mnemosyne

b. medusa 26 June 2009 4:34:35 pm

thrilller, thriller, thriller. was nobody in the blogosphere around before this lp (that’s an album for you young folks) appeared? oh wait, i know of @ least one occasional blogger. the last one i thot would come out of blogging retirement (momentarily) to do a post like this. me.

i was an 11 yo 6th grader standing in the the cafeteria/auditorium @ a school dance the first time i heard the J5. i want you back. the way so many kids rushed to dance, i felt like i was once again the last to know a good thing. i more than made up for it over the years. yes, i own thriller & off the wall (who doesn’t). yes, i moonwalked my ass off & did the one glove thing back in the day (who didn’t). i was more inspired by the robot though…

and which one of those 6th graders got to see the reunion concert in chicago’s soldier field in ‘85 – me. anybody else? did you get your program autographed too (damn i wish i knew what i did w/ it). but i digress. i was fascinated w/ all things J5, & like every other little girl my age i had a crush on michael (& marlon & jermaine) from that moment until high school. no matter what important thing i was doing – playing, torturing my little sisters, doing my homework, or chores – the whole world came to a stop if the J5 were on soul train or american bandstand or the ed sullivan show. no way did i miss the cartoon on saturday mornings. if they were on the cover of any mag, i thot would die if i didn’t have that issue.

but the thing that had the most impact was finding out that mj’s birthday was the day before my own (although according to some sources his time of birth was approximately 20 minutes to 2 hours before mine). in some small way it seemed to put him within reach. almost since the moment i found out this info i’ve been saying, “what a difference a day makes.” at first solely in awe, then added w/envy, & later w/ disdain. today, w/ nostalgia for the last 4 decades & a greater sense of my own mortality.

you are greatly missed michael.

• aging , art , dance , history , music , nostalgia , pop-culture
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b. medusa 10 December 2007 8:07:35 am

today is International Human Rights day. so let’s begin shall we…

EDIT: just found this after completing the post:

Seven Year Old Alexis Goggins Shot Six Times Protecting Her Mother

A 7-year-old-girl is being hailed as an “angel from heaven” and a hero for jumping in front of an enraged gunman, who pumped six bullets into the child as she used her body as a shield to save her mother’s life.

Alexis Goggins, a first-grader at Campbell Elementary School, is in stable condition at Children’s Hospital in Detroit recovering from gunshot wounds to the eye, left temple, chin, cheek, chest and right arm.

“She is an angel from heaven,” said Aisha Ford, a family friend for 15 years who also was caught up in the evening of terror.

The girl’s mother, Selietha Parker, 30, was shot in the left side of her head and her bicep by a former boyfriend, who police said was trying to kill Parker. The gunman was disarmed by police and arrested at the scene of the shooting, a Detroit gas station. Police identified him as Calvin Tillie, 29, a four-time convicted felon whom Parker had dated for six months.
[...]
Ford said she dialed 911 on her cell phone as she walked into the station.“The first operator clicked off and I dialed again and told that operator a guy with a gun was holding me hostage with a mother and baby and threatening to kill us. I told her the name of the gas station and then she said they didn’t have a unit to send.”Ford said she paid for $5 of gas and slowly returned to the vehicle, stalling for time as she handed Tillie the change. She said she kept stopping and starting the pump, hoping the police would show up.“I told him I needed more gas and took money out of my purse and went back into the station,” she said. The attendant, Mohammad Alghazali, 30, said he noticed Ford was crying and she told him what was happening. He called 911 as he heard shots coming from the vehicle.
[…]
Alghazali said a police car on a street nearby arrived in less than a minute after his call.

an update on her condition can be read here. a fund has been set up for Alexis, checks should be made out to the Alexis Goggins Hero Fund & sent to the following address:

Campbell Elementary School
c/o Alexis Goggins Hero Fund
2301 E Alexandrine St
Detroit, MI 48207

for information, call (313) 494-2052

ADDITIONAL INFO (courtesy of all about race): Alexis is a special needs child, due to a massive stroke she suffered as an infant. she walks with a limp & has a weak left eye. her right eye was just removed.

Alexis, who walks with a limp, slipped momentarily on the icy sidewalk and as she helped the girl up, she saw the man and recognized him as Tillie. He was holding a gun.
[...]
Before Tillie could fire again, Alexis jumped over the seat between her mother and the gunman and begged him not to shoot her mother.

The police report said Tillie “without hesitation” pumped six shots into the child.

G*TD*MN M*THAF*CKIN SORRY *SS PIECE OF SH*T!!!!!

(i don’t usually bleep myself here, but i don’t want to be excessively disrespectful to my readers. all 2 of them.)

also contact the msm & ask them why they’ve ignored this story.

CNN
Phone: 404-827-1500

Fox News Channel
Phone: 212-301-3000

ABC News
Phone: 212-456-7777

CBS News
Phone: 212-975-4321

NBC
Phone: 212-664-4444

MSNBC
Phone: 201-583-5000

Newsweek
Phone: 212-445-4000

Associated Press
Phone: 212-621-1500

Reuters
Phone: 646-223-4000

United Press International
Phone: 202 -898-8000

i don’t have to tell you why this is a human rights (as well as police brutality) issue do i?

i can’t believe i missed this story until now. much respect & gratitude to Sylvia, Nez, Carmen D., Ann & all other bloggers covering this.

• activism , assholes , capitalism run amok , community , disability , domestic abuse , feminism , gender , history , imperialism , infrastructure , networking , oppression , organizing , police brutality , politricks , poverty , privilege , racism , rape , sexism , violence , war , war is a racket
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b. medusa 12 August 2007 11:59:55 am

just in case anyone thought mistreatment of vets was a fairly recent phenomena:

The Bonus Army

In 1924, a grateful Congress voted to give a bonus to World War I veterans – $1.25 for each day served overseas, $1.00 for each day served in the States. The catch was that payment would not be made until 1945. However, by 1932 the nation had slipped into the dark days of the Depression and the unemployed veterans wanted their money immediately.

In May of that year, some 15,000 veterans, many unemployed and destitute, descended on Washington, D.C. to demand immediate payment of their bonus. They proclaimed themselves the Bonus Expeditionary Force but the public dubbed them the “Bonus Army.” Raising ramshackle camps at various places around the city, they waited.

[...]

on July 28, Attorney General Mitchell ordered the evacuation of the veterans from all government property, Entrusted with the job, the Washington police met with resistance, shots were fired and two marchers killed. Learning of the shooting at lunch, President Hoover ordered the army to clear out the veterans. Infantry and cavalry supported by six tanks were dispatched with Chief of Staff General Douglas MacArthur in command. Major Dwight D. Eisenhower served as his liaison with Washington police and Major George Patton led the cavalry.

[...]

The veterans, assuming the military display was in their honor, cheered. Suddenly Patton’s troopers turned and charged. “Shame, Shame” the spectators cried. Soldiers with fixed bayonets followed, hurling tear gas into the crowd.

excerpted from “The Bonus Army” EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2000).

read the full article

• activism , counter-recruitment , fta , history , oppression , poverty , violence , war is a racket
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