A Yelp Holiday Hangover 2016 Party

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Okay. So it’s not that often that I find myself blaghing about parties on this blog these days and yet this post happens to be about an annual Yelp Holiday Hangover 2016 party on that Hudson River to be found in that city of New York. “I’m in!”, read a lot of comments to be found on that Yelp Holiday Hangover 2016 website, when those email confirmations from those rsvp’s were received in those emails. “I’m not in!” read some of those comments also of people and friends who were not in and were wait listed, as from what I read, this event sold out within twenty minutes of opening at noon and there were over a thousand people on the wait list. And I thank that friend for telling me about this event. And if I must blagher say, I was super excited to have received one of those Hornblower New York cruises and events party passes, as I have never found myself on one of those yacht party cruises before throughout my travels here on planet earth. And this cruise was a blast, food, food, and more food, entertainment, entertainment and more entertainment, catering, catering and more catering. And that Statue of Liberty all lit up at night photo is missing in action for when that camera doesn’t seem to want to see in the dark from inside that boat and its route.
And that list of performers and vendors from that night, which was actually last night, reads something like as follows:

Mark your calendar – set an alarm – RSVPs open this Thursday at noon for our Annual Yelp’s Holiday Hangover party!

What/Why:
#YelpHH16

It’s Holiday Hangover time once again with our friends at Hornblower NY (hornblowerny.com)! Presented by Campari America and Bronx Brewery, our goal is to make your otherwise dreary February into the best party this year.

For the fourth straight year, we’ll set sail aboard the Hornblower Infinity yacht filled with food, drink, live entertainment, and so much more. Don’t mind sub-freezing temps, the Hornblower Infinity is an enclosed four story beauty of a vessel. You’ll be plenty toasty.

Here’s what to expect:

ATTIRE:

This is a cruise, dress to impress (this means no normcore, no athleisure, etc… If it has a drawstring, chances are you’re not trying hard enough)

DRINK:

Campari America
Bronx Brewery
Monster Energy
Harmless Harvest

EAT:

BarkTHINS
Between The Bread
Chickpea
City Cakes
COLORS
Coppelia
Dough
Ground Central
KIND Snacks
Korilla BBQ
Krave Jerky
Lolo’s Seafood Shack
Mikey Likes It
Oficina Latina
Oficina 1000Miglia
Otto’s Tacos
Patacon LES
Pokeworks
Pretzel Crisps
Royal Munkey
Sticky’s Finger Joint
Tea and Milk
The MasalaWala
Toloache
Vosges Haut Chocolat
Williamsburg Pizza
*Final list of participating food vendors subject to change

FUN:

Anthony Fuscaldo Jazz
Candy Twisted Balloons
DJ Darnell Justin
DJ Kev G
Eric W. Brown Magic
House of Yes
Pendulum People / Nova Zef
Spa Envy
StelnikArt Soirée
Waiting To Inhale Oxygen Bar

IMPORTANT INFO:

1. RSVPs open Thursday, January 28th at noon. Save the date/time in your calendar now, spots will fill up fast. These are individual RSVPs so if you’d like to bring your friends, have them RSVP at noon as well.

2. The event is 21+ and your invite is non-transferrable.

3. There will be a $10 donation at entry with all proceeds benefitting Stupid Cancer’s comprehensive efforts to cure young adult cancer through advocacy, research, support, outreach, and awareness.

4. Timing of RSVP won’t necessarily factor into the final guest list.

5. Please sign up for Hornblower’s email so you can stay up to date on important info regarding Yelp’s Holiday Hangover.

And every picture tells a story as in those photos and videos that find themselves posted above. Have a great party cruise day and more.

Uncategorized

On The Road Again

Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. The beauty of nonviolence is that in its own way and in its own time it seeks to break the chain reaction of evil. “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

And on this day finds itself as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. AndOccupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter are still moving fast. And so to leave town when things are falling down all around you or not to leave town when things are falling down all around you. That is the question. And the only thing constant is change and some stories do not end as you expect. And so I found myself at Art House gallery and cafe in Edmeston, New York, and its surrounding houses and towns, some places that could almost be in the middle of nowhere and if you blink you’ll miss it, in upstate New York this past week in my travels throughout here on planet earth. Upstate New York, a place where land is measured in acres versus square feet and backyards are the sides of a mountain, in farms and self sufficiency, someplace similar to that road trip to Vermont, the city versus the country sort of thing. And Art House of Edmeston is looking for artists to display their work there if you happen to be in the neighborhood. Oh, and dear deers, please learn how to cross the street. #roadkill. And as a way to pass time, it also happened to be Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday that week to where I also found myself at an NAACP Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 2016 Birthday Celebration held at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Oneonta church in Oneonta, New York. And their program for that birthday celebration read something like as follows:

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

2016 Birthday Celebration

Remember! Celebrate! Act!

