Art: Try out your creativity, Sundays, any time from 2-4:30 p.m. in the Arts and Crafts Room.
Meditation: Wednesdays, 7:45 a.m., in the STAR classroom. Open to staff and guests.
Crochet and Knit Class: Saturdays from 9:30 am to 11:30 pm in the arts and crafts room.Zumba Class: We now have a Zumba class for STAR students and other interested guests and staff, on Tuesdays from 3:00 until 3:45 in the Community Room. Zumba blends Latin dance and aerobics for a high energy workout. Kelly Thrall, former Front Desk Coordinator and certified Zumba Instructor, is the facilitator.
ABE
▪Learn Spanish: Sundays from 6-8 p.m. in the Adult Basic Education Room.
Four students from Notre Dame will be coming to the ABE room to help students learn Spanish.
▪Positive Life Skills: Wednesdays, 9-11:30 a.m.
▪Money Smart: 10-week finance class starting March 2 sponsored by Lake City Bank; Mondays 7-8:30 p.m. Get paid $15 per class! Build or fix your credit through interest-free loans.
Priority eligibility: STAR graduates, Transitional guests, Starting Over Graduates, coach referral (if open seats exist). Sign up in ABE room.
▪ABE Incentives: Students will be given a card to be initialed during each walk-in class attended. Once a student has attended 10 walk-in programs, cards can be redeemed for prizes.
▪GED: All GED-bound students are welcome to attend. The class meets from 1-3 p.m. Thursdays and includes group discussions and time to work on testing, individual assignments and the computer. Please see ABE for details.
▪Poetry Jam: Mondays, 3-4 p.m.
▪Writing: Tuesdays, 7 p.m., ABE. Improve your basic writing skills under the guidance of a trained instructor.
▪Reading: Tuesdays, 6 p.m.; Thursdays, 6-7 p.m.▪Learn Spanish: Sundays from 6-8 p.m. in the Adult Basic Education Room.
Four students from Notre Dame will be coming to the ABE room to help students learn Spanish.
▪Positive Life Skills: Wednesdays, 9-11:30 a.m.
▪Money Smart: 10-week finance class starting March 2 sponsored by Lake City Bank; Mondays 7-8:30 p.m. Get paid $15 per class! Build or fix your credit through interest-free loans.
Priority eligibility: STAR graduates, Transitional guests, Starting Over Graduates, coach referral (if open seats exist). Sign up in ABE room.
▪ABE Incentives: Students will be given a card to be initialed during each walk-in class attended. Once a student has attended 10 walk-in programs, cards can be redeemed for prizes.
▪GED: All GED-bound students are welcome to attend. The class meets from 1-3 p.m. Thursdays and includes group discussions and time to work on testing, individual assignments and the computer. Please see ABE for details.
▪Poetry Jam: Mondays, 3-4 p.m.
▪Writing: Tuesdays, 7 p.m., ABE. Improve your basic writing skills under the guidance of a trained instructor.
▪Creative Writing: Thursdays, 6-7 p.m., Art Room.
▪Math: Computation--Tuesdays, 7:30-8:30 p.m. and Fridays, 1-2 p.m.; Applied--Thursdays, 3-4 p.m. and Fridays, 2-3 p.m.
▪Math: Computation--Tuesdays, 7:30-8:30 p.m. and Fridays, 1-2 p.m.; Applied--Thursdays, 3-4 p.m. and Fridays, 2-3 p.m.
▪Gender Roles: Fridays, 3-4 pm.
▪World Masterpiece Seminar: Tuesdays, 6-7:30 p.m., starting February 10. Sign up in ABE.
▪Intermediate Computer Classes: Thursdays, 3-4 p.m.
▪Grammar Classes: Thursdays, 7-8 p.m.
▪Book Clubs: Inspirational Reading Squad—Mondays, 5-6 p.m., in the chapel.
Herald Sports
▪World Masterpiece Seminar: Tuesdays, 6-7:30 p.m., starting February 10. Sign up in ABE.
▪Intermediate Computer Classes: Thursdays, 3-4 p.m.
▪Grammar Classes: Thursdays, 7-8 p.m.
▪Book Clubs: Inspirational Reading Squad—Mondays, 5-6 p.m., in the chapel.
Herald Sports
ND Scores: Basketball, Men--(11) Villanova 77, ND 60; Women--ND 72, West Virginia 66; Hockey--Jordan Pearce named CCHA Goaltender of the Week; Lacrosse, Women--Erin Goodman named Big East Defensive Player of the Week.
NBA Scores: Hawks 98, Wizards 89; Hornets 98, 76ers 91; Cavaliers 107, Heat 100 (LeBron 42, D-Wade 41); Thunder 96, Mavericks 87; Spurs 106, Clippers 78.
