Thanksgiving

Sent to me by a dear friend...

A Prayer for those who have too Much
Sr. Joyce Rupp
Servite Sr. Joyce Rupp wrote this prayer
after visits to Guatemala and Liberia
o my brothers and sisters in developing countries;
While I was deciding which oat bran cereal to eat this morning, you were searching the ground for leftover grains from the passing truck.
While I was jogging at the health center, you were working in the wealthy landowner’s fields under a scorching sun. While I was choosing between diet and regular soda, your parched lips were yearning for the touch of water.
While I complained about the poor service in the gourmet restaurant, your were gratefully receiving a bowl of rice.
While I poured my ‘fresh and better detergent’ in the washing machine, you stood in the river with your bundle of clothes. While I watched the evening news on my wide screen television set, you were terrorized and taunted by a dictatorship government.
While I read the newspaper and drank my cup of steaming coffee, you walked the dusty, hot miles to the tiny, crowded schoolroom to try to learn how to read.
While I scanned the ads for a bargain on an extra piece of clothing, you woke up and put on the same shirt and pants that you have worn for many months.
While I built a 14-room house for the three of us, your family of 10 found shelter in a one-room hut.
While I went to church last Sunday and felt more slightly bored, you looked upon the earth and those around you and felt gratitude to God for being alive for one more day.
My brothers and sisters, forgive me for my arrogance and my indifference.
Forgive me for not doing my part to change the unjust systems that keep you suffering and impoverished.
I offer you my promise to become more aware of your situation and to change my lifestyle as I work for transformation of our world.
(From Xaverian Mission Newsletter)

So if you've got a dream and a lot to do....

What I'm listening to. So appropriate for Stand Up, Speak Out next month...

http://flobots.com/

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Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up We shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

We still don't understand thunder and lightning
Flash back to when we didn't fund the dam
Didn't fund the dam levee? No wonder man
Now our whole damn city's torn asunder man
Under water but we still don't understand
We see hurricane spills overrun the land
Through gaps you couldn't fill with a 100 tons of sand
No we still don't understand
We've seen planes in the windows of buildings crumbled in
We've seen flames send the chills through London
And we've sent planes to kill them and some of them were children
But still we crumbling the building
Underfunded but we still don't understand
Under God but we kill like the son of Sam
But if you feel like I feel like about the son of man
We will overcome

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up We shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
Except by a freedom fighter bleeding on a cross for you
We shall not be moved
Except by a system thats rotten through
Neglecting the victims and ordering the cops to shoot
High treason now we need to prosecute

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
And we won't fight a war for fossil fuel
Its times like this that you want to plot a coup
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Unless were taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up

Now shake, shake
A Polaroid dream
nightmare negatives develop on the screen
We sit back and wait for the government team
Criticize they but who the fuck are we
The people want peace but the leaders want war
Our neighbors don't speak, peek through the front door
House representatives preach "stay the course"
Time for a leap of faith
Once More

Put your hands up high if you haven't abandoned
Hope that the pen strokes stronger than the cannon
Balls to the wall, Nose to the grindstone
My interrogation techniques leave your mind blown
So Place your bets lets speak to the enemy
Don't let em pretend that we seek blood
And who's we anyways Kemo Sabe?
Mighty warlord wanna-be street thug
a threat for a threat leaves the whole world terrified
blow for blow never settles the score
word for word is time need clarify
We the people did not want war

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Unless were taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up
[ Stand Up Lyrics on http://www.lyricsmania.com/ ]

If You Take a Mouse to DC

For any activist parents out there, a friend and I were joking about how- if you are successful- every step of lobbying seems to lead to more craziness and work. Like the Laura Numeroff "If you give a mouse a cookie" books:

If you take a mouse to a congressional face-to-face meeting, you're going to have to create a presentation and good leave-behind docs.

If your U.S. Representative likes your message and leave-behinds, you'll have to follow up with her staff.

If her staff completes your requests, you should generate media in her district.

If your media gets published, you'll have send it to all related MOC's with handwritten letters, email it to their aides, distribute it to your activist partners and you'll want to invite your local friends to respond to it with letters to the editor.

If they get published, they'll probably get excited and want to go to your rep's town hall meeting with you to ask a question.

If the question gets run on TV with her response, your rep might want to capitalize on the publicity and take action quickly with her colleagues, which means you should get your activist partners in their districts to call on their reps, too.

If enough reps and senators back the issue, you may get your resolution or funding passed.

