Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Change your thinking....

From Hölderlin's letter to Johann Ebel in Paris, 10 January, 1797:
« Ich glaube an eine künftige Revolution der Gesinnungen und Vorstellungsarten, die alles bisherige schamrot machen wird. »
From François Fédier's L'irréprochable in L'INFINI 95, Été 2006, p. 153:
« L'injonction : avoir à répondre de ce qui a fait entrer notre être au sein du partage que nous adresse la parole -- tout être humain, en tant qu'être humain, en est aujourd'hui requis -- d'une requête qui ne fait plus qu'un désormais avec la condition de l'homme moderne. »

Monday, June 19, 2006

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Humpty-Dumpty's Memorial- "neither more nor less"

To make sure more understand, I have translated the beginning of this exellent piece from one of Berlin's daily newspapers on the utter cynicism of the bushbaby playpen's reaction to the suicides of three Guantánamo victims:
When torture isn't torture, but a legitimate form of national defense, when the systematic abuse of international law is no violation of the law, but an adaptation to altered realities, when the negation of human dignity is no attack on human dignity, but its most effective defense, then quite naturally, the suicide of prisoners-of-war in Guantánamo who are not prisoners-of-war, but imprisoned kamikaze fighters, is no longer a suicide, but a kamikaze attack. This is the perfect logic of the camp commander [...] the logic of insanity, the insanity that has coopted American policy since it plunged the world into a "war on terror" in the name of freedom, democracy, and human rights.
The author quite properly compares the playpen's version of language and the comprehension thereof to that practiced by Humpty-Dumpty in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, where, challenged by Alice concerning his false definition of a word, Humpty-Dumpty explains:
" 'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean-- neither more nor less.' "
Here follows the complete article in the German original:

Reprinted from Berliner Zeitung, 13.06.2006 ©

Goggelmoggels Denkmal
Christian Bommarius
Wenn Folter nicht Folter ist, sondern eine legitime Form staatlicher Selbstverteidigung, wenn die systematische Verletzung des Völkerrechts kein Rechtsbruch ist, sondern die Anpassung an veränderte Realitäten, wenn die Negation der Menschenwürde kein Angriff auf die Menschenwürde ist, sondern ihre wirksamste Verteidigung, dann ist naturgemäß der Selbstmord von Kriegsgefangenen in Guantanamo, die keine Kriegsgefangenen sind, sondern eingesperrte Selbstmordattentäter, kein Selbstmord mehr, sondern ein Selbstmordattentat. Folgerichtig hat der Kommandant des Lagers, Konteradmiral Harry B. Harris jr., die Selbstmorde von drei Inhaftierten am vergangenen Wochenende als verbrecherischen Anschlag bezeichnet:" Ich glaube, das war kein Akt der Verzweiflung, sondern ein Akt der asymmetrischen Kriegsführung." Harry B. Harris jr. ist zu Gute zu halten, dass aus ihm nicht der General gesprochen hat und nicht einmal der Kommandant des Lagers von Guantanamo, sondern die Logik des Wahns - es ist der Wahn, der die US-amerikanische Politik ergriffen hat, seit sie sich und die Welt im Namen der Freiheit, der Demokratie und der Menschenrechte in den "war on terror" stürzte.
Mit den Gesetzen dieser Logik hat Lewis Carroll in "Alice hinter den Spiegeln" die Öffentlichkeit bekannt gemacht: "Wenn das keine Glocke ist." - "Ich verstehe nicht, was Sie mit Glocke meinen", sagte Alice. - Goggelmoggel lächelte verächtlich: "Wie solltest Du auch - ich meinte: Wenn das kein einmalig schlagender Beweist ist!" - "Aber Glocke heißt doch gar nicht einmalig schlagender Beweis", wandte Alice ein. "Wenn ich ein Wort gebrauche", sagte Goggelmoggel in recht hochmütigem Ton, "dann heißt es genau, was ich für richtig halte - nicht mehr und nicht weniger." - "Es fragt sich nur", sagte Alice, "ob man Wörter einfach etwas anderes heißen kann." - "Es fragt sich nur", sagte Goggelmoggel, "wer der Stärkere ist, weiter nichts."
Diese Frage glaubte die US-Regierung seit den Anschlägen vom 11. September 2001 beantwortet zu haben. Sie ließ kaum etwas unversucht, die Autorität des Völkerrechts der Macht des durch den "Anti-Terror-Krieg" geschaffenen Faktischen zu unterstellen, sie zu suspendieren, sofern sie sich störend, also disziplinierend, bemerkbar machte, sie zu desavouieren, wo sie sich im Namen der Demokratie und Menschenrechte dem Kreuzzug für Demokratie und Menschenrechte in den Weg zu stellen versuchte. Den hybriden Versuch, eine vermeintlich überlegene Moral gegen das Völkerrecht auszuspielen, haben beide mit ihrem Zusammenbruch bezahlt: das Völkerrecht mit der ersten Rakete, die die "Koalition der Willigen" seinerzeit auf Bagdad abgeschossen hat, die Moral unter der Flut von Bildern, die von amerikanischen Bewachern gefolterte irakische Gefangene in Abu Ghoreib zeigten, und unter den unaufhörlichen Berichten über die lebenden Toten von Guantanamo. Das erstere hat die US-Regierung nicht nur in Kauf genommen, sondern gezielt herbeigeführt - das Völkerrecht erschien ihr als Vorwand der Weltgemeinschaft, der Supermacht und deren bewehrter Moral in den Arm zu fallen. Der Bankrott dieser Moral aber, der sich in den Fotos von Abu Ghoreib und den Nachrichten aus Guantanamo manifestiert, hat nicht nur den Militäreinsatz im Irak und den "war on terror" gleichermaßen delegitimiert, unausgesprochen, aber unüberhörbar verkündet er die Botschaft, die dieser so genannte "war on terror" nur mehr bereit hält: Folter oder Barbarei.
Ein Staat kann Gefangenen alle Rechte verweigern, er kann sie ohne Angabe von Gründen, unbefristet und ohne juristische Kontrolle in ein Lager sperren - aber er kann das nicht als Rechtsstaat tun. Ein Staat kann, sofern er die militärischen Mittel hat, das Völkerrecht torpedieren, er kann Unverdächtige zu Verdächtigen, Verdächtige zu Terroristen und Terroristen zu Vogelfreien erklären - das kann er, aber er kann es nicht im Namen der Demokratie und der Menschenrechte. Ein Staat kann den Angriffskrieg zur Notwehr erklären, er kann zum Schutz der Zivilbevölkerung Zivilisten massakrieren, er kann die Folter als "strenges Verhör" deklarieren und das "strenge Verhör" als Gebot der Stunde - aber die einzige Logik, auf die er sich dabei berufen kann, ist die Logik des Wahns. Das Lager von Guantanamo ist ihr Symbol, die drei Selbstmörder sind ihre Konsequenzen. Mit Guantanamo hat die US-Regierung Goggelmoggel ein Denkmal gesetzt.
© Berliner Zeitung, 13.06.2006

Friday, June 9, 2006

In the hopes it will jolt some out of darkness...

At least a few innocent people more may be preserved from death through that of at least this one terrorist murderer al-Z...
Let us hope that efforts to make of him a martyr will fail, succumbing, I hope, to the efforts of some to make many more THINK and desire LIFE.
No thinking person will shed even a single tear for the obscurantist and fundamentalist and treacherously exploitive al Zarqawi.
All thinking people will continue to work for an end to the killing of humans by other humans of different opinions, races, sexes, practices, religons, whatever.
Think about what is to be pondered...
In darkness, light can be seen.

Tuesday, June 6, 2006

Einzig der Mensch... Man alone... L'homme seul...

» Einzig der Mensch unter allem Seienden erfährt, angerufen von der Stimme des Seins, das Wunder aller Wunder: d a ß Seiendes i s t. «
-M. Heidegger: Nachwort zu: »Was ist Metaphysik?«, 1943.

Of all beings, man alone, called upon by the voice of Being, experiences the wonder of wonders: that being is.

De tous les étants, l'homme seul, appelé par la voix de l'Être, éprouve le miracle des miracles : que l'étant est.

BushBaby seeks Sharia for the American Playpen!

Now I understand why the bushbabies in Iraq do nothing to stop the murder of gay men by fundamentalists carrying out the orders of Shiite fundamentalists. Apparently the bushbaby and his playpen are determined to institute religious laws in the US, transforming the whole country into the type of playpen that the Taliban in Afghanistan had and want again with the assistance of al Q, that Iran imposes on its people, and that Iraqi fundamentalists seek.
The question remains: Why is the playpen engaged in military action against those whose opinions and beliefs it is obviously fonder of than of those of Americans and Europeans committed to human rights, justice, and democracy? Should the bushbaby and co finally be placed on a list of terrorist organizations? They obviously seek the destruction of the democratic order of the Western World !

Thursday, June 1, 2006

Thankful for the French press !!


CHARLIE BLASPHÈME
La chasse aux mécréants de l’inquisition à l’affaire des caricatures
Auteures : Caroline Fourest et Fiammetta Venner / Dessins : Charb & Luz Sortie mercredi 31 mai 2006 chez tous les marchands de journaux (et uniquement !)

Wonderful that the French press never lets up on those who would try to stifle thought and the free expression thereof!

May I here express my very personal gratitude to the publishers, editors, writers, cartoonists, printers, distributors, and supporters of Charlie-Hebdo.

Bushbaby Playpen Allows Anti-Gay Pogroms in Iraq

While supposedly AGAINST all things Irani and IN FAVOR OF the spread of human rights and democracy, the current US administration, military division, does nothing to hinder the IRAN inspired hunting-down and killing of gays in Iraq.
Doug Ireland, writing yesterday for IN THESE TIMES sums it up as follows:

Shiite death squads in Iraq are carrying out a campaign that targets gay men for murder. This so-called “sexual cleansing” is happening under the nose of the U.S. military—but American authorities in the Green Zone have refused to do anything about it.

Here is the link to the complete article from In These Times, May 31, 2006.
Another shining example of ensuring human rights is what the bushbaby is doing here. Use every electoral and judicial opportunity to remove this band of renegades from office! They are a threat to democracy in the US, to human rights throughout the world, and to world peace!
(And if you think: "I'm not gay or in Iraq, so what to I care." Well, just remember, you may well be on the next list. Perhaps you laugh at the wrong jokes, for example...)

Monday, May 29, 2006

Heliogabalus


Elagabulus, or Heliogabalus (c. 203–March 11, 222)

Home from the island




A wonderful week on the Baltic Sea island of Hiddensee is over, but a few pictures to retain the feeling and spread its vigor.

