test blog 5

Things are a bit calmer in Chez L-Sock these days. Whew. Dogs. We've met a new dogwalker and house-sitter, someone who answered an earlier Craigslist ad of mine, but who I didn't meet at the time. She seems responsible and reliable, has a lot of experience with dogs, and has references. But then, didn't they all. Actually D, the first disappearing dogwalker, didn't give me a reference - she said she was going to, never did, and I neglected to follow up. I've always wondered if that was a mistake, if she ducked the reference because of a habitual disappearing act. I'll never know, but I'll never skip that step again. I also emailed with J a bit more. He explained further what happened, and as I suspected, there really is no valid excuse. He does seem sorry, and says he's learned an important lesson, but he'll have to use that knowledge elsewhere. Here's a good tidbit. I usually leave J's pay on Sunday, but as I still hadn't heard from hi...

From the Daily Mail (UK): Punctuation hero' branded a vandal for painting apostrophes on street signs . This man's efforts, while noteworthy, leave the more pressing work untouched: wiping out the unnecessary apostrophes littering our visual landscape. Get out there and do your part. Erase an apostrophe today. Stamp out apostrophe abuse in our lifetime. Thanks to Fred for thinking of me.

Terrific story on Robin Long from the Boise Weekly . Robin Long ran away twice in order to find himself. The first time he ran--during his junior year at Timberline High School--Long wandered the United States for more than a year, hitching rides, working odd jobs and eating at soup kitchens. The second time he ran, Long took a stand against the Iraq War, shirked U.S. Army orders, fled to Canada and became the first U.S. Iraq War resister deported back to the United States. He ended up in a military lockup in San Diego for a year. In Canada, Long found a community of Iraq War resisters and a cause, according to his attorney, James Branum, who represents many Iraq War resisters. "He really found his own voice there," Branum said. "He's a lot more confident and assertive and speaking out for what he believes in, more than he was before." Long has argued that the U.S. war in Iraq is illegal under international law, that former President George W. Bush deceived the ...

Today is Rally For Rodney day! Call, write, email. Make your voice heard. The Conservative government continues to ignore the direction of Parliament by deporting Rodney Watson back to the US where he faces punishment for refusing to redeploy to Iraq. Rodney, who currently lives in Vancouver, served a year in Iraq. His contract was unilaterally - non-voluntarily - extended for an additional year. He refused a second deployment to Iraq. "I realized the war had nothing to do with 9/11 or helping Iraqis or stopping terrorists," said Watson. "It's all about guarding oil for the U.S." Canada's Parliament, supported by a majority of Canadians, has repeatedly called on the Harper government to stop the deportations and allow war resisters to stay. Today, tell the Government you want these deportations to stop - now. Please call or email the Immigration Minister, the Parliamentary Secretaries to the minister, and the Prime Minister. Ask them to honour the will of Pa...

War resister Dean Walcott's court date has been postponed for administrative reasons. That means there's no vigil tomorrow, so don't show up! Instead, why not use the time to support Rodney Watson ?

Do you remember Ezra Nawi? Nawi is a human rights and peace activist, a Jew, an Mizrahi Israeli, and a very brave man. He tried to stop a military bulldozer from destroying the homes of Palestinians in the South Hebron region. He was arrested, and his arrest sparked protest and sympathies around the world. This past Sunday, August 16, Nawi was in court for a sentencing hearing. (We won't know his sentence for another month or so.) Representatives from Jewish Voice for Peace were there, along with a petition signed by more than 20,000 people, calling for justice for Ezra Nawi. Before his hearing, Ezra Nawi made this statement through JVP: This is not the first time that I stand trial for my beliefs. But it is the first time that they will probably be able to stop me. I always knew that many people silently supported me, and that if I ever got into trouble they would stand behind me. This moment has come. I have been harassed and targeted throughout the years, because I embody thr...

Tomorrow, Wednesday August 19, is a day to raise our voices in protest and plea: stop the deportation of US war resister Rodney Watson. The Conservative government continues to ignore the direction of Parliament by deporting Rodney back to the US where he faces punishment for refusing to redeploy to Iraq. Rodney, who currently lives in Vancouver, served a year in Iraq. His contract was unilaterally - non-voluntarily - extended for an additional year. He refused a second deployment to Iraq. "I realized the war had nothing to do with 9/11 or helping Iraqis or stopping terrorists," said Watson. "It's all about guarding oil for the U.S." Canada's Parliament, supported by a majority of Canadians, has repeatedly called on the Harper government to stop the deportations and allow war resisters to stay. The recent Federal Court decision in the case of Iraq war resister Kimberly Rivera reflects the broad consensus in this country opposing the punishment of those who ...