Eabha The Kiwi: August 2006

Kyna's Close Call, Two More Evolve Photos, A Crazy Video

So Kyna (8 month old Lab/Pit) had a very close call yesterday at a lake front we were visiting when she stumbled upon an underground hornets nest. Emily and Rowan (5 year old chow/rott/pitt/bulldog) ran farther into the woods, while a naked Eabha (we were about to swim in the lake) and I ran toward the open lakefront behind us. Kyna struggled for several minutes to make it to the lake as she was swarmed by hundreds of angry hornets. I estimate she was stung somewhere in the region of 60 to 70 times, perhaps more. Once Kyna made it to the water's edge, I pushed her in with my boot and the hornets that weren't stuck to her with their stingers took off.

None of us people were stung, but Kyna starting to shake and have laboured breathing so we sped to the animal hospital where they gave us 3 shots and a bottle of pills and stripped us of $130.00. Whew!

Thank you for the birthday calls that people made. It was fun hearing them on the answering machiene.

Emily is planning on going to Montreal for a week or so next Tuesday. I'm a little intimidated as this would be an unprecidented event in Eabha's life, but I think we'll have a lot of fun (and Emily will definietly have a lot of fun).

That being said here are some links I wanted to throw your way:

Anti-Nazi Slogan - Banned In The U$A

Bombs And Shields (Check under the "Keep The Blog Rolling" Links - Bottom)

The accompanying photos are from a DJ that saw my request on the Evolve Music Festivals's message board for photos of Eabha.

John D

A Message from our pal Tad Hargrave (pass it on):

"The Circle Of Destruction Vs. The Web Of Life"

1. *The concentration of power is the problem.*

2. The more you help the Circle to expand the greater are your rewards. The more you thwart the Circle's expansion the greater is your punishment.

3. The goal of the Circle is to be in the absolute center - to be on top.

4. The power of those in the center comes by creating the illusion of legitimacy in their authority and their right to rule.

5. While you're inside the Circle you have two basic choices of how to live: you can submit or you can rebel.

6. The closer you get to the center the more you are convinced that the circle you are spreading is not, in fact, a circle of destruction but a circle of virtue.

7. For the Circle to continue to spread those inside it must see the Circle as not only normal but natural:

8. You must never question how the goal of expanding the circle - or the process of it.

9. Violence is allowed to flow from the center out but not from the margins back inside.

10. Those on the margins experience incredible violence.

11. Because of this structure, the power will *never* be equally distributed.

12. Because of this structure, the Circle will never achieve its stated goals of just, thriving and sustainable communities full of healthy and happy people.

13. The closer you go inwards - the less diversity there is.

14. The closer you are to the center the more "important" you are seen as.

15. The closer you are to the center, the more valuable your property becomes. The reverse of this is also true: the closer you are to the periphery the less valuable your *life* becomes

16. The most efficient way for those at the center to expand their power is to grow the circle

17. The closer you are to the center - the less of any *real* idea you have about what is going on at the margins.

18. The larger the Circle becomes the harder it is to see.

19. The closer you are to the center of the circle the more spoiled you become.

20. The longer you are in the Circle the less human you become.

21. The longer you live in the Circle - the more you lose.

22. The closer you are to the center the safer you feel.

23. On a finite world - there's a point where those in the center will have exhausted all of the frontiers - then they turn their eyes back on the Circle.

24. The center is a bottomless pit.

25. In order to *slow* the growth of the circle you may use the avenues provided to those within the circle (e.g. letter writing, voting, demonstrating, writing books, signing petitions, building groovy eco villages etc.)

26. In order to *stop* the growth of the circle you must use

avenues that are not provided (or permitted) to those within the circle

27. The Circle can't be redeemed.

28. The Circle cannot be used for good.

29. The Circle of Destruction and the Web of Life cannot peacefully co-exist. Those in the center will stop only when they must.

30. It is okay to defend ourselves.

31. Violence is not the problem. Violence is used as a synonym for: abuse, exploitation, theft, rape etc. There are forms of violence that are none of these things.

32. The goal isn't the end of violence (impossible) but the establishing of right relationships with each other.

And THIS. THIS is the craziest thing you will see all week!

Mid munch with a Cinnamon Bun lunch.. Laughlin MacDonnell

29 degrees celcius, a naked nap in the shade with Dadad.. Laughlin MacDonnell

More Photos of Evolve And Critical Mass

So I scoured the message board, and internet searches and asked for people to email photos from the Evolve Festival (because I knew a lot of folks had taken photos of her). Anywho the results, plus a few others are below.

Happy 30th Anniversary to my parents!! And if it's a while 'till my next post Happy Birthday to my mother as well (28th of August).

Bella Ciao,

John D

Actually, there is one more thing (couldn't leave without a whack of videos of course). The media in Halifax reported over 100 people participated in the last weekly Critical Mass protest in Halfiax. Critical Mass bike rides have been going on all over the world for the past 15 years, and I've been to a few of them in Halifax, Victoria and Toronto. I haven't however been to one in Halfiax where there were so many people. Maybe we will build a critical mass afterall!

Here is a video made by a New York City Bicycle Gang: