Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Friday, June 22, 2007
Joe from Oregon sends "hugs and madness"
well said joe.
does this mean you will be lifting that pen up again?
Posted by michael on from scotland 06/22 at 05:56 AMJoe sounds like a guy who is really in touch with himself and others—a good friend to have.
Posted by kim on from 06/22 at 08:03 AMJoe, this is priceless advice, bordering on sending the entire counseling industry into the unemployment line.
Posted by Zen Prole on from Urth 06/22 at 08:21 AMquite happy with the way this one turned out as well..
Posted by michael on from scotland 06/22 at 08:35 AMright, i’m away for the weekend
speak to you all on sunday
Posted by michael on from scotland 06/22 at 09:37 AMThanks for printing the letter by Joe from Oregon.
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 10:09 AMThinking tangentially about Rikers Mickey-- why can’t there be a book with the word “Expendables” in the title? You can trademark it just as easily as your own name I think!
Sweatin’ behind a wheelbarrow-- been there, dun that!-- Keep ambitions and hope alive!
Just the same-- Right On Joe!
Z-ZEN! FORWARD!
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 06/22 at 10:18 AMMickey, I just checked the last of last night’s comments and as soon as I got to yours, I absolutely knew that it would be Rikers Island. I love it when friends can finish each others sentences.
Greetings Robert, michael,Zen,kim and joe.
Thanks for posting the letter from Oregon Joe, Mickey. I have been thinking about him lately. He is a very special person - kind, understanding, and compassionate. Yes, a very big heart. Now, if we would only hear from Amelopsis, Youngfox, and the others who are being missed around here.
It seems that many of us are suffering from the same malady -the selling of our souls for money -not by choice, but by the need to survive. Gibran was right.
Last night the Congress debated the refinancing of the School of the Assassins. It was really something watching the Democrats who support the SOA.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 10:59 AMOn the topic of islands, here’s one that shows the obscenity of the distribution of the Earth’s resources and wealth.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 11:09 AMYikes-- if Riker’s isn’t enough, there’s always this place: http://tinyurl.com/39sjd2
Posted by James on from work 06/22 at 11:26 AMJames...have you ever seen the cult, comedy movie “Office Space”? It is one of my favorites and every time I see it, it reminds me of how I picture your work environment.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 11:49 AMI have had many “Office Space” situations myself, RMJ...and I’ve managed to laugh pretty hard at them...even when I’ve felt like crying.
That was just great, reading that response from Joe Knows...excellent advice for us all. I wish at least some of the people on that “missing Expendable” list would pop in for a quick hello, but I also understand and respect their need to get away for a while.
Joe from Oregon, if you happen to come by, I miss you man.
Posted by JOS on from Oak Park 06/22 at 12:02 PM214 TERRORISTS HAVE BEEN FOUND!!! They are members of Congress.
203:214 = SOA/WHINSEC Survives Vote in Congress by a 6 Vote Margin
Last night at 11:52 PM, Congress defeated the McGovern/Lewis amendment to cut the funding for the SOA/WHINSEC by a margin of six votes.
The grassroots mobilizing effort was tremendous: Tens of thousands of emails, faxes and calls flooded the halls of Congress over the past three days. Students, clergy, union members and veterans travelled to DC and visited with hundreds of Congressional offices to communicate clearly that there is no room for institutions like the SOA/WHINSEC in our future. Despite this, 214 Members of Congress missed the chance to stand up for human rights, justice and democracy, and voted to keep the funding for the SOA/WHINSEC flowing.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 12:09 PMJOS...Yes, sometimes work situations can be just awful.
Things That Bosses Say
Just Another Day in the Life of a US Worker
1. Look, it doesn’t matter if the fumes are making you sick. OSHA says everything is OK.2. I already told you that you can’t have the morning off. Your Father’s funeral can wait till the weekend.
3. Union, did I just hear somebody say, “Union”? Fire that damn Commie !
4. You want a raise........hahhhhahhhahahahhhah.
5. Look, if you want a health care benefit, move to Costa Rica or Cuba. Third-world countries give health care. This is now a fourth-world country. Get used of it. Love it, or leave it.
6. What’s the big deal. It’s just asbestos.
7. Next time that you want to go to the bathroom, ask for permission first. That’s the rule.
8. You say that the school called and told you that your child was just injured on the playground and needs to go to the hospital. Who gave you permission to use the phone? Get back to work.
