Latin American Deja Vu
Deja vu is French for the feeling that something is strangely familiar. You feel like you are experiencing something that you have already experienced. For anyone even vaguely familiar with the history of U.S. interventions in Latin America, the news about Venezuela should spawn Deja vu. In the words of a song by Vietnam veteran Pat Scanlon,
“I've got a feeling I've been here before
In a jungle in a dirty little war
Young men can die so fast
My God let's not repeat the past
I've got a feeling I've been here before.” *
The U.S. has frequently interv...
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS PART II
III. Strategies for Community Schools
A. “A strong and proven curriculum, engaging students with culturally relevant and challenging material, and offering a robust selection of classes, AP and honors courses, as well as after-school programs in the arts, languages, and ethnic studies, ELL, Special Ed, GED preparation, and job training.”
The curriculum in Community Schools emphasizes real-world learning and community problem-solving skills. These opportunities would be provided by partners in the community--environmental groups, businesses, community gardens, ...
MAKING THE WORLD WORK FOR EVERYONE – A PALE BLUE DOT PART IV
Planet Earth from a distance of 4 billion miles. Photo by Voyager I. Source: NASA/JPL Feb. 1990 (Just below middle of page in orange/brown color band on right)
“We stand today upon the fulcrum of history, a crossroads at midnight with a blood moon rising. Down one road lies fire, flood, famine, failure and the final triumph of greed. What awaits down the other road is unknown, terra incognita, a mystery to be solved one gentle step at a time. As a species, we tend to recoil from what we do not know, often choosing the awful alternative simply because it is ...
Water is Prosperity – Part II
Last week I wrote about how water is life. This week I hope to show how important water is for all of us to not only survive, but also to thrive.
In my Capitol office hangs an old re-election poster for former Governor Gaylord Nelson. The founder of Earth Day, Governor Nelson was one of Wisconsin’s fiercest advocates for our environment. He was also a pragmatist – he understood not only how important clean water was, but he also acknowledged its importance for our economy.
Milk, cheese, beer, and paper -- these are quintessential Wisconsin products. Each of these ...
‘IF YOU ARE NOT OUTRAGED YOU ARE NOT PAYING ATTENTION” Action Alert
Trump's declaration of emergency is a blatant attempt to bypass congressional control over federal spending. Having failed to get the money he wanted to build the wall, both from the prior Republican controlled House and the latest budget compromise, he is illegally trying to bypass Congress. This is illegal because no actual emergency exists on the border.
This is dangerous because a declaration of emergency gives Trump essentially dictatorial powers that can be used to do much more than build a border wall. Given Trump's known impulsive, racist, authoritarian behavi...
There is Hope
What are the legal limits to using corporate money to finance presidential campaigns? Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez shows the broken campaign finance laws. Watch the video here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h810bO-4LIs#action=share
A HISTORY OF THE WALL
The first wall between Mexico and United States was not built to keep out people. It was built to keep out cattle.
The first federally funded border fence between Mexico and United States went up in 1911. It was mean to keep out the ticks that came with the cattle from Mexico.
Mexican cattle wandered over the southern border with “Texas fever” caused by ticks. This destroyed many cattle on both sides of the border. This increased the price of beef.
A barbed-wire fence was put up but did not help very much. There have been repeated outbreaks of Texas fever, ...
GREEN NEW DEAL RESOLUTION
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortex and Senator Ed Markey released a non-binding resolution that would “recognize the duty of the federal government to create a Green New Deal.”
The phrase “Green New Deal” quickly trended on social media, and the resolution garnered support from dozens of Democratic members of Congress, including Democratic presidential candidates.
Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is encouraged that Green New Deal supporters have raised the urgency of climate change in the media and within the halls of Congress. “The Green New Deal has clearly ...
ACTION ALERT
I believe Trump’s declaration is a serious threat to democratic rule of law. It must be defeated and citizens must immediately take action.
We cannot wait for the law suits or the Democrats in the House to dither and compromise. The declaration is the real emergency and requires a no-compromise, all-hands-on-deck, public response.
“IF YOU ARE NOT OUTRAGED YOU ARE NOT PAYING ATTENTION” Action Alert.
Trump's declaration of emergency is a blatant attempt to bypass congressional control over federal spending. Having failed to get the money he wanted to build ...
THE UNIVERSAL ECONOMY UNIT XIX: MONEY IS A CONCEPT – NOT A THING
Money is a concept – not a thing. We have the physical resources – the matter, the energy, the man power, the machine power, the knowledge – to rebuild our infrastructure, to repair our crumbling roads. We have the physical resources – the matter, the energy, the man power, the machine power, the knowledge – to provide healthcare for all. We have the physical resources, the knowledge, to put an end to the use of global warming fossil fuels and switch to safe alternative energies. We have the physical resources, the knowledge, to provide food for everyone on the ...