October 2014 - OE - lists.wedgeblade.net

Fwd: GMCA Oct. 06
by David Zahrt via OE 09 Oct '14

09 Oct '14

*MON OCT 06** Unitarian Universalist Church, Cleveland Heights to UMC in Macedonia, OH* Dave Finnegan answered my email immediately overnight. He’s been looking for assistance in the Cleveland area! And now he has it. When Rachel asked about breakfast, the evening before, I suggested that we have granola. She was delighted. I got the homemade granola out of the box from Heidi. Peter had been working on a PowerPoint presentation the night before and didn’t have breakfast with us. Rachel took Cocoa (Labrador Retriever) for an early morning walk. I looked at the map I had on my phone for Bicycle that Rachel found for me. I copied the route down on paper so I could look at it on the trip without having to pull my phone out. Rachel came back from the walk and was ready to take me to the church. She woke Peter so we could say goodbye. He came down in a shirt and tie ready for work (Geriatric MD). I told him we had granola for breakfast and offered him some. He declined. We shook hands and I thanked him for the Home-stay. Rachel helped me load my belongings and we drove off to the church. Shortly after we departed Rachel’s phone rang. It was Peter. He told her that I had left my box on the table. Rachel returned, picked up the box, and informed me that Peter had some granola after all! I’ll share the rest with the March at breakfast time. When we got to the church I unloaded my gear, thanked Rachel with a hug. Since I had the route I headed for Macedonia. The bike route directions were much simpler than the March route. When I arrived at the Church I introduced myself. I indicated I was early because I was riding my bike. They asked if I wanted to put my bike inside. I said “Yes”. One reason is security; the second is weather. I picked a room downstairs and near a door to the Gear truck. There was a Jazzercize class in the auditorium adjoining the kitchen so we couldn’t have dinner until 7:15. There were at least 10 new Marchers. Since they come and go, I find it difficult to remember names. There were several long ‘announcements’ that took dinnertime until 8:15. There were 2 meetings after dinner. One to get a consensus on the actions that the March should take in WDC, and the other to reflect on the impact the March has had on us as individuals. -- Peace, David

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Fwd: GMCA Oct 7-8
by David Zahrt via OE 09 Oct '14

09 Oct '14

*TUE OCT 07* *UMC in Macedonia to Christ Episcopal, Kent, OH* Because of last night’s meetings breakfast wasn’t until 7:30am. I donated my granola to the kitchen but the menu was scrambled eggs and tofu. It was hard to get from the kitchen truck to the church kitchen so there wasn’t much out for lunch prep. I practiced what I learned from Rachel about using Map quest and copied down today’s route. The route had at least 6 miles of bike trail. The sun was behind clouds all morning. Occasionally there were sprinkles of rain but I got more moisture from sweat than sprinkles. I found the written map didn’t always correspond with the actual geography so Map quest is sometimes out of date. I got to the church, ate lunch, and did some journaling. Deb offered me an overnight homestay. Doug and I accepted a stay with Kathy and Kevin Kerns. Dinner was a potluck at Fuller Park. Kathy picked us up at the Church, took us to her house, then took us to the Park for dinner. She had other plans with her family for dinner so she came to the Park later and picked us up. When we got home I was able take a tub bath—been a long time since I’ve had one—mostly showers. *WED OCT 08* *Christ Episcopal, Kent to Community Center, Newton Falls, OH* We ate breakfast with Kathy and Kevin Kerns. We shook hands with Kevin, thanked him, then Kathy took Doug and I over to the church where a good number of the Marchers stayed last night. They were finishing breakfast and packing lunches. The evening before I put Sarah’s route and my bicycle route on paper. Sarah’s route looked simpler so I took it. After I went 2 miles out of the way I asked for directions. I was told to go back 2 miles and stay on Newton Falls Rd. It was meant to be a 21-mile day. I went 25 miles! All the Marchers I asked said they had trouble finding the route, too. The planned all-camp meeting was postponed because the Marchers were so late getting in, and there was a meeting in Youngstown that some went to. Since the Peoples March in NYC, Michael has re-joined the March. He’s got Mexican heritage. He and Andre, a Native American, cooked dinner. It was a good vegan meal. Doug showed some DVDs. Tomorrow’s another 20+ mile day to Youngstown. -- Peace, David

