mass suicide mass, another poem by steve ben israel from 1978 seems relevant today

for the past few months, steve ben isreal has been sending me a few gems from his vast collection of monologs and poems . There seems to be no pattern there, but every few weeks or months, I receive an email with one or two and little or no other comment. They, of course, speak for themselves.

This last one dates from 1978. Decades ago but it seems like yesterday.

For previous gems, check out: A New Steve Ben Israel Poem, "non violent executio...

-charlie




mass suicide mass – (for jonestown and ourtown)


what is common to us all
a case of the jones
of keeping up with joneses
cult is the tip of the culture

ah this collective guilt
of knowing what is being
done to us
by us

where was their individuality
asked all the waving flags

and our grandfathers
who said, if not me
maybe my son
grandsons still waiting
hiding of clock cloak
of worker
dreaming
that their 10,000 year old class
will be abolished

slow death
mass suicide mass
for those who couldn't keep
track of themselves
without their main man
in the midst of a
subverted subverted future
which clouds our love

yes there is a crack
in the reality
going to war suicide
going to chemical plant suicide
going to revolutionary suicide
going to build nuke plant suicide
not making a new world suicide
not demystifying suicide

audy murphy, remember him
uncle sam's no.1 son
congressional medal of honor winner
who died alone
because he couldn't find community

sgt york
alvin york
who gary cooper made
us love gun
and sgt york dying of cancer

the same year the new anti war
movement shook d.c.
the i.r.s. danced around alvin's bed
chanting
you owe us taxes
from the movie of your life
humphrey bogart would say
"taxes is a protection racket"

dylan don't follow leaders echoes
earlier hip chants
of how in the original moment
the people copped for the king
instead of themselves, the self
suicide the denial of the self
succumbing to the man's plan
and believing it to death
watch out for disciples baby

the guns creep in
the guns creep out
shouts the explorer to the new world
still
how heavy to fall in the new world
yes dreams have cracks in the
rainbow on the way to becoming human
only forward never dies

hey wait nine months
next time baby
it took 10,000 years
to make you baby

from the bottom tip
of argentina chile death locks
to the top of guyana
not so strange deaths
some will say
it was the howls and screams
from nicaraguan
argentinean
guatemalan
chilean
and brazilian torture dungeons
that made them nuts
conspiracy fact
can wisdom come
from death jones jim
something alive must
life demands it


steve ben israel 1978

"Mom & Pop" presented by Raconteur Theatre

Hi everybody!

This Thursday Raconteur Theatre Company opens Mom and Pop by Jill's
fellow teacher at Olentangy High School, Sarah Tobin. Jill directed
this piece and we would love to have you all come out to see our hard
work come together-- we built a hardware store in the theatre for this
one! We still have green in our finger nails from sponge painting.
It's at Columbus Dance Theatre, right at the edge of Olde Towne East,
so come support an OTE business (Raconteur Theatre) at a Main Street
venue!

See our promo video: http://raconteurtheatre.com/index.html
Purchase tickets online: http://raconteurtheatre.com/tickets.html

Hope to see you all soon!
Andrew & Jill
410 S. Ohio Ave.

Play Synopsis
In 1958, Ed (Sam Blythe) accepted the responsibility of taking over
the family hardware store despite his dreams, which would have
otherwise lead him to Memphis. Now he has passed the burden of choice
to his children—should the three take over the stores or sell them?
Gail (Danielle Filas) is determined to sell them, but Luke (JT Walker)
is aggressively advocating that the stores stay in the family. This
leaves Eda (Molly St. Cyr-Reid) stuck in the middle. Meanwhile, Ed is
nowhere to be found to help guide them in their choice. Despite their
decision, they are all forced to face one fact: mom and pop stores are
a dying breed, and they even find themselves choosing big business
over the little guy for convenience.

Mom and Pop runs December 4-20 at Columbus Dance Theatre (592 E. Main
St.). Shows are Thursdays-Saturdays at 8pm and on Sundays at 2pm.
Tickets are $10-15 at the door or can be purchased for $12 online at
http://raconteurtheatre.com/tickets.html
--
Keep up with Raconteur Theatre Company at www.raconteurtheatre.com!

Mark Berger attends Superstar, a tribute to Andy Warhol at the Chop Chop Gallery

Charlie:

This event took place on 15 Nov 2008, the event was very well attended and thought this info might be of interest for your Blog.

Mark

superstar@chopchopgallery.com

“SUPERSTAR” is an exhibition celebrating key figures of the Andy Warhol Factory from the 1960's and early 1970's. With great excitement we bring these artists to Columbus to share their experiences and hear their stories. The “SUPERSTAR” evening will consist of a multimedia exhibition of past and current work, performances, and a sure-to-be lively panel discussion. Please join us to view the work of these Warhol collaborators and celebrate their visit to Columbus.

