Strung Out Episode 201. THE WORLD ROUNDUP FROM THE BACKYARD

It's the World Roundup (from the backyard of Martin's house in Chicago). This week Martin talks about the college Palestinian encampments and how both pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli factions are getting things half wrong.  Then we look at two very interesting stories that popped up in the news that you probably don't know anything about. 

Transcript

[00:00:00] ANNCR: Welcome to Strung Out, the podcast that looks at life through the lens of an artist. Your host is the artist, writer, and musician, Martin Lawrence McCormack. Now here's Marty. Welcome

[00:00:17] MARTIN McCORMACK: to Strung Out. Glad to have you with me. If you're watching this on YouTube, we're in the backyard. If you're listening to this, you're going to hear the birds chirping. Um, I just got back from Colorado and I have my guests all slotted for the coming weeks. So this is kind of a, going to be a short podcast because, um, I just have some stuff that, uh, I have found interesting to report about, but not a whole lot as far as talking to artists and such.

[00:00:52] Um, but that being said. Let's do a little bit of a world roundup and the most obvious thing that's going on in the world today are the wars that we have. And, uh, let's start with the war in Gaza and the effect that is taking place in the United States, taking place in, uh, our campuses in particular. Um, the.

[00:01:28] Situation that's going on, uh, you have a lot of back and forth. Uh, you have the students on the one hand that are, uh, protesting what they're calling genocide in Israel. Um, that they feel that Israel needs desist and leave Gaza. Then you have the, uh, Israeli side and the Israeli side with the country of Israel is that we were attacked.

[00:02:11] We have a right to defend ourselves. Uh, the Hamas is a terrorist organization and they need to be defeated. So you have that on the upper level. And those are two sides.

[00:02:37] Of an issue that there are some inaccuracies and, uh, why don't we start first with the, uh, Palestinians in Gaza and the protests that are going on in the universities about it. One of the problems is, is that you have, uh, an organization in Hamas that's not necessarily there for the people. Um, They're an organization that, um, they want to eliminate Israel, uh, and, uh, set back the clock, um, all the way to, let's say, before the turn of the century.

[00:03:20] Um, and so the protesting against the genocide, uh, as the students are saying, is, um, is laudatory in the sense that, yeah, let's stop the killing. But from a political standpoint, there, there is a huge problem there. And that is if you stop and you allow this terrorist organization to live to fight another day, then undoubtedly you're going to have more October 7th with an organization like this.

[00:03:59] So. The state of Israel, the country Israel, is in a predicament in that sense. Because they're going to have to go in and try to eliminate the leadership of Hamas. So that, purely from an emotional, human standpoint, um, you have to grieve for the loss of life. And you have to do something more than that. So there's that.

[00:04:36] And then with Israel, uh, what you have there is, you know, the counter protesters and such. Uh, Israel has the right to exist, but the Israeli government, as I've talked about on this podcast, uh, has a lot of, it's a coalition that's being held together by some extreme right wing ideologues. And Benjamin Netanyahu has himself over a barrel there.

[00:05:11] Um, if he goes against the wills of those people, now all of a sudden he's gonna lose out on his ability to, uh, uh, hold that coalition together. So while on one hand, you know, hunkering down and having, uh, uh, an encampment on a cliff, College campus does a lot to just register the angst and concern and, and being genuinely upset.

[00:05:42] These are not the kind of solutions that are going to be solved with an encampment. And, uh, this is, this is a world class problem. And I think the aid delivery from Jordan that took place on Friday, uh, that made it into the news best exemplifies just how whacked this whole thing is. The Jordanian government, uh, sent a load of humanitarian food for the Gazan refugees.

[00:06:19] On the way from Jordan through Israel to the, um, checkpoint to get it into Gaza, it was held up and, um, and attacked by Israeli settlers. They're the ones that believe in the idea that, uh, They have claimed to all of historic Israel. Once it made it inside of Gaza, it got held up and taken away by, you know, who Hamas.

[00:06:54] So none of the food made it to the refugees. And I think that best exemplifies the problems that you have with this situation and why it's, it's just not so cut and dry. You have two competing factions. That are fighting for their very existence. And the people are stuck in the middle. And the people, by what I mean by that is the Israeli people, the citizens of Israel and the Palestinian people.

