Ed Pearl: Naomi Wolf: The Middle East's Feminist Revolution, How the Rich Soaked the Rest of Us

Reply-To: "Ed Pearl" <epearlag@earthlink.net>
From: "Ed Pearl" <epearlag@earthlink.net>
Subject: Phil Ochs film and Panel, Sunday, March 6th
Date: Sat, 5 Mar 2011 07:09:36 -0800
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From: Greygoosemusic@aol.com=20
Sent: Thursday, February 24, 2011 12:52 PM
Subject: Special Folk Works Screening of Phil Ochs film, Sunday, March =
6th

On Sunday morning, March 6 at 11:00 AM FolkWorks will host a screening =
of the new documentary Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune at the Laemmle =
Theatre in Santa Monica, 1332 2nd St. Tickets are $10. Then there will =
be a Q&A with Phil Ochs=E2=80=99 brother and co-producer Michael Ochs, =
the film=E2=80=99s director Ken Bowser, Ash Grove founder Ed Pearl, and =
FolkWorks columnist Ross Altman. (For tickets and lunch opportunity see =
www.folkworks.org)

Phil Ochs took his life 35 years ago in 1976, during the =
Bicentennial, at the age of 35. Composer of the patriotic anthem The =
Power and the Glory=E2=80=94second only to This Land Is Your Land in its =
melding of the American landscape with a profound identification with =
its people=E2=80=94Ochs raised the modern protest song to a high art. =
With such classics as I Ain=E2=80=99t Marching Anymore, Draft Dodger Rag =
and There But for Fortune he became the voice of the antiwar movement; =
with such classics as Here=E2=80=99s To the State of Mississippi, and =
The Ballad of Medgar Evers he became a voice of the civil rights =
movement.=20

He began as one of =E2=80=9CWoody=E2=80=99s Children=E2=80=9D at =
Gerdes Folk City in Greenwich Village, penning songs as fast as Woody =
Guthrie had a generation before; when Pete Seeger took him and Bob Dylan =
up to the offices of Broadside Magazine at the beginning of 1963 to hear =
songs they had written in just the past two weeks=E2=80=94and which =
Broadside would be the first to publish=E2=80=94Seeger came away =
astonished at both their creativity and productivity; he concluded that =
=E2=80=9CHere were two of the greatest songwriters in the world, only no =
one knows it yet.=E2=80=9D By the end of 1963 everyone did. =20

Two years later, when Dylan went electric, Phil Ochs went =
classical, surrounding new songs like Pleasures of the Harbor and Small =
Circle of Friends (on the murder of Kitty Genovese in New York City in =
broad daylight) with piano accompaniment and orchestral settings. But he =
also continued his musical and political activism, becoming a founding =
member of the Yippies (with Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin and Tom =
Hayden=E2=80=94who is interviewed in the movie) at the Chicago =
Democratic Convention in 1968, and testifying on their behalf at the =
Chicago 8 conspiracy trial. All of the defendants were acquitted.

But Phil Ochs did not need a conspiracy to organize effective =
protests against the war in Vietnam; he was a one-man movement who =
brought together thousands of people in the famed The War is Over =
demonstration in 1970, inspired by his song of the same title. Unlike =
his hero James Dean, Phil was a rebel with a cause, and he was not =
afraid to rebel against even his own fans; at his landmark concert =
Gunfight at Carnegie Hall, he wore Elvis=E2=80=99s gold lame costume and =
mixed in his favorite Elvis and Buddy Holly songs along with his classic =
protest material, to the chagrin of his audience, who had come to see a =
folk singer, not a rock and roll star. So Phil documented the traumatic =
event in his song Chords of Fame, with the telltale line =E2=80=9CGod =
help the troubadour who tries to be a star.=E2=80=9D

Shortly thereafter, at the threshold of the depression that would =
eventually take his life, he wrote No More Songs, a brutally honest look =
at an artist who was coming to the end of the road, after a =
decade-defining outpouring of songs that=E2=80=94were all the books and =
speeches of the time to be burned in a Fahrenheit 451 =
nightmare=E2=80=94would enable historians to reconstruct both its highs =
of idealism, hope and quest for social justice and its lows of failed =
dreams and cynical politicians that led to Watergate and Cambodia.

