Prayer on a Post
by Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Sherine Tados, a correspondent for Al Jazeera English, tweeted this incredible photo of a man praying atop a lamp post in Tahrir Square today — along with this image of a mass of people prostrating while performing salah:
Light Painting the Mines of North Wales
by Trent Gilliss, senior editor
If you’re looking for a brief respite between Thanksgiving meals or a brief interlude to the NFL triple play, check out this short film by Andrew Telling and Owen Richards. They shadow photographer Robin Friend as he traverses the foothills of North Wales and descends into an abandoned Victorian mine at Cwmorthin to do a bit of light painting for his Slaughterhouse series:
“Although my mind kept wandering and playing tricks, it would always return to the absence of the men that used to work here. Their presence was palpable; this was their mine and I was trespassing. Each cathedral-sized cavern would have been leased and worked by one family. Grandfathers, fathers, sons, uncles, and nephews would have worked side-by-side, day in day out. These dark passages, steep crevasses, and sheer drops would have been their livelihood. This was their world. They would have spent the majority of their lives down here in the dark with nothing but a candle to illuminate the slate and their spirits.”
(h/t trishutchinson)
I had an opportunity to read the speech, and I almost threw up. In my opinion, it was the beginning of the secular movement of politicians to separate their faith from the public square, and he threw faith under the bus in that speech.
—Rick Santorum
The GOP presidential candidate, who, like John F. Kennedy, is also Roman Catholic, was speaking to a group at the College of Saint Mary Magdalen in Warner, New Hampshire in October when he made this comment about JFK’s seminal speech in 1960 in which the then-Democratic presidential candidate expressed his faith in the separation of church and state.
Photo by Gage Skidmore/Flickr, cc by-nc-nd 2.0
~Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Most young people don’t look at history through the lens of hip-hop. Once they see this very powerful and profound history, they get a whole different respect for the culture.
—Khalid el-Hakim, from the Detroit Free Press
His Black History 101 Mobile Museum educates people on African-American history and culture by displaying selections of more than 5,000 artifacts from black history in the United States. Wish I was in Dearborn last night to see some of pieces on hand…
~Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Q:Have you experienced Joe Hutto's "My Life as a Turkey"? Currently watching a program on PBS Nature. Some fascinating insights into imprinting, presence, and being... Enjoy!
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous—
I had seen previews on PBS for this Nature special several times but never found the time to watch it. Your question was the catalyst. Thank you. What a gorgeous film and what a novel way of seeing the world!
I’m embedding it within this reply so that others may watch it in the days leading up to Thanksgiving in the States. In many ways, characters like Joe Hutto and Alan Rabinowitz, whom we interviewed for “A Voice for the Animals,” are windows for our species. They’re eccentric characters that teach us about ourselves as a species and as a sentient beings through their interactions with wildlife. They also prove that we have a lot to learn when it comes to our sweeping generalizations about other species.
Here are a few of Joe Hutto’s words of wisdom that strike at the core of who this man is and how we can learn from his observations:
“And I realized that my involvement in this experiment was going to be a very personal, very emotional ride for me — and not just a science experiment.”
“Each day as I leave the confines of my language and culture, these creatures seem to become in every way my superiors. They are more alert, sensitive, and aware. They’re in many ways, in fact, more intelligent. They’re understanding of the forest is beyond my ability to comprehend.”
“Emotions are certainly not peculiar to the human experience. In their observation of death, the death of another turkey that is a member of their group, it’s a very conscious behavior as if they are trying to understand what the meaning of this is.”
And, boy, I’d regret not commenting on the ending scene with Turkey Boy. My Life as a Turkey is a brutal reminder that with all of the kindness, the tenderness, and the social interaction between man and bird, nature and creatures desire not only to survive but to dominate and establish dominion.
Thank you so much for the reminder,
Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Q:Who is behind yourorganization
Anonymous
Good morning, Anonymous—
On Being is a public radio project hosted and produced by Krista Tippett, with a production staff of five including me, Chris Heagle, Nancy Rosenbaum, Susan Leem, and Anne Breckbill. The program is produced and distributed by American Public Media, which also distributes such popular shows as The Splendid Table, A Prairie Home Companion, Marketplace, and many more. We’re based out of St. Paul, Minnesota.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Rosanne Cash with Krista Tippett
A fabulous conversation was had yesterday at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis. Stay tuned for the produced show in the coming; it’s going to be a good one.
(photo: Trent Gilliss)
Rosanne Cash Is “In the Room” with Krista Tippett (Live Video!)
November 17th, 2011 ~ 4:30pm CT/5:30pm ET
Today’s the day! We’re reclaiming Orchestra Hall in downtown Minneapolis again (recall our one-on-one with Bobby McFerrin?), but this time with singing and songwriting legend Rosanne Cash!
She’s lived a life, as she describes it, “circumscribed by music” and has given voice to her experiences through the lyrics and rhythms of her compositions — and of her musical ancestors. In a one-one-one, free-flowing conversation for 90 minutes, we’ll talk to her about the way she thinks about music and literature, life and spirituality.
Pssst! For you bloggers and website editors out there, we’re offering you the ability to embed this video on your site. We’ve got promotional image tiles and code that makes it easy to do. Oh, and you can embed the chat module too! Check out the details at the On Being live video events page.
In Gabby Giffords’ Voice
by Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Listen to the first 80 seconds of Melissa Block’s piece on last night’s All Things Considered. And then fast forward to the final 67 seconds of the audio. What a powerful message, a powerful couple minutes of radio. To hear the contrast of the fluid voice of the Congresswoman before her brain was penetrated by a bullet in January of this year, and then witness the powerful will of her language several months later rages with hope.
Now, listen to the full ten-minute piece with Block’s interview with Representative Giffords’ husband, Mark Kelly, which is bookended with Gabby’s voice. The context makes her readings all the more powerful. Non?
Yes, even those of us who work in public radio are not immune to those “driveway moments” in the darkness of the early evening. What a gift.
Occupy Wall Street Takes New Park Owned By Trinity Wall Street Church
As the OWS protestors are occupying Duarte Park, the Gothamist is providing live updates of the events.
~Trent Gilliss, senior editor