9. A little bit of ionizing radiation never hurt anybody.
10. Hell no, you can’t leave. Wait till your shift is over. I don’t care if your labor pains are just 3 minutes apart.
And so, life goes on, and on, and on under the Capitalistic regime.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 12:20 PMMickey, thanks for posting Joes letter. I am marking that page as a favorite and will be reading it often. His words are speaking directly to me. I have been struggling with my own serious health issues recently...biopsy today. Its a wake up call that is changing the way I relate to myself, my family friends the world.
Most of ‘my’ life,(why do we need to claim ownership on everything?) has been spent trying to find the ‘rightness’ the feeling that everything is right and good and just as it ‘should’ be. Always not now but just over the horizon forward or back. Who knows how any of us got to be feeling so out of place that just having shelter and food seems like a blessing. Being here now in the fullness of the moment, even if that moment is full of fear anxiety depression anger or whatever, seems like an ok goal to me. Plenty of opportunity for practice and exploration in our daily lives.
Most times when I am looking around for answers what I arrive at are more contradictions. For instance: waiting in the bank line I notice relay for life and kids for cancer fund raising posters. Then think about what the banks use the profits from interest for...investing in industries and activities that produce cancers. So is it just PR? or what? I think about the mammographers response to my inquiries about petrochemical pollutants, “we are slow learners” she says. Slow learners? Our species didnt survive all these millenia by being slow learners.
Time appears to be linear but I think this is an illusion...it seems more spherical to me...there is no end to the ‘story’. Just now only here.
Live and love and be here now. Do it with passion.
again, ty for posting Joe from oregons letter.
Frances
captcha says: going....where?Posted by frances on from bc 06/22 at 12:57 PMRMJ..14...I have been told, at the sweatshops in Maine, old shoe shops and others, people were so fearful of reprimand or losing their jobs...they would hold bodily functions for hours, so not to be seen away from their benches, bondage posts, whatever!
From my experiences during my brief time in Maine and my conversations about this topic, I never had reason to doubt it. In fact, I am convinced companies go up north and catch people in leg-hold traps, bring them back and make them supervisors...yeah, don’t beat yourself, if someone else is an ass…
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 01:22 PMHi frances...Yes, I too will be reading and rereading Joe’s letter. He is a natural born nurturer - one of those rare human beings who always knows exactly the right thing to say to make you feel just a little bit better.
I am sad to hear that you needed a biopsy today. I hope that the health care situation in your area is a bit more compassionate than it is in many other places. The stress involved in waiting for the results of a mammography has caused some women to stop having the test. It is one example of how “the system” lacks compassion. The solution would simply be to schedule the exams at the same time that the e-rays can be read. Some complaining at a local hospital helped and now the wait-time for results is just a few days, instead of many days. Good luck to you. You are in my thoughts.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 01:24 PMOddly enough, Rosemarie, I just stole the stapler from my desk here to use at home… a reference to Office Space for anyone who doesn’t know… and another reason that I’m glad that internet use isn’t monitored so much where I work now. And since I got out of law firms and investment banks the environment has become a lot more humane in general. And soon I’ll be moving into a different type of proofing/editing work-- pharmaceutical advertising. Pays a lot more than where I am now, plus I’m sure I’ll get to read about all of the humanitarian work that companies like Pfizer need to advertise… right.
Posted by James on from work 06/22 at 01:29 PMHi joe...we were symultyping. You just reminded me of one of my first jobs. I was about 12 years old. It was a REAL sweatshop--- very hot, no ventilation, no bathroom privileges, no permission to get a drink of water. I still remember being so thirsty that it hurt. I worked on a sewing machine. It was awful. I still hate sewing machines and have never owned one. At the time there were a lot of garment factories in Pennsylvania. The women worked in the garment factories, and the men worked in the coal mines.
“...brief time in Maine...” Where were you before you went there?
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 01:33 PMRMJ..19..Since I did not have that experience, I like sewing machines...I have a Nechi that is almost as old as me...great piece of art.
Yeah my mother worked in textile mills in Hatfield, PA, which is where I grew up. About 45 mins. NE of Philadelphia, Montgomery County. The trains were neat. In my opinion, every traditional hierarchical organization is simply the plantation mentality, which is all america every really was. The masters and the people who were not masters. Where did you have this sewing job..RMJ?
