Tidbits - August 15, 2012

* Re: More on How to Launch a Mass Movement for Economic
  Justice (Michael Munk)
* Re: Tidbits - August 12, 2012 -Marvin Mandell responds to 
  Katrina vanden Heuvel 
* Re: Paul Ryan: All You Need to Know (Laurel MacDowell)
* Ryan Oil and Gas connections (Kay Brown)
* Safe States (Dimitri Devyatkin)
* Voting - New Forms of Voter Suppression (Seymour Joseph)
* Re: Nine Nobel Peace Laureates Call on NBC to Cancel
  "Stars Earn Stripes" (Germaine Cook)
* Arizona, the Wild West of Charter Schools (Diane Ravitch's 
  blog)

==========

* Re: More on How to Launch a Mass Movement for Economic
Justice

"Progressives" to salvage Obama's policies--after the
election

In his Nation piece, "How to Launch a Mass Movement for
Economic Justice," William Greider writes that a
labor/liberal coalition has proposed policies intended to
head off more of the compromises with the far right (and his
contemptuous dismissal of progressives) that have
characterized Obama's political behavior in his first term.

According to Greider, "neither the president nor the
Democratic Party much wants to talk about solutions that
sound suspiciously liberal. Mitt Romney is mocked for not
having a coherent plan for economic recovery, but Obama
doesn't have much of one either. "Fairness" is not a
governing strategy. Frequent factory visits are not going to
bring back manufacturing jobs."[and neither is endorsement
of Gay marriage-MM]

So several "progressive" organization, including the AFL-CIO
executive council, the SEIU, the Center for Community
Change, the Economic Policy Institute, the National Council
of La Raza, and the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human
Rights have endorsed  a document called "Prosperity
Economics: Building an Economy for All" that is intended as
a "shadow platform" for the Dems to stand on but only after
the campaign.

Any chance the liberals and labor will be taken seriously by
the "Reelect Obama and the Dems' movement? Greider admits
that they "are trying to walk a delicate line. On the one
hand, they intend to push these comprehensive reform
proposals aggressively on Congress and the White House, no
matter who wins in November. On the other hand, they are
committed to Obama's re-election and anxious to avoid making
problems for him."

So those old- line labor/liberals will continue to play dead
until after the election-when, Greider says without much
conviction, they'll start "to play hardball."

If they weren't ready to play for the past years, I'm
skeptical they will suddenly find religion after election
day. Such is the nature of US politics and its mantra of the
lesser evil.

Read his long piece at
http://www.thenation.com/article/169286/how-launch-mass-movement-economic-justice

Michael Munk

===

* Re: Tidbits - August 12, 2012 = Katrina vanden Heuvel
responds to earlier Tidbits response from Marvin Mandell

Katherine vanden Heuvel defends The Nation which I did not
attack. In a carefully worded statement, she also defends
William Greider's stance on Obama's murderous foreign policy
by saying that he would oppose a bloated military budget,
etc. Many liberals, alas, would also oppose a bloated
military  budget but also support Obama's use of drones and
assassination squads. Not a word about them from
vandenHeuvel.

Marvin Mandell

==========

* Re: Paul Ryan: All You Need to Know

The nomination is a disaster for the country but very
revealing about Romney. Social activists should not rejoice
and think this team is a pushover. After all the activists
in the end lost in Wisconsin. The Republicans have funding
like they have never had before from the 1% and thanks to
the new election rules. Not only can the rich try to buy the
election, many states are passing laws to restrict voters -
a hurdle that intentionally makes it hard to get out the
vote. Indeed there should be a court challenge to such laws
that restrict the right to vote.

It is sobering that in the 21st century the election rules
have come to this. So let us hope that the activists and
others fight to the bitter end to keep the Republicans out
or this team will make George Bush look like a liberal and
the economy and the prestige of the U.S. will go down the
drain.

Laurel MacDowell

==========

* Ryan Oil and Gas connections

I would like to see coverage of these connections starting
with his wife who born into Oklahoma Oil and Gas interests -
and still is - and his support of non-regulated oil and gas
businesses (see House actions) especially oil fracking
services that remain unregulated and unmonitored !!

Will he give us his last ten year's income tax reports???

Did we give  up asking Romney for his income tax reports?

Thanks for your support.

Kay Brown

==========

* Safe States

As Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky stated re: the 2004 election,
if you live in a "Safe State" like New York or California, you
are not endangering Obama's victory by voting for the Green
Party or another third party. See
http://www.chomsky.info/onchomsky/20040526.htm . If you vote
for Obama in one of the safe states, the Democratic leadership
will take your vote as an approval of Obama's imperialist pro-
bank policies.

Dimitri Devyatkin

==========

* Voting - New Forms of Voter Suppression

It appears that in North Carolina if you want to vote for
president and all the candidates of his party, you have to
mark two boxes on your ballot: "President" AND "Straight
Ticket." If you just mark "Straight Ticket," and not mark the
box for president also, your vote will be voided!

That's the word about North Carolina. But it's not a bad idea
for every voter in every state to read the ballot instructions
carefully, and if you're not sure of their meaning, ask one of
the officials to clarify things for you.

In this critical election, you don't want to lose your vote.

Seymour Joseph

==========

* Re: Nine Nobel Peace Laureates Call on NBC to Cancel
"Stars Earn Stripes"

Just what we need, more violence.  You'd think they'd have
figured it out by now!!  Glorify killing...I'm speechless.

Germaine Cook

===

Stars Earn Stripes

I agree with the protest against "Stars Earn Stripes." But
the protest should be extended to the war games created for
computers and game hardware.

Seymour Joseph

==========

* Arizona, the Wild West of Charter Schools

Diane Ravitch's blog
August 15, 2012

http://dianeravitch.net/2012/08/15/arizona-the-wild-west-of-charter-schools/

The Arizona Daily Star reviewed the charter sector and came up
with some amazing and disturbing findings.

The state has 500 plus charter schools, and provides next to
no oversight.

A new charter may get a visit in the first year or two, but
seldom after that.

They are on their own.

There are only 7 people in the state department of education
to oversee the charters, but five of the positions are vacant.

Charter schools are now one-quarter of all schools in the
state, and the federal government (thanks, Arne) is offering
the state $53 million to open 100 more of them.

Some do excellent work, some don't, as is true throughout this
sector.

Some charter leaders pay themselves handsomely, some keep
their finances obscure.

What a strange way to spend the public's money.

By now, after 15 years of free-market education policy,
Arizona ought to be the top scoring state in the nation.

But it's not.

==========

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