Holly Woodlawn is a transsexual actor and was a key figure in Warhol's Factory during the early 1970's. Born in Puerto Rico, Woodlawn arrived on the NYC scene and was immortalized in Lou Reed's song Walk On The Wild Side. She starred in Warhol's Women In Revolt and Trash.
John Giorno is an actor and poet and the lead in the Warhol film Sleep. Giorno is currently a spoken word poet and AIDS activist in New York City.

Penny Arcade starred in Women In Revolt. She is an avant-garde performance artist, actress and playwright residing in New York City.

Taylor Mead is an actor, painter and poet, an East Village icon as well as long standing Warhol Superstar. Mead participated in Warhol films Taylor Meads Ass, Lonesome Cowboys, Imitation Of Christ, Tarzan And Jane Revisited, Nude Restaurant and Couch. Taylor still acts and performs his poetry, which he will share with us this evening. His most recent theatrical role was in the last scene of the Jim Jarmusch film Coffee And Cigarettes.

A New Steve Ben Israel Poem, "non violent executions"

I am rerunning this previous item to include "non violent executions" , a new piece sent here just this past week. Steve was an original member of the legendary, seminal Living Theatre. Please search my blog for previous articles about Steve Ben Isreal. -charlie

Award winning actor, performer, social commentator, poet, raconteur, and all-around good guy Steve Ben Israel sent three vignettes below. Steve is often heard delivering wry, relevant commentary on NPR. In this photo, (taken by Fernando Leon) he accepted an Obie award.

I met Steve at an all-night diner in the lower east side of NY city, several years ago, introduced by my long-time friend Stan. We talked, dank coffee, schmoozed, listened to his fabulous tales and enjoyed it enough to consider the evning memorable.


non-violent
executions

in the revolution
we will execute
only the system
with a new way
of being alive

it won't be necessary
to kill people anymore
even the torturers
the ones who
did the dirty work
of chasing angels
will be allowed
to live and build

for they are the dead
to be raised
and they the dead raised
will be profoundest homage
to those they have harmed

we will walk naked
in the world
as the sun gently
touches our cocks and cunts
humming a tune so beautiful
that the dead poets
will come in their graves
and forever be at peace


steve ben israel

brooklyn

flunked out of high school
went back in the summer
and passed all 3 subjects
amazing, teachers must be
nicer in july and august
what now,18 years old now what
some friends out in k.u.
in kansas write me and say
come out here and I write
them back are you kidding
with my grades" they say
write them anyhow
and I do and they write
me back and say
are you kidding with your grades
but they give me a three month
trial period of three credits
in english

so I make my way to the land
of thank you and come back
and there in english I am asked
to write a paper on
henry david thoreau's walden pond
now reading and writing it down
was always tough for me
and still is, but I do it
and hand it in
a week later the papers
are marked and ready
the teacher is holding up
two papers in front of the class
he says this first paper shows
remarkable insight in to walden pond
but I am not quite sure what language
he wrote it in this other students paper
is grammatically perfect but I don¹t know
what he read,now the first paper was mine
a lot of red on yellow legal
and he hands it to me in front of
the entire class and I take the heat
hoping that the bell is going to ring
so I can go out and talk to a tree
who I know will tell me I am really ok
the bell rings so I make my way to
the door and the teacher says
steven can I see you for a momment
sure and I make my way to the front
of the class and the teacher says
steven ah are you a foreign student
and I say no I am from brooklyn

steve ben israel


not my real uncle

she invited me over to dinner for lisa bauer
at her uncles house in west berlin
she said he wasn't her real uncle
he a berlin police captain hid
seven jews in seven different houses
along with her mother and brother
for four years he provided food
medicine and security
they were hiding they were hidden
they were hidden they were hiding
the last day of the war
she emerged to the sunlight
and then raped by a drunken
russian liberator in the midst
of her joy and then stabbed
in her breast
later she became a pianist
and teacher and was a bright light
in a city with a wall around it
I went to her uncles house
for dinner along with the others
who called him uncle
every month he cooked dinner
when I met him he said" just call me uncle"
now that's an uncle

steve ben israel





star wars 1999


I won't be waiting on line and I don't need any tickets
because star wars is playing everywhere, especially on CNN
the military home shopping channel and every half hour,
James Earl Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, says,"this is CNN"
and I won't be picking up any action figures to this" new phanto menace"

because I remember April 29,1975 our sons first birthday,
and he's asleep and he doesn't know it when suddenly
he's awakened by another baby crying 6,000 miles away coming out
of the tv because I'm watching the NBC special "the evacuation of Saigon

