Quote of the Week- Angela Davis

Today, we conclude our quotes from radical left-wingers for the month of May with a quip from Angela Davis, who is alive and well in Oakland, Calif., at age 67. Though today she makes the rounds in speaking engagements, she was a headline-maker from 1969-1972 as she became a controversial figure involved with both The Black Panthers movement and Communist Party, USA.

Davis spent time in jail from 1971-1972 because (according to Wikipedia) guns registered in her name were used in the infamous Marin County Courthouse Incident on Aug. 7, 1970. The sensational event involved guns being brought into a courtroom, hostage-taking, and an exchange of gunfire which alas lead to the killing of a judge.

Her quote comes to us us by way of the interesting graphic novel-inspired book "Self-Defense for Radicals" which I purchased on a whim from The Internationalist Bookstore in Chapel Hill, NC, several weeks ago.

Though I'm not a radical or a socialist myself (nor am I a Tea Partier or a Republican), I found Mickey Z's book, which features quotes from Davis and Malcolm X, to be quite fascinating. The author uses both expressions of his left-wing political views alongside boxing tips from pro boxing trainer Joe Goosen. The book was released by PM Press, which also has the ever-radical illustrated manifesto "Abolish Restaurants" by the writer/artist Prote.

On June 25, The Internationalist has a unique event as they host Duckmandu (Aaron Seeman), a self-described punk accordianist who plays everything from klezmer to Broadway to The Dead Kennedys (?!)

Here is the quote from Davis:

"Radical simply means grasping things at the root."

SIDEBAR: We want to take a moment to congratulate the University of Virginia men's lacrosse team on winning their fifth NCAA title. The Cavaliers beat the University of Maryland in a title game that was played in the Terps' home state in Baltimore. Colin Briggs scored five goals for the Cavs in the 9-7 victory. But, we loved the Terps' team motto which was "Fear the Turtle."

Quote of the Week- Karl Marx

A special good morning to all our friends in Corvallis, Oregon (actually, I only one person in that state, and he lives in Portland) who are just waking up, and a special salute to the graduates of the school there, which is Oregon State. Their arch rival Oregon University is in Eugene. It's easy to get the two towns mixed up.

Let's get to our Quote of the Week, and I should add that while I think the German philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883) was a remarkable historical figure, I don't consider myself a Marxist, as Cuba has proven the short-comings of what happens in communist countries. But, of course, in Provo, Utah, which is home to Brigham Young University and is perhaps America's most conservative zip code, I would probably be classified as one there!

This quip is part of this blog's month-long quips from radical, left-wing figures.

Here is the quip, which should go over well with "True Blood" fans:

"Capital is dead labor, which, vampire-like, lives only by sucking living labor, and lives the more, the more labor it sucks."

We are planning to have quotes from many people past and present from Germany (with the exception being the Nazi-era) in October.

SIDEBAR: Yesterday, as we typing our blog post on English soccer, there was actually a game being played there. I wonder if they call it "Monday Night Futbol." Hmmm....you may have to be an American born before Ronald Reagan was president to get that joke. Liverpool beating the living daylights out of Fulham by a 5-2 score in that game with Argentinian star Maxi Rodriguez scoring three goals for the winning Liverpool side.

Quote of the Week- Malcolm X

Today, we begin quoting radical left-wing figures since May 1st is associated with socialism and communism, and there will quips from these people, both past and present, throughout the month.

I should point out that I am not a fringe extremist who is into veganism and riding bicycles to work (that would take two hours in my case!), but I strongly feel such individual as closer to the political center that those far right gunsGodandcountry folks who subscribe to "Solider of Fortune." Nevertheless, in spite of being a moderate liberal, I am fascinated with those who really are socialists! (Everyone who is a Democrat is accused of being a socialist in North Carolina, except in Chapel Hill).

Today, on our two blogs, we quote two men who were both killed by guns at age 39. The person we are quoting here is Malcolm X (1925-1965), and we got this quote from a very interesting book/graphic title/self-help guide called "Self-Defense for Radicals" by Mickey Z with illustrations from Richard Cole; the 2010 book is published by PM Press in Oakland, Calif. They are known for publishing works with socialist themes.

"We are nonviolent with people who are nonviolent with us," Malcolm X.

The answer to last week's road trip quiz was B) as it takes about ten hours to travel from Portland, Maine, to Altoona, Pa; we hope to have a new quiz for you within the next few days.

Quote of the Day- Frida Kahlo

I must profess when my girlfriend Louisa (pse) left me for an unemployed car mechanic in Duluth, Minn., that she meet on the Internet, she did cite the fact that I spent way too much time blogging as a factor!

