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Editorial
Did we Vote our Rights Away?
or should we force Christianity on the United States
 The Election has passed.
Apparently the people spoke: after hearing MTV and rap stars plead to the youth to get Bush out of the office after not finding Bin Laden and pulling the wool over the country’s eyes to fight a man his dad couldn’t kill when Bush I was in office over a decade ago, Republicans (probably via talk radio) had every conservative in their cars listening to the radio get pumped up to help them keep their religious demigod in office for another term. Don’t think I’m right? Listen to MTV. Listen to talk radio.
Well, people listened to the rap stars, saying “Bush is Bad,” and people listen on the radio say that we have to stay with this Republican leader. If you’re a Democrat, it doesn’t matter if you like Kerry (I heard someone interviewed on the Daily Show say that ‘Although Kerry is a douche bag, he’s better than Bush’), just vote for the Democrat party. And any Republican listening to talk radio heard only of the perils of what Kerry would do to this country if he were elected, and people nowadays don’t understand what war is like (no, we’ve had a different image of war ever since we let reporters in for live action coverage of war situations, starting with Viet Nam, we’ve been able to see the gore of it and we want out). And everyone listening to talk radio heard conservative radio hosts like Shawn Hannity calling every military veteran and every supporter of his beliefs “a good American” (because letting the government tell you it’s okay to kill a lot of people people makes you a good American, that’s the standard they’re going by...). Those listeners to the radio shows don’t need to agree with everything Bush ever says, but it is good for the American people to keep him in for another four years.
Great. But what does this mean for us now?
The first thing I heard Bush say to select people in his cabinet after he knew he won reelection was that now that he won, ‘now we can work on getting everything done in my plan.’
He said my plan? Bush’s plan? What plan does he exactly have for America?
And I know he talked to Kerry in that next-morning phone call, and Kerry told him that this was a divided nation, and he has to work on uniting everyone, so the country doesn’t continue to segregate itself along political lines.
And yes, Bush’s acceptance speech talked about bringing this country together so we could all get what we wanted. And yes, when Colin Powell, the first black man in the Secretary of State position, retired (which he claimed he would do before the election ended), Bush asked Dr. Condoleezza Rice to take over as the Secretary of State (and people don’t mention that she is the first woman — let me correct that, the first black woman, ever in this cabinet position). And yes, for attorney general Bush nominated Alberto Gonzales, a son of migrant workers. I’m sure that if a Democrat was president and this happened, the media would be all over the wonderful things this president is doing for equality, but its never mentioned in a Republican is president.
Well, I suppose some points sound good for him. And I don’t know what the people in the military would say, that we still have forces in harms way in Iraq. I’m sure that all are proud, but I’m sure that some still think it’s right they are there, while some think it’s wrong and want their loved ones to come home.
And depending on what news station you’re listening to with live feed from the military stationed there, you’ll hear the same diversity in answers from our military there. I know that some don’t want to be there any longer, but they signed up for the military and they won’t go against their Commander in Chief.
So is the answer to bring them back? Or would bringing them home prematurely prove to the Middle East that we will back down prematurely, allowing the country to fall to ruin again so that their forces can become stronger again to attack us?
•••
I suppose I could start talking about improving the economy now, but what I see now in my colleagues and friends now more than anything else are worries about religion and losing our rights because Bush was reelected. Now, I know they want to expand powers under the Patriot Act, which includes:
Outside view: Patriot Act problems:
• ...Like the “sneak-and-peek” provision, allowing secret search warrants that do not require the police to notify the person being searched.
• Another provision allows the government to obtain secret intelligence court orders, without any probable cause linking the target of the order to suspected criminal activity (that makes me personally feel safe).
You think they’ll only use the Patriot Act for terrorism-related crimes? Don’t be so naive: the administration has been using the Patriot Act to prosecute cases that have nothing whatsoever to do with terrorism.
• By eliminating the notion of “due process,” the Government can now attack people in non-terrorism crimes.
The library book you rented can be monitored by your precious government. Angel Stewart, writing for http://www.houseofconfusion.com, even stated that “The Patriot Act makes the Thought Police a real possibility... A crucial part of the checks and balances of the American system has been disabled.”
The Patriot Act has allowed the unnecessary surveillance of innocent people. Did you hear John Kerry saying in one of the Presidential debates that thousands of hours of surveillance tapes that have never been watched? Well, if the government is undermanned for these innocent-people-surveilence tapes, who can we get to watch us in private?
I think the Patriot Act can even legislate against anyone distributing information that is outside of the norm - which means that if Children, Churches and Daddies doesn’t watch it’s back, we could be violating the Patriot Act by producing this magazine.
Wow, I feel so safe now. I can go to sleep with comfort and ease now.
I suppose I shouldn’t get on my soap box about the Patriot Act, but I should be thinking about friends I have talked to who have considered leaving the country because Bush was reelected. They considered it because they are sure now that rights as their same-sex partner will not be granted to them.
I know, I know, I heard Bush say that he believes there should be rights given to same-sex partners, even if it is not by considering their union a “marriage.” But when my friends heard that Republicans wanted to make a Constitutional Amendment to make marriages only between a man and a woman, and when they heard that I think 14 states made state laws defining a marriage as only between a man and a woman, their worries escalated. When one of them is ill and hospitalized, they need permission form anyone else to be with the one they love in their time of need.
My friends considered Canada when considering leaving the country, and John (cc&d’s web language master for Perl Scripts, and the author of last month’s editorial) noted that hits to Canada’s web sites for immigration skyrocketed after the election results came in.
Hell, I even heard of a web site that would find a country you could defect to, depending on what political views you held.
John knew someone in the military — a lesbian in the Navy, more precisely — and she stressed that the white man (people like John) have no idea of what discrimination is. That cards are stacked against you when you love someone that is not what God defines as a proper mate. Hell, the cards are stacked against you when you’re a woman, or if you are anything other than Anglo-Saxon (sorry Black, Latinos, sorry Chinese, Native Americans...), and the way this country is now being run, the cards are stacked against you if you don’t believe in a Christian God (sorry Jews, Hindis, Muslims, sorry atheists... you’re screwed too, because you don’t fit our perfect mold).
All of these things that are expected of people, they’re starting to sound like we’re looking for our Arian state.