the next picture was of the parents of the last American soldier
to die in that Vietnam war and they were both holding back their tears
as the father say's,"my son gave his life for his country"
I held our son even closer and realized how precious that moment was

a few years later a friend of mine says,"have you seen the
new star wars movie yet?" and I said "not me, pops, the last thing
I want to do is see a movie with the word war in it'

but that changed very quickly, when all of a sudden our son said
'daddy, daddy, we have to go see star wars, everybody I know
has seen star wars, we have to see star wars"
so we went to see star wars.
and I actually saw all three of those modern day swashbuckling
intergalactic sagas of good guys verses bad guys
and, actually the movies played for years on our son's floor
I was always avoiding stepping on luke Skywalker, princes laya,
Darth Vader,Han solo, Jaba the hut, chubacka the wookie,Yoda
r2d2 and cp30. I once spent an hour and a half on my knees
trying to find Yoda's cane and screamed out,"I found it, I found it,
I found Yoda's cane"

but know our son is twenty five and I think this time, together
we are going to skip this phantom menace
and go to the peace vigil out the 42nd street library
hoping that we are going to be joined by the liberals
and the conservatives the democrats and republicans
the left and the right because too many parents have cried
in this century for the children they have lost

steve ben israel 1999

In Memoriam: Sue Urbas

The sad notice below came to me from Harry Farkas.

Sue Urbas was a family friend, a community activist, an idealist, provocative, actively anti-war during the Vietnam era, early Free Press contributor, founding member of the community festival now known as Comfest, and many other things too numerous to mention here. Sue also had one of the friendliest smiles as seen in this photograph I took of her at Comfest 04. We will miss her -charlie

As most of you know our dear friend and sister Sue Urbas passed away last Saturday. I have been contacted by John Urbas and want to pass along the following:

A Memorial Gathering for Sue will be held at the Goodale Park Shelter House on Sunday, November 23, from 5 to 7 PM. Candy Watkins is assisting in organizing the memorial and can be contacted at Afoot765@cs.com.

Still tentative, but likely is a gathering later that evening at Dick's Den. Sue's earthly remains are in the process of cremation, though her spirit soars. An obituary will be published in the newspaper prior to the memorial.

Jodi Kushins has indicated a willingness to record stories about Sue either at this gathering or otherwise. She has also volunteered to assist with Sue's memorabilia. There is also a discussion on the Comfest Organizers Yahoo group regarding a permanent memorial to Sue, possibly at 16th and Waldeck. [Some of this duplicates info already on the Comfest Organizers Yahoo group.]

I am available if anyone requires additional information. I can be contacted at hfarkas@wowway.com

Our loss is great, but together we will remember Sue. Please pass this information along to anyone who might not have received it, especially those without email.

Best regards on this sad occasion,

Harry

Yvonne Gunner Photo Exhibit

Alan Fliegel - Yvonne Gunner - Studio Stu

Last month I was visiting my friends Alan Fliegel and Studio Stu in Kingston, New York. They introduced me to their friend, Yvonne, a photographer who is currently exhibiting black and white portraits at the 2/20 Gallery, in New York City.

Alan and his wife Lynn, own and run Babytoes, a business of handmade and hand painted kids and adults garments, in Phoenicia, NY. They also are co-owners of The Arts Upstairs, a gallery featuring many NY artists in their monthly, rotating exhibitions. We have featured Babytoes and the Arts Upstairs in this blog previously.

Studio Stu is a jazz virtuoso on the wash-tub bass, who performs regularly in that area of New York state. Friends of this blog have also read about him before.

If you happen to be in New York City anytime this November, check out Yvonne's Gallery show.
Learn more about all three of my wonderful creative friends by visiting their websites:

www.shotbygunner.com
www.babytoes.com
www.studiostu.biz

Columbus Womens Chorus perform Traveling Together

Hi Charlie,

While the polls are about to close on the west coast, I am distracting
myself by sending you this message about our fall 2008 concert.

The Columbus Women's Chorus will be performing
Traveling Together
Sunday, November 23
Trinity Episcopal Church
125 East Broad Street
Columbus
(southeast corner of Broad and Third Streets).

The silent auction starts at 2:30 PM and
The concert begins at 4:00 PM.

We will be joined by WINDSONG (a women's chorus from Cleveland).

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and retirees.

Please mark your calendar for this special show!
Thanks!

