Letter to editor about Green Expo

Dear Editor,

I recently attended the most exciting, informative and valuable expo I have ever attended. I wish to thank the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce for organizing this “4th Annual Kuleana Business Conference and Trade Show”. As a result of being at this free expo, I met a number of wonderful people promoting ethical and socially responsible business practices and environmental stewardship.

I was impressed with how well the show was put together, how high-minded the green businesses and volunteer organizations were who showcased their products and services. I understand that this exhibition and conference almost doubled in size from last year. The speakers at this event were world class—on the leading edge of thought regarding how to operate responsible businesses, while taking care of our planet, ourselves, and each other.

It was heartening to see children from the charter school there wearing their purple Chamber of Commerce t-shirts, learning every “green” thing they could learn.

Because of this show, I have learned: how to decrease my electrical usage by using LED lights; how to reduce my electro magnetic radiation while reducing electric bill costs; that my solar panel on my hot water system needs to be replaced because it is “burnt out”; and that there is an “energy consultant” (Alex Woodbury) who I scheduled to come and determine where the “leaks” are in my electrical system, giving me tips to decrease my energy usage as I prepare to install a photo-voltaic system that will pay for itself.
.
I found soil enhancing microbial inoculant, worms for my garden, learned where to take my old computer (CompuCycle Kona 326-9695) and used furniture/lumber (ReStore habitatwesthawaii.org 331-8011), learned about recyclehawaii.org (a non-profit educational membership organization 969-2012) and where to donate my slightly less than organic food that no longer meets my over-the-top standards for me and my guests but will be appreciated nutrition for the hungry (the Food Bank 322-1418).

I also networked with a leader from Hawi who was instrumental in organizing Sustainable Kohala. He offered to help me organize a Sustainable South Kona Alliance. (We will be announcing our first “Garden Party” with agricultural educator, Jon Biloon, at the Dragonfly Ranch to take place in June.)

I wish to give a special thanks to Rosa Louie (808-737-6334) for inviting me to the expo to assist her in sharing healing clothing developed in Japan using negative ions to regulate organs, relieve pain, and detoxify the body (ClothingforHealth.com).

Thanks to this event, I decided to join the Chamber of Commerce and hope others of you will do the same, making next year’s event even greater. At this critical time in history, it feels very important to network with one another and pull together as an aware community helping each other while we take care of our precious island.

Kudos to Michael Kramer, Zarine Dorabji, and the other movers and shakers in our community who made this extraordinary event possible.

A huge Mahalo to our wonderful Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce.

Sincerely,
Barbara Moore
Soul Proprietor, Dragonfly Ranch: HEALING ARTS CENTER
–
“In the Sweetness of Friendship,
let there be Laughter
and the Sharing of Pleasures ”
Khalil Gibran
Barbara Ann Kenonilani Moore
President of Hawaii Island Wellness Travel Association (HIWTA.org)
soul proprietor of Dragonfly Ranch: HEALING ARTS CENTER
Voted #1 B&B in West Hawaii by readers of West Hawaii Today daily paper
(808)328-2159

http://dragonflyranch.com

where Aloha abounds
72 degrees and sunny on Big Island’s Kona Coast
?

Christian Bollman sends videos of Dragonfly!

Dear Barbara,

How are you – hopefully full of joy?
We succeeded to put two of our first Videos on OMN (Overtone musicians Network)

http://www.overtone-network.org/video/magical-ohana <http://www.overtone-network.org/video/magical-ohana>
http://www.overtone-network.org/video/rocked-by-the-wave <http://www.overtone-network.org/video/rocked-by-the-wave>

so everyone can see it from any place in the world. You can link it or get the embeded code to put it on your webpage – isn´t this fantastic.

Also watch:
http://www.overtone-network.org/video/a-lovesong-for-tibet <http://www.overtone-network.org/video/a-lovesong-for-tibet>
http://www.overtone-network.org/video/klaenge-des-lichts-sounds-of <http://www.overtone-network.org/video/klaenge-des-lichts-sounds-of>
from my last concerts.