Playpen on the rampage

Reprinted from : Niagara Falls Reporter ... May 16, 2006
>>
BUSH SPYING ON AMERICAN CITIZENS VIOLATES OUR GUARANTEED FREEDOMS
By Bill Gallagher
DETROIT -- When the Liar in Chief declares, "We're not mining or trolling into the personal lives of innocent Americans," the enlightened know that is precisely what his fascist government is doing.
President George W. Bush lies in small matters -- like his absurdly folksy claim that his greatest thrill and the "best moment" of his presidency was catching a fish. So when it comes to covering up his domestic spying program, you know he's spewing his Orwellian whoppers big-time.
The only problem the Busheviks had with their secret wiretapping program was they got caught. But don't worry, Bush assured us, it's only those "international communications" he wanted to "aggressively pursue."
Always the master of the deceptive oversimplification to buttress his point, Bush added, "If there are people inside our country who are talking to al-Qaeda, we want to know." Little details like the law and the Constitution couldn't restrain our "wartime president" who claims absolute, unfettered authority to do anything he wants to "protect" our nation.
So now he's caught kicking it up a notch to include widespread surveillance of domestic phone records and spying on millions of innocent Americans. USA Today blew the lid off the National Security Agency's spying and monitoring of domestic phone activities. One source told USA Today that the NSA spying program has produced "the largest database ever assembled in the world."
This Big Brother snooping was done with the ignominious cooperation of phone company giants Verizon, AT&T and Bell South. Qwest, to its great credit, refused to cooperate in the sordid deed of betraying its own customers.
Joseph P. Nacchio, Qwest's former CEO, refused to provide the NSA with private phone records of its customers. Nacchio -- who's under indictment on an insider trading charge -- smelled serious legal issues when the NSA came knocking on his door.
In a prepared statement for The New York Times, Nacchio's lawyer, Herbert J. Stern, said the government first approached his client in the fall of 2001.
"Mr. Nacchio made an inquiry as to whether a warrant or other legal process had been secured in support of that request," Stern stated.
He added, "When he learned that no such authority had been granted, and there was a disinclination on the part of the authorities to use any legal process," Nacchio became suspicious, figured the NSA requests violated privacy requirements and told his people "to refuse to comply."
Any officer at Verizon, AT&T and Bell South who did comply should be summarily fired. Company board members should be outraged, and shareholders should be demanding accountability. This may be the incident that sparks the biggest class-action lawsuit ever. The company officers broke the law and their contracts with their customers.
A $5 billion suit has already been filed against Verizon for sharing customer information with government spies.
"This is the largest and most vast intrusion of civil liberties we've ever seen in the United States," said Bruce Afrin, one of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit.
The folks at the NSA must have been huffing over Qwest's resistance. Imagine that! What's all this "warrant or other legal process" crap? What kind of people are these? How dare they defy our "wartime president"? All those legal niceties are OK in theory, but times have changed. Our government gets what it wants, when it wants it, and woe betide those who dare to think otherwise.
Predictably, Bush claimed everything is perfectly lawful, saying in his weekly radio address that "the privacy of all Americans is fiercely protected in all our activities." Sure.
Warrantless searches, phone trolling, torture, kidnapping, indefinite imprisonment without charges, denial of legal representation, you name it. It's all legal. Just ask Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. If the president says it's legal, it's legal. When we're at war, the Constitution, the Congress and civility are out the door.
Bush always plays the fear card, telling us he's "protecting" us from al-Qaeda as he takes us on our national plunge into fascism. He seizes power with impunity, and the Republicans in Congress are willing accomplices as they abrogate the fundamental responsibilities of their branch of the federal government to a power-crazed madman.
As America sleeps, basic rights, especially privacy, are under assault. The concentration of claimed authority in the Executive Branch -- removed from congressional authorization and outside the scope of judicial review -- is dangerous and frightening.
The Busheviks are not conservatives -- they are neo-fascists with an agenda aimed at protecting a privileged elite and using the unbridled power of an authoritarian government to enhance and protect their wealth.
They're not wearing black shirts, boot-stomping down Pennsylvania Avenue in the style of the more theatrical of their ilk. But their insidious threat is real and chilling.
Doug Olson, a reader from Madison, Wis., provided me with an important analysis of what the Busheviks are doing. Doug says when he brands them fascists, he doesn't mean it as a "barstool put-down." Doug has a good grasp of what fascism historically is. "I mean it quite literally," he says. "Most people have no idea what fascism is. They think you need to have a bunch of swastika-wearing thugs out rounding up the Jews. This is completely wrong. The Bush people fit my definition of fascism to a T: They are radical, conservative, corporate, authoritarian, nationalist supremacists.
"Their supreme 'master race' is not racial but economic -- the top 10th of a percent of wealth-holders in America. They have no respect for human rights. They have no respect for democracy, except as a cover and propaganda tool. They pervert language -- for them, language is merely a tool of deceit."
Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., is the most forthright, courageous and prophetic voice in Washington today. He brands the Bushevik regime's systematic assaults on our liberties as the egregious deeds they are. He also had the guts to oppose the war in Iraq and is now calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Feingold calls the phone-record mining "a frightening prospect." Before the latest spying revelation, Feingold had already offered a resolution in the Senate to censure Bush for ordering the NSA's warrantless searches.
Feingold -- unlike so many gutless Democrats on Capitol Hill -- doesn't mince words and challenges Bush on the most vital issues of our times.
"We must get out of our foxholes and be willing to clearly and specifically point out what a strategic error the Iraq invasion has been," he told a National Press Club gathering last week.
Feingold wants U.S. troops withdrawn by the end of the year.
"I believe the situation would probably be better," he said. "The lesson of insurgency is, when the occupying power leaves, it tends to lessen, rather than increase, the level of violence."
Feingold's views are in direct contrast to Sen. Hillary Clinton, who has never admitted her vote to support the war was a horrible mistake. She ducks the crunch questions about force withdrawal.
Sen. Clinton did, however, say she finds the phone-record mining "deeply disturbing." Why, then, is her name not on Feingold's censure resolution? The Clinton-infatuated media gave more attention to Rupert Murdoch's planned fund-raiser for her than Feingold's substantive presentation on Iraq and national security.
Last week, Hillary gushed over George W. Bush's "charm and charisma." I just don't know where anyone can find any "charm" in a fascist-loving war criminal.
Bill Gallagher, a Peabody Award winner, is a former Niagara Falls city councilman who now covers Detroit for Fox2 News. His e-mail address is gallaghernewsman@sbcglobal.net.
Niagara Falls Reporter
www.niagarafallsreporter.com
May 16 2006

Friday, May 19, 2006

Hiddensee Week


Off to the island with Detlef: our bikes to the train to the ferry to the island. A few clothes, nothing fancy -- and if there's sun for the beach, we don't need any anyway. A few books: Heidegger's "Wegmarken" Guyotat's "Éden, Éden, Éden" as well as his "Coma". And of course notebook and pen.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Monday, May 15, 2006

Berlin Remembers


One year after official opening.... ever impressive, ever warning, ever intense...

Tuesday, May 9, 2006

Food for thought

The original:

Am Ende ist der bestimmt gerichtete Umweg und das vollzugsmäßige Umwegverstehen der Weg.

[MH: Wegmarken, S. 5]

My spontaneous English version:
In the end, the decidedly directed detour and the performative detour-understanding are the way.

My quick French effort:
Enfin, le détour décidément dirigé et la compréhension performative du détour sont la voie.

And both are in tune with the thinking of the thought of this thought!

But now for a "figure-of-speech" (folksy) version that can perhaps explain it to those suspicious of "intellectuals" (and quite deep in and of itself):
Beating around the bush and understanding that's what you're doing is, in the end, the best way to find out all about the bush!

Tuesday, May 2, 2006

TEN YEARS DETRICK !!!


Fantastic that we can today celebrate ten years of loving and passionate union!
A privilege to have been with this man so long and with the same big smile I had ten years ago look into an unending future with him.
I love you Detlef !! Thanks !

Sunday, April 30, 2006

Sorry, but the US has to violate your rights to protect them...

If I've ever seen a cynical, hypocritical, inhuman argument, it is this one by the bushbaby playpen: that they just can't release those people that have been held in Guantánamo without charges, lawyers, judicial review, trials for nearly five years because their home countries might treat them badly. I think I'd rather take my chances....
See this NY Times article for the complete information. What follows is just a short bit from the beginning...

U.S. Says It Fears Detainee Abuse in Repatriation
By Tim
Golden
Published: April 30, 2006, NYT
A long-running effort by the Bush administration to send home many of the terror suspects held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, has been stymied in part because of concern among United States officials that the prisoners may not be treated humanely by their own governments, officials said. Administration officials have said they hope eventually to transfer or release many of the roughly 490 suspects now held at Guantánamo. As of February, military officials said, the Pentagon was ready to repatriate more than 150 of the detainees once arrangements could be made with their home countries. But those arrangements have been more difficult to broker than officials in Washington anticipated or have previously acknowledged, raising questions about how quickly the administration can meet its goal of scaling back detention operations at Guantánamo. "The Pentagon has no plans to release any detainees in the immediate future," said a Defense Department spokesman, Lt. Cmdr. Jeffrey Gordon of the Navy. He said the negotiations with foreign governments "have proven to be a complex, time-consuming and difficult process."
The military has so far sent home 267 detainees from Guantánamo after finding that they had no further intelligence value and either posed no long-term security threat or would reliably be imprisoned or monitored by their own governments. Most of those who remain are considered more dangerous militants; many also come from nations with poor human rights records and ineffective justice systems.
But Washington's insistence on humane treatment for the detainees in their native countries comes after years in which Guantánamo has been assailed as a symbol of American abuse and hypocrisy — a fact not lost on the governments with which the United States is now negotiating.
That can hardly be topped. It's a lot like the playpen's policy with its own citizens: Deny rights to prevent terrorists from destroying the system of democratic rights they're supposedly protecting/fighting against. Who's on which side????

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Bin Laden can count me as his enemy !

Bin Laden Says West Is Waging War Against Islam - New York Times:
"April 24, 2006
Bin Laden Says West Is Waging War Against Islam
By
MICHAEL SLACKMAN
CAIRO, April 23 - Osama bin Laden denounced what he called a 'Zionist-crusaders war on Islam' in an audiotape broadcast Sunday, pointing to the isolation of the Hamas-led Palestinian government, talk of a Western peacekeeping force in Sudan and Muslim outrage over Danish cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad as new evidence of a clash of civilizations.
His voice sounding strong and combative, Mr. bin Laden implied that killing American civilians was justified, beseeched Muslims to fight any Sudan peacekeeping force and called for the creators of the offensive cartoons to be turned over to Al Qaeda for punishment.
The audiotape, broadcast by Al Jazeera and deemed authentic by American intelligence officials and terrorism experts, was Mr. bin Laden's second in three months and the first in which he has raised Sudan as a possible new battleground where Muslims should go to fight. The tape appeared intended not only to re-establish his role as a sort of supreme guide for Al Qaeda, but also to inform his enemies that he is acutely aware of current news events that reflect violent confrontation between Islam and the West.
While Al Qaeda had previously criticized Hamas leaders for participating in Palestinian elections, Mr. bin Laden sought to tap into the wide public support among Arabs for Hamas, which Israel, the United States and the European Union regard as a terrorist organization."

Yes, I am in favor of the caricatures and even more mockery of his and all other so-called "prophets" -- because if you can't laugh about them, you can only cry about the horrors they cause ! And I am against a terror regime of Hamas in Palestine : Peace is necessary there and normal cohabitation with neighboring countries, not attacks and questioning of their right to existence ! And I'm in favor of saving the hungering people in Darfur without having them take refuge in some religious shadows on the walls of some new caves!
And yes, I'm American and not at all in favor of the playpen, the bushbaby, al qaida, or bin laden --- two covens with two all-too-similar "chieftains" in them. I am in favor of human rights, civil rights, justice, freedom ..... And I value the right of all to express their thoughts. Now that the man who wants to have so many of us killed has expressed his, this is mine!