Come and celebrate the life of Phil Ochs=E2=80=94an American =
original=E2=80=94with his music and the personal memories of =
those=E2=80=94such as Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Judy Henske=E2=80=94who =
knew him and remain committed to his ideals. Phil Ochs: There But For =
Fortune promises to be a film to remember about an artist impossible to =
forget.
------=_NextPart_000_0172_01CBDB04.4AD05330
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=EF=BB=BF<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
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<DIV>From: <A title=3DGreygoosemusic@aol.com=20
href=3D"mailto:Greygoosemusic@aol.com">Greygoosemusic@aol.com</A> </DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>Sent: Thursday, February 24, 2011 12:52 PM</DIV>
<DIV>Subject: Special Folk Works Screening of Phil Ochs film, =
Sunday,=20
March 6th</DIV> </DIV>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal">On=20
Sunday morning, March 6 at 11:00 AM FolkWorks will host a screening of =
the new=20
documentary Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune at the Laemmle =
Theatre in=20
Santa Monica, 1332 2nd St. Tickets are $10. Then there will =
be a=20
Q&A with Phil Ochs=E2=80=99 brother and co-producer Michael Ochs, =
the film=E2=80=99s=20
director Ken Bowser, Ash Grove founder Ed Pearl, and FolkWorks columnist =
Ross=20
Altman. (For tickets and lunch opportunity see <A=20
href=3D"http://www.folkworks.org/">www.folkworks.org</A><FONT=20
size=3D3><FONT=20
face=3D"Times New =
Roman">)<o:p></o:p>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> 
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">    Phil Ochs took his =
life 35=20
years ago in 1976, during the Bicentennial, at the age of 35. Composer =
of the=20
patriotic anthem The Power and the Glory=E2=80=94second only to =
This Land Is=20
Your Land in its melding of the American landscape with a profound=20
identification with its people=E2=80=94Ochs raised the modern protest =
song to a high=20
art. With such classics as I Ain=E2=80=99t Marching Anymore, =
Draft Dodger Rag=20
and There But for Fortune he became the voice of the antiwar=20
movement; with such classics as Here=E2=80=99s To the State of =
Mississippi, and=20
The Ballad of Medgar Evers he became a voice of the civil rights=20
movement. <o:p></o:p>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> 
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">     He began as =
one of=20
=E2=80=9CWoody=E2=80=99s Children=E2=80=9D at Gerdes Folk City in =
Greenwich Village, penning songs as=20
fast as Woody Guthrie had a generation before; when Pete Seeger took him =
and Bob=20
Dylan up to the offices of Broadside Magazine at the beginning of =
1963 to=20
hear songs they had written in just the past two weeks=E2=80=94and which =
Broadside=20
would be the first to publish=E2=80=94Seeger came away astonished at =
both their=20
creativity and productivity; he concluded that =E2=80=9CHere were two of =
the greatest=20
songwriters in the world, only no one knows it yet.=E2=80=9D By the end =
of 1963 everyone=20
did.    =20
<o:p></o:p>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> 
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">     Two years =
later, when=20
Dylan went electric, Phil Ochs went classical, surrounding new songs =
like=20
Pleasures of the Harbor and Small Circle of Friends (on the murder of =
Kitty=20
Genovese in New York City in broad daylight) with piano accompaniment =
and=20
orchestral settings. But he also continued his musical and political =
activism,=20
becoming a founding member of the Yippies (with Abbie Hoffman, Jerry =
Rubin and=20
Tom Hayden=E2=80=94who is interviewed in the movie) at the Chicago =
Democratic Convention=20
in 1968, and testifying on their behalf at the Chicago 8 conspiracy =
trial.<SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">  All of the defendants were=20
acquitted.<o:p></o:p>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> 
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">     But Phil =
Ochs did not=20
need a conspiracy to organize effective protests against the war in =
Vietnam; he=20
was a one-man movement who brought together thousands of people in the =
famed=20
The War is Over demonstration in 1970, inspired by his song of =
the same=20
title. Unlike his hero James Dean, Phil was a rebel with a cause, and he =
was not=20
afraid to rebel against even his own fans; at his landmark concert =
Gunfight=20
at Carnegie Hall, he wore Elvis=E2=80=99s gold lame costume and =
mixed in his=20
favorite Elvis and Buddy Holly songs along with his classic protest =
material, to=20
the chagrin of his audience, who had come to see a folk singer, not a =
rock and=20
roll star. So Phil documented the traumatic event in his song Chords =
of=20
Fame, with the telltale line =E2=80=9CGod help the troubadour who =
tries to be a=20
star.=E2=80=9D<o:p></o:p>
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> 
<SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-WEIGHT: normal"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">     Shortly =
thereafter, at=20
the threshold of the depression that would eventually take his life, he =
wrote=20
No More Songs, a brutally honest look at an artist who was coming =
to the=20
end of the road, after a decade-defining outpouring of songs =
that=E2=80=94were all the=20
books and speeches of the time to be burned in a Fahrenheit 451=20
nightmare=E2=80=94would enable historians to reconstruct both its highs =
of idealism,=20
hope and quest for social justice and its lows of failed dreams and =
cynical=20
politicians that led to Watergate and=20
Cambodia.<o:p></o:p>
<DIV><SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; =
mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; =
mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes"> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN=20
style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; =
mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; =
mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: yes">     Come and =
celebrate the=20
life of Phil Ochs=E2=80=94an American original=E2=80=94with his music =
and the personal memories=20
of those=E2=80=94such as Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Judy =
Henske=E2=80=94who knew him and remain=20
committed to his ideals.  =
Phil=20
Ochs: There But For Fortune promises to be a film to remember about =
an=20
artist impossible to forget.<SPAN=20
style=3D"mso-spacerun: =
yes">           &n=
bsp;           &nb=
sp;           &nbs=
p;     =20
</DIV></BODY></HTML>

