text:
Here is a presentation given by Terry Moon to the Chicago Local of News and Letters Committees on Dec. 11, 2017.
From Trump's trashing of women to #MeToo:
Which way forward for women's liberation?
–Terry Moon
The story in The New York Times ("'The Silence Breakers' Named Time's Person of the Year for 2017," Dec. 6. 2017) about how Time magazine's person of the year is who they dub "the silence breakers" begins by saying "First it was a story. Then a moment. Now, two months after women began to come forward in droves to accuse powerful men of sexual harassment and assault, it is a movement." Well, no, Jonah Engel (that is the name of the man who wrote the article). First there was a movement, then there was decades of retrogression and reaction topped off by the election of the Abuser in Chief, then there was a moment—it was called the Women's March and it was almost a year ago on Jan. 21. As part of that revitalized movement, given impetus by the Women's March, women started speaking up and men began to fall.
When that movement first began in the mid-1960s, the Marxist-Humanist revolutionary philosopher Raya Dunayevskaya caught its essence in the category she created then: "The Women's Liberation Movement as revolutionary force and Reason." In her works that followed she made explicit that force and Reason in different periods, always also making explicit its relationship to Marx's revolution in permanence. She caught the humanism that runs through over 50 years of the movement—a red thread of a different kind of revolution than had been articulated by the Left. In "The New Voices" section of Rosa Luxemburg, Women's Liberation, and Marx's Philosophy of Revolution," in showing how what was then the new Women's Liberation Movement had transcended even the great organizing of the German Socialist Women's Movement, she wrote that Clara Zetkin's "superiority in organizing women on class lines left hidden many aspects of the 'Woman Question,' most of all how very deep the uprooting of the old must be" (p. 100).
The latest length of that revolutionary red thread, #MeToo, shows this truth in a different visceral way again, that revolution must deepen at every point in order to finally make the relationships we have with each other actually human relationships. Because if #MeToo shows us anything, it is that men are certainly not treating women as if they are human beings.
There is no doubt that in some ways the explosion of women coming forward with their reports of rape, sexual abuse and harassment has made an impact—first of all in the U.S., and now spreading worldwide. The clamor has exposed how many powerful men—concentrated in high-end businesses, government, and the entertainment industry—are rapists and abusers. It has revealed how so many of these men who have power over women view women and abuse that power.
But we need to keep in mind that who this information is revelatory to is not so much women—that is after all what #MeToo means—but men. That certainly includes many of those powerful men who run the media, who have kept women underrepresented as reporters, underrepresented as those who are interviewed, as those considered experts, as those whose voices have a right to be heard, as those who actually have a viewpoint that is important, an expertise that can throw light on objective events.
These media men have always been part of the problem, so much so that women staffers sat in at the so-called "radical paper" Rat in 1970 and took it over. That same year in March, over 50 women sat in at the Ladies Home Journal for 11 hours, forcing the editor to give them a section in the next issue. Our WL group in Detroit refused to talk to male reporters, forcing news stations to find a woman to interview us—often a woman who had been confined to reporting the weather. (I think of this often when watching those horrible anti-women racists women anchors on Fox News who have no idea that they owe their jobs to the Women's Liberation Movement.) Then women began starting our own papers so we could finally have a voice. Remember: then there were no women anchors; Helen Thomas was the only woman reporter people knew; if you heard a woman's voice on the news, she was talking about the weather.
And by the way, Time is so out of line by calling the women on the cover "the silence breakers." Women have always been speaking out, struggling to break the silence! We have fought; we have gone to the police, who for decades treated domestic violence as nuisance calls, taking the abuser for a walk around the block to "cool off." We have reported rapes, put up with the invasive procedure needed to collect evidence from our battered bodies and then had those rape kits pile up by the tens of thousands in police basements and storage rooms, forgotten, leaving serial rapists free to strike again and again. Women have spoken up at work against their abusers and been demoted and fired. Women in non-traditional jobs spoke out against brutal harassment by their co-workers, often to no avail. There certainly has been a "silence," but it is not because we've had to wait for women to speak out.
Everything about this Time front cover pisses me off. First, they leave off the cover a picture of Tarana Burke, the founder of #MeToo. Then Time's editor in chief, Edward Felsenthal, claims, according to The New York Times, that "the #MeToo movement represented the 'fastest-moving social change we've seen in decades…'" That is only true, of course, if you ignore Black Lives Matter—another movement begun by women; or the Arab Spring for that matter.
I. From the Women's March on Jan. 21, 2017, to #MeToo
Let's remember for a moment that fantastic march on Jan. 21 as the country faced a future ruled by the inhuman insanity that is Trumpism. We wrote then:
It meant something that the women's marches caught fire. It wasn't explicit that it was a humanism that brought people out, but it was implicit in all the signs calling out Trump for hate, in the insistence that we were there because we welcome immigrants and refugees, that we know in our bones that Black Lives Matter and police killings must stop and that we want justice for LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, and others.
It was a beautiful day and not only because of the weather, but because of the comradeship. The march projected the kind of America Trump aims to destroy—multi-racial; multi-ethnic; tens of thousands of spirited feminists, immigrants, LGBTQ people being who they are and proud. We were united because we oppose Trump's inhuman plans for the U.S., but also in what we were fighting for—and the "for" was also what the demonstration itself embodied: the desire for a country that is committed to the well-being of its citizens, the world's citizens and the planet. ("Democracy in the streets votes Trump out! In Chicago," Jan.-Feb. 2017 News & Letters)
The Women's March was not explicitly revolutionary, but we saw that red thread within it and tried to make it explicit. Those who are misleading this country saw it too, which is why we could write in the editorial in the current issue that what "we are faced with [is] a blatant attempt to not just control women's bodies and lives, but to crush a movement" ("Abuser-in-chief trashes women," Editorial, Nov.-Dec. 2017 News & Letters).
While it is certainly not just the women's movement that is under attack but all freedom movements—and especially the movement for Black liberation as seen in the demonization of the Black Lives Matter coalition—almost all of Trump's anti-human actions affect women more and Black, poor, and minority women more than white women: from the attack on immigrants—most whom are now women and children, especially if they are from Mexico or South and Central America—to the gutting of the birth control mandate in the Affordable Care Act, the crippling of ACA, the elimination of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), to the planned cutting of Medicaid and Medicare, both of which serve more women than men. There is as well the appointing of rabidly racist anti-gay and anti-abortion fanatics to positions of power in agencies that have been transformed into their opposites—from entities meant to better the lives of the poor, women, people of color, LGBTQ people, children and the disabled, into agencies now dedicated to destroying any rights these people have fought for in the last 200 years and, in the process, destroying the people themselves. Furthermore, Trump et al are making sure their people-destroying polices will last for decades with the ramped up installing of dozens of Right-wing judges—some woefully unqualified but all Right-Wing fanatics of one stripe or another. To show the lengths Trump will go in order to kowtow to every whim of his racist, sexist, capitalistic base, one of his latest outrages is that his (anti-)Labor Department proposed rescinding another Obama-era rule mandating that tips belong to the servers and the owners of the restaurants cannot steal them. Of course most servers are women, many who make less than $10/hr—partly because the rationale has always been that they get tips! But since the National Restaurant Association lobbied for this takeaway from the poor, Trump wants to deliver.
It is the outrageousness of the current objective situation that has given impetus to the movement, pulling in women from several walks of life. Thus in the last few weeks we've heard from:
- Women lobbyists who are in a bind because they are being raped and harassed by those who they are trying to convince to vote in a certain way and who, if they alienate, will not vote their way, and the women will also lose their jobs. As one lobbyist for NARAL said, who would care that a NARAL lobbyist had been sexually attacked?
- In 24 hours more than 125 women artists signed an open letter condemning the publisher of an important art journal for harassment and misuse of power. When the letter was published, over 1,800 had signed, including Trans women and gender-nonconforming artists from around the world.
- Close to 200 California women who work in local government signed a letter "denouncing a culture of rampant sexual misconduct in and around the state government…in Sacramento." The letter complained "of male lawmakers groping them, of male staff members threatening them and of a human resources system so broken that it is unable to give serious grievances a fair hearing" ("Sexual Misconduct in California's Capitol is Difficult to Escape," The New York Times, Oct. 29, 2017).
- The president of Emily's List "said that in the 10 months before the election in 2016, about 1,000 women contacted her organization about running for office or getting involved in other ways. Since the election, she said, the number has exploded to more than 22,000." ("Women Line Up to Run for Office, Harnessing Their Outrage at Trump," The New York Times, Dec. 4, 2017.)
As the movement expands, it is clear that sexual abuse is not limited to what happens on the job. #MeToo has given new life to the movements to stop childhood sexual assault. For example those struggling for 11 years to pass the Child Victims Act in New York—a Bill which would lengthen the time victims of childhood sexual assault would have to sue their attackers as well as the institution where the abuse happened, has taken on new life and urgency. As one of the Bill's advocates, who herself had been abused as a child, said, "The people who are speaking up are famous people, with fortunes and legal teams and PR teams." And yet for years "They were too scared to talk. So how do you expect a child to do it?" ("A New Push to Expand New York's Childhood Sexual Assault Law," The New York Times, Dec. 6, 2017.) Soon #MeToo will include people speaking out about incest.
#MeToo is just getting started, which is a good thing because it needs to continue to deepen.
II. #MeToo needs to also be #YesAllWomen
There is a reason that so far most of the men who have had to leave their jobs or positions of authority are clustered in the entertainment industry, politics or the academic world. It is at least partly because the women accusing them can afford lawyers. Another reason may be that, like the women artists, women who've been able to for once actually be heard have a network so that they can more easily organize and speak out loudly in one voice.
But what we've seen and read is just the tip of a huge iceberg. #MeToo has to also be for waitresses or women who work in kitchens, for house cleaners and those who work in people's homes, migrant women jailed—for that's what it is—in detention centers as well as women in recognized jails and prisons; and for any number of low-paid, low-status jobs that put women or men too in contact with those who have power over them.
The jobs of women who work in the fields is dependent on the overseer. If he rapes or harasses them, fighting back means you get fired or worse. Living this reality, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, an organization of women farmworkers and women from farmworker families who represent 700,000 women field workers, wrote an open letter to their "Dear Sisters," "actors, models and other individuals" "who have come forward to speak out about the gender based violence they've experienced." They wrote in part:
Sadly, we're not surprised because it's a reality we know far too well. Countless farmworker women across our country suffer in silence because of the widespread sexual harassment and assault that they face at work. We do not work under bright stage lights or on the big screen. We work in the shadows of society in isolated fields and packinghouses that are out of sight and out of mind for most people in this country….
Even though we work in very different environments, we share a common experience of being preyed upon by individuals who have the power to hire, fire, blacklist and otherwise threaten our economic, physical and emotional security. Like you, there are few positions available to us and reporting any kind of harm or injustice committed against us doesn't seem like a viable option. Complaining about anything—even sexual harassment—seems unthinkable because too much is at risk, including the ability to feed our families and preserve our reputations" ("700,000 Female Farmworkers Say They Stand With Hollywood Actors Against Sexual Assault," Time, Time Staff, Nov. 10, 2017).
They are saying that in many ways, as hard as it was for the women attacked by Harvey Weinstein and so many others like him to speak out, these women have a harder row to hoe.
Tarana Burke spoke directly to the problem the day Time announced their "Silence Breakers" cover:
Today's announcement should be an opportunity to ask ourselves: are we really committed to the hard work of ending sexual violence.
What about young people having to break bread with their abuser at a family gathering year after year, in silence and solitude? What about women of color and transgender people, who struggle to be believed by friends, families, and those in power? What about those regularly assaulted by officers of the law, on our streets and in our jails—do they get to say #MeToo as well? Will we listen when they do?"
Burke calls for "a complete cultural transformation…build our families differently, engage our communities and confront some of our long-held assumptions about ourselves," and actress Alyssa Milano, who brought Burke's #MeToo to the world's attention when she confronted her harasser, said, "I want companies to take on a code of conduct, I want companies to hire more women, I want to teach our children better. These are all things that we have to set in motion, and as women we have to support each other and stand together and say that's it, we're done, no more" ("'The Silence Breakers' Named Time's Person of the Year for 2017," The New York Times, Dec. 6. 2017).
But what that red thread we've been tracing, which is the dialectic of revolution, tells us is that we need something more total for women and others to be free. One reason that is so is because rape and sexual abuse and harassment are institutionalized, just as racism is, so it will never be enough to raise our children differently or have companies hire more women. And with Trump in office it is getting worse by the minute.
III. The institutionalization of rape, sexual abuse, harassment and so much more
There is so much that can be said here, but we can't talk all night, so let's just pick three things. First and briefly, is what Harvey Weinstein was able to do. The facts by now are pretty well known. He had power and money, could make or break people's careers, and he did that whenever he felt like it. When there was actually a chance to at least bring his despicable, criminal behavior to light, the system protected him.
Despite what police who worked on the case that actress Ambra Battilana brought said, including: "We brought them a very good case," nothing was done. Knowing that Weinstein was a serial harasser, he could have at least been arrested on third-degree sexual abuse. That might have cramped his style. But Manhattan district attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. would not press charges. Some prosecutors thought Vance should have prosecuted as, "'The idea that Weinstein's criminal intent was unprovable because of his stated "professional need" to personally inspect [Battilana's] breasts doesn't pass the laugh test.'" Supposedly his "professional need" to see if she wore breast implants made it OK for him to lunge forward and grab her breasts and when she protested and pushed his hands away, to persistently put his hand up her skirt and ask to kiss her, according to the police report. ("For Weinstein, a Brush With the Police, Then No Charges," The New York Times, Oct. 15, 2017.)
Weinstein was not only protected by his money but also by his aides and his contacts, who enabled him to savage woman after woman, ruining careers and lives, changing women in ways that no one should be changed, creating events they could never forget or forgive—unfortunately often including themselves—for the rest of their lives. He is an example of someone using the institutionalization of sexism for his own ends.
The second example is different. Trump reversed an Obama order that "forbade federal contractors from keeping secret, sexual harassment and discrimination cases." The "rule prohibited these companies, which employ about 26 million people, from forcing workers to resolve complaints through arbitration…" ("Trump Is Quietly Making It Even Harder To Report Sexual Harassement And Discrimination," Portside, Nov. 26, 2017).
Lastly this institutionalization of rape culture, of abuse and harassment of women is clearly seen in what Trump, et al, are doing to Title IX, specifically the gutting of protection for women who have been raped and/or sexually harassed on college campuses.
The white nationalist Candice Jackson, who now heads the Education Department Office for Civil Rights, blurted out her true belief to The New York Times "that in most sexual assault investigations, there's 'not even an accusation that these accused students overrode the will of a young woman. Rather, the accusations—90% of them—fall into the category of "we were both drunk," "we broke up, and six months later I found myself under a Title IX investigation because she just decided that our last sleeping together was not quite right"'" ("Education Dept. Civil Rights Head: 90% of Campus Sexual Assaults Amount to 'We Were Both Drunk,'" Time, July 12, 2017). The truth is that women don't lie about this, false reports of rape and assault are between 2% and 10%.
The greater truth is that the Obama 2011 Dear Colleague letter was only issued because women's decades-long battle on campuses grew large and militant enough to force some changes. Without going into details—which we can take up in the discussion—moving from a "preponderance of evidence" criterion, which the Obama letter called for, to a "clear and convincing" criterion, which is what De Vos will do, means that once again, men who rape on campus get a free pass. When women accuse a man of rape, it is often, but not always, a she said he said, and if you believe, as De Vos and Jackson do, that he is telling the truth and she is 90% of the time lying, then he gets off at least 90% of the time.
Remember the Brock Turner case? This was not a case of she said he said because two students caught Turner raping an unconscious woman behind a dumpster. He got a slap on the wrist sentence of six months in jail and three years' probation. He could have been sentenced to 14 years in prison. Now—long out of jail—he's appealing his conviction claiming he did not get a fair trial because character witnesses who would have talked of his swimming career, his school performance and honesty were excluded. Most telling is that over a third of his 172-page brief is devoted to raking his victim over the coals; concentrating on how drunk she was on the night he raped her. You would think that should give a man pause, if a woman is falling down drunk perhaps he shouldn't try to have sex with her, but in our rape culture he is freed of responsibility while she is condemned. ("Brock Turner Is Appealing His Sexual Assault Conviction," The New York Times, Dec. 2, 2017.)
After decades of struggle by young women—because no one else was doing a damn thing to help them—and after Obama's Dear Colleagues letter, here is what women are still facing on some campuses.
Six women are suing Howard University for ignoring their own policy of following a 60-day timeline to address sexual assault. (The reason Howard is having so much trouble is they lack funds. That is part of why the blowback: enforcing Title IX cost money.) Jane Doe 2 first reported her rape in October 2015 and was concerned because her rapist was a resident assistant in her dormitory who had keys to her room and had stalked her for months. Howard's Title IX coordinator, Candi N. Smiley, informed her that nothing could be done until the investigation was finished. At that time Doe 2 had sent Smiley email and text messages that backed up her claim of harassment and rape. She heard nothing from Smiley until December when Smiley asked her to resend her the emails and texts. At the end of the fall 2015 semester, after hearing nothing, she tried to drop out; was on the brink of losing her scholarship, depressed and afraid. She moved out of her dormitory to get away from her rapist, but was charged for it when the administration had told her she would not be. They also removed her Pell grant and need-based scholarship from her transcript and charged her for it, sending "her multiple notices threatening to send her to collections." She heard nothing from them until March 2016, which was not until Doe 2 contacted Doe 1, "who had gone on a 'storm' on Twitter [about] how the university had similarly botched her report of rape—against the same man." And get this, "He had transferred from the University of California…after being accused of sexual misconduct there…" It was then that the idiot Smiley asked for the third time that Doe 2 resend the text and email messages!
Finally, in April 2016, Smiley told Doe 2 that Howard had suspended her rapist for two years but, unbelievably, they didn't tell this to Doe 1. She had reported her rape in February 2016, but didn't hear anything from Smiley until the end of March "except for Smiley contacting Doe 1 to ask if she had been discussing the rape in text messages with her friends… Doe 1 called Smiley four times during that period with no response. Doe 1 ended up being fired from her resident assistant position "based on a report her [rapist] gave to residence life. No one ever told Doe 1 that her rapist was kicked off campus" ("Lawsuit alleges Howard University kept serial rapists on campus," Insidehighered.com, Dec. 7, 2017.) This is what life can be like for women who are raped on campus. Who is being punished here? And remember, the worst thing that a university or college can do to a rapist is expel them. And when they do, they do what Doe's 1 and 2's rapist did, go to another school. That is rape culture; that is what it means to say that sexism is institutionalized. At least in part. While this sounds fantastically horrible, before women started the campus movement against rape and abuse, this kind of thing was actually very common.
IV. Where do we go from here?
The red thread we saw in the Women's March in January has certainly not been obscured by Trumpism, only strengthened. That can be seen by the over 4,000 who found their way to Detroit to attend the Women's Convention. That strength was seen, not so much in the leaders, or the women politicians who spoke from the dais, but in the issues women insisted on taking up, issues that reflected those addressed in the Women's March: healthcare, global warming and environmental justice, mass incarceration, Black Lives Matter meaning police gunning down unarmed Black people, women's right to control our own bodies, discrimination in work and in life, children and childcare, immigrants' rights and the rights of LGBTQ people, and of course, sexual assault and harassment. Every time Betsy De Vos' name was mentioned, everyone booed.
So on the one hand you have this red thread of humanism emerging again at the Women's Conference; and on the other hand there is the same impulse coming from the leaders, coming from the press and also, in a way, coming from the Left, to tie this thread into a knot that is either electoral politics or vanguard partyism. The New York Times reported in a gush of wishful thinking, "Yet for all the disparate topics at this meeting, one thread ran through them all: opposition to the Trump administration and a pointed focus on elections next year" ("At Women's Convention in Detroit, a Test of Momentum and Focus," The New York Times, Oct. 28, 2017).
No one can be blamed for hoping that elections will throw the racist, sexist, money-hungry, anti-human Republicans out the door. Elections got us into this, so the hope is that elections may get us out. But what else is evident by leaders of the March and Convention and certainly by the elected officials who spoke at both is their drive to narrow the scope of this movement into electoral politics. What they fear is revolution. The Trump administration fears it too, thus their unrelenting attack on forces fighting for a better world, especially women.
So where we go from here, as we have done so many times before, is to fight against the narrowing of this passionate movement for a more human world, including making that fight explicit to those engaged in it. I can write this in one sentence, but it takes a philosophy of freedom and an organization of people willing to take responsibility for the idea of freedom, to make it a reality.