NHL Scores: Islanders 4, Avalanche 2.
College Basketball Scores: Men--(25) Texas 73, Baylor 57;
Women--IPFW 68, Mo.K.C. 48; (7) Louisville 66, Marquette 61; (17) South Dakota St., 71 Oral Roberts 64; (1) U Conn 69, Rutgers 59; (14) Pittsburgh 79, St. John's 60;
College Baseball Scores: Dakota Wesleyan 14, Bethel 6; Morningside (IA) 9, Bethel 1.
College Softball Scores: Bethel 8-0; U. West Florida 3-5.
MLB Exhibition Scores: Diamondbacks 9, Cubs 1; Mariners 5, White Sox 3; Phillies 12, Blue Jays 7; Rays 8, Cardinals 5; Padres 4, Brewers 3; Yankees 5, Astros 5; Royals 14, Giants 5; Pirates 2, Reds 1; Orioles 5, Red Sox 3; Rangers 8, Indians 7; Angels 12, Rockies 3.
Local
Local Headlines: Explosion--man taken to hospital after possible meth lab blast; Landlords--landlords say rising property taxes lead to foreclosures of rental properties; Monaco--Monaco Coach terminates most of remaining work force; employed more than 5,300 workers little more than a year ago.
Nation/World
Nation/World Headlines: White House--Obama aides defend budget plan in Congress; President Obama releases secret Bush anti-terror memos; claimed exceptional search-and-seizure powers and divulged that CIA destroyed nearly 100 videotapes of suspect interrogations; president hints missile shield flexibility to Moscow; Illinois--primary for White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's former congressional seat underway; Pakistan--gunmen attack Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan; Middle East--Secretary of State Clinton says Israel cannot "stand idly by" over Gaza.
Weather
Today High 27 Low 18 Mostly Sunny
Thu High 50 Low 39 Mostly Cloudy
Fri High 51 Low 38 Few Showers
Sat High 50 Low 31 Cloudy
TV Listing: 16--8-10 p.m., The Biggest Loser; 22--8 p.m., NCIS; 9 p.m., The Mentalist; 25--8 p.m., Reaper; 9 p.m., 90210; 28--8-10 p.m., American Idol; 46--8 p.m.;, Lester Sumrall Teaching; 8:30 p.m., Paid; 9 p.m., Harvest; 57--8 p.m., Homeland Security USA; 9-10 p.m., Scrubs (two episodes); 69--8-9 p.m., Street Patrol (two episodes); 9-10 p.m., Whacked Out Videos (two episodes).
Letter to the Editor
What forces me out into the open marshland of "non-mainstream" political punditry has to do with the latest Obama "pullout:" the decision to withdraw from the April 2009 Geneva United Nations World Conference Against Racism, dubbed Durban II.
We heard the same palaver in 2001 from the same forces inside our country, basically that a discussion of Zionism, in the context of such a Conference, would be anti-Semitic; therefore all the world's dispossessed and marginalized people must continue to suffer and sacrifice while muting their grievances so that no discussion of Israel would take place on the world stage in this context.
Well, in 2001, upon hearing this line of reasoning, I went to then-Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chairwoman, Eddie Bernice Johnson, and asked if I could be appointed as the CBC Task Force Chair on Durban. The non-participation argument was also a handy "peg on the track" with the potential of derailing many conversations, including a real discussion about the trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and the issue of reparations. Respectful of the excellent preparatory work that had been done, I wanted to avoid that outcome.
Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson made the appointment and I led a delegation of 5 Members of Congress to Durban.
The current Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Barbara Lee, was a member of my delegation to Durban. From my position on the International Relations Committee, we successfully argued for U.S. participation in that Conference at a Hearing designed to quash our effort. We not only met with then-United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, we also presented her with the untold story of COINTELPRO and the remaining unsolved deaths of its Black Panther Party member victims, commissioned by me and written by Kathleen Cleaver and Paul Wolf.
Our CBC Chairwoman made a beautiful statement of why it was imperative that the United States join with our Native American and Latino brothers and sisters and with oppressed peoples all over the planet and not only make our statement of solidarity, but also institute policies at the Congress that recognized their needs. It is incorrect to say that the United States was not present at Durban. We were there and only when the duties of Congress pressed us to return to Washington, DC did the Bush Administration make a big deal about anti-Semitism and then staged its phony walk out. The United States delegation of Congressional Black Caucus Members was there to support the phenomenal work of U.S. activists and the African and Caribbean delegations, in particular. I think everyone in Durban was moved by the plight of the Dalits in India and understood better the surging political power of Afro-Latinos.
Durban was a clear victory for the world's marginalized peoples, including those of us who reside inside the United States. But, when the Congressional Delegation returned to the U.S., there was no time for celebration because the tragedy of September 11, 2001 unfolded.
