The Death Penalty Makes Other Problems Worse
See the easy-to-read 1-page flyer at this link: The Death Penalty Makes Other Problems Worse
Human Rights
How can we challenge this dominant but destructive economic assumption?
Embedded very deeply in our American culture — and many other nations’ cultures too — is an assumption that is embedded so deeply that nobody recognizes it, let alone challenge it. The assumption is this: It is OK if what I do kills people, so long as I’m making money from what I do. At the surface level — the explicit level — if you were to ask people whether it is moral to kill other people, they would say “no.” But below the surface — at the implicit level — our society tolerates behaviors that knowingly kill people because […]
An 11-point Agenda for America’s Economic Future
Progressives spend much time protesting what we oppose. We should spend much more time organizing to accomplish what we want instead. Here is a good example for progressive economic and social justice: See the 11-point Agenda for America’s Economic Future at this link: http://campaignforamericasfuture.org/?link_id=4&can_id=1d662460c0abb8939c5044c82927552b&source=email-pledge-news-hightower-lowdown-pledge-issue&email_referrer=email_358386&email_subject=pledge-news-hightower-lowdown-pledge-issue Read Jim Hightower’s supportive article about the Agenda for America’s Economic Future at this link: https://hightowerlowdown.org/article/economic-agenda/?link_id=0&can_id=1d662460c0abb8939c5044c82927552b&source=email-pledge-news-hightower-lowdown-pledge-issue&email_referrer=email_358386&email_subject=pledge-news-hightower-lowdown-pledge-issue
Death Penalty = Archaic, creepy ritualized killing to serve symbolic rather than practical purposes
Many people assume that the death penalty serves some useful purpose, such as protecting public safety. Actually, as other items I’ve posted on this blog explain, the death penalty does NOT deliver what it promises, and it causes other problems instead. See http://parallaxperspectives.org/testimony-for-legislation-to-abolish-washington-states-death-penalty Beyond the death penalty’s ineffectiveness, we should also recognize it for what it is: an archaic, creepy example of conducting ritualized killings that serve only symbolic rather than practical purposes. In some primitive societies, people were aware of “evil” and created ritualized exercises to periodically purge the “evil” from their societies. They did this in different ways. One […]
Profound Nonviolence for a Truly Just Society
In slightly more than three pages, the article at this link provides wisdom, compassion, insights, and encouragement to fix our society’s problems. I believe you will find that reading this is a good use of your time. Here is the link: Profound Nonviolence for a Truly Just Society
Here is a way to understand Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election
You don’t need to be a Hillary Clinton supporter (and I certainly am not) to recognize the strong evidence that elements from Russia flooded American social media with racially polarizing social media during the 2016 election campaign. Why did it occur? How about considering the following context? Traditionally socialism has envisioned a joining together of the entire working class, across nations and across races. When the USSR existed and the Communist Party USA was active, especially from the 1930s and subsequent decades, the CPUSA really worked vigorously for racial integration and equality as part of this larger struggle. Instead of […]
This powerfully insightful article helps us understand progressives’ infighting over race, gender, etc.
The article at this link — https://www.alternet.org/activism/progressive-infighting — offers many very fresh insights that can help us move forward. I urge people to read the entire article. I’m summarizing a few key points below (and identifying which additional comments are my own). The entire article fleshes these out and adds more insights. I highly recommend reading the article at the link in this paragraph. The article’s title – “Here’s Why Some Progressives Are Tearing Each Other Apart” – is bold, accurate, and highly relevant to the organizing crises many of us have been experiencing in the past few years. The […]
The U.S. Empire is BI-PARTISAN.
It’s easy to criticize the hawkish foreign policy that Trump and the Republicans are promoting. Their gross cruelty causes some people to overlook the fact that Obama, Bill Clinton, and the Democrats have done similar things when they were in the White House and Congress. A year ago Courage to Resist (www.couragetoresist.org) published in its May 2017 newsletter an article (“Empire War Status” written on April 6, 2017, by Bob Meola, a member of Courage to Resist. The information below includes some of his ideas and some of my own. He wrote: “A lot of people miss Barack Obama because […]
Protect the 2020 census and DEMOCRACY ITSELF from Trump’s racist, partisan abuse!