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Musicians wrestle everywhere
All day—among the crowded air
I hear the silver strife
And—walking—long before the morn
Such transport breaks upon the town
I think it that "New Life"!
If is not Bird—it has no nest
Nor "Band"—in brass and scarlet—drest
Nor Tamborin—nor Man
It is not Hymn from pulpit read
The "Morning Stars" the Treble led
On Time's first Afternoon!
Some—say—it is "the Spheres"—at play!
Some say that bright Majority
Of vanished Dames—and Men!
Some—think it service in the place
Where we—with late—celestial face
Please God—shall Ascertain!

subset: commoncrawl


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On Thursday, class 11 and 12 lined up to play non-stop-cricket. We went down to the field and it was already set up.
I was batting first, I was ready to make the ball fly. My first hit… well, it only went one meter. But then my next try it went FLYING! It was accelerating in the air and I sprinted back and forwards so I could get points for my team. I was energetic so I could run very very fast.
Then I was fielding next, I saw a ball in the air, but it was far from me, and it almost bonked someone on the head. Another one went straight past me, Deavay and I were racing for it. Deavay got there first and grabbed it, I almost risked stumbling for nothing. I was a little sad because I couldn't get a ball.


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I remember this vividly, you might notice- because it scared the hell out of me. As did The Tower of Terror, that skeleton army scene in The Black Cauldron, the entire Fantasia sequence of "Night on Bald Mountain." The one time I watched sections of The Wall when my parents didn't see me come in (a bad idea, in hindsight). I suffered from one fired-up imagination and had a habit of taking frightening imagery, allowing my brain to fill in the story's blanks. This resulted in a lot of sleeplessness and nightmares.
"They're only stories," my father told me once. "Like Little Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Wolf. Remember, that wolf always loses."
Something in those words settled into my soul, and I revisit them sometimes. While I scared very easily as a child, I grew to like and write gothic fiction overtime- a lot of writers do that. A close cousin to historical and horror, and a little like neither. More in common with cabaret music and steampunk culture these days too. Tim Burton was always fun, and I loved the ghost stories book that my mother had passed along to me- the kind with The Monkey's Paw and ghostly women that haunted roadside hotel. When I was eleven, I sunk my teeth into Edger Allen Poe's The Black Cat and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. The wolves were there, and they came in the form of human condition, negligence, and impossible odds. There is complexity and nuance to each monster, and I saw hope and cleverness there. I found that through fear- something these stories often used, there was also glints of compassion and heroics. I fell in love. I dove into the genre and all it had to offer.
As a reader, a writer, and I suppose, as a person, I've always related heavily to that one Doctor Who quote from the Weeping Angels episode with Sally Sparrow. "I love old things. They make me feel sad. It's happy for deep people." While a bit on the "emo teenager" side of statements, I've far more in common with old ghosts and antique books than I really should. There is an otherness there that I understand.
There is a rather interesting phenomenon in horror and gothic fiction that taps into Otherness. These stories exist in several ways: the heroes verses The Other (Dracula, The Phantom of The Opera), the village verses The Other (The Masque of The Red Death), and The Other verses himself (The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and one could argue Frankenstein). Scholars like Jarlath Killeen have discussed the connotations of this in early gothic fiction, and their often racially or culturally charged supernatural entities. There is a mirror effect that occurs in these stories as well, a self-reflection not only of the author themselves, but of the cultural state they occupy, particularly in female authors. Female horror authors love Otherness.
Mary Shelley reflects her times with subjects of responsibility and parentage, and with a monster so brilliant and devastating powerful- yet so physically abhorrent. Shirley Jackson, who died too young to see how her books have lasted, loved the subject of dysfunctional family and tragedy. Anne Rice's vampires are as depraved as they are empathetic. And this does not go without critique, films like The Woman in Black, Corpse Bride, and Crimson Peak, more feminine in focus and nuanced in their villains, were dragged for being "too sad" and "not scary enough."
This comes in clear contrast to Stoker, or Wilde, or much of King; monsters are enemies to be defeated. Otherness is something separate from the hero, or even something that consumes the hero to his demise (see Dorian). There is no space for nuance- we're back to Little Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Wolf. Wolves always lose.
But what if your wolves are not so literal? What if our enemies are not the ghosts we face, but the beasts that created them? Or what's more- what if your wolves are too literal? Women spend most of their lives facing what the Big Bad Wolf represents, making this threat more reality than fiction. Perhaps women understand their monsters better, or see them differently.
One of the most striking statements I've encountered about gothic horror is that men write monsters based on their enemy (take "enemy" to mean whatever you like sociologically); women write monsters based on how they view themselves. They aren't just fighting the monster, they are the monster. Society certainly seems to think so, given its track record with women: witch trials, poor mental health, suppression, claims of hysteria… Is it any wonder we feel for the Other?
I write my own sad ghosts and empathetic monsters now, not near as scared of horror movies these days. If anything, I've come to understand them a bit better. Rather than fearing the wolves, society sometimes acts as though women might just become one of them. And maybe they're right.


text:
Where I grew up, Meadow Tea is about as common in summertime as ice cream, swimming pools and running barefoot through the grass.
It's simple to make, if you've got access to a large patch of mint. And if you know anything about growing the stuff, you'll know that any patch of mint is a large one.
Mint is impossible to kill and spreads like wildfire. It's probably not an exaggeration to say that one patch of mint could fill an entire meadow over the course of time.
Maybe that's why this mint tea is commonly called Meadow Tea…
How to Make Meadow Tea
These instructions came directly from my own mother, who has brewed Meadow Tea for decades. She introduced my boys to this official country drink of summer, and now I regularly discover large piles of mint in our kitchen, picked by small hands that can't wait to hold a glass of ice cold Meadow Tea.
- Collect enough mint stalks to fill a plastic grocery bag about ¾ full.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Wash the mint thoroughly under running water (extract all bugs, dirt, weeds, etc.).
- Trim off the root ends of the stalks (where there are no leaves).
- Add clean mint leaves to the boiling water, fully submerging all the mint.
- Boil for 30 minutes over medium heat.
- Reduce heat and simmer for another 30 minutes.
- Turn off heat and allow the tea to cool on the stove top.
- Remove mint and strain the tea into a pitcher (or two).
- Add sweetener of choice, to taste. (I generally use 5-6 squirts of clear stevia per gallon.)
- Refrigerate, or to serve immediately–pour the tea into a glass filled with ice cubes.
Optional: Add freshly squeezed lemon juice or Lemon oil. I love one drop of Lemon oil in my glass of Meadow Tea.
Happy summer, y'all!
Let's get real! I'm Kathleen Henderson, your Natural Living Mentor, and I'm on a mission to help families see the joy in real food, while finding natural remedies and creating a nontoxic home.