Congratulations to the Empire State Building !


A wonderful 75th birthday ! Best wishes from this former New Yorker, now Berliner !
And use this link to the official website to get a lot of information on New York City's tall lady.
Photo from The New York Times, courtesy of David MayNew York, N.Y

Saturday, April 22, 2006

Brandenburg Spring - Bike Trip [part 2]


The flowers up close - under the giant birch trees whose leaves still lie dry beneath these tiny white blossoms, the mass of which smell as sweet as honeysuckle with the breeze in your direction.

Brandenburg Spring - Bike Trip [part 1]


Just some proof that Spring has come to the forests of Brandenburg ! A wonderful view on a bike trip from Angermunde to Templin

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Possibly an antidote to the playpen....


Chicora Court Chicks chase the chiseler out of the country! And cherish the chirping of birds!
The countess reigns; the cheats check out; the country focuses on a tiny complex; the world arches out from the interwoven stitches .... and a picture emerges.

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Der mitleidige Christ

Nietzsche - Morgenröthe

80. —Der mitleidige Christ.—
Die Kehrseite des christlichen Mitleidens am Leiden des Nächsten ist die tiefe Beargwöhnung aller Freude des Nächsten, seiner Freude an Allem, was er will und kann.

From me, no further commentary or additions necessary....

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Give Popetown a Chance !


After British religious fundamentalists (of the Catholic variety) managed to prevent the satire /caricature cartoon series from being broadcast on BBC (which produced it), MTV in Germany has announced it will begin airing the 9 episode series on May 3!
Thanks for showing we can make fun of what is essentially funny, were it not so intolerant itself (i.e. religion).
Now, however, the German catholic fundamentalists (the Bishops) are up in arms and attempting to block the MTV broadcast. The still from the series here shows what they probably would like to do to anyone showing or watching the series!
Out of the shadows and into the light!
This is a link to the TRAILER for the comedy cartoon.

Wednesday, April 5, 2006

Cheers for the Chicks of Chicora Court !!!

I know their countess, I know their court, I know (or have at least met) several of those roosting chicks, appreciate their chatter, cherish their cheekiness, and hope soon to tell you more about them here! Stay tuned....
....
....
....
Which chick is champion of obscurity?
Which is confounder of the devious?
Which is controller of continuity?
Which is catastrophically contagious?
Which is chucklingly childish?
And who can possibly match the chides of the reigning Countess?

Monday, April 3, 2006

Even in Berlin... Spring is on the way !!



And just a couple of pics to prove it, just taken, just now, in the garden....

Friday, March 31, 2006

Neue Kämpfe

Von Nietzsches Die fröhliche Wissenschaft

108
Nachdem Buddha todt war, zeigte man noch Jahrhunderte lang seinen Schatten in einer Höhle,—einen ungeheuren schauerlichen Schatten. Gott ist todt: aber so wie die Art der Menschen ist, wird es vielleicht noch Jahrtausende lang Höhlen geben, in denen man seinen Schatten zeigt.— Und wir—wir müssen auch noch seinen Schatten besiegen!
If anyone was wondering why it's still so difficult to promote thinking, well, the question was raised long ago and the approach to the answer will continue for some time to come.
Keep trying!

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Is There a Case for Impeachment?

From a HARPER'S MAGAZINE posting on Wednesday, March 22, 2006.
Edited selections from a forum moderated by Sam Seder and featuring Representative John Conyers Jr., John Dean, Former Congresswoman Elizabeth Holtzman, Lewis Lapham, and Michael Ratner, held March 2, 2006 at Town Hall in New York City.
Follow this link to the transcript as well as to further links with the downloadable mp3 podcast of the forum in full length and to the text of the house resolution to investigate GWB for impeachment.
Perhaps there is still a chance to preserve the balance of powers (or reinstitute it) and prevent the playpen from ending democracy and liberty and civil rights in the USA!

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Support the Manifesto against Totalitarianism Signatories

We support the signatories of the Manifesto "Together facing the new totalitarianism. 1078 support on Tuesday the 21 of march
On Saturday, March 11, a thread on the British Islamist site, ummah.net, issued a death threat against the 12 signatories of the Manifesto "Together facing the new totalitarianism" : 'Excellent-makes killing the kuffar all the bit easier (...) Jezak'illah Ukthi, now we have drawn out a hit list of a 'Who's Who' guide to slam into. Take you time but make sure their gone soon- oh and don't hold out for a fatwah it isn't really required here.'
We, the undersigned, wish to express our unequivocal support for and solidarity with the twelve signatories of this proclamation and our outrage at the Islamist movement's attack on them. We stand firm with the 12 against this reactionary movement and join in their call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all.
If you wish to show your support, please email us your name as well as the way in which you want to be introduced in brackets to manifesto@prochoix.org. We will publish the text and the list of signatories in the next few days.
http://www.prochoix.org/cgi/blog/2006/03/01/413
A. Figoussian——A. Glickman——A. Hirota Japan ——A. Kheir——A.J. Robb——Aaron Azlant——Aaron Nagler——Aatif Iqbal——Abdallah Al Rashid——Abraham Birenbaum Toronto Canada——Abraham Greenwald——Adam M. Cole——Adam Mahler Buffalo, NY——Adam Swift——Adrian Gaty, Harvard College Class of 2007——Adrien Saumier, Seine-et-Marne, assistant parlementaire——Ahcene Talbi (EtudiantTunisie)——Ahmad Bishara——Aida Davis Vancouver, Canada——Aidan Martin——Aimée Toulgoat——Akbar Ladak Muslim residing in Bangalore, India.——Åke Lagergren Malmö Sweden——Al King Canada——Alain Calles (Ancien président du Mrap)——Alan baker——Alan Cuthbertson——Alan Gold——Alan Watson ——Alastair Gordon——Albert Moawad——Alene Berkowitz——Alex Friesen——Alex Poore Melbourne ——Alex Schulman——Alex Roberts——Ali Mesra——Alice Coffin Journaliste——Alice Moskowitz-USA——Alicia Priest Victoria, Canada——Alisa B Canada——Alixx Ortiz——Allan Golombek——Allan Stansall Mississauga, Canada——Allison Martin——Alok Daga Toronto, Canada and Calcutta, India——Amal shahid——Amel Bejaoui Citoyenne laïque militante -Tunisie-——Amman, Jordan——Amos Galvin——Amy Whitman, California, USA——Anat Turel Dckman——André Gomar——Andre R Boulanger Rev——Andrea Thurm——Andrew Holladay——Andrew Knox Austin, Tx——Andrew L. Jaffee, Publisher——Andrew L. Levy——Andrew Levy United States of America——Andrew MacDougall——Andy Gilmour,——Ann Lemieux Canada——Anna DeMarinis——Anna Morgan ——Annaka Harris ——Anne Collins——Anne Hubble——Anne Savage——Anne Winter——Annette Heller ——Annick Piat (France)——Annie Gottlieb——Anthea Lipsett 
UK——Anthony Reynolds ——Antoine Finck ——Arizona——Armand Laferrère——Armando Paredes Doctorant à l'Université de Paris Professeur de langue espagnole——Arnold frischman——Arthur Arfa——Arthur Thomson——Arvo Marits Canada/Estonia——Aubrey Goldstein——Audrey Walzer——Augie Ruckdeschel——August Berkshire——Austin Cline——B. Goldman Canada——Bachir Choukri——Bachir Guezal (Journaliste)——Barb Lefcourt Canada——Barbara Andersen USA——Barbara McCarthy——Barbara Roberts——Barney F. McClelland——Barry Lubotta——Béatrice Szwec——Ben Cronin——Ben Litchman——Ben Shobert——Benjamin Bilski——Benjamin M. Lawless——Benjamin Sharma——Benjamin Wolf ——Bernadette Capdevielle France——Bernard Delmotte (ingénieur, agrégé, athée)——Betsy Brookshier——Bev LeFrancois Canada——Bill Budinger——Bill Buzbee——Bill Garland, Professor, Dept. of Engineering Physics——Bill Kerr Australia——Bill Moore——Bill Nigh——Bill Prestwich——Bjorn Larsen——Blanche Le Petit Institutrice——Bob Kaufman——Bonny Leszcz Canada——Boris Goldberg, New York.——Boulder, CO USA——Brandi Dickman——Brandon W. Zuk, East Lansing, Michigan.——Brendan Babish Development Associate WE ACT for Environmental Justice New York——Brendan Murphy——Brendan Wolfe——Brent Forrester, USA——Brian Blake——Brian D. Cale——Brian Dalton Brooklyn, NY——Brian Greene——Brian Hagan——Brian Hinkle——Brian Johnson——Brian Lass Toronto, Canada——Brian McCarthy——Brian McClinton——Brian n. Dickenson Rev——Brian Thomas——Brigitte Lhomond (sociologue, CNRS)——Brigitte Stora, journaliste——Brona Rosen——Bruce Long Texas, USA——Bruce Pitt——Bruce S. Springsteen——Bruce G. Conrad-Reingold ——Bruno——Bruno Richez (républicains, athées et laïques)——Bryan Summers——C. E. Alexander——C. Van Youngman——Calgary, Alberta——Calvin Martin, Q.C., Toronto, Ontario, Canada——Cameron Angus Richmond, British Columbia——Cameron Strandberg——Carl Miffleton Jr. USA——Carol Rosenthall Canada——Carolyn Haas——Caspar Melville——Catherine Hsu——Catherine Perry Dr——Catherine Ravelli (enseignante, syndicaliste SNUEP-FSU, Paris)——Cécile Arnold, Marseille——Chahla Mohsen——Chaliand Minces Juliette ——Charles Falut (France)——Charles Homme Fargo——Charles S. Hendricksen, PhD——Charly Bouchara, traducteur, Montréal, Québec——Checked by AVG Free Edition.——Chicago, Illinois 60603——Chicago,I llinoisCity or country - optional——chloé legeay, 24 ans, étudiante——Chris Darrouzet——Chris Hallquist——Chris Hughes——Chris Schroeter Germany ——Christian A. Hankel——Christian Gaudray (militant laïque) ——Christian Skalka——Christo Doherty Professor——Christophe Dumas consultant France——Christopher Farley Portland, Oregon——Christopher Orlet USA——Christopher Williams 
Culpeper, Virginia——Chuck Currie——Claire Huynen écrivain——Claude Boiziau membre de la commission femmes d'Amnesty International.——Claude Wachtelaer Inspecteur - Coordinateur Pédagogique——Claude Wynne——Clint Brooks——Colette Bati Psychanalyste à Gentilly et à Corbeil——Colette Guillaumin ( sociologue )——Colette Micoud-Terreau (régisseur lumière)——Conrad Roeske——Constance Wiggins——Corner Brook, NL, Canada——Craig Merritt——Craig Read Canada——Curtis Scott Dunkel——D. Bonder Dr——D. Glazer——D.Miglos——Dagmar Gontard-Zelinkova Your name here——Dagmar Yaari——Dale Wilson——Damian Penny——Damien F. Veatch——Dan Britt Montreal, Canada——Daniel Dale——Daniel Sharp——Daniel Strohl——Daniel Turnbull London——Daniela Dixon——Danièle Migols (France)——Daniella Gold Toronto, Canada——Danny Kampf——Dara Korra'ti——Darrell Larson New York, USAl William Baggett——Darrell Vaughn——Dave Deveau——Dave McKenna——Dave Olim——David A. Bell——David A. Martin Jr.——David Blinick Toronto, Canada——David Bornstein——David D. Kympton——David Dehoney——David E. Kenninger——David Eaves——David Galway——David Galway——David H. Solomon, M.D. Los Angeles California, USA——David Hernand——David Hitchcock——David Hobbet——David Jackmanson" ——David Jaffe ——David Lenny——David Lewis Studio City, California——David M. O'Leary, S.T.L., D.Phil Reverend——David McKeegan——David Montelle Forbes——David Mulvale——David P. Kyzer——David Pendleton——David Polansky——David Pollock——David Randall——David Sinyor, Montreal, Canada——David T. Drummond Ottawa, Canada——David Weil United States——David Wrenn——Davis B. Richardson——Davor Bakovic——Dawn Wolfe Gutterman——Dean Boyer——Del Arseneault——Denis Loggins ——Dennis Abry United States of America——Dennis Branch California,——Dennis Maust——Dennis Maust——Dennis R. Norton——Dennis Trentadue——Dennis Ward——Dennis Strander——Denver, CO——Devin James Carpenter——Diana Brown (supporter of human rights)——Diane Bischak——Diane Fulford Gee——Diane Lavi——Diane Ravitch——Dianna Deeley——DJ Van Hoogstraten——Dominic Cardy