[00:07:25] They're, they're, you know, currently the Palestinians are bearing the brunt of the bombings and the wholesale slaughter. So this is a, uh, issue that. cannot be solved by protesting. It has to take a considerable amount of diplomacy, which hopefully is going to play out soon. As of this podcast, you have members of Hamas going for talks in Egypt with, um, and so that's a very hopeful sign.

[00:08:05] I think Hamas probably realizes it's, the game's up for them. Um, as a political entity, if I was going to be a betting man, I would say that they're going to accept the 40 day ceasefire and hopefully in that amount of time, but that'll also enable Israel to do is to, uh, to, uh, Be able to get the refugees out of Gaza and Rafah, maybe relocate it.

[00:08:42] It's, again, another Herculean effort. Um, but that's what it's going to take in order to stop the killing, at least of innocents. Uh, the population, which is millions, is going to have to be moved. Otherwise, what we're going to see is something, uh, sad take place. Um, we live in a world, of course, that, uh, we have players out there that want to not only destroy, uh, the country of Israel, but they want to, uh, destroy the United States.

[00:09:26] They want to destroy any kind of Western, uh, democracy. You also have people who like to talk about decolonization, and we've talked about that on previous podcasts as well. That they really don't understand what decolonization stands for and, uh, but in this instance, what they want to do is they want to get rid of Western ways of thinking and being, and, uh, in particular, uh, you know, The people that have held power in the West.

[00:10:08] Again, it's, it's a fairytale kind of wish. So the only way out of this, at least for the refugees, is the people of Gaza that are stuck in their own country, uh, being bombarded is a diplomatic solution and let's just hope what develops is diplomacy and not Like what we saw with the aid from Jordan, getting attacked in Israel and getting stolen in Gaza by, you know, the entities that, uh, are really kind of voicing what they want.

[00:10:48] They want the end of Israel. They want the end of Palestine. You have two extremes and, uh, you have to be very careful not to fall into either camp because neither camp is in, uh, the right. So we're gonna take a short break and when we come back I want to talk about Some interesting reading that I've been doing and bring up a couple articles of note.

[00:11:18] So you are With me, Martin Lawrence McCormick, I'm strung out. 

[00:11:25] ANNCR: Hey, want to show your support of Martin's artist endeavors? Buy me a coffee is an online site that makes supporting Marty easy. In just a few taps you can make a payment of any amount and no account is needed. You can also decide to become an ongoing supporter.

[00:11:42] Go to martinmccormack. com and click on the words Support Martin. Let's help Martin keep it all capital.

[00:12:07] MUSIC: Everybody wants their car to go faster than the rest. Everybody wants their car to go faster than the rest. Everybody has an elephant that wants to be relevant. Martin. Martin.

[00:12:25] Everybody wants their phone to have the latest apps. Everybody wants their phone to have the latest 

[00:12:33] MARTIN McCORMACK: apps. Everybody has an elephant that wants to be relevant.

[00:12:43] MUSIC: Gotta come return to the pack a dum. Gotta come return to your pack a dum. Gotta come to terms with the Packard Turn. Gotta come to terms with the Packard Turn. WARP Commit Not I am the um, uh uh, Um, Uh, uh, Um, Uh, uh, Uh, uh, Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo.

[00:13:26] Everybody thinks the story is all about them. Everybody thinks the story is all about them. Everybody has an elephant that wants to be relevant.

[00:13:44] Everybody thinks the world revolves around them. Everybody thinks the world revolves around them. Everybody has an elephant that wants to be relevant. Gotta come to terms with the pack of 10. Gotta come to terms with the pac a da, Gotta come to terms with the pac a da, Ooh, Ooh,

[00:14:33] You have to keep it a, A, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, A, a, a, a. Well about,

[00:15:06] Their

[00:15:12] elephants are big in the room. Everybody thinks their elephants are big in the room. Everybody 

[00:15:20] MARTIN McCORMACK: has an.

[00:15:27] MUSIC: Yeah, everybody has an elephant that wants to be relevant.

