Dove & Pigeon

Is Barack Obama President Yet?

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:01:24 -0800

Is Barack Obama President Yet?

Service Nation

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 01:29:04 -0800

Service Nation:

Important.

Group moves homeless people into foreclosed homes - Boing Boing

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:05:41 -0800

Group moves homeless people into foreclosed homes - Boing Boing:

Homes are meant to be lived in. You know, because otherwise we’re just like primates. Outside and shit. It may not last in the long run, but this kind of action points out the disparity in how America thinks about housing. This will come to Seattle, and very soon, I imagine.

Will it ever stop?

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 00:09:33 -0800

Will it ever stop?:

Best Headline I’ve Ever Seen

It’s true, I think the snow has put everyone on a crazy edge. Like, we’re still saying, ‘Oh yay, isn’t it pretty? And to think *some* places have this all Winter long! Hah hah, hah!’ but in a forced way, now. Because the buses are down, the taxis are gone, and good golly Miss Molly, there’s a damned FOOT OF SNOW ON THE GROUND. Snowpocalypse, indeed!

Deep Freeze In Seattle

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 02:03:07 -0800

Deep Freeze In Seattle:

The most disheartening thing is that in the comments, no one mentions the homeless. It’s all about the fickle forecasters and how much it sucks when the city shuts down. What about when you’re sleeping in a doorway?

Seattle Times on 5th Nickelsville Move

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:30:35 -0800

Seattle Times on 5th Nickelsville Move:

The church is, understandably, anxious to clarify that hosting Nickelsville is not, for them, meant to be a political act. Is human right to shelter ‘political’? Is taking a stand for this basic human right only to viewed in terms of ‘politics’? When a community sees a need, calls for action and is ignored because it’s easy for those in power to do, does it not have the right to provide for itself?

I understand that the church is acting out its mission, and that’s commendable. But I want to look at it like this: We live in a reality where basic right to shelter needs to be a political act in order to come into existence. University Congregational has the right idea, as do so many other faith communities and their myriad of works in the name of social justice, in that they are simply called to help Nickelsville.

Why aren’t we all?

Where it all started for me in June 2006. Bread and Roses...

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 01:03:43 -0800

Where it all started for me in June 2006.

Bread and Roses Advocacy Center, OlyWa

CityTeam Ministries Shelter Running Out of Money: May Shut Down

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 21:17:36 -0800

CityTeam Ministries Shelter Running Out of Money: May Shut Down

Homelessness - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 01:06:04 -0800

Homelessness - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

It’s a bit of a read, but I feel like it’s well said.

Food stamp applications up in Washington

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:58:57 -0800

Food stamp applications up in Washington:

Everyone needs food. What happens when you can’t afford it?

Everyone needs shelter. What happens when you’re priced out of it?

The Stranger | Slog | CTA Cracks Down on Homeless

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:54:00 -0800

The Stranger | Slog | CTA Cracks Down on Homeless:

On riding the bus at night to keep safe and dry. What really gets me is not the story itself, but the comments of Slog readers. Seattle: Not too liberal to not be fucking classist a-holes!

People

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 18:41:00 -0800

I don’t want to sound like I think I’m the only one in the world who knows this, but I see enough people being jerks to other people that it bears repeating:

There is no difference between you and me.

Nor is there any difference between you and that other person standing over there.

Or between me and that one guy in Cameroon.

Or between him and the homeless woman standing on the corner sparing for change in downtown Seattle.

I refer you to the quote preceeding this post. It isn’t a very hard concept to wrap one’s brain around, yet everywhere I go, everything I was taught, everything that popular culture reinforces is a belief that there *is* a difference between people.

I look at it like this: Pigeons and doves are the same bird. All that differentiates them is the viewer’s perspective. People think pigeons are dirty, yet doves represent peace. People associate pigeons with the streets, with garbage, with bird poop. Guess what? Doves shit, too. It’s the same with people.

"Your Honor, years ago I recognized my kinship with all living beings, and I made up my mind that I..."

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 22:57:03 -0800

“Your Honor, years ago I recognized my kinship with all living beings, and I made up my mind that I was not one bit better than the meanest on earth. I said then, and I say now, that while there is a lower class, I am in it, and while there is a criminal element I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”

- Eugene V. Debs

The Criminalization of Homelessness

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:16:20 -0800

The Criminalization of Homelessness

Me on Election night.

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:06:00 -0800

Me on Election night.