Inside the Belly of the Beltway Beast

OK, I desperately want to do some wildly creative things, as well as land a job that doesn't drive me insane, pays me a salary above the poverty line, and is at least someway related to an archives or a library's special collection. But more on the job hunt later. So with the long neglected creative side of my persona yearning to be unleashed, I decided I am going to write in this here blog a lot more frequently, and I am going to make a second attempt at working through my sci-fi, near-future dystopian novel. I might also try and get back into meditation and poetry. Meditation, I think I need to bring more peace and discipline into my life. And poetry just would help me express myself new ways, bringing me more joy; something I used to do more -- before I became obsessed with a quest to save the world, or at least the empire from itself. That struggle, I am convinced, slowly took over my life and enslaved me to my own hubris. So, let me state quite clearly here: I will becom...

There is a lot going on for me in March. And the weather was warming up nicely today; Bruno enjoyed his walks. March 13th we have the fundraiser for Bradley Manning's Legal Defense Fund. Location: Busboys and Poets at 5th and K Streets NW. March 19th Veterans for Peace lead a big protest and civil resistance action at the White House. March 20th we have a rally and march to the gates of Quantico (similar to what was done on MLK Day). Buses have been reserved to take folks from Union Station. Meanwhile, the resistance to union busting and the further destruction of the Middle Class intensifies in Wisconsin. Hundreds of protesters have reclaimed their state capitol building in Madison, staying overnight in the rotunda. This same beautiful resistance is now beginning to spread to Indiana and Ohio. I really don't think the corporate servant boy, Gov. Walker of Wisconsin will be re-elected in three years from now. It must also be pointed out that this beautiful show of people standi...

A week ago, I was spending my third and last night in DC Jail. A loud, violent and cruel place. A place populated by young black men, as a white inmate I was an extreme minority. And as a gay white man of somewhat slight build, I elected to get the protective custody order from Judge Lynn Liebovitz upon my sentencing. My sentencing, in retrospect was not that severe, and this is because my pre-sentencing officer had recommended probation and I admitted that my days of being arrested for expressing my moral and ethical beliefs (which put me in complete opposition to the U.S. Government’s foreign policy) were over. Perhaps someday, when I am retired and close to my friend Eve Tetaz’s age I may resume nonviolent civil resistance against the moral bankruptcy and downright evil policies of the U.S. Empire, but for now I choose a different life for my lifetime partner and myself. Many of you have expressed an interest in discussing my experiences further, and I am open to accepting questions...

By Max Obuszewski In 2002, the Iraq Pledge of Resistance was formed to prevent a war with Iraq. While we failed, we continued to engage in nonviolent direct action to end the war and the occupation. Eventually, the group, in expanding its focus, became the National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance [NCNR]. In light of the massive Capitol Climate Action on March 2nd, we would like to take the opportunity to describe what we as a campaign have committed ourselves to. We celebrate this opportunity to share our thoughts with other progressive activists. As a group with lots of direct action experience, NCNR has consistently encouraged organizations and individuals to recognize the difference between civil disobedience and civil resistance. We see the difference as being important in the struggle for nonviolent, positive social change. The classic definition of civil disobedience, as practiced by the civil rights movement, is the breaking of an unjust law with the intent of changing it...

In honor of Independence Day, I was originally going to write a piece talking about the loss of our republic to the military-corporate empire we live in now, but I thought I would just save myself the additional frustration and post Max from Baltimore's report on civil resistance actions and trials thus far this year! Thanks Max... Thanks to all of you who were able to risk arrest or to support such protests against the Iraq War. Let us continue to take the risks of peace. This list of appeals, arrests and legal cases is not all-inclusive. Please send additions, corrections and updates to mobuszewski at verizon.net. Included are arrests and pending cases in 2008. JULY 20—[WDC] The government was to file a brief in response to the one filed on Dec. 29, 2007 by Mark Goldstone on behalf of Beth Adams, Ellen Barfield, Michelle Grise, Sherrill Hogen, Kathryn McClanen, Joan Nicholson, Max Obuszewski & Eve Tetaz with the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. They are appealing ...

