OMNI NEWSLETTER: CURRENT EVENTS
CREATING A CULTURE OF PEACE
October 14, 2006



WE, THE PEOPLE



"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy." --- James Madison



“History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant.” Thurgood Marshall, US Supreme Court Justice



“The nationalist not only does not disapprove of atrocities committed by his own side, but he has a remarkable capacity for not even hearing about them.” George Orwell



“I prefer to try to tell the story of the discovery of America from the viewpoint of the Arawaks, of the Constitution from the standpoint of the slaves, of Andrew Jackson as seen by the Cherokees…of the rise of industrialism as seen by the young women in the Lowell textile mills.” Howard Zinn, author of A People’s History of the United States.



Social change in the US can begin at the grass-roots level--in churches and synagogues and mosques where people listen to their pastors and rabbis and imams, in peace and justice organizations where people discuss alternatives and solutions, and are moved to action.





TOLL-FREE NUMBERS to call Congress: 888-355-3588 and 800-828-0498. See end for details on Lincoln, Pryor, and Boozman.







Current Events (Reports and Commentary will arrive separately, a special no. on Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea).





OCTOBER 14, 9 to 5, Open House at Presbyterian and Disciples United Campus Ministry, 902 W. Maple, Fayetteville (where OMNI is located). Come see our plans to continue the presence and the mission of United Campus Ministry at the University of Arkansas. See old friends, participate in our oral history project, hear about our current programming, and meet our Board of Directors and Board of Trustees. Enjoy good food and fellowship before, during and after the Razorback football game with hors d’oeuvres and light refreshments.



OCTOBER 15, SUNDAY, HOWL: Women's Open Mic
Come read, sing or play your work to a really receptive audience. HOWL: Women's Open Mic happens the third Sunday of each month. (October will be our last meeting at the OMNI space -- though the OMNI/herwords creative collaboration will continue even as we move over to an accessible space!)
Women are invited to read poems (their own or another woman writer), share short prose, sing songs, etc. Men and women are warmly invited to attend. Readings begin at 6:30 and we welcome help setting up at 6 pm. OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology is located in the United Campus Ministry (Presbyterian Student Center) 902 W. Maple, corner of Maple and Storer, just north of UA’s Old Main. The main entrance is on the west side. For HOWL questions or to join our mailing list, email howl@herwords.org. If you can't join us on 10/15 -- we'll send out new-space announcement via email also. See you at OMNI on 10/15/06!





OCTOBER 17, TUESDAY, WORLD PEACE WETLAND PRAIRIE (WPWP)

Our next WPWP TAG meeting will be this coming Tuesday, October 17th, @ 4:30pm @ the Audubon Office, Fran Free. Also for the calendar:

* Friday, October 20th, 1pm = our 2nd (of 3) plant population surveys @ the WPWP
* Saturday, October 21st, 8am-noon = our monthly Volunteer Restoration Day @ the WPWP



October 17,Tuesday, 6:45pm, Interfaith Dinner, free, celebrating breaking of Ramadan fast, at Fayetteville Town Center.. RSVP 387-4970. Business attire.



October 17, 8pm, AETN PBS Ch. 13, Frontline “The Lost Year in Iraq.” The US occupation of Iraq under the leadership of Ambassador L. Paul Bremer III and his occupation staff and army resulted in “lawlessness, insurgency, economic collapse, death, and destruction.”



October 17, 9pm, AETN Ch. 13, “A New Island,” documentary on Springdale’s Marshallese community.



OCTOBER 17-19, TEACH-IN AT NWAAC

The War on Terrorism: Separating Fact from Fiction

Historians Against the War, the Omni Center for Peace, Justice, and Ecology, and the Honors Program at NorthWest Arkansas Community College are sponsoring a program about the War on Terrorism on October 17-19, 2006. The focus of the event will be "Separating Fact from Fiction" regarding three issues related to the war: Civil Liberties, Human Rights, and War Profiteering.

Interested parties will have an opportunity to view informative films on these subjects at the Shewmaker Center on campus each evening at 6:30 p.m. The series includes a film on each of the themes: Civil Liberties (October 17), Human Rights (October 18), and War Profiteering (October 19).
The three-day event will culminate with a screening of director Robert Greenwald's new movie "Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers." The 75 minute film begins at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 19th, and will be followed by a brief discussion. Admission is FREE to the public. The film reveals how profiteering private corporations have been awarded contracts for the reconstruction of Iraq and are allowed by America's top decision-makers to accumulate billions of dollars in profits at the expense of American taxpayers. To accept the invitation to the screening of “Iraq for Profit” RSVP at http://iraqforsale.bravenewtheaters.com/screening/show/6373-bentonville and include the number of friends, neighbors, and family members who will attend with you. For more information or to RSVP by phone, contact Edrene McKay (479-855-6836) or Tate Marble (479-387-4201).