So, it should be no surprise to those who know me well that I am devoting 32 quotes from 32 people, both alive and dead, from the 32 countries in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, which starts (yikes?!) tomorrow with a game between the host country and Mexico that will air at 9:30 a.m. in Boston and Miami (and the rest of the American east coast as well as places like Toronto, Canada).

Today, we feature a quote from the late Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) who was the subject of the film "Frida" (2002) which starred Mexican actress Salma Hayek in the title role.

Frida is popular not in Mexico but throughout Central America as there is a popular restaurant named Frida's in Antigua, Guatemala, that we couldn't get into because there was a long, long line waiting outside (?!) when we there in 2005. We've since read from travel writers that many Americans who go to Guatemala have trouble getting a seat in this restaurant, which is known for its cocktails and quesadillas.

As for the painter Frida, she was known for her Realism, Symbolism and Surrealism. She was also a bisexual and a communist, which made her life, as tragic as it was, even more interesting!

She was married to fellow Mexican artist Diego Rivera. And, she had affairs with the African-American singer Josephine Baker as well as the Russian socialist leader Leon Trotsky, who was murdered in 1940 while in exile in Mexico. Trotsky also lived for a while in Turkey. My late Turkish aunt happened to spend her summer residence on the island of Buyukada off the coast of Istanbul where Trotsky lived in the late '20s and early '30s before heading off to Mexico.

Frida also suffered from massive injuries that she suffered from a bus accident which happened when she was 18. Those injuries haunted her for the rest of her life. She died under mysterious circumstances, and there is much speculation that she committed suicide.

An exhibit of Frida's paintings is currently taking place at a museum in Berlin, Germany--- a city where one can also see Knut the Polar Bear (at the Berlin Zoo, of course!).

Here is today's quote from Frida:

"Feet, what do I need you for when I have wings to fly?"

Quote of the Week- Salvoj Zizek

Since we are featuring quotes from left-wing radicals during the month of May, we thought we'd go with someone we've never quoted before in Slovenian Marxist philosopher Salvoj Zizek, who is the subject of the 2005 documentary "Zizek!"

It turns out that Zizek, who is 61, is really into films, and he is not religion so even though I'm more politically moderate, we'd probably get along swell!

Here is today's quote:

"Cinema is the ultimate pervert art. It doesn't give what you desire- it tells you what how to desire it."

Quote of the Week-Che Guevara

Since the traditional Socialist holiday May Day was Sat., May 1st, we thought we would feature quotes from left-wing radicals throughout this month even though I myself am a moderate left-wing radical (that is a joke...all of us who are Democrats in either Virginia or North Carolina have pretty much been accused of being with the Reds and we aren't talking about the baseball team in Ohio).

Today, we thought we'd start off with the radical of the radicals, the late Che Guevara (I thought his last name was spelled Guevarra....oops!):

"It's a sad thing not to have friends, but it is an even sadder thing not to have enemies."

SIDEBAR: In a related matter, I saw the following tweet from Mashable who is really Scotish technocrat Pete Cashmore (yes, I have no idea what a technocrat is either!)last week: "Hugo Chavez asks Fidel Castro to Join Twitter."

We could not make this stuff up!

Silly Photo to Fill Space- Gumby and Pokey

If it seems surreal that a conventional American soap opera like "The Young and the Restless" is popular in Turkey (my late father's country), it may seem even stranger that the 1950s American claymation cartoon "Gumby" which featured Pokey the Horse is popular in Venezuela!

According to the NPR series "The World," which airs at 3:00 p.m. daily on 90.7 WUNC-FM (Chapel Hill, NC) , Gumby toys are among those which are most sought for at The Socialist Toy Fair that is currently happening in that country's capital of Caracas.


The report from Anahi Aradas indicated that the cartoon is one that Hugo Chavez admires a great deal.

I did not get acquainted with Gumby until Eddie Murphy made fun of Gumby on "Saturday Night Live" when I was a kid. He had the trademark line: "I am Gumby, damnit."

"Gumby" was created by Art Clokey, who is still alive in his late 80s. Clokey also produced the Biblical-themed cartoon "Davey and Goliath," which was funded by the Lutheran Church.

A great documentary about the landmark animation series called "Gumby Dharma," whichhas aired on The Sundance Channel, explored the Buddhist philosophy behind the show.

This sort of reminds me of how the Polish cartoon "Lolek and Bolek" (now available on dvd in America) was the only cartoon allowed to be shown on television in the Islamic Republic of Iran!