I thought this card was appropriate for this year’s election season.
It’s also not party specific, so apply the little poem to whomever you despise the most! The card is actually the size of a business card, and I believe it to be around 100 years old. There are no markings to identify the printer, author or date, but I assume it’s that old because it was with a box of postcards that are 100 years old. The paper has the look, feel and color of the old postcards.
I did a quick internet search of the poem and came up with zero results. If anyone has heard or seen this before, please leave a comment to satisfy my curiosity.
A year from now, Americans will be caught in an unprecedented blizzard of campaign ads.
Most of this ad blizzard will not come from the candidates, but from ads secretly-funded by huge corporations. This is because a five-man cabal on the Supreme Court issued an edict that perverts nature itself. In a case titled Citizens United, the five decreed that – shazam! – lifeless corporate elites are henceforth “persons” with more electioneering rights than us real life persons. In a black-robed coup against our democracy, the Supremes ruled that a corporation’s money is “speech” and that CEOs may dump unlimited sums of it into their own ad campaigns to elect or defeat any candidates they choose.
Of course, it’s a grotesque, Kafkaesque lie to say that Wal-Mart, Goldman Sachs, ExxonMobil, and the rest are people with political rights equal to – much less superior to – human beings. As a friend of mine puts it: “A corporation is not a person until Texas executes one!”
The good news is that real citizens of our country are united against Citizens United. In a January Hart Research poll, 87 percent of Democrats, 82 percent of Independents, and even 68 percent of Republicans favor passing a Constitutional amendment to overule the Court’s bizarre decision and make clear that only people are people.
Sadly (though not surprisingly) our national elected officials – including Republicans, Democrats and tea partiers – are too hooked on corporate money to stand up for us… for America’s democracy. So, do we just have to surrender to the corporados? Of course not – we’re Americans!
Rebel! A new “We the People Campaign” is rallying grassroots folks to sign a “Declaration of Independence From Corporate Power.” To sign the declaration and join the action, go to .WeThePeopleCampaign.org.
I am writing this from the Osage point of view, written by memory from the writings of an Osage descendant, Louis F. Burns. I have found his book to be the most comprehensive. If you are a student or researcher, please consider Mr. Burns as my main reference here. While searching the internet, I have found several inaccurate sources with widely varying information.
This brief overview generally deals with the Osage nation prior to the “Louisiana Purchase” of 1803. After 1803, everything changed for the Osage people at such a quick pace that they were unable to adapt and survive as the proud nation that I write here about.
For centuries, the Osage possessed the most prime real estate on the continent. The four-state area that they claimed during their height of power is a humid, temperate climate, encompassing just about every type of geography; wetlands, mountains, and bluegrass plains of the buffalo. Their enviable position in the center of the nation fashioned their customs and religious practices.
The Osage style of government is thought to have been used by our founding fathers as a model for our present American style of government. The Osage had developed a special relationship with the French, and a group of the natives were taken to France a full half-century before our war of independence. A famous French treatise on this style of government was written shortly after this event and this treatise was indeed part of the model for our present constitution. Although no written proof of credit to the Osage is found, the similarities are beyond coincidence. Not the least of these is the concept of “inalienable rights” of each individual.
At the top of the Osage government there was a powerful group of elderly ‘wise men’, who were referred to as “The Little Old Men”. The Little Old Men shared power and were made up of men from varied factions of the nation. It was their job to make judicious decisions based on petitioning from various counsels of “Grand Chiefs”. These Grand Counsels were specific to areas of tribal life. For instance, a Grand Counsel on war-making and another one meant just to lobby for peace. At the more local, or “band” level, there was also some allowance for their own government. There were Chiefs and Councils at all levels. Sound familiar? This system was known to be in effect as early as the 1500′s.
The government reflected the Osage personality. Slow to action and deliberate in all things, the system eventually became so top-heavy that it was cumbersome and had to be modified to meet the changing times. As such, The Little Old Men had a decreasing power as they approached 1800.
