Bush Step Down Rally Jan 31 & Feb 4th

I want to start this post by first thanking those of you who forward us information us information or write to us about things you are standing up for. Keep emailing this stuff to us. I try to read all of it, and make up my own mind. Fortunately this blog gives me the chance to pass some of that information along and eevn comment on it myself. Today I got this information forwarded to me that I feel the need to share.

From World Can't Wait - Drive Out the Bush Regime!

BUSH STEP DOWN AND TAKE YOUR PROGRAM WITH YOU!
DROWN OUT BUSH'S LIES!

JANUARY 31ST - TUESDAY
In large cities and town squares across the country we will rally one hour
before Bush's State of the Union Address. In Philly: Gather at 8PM at 12th and Market Sts. Center City
At 9PM let the world hear us as we symbolically drown out Bush's lies,
Bring your own noise - drums, pots and pans, musical instruments - your
voice. Let the taxi horns blare and church bells ring as we bring our own
state of the union message. BUSH STEP DOWN AND TAKE YOUR PROGRAM WITH
YOU.

FEBRUARY 4TH - WASHINGTON DC
WE WILL TAKE OUR DEMAND TO THE WHITE HOUSE. This regime is immoral,
dangerous and indictably criminal. BUSH LIED. BUSH SPIED. BUSH STEP
DOWN.
Rally starts at 11AM at 17th and Constitution. March at 2PM

For local info: go to www.worldcantwait.org
For text of the "World can't Wait Drive Out The Bush Regime" Call and full
list of signatories see www.worldcantwait.org.

You can check the website for local chapter information for your area or help in getting to any of these rallies. Now while I don't think that this protest will really force Bush to step down, it is important to keep speaking out for what you beileve in. Never give up the fight, never back down, never let them forget. "It you aren't outraged, you haven't been paying attention"

This event is not sponsored by Revolution Threads

They need their coats more

Whenever the topic of animal rights comes up it inevitably raises the ire of a lot of people. Many people simply think a) there are other more important things to worry about or b) they associate the topic with radically left-wing groups like PETA (of whose tactics I am not a personal fan). Take the time at least temporarily to look past these issues to one aspect of animal rights which many can agree to support...the abolition of the sale of animal fur in the name of fashion.

Every year around Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving, and the busiest shopping day of the year) the whole of the animal rights community comes together to support Fur Free Friday on November 25. It is a day when compassionate shoppers are urged to not buy fur or fur-trimmed products and encourage their circle of influence to do the same. I wanted to make all you wonderfully revolutionary people out there know about this day and offer some more information if you are not convinced that wearing fur is a big no-no. The practice of slaughtering a helpless animal for an unnecessary and superfluous piece of "fashion" to make people think you are rich and popular is barbaric and has no place in a civilized society. It is not cool. Paris Hilton says it is hott to wear fur. If you still take advice from a image-driven sex object then, well, I'm telling your parents, and you will definately be sent to your room. Shave a sheep to keep warm. Wool is plentiful, just as warm, and easy on your budget.

Anyway, please be aware of the tragedy of fur clothing and that there are organizations trying to do something about it. Let them tell you more about it, as I am interminably bad at driving home points that to me seem so self-evident. Check out http://www.neimancarcass.com for more information (the site has information about Neiman Marcus stores in particular) on the whole fur trade. Remember, animals need their coats more than you do! Keep on keeping on.

Jeremy

Democracy for the Victors

Regimes in power only support democracy as much as citizens to vote for them (or how many citizens they can "convince" to vote for them). Elections in Africa have been forever riddled with varying degrees of corruption, and the recent elections in the Tanzanian region of Zanzibar seem to be no different.

To fill in some background information, the incumbent Party of the Revolution (CCM) was announced victorious in the presidential and parliamentary elections in the region in Zanzibar, eligibly winning 53% of the vote. Protests by the opposition Civic United Front (CUF) led to violence by CCM security forces and CUF protesters alike. International observers were of course on-hand to observe the election process. Even so, the CCM allegedly bullied un-informed CUF supporters away from the polling places, several party members voted several times, and children were registered to vote and bused to polling places to cast CCM votes behind observers backs. All of this sounds nothing new of what we have come to expect of so-called "democratic" elections in less-developed countries.