Thursday 19 June 2008 by: Bill Quigley, t r u t h o u t | Perspective "We can never forget that everything that Hitler did in Germany was 'legal,' and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did was 'illegal.' It was 'illegal' to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany , but I am sure that if I lived in Germany during that time I would have comforted my Jewish brothers even though it was illegal ... we who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive." Martin Luther King Jr. There have been over 15,000 arrests for resistance to war since 2002. There were large numbers right after the runup to and invasion of Iraq . Recently, arrests have begun climbing again. Though arrests are a small part of antiwar organizing, their rise is an indicator of increasing resistance. The information comes from the Nuclear Resister, a newsletter that has been rep...

By Malachy Kilbride, Washington Peace Center Last week, as prisoners continued to languish in the infamous and illegally-run US concentration camp of Guantanamo, I was fortunate to join 34 fellow criminals in Washington DC at the District of Columbia Superior Court as our case, for an act of peaceful civil resistance, was heard by a judge and prosecuted by one of America’s officers of the court. Our court experience was far more than our unfortunate brothers in Guantanamo have received after 6 years in their open-ended confinement. Approximately 270 Guantanamo prisoners are held in captivity without charges, Habeas Corpus rights denied, access to civil courts denied, living in conditions of abuse, torture, and with little hope for life or liberty. Some have committed suicide because of their desperate situation. On January 11, 2008 hundreds of people solemnly processed from The National Mall to The United States Supreme Court marking the 6th year of the prison camp to redress our griev...

By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Eleven peace activists received jail sentences May 30 after being convicted of misdemeanor charges in connection with a Jan. 11 nonviolent demonstration at the U.S. Supreme Court calling for the closing of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The 11 were among 34 people convicted of unlawfully gathering on the Supreme Court grounds by District of Columbia Superior Court Judge Wendell Gardner Jr. May 29 after a three-day trial. Their sentences ranged from one to 15 days, the length dependent upon the number of previous convictions stemming from other similar actions. Six of those who were sent to jail are members of the Catholic Worker Movement. They are: Kirk Brown and Ed Bloomer of Des Moines, Iowa; Brian Terrell of Maloy, Iowa; Carmen Trotta of New York City; Arthur Laffin of Washington; and Bill Frankel-Streit of Louisa, Va. Others receiving jail terms were Susan Crane of Baltimore, a resident of Jonah House w...

Proud to be helping a little bit with this great action!

For the last couple months I knew it was coming, but now the wonderful anti-war nonviolent direct action INSIDE the Capitol Building has come and gone, I will be suspending my organizing activities with the peace and justice movement for two years while I am in grad school. I am studying Library and Info. Sciences at CUA, and following my completion I will need a few months starting my new career before I return to organizing. Sadly, I think the U.S. military occupation of the nation of Iraq will still be continuing, and we may also be engaged in a war with Iran at that point. So there will be a lot to organize around. Furthermore, D.C. will still not have a vote in Congress and our government will be spending more on military expenditures than health care and housing. So, there will be a lot of work for an anarchist archivist/librarian to help organize and support. The action yesterday inside the Capitol Building resulted in 36 people arrested. This was a joint nonviolent direct actio...

Dear Friends I would like to share with you my decision to participate in a direct action which will most likely lead to my incarceration for some time. As a result of my last arrest at the Hart Senate Office Building, I spent the night in jail and at my arraignment the next day, was released into 3rd party custody, and ordered to report weekly to pre trial services. Additionally I must stay away from the entire Capitol area. I am unable to comply with these orders, and after careful and prayerful consideration, have decided to take the initiative by deciding the circumstances under which I will begin serving my sentence. I have decided on this course of action I hope that this action will receive media attention, but I can't be sure that my arrest would spark any interest on their part, since Paris Hilton seems to be the main focus of their interest. So be it. There are many who have chosen to speak truth to power in this fashion. I think of Rosa Parks, whose action was the ...