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Musicians and music lovers across Cape Cod and beyond are mourning the loss of a mentor, bandleader, renowned trumpet player and good friend.
Patriot File Photos
ALWAYS GRAND – Lou Colombo gets folks in the swing of the 2009 July 4 parade in Hyannis, for which he served as Grand Marshal.Lou Colombo remembered for music, friendship
Musicians and music lovers across Cape Cod and beyond are mourning the loss of a mentor, bandleader, renowned trumpet player and good friend. Lou Colombo, a Cape music icon, passed away March 3 in Fort Myers, FL, as the result of a car accident.
Colombo, 84, was best known for his masterful way with a trumpet.
"Lou was among the few jazz musicians who had a supreme, God-given talent," said Marshall Wood, a bassist and longtime friend of Colombo's.
Wood, who now tours with Tony Bennett, met Colombo in the summer of 1982. He recalled playing many, many gigs with him through the years, including live shows and recorded albums.
"I have a long history with Lou," Wood said. "He had a once in a lifetime musical talent."
Colombo first began developing that talent as a child in Brockton, after his father, Vincent, gave him a cornet.
As a teen, he played at clubs around Brockton. In the Army, Colombo played with the Army Band in Aberdeen, MD.
Then, Colombo put down his horn and picked up a bat, playing Minor League baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Baseball, like music, was a passion, until a broken ankle ended his diamond dreams.
After baseball, Colombo decided to get serious about his music. After moving to Boston, he played with Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, and Sammy Davis Jr.
Through Shaw he met bandleader Dick Johnson, and decided to form his own band with Johnson on the clarinet and Dave McKenna tickling the ivories.
Wood recalled a conversation he had years ago with Johnson about meeting Colombo.
"Dick Johnson told me that Lou came over at the age of 12 with his trumpet. He stood on a milk crate so he could read the music, and played Hoagie Carmichael's song 'Stardust,'" Wood said. "That's a very complex piece. He not only played it flawlessly, but he improvised."
When a mouth injury compromised his playing ability, Colombo again improvised, learning to play more from the side of his mouth.
Although Colombo's group traveled the country, Cape Cod kept calling, and in the 1970s, he settled here with wife Noel, to whom he was married for 60 years, and their six children.
Having a large family was a joy for Colombo, who delighted in time spent with each of his children, Lou Anne, Lori, David, Tom, Lynda, and Sherri.
"I wanted to have a lot of children," he told the Patriot's Ellen Chahey in 2009. "Traveling with the ball team, and as a musician, I spent a lot of time on the road alone. I never wanted to be lonely again. I loved to have those kids jump all over me."
Dick Golden, former host of the long running Cape radio show Night Lights whose American Jazz program is heard throughout North America on Sirius XM Radio, echoed that sentiment.
"Lou's kids adored him," Golden said. "There's the Italian heritage of family and love and food and music and accomplishment and creativity."
Colombo was a fixture at son David's eateries the Roadhouse Cafe, Colombo's and The Black Cat, all in Hyannis, and daughter Sherri's Florida establishment, also the Roadhouse Cafe, in Fort Myers.
He spent his last hours performing at the Fort Myers venue, something Wood said is a testament to Colombo's love of music.
"Here's a guy who, in his final hours, what was he doing? Playing music," said Wood. "That kind of love for your occupation is amazing."
Wood remembers playing with Colombo at various locales on Cape Cod. A fond memory is of a performance at Mashpee Commons in the 1990s honoring pianist McKenna's 50th anniversary in show business.
"It was a really wonderful day and I never heard Louie sound better," Wood said. "That certainly would stand out as one of the fun jobs we did."
Golden recalled a conversation he had about Colombo with none other than the trumpet-playing father of bebop.
"Years ago when Dizzy Gillespie was performing on the Cape, I went over to his hotel to interview him," Golden said. "He told me, 'There's one call I have to make. I have to call the greatest trumpet player in the world. Do you know Lou Colombo?'"
Young jazz drummer Kareem Sanjaghi first heard Colombo play in a concert in Dennis.
"He was a fantastic musician," Sanjaghi said. "A true original. An icon."
Sanjaghi, who played "hundreds" of times with Colombo, appreciated his directness. Colombo, he said, inspired others to play at his level.
"It didn't matter to him the venue, or the performance or who he was playing with," Sanjaghi said. "He always played at the top, at the best of his ability. He would bring everyone up to his level just by playing."
Sanjaghi treasures playing with Colombo at the Roadhouse in Hyannis for Tony Bennett after Bennett's Melody Tent concerts.
"Jam sessions after Tony Bennett are something that I'll cherish for the rest of my life," Sanjaghi said. "To do those with him was something special."
Bennett himself was such a fan of Colombo's that a sketch of the horn player, "Lou Colombo's Jam Session," is featured in his art book Tony Bennett in the Studio.
Golden said Bennett and Colombo were chums, and that Bennett appreciated Colombo's talent.
"Tony spoke of 'these guys in New England,'" said Golden, referring to Colombo, McKenna, Johnson, Wood, Gray Sargent and George Masso. "He said, 'You could take that band anywhere in the world.' Tony and Lou had a great affection for one another. They just loved music."
"You could meet any musician and mention Lou Colombo and they knew who he was and respected him," Sanjaghi said.
A song that will long remind Sanjaghi of his friend is "When You're Smiling."
"When people came to hear him play, they would always have those smiles," Sanjaghi said. "People always smiled when they saw Lou."
For son David, there are two songs that remind him of his dad.
"One is a song that Dick Johnson wrote the night before the funeral of the great cornet player Bobby Hackett, 'I Remember Bobby'," David said. "That song and 'My Funny Valentine.' He always dedicated that to my mom. It's her favorite."
Along with his powerful music, Lou Colombo's friendly nature also left an impression on people.
"He connected with people," said his son. "He was convinced that he could make a difference in the world, and he was determined every day to make a difference with whoever he came in contact with."
"Lou had an impulse to make people happy," Golden said. "He did what he loved to do, to make people happy. Really, he was in the business of happiness. Jazz musicians are often quiet, reflective. Lou was the type of guy who just embraced the audience."
"He was a really warm, fun loving, sports loving, gregarious person," Wood said. "He could talk to anybody and make them feel comfortable. He really stood out."
"He had that great laugh," Sanjaghi said. "He always had a hard time remembering people's names, but he always remembered their faces, their families, and the instrument they played. He really just took an interest in people."
What David Colombo will remember most about his father is his ebullience.
"His spirit," he said. "His young spirit. He lived every day to the fullest."
An appreciation of Lou Colombo by Kareem Sanjaghi will be found in today's Arts & Entertainment Lighthouse. An obituary is on page B:2.


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An Excerpt from Deadly in Stilettos:
"I see you are up." The voice startled him, but Greg knew who it was. "Demi just called me. We are meeting for dinner. Maybe I will just tie her up and bring her here to keep you company. What do you think?" Laurel leaned down in front of his face, touching his lips biting them.
Greg hated Laurel for the game she was playing. And to think Demi was worried about her, wanting to protect her. Now he was not so sure that her parents were the bad ones. From her actions, Laurel was more crazy and psychotic than anyone else he knew, even Anya. He would tell Demi first chance he got.
"If you do anything to hurt her, I will make sure you suffer!" Greg's voice was strong, powerful, but Laurel wasn't fazed by it. He was tied up. What harm could he do to her?
"Is that a threat Mr. Detective?"
"No Laurel. You can bet your ass, that is a promise!"
Laurel felt a chill down her spine hearing the words come from Greg's mouth, realizing for the first time he meant every word spoken. Why she couldn't have someone to fight for her like that, Laurel wondered. Suddenly, her plan to keep Demi all to herself did not seem to be the best idea she had ever came up with. She wondered if she should just let Greg go. The voice in her head told her to stop thinking silly thoughts. She shook the thought away.
No way! Laurel thought. He was a cop. She would be thrown in jail for kidnapping an officer of the law. Laurel had to pull herself together, think about what she would do next. Demi had to believe he left and went back to wherever he was from, so that Laurel could be there to comfort her. If she felt betrayed by Greg, Demi would not try to contact him again. Laurel would get away with her plan. "Great idea," Laurel said to herself smiling slyly. Greg had a great look of disgust on his face when she turned to look at him.
It saddened her to have to kill him, but no one would listen to her when she needed them too. Now was too late. Her parents were trying to kill her, but she did not tell the entire truth as to why. Laurel wanted each of them dead just as much as they wanted her to be. If only they would have given her the family business without putting up a fight. She would not have to resort to such evil acts. They would suffer and she would get everything in the end, Laurel beamed.
Greg watched Laurel and the big smirk that suddenly appeared on her face. What was she up to? Greg wondered. The look in her eyes told him Demi was in danger.
Noticing Greg's concern, Laurel touched his hands. "Do not worry about Demi. I promise that I will take real good care of her. Once you are out of the picture. She will never want to have anything else to do with you once I am done filling her pretty little head with lies. I cannot wait to taste both sets of her lips. You will never have her!"
Greg tried to free himself. He used all of his strength, but fail. If he could have gotten his hands on Laurel, she would be greatly sorry. Pure evil, Greg thought watching Laurel walk out of the shed.
Before she left for her dinner date with Demi, Laurel came back with two bottles of water, and two sandwiches. Putting the items in Greg's lap, Laurel winked and then walked out the door. He heard it being locked. Then there was only silence.
Judging from the amount of light shining through the tiny window, Greg estimated it was just after seven o'clock in the evening. It would be complete darkness soon, so he had to work quickly. Greg took one bottle of water and drenched the rope tied around his hands. He drank the other. The sandwiches smelled sour. He did not even bother eating them, although his stomach ached from hunger. Even though he would need every ounce of strength he had, eating spoiled food was not the way to go. That would only do more damage.
When the rope was wet enough, Greg moved back and forth until the rope loosened, releasing one of his hands. Quickly untying the other one, he bent down to untie his feet. Greg pulled out his cell phone calling Demi. It went straight to voicemail. Greg cursed. He had to get to her to warn her about Laurel. As Greg walked near the entrance of the shed, he heard voices coming closer. "She said to keep him alive, but make sure he suffers," one of the voices said. Greg hid out of sight.
The men walked into the dark room searching for a light. Before they knew what was happening, Greg jumped out hitting both of them so hard they went out cold. All the years of martial arts training was finally paying off, he thought, thankful that his mother never let him quit.
Carefully looking around the wooded area, Greg realized that he had been right all along. He was in the back of the Cordwright's home. He was only feet away from their pool and guesthouse. How could he have been there the entire time and no one knew it was beyond him. Now Greg was on the lookout for more men hired by Laurel to keep him from getting away. Making his way across the yard was easy until he saw three huge shadows coming toward his direction. "Not again," Greg groaned. He was not a violent man, and he hated fighting. But if fighting would save his life and bring him back to Demi he would kick as much ass as he had too.
Greg got on the ground waiting. He felt around trying to find something to use as a weapon. The only thing he found was a small branch from the tree above him. "This will have to do," Greg whined. The men got closer and closer. Greg launched at the first one. The man fell to the ground. Greg used the stick to defeat his opponent. His movements were quick and accurate, hitting the man repeatedly until he was out cold.
The next man gave a good fight. He moved swiftly, landing a few good punches into Greg's side. Stumbling, Greg regained his footing, and went at the man with all he could. Several punches, kicks and grabs later, his next opponent lay on the ground with his partner, out cold.
The final man was bigger and much stronger than the other two. Greg being a muscular and tall man himself was no match for the HULK HOGAN built frame standing in front of him. Greg moved, blocking the punches from causing him major bodily harm. The Hulk, as Greg nicknamed the man, was quick for his size, but his breathing told Greg he was getting tired.
Still moving fast as he could, Greg did a quick turn, kicking Hulk in the back of the leg. The bone immediately broke. The Hulk fell down hard. Greg kicked him in the ribs crushing several. The Hulk wailed in pain.
Greg did not look back as he ran as fast as his feet could carry him, jumped the gate, and went in the direction of the city. The fact that he had not had any food for the last two days did not slow him down. The love of his life was in danger. He was determined to get to her before Laurel did anything to hurt her. The anger Greg felt toward Laurel was undeniable. He could easily kill her when he saw her, but thought better of it. He was a cop. He was supposed to protect and save, not destroy and kill.
The light of a car coming behind him brought Greg back to reality. The car got closer and closer. Greg knew it had increased speed. He jumped off the side of the road into a massive ditch.
Covered in mud from head to toe, he leaned against the side of the ditch. Someone got out of the car looking down at him. The mud shielded him from being seen. Then he heard Laurels' voice say, "He is probably dead. Send some men down there to check. Let's go!"
Greg was even more furious. That bitch had tied him up, starved him, sent men to hurt him, and now tried to kill him. She would definitely regret that move. He stood still as he could until she was gone. He climbed out of the ditch but kept to the side of the road out of sight. Greg was getting tired. He took out his phone and dialed one of his contacts. "I need you to come get me. Use my phone to track my location. I also need you to send someone to the Plaza Hotel to warn Demi. She is in great danger."
The person on the other side of the phone did as directed. Within minutes Greg was in a car, with some food and water, on his way to save his woman. It was good because just as Greg turned to look behind, he saw a dozen or so men go down into the ditch searching for him. No doubt, he would be dead at that very moment if his contact had not picked up his phone when he called.


