Coverage of Million Muppet March - NY Daily News

www.nydailynews.com/

Progressive puppeteers took to the street – and this time, it was not Sesame Street.

 

More than 1000 people gathered on the National Mall in Washington D.C.  in support of public media at The Million Puppet March on Saturday (November 3, 2012) – three days before the 2012  presidential election.

 

PBS and NPR supporters – dressed as Sesame Street characters and armed with Muppets – marched to the Capitol from Lincoln Park just after 11 a.m.

 

“Power to the puppets! We can save the Muppets!” the crowd chanted as they waved playful yet political signs.

 

Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

A woman holds a puppet and a sign during the 'Million Puppet March' in support of public broadcasting in Washington on November 3, 2012.

 

“When puppets are outlawed only outlaws will have puppets,” one sign read.

 

The Million Puppet March was intended to raise awareness of public media’s importance and to promote wider support for its continued federal funding.

 

Political science student Chris Mecham and animation executive Michael Bellavia organized the march and started a petition to Congress.

 

“We believe in public media.  We believe that a strong public broadcasting system builds a stronger nation.  And we believe that it is essential to provide adequate federal funding to our public broadcasters,” wrote Mecham and Bellavia in a mission statement.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/sesame-street-takes-national-mall-article-1.1196478#ixzz2BI4sMKxI

Election of New Pope (Coptic Church of Egypt): Reuters Nov. 4, 2012

Press coverage in NY TIMES online (Nov. 4):

Egypt’s Coptic Church Names New Pope
Egypt's Coptic Orthodox church chose a new pope, Bishop Tawadros, in a sumptuous service on Sunday that Christians hope will lead them through an Islamist-dominated landscape and protect what is the Middle East's biggest Christian community.
Many Christians in Egypt, who make up about a tenth of the population of 83 million, are worried about political gains made by Islamists since Hosni Mubarak was ousted last year. They have long complained of discrimination in Muslim-majority Egypt.
In a ritual steeped in tradition and filled with prayer, chants and incense at Abbasiya cathedral in Cairo, the names of three candidates chosen in an earlier vote were placed in a wax-sealed bowl before a blindfolded boy picked out one name.
Copts believe this long-established process ensured worldly influences did not determine the successor to Pope Shenouda III, who led the church for four decades until his death in March at the age of 88.
"Pope Tawadros II is the 118th (leader of the church), blessed congratulations to you," said interim Pope Bakhomious, dressed in gold-embroidered robes, who has temporarily been in the post since Shenouda's death.
As he held the name aloft, the congregation in the packed cathedral applauded. The formal ceremony to install Bishop Tawadros as the pope will take place on November 18, a priest said.
The new pope, bishop of a region in the Nile Delta north of Cairo who clerics said turned 61 on Sunday, had trained as a pharmacist before joining the priesthood.
Church experts said he had strong communication skills and had called for peaceful co-existence in Egyptian society.
"I am so happy. I have had dealings with Bishop Tawadros before and he is a very wise and calm man," said 20-year-old Marina Nabil, speaking amid applause in the cathedral.
The other two candidates were Bishop Rafael, a 54-year-old who qualified as a doctor before entering the priesthood, and Father Rafael Afamena, a 70-year-old monk who studied law before taking on holy orders.
In a ballot last week the candidates were whittled down to a choice of three. Voters included leading members of the church, public figures and a handful of representatives of the Ethiopian Church, which has historic links to the church in Egypt.
Echoing the worries of many of Egypt's Copts, shopkeeper Michael George said before the service: "Christians fear the Islamists' rule especially because their presence is encouraging radicals to act freely."
Since Mubarak was ousted, there have been several attacks on churches by radical Islamists. Those incidents have fuelled longstanding complaints that Christians are sidelined in the workplace and in law. They point to rules that make it harder to obtain official permission to build a church than a mosque.
The Muslim Brotherhood, the mainstream Islamist movement from which President Mohamed Mursi emerged to win power via free elections, has sworn to guard the rights of Christians in the overwhelmingly majority Sunni Muslim nation.
The Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party congratulated the church. The party chief, Saad al-Katatni, said on his Facebook page that he was "optimistic about fruitful cooperation with (the pope) as spiritual leader of Coptic brethren."

Million Muppet March - link to Photo/Slide show

reported in Washington (D.C.) POST:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/million-puppet-march-promotes-public-broadcasting/2012/11/03/174c99d4-25f2-11e2-ac85-e669876c6a24_gallery.html?hpid=z7

Nov. 10 Concert, 4 p.m. -- The Promissory Notes (Dulcimer group) - Niles Library

In the Niles (Michigan) Library Gallery - Rotunda:

The Dulcimer group from Elkhart, Indiana was formed in 1998 and has played at many area festivals and venues.  Come enjoy the N. Indiana musicians and learn more about the instrument and history of the wonderful folk music.

Longest Weekend of the Year (Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2012)

Turn back your clocks from 2 a.m. Sunday Nov. 4 to 1 a.m. in order to "gain back" the hour of Daylight Savings Time that we lost last spring.

This makes the first weekend of November -- 49 hours long.

Will all of your devices and computers do the same?  Do you have old-tech watches and house clocks that require such maintenance and correction?  Will you deliberately also change your home Smoke Alarm batteries?
Thanks for Comments -- God bless you!

Million Muppet March -- more information about unofficial status of PBS or Henson Company employees

www.politico.com/

The Million Muppet March kicks off Saturday (Nov. 3, 2012) at Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.
 “This is a fun event, we’re not trying to make it a political thing,” Michael Bellavia, one of the event’s organizers, told POLITICO. “We wanted to show that this is something that has a broad base of support.”

They may not want the march to be political, but they’re aware that that’s an uphill climb. They expect other to people to dress up as, say, Sesame Street characters but event officials will not, as their March isn’t in association with PBS or the Henson Company.

“We’ve heard through the grapevine that there are going to be employees who attend as private citizens,” said Bellavia.

The March has attracted attention all around the world, including Japan and New Zealand, and is expecting a few thousand attendees, a smaller number than originally hoped thanks to Hurricane Sandy. And they’re ready for anyone ready to protest their message.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83204.html#ixzz2B62Y0Uas

Lecture on Constitution and Pursuit of Happiness: Akhil Reed Amar (Nov. 3, 2012)

Potenziani Constitutional Law Lecture by Professor Akhil Amar

Fri Nov 2, 2012, 4:00PM - 5:30PM

Location: McCartan Courtroom

Akhil Reed Amar is Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University, where he teaches constitutional law at both Yale College and Yale Law School.

http://law.nd.edu/events/calendar/events-page/

Notre Dame School of Law -- the lecturer's most recent book is America's Unwritten Constitution (2012)