Sponsored by the

– Oneonta Area Branch of the NAACP

– City of Oneonta Commission on Community Relations & Human Rights

Sunday January 17, 2016 – 2:00 PM to 4PM

Unitarian Universalist Society

12 Ford Avenue, Oneonta

“Jazz Ensemble”

Gennaro Falco, piano – Danny Birnbaum, bass – George Ehrman, trumpet

Sadiq Abdushahid, drums – Steve Fabrizio, voice

Reverend Craig Schwalenberg, Unitarian Universalist Society

“Welcome and Invocation”

Everyone – Tim Horne, piano

“Lift Every Voice and Sing”

Lee Fisher, President Oneonta Branch NAACP

Joyce Miller, Chair Community Relations & Human Rights

“Greetings”

Gary Herzig, Oneonta City Mayor

“Oneonta City Proclamation”

Yolanda Share, soprano – Craig Morrow, baritone

“In Paradisum” (Be Thou In Paradise) by Gabriel Faure

Ecce Fidelis Servis” (Behold All Faithful Servants) by Gabriel Faure

“Wade In The Water” Trad.

Rabbi Molly Karp, Temple Beth El, Oneonta

“Selection” from Abraham Joshua Heschel

Aaron J. Marcus, NYS Assistant Attorney General

“Message From NYS Attorney General Schneiderman”

Michelle Osterhoudt, NAACP Scholarship Committee

“The 2016 NAACP Unity Scholarship”

Rory Decker, Oneonta High School

“Love Your Enemies” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Kaliph Bond and Jacob Katoke, Oneonta High School

“What Is Your Life’s Bluerint” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Maeve Rule, OHS Raiinbow Connection

“Achieving Gender Rights At OHS”

Cappagnia – Lynne Chase, OHS & Gerry Palco, piano

“Imagine” by John Lennon.

Delanor Davis, NAACP Membership Committee

“NAACP Membership!”

Steve Fabrizio & Jazz Ensemble

“Georgia On My Mind” by Carmichael & Gorrell

“Unchain My Heart” by Bobby Sharp

Adina Feliu, Business and Community Liason

“Oneonta Job Corps Academy”

Harry Bradshaw Matthews

Associate Dean & Director of Intercultural Affairs, Hartwick College.

“Speaking Truth To Power:

Dr King In The Context Of The Freedom Journey”

Introduction : Tom Heitz, NAACP Publicity & religious Affairs

Yolanda Sharpe, soprano – Craig Morrow, iano – Robin Seletsky, clarinet

“Precious Lord Take My Hand” by Thomas A. Dorsey

Robin Seletsky, clarinet

“Nigun” Trad. Hebrew

The Oneonta MLK Choir

“This Little Light Of Mine” Trad. gospel

Joanne Fisher, NAACP Assistant Secretary

“Days Of Service”

Reginald Brunson, recital

“I Have A Dream” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Barbara Roberts, Cantorial Soloist

“All The World” Hymn

“Oseh Shalom” (Making Peace) by Debbie Friedman

Pastor Jan Lacey – Markle, Davenport United Methodist Church

“Benediction”

Everyone – Led by Barbara Roberts

“We Shall Overcome”

“Sharing The Birthday Cake”

Please Join Us For Refreshments

“I Have A Dream” Speech:

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.” But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

As we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, “When will you be satisfied?” We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied, as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating “For Whites Only”. We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.”

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with a new meaning, “My country, ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim’s pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring.”

