we are stardust

Zuni Dreamtime.....a story

By we are stardust on Wed, 04/21/2010 - 5:54pm |

We stopped at a trading post near Moenkopi, Arizona, at the west end of the Hopi Villages. I can't remember why were there, nor can I remember how on earth we came to be approaching the villages from the...

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988 reads

Joe . . . a sketch, not a story

By we are stardust on Sun, 04/18/2010 - 6:02pm |

Joe believed in UFOs. In a weird way, it suited him. The sad truth is that it was almost too easy to see him as a character, more of a two-dimensional being. It might not have been altogether...

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1132 reads

Albert the Blacksmith

By we are stardust on Fri, 04/16/2010 - 12:09pm |

I was already having second thoughts. I'd been sent on an errand by The Boss; well, really she was my husband's boss, but I was a handy unpaid extra, and I got pressed into service here and there. ...

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1961 reads

European Space Agency's Herschel Telescope: Mapping the Universe's Past

By we are stardust on Wed, 04/14/2010 - 5:41pm |

Last week Nova aired a program on the evolution of telescopes. Galileo and on through the ages, changes bigger and better in fits and starts: refractors, reflectors mirrors growing bigger and bigger, to Hubble, and now: The Herschel Space Observatory...

Financial Reform: What a few outside economists are saying

By we are stardust on Tue, 04/13/2010 - 5:55pm |

Conventional Beltway thinking says that 'some sort of financial reform package' will be passed fairly soon. The bill that's already been passed in the House apparently has some strengths that Chris Dodd's Senate bill lacks, but...

Longest US War Ever: Afghanistan, Year 9

By we are stardust on Mon, 04/12/2010 - 10:07am |

Four Star GEneral Stanley McChrystal Friday night Bill Moyers hosted Andrew Bacevich to speak about the war in Afghanistan. It's likely you've seen other interviews with Bacevich, a West Point graduate who served in the army for 23...

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1001 reads

Morpheus, Morpheus

By we are stardust on Fri, 04/09/2010 - 5:32pm |

Painting of Morpheus,Phantasos and Iris by baron Guerin "Mama! Mamaaa!" he cried from the kids' dark bedroom. I went to him; he was curled up on his knees on the top bunk bed, face streaming tears....

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2082 reads

Merry Christmas / Call the Police (a story)

By we are stardust on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 11:57am |

My father's parents lived in Shaker Heights. On Van Aken Boulevard, a wide street with a grassy strip the middle for the Rapid Transit tracks down the center. The cars were powered through a metal rod that scooted along electrical wires strung...

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1276 reads

Update on Considerations of Robotic War

By we are stardust on Tue, 03/30/2010 - 10:46am |

I posted this diary on Drones recently, and wanted to update it. We need to have the discussion on drone war. The US use of drones is increasing massively, both abroad and domestically. Some are capable of only reconnaissance and logistics, but...

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1690 reads

Transubstantiation

By we are stardust on Fri, 03/26/2010 - 11:28am |

Outside my bedroom door that should have opened onto a deck, but didn't. My husband and others in the doorway looking toward me eagerly, awaiting some response, but what?...

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1844 reads

Doug Brooks, Head of the Int'l Peace Operations Association (Private Military Contractor Lobbying Organization) Answers Questions + Will Stop By For More Q's From You

By we are stardust on Mon, 03/22/2010 - 11:50am |

I'm reposting this diary; I'd found it necessary to put it up and take it down over the course of two days. Due to a technical glitch on my end, Doug Brooks never knew it was up, so never visited...

What Else Could This Wasted Six Billion Dollars Have Funded?

By we are stardust on Sat, 03/20/2010 - 10:19pm |

T. Christian Miller, Mark Hosenball, and Ron Moreau have a piece in Newsweek called The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight. Their piece explores reports that the six billion dollars that the US has spent since 2002 to train Afghan Security...

Our Rowan-the-Manatee Could Use Our Help

By we are stardust on Fri, 03/19/2010 - 2:10pm |

I just got the official Okey-Dokey from Rowan to post this blog; she's been too unwell to even imagine that she could spend enough time at her computer to read any posts it might elicit, but now feels more...

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1477 reads

Hey, Horse; Cut That Out!

By we are stardust on Thu, 03/18/2010 - 3:38pm |

After living four brief months in Truchas, New Mexico, and being involved in a few scuffles involving being held at gunpoint, my husband and I decided to high-tail it back to Colorado where we'd stand a better chance of...

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1209 reads

For mcrose68; A heartfelt Apology

By we are stardust on Wed, 03/17/2010 - 5:32pm |

I hope you see this, mcrose. I was checking out a comment on Rutabaga's Pot-sniffing blog, and saw a comment from you that I'd missed. I am deeply sorry for the comment I made that caused you pain; it was inexcusable. ...

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1194 reads

Droning On. And On. And On...

By we are stardust on Sat, 03/13/2010 - 6:41pm |

The Mechanization of War has always produced a flutter in the hearts of the military and the supporters of war; each generation of weapon is heralded as helpful, and often more efficient. Now we are into the generation of...

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1428 reads

War Postmortems

By we are stardust on Wed, 03/10/2010 - 12:04pm |

The Iraqi elections are over. It will likely take weeks to count the votes, and MSM will report on the results, and are already reporting on the election's success and awesome turnout. We won't be told about the Iraqi courts...

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1806 reads

Not a Bedtime Story Part III

By we are stardust on Sat, 03/06/2010 - 1:36pm |

The working title might be: Suicide Isn't Painless Please don't read it if you're looking for an upbeat read; I can guarantee you this isn't it. ............................................................................................................................... I updated (re-wrote) Part III; you may have to Refresh it; I...

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1200 reads

Not a Bedtime Story

By we are stardust on Fri, 03/05/2010 - 1:02pm |

This story wants to be written. Every time I try to avoid it, it pops up again, nagging me with an insistence I really can't like. Writing it wouldn't mean I had to publish it, but I have decided to,...

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1970 reads

Questions for Doug Brooks of the International Peace Operation Association

By we are stardust on Thu, 02/25/2010 - 9:25pm |

I posted this diary yesterday concerning Jan Schakowsky's bill 'Stop Outsourcing Security Act,' and was surprised to wake in the morning to a comment posted by the president of IPOA, Doug Brooks, taking issue with a few of my assertions in the piece. IPOA is a non-profit lobbying umbrella for Contractors, especially in war zones and disaster areas.

He invited me to contact him by email or phone; I chose email, and sent 12 questions to him. He responded quickly that he would answer them if I guaranteed to post his answers in their entirety.

I responded affirmatively, with the caveat that the answers not be too long for a normal diary, though I later thought it would also be possible to divide them into two blogs.