NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

Biba Puenggen Na'ma'a'nao ginnen i dos na patgon-hu! Ya hunggan, i kinadukun-niha gi este na litratu gi pappa', taiguini todu tiempo siha.

If you have the means, consider donating to this cause below. The Global Network is a very important organization who is doing important work in terms of promoting peace in the world (and the heavens above). ********************** Dear Friends, I hope this letter finds you doing well.  I have just returned from Washington DC where I was part of a trial of those arrested at the White House on March 19 opposing the endless and growing string of U.S. wars.  On that day 113 people (including many veterans) were arrested but only 18 of us went to trial.  We were found guilty by the judge but he chose to impose only a minor fine, which was a victory of sorts. I am writing to ask for your help.  As you may know the Global Network will be 20 years old in 2012.  We’ve been asked by the leaders of the Gangjeong village on Jeju Island, South Korea to hold our annual space organizing conference there next year.  Our Board of Directors/Advisers has agreed and we will travel to the villag

The decolonization debate continues. Lately it has been all over the Marianas Variety website. I've been writing a column for them for more than a year now, and so I can attest to how much of a ghost town their website used to be. To see some articles on their site today and yesterday reaching 50 and 60 comments within a single day is a miracle to behold. It is still nowhere near the level of the PDN, which can reach 100 comments sometimes on articles that barely say anything, just because so many trolls hang out there, but it is still impressive. It is no wonder that the paper won't stop the publishing of "The Outsider Perspective" by Dave Davis. The angry and racist rhetoric of Davis is key to making the Variety appear to be a competitor to the community discussion role that the PDN plays. To be fair the news coverage of the Variety is much more balanced than the PDN, but this balance is generally lost on the editorial page. Key elements of this debate is whethe

Halacha fihu inetdot yu'. Achokka' kalang taya' gi oriya-hu ni' bubulao, kalang manieniente yu' na guaha un malamana na pakyo' gi oriya-hu. Na'ao siempre, lao gagaige ha'. Meggai masasangan put Guahu. Ya ti hu tungo' hafa mismo masasangan, lao hu tungo' ha' na masasangan. For the past few days I've been feeling a bit off, and usually when I get like this it is because of this feeling that I am being talked about, but I don't really know who is doing the talking, or what they are saying. I make regular public statements through this blog, through different events and activities and through my columns in the Marianas Variety and so it is common for my words to travel around the island and around the internet. Things that I barely remember saying on this blog or in public, sometimes become the only things that people remember about me. Sometimes I get used an example for good things about Guam or about Chamorros, sometimes I get used a

This article is from last week's Marianas Variety and so the dates are a bit off, as the hike to Ague Cove took place over the weekend. But for those of you still looking to go on some Heritage Hikes, there are two left. Hila'an is very common hike that people go on, as it is home to Shark's Pit and Lost Pond. What most people don't realize is that if you walk into the jungle just a little bit, you will not just be treated to few latte stones here and there, but you can actually find close to 100 latte . Some of them still standing, some of them still arranged as they might have been centuries ago. You can basically walk through the Ancient village of Hila'an. That hike will take place on October 30th, and start time will be at 3:30 pm at Tanguissan Beach Park. Our last hike will be to Pagat Point, which is much less known than both Hila'an and Pagat Cave. The hike for that will be on November 5th, and we'll be starting at 9 am, start point will be the Pag

Published on Sunday, October 16, 2011 by YES! Magazine 10 Ways to Support the Occupy Movement There are many things you can do to be part of this growing movement—and only some of them involve sleeping outside. by Sarah van Gelder The #OccupyWallStreet movement continues to spread with more than 1,500 sites. More and more people are speaking up for a society that works for the 99 percent, not just the 1 percent. Here are 10 recommendations from the YES! Magazine staff for ways to build the power and momentum of this movement. Only two of them involve sleeping outside: 1. Show up at the occupied space near you. Use this link to find the Facebook page of an occupation near you. If you can, bring a tent or tarp and sleeping bag, and stay. Or just come for a few hours. Talk to people, participate in a General Assembly, hold a sign, help serve food. Learn about the new world being created in the occupied spaces. 2. Start your own occupation. Use this Meetup site. Or

After close to a decade of no movement at the governmental level on Guam's decolonization, last month, a meeting of the decolonization was called. I was fortunate enough to be at the meeting and took some pictures. ********************************

In my continuing efforts to make sure that I have way too much to do, I'll be moderating a forum tomorrow on decolonization and self-determination at UOG. Details are below. ************************* Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice and the University of Guam present:. PUBLIC FORUM on Political Decolonization Dr. Carlyle Corbin United Nations Advisor and Internationally recognized expert on decolonization "The Role of the United Nations in the Self-Determination Process" Attorney Julian Aguon Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice "Defrosting the Self-Determination Imagination: The Trajectory of Right Under International Law" Wednesday, October 19 5:30 - 8:30 pm University of Guam CLASS Lecture Hall THE PUBLIC FORUM WILL BE LIVE STREAMED AT THE FOLLOWING CHANNEL FOR THOSE OFF-ISLAND: Tuesday, 12:30 am PST http://www.ustream.tv/channel/we-are-guahan

