The Swapping Continues...

Many of Threeow's readers know about my lovely wife Emily's significant involvement in the national foodswapping movement. Along with great friend and insigator/conspirator Bethany R., she was instrumental in founding PDX swappers, one of the most influential and media covered swapping groups in the nation. Their story has been filmed by Cooking Up a Story, covered by HuffPo, mentioned by the NY Times, and has been significant in inspiring and equipping similar events and community organizing nationwide.

If you're coming late to the party, food-swapping is a currency free exchange of homecrafted food, beverages, goods and services. 

Brueggemann on Ezekiel, Occupy, and Good Shepherding

I just came across an excellent piece by Walter Brueggemann over at Huffington Post.

As part of HuffPo's On Scripture series, Brueggemann explicates Ezekiel 34 in connection with the recent Occupy movement. The passage is a scathing condemnation of oppression, especially that of leaders ("shepherds") who fleece their flocks. The clear reading of the passage opposes leaders who exploit their position for imbalanced gain of any kind. Ezekiel takes a dim view of the 1%.


Ezekiel takes the long view though, recognizing that the abundance of abusive and mutton-hungry shepherds points (ironically) to a servant-leader, a "good" shepherd, a priest-king that will pasture the nations well, for the flourishing and feeding of humanity.

Brueggemann recognizes the potent messianic hope that the early church hailed in Jesus' declaration that he is the "good shepherd." He finishes by drawing the principles that society can learn from such an example of sacrificial leadership:

"...the news of Ezekiel is that because of God's resolve, mediated for Christians through Jesus, the Son and regent of God, it need not be so. As Israel need not have poor self-serving kings, so a democratic society need not suffer poor outcomes from an exploitative oligarchy. The promissory nature of Ezekiel's oracles articulates what good leadership looks like -- in government, in corporations, all through the private sector. That rule consists in,

-Seeking the lost,
-Bring back the strayed,
-Binding up the injured,
-Strengthening the weak,
-Feeding the hungry.

"In a word, good leadership consists in the restoration of the common good so that all members of the community, strong and weak, rich and poor, may live together in a common shalom of shared resources. The text is a powerful reminder of what might be; it is at the same time a summons to a political will for leadership that is not occupied, through ideological cant, with feathering its own nest. It is not enough to recite, in pious tones, the 23rd Psalm about "The Lord is my shepherd." What is envisioned (and required) is the formation of a different leadership that has in purview all members of the community. Ezekiel knew that is the only way to have a future that does not replicate the failed past. It is still, among us, the only way!"

It is still the only way. May the lies of the many fleecing shepherds be silenced and swallowed by the peace, the security, the truth of the Good one.

Read the full piece at HuffPo. 


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Richard Foster on Psychotic Affluence

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“We really must understand that the lust for affluence in contemporary society is psychotic. It is psychotic because it has completely lost touch with reality. We crave things we neither need nor enjoy. 'We buy things we do not want to impress people we do not like.' ...It is time to awaken to the fact that conformity to a sick society is to be sick.”

-"Celebration of Discipline"

Well said, Mr. Foster.

Happy Birthday, Columbia River Gorge!

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act. As the Oregonian's editorial today points out, the law has both preserved the remarkable, fragile beauty of this national treasure, while simultaneously boosting local economy.

And there is no better place that I can think of to protect. I have lived life more fully in this 85 miles than I have anywhere else.

Just a few personal highlights of my Gorge experiences:

-My proposal to Emily in a harsh storm on the edge of Angel's Rest 

-Weekly night hikes in college (numbering in the low 100s I'd guess) with my best friends

-Many well spent days and nights at a family cabin by Bridge of the Gods
-Kayaking and fishing on Wauna Lake
-Exploring Eagle Creek with my brothers
-A dear friend's wedding on a wind whipped bluff overlooking Hood River
-Salmon fishing
-Bear chases
-Covering my body with Poison Ivy while free climbing Angel's Rest
-Foraging and eating lots of delicious natural foods
-Hiking to try and induce labor for our first kid
-Getaways from that first kid at Skamania Lodge

Many of my best memories are of the rocks, waterfalls, forests, and trails of this land.
I am profoundly and inexpressibly grateful for the preservation of the most wonderful place I have ever seen.

Beautiful Time-lapse of Portland

Simply gorgeous views of PDX at night, thanks to lens artist Lance Page.

Via the Portland Mercury

A Good Quote from Mr. Nouwen

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I came across a good reminder from the venerable Henri Nouwen today: 

“Somewhere we know that without silence words lose their meaning, that without listening speaking no longer heals, that without distance closeness cannot cure.”

May we find silence and listen well, embracing both distance and proximity.

Health and wholeness to you.