Krider and Smith Exhibit Photographs at Invisible Gallery

Chas Ray Krider: Days of Noir,
and
Kirk Richard Smith: Images from the Storm
November 7, 8, 9, 2008
10 - 5 pm
November 10 - 16, by appointment
614 327 2793
Opening Reception: Saturday, November 8, 2008, 6-10pm

Steve Ben Israel in a recent performance

Here's a new Youtube entry of a recent performance by Steve Ben Israel. Very hilarious. I'm especially grateful for his commitment to "cherrrr…". Don't know what that is? Check out the clip and find out. -charlie

Alan McLelland's new Fall Pics

Hello,

This is the fifth installment of the Radiance series. All photos where taken in various desolate and beautiful places in Ohio, Kentucky, New Mexico and Texas this year. Enjoy the charms of the Fall season and keep in touch!

-Alan

Radiance V

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eyelyft/sets/72157608288482037/show/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eyelyft

::: eye.lyft blogspot :::

http://eyelyft.blogspot.com/

Stealing America: Vote by Vote now available online

This documentary by Oscar-nominated, Emmy-winning filmmaker Dorothy Fadiman, narrated by Peter Coyote, is now premiering online. Will the 2008 Presidential Election stolen? The film presents many samples of evidence of questionable vote totals, illegal purging, machine "glitches" and more.
If, as many believe, they already stole it twice in a row, why couldn't they do it again?
See for yourself? www.stealingamerica.org

Sing Out the Vote, Octber 22

This note was sent to me by my friend Babette Gorman. Please note that my sister in law, Sally Fingerett of the Four Bitchin Babes was not included on the poster, but will definitively be a part of this - charlie

Dear Charlie,

Please help us Sing Out the Vote this Wednesday, October 22, at 7 PM, at the
Unitarian Church, 93 W. Weisheimer Rd in Clintonville.

Organizer Holly Near says, "A little tour has become a traveling music
festival for change, dedicated to serving the brave people of Ohio. 8 cities
and 18 singers will weave in and out as schedule allows. Singing Out the
Vote in Columbus are some of our country's finest social change artists.
Come get renewed, refueled, and inspired so we all go full tilt to election
day. Add your voice to the choir!"

Holly has info on the other Ohio stops on her website:
http://hollynear.com/concerts.html

Global Gallery has an additional location and they will have advance ticket
sales as well:
3535 North High Street, Clintonville. 614/262-5535.

The flyer is attached but all the text is quoted below, just in case you
have a problem with the attachment. I have added website information for
each of the artists so you can research them if you like.

SING OUT THE VOTE
A Suite for Change

Musicians on tour through Ohio to Sing Out the Vote will present a collage
of powerful social change songs written by participating artists, including:

Holly Near
http://hollynear.com/

Andre dos Santos Morgan
http://cdbaby.com/cd/adsm

emma's revolution
www.emmasrevolution.com

Sally Fingerett
http://www.sallyfingerett.com/

Laura Love
www.lauralove.net

John McCutcheon
www.folkmusic.com

Poet On Watch
www.poetonwatch.com

The Prince Myshkins
www.princemyshkins.com

Vanessa and Tamara Torres
www.vanessatorresmusic.com/splashpage/

Tory Trujillo (you need to copy and paste from http: to 158787317 at the end)
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=
158787317

Roy Zimmerman
www.royzimmerman.com


"We come to inspire, heal, motivate, energize; however we can be of use. We
want to support the dedicated people of Ohio who are determined to see that
there is a fair and representative election this time around."
-organizer of Sing Out the Vote, Holly Near

7:00 p.m. October 22, 2008
First Unitarian Church of Columbus in Clintonville
93 West Weisheimer Road
Columbus OH 43201

Tickets will be sold at:
Global Gallery in the Short North
682 North High Street
614-621-1744

Donations of $10.00 in cash or checks only.
Checks should be made out to Holly Near
with Sing Out The Vote on the memo line

Sing Out the Vote will be in Athens
7:00 p.m. October 24, 2008
at Arts West, 132 W State Street
******************************

**********

Hope to see you there!
Babette Gorman

PS. This is not a benefit for any campaign nor is it sponsored by the
Unitarian Church. Funds collected will go towards renting the church and
reimbursing the artists, who are donating their time, travel, and backs
(sleeping on couches).

Butterflies photographed by Mark Berger

Photographer Mark Berger, inspired by the yearly butterfly exhibit at the Columbus Conservatory, sent us the following three images. Enjoy!

-charlie

Green Vein Charaxes

Charaxes are among the fastest flying butterflies in the world, some reach speeds of nearly 40mph! They are nearly impossible to chase on the wing so catchers wait until they are at rest or sunning. Charaxes are highly desirable and they have extraordinary undersides richly designed and colorful.

