Online group to discuss ‘The New Jim Crow’

The librarian may leave the library, but the library doesn’t leave the librarian. An open Facebook group, UUA Common Read Lab, is sure to interest readers of the Unitarian Universalist Association’s “Common Read.”

The 2012-2013 UUA Common Read selection is The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander.

As recently as three months ago, I administered a lending library for a UU congregation in Lake County, Calif. When developing a collection or recommending books, one area I paid strong attention to was the “common read.”

(This interest extended beyond administration of the lending library; my own most recent common reads are Michael Malone’s The Four Corners of the Sky and Vanessa Diffenbaugh’s The Language of Flowers).

It seemed only natural to pass this resource along, given the importance I placed on the Common Read when building a collection for the library.

The UUA invites group participants to “Post information about a discussion group being held in your congregation or community, extend in-person conversations beyond your group, and connect with others taking part in the Common Read.”

Monsanto marches: Not really ignored by media

A grammatically and factually wrong meme

A Facebook user named Jason Aaron Wood has a fantastic “Monsanto” meme. “Hate Monsanto? Want to make an effective viral meme?” it reads. “Try facts.”

Facts are too often absent from social media memes.

Case in point: a montage of images from the international protest against Genetically Modified Organisms that took place on Saturday. It reads: “Meanwhile the mainstream media completely ignores [sic] the global march against Monsanto in over 400 cities.”

As a former journalist and aspiring librarian, a claim like this matters to me. I have a doubly-vested interest in setting the record straight. Indeed, a search on Google disproved the claim with links to coverage by the Washington Post, USA Today and regional and local network affiliates.

Newswatch 12, an ABC affiliate, covered the protest march in Medford, Oregon. It reported a turnout of 800 people who joined their marching counterparts in more than 250 cities in 36 countries around the world.

A more accurate caption would read: “Meanwhile, March Against Monsanto organizers ignore coverage of their marches because they belie the marchers’ portraying themselves as ‘ignored’ by mainstream media.”

Memorial Day gratitude

This post is by guest author Jonathan Donihue.

I would like to thank everyone who has fought for this country: the soldiers, the educators, the peace activists, the writers and film makers, the librarians, the spiritualists. To everyone who has lost property, fame, freedom, or life in an attempt to make America a greater country: Thank You.

Troll on Craigslist: Confident Staffing CEO offers wonderful response

At Craigslist Medford, the CEO of Confident Staffing offers a wonderful response to online criticism. “I am sincerely sorry that your impression of our company was not positive,” it reads in part.“I always welcome feedback about our company and staff, so please do feel free to reply to this posting about your experience.” And its author is identified.

The email-scramble feature of Craigslist makes it easy to “troll,” to leave comments with anonymity. I’m unfamiliar with the complaints made by this individual (I can’t rule out their validity) but am impressed by the dignity, compassion and the invitation for dialogue exhibited by CEO Rebecca H. Morrison-Stoney.

‘Man of Steel’: T-shirt cosplay for Superman film

A quest to create special shirts for the new “Superman” movie, “Man of Steel,” brought us to Goodwill Industries of Southern Oregon, where we bought T-shirts to serve as base garments and form the layered “S” crest.

The film opens June 14 and my inspiration was guided by Megan Nicolay’s books, “Generation T” and “Generation T: Beyond Fashion.”

Goodwill sponsored an upcycled fashion contest at the Rogue Valley Earth Day celebration. If the competition next year has a “Community” division, maybe you’ll see us displaying our splendor as members of the “House of Jor-El.” Or maybe you’ll see my “Sharrow” shirt.