Hope to get the DVD for you ready soon with the fotage of our last evening in the Dragonfly Ranch and get it posted.

feedbacks welcome…

with a big hug and a warm Aloha from

Christian und Jutta

Lichthaus-Musik
Christian Bollmann
Prombacher Str.19
51588 Nümbrecht

Büro T/F 02293-7031
Privat 02293-90 27 17
Mobil 0171-126 1483

Ch.bollmann@gmx.de
www.lichthaus-musik.de <http://www.lichthaus-musik.de>

http://overtones.ning.com/profile/ChristianBollmann

Chomsky! speaks out with noble integrity

American Amnesia: We Forget Our Atrocities Almost As Soon as We Commit Them

By Noam Chomsky, Tomdispatch.com. Posted May 20, 2009.

Historical amnesia is a dangerous social phenomenon because it lays the groundwork for crimes that still lie ahead.

Also in Rights and Liberties

 by the White House elicited shock, indignation, and surprise. The shock and indignation are understandable. The surprise, less so.

For one thing, even without inquiry, it was reasonable to suppose that Guantanamo was a torture chamber. Why else send prisoners where they would be beyond the reach of the law — a place, incidentally, that Washington is using in violation of a treaty forced on Cuba at the point of a gun? Security reasons were, of course, alleged, but they remain hard to take seriously. The same expectations held for the Bush administration‘s “black sites,” or secret prisons, and for extraordinary rendition, and they were fulfilled.

More importantly, torture has been routinely practiced from the early days of the conquest of the national territory, and continued to be used as the imperial ventures of the “infant empire” — as George Washington called the new republic — extended to the Philippines, Haiti, and elsewhere. Keep in mind as well that torture was the least of the many crimes of aggression, terror, subversion, and economic strangulation that have darkened U.S. history, much as in the case of other great powers.

Accordingly, what’s surprising is to see the reactions to the release of those Justice Department memos, even by some of the most eloquent and forthright critics of Bush malfeasance: Paul Krugman, for example, writing that we used to be “a nation of moral ideals” and never before Bush “have our leaders so utterly betrayed everything our nation stands for.” To say the least, that common view reflects a rather slanted version of American history.

Occasionally the conflict between “what we stand for” and “what we do” has been forthrightly addressed. One distinguished scholar who undertook the task at hand was Hans Morgenthau, a founder of realist international relations theory. In a classic study published in 1964 in the glow of Camelot, Morgenthau developed the standard view that the U.S. has a “transcendent purpose”: establishing peace and freedom at home and indeed everywhere, since “the arena within which the United States must defend and promote its purpose has become world-wide.” But as a scrupulous scholar, he also recognized that the historical record was radically inconsistent with that “transcendent purpose.”

We should not be misled by that discrepancy, advised Morgenthau; we should not “confound the abuse of reality with reality itself.” Reality is the unachieved “national purpose” revealed by “the evidence of history as our minds reflect it.” What actually happened was merely the “abuse of reality.”

The release of the torture memos led others to recognize the problem. In the New York Times, columnist Roger Cohen reviewed a new book, The Myth of American Exceptionalism, by British journalist Geoffrey Hodgson, who concludes that the U.S. is “just one great, but imperfect, country among others.” Cohen agrees that the evidence supports Hodgson’s judgment, but nonetheless regards as fundamentally mistaken Hodgson’s failure to understand that “America was born as an idea, and so it has to carry that idea forward.” The American idea is revealed in the country’s birth as a “city on a hill,” an “inspirational notion” that resides “deep in the American psyche,” and by “the distinctive spirit of American individualism and enterprise” demonstrated in the Western expansion. Hodgson’s error, it seems, is that he is keeping to “the distortions of the American idea,” “the abuse of reality.”

Let us then turn to “reality itself”: the “idea” of America from its earliest days.

