(11.01.06) Recommends:

Daniel Johnston, "Welcome to my World" (High Wire Music, 2006).

Most people probably know the story by now. Johnston, the Waller, Tx based artist with bipolar condition, started making -- and handing out to anybody who would take one -- low-fi casette tapes of his keyboard-and-vocals music in the 1980s. He attained mainstream notice in the 1980s, thanks to the Austin music scene, exposure on Mtv, and praise by other established rock stars. This album is like a greatest hits compilation. Some people inevitably give in to the urge of feeling uncomfortable when dealing with the fruits of someone like Johnston, because of his bipolar condition. The feeling, I suppose, is uncertainty over whether when we laugh and smile with the music, we're doing so because we actually like the music -- and thus are actually laughing and smiling with Johnston -- or whether we're laughing and smiling at Johnston. I appreciate that people have this urge, I suppose. But when I listen to a track like "Don't Let the Sun Go Down" I just can't understand the urge. It is such a catchy tune. I mean, he clearly recorded this thing in a garage, and as far as the world was aware, the garage was as far as this song would ever go. Yet at the end he's calling out for the crowd to sing along. Is he doing this because he is bipolar? Perhaps. But more than likely, he's doing it because it's something that, say, Bono would do. It's so awesomely rock star. We nominate Bono for a goddam Nobel Peace Prize, but we feel uncomfortable when Daniel Johnston wants to rock out? Puh-lease. Get over yourself already. Once done, get out and give this record a chance. There is some incredibly catchy, witty, funny stuff here. And that's more than we reasonably deserve to receive from Daniel Johnston.

November 1, 2006 - The Big 5-0

Several days ago, in a quiet way, Claire and I celebrated my 50th birthday. The actual day was October 28th. I was up at our Adirondack camp (vacation cabin) near Jay, New York. I’d been up there for a week of study leave, writing furiously, as the deadline for my latest book, the third and final installment of the Lectionary Preaching Workbook series, approaches.

I didn’t bolt out of town to avoid a big birthday celebration. Really. It’s just that last week was the only possible week I could get away, this fall. It was Reading Week at New Brunswick Theological Seminary, so I didn’t have to teach my weekly, Thursday-evening course.

On my birthday, Claire rode up to join me, taking the Amtrak train to Plattsburgh, New York. As I met her at the classic, Victorian rail station, I was surprised at how few people got off the train – no more than 4 or 5 individuals. This is no out-of-the-way spur, I thought to myself. It’s the Amtrak main line between New York and Montreal. Claire’s was the only train of the day connecting those two major cities, and it was more than two hours late (equipment problems). It reminded me of how we’ve let our nation’s once-mighty passenger rail system slip into near-oblivion.

So, if you want to know how I spent my 50th birthday, at least part of the time I was waiting for a train. I have to admit that was better than the earlier part of the afternoon, though, which I spent in a dentist’s chair. I’d lost a temporary crown the evening before, and was fortunate, indeed, to find a wonderful dentist, Dr. Michael O’Connor, who agreed to open up his Plattsburgh office on a Saturday morning, even though I’m not one of his patients.

The irony of that experience wasn’t lost on me. It was my fiftieth birthday, and my teeth were falling out. Literally. Tempus fugit.

It was good to see Claire, though. After driving back to our little house, we went out for a nice birthday dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, overlooking the rushing rapids of the AuSable River. The next day we enjoyed some quiet times, watching the snowflakes swirl (thankfully, they didn’t stick; it was still a little too warm for that). At one point, we were treated to the rare sight of a doe and a faun, foraging for food just outside our window.


How do I feel about turning 50? To be perfectly honest, it seems kind of anti-climactic. The sturm und drang of my cancer experience overshadows any piddling anxiety I might otherwise have felt, concerning this milestone birthday.

I’m not upset about turning 50. In fact, I’m glad I’ve made it this far. I was thankful for a quiet day, in one of my favorite spots, with my best girl by my side.

Claire and I are talking about throwing a bigger 50th birthday party, for both of us (she passed that milestone herself, in July). That party will do double duty as a belated end-of-chemo celebration for me, and also to commemorate Claire’s 15th anniversary of ordination as a minister. We’ll probably plan that celebration sometime later this month, if we can find a date that works.

Milestone birthdays are significant events, for most people – but maybe less so, for cancer survivors. For us, any healthy day is a good day.