If your legislation gets passed, you may get invited to the White House to meet the President at a Rose Garden ceremony with Bono and Jeffery Sachs for your part in fighting extreme poverty.

If you get friendly with Bono and Sachs, they'll probably take you to Africa to teach you more about the crushing need for advocacy in eradicating extreme poverty.

If you meet a lot of people living on less than $1 a day and take the time to understand their struggles, then you'll want to help them by taking their stories to people with the power to change things...

....which means you should probably set up a congressional face-to-face meeting! :)

Snackin' with Jerome McDonnell of Worldview

Yesterday, I had a wonderful opportunity to go down to the Chicago Public Radio studio on Navy Pier and enjoy some great conversation about activism and world hunger. Our wonderful Chicago Bread for the World staff put together a program where we could meet Jerome McDonnell, host of Worldview. What a warm and wonderful individual! We got to hear about how Worldview came about, his goals for the program and insights on his hosting philosophy. BFW passed out white papers on the upcoming global poverty issues we are advocating about and we had time for some lively discussion about the state of poverty in the world.

Which brings me to a story about me re-learning a fundamental lesson: you don't get to stop paying attention even when you're out of college! Some of you seem to particularly enjoy personal stories about my missteps on this journey, so here it is:

WBEZ had really rolled out the red carpet for us with a wonderful lunch, a conference room with a phenomenal view of Lake Michigan (on a particularly beautiful spring day), and ample time with Jerome. I firmly told myself "Less talking, more listening!!" as there were many people there I could learn from. Conversation ranged from micro-loans to Share Our Soles to the Farm Bill. I was basking in the conversation, heady with that mid-afternoon I'm-playing-hooky-in-the-middle-of-the-day feeling because I was getting to hear about all this good stuff instead of the normal lunch conversation I usually engage in. I was on the edge of my seat learning all this new stuff, but when they turned to the Farm Bill, I suppose my brain sort of drifted since I have a handle on that after advocating on it for a year. I allowed my mind to sort of drift through the window and down to those lovely boats on the lake. Vaguely aware that someone was asking Jerome what he had done on the show on the Farm Bill and Jerome was wanting to know what we wanted, suddenly I was pulled back by our Bread coordinator turning to me and saying, "You're an advocate. Why don't you take this one?" To which my brain (not my mouth, thankfully) responded, "Boats???" My moment and I was missing it! I came up with an answer that hit on the main topics, but it was definitely on the rambling side and might have come off like I was telling Mr. McDonnell how to run his show after giving it 2 milliseconds of thought! Fortunately, I saw him later that night at the Expo and got a chance to follow up with him. So, the take away is, if you're going to bother to become educated on a topic and advocate about it...be prepared to do so at any time!

Anyway, that aside, it really was a great afternoon followed by the Global Activism Expo that night filled with orgs and people with the common goal of making the world a better place. An uplifting day overall!

Oprah's Big Give & Giving w/ Strings Attached

While channel surfing, I stumbled upon something that turned my stomach. There a lot of irritating shows out there, but I shortly discovered I was watching Oprah's Big Give. Now, I'm pretty ambivalent about Oprah. I don't watch her talk show and know only the obvious things about her. When I heard about her Big Give show, I didn't think much about it one way or another. I did think it might draw some attention to philanthropy in general, but I knew it would be very commercial and very self-promoting for everybody involved so I wasn't too interested. But I didn't know it would be as tacky and demeaning as what I saw.

I went to the web later to find out the rules of what I had been watching. Each person was given $100,000 and 24 hrs to give it all away. The contestants had to "dream up most dramatic, most exciting,most creative way" of spreading their wealth. The catch was that they couldn't give away cash, couldn't spend more than $500 on any one person, and couldn't spend more than $10,000 in any one place. I tuned in to see one of the contestants go to Target, find a bunch of people and tell them they had 5 min (or was it 10?) to run around the store and spend $500. People were running, sweating, being yelled at by the Big Give contestant and generally acting really desperate in front of the camera. Then, the contestant and the Big Give crew found the most down on their luck family to interview. It was a family living in a shelter who seemed to truly need the break and were very appreciative. I have no beef with the actions of the family. It was the fact that the contestant set up these stupid rules which made the family scramble around for the amusement of the masses. The dad was literally drenched in sweat from having to run all over the place and trying to give his daughter some life advice about being in the right place at the right time. But in the process of helping people, was it necessary to make them scramble around in a maze of limitations to find basic necessities when their lives are probably rather like that metaphor all the time? Sure, it's nice to give people a boost, but wouldn't those people be able to be more thoughtful about getting what they really need without a ridiculous time constraint? The editors chose a lot of pictures of babies to get viewers worked up about their needs that would be met. But any mother with a child about to melt down can tell you from experience that you cannot thoughtfully spend $500 to fulfill your baby's needs in 5 or 10 minutes. Yes, it is a kindness to give to people, but it should not be with attached strings that unduly impose more stress and hardship on those whose lives might already seem like a futile race to artificial deadlines.

