Hasta La Gadget!

Jennifer Lynn McCoy, Georgia State University

Outsiders are once again attempting to alleviate political conflict in Venezuela.

A decade and a half after a failed coup against Venezuela’s iconic leader Hugo Chávez, his successor, Nicolás Maduro, is similarly embattled. He faces an emboldened opposition and widespread frustration, as the state of the nation deteriorates.

The people of Venezuela are facing a humanitarian, economic and political triple crisis. People stand in long lines seeking scarce foods and medicines, while hyperinflation and crime rates soar.

A petition for a recall referendum to cut short Maduro’s term has garnered hundreds of thousands of signatures.

In late May, President Maduro agreed to a proposal by a relatively new organization – the South American Union of States (UNASUR) – to initiate a dialogue with his political opposition. At the same time, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luís Almagro, called for an urgent meeting to consider democratic deficits in Venezuela.

Outsiders have been called in to Venezuela by either the government or the opposition three times since 2002. They have been asked to help resolve deep antagonisms between those who support Hugo Chavez’s 21st Century Socialism, and those who fear Venezuela will become a poor socialist country like Cuba. The country has become so polarized that there are virtually no individuals or organizations perceived as neutral.

The research in my book, International Mediation in Venezuela, confirms that in extreme political and social polarization, opposing camps tend to form impermeable boundaries. An “us vs. them” mentality takes root.

Once normal political adversaries, opposing parties begin to see each other as enemies to be vanquished. Those in the middle who are ready to dialogue and compromise are labeled traitors. Each side tries to force the entire population to identify with one camp or the other.

This was the case in Venezuela in 2002 and continues in 2016. Stability in this major oil-producing country is at stake. The crisis also poses a test for the regional organizations as they try to get political adversaries to quickly and peacefully resolve deep crises, while defending the democratic rights all hemispheric governments have committed to uphold.

Back to the future

It seems like deja vú.

In 2002, the international community was worried about violence in Venezuela between “chavistas,” Chávez supporters, and their opponents. Tensions were high in a highly armed population during a power struggle that was similar to today’s situation. Following a failed coup against him, Chávez asked former President Jimmy Carter to facilitate a dialogue with the opposition.

At the time, I led the Americas Program at The Carter Center, a non-governmental organization dedicated to promoting peace and democracy. We formed an unusual, joint mediation effort among the Center, the OAS and the United Nations Development Program. One of Chávez’s team members at the negotiating table was a labor leader turned legislator – Nicolás Maduro.

The resulting agreement produced the first recall referendum in Venezuela, in a similar climate of contentious debate over the rules and timing of its process. After defeating the recall referendum, Chávez stayed in power. He consolidated his radical politics until his death in 2013.

Today, a power struggle has reemerged. However, the economics, health and security of the country have deteriorated to such a degree that observers worry about a widespread social explosion of discontent.

Threats to Venezuela’s democracy

Last week, the OAS held a tense meeting of the Permanent Council of ambassadors with the Venezuelan foreign minister. Secretary General Almagro presented his assessment of how essential elements of democracy, listed in the Inter-American Democratic Charter, have been violated in Venezuela.

The Democratic Charter was signed by 34 countries of the hemisphere in 2001 to help defend democracies against military coups and abuses by sitting governments. Article 20 of the Charter allows either the Secretary General, or any member state, to call an urgent meeting if they see “an unconstitutional alteration of the constitutional regime that seriously impairs the democratic order in a member state.”

Almagro cited the erosion of the separation of powers, lack of due process for political prisoners, and obstacles to the constitutional right of Venezuelan citizens to petition for a recall referendum against elected officials.

The Venezuelan government and its allies in the Bolivarian Alliance of Latin America (ALBA) argued that Almagro exceeded his authority. They claimed he is a lackey of the United States and is allying with Venezuelan opposition to carry out a coup against Maduro.

OAS Secretary General Almagro’s gambit to make the OAS once again the preeminent defender of democracy and human rights was high-risk. His move is caught in the ideological polarization of the hemisphere, which mirrors the polarization within Venezuela.

Venezuela asserts that its sovereignty precludes any international involvement in its internal affairs. Venezuela’s allies in ALBA and Caribbean recipients of discounted oil tend to support this argument. Other countries, including those closest to the United States, assert the region’s obligation to defend democratic and human rights of all its citizens.

