Sheridan, Wyoming Weekly Vigil

Helen and Gerry joined Marya and several others at the weekly Tuesday vigil in Sheridan, Wyoming yesterday.  We were able to talk to several passersby and several people honked and waved as they drove by.

Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park June 24 – 27, 2011

We hiked and kayaked our way around the Grand Teton range, then spent an evening and morning at Artist Point / Upper and Lower Falls / Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone before driving further into North Central Wyoming.  

Spending 2-3 nights in one area allows us to really relax and enjoy the scenery around us.

We saw antelope, deer, elk, and a bear.  We also saw osprey, ravens, mergansers, white pelicans, swans, and many other birds.

Seattle Adventures June 13 - 20 2011

Seattle Adventures

On Monday, June 13 Gerry put me on a plane from San Diego to Seattle for Jordan’s high school graduation.  I found out Friday that Jordan wouldn’t be walking in the ceremony, but had lots planned so didn’t cancel the trip.  Lissa picked me up at the airport and brought me home where an airbed from the neighbor was ready to be inflated – cool – very cool – a 2-layer bed, about 10” high and very comfortable! 

June 14 was Bill and Lissa’s 31^st wedding anniversary!

                                          

I went to the Tuesday weekly vigil at the Federal Building, anchored by Joe Colgan and Dave Cannis.  It was great to see so many friends there including Jack and Linda!

Tuesday night was the West Seattle High School graduation ceremony and Alexis was playing with the band and Gary and Melanie were going as well.  I went to the house and talked for awhile with our friend Jim, who is living with his two cats in the RV while he recovers from pneumonia and possibly a lump in his lung.  Eventually Gary came home to give me keys to the Honda.  I asked Jordan if he’d like to go out to dinner with me and he said yes.  I asked him to be straight and sober so that we could talk.  By the time I took Gary downtown and picked up my stuff from Lissa’s, Jordan had left the house.  I talked with Jim some more.  Eventually Gary and Melanie got back, and after awhile Jordan showed up.  I asked him if he was ready to go out to dinner and he said he was leaving again and had a friend waiting outside.

I spent the night at Judy & Don’s – they have a comfortable futon sofa bed.

Wednesday 6-15-11 I went to Linda and Richard’s in Kenmore and helped them build a big sign! 

I helped Richard with an experiment and ended up spending the night at their house.  We had a wonderful meal that night at a local restaurant, and Linda and I had a very enjoyable breakfast out as well.  It was great to spend so much time with them! 

Two things happened while I was at Linda and Richard’s – one is that Gary called to say that Jordan was being kicked out of the house.  Apparently he came in at 3:30 am, ate a meal, and ran off with Melanie’s laptop.  He eventually came back to the house during the day and Gary informed him that he had to move out.  He tried to argue that he had not stolen the laptop and tried to put forth an alibi, but agreed to move out anyway.  The other is that I did not set myself an alarm and consequently did not get on the GI Resistance Working Group conference call – nobody took notes – I’m really upset with myself for letting down the group and Gerry!

Thursday 6-15-11 By the time I got to Judy’s it was around 1 and kind of cold and windy, so we took a walk instead of a boat paddle.  I went to the Seattle Against FBI Repression rally from 4:30 – 5:30 at the FBI / Fusion center at 3^rd & Spring.  There were signs and speeches and flyers.  Again, nice to see so many friends!  I don’t have any of my own pictures, but I’m in Elliot Stohler’s movie at the end. 

Finally, I met my some of my fellow Cuba delegation members (Shan, Cindy, Michelle, Stephanie and Cindy) at the New Orlean’s café.

I also went to see Jordan Thursday.  Gary called me to tell me that Jordan was coming over to get his stuff to move in with Taylor, so I went over and was there when he came in with Taylor and two rolling suitcases.  I said Hi and offered him my backpack, saying that he could pack it like he was going hiking and have an easier time with his stuff.  He declined, but might take me up on it some other time.  I said goodbye and wished him luck – it wasn’t tearful – he’s only staying with a friend in SeaTac.  I also told him that if he wanted to go on a trip with me he had to go through the Encompass program and try to have a relationship with me.  He didn’t sound very disappointed.