Naxal, Kathmandu, Nepal
——Dominique Durand - (Educateur spécialisé, chargé d'insertion RMI en Ile-de France)——Dominique Jacquin Adjoint au maire Ville d’Arcueil Val de Marne ——Don Reid London Ontario——Don Walker——Donald Braun——Donna Deitch——Donnel Jones——Donnel Jones——Dora Usher——Doris Epstein——Dottie Buch ——Doug Taylor USA——Douglas Adams——Douglas C. Ward——Douglas J. Drake——Douglas McBride, USA——Douglas Murray.——Douglas R. Stewart——Douglas Rogers——Draisa Frischman——Duncan McGregor——E. Borenstein——E. Marshall Pollock, Q.C.,——Eduard Konrad——Eduardo Hernandez——Edward Bein——Edward Bornstein Toronto, CANADA——Edward Cantor——Edward G. Tripp, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.A.——Edward Lasseigne——EGALE——Eileen Wahl ——Elena Diamantos——Elisabeth Badinter, philosophe.——Elisabeth Schemla (Fondatrice de Proche-Orient.info)——Elizabeth Bromstein, Canada——Elizabeth Caskie——Ellana Livermore——Ellen S. Goldstein- Buffalo, NY——Ellen Williams——Elliott F. Grasett——Emanuele Ottolenghi——Eric Duffey Norwalk,Oh, USA——Eric Martinez Fonctionnaire de santé——Eric Pitt of Chicago,——Eric Rohrs——Eric Sutton Canada——Erik Tanner——Esther Behar——Eugene M. Pommier——Euromed ——Eva Gold——Eve bigou simple citoyenne qui défend la laïcité et la liberté de pensée et d'expression——Fariba Hachtroudi Ecrivain et journaliste Iranienne Présidente de l'Association humanitaire Mohsen Hachtroudi (MoHa).——Farouk Mansouri (consultant) Paris.——Fatima Amar——Fénotte CALMO——Fern Oppenheim——Fewzi benhabib enseignant-chercheur Université de Cergy-Pontoise——Fiammetta Venner (politologue)——Filippa von Platen Sweden——Finn Boserup (human being, Denmark)——Fisher Lena——Florence Brown——Floris van den Berg van Saparoea——Floris van den Berg van Saparoea——France——Francine Godard——Francine Van den Moortel ——Francis Joseph DiTraglia——Francis Lazerges, ingénieur retraité, ex catholique devenu athée,——François Massias Chômeur, CNT (KB 9.4)——François Vilbert——Frank Brickle——Frank Logan——Frank M. Howland——Frank O'Hara Toronto, Canada——Frank Sokolowski——Frank Spence——Fred Britton Canada——Freddy Clayton——Frederik Stjernfelt (professor, Danish University of Education)——Free yourse ——Frimet Roth——G. D. Moore——G.S. Cox——Gail McCabe Toronto ON Canada ——Gaithersburg, MD ——Gardena, CA USA.——Garland, TX, USA——Gary Hagland ——Gary Leach——Gary Sehnert——Geoff Fridd Toronto, Canada.——Geoffrey LaForte——George Atherton——George Masologites——Georges Ostiguy——Georges Rivière (ARCAM)——Georges Slodzian (physicien)——Germany——géry brasseur-delcourt——géry brasseur-delcourt,militant radical de gauche,élu membre du comité directeur du prg,——Gibraltar——Gilbert Glasman——Gilbert GLASMAN——Gilbert Glasman - Conferences & Débats——Gilles Domenget (coopération culturelle en Algérie)——Giorgio Bertuccelli——Glenn Bullard Canada——Glenn Caron ——Gloria Lepofsky Canada——GM Roper ——Go Home Lake——Go Home Lake——Gordon Gamm——Gordon M. Bell——Gordon Walker France——Graduate Student——Graham Milne ——Granville Martin ——Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada——Greg Mills——Greg Mills Berkeley, California ——H Nicholson——H. David Burstein——Habib Al Latif——Hakim Arabdiou, Paris.——Hamilton, Canada ——Harriet Dickman——Harriet Wrye, Ph.D., ABPP——Harry Heller USA——Harry R Welty——Harry Wajchendler——Harry Walsh Ottawa, Ont. Canada——Hasan Suroor London,United Kingdom——Hasdai Westbrook——Hassan Abdelnour (Damascus Syria)——Hassan Abdlemalik——Hassan Dubois (Bordeaux)——Hassan Ouardi (Suisse)——Hassan Walid Al Joumouriah——Hassina Hamaïli——Hazel Barkham Rev——Heime Geffen——Helen Poizner——Hélène Richez (républicains, athées et laïques)——Hellal Khelaf , Ingénieur , Alger ——Henning Petersen——Henriette Gleizes de Cambiaire——Henry Wolkowicz Cambridge, Ontario——Herb Green——Herbert Rosenbaum, physicist, writer, Denmark)——Holger Lutz Kern Ithaca, NY——Howard Weinberg——Hugh McMillan Canada——Hugh Millar ——Hugues Leenhardt (instituteur)——Huguette Chomski Magnis ——I. van Riet——Iain Ross——Ian A. Gillespie——Ian Dew-Becker——Ian Dodd——Ian E. Macfarlane Canada——Ian Lowe Scottish Atheist Council——Ian McAllister——Ian McKechnieCanada——Ibrahim Latif——Igor Ellyn——Imad Shawa——Imre Herzog——Ingrid Becuwe (France)——Ingrid Verver The Netherlands——Initiateur du nouvel islam——Irène Ekani——Irini Papandreou ——Irving Weisdorf ——Isabelle Ravary isabelle professeur des écoles depuis 25 ans en ZEP Seine Saint Denis——Ishrat Manji——Ismahan Levi——Issa Moawad——J. Boüüaert, Docteur en philosophie et lettres.——J. Russell Kliegel Denver, Colorado, USA——J.L. Eisler——J.LivingstonToronto,Canada——Jack A Witkin——Jack Basuk Victoria, Canada——Jack Cosgrove——Jack L. Parsons——Jack Mallah——Jack Micay Toronto, Canada——Jacob Howland——Jacqueline Clark——James Blandford——James Blythe——James Boyd Baker——James C. Garahan ——James Feldman NY, NY——james harper——James R. Brown——James Silverglad, New York, NY——James Tapley Sarasota ——James Thurman Kahn 
United States of America——Jan Krejcik——Jan Loeb Eisler, located in Madeira Beach FL USA——Jan Narveson——Jan van Horebeek——Jan van Horebeek Directeur d'école honoraire de l'enseignement de la communauté flamande en Belgique. Franc-maçon G.O.B——Jane Kilgannon London, UK——Jane Luksich——Janet Jones——Janet Somerville English Department——Janis Kelly——Jared Shore——Jarvis Cochrane Perth, Australia——Jason Christensen——Jason Sheppard——Jason Wood Oakville, Ontario, Canada——Javier S. Hidalgo——Jay Allen——Jay Huber——Je soutiens et signe le manifeste "Ensemble contre le nouveau totalitarisme"——Jean L. Burbidge. Canada——Jeanette Dennis——Jean-Loup Azema (citoyen)——Jean-Paul Joseph Chercheur CNRS——Jean-Pierre Chemla (Primo-Europe)——Jean-Pierre E. HERREMANS, Avocat, juge de Paix suppléant, Lieutenant-Colonel (Hre- Rés) Belgique——Jean-Pierre Matte Canada——Jeff Burke ——Jeff Guinn 
Business Objects Developer 
iTEK Center East, E1F001K ——Jeff Simpson——Jefferson City, Mo. USA——Jeffrey Hansen——Jeffrey St.Claire——Jeffrey Ullman——Jennifer Brooks Rev——Jennifer Howland——Jeremiah D. McAuliffe, Jr.——Jeremy Reff——Jerome Gassa ——Jerry Brennan——Jesse Kirchner——Jessica Rasku——Jibril Kheir——Jim Cranwell Ontario Canada——Jim MacGregor——Jim Moskowitz Swarthmore, USA——Jim Watson——Jimmy Dobbs——Jocelyn Bézecourt——Jodie Evans Cofounder, CODEPINK: Women for Peace——Joe Grindstaff——Joe Grossman——Joe Kaplan——Joe Nadler——Joel Cooper——Joel Drazner——Joel Scott——Jogen Shukla.——John Berube——John C. Lindsley Leicester, NC USA——John C. Schmerein——John Cooper, 46487 Yale Road, Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada——John Erich Portland, OR——John F. Swenson, J.D.——John G. Simpson——John Hunt, London, UK.——John J. Furedy, Emeritus Professor of Psychology, University of Toronto——John Loeffler——John Mason——John Medhurst Trade Unionist Brighton——John Mertes California, USA——John Miller——John Morrison 
Toronto, Canada——John P. March——John P. Scott ——John Robert Martin Chicago, USA——John Tabin——John Thompson ——John Tillinghast Statistician——John Topalanchik——John Williams Atlanta,Ga,USA——Johnny Jacobs From, Oxford, Mississippi——Jon K. Bornholdt——Jon Self——Jonathan Abbey——Jonathan Gold——Jonathan Usher——Jordan Ravka——Joseph Attias Universitaire (France)——Joseph Erbal Konrad——Joseph J. Gill——Joseph M. Steiner——Joseph Shipman——Joseph W. Davis, Jr.——Josh Cohen——Josh Glasstetter ——Joyce Green ——Judah Passow, London UK——Judith Wyatt——Judy Anderson, Toronto, Canada——Judy Schwartz——Julia Cohen——Julian Saunderson——Julien Nitzberg——Julien RENAULT——Juliet Gavison-Chauveau——Justin Payne——Justin Sheets——Kallan Greybe——Keith Chang——Keith Hambly——Keith Kopitz——Ken Braithwaite——Ken Macdonald, Kelowna——Ken Reibel——Kenneth F. Hodges——Kenneth Richter——Kenneth Sheridan——Kenneth Weisz——Kent Haines——Kenzari Touhami (Journaliste)——Kevin Bradley——Kevin McGilly——Kevin Rooney, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada——Kevin Saldanha Mississauga, Canada——Kirsten Grimstad——Kitty Heller ——Konrad Ejbich——Kristian Dunn United States——Kyle I Swanson——Kyle Lindskog——Kyle Orland——L. Zimmerman Canada——L.D.Thompson——Lakshmi Reddy Bloom——Lauren Smith——Lauren V. Merritt USA——Laurie Blendis MD Professor——Lawrence W. MalitoYour name here——Leah Ishmael.