Stand Up! Take Action! Vote!
by Chris Borland
People,
Did you know ARCO gas was BP?
The very LEAST we can all do to protest BP’s reckless and deliberate ignorance of it’s environmental responsibilities and ethical and legal duties as a corporate entity is to boycott ARCO and other BP brands. There certainly are plenty of other places to buy gas, etc.
Here’s a list of BP companies:
Norman Solomon will be on C-Span “Washington Journal” tomorrow (Sunday), 7:45 a.m. ET, talking about Obama and progressives.
Video of his appearance on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” will be posted soon after it happens Sunday morning:
By Mary Nichols-Rhodes
June 2, 2010
“Another world is possible. Another U.S. is necessary. Another Detroit is underway.”
Months and months of organizing for the U.S. Social Forum (USSF) will soon result in the synthesis of ideas, positive energy, and movement building of enormous proportion! According to the USSF site, “the US Social Forum (USSF) is a movement building process. It is not a conference but it is a space to come up with the peoples’ solutions to the economic and ecological crisis. The USSF is the next most important step in our struggle to build a powerful multi-racial, multi-sectoral, inter-generational, diverse, inclusive, internationalist movement that transforms this country and changes history.”
Gail Russell Chaddock
June 11, 2010
Take Action: End the Afghanistan war in 10 minutes or less
Published by The Christian Science Monitor
Congress faces a formidable summer agenda on issues ranging from an overhaul of financial regulation to oversight of the Gulf oil spill. But nothing is as wrenching for the Democratic majority as upcoming votes to fund the surge of US forces in Afghanistan.
Most of the more than $1 trillion to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan passed the Congress as “emergency” spending–that is, funded off-budget. In the Bush years, these were typically big, bipartisan votes, with Republican votes a given.
National Nurses United/California Nurses Association
June 11, 2010
Join PDA’s Healthcare for All Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here .
Published by California Nurses Association
The 155,000 Registered Nurses of National Nurses United (NNU) today salute and honor their brave colleagues of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) for their historic decision to stage a major strike in defense of the patient care and safety standards at their hospitals.
David Swanson
June 11, 2010, Charlottesville, NC
Take Action: Eat lunch for peace—become a brown-bagger
Local Focus: Cost of War to Sonoma County
During the past five years since I moved back to Charlottesville, Virginia, I had yet to observe the slightest violent incident, prior to the recent spree of horrific mass murders. There was crime, but I hadn’t ever seen it. I had only heard about it in the local media. First there was a young woman picked up hitch hiking and murdered. That was many months ago now. Then there was a man from Charlottesville attacked out of the blue up in the mountains, not actually in Charlottesville. Most recently, a University of Virginia student was alleged to have killed his girlfriend; this made national news, apparently because they were both Lacrosse players.
Conservation Council for Hawai’i
June 11, 2010, Honolulu, HI
Join PDA’s Stop Global Warming/Environmental Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here .
A broad coalition of elected officials and community leaders, representing over 100,000 residents throughout Hawai’i, are calling for the U.S. Senate to pass a comprehensive climate and clean energy bill this year. Hawai’i imports about 45 million barrels annually and burns over 5 million gallons of oil per day to meet roughly 90 percent of its current energy needs. It costs nearly $10 million daily to buy this oil—money that simply leaves the state. On average, each Hawai’i resident produces approximately 18 tons of carbon dioxide each year.
On the May 26 Amend to Suspend Corporate Personhood call, participants heard from David Cobb of Movetoamend.org and John Bonifaz of freespeechforpeople.org as each made their case for amending the constitution to limit corporate personhood. We discuss the three tracks PDA will follow: Track 1–deny corps all personhood rights; Track 2–Deny corps all rights under the first amendment; Track 3–deny corps first amendment rights ONLY as relates to elections.
Next Amend to Suspend Conference Call is Wednesday, June 30: https://www.thedatabank.com/dpg/309/personalopt1.asp?formid=meet&c=2503667
Wednesday, June 9. 2010
Reactions to yesterday’s election results include exhilarating highs and disappointing lows. Local & Statewide election results will not be certified until July 9. Ballots are still being counted. Semi-official results are posted here .
In Marcy Winograd’s note today to her supporters she states in regard to her lost Congressional bid, “We are building a movement — and change will come.” And that is the theme of tonight’s program at our regular monthly meeting, as we feature:
Howard Zinn: You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train
By Marcy Winograd
June 9, 2010, Marina del Rey, CA
Jane Harman won the primary in California’s 36th district with 58.79% of the vote. Marcy Winograd received a respectable 41.21%. Marcy sent the following note to her campaign supporters this morning:
Dear Friends & Supporters,
Thank you for everything—for your generous donations, for your nationwide phone banking, for your tireless precinct walking in our district. We are building a movement—and change will come.
Harvey Wasserman
June 9, 2010
Take Action: Tell Congress – End our dependence on dirty energy—we want a carbon tax with revenue returned to households!
Published by Common Dreams
As BP’s ghastly gusher assaults the Gulf of Mexico and so much more, a tornado has forced shut the Fermi2 atomic reactor at the site of a 1966 melt-down that nearly irradiated the entire Great Lakes region.
Steve Cobble
June 7, 2010
Tomorrow is Today—TAKE ACTION NOW— Join the phone bank for Marcy!
Published by The Huffington Post.
Just a little over 2 days left to say yes to one of the only real progressive Democratic challengers running this year.
Just a few hours left to go to www.winograd4congress.com to make a donation, volunteer to make a few phone calls, or find out where to vote.
