Quaker Thought and Today
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February 1997 Quaker Thought FRIENDS and Life OURNAL Today - .. -............. - Editor-Manager Among Friends Vinton Deming . Associate Editor Kenneth Sutton Assistant Editor Timothy Drake New Locks on the Hen House Editorial Assistant Claudia Wair articularly valuable project of the Peace Committees of Baltimore and Poetry Editor Judith Brown Philadelphia Yearly Meetings is the Legislative Letter Writing Campaign. Art Director We receive LLWC mailings on a regular basis and appreciate the good Barbara Benton thought that goes into this important work to influence legislative action. Production Assistant The campaign's Focus Issue in January was a particularly good one-the need for Alia Podolsky election campaign finance reform. Perhaps, like me, you were turned off by the blitz Marketing and Advertising Manager Nagendran Gulendran of TV commercials that took over the airwaves preceding last year's presidential and Circulation Assistant congressional elections. And, like many others, you would like to see significant Nicole Hackel reform occur in the ways in which political campaigns currently are waged. Well, Administrative Secretary with the right kind of grassroots effort, this year there seems to be a small glimmer of Marianne De Lange hope that the massive expenditure of funds for the purch.ase of political office may Bookkeeper Juliet Resos be brought under control. Development Consultant Consider, if you will, these LL WC figures. The overall cost of electing the Henry Freeman president and members of Congress in 1996 was $1 .7 billion. Most of this money Development Assistant Pamela Nelson was spent to purchase TV commercials advertising the worth of particular Volunteer candidates-or, through negative advertising, the worthlessness of their opponents. Roben Sutton To win an election, it seems, candidates of both parties have come to depend more Board of Managers and more upon large gifts of money from corporations, labor unions, and wealthy Irwin Abrams (Clerk), Jennie Allen, Lucinda Antrim, Paul Buckley, SusanCarnahan , individuals (domestic and foreign). Sue Carnell, Elizabeth Cazden, Barbara Coffin, What can be done about this? It won't be easy. Statistics show that 94 percent of Phoebe Cottingham (Treasurer), John Farmer, incumbents who sought reelection last year won. This was made possible not only Deborah Fisch, Many Grundy, Ingrid Holcomb, Roben Kunkel, Mary Mangelsdorf, Judy Monroe, because of easier name recognition of those holding office, but by the Caroline Balderston Parry (Recording Clerk}, disproportionate flow of Political Action Committee monies and other contributions Lisa Lewis Raymer, Margery Rubin, David Runkel, to incumbents. The difficulty of convincing office holders to give up such privilege, Larry C. Spears, Larry D. Spears, Carolyn Sprogell (Assistant Clerk}, Roben Sutton, of course, seems obvious. To quote Bill Ludlow in his LL WC background Carolyn Terrell, Wilmer Tjossem information piece prepared for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting: FRIENDS JOURNAL (ISSN 001 6-1322) was established in 1955 as the successor to The Friend ( 1827-1 955) Asking present members of Congress to change a system that benefits their return to and Friends lntelligencer ( 1844-1 955). It is associated with the Religious Society of Friends. office is rather like asking a fox to install a lock on the hen house. But there is little • FRIENDS JOURNAL is published monthly by Friends choice, and enough public uproar over the flagrant illegalities of the last election Publishing Corporation, 1501 Cherry St., could bring some action. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court has made the task more Philadelphia, PA 19102-1497. Telephone (21 5) 24 1- difficult by ruling that corporations have First Amendment rights and that mandatory 7277. E-mail: [email protected]. Periodicals postage paid at Philadelphia, Pa., and additional limits on political contributions violate freedom of speech. However, an amendment mailing offices. to the Constitution is neither desirable nor feasible. Strong leadership and a major • Subscriptions: one year $25, two years $45. Add public outcry are needed. S6 per year for postage to countries outside the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Individual copies $2.25 each. • Information on and assistance with advenising is Here's what LL WC organizers recommend. Senators McCain and Feingold, and available on request. Appearance of any Congressmen Shays and Meehan, plan to reintroduce their bills for campaign finance adven isement does not imply endorsement by reform early in the new Congress. The bills hold contributions to political parties to FRIENDS JOU RN AL. the same restrictions as contributions to individual campaigns and limit the amount • Postmaster: send address changes to FRIENDS JouRNAL, 1501 Cherry St., Philadelphia, of campaign spending. Friends are encouraged to write their representatives