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Fwd: GMCA Update Sept 30
by David Zahrt via Dialogue 04 Oct '14

04 Oct '14

*TUE SEP 30* *Fremont, to Parks & Recreation Center in Bellevue, OH* Last night I slept well on the bed. Once again, I put my sleeping bag out on top of the blanket so I didn’t use their sheets or the pillow. There had been no announcements at last night’s dinner about when we planned to leave. I went out to pack my things in the truck and discovered that it had started raining, a sprinkle not a downpour. I had everything packed up by 6:30am and went to the Retreat kitchen. There were very few looking for breakfast. I got granola and yogurt out of the kitchen truck and ate my breakfast. Ed came along later and made pancakes. I didn’t need any more breakfast. It rained intermittently. I asked JJ if he had a rider. He said “No”. I asked if I could ride with him if it continued to rain. He said, “Yes”. I surveyed the weather and decided that the rain had gone away. I decided to ride my bike. I got route info down on paper from someone. As I was getting ready Shira approached me and indicated we should ride together. We got Jim, one of the hosts, to instruct us on how to get to the Trail that runs from Fremont to Bellevue. Shira and I got on our bikes and rode off. It was chilly and as soon as I started to sweat I was hot and cold. The atmosphere was clear but the clouds completely blocked the sun. Shira decided to ride at my pace. We took both lanes and in 15 miles had only 2 cars to watch out for. We conversed as we rode. I discovered that we have some common interests: she makes apple cider in the fall, and she is a beekeeper. Interesting how we had a chance to share in our ‘side-conversation’. When we’re busy attending to March practics those conversations aren’t appropriate. We got to Bellevue and asked how to find the library. It was on the way to the Parks and Recreation Center where we were to camp. We stopped and used the library’s computers for email, then went to the campsite. I had used Rod’s needle and thread in Elmore to fix one of the tie-downs on my bike backpack. I put the needle back in the spool of thread and when he opened the spool container, he couldn’t find the needle. Since I had time I went to a Dollar Store and bought him a package of needles. Dinner was late. There was an All-Camp meeting. The topic was “What do you want the March to do in the last month and how should it empower us to act when it concludes?” There were many suggestions. Sean was the facilitator and will gestalt the brainstorm for us to begin work on. It will be interesting to see what the follow-up achieves. -- Peace, David

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Fwd: GMCA Update Sept 29
by David Zahrt via Dialogue 03 Oct '14

03 Oct '14

*MON SEP 29* *Elmore to Fremont, OH* Although it was announced that the March would leave at 9am I put the stoves away and folded up the solar panels and hit the trail a little after 8am. The route from Elmore to Fremont was a trail. I think it’s meant to go all the way across Ohio. I believe it’s the Trail we were directed to when we left Montpelier. This portion of the trail is a blacktop surface at least 7 foot wide. It’s nice to ride a trail. The walnuts and oak acorns provided some bumps in the road. Once again it was foggy. I got to Fremont in time to visit the bicycle shop. The side of the rim on the back tire is splitting. The split allows the brakes to work but it makes the brakes go bump, bump, bump. There is no air in the tire so I don’t have to worry about a blow-out. The mechanic suggested that I continue to ride it. Then I found my way to the library. I sent a journal to Lin and a note to Shari, the secretary for the March in the Des Moines office. I’m volunteering to drive the Gear truck from WDC to Des Moines. I’ll have to wait and see what transpires. We’re staying in another Convent—Our Lady of the Pines Retreat Center. They offered some rooms inside the Center. I picked a room and took a shower. Before dinner we had a Toledo engineer, one who was at the Saturday Protest/ Demonstration of BP in Toledo, give us the technical details of fracking. From the details he gave it’s clear that there are some who care nothing about the earth, its population, and the future of all its species. Their only concern is accumulating income. The dinner crew worked on dinner but the major part of it was donated by the Retreat Center. There was nothing planned after dinner. I relaxed in my room then went to bed. -- Peace, David

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Liberal heresy
by via Dialogue 03 Oct '14

03 Oct '14

This seems like a liberal answer with structural fixes. From John Cock's blog: http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/sep/26/8-innovations-e… Seems like anyone who isn't extremely right or left is a threat to both polarized extremes. I was talking to someone in the millennial generation, who said he always thought Hippies were heroes, but he absolutely hated Occupy Wallstreet. Figure that one out. Jann

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Fwd: GMCA Update Sept. 28
by David Zahrt via Dialogue 03 Oct '14

