At a Slaughterhouse......

At a Slaughterhouse, Some Things Never Die

Who Kills, Who Cuts, Who Bosses Can Depend on Race

 

TAR HEEL, N.C. -- It must have been 1 o'clock. That's when the white man usually comes out of his glass office and stands on the scaffolding above the factory floor. He stood with his palms on the rails, his elbows out. He looked like a tower guard up there or a border patrol agent. He stood with his head cocked.

[......]

Who Gets the Dirty Jobs

At shift change the black man walked away, hosed himself down and turned in his knives. Then he let go. He threatened to murder the boss. He promised to quit. He said he was losing his mind, which made for good comedy since he was standing near a conveyor chain of severed hogs' heads, their mouths yoked open.

[......]

Blood and Burnout

Slaughtering swine is repetitive, brutish work, so grueling that three weeks on the factory floor leave no doubt in your mind about why the turnover is 100 percent. Five thousand quit and five thousand are hired every year. You hear people say, They don't kill pigs in the plant, they kill people. So desperate is the company for workers, its recruiters comb the streets of New York's immigrant communities, personnel staff members say, and word of mouth has reached Mexico and beyond.

http://www.nytimes.com/library/national/race/061600leduff-meat.html

 

  

Sermon on the Mount

Mount of Beatitudes - where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount...actually it was delivered from the bottom of the mountain...where the bananna fields are now.

 

 

In honor of the Jivamukti Focus of the Month being Ahimsa, and given that one of my good friends recently returned from a trip to Israel where he saw the place where one of the greatest teachings on Ahimsa was given, here is the beautiful message of Christ on nonviolence:

 

Matthew 5-7:27 (New International Version)

 

 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2and he began to teach them saying: 
 Blessed are the poor in spirit,
      for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 
 Blessed are those who mourn,
      for they will be comforted. 
 Blessed are the meek,
      for they will inherit the earth. 
 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
      for they will be filled. 
 Blessed are the merciful,
      for they will be shown mercy. 
 Blessed are the pure in heart,
      for they will see God. 
 Blessed are the peacemakers,
      for they will be called sons of God. 
 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
      for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

An Eye for an Eye

"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Love for Enemies

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

FLOW is famous!

Check it out - FLOW yoga studio was featured in the news!

http://video.nbc4.com/player/?id=179435

NOVEMBER Jivamukti Focus of the Month - Ahimsa

Ahimsa, Nonviolence, अहिंसा
 

This month's Jivamukti Focus is Ahimsa. Read Sharonji's message here:
Ahimsa: The Foundation of the Yoga Practice

And since we are living in DC, here is a more "political" approach to ahimsa, or nonviolence, as it has been used and can be used to affect change on a tactical level: 

 

How Nonviolence Works
Nonviolence rejects the use of physical violence in efforts to attain social, economic or political change. It rejects both passive acceptance of oppression and armed struggle against it, instead offering a number of other tactics for popular struggle such as:

• education
• persuasion
• civil disobedience (it could be said that it is compassion in the form of respectful disagreement)
• noncooperation with political, economic or social authorities
• nonviolent direct action (NVDA) - "Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored." --Martin Luther King Jr.

Central to any understanding of nonviolent strategic theory is the idea that the power of rulers depends upon the consent of the populace. Without a bureaucracy, an army or a police force to carry out his or her wishes and the compliance of key sectors of the population, the ruler is powerless. Power, therefore, depends largely on the co-operation of others. Nonviolence seeks to undermine the power of rulers through the deliberate withdrawal of this consent and co-operation.

Also of primary significance is the notion that just means are the most likely to lead to just ends. Gandhi said that "the means may be likened to the seed, the end to a tree." Proponents of nonviolence reason that the actions taken in the present inevitably re-shape the social order in like form. They would argue, for instance, that it is fundamentally irrational to use violence to achieve a peaceful society.

 

Nonviolent action generally comprises three categories.

1. The first, Acts of Protest and Persuasion , which include protest marches, vigils, public meetings and tools such as banners, placards, candles, flowers and the like;
2. secondly, Noncooperation, the deliberate and strategic refusal to co-operate with an injustice;
3. and thirdly, Nonviolent Intervention, the deliberate and often physical intervention into a perceived unjust event, such as blockades, occupations, sit-ins, tree sitting, truck cavalcades to name a few.

A useful source of inspiration, for those seeking the best nonviolent tactics to deploy, is Gene Sharp's list of 198 methods of nonviolent action, which includes symbolic, political, economic and physical actions.
 

Great nonviolence leaders and theorists who have thought deeply about the spiritual and practical aspects of nonviolence: Leo Tolstoy, Lech Wałęsa, Petra Kelly, Thich Nhat Hanh, Dorothy Day, Ammon Hennacy, Albert Einstein, John Howard Yoder, Stanley Hauerwas, David McReynolds , Johan Galtung, Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Ida Ford, Daniel Berrigan,Bacha Khan, Mario Rodriguez Cobos and César Chávez.
 

UN environment report: Humanity is putting Earth, and itself, at risk

The human population is living far beyond its means and inflicting damage to the environment that could pass points of no return, according to a major report being issued on Thursday by the United Nations.

Population growth and unsustainable consumption have resulted in an increasingly stressed planet where natural disasters and environmental degradation endanger millions of humans as well as plant and animal species, the report said.

The report, which is prepared by 388 experts and scientists, as the broadest and deepest of those the UN has issued on the environment, and called it "the final wake-up call to the international community."

Read on.

lesson in volunteerism

SAN DIEGO, California (CNN) -- Dust off every disaster plan from Washington to San Diego, scrutinize them to your heart's content, and it's still unlikely you'll find mention of the emergency services provided by Shary Shores. Shores, a volunteer registrar at San Diego's evacuee shelter, has appointed herself the shelter's "hugger." Every person she signs in gets a warm, heartfelt hug.