“Come Over and Help Us”

The inspirational phrase “city on a hill” was coined by John Winthrop in 1630, borrowing from the Gospels, and outlining the glorious future of a new nation “ordained by God.” One year earlier his Massachusetts Bay Colony created its Great Seal. It depicted an Indian with a scroll coming out of his mouth. On that scroll are the words “Come over and help us.” The British colonists were thus pictured as benevolent humanists, responding to the pleas of the miserable natives to be rescued from their bitter pagan fate.

German Sound Healers sing goodbye

This is such a sweet memory for me! ENJOY!

http://www.overtone-network.org/video/rocked-by-the-waves

Holy Basil encourages apoptosis

This video is like a sacred gemometry sci fi!

Lady in the Justice Dept. DID THE RIGHT THING!

West Hawaii Today

By GENE JOHNSON
the Associated Press

SEATTLE — The Justice
Department is dropping its
attempt to retry the first
commissioned officer to be
court-martialed for refusing
to go to Iraq.
Army 1st Lt. Ehren Watada
of Hawaii contended that
the war is illegal and that
he would be a party to war
crimes if he served in Iraq.
His first court-martial
ended in a mistrial in
February 2007.
A federal judge ruled last
fall that the Army could not
try him again on key charges,
including missing troop
movement, because it would
violate his constitutional
right to be free from double
jeopardy.
The Justice Department
initially appealed to the
9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals, but later asked the
court to dismiss the matter.
The court did so
Wednesday.
Watada’s attorney, James
Lobsenz, said in a news
release that his client anticipates
he will soon be released
from active duty and “plans
to return to civilian life and
to attend law school.”
But Fort Lewis leadership
is still mulling how to handle
two remaining allegations
of conduct unbecoming an
officer against Watada that
the federal judge had kicked
back to the military trial
court for further consideration.
Options include courtmartial,
nonjudicial punishment
such as docking his pay
or giving him extra work, or
kicking him out of the Army
with either an honorable or
dishonorable discharge.
“What is most troubling to
us here is that the most serious
charge of missing movement
will not be decided
upon by a jury of the lieutenant’s
peers,” said Army
spokesman Joe Piek. “We’re
troubled by that on that on
behalf of the hundreds of
thousands of soldiers who
have deployed.” 

My letter about Ehren–intro by Shannon

Aloha friends,
 
It is hard to believe, but the military still wants to prosecute Lt. Ehren Watada for refusing to deploy to Iraq because he knows that to do so would violate his oath to defend the Constitution from enemies foreign as well as DOMESTIC.  In his trial in 2007, the army’s own witnesses testified favorably for Ehren, so the army prosecutors moved for a mistrial, which was granted.  In an attempt to prosecute Ehren for a second time, a new judge declared that to try Ehren a second time would be double jeopardy.  The army is now appealing that judgment to the Department of Justice.  The Solicitor General, Elena Kagan will decide the appeal.  Also, the army wants to prosecute Ehren for speaking out about why he refused to deploy to Iraq making freedom of speech for military officers a crime.
 
Below is a letter to Ms. Kagan from Barbara Moore, a friend, asking her to please do the right thing and deny that appeal.  Ehren was supposed to be out of the army in 2006, he has been held three years past his enlistment a virtual prisoner with no route for him to take to be discharged.
 
I want to ask you to help in a effort to bring justice for Ehren, he has “served” his time and should be allowed to go on with his life not prosecuted for refusing to validate an illegal and immoral war and commit war crimes.  Using the AskDOJ@usdoj.gov email address for Solicitor General, Elena Kagan, please send a note in support of Ehren for his release from the charges and from captivity.
 
Mahalo,
Shannon  
 
   
—– Original Message —–
From: Barbara Moore <mailto:dfly@dragonflyranch.com>  
To: AskDOJ@usdoj.gov
Sent: Monday, May 04, 2009 11:31 PM
Subject: Re: Lt. Ehren Watada

Aloha Solicitor General, Elena Kagan,

I understand that you are in a key position at the  Justice Department to recommend that the army drop its appeal of the mistrial  and resulting double jeopardy judgment in favor of freeing Lt. Ehren Watada. I  am impressed that you are a woman because I feel I can speak to you honestly  from my heart and you will hear me. I am writing to beg you to use your  authority to dismiss the immoral prosecution of this honorable  lieutenant.