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What ever happened to the bug model?
by James Wiegel via OE 09 Oct '14

09 Oct '14

I remember fondly the "bug" model from the EI's local congregation course back in the day. However, once the local church triangles were built, it seemed to disappear. What happened? Jim Wiegel Never trust atoms. They make up everything. a billboard 401 North Beverly Way,Tolleson, Arizona 85353011-623-936-8671 or 011-623-363-3277jfwiegel(a)yahoo.comwww.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.netThe 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 85003AICP Planners: 14.5 CM for all ToP® courses

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Ferguson: Weekend of Resistance; Cartoon: Map of Contemporary America circa 2014
by Ellie Stock via OE 09 Oct '14

09 Oct '14

National call to action demonstration/events this weekend in Ferguson. For info google: fergusonoctober Ellie elliestock(a)aol.com

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Parliament of Religions next October
by via OE 08 Oct '14

08 Oct '14

Would it be helpful for O:E/ICA to have a table at this convention next year as the "secular religious"? http://www.parliamentofreligions.org/index.cfm?n=35&sn=1?mc_cid=b639ed8500&… Jann McGuire

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Fwd: GMCA Update Oct 04-05
by David Zahrt via OE 08 Oct '14

08 Oct '14

*SAT OCT 04** St Clarence RC Church, North Olmstead to Unitarian Universalist Church, Cleveland Heights, OH* I find myself continuing to wake up at 5:30 am even though we’ve had the Autumnal Equinox and dawn doesn’t come until 7am or later. My routine is that I pack up my sleeping gear and get it out to the Gear truck to avoid the ‘rush’ that comes after breakfast. The weather looked favorable so I rode my bike. The first 16 miles of the ride was NE on Loraine Rd. It was a cool 50º! The Unitarian church where we will be staying two days was hosting the evening potluck. I got a call from Jane McWilliams indicating she had a package from Camarillo for me. She said that she would bring it to the potluck. Rachel, the woman who offered me a Home-stay, arrived and took me to her house to get me settled in to the guest-room in the basement. She and her husband, Peter, had a dinner engagement so they took me back to the church for the potluck and went on to their engagement. After the dinner we went to the sanctuary for a meeting with all the attendees. I noticed that there was a collection of the 18 to 24 year old Marchers still downstairs in the auditorium. They were interested in their own meeting, I guess. Liz led the conversation. One of the local persons stated that Fracking was the major issue in northern Ohio. It is causing monumental pollution to air, earth, and water that affects the physical health of the communities. It produces natural gas that delivers more pollution than coal. It requires more financial investment and therefore ties the industry to the process regardless of its pollution. As Liz was going around the circle she asked me to comment. I broke down in tears as I said that I have been demonstrating all my life that we need to respect Mother Earth, that I saw this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and that we don’t know what difference the Climate March will make. But we didn’t know what difference MLK’s March would make until after the fact. So we must do the March and look for its outcome. I personally am committed to recruiting Dave Finnegan’s course *Climate Change Is Elementary *across the nation, and hopefully, children will hold their parents accountable for reducing the Consume-and-Throw-Away lifestyle that we, in the US, are practicing. It was right around 8 pm when I finished my response that Rachel arrived to pick me up. I grabbed my box that Heidi had sent and went with her and Peter. I settled into a real bed and soon went to sleep. *SUN Oct 5* I slept in. Rachel had done my laundry. I took a shower and went up for breakfast. The thermometer hanging outside the kitchen window read 40º--nice to have a bed inside. Rachel went on a walk with friends and took Cocoa, her dog. I spent some time catching up on my email. Rachel returned and served chicken soup for lunch. Rachel and Peter joined some friends for an afternoon bike ride. They spent the whole afternoon away and contacted another host, Anne, to shuttle me to the Grog Shop where there was scheduled to be a meeting. Anne was hosting Mack and Sean and invited me to dinner at her house. I willingly accepted because I suspected that all that would be available at the Grog Shop was grog. We had a leisurely meal. I had a chance to explain Dave Finnegan’s program < climatechangeiselementary.org>. After dinner Anne shuttled me back to Rachel and Peter’s and on the way she, a retired elementary school teacher, indicated that she’d like to get involved in the program. When she dropped me off I immediately emailed Dave to let him know he had a recruit. -- Peace, David