What has happened in the interim has devastated the very people that Durban was designed to address, unfortunately, much of it due to U.S. policy. Now is not the time for the United States to shrink from this call.
In order to prevail in Durban, I had to go toe to toe with the Anti-Defamation League and Members of Congress Tom Lantos and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen who, among many other Members of Congress, vociferously denounced Durban. This was something that I did because I felt it was the right thing to do. Given Israel's recent actions in Gaza that have brought upon it the world's opprobrium, I can imagine that this is the last point in time that Israel might want to revisit Durban. Israel has said that it will not attend the Conference in Geneva.
Early last year, a government official announced Canada's decision to not attend Durban II after deeming the Conference to be anti-Israel. Shortly afterwards, France followed suit with French President Nicolas Sarkozy stating that the "excesses of 2001" transformed the Conference "into an intolerable platform against the State of Israel." I would note also that France must be particularly loath to discuss racism now with what is happening in Guadeloupe and Martinique as I write this piece. And remembering that Paris, itself, was literally on fire just a few years ago.
The UK, which has been under severe racial tests with Asians rebelling openly in the streets since Durban 2001, and the Netherlands have both threatened to withdraw their support for the Conference if a "negative spiral" of events takes place. Interestingly, these remarks came at the same time as the release of a European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance report which found that the tone of Dutch political and public debate on immigrant integration, racism, and other issues relevant to ethnic minorities, had experienced a "dramatic deterioration. "
So, we shouldn't be surprised that the racism stress test is revealing cracks and fissures in human relations. But the United States and President Obama should not shield them or this country from these stresses. This Conference gives us the opportunity to get the issues out in the open and to deal with them. That's the way to put them to an end. The world might have changed because of events occurring in September 2001, but it wasn't because the United Nations successfully convened the World Conference Against Racism.
And now that I am as completely in the middle of the marsh as I was as completely in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea when my boat was rammed by the Israelis, let me make an observation about one aspect of marshes. I have witnessed the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets on the Savannah, Georgia marshland. And the most beautiful rainbows. Being away from the glass and concrete can give one a better perspective.
I observed last year that I thought U.S. voters went to the polls in large numbers to try and regain a bit of dignity lost during the eight years of outright banditry played out in our names, with our resources, against our interests. But I was reminded at the recently adjourned Transpartisan Alliance convention in Colorado that dignity will not come without first an acknowledgment of the truth: with truth we can have justice; and with justice we can have peace; and it is only with peace that we can truly have dignity. Something as easy as a vote, alone, is not going to be enough to wrest us from this mess that has been wrought.
This morning, I sent the following message to the White House:
‘Mr. President, it was with great disappointment that I read of your decision to pull out of Durban II. Even the Bush Administration, under pressure from the Congressional Black Caucus, provided some funding for the United Nations effort and sent staff to support the Congressional delegation that attended the Conference. I was there. I was head of the Congressional Black Caucus Task Force that negotiated Congressional and Administration engagement on this issue. There is still time for the U.S. to participate. Your decision is not irrevocable. I would encourage you to please reconsider this decision and not only attend the Conference, but also provide funding to ensure its success.”
I implore the Members of the Congressional Black Caucus to spearhead the participation of the United States in the United Nation's World Conference Against Racism: to boldly go where we have gone before. Dr. King reminded us that "the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. " On this issue, President Obama has shown us his measure. I hope that the Congressional Black Caucus and the Progressive Caucus and the Democratic Caucus can show us, oh, so much more.
____________ _________ _________ _________ ________from Cynthia Mckinney
"Since when have we Americans been expected to bow submissively to authority and speak with awe and reverence to those who represent us? " -- Justice William O. Douglas - (1898-1980), U. S. Supreme Court JusticeWhat forces me out into the open marshland of "non-mainstream" political punditry has to do with the latest Obama "pullout:" the decision to withdraw from the April 2009 Geneva United Nations World Conference Against Racism, dubbed Durban II.
We heard the same palaver in 2001 from the same forces inside our country, basically that a discussion of Zionism, in the context of such a Conference, would be anti-Semitic; therefore all the world's dispossessed and marginalized people must continue to suffer and sacrifice while muting their grievances so that no discussion of Israel would take place on the world stage in this context.
Well, in 2001, upon hearing this line of reasoning, I went to then-Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chairwoman, Eddie Bernice Johnson, and asked if I could be appointed as the CBC Task Force Chair on Durban. The non-participation argument was also a handy "peg on the track" with the potential of derailing many conversations, including a real discussion about the trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and the issue of reparations. Respectful of the excellent preparatory work that had been done, I wanted to avoid that outcome.
Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson made the appointment and I led a delegation of 5 Members of Congress to Durban.