Typically dwelling in medium and high altitude tropical African forests, members of the species prefer densely wooded areas and often fly high in the tree canopy. Such traits can make the species extremely difficult to catch unless one knows the secret to attracting the elusive butterflies.

Graphium agamemnon is a predominantly green and black tropical butterfly that belongs to the swallowtail family. The butterfly is also called Green Spotted Triangle, Tailed Green Jay or the Green Triangle. It is a common, non-threatened species native to India, Sri Lanka through Southeast Asia and into Australia.

Once found primarily close to wooded country where there is a fairly heavy rainfall, the Green Triangle is now very common at low elevations and regularly seen in gardens.

Strong and restless fliers, they are very active butterflies and flutter their wings constantly even when at flowers. They are seldom seen drinking from damp patches

Common Sargeant

Great Spangled Fritillary

Because we fought for them…

Harvey Wasserman is a friend I've known since high school days. He is also a well versed and often published author and social activist who often comes up with one or two wonderful ideas. Here's something he just recently came up with. Read below and enjoy.
-charlie

Harvey Wasserman

Because we fought for them my daughters have cast paper ballots
October 6, 2008

My daughters and I have cast paper ballots in the opening days of the 2008 presidential election. It was their first time voting in a presidential election.

That they have only voted with an African-American atop the Democratic ticket makes this doubly historic for them. The issue of race remains a great unknown in how things will turn out.

But so does the question of whether everyone who wants to vote can, and whether those votes will be accurately counted (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHiCFe2GBjk).

Four years ago this county tried to deny me the right to cast an absentee ballot. After four phone calls and some serious politicking, I finally did get a paper ballot, which I hand delivered to the election board. But was it counted?

My twins are now 21. On Friday, October 3, 2008, we drove to Veterans Memorial in downtown Columbus to cast our ballots under unique circumstances. For a full week, Ohio voters have been able to register and vote at the same time.

It took the focused efforts of thousands of election protection activists---and a legal defense team---to make happen this and other things suitable to a democracy. Such victories will define whether we get fair participation and a reliable vote count in November, and thus who will be the next president.

Since the stolen election of 2000 the Democratic Party and corporate media have studiously ignored the fact that we have been afflicted with an unelected president. A media-based recount in Florida showed Al Gore was the clear winner there eight years ago.

In violation of federal law, 56 of Ohio's 88 counties have destroyed election-related materials, making a comprehensive 2004 recount impossible. No one has been prosecuted. But those of us who watched first-hand how the 2004 election was conducted here know all too well that it was stolen in a "do everything" campaign that the Democratic Party still doesn't comprehend, and does not seem to want to acknowledge.

Nonetheless, we may be entering the 2008 contest in somewhat better shape. Independent reporting on the internet and some talk radio organizing, plus a few major books and articles in places like Rolling Stone and Harpers, have inspired a new grassroots movement for election protection.

We have won important victories, such as removing Ohio's infamous Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, the critical point man for Karl Rove's 2004 hijacking. We are pursuing Michael Connell, a shadowy Bush IT operative who has been accused by a Republican insider of working to rig this and other elections.

In Ohio, as many as a third of Ohio voters are casting their ballots early. By law a quarter of those coming to the polls will be able to get paper ballots (we are working to make them available to ALL who want them). As my cohort Bob Fitrakis puts it, the choice will be between paper or the plastic of voting machines.

But the specter of disenfranchisement and electronic theft still hangs over this election as a twin curse to endemic racism. Millions of Americans are being systematically eliminated from voter rolls in as many as 19 states. Most of these are inner city and other vulnerable voters known to be heavily Democratic. Among them are African-American soldiers stationed overseas.

Some 300,000 Ohioans were deleted from the registration rolls prior to the 2004 vote count. Had they all voted, John Kerry might have been in the White House these past four years. Another 170,000 were eliminated after 2004 in Franklin County (Columbus) alone.

Throughout the US, Republican operatives are working overtime to decimate the Democratic turnout. The Bush Administration has already fired nine federal prosecutors for refusing to conduct a bogus witch hunt against legitimate voters.

But other attacks are proceeding, and could make all the difference. You who claim concern about our electoral process might spend at least some of this next month monitoring election boards and guaranteeing that those who believe they are registered do not show up at the polls November 4 only to find they have been disenfranchised for the "crime" of leaning left.

We must also have zero tolerance for electronic voting machines. There may actually be thousands more of these election theft devices deployed throughout the US this year than ever before. As always, the big vendors are hiding their software from the public, claiming it is "proprietary."

But as registration activists, poll workers, judges, official observers and Video-the-Vote workers (see "Be a Poll Worker and Save American Democracy,"http://www.freepress.org/ departments/display/19/2008/3205) you may be in a position to exert critical leverage on access to decisions on software, hardware deployment and vote counting that could save thousands of legitimate ballots thoughout the US.