The Osage had no concept of individual land ownership. The land was claimed by the entire nation. As a nation of hunters, these claims of territory were fiercely defended by warriors whose full time job was policing their claims. These small ‘war parties’ were not without rules.
Intruders were generally watched from a distance without them knowing they were observed. They were subsequently categorized and then dealt with. Although the whites considered these Osage people cruel savages, the punishments usually were comparable to the white’s justice.
Three classes of intruders were considered. First was the traveller. If you were observed to be just passing through, and you took only what game and resources you needed to survive your journey, you would probably not even know you were watched. Minding you manners would save your life. Second was the hunter/trapper. These intruders were considered the worst, and were just common poachers as far as the Osage were concerned. White men would promptly hang a cattle rustler, and Osage warriors took it one step further. Poachers were beheaded and the heads displayed as a warning to any others with the same ideas. Third consisted of two different types of offenders who were treated similarly; settlers and traders. If traders were not poachers, they were not killed. If they were not trading directly with the Osage, they were however, robbed of their trade goods and sent on their way. The message was clear; Osage controlled the early merchants. Approved traders (mostly French) were encouraged. Unapproved traders were harassed out of the area. Any trade with other native nations was not approved, as the Osage were constantly at war with them on all sides. Agricultural settlers, white or native, were treated much the same. Since the Osage were primarily concerned with hunting, and hunting territory, small groups of settlers were tolerated on their eastern border, along the Mississippi river. They were subject to some harassment though, and stealing their horses was fairly common. If they were not inter-married with the Osage, they were usually harassed until they left the area.
At the time of Lewis and Clark’s expedition, the Osage Indians lived in most of Missouri, northern Arkansas, eastern Kansas and northeast Oklahoma. They were thought to have descended from one branch of the Omaha Sioux and migrated from the lower Ohio River Valley. They were divided into three clans: the Great Osage, Little Osage, and Arkansas Osage. Their first experiences with Euro-Americans came in the mid 1600′s when French trappers and traders encountered them. Early records from the Trading Post that was to become St. Louis indicate that early Americans traded with the Osage at nearly twice the rate of all the other Native Americans combined.
The Osage had a special relationship with the French from the very first encounters. This has been attributed to the temperament and manners of the French explorers, more than anything else. The official French government policy was to subdue the Osage and make them proper colonial subjects. The actual practice was nothing like this. Several French were married to Osage women, and are now the ancestors of many thousands of Osage people. Apparently the Spanish and English did not have the good sense to treat the Osage as equals, and subsequently were nearly completely shut out of the lucrative fur trading, unless done by proxy through the French. Osage warriors were known to attack British soldiers on sight.
Osage girls married immediately upon reaching puberty, unlike boys, who married in their late teens. When the oldest daughter in a family married, her husband also got marriage rights to all of her younger sisters if he so chose. However, this did not happen often; polygamy was rare. A distinction was always made between the first born daughter and those that came after. Marriages were arranged by the girls parents, and though inter-marrying with other clans, tribes and even whites was done, it was not the norm. When a daughter was married away into other clans, it was a political advantage and the family ties were never forgotten. The marriage to a first-born daughter was the highest honor. When a baby was born, the town would have a naming ceremony to make it a “real” person. As the children grew up, girls were educated mainly by their mothers in domestic arts, horticulture, and gathering. Children of native and white mix were considered “real” people as long as they followed Osage traditions. If they did not adhere to Osage customs, they were allowed to move about the clans and villages as they pleased, but they were not “real”, as such, they were not spoken to, or spoken of at all. Usually these ignored offspring would live with their French relatives.
The Osage were not an agricultural society, but the women did keep gardens at semi-permanent villages. They grew maize, squash, pumpkins, gourds, and beans, as well as gathering wild fruit, berries, acorns, and nuts. In autumn they would harvest the crops and preserve them for winter. Families lived in lodges made of wood and reeds, or of tall poles covered with animal hides. The lodges were thirty to forty feet in length, with two doorways and an opening at the top for venting campfire smoke. They were permanent, yet villages were regularly moved just short distance when conditions warranted, such as sanitation, gardening, flooding and draught. Osage warriors left them twice a year, once in the summer and once in the fall, when they headed west to hunt buffalo. Although some women travelled with the buffalo hunt, the main job of women in the villages was to grow crops and gather food, as well as raise children and take care of the home. The only time the Osage used “Teepee” style shelter was when they hunted far out on the plains, away from woodlands.
