NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

  The election for President in the US in 2016 has already started, and even though I am only casually following the coverage it does already seem like every single Republican or every possible stripe is teasing that they are running. It is interesting to see the bubbles in which people live and how it sustains their egos and gives them delusions of grandeur and potential power. All of these Republicans keep telling us that everyone they know is compelling them to run for President, and most of the country is wondering how many followers on Twitter or Facebook count as "everyone" nowadays. This video here from Bill Maher who has created a convenient guide for billionaires out there who are interested in buying a candidate and want one that matches their ideology or would be willing to say the craziest things. Some other articles are included below as well. ******************** Sarah Palin and the Demise of the Tea-Party Media By Eric Boehlert Huffingpost 1/30/2015

I can’t get my students at UOG excited about the 2012 Presidential race. This is to be expected considering that Guam, as a territory has no Electoral College votes and so it doesn’t get to help choose the next most powerful man in the world. In most similar classrooms across the United States, a group of apathetic students is an affront to democracy and self-government! But what is the point of calling on people in Guam to care about a race that they are prohibited from participating in? This November when you head to the polls you will get a ballot that asks you if you want to vote for either Willard Mitt Romney or Barack Hussein Obama. But since the vote doesn’t count, it makes you wonder why we even do it at all? It is yet another way that people on Guam seek to create the illusion of Guam being a secure and full part of the United States rather than face the truth of the situation. It is akin to seeing someone who is hallucinating that they are eating a gourmet meal

Ti meggai i ekspirensia-na siha Si Mitt Romney gi gubetnamento. Guaha na biahi na mas maolek este sa' i manenimigu-mu siha, ti sina ma hatme hao put i meggai na tinaya'-mu! Lao, ti ilek-hu na taya' ekspirensia-na, ilek-hu ti meggai. Desde 2002 asta 2006 Si Mitt Romney ha fa'cho'chu'i i taotao Massachusetts komo maga'lahin-niha (gubetno). I mas dangkolu-na Si Mitt Romney na este na bida-na, ti gof maolek. Ti atanon este, ti gof bunito. Meggai inefresi-na siha lao guahlo' gui'. Ilek-na na Guiya para u atbansa iya Massachussetts, lao gi durante i tiempo-na gumof tunok i tano'-na put cho'cho', ekonomiha, salape' yan kobransa. An malalagu hao para un takhilo' na ofisinan pulitikat taiguihi i Apa'ka na Guma' (lol), debi di fattayon i che'cho'-mu pulitikat. Lao para Si Romne ti meggai yan para i Republicans ti umaya yan i sisteman hinegge. Massachusetts un sen "asut" na tano' gi i US. I bida-na

Mensahi Ginnen i Gehilo' #3 "I Fecha" After the Decolonization Commission being called into session last year, things looked to be moving ahead in terms of an educational campaign and a self-determination plebiscite.After eight years lost due to the previous administration's unwillingess to address the issue of political status, the Calvo Administration appeared committed to "un nuebu na direksion" put este na asunto. After quite a bit of hype and hope things have cooled. In 2011, Governor Calvo went on record supporting 2014 as a good year to hold the self-determination vote. The commission and its subcommittee discussed what would be the best date given a variety of factors. These factors included availability of funds for a stand alone vote, changes in administrations, the need for sufficient time to educate people, and also the fear that if the date is set to far into the future, then it might prevent elected leaders today from working towards it.

Mensahi Ginnen i Gehilo' #2 A Vision for Independence One of the most important tasks that the Decolonization Commission has before it at present is the setting of a possible date for a self-determination plebiscite to help determine Guam’s next political status. After much discussion last year, the general election of 2016 was favored as possible date. Things have changed however as funding for the commission and the political status task forces seems unlikely for at least a year and the majority of members of the commission itself seem to now be against having the self-determination vote mixed with the politics of a gubernatorial election. Hopefully future meetings will help clarify this, so we can move forward. In the meantime, for each political status task force, our most important agenda item is the updating and revising of our perspective position papers. In 2000, each task force, independence, statehood and free association submitted to the Decolonization Commission, se

Everyone hates "politics." It is almost funny how it works. How people sneer, and jeer and frown when something happens and its "political." On Guam for example people say or think these things so much and so often it makes you wonder what they expect? In an ideal world, government is supposed to work for the good of all and run based on strong principles. The same goes for those elected into the government or working in it. But we don't live in an ideal world. We may pine for it, dream about it. But in truth, the ideal world only exists to make us feel crappy about the world that we have. The ideal world also exists to be an excuse to keep us from acting in this world. No one has the ideal form of government, but for the majority of people, if their government is found wanting, they fill the void of inadequacy or mediocrity not with engagement, hardwork and a determination to fix things. Instead, they fill the gap with complaints that make them feel like they