In our next article, Bob Fitrakis, Sheri Myers and I will write in detail about the history of electronic election theft and its long-time master of disenfranchisement, Karl Rove.

In the meantime, it's crucial to remember that favorable polling numbers will not guarantee a fair election. Carefully manipulated racism, plus mass disenfranchisement, rigging of electronic voting machines and additional Rovian dirty tricks are what brought us eight hellish years of George W. Bush. Without taking drastic grassroots action, they could be used again to tack on four more, from which it is not likely this nation would survive.

The good news is that we have won some victories. My daughters have voted in a safe, secure atmosphere, and there's a reasonable chance their ballots will be counted---along with millions more.

But to guarantee a full voter turnout, and a safe reliable, vote count, YOU must get involved. Visit The Free Press (http://freepress.org) and Poll Workers for Democracy (http://act.credoaction.com/pollworkers/index.html).

This year, there is no excuse. We know what has happened, and we know the consequences of inaction. See you in the army….of election protection workers.

--
Harvey Wasserman is co-author, with Bob Fitrakis, of four books on election protection which are available at www.freepress.org, where this article first appeared. His HARVEY WASSERMAN's HISTORY OF THE US is at www.harveywasserman.com along with SOLARTOPIA! OUR GREEN-POWERED EARTH, A.D. 2030.

=

Walk Now for Autism, October 12

This note came to me from my son's wife Christina. Aaron and Christina's daughter Cordy, who just turned 4 last month, is one of millions affected by autism, that mysterious and - s0 far incurable - developmental disorder. Cordy attends a special education program that has helped her tremendously. She is, of course, my beautiful, smart, sweet, kind and very polite grand-child, whom I adore. Research appears to be the best hope for combating this. (I think it's caused by millions of tons of pollutants we've dumped on this planet in the past 100 years!)
Cordy's parents are participating in a Walk Now for Autism event on October 12. They are hoping to raise money to be used for research. Please help. Read below for details. -charlie

Charlie,

Aaron and I are participating in Walk Now for Autism on Oct. 12 for Cordy. As you may know, autism is the second most common developmental disorder in the United States affecting one in every 150 children born today. Despite some promising discoveries, the cause of autism is unknown and a cure does not exist. Research is crucial.

Cordy has already benefited from the research that has been done so far, but she has a long way to go still, and is depending on further advances in therapy and genetic research for her own success in life. We are committed to making sure she has the best chance at a "normal" childhood.

Walk Now for Autism is our chance to make a difference in the fight against autism by raising money for autism research and heightening public awareness. Please join me in my fight as I raise $ 250 to help fund essential research. I will be walking on Oct. 12 and would like you to support those affected by autism.

You can donate to Walk Now for Autism and join my team online through my webpage at http://www.walknowforautism.org/columbus/personal/cmc. Donations can also be mailed to Autism Speaks using the donation form located on my page or send me a check made out to Autism Speaks. My team name is Cordelia, Warrior Princess; please note this on your check and the donation form.

Please join me in my fight against autism. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of the more than 1 million Americans living with autism today, including Cordy.

Sincerely,
Christina

http://www.walknowforautism.org/columbus/personal/cmc
Donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
Autism Speaks 501 (C)(3) Tax Id #: 20-2329938

MATCHING GIFT PROGRAM Many companies provide their employees with matching gifts. Please consult your employer on its matching gift guidelines and attach matching gift forms accordingly.
Follow this link to visit the team page for Cordelia, Warrior Princess.
Follow this link to visit Christina McMenemy's page.

Christina McMenemy

****************************************************************************
If you cannot see or click the link(s) in this email, copy and paste the URL(s) into your browser's address field:
http://www.walknowforautism.org/columbus/team/cordelia?faf=1&elid=1944472444
http://www.walknowforautism.org/columbus/personal/cmc?faf=1&elid=1944472444
****************************************************************************

Bill Cohen 1960's Coffee House

1960’s Coffeehouse To Benefit Food Pantries

Civil rights sit-ins. Bell-bottoms. Anti-war marches. Student Power. Afros. Mini-skirts. Hippies. Riots. Space flights. The generation gap.

Those hallmarks of the turbulent 1960’s will be rekindled Friday November 14 at this year’s annual “Spirit of the ‘60’s Coffeehouse”:

Friday November 14 7:30 p.m.

King Avenue Methodist Church
299 W. King at Neil in Columbus.

The show begins at 7:30 p.m. in the church basement, but get there early for a good seat.