You know, I’ve heard people say that Bush is like Hitler, and that seems ludicrous to me. But when looking at definitions, I wonder how close to a fascist he actually is.
•••
I don’t suppose I helped answer any questions about what to think now that a President has been chosen. Maybe we’ll remain as confused about how we can get ahead in our world as we did before the election. Is there a way we can find our answers ourselves and not rely on the president to do our thinking for us?
Janet Kuypers
Editor-In-Chief
info you can use
Rome’s Syllabus Of Condemned Opinions: The Last Blast Of The Catholic Church’s Medieval Trumpet
by Joseph McCabe
(made available by the Bank Of Wisdom and the Internet Infidels for The Freethought Web)
Here they are: The Syllabus of Condemned Propositions
1. There is no supreme, omniscient, all foreseeing Deity distinct from the universe. God is the same thing as Nature and therefore subject to change. He becomes God in the world and man; all things are God and have the very substance of God. God is one and the same thing as the world; therefore spirit is the same thing as matter, necessity the same thing as liberty, truth the same as falseness, good the same is evil, justice the same as injustice.
2. That God acts upon man and the world is to be denied.
Human reason is the sole judge of truth and falseness, good and evil. It is a law unto itself and suffices, by its natural resources, to promote the welfare of nations.
3. All truths of religion have their origin in the natural use of human reason. Hence reason is the chief means by which we can and ought to acquire a knowledge of all truth. Divine revelation is imperfect and therefore subject to continual and indefinite progress, and this corresponds to the advance of human reason.
4. The faith of Christ is opposed to human reason, and divine revelation is not merely useless but injurious to man’s interests.
5. The prophesies and miracles that are contained in Holy Writ are poetic fiction, and the mysteries of the Christian faith are the outcome of philosophic inquiries; the contents of both Old and New Testaments are fiction, and Jesus Christ himself is a mythical figure.
6. Since human reason is as valuable as religion, theological matters are to be treated in the same way as philosophy.
7. All the dogmas, without exception, of the Christian religion are the subject of natural science or philosophy.
8. Human reason can in the course of time be so developed that by its natural force and principles it can attain all knowledge, even the more profound, provided that these, dogmas have been submitted to reason as its subject.
9. Since the philosopher is one thing and philosophy another, the former has the, right and the duty to submit to authority which he believes to be sound, but philosophy neither can nor ought to bow to authority.
10. The Church not only must never pass judgment on philosophy but must tolerate its errors and leave it to correct them itself.
11. The decrees of the Apostolic See and the Roman Congregations are an impediment to the free advance of science.
12. The methods and principle which the older Scholastic doctors used in studying theology are not in the least in harmony with the needs of our time and the progress of the sciences.
13. Philosophy must be studied without regard to supernatural revelation.
14. Every man is free to adopt and profess any religion which, under the guidance of reason, he believes to be true.
15. Men can find the way to eternal salvation and attain it in any religion.
16. At least we have good ground to hope for the eternal salvation of men who do not belong to the true Church of Christ.
17. Protestantism is only another form of the one true Christian religion, and God is just as pleased for men to join it as to join the Catholic Church.
18. The Church is not a true, perfect, and entirely free body, and it cannot decide in virtue of the rights conferred upon it by its divine founder what are the limited times within which it can exercise its rights, but must leave this decision to the civil power.
19. Ecclesiastical authority must not use its powers without the permission and consent of the civil government.
20. The Church has no power to lay down dogmatically that the religion of the Catholic Church is the one true religion. The obligations which strictly bind Catholic teachers and writers are confined to matters which have been declared by the infallible judgment of the Church to be dogmas of the faith to be believed by everybody.
21. Roman Pontiffs and Ecumenical Councils have exceeded their powers, usurped the rights of princes, and erred even in defining questions of faith and morals.
22. The Church has no power to use force or any temporal power, direct or indirect. Apart from the authority which is inherent in the office of bishop, any secular power is conferred upon him expressly or tacitly by the civil power and may therefore be withdrawn by that power when it pleases.
23. The Church has no native and legitimate right to acquire and hold property. The sacred ministry of the Church and the Roman Pontiff must be entirely excluded from concern about ownership and secular things.
24. Bishops cannot be allowed to publish even the Pope’s letters without permission of the government.
25. Privileges conferred by the Roman Pontiff must be regarded as null unless they were asked for through the government.
26. The immunity of the Church and of ecclesiastical persons has its origin in civil law.
27. The ecclesiastical court for hearing secular charges, either civil or criminal, against clerics must be entirely abolished, without consulting or even against the protest of the Apostolic see.
28. The personal immunity from the duty of military service which clerics enjoy may be revoked without any violation of national law and equality, and this revocation is necessary for social progress, especially in countries with a more liberal constitution.
29. It is not the exclusive right of ecclesiastical jurisdiction to regulate the teaching of theological matters.
30. The idea that the Roman Pontiff may be compared to a free prince acting in the universal Church is medieval.
31. There is no reason why the Supreme Pontificate should not be transferred by the decision of a General Council or the action of all nations from the Bishop of the city of Rome to some other bishop and city.
32. The decision of a National Congress is not subject to further discussion, and the civil administration may demand this.
33. It is lawful to establish National Churches that are not subject to the authority of the Roman Pontiff and are, in fact, entirely separated.
34. The arbitrary action of the Roman Pontiffs is in part responsible for the division of the Church into Eastern and Western.
35. A republic, as the origin and power of all rights, has an unlimited power.
36. The teaching of the Catholic Church is opposed to the welfare of human society.
37. The civil power, even if the ruler be an infidel, has an indirect negative right to interfere in sacred things, and it therefore had the right which is called exequatur (permission to carry out an ecclesiastical order) and what is called the right to appeal against abuses.
38. In a conflict of law between the two powers the civil law takes precedence.
39. The lay government has the power to rescind or to declare null and void the solemn agreements usually called Concordats about the use of rights pertaining to ecclesiastical immunity entered upon with the Apostolic See without the consent or even against the protest of Rome.
40. The civil authority may intervene in matters that refer to religion, morals and the spiritual order. Hence it has the right to criticise the instructions which the Church gives to priests for the guidance of consciences and even to lay down rules for the administration of the divine sacraments or the disposition required for receiving them.