I’ve been reading a lot about Trump’s blatant attempt to violate the Constitution by politicizing and racializing the 2020 census. This article from MoveOn does a good job of summarizing the crisis succinctly, and it provides an URGENT PETITION that you can sign: Donald Trump and his Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, want to add a question about citizenship to the census. The Constitution states that “all people” must be counted for the census, not just citizens. If this question goes ahead, all urban areas — and big states like California, Florida, New York, and Texas — will lose federal funding […]
May 15 of every year is International Conscientious Objection Day
President Kennedy said wars will continue until conscientious objectors who refuse to fight are appreciated as much as soldiers are. Most nations celebrate their people who make war, but almost no nations celebrate their people who make peace. Grassroots people who organize to urge their nations to create nonviolent foreign policies deserve respect and appreciation. So also do those people — those in the military and those facing the military draft — who REFUSE TO FIGHT BECAUSE OF THEIR CONSCIENCES. These Conscientious Objectors are recognized on May 15 of every year. If you want information about Conscientious Objection — either […]
Trump, politicians, media mislead the public about immigrants
Trump’s 2016 political campaign rhetoric and lies about immigrants have continued in subsequent years. Many other politicians act as if Trump’s lies were true. Mainstream media have failed to correct Trump’s lies, so most Americans seem to believe them. There is NOT a flood of immigrants entering the U.S. from Mexico. Actually, the numbers dropped 90% from 1.7 million in 2005 to only 170,000 in 2015. Also, more Mexican people are LEAVING the U.S. and moving to Mexico than vice versa. Most people who are here illegally did NOT come from our southern border. Most came here on tourist visas, […]
Protecting science from corruption is URGENT and CRUCIAL
A huge number of scientists wrote a powerful statement in 2017 explaining how “Human beings and the natural world are on a collision course.” They strengthened the statement in 2018 and now 20,000 scientists signed on to this “Warning to Humanity.” This is yet one more reason why we need honest science to drive public policy. Read the “Warning to Humanity” article at https://www.ecowatch.com/warning-to-humanity-scientists-2544973158.html?utm_source=EcoWatch+List&utm_campaign=aaad04f9dd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_49c7d43dc9-aaad04f9dd-85369701 Republicans’ partisan bias against science and reality: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2018/3/29/1752981/-Lies-have-a-conservative-bias-Republicans-up-their-war-on-science?detail=emaildkre The government needs good, honest science in order to devise smart public policy. However, the agencies under Trump have been slashing the numbers of competent scientists, failing to consider […]
Saturday April 14: Participate in Olympia’s March for Science!
11:00 a.m. at Washington State Capitol steps. Hear a few brief speakers. 11:45 Proceed down Capitol Way, turn left (decision pending on whether to turn left on Legion Way or 5th Ave), and enter Heritage Park. Visit informational booths until 2:00 p.m.. • Stop the denialism and corruption that interfere with honest science and good public policy. • Demand that public officials respect honest science and enact evidence-based public policies. • Human beings and our natural environment need this! Background and more information: • The head of the U.S.’s Environmental Protection Agency does not “believe” in climate change and works […]
How to understand Trump’s current rants about “caravans” of immigrants coming to the U.S.
The Quixote Center (www.quixote.org) has done great solidarity work with Central America for decades. They put into context the ranting of Trump in early April 2018. Trump is feeling increased pressure about his many scandals, etc., so he is trying to divert scrutiny of his own bad behavior and that of his appointees by demonizing “The Other” and trying to get Americans to fear “The Other” and support Trump’s claim that militarizing the US’s southern border and violating the human rights of undocumented immigrants here will protect us. This article deserves to be read by many people: https://quixote.org/trump-unhinged/ A great […]
6 ways to reduce gun violence in America: See the list, fact sheets, short videos
A non-profit organization, the Center for American Progress, offered this informative set of information in March 2018. See their fact sheets, action suggestions and short videos at this link: https://www.americanprogress.org/series/6-ways-to-reduce-gun-violence-in-america/view/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=progReport