303 results for author: Phil Anderson

ACTIVE CITIZENS MAKE DEMOCRACY WORK

Democracy requires citizens to be involved. It isn't a spectator sport. Too often people think electing a new president or a better legislator will solve our problems. Then they are disappointed when they find out he or she is a just another politician. Little or nothing changes. We want a savior when what really works is citizen involvement. None of the progress we now enjoy came about by accident. None of it happened because the political leadership had vision. It all took decades of work by many people. It took citizens demanding change. Abolition of slavery, woman's suffrage,civil rights, the labor movement and environmental protection are ...

RIGHT-SIZING THE PENTAGON (how to reduce military spending and maintain security)

RIGHT-SIZING THE PENTAGON (how to reduce military spending and maintain security) By Philip Anderson   I believe we can reduce military spending without hurting national security. Reducing the huge cost of our military requires many reforms large and small. It requires reducing waste. We need to take the profit out of war. We need to demilitarize our foreign policy. And we need to “right size” the military. Reduce the waste. Waste is endemic in the military and is the obvious place to begin reducing costs. Waste happens everywhere at every level from large weapons programs to small everyday activities. In my 20 years of military ...

Imagining a Nuclear Free World

Imagining a Nuclear Free World By Phil Anderson John Lennon's song “Imagine” asks us to “imagine all the people living life in peace.” What we imagine shapes the way we see the world and how we behave in the world. August 6th and August 9th are the 70th anniversaries of the U.S bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki using nuclear weapons. As we remember these tragedies, can we imagine a nuclear weapons free world? We created these weapons of mass destruction and are the only nation to ever use them against civilian targets. We should take responsibility for them by actively working for their abolition. Unfortunately, we are still ...

STOP Shopping Til THEY Drop! Family Values Weekend: A new tool for change.

STOP Shopping Til THEY Drop! Family Values Weekend: A new tool for change. By Philip Anderson Progressives are often frustrated by the overwhelming odds against building a better society. Money rules elections. Corporate lobbying trumps public opinion. Voters are apathetic and vote against their own interests. Crazy reactionaries succeed and common sense reforms go nowhere. We organize, march, write letters, contact our legislators, sign petitions, and advocate for the common good seemingly to no avail. Perhaps we need a new tool. A new protest that will demand attention and, perhaps, get better results. A tool that even huge multinationals ...

Taxes are Good

This is a second article promoting website and book “Government is Good, An Unapologetic Defense of a Vital Institution.” Taxes are perhaps the most effective “wedge” issue used by conservatives to keep people voting against their own best interests. On his website Douglas J. Amy, Professor of Politics, Mount Holyoke College does a terrific job countering the conservative obsession with taxes and tax cuts with hard facts and good reasoning. “Most conservative criticisms about the ill-effects of taxes are exaggerated or untrue. Taxes are in fact good – they are dues we pay to enjoy the numerous vital benefits that government provides ...

Government is Good

Government is good and has many successful programs to show! On the other hand, the conservative mantra is that government is too big and needs to be cut. Government is the problem and not the answer. We are better off with the smallest government possible. They have been so successful at this agenda that many “liberal” politicians are afraid to defend successful government programs and the necessary taxes to support vital public infrastructure and services. There is a great website (and book) which addresses this subject in wonderful detail. Government is Good, An Unapologetic Defense of a Vital Institution, http://www.governmentisgood.co...

Rethinking Militarism

We have a culture in this country of violence and militarism. Many of our national myths are based on violence. The six-gun toting cowboy, the tough cop, the military hero, and mafia godfather are typical Hollywood themes. Even our national anthem is all about war and “bombs bursting in air.” Around patriotic holidays, like Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, this culture is promoted with speeches honoring the “sacrifice” of our troops. They died to “defend freedom” and protect our way of life. Implied in these stories is that our many wars were necessary and justified. In our zeal to honor military service we create a mythology of ...

Honor the Fallen Not the Wars

On Memorial Day we remember those who died serving in the military. But remembering their sacrifice should also remind us of the futility and costs of war. We should mourn the fallen without glorifying and promoting war. Too often in eulogizing veterans we unintentionally promote war. The story line is that we owe our freedom to the sacrifices of military veterans in just wars. This is not true, but saying so is unpatriotic. It is not true that all our wars have been necessary, just, or in defense of freedom. Many have been illegal. Most have been about protecting commercial interests, expanding territory, or opposing other ideologies and ...

Protect Our Outdoor Heritage

Looking at the budget debates going on in Wisconsin and nationally it is hard to understand the conservative positions. Their destructive, short- sighted, and counter-productive agendas are simply “penny wise and pound foolish.” Why are they obsessed with cutting successful programs that cost pennies in comparison to the social and economic benefits? I am a member of the North Country Trail Association (NCTA). This non-profit organizes volunteers to build and maintain the North Country National Scenic Trail which runs across Northern Wisconsin. The work we do as volunteers depends on support from the National Park Service which provides the ...

TAXES BUILD COMMUNITIES

Philip Anderson has been working with Duluth, MN activists to organize events for the week of Tax Day. They are planning a teach-in, a rally, and have created the following survey to show REAL people's public spending priorities. Please take the online survey!  It is important that many people take the survey. This will be the message for the April 15 rally.  Congress is doing this.... but people want better priorities! "How would you spend $1 trillion?” www.surveymonkey.com/s/V5LYJQK  Please pass this survey on to your contacts.  Everyone loves to hate taxes but the truth is taxes are good. Taxes are the way we come together as citizens ...