❧❧❧ Whatever you can do or dream, you can BEGIN IT. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Goethe ❧❧❧
❧❧❧ You were born whole, not broken. Sandra Hammel ❧❧❧
Friday, October 24, 2008
NOTHING CAN BRING US TOGETHER LIKE MUSIC CAN
THIS POST HAS BEEN UPDATED Saturday, October 25, at 6:30 p.m. When I posted this last night the video for the Playing For Change segment of the show hadn't been uploaded yet on the PBS website. It is now and the link is just below. It is a must see.
Tonight on PBS' Bill Moyers had two guests on the Journal
JAMES K. GALBRAITH Galbraith is the author of six books, the most recent, The Predator State: How the Conservatives Abandoned the Free Market and Why Liberals Should Too. See the video.
MARK JOHNSON PLAYING FOR CHANGE Bill Moyers talks withMark Johnson, the producer of a remarkable documentary about the simple but transformative power of music.
See this segment of the show. I am quite certain you will be impressed with Mark Johnson. Upon asking Mark if people said he was naive, he answered "The only chance we have is to come together, to inspire..." The following is taken from the PBS website:
Bill Moyers sits down with Mark Johnson, the producer of a remarkable documentary about the simple but transformative power of music: PLAYING FOR CHANGE: PEACE THROUGH MUSIC. The film brings together musicians from around the world — blues singers in a waterlogged New Orleans, chamber groups in Moscow, a South African choir — to collaborate on songs familiar and new, Johnson traveled around the globe and recorded tracks for such classics as "Stand By Me" and Bob Marley's "One World" — creating a new mix in which essentially the performers are all performing together — worlds apart. Often recording with just battery-powered equipment, Johnson found musicians on street corners or in small clubs and they would in turn gather their friends and colleagues — in all, they recorded over 100 musicians from Tibet to Zimbabwe.
The unique composition of the film which has musicians playing together yet in their own traditions, made Johnson think anew about what world music means:
Just thinking in my mind... what would be unique instruments to juxtapose against each other that had never been heard before: a talking drum and a tabla, they're very similar but they never really come together, or a sitar and a dobro, very similar but how often do you hear them play together? The idea was to go to places that would have some sort of instruments that they could add to the spectrum of the global music that we were trying to find.
The Playing For Change Foundation provides resources (facilities, supplies, educational programs, etc) to musicians and communities around the world. The foundation is working with South African poet Lesego Rampolokenga to build the Mehlo Arts Center in Johannesburg, South Africa and building and supporting the Ntonga Music School in the South African township of Guguletu. In addition, Playing For Change is working to enhance and rebuild Tibetan refugee centers in Dharamasala, India and Kathmandu, Nepal. You can find news about their benefit concerts and programs, and listen to additional songs, on their Web site: Playingforchange.com (for Flash users) or Playingforchange.org.
Guest photo by Robin Holland
Published October 24, 2008.
Today on Oprah, Il Divo sang this song - Amazing Grace. They were in an airport in Mexico on the way to Europe when her staff person called them - already had their luggage checked in. But it was Oprah, so they delayed their trips home and came to Chicago to sing this one song at the opening of the show October 24, 2008. Besides their new CD includes this song and it is released on November 18, 2008 and at amazon.com you can order Promise by Il-Divo for $9.99.
Not bad karma - getting promotion of their new release around the world on Oprah.
Il Divo in Hong Kong 2005 from left to right: Sébastien, Carlos, David and Urs
Their debut self-titled album has sold over 5 million copies - smashing Led Zeppelin's 25 year-old record of being the only band to achieve a number 1 album without a single release.
