Tidbits - June 21, 2011

* Re: AARP Supports Cuts in Social Security Benefits. Wait,
  What? (Chuck Idelson)
* Re: What Exactly Is the War Powers Act and Is Obama
  Really Violating It? (Jean Damu, Frank Chadwick)
* It Started in Wisconsin: Labor Unity, Teachers, and the
  Prospects for a New Labor Upsurge - Chicago - June 22
* Query - public culture support by labor and socialist
  parties (Fred Lonidier)
* Protesting War Criminals When They Converge on NYC in
  September 2011 (World Can't Wait)
* Maudelle Shirek is 100!
* Re: A Brief History of Opposition to Public-Sector
  Unionism (Cyril Robinson)
* Re: War Resisters Inject Truth into Military Recruitment 
  (Per Fagereng)
* Re: Get Radical: Raise Social Security (Kim Scipes)
* Re: The Locavore's Dilemma- Readers' Responses (Dorinda 
  Moreno, Harry Hamil and Jane Power)
* March to Protect Blair Mountain (Sandro Portelli and 
  Moderator's Response)
* Re: History Of Water Availability In The Rockies Shows
  Trouble Ahead (John Allison)

==========

* Re: AARP Supports Cuts in Social Security Benefits. Wait,
What?

They have apparently freaked out over all the angry calls
they have received, and issued this statement.

Chuck Idelson

===

AARP Has Not Changed Its Position on Social Security
Reaffirms that program must be strengthened to maintain
critical benefits

June 17, 2011

http://www.aarp.org/about-aarp/press-center/info-06-2011/aarp-has-not-changed-its-position-on-social-security.html

==========

* Re: What Exactly Is the War Powers Act and Is Obama
Really Violating It?

Essentially in its' entire history the US Congress has
declared war only five times; the War of 1812, the Mexican
War, against Spain in Cuba, WWI and WWII. [Technically upon
entering WWII Congress declared war against 6 Axis powers,
pretty much all on the same day.]

Many historians argue the first "presidential war" was
conducted by Roosevelt in the North Atlantic in successful
efforts to aid Great Britain in the runup to our entering
WWII.

Numerous biographers of Army General Douglas McArthur
register his dismay (albeit delight) at Truman's declaration
of war against North Korea without consulting congress or
the military theater commanders.

Therefore congress long ago abandoned its role in overseeing
this nations' participation in war. It's difficult to see how
they are going to slip under the ropes and retrieve the
towel thrown into the ring so long ago.

Jean Damu

====

With respect to Marian Wang's column, and the issue in
general, I find President Obama's argument that Libya does
not constitute hostilities because drone strikes do not put
U.S. personnel at direct risk is absurd, and I find myself
angry at the administration for, among other things,
managing to find something I can actually agree with John
Boehner about -- this really doesn't pass the "straight-face
test." Why? Two reasons.

First, would we consider ourselves in a state of hostilities
with a foreign power conducting unmanned drone strikes
against us? Of course we would.

Second, and more tellingly, by the administration's curious
definition (no US personnel placed in direct danger by the
unmanned attacks), launching nuclear-armed ICBMs at a state
would not constitute "hostilities" for the simple (but
irrelevant) reason that ICBMs are unmanned.

Frank Chadwick

==========

* It Started in Wisconsin: Labor Unity, Teachers, and the
Prospects for a New Labor Upsurge

Opening Reception and Plenary of the Working Class Studies
Association Conference

Wednesday, June 22, 6:30-9:00PM

University of Illinois-Chicago Student Center 
East 750 S.Halsted Street 3rd floor Conference Center 
Chicago, Illinois

The recently formed Labor & Working-Class Studies Project at
the University of Wisconsin is organizing a plenary session
that will reflect on what the ongoing struggle of public-
sector workers in Wisconsin offers for the possibility of a
larger offensive upsurge in the American labor movement.