“Presidential Visit Calculus” by Michael Lujan Bevacqua 11/30/2011 The Marianas Variety The recent visit, but not really a visit by President Barack Obama to the World’s Largest Gas State Where America’s Day Begins caused a bit of a stir. There was a demonstration of more than 50 people at the front gates of Anderson while his plane was refueling. There have been debates about whether this counts as a visit or not. Furthermore, is Guam right to expect the “most powerful” man in the world to give it the time of day? Or is it just being selfish and trying to steal away the time of the busiest man in the world? At a time like this, it is probably important to reflect on the calculus of Presidential visits. Presidential stops are meant to enhance a Commander and Chief’s reputation. They are meant to give him a little boost, some extra political capital each time he leaves Washington and gets out to eat apple pie with Joe and Jane Six Pack. The calculus could be reduced to a handful o

“The Fourth Kind” Michael Lujan Bevacqua 10/26/2011 The Marianas Variety For those who follow the local decolonization conversation, you know that there are three options for Guam in terms of its future political status; statehood, free association and independence. These options are part of an internationally recognized United Nations’ process for taking territories or colonies and getting them to become self-determined entities. You could call these the Holy Trinity of status options. These three options were not created arbitrarily, and are not perfect, but are meant to reflect the most basic ways in which a colonized people can reassess their relationship to their colonizer and get rid of the colonial elements of it. At this level, decolonization is about ridding your relationship to the colonizer of its unilateral and unequal aspects; you can do so by splitting them off entirely, by integrating into them, or by creating a new agreement through which your relationship is ma

Gof ya-hu i "The Day in 100 Seconds" ni' fina'tinas as Talking Points Memo. Taya' cable-hu, ya achokka' meggai tinaitai-hu gi i internet kada diha, ti hu gof tutungo' i hafa masusesedi gi i mundon i mainstream media. Guaha dos mas ya-hu na huego. I fine'nina huegon video siha, ko'lo'lo'na "Sahyan Estreyas 2" pat estaba hu fa'na'an "Kareran Estreyas 2" pat fino' Ingles "Starcraft 2." Gof ya-hu humugando ayu yan umegga' lokkue' gi i professionat yan gof kapas na ganadot na banda. I mina'dos "politics" ayu un gof "frustrating" yan "interesante" yan "bunito" na huego. Guaha nai i mampulitikat mambaibaila, guaha mamyaoyaoyao, ya sesso manmumumu. Guaha manmaolek na taotao siha yan guaha mambaba lokkue'. Ayek un banda ya pakpaki yan bibayi i ganadot-mu siha! Este i "Day in 100 Seconds" ginnen i kumeplanos-hu gi i ma'pos na simana.

Sen magof hu na sumasaga' yu' pa'go giya Guahan. Estaba, annai sumasaga' gi lagu, fihu mampos mahalang para este na isla. Lao desde hu "move" hu tatte para Guahan, hassan nai na nina'mahalang yu' ni' i lina'la' gi lagu. Hunggan, guaha na biahi, mandiseha yu' na este giya Guahan, pat este giya Guahan, lao ti presisu este na siniente. Mas ki nahong i lina'la'-hu guini, guaha na biahi, mas ki bula'. Mismo machuchuda' i tasa-hu. Lao desde hiningok-hu put i dos na rallies ni' manmaplaneha ni' i fumati'tinas i Daily Show yan i Colbert Report, fihu mandiseseha yu' na gaige yu' gi lagu ta'lo. Ti para mo'na ya ti para apmam, lao para un simana ha' buente, kosaki sina hu saonao ayu na linahayan gi ayu na dinana'. For those interested, I've got the rally and march messages below. ************************ "RALLY TO RESTORE SANITY" Jon Stewart National Mall, Washington D.C

After the Record of Decision was signed, the Pacific Daily News  collected responses from Senators in the Guam Legislature, detailing their thoughts and concerns on the military buildup finally being officially declared "begun." I have pasted them below for people to read and reflect on. I have heard so many people over the past few months speak with some satisfaction that the rhetoric of so many of our political leaders have changed, that the efforts of so many who were critical of the buildup have helped make it so that no potential political leader who wants to be taken seriously can be 100% supportive of the military buildup, but instead has to hover around 50% - 70% good and the rest bad. This is a very real shift in rhetoric since for the first few years of the buildup, politicians would try to convince people that the buildup was a boon, that it was great and that the problems were minor and not such a big deal. That was how the public was shaped back then, in such a