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, “Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”

And every picture tells a story, I think, as in those photos that find themselves posted above. Have a great Martin Luther King Day and more.

rikers, Uncategorized

A Rikers Island Party

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And if I must blogger say, I have been to a few of those March to Shut Down Rikers Island protests the past few months in that city of New York. As Rikers Island is ranked as one of the ten worst prisons in America, and yet it’s still open for business. And I have even found myself visiting a friend who is an inmate at Rikers Island Correctional Facility the past few months as well, his blog, Orange Lives Matter, is about his time incarcerated at Rikers Island that is inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. And so with this Rikers Island inmates invites I found myself at a Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur Rikers Island Sukkot party. And then a couple of months later, at a Rikers Island Chanukah party, both of these parties being at a gym with what seems like more guards in attendance than prisoners, the first party with the inmates relative, and the second party with the inmates friends, as each inmate was allowed to invite two guests, though it seemed to be a practice where inmates would invite six guests or more using other inmates names who did not have guests. And what a party these parties were indeed for me to see, kind of like one of those over the top and out of control, well sort of out of control, Bar Mitzvah’s, with good food, challah bread, grape juice, potato latkes, gefilte fish, traditional donuts, visiting a sukkah hut, Rabbi greetings and speeches, the coolest Jewish bands and comedian and magician performers with menorah candles and doves one could ever see and lots of really cool dancing, and even one inmate doing gymnastic flips at the Hanukkah party and another inmate playing the drums at the Sukkot party, with Jewish members that I think were fromChabad Lubavitch HQ, and prisoners dancing together and one guard, or corrections officers as you can call them, declining an invitation to join the dancing for whatever reason, and then what seemed like this big gigantic plastic cartoony blow up air balloon dancing Jewish guy complete with one of those Jewish top hats and top coats who came out to dance with everyone, what a sight that was, never saw one of those dancing blow up air balloon characters before, probably the closest I’ll ever get to a Jewish high holiday service. And thank you Lubavitch Youth Organization, at least that’s the name on those really cool experience the High Holidays, Sept 13 – Oct 6, 2015, Tishrel 5776 and experience Chanukah Dec 6 – 14, 2015, 25 Kislev – 2 Tevet, 5776 brochures written in Hebrew and English, that were left on those prison dining tables after the party ended, thank you for this party. Though I was told that prisoners conveniently change their religion depending on what party it is at Rikers Island, either Islam for Ramadan parties or Jewish for Jewish holiday parties or both, for a three hour visit for those with guests.

And a friend described this Chanukah party on her Facebook page as:

“A Channukah party at Rikers island (a few of us were visiting a friend) turned out to be a beautiful experience ~ a man kissing his children as they arrived, the camaraderie between observant Jewish prisoners and those that had come for the occasion, Jewish synthesizer band and magician, which somehow looked cool together ..
My uninhibited friends, one in prison and one outside, leading the dances in the men’s circle; the women visitors dancing; the women prisoners holding each other separately for the dance, and staying at their own table – they were invited to join, but the female prisoners seemed to bond with one another, while the visitors were feeling joy to reunite with their families on this relatively happy occasion – the rabbi talked about the Hebrew word for redemption, and one hasn’t lived till one has heard Hebrew covers of “Down Under.”
In the meantime, I did listen to some inmates’ stories, one man who’d been arrested in several middle eastern countries – for political protests, for throwing rocks at police who were beating up Israelis, for stealing camels to sell rides to tourists, for renting cheap rooms while robbing the occupants, and, in the US, credit card fraud, a man who said that he wished he could be a soldier so that he could fight for a cause – he would still be of age to join the Israeli army if he converted, and he said “I’m there” – he was in jail for rigging MTA card machines and stealing people’s cash – and, a young man who talked about his childhood pet bunny rabbit, and about how stealing a cell phone with his friends when he was 16 had turned into being pulled over seven years later in Texas; the warrant was found and he was serving time nine years later – he said that nobody had visited him, because everybody he knew lived in Texas, but that he would be released in April – my friend who is in there, unfortunately, said that what he is getting from the experience was that he “should’ve been sneakier” (he isn’t really the sneaky type), and the man who’s been arrested in several countries, while he was a gentleman to me, said, “in prison you have to be a savage in order to survive.”

Though what a drama this Chanukah party was for me indeed.

And we all departed as we all came, some prisoners fromManhattan Detention Complex as well, in lines of prison jumpsuits and visitors, in lines of I guess you can call it, civilian clothing, separated by numbers.

#shutitdown #shutdownrikers

No one is free when others are oppressed. Is another world possible. Peace on earth and goodwill to all mankind. Blessings.