I am proud to say that Ehren is a personal friend of mine.  I don’t  know if you are aware of the fact that his name, Ehren, means  ”honorable.”  Honorable describes Ehren Watada precisely. After  discovering the facts and realizing that the Iraq war was (and still is)  unconstitutional, Ehren courageously spoke the truth and defended his precious  Constitution. This was not an easy stand and it has already cost him huge  legal expenses, death threats, and humiliation, as well as emotional and  physical stress for not only him but for his supportive and loving family-not  to mention wasting three precious years of his young life.

Ehren will  go down in history books as a hero, being the first officer in the United  States Army who used his intelligence, had the courage of his convictions,  listened to and then acted upon his conscience to say NO to this grotesque  war. He obeyed his oath to defend the constitution-performing that oath  precisely as he agreed to do, while humbly alerting others. (Have you seen his  moving and eloquent 2006 speech in Seattle? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wj0hI4OyF3A)  Questioning this man’s honor is obvioualy inappropriate. Forcing him to face  prosecution again or even requiring another day of “service” would be  unconscionable.

Ehren once said:

When you are   looking your children in the eye in the future, or when you are at the  end of  your life, you want to look back on your life and know that at a  very  important moment, when I had the opportunity to make the right  decisions, I  did so, even knowing there were negative  consequences.

As I am  sure you know, according to international law, those who follow immoral and  illegal orders, like the Nazis who murdered the Jews, are responsible for  their actions and should be punished. At a price of well over a million Iraqi  lives, an immense number of American lives of soldiers who have died or who  are destined to a life of living hell with debilitating DU in their systems  and horrible memories in their psyches, along with over a trillion dollars of  tax payers money, we all now know that this war has been a tremendous  FIASCO. Ehren investigated and knew it before others were willing to admit it.  No one questions anymore that this war was and still is, a mistake. So why  would we not honor a man for recognizing the wrongness of this immoral and  illegal war, refusing to mindlessly take orders in violation of our War  Power Act of the Constitution as well as the UN Charter, the  Geneva Convention and the Nuremberg Principles?

I humbly   beseech you, as a woman with a very intelligent and well educated brain,  a kind heart (judging by your looks), and a refined sense of  conscience–please make the right decision by encouraging the release of this  noble man, Lt. Ehren Watada–with an HONORABLE discharge. It is the  just thing for a person in your position in the Justice Department to  do. I realize that such a decision will take courage on your part. I  appreciate the unique position you are in and sincerely pray that you have the  moral fiber it takes to deliberate carefully and make this judgment  correctly.

Respectably yours,

Barbara Moore
Honaunau, HI   96726

PS After you tell the army that this man deserves an  honorable discharge immediately, please come to the Dragonfly Ranch for  R&R!

–

“In the Sweetness of Friendship,
let there be Laughter
and the Sharing of Pleasures ”
Khalil Gibran
Barbara Ann Kenonilani Moore
President of Hawaii Island Wellness Travel Association (HIWTA.org)
soul proprietor of Dragonfly Ranch: HEALING ARTS CENTER
Voted #1 B&B in West Hawaii by readers of West Hawaii Today daily paper
(808)328-2159
http://dragonflyranch.com
where Aloha abounds
72 degrees and sunny on Big Island’s Kona Coast

New delivery of high dosage Vit. C to cells

http://livonlabs.com/

Write to Help End Noble Lt. Watada Agony

End the U.S. Army’s prosecution of Lt. Ehren Watada! PDF Print E-mail Image The Justice Department can say no to Army’s legal appeal;

“Dear Solicitor General: Tell the Army to drop the appeal against Lt. Watada”