[00:15:37] Yeah, gotta come to terms with the fact that, uh, gotta come to terms with the fact that, uh, uh. Yeah, gotta come to terms with the fact we're done. Gotta come to terms with the fact 

[00:15:55] MARTIN McCORMACK: we're done. It wants to 

[00:16:00] MUSIC: be relevant.

[00:16:05] Everybody has an elephant. Everybody has an elephant.

[00:16:49] MARTIN McCORMACK: Hey there, we're back here in my yard in Chicago and uh, we're just kind of doing a world roundup and on this section of the world roundup, I, um, I was looking at the news and uh, one of my news sources that I like to recommend is uh, a source called 1440. 1440 prides itself on having no dog in the fight when it comes to slanting the noose, which is really important.

[00:17:21] They're sponsored by, um, uh, different kind of, you know, like butcher box and other kind of vendors. So that's, you know, the only, The thing that they have that keeps them going is the sponsorships, but the good thing is they go through all the news That's out there, and they bring you the articles that Are without bias basically they present it without bias, so this is an unsolicited Endorsement of 1440 if you're looking for new sources that don't have any, any sort of slant whatsoever.

[00:18:03] Theirs is probably the best that I, I like to read. And, um, there was an article that they suggested that's out there by the Jesuit magazine called America. And America magazine is the monthly publication from the Jesuits. It's in the United States and this article, um, was talking about the sale of sacred spaces and in the Catholic Church right now, there is a great, um, at least in the United States.

[00:18:41] So let's be very qualified right now. It's going through a tremendous, uh, change and what it is, is that, uh, Our forebears built tons and tons of churches, neighborhood churches. Churches were built at a time of horse and wagon, so you would have a diocese that would have a bunch of churches that might be, you know, five miles away one from the other, who is as far as a horse and bucket could travel.

[00:19:14] In an urban area like Chicago, you had your various, uh, immigrant groups that built churches that would remind them of home. And, uh, one church in particular up here in Chicago is where Annie and I got married, Our Lady of Lords. With the shrinking of the population of practicing Catholics, mainly just through the changing demographics of population, with the decline of, uh, priests, um, Some of these churches now are going empty and the Roman Catholic Church is one of the largest, if not the largest, holder of real estate in the world.

[00:20:04] So, what do you do with these places, these houses of worship, once there is There's no way of sustaining them. In the past, what has happened, it's been kind of left up to every diocese to kind of figure things out. And, uh, that has kind of ended up with mixed results because you can sell, once you, you know, uh, what they do is they will, uh, They go into the church and they, uh, there's a term for it that's slipping my mind, but they basically de sanctify the sanctuary, um, and usually what that involves is, is taking out like statuary, taking out the, uh, sacristy, um, taking out, uh, the, uh, tabernacle of the Eucharist, things like that, you know, that, um, uh, the altar, maybe they'll be taken out.

[00:21:04] And so you're left with a building that looks like a church, but is no longer sanctified. So in the past, these diocese have been selling them to whoever wants them. And sometimes they're converted into other houses of worship, which is a good thing. Um, and, uh, in this article, they talk about mosques. They talk about Protestant churches.

[00:21:32] Um, Um, that have taken over what were formerly Catholic, uh, churches and, uh, a lot of these churches in cities, these immigrant groups built big, big churches, you know, cathedral type, basilica type of buildings. So we're not talking about a, a practical kind of, you know, building to begin with. These big behemoths, um, They, they age and the upkeep on them is, is tough.

[00:22:08] In Europe, the government steps in and takes care of these buildings because they look upon them as part of the, uh, history of their country. We're not of that thinking in the United States. And, uh, maybe because we're a little more, uh, Still separated from church estate, which is great. So I have been in, uh, churches that have been used for, uh, concert halls, restaurants, uh, I don't think, what else have churches turned into condos.

[00:22:48] And, um,

[00:22:52] I heard of a church that was used as a roller rink. And I think what, uh, the Catholic Church wants to do is put across a way in which there's some level of sanctity, um, or respect of what the building represented involved. So they'll frown on the idea of like, uh, yeah, I'm going to buy a church and turn it into a brew pub, you know, and that sort of thing.

