paradox of texas republican party
according to texas am political scientist harvey tucker, there is strong positive relationship between voter turnout and democratic party vote for governor, since 1970 when republicans began running competitive elections for governor, dems have won all but one election when turnout was at least 30% and reps have won all but one elections when turnout was less than 30%... rep gubernatorial candidates when big when turnout is small, bush was elected in '94 with 53.5% of vote and he was re-elected in '98 with 68% of vote, however, in each election he was only supported by 18% of age-eligible voters in state, his large majority in latter instance was result of keeping turnout low rather... accordingly, greater number of votes texas rep gubernatorial candidate receives, greater the probability dem candidate will win... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Facing South - 8/12/04
F A C I N G S O U T H A progressive Southern news report August 12, 2004 * Issue 86 _ INSTITUTE INDEX * Who Is Watching? Number of government surveillance programs currently in operation: 14 Year that Congress voted to de-fund the Total Information Awareness surveillance program due to civil liberties concerns: 2003 Year that the Pentagon admitted it planned to continue TIA-like activities ... outside public view: 2004 Number of Florida residents a test-run of the MATRIX database program flagged as having a statistical likelihood of being terrorists: 120,000 Estimated value of contracts that will be given to companies for anti-terror projects each year until 2010, in billions: $150 Number of lobbyists hired by corporations to secure homeland security contracts: 569 Number of communities that have passed resolutions opposing the Patriot Act and other unconstitutional surveillance programs: 344 Sources on file at the Institute for Southern Studies. _ DATELINE: THE SOUTH * Top Stories Around the Region ACLU DECRIES SURVEILLANCE-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX The government is rapidly increasing its ability to monitor average Americans by tapping into the growing amount of consumer data being collected by the private sector, according to a report released by the American Civil Liberties Union. The government has always recruited informers to help convict criminals, but today that recruitment is being computerized, automated, and used against innocent individuals on a massive scale that is unprecedented in the history of our nation, the ACLU's director said. (Common Dreams, 8/9) http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0809-07.htm ARMY GIVES IRAQ CONTRACT TO VIRGINIA COMPANY INVOLVED IN JAIL SCANDAL The U.S. Army announced the award of a no-bid contract worth up to $23 million to Virginia-based CACI International Inc. for private interrogators to gather intelligence in Iraq. The contract came just as the Interior Department was preparing to cancel the existing contract with CACI, which came under scrutiny earlier this year after one of its interrogators was cited for involvement in the sexual humiliation of Iraqi captives at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison. (Los Angeles Times, 8/5) www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-contract5aug05,1,3952058.story BEACH CLOSURES FROM POLLUTION INCREASE The number of days that beaches closed or posted warnings because of pollution rose sharply in 2003 due to more rainfall, increased monitoring and tougher standards. There were 18,284 days of beach closures and advisories nationwide in 2003, an increase of 51 percent or 6,206 days from 2002, according to the 14th annual beach report by the Natural Resources Defense Council. (Associated Press, 8/6) http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=storycid=624ncid=624e=4u=/ap/20040806/ap_on_sc/beach_quality_3 PRISON/AIDS LINK HITS AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITIES As health specialists continue to grapple with AIDS, the black community faces a complex social issue: the link between high rates of imprisonment among African-Americans and high rates of H.I.V. and AIDS. (New York Times, 8/6) http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040806/ZNYT04/408060357/1002/BUSINESS PENTAGON: HALLIBURTON FAILED TO ACCOUNT FOR $1.8 BILLION Pentagon auditors have concluded that Halliburton Co. failed to adequately account for more than $1.8 billion of work in Iraq and Kuwait. The amount represents 43 percent of the $4.18 billion that Houston-based Halliburton's Kellogg Brown Root unit has billed the Pentagon to feed and house troops in the region, the newspaper said. (Reuters, 8/11) http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNewsstoryID=5933577 BORDER PATROL GETS MORE POWER TO DEPORT The Department of Homeland Security said today it will speed up deportations of certain illegal immigrants from countries other than Mexico to improve U.S. border security. In the past, these would have been sent to an immigration court where cases take an average of one year to be processed. Now, these immigrants will be immediately returned to their home nation. (Reuters, 8/10) http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2728818 DEMOCRATIC WOMEN GAIN GROUND IN THE SOUTH While the Democratic Party fights to regain ground in the South, a growing cadre of Democratic women are winning races here. Hailing from the right wing of the party, Democrats like Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana meld charm with conservative politics and a killer political instinct. (The Atlantic, 9/04) http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200409/starr LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AIMS TO CREATE LARGEST CIVIL RIGHTS ARCHIVE With a goal of creating the world's largest archive of firsthand accounts of the civil rights movement, the Library of Congress is conducting a 35-city, 70-day bus tour to mark the 40th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. The Voices of Civil Rights bus tour traces the route of the 1960s Freedom Riders,
