Monthly Archives: June 2011

“The Arizona Way or the American Way?” by Mark Budman

Since I am a legal immigrant myself, I might understandably react to Arizona’s new law on immigration even more strongly than a native might. Though I am not a Latino, this issue of potential tough enforcement affects every immigrant group … Continue reading

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SATURDAY POETRY SERIES PRESENTS: OLIVER DE LA PAZ

INSOMNIA AS TRANSFIGURATION by Oliver de la Paz Because the night is a scattering of sounds—blunt branches hurtling to the ground, a nest stir, a sigh from someone beside me. Because I am awake and know that I am not … Continue reading

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The Coming Crisis of Op-Ed Food: Plenty of Plenty in the New Food Plutocracy

By Liam Hysjulien [This piece was originally published in Truthout.] As food prices, both in this country and abroad, continue their steady ascent, the amount we should pay for food remains a contested issue. In a February 21, 2011, Huffington … Continue reading

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Gary Johnson: Pro and Con

Before I was a leftist, I was a libertarian. I voted for the Libertarian Party presidential nominee in my first three U.S. general elections—1988, 1992, and 1996—and in 2000, I voted for George W. Bush, one of only 18 people … Continue reading

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SATURDAY POETRY SERIES PRESENTS: OCEAN VUONG

By Ocean Vuong: TO LOVE WELL is to place a hand   on another’s chest and know   that the heart only beats   when locked in a cage   of bone. DEPARTURE Dawn cracks: a lightning bolt carving slowly through the clouds. All … Continue reading

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FRIDAY POETRY SERIES PRESENTS: HANNAH GAMBLE

YOUR INVITATION TO A MODEST BREAKFAST by HANNAH GAMBLE It’s too cold to smoke outside, but if you come over, I’ll keep my hands to myself, or won’t I. I would like to tell you about the wall eaten up … Continue reading

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Rites of Passage

I’ve been asked to explain a bit about the personal essays I often contribute to this blog. I wrote most of them for the popular “Readers Write” feature in my favorite literary magazine, The Sun. Each month they propose a … Continue reading

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SATURDAY POETRY SERIES PRESENTS: KEETJE KUIPERS, REVISITED

By Keetje Kuipers: THE OPEN SPACES She said it was a place that held nothing but sadness for her. Still, I think I could lie down in it forever, head resting in the sagebrush flats. I told her I once … Continue reading

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FRIDAY POETRY SERIES PRESENTS: KEETJE KUIPERS

4TH OF JULY by KEETJE KUIPERS If I have any romantic notions left, please let me abandon them here on the dashboard of your Subaru beside this container of gas station potato salad and bottle of sunscreen. Otherwise, my heart … Continue reading

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Consider the Rant: A Book Review

Consider the Rant by Okla Elliott On Pain of Speech: Fantasies of the First Order and the Literary Rant Dina Al-Kassim University of California Press ISBN 978-0-520-25925-6 $34.95 Paperback $28.00 E-Book In Dina Al-Kassim’s new book On Pain of Speech: … Continue reading

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