At War with the World

When I first woke up, connected to the BBC and heard the news that the Nobel Peace Prize was being awarded to our current president, Barak Obama, it was, truthfully at the time, a bit anti-climactic. It's almost as if I wanted a new face, a new idea and a new name to go with such a prestigious award. And to be honest once more, questions popped into my head such as, "Really?" "Huh...well, why?". They were quickly followed by answers that tried to massage my mind into accepting his award..."Well, he is a good guy...I mean, he has a good heart. He's said a lot of things I can dig." But, wow, the Nobel Peace Prize...Really?

Then I gave it a few days. I love to ride the fence, but after a few days of reading other peoples reactions on the internet, I decided that, hey, i might actually have an opinion.

I've read the good, the bad and the ugly of peoples thoughts (Americans thoughts) concerning this award and its awardee. Then , this morning, it hit me like a brick wall: "Wait, wait, wait...Americans are actually complaining that their president received an award in the name of PEACE?? I am actually questioning his right to have won such acclaim?" To put it bluntly, what the hell is wrong with us?!

Peace seems to mean so little anymore. It's some flight of fancy nowadays. It's something you work in the name of for a few years, tear your hair while doing it, just so you can slap it on some resume and say you 'tried' to help the world, but now you really want work in that bank. Se la vie. It must be that way because we are so unnacustomed to it (Peace) anymore. And really, how sad it that, that our faith and hope in ourselves, has come to mean so little?

I havent been in the states since Obama took office. And what happens in the States is like Vegas in Africa...what happens in the US, stays in the US. We don't feel all that much fallout by the choices made by the American people here, in my tiny town. Well, unless you count all the USAID posters saying no to sugar daddies, or instructing you on how to prevent diahrea (i can never spell that), and how to take care of a person suffering from AIDS. Otherwise, i turn the radio on, i turn the radio off, i begin my day. But, I am supposedly here in the name of PEACE. Ive got the damn concept tattooed on me to remind me of that (no thanks to the Brits and their 'ban the bomb' sentiment). But what does it mean?

To me, it means Love. Hard, misunderstood, overwhelming, inspiring, painful Love. Love of yourself and everyone around you. To the point that you can see what it means to be here, on earth. And trust me, I havent figured that one out, so I aint no fuckin' guru. I had my 8th grade english teacher once tell my class that the only way Peace could exist on Earth is if humans were dead ("the humans are dead. We poisoned their asses, with poisonous gasses"). Now what a depressing thing for an 8th grader to hear. I might as well as just have quit on humans and life as i know it then and there, at the innocent age of 13.

But, I didn't. I thought, "you fool of a teacher...Peace means hardly a thing when no one is around to comprehend it (and i do mean human comprehension)." So, I struggled on. As we all do.

Now, Obama's award. Let me ask people a question: Would you rather have your president recieve an award in the name of Peace (no matter how much you think he/she deserves it) or would you rather live through 8 years of idiocy, run by a dimwit and satans children? O wait, we already let that happen. And look!! Look how peaceful we were during those 8 years! Oh my, human potential really reached its pinnacle under one hipster doofus, and all of those who controlled him. Hope you're picking up the sarcasm b/c i am laying it on pretty thick here.

Another question: just how many Americans were labeled anti-american and unpatriotic for their voices against the Bush Admin and all their violent choices? I am no extremist, but to me, it is far more unpatriotic to not support a vision in Peace, and to not support a President who represents hope, not just in the great US of A, but all over the world. If only Americas could understand just how much people all over the world look to Obama as a sign of goodness. And, it's as if, it is so hard for Americans to recognize goodness in someone. To honor a good heart is a struggle. i suppose not just in Americans, in humans.

The Bush Administration ran us in fear and on hate and on war. And...It truly united us. And now, we find it so hard to unite in the name of Love, Peace, goodness. It's enough to make me want to slap us humans in the face and scream "stop crucifying yourselves!!" Accept that we deserve something good to hold onto! We deserve something good to hold onto.

To criticize Obama's right to this award (which he didnt even campaign for...he made no choice but to accept. Others thought he deserved it, and so he was nominated and voted for, and won), is the same as telling him that he doesn't deserve to be told he is a good person. It's the same as saying that he doesn't have a good heart. That he is incapable of giving Love or Hope. When will humans realize that it doesn't have to be all pain all the time? That everyone is capable of the same wonderful and horrendous emotions and actions? Even Bush has a heart. And, I'd like to think that Obama could never have been nominated and won such an award without Bush's help. Peace is the natural adversary to War. "Like a horse and a carriage...you cant have one without the other." So, pat yourselves on the back Bushies, you played your part in this too.

Point is, we as a people will bitch and moan till we die, it's one of our God-given rights. So, I welcome criticism. But, their is always a point of idiocy, when people don't realize that they are being foolish with their opinions, pig-headed and stubborn. I hope that is what is happening now, when people say that Obama doesn't deserve such recognition. B/c it's either they are being foolish and stubborn with their opinions, or it's that they really want to see how bad the world can be, how painful we can actually make our small, finite existence.

Right now, it feels as if Americans would rather be at war with the world, than recognize Peace when they see it. Prove me wrong, please.

RUCODEP and Our Beads

Rural Community Development Programme (RUCODEP), paper bead jewelry.