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Gobal Buzz October
by ICA International via OE 07 Oct '14

07 Oct '14

Enjoy catching up with what is happening in ICAs across the globe.....If you wish to SEND a report...send to your ICA contact person OR...go to the members section on the ICA International website Please click the link below for the October issue of the Global Buzz Global Buzz Report: October 2014 or copy and paste this URL into your browser's address bar http://ica-international.org/buzz/7dayreport-14/2014-10-01.php ICAI Communications

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this week in Chicago
by Terry Bergdall via OE 07 Oct '14

07 Oct '14

As most of you know, last week was a very big one for us in Chicago attracting a lot of media attention. Though they focused on only small part of our work, largely by-passing our community activities, they do provide a visual update on what we're doing. Though most of these have appeared on Facebook, etc, here are some in case you missed them. Depending upon your time constraints, you might click on a link or two. Channel 2 interview with Terry Bergdall (2 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x591-44U5Ck Channel 2 interview with Seva Gandhi (2 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyKL66MNnlQ Vince Gerasole Channel 2 interview with Lesley Showers (2 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c5ev57liHs WGN helicopter report on the day of the ribbon cutting (1 minute) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co2e_QM5aG8 Channel 11 feature on Solar at GreenRise (10 minutes) http://chicagotonight.wttw.com/2014/10/01/solar-power-city PDF of short print story:

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Fwd: for October 10 ST from Jaime
by via OE 07 Oct '14