Melanie told me that if Jordan wasn’t going on a trip that Alexis would very much like to.  Melanie’s vacation is from August 22 through September 16, so I’ll discuss our schedule with Gerry and think about it.

On Friday I got to have lunch with Percy Hilo and also got to visit with Alonso.  Judy and I had dinner and a drag queen show at Julia’s on Capitol Hill.  What a HOOT!  I spent the night there – good thing – it was after midnight by the time we got home.

Saturday 6-18-11 I got up and went to the VFP 92 GMM.  There was a good presentation by a Duwamish tribal leader regarding the history of the river and current cleanup efforts.  I’ll type up the minutes of the meeting and send to Tom Shea in case mine are more complete than his.

I had a good visit with Cliff Wells after the meeting.

Nickelsville had an open house from 2 – 5, so I bought some meat and salads and headed over.  They’re at the bottom of the Highland Park hill, their original location.  Peggy, Scott, and Richard are the people there that I know best and Dorli showed up as well.


I went back to Bill & Lissa’s for awhile before heading to dinner with Sharon and Felix.

Sharon looks great!  She’s lost 30 pounds!  They eat a mostly vegan diet and the spaghetti was delicious – a soy-based sauce, really good.  We talked about world affairs and I didn’t get back to Bill & Lissa’s until around 10 pm – we didn’t get to bed until almost midnight.

Sunday was spent at the Alaska Junction.  At 11, Al, Kim and I met at Puerta Vallarta for lunch then joined the West Seattle vigil. 
 

Sam Scharff and I went out for coffee and a cupcake afterwards.  I found out from Al that the white Volvo no longer starts – likely the battery has gone dead, so I’ll try to start it when I get back to Seattle in July or August.  I got back to Bill & Lissa’s and am just hanging out doing these notes.

Some thoughts about the world:

As I peel back the onion of the world’s situation and the causes of the problems, I think that unregulated corporate capitalism is one of the roots of the problem – greed, in other words.  I feel like throwing rocks at the corporate windows and one of those rocks might be a constitutional amendment that eliminates corporate personhood and rights.  Another is independence from the corporate world in our communities including food, water, and energy – the basics.  This is where I think I’ll be putting my life energy – helping communities to organize gardens, water catchment and renewable energy including micro-grids.

Cuba reactions –

Many people believe that the Castros are brutal dictators and that communism is really evil.  Who can blame them with the propaganda that comes our way from mainstream media. 

However, one thing I hear about is that the people of Cuba don’t have the right to criticize their government.  Although there’s some truth about that, it’s more of the case that the Cuban communist party is protecting the socialized economy and gains of the revolution against the covert CIA organizations that produce counter-revolutionary propaganda to try to bring down the Cuban government. 

It is unfortunate that after Fidel the new president is Raul because it gives the impression of a kingdom / monarchy rather than the democracy that really exists.  I’m experimenting with answers to these concerns and am getting better at it every time I talk with someone. 

Another concern is the poverty of the people and the question – did the revolution really help the people? 

Recovering from trip to Cuba and Activist San Diego

I'll post more about my trip to Cuba but want to start blogging more frequently.  We've been in San Diego since May 25 and really enjoying the city, our friends, the Tijuana River Estuary, the Pacific Ocean, and the night life.  The weather here is excellent!!  The clouds don't deter me from enjoying the great outdoors and we've had a real rain only once in over two weeks.

We went to a board meeting of Activist San Diego.  I met some friends of Gerry's and other activists.  We heard from a man who has done extensive research into voting processes - he advocates for publishing a voter's identification number and how the person with that ID # voted on the web (or some other place) so that every voter can verify that their vote was properly counted.  Secret non-verifiable voting, he contends, has led to corruption and voter fraud since the mid-1800s when it was introduced.  Secret voting is one of the things we have always heard the benefits of but never had discussions about the down sides.

27 Activists arrested at the White House April 10, 2011

 On Sunday, April 10, 27 human rights activists were arrested in front of the White House when they staged a die-in on the White House sidewalk to call attention to thousands of Latin Americans who were murdered by graduates of the U.S. Army School of the Americas. The die-in followed a march of hundreds of human rights activists to the White House. The march included torture survivors, union workers, educators and students from across the Americas. Marchers carried banners, flags and large puppets, including a 14-foot tall Mother of the Disappeared with them to the White House.