A majority of OAS countries welcomed Almagro’s report as important information. However, given the divisions within the organization, they did not make any formal decision to activate the Charter.

Outside pressure could help resolve crisis

The international effort to help Venezuela is embroiled in the hemisphere’s own politics. UNASUR was created by Chávez and his ally, Brazilian president Lula da Silva. They pointedly excluded North America, and UNASUR displaced the OAS as the most prominent regional organization assisting in South American political crises.

Last week’s OAS meeting was not a clear victory for either the Venezuelan government or Almagro. But even without voting to activate the Charter, the body in essence took the first step the Charter lays out to help countries overcome democratic crises – diplomatic gestures and dialogue.

The OAS declared support for the dialogue effort sponsored by UNASUR, while putting Venezuela on notice that countries in the region continue to pay close attention. These actions show a crucial international unity in encouraging Venezuela’s opposing camps to address the crises facing its people.

The United States also opened its own dialogue with the Maduro government last week. This removes the scapegoat of the United States from Maduro’s lexicon of justifications for his economic problems.

The next step to watch is whether the international response spurs Venezuela’s National Electoral Council to facilitate citizens’ rights to petition for a recall referendum on Maduro’s presidency. The Council has until July 26 to determine whether the first requirement – 1 percent of voters signing – to initiate the process was met this past week. If so, a process to open signature collections of 20 percent of registered voters will begin.

If there are no further delays, Venezuelans could make the deadline to hold a recall vote before Jan. 10, 2017. If the vote is held before this date and Maduro loses, special elections will be called to elect a president to fulfill Maduro’s term.

If the vote is held after that date, the sitting Vice President would fulfill his term. The question of which political camp leads Venezuela until 2019 rides on how quickly the recall prerequisites proceed, as well as the determination of the Venezuelan electorate.

Jennifer Lynn McCoy, Distinguished University Professor of Political Science, Georgia State University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

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July 17th will be the 7th anniversary of my 21 year-old daughter Casey’s death. She was killed by a distracted driver. In the days, weeks and months following Casey’s death I wondered whether her short life would be remembered and whether her life would have made a difference in the world.

Fear that she would be forgotten was the driving force for me to learn about distracted driving and establish a Foundation in her memory and EndDD.org (End Distracted Driving ). Through EndDD.org, and our network of volunteer speakers, we have provided science-based distracted driving presentations to more than 300,000 teens and adults across the country and Canada. We have been able to provide presentations to elementary, middle and high school students without cost. I have personally spoken more than 400 times since 2010 and close to 100,000 people.

I no longer fear that Casey will be forgotten. Her face has become a national symbol of the senseless loss of life caused by distracted driving. I no longer fear that Casey’s short life would not have made a positive difference in the world. Telling Casey’s story, and the stories of the thousands who have been killed, is saving lives.

After presentations many people praise and congratulate me for being able to stand up in front of an audience and talk about how Casey was killed. Many tell me that they would not be able to do so. I am uncomfortable hearing those statements even though I know they are well-intended. For me, not telling Casey’s story would be harder. And the tragedy of Casey’s death would be even worse if good could not come from it. I suspect many feel that telling Casey’s story reminds me of her loss and the way that she died and that’s why they feel it must be so difficult. But regardless of whether I am speaking publicly I think of Casey every day. It is never necessary for me to have a reminder that my child is dead.

So it is not “difficult ” to speak about Casey. What is difficult is to think about how many young people will be killed or injured because of distracted driving, how many promising young lives will be taken because of senseless preventable crashes and how many families will suffer from the loss of a child, sibling, spouse, parent or friend. We think of the drunk driver as a bad person but since so many of us drive distracted it is difficult to think of ourselves as bad, or selfish or irresponsible. But all of us need to honestly look at how we drive if we are to stop these tragedies. It is difficult knowing that there is so much more that could be done to save lives and we are not doing it. Until we change the way we view distracted driving, more and more young people will die and more parents will be telling the stories of their dead children.

Joel Feldman is an attorney in Philadelphia with the law firm of Anapol Weiss. After his daughter Casey was killed by a distracted driver he obtained a masters in counseling and co-founded EndDD.org (End Distracted Driving) with his wife Dianne. EndDD.org has a network of speakers across the country and provides presentations without cost to schools. For more information about scheduling presentations or learning what you can do to end distracted driving e-mail Joel at info@EndDD.org.