The current Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Barbara Lee, was a member of my delegation to Durban. From my position on the International Relations Committee, we successfully argued for U.S. participation in that Conference at a Hearing designed to quash our effort. We not only met with then-United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, we also presented her with the untold story of COINTELPRO and the remaining unsolved deaths of its Black Panther Party member victims, commissioned by me and written by Kathleen Cleaver and Paul Wolf.
Our CBC Chairwoman made a beautiful statement of why it was imperative that the United States join with our Native American and Latino brothers and sisters and with oppressed peoples all over the planet and not only make our statement of solidarity, but also institute policies at the Congress that recognized their needs. It is incorrect to say that the United States was not present at Durban. We were there and only when the duties of Congress pressed us to return to Washington, DC did the Bush Administration make a big deal about anti-Semitism and then staged its phony walk out. The United States delegation of Congressional Black Caucus Members was there to support the phenomenal work of U.S. activists and the African and Caribbean delegations, in particular. I think everyone in Durban was moved by the plight of the Dalits in India and understood better the surging political power of Afro-Latinos.
Durban was a clear victory for the world's marginalized peoples, including those of us who reside inside the United States. But, when the Congressional Delegation returned to the U.S., there was no time for celebration because the tragedy of September 11, 2001 unfolded.
What has happened in the interim has devastated the very people that Durban was designed to address, unfortunately, much of it due to U.S. policy. Now is not the time for the United States to shrink from this call.
In order to prevail in Durban, I had to go toe to toe with the Anti-Defamation League and Members of Congress Tom Lantos and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen who, among many other Members of Congress, vociferously denounced Durban. This was something that I did because I felt it was the right thing to do. Given Israel's recent actions in Gaza that have brought upon it the world's opprobrium, I can imagine that this is the last point in time that Israel might want to revisit Durban. Israel has said that it will not attend the Conference in Geneva.
Early last year, a government official announced Canada's decision to not attend Durban II after deeming the Conference to be anti-Israel. Shortly afterwards, France followed suit with French President Nicolas Sarkozy stating that the "excesses of 2001" transformed the Conference "into an intolerable platform against the State of Israel." I would note also that France must be particularly loath to discuss racism now with what is happening in Guadeloupe and Martinique as I write this piece. And remembering that Paris, itself, was literally on fire just a few years ago.
The UK, which has been under severe racial tests with Asians rebelling openly in the streets since Durban 2001, and the Netherlands have both threatened to withdraw their support for the Conference if a "negative spiral" of events takes place. Interestingly, these remarks came at the same time as the release of a European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance report which found that the tone of Dutch political and public debate on immigrant integration, racism, and other issues relevant to ethnic minorities, had experienced a "dramatic deterioration. "
So, we shouldn't be surprised that the racism stress test is revealing cracks and fissures in human relations. But the United States and President Obama should not shield them or this country from these stresses. This Conference gives us the opportunity to get the issues out in the open and to deal with them. That's the way to put them to an end. The world might have changed because of events occurring in September 2001, but it wasn't because the United Nations successfully convened the World Conference Against Racism.
And now that I am as completely in the middle of the marsh as I was as completely in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea when my boat was rammed by the Israelis, let me make an observation about one aspect of marshes. I have witnessed the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets on the Savannah, Georgia marshland. And the most beautiful rainbows. Being away from the glass and concrete can give one a better perspective.
I observed last year that I thought U.S. voters went to the polls in large numbers to try and regain a bit of dignity lost during the eight years of outright banditry played out in our names, with our resources, against our interests. But I was reminded at the recently adjourned Transpartisan Alliance convention in Colorado that dignity will not come without first an acknowledgment of the truth: with truth we can have justice; and with justice we can have peace; and it is only with peace that we can truly have dignity. Something as easy as a vote, alone, is not going to be enough to wrest us from this mess that has been wrought.
This morning, I sent the following message to the White House:
‘Mr. President, it was with great disappointment that I read of your decision to pull out of Durban II. Even the Bush Administration, under pressure from the Congressional Black Caucus, provided some funding for the United Nations effort and sent staff to support the Congressional delegation that attended the Conference. I was there. I was head of the Congressional Black Caucus Task Force that negotiated Congressional and Administration engagement on this issue. There is still time for the U.S. to participate. Your decision is not irrevocable. I would encourage you to please reconsider this decision and not only attend the Conference, but also provide funding to ensure its success.”
I implore the Members of the Congressional Black Caucus to spearhead the participation of the United States in the United Nation's World Conference Against Racism: to boldly go where we have gone before. Dr. King reminded us that "the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. " On this issue, President Obama has shown us his measure. I hope that the Congressional Black Caucus and the Progressive Caucus and the Democratic Caucus can show us, oh, so much more.
____________ _________ _________ _________ ________from Cynthia Mckinney
Submitted by: Lorenzo Kibler
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