David Swanson's Blog, page 208
August 4, 2011
August 3, 2011
Come to the Conference on the Constitutional Convention
I'm excited to be speaking at an important conference upcoming at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Mass. I'd like to invite you to attend (at no charge). It's called the Conference on the Constitutional Convention, and more info can be found at http://conconcon.org
From both the Right and the Left, citizens are increasingly coming to recognize that our Republic does not work as our Framers intended. Reform of any kind is stalled by those who profit from the status quo.
The Framers created the Article V Constitutional Convention as a way to escape captured government: If two-thirds of the state legislatures pass resolutions calling for a convention, then all sides will have the opportunity to argue for the changes they believe will restore or advance our Republic. Any amendment proposed must then be ratified by three-fourths of the states to become law.
On September 24th and 25th, people from across America and across the political spectrum will convene at Harvard University to discuss the advisability and feasibility of organizing towards a Constitutional Convention.
The conference's lead organizers include proponents and opponents of an Article V convention and we actively encourage the participation of those who support a convention, those who are ambivalent, and those who oppose holding a convention at all. The conference is sponsored by Harvard, the left-leaning Change Congress, and the right-leaning Tea Party Patriots; it's being co-chaired by Change Congress's Larry Lessig and the Tea Party Patriots' Mark Meckler. You can review the agenda and register -- for free for the time being -- at http://conconcon.org
Thanks so much, and we hope to see you in September.
--David Swanson
P.S. The conference is open to the general public, so please forward widely.
August 1, 2011
To Whom Do We Now Turn?
"The Democratic Party is running away from its traditional role of protecting the poor, the elderly, and the working class," writes Congressman Dennis Kucinich. "To whom do these groups now turn?"
We turn to ourselves, Congressman. You know that. And you know I love you. But we've got to stop turning to people, much less parties. It's killing us. We can work with you and all of our friends, but we're going to have to do this ourselves. There's nobody so poor, so elderly, so working class, so sick, so weak, or so wounded that they can't help this country a hell of a lot more themselves than can your colleagues, Congressman, the vast majority of whom, politically speaking, aren't worth a bucket of warm spit.
No Deal
Vote Down the
Debt Deal!
Share this action on Facebook
Share this action on TwitterDear David,
The debt ceiling deal struck last night does not tax the rich or even allow temporary tax cuts on the rich to expire. Nor does it defund any wars. Yet it requires cuts of $1.2 trillion now and $2.5 trillion over a decade.
Tell Congress to reject this deal.
Details of much of the cutting will be worked out by a new 12-member Super Congress empowered to cut any spending, and to force a rushed vote with no amendments on whatever it proposes to the actual Congress. And if that antidemocratic procedure fails, cuts will happen automatically. Half of those cuts might be to the military, but that should be seen before believed, and the devil will be in the details -- details being rammed through under the gun of a manufactured crisis.
Will you take two minutes today and send this message to Congress before the vote?
The President gives us credit for solving his non-problem: "The voice of the American people is a powerful thing," he remarked Sunday night. But has anyone in Washington heard that voice? Your efforts have added more Congress members to the list of those committed to protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
But compare how you would spend the federal budget to how it is spent. We guarantee the two are miles apart, and about to get much more distant.
This is a terrible deal. Tell Congress to reject it now.
Thanks,
Aimee, David, Sarah
and the RootsAction team
July 31, 2011
US exploiting loopholes to stay in Iraq
The United States seeks to exploit the loopholes of a bilateral security pact it struck with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in 2008 in order to extend its military presence in the war-torn country.
"There is a giant loophole in the treaty that Bush and Maliki put together for any troop that is not employed through the Department of Defense", David Swanson, co-founder of War is a Crime.org, told Press TV's U.S. Desk on Sunday.
July 27, 2011
How would you spend the federal budget?
Time to take out the good ol' fashioned paper and pen and create your budget. As George Lakoff once wrote, a budget is a value document. So enter numbers based on your values. When you're done, scroll down to compare your budget with the one governing United States federal spending.
Directions: Enter a percentage of the budget that you would spend on each of these six broad categories. (If you're feeling industrious, fill in each little line item.) Make sure the total equals 100%.
FRIENDLY FOREIGN RELATIONS____%
Economic development aid to select foreign countries, medical aid to poor nations, and development aid to poor nations, the Peace Corps, and disaster relief abroad: ____%
State Department: ____%
United Nations, peacekeeping, weapons nonproliferation: ____%
HOSTILE FOREIGN RELATIONS____%
Military and Homeland Security Department and military "aid" to other nations: ____%
Current wars: ____%
Veterans' benefits: ____%
SUSTAINABLE POLICIES____%
Job training, mass transit, and a jobs program to build renewable energy infrastructure and mass transit: ____%
Management of public lands: ____%
Pollution control and Renewable energy research: ____%
Subsidies to small farmers: ____%
EDUCATION AND RESEARCH____%
Elementary and secondary education, and higher education, and special education for students with disabilities: ____%
Medical research: ____%
Scientific research: ____%
Nasa: ____%
BASIC GOVERNANCE____%
Law enforcement and federal prisons: ____%
Housing for the poor and elderly: ____%
Paying off national debt: ____%
BIG AGRICULTURE AND BIG TRANSPORTATION____%
Airports and railroads and highways: ____%
Subsidies to big agriculture: ____%______
______
Now compare what you did with what the White House projects for 2015.
Stop Hoping! Start Changing!
"Zeus did not want man to throw his life away, no matter how much the other evils might torment him, but rather to go on letting himself be tormented anew. To that end, he gives man hope. In truth, it is the most evil of evils because it prolongs man's torment." -Friedrich Nietzsche
Had enough hope yet?
Had enough waiting, praying, expecting, wishing you actually believed it but pretending you just might, anticipating the let-down, taking in the impact of disappointment, betrayal, humiliation, and powerlessness, and finally, time after time, smashing your forehead into a concrete wall that had always been standing there as big as day?
July 26, 2011
Winner of Graphic Contest for This Website
The winner is P. Jamiol from http://jamiolsworld.com for this image:
New store: http://www.cafepress.com/letstrydemocracy
Who Should Challenge Obama in 2012?
The majority of U.S. citizens favor protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; taxing the rich; cutting military spending; and protecting the environment. We don't have a candidate . . . yet. Potential candidates supported on this site will be notified and encouraged to run.
Stop Hoping! Start Changing!
Should Obama be challenged in a primary?
If nominated, should Obama be challenged in the general election?
Add your voice to the movement that will recruit the next U.S. President.