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 01:38 PMJames #18...thanks for that. You made me laugh.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 01:41 PMjoe...that factory job was in Luzerne, Pa. I also worked in some other factories before I escaped to (unsuccessfully) seek my fortune in the big world. At one point, I worked the night shift in a cigar factory. I was a “wrapper layer”. That is the person who works on a big machine that puts the outer layer on the cigars. The smells and fumes in that factory were pretty bad. Many people wound up with health problems. You are right about “the plantation mentality”.
I lived in Philadelphia during WW2.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 01:52 PMRMJ...22...did you take any cigars that you can mail me...(-: I don’t know the Luzerne area, I know very little about PA, even though I spent most of my...59 years there. For some reason I had not interest in learning about the state???
I was always attracted to New England or if I had known better, another planet. It’s amazing what we know as young people, but cannot always find a way to express this. External pressure doesn’t help us identify these thoughts and feelings that are real and we lose as we become ‘good adult citizens’ obeying blinding every damn thing that comes down the pike...that later we try to reclaim our humanity amidst the confusion and economic pressures...RE-WILD, as the very nice Anarchist says, re-wild my friend, let go of the false teachings, hug someone you don’t know or at least say hello to someone you don’t know. Sometime we need to have coffee together RMJ…
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 01:59 PMHey, what’s this about-- http://tinyurl.com/2dwb6a
I mean, at some jobs I’ve had with proofreading, I"ve been firewalled out of gmail, but White House staffers can use it at work?
Posted by James on from work 06/22 at 03:01 PMJames..24...Let’s have a standing ovation for the excellent ethics of the White House email theifs.
What fine role models they are for their children, who , with luck will grow up to be torture experts...disguising their talents as brain surgeons.
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 03:24 PMJames...those Washington folks are very tricky. They will use any means necessary to keep the rest of us in the dark. Actually, yesterday’s debate in Congress about the SOA funding was about the secrecy of the SOA. Very little of the debate was about the fact that the usa is training terrorists.
joe...no, I was not even skilled enough at that time in my life to confiscate one for my Father, who was known to occasionally indulge in cigar smoking. Sounds like you spent more of your life in Pennsylvania than I did. I left there when I was 18. My 96 year old Mother and 1 sister are still there, so I sometimes visit. /// The coffee is always hot, and the sunsets from my porch are pretty cool.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 03:30 PMListen well to Oreganic Joe, he knows you and loves you. All of you bastards.
Good ol’ Democracy Now has some good stuff on the issue de jours. For all the blehness of Moore (and I’m surprised no-ones called Mickey out as an insane cancer-inciting bigot for suggesting Moore’s docos don’t actually achieve anything), I would be interested in seeing Sicko just to see what he has to say about Cuba, which I didn’t know would be mentioned until I read the DN piece. Their system was semi-demi-quasi*-infamously relegated to second-place behind Canada’s for Moore’s Awful Truth series at the behest of the production company, despite performing better than either the US or Canada in the not entirely scientific spot-check.* Or “Not-at-all”
Captcha sez I’m in good “company”.
Posted by Mew on from clophill 06/22 at 03:38 PMMew… anything that makes the dems squirm, can’t be all bad. The single payer system here was blocked by the then Governor, Howard Dean. He’s a democrat and also a medical doctor.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 06/22 at 03:52 PMRMJ...That’s great...."My 96 year old Mother and 1 sister are still there, so I sometimes visit. /// The coffee is always hot, and the sunsets from my porch are pretty cool.”
MEW...27...I don’t know if you have ever listened to Radio Habana Cuba on shortwave radio [English Broadcast]...I’m not sure if you can listen on internet these days...some interesting stuff and about the global medical profession meetings there.
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 03:55 PMJoe, I have a look at Granma and Prensa Latina every now and then; years of practice at seeing through the dense propaganda fog of western corporate media make seperating the wheat from chaff childs-play. Seriously, honest and true, Cuba is not my idea of a utopia, but we’ve all got something to learn from one another and I have a feeling Cuba is going to be more teacher than pupil in the years to come, especially as regards food production in an oil scarce environment and living together equitably.
