Anyone Know How To Run A Country?

Experiencing an evil system? Corrupt government? Regulatory agencies that make it easier for an industry to pollute, exploit and kill? Is anyone in control here? Does anybody care?

That's the theme this week. If nobody but We the People care, then maybe we're the ones who need to take--and be in--control.

Anyone Know How To Run A Country? by C.A. Matthews It's a legitimate question. Does anyone know how to run a country? If someone out there does, can we really trust this person to do so in a just and moral manner? Or are Americans just fooling ourselves to think this grand experiment in democracy (begun in 1776) is even possible? An excellent example of democracy-not-in-action is the recent meeting of the Lucas County (Ohio) Board of Elections. They halted not one, but two citizens initiatives after they were certified to be on the November ballot. That an appointed group of four individuals can tell voters what they can and cannot vote on demonstrates just how sick our version of democracy has become. We've been brainwashed to think a board made up of  well-paid appointees from  the Republican and Democratic Parties somehow equals a "fair and democratic" agency with the public's interests at heart. The Lake Erie Bill of Rights is a petition that received 10,000+ signatures from voters eager to prosecute the industries actively polluting the drinking water for 11 million and causing toxic algal blooms on Lake Erie. So, how does preventing this measure from getting on the ballot embody "democracy"? If anything, it demonstrates the complete opposite. It shows where the interests of the two parties that make up the Lucas County Board of Elections lies--in pleasing the polluting industries and their lobbyists, not the voters. One might surmise from the Board's recent actions that "democracy" exists in the US to serve corporate interests alone. One could also conclude the two major parties are pretty much one and the same, since they work together to accomplish the same goals for corporations. Democrats and Republicans are all employees of the corporations, serving them at their beck and call. And on August 28, 2018 in Toledo, Ohio, they did as they were instructed by Big Oil & Gas and Big Agriculture interests. Well done, Bruce Saferin, Brenda Hill, Joshua Hughes and David Karmol,  good and faithful servants of the Lucas County Board of Elections! (The check is in the mail.) Government at the service of  corporations is termed fascism. When Democrats and Republicans do as corporate lobbyists tell them to, they are acting as fascists. Some feel that calling politicians who serve Big Oil or Big Agriculture, for example, fascists is a slur. But if their actions fit the definition of fascism, then that's what they are--fascists, plain and simple. There's no need to beat about the bush, is there?  The two major parties in the US regularly cooperate with corporations and pass laws that support corporations over ordinary people. In the case of the Lake Erie Bill of Rights, they cooperated to block a citizen-instigated law from reaching the ballot that could cut into big business's profits at the expense of the environment. Since these two parties support ever increasing profits of corporations over the public's welfare, they can be rightly labeled as supporters of fascism. I now will address the elephant in the room: "But, but, but... What about there being one evil party and one not-evil party as the campaign rhetoric tells us every election? There's supposed to be just one evil party, right? We then have to vote for the other party, even if we don't like everything they do. There can't be two evil parties because... then who can we trust?" Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is no such thing as a lesser evil if you haven't figured that out yet. There is only evil and those who cooperate with it. Sure, they can choose different terminology or styles of cooperation, but it doesn't stop them from cooperating with evil. No one can occupy two positions at once. You either work with evil or you fight against it, and both of the major parties in the US are working with those who would do us and our children harm. Compromising on any instance of harm makes one complicit with the harm, and harm is evil. If deliberately polluting drinking water and covering for the perpetrators of such acts isn't evil, then what is? If you believe in doing as Big Business/Wall Street tells you to do is acting in the best interests of our country, though, then you believe in fascism. As a fascist, democracy--or the lack of it--isn't something that keeps you awake at night. You believe corporations and their CEOs can run things better than democratically elected (not via rigged primaries, that is) public servants.  