41. Public schools in which the youth of a republic are trained with the exception of Episcopal seminaries to some extent, are and ought to be controlled by the civil authority; and to such an extent that no other authority has the right to interfere in the curriculum, the discipline, the awarding of degrees, or in the choice and approval of masters. Even in seminaries for the priesthood the arrangement of the studies is subject to the civil authority.
42. The best interests of society demand that public schools, which are open to all children of every class, and public institutions generally that give higher education and train youths, shall be free from all clerical authority, control, or interference and shall be left entirely to the dictates of the civil political authority as the rulers and the general opinion of the public shall decide.
43. Catholic men may approve of a kind of education that is separated from the Catholic faith and the power of the Church and that looks only, or at least primarily, to the interests of the natural sciences and the social welfare.
44. The civil authority may prevent prelates and the Catholic laity from communicating freely with the Roman Pontiff.
45. The secular authority has the intrinsic right of appointing bishops and it may demand of them that they visit their dioceses before they themselves receive canonical institution and Letters from the Holy See. Moreover the secular government has the right to deprive Bishops of the exercise of their pastoral ministry and is not bound to obey the Roman Pontiff in matters concerning the office of bishops.
46. The government has the right to change the age fixed by the Church for entering the religious orders of both men and women; and to forbid these orders to admit anybody to take the solemn vows without its permission.
47. Laws that protect the status of religious communities and relate to their rights and duties should be abrogated; the secular government may assist all who wish to abandon the religious life and break their solemn vows; it may suppress religious communities as well as collegiate and parish churches and hand over their property and revenue to the administration and disposal of the secular authority.
48. Kings and princes are not only exempt from the jurisdiction of the Church but in deciding questions of jurisdiction they are above the Church.
49. The Church must be separated from the State and the State from the Church.
50. Moral law does not need a divine sanction, it is not at all necessary that human laws should conform to the Law of Nature or derive their binding force from God.
51. Philosophy, the science of ethics, and human laws may or ought to be independent of divine and ecclesiastical authority.
52. No forces are to be recognized which are not inherent in matter, and all moral and decent effort ought to be expended in accumulating wealth and procuring, pleasure in any way.
53. Right consists of a material fact, “duties of man” is an empty phrase, and all man’s acts have the force of right. Authority is merely the sum of numbers and material farces.
54. A fortunate outcome of an unjust act does no harm to the sanctity of right.
55. The principle of Non-intervention is to be recommended and observed.
56. It is lawful to refuse to obey and even rebel against legitimate princes.
57. The violation of the most sacred oaths and any criminal and disgraceful action in violation of the eternal law are not to be censured but are entirely lawful and worthy of the highest praise if they are done out of love of one’s country.
58. It must by no means be admitted that Christ raised marriage to the dignity of a sacrament. The sacrament of matrimony is something added to the contract and Separable from it, and the sacrament consists in a single nuptial blessing. By natural law the bond of matrimony is not indissoluble and on various grounds the civil authority may grant divorce.
59. The Church has no power to create nullifying impediments to marriage; that power belongs to the civil authority, and it must abolish existing impediments. In earlier ages the Church began to create nullifying impediments by the powers entrusted to it by the civil authority, not by any power of its own.
60. The canons of the Council of Trent which impose the censure of anathema on those who dare to deny that the Church has the right to create nullifying impediments are either not dogmatic or are to be understood as deriving force from this delegated authority.
61. The Tridentine formula with its penalties is not binding when the civil authority provides a different form and insists that if this is followed the marriage is valid.
62. Boniface VIII was the first to lay down that the vow of chastity taken at ordination invalidates a marriage.
63. There can be true marriage for Christians on the strength of the civil contract alone; and it is false to say either that between Christians the contract of marriage is always a sacrament, or that the contract is null if there is no sacrament.
64. Matrimonial and espousal cases belong by their very nature to the civil court.
65. Whether the secular power can be reconciled with the spiritual is disputed in Christian and Catholic circles.
66. The destruction of the temporal power that the Apostolic See holds would greatly promote the freedom of the Church.
67. In our age it is no longer expedient to have the Catholic faith as the only religion of the State, to the exclusion of all others. Hence it is rightly provided by law in certain nominally Catholic countries that men who migrate to them shall be allowed the public practice of the religion of each. For it is false to say that the civil liberty of all cults and the concession of full power to men to discuss in public any sort of opinion and ideas leads to the corruption of the minds and morals of the people and the spread of the pest of indifferentism.
68. The Roman Pontiff can and ought to be reconciled and come to terms with progress, liberalism, and modern civilization.
Poetry
Overfed
Michelle Greenblatt
1.
trudging thru the greenery, the sodden remembrance
of you, the stagnant puddles and old leaves muted brown,
the weight of the forest on my stomach.
I am full. what can I say?
I was overfed.
2.
twisted beams of darkness: a crumbling statue leaning
towards a sliver of sunlight, burning embers of twilight
in her eyes / the statue is me / but not the eyes
3.
I am with you
I have watched you sleep
I have heard our hearts pound
together as one organ
drowning in the same blood.
6th Shot of Cuervo
Michelle Greenblatt
wind licks the pavement
scuffs the earth with its sandpaper
tongue
the fossils stir
deep w/in the soil
the bells ring
in silent harmony
the music weeps
for your solo departures.
I’m drinking at 3:49 p.m.
I’ve been erased
& it hasn’t been easy
now your hands
are on her
I wonder
if she cries
like I did
when you touched me
I am not drunk yet
but I am on my
sixth shot
of Cuervo, always
Cuervo
no salt no lim
Before You Know It
John Carr
8 months from now she’ll call me crying.
6 months from now on an ice cloaked Saturday I’ll hang up on her.
She’ll call back in 12 minutes, but I won’t answer. By then I’ll be sitting
in my dingy 1984 Chevy Celebrity at the top of Irish Hill,
staring past the Philadelphia skyline,
entertaining suicide.
4 months from now she’ll start seeing someone else.
3 months from now we’ll go to the Ritz on a Wednesday to see
Almost Famous. The movie makes her cry. Afterward we’ll sit in my car for hours,
I’ll try to make her come back, sometimes deceptively, often begging,
while she’ll tell me that I’m the only guy who ever made her feel worthy of love,
but she’s not ready to go back yet.