Speakers include:
* Jack Bernfeld, AFSCME Local 40
* Will Jones, historian, U. of Wisconsin-Madison
* Sarah Lloyd, dairy farmer and President of Columbia County
Farmers Union
* Adrienne Pagac, U. of Wisconsin Teaching Assistants
Association
* Jacque Pokorney, SEIU Healthcare Wisconsin
* Tonieh Williams of I Love My Public Schools (Milwaukee)

http://www.ler.illinois.edu/labor/wcsaconference.html

Contacts: Jack Metzgar at [log in to unmask] 
Maria Dokes at [log in to unmask]

==========

* Query - public culture support by labor and socialist
parties

Colleagues,

I am in need of a bibliography or other sources for accounts
of public culture support by labor and socialist parties.
Unlike the USA, most countries support the arts with public
funding and, where such parties are or have been in power,
some of that goes to labor cultural institutions and
activities.  This, I know, is especially true of countries
in the northwestern Europe.  I have found bits and pieces
about visual arts, theater, etc but no comprehensive history
or views let alone analysis of what a full range of their
activities and goals. I have been able  Unfortunately, my
reading ability is limited to English.

I have been interested in this for some time but now has a
more urgent motivation as, after more than three decades of
making and showing documentary photo/text installation
artworks for, by and about the labor movement on the border
here, I have a show now in Berlin with some of that work in
it.  I would both like to try and get a labor audience to
the show as well as connect up with union cultural activists
abroad as well as any artists working consistently with
class struggle: www.silberkuppe.org

I welcome any ideas you may have and, by all means, if there
are culture workers with a similar interest in the working
class, feel free to put them in touch with me.

Fred Lonidier
Visual Arts Professor
Member UC/AFT & CLC Delegate

==========

* Protesting War Criminals When They Converge on NYC in
September 2011

As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, we are beginning
to learn of the arrival in NYC for various conferences and
assorted speaking gigs of major US war criminals -
characters such as Donald Rumsfeld, John Yoo and Michael
Chertoff.  This may well prove to be the biggest gathering
of such characters ever.

These are the people who brought us ten years of the "war on
terror." These people should be indicted and prosecuted for
their crimes against humanity.  The brutality with which the
US government exercises its ?war on terror? is condemned
both by the court of international public opinion and by the
principles of international law governing human rights. The
expanding wars of aggression, beginning with Afghanistan and
Iraq,  and the torture of detainees are clearly defined as
war crimes by the UN Declaration of Human Rights, the Geneva
Conventions, the Convention against Torture and other
treaties to which the United States is a signatory.

People of conscience must insist on accountability for the
actions of U.S. officials. The status of the United States
as a major world power does not make its officials less
accountable for their crimes than those of the former
Yugoslavia, Cambodia or any other country.

Check the calendar on www.WarCriminalsWatch.org frequently
as we update September appearances.

Please join now in planning protests.  Contact
[log in to unmask] or call 866-973-4463

==========

* Maudelle Shirek is 100!

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F2011%2F06%2F17%2FBAI91JUVRT.DTL

One thing you should never do around Maudelle Shirek - aside
from vote Republican or tell her she can't do something - is
reach for the salt.

"She'll grab it out of your hand and give you a lecture why
it's bad for you," said Barbara Lubin, her longtime friend
and fellow veteran of Berkeley politics. "That woman has not
had salt in 50 years."

The godmother of East Bay progressive politics turns 100
today. And although she now has dementia and spends much of
her time sleeping, Shirek watches C-SPAN and CNN every day
and "tears into the right-wingers," said Berkeley City
Councilman Kriss Worthington.

Shirek served 20 years on the City Council, and when she
left office at age 92, she was the oldest publicly elected
official in the United States.

Full article:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F2011%2F06%2F17%2FBAI91JUVRT.DTL

==========

* Re: A Brief History of Opposition to Public-Sector
Unionism

I would add that police, in terms of class, come from the
working class. They come from working-class neighborhoods,
the same class and neighborhoods as the hoods they chase and
arrest, that is, police and "criminals" come from the same
neighborhoods and class.The Boston police, by joining the
labor movement, committed a political act and took class
sides. Normally, the police were seen and used to control
workers, not to join them. This turnabout was seen by the
capitalist class as threatening their control of workers, as
it was. To my knowledge, in the US, this is the sole
instance in which the police have sided with workers
although my research have found other instances.