03 Oct '14

*SUN SEP 28* *Toledo to Elmore, OH* I went through the breakfast/lunch routine, packed up and was ready to go. After breakfast I asked Sarah about the route. She had sent it out to the Marcher list the night before. I had my phone connected to the Jetpack that the March has procured to give the March constant connection to the Internet. She sent it again while we were conversing, but it didn’t arrive. Then she texted me and I got it. The email she sent didn’t arrive until I got to Elmore and hooked up to a WiFi in a local restaurant. We were informed that we were to get our trucks out of the parking lot by 8am. People were still bringing their luggage down from 4th floor of the convent. The Gear truck was congested. When we had a workshop on the Qualities we would like to see the March incorporate, I should have contributed “being punctual”, or punctuality! At dawn the atmosphere seemed clear, but by 8am the atmosphere was filled with fog. On the way to Elmore there were times when it covered the sun. It was like a white night. By the time I got to Elmore the fog was gone. We camped in the park that Elmore has established as a memorial to their Railroad Depot. It’s a relic. It even has the telegraph system intact. We set up the kitchen in a tiny amphitheater. Most of the Marchers put up their tents. I found a porch with a nice roof to sleep under. I sat under the ‘kitchen’ amphitheater and did some journaling. The Marchers straggled in. A local Toledo woman volunteered to serve dinner. Some Marchers helped her get the meal ready. After dinner people were doing their own thing. I went to bed. -- Peace, David

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Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change??
by Bill Parker via Dialogue 02 Oct '14

02 Oct '14

Nancy, Sorry for the delay. I just now saw your request for a "little more" on the fallacy of the liberal form of doing. Years ago John Epps presented a paper on the "liberal heresy". It is archived so you can get access to it. He described the dynamic very well. Today I see and experience a type of this "heresy" broadly among some liberal and progressive people. They see the problem, understand what causes it, grasp that it is systemic in nature, find who to blame for it, then resort to symbolic gestures of outrage, to themselves and sometimes to whomever is to be blamed. They then go on with their lives as normal because of the symbolic gesture they feel like they have addressed the issue. They do this without any effort, or even commitment, to dealing with the systemic situation underlying the problem, building transitional models, or acknowledging a movement is essential before anything can happen to alter and sustain the situation. Hope this adds a little to the phrase. Bill ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nancy Trask" <nancytrask(a)rocketmail.com> To: "James Wiegel" <jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com>; "Colleague Dialogue" <dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net>; "Order Ecumenical Community" <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net>; "Bill Parker" <bparker175(a)cox.net> Sent: Monday, September 29, 2014 12:37 PM Subject: Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change?? Hey Bill - Say a little more about "This is the fallacy of the "liberal" form of doing." Nancy Trask -------------------------------------------- On Mon, 9/29/14, Bill Parker via Dialogue <dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote: Subject: Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change?? To: "James Wiegel" <jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com>, "Colleague Dialogue" <dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net>, "Order Ecumenical Community" <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> Date: Monday, September 29, 2014, 11:10 AM If only it were that simple. Doing social change work and getting social change done are two very different realities. Social change comes out of a movement toward a different future which shows up from a multitude of independent faces from the human community. Holding elected representives accountable is certainly one aspect of that but its "tail is not large enough to wag the dog." Also, social change is more than just change but it is change that cannot be reversed as soon as people's interest moves on to something else. This is the fallacy of the "liberal" form of doing. ----- Original Message ----- From: James Wiegel via OE To: Colleague Dialogue ; Order Ecumenical Community Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2014 1:17 PM Subject: [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change?? "I've been doing social change work for more than 40 years, and I know that organizing people to hold our elected officials accountable is the only thing that actually makes change." Wenonah Hauter. True or false. Please comment Jim Wiegel Those who have the most rigorously tested answers will not drive the future of learning; those who pursue the most meaningful questions will. Mathew Abrams 401 North Beverly Way, Tolleson, Arizona 85353 Tel. 011-623-936-8671 or 011-623-363-3277 jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com www.partnersinparticipation.com Upcoming public course opportunities: ToP® Facilitation Methods: Sep 9-10, Nov 18-19, 2014 Click to watch video. ToP® Strategic Planning: Oct 7-8, 2014 Click to learn more. Facilitation Mastery: The Mastering the Technology of Participation program begins in Oakland on Nov 12-14, 2014 Click to watch video. For online registration go to http://www.top-training.net The AZ ToP® Community of Practice meets the 1st Friday, 1-4 pm, starting again on Sept 5th at ACYR, 648 N. 5th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85003 AICP Planners: 14.5 CM for all ToP® courses _______________________________________________ OE mailing list OE(a)lists.wedgeblade.net http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _______________________________________________ Dialogue mailing list Dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/dialogue-wedgeblade.net