-Paul

Our "Kill Team" and the Death of Humanity

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Let me begin a difficult Veteran's Day Post by thanking any individual veterans or families who may read this for undergoing difficulty in support of national defense. Though I dissent strongly with America's military philosophy and culture, I do not forget the individual men and women who frequently put themselves in harm's way.

I've been following the trial of Sgt. Calvin Gibbs and his "Kill Team" ever since the story broke some time ago.

Gibbs was convicted of the murder and mutilation of Afghan civilians during a tour of duty with the 5th Stryker Brigade - a platoon described as "out of control" by prosecutors. The evidence bears that description out, with widespread drug use, abuse of Afghan remains, and suppression of whistle-blowers.

Taking the stand in his own defense, Gibbs pleaded that in many cases, after he murdered a civilian and staged their corpse, he cut off their fingers as trophies. Why? In his own words he was "disassociated." "It was like keeping the antlers off a deer you'd shoot."

War creates killers, there's no arguing that. I'm sure that we all can relate stories from family members or friends who have seen combat. But sometimes the violence exceeds even the standards of battlefield ethics. I've heard descriptions many times of sociopathy in war, whether in the Ardennes, Mai Lai, or Baghdad. The pressures of combat encourages the abandonment of social norms and ethics. Even good men do terrible things.

How to Move Your Money Local

 A great how-to article over at Mother Jones is the perfect follow up to my earlier post about why my family banks local.

Read the piece for a helpful FAQ if you're curious about shifting your funds to a Credit Union or other local banking option.

You won't be alone. As Josh Harkinson comments:

"Credit unions across the country have added upwards of 650,000 new customers since September 29 (the day Bank of America unveiled its now-defunct $5 monthly fee for debit cards), according to a survey of 5,000 credit unions by the Credit Union National Association. The group also estimates that credit unions have added $4.5 billion in new savings since then, likely from these new members and transfers from other banks."

Read the full article here.

A Good Quote from Helmut T.

 

This quote struck me deeply when I came across it today.

"Truth seduces us very easily into a joy of possession: I have comprehended this and that, learned it, understood it. Knowledge is power. I am therefore more than the other man who does not know this and that. I have greater possibilities and also greater temptations. 

Anyone who deals with truth—as we theologians certainly do—succumbs all too easily to the psychology of the possessor. 

But love is the opposite of the will to possess. It is self-giving." 

-Helmut Thieckle, A Little Exercise for Young Theologians

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Zoobombing the BBC

Bike Pile!

The BBC recently highlighted Portland in their "Close Up" series. What got their attention? The robust and wild local tradition of ZOOBOMBING. Participants careen down the West Hills, at night, on souped up children's bikes that they store in the bike pile seen above, outside Rocco's pizza on 10th Ave.

What about this seems like a good idea? EVERYTHING.

Full video after the jump on the BBC's website.

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Pollution, Consumption, Oregon.

An interesting study was recently published by Oregon's DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality).

The inventory demonstrates that higher levels of harmful emissions and pollutants are produced by the buying habits of Oregonians than by our driving or other transit choices.

In the words of Jonathan Maus over at Bike Portland, this shows that what "we buy emits more greenhouse gases than what we do."

The implications of this study (the first of its kind) are wide ranging. Theoretically, the data shows that a shut-in who compulsively buys stuff on Amazon potentially has a worse effect on environmental quality than a daily car commuter. Practically speaking, it should put our buying habits in a sobering perspective.

This study provides helpful nuance to our current thinking on consumption, environmental stewardship, and lifestyle. It shows unequivocally that our production practices carry profound cumulative harm for both global health and local communities that produce the things we buy. It's a compelling reason to produce and purchase locally made, grown, and crafted goods.

The wrong response to this study is to say that "what I drive doesn't matter then." False. Those of us interested in stewarding our communities and land need to continue to advocate for wise production practices in addition to savvy transit choices. Fundamentally, this requires simplification of our consumer lifestyle, local involvement and careful attention to the difficult wheres and whats of buying.

Buy to live where you work. Work to buy where you live. You may be surprised at the impact that your household's choices can have on creating a vibrant local economy and a healthy region. It's worth the investment.

Oregon's study is helpful in framing the discussion. It is also sobering in its implications. In the end, will you and I choose to change the way we view possessions, transportation, and consumption?
I hope that we will.

(Via Bike Portland)

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Low Tech Education in Silicon Valley

 

A recent piece in the New York Times highlights a Waldorf School in Los Altos, CA. Like other educational institutions and philosophies that share values with the Waldorf system, the vast majority of learning methods and resources are low tech, and low profile. Hands on learning is facilitated by a wide variety of methods. Ideas are captured on paper with old fashioned pens by students, on blackboards by teachers. There is a marked absence of computers.

So should it surprise us that top executives and other employees from eBay, HP, Google, Apple, and Yahoo send their kids here? In fact, 3/4 of parents work in the tech industry.  It feels like it should.