------=_NextPart_000_0172_01CBDB04.4AD05330--
From: "Portside Moderator" <moderator@PORTSIDE.ORG

How the Rich Soaked the Rest of Us

by: Richard D. Wolff,
t r u t h o u t : Wednesday 02 March 2011

How the rich soaked the rest of us: The astonishing story of the last few
decades is a massive redistribution of wealth, as the rich have shifted the
tax burden.

Over the last half-century, the richest Americans have shifted the burden of
the federal individual income tax off themselves and onto everybody else.
The three convenient and accurate Wikipedia graphs below show the details.
The first graph compares the official tax rates paid by the top and bottom
income earners. Note especially that from the end of the Second World War
into the early 1960s, the highest income earners paid a tax rate over 90
percent for many years.

Today, the top earners pay a rate of only 35 percent. Note, also, how the
gap between the rates paid by the richest and the poorest has narrowed. If
we take into account the many loopholes the rich can and do use far more
than the poor, the gap narrows even more.

One conclusion is clear and obvious: the richest Americans have dramatically
lowered their income tax burden since 1945, both absolutely and relative to
the tax burdens of the middle income groups and the poor.

for the rest of this, with graphics, go to
http://www.truth-out.org/how-rich-soaked-rest-us68155

***

From: "Sid Shniad" <shniad@gmail.com>

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/the-middle-easts-feminist-revolution/article1925427/

The Middle East's feminist revolution

Naomi Wolff:
Globe and Mail: March 2, 2011

Among the most prevalent Western stereotypes about Muslim countries are
those concerning Muslim women: doe-eyed, veiled and submissive, exotically
silent, gauzy inhabitants of imagined harems, closeted behind rigid gender
roles. So where were these women in Tunisia and Egypt?