Made by a mixed group of men and women in Kaliro, Uganda. We began this work in January of 2009, as an income generating activity for the members of RUCODEP.
Take a look at what we have accomplished together over past year.
If you like what you see, then place your orders for Christmas 2009...just send me an email (pax.lisa@gmail.com) or write a message on this page. We always have new designs coming to our brains...I will try to keep you up to date on the latest and greatest of RUCODEP.

Unfortunately, not all colors are available, as we are limited by what paper color is available in our market..colors go fast. However, if you'd really like a certain color, tell me and I can probably find it in a market here. but i need about 2 weeks time to find the color...so sooner the better.
The styles below are always available, however.
*what follows below are samples... all of them may not be available, but they are the designs we are making and the colors we presently have*


Necklaces: Colors available now:
Triple Strand: $4 yellow, brown, blue, dark turquoise, black, orange, and pink.
Double Strand: $3 (all -multi)
Single Strand: $2

Bracelets:
Double and Single Strand: $1.50


Bracelets: colors: yellow-multi, blue-mutli, light blue.




Necklaces: includes following colors - yellow-multi, blue-multi, white-multi, pink-multi, orange-multi.





























































Bracelets: white-multi, green, yellow-multi




















*Cost does not include shipping...keep in touch if you are interested. ALL money goes to the RUCODEP members who roll the paper and design the jewelry.
Hope you appreciate their hard work.

Cheers,
LB

Dr. J

Attn: Lynn Foden, Peace Corps Africa Region Acting Director;
Senator Christopher Dodd;
Aaron Williams, Peace Corps Director;
Anyone Who Cares

Regarding: Dismissal of J. Larry Brown as Country Director, Peace Corps Uganda


To Whom it May Concern:

Recently, Peace Corps Uganda Volunteers were given the shocking news
that our current Country Director (now former CD), Larry Brown, was
dismissed from his post, 2 weeks ago. This news was met with great
confusion and concern among the volunteers, as no information was
provided as to why he was dismissed of his duties, and many volunteers
believed working with Mr. Brown as our CD was of great benefit to us.

First, it should be noted that in less than one year of serving at his
post in Uganda, Dr. Brown had succeeded in creating an environment
conducive to an open relationship between PCV's and Peace Corps Uganda
Administration, as well as giving more voice to volunteer concerns
when it came to post support of their work, and resources provided to
PCV's. One of the first things Mr. Brown did coming into his position
was to reach out to PCV's in a way that our previous CD did not do.
He welcomed us with open arms, asked for our opinions, and encouraged
us to raise our voices in order to 'own our post'. Up until the past
2 weeks, PCV relations with Mr. Brown had been on the whole very good.
Then, we unexpectedly lost contact with him, as he unexpectedly lost
his job.

As a PCV who has 7 months left in her service, I find it crucial to
have a Country Director that I feel open with in terms of speaking my
mind and asking for better support from Peace Corps as a whole. Mr.
Brown aided myself and others in this. I also find it crucial to have
a determined person, such as him, working with us and for us. He was
determined to improve our support and resources, and bring to the
attention of Peace Corps staff that volunteers were in dire need of
better support, from the top down. He was determined to help
volunteers feel that they had an actual stake in this great
organization called the United States Peace Corps, and that they, the
volunteers, matter just as much, if not more, to our government than
any administrative staff does.

Mr. Brown was the first person in PC/U administration to listen to my
group's complaints of poor training received when we were PCT's. He
investigated these complaints and tried to do something about them.
He also opened up grant approval and money to PCV's that the previous
CD, McGrath J. Thomas, had kept very closed and out of reach from
volunteer hands. Also, the encouragement that PCV's received from Mr.
Brown regarding volunteer-led committees (i.e.,, Peer Support
Diversity Network, Women in Development and Gender and Development
committee, just to name a few) has led to great PCV participation
numbers. He showed the volunteers of Uganda that we hold power in our
organization and we deserve better from our government. Mr. Brown was
part of the 'better' that we deserved. Yet, now, he has been
dismissed of his duties, and without any reason given to us, his
volunteers, as to why such a person should be revoked of their duties,
and in such a way.

If our government insists on this decision regarding former CD Brown,
then they should also insist on providing PC/U and all Peace Corps
posts with enough support and services for us to do our jobs well.
Peace Corps Washington should insist on being able to cope with the
high amount of volunteers granted to a post and recognizing that more
volunteers is not necessarily better. If they insist on more PCV's
per post, then more money and services must naturally follow.
Volunteers need better training, better support services, higher
approval rates for grants, and more encouragement to take part in
PCV-run committees. They also need a voice that will be listened to
in Washington and in their own posts administration.

Mr. Brown gave us hope. Hope that someone at the top cared for us and
wanted to see us succeed in our jobs and lives here. He also gave us
hope that we, the volunteers, had some control and say in our posts
actions, and we were not just seen as statistics to Washington. He
taught us that the volunteers were the ones that 'owned' the post, and
Peace Corps existed FOR us. If this is really true, then I hope these
words, and the words of my fellow volunteers do not fall on deaf ears,
like so many people's words do, every year, within our American
government. PCV's have taken an oath to serve their government, and
serve it well. Now, we ask that our government reciprocate for us.

Thank you for your time and attention,

Sincerely,
Lisa Janel Balland
PCV, Uganda