By Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images 2/21/2010 Nicole Celestin prays on a pile of rubble during morning Mass at a church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
This picture caught my attention as I found it flooded with contrast and juxtaposition of presents. Faith, wreckage, beauty, poverty and Dora... Seems to mirror a larger drawing of the world we live. Paralleling singularities of events and emotions. Amazing that we can even co-exist with ourselves. Or maybe itʻs just me...
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Rob Bell Drops Life Stars Tour (The Wiltern Theatre Los Angeles)
Rob is master storyteller.
He told stories to a whole bunch of different people in a large historic theatre directly downtown in a giant city.
His "performance" was no different than that of any given preacher in any given town at any given church on any given Sunday save that is was better.
The accompanying media presentation was striking but only the beginning.
Seth and Joey werenʻt there but Troy and Mike were.
The people were young and old.
Many had suffered through cancer, loss, betrayal or addiction.
Those met someone else who had experienced the same.
"Pain has a way of making us honest."
Many of us suffer in our own insulation.
Suffering brings solidarity.
Solidarity relief.
Jesus suffered with.
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"Next time you hail a cab in Sweden, there might be beef in your rideʻs tank. The city of Linkoping is running one train, 67 buses and 80 cabs entirely on biogas, a methane fuel made primarily from cow intestines and other slaughterhouse waste."
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For individuals and families struggling to simply exist, sex can equal work and work is life. The growth of the sex trade is perhaps the most troubling discovery and trend of our time, in particular that of the forced child sex worker. Visit Love146 for more on that.
Gastaldelloʻs work isnʻt all tears however as she gives glitter the ordinary whether capturing bicycles in NY or trash in Naples. You can enjoy her work here.
[Linda Gastaldello Photography]
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JOBS:
Mr Obama used the word "jobs" 16 times and made it the centrepiece of his speech. He wants to take $30 billion of the money Wall Street banks has repaid from the financial bailout packages and give it to community banks for small business loans. As well as this specific message, he wanted to prove he understood the frustration and anger of Americans.
HEALTH CARE REFORM:
The speech was initially timed to be a celebration of the signing of a historic health care reform into law. The Massachusetts election changed all that. His pitch was well into the speech and he gave no indication of how he thinks a bill can now be passed.
SPENDING FREEZE:
"Starting in 2011, we are prepared to freeze government spending for three years ..."
This plan was trumpeted beforehand as a big deal but it got only tepid applause. Liberals believe it will hurt the poor and conservatives view it as too little, too late - affecting only 17 per cent of the overall budget and at $250 billion, representing well under one per cent of projected spending a decade.
DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL:
"This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are. It's the right thing to do."
This was a surprise. After the setback over health care and grappling with a recession, it might not be wise for Mr Obama to tackle this issue. But the Left is angry and this is one of its most cherished aims. Sceptics will note Mr Obama devoted just 38 words to repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".
FOREIGN POLICY:
The US is engaged in two wars but it wasn't until three-quarters of the way through the speech that he turned to foreign policy. Even then, it was most remarkable for what he didn't say. He gave no rationale for why 30,000 more American troops are now deploying to Afghanistan and made only cursory mention of Iraq. He claimed that Iran was now "more isolated" but did not spell out what he meant by the "growing consequences" Tehran faces if it persists with its nuclear ambitions.
Special thanks to the UK Telegraph.
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