Uncategorized

The Mark Of The Beast

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And sometimes it seems as if the world is going to hell in a hand basket these days when one reads the headline news of the day. Where is the world headed? And on this day finds itself as Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving Day, #boycottblackfriday or Buy Nothing Day in that country of North America. And Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter are still moving fast. And there’s something about #Paris, #PrayForParis, #passports #refugees and the worlds growing focus on Jerusalem that’s been in the news a lot lately and posted all over social media, or at least Facebook, the past few days. So much that I thought to recycle these passport blog posts again in an attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blagh whenever blaghers block possible. Pray For The World

#666 ‪#‎markofthebeast‬ ‪#‎antichrist‬ ‪#‎technology‬ ‪#‎refugees‬ ‪#‎passport‬‪ #‎travel‬ ‪#‎immigration‬ ‪#‎rfid‬ ‪#‎barcode‬ ‪#‎microchip‬ ‪#‎trackingdevice‬ ‪#‎gps‬ ‪#‎cellphone‬ ‪#‎ID‬ ‪#‎biometrics‬ ‪#‎identification‬ ‪#‎electronicidentification ‬‪#‎cashlesssociety‬ ‪#‎system‬ ‪#‎bigbrother‬ ‪#‎georgeorwell‬ ‪#‎smartcard‬‪ #‎fingerprint‬ ‪#‎voicerecognition‬ ‪#‎government‬ ‪#‎finance‬ #globalism

“And he causeth all, both great and small, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark on their right hand, or in their foreheads. And no man might buy or sell, save he had the mark of the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred three score and six.” rev. 13.

The Passport Again

And after what seems like millennials of blogging away on this blog, I don’t know what compels me to keep attempting to blagh away on this blog every so often whenever I am able to except for the sake of whoever could be reading this blagh and that attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blogs whenever social media web 2.0 user generated content bloggers block possible, that now gives everyone the opportunity to blagh away in social media web 2.0 land. And there is always that question of what to blog about on any given current event headline news random thoughts day. And so in between reading about black lives matter events, articles with titles that read Here’s Definitive Proof Gentrification Is Racist, As Told By A Participating Brooklyn Landlord, East New York Residents Demand Relief From Gentrification’s Tightening Grip, Beekeepers see 42% of US honeybee colonies die off in a single year, 27 Powerful Images That Sum up How Smartphones Are Ruining Our Lives and other headline news stuff, I came across someones post in facebookland complaining about immigration, illegal aliens, detentions, customs, border patrol and passport problems that reads something like:

“Well there are worse things than getting deported back to such and such place. I suppose I’m not meant to return to such and such place quite yet…?

“The border control guards also seem to find it incomprehensible that someone would travel so much. Telling her that I was just back home in such and such place and then at a such and such event and then at a such and such event made no sense to her. “You were just in such and such place too!” she said accusingly and told me to stop lying when I told her that airfare is $300-$400 cheaper from such and such place to such and such place if you travel thru such and such place & then hop on such and such airplane.”

“Ha, such and such person, looks like that just might happen. Except that they probably wouldn’t even let me commute. auch and such person, I think I’m on a list of people who were refused entry but it seems this is quite common now. Big flag is that there’s a cross over the stamp I got at the such and such Airport. Doing research, however, it seems it would be a bigger flag if I “lost” my passport & got a new one.”

“Border patrol guard cut me off when I started to say something about applying for a visa at the such and suck embassy, declaring, “Why would you go to the embassy? It has nothing to do with the embassy. We make the decisions.” And there seems to be so many stories online of artists who have proper visas but they were denied entry despite all their legal papers. At any rate, it seems I have to find someone to clear out my flat in such and such place since I can’t afford to pay for it and fly back to such and such place. Or such and such place. Or wherever might have more options.”

And I’m pretty sure the list of border you can’t be free to travel where ever you want to in this world because we say so patrol horror stories goes on and on….

And this was enough to make me want to repost this post about passport problems that I posted on this blog awhile ago. And I have blogged about this topic before in times past. No one is free when others are oppressed. And what if anything does this have to do with No Police State.