Why are food bank donations down?

The Gleaner’s Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan reported a 35% decline in overall donations in 2007. In Washington, DC last month, the Capital Area Food bank supplies were down 60% compared to a year ago. The story is the same everywhere, including my local Niles Food Pantry: Less available food at food pantries. Images of empty shelves at food banks are evidence of what we don’t see…empty refrigerators and empty bellies. In a land of plenty, why is this happening? Here are 5 reasons why donations have dramatically declined:

1. Increase in demand: America’s Second Harvest’s member food pantries have seen demand increases nationwide, sometimes as high as 20%.
2. Strong farm economy: Drought and strong international markets reduced food surplus for the government to buy cheaply. This was great for farmers, but bad for a system reliant upon bonus commodities to feed the hungry. In five years, the U.S. Department of Agriculture steadily decreased its purchase of surplus food from $200 million to an estimated $58million.
3. Fewer damaged goods from manufacturers: Increased efficiency conserves money and resources. Yet salvage products, edible food in damaged packaging, are a significant source of donations. At the Greater Chicago Food Depository, these contributions have fallen by 42% since 2004.
4. Decrease in grocery store donations: Better controls over store-ordering procedures reduce overstock and donations. Supermarket chain consolidation also decreases giving opportunities.
5. Inflation: Support for the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) is re-authorized only every five years. $140 million todays doesn’t buy as much as it did in 2002.

The accumulated effects of these trends are devastating to thousands of individuals and families. So the question remains: ‘What can we do?’
- Pass a strong nutrition title in the U.S. Farm Bill. Congress can increase support for TEFAP and the Food Stamp Program.
- Develop community hunger relief projects: City wide programs like Chicago’s “One City, One Food Drive” promote awareness while making it easy for everyone to participate. Any community group can hold a food drive.
- Make personal donations: Local food banks or America’s Second Harvest can make your money go further than your food donations. They buy more food per dollar than individuals and know the needs of their patrons.
- Increase corporate giving: Businesses can make financial or in-kind donations. More food manufacturers can donate salvage products. Restaurants, grocery stores, and caterers can participate in food rescue programs, which re-distribute perishable and prepared foods.

The desperation felt by someone turned away empty-handed from a food pantry is hard to fathom in the midst of abundance. Yet it is a growing reality. The good news is that this problem can be overcome. With even modest acts of compassion and political action we can move nourishing food to food bank shelves and then into homes where it belongs.

A letter to Obama

I emailed this to Obama's office and the Chicago Trib today...
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Dear Mr. Obama,

I don’'t know how else to get your attention. I’'ve written you letters about the U.S. Farm Bill re-authorization. I'’ve left you messages at your office urging you to protect poor and hungry people against the aims of the agribusiness rich to get richer. (Thank you for your eloquent responses agreeing with my views.) I’'ve sent you money to help you win the office without the help of Big Lobby Money. And yet, when the strongest measure for farm bill reform appeared for a senate vote on December 11...you were gone. In Iowa, I believe. You talk about grassroots movements and improving lives, but when it comes to voting on what could be the U.S.’'s biggest poverty fighting tool, your record listed "“not voting.”" Thank goodness Mr. Durbin didn’'t have any pressing engagements, so he could vote "“yes.”"

There are still amendments left this week to put limits on commodity payments and strengthen nutrition, food stamps and school lunch programs. Mr. Obama, I think I want you to be my president, but right now I really need you to be my senator.

(By the way, I know Ms. Clinton didn'’t vote either, but she’'s not my senator.)

Reflections on the Rolling Fast

Yesterday was the day I participated in Bread for the World's rolling fast. Members fasted on different days between 9/6-10/15 to pray & fast as witness against global poverty. This was the 1st time I'd fasted for a cause instead of a holy day tradition. It was also the first time as a mom.