Plus, they make awesome cigars. What do you smoke? I’ve settled on Bolivars as my brand, can’t afford too many too often though!Posted by Mew on from clophill 06/22 at 04:21 PMMEW...30...I agree with every country has their propaganda and you thoughts about Cuba. My Cuban friend receives updates via email by way of the Netherlands.
As for cigars, I don’t know names. My cigar reference is really humoring myself in the midst of non-smoking, vegetarianism, vegans, etc. I do smoke small cigars that are decent and very inexpensive. I did cigarettes for years, pipe smoking, recommend Peterson of Dublin, System Pipes. You can use them with or without screens.
Posted by joe of maine on from 06/22 at 04:41 PMAh, I have a mate who occasionally smokes a pipe, it humours us enormously. Especially when he changes colour.
Theres a public smoking ban coming in pretty soon here in England (I believe Ireland and Scotland already have it in force). I have mixed feelings. I’m perfectly OK with putting toxins into my own body, and won’t see anyone stop me. On the other hand, other people toxifying my body (or more rarely, vice versa) I’ll be pleased to say goodbye to. I see the debate as less over individual rights than over use of public space, where the hippocratic principle or Mill’s maxim - “you are free to swing your arm, until it reaches my face” or words to that effect, seems to trump everything. But I’m pleased to be argued with, humiliated and corrected.Posted by Mew on from clophill 06/22 at 04:57 PMI could not agree more with Joe from Oregon! Absolutely no need to re-invent yourself, Mickey - just stay as you are and keep blogging, please.
Best wishes for a good weekend to Michael, Kim, Zen Prole, Robert B Livingston, Joe of Maine, Rosemarie, James, JOS, Francis, Mew and to the Cool Observer and his Michelle of course. I’ve got to go but look forward to calling in again in 48 hours or so.
Auf Wiederemailen from the ‘golden countryside’ outside Melbourne, which is also quite wet at the moment. But, as the saying goes: ‘We need the rain.’
Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 06/22 at 08:20 PMHello Expendables...from a breezy Astoria. Whay am I not surprised that Joe’s word have provoked a day’s worth of excellent comments?
Frances: My thoughts are with you. Please stay in touch with us if you can. Everyone here is wishing you the best.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 06/22 at 09:08 PMA fine day of discussion. Before I say goodnight (G’Day to Helga), I want to note an alignment of political weakness:
http://www.counterpunch.org/green06222007.html
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/06/22/2038/Usually it is CommonDreams that posts (some) articles that CP takes the lead on, or are nationally known figures anyway. This is a milestone in devolution, one witnessed before at ZNet. When I pointed out that one, it was met with the milquetoast “we were posting the article only, and hold no brief for the writer,” who had recently savaged any/all antiwar efforts while generally fellating the Democratic Party (link provided by moi).
The blandness of dissident media, now that the internet is passe, is self-evident. After a decent start, CommonDreams quickly became handmaiden to Democrats. CounterPunch held out longer, but is now in the bookselling bidness.
Say goodnight, Gracie.
Posted by Zen Prole on from Urth 06/22 at 10:31 PMMICKEY AND ALL == GIVE UP WRITING? ==and then what? WHY? IT HELPS VENT YOUR SOUL, the corner that enlightens your gut.. Shootin’ buckets helps you touch the rim. You keep your body in shape. You have a lively mind. Doin an 8-5, or an 11-7 taint’ going to cure anything. Your curiosity itches. You have enough material for a social studies curriculum in cyber-space. In fact, how did JIMMY BRESLIN, your fellow Jamaica New Yorker do it? How bout’ the late Studs Terkel? http://tinyurl.com/2a3gxb http://tinyurl.com/yu3xkk They produced novels and columns! Jimmy and Studs were common, self-educated men and so are you. Mickey, you write multiple columns every week for a potential audience far greater than Mr B or Mr T. You recently shared an exerpt from your short story. It was captivating. You are a political humorist. The guy who writes the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series edits the submitted wisdom of his subscribers. How does he get away with being a best selling author? Marketing, Timing, Luck, Talent! Mickey, you live in the center of the written word capitol of the world. You have something to say and you say it with chutzpah! We all need to speak to your literary agent. Perhaps, we need to get you a new one who recognizes your multiple styles of written expression! Maybe Chicago is where the guru agent resides. How bout London? RoseMarie has mentioned this same line of thinking before. Maybe it’s time we put you on the radiowaves traditional and net radio. Maybe it’s time to put you in the theater = a one man show. The wit, wizdom and philosophy of the Z Warrior. Zen for the final wave of the babyboom generation and their sprung loose offspring! == I’ll leave you with this short video == enjoy! http://tinyurl.com/ywroj3 == richie
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/22 at 11:20 PMOPPS-A-DAISY...........STUDS IS SYILL HERE...HE’S 95....AND HE MUSES THAT HIS OBIT WILL BE LONGER THAN MOST == http://tinyurl.com/2ujxup == I should have said great = not premature “late” ... I had the pleasure of meeting and chatting with Studs in 73’. I’ll soon be 59 and share the same birthdate with Jimmy Breslin == He’s my elder by 18 years = a “Great Depression” child. I was born in 48’ == the year Truman beat Dewey and the “New State of Israel” was formed. And away we go! A Jersey guy meets Ralph and Alice http://tinyurl.com/35kr5e ==richie nitey nite all!