As part of the program, representatives of the three sponsoring organizations will be on campus between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. each day in Room 1469 in the west wing of Burns Hall to discuss the issues and to answer questions. This is an important feature of the program that promises to result in healthy debate about the issues. (OMNI’s Gladys, Melanie, Dick, and others will be there part of each day.)



OCTOBER 18, Wednesday, 5-7, Citizens First and OMNI
Informational Fundraiser, Home of Jay and Joyce Hale 285 West. Cleburn St., Fayetteville (near Wilson Park north). Spend an hour hearing about the latest on Arkansas politics with others who share your values. Help AR Public Policy Panel raise money to support the Citizens First Congress as it fights for ...
Closing the education achievement gap
Reforming the Arkansas tax system
Protecting the environment, including global warming and clean water
Alternative sentencing for nonviolent offenders
Creating an AIDS/HIV Minority Task Force
Monitoring the overall legislative process
RSVP to Joyce Hale, 527-2777, joyhale43@sbcglobal.net.

October 18, 7pm, FPL, lecture on art treasures stolen after the invasion and bombing of Baghdad, and the failure of White House and Pentagon planners to protect Iraq’s cultural treasures, by Col. Matthew Bogdanos.



October 19, Judge Griffen. Contact Gladys Tiffany for details.



OCTOBER 19, “IRAQ FOR SALE,” see above.



October 19, Sierra Club, Ozark Highlands Group,the OHG New Members' Mixer at the home of Fran Free in Fayetteville on Thursday, October 19th, 7:00 - 9:00pm. This is your opportunity to meet and network with OHG members outside of our monthly meetings. We welcome members of all levels, from newbies to well-seasoned. Hors devours, cocktails, and good times will be served.

Call 443-6732 for directions to the OHG Member Mixer.



OCTOBER 20 Weekend Seminar: Toward the Real Human Being, Oct.20-22 Heartsong Retreat Center, Deer Arkansas. $125 meals included. Beloved Sufi teacher Sherif Baba shares with us the Path of the Real Human Being – Immeasurable Love (Ashk), Rightness (Hakk), and Living Knowledge (Marifet). Come meet a rare soul who sparks the fire of Endless Love and awakens beauty, joy, and serenity.

Sherif Baba received education in Sufism in the Rifa’i-Marufi, Halveti, Qadiri, Bektashi, and Mevlevi Tariqats (Paths). He has lectured on spirituality and healing at Universities and conferences throughout the U.S. and Canada, and teaches in Azerbaijan and Turkey. He also hosts the annual Rumi Festival in Chapel Hill, North Carolina where he resides. For information, & questions, please contact Sandy Goodier greenma@juno.com 479 253 8191 or Talat Halman htalat@gmail.com 479 595 1405



OCTOBER 21, Saturday, October 21st, 8am-noon = our monthly Volunteer Restoration Day @ the

WPWP.



October 21, Diwali



OCTOBER 22, SUNDAY, 6:30, VIDEO UNDERGROUND

Oct. 22 – “Life and Debt” - A powerful examination of the effects of globalization and the policies of organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank have on third world countries. This documentary focuses primarily on the economic hardships faced by individuals and businesses in modern Jamaica. Working with an infectious soundtrack and gorgeous camerawork, the filmmakers talk with farmers, workers and government officials about the problems facing a third world country in a global economy.



October 22, Sunday, 9am to 4pm, DANCES of Universal Peace

John Babbs 479- 253-6664/johnbabbs@arkansas.net Retreat: Living the Story of Creation. The Sufi Center of the Ozarks, Eureka Springs. Abraham and Halima Sussman, dance leaders in Cambridge, Massachusetts for over 30 years, will lead the retreat. Abraham and Halima bring to us 'Living the Story of Creation.' Drawing from the story of creation as told in the Book of Genesis, this retreat will incorporate silent meditation, sacred dance practices and the process of personal spiritual inquiry. For information and reservations contact The Sufi Center of the Ozarks at 479-253-6664.



OCTOBER 24, UNITED NATIONS DAY, celebrates the ideal of cooperation among nations as an alternative to the violence and wars of militarism, nationalism, and imperialism. Program under consideration. Will you help? Contact Dick Bennett.



October 24, Tuesday, at 6:30 pm Tibetan Monk at Unity of Fayetteville 4880 W Wedington Dr. 442-0680

Over the next 22 years, Geshe made a thorough study of the vast scriptures, principally the five foremost Buddhist philosophical subjects. Geshe was ordained a Buddhist monk by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1986. He has become acquainted with our customs and western ways and from his unique vantage point has been able to present the fundamental tenets of Tibetan culture and philosophy in a way that is very accessible. Geshe's message is universal and speaks to people of all persuasions and cultures.



