Motley Moose – Archive

Twenty-four years later: a look at the city of Berlin, Germany just before reunification, after the jump ….  

Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings diary series give the Moose, old and new, a place to visit and share words about the weather, life, the world at large and the small parts of Moosylvania that we each inhabit.

The President’s Weekly Address post is also an Open News Thread. Feel free to share other news stories in the comments.

BONUS VIDEO: The president spoke at Laborfest 2014 from Milwaukee WI Monday afternoon.

From the White House – Weekly Address

In this week’s address, the President wished Americans a Happy Labor Day weekend, highlighted the important economic progress we’ve made, and reaffirmed his commitment to accelerate our progress and ensure that our growing economy fuels a strong middle class.

To do this, the President reiterated that Congress should do right by hardworking Americans across the country and raise the minimum wage, and he praised the 13 states and Washington, D.C. as well as employers large and small who have heeded his call and taken action to provide their citizens and employees a fair wage.

The President underscored that America built the world’s greatest middle class by making sure that everyone who’s willing to work hard and play by the rules can get ahead – an economic patriotism worth remembering this Labor Day, and every day.

August 28th was the final day of a week-long call to action by Rev. William Barber, his call for a  Moral Week of Action.

The topic was Voting Rights and was marked by a rally encouraging people to vote their dreams, not their fears.

(Note: Reverend Barber speaks at 11:27)

More video from the rally and all 7 days of the Moral Week of Action can be found here: Livestream

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The date August 28th was chosen because it was the date in 1955 that a 14 year old black boy, Emmitt Till, was murdered in Mississippi for speaking to a white woman. His murder galvanized the Civil Rights Movement and inspired Rosa Parks to protest in Montgomery AL and was also the day that Martin Luther King led the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and shared his dream.

Transcript: “I Have A Dream”

More …

This morning driving to work, I heard Frank DeFord say the following on NPR.

But here’s a tip to the White House media office. Never, never again let the president be photographed in a golf cart. What is the wussiest item in all of sports? A golf cart – that electric chaise lounge. A movable divan. Could you ever picture Vladimir Putin in a golf cart? You think Angela Merkel poses in a golf cart? In a pig’s eye.

Really? Nothing else going on the world of sport? You gotta criticize the President for something you wouldn’t think twice about for Bush, Clinton, Bush, Reagan, Carter, Ford (read the white guys).

Mr. DeFord goes on…

I’m telling the president, just stay completely away from golf courses and get back to your basketball court.

Really? Any dietary advice while you’re at it?  Have you seen the President’s thighs? Any thoughts on swimming?

From the White House blog:

From our spacious skies and fruited plains to our purple mountain majesties, the United States boasts some of the world’s most breathtaking natural lands. On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson created the National Park Service to formally protect and preserve these lands so people all over the world could experience America’s historic beauty and heritage for years to come.

Today, the National Park Service manages 401 national parks and memorials, which supported 238,000 jobs and pumped more than $26 billion into local economies last year. In fact, for every $1 we invest in our national parks, our economy sees $10 in return.

Take a glimpse at what the National Park Service has been working to preserve for 98 years, and follow the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Interior on Twitter to see more of what makes America so beautiful.  

The NPS is 98 today! Dir. Jarvis & friends celebrate with new Centennial logo -only 2 years to go! #NationalParks pic.twitter.com/pHV2fFw54E

— NationalParkService (@NatlParkService) August 25, 2014

I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in “Cheers & Jeers”.

SEPARATED at BIRTH – “Harry Potter” author JK Rowling and TV/film star Felicity Huffman – best known for “Desperate Housewives”.

   

OK, you’ve been warned – here is this week’s tomfoolery material that I posted.

Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings diaries give the Moose, old and new, a place to visit and share words about the weather, life, the world at large and the small parts of Moosylvania that we each inhabit.

(clip from Pre-Moral Week of Action LiveStream Broadcast)

Unrest in Ferguson, Mo., prompts vigil and rally in Charlotte

Moral Mondays, the familiar North Carolina protests, are being expanded to Moral Week of Action, a seven-day protest of the state legislature in Raleigh starting Friday.

The Rev. William Barber, president of the state NAACP and a leader of Moral Mondays, said in a video posted Monday that the peaceful protests have attracted attention from people in Missouri.

“We’ve been asked about coming down to Ferguson and having some conversations with people,” Barber said. “They’ve said that the Moral Monday movement is a model that they need in that community.”

North Carolinians frustrated with what has happened in Ferguson should turn to local elections, he said.

“You’ve got a lot of young people that say they’re angry about what they saw in Ferguson, so let them know this,” he said. “Mayors and city councils hire police chiefs. People elect mayors and city councils. So if you’re concerned about who the police chief is, you need to be organized and registered to vote.”

Today was the first day of the seven days of protest, culminating in a major rally on the anniversary of the March on Washington on Aug 28.

‘Moral Mondays’ Movement Expands to 12 States for ‘Moral Week of Action’

A broad coalition of faith, labor, and social justice organizations will hold events in 12 mostly Southern states-Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Wisconsin-with a different social justice theme every day. Friday kicked off with discussions of labor rights, fair and living wages, and economic justice. The weekend will feature actions on education and criminal justice, then equal protection under the law. A “Youth Moral Monday” will start the work week, then women’s rights will take the stage on Women’s Equality Day (August 26), followed by health care and environmental justice actions, and finally voting rights.

Get involved – support the Moral Week of Action.

(see full transcript of Rev. Barber’s remarks below )

The President’s Weekly Address post is also an Open News Thread. Feel free to share other news stories in the comments.

From the White House – Weekly Address

In this week’s address, the President highlighted the progress made towards rebuilding our economy, including the creation of nearly 10 million new private sector jobs in the past 53 months and the rise in the number of American exports to an all-time high. That growth is in part thanks to the actions of the U.S. Export-Import Bank, an organization that creates American jobs by helping to take American businesses global. The charter of the Export-Import Bank is slated to expire next month, unless Members of Congress renew it, as has happened 16 times in the past with support from Democrats and Republicans. The President asked business owners and employees to reach out to their representatives, who are home this month, and let them know how important it is that the Export-Import Bank continue its work so that American businesses can continue to grow.