I have just discovered some great actors in the last year that have been doing great work for a long time. I just didn’t know about them. Rufus Sewell was outstanding in Amazing Grace, where I was introduced, not only to the lead character played by Ioan Gruffudd, but to Rufus Sewell. He played Thomas Clarkson (pictured above). Loved him. Also saw him recently in Tristan and Isolde. Great in that, also.And thanks to Youtube I have been introduced to other works of Rufus. I love Youtube. I find when I love an actor's work in one movie, it pretty much means I will love him in other works. His birth name is Rufus Frederick Sewell and his nickname is Roof. He is 6 feet tall (1.83 m). Rufus was born on the 29th of October 1967 in Twickenham, England. His father, Bill, was an Australian animator, who died when Rufus was 10. He has one brother, Caspar. He attended London's Central School of Speech and Drama and left in June of 1989 after completing three years of training. He made his London Stage debut in "Making It Better" for which he won the "Best Newcomer Award”. He is a prolific actor . ………………………………………………… ………………………………………………… http://youtube.com/watch?v=ALxw70CxphA Rufus Sewell, scene from Uncorked ………………………………………………… ………………………………………………… http://youtube.com/watch?v=hUAuhbDdqFw The movie is Uncorked. A montage of scenes set to the song Someone Like You.…………………………………………………
………………………………………………… http://youtube.com/watch?v=NZt1M3Kuu2c Rufus Sewell sings I Have Often Walked On This Street Before in Gone to Seed………………………………………………… ………………………………………………… http://youtube.com/watch?v=dnK_VLPEjM Rufus Sewell's shining career through pictures of his works in cinema, theatre and television, from 1991 to 2007. Music by Butterfly Boucher ~ Life is short.
Do you ever feel like you need a complete contrast to the focus of your life?
That is what I am feeling tonight. After an endeavor taking over my life for the last two months, I now only have to do the "finishing" off of the follow-ups with the press and stuff. The event I produced was today. So as a decompression act I am online reading blogs and freely cruising.
It is the feeling I got when I was teaching full-time - music, in the public schools, where I taught 8 and 9 classes day. And at night I was in a trilogy playing Ruth in the British comedy, The Norman Conquests. I loved the part. But when the play closed, I felt like I needed to break out. Needed a release - needed to be less contained in my responsibilites of a life that was over-scheduled.
And the song that expressed my feeling was Dogs in the Yard. .....................................................................
..................................................................... I want to be bad And not even care I want to go out of my head somewhere I want run crazy Like the dogs in the yard I want to cut the rope But it's getting so much harder
I think I'll play poker Stay out every night Throw stones at the water In the morning light
I want to be lazy like the dogs in the yard Why can't I fly tonight? Why can't I sleep all morning? I'm going out of my mind tonight That's where I'm going That's where I'm going
Gonna have a good time Before it's too late Come on, baby, let's go uptown and celebrate Gonna celebrate!
We're gonna run crazy Like the dogs in the yard We're gonna fly tonight We're gonna sleep all morning
We're going out of our minds tonight That's where we're going
digitalfairy24 has posted the entire movie in 11 segments online. Some of my favorite scenes are in segment 8: .....................................................................
..................................................................... And this is the final section, 11. THE ONLY WAY TO A GREAT MOVIE- a great cast to begin...IOAN GRUFFUDD, RUFUS SEWELL, BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH, JEREMY SWIFT...
And while cruising I found this gem. Ioan Gruffudd speaking his beloved Welsh: .....................................................................
WHY GO TO SLEEP WHEN I CAN STAY UP AND FIND THESE FUN VIDEO CLIPS ALL NIGHT? TOO much fun!! My very first introduction to Ioan Gruffudd was as William Wilberforce in the movie Amazing Grace. Then I saw him in the Forsyte Saga and Hornblower. Ioan is from Cardiff, Wales and was recently married to Alice Evans in Mexico on the beach with best man, Matthew Rhys by his side. ......................................................
DARFUR is a western region in the country of SUDAN. The President, Omar al-Bashir, of Sudan is killing some people that he doesn't like, the Darfuri families. When you target a group of people because of who there are it is not only sick, we invented a word for it after World War II.The word is GENOCIDE.But Bashir says that he isn't murdering his people.But by accounts but his, he is. And there are Chinese companies in Sudan with oil rigsreaping their oil.And 70% of the money made by selling the Sudanese oil goes to buy the very weapons that are used to murder the people of Darfur and on the border of Sudan and Chad.
