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Stirring humor into "Old Age"

No doubt everyone grows old in their own way.

But once you actually hit it — that three letter word, “old” — watch out: “An aged man is but a paltry thing,/A tattered coat upon a stick . . .”

So wrote William Butler Yeats, back in the last century, conjuring a mystical journey to the spiritual city of Byzantium in order to escape his entrapment in that word, and in the world that values only youth. Hey Bill, how does it feel to be so old?

Familiar tale gracefully blends feminism and fantasy

Feminism has a crucial role to play in modern life, but I sometimes wish it would leave our fairy tales alone. The results of its revisionist meddling are too often unconvincing and unsatisfying.

Remember last year’s Maleficent? It turned an age-old story on its head by revealing that the fairy (Angelina Jolie) who turned a princess into a “Sleeping Beauty” was not evil at all. No, she was merely wronged and misunderstood. Worst of all, we learned that the somnambulant princess could not be awakened by a kiss from the handsome prince, but only by a motherly peck from that same fairy.

How heartwarming. And how utterly unromantic.

Thank goodness Disney’s new live-action version of Cinderella doesn’t wear its feminism on its sleeve. It has nods to modern sensibilities, to be sure, but they’re handled with a lighter touch.

TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL 2024: Film Review

 

TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL 2024: Film Review

Part I:  The “Coachella of Classic Movies” Rides Again at Hollywood

By Ed Rampell

MAGA Enquirer

The Humble Pen takes on the Mighty Sword

Here’s an anniversary no one wants to celebrate: The Columbine school shooting — April 20, 1999 — just passed its 25th anniversary. Fifteen dead (including the two shooters), twenty-one injured. A new era begins . . .

Why, why, why bring up such a horrific event? Perhaps because it hasn’t stopped.

Even though I sit here in the comfort of my study, feeling perfectly safe, I can’t emotionally disentangle myself from the news, which is always, in one way or another, about the human need to kill itself — or rather, the human assumption that it’s divided from itself, and “the other,” whoever that other is, either needs to be killed or is, at best, expendable. For instance:

“The Senate has passed $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.”

Columbus is an “Opportunity City” for a Select Few

Columbus skyline

Our sloganeering Mayor Andy Ginther had been spouting off about how Columbus is “America’s Opportunity City” as far back as 2015 when he stated, his "Columbus will be America’s Opportunity City.” In 2018 Ginther told the inaugural cohort of the New American Leadership Academy, “We are a top city with immigrants. We are proud of that.” In his 2019 State of the City Address he claimed, “In my previous State of the City addresses, I committed to make Columbus America’s opportunity city, to tackling our most pressing challenges and making tangible, long-lasting changes to lift up Columbus neighborhoods and move our city forward together. We have. And we are.”

During Ginther’s 2023 mayoral campaign he wrote he would, “Ensure anyone who works in America's Opportunity City can afford to live in the neighborhood of their choice” and “Every family in every neighborhood should be able to share in the success story that is Columbus. But what makes Columbus truly special is how we respond to opportunity.” Ginther has been full of more empty campaign promises.

Columbus is an “Opportunity City” for a Select Few

Columbus skyline

Our sloganeering Mayor Andy Ginther had been spouting off about how Columbus is “America’s Opportunity City” as far back as 2015 when he stated, his "Columbus will be America’s Opportunity City.” In 2018 Ginther told the inaugural cohort of the New American Leadership Academy, “We are a top city with immigrants. We are proud of that.” In his 2019 State of the City Address he claimed, “In my previous State of the City addresses, I committed to make Columbus America’s opportunity city, to tackling our most pressing challenges and making tangible, long-lasting changes to lift up Columbus neighborhoods and move our city forward together. We have. And we are.”

During Ginther’s 2023 mayoral campaign he wrote he would, “Ensure anyone who works in America's Opportunity City can afford to live in the neighborhood of their choice” and “Every family in every neighborhood should be able to share in the success story that is Columbus. But what makes Columbus truly special is how we respond to opportunity.” Ginther has been full of more empty campaign promises.

Rolling Stone writer’s new book exposes dangers of working in Ohio’s gas and oil industry

Book cover

Ohio environmental groups and allies are alerting the public about the need to stop fracking methane gas and keep fossil fuels in the ground so to mitigate the worst effects of global warming and climate change.

These groups are promoting book signings throughout Ohio, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania this spring for Rolling Stone and DeSmog writer Justin Nobel’s new book investigating worker health harms and the environmental dangers of working in the gas and oil industry.

Nobel’s nonfiction book, Petroleum-238: Big Oil’s Dangerous Secret and the Grassroots Fight to Stop it (Karret Press, 2024) will be released April 24th in U.S. bookstores.

Nobel spent seven years traveling eastern and southeastern Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and other states across the country interviewing workers in the gas and oil industry about their work conditions, the radioactive toxic waste they were exposed to daily, and the health issues they eventually faced.

Two events today

Details about event

Protest at Chase "McCoy Center" Headquarters in Columbus
Wednesday, April 24, 2024, 3:30 – 5:00 PM
Chase is THE LARGEST fossil fuel funder on the planet. They've pumped over $434 BILLION into deadly fossil fuels worldwide since 2016.  

JOIN US for a protest at Chase "McCoy Center" headquarters in Columbus. If this is the 'Real McCoy' they need a REALITY CHECK!  

This will be peaceful protests and we do not anticipate any arrest risk. Rain or shine (unless lightning).

This protest, organized by Third Act Ohio, is part of a larger "Spring Spark" group of actions happening in NYC and across the country on this day.  

All are welcome.  Please Be There!!  

Meet up: 3:30pm, Krispy Kreme, 1021 Polaris Pkwy, Columbus (inside if raining, parking lot, otherwise).  We will convene and move to 2 close-by protest sites.  

If you have questions, or need a ride to the protest site, please email us at thirdactoh@gmail.com. 

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