Hafa adai, We Are Guåhan is pleased to announce its fourth series of Heritage Hikes: Nå’i Tåtte, Chule' Tåtte. The title translates to "Give Back, Take Back," as this series of hikes will deal with the Department of Defense's complex history of land taking and land returns on Guam. The title he upcoming Heritage Hikes will include 2 new sites, Ague Cove and Pågat Point, as well as a Sunday afternoon hike to Hila’an Village. The hike schedule is as follows: · Saturday, October 22, 2011 – Ague Cove (Difficulty: Easy. Duration: 2 – 2.5 hours) Meet at Former FAA property (near NCS Dededo) · Sunday, October 30, 2011 – Hila'an Village (Difficulty: Very Easy. Duration: 2 – 2.5hours) Meet at Tanguisson Beach Park. · Saturday, November 5, 2011 – Pågat Point (Difficulty: Medium. Duration: 3 – 4 hours) Meet at Pågat trailhead along The Back Road. WHEN: The show-time for the Ague Cove and Pågat Point hikes is 8:45a.m. with a go-time 9:00 a.m. The show time for the

Anatomy of a Victory: Occupy Wall Street Wins a Big One Saturday 15 October 2011 by: J.A. Myerson, Truthout | News Analysis  Mayor Bloomberg’s Wednesday night visit to Liberty Plaza Park, during which he delivered news ( on behalf of his girlfriend’s corporation ) that the park would be cleaned Friday morning, made me very nervous. I found myself with a lay-over in Charlotte early Thursday morning and took the opportunity to pen a quick blog post to express my concerns. Boarding my next flight, I tweeted the following : “Okay, internets. About to take off for Seatac. No one do or say anything interesting for several hours, yes? Yes.” The internets declined. Over the next 20-or-so hours, there precipitated one of the most impressive single days of organizing I can recall or even imagine, and by 6 AM the next day, when the cleaning was set to begin, the Wall Street occupiers and our allies around the world had won. It’s worth looking into what made that happen, if for n

The Governor of Guam has his own Youtube Channel . Yanggen ti un tungo' este esta, taya' guaha. It was only created last month, and it has so far only 19 uploads. You can find there some of his weekly messages, some testimonials from people who want their/need their tax refunds, and presentations on his government reorganization plans. I'm waiting to see if the Guam Legislature will create their own Youtube page. They probably won't for a while since they already have their own tv channel where you can watch them in session and when they hold public hearings. Of the videos on Calvo's channel, one in particular caught my eye. It was uploaded three weeks ago, and it was a message to every member of Congress. In it the Governor called on members of Congress to support Guam in a number of ways. Two of his calls might appear to be contradictory; first his call on Congress to make sure the military buildup happens, since they need to take advantage of Guam and its

I just finished writing about the contrast between the 99%/Occupy Wall Street protests/sit ins and the Tea Party movement for my column in The Marianas Variety, and then I came across this on Tumblr. It puts in a very succinct way the differences between the two movements. ******************* How to compare and contrast America’s two “populist” movements — the Tea Party movement vs. the Occupy Wall Street/We are the 99%ers movement… - Both are angry at Wall Street bailouts, American plutocracy, and our whorish two-party system. - One blames the poor, immigrants, unions, non-Christians and Americans who happen to be liberal for what’s wrong; the other blames Wall Street, plutocrats. and whorish politicians. - One is funded by right-wing billionaires and corporate money; the other isn’t really funded by anybody. - One got major media coverage (lead by FOX) even when they could only produce a few hundred people at a rally in Washington, DC; the other got almost no media coverag

Congratulations to Inetnon Gefpago for their recent victory at the 2011 Cheonan World Folk Dance Competition. I have worked with IGP for a few years now on several different projects, most notably the writing of their 10 year anniversary production: Guahan: Fanhasso, Fanhita, Fanachu.  They are the most innovative of the Chamorro dance groups on island at the moment and I am happy to see them traveling around the world representing Guam.  ************************ Pacific News Center 10/10/2011 Guam - Guam’s Inetnon Gefpa’go Cultural Arts Program made the top 8 finalist  beating 21 other countries in the 2011 Cheonan World Folk Dance  Competition, Cheonan City, South Korea. The group also won the Encouragement Award from the Festival Organizers. The competition was held from September 28 through October 5. Only a select group were chosen and invited from around the world. “We didn’t really know what to expect going into the competition or the type of artistry required. This competiti