To see more pictures: SOA Watch Latin America Solidarity Coalition March Rally Arrests April 10, 2011

                        

Still on Vacation!

Although we're both behind on our activist duties, I still couldn't face the idea of being anywhere near a city, so we stopped at Lake Berryessa, where we got to see Pereguin Falcons mating while were out on a rented kayak.

Oops! "Irene" ends up in the ditch!

Gerry was trying to find his brother's house and was turning around from a wrong turn when he found himself up off the ground, one set of duals in a ditch and the rig resting (fortunately) on its side trim.  The tow truck driver pulled us out sideways, and there's no apparent damage to the rig, although we're not sure yet.

On Vacation - Finally!

I went pretty literally crazy the other day and had to get out of the city.  We started down Skyline Drive out of San Francisco and ended up at Portolo Park, which is pretty, but still closed for the season - the ranger ran us out, but we still managed to have a picnic.

We had to go to Belmont for a dentist appointment Monday (March 28), but I went crazy again right after the appointment, so my WONDERFUL partner took me to Pt. Reyes.  On Tuesday we got a 12.6 mile hike to the summit of Mt. Wittenberg and down to the ocean and I felt MUCH better!!!

Code Pink Bares it all for Bradley Manning in San Francisco Mar 22, 2011

More than a dozen activists stood at the door of Senator Diane Feinstein's office in downtown San Francisco today to demand that Bradley Manning, accused Wikileaker, be treated humanely and released from the brig at Quantico, VA.  We were there for more than an hour and two TV stations covered the event. (I'm 4th from the left.)

Bradley has for the past two weeks been forced to stand naked at attention morning and night as part of the campaign to punish him before he is tried of a crime.  Ms. Feinstein refuses to get involved with the case.

The 23 hours per day solitary confinement for 10 months amounts to torture, which Obama claimed that the U.S. does not do.  We need to step up the pressure on all parts of the government to get better treatment for him - take him off of the "Prevention of Injury" watch and off of the maximum security designation.

Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul have repeatedly requested entry to the brig to see for themselves the conditions under which Bradley is being held, but so far, the military has denied them entrance.  This is OUTRAGEOUS!

For more pictures, see Code Pink Bares It All! and Code Pink pictures

AntiWar Rally in San Francisco Mar 19, 2011

If you would like to see all of the pictures from the event, click this link:

 AntiWar Rally in San Francisco Mar 19, 2011

Around 2000 people showed up including SEIU Local 2, ANSWER, Courage To Resist, Code Pink, IVAW, VFP, and LOTS of other groups!

Most of the VFP contingent posed for a picture

We got to be on stage while Camillo Mejia was speaking, so got this shot with a great San Francisco background.

Gerry and Helen and Anne, who is from Willits - several people from Willets came to the event.

Willits community vigil

Gerry and I attended the weekly vigil held in Willits every Friday.  This group of friends has been holding vigil since before the start of the Iraq war and haven't missed even one Friday, regardless of the weather!

Stop Torturing Bradley Manning

I sent this underwear and a letter to the brig commander at Quantico where Bradley Manning is being held.  The letter reads:
March 11, 2011

Quantico Brig Commanding Officer
CW02 Denise Barnes
3247 Elrod Avenue
Quantico, VA  22134

Dear Ms. Barnes,

Bradley Manning must be presumed innocent until proven guilty!  He is not suicidal and represents no threat to himself or others!

End the TORTURE NOW!  Lift the "Prevention of Injury" watch order NOW!  Treat him like other prisoners who are awaiting trial.  23 hours of solitary confinement, sleeping under a stiff, scratchy cardboard "blanket" NAKED, and not seeing daylight for months on end is tantamount to torture - stop the inhumane treatment NOW!

Helen Jaccard

Lost Coast Before the Tsunami

If you drive from Ferndale toward the coast you'll find a little-used sometimes dirt road that winds steeply South along the coast and across mountainous cliffs.  There is the occasional ranch house and infrequently a pickup truck goes by - sometimes you have to pull off to the side of the road to let someone by, as it's a one-lane road in places.

Toward the end of the road are two day-use BLM areas - this area was once used by the military and the BLM hasn't decided what to do with it yet.  Although people along the coast know of "Lost Coast", they usually don't know anything about this part of it that dead ends at someone's home.

We spent the night at the furthest area, arriving after dark.  Soon after we arrived, a storm came in, making the RV rock from all directions all night.  The morning brought a bit of a sun break so we walked down 1/2 miles of steep terrain to the beach and back.  The remnants of the Japanese tsunami hit the coast about noon that day, but we were already gone and completely unaware of the earthquake and tsunami.

VFP Northern California Convention

Phil's summary of the VFP Northern California Convention in Ukiah, CA on March 4-6, 2011 is so good that I decided to start with it and edit my own later (see below).  It was an excellent conference and we're really glad to have attended.  Approximately 50 people were there on Saturday - we met many wonderful, dedicated activists and made lots of new friends!

One thing I'm really upset about is the new torture procedure laid on Bradley Manning, where he is forced to sleep naked under a stiff, scratchy wool cardboard "blanket", then stand at attention naked each morning to receive his underwear back for the day.  The wool is giving him a rash, and now he has no underwear to protect his privates from it.  THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!!!  As soon as I can get to a thrift store, I'm going to buy some men's underwear, write STOP THE TORTURE on it, and send it to the brig commander, base commander, the Pentagon and The White House.  I know it will take weeks to clear through security, so I'll also be sending postcards to the above.  In addition, I want to write letters to editors of local newspapers (words such as these):

U.S. GOVERNMENT POLICY: FORCED NUDITY ADDED TO TORTURE OF INNOCENT ARMY PRIVATE WHO FACES POSSIBLE DEATH PENALTY

PFC Bradley Manning, accused of releasing video and documents to WikiLeaks, has been charged with "aiding the enemy", which carries a death penalty as punishment.  Contrary to the psychologists and medical doctors at the Quantico, VA Marine Brig, his captors are now forcing him to surrender his underwear every night for 7 hours and sleep completely nude under a stiff, scratchy wool/cardboard "blanket".  I call on all concerned citizens to contact the Quantico Brig, their senators and representatives in Congress and demand an end to the 23 hour a day solitary confinement and torture of Bradley.  The brig psychologists have determined that he is not a danger to himself and others and should not be the recipient of this harsh treatment.    

President Obama said that we don't torture our prisoners - this is not true - we do, if they are political prisoners, even before they are convicted of anything.  We are all supposed to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, right?

Bradley Manning tried to inform his command of the war crimes he read about as an intelligence officer.  They told him to cover it up.  He refused and followed his conscience, the Nuremburg Principles, and the Geneva Conventions by informing the public - he is a HERO, not a criminal.  Exposing war crimes is a duty, not a crime!

Helen Jaccard

____________________

Report from Veterans for Peace Regional Convention in Ukiah March 4-6, 2011

by Phil Pflager

VFP101 members Anne & Phil Pflager and George Johnson attended the conference and agree that the trip to Ukaih was worth the drive. In addition to good presentations the food was excellent. The Ukiah chapter, VFP116, worked to gain access to the Ukiah Veterans building for a nominal fee. Other veteran groups chartered by congress have free use of the building and some of those groups feel that since Veterans for Peace is not chartered they should pay the same price as the general public for use of the building. VFP116 is working to correct that situation.

The Veterans Building has a kitchen so VFP116 hired a caterer to serve all meals. The cost of meals was included in the attendance fee of $50.00. Not bad for dinner Friday, breakfast lunch and dinner Saturday and breakfast and lunch Sunday. It was a great idea to have the meals in the building because it kept the group together and gave people more time to get to know one another.

The Friday night social started out with poetry, music by Annie and the Vets then ended with song by the Ukiah Raging Grannies. After introductions Saturday Fredy Champagne of chapter 22 gave a rousing introduction to their project the "Golden Rule." The Golden Rule is a thirty-foot ketch that sailed into the U.S. government nuclear testing zone in the Pacific. After several decades the Golden Rule was battered by storm and sunk off Eureka. It was salvaged by a local shipyard owner and was to be cut up until VFP chapters in Garberville and Humboldt Bay got involved and decided to restore it to carry on the struggle against nuclear weapons and warfare. (from Grandmothers for Peace International spring 2011) For more information on the Golden Rule project see:

The Golden Rule Project
http://www.heritech.com/goldenrule/goldenrule.htm

Saturday after lunch a representative of each of the VFP groups attending gave a group report then Jeff Patterson of "Courage to Resist" did a presentation about Bradley Manning and the tortuous conditions he is being held under. Courage to Resist is funding a lawyer to assist Bradley in his defense and states that "Blowing the whistle on war crimes is not a crime." It appears that the military is trying to break Manning so they can avoid an embarrassing trial. For more information on the situation please visit:
www.couragetoresist.org

There was a "Utilizing Social Media presentation" on media Saturday afternoon that demonstrated that press releases are important and should be written like a news story, not like a press release. It is better to hold actions in the morning or early afternoon, not at noon or six pm when the news is on the air.

Peter Phillips was the keynote speaker Saturday evening. He did a powerful presentation that I captured with my Flip Cam. I have posted the thirty-minute presentation on YouTube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgDeoW4mJ3c

After breakfast Sunday morning members had the opportunity to give a short presentation on any subject of interest to the group. George spoke about "Banished Veterans" and I talked about the advantage of having someone in the group like Doug Nelson who is knowledgeable of veterans rights to help them to find the route to benefits legally granted them.

George decided to stay over until Monday to deal with the VFP table while Anne and I left Ukiah before lunch. It was a good meeting and I hope one day we can hold a central California convention in the Bay Area.

Phil Pflager
Chapter Contact VFP101

Veterans for Peace Ukiah regional convention (10min)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsHr8rUb5rE

The adventure continues in Oregon and California

Before leaving Seattle, we went to the Nickelsville (Homeless Tent Camp) Pancake Breakfast Benefit on February 5.  The event was well attended both by Veterans For Peace (around 10 members) and by other supporters.

The Portland, Oregon VFP chapter is hosting the National VFP convention in August, so we attended their planning meeting.  We'll help spread the word about the convention wherever we are.

The RV is serving us well, although we have had to get some repairs made and there are more yet to do.  Both of the beds work well, although the upper one is more comfortable and larger.

We attended the Western Conference of the Coalition Against FBI Repression in San Francisco on February 12.  There were many good panels and presentations; however, the lack of workshops and discussions was disappointing.

We've been dancing and/or day-hiking almost daily and eating healthy meals.  Our health is good and we're happy - retirement is great!  We had a marvelous time at Half Moon Bay dancing with friends and brought fresh crab back to family in the Sacramento valley.  Our biggest problem so far is that the bike rack we bought was a very poor design - it added 5 ft to the back of the RV meaning we could no longer park in normal spaces and the rubber handles that held the velcro in place failed on Highway 1.  We no longer have bicycles and probably won't replace them right away.

Courage To Resist has a new office in Oakland, so we visited Jeff Paterson there and discussed the campaign to improve Bradley Manning's confinement conditions.  He continues to be on 23 hours of solitary confinement and other restrictions despite our efforts.  The torture he is enduring is taking its toll on him physically and mentally.

Gerry was on Jefferson Public Radio in Medford on Feb 18 for an hour, then gave a talk about Bradley Manning and war resisters the next day at a public meeting which was attended by about 40 people.  We stayed in the Ashland / Medford / Grants Pass area and were able to attend a concert of five peace choirs and stand for peace with a couple that does so every day that the weather will allow (wow!).  A man from Shanghai, China came by and took our picture for a Chinese newspaper and said that the Chinese people don't like war any more than we do.

We did it!

Gerry and I have started our mobile activist life.  We're out of the apartment and out of Seattle, living in the 21 ft. Dolphin mini-motor home and couch surfing with friends.  It feels so good to have downsized so much, but there is much to do - we'll still have to reduce our possessions by about 1/2.

Gerry spoke both on the radio and at Western Washington University last week about Bradley Manning and war resistance.  There was a good turnout and we were able to say goodbye to several friends.