Bill Ayers

http://blog.m80radio.com/80-y-la-madre/2014/11/03/bill-ayers-habia-que-parar-que-cada-semana-murieran-6-000-vietnamitas-manos-de-eeuu/

I voted.
Early.
No illusions that a billionaire’s ball is either a reflection of popular will or a mandate for what is to be done; no dreams that pulling a lever fulfills my ongoing responsibility as a socially engaged person or could possibly realize my most hopeful vision of a just and joyful world; no fantasies that the process is either clean or fair or honest.
But I voted.
Because it’s a fundamental right. Because people who are denied that right demand it and fight like hell for it all across the globe. Because I remember the courage of African-Americans on the courthouse steps in Mississippi and Alabama enduring hatred and humiliation, risking violence and death for access to the ballot. Because the right to vote is secured with blood. Because the right to vote is, then, sacred.
But four billion dollars? Big Oil, Big Pharma, Big Finance, Big Military, Big Prison. That’s not democracy. That’s an oligarchy.
As Emma Goldman once said, “If voting changed anything, they’d make it illegal.”
Oh, and they did.
The Onion got it right: “Republicans poised to retain control of Senate.”
Gloria Ladson Billings commented: “Republicans are going to party like it’s 1865.”
Indeed.

I mentioned this important book a few days ago. Here is an interview I did with Maya Schenwar that appeared in Truthout today:

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/27130-prison-itself-is-inflicting-mass-violence-bill-ayers-interviews-maya-schenwar

An urgent new book about America’s gulag, and how it destroys democracy and hurts everyone’s humanity:

For years, in addition to her tireless work running Truthout, Maya Schenwar has written on the impact of prisons in the United States – the devastating effects this system of incarceration has on individuals, families, communities and the country as a whole.

As more and more people recognize the US prison system as a pressing issue, her work has appeared not just at Truthout but also The Guardian and The New York Times. Now we are very proud to announce the release of Maya Schenwar’s debut book, Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn’t Work and How We Can Do Better.

Locked Down, Locked Out is a deeply personal and unflinchingly honest book, drawing directly on the experience of Schenwar’s own family, as well as extensive research and interviews with those who are incarcerated and those who are working to find better alternatives to incarceration. Through the stories of prisoners and their loved ones, Truthout’s editor-in-chief looks at how prison breaks apart families and communities, creating a rippling effect that touches every corner of our society. With an eye always on the practical, she explores how we can provide healing and resolution to victims while building public safety in communities – and ultimately, how we can create a safer, more just world.

Locked Down, Locked Out has already been acclaimed by everyone from Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow, to former Congressman Dennis Kucinich, and from Bill Ayers to Angela Davis, who says it contains “brilliant juxtaposition of abolitionist imaginaries and radical political practices.”

Published by Berrett-Koehler, Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn’t Work and How We Can Do Better will be in stores on November 10. But you can get Maya Schenwar’s book ahead of time, shipped directly from Truthout, by making a minimum donation of $25 today!

One of my wondrous publishers in Spain is Hoja de Lata Editorial, a small press born in the spirit of making a virtue of necessity. Encouraged by this unique moment, they’ve recently launched what had long been their dream editorial project, a label committed to offering evocative readings for uncertain times through two collections. The first is Sensibles a las Letras, narratives of successful contemporary authors, updated translations of works that deserve another chance, early works by new authors and unreleased classics. The second collection is Mecanoclastia, essays that can serve as thoughtful tools for the work and struggles ahead. Our endearing mechanical toys are mostly made ​​of tin, but Hoja de Lata aims to provide a catalog that will last over time, designed for the reader who knows what she wants and dares to bet on different titles.

Please spread the word to all your Spanish-speaking companeros, and visit Hoja de Lata here:

http://www.hojadelata.net/diasdefuga.html

Fugitive Days, Spanish Edition, is available from the brilliant press, Hoja de Lata (www.hojadelata.net); To Teach: the journey in comics, Spanish Edition, is available from the dazzling Ediciones Morata (www.edmorata.es) now in its 95th year.

http://www.edmorata.es/nuestro-bloc/te-presentamos-el-primer-comic-en-la-historia-de-morata

A proposed new form letter to potential faculty making its way around the university:

Dear Dr. _______

Congratulations! You may already be a professor at the University of Illinois!

I am pleased to say that we are provisionally offering you a possible job as an Associate Professor in the XXX department, contingent upon your background check and thought-process clearance. Please note that this offer is not enforceable in any way. It is, however, our sincere invitation to you to resign your current position, have your spouse quit their job, pull your children out of school and move to central Illinois on the off-chance that when you arrive, we might still hire you. Although the position is tenured, we ask that you to work for one month before we decide.

We are proud to say that you might be joining one of the finest research faculties in the world.   Of course, since Academic Freedom is central to our mission at Illinois, we would not want your freedom to speak out on controversial issues to be constrained in any way. Therefore, we offer our “Illinois Freedom Guarantee”: you are free to say whatever you like, and in return, we are free to fire you at the local newspaper’s request.

There are just a few more steps to take before we can provisionally confirm your employment: we will need to do a forensic analysis of your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Myspace and AOL accounts as well as your ATM access and the inscriptions on your high school yearbook. Please send us your most recent passwords and the name of your BFF from 12th grade.

We will need to install surveillance cameras in front of your house and current office. When you get here, you’ll be delighted to find that video surveillance is a standard feature in most office suites at U of I.

Please note that all faculty and prospective faculty are now subject to random autonomy testing. Governor Quinn will be in direct touch about our excellent selection of retirement plans.

To start your background check and clearance, please fill out and return the enclosed forms, with a check or money order for $50 dollars (non-refundable) and a recent DNA sample. You’ll be hearing from us very soon.

With sincerely conditional best wishes,

Xxxx

U of I