——Lee Chitiz Toronto, Canada——Lee Doubell——Leo Grunberger Toronto, Canada——Leo Wisniewski——Leon Komkov ——Leslie Sacks——Liliane Kandel——Linda Dennis——Linda Frum——Linda Garfield——Lindsey Bethke——Lindsey O. Worth——Lionel Robins——Lisa Heezen——Lisa L. Dean——Lisa Regan Seattle WA——Lorri Kushnirur ——Louis E. Balleweg——Louis Gregorich——Luc Berard de Malavas (conseiller municipal PS)——Lucas Klein——Lucille van Ommering——Luke Lea——Luke Murphy——Luke R. McCormac——Lyle P. Smith——Lynn Slaughter——M Faraz——M. Mehdi S. Al-Rifai——Macey Cadesky——Magnus Norell Dr Stockholm, Sweden——Malcolm Kronby——Malika Boussouf journaliste et auteur——Marc Abinader——Marc Duyungan——Marc Furman Johannesburg South Africa——Marc Horwitz. Membre-fondateur et responsable de la communication d'Egale——Marc Koplowitz Toronto, Canada——Marc Surgers——Marcel Cools, Avocat, citoyen du monde——Marcel Gillet un Homme normal athée ,laique ,anticlérical,qui ne fait confiance qu'à la science et a la raison face à tous les obscurantismes de ttoutes les religions et sectes de tous ordres——Marcelle Villarreal (Mexico City, MEXICO)——Margaret Wente——Maria Rosa Menocal——Marianne Marchand Westerlo Belgique——Marie Bickof, Canada——Marie- Laure Segal——Marie-Christine Guillerm (enseignante)——Marie-Claude San Juan——Marie-Dominique Housset——Marie-Françoise Rougerat Cadre Infirmier——Marilynne Friedman, Toronto——Marin Frith——Mark Amerman——Mark E. Pietrzyk——Mark Fournier Ottawa, Canada——Mark Gordon, www.suicideofthewest.com——Mark Keavney——Mark Landa..canada——Mark Scott new zealand——Martin Dooley——Martin Frankland——Martin Henderson——Martin Herring——Martin Thall——Martine CERF——Martínez Gorriarán (profesor de filosofía, Universidad del País Vasco; portavoz de Iniciativa Ciudadana Basta Ya)——Marvin D. Klotz Dr——Marvin Goodman ——Marvin Levant——Mary Lou Abrogio (Canada)——Mary McLemore United States of America——Mary Rue——Mary Waller Wisconsin Dr——Mathilde Falcou, 30 ans, éducatrice de rue, espérant élever mes enfants dans la paix——Mats Johansson Stockholm, Sweden——Matthew Dallman, Chicago USA——Matthew Kelly——Matthew T Manos, CPA——Megan Fauls——Mehdi Abinader——Melinda Barton——Mere, Wiltshire, UK——Meryle Kates, Canada——Micah Seymour——Michael A. Humphreys——Michael Barnaby——Michael Blank Framingham MA USA——Michael Butler, Los Angeles, CA——Michael C Ludders——Michael Cooper, Oregon——Michael Diamond, Toronto, Canada——Michael Goldfarb——Michael Hawley Operations Support Manager,——Michael John Landauer——Michael Kriskey——Michael LaTorra——Michael Ledeen——Michael Lonie Albany, Oregon, United States of America——Michael Loomis——Michael Mell——Michael Minch——Michael Mirus——Michael Mussman——Michael Paris BRUSSELS——Michael Robertson Moore——Michael Schell, Seattle, WA, USA——Michael Scott Brown——Michael Snider——Michael Stephen Fuchs——Michael Suedfeld——Michael Tran——Michael W Bailey——Michael Weingrad U.S.A.——Michael Zarett——Michael E Brant Rockdale,Il.——Michal Hasek——Michèle Vianès——Michelle Douglas——Michelle Samuel——Mike Cullen Brooklyn, NY, USA——Mike Dorsey——Mike Ferrell - NY USA——Mike McGoldrick——Mike Richard——Mike Wasiura——Mikkel Wallentin, Danish author and cognitive brain researcher——Miles A. McQueen——Miriam Cantor——Miriam Kronby——Mohamed Pascal Hilout (Fondateur du Nouvel Islam)——Mohammad Kheir——Mohammed Amin Manchester——Mohd Fuad Rawi——Molyn Leszcz——Moncef Redha (Journaliste)——Monica Hadley, Fairfield IA USA——Monique Cerisier ben Guiga Sénatrice des Français établis hors de France——Montcenis Danielle——Muriel Darmon (médecin, France)——Myron Pentz——Nader Abou Abbas——Nadia Kerrouan——Nadia Liassine, mededecin——Nadia Majiss——Nadja Ringart (sociologue) ——Nancy J. Proctor——Nancy Robertson——Naomi Hassan——Nasr Nagi Abdelmalek——Nate Rothstein——Nathan Grinspan——Nathan Wallingford, George Mason University——Nathaniel Howland——Nav Purewal——Neal Bever——Nedjma Scialom (Réalisatrice & Monteuse).Newton D. Scherl——Nick Papandreou ——Nick Ragaz Toronto, Canada——Nicolas Dessaux, président de Solidarité Irak——Nicole Leibowitz (Rédactrice en chef de Proche-Orient.info)——Nigel Waddington——Nikki Basuk Victoria, B.C., Canada——Nils Bredsdorff (librarian)——Nina Clemson Australia——Norbert Van der Meulen YerresFrance——Norman Share——Olga Zrihen (Sénatrice, Belgique)——Oliver Bennett ——Omran Salman Bahraini Writer & Journalist Based in USA——Ophelia Benson——Owen Dickman——Paolo Barredo——Partha Lal——Parthiban——Patrick Casey Warwick, Rhode Island, USA——Patrick D. Moran——Patrick Delbac ( Conseil d’entreprises )——Patrick Guerin Iowa - USA——Patrick Johnston——Patrick Lowery——Patrick Nachtigall——Paul Bowden, USA——Paul Douglas Green.——Paul Douglas Scott——Paul Fauvet——Paul Fisher——Paul Garnier.——Paul Hoffert——Paul Jenns——Paul Kingston——Paul Schultz——Pearl Adams——Peer Bundgaard Associate Professor, Ph.D. University of Aarhus, Denmark——Pete Blackwell——Peter Daivs Toronto, Canada——Peter Davis——Peter Ingemi——Peter Tudvad (cand.mag., Copenhagen, Denmark)——Phil Craig——Philip A. Sullivan——Philip and Gayle Tauber——Philip Black ——Philip Carl Salzman——Pierre Legrand ——Pierre Yardin——Pierre-Michel Rogozyk Adjoint Ingénieur Grandes Ecoles France——Preston Lancs——R.D. Wauchope Carlsbad, CA USA——Rabbi Richard Agler——Rachel Bordoli——Rachel J. Wilson——Rachel Jordan ——Rajiv Singh——Ralph Estey——Ramsey Campbell——Raphaël LELLOUCHE——Ray Arseneault——Raymond Heard——Renate Britton——Renaud Jean——Reza Aslan——Rezzoug Youcef (ancien rédacteur en chef du journal Le Matin d'Algérie)
——Rhyad Hamid Toronto, Canada - ——Richard Bartholomew (Osaka, Japan)——Richard Bouaziz France——Richard Brems——Richard Gardner (Translator, Writer, Thinker : American PhD in French living and working in Berlin, Germany)——Richard J. Rosendall Washington, D.C.——Richard Kirker——Richard Klumker- Denver,Colorado——Richard Koeppel——Richard M. Evans——Richard Martin——Richard Moore——Richard R. Myers——Richard Samuel——Richard Waghorne, Dublin, Ireland——Richmond Hill, Ontario——Rick Herrick——Rob Brooks——Rob Shields——Robert Abdelmajid——Robert Adams——Robert Castle ——Robert Danberg——Robert Dawson USA——Robert Dickman——Robert Frazier Chicago, USA——Robert Fulford——Robert Gaus——Robert Hodgman-Burns——Robert I. Wexelbaum——Robert J. Throckmorton, Dr Las Vegas, NV——Robert J. Willis——Robert James Bidinotto——Robert Jennings——Robert K. Selander——Robert Kennedy——Robert Lichtenauer——Robert M. Leaf——Robert Pavlacka——Robert Zeldin Toronto——Roberto Maglica——Robin Vigfusson——Rochelle Wilner——Rolf Majander Sweden——Rolly Bettse——Ron Ander Canada——Ron Reanorth——Ron Waksman News Director Global NEWS Global Television——Ronnie Rose Lausanne, Switzerland——Ross Burgess——Ross Johnson——Ross Spencer Cohen——Russell A. Barkley, Ph.D.——Ruth Abrams——Ryan Hardy——Ryan Pelkey——S. G. Adams——Salika Wenger. Présidente de l’Association des suisses contre les intégrismes et fondamentalismes religieux.——Sally Ferguson Dr——Sally Rogow——Salma Abdallah——Salomon Benzimra, P.Eng. Toronto, Canada——Sam Harris——Sam Wilson——Samuel Nisenboim——Sandra Freeman ——Sandrine Malem, Paris——Sara Nuzhat ——Sarah Gavion-Chauveau——Sarnia, ON, Canada——Scott Dillard——Scott J. Yambor——Scott M. Streff——Scotty Allen Moody——Seif el Din Abou Choukhra——Selim Naguib Avocat——Shadi Amin Iranian Exile Journalist, Editor in Chief : Iranian women's Network Association (SHABAKEH)- www.shabakeh.org——Shan Anwar
sanwar——Shane Duffield 
Calgary, Alberta——Sharon D'Avena usa——Shelley Ide——Shirley Anne Haber——Shirley Svihra California, USA——Shoukry Rizk——Sidharta Singh——Simon ARCHIPENKO Consultant entreprises——Simon Blumental (militant anti-colonialiste et anti-raciste)——Simon Chin——Simon Shapiro Toronto, Canada——Sinyo Tolotolo——Sissy Willis USA——Smadar Annette BAKOVIC——Solomon Zeifman——Sophie Chauveau——Sophie-Anne Hossaert. ——Stephen Altbaum Toronto, Canada——Stephen Browne——Stephen C. Wetlesen——Stephen Hendricks ——Stephen J. Bielfeldt——Stephen Malls——Stephen Phillips (Journalist)——Stephen Posen——Stephen Shepherd——Stephen Stripe——Steve Farrar——Steve Samuel——Steve T. Eichler Canada——Steve Tappan——Steven A. Knowlton——Steven Canvin Canada——Steven Drexler San Diego, CA——Steven Glass——Steven Maat——Stu Bykofsky, Philadelphia Daily News——Stuart Buchalter——Susan Brassfield Cogan——Susan De Rosa Toronto, Canada——Susan Griffiths (USA)——Susan Harris——Susan M. Brewer——Susan Mcleod Toronto ——Susanna McNeil——Suzanne Moawad——Svetlana Broz cardiologist, lecturer, author, human right advocate Sarajevo Bosnia and Herzegovina——Sylvie Finkielstein (traductrice, Paris)——Sylvie Nunes de Castro——T. Balaban Canada——Tad Brennan Professor——Talal Al Rashid——Tamar Hermann Professor——Tamara A. Turner——Tania Blumenthal Toronto, Canada——Tasha Axelrod——Tassadit DEBEC (Citoyenne)——Taube Zeifman——Ted Cosens——ted matthews——Ted Vokes Dr——Temperance Blalock——Terrence Flanagan——Terry Hinz Canada——Thomas A. Brennan——Thomas Coleman——Thomas Gilbert——Thomas Suhadolnik ——Thomas V. Roland Lawyer, USA——Thomas Vincent Smith——Tibor R. Machan——Tim Conaghan——Tim Jackson——Tim Peichel——Timothy Hack——Timothy Maguire——Tom Brennan, Lafayette, La. ——Tom Chen——Tom Grant——Tom Tomasov——Tor Arne Dahl——Tore Meberg——Toronto, Canada.——Trevor Garner——Tristan Mendès France (Secrétaire général de l'Institut Pierre Mendès France)——Trixy Sarino——Troels B. Hansen——Tyler Curtain ——Udo STAF Metteur en scène——Usman Ahmed——Vardit Zafri——Veronica Wessells Maryland, USA——Victor Abdelshahid——Vikram Reddy——Virginia Soronow, Vancouver, Canada——Vivian C. Hiestand ——Wafa Abdelnour (Palestine, USA)——Walid Elkarreh——Walid Hannah (Lebanon)——Walid Melki——Walid Moawad——Walter R. Ehrhardt——Walton, KY 41094——Wash., D.C. - USA——Washington, DC——Washington, DC
——Waterloo, Ontario, Canada——Wendell Bell——Wendy Fromme San Antonio, Texas——Wilf Reimer Vancouver, Canada——William C. Buttrey——William F Pekoc IV——William H. Driver——William Jacob Winship——William L Frydman Dr——William M. Farmer——William P. Stenwick, USA.——william roberts——William Salyers United States——William Snedden, Jr. Greensboro, NC, U.S.A.——William Thomas——William Wires——William Thomas——Yada Singh——Yael Pardess——Yann Policar (Comédien)——Yannick Comenge (Jeune chercheur)——Yernie Lustigour ——Yossi Gurvitz (Journalist)——Yossi Klein Halevi Jerusalem, Israel——Youssef Abdlekrim——Yves Scheller——Zachariah A. Baird——Zachary D. Liebhaber Goleta, California——Zachary Winograd, United States.——Zavie Miller Canada——Zelda Gamzu USA ——Zev Birger——Ziad Goudjil (histoiresdememoire.org)——Zuzana Ikels San Francisco, California——
Lien permanent de cette news