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Fwd: GMCA Sept 26-27
by David Zahrt via Dialogue 01 Oct '14

01 Oct '14

*FRI SEP 26* *Maumee to Toledo, OH* While I waited for the scrambled eggs, I made my lunch for the day. I chose a route north along the west side of the river to Toledo. We’re staying in an abandoned Convent at Good Shepherd Catholic Church. It was abandoned when the elevator stopped working. We have to climb the outside stairs 4 ½ flights to get to the Convent. The facilities are nice. I claimed a room and then went to the local library. In the afternoon we were shuttled to a community garden placed on a 1/8 acre lot in East Toledo—we had to cross the river to get there. The garden is somehow in violation of the city ordinance! Kat led an introductory conversation—around the circle; name and concern prompted by Climate Change—and then we broke into groups to discuss particular interests. The group I chose focused on solar electricity. It’s one thing to get solar panels up; it’s yet another to get access to the electricity produced because of the utility companies. Then a retired engineer gave a short presentation. He has a chart of the way we (human civilization) have used up Mother Earth <www.cs4us.org>. I haven’t looked at his website but I think his prediction is that humanity will use up Mother Earth and we will not be able to inhabit it at that point: Humankind will become extinct! But Mother Earth will rebound. We were shuttled back across the river for dinner offered to us by a church that closed and has become a Homeless Shelter. Talk about humility and gratitude! We were able to walk back to the Convent. At the evening meeting Deb led a workshop focused on the qualities that the participants would like to have the March embody. As I recall she did this workshop earlier in New Mexico. I think she re-instated it because we have some new Marchers. It was meant to be a brainstorm that would be gestalted. It turned into a discussion and lasted until 9:30pm with the need to continue the conversation. *SAT Sep 27 *It was a leisurely morning. I ate breakfast and took a shower. At 9am there was an All-Camp meeting. This one was to allow members of the March to express opinions that they might have been harboring—“I” statements. Then we were to gather at 11am to be shuttled to a BP (British Petroleum) processing plant to demonstrate against the way BP is poisoning the Toledo environment. There were very few locals that joined us in the shuttle. We found a parking lot and there were a few more people there. We Marched back to a place that would put a labeled BP storage tank in the background (for filming). Several local folks made presentations as did several Marchers. At the end of the presentations there were Marchers that collapsed on the ground. The rest of us wore face masks to symbolize the pollution that the processing plant is leaving in the atmosphere. Then we Marched back to the parking lot where one of the local women provided bagels and cream cheese. We ate lunch and shuttled back to the Convent where once more dinner was provided by the Homeless Shelter. There was a Prayer Vigil scheduled at one of the local churches. I missed going with our group and I didn’t know the directions through the neighborhood. Since the neighborhood was said to be dangerous after dark, I decided not to go and returned to the Convent to pack up and get ready for the Sunday March. -- Peace, David

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Fwd: GMCA Sept 24-25
by David Zahrt via Dialogue 01 Oct '14

01 Oct '14

*WED SEP 24* *Archbold to Delta, OH* Shira didn’t ask me about bike riding. The route had trails again so I stuck to the highway—Hwy 20A. The Campground had another amphitheater. This one was bigger. I chose a spot in the back to put my bedroll. Izzy left the March to participate in his daughter’s wedding. And he’ll also volunteer some time at the Omega Institute in NYC. He’ll join the March in a couple of weeks. Delta has a lovely library. It was on the way to the campsite. It also had several thrift stores. I missed them but learned that JJ stopped in one and got a GPS instrument for his truck. I've been considering the same but haven’t found the right one yet. Most of them require an electrical support—a connection to the cigarette lighter in the car. I don’t have a cigarette lighter outlet on my bike! The afternoon and evening was easy going. John Abbe and several others are still in NYC. I suspect the pace will pick up when those in NYC return. I picked a spot that was near an electrical outlet and Doug was showing a DVD on his computer. So I had to go to sleep with the DVD script. People asked me in the morning “How did you sleep?” I have only one response, “When I go to bed I go to sleep!” *THU SEP 25* *Delta to Maumee, OH* People seemed to be slow in getting ready to leave the campsite this morning. I got on my bike and left. The next campsite was in Maumee at St Paul’s Episcopal Church. We were able to sleep inside the church. I put my bedroll in the auditorium and then found the local library. We were able to use the kitchen and the pastor offered us the opportunity to take showers in the parsonage. There were no camp meetings. It was marvelous to be able to sleep inside. I think Doug, gear truck driver, was using the church library to show more films. Tomorrow is a 9 mi. March to Toledo, so breakfast isn’t until 7:30 and departure at 9 AM. Even so I went to bed at 8:30pm. -- Peace, David

