August 2005

Some new weekly items:

• The clash between the South Bend Catholic Worker group and some neighbors over zoning continues to get some press there, although there’s no news to speak of. Here’s an op-ed with some history of the house, and a South Bend Tribune article via Loaded Mouth.
• Film fans: here’s Victor Morton’s “Catholic Version” of the Aristocrats joke.
• Spotlight on Darfur 1 is a continuation of a project to highlight the diversity of blog posts on the Darfur crisis, a crisis that Eric Reeves calls “the first great episode of genocidal destruction of the 21st century.” Things continue to go badly there.
• You can read about national attitudes toward the war many places, but what about local opinion?

  In Worcester in recent weeks, we’ve seen a surge of anti-war feeling. For example, in today’s daily paper, the Telegram & Gazette, there are three anti-war letters to the editor, and none supporting the war.
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When it’s time to hold a demonstration, use signs and banners that are readable, neat, and attractive.

Art stores sell a product called foamcore that is much more durable than posterboard, which disintegrates in the rain and flaps in the wind.

Banners, made of white sheets folded lengthwise, are great in rainy or windless situations, but require more effort to hold.

Lettering and artwork should be in acrylic paint, because it is brilliant and waterproof. Magic markers stink. They are too thin, streaky, and pale.

Letters on a poster or banner should be at least 3 in x 6 in. The best test for legibility is to stand 30 feet away from your signs and try to read them. Consider how little time drivers have to take in your message.
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Last week, Bruce and I walked across town to visit the much-lauded Billy Goat Beanery coffeehouse. They were closed. (The Pulse thinks they’re out of business, but the woman in the bookstore below the coffeehouse told us they’re negotiating a new lease and will be back soon. Update: The old Billy Goat is now the Belfry Cafe. Check out Bruce’s review.)

We had a lukewarm cup of coffee at a nearby restaurant. Nothing to write home about.

But this gives us an excuse to post an interview we did with Bruce a few months ago about the coffee of downtown Worcester, Mass.
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According to the latest newsletter from Isaiah House, the Catholic Worker community in Orange County, California:

Our lawsuit against the City is still pending. However, settlement discussions with the City under the supervision of the court have progressed steadily. We remain hopeful that a negotiated settlement will be reached soon.

The Orange County Catholic Worker’s crime? Housing homeless kids and their families without a license.
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Oxford peace groups join today to highlight the destruction in Hiroshima 60 years ago; and, at a time when the next generation of Britain’s nuclear weapons is to be discussed in parliament, to say that this must never happen again.

More photographs will eventually appear at Oxford Indymedia.