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Because the mainstream media says so.
I mean, Romney is up 47-45 in Rasmussen Presidential and up 47-46 in the Rasmussen Swing State Tracking. OVER.
And now Gallup is showing Obama only up by 1, 47-46. Bounce? Gone. Election? OVER
Gravis has Romney up 1 in FL….Rasmussen has Romney up 3 in Colorado…Baydoun/Foster has Romney -2 in Michigan…Rasmussen has Romney -1 in Virgina…O.V.E.R.
So Dems…no need to go vote…this election is OVAH.


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My kitchen needs some updating and for a quick fix for change I will print these on a small 8×8 canvas print. Please take a look. Which one is your favorite?
Iphoneography for kitchen prints at home kraft&mint © 2013
I like the middle picture. I'm wondering if you could tell me how to put a picture on canvas?? I would love to be able to do that for my mother's & her siblings, that would be great!!! Thank You!!. Joyce


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Are you a Cleveland Browns fan? Well hopefully you answered "No," because this season for the Browns has been a very bad one, to say the least. So far nothing has seemed to go the Browns way and they have not won a game so far this season. Most analysts have said they don't expect the Browns to win at all this year, but that changed this week when the Browns announced that they would start Robert Griffin lll this Sunday, against the Bengals. Griffin has been out all year due to injury and the Browns have felt the effects by having to start multiple quarterbacks over multiple different games.
It is definitely too late in the season for the Browns to do anything significant, but all they want to do is win one game this year. The best shot the Browns have to win a game is by getting their starting quarterback in the starting lineup. It would be a huge morale boost for the team to see Griffin on the field this coming Sunday, under center. Griffin's start with the Browns this season could go down as the worst start on a new team in NFL history. He injured his shoulder in week 1, sidelining him until this point in the season. The Browns are the worst team in the NFL this year and surely will get the number 1 overall pick in next spring's NFL draft.
If Griffin can come in the next few weeks and play some solid football, and maybe even win a game or two, that will be huge for himself and his team. If he gets out on the field and does not perform well, then the front office of the Browns will surely be thinking about which college quarterback they can get with the number 1 pick next year. In his lone start for the Browns, Griffin completed 12 of 26 passes for 190 yards and an interception. He finished the game with 37 yards rushing and a passer rating of 55, in what was an underwhelming debut for his new team. His team needs him now more than ever, just for a spark, which they have wanted since week one of the season.
Griffin is in the first year of a two-year deal with the Browns. With a cap hit of $9.25 next season, RG3 will have to prove he's capable of staying healthy and playing well in the final four games. If the Browns are going to keep him on the team next year, he will have to prove to them that he is worth the money. At least this finally gives Browns fans everywhere something positive to talk about, leading up to this Sunday's divisional game against their rival, the Bengals. One thing for sure is that Griffin cannot do any worse than the previous Browns quarterbacks this season. Josh McCown has played the majority of the last two games, with Cody Kessler injured. In those games, he completed 55.7 percent of his passes with two touchdowns and zero interceptions.


text: Commercial development requires precise organization and coordination of numerous trades with quick turnaround. Kemp Constructions' team of project managers are highly skilled at executing fast-track projects with demanding schedules. Commercial construction will often occur in active public areas and safety is of the utmost importance. Kemp Construction's proven safety record and strict safety policy keep our clients confident and assured that their project will be completed without incident.


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Guest Post: Journey as a Buddhist Allegory
This latest guest post comes to us from writer, game developer and minister Katriel Paige. In this piece, Paige dips into her theological knowledge of Buddhism to draw meaning from her experience with Journey, and the spiritual and allegorical themes that weave their way through the gentle puzzle game. You can support Paige via Patreon and follow her on Twitter @kit_flowerstorm.