There were ceremonies in all seasons for naming, mourning, peace, planning, and harvesting, where women would dance in the rituals, but singing, priesthood and religous ritual and authority were only the dominion of men. Women commonly got tattoos, especially to remember their husbands, if their husbands were killed. If a man committed a notable act of bravery he earned the right to tattoo his wife and daughters. Mothers taught their children well-defined rules of behavior. They raised their kids gently, disciplining them using ridicule and rewards, never physical punishment. Osage women carried their babies on boards on their backs, because it was convenient. As a result of this the babies’ heads were flattened in the back and stayed that way for life.
The mode of burial among the Osages was to place the corpse in a sitting posture on the ground, at most only in a slight excavation, and pile around it a heap of stones for its protection. When the early settlers came here many such graves were seen in which the skeleton was remaining intact, and in some instances the flesh scarcely yet having entirely disappeared.
Produced by Jonathan Weston
Engineered by Django Johnny Punter
Assistant Engineer: Mark Dodson
Recorded in England at Rampart Studio, Battersea
I’ll sing you a song of the deepest blue, if you tell me all the colors that you see in the human hue I’ll sing you a song of the brightest hope, if you show me a man who’s reassured that he can cope I’ll sing you a song of beige and livid green, if you show me an earth that is slowly getting clean And I’ll raise your spirit higher, make you tremble with delight, if you lay down all your weapons, if you make the truth your fight Lay down all your weapons, if you make the truth your fight If you make the truth your soulmate, keep it with you all the time, then by the grace of God inside, you’ll live in heaven’s clime
If you talk to me of atom bombs, if you explain what they are for, I’ll sing you all the songs I know about a world I see at war A war that’s greatly based on fear that’s the only way they’ll work, authority and governments they hide behind their smirk For they think that you don’t know it yet they think you’re not aware, that the potential of the human soul lies just in human care So won’t you sing this silly song with me, come and give me a gift, we all are one in life and love, we all provide the lift
Slash the budget, That’s our plea; Just don’t cut What’s dear to me.
Budget cuts are slippery.
What happens when your state cuts aid to municipalities or the federal government cuts special help to your local school? Who ends up getting hurt most?
It’s not always easy to follow, because elected officials generally seek to obscure who’s really at fault. They often try to pass the blame to someone else, slow the impact until they’re out of office, or focus as much of the damage as possible on people who don’t tend to vote. These are ancient techniques.
Pensions are a good example. All levels of government cheerfully underfund them, especially in times of low interest rates, like now. They figure it will be their successors who have to raise taxes to pay them, or else renege — or declare bankruptcy.
School aid is classic too. The federal government helps fund schools in impoverished areas, as do most states. But when dollars are short, that item is an easy cut. Then either the local (poor, remember?) taxpayers pony up the difference, or the kids lose. They bear the brunt of the layoffs, bigger classes, and fewer arts and sports programs.
Then there’s Medicaid. Its job is to provide health care to low-income folks. The federal government supposedly splits that cost with the states, but what happens when it’s broke? Simple: they cut federal support for Medicaid and leave the states holding the bag.
Thanks to an anti-tax pledge most Republican politicians have taken, GOP-controlled state legislatures are rendered unable to raise taxes. That means many states can’t raise more money to cover the gap in their Medicaid budget, so they just cut their payment rates for doctors. Many doctors then can’t work for those rates and stop accepting Medicaid patients. And, when Aunt Minnie’s diabetes goes untreated, she dies.
Not surprisingly, these tough times foist other budgetary fallout on the poor and voiceless. How about prisoners only getting two meals a day, as is happening now in Texas on weekends? Or food stamp cuts that force the poor into still more cheap empty calories? Daycare is likewise getting hit, along with early childhood education. The poor are losing heating programs and housing subsidies, and services for the homeless are scant.