The Passport

And so this seems to be yet another one of those recycle this blog posts that I find myself posting on this blog every so often these days…
For what reason is the number of that passport immigration law that prohibits freedom of travel amongst humanity anywhere on planet earth, and that Section 666 Social Security Act, cashless society, national I.D., the number of your name to receive any state services and everything else in between thing, 666? Is this that save no man that he may buy or sell except that he have the mark of the beast thing in the book of Revelations. Is this written in prophecy somewhere. Did George Orwell or Nostradamus predict this? Is that a coincidence or on purpose that this law has the same number of that beast thing. And who or what is the beast, and what is that mark on ones right hand or forehead. What does that mark represent or mean, if anything. And what’s up with that UPC bar code photo that I placed in this blog entry. And for what reason do all universal product codes contain this number. What the heck does that mean? Is that the number of the beast, the number of man? And what’s that New World Order, Verichip and RFID tag thing all about. Big Brother, Brave New World and technology are here and that’s a whole another blog posting. And I have heard so many green card immigration nightmare stories about green card marriages, lotteries and green card everything else in between. Of people leaving a country and not being able to return for whatever reason. And the stories of loss of life while crossing a border, whether by land or sea. And for what reason are there boarders, divisions, restrictions, barriers and territories of land in this world. And for what reason are people not free to travel anywhere in the world without the permission of someone else. Who invented this concept. Is it possible to undo this passport, visa, citizenship, where are your papers to come here law so that everyone can be free to travel anywhere in this world. For what reason does this concept exist. And who is a foreigner. Aren’t we all strangers in this land. Is another world possible. No one is free when others are oppressed. It is Sunday today, day of God, a day of rest. Or is that Saturday, the Sabbath, Sabado. And what does this have to do with a No Police State?

Uncategorized

Life And Death

The only thing constant is change. Some stories do not end as you expect and everything happens for a reason. And it is the grim reaper that people seem to be born to die and some are cursed at birth and one can only play with the cards they are dealt with. You take a deep breath and you jump and you hope that there is water at the bottom of the pool when you land. And there is someone who will not always be there. And the memory of you is forgotten. It is the saddest story ever told. And a bunch of other sayings and philosophies on this blogging day. And so this day seems as if it wants to post that poem below that has found itself on this blog sometime a while ago in an attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blogwhenever blaghers block possible.

I am no Queen
I sit a widow and shall see sorrow
I kannot walk any further
my journey may end here
there are no words to take away the pain
to replace a person who is gone
my eyes are dim and heavy with grief
I kannot close them
I do not wish to see the darkness they hold
this thing which I have greatly feared
has come upon me with trembling
kausing all my bones to shake
I am scared with dreams and terrified
with visions of what will my funeral be like
when I die today at this very moment
will there be a funeral
who will come and who will pay
will they eulogize me and what will they say
leave me to sit and decay
make me your centerpiece in a chair dressed up dead
preserve me with spices, mummify me
let the birds of the air pluck me
the beast of the field tear me
till I be consumed by maggots and
dust and fly away when I die
there hath been no greater love than
that which hath been
it is the sound of Rachael mourning for
the children that never were
no one to comfort her
no where to wail lament save the ocean
why died they not from the womb
why died they not the breast prevent them from suck
why died they not the knees prevent them
why died they not give up the ghost that
no light shine upon this day
cursed be the man that saith the child is born this day
it is the wake of a funeral procession about to begin
it was a sunny day that day across the street from the graveyard
and we all laid down in our coffins to die

Have a great life, death and poetry day.

Uncategorized

A Rise Up October Rikers Island Protest

And on this day finds itself as Occupy Wall Street day one thousand and something. And Occupy Wall Street is still moving fast. And Black Lives Matter, that all things police brutality and beyond movement is still moving fast also. And as I had blaghed about that March to Shut Down Rikers Island the other day, there was another one of those #RiseUpOctober: Shut Down Rikers Island and Resist Rikers protests this past weekend as part of Stop Mass Incarceration Network‘s #RiseUpOctober. And those Facebook event invites for these events read something like:
#RiseUpOctober: STOP Police Terror & Murder! Which Side Are You On?

11:00 Washington Square Park
1:00 MARCH
3:00 RALLY Bryant Park, 6th Avenue & 42nd Street

STOP POLICE TERROR!
WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?

affiliated actions:
October 22 — national protests and NYC reading of names of those killed by police:
https://www.facebook.com/events/867605399984510/

October 23 — non-violent direct action
https://www.facebook.com/events/424613221065195/

People take to the streets in cities all across the country on October 22. People won’t be able to turn their heads and say they didn’t see it. On October 23, when students and clergy alongside and in solidarity with those who feel the lash of this every day, engage in non violent direct action and shut down one of their institutions of misery and terror – that will send a powerful message to all – this movement is serious.

Then on Oct 24, we, all of us, will march in from Grant Homes and Strivers’ Row in Harlem, from Washington Heights and Jackson Heights, from Bed-Stuy and Hunt’s Point and from Jamaica and Staten Island. There will be students from CUNY, Columbia and dozens of other campuses from this area, people from Newark and Paterson and Hartford, numbering in the thousands and thousands. We will be joined by thousands and thousands more from Atlanta and Chicago, from Detroit and Cleveland, from New Orleans and Mississippi and many other places. Millions of people all across the country and around the world will hear our powerful cry – WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON? Millions more are gonna say, okay, I gotta choose sides and many of them will decide they have to be with the ones trying to STOP this.