In both countries, women protesters were nothing like the Western
stereotype: They were front and centre, in news clips and on Facebook
forums, and even in the leadership. In Cairo's Tahrir Square, women
volunteers, some accompanied by children, worked steadily to support the
protests – helping with security, communications and shelter. Many
commentators credited the great numbers of women and children with the
remarkable overall peacefulness of the protesters in the face of grave
provocations.

Other citizen reporters in Tahrir Square – and virtually anyone with a
cellphone could become one – noted that the masses of women involved in the
protests were demographically inclusive. Many wore head scarves and other
signs of religious conservatism, while others revelled in the freedom to
kiss a friend or smoke a cigarette in public.

But women were not serving only as support workers, the habitual role to
which they are relegated in protest movements. Egyptian women also organized
and reported the events. Bloggers such as Leil-Zahra Mortada took grave
risks to keep the world informed daily of the scene in Tahrir Square and
elsewhere.

The role of women in the great Middle East upheaval has been woefully
under-analyzed. Women in Egypt didn't just "join" the protests – they were a
leading force behind the cultural evolution that made the protests
inevitable. And what's true for Egypt is true throughout the Arab world.
When women change, everything changes, and women in the Muslim world are
changing radically.

The greatest shift is educational. Two generations ago, only a small
minority of the daughters of the elite received a university education.
Today, women account for more than half of the students at Egyptian
universities. They're being trained to use power in ways their grandmothers
could scarcely have imagined: publishing newspapers (as Sanaa el Seif did,
in defiance of a government order to cease operating); campaigning for
student leadership posts; fundraising for student organizations; and running
meetings.

Indeed, a substantial minority of young women in Egypt and other Arab
countries have now spent their formative years thinking critically in
mixed-gender environments, and even publicly challenging male professors in
the classroom. It's far easier to tyrannize a population when half are
poorly educated and trained to be submissive. But, as Westerners should know
from their own historical experience, once you educate women, democratic
agitation is likely to accompany the massive cultural shift that follows.

The nature of social media, too, has helped turn women into protest leaders.
Having taught leadership skills to women for more than a decade, I know how
difficult it is to get them to speak out in a hierarchical organizational
structure. Likewise, women tend to avoid the figurehead status that
traditional protest has imposed on certain activists in the past – almost
invariably a hotheaded young man with a megaphone.

In such contexts – with a stage, a spotlight and a spokesperson – women
often shy away from leadership roles. But social media, through the very
nature of the technology, have changed what leadership looks and feels like.
Facebook mimics the way many women choose to experience social reality, with
connections between people just as important as individual dominance or
control, if not more so.

You can be a powerful leader on Facebook just by creating a really big "us."
Or you can stay the same size, conceptually, as everyone else on your page –
you don't have to assert your dominance or authority. The structure of
Facebook's interface creates what brick-and-mortar institutions, despite 30
years of feminist pressure, have failed to provide: a context in which
women's ability to forge a powerful "us" and engage in a leadership of
service can advance the cause of freedom and justice worldwide.

Of course, Facebook can't reduce the risks of protest. But, however violent
the immediate future in the Middle East may be, the historical record of
what happens when educated women participate in freedom movements suggests
that those in the region who would like to maintain iron-fisted rule are
finished.

Just when France began its rebellion in 1789, Mary Wollstonecraft, who had
been caught up in witnessing it, wrote her manifesto for women's liberation.
After educated women in America helped fight for the abolition of slavery,
they put female suffrage on the agenda. After they were told in the 1960s
that "the position of women in the movement is prone," they generated
"second wave" feminism – a movement born of women's new skills and old
frustrations.

Time and again, once women have fought the other battles for freedom of
their day, they've moved on to advocate for their own rights. And since
feminism is simply a logical extension of democracy, the Middle East's
despots are facing a situation in which it will be almost impossible to
force these awakened women to stop their fight for freedom – their own and
that of their communities.

*Naomi Wolf is a political activist and social critic whose most recent book
is *Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries.

Ed Pearl

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Naomi Wolf: The Middle East's Feminist Revolution, How the Rich Soaked the Rest of Us

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