Gregory Rodriguez (writing last month):
“Journalists in L.A. are starting to realize that all the leading local institutions are controlled by liberal Democrats, and they have to write about them critically too,” Stewart said.
We don’t call it The Left Coast for nothing.
This Washington Post article reflects on China’s ever-increasing influence in Africa. This may be common knowledge to some, but efforts by American Christians (among many others) to do something about Darfur (as in SaveDarfur) are being undermined - not by apathetic, comfortable, self-centered Americans, but by the Chinese government. Why does the Sudanese government have to respond to U.S. pressure, world pressure, United Nations pressure when the Chinese government will back their wishes, in exchange for favored access to all that Sudanese oil? With China as an ally, the Sudanese government that is allowing the slaughter of hundreds of thousands in the Darfur region can do - or not do - as it chooses. Sobering news on the global justice front.
I’m following Iraq the Model for updates
Don’t get worked up, just some trivial stuff:
– we are having family game night tonight
– last night’s Harambee Junior Staff Reunion was great. I’ll post pictures very soon
– the grass is not greener on the other side
– Kafi’s birthday was yesterday
I was about to post something, but… I can hear Micah down the hall. She slept til 8 this morning. Now she’s talking out loud. Just wait until she learns that, during her short time on earth, her brother has been getting up in the middle of the night and walking over to our bed, then climbing in for a snuggly warm sleep, and he’s been doing this almost every night. Our bed can’t hold four people. Below is a shot of Micah performing at the Harambee Christmas Program.
(scroll to bottom of this post for latest info)
The boy on the right of this photo is named Mark. He wants to attend Jubilee Christian School in eastern Washington. His brother, Ramiro, is next to him. Ramiro is already a student at Jubilee. Mark needs financial help to get started at Jubilee. Jubilee is a private Christian school emphasizing new starts for youth from the city. Mark is one of ten kids. He graduated from our Harambee Prep School in June (Mark is pictured at Harambee’s home page here). Jubilee provides generous scholarships to youth, but Mark’s family cannot even pay the minimum. I called his mother today about completing the application. She is at California Hospital at her husband’s bedside. Her husband has been hospitalized for four days with internal bleeding. I’m going down to the hospital later today to check on the father and then to work with the mother on Mark’s application papers.
Mark needs at least $900 to get started (intake fee: $400; damage fee: $100; transportation: $250; cold weather clothing: $150). Would you consider making a one-time contribution, in any amount, to help Mark get started at Jubilee? Mark really wants to go, because he’s seen how good Jubilee has been for his brother. His mother would also like Mark to go, especially given that the neighborhood where they now live in South L.A. is full of gangs. There are more details, but I say just email me if you would like more info. We’d like to get Mark up to Jubilee by January 3. To give you can hit the paypal button below, or go to this page for information on making a tax-deductible contribution on Mark’s behalf through Harambee Ministries. Thanks!
UPDATE: January 1: Harambee has received gifts and pledges totaling $400. Thanks to all who have contributed. We need $500 to reach the goal and help get Mark started at Jubilee.
JAN 1, 10:30PM: We are up to $495.
cutting the corporate tax rate - a Wall Street Journal editorial:
We certainly agree with those who’d like to do more to lift worker paychecks, so here are two ideas. First, make the Bush tax cuts permanent. If Congress lets them expire in 2010, as many Democrats are urging, the average family will suffer the equivalent of a $2,000 a year pay cut.Second, slash the corporate income tax. A recent study for the American Enterprise Institute by economists Kevin Hassett and Aparna Mathur examined 72 nations over 22 years and found that “wages are significantly responsive to corporate taxation.” In today’s global economy, capital migrates across national borders away from high-tax nations to places where tax systems are less punitive. Workers suffer when capital flees, and job and wage growth slow.
Many political leaders have adapted to this reality, which is why the average corporate tax rate across the globe has fallen over the past 25 years to an average of about 30% from 50%. The AEI study finds that, if the U.S. were to cut its 35% corporate tax to the OECD average of 30%, American manufacturing workers would gain nearly a 10% pay raise dividend within five years, which is the equivalent of roughly a $3,500 a year pay boost.
Some on the political left have other ideas for raising wages, such as more and easier unionization, more trade and tariff barriers, or a government takeover of employer health care. But all of these would make the U.S. more like Old Europe, where job growth is far slower than it is here. Now as ever, policies that keep the economy growing and employers hiring will lift wages for everyone.
Well, there’s WAY too much stuff to say in regards this article. It’s about Hillary angling for the presidency. But the article reports in detail about broad Democratic Party efforts to “get” conservative evangelical voters. Names are named, links are established, tails are wagged, pressure is brought to bear… ok, that’s a bit dramatic. But I was unaware that John Kerry met with Rick Warren recently (I think that meeting was a good thing). Time for another link to FaithfulDemocrats.com. Can you imagine if the Democratic Party stepped away from its militant and intolerant and inflexible pro-abortion position?
To my Canadian peers, Happy Boxing Day!
Things are better now for Sam. Last night I took him back to urgent care at City of Hope. They wanted to check him again. He’s good all around, save that his ANC is pretty low (0.6) and that he’s got a regular, hacking cough. But he feels good and looks good. They let him come home. Now Sam is with Kafi and Micah at City of Hope again - third day in a row - for his regularly scheduled doctor visit. I’m here at the Harambee main office, sitting at Ilene’s desk, and Brandon is behind me on the other computer. I’m just handling some business. Kafi saw Dreamgirls last night and said it’s excellent, it should win an Oscar, and if I liked “The Five Heartbeats” I’d love Dreamgirls. Then my buddy walked in and said, “It’s OK. It’s a chick flick. It’s not for us.” So Apocalypto remains #1 on my movie list. I guess I better go see it before it disappears from the theatres.
We did not spend the night at the hospital. We finally came home at 11:45 p.m. The doc thinks he was hit by a low-level virus and fought it off. The doc actually wanted to check Sam into the hospital last night, but after talking to him he said Sam could come home, only that we keep a close eye on him. So we have watched him all day, he’s done well, and now I’m going to take him back to City of Hope - that was the other part of the plan: bring him back within 24 hours to re-check him. So in a little bit we’ll head to the hospital. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.
Here’s Sam with one of his gifts, a Power Rangers Dragon Command Center.
640PM: We just took Sam’s temperature and it’s 38.8 celsius, or 101.8 fahrenheit. We are calling City of Hope to see what they want us to do. If you don’t know, my son is in chemotherapy for leukemia. He’s in remission. We have to keep a close eye on him. If he gets a fever, he has to go into the hospital to get treated.
UPDATE: 645PM: They want us to bring him in. So we are now on our way to City of Hope. There is a chance that Sam will be in the hospital on Christmas Day.
One day I’m going to meet Tony Gleaton.
He might be a good speaker for this Black/Brown stuff we are thinking about doing.
If you are interested in both urban ministry and environmental justice, here’s food for thought.
• WSJ: The Ring Makes The Difference: “It is not that these parents don’t love their children; it is that they do not have a “script” for being parents.”
• Ken Fong has a blog
• So does Bruce Reyes-Chow
• Baghdad economy starting to boom: this is no joke
• Stop quoting Koran, start reading it, says scholar
• 1981: When Israel destroyed Iraq’s nuclear reactor: a Flash presentation
• Why do conservatism and racism seem to fit so well?
Very very soon, Harambee will send a grant proposal to these people. If you think your ministry is anything like Harambee, you might consider sending one as well.
