articles tagged "Esty Dinur"
“Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy”
Friday, 5 October 2012 | A Public Affair
On Friday October 5th, host Esty Dinur spoke with author and senior fellow at Political Research Associates Frederick Clarkson about the role of the Christian right in American elections and American politics. Clarkson wrote the book “Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy” and is editor of Dispatches from the Religious Left: The Future of Faith and Politics in America. Clarkson has been researching and adding his expertise to the realm of politics and religion for more than 30 years. He recently stated, “This past weekend, Christian Right leaders including Pat Robertson, and Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, staged a mediagenic rally in Philadelphia for more theocratic governance. Against the backdrop of Independence Hall, top leaders of the Christian Right urged some 10,000 ralliers and untold numbers globally on the GOD TV network, to work and pray for unambiguously political outcomes regarding marriage, reproductive rights, and separation of church and state. Rev. Samuel Rodriguez gave a version of his demagogic speech in which he declared that America will not be saved by the GOP elephant or the Democratic donkey but only by ‘the agenda of the Lamb who sitteth on the throne.’ Rev. Rick Scarborough of the Texas-based Vision America said that people should pray for government officials and the members of the Supreme Court. But if they fail to follow God’s will, then they should pray for God to ‘remove them.’ Pat Robertson said: ‘I don’t care what the ACLU says or any atheist says, this nation belongs to Jesus!’ The leaders of America for Jesus protested before during, and after the rally that it was an apolitical event. But they really doth protest too much. In a pre-rally interview with Charisma magazine Rodriguez said that Christians need to abandon political ideology and hold to a ‘biblical worldview and go biblical about it.’ But of course, going biblical does not necessarily mean going apolitical. One of the rally’s purposes was to launch a fast campaign called ’40 Days to Save America’ led by top Christian Right political figures, including Perkins, Rodriguez and Scarborough. The fast ends on Election Day. Hardly a coincidence. The Christian nationalism was as open as the raw religious supremacism and unambiguous political purposes of the event.” Read more about Frederick Clarkson’s work at his website: http://www.frederickclarkson.com/ Listen to the entire interview: more »
People Who Understand the Language of Plants
Friday, 28 September 2012 | A Public Affair
On Friday September 28th, host Esty Dinur talked with documentary filmmaker Lawrence Lansburgh. Recently, he released a documentary about the Achuar people of the Ecuadororian Amazon. He has been nominated for an academy award and is a recipient of previous Emmy awards. His documentary tells the inspirational success story of a small group of forest people who overcame the power of big oil. In his words, “My area is the intersection of environmental health and human rights, as demonstrated so vividly by the success of the Achuar people in keeping oil companies out of their pristine part of the Amazon rain forest. Clearly, among the valuable assets of a still-healthy Amazonian culture is the knowledge of medicinal plants. By protecting themselves from the cultural and environmental devastation of oil operations, the Achuar people have also protected their knowledge of those plants.” Visit Lawrence Lansburgh’s website: http://www.larrylansburgh.com/ Listen to the entire interview: more »
Reshaping of the University of Wisconsin Human Resources System
Friday, 21 September 2012 | A Public Affair
On Friday September 21st, host Esty Dinur spoke with David Ahrens, retired University of Wisconsin Public Health researcher, about the reshaping of the University of Wisconsin Human Resources System. The University of Wisconsin Interim Chancellor David Ward stated of the plan: “The HR Design project represents an unprecedented effort involving OHR, campus governance groups, labor organizations and other university stakeholders to redefine the university’s approach to human resources. We recognize the project’s strong commitment to participation and dialogue as central to creating an HR system tailored to our values, culture and organization… Eleven groups of employees—representing governance groups, labor organizations, administration, classified staff, HR practitioners and other stakeholders—came together in spring semester 2012 to analyze the full range of human resources practices on our campus and to make recommendations for improvement. Their commitment and hard work, supported by the project’s Collaboration, Change Management, Communication and Data Analysis teams, formed the core of this plan. We thank them for their effort, positive spirit and courage in tackling complex and sometimes controversial topics. We also thank the thousands of people from all segments of our campus community who participated in the process and shared their perspectives. The opportunities and initiatives presented in the plan are ambitious and will require changes to our policies, processes, technology and, in some cases, our culture. Many details remain to be clarified, but this document provides a trajectory for improvement. We look forward to ongoing engagement with campus on these important topics.” Although many at the University are optimistic about the new HR restructuring, many also have serious reservations as to how the changes will impact the University community. Ahrens discussed these important issues regarding the future of UW-Madison. To view the new plan: http://hrdesign.wisc.edu/content/uploads/2012/11/HRD-Plan-Revised-11-19-2012-.pdf To listen to the entire interview: more »
Abuse and Dissociation
Friday, 7 September 2012 | A Public Affair
On Friday September 7th, host Esty Dinur spoke with the award-winning author and visual artist Christine Stark about her recent book Nickels: a tale of dissociation. The novel deals with the difficult issues of incest and physical and verbal abuse from the survivor’s point of view. It discusses how dissociation is employed as a means of coping. Stark explains how her motivation in writing the novel began with her social justice work around sexual violence. “Nickels follows a biracial girl named Little Miss So and So, from age 4-½ into adulthood. Told in a series of vignettes, Nickels’ lyrical and inventive language conveys the dissociative states born of a world formed by persistent and brutal incest and homophobia. The dissociative states enable the child’s survival and, ultimately, the adult’s healing. The story is both heartbreaking and triumphant” -Bertram’s Books To learn more about Christine Stark: http://www.christinestark.com/ To listen to the entire interview: more »
Privacy
Friday, 10 August 2012 | A Public Affair
On Friday August 10th, Esty Dinur interviewed author and Harper’s contributing editor Garret Keizer about his new book “Privacy.” They discussed the challenges of maintaining personal privacy in an age of ever increasing and invasive technology. “Body scans at the airport, candid pics on Facebook, a Twitter account for your stray thoughts, and a surveillance camera on every street corner — today we have an audience for all of the extraordinary and banal events of our lives. The threshold between privacy and exposure becomes more permeable by the minute. But what happens to our private selves when we cannot escape scrutiny, and to our public personas when they pass from our control? In this wide-ranging, penetrating addition to the Big Ideas//Small Books series, and in his own unmistakable voice, Garret Keizer considers the moral dimensions of privacy in relation to issues of social justice, economic inequality, and the increasing commoditization of the global marketplace. Though acutely aware of the digital threat to privacy rights, Keizer refuses to see privacy in purely technological terms or as an essentially legalistic value. Instead, he locates privacy in the human capacity for resistance and in the sustainable society ‘with liberty and justice for all.’” -Picador Publishers To learn more about Garret Keizer: http://garretkeizer.com/ more »