We will change history. We will inspire thousands and yes millions, who are tired of being treated like criminals and tired of seeing cops patrolling their communities like occupying armies, to see that they don’t have to take this, to see that it’s their fault. And they will stand up and act to stop this. We will rally to their side thousands of people from other sections of society who refuse to stand aside while horrors are inflicted on people because of the color of their skin. We will open the eyes of those who don’t suffer these horrors, challenging them to quit swallowing the lying justifications the authorities give for continuing to give a green light to killer cops, challenging them to get off the sidelines – Which Side Are You On? Are you on the side of acting to STOP these horrors? Or are you on the side of continuing to let them go down? There’s no middle ground, no neutrality, on this. You gotta choose a side. And I don’t mean just giving us your sympathy. I mean actively joining in the resistance and mobilizing others to resist too. You gotta join with this effort to make Oct 24 as powerful as possible. You gotta listen when somebody here tonight tells you what you can do and who you can hook up with to be part of#RiseUpOctober, or and let me be real – if you and people like you don’t throw in on this – it ain’t gonna happen.

And it HAS to happen.
(from http://stopmassincarceration.net/4528-2/)

#RiseUpOctober: Shut Down Rikers Island

It’s been called “New York’s Abu Ghraib,” a combination torture chamber & concentration camp. After years of exposure, after lawsuits and decrees, horrors that shock the conscience continue unabated. In the country’s largest jail, lives are irreparably damaged every day.

19th Avenue and Hazen Street
To join the action or provide support: AddMyVoice@RiseUpOctober.org
(By bus: Take MTA Q101. The first bus stop is the route is on 2nd Avenue between 60th and 61st streets. It is on the West side of the street.
From wherever you live, make plans to get to the Q101 bus stop at 8:00. The closest trains are the F train to
63rd & Lexington, or the 4,5,6,N,Q, R trains to 59th and Lexington.
The Q101 bus comes every 12 minutes (or so) and takes approximately 45 minutes to get to the Queens entrance to Rikers Island. Relax, sit back, you can’t get lost. You are taking this bus to the last stop. You will be dropped off within eyesight of the big “Welcome to Rikers” sign that is at the intersection of Hazen Street and 19th Avenue.
We will be gathering one block up on Hazen street (away from the bridge) at a little corner just
up the street. Look for the people with the big enlargements of people’s faces. These are the
faces of people who were killed by medical neglect or guard brutality at Rikers. MORE DETAILED DIRECTION SHEET POSTED BELOW)

As part of #RiseUpOctober, join in a non-violent direct action and protest to Shut Down Rikers Island. Sign up to be part of the action, or to provide support. Write: addmyvoice@riseupoctober.org

And flood the streets on October 24:
https://www.facebook.com/events/767581106685589/

Also, take part in the national October 22 National Day of Protest to STOP Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation across the country:
https://www.facebook.com/events/767581106685589/

Resist Rikers

March to SHUT DOWN RIKERS ISLAND

It is our duty to fight for our freedom.
It is our duty to win.
We must love and support one another.
We have nothing to lose but our chains.

And according to that pix11.com Petition launched to change name of Rikers Island amid slavery connection article that has something to do with Rikers being named after Richard Riker who used bounty hunters to collect slaves from the south, Rikers Island still has the name Rikers. And short of LaGuardia airport shutting down Rikers and expanding it’s runways into the Bronx, Rikers Island Correctional Facility still seems to be open for business. And there were articles with titles like: Videos: 11 People Arrested During “Rise Up October” Protest Against Police Brutality, PBA president calls for boycott of Quentin Tarantino movies after he joins ‘Rise Up October’ protests, Arrests made during Rikers Island protest, Protesters SHUT DOWN Rikers Island Prison and more. And going near the displaced visitors at that Shut Down Rikers Island protest, was the scariest part of it all. #visitsarecancelledfortheday. And whether or not there’ll be another one of those #shutdownrikersisland protests, or #RiseUpOctober protests against police brutality remains to be seen. And according to that NAACP photo posted above, “Welcome to America, home to 5% of the world’s people and 25% of the world’s prisoners. And Rikers Island is one of the ten worst prisons in America. And New York City is what a police state looks like. And Rikers Island is what a police state looks like. No one is free when others are oppressed. Is another world possible. And what does this have to do with a No Police State.