[00:23:25] or sports bar. And the gist of the article is saying that this is going to be a problem that's going to be ongoing for the next 20 30 years of these properties that are going to most likely be sold. And what to do with them because they once represented a house of worship And when that's gone and you relinquish that, do you, do you have a right to say how it's going to be treated in the future?

[00:24:02] It's a very interesting read. Uh, it's called Sacred Spaces. Uh, I recommend it. American, America Magazine is the Jesuit Quarterly. Uh, I believe this is in the May issue. So, uh, if you get a chance, Google it and check it out. Um, personally, my opinion is, is once the church is desanctified, um, you can do whatever you want with it.

[00:24:28] Um, and I understand, I think, you know, when you see a physical church, something that's held a lot of history, um, a lot of, uh, energy traps inside that building, if you will, um, it's hard to let it go, even if you have to. And I'm sure to a lot of these priests or some of the members of, uh, the, the church, it almost seems kind of like a, kind of like you failed at something.

[00:25:00] You know, we don't have the numbers of people that we had once upon a time. We don't have the number of practicing Catholics. So in a way it is a painful, painful thing. So, you know, but what to these are structures that In one way or another are worth preserving. Um, Cascade, Iowa. Yeah, two Catholic churches in a small town.

[00:25:25] The German and the Irish churches. So they took the Irish church and they turned it into an antique store. So you do see this and you have to kind of take a step back and kind of remind yourself what a church is for. The building itself is merely a building, but, uh, the church is the people. And, uh, I have talked about that time and again with pastor drew by the, by the campfire around the campfire.

[00:25:56] When we've done that podcast. So something for us to keep in mind, we'll take another little break here. And when we come back, I'm going to tell you about something that surprised me. I didn't know about my heritage and, uh, of all places, it was a GQ magazine. You're on strung out. 

[00:26:20] ANNCR: Hello, Polly Chase here, reminding you about the 20 percent discount you get from your first order at martinmccormick.

[00:26:28] com. Choose from fine art prints or merchandise like tote bags, t shirts, pillowcases, and much more. You're sure to find something you love, but don't take my word for it. Let's hear from Jan in Australia about her new Marty merchandise. I am so happy with my first purchase from Marty's collection of merchandise.

[00:26:58] I chose a mug, this one, which features a red cloud. It's beautiful. It goes right around the whole mug. And I've just finished drinking a cappuccino from it. It was perfect. It was easy to order, only took a couple of weeks to arrive in Australia. Beautifully packaged. So now I'm considering what to buy next.

[00:27:33] MUSIC: I'd like to come back as a million roses, A million roses in the spring. In the gardens you'll find me blooming, A million roses in the spring. To make right a life of sorrow, Make right a life of sorrow.

[00:28:37] I'd like to come back as a million stars, I'd like to come back as a million stars, A million stars in the sky On a quiet night you'll gaze in wonder A million stars in the sky To tell you it's all worth it To tell you to go on Bring some joy to, to you

[00:30:02] This life I am leaving A rough and ragged road

[00:30:13] The love that was so fleeting Never laid me low I'd like to come back as a child A child safe and sound And the love that I'll be given will be the love I'll never find. A little child. A little child. A million stars. A million stars.

[00:31:20] Okay, we're back and 

[00:31:22] MARTIN McCORMACK: I want to talk about the final piece of reading that I did that surprised me. GQ Magazine, and it was an article about, uh, the ancient lifting stones of Ireland. And I have to laugh because in my backyard I built a stone. Out of some pretty big stones, a waterfall. And I, I always wondered, what is this?

[00:31:49] You know, is this in my DNA or something? You know, and, and certainly the Celts are known for their building of stone tombs, dolmens, that sort of thing. So, um, I guess in some ways it is. Well, this surprised me. That there was a guy that's, uh, he's a weightlifter in Ireland. And, uh, he learned about these stones that used to be before the British came, really would be used as a test.

[00:32:27] A test of manhood or a test of strength, and sometimes they would be used, you know, even as penance. There was a religious aspect to them. And these were the lifting stones, and these stones were given names, and these weren't light stones. Um, these were, you're talking 200, 300 pounds, uh, a fairly, fairly heavy stone to lift.

