Other resources that could be used in activities looking at alternatives economies are Freecycle and freeconomy.

Yala, Thailand – Suspected Islamic militants shot dead a female Buddhist teacher in Thailand’s troubled south Tuesday in a spiraling uprising against central government authority, police said.

The 56-year-old elementary school teacher was shot in a drive-by attack in restive Yala province as she rode to work on her motorcycle, they said.

The killing comes amid a recent upsurge in violence in the Muslim-majority region bordering Malaysia, where more than 3,700 people have been killed during a bitter five-year insurgency.

The victim was the 117th teacher shot dead since the unrest began in the volatile provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani in January 2004, said Boonsom Thongsriplai, head of a southern teachers’ confederation.

full story

The fact that 117 teachers have been killed in this province in just 5 years is absolutely mind-boggling, and I absolutely agree with Bill Templer that “solidarity with embattled teachers everywhere is imperative”. He also refers to violence against teachers in Gaza and Afghanistan. I’m not sure how and when to bring these issues into classes, but their importance is enormous. When people are no longer safe to teach and learn, there isn’t much left.

Bill also posted an interesting lesson on conscientious objectors in Israel that uses a video clip and discussion questions.

Update: Human Rights Watch just posted an official condemnation of the killings.

In January, they are conducting their 2nd month of responsible consumption. The tenets of the month are:

1. Daily meditation.
2. Limiting use of plastic bags, disposable coffee cups, electricity, and so on.
3. Walking, biking or using public transportation whenever possible
4. Eating lightly packaged local food and less meat.
5. Limiting general consumption, trying to buy things secondhand.
6. Finding another personal way to reduce consumption (giving up cigarettes, coffee, etc.).
7. Sharing your experience on a daily basis.

Because I can no longer listen to the podcast (it’s blocked in China) this event crept up on me, but I think it would be a great activity to bring into the language classroom, and a powerful way to introduce a wide range of global issues. I have done individual activism projects before, and found them to be very worthwhile. I especially like the final item on the list — participants are encouraged to journal about their experience and realizations during the course of the month. Students could participate on the message board, or simply share their thoughts with their classmates.

What I’m arguing is this: If you think it’s ever possible not to vote, then you’re dead wrong.

Silence doesn’t equal nonparticipation; silence is a very specific kind of participation. Deeming a discussion inappropriate or shutting down dialogue actually empowers a side in the debate. By definition, the viewpoint that silence and discomfort empower is the conservative one.

Nonparticipation is always a vote – a vote for the status quo.

With apologies to all the minor parties, there are actually three major political parties in the United States. The Republicans and the Democrats remain locked in a recurrent battle to determine who will become the 2nd most powerful political party in America. Each of these parties controls roughly 25% of the vote. Far more powerful than either Donkeys or Elephants, however, is the Apathy Party, composed of the 50% of eligible voters who perennially fall prey to the propagandized myth that it’s possible to stand independent, somehow outside the collective discourse.

Often times an Apathetic throws her support unwittingly to a true conservative – someone whose agenda is really about preserving the status quo. Even worse, Apathetics often cast their votes for radical candidates posing as true conservatives (such as the current US administration) who press through an unfair agenda that would never have a chance at popular success without such an overwhelming wave of support from the Apathy Party.

(P.S. – Does their WordPress theme look familiar?)

BuddhaNet – Tons of free eBooks and audio files. The eBooks cover general Buddhism, meditation, Theravada Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism and even children’s books. The audio files include chanting, meditation instruction, Dharma talks and even songs.

Dharma Seed – Tons and tons of wonderful Dharma talks, organized by title and teacher.