'Divide et impera', meaning to 'divide and rule', is an old and effective tactic, and one which is arguably enjoying success in the highly polarized America of today. But perhaps instead of fighting each other, 'we, the people' can find ways to bridge some divides, to together work in reclaiming what those who have profited by our division have taken. Is the question we face one of Democrats or Republicans, the Right or the Left, or that of a better future or the lack of one?

On Monday the White House announced another round of grant recipients in the Broadband Technologies Opportunity Program (BTOP). Among the grants awarded was a $11.8 million Sustainable Broadband Adoption grant to the Urban Affairs Coalition and several sub-recipients, including the Media Mobilizing Project (MMP).

Media Mobilizing Project recently started a new initiative: Community Journalism in Times of Economic Crisis. The initiative is a response to both the economic crisis, which is hitting Philadelphians hard, and the growing problems with the for-profit journalism model, which is making it difficult for local newspapers to cover stories about the struggles of everyday people during the economic downturn. The goal of this project is to report on and collect the real stories of Philadelphia and beyond on MMP's community blog, so we can begin to get a picture of the economic crisis from the ground up. Here is a copy of our latest newsletter: The Human Right to Healthcare: Northeastern Hospital is Groundzero

There are folk-ballets of old, and in today's world, there is Wikipedia, and now an Internet folk ballet giving a philosophical or minstrel touch to the White House race. It’s on the ironies of Obama considered an outsider, and not competent, while out of touch with the American spirit, while a candidate with seven houses and a Vice President in her own way out world, are somehow considered part of Americana.