Roomin' House Blues

According to a recent poll the majority of Palestinians did not support an attack on a Israeli settlement in which a family was knifed to death. It's time for Israel to seize the opportunities for peace with the Palestinians. Poll: 32% of Palestinians support Itamar attack - Israel News, Ynetnews

One of my favorite e-newsletters has arrived this morning, Consistent Life. As a pro-life progressive I find that this organization reflects the general principles which I believe in. A consistent respect for the sacredness, value and  dignity of human life at al stages and it's protection from all attacks, war, abortion, injustice, "death with dignity" and so on. They informed me that there is a website in Ireland upholding the same principles: Consistent Life Ireland:  http://www.consistentlife.iwarp.com/

Local Catholic Workers sent me email with a link to the Sentence of the Disarm Now Plougshares activists. The Disarm Now Plowshares activists who entered U.S. Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor to symbolically disarm the nuclear weapons stored there were sentenced today at the Tacoma Federal Courthouse, receiving sentences of 6 months to 15 months confinement, plus one year supervised release.    More at:  http://disarmnowplowshares.wordpress.com/

In another of those amazing emails I get from dozens of interesting groups Consistent Life, the pro-life, pro peace organization, has this to say:   U.S. Budget Battles: What if the American People Decided?            Much as the punditry likes to claim that the American people want government services without paying the needed taxes for them, a  recent poll  suggests that if the will of the majority rather than well-lobbied politicians decided on the budget, it could be balanced. So many military expenditures – spending on preparation for and actual practice of mass killing – are what the U.S. cannot afford.         It’s been long established in many polls that the American people also don’t want tax money going for abortions. But the life-affirming health care, counseling services, and material assistance for mothers in need are only on the chopping block because of what some pol...

Disarm Now Plowshares Sentencing Events On November 2, 2010, Fr. Bill “Bix” Bichsel, S.J., of Tacoma; Susan Crane, of Baltimore; Lynne Greenwald, of Bremerton; Fr. Steve Kelly, S.J., of Oakland; and Sr. Anne Montgomery, RSCJ, of New York; trespassed onto the Naval Base in Bangor, Washington, to protest the nuclear weapons stored there.  They were tried and found guilty on December 13, 2010, of trespass, felony damage to federal property, felony injury to property, and felony conspiracy to damage property. In their defense the activists argued three points: 1) the nuclear missiles at Bangor are weapons of mass destruction, 2) those weapons are both illegal and immoral, and 3) that all citizens have the right and duty to try to stop international war crimes from being committed by such weapons. Each defendant faces possible sentences of up to ten years in prison. The five will be sentenced on Monday, March 28, 2011. The following is a schedule of events for the ...

Consistent Life,  an organization I support, called my attention to a letter to Sarah Palin by Mary Meehan, another Consistent Life supporter.  Mary, like me sees an anti war position as part and parcel of being pro-life, and being pro-life as being consistent with being pro-peace.  She compliments Sarah on being pro-life, pro-family, but takes her to task for supporting the war in Afghanistan, pointing to collateral damage to women, infants and children in the war.  More at:  http://www.meehanreports.com/openletter-palin.html  

One of the organizations I support is Consistent Life.  They are a coalition of pro-life groups that see the pro-life question in an entirely different context.  To be pro-life you must be pro-peace,  and in favor of a seamless garment of life as Pope John Paul said.  They courageously oppose the death penalty, torture and support social justice to give quality to life, coupled with opposition to abortion.  It's opposition to violence in all it's forms.  The victims of violence in America are people in the margins, be they a crime victim, someone sitting on death row, or the totally innocent child in the womb. To find out more about Consistent Life go to there website: http://www.consistent-life.org/