The mother is asking for our help, for our letters. But first:

She was sent to Iraq right out of her basic training. While she was packing, we cried, as she assured me she would be okay. One of her sergeants assured me, "Don't worry, ma'am, we'll take good care of your daughter." I desperately hoped that I could trust him to watch over her. I later found out he was one the first predators to try to have sex with her and make her "his private."

College girls (we were freshmen, what, 18 or so?) who became pregnant had several choices, besides suicide. For abortion you: a) found a back-alley doc in the nearest big city b) waited until spring break, scrounged a car or a bus ticket or a plane ticket, and went to Mexico.

What happened when you got to those clinics was roughly the same in both countries, as far as I know. You probably had little pain medication.

This diary's topic: getting to know your neighbors.

Do you know any of your neighbors? Are you in a house or an apartment building? Other? (Dorm, barracks, underwater cave...)

Have you ever invited neighbors to your house or yard for a party?

Ever helped to create a block or neighborhood party?

If you haven't met any of your neighbors, yet, how would you go about that? FOr those of you that have, what method do you use?

If you haven't met anyone from your block, that is your assignment for this week. Figure out a way to meet one person from your block or apartment building (underwater cave).

If you wonder -- how could this be political? I think I mentioned in last diary that the lady from China across the street from me said I'm the only one on the block who talks to her. She, uh, also asked me in 2004 who to vote for, and said she would take my word for it.

That's when community gets political, eh?

What does the concept evoke for you?

A bunch of Amish guys with hammers swarming over a pile of wood? Let's look at it as a concept instead.  

It's what built this country. Cooperation. One neighbor, relative, or group helping one person or family to do more than they ever could alone. The apple harvest. The wheat harvest. Home-building. Barn-building. Wagon trains. (NOT solo wagons.) Rounding up the pigs. Slaughter and preserving animals. Cattle round-up.

It's how people STILL live in the rural areas or small towns in this country. Helping each other. It's a noble way of life, a life filled with meaning. With thanks, gratefulness, with that wonderful feeling that you just helped someone else have a better life. Where you're woven into a never-ending series of favors given and received, no end in sight, the beginning far past.

A world where you don't have to worry so much about doing "the big projects", because you don't have to do them on your own. Think about that, I mean really ponder it. A world where it's natural to call on your neighbors, friends, relatives for help. Where you are more doing them a favor by asking, because you weave the community together by doing so. Where this is as much a part of life as breathing. A security infuses your everyday life. Not that hardships won't come, but that you won't bear them alone, but with help on every level.

Emergency at your house? No problem. As many people as needed will show up to help you. One person's needed to watch the kids while you drive one to the hospital? Done. 14 people to help vacuum the water out of your house after it flooded? Here they come. Are some of them taking the day off work to do that, because their boss is a member of the community? Yes. Are they being paid to work at your house on the water by that boss? Possibly. Either the boss is sacrificing their pay on your account, or they're sacrificing it by working for free for you, in any case, it's all part of a beautiful circle, which will benefit every member in its time.

Do we have this type of community in our world today? In our country today? On this blog today? If not, why not? And if not, how can we create it? Why spend time bemoaning it if we don't have it, let's create it!

I would contend that creating those types of communities, both online and in person in our daily lives, is one of the most effective political acts we can commit. No, the MOST ESSENTIAL political act we can commit. Most essential.

One thing that's so great about creating truly interwoven, giving communities? On the face of it, it's not "political" -- it's social. It's innocuous. But it's powerful! It's powerful in a way that squares or cubes the meaning of the word "powerful". It's the most radical,profound -- and yet sweet, meaningful, and wonderful change we can make in our world.

So -- that was the vision portion of this piece. Please, let's discuss this, and not in just one diary, not just one day. Let's not give it the add/adhd treatment.     :-)

 Now to bring this subject to the personal level, the level of this community. Last night I logged onto Booman and read that one of the premier diarists here was using a computer monitor which barely worked, and was very very small. That person lives roughly 100 miles from me. Yesterday I drove 15 miles to pay a business $10 to take an old monitor from me, and resell or recycle it. Needless to say, the irony of that is not insignificant.

Even more "synchronistic". I'm ex-board member of a computer club in Seattle, I'm hooked in with at least 4 computer/monitor give-away programs. Add to the mix that I've even corresponded with that diarist personally before -- she's the person who gave me the courage to post my first diary on dKos. What's relevant here is not that "I owe her one," but "I kind-of personally have an email relationship with her".

