Activism

Attending the No Kings Rally in Thousand Oaks

Posted on by The Ultimate Rabbit

After having been too busy with work over the past year or so, I finally got to attend my first ever No Kings rally on March 28, 2026. And while the focus was on major cities like Los Angeles, New York and Minneapolis among others, I decided to head over to Thousand Oaks as I was worried that getting in and out of Downtown Los Angeles would be too chaotic. But there was another reason; I lived in Thousand Oaks when I was young from 1982 to 1987, and it always holds a special place in my heart. I always try to visit there whenever I can as I have fond memories of this city, and moving away from there was very difficult.

Well, Thousand Oaks certainly did not let me down on this day. There was a sizable turnout just outside of The Oaks Mall with signs and costumes aplenty, and the honking of car horns was never ending as everyone made their voices heard loud and clear. While the turnout in major cities may have been enormous, and this is apparently the biggest No Kings day yet, this gathering proved to be more intimate as we protested Trump’s abysmal Presidency, bemoaned the ridiculously high gas prices (it is around $6 dollars a gallon in Southern California), expressed our anger at the abuses of ICE, and we all made sure to mention the name Epstein at least nine times.

While I typically film events like this with my digital camcorder, I decided to capture footage using my Google Pixel phone. The downside of this was that the image is a bit smaller than what my camcorder could have given us. As much as I tried to blow up the image so that it could fill up the entire screen, I was unable to do so. If anybody knows of a way to do that through Wondershare Filmora, please let me know. Nevertheless, I present you this video of what I observed as walked along the streets of Thousand Oaks. I hope you like what you see, and don’t give up the fight.

I also uploaded the video to my Instagram page if you want to check it out there instead of on You Tube.

Click here to visit the No Kings website.

Oh, and by the way, this is the shirt I wore for this rally:

UPDATE: I did another version of my video, and I managed to fix it to where the images are enlarged and fill the whole screen. Please feel free to let me know which version you prefer.

‘Remote Area Medical’ Exclusive Interview with Jeff Reichert and Farihah Zaman

Posted on by The Ultimate Rabbit

“Remote Area Medical” focuses on the non-profit medical provider of the same name, better known as RAM, when they opened a three-day clinic held at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee, and we watch as hundreds wait by their cars in the hopes of getting the kind of health care they never have any easy access to. While there has been an endless debate in the United States about how to handle health care, this documentary chooses to focus on people instead of policy. We get a close up look at how this clinic starts off with a 3:30 a.m. ticket distribution which determines who will get seen for routine check-ups, and the patients tell us about themselves through stories which prove to be both vivid and heartbreaking. In addition, we also get to meet those who volunteer their time at the clinic like the organization’s founder, Stan Brock, a doctor who happens to drive a refurbished 18-wheeler truck, and a denture maker who also works as a jeweler. From start to finish, “Remote Area Medical” puts a human face on what it means to not have access to health care, and it makes for one of the most unforgettable documentaries of 2014.

I got the opportunity to speak with its directors, Jeff Reichert and Farihah Zaman, while they were in Los Angeles back in 2014. They are married to each other and actually volunteered at a RAM clinic back in Pikesville, Kentucky in 2011 where they were overwhelmed by stories they heard of patients in need and volunteer doctors working overtime to provide care. Reichert and Zaman also directed the documentaries “Gerrymandering” and “This Time Next Year.” They discussed what stunned them most as volunteers at RAM, what they learned about people who live in the Appalachian community, and they talked more about the conversations they had with Stan Brock.

Please check out the exclusive interview down below, and I have also included a trailer for “Remote Area Medical” as well for you to check out. This documentary is now available to own and rent on DVD, Blu-ray and Digital.

To learn more about Remote Area Medical (RAM), please feel free to visit their website at ramusa.org.