.
And celebrate all the blessings in your life...take some cookies to your neighbors today...help mow the lawn of someone elderly!
Go watch a little league game and cheer on the teams! Be glad you can put gas in your car, even if it is $3.45 or more a gallon...
Be grateful! Be joy filled!
And...a special salute here to the Summerfolk Festival in OWEN SOUND, CANADA...Thank you to Richard for bringing me up
and to all the good folks who enjoyed my music, to all the great musicians I met (David Roth, Natalia Zuckerman, Twilight Hotel,
David Amran, the wonderful drummer from Diggin' Roots who gave me a two hour ride back to Toronto when I missed my shuttle and would
have missed my flight! and everyone I am forgetting at the moment...)
I LOVE Canada...the air was brilliant clear and clean, the double rainbow my first day there, the sound engineers, the craftspeople and their booths
(the two young ladies who gave me the henna lotus on my right hand), the amazing food (fries with cheese and gravy!?), the volunteers, the stages
and songwriters and children and families...Thank you for the opportunities!!! Summerfolk RULES!
XOX
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:26 pm
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SARA on the radio in NEW YORK Saturday, August 23, 11 am
August 22, 2008
wjffradio.org
at 11 am, following "car talk"
(if you test the feed the hour before, you should hear "car talk")
sara taped at SUMMERFEST FOLK FESTIVAL last weekend in Owen Sound, Canada!
FolkPlus/Hydro-Powered Public Radio WJFF
with Angela Page
Setlists: http://www.wjffradio.org/FolkPlus
Reviewer: Sing Out! Magazine
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:28 am
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PLEASE BOYCOTT this company: FOUR PAWS
August 21, 2008
Please visit and read/witness the following:
http://www.thechaistory.blogspot.com/
I have written Four Paws and requested they immediately remove and destroy any and all Pimple Balls (with bell)
before any other animals have to suffer the same unneccessary fate as Chai.
Love,
Sara
HERE IS THE RESPONSE I RECEIVED just now (one hour later) from the company. I hope they will assist Chai in his healing and help the dog owner with expenses....
Thank you for your recent note expressing concern over the Four Paws® Pimple Ball with Bell. We were equally alarmed to learn that a dog may have injured himself while playing with this toy.
Dogs have been enjoying the Pimple Ball with Bell for more than a decade with over 500,000 units sold. In all the years this product has been on the market, this is the first injury of this nature that we are aware of. Unfortunately, accidents sometimes happen. That’s why we recommend that dogs always be supervised when they are playing with any toy. We take great care in developing safe products for pets and their owners.
At this point we have identified the problem and are not shipping any more Pimple Balls. We have contacted customers that carry this product and have asked them to immediately return their inventory.
Thank you for your concern and feedback. Please know that we are in direct communication with the pet owner whose dog was injured. At Four Paws, happy pets and satisfied pet owners are our number one priority. Rest assured we will continue to work hard to deliver on our priority.
Sincerely,
Allen Simon
President, CEO
Four Paws Products
Sent by Haley Birk on behalf of Allen Simon
posted by Sara Hickman at 12:22 pm
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Comment on “The One”
August 19, 2008
I heard you at Summerfolk this past weekend and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I was particularly touched by your song about Seung-Hui Cho's mother at the 'Heart of the Matter' workshop. For almost ten years I've wrestled with the murder of Matthew Shepard (yet another devistating heatache) and something in your song resonated with that sorrow. Thanks for challenging us to think differently - I was very moved.
What is the name of the song? Is there any chance you'll be recording it?
Thanks again!
Barry
Dear Barry,
Thank you for hearing my song and letting it touch you. It means so much to me when I get a letter like yours...
Your mentioning Matthew Shepherd reminded me that I had always wanted to write a song in his honor, too, but I just never did. That is an incredibly horrific story, and one that should never be forgotten---especially in this era when governments are condoning violence...
So, to answer your question, yes, I recorded the song ("The One") and made a video, as well. If you go to my website (http://www.sarahickman.com) and click on the "Start the Dialogue" link, it will take you to a site I started to get people talking. You'll see a bunch of videos there, and if you click on "The One", you can hear and see the song.
Bless you and thank you, again, for writing (and listening!)
In Grace and Gratitude,
Sara
posted by Sara Hickman at 07:51 am
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Lily is 12 today! I’m off to Canada! I cut my hair short! We looked at our great grandfather’s…
August 15, 2008
Hooray for Lily! I printed out a journal I started before she was born and kept for years and years and made a couple of books
for her to enjoy about her life so far! Sing happy birthday to her wherever you are! And happy birthday to iolana (June 22)
and to Lance (Sept 14) and to you today if it is your birthday, too!
Peace out, y'all!
posted by Sara Hickman at 01:54 am
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sarahickman.com | Bio | Music | Shows | Press | Store | Community | Zooks
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Whether you've learned about Sara Hickman through her music, her family, her causes, or her films, you know that her originality, creativity, and enthusiasm bring a fresh meaning to the well-worn phrase "living life to the fullest."
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Motherlode
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Faithful Heart
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Big Kid
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I Am Going On A Journey: the DVD
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