Who cares about civil rights? CEOs don't, so why should you? Go ahead and lock up as many brown, black, red and poor white people as you can. It's good for the for-profit private prison system. Don't forget, incarcerated immigrant children make for a good source of slave labor, too. And the shooting of unarmed persons of color and hiding behind a badge is a sport fascists can really sink their teeth into. However, as a fascist politician-puppet, you always have to think about where your next election is coming from. Ordinary Americans don't write many big checks to bankroll your next turn at the feeding trough--I mean, the next time you run for "public" office, do they? So you can ignore them and concentrate on your wealthy donors. What can poor folks do? Your fascist buddies and you control the system, and you're motivated to maintain the status quo no matter what. But wouldn't you know, some pesky citizens called Toledoans for Safe Water still believe in old-fashioned democracy and not fascism. They want clean drinking water, and they demand the right to live without the fear of toxic algal blooms that have been linked to increasing numbers of ALS, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's cases worldwide. (Watch the film Toxic Puzzle for more on this frightening medical link of cyanobacteria in our algae-filled water and these illnesses.) The supporters of  the Lake Erie Bill of Rights are fighting for both clean water for millions and for the power of restoring democracy to the people. They want citizens to have a say so on protecting their natural resources, not corporations. Citizens not corporations--is that a good way to run a country? One person, one vote? Not one billion dollars in kickbacks to politicians and the rules are rewritten to help your polluting industry? I don't know anymore. The Lucas County Board of Elections instructed the citizens at the meeting to  "Vote next time for representatives who will represent you." But if we continue to do as the Board told us, and we allow representatives of the two corporate-owned-and-operated parties to appoint people to a board that thwarts democracy without blinking, then we'll get exactly what we deserve: Fascism. I don't think we deserve it, but unless more of us wake up and fight for democracy, we'll have to live in a country run solely by corporations and learn to like it--toxic algal blooms and all. Is this the "future to believe in" we've been working toward? If it isn't, then we need to take actions to start building a better one. Today. Join with others fighting for democracy and a better world. Don't let evil win.   "Change Society Now, Don't Wait" is the theme of Lee's opening segment on last Friday's Redacted Tonight. Sometimes activists can't wait to take action--especially when the clock is ticking down on climate change and our chance to survive as a species. We have to act decisively and quickly. Watch and see if you don't agree.  https://youtu.be/yqeMbfh_exE Some other things to be aware of this week--  Big Pharma Family Finds New Way to Cheat (and flood the market with more addicting opioids, of course): https://youtu.be/QXg_iTOadCM Our good friend from the North, Vegematic, shares stories about activists worldwide that you won't hear much about on mainstream media: https://youtu.be/X6pXDWO4ZKg   I've lost count of the number of book publishers that Amazon has destroyed in the last couple of years. It's heartbreaking. It's "economic censorship" since these publishers aren't putting out different books and different voices aren't heard. It's the ultimate control mechanism--both financially and psychologically. More people need to #BoycottAmazon and support small businesses, but they'll just whine if you mention all the harm Jeff Bezos has done because Amazon has become their drug of choice. Watch this short video to understand how allowing corporations to rule us is destroying our economy and our world: https://youtu.be/4dnf55cUIV0 Jonathan Pie gives us the low down on Amazon and corporate greed and what they're doing globally in his usual tongue-in-cheek manner.  https://youtu.be/4f1vNr9j5G8  *** Fight For Freedom! Support Independent Media   The Revolution Continues has set up an easy way to donate to the cause of independent journalism by keeping it ad-free. We've been publishing over three years without those obnoxious ads (that many news sites have to cover costs). It's been great, but the editor does have to pay for internet, electricity, etc., out of her own pocket. She would like to be able to pay her contributors in the future. Please consider donating a buck, $5, $10 or $100--any amount you can share with us to keep this progressive site going without those awful ads is appreciated. Help us become a strong alternative voice protesting against the corrupt establishment and its paid-off corporate mouthpieces. Give to TRC today. Thank you.   You can donate via Paypal at http://paypal.me/camatthews Power to the people and not the corporations!   ***

The National Campaign to End Corporate Personhood and Demand Real Democracy!

About | Donate | Take Action At Move to Amend we have one goal: to help build a democracy movement so deep and so wide that we pass the We the People Amendment (to secure constitutional human rights for natural persons only) and go on to build real, authentic democracy for every living human in the U.S. for the first time in our history. Unfortunately, far too many Americans believe we can vote ourselves out of this mess. They are wrong, wrong, wrong.  Our Pledge to Amend campaign drives the Moment to Amend into our elections. Fundamental flaws have brought us to this point. Constitutional human rights limitations, white supremacy, classism, the two party system, and the Electoral College have all played their role. Equally destructive is an unelected Supreme Court that has created and nurtured "corporate persons" with human rights for 130+ years. We're experiencing corruption writ large! Nowadays, voting is actually pretty far down the list when it comes to a making functioning democracy. As broken as this system is, between organizing and earning a living, vote we must. To effect change, we have to vote -- as a movement! That's why Pledge to Amend is so important right now. With the passing of Labor Day, the campaign season just got hot. People are starting to really pay attention now, which means your participation in Pledge to Amend is more important than ever before. Pledge to Amend is the way for candidates to tell us whose side they are on -- do they stand with We the People or with multinational corporations & billionaires? Vote to Amend is the part of Pledge to Amend that connects YOU, the voter, to the candidate. By taking the Voter Pledge, you are telling candidates that if they Pledge to Amend, YOU will vote for them. Easy peasy! You do have power. Pledge to Amend has become more influential in every election because more and more voters and candidates participate. It's an integral part of our strategic plan to pass the We the People Amendment by 2026. YOU can make it all happen! And taking the pledge to Vote to Amend is simple; just add your name to our list! It takes less than 1 minute. So before you close this email, just go for it! And then take 2 more minutes to encourage all your friends to join you! Move to Amend knows we will win this battle. We will end corporate rule and make the U.S. a real democracy. Will you stand with us? Will you Vote to Amend? In solidarity, Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap National Director, Move to Amend Coalition P.S. Tell candidates that supporting the We the People Amendment is what you need from them if they want your vote! *** From Friends of the Earth: Help send 30,000 comments to the EPA: Don’t slash protections from methane pollution! This week, Trump and Acting EPA Administrator Wheeler launched another attack on our environment and our communities. They announced a plan to gut the EPA’s methane pollution standards. If their plan goes through, it would mean polluters would be free to pour even more of this dangerous greenhouse gas into our atmosphere. This would harm our health and bring us further to the brink of climate disaster. The administration is required to consider public input on this plan before it can go through. So we need you to speak up now! Help send 30,000 comments to the EPA: Don’t slash protections from methane pollution! Methane is one of the biggest drivers of climate change. What’s more, it’s linked to severe public health impacts -- including increasing the risk of asthma and cancer. The EPA’s restrictions on methane pollution are a common-sense effort to protect our environment and our communities. The only reason the Trump administration wants to roll them back is to help its friends in the fossil fuel industry make more profits. This is unacceptable. The administration is saddling communities who live near oil and gas facilities with polluted air and health risks, all for the benefit of Big Oil. The EPA needs to hear from you! Tell the agency to put our communities and environment ahead of the fossil fuel industry’s profits! This is just the latest in a string of efforts by the Trump administration to hand over our environment to corporate polluters. Trump’s Department of the Interior is also poised to roll back restrictions on methane pollution. And just last week, it advanced its plan to gut the Clean Power Plan. This is the opposite of what we should be doing. Time is running out to prevent climate chaos. We need stronger action to avoid the worst, not a rollback of our existing rules. The EPA could halt Trump’s disastrous plan in its tracks -- but it will only act if people like you speak up. Tell the EPA: No rollbacks of protections from methane! Standing with you, Ernesto Vargas, Climate and energy program director, Friends of the Earth *** We're excited to announce our autumn webinar series, starting this September 27. The topics of our upcoming webinars are based on the feedback that we received from our supporters about what most interests you! Details below. What: Webinar: How War Threatens the Environment When: Thursday, September 27 at 8:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Eastern Where: Your computer or telephone! One of the most destructive of human behaviors, war is a leading contributor to the growing global environmental crisis. Hear from experts Gar Smith and Tamara Lorincz about the deep ecological impact of the war system. Register here! What: Webinar: Global Perspectives on War When: Wednesday, October 24 at 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Eastern Where: Your computer or telephone! How do people around the world think about militarism? You won't want to miss this interesting webinar featuring three different global perspectives on the impact of war, featuring David Swanson, Kathy Kelly, and Barry Sweeney. Sign up! And stay tuned for a November webinar (date to be announced) celebrating the launch of the 2018-2019 edition of World BEYOND War's book. RSVP to join us on September 27, to kick off our autumn webinar series! Greta Zarro Organizing Director World BEYOND War greta@worldbeyondwar.org

