The Dalai Lama recently criticized Tibetan violence on both sides and said that if it continued that he would resign as the Tibetan Exile Governments political leader. He is under some pressure from impatient younger Tibetans who want full independence now and are willing to fight for it.

An excellent article by Gabriel Lafitte at NewMatilda.com, advisor to the Tibetan Government in Exile, about the protests and riots, and what it means to the Tibetans themselves. What follows is his article in full (reprinted with permission).

The Tibetan revolt, like those of two and five decades ago, will be crushed by the overwhelming might of the Chinese military. No match could be more unequal: maroon-clad nuns and monks versus the machinery of oppression of the global rising power. In recent months, fast-response mobile tactical squads whose sole purpose is to quell the masses have been overtly rehearsing on the streets of Tibetan towns for just what they are now doing.

What is the point of revolt if it is almost certainly suicidal

(GNU license from wikimedia)

A friend of mine died yesterday, Valentines Day morning. She was at home surrounded by her sisters and held by her husband at the moment her body failed, as they sang to her and prayed. I sat in the hallway a few feet away and listened but did not impose myself to take up precious space at her bedside. She had pancreatic cancer that had remitted and recurred. Pain medication partially worked in the last few days, providing her hours or minutes of unconsciousness at a time but not in the final hour and a half of her life. Although unresponsive, she cried out strongly and often. Drowning finally ended her pain.

The Secretary of State of New Hampshire has announced that they will do a statewide recount. Finally a state is taking sane steps to reassure its people that they in fact participated in a valid election and putting the controversy to rest. It's about time. A lot of people here and elsewhere were shouted down as conspiracy nuts because they suspected otherwise. I am puzzled and a bit angry that it is controversial for progressives to insist on anything less than mandatory recounts of paper ballots in all elections for at least a random selection of districts. The burden is on the state to prove that the election results are correct, yet I read person after person insisting that we should be quiet. It is "lunacy" to think that the burden of proof rests on the citizen.

This is a project that was completed and submitted for review the day before the events at Virginia Tech. It is focused on theory and situational forces on middle and high school adolescents since that is where the majority of school shooters have come from. In that respect it is less applicable to Cho but many will find that some of the underlying factors in this case and school shootings in general are more understandable in light of this paper. I highly recommend viewing the original and complete piece with pictures here. This was a team project and the other two members prefer to remain anonymous.

This is the third and final part and covers research and real solutions. Please first read part1 and part2. One of the solutions, the Jigsaw Classroom, was the inspiration for the title.

Once again, keep in mind that this was written before the events at Virginia Tech, but we think you will find it useful none the less.

Cross-posted elsewhere.

This is a project that was completed and submitted for review the day before the events at Virginia Tech. It is focused on theory and situational forces on middle and high school adolescents since that is where the majority of school shooters have come from. In that respect it is less applicable to Cho but many will find that some of the underlying factors in this case and school shootings in general are more understandable in light of this paper. I highly recommend viewing the original and complete piece with pictures here. This was a team project and the other two members prefer to remain anonymous.

Once again, keep in mind that this was written before the events at Virginia Tech, but we think you will find it useful none the less.

Before going on, please read part1. This is the 2nd of 3 parts and is a tough piece emotionally since it looks directly at horrifying cases of school shootings. The next and last part tomorrow will cover research and proven practical solutions.

Cross-posted elsewhere.

This is a project that was completed and submitted for review the day before the events at Virginia Tech. It is focused on theory and situational forces on middle and high school adolescents since that is where the majority of school shooters have come from. In that respect it is less applicable to Cho but many will find that some of the underlying factors in this case and school shootings in general are more understandable in light of this paper. I highly recommend viewing the original and complete piece with pictures here. This was a team project and the other two members prefer to remain anonymous. It will be posted in three parts.

Once again, keep in mind that this was written before the events at Virginia Tech, but we think you will find it useful none the less.

I've been caught up in the rush of GOTV stuff but I got a phone call today that really ticked me off.  

I'm recovering from god-knows-what from doing aid work in S. India and decided to take a Community College course in Developmental Psychology rather than lay around.  It's a small CC in Walla Walla, Washington, which is somewhat rural and very conservative.

The instructor seemed to have a anti-choice bias but nothing pointed until the 3rd class when we were covering fetal deveopment.

It's time people!  We are closing in with less than 4 weeks left until the elections on November 7th.  We are up against a well oiled, well manned, well funded Republican machine.  If you haven't already, it's time to get in gear and volunteer in what ever way you can.
This one is for all the marbles!

On Thursday, August 3, 2006, ErrinF wrote an historic GBCW diary, the blog equivalent of a goatse and the reaction was enormous.

Can anyone else feel the change of season?  The harsh winter breaking?  I've seen a glimpse of the sun.  It might even be safe to go outside after a while.  Or more likely, we've been banished to the elements, have survived and are now eyeing the house we once lived in.

(hope and mayhem on the flip)