M. L. Clark π―
- Humanist
- Global / Big-Tent
- abZurd Magazine
- https://linktr.ee/abzurdmagazine
- Newsletter
- https://mlclark.substack.com
Writer (SFWA), translator, humanist, general odd duck β’ π¨π¦n in π¨π΄ β’ avoids pronouns, they/them if key
Joined Apr 2022
I have a burning desire to reread Vonnegut's Bluebeard today.
(I *think* my urge has to do with this book questioning the plausibility of creating art with meaning and integrity in a world that often lacks both. But I'll have to reread to be sure!)
Anyone else having a certain book or author calling to them these days? #CoSoBooks
This is one of my favourite go-to pieces to push back on generationalism: a strong reminder that economic insecurity today was also felt by many in other eras, too.
There *is* a difference today - we have cascading climate change events, and environmental pressures exacerbate nationalism and refugeeism in lockstep. We've also been going longer with lousy taxation of the rich and deeper debt loads. BUT!
We can still learn a lot from solidarity with struggles come before.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/billboard-boys-the-greatest-radio-contest-of-all-time/
M. L. Clark π―
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Gloria Steinem, Angela Davis, Jane Fonda, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, Maxine Waters, the list goes on and on. Posthumously: Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Maya Angelou et al.
All are boomer warriors.
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark Lori pushed hard to open NASA job opportunities to women. She got a lot of blowback on that too, but today many NASA centers (including KSC) are run by women.
A Lori clip (4 1/2 minutes):
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark
First to mind is that English teacher I wrote to recently. She went outside the lines of the official curriculum, teaching us much more than composition and literature.
She was the first time I saw someone expressing unconditional love towards strangers (us Rotten Kids that is). :)
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark My mentors and friends. They are a married couple. He left an executive role at GE in the 90βs, started a youth development agency with community members in Hartford, serving thousands of at risk kids and families. He then created programs to provide reentry job/life skill services for incarcerated men. She is a Professor of gender studies and sexual health, and was a pioneer in LGBTQIA advocacy, providing supportive counseling for people transitioning starting in the early 90βs.
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark I generally don't like to guess at ages. Grandpa Ishy (Ishihara) was a positive force of change here but he left to tend to his mental and physical well being. He lived through the Vietnam war, the Japanese consintration camps in the US and through so much change of the 60's and 70's as a war vet. I don't know where he is today but I wish him the best of health and good times in his twilight years.
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark I'll go with my friend and space muse, Lori Garver.
She fought the space-industrial complex status quo to give "NewSpace" commercial companies the chance to compete for government contracts and have access to government facilities.
Many powerful forces aligned against her in the 2009-2012 time frame. She was condemned as evil incarnate.
But you wouldn't see SpaceX launching and landing reusable rockets today without Lori opening the door.
Follow-up question! π
Who's a Boomer you think doesn't get talked about enough for the work they did, the contributions they made, or just the way they lived their one precious life?
They can be someone in a major public-facing role, someone who left us too soon, or someone in your community / family who makes you proud to know them.
With over 8 billion people now on this fragile pale blue dot, we always have *so* much more to learn from each other.
So who's your pick?
Here's the other side: in the same paper, there are updates on Petro's attempts at "total peace" - a complex and hardwon thing, when negotiating with many groups at once.
ELN has announced that it's not going to stop kidnapping civilians because that's an income stream π, while Clan del Golfo is diversifying its portfolio: exploiting immigrants trying to reach the US, in the absence of robust drug returns.
Colombia celebrates hard because Colombia also holds in tension how hard life always is.
The road to Navidad is always so pretty here.
There are three "phases" in MedellΓn:
Sept 1 - the end of Feria de las flores in August brings the first Xmas decorations into stores.
Then sometime in late October or early November the lights start going up. :)
Next up, fireworks on Nov 30, leading up to Dec 1. Then all of December is filled with events - DΓa de las velitas, novena, the local April Fools on Dec 28 - until DΓa de los reyes in January.
Still 100% atheist, but what a culture! π
M. L. Clark π―
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yesβΌοΈ how many today are as involved in demanding change as we were then?
people were murdered in the south by bigots, jailed in the north for demonstrating, reviled everywhere by the masters of war.
but we held firm and changes occurred.
now it's time for another generation to face the same powers seeking to enslave us all.
M. L. Clark π―
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@MLClark The moment people are othered we are all damaged, because the very act of that is a separation, and a judgement.
Every generation has had its triumph and its sins because every generation has been made of individuals, and zeitgeists that blew through their times, shaping and molding the world to what we know now.
Hate is baggage, no matter how it manifests, it weighs us down and holds us back.
The truth is, if we want to thrive and survive, itβs all of us or none.
Shout-out to Boomers today!
The people who fought for no-fault divorce, plus women's right to credit, access to contraception, & legal abortion.
The people out picketing against nuclear winter before it was cool (pun intended), & who tried so hard to stop unjust wars in other eras.
Who endured other recessions & rallied for workers' rights.
Who were present at Stonewall, & did SO much to fight for inclusivity.
Ageist thinking distracts us from the real destroyer of lives. #NotHere #NotCoSo
M. L. Clark π―
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It saddens me a bit when I see Boomer-bashing here or elsewhere.
In my experience at least half of us were and are liberal, progressive, equal rights, anti-racist, pro-environment, hippie resisters.
Also in my experience, no generation is so homogenous or monolithic that they can be blamed or praised collectively.
It saddens me a little because, yeah it hurts a bit, but mostly because those bashers are wasting their rage on the wrong people, many of whom are actually strong allies.
M. L. Clark π―
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The internal conflict I suffer on days like today is palpable.
The sacrifices made by so many people for the rights and values I hold so dear are laid hollow by those that shout the loudest and try to remove them wrapped in a flag.
Well, I immediately made a hash* of my first administrative tasks today, so eff it, I'm out. Coffee and crossword time.
*A fixable hash, but I junked up a database for a good 15 minutes there. Lesson learned, never again, humility's good for the heart, but... π€¦ββοΈ coffee first next time.
Good morning to all the dreamers. πͺ
Okay, offline to write.
One last Remembrance Day note, for all the vets here:
When this day of so much public mourning & veneration has passed, & society moves on to its next seasonal event, your mental health & well-being, especially when thinking on those you lost, won't matter any less.
Take good care of yourselves.
May you always have company you trust--people who understand what you've been through, & how it sits in you today--& all the resources you need for any battles that lie ahead.
What a freaking year, eh?
M. L. Clark π―
- Humanist
- Global / Big-Tent
- abZurd Magazine
- https://linktr.ee/abzurdmagazine
- Newsletter
- https://mlclark.substack.com
Writer (SFWA), translator, humanist, general odd duck β’ π¨π¦n in π¨π΄ β’ avoids pronouns, they/them if key
Joined Apr 2022