Ethiopia: November 1st, 2005 - Remembering the events of that day

ETP

A day earlier – the EPRDF led government of Ethiopia issues a violent statement on state run radio and TV. This statement drew parallels between the Rwandan Interehamwe militia and the popularly elected CUD leaders who, in reality, were advocates of a peaceful resistance. This statement leaves many angry and frustrated, what the government was trying to do was becoming obvious. It was trying to discredit the elected leaders and justify its grip on power.

November 1st – The government dispatches armed security forces to watch high schools and universities to look for signs of opposition.

Addis Ketema high School (Merkato) - security forces encircle the school without any given warnings. Students of Addis Ketema High School start protesting; troops start shooting at students. Stand byers seeing the students were brutally being massacred - fearlessly join the high school students in protesting. Troops start shooting into the unarmed crowd indiscriminately. News of what happened in merkato is heard all over Addis. Angry citizens all over Addis Abeba join in on the protest.

Massacre – Members of the Agazi unite, special branch of the EPRDF military, erratically start spraying bullets on protesters. The following are news excerpts of events that transpired on that day.

USA Today - "The violence spread across the city of 3 million people, reaching the doorsteps of the British, French, Kenyan and Belgian embassies all located in different parts of the capital. Workers at U.N. headquarters were told not to leave their offices. "

Reuters - The wounds are in the most dangerous areas. There are no shots below the knee. There are shots on the chest, on the head and other dangerous parts," the doctor told.

"I was on my way home when police attacked me with a stick. I was running for my life when I was shot in the arm," said Hunegnaw Teferi, 25, receiving treatment at St Paul's Hospita

Associated press - Witnesses also said police fired assault rifles and lobbed grenades indiscriminately against civilians Wednesday. Among the victims was Arabia Abdul, who was wounded by shrapnel in her stomach and legs.

"The police were looking for rioters and burst into our compound. They fired tear gas and then threw a grenade," said her father, a 44-year-old daily laborer. "The police then started shooting in the compound. My daughter has never been in trouble with anyone."

Witness reporting from Addis- "I was in a Taxi (Mini bus) on the way Abenet to Central Bus station. The area was not quite. The driver gets stopped, and then the soldiers arrived immediately. They took him out of the cabin. I do not know what he did wrong. They beat him hard & thrown him over the Police truck. All the passengers, including me jumped out of the mini bus. Following there was shooting. We run away. When I turn to a narrow street to the village I tried to see back many people were falling down. This was a tragic event for me in my life. Civilians get shot down by armed forces."

Arrest of the elected leaders - Police start arresting CUD (the opposition) leaders, including CUD's President Hailu Shawel, VP. Judge Birtukan Mideksa, Professor Mesfin W/Mariam (human rights activist), Engineer Gizachew Shiferaw, Dr Yacob Hailemariam, Dr Berhanu Nega, Dr Hailu Araia, judge Dr Befekadu Degifie, Tamru Gulilat, Major Melaku Admassie and many others. Ethiopia's civic organization leaders, members of the free press and human rights advocates are also hunted down and arrested.

At the end of the day; countless bodies lay in morgues in hospitals all over Addis, hundreds were left disfigured for life. The Prime Minister of Ethiopia calls the killings necessary and a few days’ later charges the arrested elected leaders of the CUD with genocide.

Also read:
-Ethiopian security forces massacred protesters: Associated Press
-Ethiopian forces killed 193 unarmed protesters: CNN
-Ethiopian protesters 'massacred': BBC

Interview of Judge Wolde-Michael Meshesha
By EMF and ethioguardian
Translation by Fikirte Hagos, ETP

.....On July 4 (sene 27), 2006, we voted 8 to 2 that the government has taken excessive force against civilians.

.....At this point it became clear to us that we were in trouble but we stayed around until 6 PM. After this some people around the office started to say “How can you sit quietly. You know you’re surrounded.” Alarmed and aware that we were in danger, we all retreated to our lodgings. We all went to the same hotel except for the Chairperson who lived there and headed home for the night. When we got to our hotel, there were also a number of new faces there we didn’t see before. We asked the owner of the hotel and he even responded that he didn’t know who these people were. Interestingly this was June, the time of the world cup and people, including myself, were all eager to see the games. However the power outage didn’t make this possible and it continued through out the night and finally came back, I think, around 5 A.M. (More...)

(Poem by Mamush M)