Republicans in Wisconsin have introduced fascist legislation to increase penalties for protesting. These bills would impose excessively harsh criminal penalties for trespassing and damage to property when protesting “energy providers” and “critical infrastructure.” This is bad legislation and a threat to our civil liberties. When did we become Russia? Or, more accurately, a corporate dictatorship?Assembly Bill 426 and Senate Bill 386 would expand a 2015 law which makes it a felony to trespass on, or damage, property owned, operated, or leased by an electrical or gas company. The new proposals expand coverage to oil, water, electricity, and ...

“Where free unions and collective bargaining are forbidden, freedom is lost.”President Ronald ReaganOn Labor Day we remembered the sacrifice of union activists to improve the lives of all of us. We should remember that unions and the labor movement helped build the middle class in America. They brought us the weekend, healthcare, retirement, work place safety, and many other employment standards. Unions have also contributed, along with many other social justice advocates, to making “freedom” more than just a platitude. They give some reality to our over-hyped rhetoric on individual liberty. “True individual freedom cannot ...

“Either we limit our population growth, or the natural world will do it for us...”  David Attenborough, British naturalist producer of nature documentaries. “Reproductive rights are an environmental issue.”Center for Biological Diversity There is a cartoon that shows deer in the woods with a sprawling, traffic jammed, polluted city in the background. One of the deer is saying, “Let me get this straight, it is our herd that needs thinning?” The current world population is 7.7 billion and is increasing by 82 million each year. Estimates say it will reach 10.9 billion by the end of the century. Whose herd ...

The best things in life are free. We went to the beach this week. The weather was perfect and the clean, clear water of Lake Superior was not too cold for swimming. I was reminded of how precious the lake is for all of us and how important it is to keep this resource pristine. A perfect summer day by the big lake is priceless.Summer also brings good things from the garden. Rhubarb, strawberries, blueberries, cucumbers, fresh peas, fresh greens, and vine ripened tomatoes that you can't buy in the store at any price. These aren't free. There is a lot of work that goes into raising them, but they taste a lot better than the corporate, shipped-f...

“Alternatives to particular wars are almost never seriously sought and the idea that there might be an alternative to war itself almost never occurs to people” “...in the 21st century it has become patently clear that making war does not create peace, as the case of the two Gulf Wars, the Afghan War, and the Syrian/ISIS war clearly demonstrate.”“War is always a choice and it is always a bad choice.” These quotes are from the World Beyond War (WBW) publication “A Global Security System: An Alternative to War.” This article continues our examination of the WBW's belief that peace is possible if we choose to build an alternative ...