Recognizing liars isn't a difficult thing. But it does mean we have to face the truth. And sometimes we choose not to face the truth. Sad, very, very sad. And a disgrace. And it means once again that we never meant it when we said “NEVER AGAIN!”
DO or DIE.
WE DO. . .
or . . .THEY DIE. .................................................................................................................
WE = the average, common every day human being, living in our homes.
THEY = the average, common every day human beings, the Darfuri family members and some Chadian family members.
There's a GENOCIDE going on. But is your American free press reporting it?
Who cares?President Bush - after reading the report on the 100 day 1994 Rwandan genocide that President Clinton complicitly allowed to go on, while ignoring its grim story - wrote in the margins of the report
“Not On MY Watch”
Well, we know he didn’t mean it.Don’t we?
Does he mean ANYthing he says?
Rwanda went on for 100 days.Darfuri families having been living, or dying, in a state of “shock and awe” otherwise defined as genocide since 2004 – for over four years.Yes, four years and “not on MY watch” are just
empty
words.
In GW Bush’s second swearing to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States he uttered these words:
“All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors…”I think that is exactly what GW has done…ignored the Darfuri families’ oppression and excused their oppressors.
In the same speech just a couple paragraphs below he also said:
“The leaders of governments with long habits of control need to know: To serve your people you must learn to trust them. Start on this journey of progress and justice, and America will walk at your side.”How does he say his words without choking while he says them.
His words are noble.His actions are not.
He says a lot of things.He just doesn’t do many of them, but the senseless ones.
On December 9, 1948, in the shadow of the Holocaust and in no small part due to the tireless efforts of a Polish-Jewish lawyer named Raphael Lemkin, the United Nations approved the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. This convention establishes "genocide” as an international crime, which signatory nations “undertake to prevent and punish.” It defines genocide as:
Genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: (a) Killing members of the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; (e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
INTERNATIONAL MILITARY TRIBUNAL: THE DEFENDANTS
The defendants listen as the prosecution begins introducing documents at the International Military Tribunal trial of war criminals at Nuremberg. November 22, 1945.
On October 18, 1945, the chief prosecutors of the International Military Tribunal (IMT) read the indictments against 24 leading Nazi officials. The four charges brought against these officials were:
1. Conspiracy to commit crimes of peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity
2. Crimes against peace
3. War crimes
4. Crimes against humanity
At this link there are the sentences handed down to the defendants at the
This weekend, Saturday, but probably more on Sunday, there are events going on around the planet earth networked by average, common every day human beings who are leaving the comforts of their homes for people who have no homes, STANDING UP, walking, lying down at the Boston Commons DIE-INS, carrying posters with messages that Time Is Up - Darfur needs us to be what we claim to be. Decent human beings who have the moral conscience that we were born with.
I sent my final email out to my list of sign-ups and others that are on an email list regarding Darfur, but most of which I have never met.Here it is:
April 26, 2007 Last Email before the NewportDarfur Walk & Gathering
Dear Person of Conscience,
This email is going out to all people that have either signed up for Newport’s Darfur Walk & Gathering on www.savedarfur.org/globaldays or are on my original Darfur email list.I would like to send what will probably be my last email before the Walk & Gathering, this Saturday, April 28 at 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.Rain or Shine.Let’s send positive thoughts out for the “Shine” option.I request that if you haven’t gone online to sign up, that you do so.This gives me a better sense of what to tell NBC, ABC and CBS when I call them again Saturday morning to see if they have chosen us for coverage that day on the news.It is important that Darfur gets in the news.If you go to www.beawitness.org and watch an extremely brief clip, you will see why it is important to me that this Darfur Walk & Gathering get in the news here in Rhode Island along side all the other events around the world.