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I like to think of myself as “Type A Minus.” At work, I’m hyper-organized, with multiple to-do lists, calendar reminders and extensive filing systems. But when it comes to my apartment, sh*t hits the fan. Especially in my closet.

As a fashion and style editor living in New York City for the past eight years, I grew accustomed to living with lots of clothes and no space. When I finally moved into a bigger apartment last year with a real closet and two dressers, things got worse. Having one whole drawer to dedicate to bras and underwear felt like a dream. Until I realized it always looked like this:

More space inevitably led to more mess. Every few months I would lose my mind trying to organize — folding clothes and arranging all the stuff on my desk into arbitrary, albeit pretty, piles. It was only a matter of days before my drawers were in shambles and my desk looked like it was hit by a tornado. A few weeks ago, I needed to leave for a trip but I couldn’t find my passport, a bathing suit or any of the sunscreens from my extensive collection. It was time to get organized.

I called in an expert. 

Enter Haya Kramer, professional organizer and home design consultant. She founded Graylane Solutions, a design firm specializing in customized, organized and functional interior spaces. Kramer has been in the business for a number of years and has worked with the Container Store and California Closets. Translation: She has an eidetic memory when it comes to organizational products, down to the skew numbers.

Let’s talk pricing. Hiring a professional organizer is not cheap, but it comes down to how much you want the help. Kramer charges $100 per hour, which seemed to be an industry standard in New York City. While the rate is pricey, customers can tailor the experience to match their needs and their budgets. It’s not uncommon for Kramer to spend an hour with a client, recommend solutions, and later return to give additional feedback. Other times, she redesigns a space and organizes everything from top to bottom, inside out.

Here’s how it worked. I asked Kramer to help me organize my bedroom, with an emphasis on my closet and dressers. Kramer broke down my request into three phases.

The Intro Meeting: Evaluating the room.

Kramer measured every inch of my bedroom and asked me to show her how I used the space. The simple answer: not that well. Within 45 minutes, she wrote a list of items I’d need from Bed, Bath & Beyond and The Container Store. It included shelving, hooks, baskets and lots of brand new hangers. Once I got the items from the list, Kramer came over again to start the heavy lifting.

Organizing Session 1: Keep, toss and donate.

Kramer was tough, but the process forced me to do get rid of things I didn’t need. She also had me toss all my wire hangers (apparently they are terrible for your clothes). The best part? Going through everything in my room let me discover several clothing items I forgot existed (since I couldn’t see them in my messy closet). I also found $20 and my childhood blankie.

Organizing Session 2: Put like items with like items, then beautify! 

Apparently, stacking your footwear one on top of the other and creating a massive pile on your closet floor is not the way a professional organizer wants you to store your shoes. Enter shoe cubbies. Kramer suggested leaving the floor of my closet empty, so I could access the space more easily. Brilliant! She even added a wall rack inside my closet for sneakers and sandals, so everything wouldn’t be crammed into one spot. 

Below, a before-and-after look of my new shoe organization system.

Next, she moved jeans from hangers to drawers, my tights from my nightstand into a small storage bin inside my closet, and she re-arranged all my tops so they were in my armoire. My long dresses and pants went into my closet. We also added tons of hooks throughout the space to help with overcrowding. 

The best suggestion Kramer had was telling me to get a filing cabinet. For as long as I can remember, my desk and closet were full of stacks of paper and important documents, and now I finally have a spot for them. I guess I won’t be losing my passport again any time soon. 

Overall the process was cathartic. I chucked garbage bags full of items that were just taking up space and finally organized my room in a smart, systematic way. Kramer’s approach worked because she favors function above all else. She made sure that all the organizational systems we put in place were ones I could keep up on my own. 

I would have never been able to organize my room as efficiently or effectively without the help of a professional organizer, and I certainly wouldn’t have thought of many of the storage solution that I ultimately used. My only regret is that I didn’t find Kramer sooner. 

Scroll down to see more photos from the room makeover:

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I was in Orlando, Florida yesterday. I was there giving a morning keynote to the American Library Association convention. Because I knew I was going to be in Orlando, I reached out to the HRC who have been wonderful advocates and leaders in the immediate aftermath to see if I could be of service to the city. I wanted to thank the first responders for all for their hard, hard work, their bravery, their sacrifice.