7 weeks from now she’ll say she needs some time apart.
5 weeks from now we’ll stand in the Deptford Mall parking lot
arguing about whether I need to find a new job. I’ll tell her I’m happy
where I am (for now), and she’ll respond that’s my problem,
I’ve got no ambition. I’ll tell her she’s just being spiteful
because she can’t find a job she keeps for more than a month.
I won’t tell her I’m afraid she’s right about my ambition.
4 weeks from now we’ll play “Laser Tag” on a friend’s farm near Elmer.
3 weeks from now we’ll make love again, quick and anxious
at first, but then she’ll slow me down. When we’re done
she’ll get up and go into the bathroom.
I’ll hear her crying through the door, but she won’t answer
when I ask what’s wrong. I’ll go back in my room
and sit down on the bed,
alone.
2 weeks from now we’ll find out she’s just over a month pregnant, and get the abortion.
Right now we’re lying naked in the grass on an insignificant island
in the middle of the Susquehanna River. She’s watching a common musk turtle
crawl around on a rock while my hand languidly runs up and down her
pale thigh. She’s asking me if I’ll love her forever, and I’m telling her that of course
I will. She’s asking, “Will you still love me even when I’m bloated
and my boobs are sagging down to my knees
and I’m wheezing from too many years smoking
and I’m wearing a stained ‘I’m With Stupid’ t-shirt
and I’m surrounded by screaming kids with pudding smeared on their faces?”
I’m grinning and saying,
“Yes, even then.”
Love Thy Enemy
or a fundamentalists foreign policy
Bob Papcsy
How do you make a friend
out of an arch enemy who views
you as the evil spawn of the Devil?
If you are quite a bit stronger
you declare a Holy Crusade and
you kill him before he kills you.
Then, his friendship is irrelevant.
If you are not stronger or if your faith
gets in the way you wage an all out
peace campaign, keeping in mind
what is your ultimate goal, the utter
and complete destruction of this
alien non-christian culture. Using
the weight of your whole society, you
undermine his position with love,
christian goodness and humility.
After a couple years being spent using
this posture in an effort to achieve your
goal, this nation is still adamant in
their hatred of you and your corrupt
society, hell bent on your complete
destruction as their chief goal, you do
not hesitate to visit God’s wrath upon them.
Wipe these strange tribes from the face
of the Earth, totally. Do so with alacrity
and Christian love. “Love thy enemy as thy
love thyself.” If by luck some of these
non-christian people survive, by all means do
so by clasping them to your heart and allowing
them to share in the one true religion of
our Lord Jesus. Voila! Now they are one
of us and none are left to rise again because
of your loving friendship and Christian resolve.
Breakup
Eric Obame
The moon moves away from the Earth a little every year
In a few billion spins it will be a speck
Of the nightlight we hold dear
And the planets move away from the sun
And the galaxies from themselves
Once everything was one
Then hell blew up and well
Everything has been hectic ever since
The universe keeps expanding
No one wants to get back together
They like their freedom
And so do I
I realize now that like all space matter
I am better off on my own
Or at least without you
So cheer up
The star clusters keep spinning away from each other
And so must we
It is universal law
So goodbye
Have a nice life
I hope that someday you will waltz into some other galaxy and blend
But that family won’t be mine
philosophy monthly
The Republic of Dreams
Gary Beck
The future of the American republic was frequently sustained by the timely appearance of notable leaders, who faced difficult issues that threatened the security and stability of the nation. Great presidents rose to the challenges that menaced the country, serving the people with desperately needed abilities. After their tenure, scholars and populist historians interpreted the significant events that led to wars, foreign interventions, or domestic crises, from the perspective of intellectual detachment, academic security and too often, indifference to the passions, doubts and confusions that shaped decision-making. Coincidental to the rise of globalism, with its traumatic impact on the American economy, may be the decline in the quality of our leadership, which is most tested in periods of extreme turmoil.
From pre-colonial times through World War II, the wars of America involved most of the citizenry, whether in combat, concern for loved ones, production of equipment and supplies, fund raising, civil defense, or countless other contributions to the war effort. Those who lost loved ones were pitied and respected, even by opponents of the war. And each war had its dissenters. Those who resisted the summons to arms out of high principle and protested the use of force from moral certitude, strengthened the fiber of the nation, since democracy requires the questioning of purpose, as long as it does not inhibit the need for necessary action for the survival of the nation.
Starting with Herodotus, recorded history reveals the perilous state of existence for nations and peoples, whose fate has invariably been decided by war. The clash of civilizations was inevitably resolved in battle. Empires were rarely dismantled peacefully and were traditionally dismembered by violence. The expansion of any nation was characterized by encroachment on another nation. Helpless peoples became slaves, or victims of exploitation. Pacifism was a condition of weakness, rather than moral virtue.
Everything changed in America after World War II. We righteously defeated totalitarianism and were ready to receive the fruits of victory; education, prosperity, the good life only previously envisioned by philosophers. But the world had contracted, due to a vast global confrontation that left fortress America vulnerably exposed to unprecedented threats. A terrible new enemy emerged, communism, potentially even more dangerous and menacing than fascism, with an ideology that had attracted many liberal westerners in the 1930’s, who were dissatisfied with the shortcomings of democracy.
The United Nations, formed with the same high ideals as the League of Nations, became the public forum for two opposing blocs, as well as third world, supposedly unaligned, nations. Although World War III seemed inevitable, large stocks of nuclear weapons assured mutual destruction and tenuous accommodations were reached with the adversary. The greatest accomplishment of the twentieth century was the absence of a nuclear exchange between America and the Soviet Union. Wars of necessity became limited and the triumph of American arms was a relic of the past. People’s wars of liberation, despite mostly being communist inspired, appealed to liberal intellectuals, who perceived a righteous cause and shut their eyes to mass liquidations and Gulags. At the same time, when America committed abuses, we were automatically judged guilty and condemned, because the world in general, and our citizens in particular, insisted we should behave better than others.