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Category: Interviews
Interviewed: Kevin Kaplan and the Dream Internship
Recently I had the chance to interview my best friend about his experiences as an intern at the New York Times. During the summer of 2012, Kevin Kaplan was an intern copy-editor at the famous newspaper company located in the heart of New York City. Now a recent college graduate from the University of Illinois and Champaign-Urbana with a degree in journalism, Kevin wanted to pass down his experience and wisdom to any young, wanna-be writers and editors. Sit back college students; you're in for a treat.
DJ: During your entire time at the NYT, what was the biggest thing you learned about the media world? and how is it going to help you in your future career?
KK: Being there gave me a very good sense of the state of print media. It's not too hot right now. I'm not talking about quality, because The Times is still strong, if not the best, in that regard. So far, the worst year for print media was probably 2009, when I was an underclassman in college, and I believed that everything had more or less stabilized after that. But being at The Times, which is a trailblazer in the industry, showed me the print medium still has a lot of hurdles to overcome, and that gave me valuable perspective regarding my goals for the future.
DJ: What were some things the higher-ups at the NYT were brutality honest about?
KK: They were candid about the state of the industry (print media are in trouble), but there is always going to be work for the people who are the very best at what they do. The overall expectations were sky-high for their writers/reporters (I was an editor). If you're not the best, you have to compensate by working extremely hard. Some of the worst writers (not just at The Times, but in general) are the most polite people I've worked with. They have to be good with people, or else they wouldn't make it to a high level. Good writing is a treasured skill that is honestly very rare. If you are an above-average writer, there will definitely be work for you somewhere, if for no other reason than most people are so bad at it.
Interviewed: Bill Nericcio
Not sure you're ready for the whole interview? Check out this quick teaser and you will be.
Follow the awesome work of Bill Nericcio via the following links:
Interviewed: Kathy Latus
Kathy Latus is a designer for the San Diego Union Tribune. Initially, this was set up as an informational interview for myself, simply to learn about the industry and gain any contacts I could. After landing the interview, I realized how nicely it would also work for the purposes of this assignment and fit perfectly into the scope of Diversions: A Journal of American Experience. The interview was recorded and then transcribed into text:
Me: How would you describe the state of newspapers in America today?
Kathy: Well, I think that it's a thriving business. I think it probably will continue its decreased readership for the print. But the appetite for people to have news and information has really increased. People go online, go on their phone minute by minute. Our company is a multimedia company, we do have newspaper products, which used to be the main, the bigger thing, but now it's not. Now it's online, television, digital. Mobile is where it's all gonna go. As far as a viable industry, news and resources is still hot, but the actual paper, the printing of the paper, your generation, no, they don't read the newspaper. So it's really gonna hurt the paper industry. It's mostly gonna hurt them.
Me: So, can you comment on the positive and negative influences technology and the internet has had on newspapers.
Kathy: Well as I'd mentioned, the negatives are for print because it's gonna hurt the printers that print the paper, the paper companies, lumbermen, all the way down. It also has decreased, because of technology and how information can travel so fast, you need fewer people to write it. The mainstream media I'm talking about, not bloggers because that's opened up a new pocket of writing. Social media has introduced new jobs but they're not taken as journalistically as serious, you know? It doesn't have to stand up to any rules or anything. Like as a writer for the newspaper, you have to follow AP guidelines, there's a guidebook that we follow as far as grammar and how we handle things and how we do things. You make sure you follow things and are grammatically correct. So the negative is the newspaper going away, but with everything, like the Industrial Revolution, we have to move on and evolve. Gotta get better at whatever you do. I'm a believer in technology and believe it will help mankind more than hinder it. It's phenomenal what it can do, but there's also a scary part. There's always good and evil.
Me: Can you describe your work for the newspaper and how you got to where you are?
Kathy: As a designer that deals in communications, we work completely digitally now. Everything you do is digital. I've worked for publications, internal communications, ad agencies, and that capacity is different from what I do here. It was more selling, I'd have to give presentations, go in and brand somebody, tell them what their brand is. And in doing that, you have to do a lot of research, you can't just make stuff up. That's where the technology has really come into play. Especially with the internet now, I know who clicked, how many times, how long they stayed on the page, how far they went in, etc. So I will go back and talk to the sales team and the customer and I will change the creative. I do everything: logo design, stationary, corporate ID, branding, it can go small, large, whatever's needed. I also happen to write, so they can use me to do multiple tasks. But I've worked with teams before as well. I would do selling in addition to the artwork, not every designer does that. I don't want to just be sitting at a desk every day, I like to get out and talk to people, engage them, learn things. You do production, you come up with a concept, you have to work with a team, interact with different people.
Me: Do you have some rough figures on the number of newspapers distributed?
Kathy: I think our combined figures, since buying the North County paper and one in Riverside, we're about 1.4 million on a Sunday. While news sales have gone down, our paper is, I think, the second leading metro paper last year, we made quite a profit, #2 in the country. We have a unique market where there's a monopoly. But that doesn't include the internet reach. Now we're all just one brand, we're the top website people go to for information. There's so much analytics we do now with statistics. But ultimately it's quality over quantity; does it bring people in the door? Does it reinforce the brand? There's a lot of dynamics about the target markets and demographics. It's important not to waste time and money and product. You've got about 1.2 seconds to get somebody's attention. It used to be over 3 seconds. You have to maximize what effective and efficient rather than focusing solely on what you want to include in an ad. You want to make sure that whatever you create as a designer fits what you're selling. It's gotta make sense. Sure, being different and going out on a limb can pay off, but don't make it so far-out that it's such a stretch that people aren't going to associate your product with.
Me: So, if the Union Tribune had unlimited resources for creating new positions, in what area do you feel those positions should be created?
Kathy: Definitely mobile, completely mobile. Everybody's got a smartphone nowadays, the internet is in the palm of your hand.
Me: What types of things are expected outside of work hours? What challenges are presented in terms of juggling work with personal life?
Kathy: There aren't necessarily things expected of you, but as with any job anywhere, in the digital age, you represent that company. Don't put anything on your facebook or whatever that could harm your company, things like that. You always have to be diligent that your actions do not show controversial, politically incorrect behavior. The times suck. You're on all the time. You always have to live and breathe the news. Look what happened just last week with the Boston bombings, we are right there, you know what I mean? You're right there, you're seeing it, seeing the people crying. I mean it's tough. You become a news junkie. So you have to learn how to turn it off and take timeouts. You need your downtime to rejuvenate you, get you revved back up and energized. You gotta have passion, whatever it is you do. You gotta be jazzed about it. Life is too short, try not to waste time. Be happy. Journalism is fast-paced, you gotta think quick.
Teaser: Podcast Interview
We picked out some of our favorite moments to give our readers/listeners something to hold them over until the full May 8th release! Don't forget to enter our book giveaway here.
Interviewed: A.J. Jacobs
A.J. Jacobs recently released another memoir analyzing an aspect of his life while simultaneously writing a treatise on a sociological issue. His literary journey has taken him from writing about knowledge and spirituality to his most recent offering, a book exploring the idea of how to build a healthy body.
Jacobs recently took some time to respond to some questions regarding his recent bestseller Drop Dead Healthy: One Man's Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection.
Diversions: Our journal is primarily interested in what we refer to as "American experiences." Body image is certainly on the minds of many Americans, as is a level of anxiety regarding health. In Drop Dead Healthy, you refer to your wife's urgings and an experience with pneumonia as catalysts for the pursuit of "bodily perfection." My first question is, how did your perception of the idea of health change as a result of your experiences?
Jacobs: I realized there's a big difference between looking healthy and being healthy. America has a weird obsession with washboard abs, for instance. Sure, they're pretty to look at. But killer abs don't increase your lifespan. I'm more interested in things that make you live longer, stress less and increase your happiness than those that reveal the musculature of your stomach.
Diversions: You tried a lot of so-called cures on your quest for physical fitness. In retrospect, what alleged path to fitness seemed like the biggest waste of time? Is there any thing you would describe as an obvious scam?
Jacobs: Yes, two things — one from each end of the body. First, juice cleanses and detox diets. There's little if any scientific evidence that they make you any healthier. Your body detoxes by itself just fine. Second, on the other end, colonics. You can live a long and happy life without shooting water up your butt.
Diversions: What is your writing process? I've read The Know-It-All and The Year of Living Biblically, and I'm consistently impressed by the apparent transparency of your style. Does this come naturally to you, or has there been a process of stripping away any boundaries between you and your readers? What are your current boundaries? Are there things you won't write about or share with your audience? (For the record, I've also skimmed The Guinea Pig Diaries at a local Barnes and Noble. I'm not sure why I haven't bought it yet. I'll get to work on that ASAP.)
Jacobs: Thank you for your honesty about The Guinea Pig Diaries. Very transparent of you! I think there's something liberating about writing about my own flaws, so maybe that plays into my writing style. I also read my books out loud to myself and will often change the sentence structure to make it sound more conversational.
Diversions: Can you share any upcoming projects with us? Are there any experiments on the horizon for intrepid urban explorer A.J. Jacobs?
Jacobs: I'm planning on diving into the world of Silicon Valley. I want to embed myself with the startup community.
Diversions: Are you answering my questions from your treadmill desk?
Jacobs: Total honesty here: I spent six hours on my treadmill today and notched up 11,700 steps. But right now I'm sitting on my butt.


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The Measure
The Measure, 2013
Songwriter, Singer, Keyboards on #1 & #6
BG Singer and Keyboards on #1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8
So Close
Jessica Blake, 2013
Background Singer on all tracks except #2
A Quiet Evening At Home
Nick Buzz, 2013, Six Shooter Records
Background Singer on #12
Ready To Die
Iggy and the Stooges, 2013
Pump Organ on #10 "The Departed"
Coasting Notes
Three Metre Day, 2012, GroundUP Music
Composer, Singer, Pump Organ player on all tracks
Shining Bits & Pieces
Buy on iTunes
Michelle Willis Group, 2010
Composer, Lyricist, Pianist & Lead Singer
John Sheard, 2010
Vocalist on #8 and #13
Coventry Christmas
John Sheard, 2009
The Game Of Love
Jake Wilkinson Quintet feat. Michelle Willis, 2009
Singer on all
Flashlight Radio
Flashlight Radio, 2009
Background Singer on #7
Jessica Deutsch & Ozere, 2020
Vocal, Lyrics on #3
Here If You Listen
David Crosby, Michael League, Becca Stevens, Michelle Willis, 2018
Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Piano, Rhodes Bass, Vocal, Co-Producer/Composer/Arranger/Lyricist on #1-10
Waxx Up!
Eric Legnini, 2017
Vocalist on #1, 7, 9, 10
Lyricist on #4, 7
Record Store Day 10th Anniversary
David Crosby & The Lighthouse Band, 2017
ft. Michael League, Becca Stevens & Michelle Willis
Fender Rhodes, Fender Rhodes Bass, MiniMoog & Background Vocal on all tracks
David Crosby, 2016, GroundUP Music
Background Vocal on Track 9
See Us Through
Buy Album / Buy on iTunes
Michelle Willis, 2016, GroundUP Music
Producer, Composer, Singer, Keyboard Player
Family Dinner Vol. 2
Snarky Puppy, 2016, GroundUP Music
Co-Lead Vocal and Pump Organ on #5 "Sing To The Moon"
Hylia, 2016
Featured vocalist on all
The Many Hats of Jory Nash
Jory Nash, 2015
Co-lead vocal and piano on "I Wake Up To Face Another Day"