The Trump Baby Blimp Rules!

The Trump Baby Blimp Rules! 

Over a quarter-million protesters marched in London alone to voice their displeasure in Donald Trump's trip to the UK.  They protested his insulting of their queen, their government and their commonsense through the use of humor in the form of a giant angry-baby Trump blimp--complete with a cell phone to tweet from in his tiny hand. Pure genius, don't you think?

Enjoy some aerial footage and great memes from a German comedy show as you read this week's article on the importance of political humor. Remember, without it there is no freedom of speech. 

Making fun of those in authority is our duty and our right. So get out there and make fun of a tyrant today!

Alas, Poor Yorick! The Passing of the Court Jester?

by Coast Watcher

The recent firing of Rob Rogers, former editorial cartoonist for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, rang alarm bells in some quarters. The majority of Americans who heard the news couldn’t understand why a cartoonist should be fired for, well, simply doing his job. Nick Anderson, a Pulitzer-prize winning cartoonist, was laid off from the Houston Chronicle last year. They are but two political cartoonists of hundreds laid off by various publications across the United States within the last thirty years. A once thriving pool of over one hundred and eighty editorial cartoonists has dwindled to a few dozen, all of whom are looking nervously over their shoulders lest they be next for the chop.

What’s going on?

It’s an old adage that the best way to destroy tyranny is to laugh at it. Making a tyrant seem ridiculous in any way, shape or form diminishes him in the eyes of the general population and so weakens his power. A shining example from history is editorial cartoonist Thomas Nast. Nast is credited with bringing down Boss Tweed’s corrupt New York Tammany Hall political machine in the late nineteenth century. (Tammany Hall became a byword for political corruption on an epic scale, a tradition the Democratic Party seems determined to uphold.)

The other function of the jester, or fool, comes through literature where he or she is seen as the symbol of common sense and honesty. The court jester is a character used for insight and advice, a person able to take advantage of his ancient right to mock and speak freely in order to highlight folly on the part of the tyrant and generally give sage advice. The jester can do this where a person of more exalted birth would find themselves in the tyrant’s potentially lethal disfavor.

Shakespearean fools are usually clever peasants or commoners that use their wits to outdo people of higher social standing. Even autocratic rulers had to tolerate their jests and japes or be seen as humorless and intolerant. In this day and age of faceless corporate power, the jester has a more difficult life. 

The modern world isn’t kind to the jester’s artistic descendant. Witness the Charlie Hebdo killings in Paris in regard to the controversial Mohammed cartoon in a Danish newspaper. Perhaps nowadays the establishment doesn’t care for the idea of being the butt of righteous satire or humor. Since the majority of cartoonists are employed by newspapers owned by a tiny handful of plutocrats, they become a juicy target for  tyrants wishing to suppress dissent. A word in the right ear will see a cartoonist being told the clear his or her desk the next day.