Bring your digital cameras, take pictures and download them to me at________. I am looking for a few good pictures that capture the essence of our day to send in to have them posted alongside every other event on www.savedarfur.orgIf you are able Save Darfur asks us to put clips of the day up on www.youtube.comThis is our way of saying we’ve had enough silence and complicity on this human rights issue of genocide vs. living out a natural life.Cox Cable is willing to put up video of the day’s event on the public access channel.It needs to be in DVD form.Another great way to help be the media instead of waiting for the media to find this story and put it on the radar screen of what is note worthy.Real news and not the entertainment news that is too common.
This is the first time that the Save Darfur Coalition of Churches, organizations and small groups have networked and planned the Darfur movement in this way where we aren’t having one central city where we transport ourselves out of state and even have to stay overnight to participate in this grassroots quiet, but steadily growing swell of voices that are saying “NO MORE” Standing Idly By and being complicit in yet one more genocide.This is the first genocide that the citizens around the world are empowered by the networking available to us through the wonderful world of the web.Over 400 events in the USA are planned this week of Global Days for Darfur. And over 30 countries besides US are stepping up and taking our swing at being the voice of the people who have no voice in Darfur.
GOOD for US.And we must not let the momentum grind to an abrupt stop after Saturday.I just got off the phone of our weekly conference call with the Save Darfur office in Washington, D.C.And what I like about this activism this time is that we already have in place plans for two or three follow-up actions to take after Saturday and Sunday’s big events are over.I’ll be telling you all about these on Saturday.
Don’t stay home. Come. Bring your friends, children, family members, co-workers…I am so excited that we ARE going to have media coverage.This is one of the goals for this under-reported story that belongs on the front pages of responsible journalism.Not relegated to a Letter to the Editor or infrequent mentions over the four years that it has been allowed to deny our words of NEVER AGAIN.Overall, Rhode Island is apathetic about this issue.But you are not.And because there is so much disinterest and apathy, you are even more important than you think you are.
The Newport Daily News has committed two things:1) publish my Letter to the Editor, hopefully, April 28, Friday, otherwise, my text will be stale 2) they are sending a reporter and a staff photographer to our event.So, if you have a Darfur t-shirt, wear it.If you have a blue hat we suggest you wear it to signify UN Peacekeepers’ blue.Four women “who rule in my book” got together last evening for two intensely artful hours and made fabulous posters for you to carry and make our presence effective as we walk.I have various flyers that will need to be passed out not only to you, but to people we pass as we walk to Washington Square.This is an historic town and we are on an historic path to be the first citizens to insist that genocide’s termination is long over due.
We are a part of probably hundreds of thousands over the weekend around the world.We may not be a huge group, but we walk along side other “people of conscience” around the nation and around this planet that all want to see peace.We are given love to give it.
And please, when asked by a volunteer to sign the petitionto ask Fidelity to divest their holdings from Chinese Oil Companies in Sudan which in turn that money buys the Sudanese government’s military equipment (70% of Sudan’s budget goes to the military) to bomb and murder their own unarmed families in their homes - please, sign the petition.It IS ONE thing we can do with or without our government’s direct support and action.
Come, find that there are others in Rhode Island who care about the human disaster, genocide.
Thanks for being willing to “Stand Up & Stand Out” for Darfur.
Great news!Thanks to your work, 96 Senators are now signing the
Biden-Lugar Darfur letter to President Hu of China!
Here’s The Letter your elected politicians have been signing to pressure China to stop being supporters of President Omar al-Bashir and his government-supported genocide on unarmed families, while using rape as a tool of genocide.
April ___, 2006
President Hu Jintao
c/o Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong
Embassy of China
2300 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC20008
Dear President Hu:
We are writing to request your assistance on a matter of grave mutual concern requiring urgent action.