Mike Richtel from the Times comments:

"Schools nationwide have rushed to supply their classrooms with computers, and many policy makers say it is foolish to do otherwise. But the contrarian point of view can be found at the epicenter of the tech economy, where some parents and educators have a message: computers and schools don’t mix."

Top 3 Most Invasive "Patriot Act" Provisions

10 years after the passing of the Patriot Act, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has put together a "Greatest Hits" collection of the Act's most invasive and dangerous elements.

In case you've been living in a bunker since 2001, the Patriot Act is a collection of

"...decidedly unpatriotic principles barred by the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution. Provisions of the PATRIOT Act have been used to target innocent Americans and are widely used in investigations that have nothing to do with national security."

Take the time to read the full article at EFF.

Via BoingBoing

Shane Claiborne on Jesus and OWS

Out of Ur published author and activist Shane Claiborne's thoughts on the "Jesus-ness" of the OWS movement. Claiborne's is a refreshing perspective, that grounds the important action of OWS protesters and advocates in a larger - and compelling - theological context.

Shane writes

"One of the constant threads of Scripture is “Give us this day our daily bread.” Nothing more, nothing less. Underneath this admonition is the assumption that the more we store up for tomorrow the less people will have for today. And in a world where 1% of the world owns half the world’s stuff, we are beginning to realize that there is enough for everyone’s need, but there is not enough for everyone’s greed. Lots of folks are beginning to say, “Maybe God has a different dream for the world than the Wall Street dream.” 

Maybe God’s dream is for us to live simply so that others may simply live. Maybe God’s dream is for the bankers to empty their banks and barns so folks have enough food for today."

Maybe, Shane. Well said.

Read the full article at Out of Ur.com

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Mobile Chapel of Love (Video)

My friend (ex-coworker and member of infamous rogue yarn group The Crotcheteers) Mary S. is highlighted in this video by OregonLive.

Mary runs the Mobile Chapel of Love, a Portland icon of... well, love. The bike powered chapel performs both legally recognized and above-the-law weddings, to anyone or anything you'd like.
Or rather, that you'd love... be that a bike, a Voodoo Donut, or the City of Portland.

Our marriage culture is more polarized than ever in America. As we (at the best of times) humbly discuss, and (worst of times) rant vitriolically about what marriage is and what makes it holy, let's take a minute to enjoy this. Whatever your views, it's a unique visual representation of something every husband or wife knows: much of your marriage is made of what you bring to it. 

The Vatican on Fiscal Theology and Financial Reform

A City on A Hill

Global Money and Human Flourishing

Released today, the Vatican's document on Global Financial Reform is an interesting and inadequate proposal for worldwide financial overhaul.

Phillip Pullella of the National Post summed up some key talking points of the paper:

“The economic and financial crisis which the world is going through calls everyone, individuals and peoples, to examine in depth the principles and the cultural and moral values at the basis of social coexistence,” it said.

It condemned what it called “the idolatry of the market” as well as a “neo-liberal thinking” that it said looked exclusively at technical solutions to economic problems.

“In fact, the crisis has revealed behaviors like selfishness, collective greed and hoarding of goods on a great scale,” it said, adding that world economics needed an “ethic of solidarity” among rich and poor nations.

In addition to this, the paper articulates a strong ethic of Christian involvement for the common good:

Coffee Break Commentary: Why I Bank Local

Safer than a sock under the mattress!

An ancillary benefit of the Wall Street occupation has been to bring attention to the benefits of keeping your money local.

Though attention was given to the "move your money" concept during the 2008- 2009 meltdown process by the HuffPo and others, we're hearing it again as protests and general grumpiness about our fat and shattered system continue.Now may be the time for a personal exodus  from Wall Street finance to community banking.

My family switched to a local credit union several years ago.  

We've experienced several benefits after moving our money from one of the Big Six banks to a local credit union:

OWS as "Post-political" Movement

Party on?

Occupy Wall Street's recently released survey data/overview of their supporters observes that over 70% of respondents self identified as politically independent.

Whatever your view of the movement - supportive, opposing, or apathetically cynical- the data reflects the fact that whatever the long range impact of the OWS movement will be, it is safe to claim that it is a major milestone in the breakdown of American two-party politics.

Gaddafi Dead, Sirte falls to Libyan Rebels

From Al- Jazeera English, the end of the beginning of the Libyan Revolution. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Libyan people, during a time of  violence, victory, and vulnerability.

May this crossroads lead them down a road to peace, justice and a free Libya. The fall of a regime does not guarantee that. The real work begins now.

PLEASE NOTE: GRAPHIC IMAGES

Lunch Link: "Occupy My Life"

As the Occupy movement begins to come into its own, the myriad human stories of Occupiers are fascinating, heartbreaking, and occasionally very sweet.

A favorite moment from the movement so far.

Occupy!

(via Boing Boing)