Performance jesters are under attack nowadays as well. One only has to look at comedian Lee Camp's You Tube videos to see how the establishment is attempting to marginalize his progressive insights and his sharing of vital information that is seldom disseminated on mainstream media outlets. The establishment feels so threatened by Lee's humor (as well as others, such as Jimmy Dore's) that they regularly block sharing of his videos and even made You Tube post a nonsensical "warning" under them to scare viewers off. If anything, their attempts have only grown Lee's audience and solidified his followers in their support for him and his message. The joke's on the establishment!

When the establishment fights back and uses dirty tactics, it doesn’t mean we can’t employ humor against the establishment and those who embody it. The American president, a boorish, ill-educated man who practically begs ordinary people to poke fun at his pomposity and foolishness, is on record as hating the Trump Baby blimp that flew over the mass protests against his visit to Great Britain. The humor worked--it got the point across as intended. We the people are not happy with his performance.  

Nick Anderson suggests newspaper readers should tell the editor of the publication how much they appreciate the cartoonist, or if the paper doesn’t have one on staff, suggest they hire one. People power does have considerable sway, even in these days of wholly-owned, Sinclair-Tribune media conglomerates. After all, if the buying public doesn’t buy their product even the arch plutocrat is helpless.   

This means we must support the political cartoonist and the comedian and the creative protester and all  like them in every way we can. Remember, humor is one weapon the tyrannical can't defend against. Arm yourself with a good sense of humor and fight back!

Related articles: 

Cartoonists Matter
https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/23/opinions/rob-rogers-cartoonists-matter-anderson-opinion/index.html

Trump Says the 20-foot tall Angry-Baby Blimp Makes Him Feel "Unwelcome"
http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-baby-blimp-balloon-london-2018-7?utm_source=facebook&utm_content=top-bar&utm_term=desktop

BIO: Coast Watcher is very proud to be British. He salutes his countrymen for their creativity and humor and thinks the Baby Trump blimp is a bloody good idea. Don't hide in the bushes--poke fun at the establishment every chance you get! Knock them down a few notches in the political revolution, fellow humorists.

And now, a bit of political humor in the sing-along fashion...

 Oh, the humanity! (Or is that "trumpanity"?)

 My Donald Trump Balloon
sung to the tune of "Up, Up and Away in My Beautiful Balloon"
new lyrics by Still Bernin'

Would you like to fly my great Donald Trump balloon?
All across the "cloud" with my Baby Trump balloon?
We can tweet, grump and spout crass racist talk, you and I--
'Cause we can cry!

Up, up and away on my Donald Trump, my Baby Trump balloon!

Would you like to hate like a Donald Trump buffoon?
Anyone will do if you're a Baby Trump baboon!
Browns, blacks and Chinese have too big a piece of the pie--
So he will lie!

Up, up and away in my Donald Trump, my Baby Trump balloon!

My Donald Trump, my Baby Trump balloon
Created under a narcissistic streak
He'll rant for war and a chance to start one
If by some chance you find yourself hating him
Then find a crowd to join you, and keep this chant beside you

The world's a hate-filled place with our Baby Trump balloon
It wears a sadder face with a Donald Trump buffoon
We can march the streets and shout it high up to the skies
He can die!

Up, up and away in my Donald Trump, my Baby Trump balloon!

(With my sincerest apologies to the Fifth Dimension for using their great tune.)

BIO: Still Bernin' keeps things in perspective through the use of biting humor. It's better than sitting and crying all day long, right? "Don't let the haters get you down! Use satire as a weapon against them. You'll be glad you did."

*** 

  

It's no laughing matter--

independent journalists need your help!

The Revolution Continues has set up an easy way to donate to the cause of keeping it ad-free. Three years without obnoxious ads (that many news sites have to cover costs) has been great, but the editor does have to pay for internet, electricity, etc., out of her own pocket, and she would like to be able to pay her contributors in the future. Please consider donating a buck, $5, $10 or $100--any amount you can share with us to keep this progressive site going without those awful ads is appreciated. 