October 25, Wednesday, 7pm, Sierra Club, OHG MONTHLY MEETING, Wednesday, at Powerhouse Seafood Restaurant in Fayetteville. Our guest will be Sandi Formica of the Watershed Conservation Resource Center (WCRC). WCRC is an Arkansas-based organization that is active in watershed management, from streambank restoration to nationally-reknown educational workshops. http://www.watershedconservation.org/ Also on the docket for the October 25th OHG General Meeting is a Political Candidates Forum before Elections, which are just "around the corner", to give OHG Members and guest a chance to have a dialog with candidates for local & state offices. After conducting and reviewing local candiates'answers to our official OHG candidate questionnaire, our Political Committee will announce our endorsements.



October 25, Wednesday, 8:00pm, AETN PBS, Wednesday, October 25, 8:00pm
POV: “My Country, My Country,” Chris D: “I saw a preview of this film on PBS' Now with David Brancaccio. It looks excellent.”
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2006/mycountry/



OCTOBER 26, THURSDAY, OMNI’S STEERING COMMITTEE

CREATING A CULTURE OF PEACE, JUSTICE, AND ECOLOGICAL CARING. Potluck 5:30. Business 6:00.

October 27, Friday, 6-9 pm, CAT FUNDRAISER. What time is it? It’s time again for you dancin’ ghouls to pull out those Frankenstein boots and twitch like a disco dynamite St. Vitus! The 3rd annual Monster Twist Party will take place at Community Access Television located at 101 W. Rock in Fayetteville as part of CAT’s fall fundraiser. (Because mainstream tv excludes the peace, justice, ecology movement, CAT and all community media are crucial to communicating our views and actions. OMNI financially supports FSTV/Democracy Now; produces a monthly forum; provides OMNI News via Short Takes; and has a new Book Sampler on Short Takes. But they only scratch the surface of tv possibilities. Give peace, justice, and the environment your ideas, your assistance, your leadership.)



October 27, Panel on Impeachment of President Bush and V-P Cheney at Drury College, Springfield.

Dick Bennett panelist.



October 27, UN DAY at UCA. All who believe in international cooperation, multilaterialism, international law, step forward for the UN.



OCTOBER 22 – 28 RAY MCGOVERN ON CAT CHANNEL 18

Tues. 10-24: 6pm, Thurs. 10-26: 6pm, Sat. 10-28: 2pm.



NOVEMBER 1 or 2, BOOK FORUM SERIES, House of War: The Pentagon and the Disastrous Rise of American Power by James Carroll. David Edwards, Claire Detels, Carl Barnwell, and Dick Bennett will discuss this extraordinary book that traces the militarization of the US from the building of the Pentagon during WWII to the present. It’s not too late to buy and read the book, or be on the panel, or just come to enjoy the discussion. Tentatively, the panel will occur at the new home of Jo Bennett.


November 2-4, The 2006 Arkansas Watershed Advisory Group’s Biennial Conference will be held Nov. 2-4 at the University of Arkansas Continuing Education Center and the Radisson Hotel in Fayetteville. The registration fee is only $50 per person if you register by Oct. 15. The fee covers two days of training, one day of field experience or an intensive workshop, a watershed symposium, continental breakfasts and refreshment breaks, lunch on two days, and a poster reception on Friday evening. For registration information, visit www.awag.org. Or call 501-682-0022.



November 10, “Holocaust Denial: An Assault on Truth” Conference.

At Jones Center in Springdale, contact Grace Donoho, 479-756-8090 ext. 210.



NOVEMBER 11, OMNI FUNDRAISER



"Raising the Green" Silent Auction & Potluck

mark your calendar and make plans to attend! this is gonna' be fun....

also, we are now accepting donations of items or services for our

upcoming 2nd annual silent auction

it was great last year and promises to be even better this time....please donate now as

it's your support that makes this event a success!



almost everyone has a item or service that someone else would love to have...if you are a business owner this is a perfect way to help OMNI and promote your business at the same time !
"Raising the Green" Silent Auction & Potluck
when: Saturday, November 11 at 5 p.m.
where: St. Paul's Episcopal Church
what: "fun" raiser and potluck and music
what to bring: a potluck dish to share and $ for shopping

enter our drawing for a $250 shopping spree at Ozark Natural Foods

for more info or to make a donation to the silent auction call or write

karen kimrey at 200-0361 karenkimrey@cox.net

more details available soon on our website www.omnicenter.org
please pass this message on to interested others..thanks!





