Happy New Year to all disregarded Americans.

[democrank]

If your factory just moved to India, don`t stop believing in your abilities. If your low income apartment just became part of a displacement baron`s portfolio, remember home is anywhere you are. If you have to choose between groceries and heat, dig deep for the strength to hang on. If you`re struggling against an addiction to drugs or alcohol, don`t give up. If you feel abandoned, desperate, depressed, please know there are people who truly care.

I`ve seen you walking with a bag of everything you own. I talked to you in the grocery store after you whisked your sons past the beef roasts and steered them to the macaroni aisle. I saw you under the hood of your rusted truck, bent in half, tools spread everywhere in the panic. I heard you say, "Not today" when your daughter pointed to the flowers on that pair of Dollar Store socks. I think it was you at the laudramat with your worn snow sneakers and gloveless hands.

Perhaps you think you`re but a speck in this land, forgotten by the limousine lawmakers and power players. But you know what? Your vote counts as much as theirs and mine does too. There are tens of thousands....maybe millions of us out here troubled by what you`re going through and eager to create a change. Some of us have been where you are or know someone who has. We`re going to call our representaives, write them, haunt them until we`re heard. We`re going to fight for health care for everyone. For a livable wage. For safe working conditions. For drug and alcohol treatment centers. We`re going to fight against corporations that don`t give you a lunch break. We`re going to fight against drug companies that think their 30-cent pill is worth $7.80. We`re going to hold our lawmakers accountable and make sure they know these sleazy backroom deals must come to a halt. And when the president starts acting like he`s too important to have to follow the rules, we`re going to take him down a notch or two.

Millions of Americans are really up against it right now, struggling every single day. On New Year`s Day I want you to know you`re neither alone nor forgotten.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. K & N

When will the limousine lawyers and power players learn that "whatsoever you do unto the least of these".... or from the Native American tradition, that we are all one, all interrelated?

[Surya Gayatri]

2. This literally brought tears

to my eyes. From far away I weep for my country and its wonderful people. To all of those unsung middle American heros who keep on keeping on, in the face of enormous odds stacked against them by this corrupt regime, I say a sincere "Bless you all". Never give in or give up--underneath the rampant materialism of the moment there is a dream worth saving. The rest of the world wants that dream to succeed, too. (Even the French! Ha!) SG