Some cuts will potentially make everyone less safe. In some areas, city councils are ending the fluoridation of water, and there are places in America where the firefighters will stand by and watch your house burn to the ground unless you’ve paid a fee for their services. And now Mitt Romney wants to privatize health care for our veterans, which would erode the VA’s services even more.
These are the kind of cuts that could get Republicans in trouble in 2012.
This card is dated 1918, and World War 1 had created approximately 3 million widows and 10 million orphans. Europe was in ruins, but the United States homeland remained completely unaffected, with a booming economy and the good times of the roaring twenties on the way. Obviously, this card is sent to let someone know that you donated to a charity for French orphans, in their name.What a wonderful gift!
Any Parsonions related to Mrs. Stella Lynd, 2718 Main?
The holiday season exerts a lot of pressure to spend what you don’t have and go deeper into debt in the name of “giving.” This year, let us all support each other to be financially responsible and engage in building wealth instead of destroying it.
Wealth, or net worth, is the value of your assets minus your debts. Assets include things such as money in checking or savings accounts, the equity in your home, and stock. Common types of debt include credit card debt, mortgages, and college loans. Without any wealth, people are just a paycheck away from financial disaster.
Wealth makes it possible to pay the bills when unemployment strikes or you get so ill that you can’t work. Wealth enables you to pay for large or unexpected expenses such as a new hot water heater or engine. It’s important to remember that during these tough economic times, celebrating the holidays shouldn’t inhibit one’s ability to save and build wealth. This is particularly important for communities of color.
A report published this year by the Pew Research Center revealed that the wealth divide between whites and people of color hit a record high in 2009, with the median wealth of white households 20 times higher than black households and 18 times higher than Latino households.
This recession is especially tough on people of color because they face much higher levels of unemployment. Joblessness has depleted their savings. Plus people of color have a greater percentage of their wealth in homes. They were disproportionately hammered when real estate prices plummeted after the housing bubble burst, and because people of color were more often targeted for higher-cost subprime loans, they were left more vulnerable to foreclosure. One out of four African Americans and Latinos who received a loan between 2004 and 2008 face foreclosure or are over two months delinquent in mortgage payments.
Even before the economic troubles set in, the financial foundation of many families of color was typically insecure as compared to white Americans. Data from the Institute on Assets and Social Policy at Brandeis University revealed that the wealth gap between white and black families more than quadrupled between 1984 and 2007, growing from $20,000 to $95,000 (in constant dollars). Clearly, while the recession may have exacerbated the racial wealth divide, there was a significant problem even before the recession began.
The racial wealth divide is likely to remain even after the economy recovers, because this divide isn’t simply a result of racial differences in employment, income, or investment strategies.
The racial wealth divide originated generations ago when people of color were legally and routinely denied the same opportunities as whites. The inequities of the past continue to haunt current generations because family wealth not only affects the amount of inheritance one receives, but also the ability of parents to help their children become more financially stable — for example, by helping them make a down payment on a home or pay for college.
The $95,000 wealth gap between black and white Americans means that children of white parents are more likely to be able to afford to go to college debt-free, while children of black parents will have to assume more debt to attend college. That’s why communities of color must be especially prudent in how we decide to “celebrate” the holidays.
We don’t want to disappoint our families, friends, and most especially our children, so start changing expectations now. Let them know that this year you want to celebrate the upcoming holidays by spending special time with them rather than spending on an extravagant gift. Your local library, museums, religious institutions, and other organizations offer a plethora of activities during the holiday season. Many of them are free, and they’re ideal for spending special time with your loved ones and friends.
The word “holiday” comes from the pairing of the words holy and day. The word holy stems from the Scottish “hale,” meaning health, happiness, and wholeness.
You, your family, and your friends will find much more financial health, overall happiness, and wholeness if you do not make the holidays days of greater indebtedness and wealth insecurity.
