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No doubt everyone grows old in their own way.

But once you actually hit it — that three letter word, “old” — watch out: “An aged man is but a paltry thing,/A tattered coat upon a stick . . .”

So wrote William Butler Yeats, back in the last century, conjuring a mystical journey to the spiritual city of Byzantium in order to escape his entrapment in that word, and in the world that values only youth. Hey Bill, how does it feel to be so old?

Feminism has a crucial role to play in modern life, but I sometimes wish it would leave our fairy tales alone. The results of its revisionist meddling are too often unconvincing and unsatisfying.

Remember last year’s Maleficent? It turned an age-old story on its head by revealing that the fairy (Angelina Jolie) who turned a princess into a “Sleeping Beauty” was not evil at all. No, she was merely wronged and misunderstood. Worst of all, we learned that the somnambulant princess could not be awakened by a kiss from the handsome prince, but only by a motherly peck from that same fairy.

How heartwarming. And how utterly unromantic.

Thank goodness Disney’s new live-action version of Cinderella doesn’t wear its feminism on its sleeve. It has nods to modern sensibilities, to be sure, but they’re handled with a lighter touch.


Attorney George Conway considers the Donald to be “unwell,” a “narcissistic sociopath,”
and George should know – his wife, Kellyanne Conway, campaigned for, then worked
for Trump in the White House. On April 30, George said on MSNBC’s Deadline White
House that a way to influence non-fanatical voters to not cast their ballots for the ex-prez
is by “making fun of him.”
Sarcasm has often been used to cut strong men down to size; laughter lessens one’s fear
of the powerful. Adolph Hitler is a favorite tyrannical target and figure of ridicule to poke

The 19th annual South East European Film Festival, which deals with socialism more than any other major filmfest in Los Angeles and possibly America, opens May 1 – the international holiday of the working class, which was widely observed in Eastern Europe – and is screening productions at L.A. venues through May 8. Founded by Sarajevo-born Vera Mijojlić, SEEFest includes many productions about socialism – albeit from critical viewpoints – as well as nonpolitical pictures. The eclectic Festival is the main U.S. portal for documentaries, features, shorts, animation, etc., from mostly former “Iron Curtain” nations.

This conversation depicts a dialogue between an Israeli father and his son discussing the father's negative views and prejudices against Palestinians. The son challenges his father's stereotypes by expressing a real concern about the Israeli and Palestinian hostages as well as the killing of Palestinian women & children and the importance of open-mindedness.
 
Son: Daddy, why did Hamas attack us on October 7?
Father: Because they are evil & hate Jews.
 
Son: How come we are killing their kids? Are they evil too?
Father: Israel wants Palestinians off the land of Gaza, sooner or later. Why not kill 
            their children now and get it over with?
 
Son: Doesn't the book of Torah say that soldiers must not cause any harm to the non-
         combatant people like women and children?
Father: You must be talking about the Quran, sweetheart!     
 
Son: Daddy, why are we cutting food, water, and electricity from Gaza?
Dad: So they can leave, surrender, or die.
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The “Old Amateurs” of Columbus – also known as those who do most of the hard work in the community – have not been invited by City officials to take personal tours beginning this week of the “Zone In” gallery which opened downtown at 141 N. Front Street. The gallery offers an opportunity for the public to see and comment on the zoning overhaul which could radically change Columbus’s major corridors.

To the City’s credit, members of our LGBTQ+ community, recent immigrants, and the arts community have been invited (pictured above). But those at the head of the line for a personal tour are “Young Professionals,” who are coveted by “Zone In Columbus” considering they’re the few who will able to afford the tiny condos and apartments in the tall towers which “Zone In” will green light for high-end developers to build in Columbus’s major corridors.

Banner about Googles against Genocide

What ever happened to "Don't Be Evil"?

Google dropped that as its motto several years ago.

Then it took on (jointly with Amazon) a $1.2 billion contract with the Israeli military and government.

When Google employees objected -- perhaps remembering that old motto -- Google fired at least 50 of them.

But shouldn't some things be required even if they're not your motto? Things like "Don't Be Genocidal"?

Tell Google what you think with a quick email by clicking here.

Bomb and peace sign

We constantly hear the media and officials refer to the OSU student encampment as “pro-Palestinian.” We counter by suggesting it should be called a peace movement by students simply asking that, as stakeholders in the university, their tuition money is not spent to kill innocent civilians. Their message is consistent – demanding the college divest from Israel because the money is funding the war in Gaza and the West Bank. National news repeat the phrase “pro-Palestinian” when referring to encampment sites at other universities all over the country.

As activists on the street protesting US involvement in the first Gulf War in 1992 and the Iraq/Afghanistan Wars, we have no recollection that any media or officials assumed we were fans of Saddam or the Taliban. No one called our rallies “pro-Iraqi” protests.

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