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"Journey Reflection" Blog Review (September 2014)
by John Cock via Dialogue 30 Sep '14

30 Sep '14

Colleagues of OE and ICA, Following are the most viewed blog posts of the month ³Journey Reflection² Review (Sept. 2014) <http://rejourney.blogspot.com/2014/09/journey-reflection-blog-review.html> a tad slow with the 16 links. A special one (³What¹s Possible²) includes the ICA:USA short clip of the Terry Bergdall interview by CBS: Chicago, from atop the 4750 N. Sheridan Greenrise building. Remember David Z., whose group recently walked through Chicago and 5th City and will finish the West-to-East-Coast walk for climate change in D.C. during the first week of November. Journey on, Lynda and John And if you would like to receive the e-mail blog posts daily at 7 a.m. (Eastern US time) via Mail Chimp, just contact us at our ³from² e-mail address above. >Daily Blog: "Journey Reflection" at this link > Google or Google+ : www.reJourney.blogspot.com <http://www.rejourney.blogspot.com/> >Web Page: www.transcribebooks.com <http://www.transcribebooks.com/> >Books: http://www.amazon.com/John-P.-Cock/e/B001K8Y5KW

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Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change??
by Bill Parker via Dialogue 29 Sep '14

29 Sep '14

If only it were that simple. Doing social change work and getting social change done are two very different realities. Social change comes out of a movement toward a different future which shows up from a multitude of independent faces from the human community. Holding elected representives accountable is certainly one aspect of that but its "tail is not large enough to wag the dog." Also, social change is more than just change but it is change that cannot be reversed as soon as people's interest moves on to something else. This is the fallacy of the "liberal" form of doing. ----- Original Message ----- From: James Wiegel via OE To: Colleague Dialogue ; Order Ecumenical Community Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2014 1:17 PM Subject: [Oe List ...] Wrong about social change?? "I've been doing social change work for more than 40 years, and I know that organizing people to hold our elected officials accountable is the only thing that actually makes change." Wenonah Hauter. True or false. Please comment Jim Wiegel Those who have the most rigorously tested answers will not drive the future of learning; those who pursue the most meaningful questions will. Mathew Abrams 401 North Beverly Way, Tolleson, Arizona 85353 Tel. 011-623-936-8671 or 011-623-363-3277 jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com www.partnersinparticipation.com Upcoming public course opportunities: ToP® Facilitation Methods: Sep 9-10, Nov 18-19, 2014 Click to watch video. ToP® Strategic Planning: Oct 7-8, 2014 Click to learn more. Facilitation Mastery: The Mastering the Technology of Participation program begins in Oakland on Nov 12-14, 2014 Click to watch video. For online registration go to http://www.top-training.net The AZ ToP® Community of Practice meets the 1st Friday, 1-4 pm, starting again on Sept 5th at ACYR, 648 N. 5th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85003 AICP Planners: 14.5 CM for all ToP® courses ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ _______________________________________________ OE mailing list OE(a)lists.wedgeblade.net http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net

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Wrong about social change??
by James Wiegel via Dialogue 29 Sep '14

29 Sep '14

"I've been doing social change work for more than 40 years, and I know that organizing people to hold our elected officials accountable is the only thing that actually makes change." Wenonah Hauter. True or false. Please comment Jim Wiegel Those who have the most rigorously tested answers will not drive the future of learning; those who pursue the most meaningful questions will. Mathew Abrams 401 North Beverly Way, Tolleson, Arizona 85353 Tel. 011-623-936-8671 or 011-623-363-3277 jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com www.partnersinparticipation.com Upcoming public course opportunities: ToP® Facilitation Methods: Sep 9-10, Nov 18-19, 2014 Click to watch video. ToP® Strategic Planning: Oct 7-8, 2014 Click to learn more. Facilitation Mastery: The Mastering the Technology of Participation program begins in Oakland on Nov 12-14, 2014 Click to watch video. For online registration go to http://www.top-training.net The AZ ToP® Community of Practice meets the 1st Friday, 1-4 pm, starting again on Sept 5th at ACYR, 648 N. 5th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85003 AICP Planners: 14.5 CM for all ToP® courses

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