L’Animateur by Nick Hilligoss

By Bill Larson | May 31, 2007 |

A travelling Fool takes his puppet stage to a desert planet. In this retelling of the myth, eating the apple is an essential step towards changing from puppet to human, and part of his plan from the beginning.

Way back in June 2006, some of the Haiku Challenge keywords were Tree, Apple, and Fall. That led me to the Adam and Eve story. Reflecting on what it is to be a stop-motion animator today led me to the main character - you’ve got to be a fool to do it, but you also have this godlike power to create characters and worlds.

«Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure | 1 Comment »

Building a bridge over the “Gay Man Straight Haters Club”

By David W. Shelton | May 31, 2007 |

I know we have the capability and the calling to rise above the petty behavior of …the armchair activists… who would rather lock themselves into the fading obscurity of subculture…

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine told me that she put in an application to a GLBT publication in New Mexico. She told me what the job would entail, and how she’d really enjoy doing it, especially since a lot of it could be done remotely. After a few minutes of jovial conversation, she came to the rather grim reality that she would probably not even be asked to interview for the job.

After all, she is straight, married, and has two very active daughters. Now, to be fair, she is very GLBT-friendly and has long been an advocate and ally to those of us who are struggling for equality. When I came out to her, she voiced her strong support for gay rights. She’s lived next to gay neighbors, and has even enjoyed conversations about men with her gay friends. However, labels have a way of affecting us pretty heavily in the GLBT community, and I wonder if we’ve done exactly what those boys did way back in the days of the “Little Rascals.” «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, Politics, Spirituality | No Comments

Ready or not, here comes SiCKO!

By Bill Larson | May 30, 2007 |

Michael Moore is coming out with a new documentary called SiCKO. It is a harsh look at the American health care system. SiCKO opens in theaters everywhere on June 29th.

When asked about SiCKO, Michael Moore responds , “Sicko is a comedy about 45 million people with no health care in the richest country on Earth.” I personally disagree with Michael Moore on that one point, this is not a funny subject.

A reviewer on the Internet Movie Database web site had this to say:

A man without health insurance (companies simply refuse people), whose middle- and ring finger are cut off, had to choose between paying 60.000 dollars for having his middle finger restored and 12.000 dollars for having his ring finger fixed. Being the “romantic” that he is, he chose his ring finger. A woman, formerly with a good job, bankrupted by her medical bills and forced to live in the study of her daughter, has to pay 240 dollars a month for her cancer medication but gets the same pills on Cuba for… 10 cents. 45 Million uninsured Americans live in fear that they might, some day, need medical care. The rest of the world doesn’t know these fears, because for them, medical help is free: paid for by tax money. The United States have become ruthless to it’s own people. It contradicts the image Americans have of themselves and their country, but it’s the awful truth. - Ivo Martijn

«Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure, Issues | No Comments

Georgia School Has its First Integrated Prom

By Terry McMoore | May 29, 2007 |

A view on race relations in America

America is a very young country but is the wealthiest country in the world. With over 400 years of free labor off the backs of enslaved Africans it not only explains its # 1 economic power position among all nations, but also why we still and must continue to fight for equality for all Americans. You can not wipe away over 400 years of institutionalized slavery in a mere 142 years. Remember the law of the land as stated in the United States Constitution declared slavery very much legal and all black people property. We are still healing as a nation people! (read more)

Sections: Issues, Politics | No Comments

A soldier in Iraq asks in despair: Why are we here?

May 29, 2007 |

After watching his roommate fatally wounded in a roadside bombing, an Army Specialist wonders why the lives of good men are being lost when the Iraqis pose no threat to us and don’t want us there.

BAGHDAD, May 12 — My name is Donald Hudson Jr. I have been serving our country’s military actively for the last three years. I am currently deployed to Baghdad on Forward Operating Base Loyalty, where I have been for the last four and a half months.

I came here as part of the first wave of this so called “troop surge”, but so far it has effectively done nothing to quell insurgent violence. I have seen the rise in violence between the Sunni and Shiite. This country is in the middle of a civil war that has been on going since the seventh century.

Why are we here when this country still to date does not want us here? Why does our president’s personal agenda consume him so much, that he can not pay attention to what is really going on here? «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, Opinion, Politics | 17 Comments

‘Good Riddance Attention Whore’

May 28, 2007 |

Cindy Sheehan is a woman warrior who has spoken for many Americans. Her son gave everything, and she has given up much of her life on this altar of protest.

I have endured a lot of smear and hatred since Casey was killed and especially since I became the so-called “Face” of the American anti-war movement. Especially since I renounced any tie I have remaining with the Democratic Party, I have been further trashed on such “liberal blogs” as the Democratic Underground. Being called an “attention whore” and being told “good riddance” are some of the more milder rebukes.

I have come to some heartbreaking conclusions this Memorial Day Morning. These are not spur of the moment reflections, but things I have been meditating on for about a year now. The conclusions that I have slowly and very reluctantly come to are very heartbreaking to me.

The first conclusion is that I was the darling of the so-called left as long as I limited my protests to George Bush and the Republican Party. Of course, I was slandered and libeled by the right as a “tool” of the Democratic Party.  This label was to marginalize me and my message. How could a woman have an original thought, or be working outside of our “two-party” system? «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Opinion, Politics | 2 Comments

Peace action honors troops, decries presidential policy

By Christine Anne Piesyk | May 28, 2007 |

“Dissent is the highest form of Patriotism.”

“Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.” ~~ Billy Graham, Evangelist

Peace and anti-war activists gathered at Patriot’s Park on Fort Campbell Boulevard Sunday afternoon for a multi-faceted event honoring the fallen soldiers and voicing support for our troops and their families while decrying Bush administration policies regarding the Iraq War.

Pacifists and Activists at Patriot’s Park. Bill Larson Photo

The peaceful Memorial Day weekend event was designed to acknowledge the growing numbers of American dead in Iraq (Sunday’s numbers for American dead in Iraq was 3,452), to say nothing of the devastating injuries (mental and physical) endured by our troops and the horrific number of civilian casualties among the Iraqi people. The statistics from the war were displayed on 4′ X 8′ signs on both sides of the park. The program acknowledged and honored those whose lives have been sacrificed to the country.

«Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, News, Politics | No Comments

Welcome to the all-new Clarksville Online!

By David W. Shelton | May 27, 2007 |

For those of you who’ve been to the Clarksville Online website before, you’re probably asking yourself if this is the same site. We’ve been hard at work to provide the best, most comprehensive, and clearest way to bring the most insightful news, opinions, and reviews to you, our readers.

Yes, this is Clarksville Online 2.0! Our editors are proud to present this all-new look, and we hope that this will continue to reflect the best in alternative news and information for the Clarksville, Tennessee area. And no, we’re not done. Be looking for slight updates to the template over the next few weeks. There’s always something to tweak. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: News | 2 Comments

Write for us!

Feeds

• Full
• Comments