Despite the violence following the election, most of the outcry against election fraud from the western world is rather mute. The CCM has been the ruling party in mainland Tanzania for a number of years, and its economy and reputation with the rest of the world on the rise. The CUF is a largely a patchwork party. Even despite calls for non-violent protests, some CUF members are taking this incident as a call for violent conflict. Could they be trusted to run the region, if they can not control their own party?

The major question of concern here is why does the Western world only support fair democracy when the party they wish to win is winning? The protesters of the Orange Revolution in the Ukraine received large amounts of western support when faced with the same sort of election fraud by the incumbent party. We may question whether this support was due to the peacefulness of the protests that took place in the Ukraine. However, without the recent violent events in Zanzibar, would you even have known an election took place?

It would seem that fair and free elections only matter when the right side is sure to be elected.

Global Voices Online

I wanted to let everyone know about a site called Global Voices online. This site is basically a collection "bride-blogs" from around the world. Bridge blogs are blogs that written by people in all differant countries around the world, meant to reach people in other countries, and give a first hand account of life in that country. These sites are a great way to reach another culture, and learn about views of the people in those cultures.

Everyday they compile a few of the most interesting posts from every region for their site. If you want to learn about a particular country, you can choose it from the list at the top of the site, and follow the round-ups to various blogs from that country. So if you are looking for other bloggers from around the world, this is a great way to get started.

Take a look at this site, there really is a lot of interesting stuff.

Greetings fellow Revolutionaries!

Welcome to the updated (and finally complete) Revolution Threads website! We want to thank all our past supporters for your help in getting us off the ground. We hope our new offerings will tickle your fancy as much as our good old-fashioned hand-made t-shirts have. We are now proud to offer you some exclusive and not-so-exclusive accessories for the truly stylish and thoughtful dresser.

Backpacks are great for school, but for the man or woman who needs to carry their life around and doesn't want to look like a yuppie with a briefcase, we introduce the messenger bag. Our messenger bags come to you straight from the army (see, those billions of dollars in military spending paid off after all) and are plastered with a cool patch. If you'd rather iron the patch onto your forehead or other article of clothing to show your support, you can get them separately as well. Also, as an avid collector of stickers myself, I know how tough it can be when you really want a cool sticker and you can't find one. So now we have stickers for you too, guaranteed to stay stuck to your bumper even in the rain and humidity of a hot, sticky Pennsylvania summer.

Finally, I am probably most proud of our button section (pins to some folks). We are trying to cover every side of every political and social issue ever with these guys. If we ever seem biased one way or another, we are absolutely not trying to be. We want you to think for yourself and express that opinion. We will never put anything we feel is blatantly offensive or violent up for sale, but we want to make sure all sides of an issue are covered. Check out the buttons with peace signs emblazoned over country flags for a really cool international expression of solidarity.

Our "Act" section is almost ready to be up and running as well, where you can actually do something about your beliefs. Remember, wearing buttons or a t-shirt or putting a sticker on your car will not change the world. Our products are merely ways of expressing beliefs and encouraging debate. To make a real difference you have to get involved. We hope that this section will give you opportunities to stay informed and make a real positive impact in our world. Also, we have added a blog section, which I will update periodically letting you in on new goings on with Revolution Threads as well as offering my (hopefully) educated take on certain issues I feel are important. I would be sad person if I preached knowledge and empowerment without backing up our mission with personal affidavits. These blogs are my own personal opinion, not the stance of the company or views that we implore you to uphold. We want you to develop your own views on issues. This blog is simply one more way we hope to encourage debate and thoughtful decision-making.

Thank you for continuing to fight the battle against apathy with us here at Revolution Threads. We hope and pray that our little company will make a difference in this wild and unpredictable world. I know we can do it, but only if we band together. A Revolution of the spirit is in the air. Let it flow through you in all you do. Let the Revolution live!

Peace & Love,

Jeremy