The devastating crisis in western Sudan has escalated despite UNSC Resolution 1706, and the subsequent agreement brokered by the United Nations late last year in Addis Ababa to establish a joint African Union-UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur.Simply put, the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) has not had the troop level, financial resources, institutional capacity or mandate to protect civilians or humanitarian organizations in Darfur.The Government of Sudan has yet to formally agree to admit UN peacekeepers.In fact, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir recently sent a disturbing letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in which he backed away from the Addis agreement to implement phases II and III, the heavy support package and a robust UN peacekeeping force. President al-Bashir’s stonewalling while civilians are raped and killed in Darfur is unacceptable.
The conflict waged by Sudanese government forces and government-backed Janjawid militias against armed rebel groups has driven more than 230,000 Darfuri refugees into Chad, and displaced more than 120,000 Chadians.Hundreds of thousands of Darfuri civilians have been killed and an estimated 2 million displaced in Darfur itself.The conflict has had particularly devastating consequences for women and children, who make up the vast majority of victims. Humanitarian operations have also been increasingly attacked and disrupted in recent months—leaving millions without access to the most basic assistance.
We appreciate the steps the international community and China have taken to confront war crimes and other egregious human rights violations in Darfur.Now, we urge China to do even more and to reassess one recent decision.Providing the Government of Sudan an interest-free loan to build a presidential palace clearly sends the wrong message to Khartoum.We hope that you will reconsider the loan and impress upon President al-Bashir the need to halt Sudan's military operations throughout Darfur, to withdraw Sudanese troops from the area, and to accept a robust AU/UN peacekeeping force in Darfur. These steps, at a minimum, are essential to enforce the ceasefire, protect civilians, ensure access to humanitarian assistance, and begin the path to reconstruction and reconciliation in Darfur.
As Members of the U.S. Congress, our primary objectives in this endeavor, and those of our constituents across the United States, are to protect civilians in Darfur, end the violence, find a just resolution to the political conflict, and begin the long path to reconstruction and reconciliation.
We must now work together as an international community; there is no time left to wait.We therefore appeal to you today to use your influence in words and in deeds to protect civilians.China has a lead role to play in insuring that President al-Bashir accept the best and most reasonable path to peace, move forward with the heavy support package, and the full contingent of UN peacekeepers and related personnel in Darfur.We would appreciate any information you can share on actions China intends to take to protect civilians in Darfur.
The movie Amazing Grace is the first film I have seen with Ioan Gruffudd in it. I first became introduced to Ioan Gruffudd through my interest in Matthew Rhys, who plays Kevin Walker on my favorite TV show, Brothers and Sisters. Ioan and Matthew both grew up in the capital of Wales, Cardiff and knew each other in childhood. They both attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, as well as owning a home together at one time for ten years.
Currently, Ioan is starring as William Wilberforce in the inspirational film, Amazing Grace. April 6, he can be seen in the movie, The TV Set.
Here are select photos which were downloaded from www.ioanonline.com which is great source for Ioan Gruffudd admirers.
It’s March Madness for college boys and girls basketball.I LOVE IT!To me, there is no sport (keep in mind, I am from the USA and don’t know soccer) like the sport of basketball.It takes athleticism, but it is full of artistic grace, the movement is poetic all done with the impromptu of the improvisation of jazz music.Technically, the moves and plays are by design and come more naturally to some, but practice makes it all work like a well-oiled machine.But to have the instinct of what to do in split second and hair-raising times is just special and art in motion.Not to mention the mind’s quick wit and cleverness that is so beautiful and enjoyed by the spectator.To be able to see the floor, the players’ in their places and know where they will move in an instant is just a blast.
My love of this game, called basketball may have something to do with the fact that I grew up in Indiana, where basketball is admittedly a passion.We call it “Hoosier Hysteria”.The “Hoosier” part is what anyone from Indiana is called.What else would you call us, “Indianaians”?Doesn’t work, does it?The “Hysteria” part comes from our spirited passion and love of this art called game.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoosier_Hysteria
My father also was my high school’s basketball coach.We were the Golden Eagles.