By the Ad Hoc Campaign to Free Ehren Watada. April 27, 2009 In June 2006, U.S. Army 1st Lt. Ehren Watada refused orders to Iraq on the grounds that the war was illegal and immoral. His court martial in February 2007 ended in an Army-contrived mistrial. In October 2007, the Army attempt to have a second court martial was stopped by a Federal judge who ruled that a second court martial would be double jeopardy. But the Army has not allowed Lt. Watada to leave military service. Instead, they have notified the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit of their plans to appeal the double jeopardy ruling. The Army has also threatened to revive old charges stemming from Lt. Watada’s speech in Seattle to the 2006 convention of Veterans For Peace. Justice Department to decide if Army will appeal double jeopardy ruling

The U.S. Solicitor General’s office in the Department of Justice will soon decide whether the Army can go ahead with its plans to appeal Federal Court rulings in Lt. Watada’s favor. An campaign of public pressure is being called by Lt. Watada’s supporters in the peace movement. The ad hoc campaign is being spearheaded by two Vietnam War resisters, Mike Wong and Gerry Condon, who are active members of Veterans for Peace in San Francisco and Seattle. The Call to Action is being issued in the name of Asian Americans for Peace and Justice, formerly the Watada Support Committee, in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Project Safe Haven, a war resister support group. We are sending out this email alert to all our contacts and organizations – including Veterans for Peace, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Families Speak Out, United For Peace and Justice, ANSWER, Code Pink, American Friends Service Committee and others.

We ask you all to phone, write, and email Solicitor General Elena Kagan and Deputy Attorney General Neal Katyal immediately.

1. Ask the Solicitor General: Tell the Army to drop the appeal and any other charges against Lt. Watada, and to release him from the Army with an honorable discharge. If we all act quickly, we can flood the Solicitor General’s office with hundreds of phone calls, letters and emails, which could tip the balance in Ehren Watada’s favor.

Solicitor General Elena Kagan, 202-514-2201 Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal, 202-514-2206 Send letters to: U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20530.

E-mails to AskDOJ@usdoj.govThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it will reach the Solicitor General and Attorney General Eric Holder.

A sample letter is included below. Feel free to edit as you wish, or to write your own. It is possible that both the Solicitor General and her Deputy may be open to our plea. Please be respectful and polite in all your communications with these Obama appointees.

2. Please forward this alert to all activists, friends, and organizations you know that would be supportive. If you are involved in an organization, please ask that it forward this alert to its entire membership.

3. We will approach the friendliest of our allies in Congress and ask them to make inquiries to the Justice Department. If you or your organization has contact with any members of Congress, please email Gerry Condon at projectsafehaven@hotmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it so we can coordinate our Congressional outreach.

4. Various groups may also wish to mount demonstrations, press conferences, lobby, or use other means of peaceful political pressure. You may also call for an end to the persecution of all war resisters. Mike Wong, Vice President, SF Bay Area Veterans For Peace; Asian Americans for Social Justice Gerry Condon, Greater Seattle Veterans For Peace; Project Safe Haven Sample letter:

Date

Solicitor General Elena Kagan Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20530-0001

Dear Solicitor General Kagan and Deputy Solicitor General Katyal, I am writing to urge you to direct the U.S. Army to drop its appeal and any other charges in the case of 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, and to release him from the Army with an Honorable Discharge.

Lt. Watada was the first Army officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq, because he believes the U.S. war in Iraq is illegal and immoral, and that orders to participate in it are therefore also illegal and immoral. Lt. Watada’s Army court martial in February 2007 ended in a mistrial that was illegally construed by the Army judge, Lt. Col. John Head. When the Army then attempted a second court martial in October 2007, U.S. District Court Judge Benjamin Settle halted the proceedings on double jeopardy grounds. Judge Settle had just been appointed to his position by George W. Bush and was a former Army JAG lawyer.

I urge you to uphold U.S. and international law by directing the Army to end its prolonged prosecution of Lt. Ehren Watada. Thank you very much.

Sincerely yours,

Mike Wong