Bill Cohen will lead a candlelit, musical, year-by-year journey through the era, with live folksongs, “news reports” of sixties happenings, displays of anti-war buttons and posters, and far-out sixties fashions.

Bill will also challenge the audience with sixties trivia questions, and he’ll award prizes (with a 1960’s theme) to those with the right answers.

Proceeds from the suggested $10 donations will go to the Mid-Ohio Food Bank. Refreshments will be available at no extra charge. Free parking is also available in the lots just South and West of the church.

The program is suitable for ADULTS and MATURE TEENS.

It’s the 23rd year of sixties coffeehouses for Bill. He’s performed the show more than a hundred times now at colleges, churches, synagogues, conferences, high schools, and middle schools across Ohio and beyond.

For more information, call Bill at (614) 263-3851.

Transit Arts exhibits Growing Our Dreams

The youth artists of TRANSIT ARTS invite you to a special exhibition and reception

GROWING OUR DREAMS
determination... seeds planted... germination...
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
5:30 - 7 pm
at

The Mid Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC)

111 Liberty Street, Suite 100

Columbus OH 43215

Special thanks to MORPC for hosting the works of TRANSIT ARTS throughout September and October.

For more information please contact TRANSIT ARTS at 614.252.3157 ext. 128, or visit www.transitarts.com or www.myspace.com/transitarts

Jackie Calderone

614.348.8975

jcalderone@calderonearts.com

Calderone Arts

www.myspace.com/calderonearts

www.calderonearts.com

TRANSIT ARTS

www.myspace.com/transitarts

www.transitarts.com

OSU Faculty Club Exhibits Paintings by Suzanne Eberle Jack

“EXUBERANCE”

Pastels and Paintings by Suzanne Eberle Jack

October 29 through December 19, 2008

ALL EXHIBITIONS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLLIC

Suzanne Eberle Jack is a national award winning artist whose works are part of major corporate collections. She graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Art Education and then earned a Master’s degree in Art Education from the University of Tennessee. Currently she is an art instructor at the Hardin Valley Academy in Knoxville, Tennessee.

The paintings and pastels of Suzanne Eberle Jack will be on display at The Ohio State University Faculty Club from October 29th through December 19, 2008.

Suzanne Eberle Jack’s return to OSU's campus -where she will attend an opening reception in her honor- will renew her memories of the 1969 football season as a cheerleader when Ohio State won the National Championship in the Rose Bowl.

Opening Reception
honoring Ms JacK
Friday, November 7
6:00 to 8:00PM
The Ohio State University Faculty Club
181 South Oval Mall
on the Columbus campus.
614-292-2262

More info?
email, barb@ohio-statefacultyclub.com
or the artist’s website: suzannejack.com.

Hot Times Festival 2008 images update

Here are some of my favorite images of Hot Times Festival 2008.

To see my entire slide show of over 100 pics, clink on this link

Three poems by Steve Ben Israel - Actor, Social Commentator, Poet

Award winning actor, performer, social commentator, poet, raconteur, and all-around good guy Steve Ben Israel sent three vignettes below. Steve is often heard delivering wry, relevant commentary on NPR. In this photo, (taken by Fernando Leon) he accepted an Obie award.

I met Steve at an all-night diner in the lower east side of NY city, several years ago, introduced by my long-time friend Stan. We talked, dank coffee, schmoozed, listened to his fabulous tales and enjoyed it enough to consider the evning memorable.

Please enjoy three short poems below told with a bit of New York irony, followwed by two short Youtube videos showcases.
--------------------------
brooklyn

flunked out of high school
went back in the summer
and passed all 3 subjects
amazing, teachers must be
nicer in july and august
what now,18 years old now what
some friends out in k.u.
in kansas write me and say
come out here and I write
them back are you kidding
with my grades" they say
write them anyhow
and I do and they write
me back and say
are you kidding with your grades
but they give me a three month
trial period of three credits
in english

so I make my way to the land
of thank you and come back
and there in english I am asked
to write a paper on
henry david thoreau's walden pond
now reading and writing it down
was always tough for me
and still is, but I do it
and hand it in
a week later the papers
are marked and ready
the teacher is holding up
two papers in front of the class
he says this first paper shows
remarkable insight in to walden pond
but I am not quite sure what language
he wrote it in this other students paper
is grammatically perfect but I don¹t know
what he read,now the first paper was mine
a lot of red on yellow legal
and he hands it to me in front of
the entire class and I take the heat
hoping that the bell is going to ring
so I can go out and talk to a tree
who I know will tell me I am really ok
the bell rings so I make my way to
the door and the teacher says
steven can I see you for a momment
sure and I make my way to the front
of the class and the teacher says
steven ah are you a foreign student
and I say no I am from brooklyn