[00:32:57] Um, and not just lift, but they would lift these stones and they would carry them. Uh, one part in the article talks about this guy that was known for lifting the stone and he carried it with him like a, about a quarter mile to a pub and, uh, supposedly with it on his back, drank a glass of whiskey, and then carried Carried it back to where he lifted it from.

[00:33:22] If that's the case, it's pretty freaking amazing. Uh, there was another rock that, um, uh, was known by a lady's name and, uh, she was, uh, Giving the guys that were trying to lift this rock, uh, some guff saying, you know, you guys should be more men than that. And they're like, well, if you're so great, why don't you lift it?

[00:33:47] And she proceeded to lift it and throw it. Throw it like six feet over the wall into the churchyard. And, uh, so there's all this anecdotal stories that this guy started digging up about these lifting stones. And, uh, sure enough, he set off and would go on an adventure to these various parts of Ireland where these stones would be found kind of where the legend said they were, and, uh, Um, they would be lost, uh, like in, uh, you know, a back of a farm field covered under vines and brambles and such.

[00:34:29] Just a fascinating reed. And this guy would free them, and he would lift them, and he would, you know, now, uh, give them, you know, their new lo uh, the location. And he's trying to single handedly bring back this ancient custom of, uh, of testing, uh, like I said, testing your strength, testing your endurance, uh, uh, and also just, um, I'm sure there was a lot more involved with it back in the times before, you know, the British came and, uh, got rid of some of the customs.

[00:35:07] Uh, what a fascinating read. And this has led this discovering of these lifting stones. has led to the establishment in the United States and in Canada, these stone lifting societies where men and women, um, will go and they will lift these various stones. And, uh, the idea is to, uh, prove to yourself, it's kind of like anything, like mountain climbing or whatever, maybe a simpler form.

[00:35:43] It's, you know, to test your, can I do this? You know, why did you lift that stone? Because was there other people that lifted it? Can I be the one that lifts it and carries it the farthest? Um, and again, I, I just had to laugh and found it fascinating because when I tour and I still do it, I will pick up a rock.

[00:36:08] I'll pick up a stone that, um, is of interest to me. And initially I was picking up stones that, you know, were, I think the heaviest I have here is probably about, uh, close to a hundred pounds. Um, that, uh, uh, I could use that would be more boulder like for this waterfall. I am not the kind of guy that can lift a 300 pound rock.

[00:36:37] Um, I don't think so, but, uh, This is, this is something that, uh, I found great, a great read because, uh, it had something to do with my lineage that I knew nothing of. And it also is interesting in the sense of somebody rediscovering, uh, that ancient history and trying to bring it back to life and in doing so, sparking a whole interest in, uh, these stone lifting societies.

[00:37:09] And what's great is they named these stones, so you could have like, you know, the stone of, you know, Lindisfarne or something like that, you know, and, uh, that stone was lifted and it stands, uh, you know, at the corner of the parish and, you know, people going to church would lift that stone and carry it, you know, as a penance and then bring it back and not everybody could lift it.

[00:37:34] Something kind of refreshing in it. In an age where we kind of shy away from such things, uh, our testing of our own ability, our own self-worth, and, uh, you know, what a better way to test your, your, you know, humanity, I guess, than lifting some sort of heavy object that others have tried and failed or tried and succeeded.

[00:38:04] So, um, so that's it for this week. And again, like I said, just a short video. Podcast. Uh, I hope you look up that article and read it too. GQ, the stone lifters of Ireland. And, uh, until next week, take care of yourself. And, uh, that's it. The world drowned up in the backyard. The jets flying overhead here in Chicago.

[00:38:27] Take care. Bye bye. 

[00:38:30] ANNCR: Thank you for listening. For more information about this show or a transcript, visit martinmccormack. com. While there. Sign up for our newsletter. See you next time on Strung Out.

[00:38:47] MUSIC: So some wrongs pain we feel Makes no sense at all A swan song wasn't part of the deal Was no good call Giving no choice Giving no stand