Jennifer Foster, a longtime HRC supporter and proud member of the LGBT community in Orlando, arranged it all, and I had the privilege of meeting with Mayor Buddy Dyer, Chief of Police, John Mina, Chief of Staff, Frank Billingsley, city CFO Chris McCullion, City Council members, including openly gay Commissioner Patty Sheehan who has served as a a fierce advocate for her community, and various divisions of law enforcement — SWAT, police, the fire department, first responders and dispatch. I was also able to go to the Orlando United Assistance Center which was set up immediately after the shooting as a place of comfort, advocacy, and resources for victims and their families. There I met with family members who still have loved ones in hospital, many in ICU, people who lost their loves and the many volunteers who are donating their time to give gentle care and get victims answers and services.

The city of Orlando will be remembered and known as a city of love, inclusion, and community.

I told them that I was speaking for all of you who are reading this. That they are loved and supported around the world. That we know of their service, sacrifice and bravery, and that the city will slowly recover, and that it will recover. That the city of Orlando will be remembered and known as a city of love, inclusion, and community. That this hateful act will NOT define them or their city but the loving response to this hatred WILL.

In fact, Orlando has had an “Ambassador of Love” for over 10 years now. They have been a leading city in diversity and tolerance so it is more shocking that this attack occurred here.

No one involved ever imagined they would be in this situation — from the victims, their families, the volunteers and all law enforcement. The whole city feels this. The way that Orlando has come together, uniting as one, supporting each other and taking care of the fallen and their families confirms everything I have always hoped about humanity, strength and the tenacity of the human spirit.

The way that Orlando has come together confirms everything I have always hoped about humanity, strength, and the tenacity of the human spirit.

They have set up the OneOrlando Fund, info@oneorlando.org Please send a donation made out to OneOrlando Fund and mailed to OneOrlando, PO Box 4990, Orlando, FL 32802-4990 or text ORLANDO to 501501 to donate $10 to help the victims and families.

Please show your support and join me and the world when we say, we are with you, we care and most importantly, love conquers hate! #OrlandoUnited

The HRC has made this video. Please watch it and share it.

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Memo to Donald Trump: To talk without thinking is to shoot without aiming.
18th Century proverb
***
The Internet may be the most significant invention since the printing press but education paladin John Dewey cautioned that “new technology carries with it the power to divide and atomize society with individual constituencies increasingly replacing a shared sense of community.” Oops.
***
A neighborhood couple recently celebrated forty-six years together. Their secret sauce: “It’s as if we see each other through old eye glasses – beyond all the scratches.”
***
What do you think are the top three greatest inventions? A while ago Atlantic magazine asked
a dozen scientists, historians and technologists to rank the world’s most significant inventions of all time. Their list, however, merges inventions and discoveries, meaning ‘fire’ is a discovery, the automobile is an invention. We’re focused on inventions only, the act of creating a physical something that never existed before that literally changes the world.
For your consideration:
The WHEEL is #1. No doubt about it. Imagine, please, it’s the Neolithic era, somewhere between 4500-3300 BCE. Some enterprising tribal humanoid comes up with a big round thingy that rolls when pushed. Her buddy figures that if you put two of these round thingies together, carve out a hole in the center of each, connect the two holes with an axle, put a seat on top of that, get a big ox to pull it and you’ve got the world’s first human-made vehicle.

The award for the second greatest invention of all time goes to PAPER, first developed in China around the second century BC. Before paper, if you wanted to write a to-do list or spread an idea, you chiseled on the nearest animal skin or tree bark. With paper, you’ve given the written word a vehicle to travel anywhere.

Of course, paper writing cannot be duplicated in mass quantities unless you come up with the third most significant invention, the PRINTING PRESS built by German Johnny Gutenberg around 1440. The press became so synonymous with the enterprise of printing everything that it lent its name to an entire new branch of media we call the press.

Unfortunately, nowhere on The Atlantic’s list* will you find what many of us feel is mankind’s most useful invention and the geezer’s most favorite tool ever: POST-ITS!
(* http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/11/innovations-list/309536/#list)
***
Things You Wish You Didn’t Know:
In ancient Egypt, the recommended method of contraception was for a woman to smear crocodile dung on her reproductive organ.
Source: Prof. Robert Garland’s engrossing
The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the
Ancient World, forty-eight
fascinating lectures of thirty minutes each
from thegreatcourses.com.

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