-->
<<< Nous soutenons le manifeste "Ensemble contre le nouveau totalitarisme" 1078 signatures au 21 mars ACCUEIL >>>
Reproduction autorisée avec mention de la source : © www.prochoix.org

Saturday, March 18, 2006

To support the Manifesto "Together facing the new totalitarianism" - ProChoix le site

To support the Manifesto "Together facing the new totalitarianism" - ProChoix le site
PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINK to add your support to the signatories of the Manifesto against totalitarian fundamentalism. The original twelve signers have now received death threats for calling for freedom of expression and opposition to intolerance!
They have called for the assertion of YOUR liberties: do not remain silent while fundamentalists attempt to silence them, or even murder them.
All we may have is our minds and voices...
... but that is enough to keep light in the world!
Do your part!!!

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Every day to dance - Every truth to laugh !!

A quotation of great JOY from Nietzsche, wrongly considered by so many to be so bleak. Read it for yourself --- here from Also sprach Zarathustra, available online for free from Gutenberg, in the original, French, and English. This piece from "Von alten und neuen Tafeln":

"Und verloren sei uns der Tag, wo nicht Ein Mal getanzt wurde! Und falsch heisse uns jede Wahrheit, bei der es nicht Ein Gelächter gab!"

"And lost be the day to us in which a measure hath not been danced. And false be every truth which hath not had laughter along with it!"

"Et que chaque jour où l'on n'a pas dansé une fois au moins soit perdu pour nous! Et que toute vérité qui n'amène pas au moins une hilarité nous semble fausse!"

Monday, March 6, 2006

Reprocessed Combatant Status Review Tribunal: GUANTÁNAMO PRISONERS

Reprocessed Combatant Status Review Tribunal (CSRT): "Reprocessed Combatant Status Review Tribunal (CSRT) and Administrative Review Board (ARB) Documents
Released March 3, 2006"
Important link to be able to read and make available everything the Playpen has released about the Guantánamo prisoners only under court order! Click onto the site and pick any of the pdf files at random to read through a protocol or two. You will be shocked at how representatives of the US government speak and at the sort of "dangerous" people it imprisons without due process for years and years and years and....

Thursday, March 2, 2006

Against the New Totalitarianism

Praise for the appeal of twelve courageous intellectuals for writing and signing this appeal for enlightenment against the powers of religious tyranny! You can read it here in French (original), English, and/or German. Just follow the links!

MANIFESTE DES DOUZE : "ENSEMBLE CONTRE LE NOUVEAU TOTALITARISME"
Le débat engagé par « douze dessins » sur Mahomet doit se poursuivre sur le terrain des idées et non plus des anathèmes. Refusant de se laisser intimider au nom du respect des cultures et surtout des religions, douze intellectuels — dont plusieurs dissidents de l’islam menacés... lire la suite

MANIFESTO : "TOGETHER FACING THE NEW TOTALITARIANISM"
After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism. We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all. The... click to read the rest

Nachdem die Welt den Faschismus, den Nazismus und den Stalinismus besiegt hat, sieht sie sich einer neuen weltweiten totalitären Bedrohung gegenüber: dem Islamismus.
Wir Schriftsteller, Journalisten, Intellektuellen rufen zum Widerstand gegen den religiösen Totalitarismus und zur Förderung der Freiheit, Chancengleichheit und des Laizismus für alle auf. Link zum ganzen Text

Wednesday, March 1, 2006

A review ... (a rave ...)


WZ-BÜHNE

Ein Traum von einem Dandy: Sebastian Koch als Lord Goring. (Foto: Joseph Gallus Rittenberg)

Oscar Wildes "Ein idealer Gatte" in Bochum: Mit Zerbrechlichkeit wider die Verlogenheit
Superlativen: Armin Holz und Richard Gardner inszenieren Oscar Wildes "Ein idealer Gatte" mit Star-Besetzung.
Bochum. Oscar Wildes Komödie "Bunbury" hat sich zum Dauerbrenner auf deutschen Bühnen entwickelt. Dabei ist ein anderes seiner Stücke in den Schatten geraten, das er fast zeitgleich, ein Jahr vor seiner Verurteilung 1895, geschrieben hat: "Ein idealer Gatte". Eine brillante Verfilmung mit Cate Blanchett und Rupert Everett haben es in Erinnerung gerufen. Dass die Bühne daraus einen Abend der Superlative machen kann, beweist die Bochumer Inszenierung von Armin Holz.
Die Geschichte kreist um Lord und Lady Chiltern, die sich wechselseitig für makellose, ideale Ehegatten halten. Sie lassen nicht den leisesten Zweifel daran aufkommen, dass ihre Partner über jede moralische Anfechtung erhaben sind. So hat der Lord in achtzehn Jahren ein großes Vermögen erworben, ist zu politischen Ehren gelangt und gehört inzwischen zur obersten Schicht der Londoner Gesellschaft.
Das Kartenhaus droht einzustürzen, als Mrs. Cheveley bei ihm vorstellig wird und ihn mit einem Brief erpressen will, mit dem er am Anfang seiner Karriere Insiderwissen über den Bau des Suezkanals für eine hohe Summe verkauft hat. Ein turbulentes Verwirrspiel beginnt.
Das Spannende der Fabel besteht darin, dass Wilde gesellschaftliche Arroganz mit politischen Hintergründen konfrontiert. Korruption, Machtversessenheit, die Rolle des Geldes und des Reichtums wirken so aktuell, als wäre die Komödie heute geschrieben. Aber Wilde beobachtet das Aufeinanderprallen von Selbstillusion und Wirklichkeit noch in der kleinsten seiner Figuren, dass die Dialoge wie ein nie erlöschendes Feuerwerk der Formulierungskunst wirken.
Regisseur Armin Holz hat mit Richard Gardner eine neue Übersetzung angefertigt, die der Vorlage in jeder Nuance gerecht wird. Zumal hat er alle Rollen mit Topkräften besetzt. Markus Boysen lässt die lordschaftlichen Krusten seiner Verdrängung nur langsam aufbrechen. Wie er sich windet, seine politische Integrität wegen einer "Jugendsünde" in Frage zu stellen und wie die Gesellschaft alles tut, um ihren "besten Mann" nicht fallen zu lassen, sondern ihn das Treppchen nach oben ins Ministeramt befördert, ist ein Kabinettstück.
Imogen Kogge steht treu an seiner Seite. Ihre Wandlungsfähigkeit ist beeindruckend. In dem neuen Film "Requiem" noch die strenge, fast fanatische Mutter, glänzt sie hier als eher verhuschte, wunderbar idealversunkene Mustergattin. Ihr Gegenpart der raffinierten Entlarvungsschlange wird von Jeanette Hain vom ersten bis zum letzten Auftritt mit nicht endenden Variationen der Bosheit garniert.
Den Gipfel der Oberhausborniertheit erklimmt Margit Carstensen als Lady Markby jeder Satz eine Schrulligkeit. Mithalten kann da problemlos Hans Diehl als Lord Caversham. Er will seinen missratenen Sohn endlich unter die Haube bringen und zu einem einigermaßen nützlichen Dasein bewegen. Hier kommt Lord Goring als sein Sohn ins Spiel. Sebastian Koch macht aus ihm die Paraderolle eines Dandys, der allen guten Ratschlägen und Weisheiten zu trotzen versteht.
Holz entwickelt eine Wilde-Figur, in der Koch zum Vollblutkomödianten wird. Jenseits der üblichen Schwulenparodie wird Zartheit und Zerbrechlichkeit zum einzigen Mittel, sich der Verlogenheit zu entziehen. Wie er mit den Knien einsackt, den Füßen tänzelt, den Händen fuchtelt und den Augen rollt, ist allein schon die Reise nach Bochum wert. Claude de Demo hält als seine Zukünftige tapfer mit ihm mit und besticht ihrerseits durch völlig abgedrehte Skurrilität.
Armin Holz erarbeitet mit Heike van Bentum und Esther Walz (Kostüme) einen abstrakten und damit zeitlosen Bühnenraum. Durch groteske Übersteigerung, Zeitlupentempo oder jähe Erstarrungen bevölkern auch Nebenfiguren wie Cornelius Schwalm, Josefin Platt und Veronika Nickl eine artifizielle Welt, der man sich nicht entziehen kann.
3 Stunden, 1 Pause, Aufführungen: Montag, 4., 7., 11., 23., 24., 30., 31. März, Karten: 0234 / 33 33 - 55 55
27.02.06Von Torsten Enge
WZ-Bühne

