Thanksgiving is the official start of the holiday season in the United States as my Community of Laguna Niguel is coming alive. But this spirit is tempered by challenges beyond our shore (including Ukraine and Iran right now as over 20,000 are under detention and many are being tortured).
I pulled together the following #RandomThoughts as I continue to remain hopeful in spite of the profound challenging times before us:
I close out these month-end #RandomThoughts with this beautiful tribute done by a Canadian Legislator to the revolution in Iran:
It is Thanksgiving Week in the United States. It has been quite a few weeks--and that's quite an understatement.
I tended to my VW this month and in honor of the revolution in Iran, dubbed my VW the #WomanLifeFreedom Car in line with a campaign that my local VW Dealer launched. I have also been quite keen to do what I can about supporting the Iranian Revolution--as I attended events and have continued the active advocacy on Social Media. This is in spite of all that the regime is doing to kill, sow division, and create mayhem--as they did by attacking Mahabad in Iranian Kurdistan Saturday Night. It was also a moving day as I joined Laguna Niguel's Veterans Remembrance Ceremonies and wrote a brief memo on the "chalk wall" the City sponsors--and I added a book on my City to my library.
As I was working away on projects including The Daily Outsider, Virtual Education, and Social/Community Advocacy, I ran across this to report on :
The headline image I selected says it all--Hope in the face of adversity.
As I close out these brief #RandomThoughts with the following courtesy USAFacts, I wish Happy Thanksgiving to all!!
Celebrate Thanksgiving with a fact feast
Thanksgiving is days away, and USAFacts has been busy cooking up dessert. The 7 days of pie buffet has returned for a wide-ranging, fact-based look at nonpartisan numbers. If you’re looking for a conversation starter, dig into these data dishes.
Single-person households have increased more than fivefold since 1960, from 7 million to 37 million. Last year, 47.3% of households had married couples, while 11.1% of people lived alone. Those figures were 74% and 3.9% in 1960, respectively.
The odds are good that at least one person at your dinner table either switched occupations or left the workforce last year. Bartenders were the most likely to change occupations in 2021, while taxi drivers and chauffeurs were the most likely to stop working entirely.
The share of the population younger than 20 has decreased by more than 13 percentage points since 1970. And since 2000, the 65 and older populations in Alaska, Nevada, Idaho, and Colorado have more than doubled.
Federal student loan borrowers might have something extra to be thankful for this year. In August, the Biden administration announced the cancelation of up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers who earn less than $125,000 annually. As of June 2020, the median federal debt for Asian, Black, and white women was $20,000. It was $25,000 for Asian men, $14,000 for Black men, and $18,000 for white men.
People are facing steep ticket prices as they take to the skies for holiday travel. From September 2021 to September 2022, the overall inflation rate for all items in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 8.2%. However, airline fares rose 42.9% during the same period. Are you likely to experience delays at the airport? See your destination’s track record here.
Minnesota raised more turkeys than any other state last year. Illinois grew 652 million pounds of pumpkins, more than the next five pumpkin-producing states combined. Learn more about the farm origins of favorite Thanksgiving dishes at USAFacts.
One last fact
October’s food prices were up compared to a year prior. Turkey and other uncooked poultry was up 16.9% over 2021. (For comparison, it rose 1.7% from October 2020 to October 2021.) Flour was 24.6% higher, while butter was up 26.7% USAFacts collected metrics from the CPI so you can see which kitchen staples might cost this holiday season.
As the Revolution in Iran enters its' third month, I just received this from the White House in response to a note I sent forth:
November 16, 2022
Dear Mr. Pouraryan,
Thank you for writing. I remain gravely concerned about the violent crackdown on peaceful protesters in Iran, and my Administration stands with these brave citizens—among them women and students—who are demanding equal rights and basic human dignity.
For decades, Iran’s regime has denied fundamental freedoms to its people and suppressed the aspirations of successive generations through intimidation, coercion, violence, and the misuse of technologies such as Internet shutdowns. I believe that the future will be won by countries that unleash the full potential of their populations—where women and girls exercise equal rights, religious and ethnic minorities can live their lives without harassment, and citizens can question and criticize their leaders without fear of reprisal.
To that effect, we are making it easier for Iranians to access the Internet, including secure outside platforms and services. The United States will hold Iranian officials—and the perpetrators responsible for employing violence meant to suppress civil society, including the Morality Police—to account. And we will continue to support Iranians’ right to protest freely.
Thank you again for writing to me. As the citizens of Iran inspire the world with their bravery, we will continue to hold those accountable for inflicting violence against peaceful demonstrators and work to secure the universal rights of all people around the world.
It has been quite a month as the Iranian Revolution of 2022/1401 rages on with agitations throughout the country and the World. The Red Alert by Cee-Roo I decided to headline my thought with is a Red Alert to the World to be aware that Iran is emerging from the darkness of the last 43 years.
Today is also Veterans Day here in the United States and Remembrance Day in the UK and the Commonwealth. I assisted with the Daily Outsider team as all properties were curated honoring all who have served and continue to serve and featuring a proclamation from the President of the United States.
I close out this latest edition of my #RandomThoughts with the latest in Iranian Revolutionary Art that has been going virtal on Social Media as I know the light will overcome darkness:
