It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…
“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor”
– Archbishop Desmond Tutu
This week:
Armani’s Mambo
Women’s Rights with Amanda Gorman
The latest chapter in our deepening moral and political crisis in the US
The American economy is lumbering under monopoly and oligopoly
Did you see the Super Flower Blood Moon last Sunday?
Student with non-speaking autism gives powerful valedictorian speech
Strangers save a woman who had a medical episode while driving
Boxer Terence Crawford’s 7 year old daughter loses her shoe, then dominates field in stunning track meet
Armani’s Mambo to Feel From the Soul:
Reset your soul scape with this original composition by my son Arman:
Armani’s Mambo is an original Mambo inspired by Latin legends such as La Sonora Santanera, Poncho Sanchez, Louie Cruz Beltran and more… Vamos a Bailar!
The latest chapter in our deepening moral and political crisis in the US-
The Numbers Don’t Lie in America’s Gun Violence Problem:
Over the past decade, the Anti-Defamation League has counted about 450 U.S. murders committed by political extremists.
Of these 450 killings, right-wing extremists committed about 75 percent. Islamic extremists were responsible for about 20 percent, and left-wing extremists were responsible for 4 percent.
Nearly half of the murders were specifically tied to white supremacists:
Source: Anti-Defamation League
As this data shows, the American political right has a violence problem that has no equivalent on the left. And the 10 victims in Buffalo this past weekend are now part of this toll. “Right-wing extremist violence is our biggest threat,” Jonathan Greenblatt, the head of the ADL, has written. “The numbers don’t lie.”
Buffalo is part of that unfolding American tragedy:
Events in Buffalo require a response that goes far beyond allyship…
The American Economy is lumbering under monopoly and oligopoly-
What BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street are doing to the Economy:
Their combined $22 trillion in managed assets is equivalent to more than half of the combined value of all shares for the companies in the S&P 500 (about $38 trillion)
The world’s oldest person is a French nun who enjoys chocolate and wine A 118-year-old nun living in a nursing home in southern France has become the world’s oldest living person, according to the Guinness World Records.
There’s a reason humans melt when they see ‘puppy dog eyes,’ new research reveals Researchers compared facial movements among wolves and dogs, finding that the domestication and the desire to be chosen has shaped dogs’ muscles.
My neighbor got a pre-declined credit card in the mail.
CEO’s are now playing miniature golf.
Exxon-Mobil laid off 25 Congressmen.
I saw a Mormon with only one wife.
McDonald’s is selling the 1/4 ouncer.
Angelina Jolie adopted a child from America.
Parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children’s names.
A truckload of Americans was caught sneaking into Mexico.
A picture is now only worth 200 words.
The Treasure Island casino in Las Vegas is now managed by Somali pirates.
Called to get Blue Book Value on my car. They asked if gas tank was full or empty.
And finally…
I was so depressed last night thinking about the economy, wars, jobs, my savings, Social Security, retirement funds, etc., I called the Suicide Hotline. I got a call center in Afghanistan, and when I told them I was suicidal, they got all excited, and asked if I could drive a truck.
(Suicide is no joke. If you are struggling please call 800-273-8255.)
Gratitude-
Thanks this week go to Starla L, UCSD Alumni everywhere, Bob C, & The Mission Fed ArtWalk Team with help from Simpler and Simpler
Please Pay It Forward, Share with your Social Network and Subscribe to make it easier to get this to you…
Global and local implications of looming climate catastrophe continue unabated. What will it take for us to attend to this perilous condition without denying reality on the one hand, or awfulizing it on the other?
Here are some powerful examples of what is happening that are worth our attention, and some positive responses both from indigenous traditions as well as from modern science…
Outside the Supreme Court, A Life of Purpose and Pain Ends in Flames:
Wynn Bruce, whose life was shaped by a devastating car accident and Buddhism, set himself on fire on Earth Day in what his father believes was a climate change protest. If the world ignores Bruce’s death and disregards the warnings from scientists about the actions needed to curb the world’s warming, they argued, millions more people will die by fire.
“We See the Storm Coming”: U.S. Struggles to Contain a Deepening Global Food Crisis: Biden officials are scrambling to limit the damage from fast-spreading food shortages sparked by Russia’s war in Ukraine, but they face an array of complex political and logistical challenges.
An Ice Shelf the Size of Rome has Collapsed in Antarctica Nasa scientist says complete collapse of Conger ice shelf during unusually high temperatures is ‘sign of what might be coming’
As Lake Powell hits landmark low, Arizona looks to a new agency, a $1 billion investment and Mexican seawater Gov. Doug Ducey hopes to solve the state’s water woes during his last year in office as decades of drought strain water supplies from the Colorado River.
Lake Powell officials face an impossible choice in the West’s megadrought: water or electricity Lake Powell, the country’s second-largest reservoir, is drying up.
An Ocean of Noise: How Sonic Pollution is Hurting Marine Life: Today’s oceans are a tumult of engine roar, artificial sonar and seismic blasts that make it impossible for marine creatures to hunt or communicate. We could make it stop, so why don’t we?
Whale Takes Tourists for Ride Near Mexico By Lifting Boat on Its Back and Swimming Away: A passenger aboard the boat said the playful whale “gently” lifted the boat and swam with the vessel on their back “twice” before swimming away
For the First Time, Wind Power Eclipsed Both Coal and Nuclear in the U.S.: For a single day at the end of March, wind was the second-largest source of electricity generation, the Energy Information Administration says. Natural gas is still the nation’s largest power source.
Learning From the Ingenious Wisdom of Our Ancestors-
Why Did the Ancient Maya Abandon Their Cities?
As we face an uncertain future of our own amid a climate crisis, are there any lessons we can learn from the Maya about how to live sustainably on this planet?
The ancient Maya flourished in modern day Mexico and Central America for millennia. They built incredible cities and they had sophisticated knowledge of astronomy, architecture and the natural world. But although Maya culture continues to exist today, around 900 AD, many of their great settlements collapsed, and today they lie in ruins. CrowdScience listener Michael wants to know – how did the Maya sustain their populations successfully for so long? And what happened 1000 years ago that led them to abandon their cities? To find out, presenter Melanie Brown travels to the forests of Western Belize. She visits the archaeological site of Xunantunich to learn about what life would have been like for the Maya living in what was once a prosperous city. She hears about the importance of water to the Maya way of life in this region, and their ingenious methods for capturing and storing rainfall. She meets archaeologists using lasers and drones to map Maya settlements that have lain hidden by jungle for centuries. And she discovers what material from the bottom of lakes can tell us about how the Maya faced a changing climate, which may have had huge consequences for their society. This episode was released on Earth Day 2022.
Spring Time: Why an Ancient Water System is Being Brought Back to Life in Spain: A project to restore a 1,000-year-old network of water channels is helping farmers in the Sierra Nevada adapt to the effects of the climate crisis
Source: Anti-Defamation League
Happy Soul Food Friday! 