Monday, February 27, 2006

"Ein idealer Gatte" im Schauspielhaus Bochum

Ein idealer Gatte
Premiere am 25. Februar um 19.30 Uhr im Schauspielhaus Bochum


Bild: Joseph Gallus Rittenberg - Sebastian Koch als Lord Goring

Pressemitteilung
Wildes Sittenkomödie "Ein idealer Gatte" hatte am Samstag Premiere im Schauspielhaus Bochum
Oscar Wilde
Ein idealer Gatte
Deutsch von Armin Holz und Richard Gardner

Regie: Armin Holz
Bühne: Heike van Bentum und Armin Holz
Kostüme: Esther Walz
Musik: Philipp Weiss
Premiere am 25. Februar 2006, 19.30 Uhr, Schauspielhaus
Weitere Vorstellung im Februar: 27.02. (19.30 Uhr)
Vorstellungen im März: 04.03. (19.30 Uhr), 07.03. (19.30 Uhr), 11.03. (19.30 Uhr),
23.03. (19.30 Uhr), 24.03. (19.30 Uhr), 30.03. (19.30 Uhr), 31.03. (19.30 Uhr)
Lord Caversham Hans Diehl
Lord Goring Sebastian Koch
Sir Robert Chiltern Markus Boysen
Vicomte de Nanjac Michael Lippold
Mr. Montford Jaschar Sarabtchian
Mason/Phipps/James Cornelius Schwalm
Lady Chiltern Imogen Kogge
Lady Markby Margit Carstensen
Lady Basildon Josefin Platt
Mrs. Marchmont Veronika Nickl
Miss Mabel Chiltern Claude De Demo
Mrs. Cheveley Jeanette Hain
"Es ist eine geistreiche und ironische Sittenkomödie", sagt Armin Holz über das Stück "Ein idealer Gatte", mit dessen Inszenierung sich der Regisseur am Samstag, den 25.02.06 in Bochum vorstellen wird. Seit August 2005 ist Holz Hausregisseur und Mitglied der Künstlerischen Leitung des Schauspielhaus Bochum. Nach seiner ersten Inszenierung "Bunbury" – seiner Abschlussarbeit an der Münchner Otto-Falckenberg-Schule 1988 – und "Salome" – einer Eigenproduktion, die er 2003 in der Probebühne Cuvrystraße in Berlin realisierte – setzt er in Bochum seinen dritten Oscar Wilde in Szene. "Das Stück habe ich schon lange mit mir herumgetragen", meinte Holz zu Probenbeginn. Was ihn besonders an Wilde reizt, ist seine Eleganz, sind seine Pointen, die mitten ins Leben hineintreffen, ist seine unglaubliche Kenntnis des Lebens, seine große Liebe zum Leben gepaart mit Bitterkeit und Sarkasmus. Für seine Bochumer Inszenierung hat Holz zusammen mit Richard Gardner "An Ideal Husband" neu übersetzt.
Oscar Wilde zeigt in "Ein idealer Gatte" die Divergenz zwischen Schein und Sein in den Denk- und Verhaltensmustern der Viktorianischen Ära und enthüllt die Fadenscheinigkeit eines Gesellschaftskodex mit all seinen Normen, Rollenspielen und Illusionen. Er beweist mit diesem Stück einen trefflich scharfen und stechenden Blick auf gesellschaftliche Zwänge und bigotte Moralvorstellungen nicht nur seiner Zeit. Uraufgeführt wurde "An Ideal Husband" am 3. Januar 1895 im Theatre Royal Haymarket in London.
Dreh- und Angelpunkt der Handlung sind verhängnisvolle Affären: Die intrigante Mrs. Cheveley erpresst den aufstrebenden Unterstaatssekretär Sir Robert Chiltern mit einem Brief aus dessen Vergangenheit. Sie weiß, dass seine Karriere einst mit einem Insidergeschäft begann und droht nun, ihr Wissen zu veröffentlichen. Als Cheveley das Geheimnis seiner Ehefrau verrät, bricht für die prinzipientreue Lady eine Welt zusammen. Chilterns Freund, der heiratsresistente Lord Goring, versucht, Robert zu helfen. Er droht Mrs. Cheveley, mit der auch er eine Vergangenheit hat, als Diebin zu entlarven. Und plötzlich steht Intrige gegen Intrige…
Oscar Wildes Thema, im Spannungsfeld von persönlichen Interessen und gesellschaftlichen Ansprüchen mit Verantwortung korrekt umzugehen, ist in jeder Zeit aktuell. "Doch direkte Bezüge zu Tagesaktuellem lassen sich in meiner Inszenierung nicht wieder finden", sagt Holz. Ihm geht es darum, große menschliche Schicksale zu zeigen.
"In Bochum arbeite ich mit großartigen, kostbaren Schauspielern", sagt Armin Holz über die Besetzung des "Idealen Gatten". Jeanette Hain übernimmt die Rolle der Mrs. Cheveley. In Holz’ Inszenierung "Salome" in Berlin spielte sie die Hauptrolle. Im Fernsehen (Sat1) war die Schauspielerin zuletzt in der Serie "Bis in die Spitzen" zu sehen. Nach zwölf Jahren Theaterabstinenz steht Sebastian Koch wieder auf der Bühne. In Film und Fernsehen machte er sich vor allem mit seiner Darstellung von historischen Persönlichkeiten (u.a. Andreas Baader in "Das Todesspiel"; Klaus Mann in "Die Manns"; Albert Speer in "Speer und Er") einen Namen. In "Ein idealer Gatte" spielt Koch den Dandy Lord Goring. Holz und Koch kennen sich seit Studentenzeiten an der Otto-Falckenberg-Schule. Die Rolle des Sir Robert Chiltern übernimmt Markus Boysen, der an großen Theatern wie dem Bayerischen Staatsschauspiel, dem Deutschen Theater Berlin, dem Deutschen Schauspielhaus in Hamburg, am Burgtheater, an den Münchner Kammerspielen und am Thalia Theater in Hamburg engagiert war und aus zahlreichen Fernsehproduktionen (u.a. "Speer und Er", "Im Schatten der Macht") bekannt ist. Imogen Kogge, seit Sommer Ensemblemitglied des Schauspielhaus Bochum, ist die korrekte Lady Chiltern. Lord Gorings Vater, Lord Caversham, wird von Hans Diehl gespielt. Claude De Demo gibt die kokette Miss Mabel Chiltern. Des Weiteren stehen Margit Carstensen, Veronika Nickl, Josefin Platt, Michael Lippold, Jaschar Sarabtchian und Cornelius Schwalm auf der Bühne.
Die Filmausstatterin Heike van Bentum hat zusammen mit Armin Holz das Bühnenbild entworfen. Die Kostüme stammen von Esther Walz, die in den letzten Jahren Kostüme für Filme u.a. von Wim Wenders, Oskar Roehler ("Elementarteilchen") und Jean-Jacques Annaud ("Der Name der Rose") kreiert hat. Der Jazz-Sänger Philipp Weiss, der jüngste Star der Jazzszene, hat die Bühnenmusik komponiert.
Armin Holz, 1962 in Krefeld geboren, studierte Theaterwissenschaft und Kunstgeschichte an der Universität Wien (1983-1985) und Regie an der Otto-Falckenberg-Schule in München (1985-1989). Während seiner Studienzeit assistierte er bei Peter Zadek am Deutschen Schauspielhaus in Hamburg. "Bunbury" von Oscar Wilde setzte er in einem Gewächshaus in München-Moosach in Szene. Er inszenierte am Deutschen Theater Berlin ("Wunderworte" von Ramón del Valle-Inclán, 1992) und am Staatstheater Hannover ("Die falsche Zofe" von Marivaux, 1996). Als Eigenproduktionen realisierte er 1991 Alfred de Mussets "Man spielt nicht mit der Liebe" in einem Zelt vor dem Schloss Lüntenbeck bei Wuppertal, 2001 Jane Bowles "Im Gartenhaus" in der Probebühne Cuvrystraße, Berlin und 2003 ebendort Wildes "Salome". 1997 wurde er mit dem Preis der Deutschen Akademie der Darstellenden Künste ausgezeichnet (Laudatio: Kurt Hübner).
Für die Premiere des "Idealen Gatten" am Samstag 25.02. und für die zweite Vorstellung am 27.02. ist mit Restkarten an der Abendkasse zu rechnen. Für die Vorstellungen im März (4., 7., 11., 23., 24., 30., 31.) können Karten an der Theaterkasse telefonisch unter 0234/3333-5555 oder über den Monatsspielplan unter Schausspielhaus Bochum bestellt werden.

Monday, February 20, 2006

Ecce Homo

Recommended reading: Friedrich Nietzsche's Ecce Homo, available for free download at Gutenberg, is more up-to-date than the latest issue of nearly any American and most European newspapers. You can even find it in English, French translations. And when you've finished, then go on to Zarathustra! For difficulties in comprehension, refer to Heidegger's essays on Nietzsche.
Just a finger pointing in a direction of smiling joyous light, in that direction, a chance to say YES to THIS LIFE...
But don't just listen to (read) what I say; go on and discover your own flame!

The New Yorker speaks up for speaking freely

"Democracies preclude contending absolutisms and the dicta of fixed identities. They have to do with identity in flux, with culture, and cultures, constantly transforming, molting into something new - something surprising and different and open-ended and free." That is how Jane Kramer tries to explain that freedom against absolutism is at issue in the so-called caricature strike: see the full article under this link> The New Yorker: The Talk of the Town:

Friday, February 17, 2006

Totalitarianism vs Liberalism

Another good comment on what's going on between those who treasure freedom of thought and expression and those who seek to shackle our minds to the iron balls of their dogma.
Click here to read it (German).