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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Sunday School (10/25/07)
TITLE: Preparing for Sunday School
By Sharlyn Guthrie
After supper, Mother set up her ironing board perpendicular to the kitchen sink. Laying me out on top, as I supposed Abraham laid Isaac on the altar of Mount Moriah, my shoulders were placed even with the end of the board so that my long hair could be washed in the sink.
Just when I was certain my drooping head would be severed like John the Baptist's, and roll into the sink, Mother wrapped my tresses in a towel and lifted me onto a stool at the kitchen table, where my father and sisters bent pensively over their Sunday school lessons.
I sat as still as Lot's wife-turned-pillar, threatened by the pointy end of a rattail comb. Mother, meanwhile, laboriously sectioned off my hair, rolled the sections up to my scalp, and tied them with rags torn from an old pillowcase. I felt a kinship with Jacob and his pillow of stone, sleeping as I did on those hard knots each Saturday night.
The next morning, wearing a starched dress with layered underskirt, I mounted my royal step-stool throne like Queen Esther, and watched in the mirror as each curl was combed around Mother's finger, then pulled to shoulder length in regal fashion.
Finally, I collected my patent leather purse and matching shoes. The coins inside my purse, wrapped in a frilly handkerchief, would serve two purposes. During church, Franklin Roosevelt and Thomas Jefferson would rock in their hanky cradle. During Sunday school they would be deposited into the offering for missionaries in the corn fields. (Much later I learned that "foreign fields" was the proper term for the missionaries' location.)
Eventually my Sunday school preparations became primarily academic, and I joined my sisters at the table. I found the fill-in-the-blank lessons uninspiring, but dutifully completed them, nevertheless, because I would have been embarrassed not to. That was before I met Mrs. Sundeen.
Mrs. Sundeen took on the toughest class in church –junior high girls, and somehow infused us with real enthusiasm for our Sunday school preparations. Okay, she bribed us. She promised a genuine artificial jewel, as detailed in the instructions Moses received for Aaron's breastplate, upon completion of each hand-written lesson on the twelve tribes of Israel. I felt like Solomon amassing his riches each time I plunked a new jewel into my drawstring velvet bag. But my interest was also piqued by an aspect of the Scriptures I had never before read, much less considered.
My admiration for Mrs. Sundeen only soared when she held a slumber-less slumber party at her home for the entire class. We gathered to sing Sunday school and campfire songs, as heavenly music flowed from her piano. Then she fed us frozen pizzas, a novelty at the time, and more home-baked cookies than I cared to remember. When dozens of donuts appeared for breakfast the following morning, I regretted lacking Daniel's resolve in resisting rich food offerings.
Admittedly, my Sunday school preparations dwindled from that time forward. Sunday school attendance became merely habitual, lacking in any heart-felt enthusiasm. Finally, having completed the curriculum courses our church offered, and finding the electives unimaginative and stale, I ended my Sunday school tradition altogether.
I still wonder at God's sense of humor, inspiring me, of all people, with the notion of an all-women's Sunday school class. I was even more stunned by the many signs and confirmations I received that it was His will for me to carry out the plan. It was a new concept for our church, and one that sparked controversy, but eventually the elders agreed to allow it, and I marveled as the Goliath looming before me became conquerable.
That was three years ago. Now, once again, on any given Saturday evening, I sit hunched over the kitchen table preparing for Sunday school, this time with more enthusiasm, thoughtfulness, and prayer than ever before. Like Timothy, I study the Scriptures I learned as a child so that, unashamed, I can accurately teach the message of truth. And I often select a song to be sung a cappella by a room full of women that sound like angels.
Despite the superficial nature of my early Sunday school traditions, I'll never regret learning that Sunday school is a special place for people of all ages to sing, learn Bible stories, and grow in their love and knowledge of the Savior. And that is worth some preparation.
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What Am I Supposed To Do Now?
My February check is coming soon.
What am I supposed to do now?
This is a complex question with a lot of variables.
One of the variables is "we are running out of time".
We are running out of time in regard to an event that will occur in America that will result in the imposition of Martial Law across America, and all that this will mean (to include shutting down and/or heavily censoring the Internet).
This event may be Economic Collapse (engineered or not), it may be a terrorist attack of a magnitude that America has not experienced yet (not that likely), or it may be a false flag attack foisted upon us by those forces that control our federal government (the Illuminati, the NWO Agenda folks, the Mafia, the Bilderberg Group, etc.).
The Axe is going to fall on America, it is only a matter of time.
Those that built the FEMA camps can't wait to use them to lock up millions of political dissenters, and to kill millions of us, especially whistleblowers, smart people, free energy discovers and alternative medical discoverers that seriously threaten the powers that be.
What Hitler did is going to be small potatoes compared to what is coming in America if a Patriot Movement Revolution does not succeed.
Despite the fact that "we are running out of time", I have decided to take one month off to take care of my health. For the month of February, I am going to remain in Albany, and apply some alternative medicine to myself, and perhaps try to do some videos and get them up on the Internet.
In March I expect to be doing the homeless shelter/San Francisco Public Library routine in San Francisco again.
Even if no one picks me up or meets with me, That's OK.
Despite no one picking me up or meeting with me this last time, as far as San Francisco goes, I strongly feel that "I belong there".
My assumption at this point is that the Mafia still wants me dead. (They just don't want to get caught.) This assumption is based on the facts that (1) I openly invited them to pick me up to bring me to NYC and talk to me on November 7, 2013 and they declined, and (2) I openly invited them to talk to me while I was in Reno in January and they declined as well. The Mafia's Silence Speaks Volumes To Me.
If the above assumption that the Mafia still wants me dead is correct, my feeling is "let them kill me in San Francisco, right in front of all of you", or let them kill me enroute to San Francisco via Amtrak. (When will the Mafia realize it is better to make a win-win deal? Perhaps sometime in the future, or perhaps never it seems.)
Incidentally, it was brought to my attention by my sister Laurie that on December 9th 2013 that AOL, Apple, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter and Yahoo jointly put a full page ad in the New York Times titled "An open letter to Washington" and addressed to the President and Members of Congress in regard to the need to reform government surveillance practices worldwide. (SeeReformGovernmentSurveillance.com.)
I applaud the Silicon Valley, Computer Industry, and Computer Software Industry collaboration that created this appeal.
However, I would like to warn you all that "you are essentially appealing to the immoral and corrupt folks that run our government", and that "who runs our government is not all that as it seems" in this regard.
No federal government that (1) precipitates the false flag attack of 9/11 in order to fight two wars based on lies, (2) knowingly suppresses dozens of energy inventions for decades, (3) knowingly allows the sickening of America's children with GMO's and other bad foods, (4) knowingly suppresses any and all alternative medical cures that have been found, and (5) knowingly stands by and watches for years while the Mafia repeatedly tried to kill me for finding numerous mental, addictive and degenerative illness cures has ANY MORALS WHATSOEVER (not to mention HAARP, chemtrails, suppressing the truth about Fukushima, bailing out corrupt banksters, etc., etc.).
In essence, in placing that ad in the New York Times "you are appealing to the NWO eugenics folks" and those that are knowingly and systematically bringing about America's collapse (and have been doing so for decades).
Don't expect our federal government to change its surveillance policies, no matter what appeals you may make or what measures you may take.
Rather, expect our federal government to increase surveillance in America with more drones, more listening and monitoring devices, and continued pervasive surveillance of ALL INTERNET and TELEPHONE ACTIVITY.
You (AOL, Apple, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter and Yahoo, if not more) should use the collaborative spirit that placed that full page ad in the New York Times to put on a Worldwide Internet Woodstock to Wake the Public Up before it is too late, just as I have proposed time and time again.
If you don't put on a Freedom Promoting and Truth Suppression Uncovering Internet Woodstock, I can practically guarantee that you will live to regret it, if you live at all after the inevitable and soon forthcoming runs on banks and grocery stores, societal collapse (especially in cities) and the imposition of Tyranny and NWO Order Agenda Controlled Martial Law.
The Patriot Movement and Internet Awareness of the Truth are not growing fast enough on their own. They both need Silicon Valley's help.
I would like to close this blog with an appeal to Silicon Valley and those in positions of power that are listening to me—>
I don't care about me. When I took on Big Pharma in the summer of 2000, I fully expected to lose my life sooner or later, for what I had learned in regard to the natural and non-drug correction of depression and bipolar disorder by that point in time had the power to topple both drug oriented medicine and the federal government which was mandating this hoax (and the hoax of bad food as per Adelle Davis's wisdom and those that speak against GMO's) upon all of us. I am not afraid of being killed for so many just causes because I know deep in my heart that "As best as I could and as I understood it, I always did the right thing". (When I made mistakes I did my best to correct them.) It is the health of America, and America's people, especially America's children, that I cared about, and will continue to care about until the day I die. If my life, or my death at the hands of either the Mafia, the Illuminati, or our federal government, does not topple our corrupt federal government and replace it with a more modern, more moral and more honest Internet based one—> I have more than done my part. Should it occur (God Forbid), the Shame in Failing For the TRUTH ABOUT FOOD, MEDICINE, HEALTH and Our Corrupt NWO Controlled Federal Government REACHING THE LIGHT OF DAY should not just fall on me. I will continue to do my best in this regard, but my best is not enough to get the job done. Please remember that I am a person who has limited power, means and communication ability (I am the most hacked and communication interfered with person in the world to the best of my knowledge)—> and one that is miraculously still alive as many times as the Mafia has tried to kill me. The Alliance that created that ad in the New York Times recently has Great Power, at least until the Internet is shut down by Obama and his controllers. I suggest that this Alliance be further expanded, and begin to meet on a regular basis with the Primary Goal of Supporting Multiple Important Social and Suppressed Truths before Rothschild and Company (the NWO folks) take over America, as they fully intend to do.
Allen D—> With Critical and heroic Help from Mark J, and from our heroic San Francisco WordPress Website DEVELOPMENT Team!
21 Revolution Educational Websites For The Patriot Movement In America