First off, I'll confess. I broke the fast. Early in the day. My toddler grabbed a bagel & without thinking I broke it in chunks for her and ate what she didn't eat. Ack! Not even 9:30AM! I was disappointed, but I didn't scrap the whole day. I thought about why it happened. The key here is "without thinking." Too many times, eating is a habit and not even enjoyable. Did I want it? Was I hungry? Was the bagel yummy? healthy? no, no, no, kinda. How blessed I am that food is often available to me for free! How irresponsible that I would shove it into my bagel-hole without thought of gratitude or need. The only redeeming thing is that my act stemmed from not wanting to waste. But in general, when food is eaten without thought or consious choice it leads to waste, overweightness, and separation from natural & spiritual order. Moving on, I was hypersensitive and extra prayerful. Not in the "Don't smite me" way, but the "Help us to help others" way. And it got easier.

Until lunch. I've never prepared food while fasting before. Additionally, my youngest fell asleep and missed lunch, so I had to do it twice. Each time, I was aware of how I usually eat with them, taste everything before they do, eat portions they won't. Each time, I listened to their happy smackings, tried to write my senators, & thought about parents who sacrifice every day like that. And then dinner came. By then I was irritable because I was hungry and ashamed at my irritability. When I first worked at a soup kitchen, I had the audacity to wonder why some homeless people were snappish with those trying to help. I've understood more over the years, but watching my kids eat while hungry myself gave me an emotional taste of the frustration the poor feel all the time.

Despite my failing in the morning, it was my best fasting experience. The reflections were deeper, the prayers more sincere, letters to Congress were mailed and I am even more committed to my work than before!

Bread for the World Update: Support Rural Communities

A message from Bread for the World...
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It’s been said that the US farm bill should actually be named the “rural development bill” because it provides much of the federal support for rural areas. As the 2007 farm bill takes shape in Congress, Bread for the World is calling for broad reform. A key component of our Offering of Letters campaign is to strengthen rural communities.

The farm bill originated during the Great Depression to help people in rural areas. Today, the goal remains the same, but the rural landscape has changed dramatically. In the 1930’s, nearly 25% of the US population worked in agriculture. Now, less than 2% of all Americans work on farms, and most rural jobs are in service industries. So commodity payment programs- a major component to the farm bill- cannot be a substitute for wider rural development efforts. To remain true to its original intent, the farm bill needs to expand its programs to support rural America in its reality today.

Hunger and poverty are more common in rural areas, and many rural counties have lost population as people move away for better jobs and services. Mines, factories and big box stores open and close contributing to “boom and bust” cycles. To break this cycle, it’s essential to promote entrepreneurship and strengthen infrastructure. In the past, funds authorized for rural water quality, firefighters and other vital services have been meager and sometimes non-existent.

There’s no quick solution for rural challenges. But many strategies show promise- from increasing entrepreneurship and attracting a diverse business base to improving access to technology. Previously, rural development programs have generally been small and low priority. Bread for the World is urging Congress to give rural development greater visibility and more resources. Only then, will more rural communities be able to find solutions that work.

"How do the hungry get to the gates of the weathly?"

Something inspirational for a change! Words to move us to advocacy. An excerpt of a sermon at the Interfaith Convocation on Hunger.
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"There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. There was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who was laid at his gate, full of sores, desiring to ve fed with the crumbs, which fell from the rich man's table..." Luke 16:19-21

Deliberate pairing is part of this story. The poor man was brought to the gate of the rich man, not just once but daily. Persistent effort. Who will bring the poor, in this country and around the world, to the attention of people of plenty? Who will bring the poor to Congress? Who will bring the poor to the attention of the executive office? Who will bring the poor to the attention of the religious community? Television brings the gates of the rich to the dwellings of the poor. But how do the poor, how do the hungry get to the gates of the wealthy?

The poor are people. They sufffer the ravages of poverty: hunger, bad health. All of these things need to be addressed. In order to do that it's going to take more than an act of charity. It's going to take some drastic action. Those of us who are people of faith and claim to follow our Lord need to look at what he did. For the record says that he who was rich, for our sake became poor and dwelt among us. He did so not just for a little bit of change, but so that we might share in the fullness of life that was his and that is desired for all of us.

-Dr William Shaw, president to the National Baptist Convention, USA

Farm Bill News FAQ: "what happened?" "what's with the Dems?" "Is it over?"

In the interest of timeliness, I previously copied a few detailed articles I found that summed up farm bill news. But I've had a few very good questions that I'll try to answer concisely.

