337 results for author: Phil Anderson

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 ...

Options for Budget Solutions

Wisconsin Republicans claim that the state is broke and they have to make “hard choices” to balance the budget. They have no choice but to cut school funding and other social programs. Whenever I hear someone say we have no options, I get suspicious. Either they don’t want to see options or they lack the ability to see alternatives. There are always options. Better, more creative leadership would “think outside the box” and provide a range of options to solve problems. If the Republicans would take off the ideological blinders they might see some of them. May I suggest a few budget options? Collect unpaid taxes from the deadbeats! ...

Divide and Conquer Works in Wisconsin

This week Wisconsin became a right to work state. This was a “given” when reactionary Republicans took control of state government. Legislation to eliminate prevailing wages is next. These laws require public contractors to compete by having better management or efficiency, not just lower wages. This is another attack on unions and the public good. Ironically, this week the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a campaign finance reform advocacy group, released figures on union contributions to Governor Walker. Unions representing engineers, police, firefighters, plumbers, carpenters and other trades contributed contributed $83,000 to Walker's ...

Normal Relations With Cuba Long Overdue

This is the second in a two part series on Cuba by Philip Anderson. The first article in this series can be found archived under the author’s name. Mr. Anderson is a twenty year veteran of the U.S. military. Establishing normal diplomatic and economic relations with Cuba is long overdue. For over 50 years we have bullied and threatened this small, poor nation for no good reason. Not only has our animosity toward Cuba been irrational and unnecessary, it has been a complete failure. President Obama should be praised and supported for finally considering improved relations. Unfortunately, we still are blinded by our hubris. The tone set by the ...

Cuba – A Historic Perspective

This is the first article in a two part series on Cuba by Philip Anderson. Mr. Anderson is a twenty year veteran of the U.S. military. American involvement in Cuba begins long before Castro and the current socialist government. To understand the harm our government's actions have brought to the people of Cuba requires looking at this history. To understand the present, we must look at the past. All through the 1800s many Americans advocated annexing, buying, or otherwise expanding U.S. influence in Cuba. Commercial gain, increasing trade, and expanding slave territory were the primary motivations. By the 1890s, the U.S. was a dominant ...

Hypocrisy is Not Good Diplomacy

It was recently in the news that Cuba is going to release 50 “political” prisoners as part of normalizing diplomatic relations. Cuba must reform its evil ways, but we can continue ours. Ironically we still have 122 political “detainees” in Guantanamo Cuba. Most of them have not been charged or convicted of anything. Of these, 54 have been cleared for release but are still being held. Estimates of other U.S. “political” prisoners range from hundreds to thousands. We certainly have many “prisoners of conscience” even though they may not have been officially convicted of a political offense. For example, Greg Boertje-Obed, a Duluth ...

Veterans Day Reality

On Veterans Day I am reminded of the many popular misconceptions about veterans. We have an almost cult hero worship of veterans and their “sacrifice” for “freedom.” The truth is veterans are just people. They reflect a cross section of our society. They have the same mix of dedication, patriotism, and competence as other public employees. They also exhibit the same prejudices, character flaws, and foibles as the general population. The periodic scandals (rape, torture, killing of civilians, sexual harassment, cheating on competency tests) clearly illustrate this point. It is a myth that we owe our freedom to veterans. Our many wars were ...