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/22 at 11:57 PMTHE NEW GENERATION WHO’S SPRING SPRUNG A LEAK… BUT THEIR CREATIVITY IN ANIME ARTS AND A NEW ROCK ANTHEM HAS SOME MERIT FOR PRODUCTION Q’.... DON’T WATCH IF YOU GET QUEASY VIEWING SPINNING...BOBBING....WEAVING...AND GENERAL MAYHEM IN FULL ANIMATION… BUT THIS IS A VERSION OF THE “Z” WARRIOR LOST IN SPACE...NOT EXACTLY WHAT I HAVE IN MIND FOR MICKEY Z’S ONE MAN SHOW...BUT… A TWISTED MORAL TALE OF US AGAINST THEM....OR THE SEARCH FOR “THEY” WHOMEVER AND WHERE EVER “THEY” MAY BE == NONETHELESS !! http://tinyurl.com/3xg5sm captcha says END
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/23 at 01:04 AMMUCH TOO LATE === TRY THIS LINK FOR “Z” WARRIOR == http://tinyurl.com/3x5gsm OK ....NOW GRACIE… THE NEIGHBORS SAID TURN OUT THE LITES AND SAY GOOD-NITE HARRY BONZELL smile
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/23 at 01:15 AMMICKEY == This is the group Saliva== and their tune “Click Click Pull” == The Living Time bomb ticking == the result of anarchy without a cause == E M P T Y == You have something to share with this new generation == and their desire for fulfillment == We gotta find a way .. to make the message real for this is the result of an empty soul… http://tinyurl.com/216mtg == Music from the anime video...above..only this simulation smacks oh too close to home for many of us…
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/23 at 01:38 AMONE MORE TIME .....SALIVA .."CLICK CLICK PULL” http://tinyurl.com/216mtq .... i apologize for the mis-q’s
Posted by Richie on from st cloud / n ft myers 06/23 at 01:51 AMThanks, Richie. I’m both flattered and speechless.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 06/23 at 06:17 AMLate to the party as always...superb post with some wonderful comments.
I sympathize with Mickey’s plight. There are some days when I just want to throw EVERYTHING away and start over...doing a “phoenix”...but our culture does not endorse such cleansing activities.
I ask myself if it is a “mid-life crisis” (and I do so detest using Cultural Shorthand) or am I really “stuck” owing to an overall ennui brought upon by a soul deadening culture?
I work with and around some of the most entrenched bourgeois people one can imagine. So there is very little stimulation from that quarter of my life. I have made a point of distancing myself from Mainstream Culture as much as possible...so this often leaves me with me. And unless I have a source of “fresh water” (such as this blog and others like it) I become a stagnant pond. While Amerika trumpets ever so loudly “our individuality” and “our freedom to express ourselves”, the circumscribed parameters for said “freedoms” are very clearly delineated (Ford or Chevy? What color baseball cap? Two or three children? The Double Giant Slurpee or The Big Big Gulp).
I attempt, and more often than not, am unsuccessful, in re-inventing some small portion of myself on a daily basis. What can I learn today? Who can I piss off? What small thing can I change about myself? And most days I am weighed down by the utter sense of futility of such an undertaking...why bother? who cares? will anyone but me notice?
We do not live in comfortable times. Joe’s exhortation is a terrific reminder to trust ourselves and keep moving forward.
Posted by The CultureGhost on from Concord, CA 06/23 at 11:00 AM
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