Mariko Chang is the author of Shortchanged: Why Women Have Less Wealth and What Can Be Done About Itand Dedrick Muhammad is the senior director of the NAACP’s Economic Department.
If you will reread it you will notice, yourself, that it lacks definiteness; that it lacks purpose; that it lacks coherence; that it lacks a subject to talk about; that it is loose and wabbly; that it wanders around; that it loses itself early and does not find itself any more. There are some other defects, as you will notice, but I think I have named the main ones. ~ Mark Twain
This letter is going to be my version of that often sickly-sweet letter that you might get from friends and relatives. You know, the one where they tell you all about how wonderful their lives are; their children are good looking geniuses, they have been promoted to V.P.’s at work, and the grandkids are destined to be movie stars and professional athletes.
Why are these often written in the 3rd person style, as if some outside entity is looking in on their blessed lives? That seems a bit creepy to me, like a long dead ancestor is keeping track of their wonderful lives and taking notes along the way, then sending in a yearly synopsis.
This letter, in keeping with the Christmas spirit, will be all about ME (and mine). My version, of course, will read somewhat differently than the one I describe above.
First, things…stuff. Since things and stuff are the least important in life (or should be), let’s get this out of the way.
-Odd stuff. I have an “eclectic collection” of antique junk that I’ve got stored here, there, and only God knows where; A rather large stamp and postcard collection, old tools, kitchen gadgets, sheet music, license plates, even an 100 year old ball-and-claw bathtub. I would like to be able to tinker around with the junk and display or use more of it, but I’ve got this blog habit that eats up any time I have off work.
-My house. It is over one hundred years old. This is what we could afford then, and barely now. One reason I wanted this place is that it was less than a block from where my parents lived, but they have since moved across town. When we moved here in 2000, I had huge hopes and plans. We were plenty lucky, shortly after moving here, as an F3 tornado missed our house by mere feet. Most of the houses directly across the street were completely gone. We got a new roof from insurance money, but it turned out to be shoddy work. I got new guttering too, but it is still stored underneath the house, waiting on me to have the time and energy to install it. Now that my money and time are very short, I wonder who was lucky. We need a new roof (again), insulation everywhere, storm windows, paint, and lots of miscellaneous.
-The storm cellar has a wall that I never finished bricking-in. The drain down there was rusted out, and I never replaced it, so any heavy rain may dump several inches of water in the cellar, which drains very slowly. Of course, there’s some junk I collected stored down there too. One notable item is a very old. (maybe 100 years old) wheelchair which would be worth some money if I had the time to refinish it. -The garage could use siding, and is completely full of my tools and other crap that I’ve scattered and made a mess of. On a bright note, I did give away a truckload of solid oak to a local man who makes rocking chairs and toy trains. I donated the valuable wood because he gives these as gifts for needy children (he deserves sainthood). I have lots more oak, but really should sell it, as I can’t pay all my bills yet.
-An outbuilding that was damaged in the tornado, and has been full of crap ever since; stuff I need to sell, throw away and give away. There are no doors on the outbuilding and it’s missing some windows too. This building is large enough to park several cars in. I hope the city continues to ignore this, because I don’t have the resources to demolish it right now. There are some good building supplies out there that I need to use, along with thousands and thousands of bricks (wall and paver). This is not a great neighborhood, but even the local thieves don’t have the guts to venture into that building.
-The “mower shed” is no beauty either. Pretty well stacked up with stuff; several hundred fire-bricks and some tile chimney-liner (for the do-it-yourself mason who wants a brick barbecue), a diamond blade brick and tile saw, masonry tools, an old chipper-shredder, and of course an aging riding mower. The mower needs repaired again, as I can’t seem to make it through one season without running over some crap and causing damage that needs professional repairs.
-The yard is rather large, three city lots, which I regret having every mowing season. I still have some odd stacks of old sandstone in the yard, all supposed to be part of a raised bed garden that I never made. I no longer have a truck, so I guess the rock is there to be mowed around for eternity.
Vehicles, another necessary pain in the ass:
-The younger daughter’s car has a lots of miles on it and is leaking coolant somewhere, but is pretty nice inside. My Mom bought her the car. Thanks again Mom. I hope it lasts through three more years of college.