For various reasons spanning the gamut from egotism to ignorance, the liberal media, northeast intelligentsia and Hollywood leftists concluded that America was an aggressive oppressor, manipulated by an exploitative oligarchy for the benefit of a privileged few. Our policies were depicted as the major destructive force on the world stage. Whether these vociferous groups were correct in their sweeping judgments, or paranoid victims of delusion, is immaterial. Americans who accuse America of evil, do so from the bulwark provided by the security of democracy, a fundamental American institution. They demand a level of morality far more rigorous than applied to other nations, and refuse to recognize the need for real politik in a ferocious world. This arbitrary double standard may have birthed a great confusion in our youth.
However simplistic it may have been perceived by hyper-critical intellectuals, young Americans once aspired to the principles of a nation that were characterized by patriotism, loyalty and service. The Korean War, never explicated in a meaningful way to the public, left most of the country unaffected by the death of our men far away, except for those families who lost loved ones. There was no higher call to duty, no noble cause, no clear goals, only the defense of half an Asian people far away, from the other half of their countrymen, arbitrarily divided by cold war circumstances that made it normal to cut countries in half, to appease conflicting blocs. The intervention of communist China in Korea barely disturbed a nation already detaching itself from concern with the well-being of its military.
The Korean War ended in a stalemate, just about where it began, after the loss of thousands of American lives, with no clear result and for the first time in our wars, no victory. As the tensions of the cold war increased in the late 1950’s, the dread of nuclear conflict permeated the American psyche. This created a schizoid personality in many young people, who were threatened by possible annihilation that they knew they were powerless to prevent, while at the same time they were encouraged to lead “normal” lives. Despite our nation’s material prosperity, inconceivable in ages past, there was an unease underlying our way of life, a constant of the atomic age, that made us more stressed than previous generations.
The children who came of age in the ‘sixties’ were more dramatically divided into haves and have-nots than ever before. The haves, although amply provided with higher education and economic security, were not encouraged to develop traditional values by their parents, who were too absorbed in the pursuit of hitherto unattainable luxuries. Many young men from the blue collar class joined the military out of patriotism, opportunities for education, or even economic advancement. Regardless of their motivation, they served their country. Have-nots from the poverty communities were mostly drafted or joined to escape the harsh streets. Too many of the children of privilege evaded the draft, because they no longer esteemed our military and disdained military service.
The civil rights movement of the early sixties particularly stirred our college youth with a clear cut call to action in the struggle for equality. Moral virtue could hardly be disputed when it was opposed by hatred and discrimination. Then the Movement wound down and was replaced by the war in Vietnam as the national challenge. The youngsters who had felt empowered in a righteous cause, then thoughtlessly applied the same simple principles of right and wrong to a highly complex political and military conflict that was an integral facet of the Cold War.
In an irresponsible process of neglect, or deliberate mis-instruction, the best educated generation of young people in our history were left virtually ignorant of our appalling dependence on oil, the vast scope of the Cold War, the consequences of displaying weakness on the world stage and the historic fragility of the existence of democracy. Many young people felt that war was evil, and under the influence of sincere pacifists, fervent poets, hysteric entertainers, and raucous attention getters, they decided that America was evil, because of our assault on a distant peasant nation that imposed no threat to our well-being.
So while have-nots were fighting, bleeding and dying in remote Asian jungles and rice paddies, the haves were vigorously protesting our brutalities in our cities and campuses, until it was time to go home, or resume classes, or seek whatever diversion or entertainment appealed to them. The youth in combat had no choices. When the portable tv camera brought the Vietnam War, live and in color, into the living rooms and dorms of America, it made the horrors of war even more unpalatable to inexperienced youth. At the same time, the cameras, live and in color, brought anti-war demonstrations into living rooms, dorms, G.I. barracks and foreign countries, presenting a pageant of venomous dissent that hadn’t been seen in America since the Civil War. Rabid opposition to ‘Lyndon’s War’ actually ended his presidency.
When the Vietnam War finally concluded in our ignominious defeat, many Americans gloated at our discomfiture, further alienating an already bitter military, who felt they had been forsaken by the nation, while they were fighting far away. At the same time, our universities, erstwhile providers of knowledge, seemed to be more concerned with the accumulation of real estate and amassing of assets. Instead of requiring courses in the harsh realities of the world, and more math and science to continue our technology, they offered more fine arts. They did not inform gullible students that the sword decides the fate of nations more often than the pen. It was another sign that our society was becoming too comfortable to struggle against the vicissitudes of life, except part-time. The lessons of natural tragedies; earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, disease, as well as man-made disasters; war, train crashes, auto accidents, hand gun violence, occurrences that should remind us that life is fragile, perilous, fraught with risk, were softened for too many of us by the protective cocoon of amenities.
After the fall of Saigon in 1975, America retreated into its shell for the rest of the decade, opting for diplomacy and trade, in preference to military adventure. The Reagan administration advocated a strong military and resistance to the ‘Evil Empire’ of the Soviet Union that confronted us globally. This challenge of the ‘eighties’ saw the resurgence of the struggle between the ‘hawks’ and the ‘doves’. President Reagan’s urgency for the Strategic Defense Initiative, ‘Star Wars’, provoked opposition from the same type of anti-war groups that had protested in the ‘sixties’, without their previous vigor and clarity of purpose. The scientific complexities of ‘Star Wars’ precluded the involvement of most actors and poets, who were ill-equipped to dispute the issues. Since ‘Star Wars’ was mostly research, few instances for volatile confrontation and insufficient publicity discouraged many attention-seeking radicals from active protest.
The collapse of the Soviet Union ended a competition that fortuitously never erupted in horrendous nuclear war. Proxy wars had replaced direct conflict and the culture of war in America was in disrepute. Any consideration of military options was instantly opposed by anti-war elements, regardless of circumstances. This vocal resistance was echoed by several allies in NATO, no longer dependant on the United States for protection from the big, bad Russian bear. While our economy boomed in the ‘nineties’ and enriched the world, resentment for our power and culture became condition normal, especially in the Moslem world. Somehow, despite helping the world more than any country in history, we were losing our friends and making new enemies. At the same time, the nation that was founded on continuous conflict had lost its appetite for war.