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Aniruddh "Andrew" Bansal of Metal Assault recently conducted an interview with former KYUSS and current VISTA CHINO frontman John Garcia. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Metal Assault: I feel that [the debut VISTA CHINO] album is a continuation of the KYUSS legacy in many ways. Is that how you would put it, musically?
Garcia: Yeah, I think the record has some KYUSS blares in there, and I also think there's a bit of exploration in there as well. Looking at the record and how it was done, it was done very organically, old-school on a 2-inch tape. Singers don't record on a 2-inch tape anymore. They just don't do it. But we did it that way. I sang out of one of Jim Morrison's U87 microphones, looking at the Joshua Tree rolling hills. The amount of trust that we put into one another to do each of our individual jobs, it was fulfilled. You can hear that. There's always going to be people that don't like it, that think there's going to be a next KYUSS record. Well, that's fine. People have their opinions about it. For me, I love songs like "Adara", "Dargona Dragona", "As You Wish" and "Sweet Remain". From a singer's point of view, those songs remind me of KYUSS, but when you listen to songs like "Barcelonian", "Planets 1 & 2" and "Mas Vino", that's what I mean by exploration. So there's a lot of feeling and emotion. I think people are going to put their label on it, put their own stamp of appeal on it, and that's totally welcomed. We're just all really proud of the record as a whole, so that's my take on it.
Metal Assault: This genre of music, stoner rock, I think it's kind of popular these days, at least in the heavy rock and metal circles. A lot of bands are playing this style. I guess it's is a good time for you to do this, in that sense as well.
Garcia: Yeah! I don't think Brant Bjork [drums], Bruno Fevery [guitar] and myself ever set out to change the face of rock 'n' roll or stoner rock. Stoner rock has been going on since forever. If you take a look at bands like BUFFALO or LEAF HOUND, that's more stoner rock than stoner rock itself. [laughs] I mean, those are the true grandfathers of this genre of music. Either you get it, or you don't. North America doesn't get it, Europe gets it, Canada gets it, and so do Australia and South America. But some places just don't get it and North America is one of them. As far as the current state of stoner rock goes, I don't really listen to much of stoner rock anyway. You'll be surprised by what I listen to. I listen to anything from Rihanna, believe it or not, to Bob Marley and everything in between. Occasionally from time to time I'll put in some LEAF HOUND, BUFFALO or SABBATH, when the kids are off at grandma's house and Wendy and I are here are the house hanging out, doing what we do. It's always fun to spin some records. But to answer your question, I don't think there's ever really a "good" time. It's just our time right now.
Metal Assault: That's very well put. You mentioned the lineup. Has Mike Dean [CORROSION OF CONFORMITY] also worked on the album or has he just been a touring member 'till now?
Garcia: You know, VISTA CHINO is a three-piece band with me, Brant and Bruno. It always will be. I think Nick Oliveri is an honorary band member and Mike Dean is an awesome part of this and an honorary band member. But also, Mike Dean has another band that he's fully committed to, an awesome band that we respect, called CORROSION OF CONFORMITY. So, he's got some obligations that he needs to fulfill and right now we're just lucky to have him.
Metal Assault: I interviewed him last April when C.O.C. were playing in Southern California, and he told me at the time that he was going to play some shows soon with VISTA CHINO. What was it like jamming with him?
Garcia: Mike Dean is an amazing bass player. What can you say about Mike Dean? I mean, he turns these songs into his own, and he brings character, emotion and personality to these songs. He's not just some robot up there playing note-for-note of what Brant did or what Nick did. Mike Dean plays on the record as well. So he has turned those songs into his own and I have nothing but absolute mad respect for him. On the other side of the coin, as a human being he is one of the nicest guys I've met in my entire life. Very intelligent, very smart. I can't talk highly enough about him.
Read the entire interview at Metal Assault.


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Welcome to the Market. Peru's markets are a great place to get food, supplies and even voodoo remedies. They offer a look back in time, and yet their currents still run deep within the community. For two months we have observed and participated in the craziness, and I am now just beginning to feel the pulse. I will show you here what crossed my vision in the myriad of underworlds called, in Peru, the Mercado.
Flickr SLIDE SHOW.
Back to the top.
Flicker Page.
Slide show.


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Bashir plans a trip to Risa but is abducted by the Maquis en route.
Log EntriesEdit
- Physician's Personal Log, Stardate 48573.3
- After nearly two years serving as Chief medical officer aboard Deep Space Nine, Commander Sisko has ordered that I take a vacation. Who am I to argue with a superior officer?
- Simon Anderson • Julian Bashir • Benedict • Tessa Blake • Costello • Jadzia Dax • Dulcet • Theleb
- Referenced only
- Chakotay • Marel
- Deep Space 9 • Goka
- Referenced only
- Deep Space 7 • Gamma Quadrant • Levinius V • Risa
Races and culturesEdit
Starships and vehiclesEdit
- Risa Express • Tattella freighter • USS Enterprise
- Referenced only
- USS Voyager
States and organizationsEdit
- Maquis • Starfleet • United Federation of Planets
- Referenced only
- Starfleet Medical
Other referencesEdit
- dabo • Horga'hn • jamaharon • postcard • Samarian sunset
Related storiesEdit
- The story is continued in "Rats in a Maze".
- The stardate given would place the story as occuring between "Destiny" and "Prophet Motive". The events of "Caretaker", the pilot episode of Star Trek: Voyager, are noted as having occurred several months earlier.
External linkEdit
- Vacation's Over article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
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Memoirs of an Invisible Ferengi
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Prophet Motive
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Luminous interpretations of timeless luxury
Luce d'Autore
Roberto Giovannini realises decorative and elegant lamps in fascinating forms, born from the perfect balance between creativity, artisan know-how and a respect for traditional criteria; his creations exalt with a rare virtuosity the natural beauty of solid wood and the expertise of wood carving.
His 'lighting creations' can satisfy the most complex or sophisticated aesthetic requirements of the interior design of large contract, hospitality or residential living environments and express that authentic luxury which still today represents the essence of the unique sophistication which has distinguished epochs of times past.
Roberto Giovannini's lighting fixtures are, therefore, precious objects, often scenographic and realised for creating a refined ambience with evocative and exciting atmospheres.
Placed in a living space, in a dining room, in a bedroom or in a study, they become distinctive elements of the surrounding architecture, valuable furnishing accessories which enhance their setting, going beyond their main purpose.
In fact, Roberto Giovannini's lights take the leading role in a living space, even when turned off, enhancing and giving more of an air of 'nobility' to contemporary settings with the ambition to amaze .
Roberto Giovannini is inspired by objects from times past and from often sublime forms, giving life to a wide selection of decorative lights – for the ceiling, standard lamps, table lamps and applique wall lamps – in different shapes, dimensions, styles and finishings, which enable the personalisation of the finest and most exclusive living spaces .
Creating décor with lighting to gratify the senses, and realising refined interiors with functionality and a strong sense of the aesthetic is the conceptual and productive philosophy from which Roberto Giovannini's light fixtures take their forms.


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Ruckus Wireless and Time Warner Cable Team to Bring Pervasive Performance to Mobile Broadband Subscribers
INTERNATIONAL CTIA, New Orleans, LA, May 8, 2012 – Ruckus Wireless™ today announced that it has been selected by Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE:TWC) to supply advanced, Smart Wi-Fi equipment to extend Time Warner's popular broadband services to an increasingly mobile subscriber base.
With thousands of miles of cable plant already in the ground and no appetite for spending billions to build mobile networks from scratch, cable operators are using Wi-Fi to cost-effectively extend wireless services to subscribers on top of their existing infrastructure. Wi-Fi has become the natural choice for operators since many mobile devices, including most smartphones, now support Wi-Fi.
Among the largest providers of video, high–speed data and voice services in the United States, Time Warner Cable, with more than 15 million customers, is deploying Ruckus 802.11n Smart Wi-Fi systems within high–capacity indoor public venues, such a stadiums, as well in select outdoor locations – providing high-speed wireless services in areas where the public gathers and Wi-Fi might not currently be available.
"Subscribers now expect their broadband services to be accessible wherever they go, and Wi-Fi is a great way to make this happen – if it's fast and reliable," said Mike Roudi, Senior Vice President of Mobile Services at Time Warner Cable.
"More and more, Wi-Fi is about data consumption on wireless-only smart devices," said Roudi. "The problem is finding Wi-Fi technology specifically designed for stringent carrier requirements. Ruckus is one of the few Wi-Fi suppliers we've found with such a focus, having developed a range of indoor and outdoor Wi-Fi products based on high reliability and pervasive performance. This is important to Time Warner Cable as we build our wireless infrastructure to give customers the best broadband experience possible, no matter where they are."
Ruckus is currently working with Time Warner Cable on the deployment of dual–band, outdoor, strand–mounted Wi-Fi access points that integrate a DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem for backhauling Wi-Fi traffic over Time Warner Cable's existing cable plant. Additionally, Ruckus and Time Warner are teaming to extend the company's branded-broadband services within high–traffic environments using specialized, ultra high–capacity Wi-Fi access points designed for stadiums and large public venues.
"Time Warner Cable clearly understands the strategic importance of Wi-Fi for carriers and is one of the more aggressive players in the wireless land grab currently underway," said Selina Lo, President and CEO of Ruckus Wireless. "The expansion of Wi-Fi into millions of homes, offices and public Wi-Fi hotspots, along with the growth of a vast and mature ecosystem built of thousands of devices has established Wi-Fi as the most heavily used wireless technology in the world."
Wi-Fi Challenges and Opportunities for Cable Operators
At the beginning of 2012, Wi-Fi accounted for nearly two–thirds (63.4%) of all smartphone-originated data traffic within the United States, according to a new report from Mobidia. Rising smartphone penetration rates and the successful attachment of data plans to those devices will grow the value of small–screen access revenues to operators to more than US$230 billion by 2016, according to Informa Telecoms & Media forecasts.
Cable operators, such as Time Warner, are not just serving high–powered laptops but an army of smartphones that have very different characteristics in terms of power, antennas, support for IP–based streaming video, and the constantly changing angle of these devices.
Unlike traditional Wi-Fi, Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi is designed to address these issues by focusing and constantly steering Wi-Fi signals over the fastest signal paths using patented adaptive antenna technology. This technology allows Time Warner to mitigate interference while providing more efficient transmission and reception of Wi-Fi signals using specialized technology that accounts for changing device orientation. The simple variation of a device's orientation can account for up to a 5x performance degradation among Wi-Fi products unable to adapt to such changes.
For cable operators, Wi-Fi is now viewed as a disruptive technology that allows them to compete in the mobility market. Wi-Fi offers MSOs multiple opportunities to increase revenue, improve customer retention, offer wholesale access and offload fees that MSO's have had to pay to traditional mobile network operators. Not only does Wi-Fi reduce customer churn in the face of increased competition from telcos, it does so by leveraging the existing DOCSIS plant while laying the groundwork for new revenue services in the future.
"Wi-Fi at the carrier level is anything but simple and requires new technologies that go beyond vanilla reference design access points and enterprise-level management," said Roudi. "Our partnership with Ruckus will be important for delivering carrier–class Wi-Fi services that offer best–in–class broadband mobility to our subscribers."