steve ben israel


not my real uncle

she invited me over to dinner for lisa bauer
at her uncles house in west berlin
she said he wasn't her real uncle
he a berlin police captain hid
seven jews in seven different houses
along with her mother and brother
for four years he provided food
medicine and security
they were hiding they were hidden
they were hidden they were hiding
the last day of the war
she emerged to the sunlight
and then raped by a drunken
russian liberator in the midst
of her joy and then stabbed
in her breast
later she became a pianist
and teacher and was a bright light
in a city with a wall around it
I went to her uncles house
for dinner along with the others
who called him uncle
every month he cooked dinner
when I met him he said" just call me uncle"
now that's an uncle

steve ben israel





star wars 1999


I won't be waiting on line and I don't need any tickets
because star wars is playing everywhere, especially on CNN
the military home shopping channel and every half hour,
James Earl Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, says,"this is CNN"
and I won't be picking up any action figures to this" new phanto menace"

because I remember April 29,1975 our sons first birthday,
and he's asleep and he doesn't know it when suddenly
he's awakened by another baby crying 6,000 miles away coming out
of the tv because I'm watching the NBC special "the evacuation of Saigon

the next picture was of the parents of the last American soldier
to die in that Vietnam war and they were both holding back their tears
as the father say's,"my son gave his life for his country"
I held our son even closer and realized how precious that moment was

a few years later a friend of mine says,"have you seen the
new star wars movie yet?" and I said "not me, pops, the last thing
I want to do is see a movie with the word war in it'

but that changed very quickly, when all of a sudden our son said
'daddy, daddy, we have to go see star wars, everybody I know
has seen star wars, we have to see star wars"
so we went to see star wars.
and I actually saw all three of those modern day swashbuckling
intergalactic sagas of good guys verses bad guys
and, actually the movies played for years on our son's floor
I was always avoiding stepping on luke Skywalker, princes laya,
Darth Vader,Han solo, Jaba the hut, chubacka the wookie,Yoda
r2d2 and cp30. I once spent an hour and a half on my knees
trying to find Yoda's cane and screamed out,"I found it, I found it,
I found Yoda's cane"

but know our son is twenty five and I think this time, together
we are going to skip this phantom menace
and go to the peace vigil out the 42nd street library
hoping that we are going to be joined by the liberals
and the conservatives the democrats and republicans
the left and the right because too many parents have cried
in this century for the children they have lost

steve ben israel 1999

Riverfront Art Festival is new name & location for former Goodale Park Art Fest

Columbus, OH— This weekend there will be almost no empty space between COSI and the west bank of the Scioto in Genoa Park. That’s because the Riverfront Art Festival will debut with nearly 150 local, regional, and national artists along with plenty of food and entertainment.

The Riverfront Art Festival is the new incarnation of the Goodale Park Art Festival, which had been one of Columbus’s fastest growing festivals. After outgrowing the parking at its former location, the festival looked to the Riverfront, where parking is plentiful and attendees will have the opportunity to savor the artwork’s surprises while taking in the city’s skyline and mingling with fellow art lovers.

Organized by Jay Snyder, the former producer of Columbus Winterfair, the Riverfront Art Festival will feature every imaginable kind of fine art & craft ranging from decorative oil paintings and sculptures, to functional ceramics and jewelry. “With all of these artists, you are sure to find something that expresses your own unique taste,” said Snyder, “and every artist has a story - when you take that work home with you, you take home the story along with it.”

With free admission, you will have a hard time finding an excuse to miss this incredible close to downtown’s festival season. On Saturday, the incomparable WaterFire will be conducting its final burn of 2008 as a part of the Riverfront Art Festival’s full entertainment schedule. The amphitheater will also feature local and regional musical acts throughout the weekend.

The Riverfront Art Festival will be open Friday, September 19, 2008 from 5 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.; Saturday, September 20, 2008 from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; and Sunday, September 21, 2008 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information log on to www.riverfrontartfestival.com or www.waterfirecolumbus.com.

###

Pot Luck at Arts Upstairs Gallery

This came from my friends Alan and Lynn Fliegel who live in Phoenecia in the Catskill Mountains of New York. They were in town with a booth at the Ho Times festival this past weekend.

The Arts Upstairs Gallery, 60 Main St., Phoenicia, NY 12464, WWW.ArtsUpstairs.Com, 688-2142 Announces:

Art Opening for show theme entitled, "Pot Luck"
Opening, Saturday September 20, 6 to 9 + PM
Group Show including the works of assemblage artist Judith Singer in the Solo Room
contact person: Alan Fliegel, info@artsupstairs or 688-2142