NOVEMBER 12, VIDEO UNDERGROUND – “Class Dismissed” - Based on the forthcoming book by Pepi Leistyna, Class Dismissed navigates the steady stream of narrow working class representations from American television's beginnings to today's sitcoms, reality shows, police dramas, and daytime talk shows. Featuring interviews with media analysts and cultural historians, this documentary examines the patterns inherent in TV's disturbing depictions of working class people as either clowns or social deviants -- stereotypical portrayals that reinforce the myth of meritocracy. Class Dismissed breaks important new ground in exploring the ways in which race, gender, and sexuality intersect with class, offering a more complex reading of television's often one-dimensional representations. The video also links television portrayals to negative cultural attitudes and public policies that directly affect the lives of working class people.



November 13-14, Difficult Dialogues series, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, American Society for Muslim Advancement, leader in effort to build religious pluralism and integrate Islam into modern society. He will lecture at FPL Monday evening and in Giffels Aud. Tuesday afternoon. (OMNI will host potluck lunch for Imam Feisal on either Monday or Tuesday; contact Dick if you wish to attend.)



November 20, 6pm, Changes are being proposed public hearings held affecting Arkansas'extrordinary resource waters. These are our highest quality free flowing streams. The proposed changes would significantly weaken the protections these streams presently have. Please take time to attend the meeting in your area and/or provide written comment opposing the proposed changes. Contact Shawn Porter NCWA board.

• November 20, 2006, Terrace Room, Clarion Inn, 1255 S. Shiloh, Fayetteville • • December 4, 2006, Northridge Middle School Cafeteria, 120 Northridge Drive, Van Buren.

• December 11, 2006, Harrison High School Commons Area, 925 Goblin Drive, Harrison.



NOVEMBER 26, 6:30, VIDEO UNDERGROUND

“Control Room” - A portrait of Al-Jazeera, the independent news channel Donald Rumsfeld calls "Osama Bin-Laden's mouthpiece." Broadcasting throughout the Middle East, Al-Jazeera's Baghdad headquarters were attacked by American forces in 2003. The film examines the power of independent media and the resistance to it and the problem of whether any news can be truly bias-free.

OMNI SEEKS A WORLD FREE OF WAR AND THE THREAT OF WAR, A SOCIETY WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL, A COMMUNITY WHERE EVERY PERSON’S POTENTIAL MAY BE FULFILLED, AN EARTH RESTORED. GRASSROOTS NONVIOLENCE, WORLD PEACE, HUMAN RIGHTS, SOCIAL and ECONOMIC JUSTICE, ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP PROTECTING SPECIES AND THE EARTH.



CONTACT YOUR CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVES
--Senator Blanche Lincoln: Web Site (they have contact links): www.lincoln.senate.gov; http://www.lincoln.senate.gov/index.cfm; http://www.lincoln.senate.gov/webform.html
Washington Office:355 Dirksen Senate Office BuildingWashington, D.C. 20510-0404
Phone: (202) 224-4843 Fax: (202) 228-1371. Fayetteville office: 251-1380;.

--Senator Mark Pryor: Web Site (see contact link): www.pryor.senate.gov ; http://pryor.senate.gov/contact/
Washington Office:217 Russell Senate Office BuildingWashington, D.C. 20510-0403
Phone: (202) 224-2353 Fax: (202) 228-0908
Main District Office: 500 Pres. Clinton Ave., Suite 401, Little Rock, AR 72201
Phone: (501) 324-6336 Fax: (501) 324-5320



--Congressman John Boozman, District 3, 12 counties from Benton to Washington

Lowell office: 479-725-0400. 213 W. Monroe, Suite K, 72745. Steve Gray, coodinator of office. Web site (with contact link): http://www.boozman.house.gov/ Heath Hasenbeck, intern (one of them). Boozman's new office in Lowell is located at 213 West Monroe in Lowell between I 540 and Business 71. To reach that office take Exit 78 off I - 540 and go east. You will be on Hwy 264 which is also West Monroe. The office is in the Puppy Creek Plaza, past the McDonald's on the right. His suite is in the back of the complex to the left.

Ft. Smith office: 479-782-7787; 30 South 6th St. Rm 240, Ft. Smith 72901.

Harrison office: 870-741-6900; 402 N. Walnut, Suite 210, Harrison 72601.

DC address: 1708 Longworth House Office Bldng., Washington, DC 20515; 202-225-4301. Leslie Parker, appointments secretary: 202-225-4301.

Dick Bennett, Newsletter Editor
jbennet@uark.edu
(479) 442-4600
2582 Jimmie Ave.
Fayetteville, AR 72703