Although we forged a broad alliance in the first Gulf War and achieved the first notable military victory in two generations, the situation of America did not change significantly for the better. In fact, the rise of the Euro-Union fostered an economic rivalry between two great industrialized blocs that created growing differences between them. Conflicts of interest, suppressed during the apprehensions of the Cold War, surfaced with increasing regularity. All the doubts that had distressed America in the ‘sixties’, reemerged as our economy spiraled down and we couldn’t seem to do anything right on the world stage. Businesses were taking their capital abroad. Jobs were being outsourced, especially high paying industrial and technical positions, leaving bleaker opportunities for discontented workers in lower paying security and service jobs.
The dot.com collapse assailed an economy struggling with massive trade deficits, disappearing industries and growing apprehensions that America’s time in the sun was winding down. Public confidence in our leaders was stretched thin and media second-guessing of every event further extended the plagues of doubt and confusion. Politics had virtually become ossified in a two party system. In the 2000 election, democrats actually blamed a third party candidate for the loss of the presidency for their party. Slightly reminiscent of the decadence of ancient Rome, when ‘Blues’ and ‘Greens’ struggled for power, the two major parties frowned on alternatives, abrogating the people’s right to a candidate of their choice.
9/11 changed the emotional landscape of America, presenting us with a moral crusade against terror. Among other results, this distracted us from difficult or unsolveable problems that would not go away, but were suddenly less threatening. However distressed we might be by diminishing incomes and fewer opportunities, the menace of terror became our overwhelming priority. Domestic security was suddenly so important that it eclipsed other vital concerns for the long term future. Our scientific and technical lead over the rest of the world was rapidly evaporating. More than half of the ph.d candidates in our graduate school programs are foreigners, studying math, physics and other sciences. They will return to their countries and help advance development. Many of our ph.d candidates are in the arts, soft sciences and physical education. The disparity for the future is alarming.
We cannot suppose that our nation is at crossroads. That would presume clear choices. We may be facing the most perilous time in the history of the republic. A time of industrial, technical, scientific, perhaps even moral decline, that leaves our vulnerable citizens apprehensive, our aware citizens uneasy. Our ailing system indicates that we cannot resurrect obsolete industries and compete in the world market in manufacturing products that are produced cheaper and better abroad. It has not been determined if our advanced technical industries can sustain a nation. The gulf between haves and have-nots keeps widening to the point of creating a de facto oligarchy. It is uncertain if the wounded giant can regenerate itself. We urgently need great leadership to steer us through these ominous pitfalls. New directions and new horizons must be found, before the republic of dreams dwindles to a second world reality.
art section
painting by Dave Jarvie
Cactus by Dr. Deborah FerBer
By The House by Irene Ferraro
Trellis by John Yotko
art by Louis Faber
Breathing the Water art by Mark Graham
March of 2002 art by Nicole Aimee macaluso
an image from the Sea of Myths, by Stephen Mead
art by Xanadu
Stockton, by Mike Hovancek
I See 1, by Rose E. Grier
All Too Real, by Edward Michael OÕDurr Supranowicz
a caramel martini glass photo from Alexandria Rand
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Nick DiSpoldo, Small Press Review (on “Children, Churches and Daddies,& #148; April 1997)
Kuypers is the widely-published poet of particular perspectives and not a little existential rage, but she does not impose her personal or artistic agenda on her magazine. CC+D is a provocative potpourri of news stories, poetry, humor, art and the “dirty underwear& #148; of politics.
One piece in this issue is “Crazy,& #148; an interview Kuypers conducted with “Madeline,& #148; a murderess who was found insane, and is confined to West Virginia’s Arronsville Correctional Center. Madeline, whose elevator definitely doesn’t go to the top, killed her boyfriend during sex with an ice pick and a chef’s knife, far surpassing the butchery of Elena Bobbitt. Madeline, herself covered with blood, sat beside her lover’s remains for three days, talking to herself, and that is how the police found her. For effect, Kuypers publishes Madeline’s monologue in different-sized type, and the result is something between a sense of Dali’s surrealism and Kafka-like craziness.
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Debra Purdy Kong, writer, British Columbia, Canada
I like the magazine a lot. I like the spacious lay-out and the different coloured pages and the variety of writer’s styles. Too many literary magazines read as if everyone graduated from the same course. We need to collect more voices like these and send them everywhere.
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Ed Hamilton, writer
#85 (of Children, Churches and Daddies) turned out well. I really enjoyed the humor section, especially the test score answers. And, the cup-holder story is hilarious. I’m not a big fan of poetry - since much of it is so hard to decipher - but I was impressed by the work here, which tends toward the straightforward and unpretentious.
As for the fiction, the piece by Anderson is quite perceptive: I liked the way the self-deluding situation of the character is gradually, subtly revealed. (Kuypers’) story is good too: the way it switches narrative perspective via the letter device is a nice touch.
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Children, Churches and Daddies.
It speaks for itself.
Write to Scars Publications to submit poetry, prose and artwork to Children, Churches and Daddies literary magazine, or to inquire about having your own chapbook, and maybe a few reviews like these.
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Jim Maddocks, GLASGOW, via the Internet
I’ll be totally honest, of the material in Issue (either 83 or 86 of Children, Churches and Daddies) the only ones I really took to were Kuypers’. TRYING was so simple but most truths are, aren’t they?
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what is veganism?
A vegan (VEE-gun) is someone who does not consume any animal products. While vegetarians avoid flesh foods, vegans don’t consume dairy or egg products, as well as animal products in clothing and other sources.
why veganism?
This cruelty-free lifestyle provides many benefits, to animals, the environment and to ourselves. The meat and dairy industry abuses billions of animals. Animal agriculture takes an enormous toll on the land. Consumtion of animal products has been linked to heart disease, colon and breast cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes and a host of other conditions.
so what is vegan action?
We can succeed in shifting agriculture away from factory farming, saving millions, or even billions of chickens, cows, pigs, sheep turkeys and other animals from cruelty.
We can free up land to restore to wilderness, pollute less water and air, reduce topsoil reosion, and prevent desertification.
We can improve the health and happiness of millions by preventing numerous occurrences od breast and prostate cancer, osteoporosis, and heart attacks, among other major health problems.