-The wife’s car is close to 10 years old and needs several hundred dollars in repair but still runs good. -My car is 35 years old and still limping along; the interior is shot, the vinyl shredding itself, and it’s been hit several times while parked on the street, and it runs rather poorly while getting some appalling gas mileage. I quit washing it, as the last time I did, some of the trim came off, along with more vinyl roof.
And now people, the important pieces of this puzzle called life.
-Dad has been quadriplegic for over 17 years. He spent a couple of months hospitalized again this past year. Squeaked through another close call. He recently had to have a toe amputated, but has recovered well. Having a spinal cord injury, he couldn’t feel any pain from the toe or the procedure. He used to be able to play on the computer, but his voice has gotten worse and the software won’t hear him well enough. Being on a ventilator has always been a speech problem.
-Mom had both knees replaced this past year, and a couple other minor medical procedures. She’s done an extraordinary job taking care of Dad all these years, but has arthritis and some other obstacles with caregiving now. I don’t know how much longer she’ll be able to do this, and it makes me uncertain about my future. I may need to be the primary caregiver at some point.
-The wife. She’s been disabled as long as Dad has, but disability payments don’t cover nearly all the costs. Several conditions and illnesses keep her from working. Her spine has gotten more bone spurs and will eventually fuse between the vertebrae leaving her back immobile. Her left shoulder is unusable right now, and physical therapy is going on with the shoulder. Conditions, procedures and medications too many to mention right now. Thanks to my wife for putting up with all my shortcomings and still loving me!
-My brother. He had surgery on his knees this year, and his back ain’t too damn good either. His wife has been seeking work and they’ve had a tough go of it. Their daughter got married and her new hubby can’t find work either. Their son is working at Starbucks, and seems happy enough with it. I don’t see them much due to my own work hours.
-Older daughter. Her family lost everything in the Joplin tornado. She has a strong faith and great church family that has helped. They went through a lot, but are relocated now and carrying on with life. Some friends of theirs died, and one lost two children. She was featured in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”.
-Younger daughter. Her second year in college. Doing okay, working on top of school too. Welcome to adulthood. Never enough time or money. The wife and I went out and heard her choir a few weeks ago. She also got to sing The National Anthem at the opening of the college basketball game. The wife was there for that and said she got a standing ovation for her performance. Apparently, that’s something that rarely happens. She would like to be an opera singer. Any producers out there let me know when she can go to work.
-The grandkids.Girl, age 10 and boy age 7. Of course, being my grandkids, they are wonderful people. They both got some local media coverage and notoriety after the Joplin tornado. Ta’ Lynn got to be the “opener” for a benefit in Branson Missouri, doing a pre-recorded and live piece with Jim Stafford, Shoji Tabuchi and Carrie April Tillis. Donovyn got some coverage at a football camp sponsored by NFL quarterback Shawn Hill. Being so young, neither one realized how cool it was to appear on TV with those celebrities.
-And finally, ME.
I continue to work two jobs, and have less time and money than ever in my life. I’m lucky to get six hours sleep on most days. This makes me grouchy,… bah humbug. I’m still bald and toothless and I’m in training to grow hair and teeth, but so far no luck. My eyes are getting worse, and I can no longer read without glasses. My lower dentures seem to be getting looser.
I still love to frequent several blogs, but lately haven’t even had time to comment on my favorites. I wish I could write and blog more, but just like writing this silly letter, there’s so many other (responsible) things I should be doing.
I hope my realistic Christmas letter hasn’t depressed (or bored) anyone to the point of needing professional counseling. If you could accept some really mediocre (free) and amateur counseling, just drop me a line. If nothing else, maybe my life will help bring perspective to your own problems.
I truly hope this holiday finds you all doing well. Thanks to all who follow, read and comment here.
Above all, I wish for you to enjoy the things that Christ taught us about; Love, compassion and forgiveness. May those lessons dominate this season and our own lives. ~ sekanblogger