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A March To Shut Down Rikers Island

October 8, 2015carlanpsgblack lives matter, board of corrections, department of corrections, ferguson, inmate, jail, justice, Kalief Browder, nyc, nypd, occupy wall street, ows, police brutality, prison, reform, rikers, rikers island Leave a comment

Hey again bloggers or whoever could be reading this blagh. And so along with what seems like the remnants of hurricane Joaquin the other day, in the midst of Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter and beyond, there was another March to Shut Down Rikers Island that was held rain, hurricane or shine in that city of New York on that Island of Queens, at the foot of the bridge leading to Rikers Island. And I guess those photos and videos from that event that day that find themselves posted above can speak for themselves. And that March to Shut Down Rikers Island Facebook event invite for this event read something like:

Saturday, October 3rd, join #ResistRikers & friends in a march to shut down Rikers Island. Featuring artwork & props by The People’s Puppets of Occupy Wall Street. RAIN OR SHINE.

3pm meet-up in front of the Rikers Island sign, followed by a speak out, march, and more! Bring your voice, banners, friends, and family. All are invited to speak about their experiences.

Directions: Q100 bus to the Rikers Island sign (right before the bridge) at the intersection of 19 Ave. & Hazen St. in Queens, from one of the following subway stations: (N/Q) Astoria-Ditmars Blvd, (F) 21 St- Queensbridge, (E/M/R) Queens Plaza, or (G) Court Square.

Contact us to get involved with planning and outreach.
___________________________
WE DEMAND AN END TO TORTURE IN NYC!
Rikers Island is NYC’s Abu Ghraib, where individuals in need of care are instead caged, languishing both mentally and physically; a place where those suffering illnesses are tortured not treated, denying them the most basic of human rights.

WE DEMAND AN END TO CRIMINALIZING POVERTY!
Most people incarcerated on Rikers Island have not been convicted of a crime. They are unable to afford bail and awaiting their next court appearance and/or trial. NYC’s Tale of Two Cities forces the poor and innocent to endure a culture of violence, rape, and overall barbarism that no human should be subject to.

WE DEMAND AN END TO DECEPTIVE REFORMS!
Mayor de Blasio shows up for photo shoots in newly renovated portions of the jail complex, while most of it remains in a state of serious disrepair and deterioration. There are frequent sewage backups and water main breaks. The floors and ceilings are crumbling. The heating and ventilation systems don’t function properly. There are rotting showers, toilets, and sinks.

WE DEMAND AN END TO OPPRESSION!
NYC Department of Correction and the Correction Officers Benevolent Association have reaped the benefits of inequality and bloodshed for far too long. Too many lives, homes, and hearts have been destroyed so that a morally bankrupt system may flourish.

NO MORE!

#ResistRikers #EyesOnRikers #BlackLivesMatter #PovertyIsNotACrime #KaliefBrowder #JusticeForKalief #SaveOurYouth

And Resist Rikers posted on that March to SHUT DOWN RIKERS ISLAND Facebook event invite,

“THANK YOU to everyone who trooped it out to this afternoon’s march to shut down Rikers!!! Super extra mega thanks to the peeps at Black Lives Matter. NYC Shut It Down: The Grand Central Crew, Copwatch Patrol Unit – CPU”, The People’s Puppets of Occupy Wall Street, and Millions March NYC. TOGETHER, WE WILL WIN! Only in unity will we put an end to torture in NYC and SHUT DOWN RIKERS!!!”

And there are articles with titles like Rikers Island Jail, New York City: Shut Down This Torture Hellhole!, Queens Councilman Wants to Abolish Rikers Island, and even Department of Justice to Release 6,000 Prisoners calling to shut down Rikers and prison reform. And so The Stop Mass Incarceration Network has created another Facebook event invite #RiseUpOctober: Shut Down Rikers Island and their event invite reads something like:

It’s been called “New York’s Abu Ghraib,” a combination torture chamber & concentration camp. After years of exposure, after lawsuits and decrees, horrors that shock the conscience continue unabated. In the country’s largest jail, lives are irreparably damaged every day.
As part of #RiseUpOctober, join in a non-violent direct action and protest to Shut Down Rikers Island. Sign up to be part of the action, or to provide support. Write: addmyvoice@riseupoctober.org

When: Morning; Gathering Location: TBA

And flood the streets on October 24:
https://www.facebook.com/events/767581106685589/

And according to that NAACP photo posted above, “Welcome to America, home to 5% of the world’s people and 25% of the world’s prisoners. And Rikers Island is one of the ten worst prisons in America. And New York City is what a police state looks like. And Rikers Island is what a police state looks like. No one is free when others are oppressed. Is another world possible. And what does this have to do with a No Police State.