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Des écrivains face à la caricature

Point de vue
Des écrivains face à la caricature
LE MONDE 13.02.06 14h49 • Mis à jour le 13.02.06 14h53

A l'époque des Versets sataniques, lorsque la fatwa fut lancée sur la tête d'un écrivain reconnu, il se trouvait ici ou là, sur les ondes, dans les dîners en ville, entre les lignes des éditoriaux, des esprits fins qui discutaient de savoir si c'était un bon livre. D'autres, plus carrés, parlaient déjà de provocation. Et dans provocation, il faut toujours savoir entendre "inutile".
Aujourd'hui, on nous demande de considérer que les caricatures d'un prophète parues dans un journal danois voilà cinq mois ne seraient peut-être pas de bonnes caricatures. On a envie de dire qu'on s'en fiche un peu, et des caricatures, et de savoir si elles étaient bonnes ou non. On nous dit que c'est attiser la haine. Et, là encore, on aimerait répondre que la haine n'est pas dans nos moeurs ni dans nos coeurs. Et en quoi serions-nous responsables d'attiser la haine d'autrui, la haine étant par essence une braise qui s'alimente toute seule ?
Nos aînés auront sans doute l'impression d'un déjà-vu, déjà-entendu. Il semble bien qu'à l'époque de Munich, pour les esprits fins d'alors, il ne fallait surtout pas humilier le peuple allemand, ne pas blesser sa fierté de grande nation défaite depuis 1918, etc. C'était une drôle de façon de montrer à nos frères allemands la délicate attention qu'on leur portait que de les laisser entre les mains d'un pouvoir qui allait les opprimer, les jeter dans des guerres sans fin, les réduire à des actes immondes, et, faisant d'eux des monstres puis des victimes, les diaboliser, les couper en deux, littéralement, puisque le Diable est Celui qui divise.
On nous demande de porter un jugement esthétique, moral et sentimental, là où il n'est question que de principes fondamentaux pour nos démocraties : le droit des femmes et des hommes à vivre libres n'est certainement pas le credo des religions, et il ne le sera jamais.
Il ne s'agit pas seulement d'être libre de se tromper. La vérité, c'est que nous sommes libres de blasphémer. Il y a quelque chose d'assez déconcertant, en France, en 2006, dans le fait de devoir rappeler qu'on a droit au blasphème. Que bouffer du curé fut longtemps un sport national, comme vendre L'Huma avec Pif Gadget le dimanche dans les cités. Que bien sûr les croyants, retour de messe, s'en offusquaient. Ce qui ne les empêchait pas de s'encanailler avec l'intégrale de Brassens dans leurs salons.
"Les as-tu vues ?" est désormais la phrase à prononcer entre gens bien. Comme naguère "L'as-tu lu ?" à propos du livre de Rushdie.
Mais peu importe qu'on les ait vues ou pas. Rien ne justifie les réactions outrancières auxquelles se livrent pêle-mêle des croyants sincèrement blessés, des politiciens trop contents de l'aubaine et de nouveaux prophètes menaçants qui nous promettent la guerre. Quand le président du MRAP décide de porter plainte contre des journaux coupables de complicité avec les blasphémateurs, sous prétexte qu'il s'agit là de "racisme antimusulman", nous nous interrogeons : de quelle race s'agit-il ? L'islam serait-il génétiquement transmissible ? Qu'en pensent les centaines de milliers d'hommes et de femmes issus de l'immigration qui se voient ainsi, encore une fois, identifiés à une religion que bien souvent ils ne pratiquent pas ?
Nous ne sommes pas trop stupides : d'une part, des dessins passés totalement inaperçus voilà presque six mois ; d'autre part, le parti ultrareligieux qui gagne les élections en Palestine et l'Iran qui menace (la provocation iranienne, comment la juger ? utile ? inutile ?)...
Nous sommes des écrivains. Nos horizons sont divers, ainsi que nos origines géographiques, nos appartenances sociales, nos héritages religieux, nos destinées singulières, nos convictions intimes, et — pardon — nos préférences sexuelles.
Difficile de ne pas voir que, dans la guerre que se livrent désormais les fanatiques chrétiens américains et les fanatiques musulmans des Proche et Moyen-Orient, c'est sur les pays laïques et modérés que retombent fatalement colère et frustrations.
Bientôt, c'est notre liberté de publier qui, au Danemark comme en France, nous sera déniée au nom du respect de tel ou tel dieu. Laissons faire et on incendiera les bibliothèques qui abritent Voltaire, Sade, Ovide, Omar Khayyam, Proust et tous les autres. Et il est bien certain que pour le grand autodafé, seront réunis et danseront les papes, les grands rabbins et les grands muftis.
Salim Bachi, Jean-Yves Cendrey, Didier Daeninckx, Paula Jacques, Pierre Jourde, Jean-Marie Laclavetine, Gilles Leroy, Marie NDiaye, Daniel Pennac, Patrick Raynal, Boualem Sansal sont écrivains.
Article paru dans l'édition du 14.02.06

Monday, February 13, 2006

Le collectif policier

Reading a novel by Philippe Sollers (currently Une vie divine), I continuously discover not only terse summaries of what has been, but also amazingly precise comments on current situations, i.e. on the future as measured from the written time. So here this quote:

"Après une phase de violent masochisme sacrificiel totalitaire, les petites gens prêchent sans arrêt l'ambition, l'argent, l'arrogance, l'insolence, le bordel, l'ignorance satisfaite, la vulgarité, l'à-vau-l'eau des vices imités, et, s'il le faut, la violence. Les terroristes suicidaires encouragent ce plan : ils travaillent à une surveillance et à un contrôle renforcés. Le collectif avait tendance à disparaître, le revoici policier." [Une vie divine, Gallimard 2006, p. 429]

Friday, February 10, 2006

The Right to Offend

Please follow the link to read the excellent speech Ayaan Hirsi Ali delivered in Berlin on Thursday, February 9, to remind us how important it is not to sacrifice or diminish or negate the rights that define us.
Here only a tiny poignant excerpt:
I am here to defend the right to offend.
It is my conviction that the vulnerable enterprise called democracy cannot exist without free expression, particularly in the media. Journalists must not forgo the obligation of free speech, which people in other hemispheres are denied.
[...]
Berlin is a city of optimism. Communism failed. The wall was broken down. Things may seem difficult and confusing today. But I am optimistic that the virtual wall, between lovers of liberty and those who succumb to the seduction and safety of totalitarian ideas will also, one day, come down.
Berlin, 9.02.06
Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Tuesday, February 7, 2006

Tolerance Toward Intolerance - Washington Post / Die Zeit

This article, in English so even Americans can understand it, explains very well how essential freedom of expression is and why the United States should stand up for that (as well actually as for all other civil and human rights and liberties) in the face of, and despite, the threats posed to it by fanatic intolerant fundamentalists.
Here the last paragraph:

"On Friday the State Department found it appropriate to intervene. It blasted the publication of the cartoons as unacceptable incitement to religious hatred. It is a peculiar moment when the government of the United States, which likes to see itself as the home of free speech, suggests to European journalists what not to print."
And follow the link to read the entire article in the Washington Post, written by the German weekly Die Zeit's Washington bureau chief. Excellent! Thanks for helping spread some enlightenment in the U.S.A.

Monday, February 6, 2006

Le Vatican prend parti contre les caricatures

Le Vatican prend parti contre les caricatures, and by so doing demonstrates that it sees a problem here only in the means (violence), rather than in the end (freedom of expression and opinion)! No, freedom of expression does NOT cease where respect for religious sentiments begins, as the Vatican and the Bushbaby Playpen would have us believe. We have the right (it might be argued the urgent need) to speak against religious sentiments in the hopes of reducing them in favor of thinking in this world.
That matters of TASTE (good, bad, objectionable) should be considered is something that the theocrats prefer not to mention. A discussion of good taste (and those original twelve caricatures were certainly not in good taste, though the follow-up reproduced here from Le Monde was in excellent taste) necessitates free expression, the ability to think, and no recourse to supposed matters of "belief".
(And any "religion" worth its salt doesn't care what I or anyone else says against it anyway: Disagreement being for any creed by definition false, any criticism or mockery of religious tenets or symbols should simply be shrugged off by the religious. Or do they actually doubt their smokey signals themselves?)
The link at the beginning is to the report about the church position in Le Figaro; what follows is the original "statement" it refers to from the Vatican:


Dichiarazione della Sala Stampa della Santa Sede
Libertà di offendere?
Per rispondere a varie richieste di precisazioni sulla posizione della Santa Sede di fronte a recenti rappresentazioni offensive dei sentimenti religiosi di singole persone o di intere comunità, la Sala Stampa della Santa Sede è in grado di dichiarare:
1) Il diritto alla libertà di pensiero e di espressione, sancito dalla Dichiarazione Universale dei Diritti ell'Uomo, non può implicare il diritto di offendere il sentimento religioso dei credenti. Tale principio vale ovviamente in riferimento a qualsiasi religione.
2) La convivenza umana esige poi un clima di mutuo rispetto, per favorire la pace fra gli uomini e le Nazioni. Inoltre, talune forme di critica esasperata o di derisione degli altri denotano una mancanza di sensibilità umana e possono costituire in alcuni casi un'inammissibile provocazione. La lettura della storia insegna che non è con tale via che si sanano le ferite esistenti nella vita dei popoli.
3) Va però subito detto che le offese arrecate da una singola persona o da un organo di stampa non possono
essere imputate alle istituzioni pubbliche del relativo Paese, le cui Autorità potranno e dovranno, eventualmente, intervenire secondo i principi consentiti dalla legislazione nazionale. Azioni violente di protesta sono, pertanto, parimenti deplorabili. Per reagire ad un'offesa, non si può, infatti, venir meno al vero spirito di ogni religione. L'intolleranza reale o verbale, da qualsiasi parte venga, come azione o come reazione, costituisce poi sempre una seria minaccia alla pace.
Dal Vaticano, 4 febbraio 2006

The Pestilent Presidency

This article The Pestilent Presidency, which I found on the Guerilla News Network, sums up all the poison contained in the Bushbaby playpen. It is a must read for anyone who prefers knowing to believing!

Saturday, February 4, 2006

Clash Over Cartoons Is a Caricature Of Civilization

The Washington Post's author Philip Kennicott, in Clash Over Cartoons Is a Caricature Of Civilization , has well expressed the need for more blasphemy, criticism, irony - yes, even bitter satire to help us all better to think and reflect, perhaps come closer to understanding some little piece of something.

Thursday, February 2, 2006

Wake Up! Read! Think!



Might I suggest reading Nietsche's Der Antichrist, or viewing some of the most wonderful works of Francis Bacon, or this caricature created out of WRITTEN WORDS?
Non, c'est exclu que je ne dois pas : JE DOIS, je dois me moquer de ceux qui veulent être trop sérieux. Je dois dire quelles tragédies la religion a provoquées sur la terre. Je dois demander que l'on s'approche, de tous petits pas, de la vérité. Je dois essayer de créer de la vérité en pensant, en m'exprimant, en ironisant. Je dois blasphémer.
The picture on the right is courtesy of Le Monde, whose editorial is also to be recommended:
http://www.lemonde.fr/web/article/0,1-0@2-3214,36-737156@51-735567,0.html
And don't forget Francis Bacon! (His painting on the left of a Cardinal! or was it a Pope? Screaming at any rate.)

Wednesday, February 1, 2006

We the People of the U.S.

Gore Vidal Delivers State of the Union: "Let the Powers That Be Know There is Something Called We the People of the U.S. and all Sovereignty Rests in Us."
Tuesday, January 31st, 2006
From the Democracy Now! website, where "in advance of President Bush’s state of the union address, author Gore Vidal delivers his own traditional state of the union address. We hear Vidal speak about patriotism, the NSA domestic surveillance programs, corporate America, Presidential powers and more."
Use this link to read and/or listen to Vidal:
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/01/31/1532246