A vegan, cruelty-free lifestyle may be the most important step a person can take towards creatin a more just and compassionate society. Contact us for membership information, t-shirt sales or donations.
vegan action
po box 4353, berkeley, ca 94707-0353
510/704-4444
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C Ra McGuirt, Editor, The Penny Dreadful Review (on Children, Churches and Daddies)
CC&D is obviously a labor of love ... I just have to smile when I go through it. (Janet Kuypers) uses her space and her poets to best effect, and the illos attest to her skill as a graphic artist.
I really like (“Writing Your Name& #148;). It’s one of those kind of things where your eye isn’t exactly pulled along, but falls effortlessly down the poem.
I liked “knowledge& #148; for its mix of disgust and acceptance. Janet Kuypers does good little movies, by which I mean her stuff provokes moving imagery for me. Color, no dialogue; the voice of the poem is the narrator over the film.
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Children, Churches and Daddies no longer distributes free contributor’s copies of issues. In order to receive issues of Children, Churches and Daddies, contact Janet Kuypers at the cc&d e-mail addres. Free electronic subscriptions are available via email. All you need to do is email ccandd@scars.tv... and ask to be added to the free cc+d electronic subscription mailing list. And you can still see issues every month at the Children, Churches and Daddies website, located at http://scars.tv
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Mark Blickley, writer
The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. “Scars& #148; is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing her book.
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MIT Vegetarian Support Group (VSG)
functions:
* To show the MIT Food Service that there is a large community of vegetarians at MIT (and other health-conscious people) whom they are alienating with current menus, and to give positive suggestions for change.
* To exchange recipes and names of Boston area veg restaurants
* To provide a resource to people seeking communal vegetarian cooking
* To provide an option for vegetarian freshmen
We also have a discussion group for all issues related to vegetarianism, which currently has about 150 members, many of whom are outside the Boston area. The group is focusing more toward outreach and evolving from what it has been in years past. We welcome new members, as well as the opportunity to inform people about the benefits of vegetarianism, to our health, the environment, animal welfare, and a variety of other issues.
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Gary, Editor, The Road Out of Town (on the Children, Churches and Daddies Web Site)
I just checked out the site. It looks great.
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Dusty Dog Reviews: These poems document a very complicated internal response to the feminine side of social existence. And as the book proceeds the poems become increasingly psychologically complex and, ultimately, fascinating and genuinely rewarding.
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John Sweet, writer (on chapbook designs)
Visuals were awesome. They’ve got a nice enigmatic quality to them. Front cover reminds me of the Roman sculptures of angels from way back when. Loved the staggered tire lettering, too. Way cool.
(on “Hope Chest in the Attic& #148;)
Some excellent writing in “Hope Chest in the Attic.& #148; I thought “Children, Churches and Daddies& #148; and “The Room of the Rape& #148; were particularly powerful pieces.
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C Ra McGuirt, Editor, The Penny Dreadful Review: CC&D is obviously a labor of love ... I just have to smile when I go through it. (Janet Kuypers) uses her space and her poets to best effect, and the illos attest to her skill as a graphic artist.
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Cheryl Townsend, Editor, Impetus (on Children, Churches and Daddies)
The new CC&D looks absolutely amazing. It’s a wonderful lay-out, looks really professional - all you need is the glossy pages. Truly impressive AND the calendar, too. Can’t wait to actually start reading all the stuff inside.. Wanted to just say, it looks good so far!!!
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Dusty Dog Reviews: She opens with a poem of her own devising, which has that wintry atmosphere demonstrated in the movie version of Boris Pasternak’s Doctor Zhivago. The atmosphere of wintry white and cold, gloriously murderous cold, stark raging cold, numbing and brutalizing cold, appears almost as a character who announces to his audience, “Wisdom occurs only after a laboriously magnificent disappointment.& #148; Alas, that our Dusty Dog for mat cannot do justice to Ms. Kuypers’ very personal layering of her poem across the page.
Fithian Press, Santa Barbara, CA
Indeed, there’s a healthy balance here between wit and dark vision, romance and reality, just as there’s a good balance between words and graphics. The work shows brave self-exploration, and serves as a reminder of mortality and the fragile beauty of friendship.
Mark Blickley, writer
The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. “Scars& #148; is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing her book.
You Have to be Published to be Appreciated.
Do you want to be heard? Contact Children, Churches and Daddies about book or chapbook publishing. These reviews can be yours. Scars Publications, attention J. Kuypers. We’re only an e-mail away. Write to us.
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Brian B. Braddock, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)
I passed on a copy to my brother who is the director of the St. Camillus AIDS programs. We found (Children, Churches and Daddies’) obvious dedication along this line admirable.
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The Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology
The Solar Energy Research & Education Foundation (SEREF), a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., established on Earth Day 1993 the Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST) as its central project. CREST’s three principal projects are to provide:
* on-site training and education workshops on the sustainable development interconnections of energy, economics and environment;
* on-line distance learning/training resources on CREST’s SOLSTICE computer, available from 144 countries through email and the Internet;
* on-disc training and educational resources through the use of interactive multimedia applications on CD-ROM computer discs - showcasing current achievements and future opportunities in sustainable energy development.
The CREST staff also does “on the road& #148; presentations, demonstrations, and workshops showcasing its activities and available resources.
For More Information Please Contact: Deborah Anderson
dja@crest.org or (202) 289-0061
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Brian B. Braddock, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)
I passed on a copy to my brother who is the director of the St. Camillus AIDS programs. We found (Children, Churches and Daddies’) obvious dedication along this line admirable.
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Dorrance Publishing Co., Pittsburgh, PA
“Hope Chest in the Attic& #148; captures the complexity of human nature and reveals startling yet profound discernments about the travesties that surge through the course of life. This collection of poetry, prose and artwork reflects sensitivity toward feminist issues concerning abuse, sexism and equality. It also probes the emotional torrent that people may experience as a reaction to the delicate topics of death, love and family.
“Chain Smoking& #148; depicts the emotional distress that afflicted a friend while he struggled to clarify his sexual ambiguity. Not only does this thought-provoking profile address the plight that homosexuals face in a homophobic society, it also characterizes the essence of friendship. “The room of the rape& #148; is a passionate representation of the suffering rape victims experience. Vivid descriptions, rich symbolism, and candid expressions paint a shocking portrait of victory over the gripping fear that consumes the soul after a painful exploitation.
want a review like this? contact scars about getting your own book published.
