Friday, December 2, 2011
Via JMG: Photo Of The Day
AmericaBlog tips us to today's hilarious shot of Crazy Eyes in the Washington Post. Could this be even better/worse than her infamous Newsweek shot? Get ready for the wingnuts to attack WaPo for "purposely selecting an unflattering photo."Via BiNationalCouples blog:
My lovely friend in Colorado will celebrate Christmas with her wife via Skype. Her wife is British and lives in the UK. In spite of her wife's extensive education, there is no "line" at the immigration office for this bi-national couple to get into.
My very dear friend lives in California, her wife, her legal wife (married in Canada and in California) will be in England due to the United States immigration discriminatory laws. These two ladies pose no threat to anyone, as a matter of fact, the Californian is a Military Veteran. In spite of serving her country, her country refuses to acknowledge her marriage to her lovely wife from the United Kingdom. They, too, will spend Christmas apart....touching their computer screens instead of holding each other.
I have a friend on twitter who is struggling on telling her son (age 2) and daughter (age 6), that their "other" Mom's visa may not be renewed. Another family separated by the so called Defense of Marriage Act and immigration discrimination. Will they be able to watch their children open their presents....together as a family?
Things that heterosexuals take for granted, spending holiday's with the family, watching the kids open presents, sitting around the dinner table, are things that bi-national same sex couples pray to be a reality soon.
Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:
December 2, 2011
Living and Breathing
Freedom of breath cannot be measured, contained, or punished—as I breathe, my aliveness asserts itself, even laughs at its constraints. Yes, in this place it is an elusive joy, but I feel it now, as surely as I feel the knots of anxiety loosen in my shoulders. |
- Marilyn Buck, "The Freedom to Breathe"
Read the entire article in the Tricycle Wisdom Collection
Read the entire article in the Tricycle Wisdom Collection
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Via JMG: Sen. Bernie Sanders Introduces Bill To Offer "Prize Fund" To Lower HIV Costs
Our favorite socialist has issued a typically blistering call for lower HIV drug costs. On the official site of Sen. Bernie Sanders, he discusses his innovative HIV drug bill. (My bolding.)By allowing patients to purchase generic versions of HIV/AIDS medicines, the bill would lower prices dramatically. In place of revenues from high prices for prescription medicine, the innovator of the product would be awarded substantial monetary reward from a special prize fund. The legislation would eliminate the monopoly barriers that keep drug prices sky-high and allow those living with HIV and those suffering from AIDS to access the most effective treatments right away. Patents would no longer be used to block generic competition. Instead, they would be used as a claim on significant prize funds for real innovation. The Prize Fund for HIV/AIDS would replace monopoly control of the HIV/AIDS treatment marketplace with a rationally administered prize fund of more than $3 billion that would be awarded based on the therapeutic advantages of new treatments. The cost of this fund would be easily offset by the savings to consumers, private insurers and government insurance programs, which now spend $9.1 billion on HIV/AIDS medicines every year.Considering the power of the pharmaceutical lobby, Sanders' bill likely would not have a chance unless drug companies see a real way to make more money. It would be great, although surprising, to see our major LGBT rights groups get behind Sanders bill. But many of those outfits also benefit from pharma donations, so don't hold your breath.
Via Tricycle Daily Dharma:
December 1, 2011
Joy Has Many Flavors
Joy has many different flavors. It might overflow from us in song or dance, or it might gently arise as a smile or a sense of inner fullness. Joy is not something we have to manufacture. It is already in us when we come into the world, as we can see in the natural delight and exuberance of a healthy baby. We need only release the layers of contraction and fear that keep us from it. |
Read the entire article in the Tricycle Wisdom Collection
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Gyalwang Karmapa Delivers Inaugural Address to Environmental Section at Global Buddhist Congregation
Gyalwang Karmapa Delivers Inaugural Address to Environmental Section at Global Buddhist Congregation
November 28, 2011- Park Hotel, Delhi
His Holiness the Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, today delivered the inaugural address at the Global Buddhist Congregation's section on "Environment and the Natural World." Opening the daylong session, the Gyalwang Karmapa addressed a packed hall of hundreds of delegates gathered from 32 countries around the world. The Gyalwang Karmapa will also attend the closing ceremony, which will be presided over by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and joined by a suite of world figures.
During his inaugural address, the Gyalwang Karmapa spoke on the underlying causes that have brought us to what he describes as a 'critical juncture' in the degradation of our natural environment.
Among those causes, His Holiness focused on a virtual "religion of consumerism" and a persistent egocentrism that has led to an unhealthy relationship between human beings and their environment. Applying Buddhist principles of interdependence, compassion, and no-self, the Gyalwang Karmapa outlined a Buddhist response to the environmental challenge facing the world today.
His Holiness spoke strongly against the consumer culture that has overtaken our global society. He acknowledged that world religions are in agreement that material prosperity does not translate into real happiness and wellbeing. Yet he went on to say that religious leaders have a responsibility to do more to open their followers' eyes to the failure of consumerism to bring lasting happiness.
We appear to be in a dangerous state of denial about the consequences of our actions on the environment, the Gyalwang Karmapa stated. "The essential problem," he said, "lies in the way we conceive of ourselves in relation to others, including the environment. We feel we are separate individuals, but in fact nothing exists independently."
"Former generations may conceivably be excused for the harmful consequences of their actions," His Holiness the Karmapa said. "But our generation cannot, as we have access to an abundance of information on the environmental impact of our current lifestyle." He continued, "Our task now is to turn information into an awareness that we feel in our hearts, and that can inspire us to live according to environmentally wise and compassionate principles."
His Holiness called on the audience to interact with the natural world in such a way that they cultivate and extend a mandala of love and compassion, based on the model of the relationship between mother and child.
Speaking earlier on his participation at the Global Buddhist Congregation, the Gyalwang Karmapa said: "Addressing the changes in our environment is one of the most pressing issues of our day. As His Holiness the Dalai Lama has long pointed out, the harm done to our environment is rooted in human minds and behavior. Because this problem arises from our attitudes towards the world we live in, I believe world religious leaders can contribute greatly to a change in our relationship to the earth and to our patterns of consumption of her resources. I am very pleased that the Global Buddhist Congregation is making the environment a focus during its meeting in Delhi, and am honored to be given this opportunity to be part of global Buddhist conversations on this important issue."
Over the course of the past five years, the Gyalwang Karmapa has taken an increasingly active role in championing an issue dear to his heart—the protection of the natural environment. Taking up a call that His Holiness the Dalai Lama has long urged, the Gyalwang Karmapa is emerging as one of the most vocal Buddhist environment leaders, speaking and acting on Buddhist principles of caring for the environment that supports the lives of all of us who share this planet. He has organized conferences, founded a region-wide an activist organization — Khoryug (the Tibetan term for Environment) — and contributed to various academic and scientific publications on the issue.
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