My point is -- IF this diarist had asked us for help in the past, I personally could have resolved this situation long ago, and likely for no money changing hands. I sent out 3 emails about finding her a monitor, one sent at 1:02 PM.  At 1:12PM, I had a reply, "Yes, there's one sitting in the front of the user group office waiting for someone to pick it up." In addition, I literally know a person who probably lives within 30 miles of the diarist, who runs a computer give-away program.

My point related to the above is:
If Susan had asked in the past, the need would have been supplied instantly. If I wasn't a part of Booman, or didn't see that post, or wasn't connected with my computer group, it would have been easy to fill her need, another way. $10 from 30 people, and she's got $300 for a computer monitor, easy.

So -- why didn't she ask? Why, if this is a community, as so many have said it is, didn't she feel that it would be (back to the vision thing) doing us a favor to allow us to help her, via making her need known? After all, helping someone else a little bit, keeps the pump primed for the time when we need a little bit of help.

Thus: I propose that we radically, politically, socially change our vision of asking for help. That we see it not as weakness in some macho view of the world. Or failure in some 50's isolationist nuclear family model of the world: "I'm not doing it all MYSELF".

I propose we see asking as a privilege, because it means we're a part of a community that cares. That we see it as a privilege for the others to give, because it infuses their lives with meaning, usefulness, community, belonging, and an avenue to share love.

Barn-raising. A metaphor for the kinds of community we need to create, to live in, to breathe in, to love in. What better legacy for our children and our world?

Ask, and you help to create that community.

I was so sad about this all day. A human life to be wasted. Another blot on the country's name, every case that's famous like this is that.

My body tried to fall asleep several times in the middle of the day; I realized I wanted to sleep through the execution, vs worrying about it all day. Working late at the computer, I had NPR on in the background to listen to "As It Happens" (Canadian show.)

Then American news came on, and the announcer said, "Tookie... will die this hour." Looked at computer clock, it was 12:01, what a shock. The time the first chemical would hit his veins, if they were on schedule.

I spent three minutes silent, eyes closed.

"His claim of rehabilitation doesn't correlate with his claim of innocence," said Mr. Swartz or his attorney writing a statement for him. What gobbledegook. How does that make sense? What makes those two ideas related in any way?

The only thing I can think of circles back to the title. I hope that in death Tookie serves the cause of ending the death penalty. I hope he serves the cause of inspiring kids to avoid or quit gang life.

I hope he inspires the rest of us to do something to make avenues of achievement for some of the kids who'd have ended up in gangs without other options.

Media savvy will carry a movement much further than any march, regardless if it had 100,000 or 500,000 or a million people. Cindy Sheehan had the right idea with the Crawford protest -- there was a story line and drama which the media could use to create a narrative, hence a long-running story.

Cindy had the right "idea"? That's hilarious. You've never lost a child or you wouldn't say that.

Cindy Sheehan had PAIN. From her PAIN she, on her own, decided to go to Crawford, and camp out to confront Bush. To try to stop him from killing another mother's son.

Cindy Sheehan had no clue that bunches of people would come join her, to spend time asking the same question, or that it would become a media moment. After all, she'd done scores of other actions, other speeches, that didn't provoke all that.

Here I am again, with a diary inspired by another diary. "Frederoil" posted here: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/7/11/32619/6292

I'm tired of people fawning over the military and I'm going to speak out about it.

One reader responded:

....So you're going to dehumanize the returning troops - it's what you are doing.

Well then. Now we're rockin' and rollin'. Now, I happen to kinda agree with Frederoil that we're waaaaay too into "How Cool War Is tm" in our society. At least those making decisions at the top are! And if we don't even dialog about this -- how on earth are we going to even learn a darned thing about it??  

Does "Support the Troops" mean "Support the Troops" when the policy makers that promote Iraq/ Afghanistan wars --ALSO-- propose pay cuts for ACTUAL troops? When they propose cutting health care for FORMER and ACTUAL troops? When they allow today's vets to become HOMELESS by screwing up their pay, their back pay, by denying them housing loans? When they ask these troops to pay for their own meals in hospitals after being wounded in Iraq war? (How can you get more insulting, more "not-support troops" than that?!?)

Or does "Support the Troops" mean "SCREW the TROOPS, but Line My Friend's Pockets with Wealth Earned From Munitions Factories And Troop Services" when these policy-makers say it??

Did they change colors on a National color alert system? (Or might they be adult enough not to have such a grade-schoolish system in place?)

Did their government ministers get on TV and say, "Everything is OK, don't worry?" Or maybe "Bring 'em on!" Or, "We'll catch ALL these terrorists, don't you worry your little head about it!"

Or... maybe "We need more restrictive laws so our government can spy on Japanese citizens easier"?

Or...

(Below the fold, and have your guesses ready, now, don't cheat!)