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Paul Weinman, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)
Wonderful new direction (Children, Churches and Daddies has) taken - great articles, etc. (especially those on AIDS). Great stories - all sorts of hot info!
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The magazine Children Churches and Daddies is Copyright ©
through
Scars Publications and Design. The rights of the individual pieces remain with the authors. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.
Okay, nilla wafer. Listen up and listen good. How to save your life. Submit, or I’ll have to kill you.
Okay, it’s this simple: send me published or unpublished poetry, prose or art work (do not send originals), along with a bio, to us - then sit around and wait... Pretty soon you’ll hear from the happy people at cc&d that says (a) Your work sucks, or (b) This is fancy crap, and we’re gonna print it. It’s that simple!
Okay, butt-munch. Tough guy. This is how to win the editors over.
Hope Chest in the Attic is a 200 page, perfect-bound book of 13 years of poetry, prose and art by Janet Kuypers. It’s a really classy thing, if you know what I mean. We also have a few extra sopies of the 1999 book “Rinse and Repeat& #148;, the 2001 book “Survive and Thrive& #148;, the 2001 books “Torture and Triumph& #148; and “(no so) Warm and Fuzzy& #148;,
which all have issues of cc&d crammed into one book. And you can have either one of these things at just five bucks a pop if you just contact us and tell us you saw this ad space. It’s an offer you can’t refuse...
Carlton Press, New York, NY: HOPE CHEST IN THE ATTIC is a collection of well-fashioned, often elegant poems and short prose that deals in many instances, with the most mysterious and awesome of human experiences: love... Janet Kuypers draws from a vast range of experiences and transforms thoughts into lyrical and succinct verse... Recommended as poetic fare that will titillate the palate in its imagery and imaginative creations.
Mark Blickley, writer: The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. “Scars& #148; is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing the book.
You Have to be Published to be Appreciated.
Do you want to be heard? Contact Children, Churches and Daddies about book and chapbook publishing. These reviews can be yours. Scars Publications, attention J. Kuypers - you can write for yourself or you can write for an audience. It’s your call...
Dorrance Publishing Co., Pittsburgh, PA: “Hope Chest in the Attic& #148; captures the complexity of human nature and reveals startling yet profound discernments about the travesties that surge through the course of life. This collection of poetry, prose and artwork reflects sensitivity toward feminist issues concerning abuse, sexism and equality. It also probes the emotional torrent that people may experience as a reaction to the delicate topics of death, love and family. “Chain Smoking& #148; depicts the emotional distress that afflicted a friend while he struggled to clarify his sexual ambiguity. Not only does this thought-provoking profile address the plight that homosexuals face in a homophobic society, it also characterizes the essence of friendship. “The room of the rape& #148; is a passionate representation of the suffering rape victims experience. Vivid descriptions, rich symbolism, and candid expressions paint a shocking portrait of victory over the gripping fear that consumes the soul after a painful exploitation.
Dusty Dog Reviews, CA (on knife): These poems document a very complicated internal response to the feminine side of social existence. And as the book proceeds the poems become increasingly psychologically complex and, ultimately, fascinating and genuinely rewarding.
Children, Churches and Daddies. It speaks for itself.
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Dusty Dog Reviews (on Without You): She open with a poem of her own devising, which has that wintry atmosphere demonstrated in the movie version of Boris Pasternak’s Doctor Zhivago. The atmosphere of wintry white and cold, gloriously murderous cold, stark raging cold, numbing and brutalizing cold, appears almost as a character who announces to his audience, “Wisdom occurs only after a laboriously magnificent disappointment.& #148; Alas, that our Dusty Dog for mat cannot do justice to Ms. Kuypers’ very personal layering of her poem across the page.
Children, Churches and Daddies. It speaks for itself.
Debra Purdy Kong, writer, British Columbia, Canada (on Children, Churches and Daddies): I like the magazine a lot. I like the spacious lay-out and the different coloured pages and the variety of writer’s styles. Too many literary magazines read as if everyone graduated from the same course. We need to collect more voices like these and send them everywhere.
Fithian Press, Santa Barbara, CA: Indeed, there’s a healthy balance here between wit and dark vision, romance and reality, just as there’s a good balance between words and graphics. The work shows brave self-exploration, and serves as a reminder of mortality and the fragile beauty of friendship.
Children, Churches and Daddies
the unreligious, non-family oriented literary and art magazine
Scars Publications and Design
ccandd96@scars.tv
http://scars.tv
Publishers/Designers Of
Children, Churches and Daddies magazine
cc+d Ezines
The Burning mini poem books
God Eyes mini poem books
The Poetry Wall Calendar
The Poetry Box
The Poetry Sampler
Mom’s Favorite Vase Newsletters
Reverberate Music Magazine
Down In The Dirt magazine
Freedom and Strength Press forum
plus assorted chapbooks and books
music, poery compact discs
live performances of songs and readings
Sponsors Of
past editions:
Poetry Chapbook Contest, Poetry Book Contest
Prose Chapbook Contest, Prose Book Contest
Poetry Calendar Contest
current editions:
Editor’s Choice Award (writing and web sites)
Collection Volumes
Children, Churches and Daddies (founded 1993)
has been written and researched by political groups and writers from the United States, Canada, England, India, Italy, Malta, Norway and Turkey.
Regular features provide coverage of environmental, political and social issues (via news and philosophy) as well as fiction and poetry,
and act as an information and education source. Children, Churches and Daddies is the leading magazine for this combination of information,
education and entertainment.
Children, Churches and Daddies (ISSN 1068-5154) is published quarterly by Scars Publications and Design. Contact us via e-mail (ccandd96@scars.tv) for subscription rates
or prices for annual collection books.
To contributors:
No racist, sexist or blatantly homophobic material. No originals; if mailed, include SASE & bio.
Work sent on disks or through e-mail preferred. Previously published work accepted. Authors always retain rights to their own work. All magazine rights reserved. Reproduction of
Children, Churches and Daddies without publisher permission is forbidden.
Children, Churches and Daddies copyright
through
Scars Publications and Design, Children, Churches and Daddies, Janet Kuypers. All rights remain with the authors of the individual
pieces. No material may be reprinted without express permission. |
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