"Hate Was Their Handshake"

by Nomad

Recently I stumbled across a fascinating book called "Under Cover: My Four Years in the Nazi Underworld of America." One of the things you quickly learn from reading the book is that the techniques used in politics nowadays were used in the past- albeit primitively, by today's standards. The modus operandi never really changes.

In the years just before WWII, Armenia-American journalist Arthur Derounian (using the alias John Roy Carlson) went underground to investigate and to expose the various organizations that supported fascism and Nazi causes.

When it was published, the book served as a warning that fascism could flourish just as easily in Chicago and New York as it could in Rome or Berlin.

Sanity Sunday- Dulcimer Music by Ted Yoder

by Nomad

Goshen, Indiana resident Ted Yoder has been called "the master of the hammer dulcimer." Although Yoder grew up in a musical family, he received his first dulcimer as a wedding gift only 13 years ago. Yet the talented musician has since grown to become the 2010 National Hammer Dulcimer Champion.

Here are a few of his covers of familiar tunes.

Father Coughlin: How Christian Fascists in the 1930s Perverted the Term "Social Justice"

by Nomad

Last week, Rev. Grady Arnold, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Cuero, Texas, submitted a draft resolution demanding that the Southern Baptist Convention reject various forms of “social justice” philosophy. Arnold called the concept of social justice to be an example of Marxist ideology.

According to Arnold, social justice was an “evil" and not about rights and compassion but about “liberal theology.” In his resolution, he claimed that social justice activism is "a vehicle to promote abortion, homosexuality, gender confusion, and a host of other ideas that are antithetical to the gospel."

“This social justice is creeping down into local churches. If we start down this road today, where will it end?”

50 Years Ago, Civil Rights Leaders Spoke Out on Gun Control.. Today the Problem is Worse

by Nomad

A half-century ago, these two civil rights leaders spoke out for the need for sensible gun control laws in this country. Not long afterward, they were senselessly murdered by lone, deranged extremists with guns.

Sanity Sunday - The Music of Camera Obscura

by Nomad

The group, Camera Obscura, has been around for awhile. This  Scottish indie pop band from Glasgow was formed back in 1996. I have my own association with the group. Their songs offered me a good deal of comfort when I was exiled to New York City during a time of apprehension and anxiety.
But that's another story.

The band has shape-shifted somewhat over the years. It is currently comprised of Tracyanne Campbell (guitar, vocals), Kenny McKeeve ( guitar, vocals), Gavin Dunbar (bass), and Lee Thomson  (drums). If you would like to learn more about the group, click here.

The Incremental Steps Toward a Fascist State

by Nomad

First published in 1955, the book, They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-45,  dealt with a difficult subject in the aftermath of a national catastrophe. It is an examination of the lives of ordinary Germans who lived under the Third Reich.

Journalist Milton Mayer's goal wasn't to shame or berate or even to hold anybody accountable. Without moral judgment, without recriminations, he simply searched for answers: How could this have happened? Or more precisely, how could people let this happen?

Why Oliver North is the Perfect Choice for President of the Extremist NRA

by Nomad

Back in 2011, Nomadic Politics ran a comprehensive examination into the life, career and- most importantly, the extreme ideology of  Lt. Col. Oliver North. It was entitled Along Came a Hero: The Oliver North Myth. Since I wrote that long long article, it has been buried in the archives.

About three weeks ago, I noticed that this article was suddenly picking up a lot of attention. Traffic is always welcome but I was curious why.
The other shoe dropped when the NRA announced that North was to be their president. Obviously, it was time for a revisit.

Film Friday: Liberty Hill

by Nomad

For this Film Friday, I'd like to introduce you Karen Collins from Texas. Until the election of 2016, Collins admits that she took little interest in politics. 

"The election caught me off-guard. I did not really believe that Donald Trump was going to win. I couldn't believe that people could say those things about other religions, about other groups of people, and I was kind of depressed for a couple of weeks. And then, I got mad."

Top Negotiator says US Withdrawal from the Iran Nuclear Deal "A Major Strategic Mistake"

by Nomad

Prior to President Trump's decision to pull out of the Iranian nuclear arms accord, polls showed that majority of Americans (63 percent) said the United States should not withdraw from the agreement. 

According to the poll conducted by SSRS, an independent research company,  29 percent in the latest survey said the U.S. should exit, eight percent did not have an opinion.

Nearly half of those surveyed, 46 percent, said they disapprove of how the president is managing the nation’s relationship with Iran, while 37 percent said they approve. Seventeen percent said they did not have an opinion on the matter.

Sanity Sunday- First Aid Kit

by Nomad

Sisters Klara and Johanna Söderberg from  Stockholm, Sweden perform under the name First Aid Kit. They first came to the world's attention back in 2008 when they posted a YouTube video cover of the Fleet Foxes's song "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song." (In fact,  the pair were already well-known in their home country.)

Film Friday: Room for Change

by Nomad

A short film about passing the torch. 

Room for Change from Dan Fipphen on Vimeo.

Calling Out the Global Problem of Sexual Harassment on the Streets

by Nomad

Women as Objects on Display

Jen Corey was no stranger to being looked at and judged by men. The tall blonde was crowned Miss DC in 2009 and made it to the top 10 of the Miss America Pageant in 2010.
Ever since she was a teenager, Corey has encountered overzealous men. However, after an incident in a bar, she decided to use her beauty queen fame to speak out against street harassment.

Corey found that too often people she spoke with dismissed the subject as just part of life as a woman in the city. Cat-calls,  long looks, sexual comments were something women should expect, especially if they dress in a certain way, act in a certain way or walk through a certain neighborhood at a certain time.