Help us become a strong alternative voice protesting against the corrupt establishment and its puppet journalists. Give to TRC today. Thank you.

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Power to the people and not the corporations! 

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A “Free Press” Cannot Be Free

The moment the news is presented to you as free, you have already paid the price. At that moment, your right to know has taken a back seat to the interests of whoever, or whatever, is sponsoring the presentation. 

If they are not paying to inform you (and they’re not), what are they paying for?

When the community takes an ownership stake, the priorities change. 

For your consideration.

Marc Ash
Founder, Reader Supported News

Sure, I'll make a donation!

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Freedom from election fraud is as important as our exercising our freedom of speech... More on the 2016 recount fight.

As we approach the 2018 midterms, the fight for elections we can trust continues. We’re happy to share with you this latest summary of the successes and ongoing struggles in the continuing recount fight for election protection and voting justice. Thank you for your support that has made this fight possible.

It’s in our hands!
Jill Stein

WithMidterms Approaching, the Recount Fight Continues for Elections We CanTrust

From the start, the 2016 Presidential recount was not simply a call to retabulate the vote. It was a demand for elections we can trust, that are accurate, secure and just, and free from the scourge of Jim Crow. While there’s been progress since then towards greater cybersecurity, our votes remain vulnerable to a spectrum of cyber threats. But that’s not all. On multiple fronts, our right to vote itself is under attack, along with other basic rights at the foundation of our democracy, including our rights of protest, privacy, freedom of the press and more. With democracy increasingly under fire, trustworthy elections are more critical than ever. For all these reasons, the recount fight continues as a battle for election protection and voting justice, a fight being waged in both the court of law and the court of public opinion.

The past year and a half has seen both mounting threats and important progress, including notable successes in ongoing recount-related efforts. This includes the adoption of crucial reforms the recount helped shine a spotlight on, and hard-fought legal progress towards much-needed scrutiny of secret, privately-controlled voting software.

Read More

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The water in the faucet runs orange. But kids are expected to drink it.  

In Fayetteville, West Virginia, the water at school has been discolored for years. No one knows what’s in it and there is no plan to clean it up.

Headwater Defense, a local grassroots group, has been donating bottled water to the school since 2016. When they tried to speak out against the school’s neglect, they were threatened. The school told them they’d stop accepting bottled water if the group publicized the issue.

The safety of kids is at risk. Congress must do something about it. Call (202) 224-3121 now to be connected to your Senator.
 
Schools can get away with potentially toxic water because, shockingly, Public Water Systems are not required to test water in schools.

The Get the Lead Out of Schools Act (S.1401) would make sure that water in schools is tested and that parents and teachers find out when there is a problem right away.  It also creates a grant program to help fund the improvement of water.

This law could have identified and stopped disasters like that in Flint, Michigan, where a whole generation of kids is being poisoned. Right this second, children are at risk for developmental delays, anemia, hypertension, and even death.

No child should come home from school poisoned. Call your senator at (202) 224-3121 to protect children from dangerous drinking water. Whole generations of kids are depending on us.
 
Lois Gibbs
Center for Health, Environment, and Justice and People’s Action
 
P.S. Use the following script to tell your Senator exactly why they need to support this bill. 

Please support the Get the Lead Out of Schools Act (S. 1401), a critical bill that will protect children from the devastating impact of lead poisoning.  No level of lead exposure is safe and children are particularly at risk to the detrimental effects of lead exposure. Prolonged exposure can cause developmental delays in children, anemia, hypertension, organ failure and death.

S. 1401 would protect America’s school children from lead by requiring that the Public Water Systems test all water that flows into school systems. This act also requires  results of the water testing to be shared with the school community, because everyone has the right to know what they are drinking. The act also provides grants to help schools address their water contamination issue and protect the health of their students.
 
I strongly believe this bill must be passed and encourage you to co-sponsor the legislation.