Cyril Robinson, professor emeritus, 
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL: 

==========

* Re: War Resisters Inject Truth into Military Recruitment

When you join the military you entrust your life to whatever
politician is in the White House. Considering the current
bunch of Republican candidates plus Obama, a person would have to be crazy to enlist.

Per Fagereng

==========

* Re: Get Radical: Raise Social Security

Please give me a fucking break!  It may look "radical" to
the NYT, but it's only because they and the rest of the
mainstream media has swung so far to the right that this
appears "radical."

If you're going to pass on such "radical" thinking, please
warn your readers beforehand!

Thanks!

Kim Scipes
Chicago

==========

* Re: The Locavore's Dilemma- Readers' Responses

Thanks for everyone whose commitment for 'Growing Food and
Justice' leads the way in strengthening this movement in
farm and gardening for nurturing communities and families
toward a healthy future. And, appreciation to Portside for
posting these points of view that summon creative uses for
the empty lots and 'nooks' where urban areas are utilized
practically toward improving the food chain.

Best,

Dorinda Moreno

====

I, too, found the comments informative, on point and great
critiques of an op-ed that clearly reflects the bias and
shallow thinking of much of Harvard's faculty.

Unfortunately, the link to the article in the Boston Globe
did not show any opportunity to comment on the original op-
ed.  I am seeing this more and more with New York Times
owned publications.
 
Harry Hamil
Black Mountain Farmers Market

====

Wait a bit -- urban sprawl is hardly the only way (and is
far from the best way) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by
increasing population density. There's always the
development of employment where people live (read "in the
suburbs"). Then, in some cities (here in Vancouver, among
other places), local governments have developed a policy of
increasing density not only by permitting construction of
slightly taller buildings (six or eight stories, say) but
also -- and more interestingly -- encouraging the conversion
of large old houses into three- or four-family condominiums
and the construction of small dwellings for one or two
people at the alley end of deep residential lots.

And wait a bit more -- growing food in back yards or patios
can be valuable even if it doesn't add up to a complete food
supply for the city. Through the summer months, we have a
weekday corner market where local residents can sell food
they've grown that exceeds their own family needs. No, it's
not enough to feed the whole neighborhood, but who cares?
It's good local food, mostly grown withing walking distance.

Finally, what about the emerging Detroit model? Cities that
have actually lost population may have space once occupied
by housing that can (by working through a thicket of ethical
and legal issues) be converted to community or neighborhood
plots.

Despite its hip title and heavy-duty statistics, "The
Locavore's Dilemma" seems to me kinda 20th-century in its
all-or-nothing approach.

Jane Power
Vancouver

P.S. I won't even mention the well-known (except, evidently,
to the writer of the article) reductions in greenhouse gas
emissions that we could achieve by eating less meat and by
growing less corn for industry.

==========

* March to Protect Blair Mountain

Dear friends,
how come I didn't see anything on Portside about the march
on Blair Mountain, WVa, june 10-11? It was an important and
beautiful event.

Sandro Portelli

Moderator's Response - Portside ran a number of posts about
the March on Blair Mountain.

* Hundreds Begin 50 Mile March to Protect Blair Mountain -
June 6, 2011
http://lists.portside.org/cgi-bin/listserv/wa?A2=PORTSIDE;f9bc7ad3.1106a

* Friday Nite Videos - June 3, 2011
http://lists.portside.org/cgi-bin/listserv/wa?A2=PORTSIDE;a3f19903.1106a

* The Blair Mountain Project - May 23, 2011
http://lists.portside.org/cgi-bin/listserv/wa?A2=portside;e6bec64.1105d

==========

* Re: History Of Water Availability In The Rockies Shows
Trouble Ahead

Actually Monsanto has filed a patent on water itself.  US
patent laws grant the rights to any existing product to that
party first filing. As no other party has previously filed,
Monsanto is expected to be granted these rights. Still to be
decided is whether the water in your body belongs to you, or
whether your must either pay Monsanto for the use of their
water, or dehydrate yourself and return Monsanto's property.

John Allison

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