Our Freedom

Today our President signed a bill called the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This act authorizes indefinite detentions of American terrorism suspects around the world. Due process destroyed coincidentally on the 220th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights.

More info:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/15/indefinite-military-detention-bill-passes_n_1152114.html?ref=mostpopular

http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/williams/111213

I called The White House today urging the president not to sign, and Pem wrote the letter that I have shared with you below. I would like to urge you all to take this information to heart. This slow removal of our rights has been going on behind the scenes for the past 10 years. We need to stop allowing trivial matters distract us. This was described in the Thrive movie I shared last week, if you haven't watched- Please do.

Dear Mr. President,

I am a lifelong American citizen and resident. I was born in Philadelphia, the birthplace of our Nation. Many of my ancestors were involved in the formation of the United States, including Major Isaac Roach, who served as Mayor of Philadelphia after the war of 1812, and Joseph Pemberton, whose house still stands directly next door to Independence Hall. In addition, I grew up in Birmingham Township, Pennsylvania, literally on the site of Battle of the Brandywine, one of the most important battles of the the American Revolution. There are musket balls from that battle (which occurred, ironically, on September 11th, 1777) still lodged in the outside wall of my childhood home. As you can imagine, I have an unusually personal connection to the health of our country and the enduring ideals of the Founding Fathers.

I strongly urge you NOT to sign the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 into law. It is one of the most egregious attacks on our Civil Liberties that has ever been created by Congress. Additionally, I strongly urge you to reject ANY bill that includes any form of indefinite detention, whether the accused be American Citizens or not. Mr. President, I voted for you with the faith that you would uphold and defend my basic rights, as guaranteed to me at birth by our Bill of Rights. By signing into law a bill which legalizes indefinite detention, you are personally denying me, yourself, and all Americans these rights.

Sincerely,

Pemberton Roach

--

Pemberton Roach

Bassist, Vocalist, Songwriter, Producer

www.pembertonroach.com

Time to Shine!

I am managing the most talented person I have ever met in my life. This Sunday Minnie Dee will be performing at Arlene's Grocery (95 Stanton St New York, NY) at 8:30 pm. I would love to see all my friends there. Not only to see Minnie, but to celebrate 2011 and all the wonderful things we have accomplished in our lives this year. As we move on to 2012 I want you to keep in mind the lyrics of one of my favorite songs by Minnie...here are they are:

Time to Shine by Minnie Dee

She smiled

as though

she had a secret

deep inside her soul.

The grin

of someone

who knew exactly

what they were looking for

la, la,la,la,la,la.

She smiled

as though

she was never coming down

off that track

then she turned the corner

and she knew there was no looking back,

and there was no more sun

and there was no more sun.

And I

can't stop

thinking about what it means to shine,

and I

can't stop

thinking about what it means to shine,

it is time, it is time.

VERSE:

New day bright mind

gonna hit the ground running.

She smiled

felt good

even though she didn't what was coming yea,

la, la,la,la,la,la,la,la,la

No more

crystal ball were needed,

she new that she finally found the secret,

and there was sun oh oh oh and there was sun

CHORUS:

And I

can't stop

thinking about what it means to shine

and I

can't stop

thinking about

what it means to shine

and I

can't stop

thinking about what it

means to shine it is time, its time.

BRIDGE:

Take a look into the sky,

don't ask no questions why,

all you need to know

its time to shine.

Take a look into the sky

don't ask no questions why

all we need to know it is time to

CHORUS:

Can't stop

thinking about

what it means you shine, shine, shine

and I

can't stop

thinking about what I means to shine, shine shine

and I

can't stop

thinking about what It means to shine it is time it is time.

It's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, IT IS. It's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time,

IT's TIME TO SHINE

xo

THRIVE!

THRIVE!

“Thrive” is a documentary that was recommended to me by my close gal pal Emily last week. Over the Thanksgiving weekend Pemberton (my boyfriend) and I spent each night huddled around his tiny iphone screen to watch the nine-part movie…twice! You can find the movie on youtube or buy/rent it off of the Thrive website (http://thrivemovement.com/) . The synopsis on the Thrive website goes as follows:

THRIVE is an unconventional documentary that lifts the veil on what's REALLY going on in our world by following the money upstream -- uncovering the global consolidation of power in nearly every aspect of our lives. Weaving together breakthroughs in science, consciousness and activism, THRIVE offers real solutions, empowering us with unprecedented and bold strategies for reclaiming our lives and our future.

I will warn now…this movie will freak you out sometimes…you may be like “SAY WHAT?!?!” but hold on until the end. The connections made and conspiracies revealed lead to beautiful images of a peaceful world. I can’t wait for you all to watch it and get back to me. I’d like to open up the discussion so we can really create the inspiring communities and healthy planet I know is achievable.