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Vermont

Welcome to Vermont. And that state of Vermont to be found in that continent of North America is a beautiful place. Green Mountain. A super cool place I guess. And that junkmobile of a car, complete with a motorcycle in it, to be found in those photos above, well that seems to have gotten everyone on that road trip throughout that state of Vermont and all points in between. Vermont, a place where land is measured in acres versus square feet and backyards are the side of a mountain where everyone seems to live off of in self sufficiency. A land that is farmed. The city versus the country. A place where time stands still, well sort of. And you can see the stars at night, even the milky way, without the lights of the city. And then there are no billboards in Vermont, a relief to the eyes and soul from big city advertising. And it is an oasis, some sort of a botanical garden of paradise, an orchard, an herbal pharmaceopia with just about every herb, fruit and vegetable enough grown on ones land to where one doesn’t even have to go to the supermarket for food, for apple trees everywhere, for grapes, greens, tomatoes, plums, poppies, wormwood, morning glories, garlic, onion, squash, echinacea, elderberry, comfrey, milkweed, lavender, valerian, willow trees, willow bark, anise and all herbs growing in the wild, etc. And that Vermont State Fair with those farm animals posted in those photos above and local vendors, the arts and crafts as part of it, that self substaining fair, well that was even more amazing to see. And those lakes, quarries, creeks, caves and waterfalls, well they were even more awesome to see. And as the world seems as if it is crashing down all around me, I am not sure what else there is to say about that state of Vermont and those photos that find themselves posted above in my web 2.0 social media user generated content internetaholicness attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blog whenever blaghers block possible. Except that what’s up with those guns that Walmart sells in its stores there? Occupy the NRA. Have a great road trip vacation day and more.

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The Guitar Pick

And I have always been a fan of music, music and more music. And so this post happens to be about gator grip, guitar picks for all things music and more. And if you happen to be looking for that guitar pic for that back to school time of year and more, finding it and all about it can be just a website visit away.

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Vanishing New Jersey

And I have heard it said that the only thing constant is change. And some stories do not end as you expect. And in between blaghing about all things #KaliefBrowder, #SandraBland, Black Lives Matter, Occupy Wall Street and beyond, and with that Google page rank update still sending me in search of a fifth full time job for when that get rich internet quick does not get rich internet quick. This blog post happens to be one of those off the wall, out of the blue, from left field posts, I think, that may have nothing to do with a No Police State, or maybe it does, who knows. This is one of those posts that has to do with real estate, the economy and change, kind of like one of those Vanishing New York posts, only this one is about Things That Aren’t There Anymore: Central NJ Edition, or at least things that won’t be there in the coming months, Northern New Jersey Edition. And does this mean that you’ve become one of those New Jersey people when you start blaghing about all things New Jersey. And I have always thought that when one crosses that New York, New Jersey interstate line, that it becomes a completely different commuter world, seemingly for generations to come. And so word on the street is that Food Basics in New Jersey, and also that Chase Bank next door to it in that New Jersey Plaza are closing in the coming months. And what’s up with that “For more information on A&P Stores sales and bankruptcy statement to be found on that Food Basics website I am not exactly sure, though this impending closing news wouldn’t be such news to me if I didn’t find myself passing by these places every so often. And from what I hear, this Food Basics lot, used to be Two Guys Department Stores years ago. Do you remember when? And then there is that The shemittah and financial collapse article that has something to do with releasing of debts every seven years, and blood moons, that in my paranoia conspiracy theories has me wondering if this is the beginning of another economic collapse, not since that mortgage meltdown a few years ago, doomsday, the beginning of the end, again, or something like that. And when the stores all around you start to close, you start to wonder if this shemittah and financial collapse stuff is true. Are stores starting to close worldwide, nationwide? And what will become of these places when they close, another chain store, another strip mall, condos, abandoned? Are these changes reflected across the nation? Is this just another story of gentrification, white flight, no not white flight…, genocide, a war zone, blight, urban renewal? And what else is there to say about this real estate situation that has not already been said in this kind of real estate situation time. Have a great impending development, impending shemittah and changing times day.