in both PA 19 102-1497. House and Senate to urge their support of the bills. It also seems timely to write to • Copyright IC 1997 by Friends Publishing the president, urging that he publicly advocate and privately lobby hard for strong Corporat ion. Reprints of anicles available at nominal cost. Permission should be received before campaign finance reform legislation at this time. reprinting excerpts longer than 200 words. Available on microfilm fromU niversity Microfilms International. PRINTED ON RECYCLEDP APER Moving? Let us update your subscription and address. fR IENDS JouRNAL, 1501 Cherry St., Philadelphia, P A 19102-1497 Next Month in FRIENDS JoURNAL: (215) 241-7277; Fax (215) 568-1377 Dispelling the Mystery of Silence E-mail: [email protected] Susan B. Anthony: Wise Mentor Quaker Visions of Religious Pluralism 2 February 1997 fRIENDS JOURNAL Febnaary 1997 FRIENDS Volume 43, No. 2 JOURNAL Features Departments 7 Cuba Revisited 2 Among Friends Thomas E. Colgan A return visit to Cuba in 1996 reveals the effects ofthe 4 Fonam US. embargo since 1963. 5 Viewpoint 9 Reflections on a Visit to Cuba Dorothy H. L. Carroll 19 Witness In the midst ofbeauty and hardship, this Friend discovers the 21 Reports strengths ofCuba's women. 22 News of Friends 12 Giving? Allen Hubbard 24 Bulletin Board Is it truly more blessed to give_ than to receive? 25 Calendar 14 The Faith of Our Giving Jane Meneely 26 Books Giving is a vehicle for the Spirit. 28 Milestones 15 Down in the Dumps Qani Belul 31 Classified What is trash? 34 Meetings 17 William Vickrey, Treasured Friend Jennie H. Allen and Susan Weisfeld FRIENDS JouRNAL's series on Quaker Nobel Prize winners continues with the 1996 Nobel Prize in Economics. Cover: Malacon Boulevard stretches for miles around the harbor in Havana, Cuba. Photo by Dorothy H L. Carroll FRIENDS JOURNAL February 1997 3 Forum Plain language Dale feels that "the values of our faith are runoff, and air/water pollution, to a point diametrically opposed to the values of the that overwhelms its ability to recover. (And In my childhood we said thee to our market." He is in company with Jesus that wars, which are probably the ultimate parents and older people in the meeting, you himself, who said at the temple, "Get these environmental insult, can no longer be to our siblings and our own generation. Plain things out of here. Don't tum my father's afforded for Earth's health or ours.) language had a note of respect and warmth house into a market." With George Fox we But if our personal observations are not to my ear. may ask, "What canst thou say?" convincing, we have studies from at least 18 At Westtown, a Quaker school, I found it Having been in the United States independent scientific centers showing that natural to say thee to all the faculty. To frequently, I am eager to learn about what we are moving toward environmental attend Westtown at that time one parent had U.S. Friends have to say on our Social collapse and widespread die-off in the to have been a member of the Religious Testimony. foreseeable future. (The one most widely Society of Friends, thus guaranteeing a Aziz Pabaney known in the U.S. is published by Donella certain Quaker background of the student Bombay, India Meadows et. al.: Beyond the Limits, Chelsea body. One day in history class a student Green Publishing Co., 1992.) asked our dyed-in-the-wool Quaker teacher, Jonathan Dale's plea to Britain Yearly If we deny these findings, saying there's "Do you want this paper handed in on Meeting assumes that a yearly meeting no population problem and that the Friday?" His reply was a stem glare. The should have dominating power and authority greenhouse effect is just a conspiracy, etc., student was puzzled. The teacher finally for imposing uniformity on all who label we live out of context with what is actually thee, you!" replied testily, "I'm a not a The themselves as Quakers, and it focuses going on, and can then do nothing about i~. student rephrased his question. predominantly upon the history of British To live boldly in context with reality- as At my nonQuaker college I didn't Quakerism for the last l 00 years. Have clearly as we can envision it-is to live in a address faculty very often but found myself Quakers blundered in abandoning the state of resiliency and power. The ultimate almost tongue-tied when talking to testimonies and taboos against theaters, reality is God, whose being includes every dormitory matrons. Thee would sound music, etc.? Unity within diversity accounts chipmunk, every hydrogen atom, and every strange to them, but because of their age and for whatever survival of Quakerism as has honeysuckle berry in the universe. Striving position I wanted to use it. You to me occurred. I agree that the spiritual for openness to God's astounding love, sounded rude. Another Quaker student there discernment by corporate decisions of a gentleness, and wisdom; we gain courage worked hard to address everyone as you. It monthly meeting is the essence of and the power to change our ways.