School colors: maroon and gold.My dad, Coach Hammel, was highly respected for his coaching, as well as for his humanity.Dad was friends with Bobby Knight and as I said n an earlier post, in the summertime my dad had a business where he sanded, finished and painted the logos on the gym floors, around the state, including IndianaUniversity, Notre Dame, Purdue Univsersity and many others.
“H –H-Ham, M-M-Mel, Hammel, Hammel, Hammel” was one of the cheers.We even had cheer block practice where we sat in the bleachers and practiced cheers and card turning.In junior high, I was cheerleader.That was fun.Really.I always felt kind of special, going to all of the high school basketball games and getting certain privileges being the coach’s daughter.But one of the drawbacks was being the daughter of my father, the basketball coach.He had rules for the boys.And one was that the boys had dating restrictions during basketball season.So, of the bb boys, who in their right mind would go out with the coach’s daughter?None of them.Imagine my surprise when I went off to live on campus in college and I was highly sought after by the males who were highly respected on campus.
Also, there were disadvantages because when the team lost, the house was a “suck-the-life-right-out-of-you place.When we lost to my dad’s alma mater, we didn’t go to church because dad would get ribbed by his uncles mercilessly.The pressures of being the losing team was felt personally through a kind of osmosis.
Anyway, we are in the middle of March Madness right now here in the States.And granted the boys’play gets all the hype and attention and the girls’ play gets relegated to a footnote, even though today the girls can play just as well as any of these boys and they have the moves, the grace ant the skills equal to the shining stars of the boys’ teams.Geez, when I was in high school we had “girls’ basketball rules” – some silly half court play…And girls that I saw play shot the ball with some two-handed grip that looked silly.I always gripped the ball like the boys.Now – that would be no distinction.
Over the years, the shorts have gotten to be baggy knee pants.It’s strange to see the clips of years ago, when the shorts were really shorts.And back then there weren’t the tattoos we so often see scar the beautiful godly skin of these beautiful athletic bodies.But still, these guys are not only beautiful to watch for their art, grace of movement, beauty of their plays and improvisational dance-like moves, but they are also beautiful to look at because the body is a beautiful thing.
Georgetown's Jeff Green puts a nifty move on Vanderbilt ... (AP)
Joakim Noah and Taurean Green survive another close call. (AP)
Save your tears boys, you had your chance to win the game. (AP)
Oregon's Tajuan Porter whispers sweet nothings to Wink Adams. (AP)
... and hits the game winner for an Elite 8 berth. (Getty Images)
This are not my captions, but the ones from the website:
I love my life. I love where I live. And I am passionate about my passions. I love to dance. Necessary to live: music, piano, singing, writing, acting, painting.
I have been fighting for and supporting the arts all my adult life. Since 2004, I have been working with other activists to end the Darfur genocide.
I have traveled to Europe many times since my early twenties. Places I have been: many USA states including Hawaii, Montreal, Canada, Barbados, France, Spain, Luxembourg, England, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Greece and Germany - and have wonderful memories.
My last trip was in May - June 2013 to Spain.
I would like to travel to Europe and Kyoto, Japan.
I love the southwest where I have visited Hopi, Navajo, Zia and San Idlefonso potters.
Life is exciting and I intend to live it full-out to the end.
B.S. and M.M., both in music
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Khartoum, Sudan Stop Genocide Time
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Spain Time
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Melbourne Time
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Hawaii Time
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RAFA NADAL -BRING BACK LONG PANTS - SLEEVELESS TOPS
Double Click on Videos to Enlarge
Darfur - The Abandoned Genocide - a video by Sandra Hammel
Want to help? Call 1~800~GENOCIDE
"May I Suggest" by Susan Werner
Satchita - Playing for Change
Stand By Me ~ Playing for Change
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Genocide is not only a word,
it is crying of the whole human race.
There is nothing redeeming about being silent
when speaking up is the humane thing to do.
The honor and integrity of the human race is at stake.