"So...what happened exactly? Did our call-ins work?"
Yes and no. The bad news is that the farm subsidy program is largely unchanged. Under this Farm Bill version, large farms will continue to get most of the subsidies while farmers of modest means will continue to struggle. Developing countries will be locked out of selling their products. The WTO may sue us over cotton subsidies. So, that didn't work. But the good news is that to get that passed, the Status Quo reps had to sweeten the pot for the on-the-fencer's by giving more food stamp assistance, nutrition stuff, rural development and conservation programs. So, that part did work. The bummer is that those nice things might not actually get funded. If the subsidy part had been cut more, the money could have come from there.

"I don't understand why so many Democrats voted against the reform amendment and for the Farm Bill. What do you think?"
Dems are having a really hard time keeping together on this one. They're trying to hold their majority and show they can run Congress effectively. A powerful "farm bloc" feels strongly about keeping subsidies high although it flies in the face of what democrats stand for. These reps are backed by large farms that eat up most of the subsidy payments and they don't want to lose support. Rep Zack Space from Ohio is an example. He's a freshman Dem rep, outspoken in saying things like "my constituents are pretty comfortable with things the way they are." Meaning: those with clout to get him replaced with a Republlican are happy with fat subsidies. Poor constituents with no influence are probably not happy at all. I've also heard some Dem reps personally receive those subsidies. A legal conflict of interest?

"Why are Republicans against the Farm Bill?"
In order to pay for the last minute adds, a tax on foreign countries- that can be used as tax havens for US subsidiaries- was put in that has the GOP against the bill. Republicans cite this as a partisan move to add taxes to what was a bipartisan bill.

"Is it over?"
Oh no. Things aren't looking great, but this thing is far from over. The White House threatened to veto if significant subsidy caps aren't in place. Bush can still do this. And the Senate debate is just beginning. The House and Senate must pass their own versions of the bill, then Congress has to reconcile the two for the final bill. Now it's more important than ever to write/call your senators about this. And if your senator is running for president, try extra hard to catch their attention. Like writing a letter to the editor with their name in it. Their printed name gets them looking more than anything!

Farm Bill and Douglas Adams

I just submitted this as an NPR commentary. Since I fully expect it to be kindly rejected, I thought I'd post it here since it's kind of silly and that's what blogs are for, right? Publishing stuff that possibly only you think is amusing?
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Let’s say there was a piece of legislation that would benefit a small group of people while hurting virtually everyone else on the planet, some so severely that they and their children would go hungry. Let’s also say Congress would review it every five years. How would it be possible to sneak it by the nation in plain sight?

Douglas Adams, author of “Life, the Universe and Everything,” had his characters encounter a science-fiction cloaking device called the SEP field. SEP was an acronym for “Somebody Else’s Problem.” It would trick an observer into believing what they were seeing was Somebody Else’s Problem, not worth acting upon, and effectively invisible. This would allow a something like a dinosaur to walk into Times Square without so much as a raised eyebrow.

Something similar is going on with the U.S. Farm Bill. The political equivalent of a fat brontosaurus has been parked on Capitol Hill for years and the average person has no idea it’s there or assumes it is “Somebody Else’s Problem.”

This one piece of legislation touches an amazingly diverse set of interest groups. A partial list includes small-scale farmers, rural communities, urban poor, farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, environmental stewards and the biggest interest group of all: people who eat. It affects school lunch menus, food prices for consumers and nutrition safety nets for those at risk for hunger.

The Farm Bill does some good things- providing for food stamps and soup kitchens, for example. Yet it also causes great distress, most notably with the system of subsidy payments for commodity crops. So much so that it’s drawn international attention by the World Trade Organization for creating unfair pricing structures. The money in the subsidy program largely goes to big business farmers instead of under-funded conservation programs, anti-hunger initiatives, and small farmers that need it most.

So, if it affects everyone, then why isn’t everyone talking about it? What caused this real life SEP field? What makes us believe it’s Somebody Else’s Problem? Is it the name, “The Farm Bill,” which insinuates that only farmers should care? Is it because it’s so easy to make peoples’ eyes glaze over by describing an imbalanced system of commodity subsidy payments given to those who farm corn, soy beans, cotton and … just that short statement may have lost listeners right at “soy beans.” Or is it because a small bloc of legislators whose districts collect a fourth of all subsidy money are historically determined to make the issue disappear as quickly as it comes up?

The good news is that, just like Adams’ fictional SEP field, the political cloaking device can be overcome using no special equipment. It only takes an ordinary person looking specifically for the hidden object. In other words, the Farm Bill is there to be found every five years. You just have to be looking for it.