Having lost her own home to foreclosure in March, Shores says she has empathy for the suddenly homeless. Her embraces may not be government-sanctioned, but they are appreciated.

"I can't tell you how many people say 'Thank you. ... I needed that,'" Shores said.

ANA FORREST: Tapping into Energy that Brightens You Inside

Ana comes to DC's Down Dog Yoga in December for a series of workshops. In anticipation of her arrival, the renown yogini spoke to us about obtaining contentment and exhilaration in a challenging yoga practice, finding and losing (and finding) your center, and more..........

Most people can depress themselves quickly with their internal dialog. But they don't know how to work the other end of the spectrum. "Can you get turned on? Can you get ecstatic? Can you get excited?

What I'm working to bring to people's attention is the habitual thinking that keeps them stuck in their pain; in their suffering; in their blindness; in their injuries and diseases; and in their lousy relationships to themselves and to others.  A lot of it is going on at a subterranean level.  There is so much energy that is used up by that stuff! Tuning inward and starting to get skillful at stopping it - it's kind of like plugging a leak.

Part of getting to the ecstatic realm is learning to work in an energy efficient way, not struggling. And it is 1,000 percent breath-related. I work with a really intense, deep breath. Staying connected to the feeling of the breathing is a big piece in shifting out of the old paradigm and into a newer one. We have to pour ourselves out of the ruts in our yoga practice in order to play on the ecstatic realm and on the breakthrough realm.

Accomplishing the poses - yeah, that's cool. But there's something else available entirely - using the pose to generate the energy necessary to heal an area. That's a total reframing. Or using the pose because it puts you on an uncomfortable edge and on that edge is some treasure that you can learn about yourself. But every pose also generates its own - I call them "pose nutrients" - exquisite and unique energies.

Read the full interview here!

Dalai Lama Recognizes Work of the Washington Humane Society

Photo By: Zaid Hamid

Dalai Lama on Stage at our Event

Friday was a remarkable day in the life of the Washington Humane Society (WHS). His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who was visiting Washington, DC to accept the Congressional Gold Medal, made a visit to N Street Village for a special event held in conjunction with the Washington Humane Society.

The Washington Humane Society and N Street Village, a nonprofit social service agency for homeless women, have partnered to create a unique volunteer program which benefits both homeless women and homeless animals. The women from N Street volunteer weekly in the Washington Humane Society shelter in an internship program with specific goals in mind—helping to care for, rehabilitate, socialize and train the animals, while gaining valuable experience.

All of us from WHS were honored and humbled to have this tremendous opportunity to meet with the Dalai Lama and hear his heartfelt remarks on the importance of compassion to animals and to one another. The Dalai Lama is emblematic of unity and compassion, and it meant a great deal to us that His Holiness chose to recognize our programs as well as the precious animals in our care.

The Dalai Lama spoke for twenty minutes on the potential expressions of compassion in our daily lives, and offered advice and teachings which served as an inspiration for all who attended. If you would like to hear the Dalai Lama's remarks for yourself, Fox WTTG has posted his remarks online, click here to listen.

The Washington Post gave a fantastic recount of the event, click here to read the article, as did Washingtonian Magazine, click here for that article. Pamela Sorensen of Pamela's Punch gave a wonderful personal recap as well; click here to read her touching remarks.

Stories from the frontlines

I recently came across a great blog written by a soldier and his experiences on the front lines in Iraq. His first-hand perspective is compelling and the story needs to be told. Check it out at: http://armyofdude.blogspot.com/

Some excerpts:

President Eisenhower warned of the growing military industrial complex in his farewell address. Since Dick Cheney can now afford solid gold oil derricks, it's safe to say we failed Ike miserably. After losing two friends and over a dozen comrades, I have this to say: Do not wage war unless it is absolutely, positively the last ditch effort for survival.

I was a struggling senior in high school when the invasion took place, and I supported it. I was mesmerized by the way we raced across the desert and took Baghdad in less than a month. War was a sleek, glossy commercial on TV, and we always won at the end. It's easy to be for a war when you have absolutely no connection with it. Patriotism lead me to believe what we were doing was right and noble. What a difference a deployment can make.

The public can do something about this. It doesn't have to be a hopeless cause forever. Write your Congressmen, go to a rally, read as much as you can about Iraq to see it for what it is: a place men go to lose their minds and their lives. And most importantly, love your children. Teach them that war is not honorable, it's no plaything cast with an indifferent hand. It's the most terrible thing man ever brought to the world. My generation didn't learn from Vietnam, but the next one can learn from us. The memories and spirit of Chevy and Jesse compel you, America. Do not forget your fallen sons.

*****************************************************
For everyone else, the nature of this war prevents the public from a full grasp of understanding. In airports and in living rooms, you can see for yourself the effect in the eyes of a soldier at war for fifteen months at a time, hidden behind a smile that conceals a secret: you'll never quite understand what we did there.Like Atlas, we carry the immense burden of the country on our shoulders, waiting for the day seemingly long into the future when the American people say, that will do.

*****************************************************
This was taken on a rooftop during a firefight on March 24 in Baqubah. One guy lost a leg up to his knee and another lost a foot in an IED blast that day. Talk about sacrifices! Out of seven Americans on that rooftop, one is going to reenlist!


http://armyofdude.blogspot.com/

cats bringing heart to iraq

Nine Lives:  What Cats Know About War
By JOHN F. BURNS
A reporter adopts cats to reconnect with life amid unremitting death.

 

Joao Silva for The New York Times

NOBILITY Iraq's strays inherit land said to have given rise to all domestic cats.

 

Check out the author's website!   http://thecatfromhue.com/