07 Oct '14

Chow and choice at Central It was 1974 in Hong Kong when a colleague showed me herfamily's business at Aberdeen. They madevotive candles, she said, so I was expecting a storefront shop in one of thebuildings. I was shown a highlymechanized production of candles for Hallmark and the operation made themafford a 20-story building when Aberdeen was just a fishing village. They also lived in a compound on classy Pok Fu Lam Rd. It did not hurt that her father also traded theingredients for making candles into what cities use for fireworks and armiesused for armaments. She was the eldest in the family who attended college inRegina, Saskatchewan, cut short when her father died. She wanted the best for her family. She wanted to bring it out of HK as Britainand China began talking about the return of the colony to Beijing'sadministration. I met her in thePhilippines on her first trip to scout possible investment in real estate. She had no qualms about China. In fact, she had the classical "roundface" of the Tang Dynasty, and the full plump body to go with it! I came through Kowloon nine years earlier on my voyage toSan Francisco as a student bound for the US via Kobe, Yokohama, Honolulu beforegoing under the Golden Gate. I rememberbeing asked when I was eight after I opened a Postal Savings Bank account thatmy mother equaled any deposits I made, what I would do with the money. I answered, "I will take a trip toChina." I was twenty when I madethe trip to Hong Kong. The coolie-drawnrickshaw and the deceptively rowdy but well-orchestrated sidewalk chow mien noodle shopsat night were China enough to my imagination. In 1989, I finally visited the mainland, hitting Beijing'sTiananmen Square and its Forbidden City four months after the June workers'uprising, the Xi'an of Qin Shi Huangdi's terracotta army, then Shanghai withthe Bund looking abandoned and dilapidated, Huangpu overcrowded and the FrenchQuarters neglected, to the well-tended gardens in Suzhou and the tranquil WestLake of Hangzhou. It was an experiencetraversing the space by air and rail when Deng Xiao Peng and China went intoreform and opening up in earnest. I was in and out of HK in the '70s and early 80s, then inand out of the mainland since '89 to the present. Thus, it came as a big surprise to read theOct. 5 online edition of Time Magazine quote David Shambaugh of GeorgeWashington U's China program as telling the New York Times that Chinawas going through its most repressive period in 25 years. That would be since 1989 when I first visitedBeijing. I was resident of Washington DC within the beltway onthe Virginia side half of the 90s being Mr. Mom while married to an officer ofthe State Department. Shambaugh directsthe GWU China program so he presumably gets his materials from the CIA, a par for the course. The current prominence of Alex Chow and Occupy Centralin Hong Kong hinges on the perception of "choice" in the nominationprocess of HK's projected universal suffrage of 2017. The Occupy Central has annual marches throughthe financial district of HK in July, and this year Alex as the newly electedchair of the Federation of Students in HK went off script. After the march, locked arms-in-arms withfellow students, he led a sit-down on the main traffic of the Central Districtchanting, "Our Government, our choice." With China's national week starting October 1, OccupyCentral for Peace and Democracy, et al, including a Baptist Minister, planned arally but 17-year old Joshua Wong led students aligned with his 3-yr oldScholarism to protest on September 28. The rally tapped into the energy of the anticipated weeklong vacationand before he knew it, CY Leung, HK SAR XO, previously chosen by electoralvotes and approved by Beijing, was asked to step down. The "choice" at Central in HK is clear aboutwhat it is against rather than what it is for. For many students who had been taught imaginal rather than actualdemocracy, it is being against China. Unfortunately, vested interests in the west fan the flames of protest asa matter of reflex action, often, involving US policy that has moved lessinclusive and more assertive of the claimed prerogatives of Americanexceptionalism since Jimmy Carter. US "meddling", a claimed prerogative of theself-appointed world police, fomented the Arab Spring, and now, Occupy Centralin HK. It quickly lent its support ofpro-democracy forces. I watched my own denomination, the United MethodistChurch, move from the fresh progressive air of its General Conference of 1968to the alliance ironically between US evangelical missionary forces and thecritical presence of third world countries. I resigned. I am not one to condemn the US of A as malevolent. After all, a country that elected a"Black" President cannot be all that bad. But I am also clear that less than a third ofregistered voters exercise their rights. Choice, not ideology, but the practice, is the democraticcall of the times. j'aime la vie pinoypanda2031(a)aol.com yesterday, appreciate; tomorrow, anticipate; today. participate. In all, celebrate!

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On Terry and the GreenRise
by via OE 07 Oct '14