By Norman Solomon
Published on Friday, June 4, 2010 by the Marin Independent Journal
http://www.marinij.com/marinvoice/ci_15225900
In this state, the Democratic and Republican parties rarely agree on anything — but both oppose Proposition 14. Although its misleading ballot title promises to increase the “right to participate in primary elections,” the measure actually imposes major new limits on voters.
By eliminating party primaries, Proposition 14 would deny all political parties — and their voters — the right to choose a nominee to run in a general election.
Instead, the top two vote-getters on a single all-inclusive primary ballot would square off in the general election, regardless of party affiliation.
In the process, the measure — an amendment to the state constitution — would exclude small parties from the November ballot.
The Peace & Justice Center of Sonoma County will be dedicating the next peace vigil – Friday, June 4th, 5:30 to 6:30, Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa – to condemning Israel’s killing of international human rights activists who were trying to deliver aid to the imprisoned people of Gaza. Israel sent armed commandos onto a civilian ship in international waters – an illegal act which culminated in civilian deaths.* The Center, while condemning all acts of violence, takes particular issue with violent acts committed in our names and with our tax dollars. The United States, in both word and deed, through Republican and Democratic administrations, continues to fund and support extreme and disproportionate acts of violence from Israel, of which the current action is but one. Come tell Obama that “regret” is not enough. Hold Israel accountable.
Here’s the link for live streaming of KPFK Radio, which will air an interview with Marcy Winograd and Norman Solomon on Wednesday at 8 a.m. (West Coast time). The focus: policy toward Israel/Palestine, the killing of people on the Gaza aid flotilla and the record of Congresswoman Jane Harman (who was invited but declined).
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… Or the next year, or the year after that
I’m going to keep this short. The $33 B (and increasing!) war escalation supplemental vote is coming this week, and PDAers with our allies have been leading the charge to get “No!” votes in Congress.
If you haven’t contacted your member of Congress recently about a “No” vote against this escalation, now is the time. Congress will vote this week. Click here.
Ever since PDA launched nearly six years ago, we have raised our voice on behalf of ending the occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan. PDA has never been confused about the need to end these occupations. We have never slackened our advocacy, whether a Republican or a Democrat ran the Administration. We have kept up the push to end these wars, even when we stood mostly alone. Now, we must stand up and demand a “No” vote on this massive war escalation supplemental.
And earlier this year, PDA launched our very strategic series of Brown Bag Lunch Vigils in front of Congressional offices (more than 100 each month!) to keep the street heat on. Dennis Kucinich characterized the vigils as one of the most useful peace projects going on right now.
Norman Solomon
June 1, 2010
When Israel attacked the Gaza aid flotilla, Congresswoman Jane Harman was engaged in a parallel assault. Israel’s government relied on the efficacy of violence; Harman’s campaign was counting on the power of paid media. In both cases, the targets were advocates of human rights for Palestinian people.
Brandishing guns and stun grenades, in international waters, Israeli commandos rappelled from a helicopter and boarded from a fast-moving boat onto the flotilla’s largest ship. The mission was to halt a Gaza-bound expedition carrying 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid.
The mission of Harman’s campaign strategists—targeting her progressive opponent with a slick TV commercial—was to achieve a related goal in California’s 36th congressional district. Stopping the Gaza flotilla and stopping the congressional campaign of Marcy Winograd are similar agenda items.
Help elect Winograd — join the virtual phone bank!
Remembering. Learning. Changing the Reality.
Healthcare NOT Warfare
“If other eyes grow dull, other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remain to us.” Gen. John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic wrote in his general orders prior to the first observance of Memorial Day on May 30, 1868.
Are the words above any less true if spoken about the struggle to stop funding more war, or for healthcare for all, than when spoken about the sacrifice and courage of soldiers? This Memorial Day, let’s pause to recall all of the heroes who fight with every ounce of energy and often with tremendous human suffering to end the great injustices of our day.
Progressive Democrats Sonoma County endorsed the following candidates running for local office in the June 2010 election:
Pam Torliatt – Sonoma County Supervisor, 2nd District
Debora Fudge – Sonoma County Supervisor, 4th District
Jamie Thistlethwaite – Superior Court Judge, Office #3
In addition, the committee issued endorsements in state-wide races for:
Interview from Friday May 25th 2010. Thom speaks with Tim Carpenter, David Pakman, and Chris Collins all live at WHMP, plus anything goes Friday.
David Swanson, WarIsACrime.org
May 29, 2010
Take Action: Tell Congress: No Money for War
Published by AfterDowningStreet.org
Sixty-six congressional candidates and 24 national organizations are opposing any more funding for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, no matter what unrelated measures are packaged into the same bill, and no matter whether the bill appears likely to pass or not. This position contrasts strongly with that of most incumbent congress members who “oppose” and “criticize” the wars.
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE COLLECTED STORIES
Join PDA’s Stop Global Warming/Environmental Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here.
May 25, 2010
Dear PDA and Progressive Allies
Not even the massive oil slick growing in the Gulf of Mexico has been able to divert attention from SB 1070, the outrageous new law signed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on April 24.
In this timely episode of The Agitator: Voices of PDA, we focus on the thorny subject of immigration reform.
We are an affiliated chapter of Progressive Democrats of America (PDA)
MOVIE NIGHT!
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
NOTE: Early start time for Wednesday’s meeting, in order that we may enjoy Movie Night and still have time for an endorsement meeting to follow.
PDSonoma meets the 2nd Wednesday of every month except December.
New Members and Guests Always Welcome!
Refreshments can be ordered and enjoyed in our meeting room. Please arrive early if you wish to order refreshments.
Healthcare advocates from fourteen states met in Wayne, Penn., April 10, 2010. The following Declaration is a result of the meeting. Add your name to the Declaration! PDA is planning actions around the country when our goal of 25,000 signatures is met.
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