07 Oct '14

TERRY and the GreenRise I am not in the best of health after being"retired" prematurely by China's rule of law (no foreign teachers areover 65 years old) and my choice to be on a writing mode on my next seven-yearitch abetted by Dong Bei's coldweather (I strained my back rolling a rock the other day, too) that keeps meindoors, but I wanted this note out before the Bergdalls walk out of theGreenRise building's executive office! I think it was 2009 when I dropped in on Kemper for anovernight stay, to see the place one last time, check out how Terry and thecrew were doing (Mary Laura ex-Bushman Jones was in the staff and dear MargePhilbrook kept the archives alive), and emotionally do a closure on asignificant part of my personal journey as well since Sudtonggan and the CebuHouse awkwardly parted ways. It was apleasant visit with the guest room reasonably priced, adequately tidy andclean. This year, when I bid North America my final adieu, myeldest daughter Kristina who lives west of O'Hare took me and her eldest son toa water tour of Chicago, which passed by her office that she does not see oftenenough as most of her work is on the road. I was tempted to make a pit stop at corner Sheridan and Lawrence; Iwanted to drop off a copy of an expanding notebook that I did for aUSAID-funded project in the Philippines but never finished. It contained manyEI/ICA/O:E methodological wisdom. Iposted it on the US mail, instead. I do remember Terry showing me his office desk, and at theend of the visit, he closed the door to show me his chart of formationmaneuvers and tactics. He might not have noticed the smile that broke out of myface, but Terry in my book, had stayed on the revolutionary path. I attended the symposium of the Realistic Living Institute(enough but not regularly) with Gene and Joyce Marshalls with a handful ofcolleagues, in Bonham, Houston, and Colorado Springs) ,occasionally get mailingfrom Michael May at the Story Warrior,get the quarterly issues of Winds andWaves edited by Dharmalingam of Malaysia and John Miesen in Australia, and sometimes hear from Evelyn andLarry Philbrook in Taipei, Jan Sanders on Negal, Jack Giles in Mexico, and DickAlton in Chicago while he monitors work in Africa. This year, I might even connect with SymondKock of Singapore, if we get our act together (Kampuchea in February 2015,maybe). We all joined a Spirit Movement at one time or another. Formation structures (EI/ICA/O:E)metamorphosed several times, but the global movement of spirit consciousness wewere all heir to is larger than any of us. Someone once even dared name names to an "invisiblecollege". I do not normally askfolks for their formation plans though I am sure generals have one in their hippocket. Terry has his behind his officedoor. Terry and his crew just installed 483 solar panels on thebuildings' roofs, and I got to see the local TV news broadcast online. Awesome. I was symbiotically proud! So,the march marches and the journey journeys on . . . Jaime in China -----Original Message----- From: via OE <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> To: oe <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> Sent: Tue, Oct 7, 2014 3:02 pm Subject: OE Digest, Vol 31, Issue 10 Send OE mailing list submissions to oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to oe-request(a)lists.wedgeblade.net You can reach the person managing the list at oe-owner(a)lists.wedgeblade.net When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of OE digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Fwd: GMCA Update Oct 02-03 (David Zahrt via OE) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 21:36:44 -0700 From: David Zahrt via OE <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> To: OE <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net>, Dialogue ICA <dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> Subject: [Oe List ...] Fwd: GMCA Update Oct 02-03 Message-ID: <CAEPC8NnE6fPsRBL-eeW5OTGbTG7GyCaTq2CYe_oJCwy536uDvw(a)mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" *THU OCT 02** Edison Woodland Preserve, New Berlin to Peace Community Church, Oberlin, OH* Ever since we reached Ohio the evenings have spread heavy dew overnight. Those setting up the Taj Mahal last night did an inadequate job: the tent delivered dew inside. We had to pack wet gear. We circled up and headed off to Oberlin. The Marching route was zigzagged but I didn?t have a state map so I followed the route directions. It was only 18-miles! I got to the Church and it wasn?t open so I went to the local library for a while. When I got back, the pastor arrived and I helped him get the auditorium set up for the evening potluck. There were 2 churches hosting us, and the 2nd one was capable of keeping my bike inside so I moved it over there. Then I set up my sleeping gear in the Peace Community Church, in the children?s room. Approximately 15 Oberlin College students and 10 local activists attended the potluck. Kat directed a conversation at the end of dinner that drew upon the experience and action of the local people?Fracking regulations in NE Ohio was the main topic. The conversation concluded at 7:45 pm and the local folks continued to use the auditorium for another one of their ?action? meetings. They are a serious group. *FRI OCT 03 ** Peace Community Church, Oberlin to St Clarence RC Church, North Olmstead, OH* I got up, packed my bedding, went over to the other Church, had breakfast and packed my lunch. It was confusing to be scattered out in 2 Churches. It wasn?t possible to tell who was up and who wasn?t. I decided to head out on my bike. The sky was filled with scattered clouds but the sun was visible. The first 7 miles were on a trail. That was nice until the trail ended and dumped me into suburbia. Then there were periodic rain showers, which continued all the way to the Church?another 10 miles. The pastor, Father Neil, showed us where we could camp inside. We were very thankful because it continued to rain during the afternoon and evening. Some of it was heavy. A small group met to discuss strategies for the week in DC after we arrive there on Nov 1. The church provided the main dish for the potluck?vegan mozzarella and baked chicken. Our 'kitchen' crew added side dishes and fruit for the meal. None of the church members stayed for dinner. Dinner was late so there was no meeting afterwards. We sat around in small groups talking with each other before bed. -- Peace, David

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