Re: Greens For Nader Update: Rigged Convention Divides Green Party (Sign and Forward This)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/11/04 3:03 AM At 1:03 AM -0400 8/11/04, Michael Hoover wrote: of course, my point was that nader people have not - and will not - raise equal protection matter (although they'll - no doubt, and rightly so - complain about being exluded from prez debates)... Have you actually looked into all the lawsuits that the Nader campaigns have filed? Here are a couple of lawsuits (probably among many more) that the Nader campaigns this year and in the part have filed, singly or jointly with other parties: the 2004 Texas General Election and all subsequent General Elections in Texas, and the facts and circumstances relating thereto, are illegal and unconstitutional, in that they are violative of the rights of the Plaintiffs under the First and Fourteenth Amendments to blockquote1. This is a civil action for declaratory and injunctive relief arising under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiffs challenge the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's requirement blockquoteOhio had authority to list the name of presidential candidate Ralph Nader on the November 2000 ballot without his Green Party affiliation, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday. Ohio officials said the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling upholds the state's position that it has authority to impose reasonable requirements for ballot listings to ensure orderly, fair elections. The Green Party and Nader had argued that keeping the party's designation off the ballot violated their constitutional rights of free speech, free association and equal protection of law. As a matter of fact, in his writing, Nader indicted violations of the equal protection clause as early as in 1958 in the context of noting the court's turning a blind eye to them: The Illinois law was challenged by the Progressive Party just before the 1948 elections. The case reached the U.S. Supreme Court where it was argued that the statute's disproportionate favoring of rural counties violated the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. In a 6-3 decision, the court disagreed and upheld the law. Writing the dissent, Justice Douglas stated: The notion that one group can be granted greater voting strength than another is hostile to our standards for popular representative government. He was referring to the fact that 25,000 signatures from 50 of the least populous counties could form a new party while the same number from 49 counties with 87 percent of the registered voters could not. . . . stand corrected re. reference to 14th amendment, although none of above addresses point i was making, they're all *within* states, not *among* them.. texas example is about differential filing deadlines between parties and independent candidates in texas, not differential deadlines throughout states... penn example is about absence of waiver for filing fee in penn (other states make allowance for such, thus, to not do so could be determined 'unreasonable' under 83 supreme court decision btw: 83 supreme court decision allows for differential definition of 'reasonableness'... ohio example is about differential number of petition signatures needed in ohio, party vs independent candidate... re. illinois example in 58 nader co-authored article, douglas dissent refers to differential number of signatures among state's counties, interestingly, this does begin to get at my point if douglass critique is applied *among* the states, similar to warren's 64 majority opinion in _reynolds v sims_ (case from alabama, if memory serves correctly) holding that one-person one-vote apportionment principle applied to state senates as well as to state lower-houses, if so, similar *principle* could also apply to u.s. senate irrespective of 1787 constitutional arrangement, same for douglass dissent if one considers differential numbers in various states (which could be addressed with use of percentage since states do have different size populations)... many technical/procedural/justice problems arise from 1787 constitutional language assigning each state authority to determine times, places, manner of holding elections... Sorry, I meant to write the Liberty Party. Although its vote never exceeded 3% of the votes cast in a presidential election, the party did further political abolitionism. In closely contested state and local elections, the Liberty party often held the balance of power, sometimes causing major party candidates to take advanced antislavery positions in a bid for its support (Kinley J. Brauer, Liberty Party, Encyclopedia Americana). More importantly, many Libertymen eventually joined with anti-slavery factions of Whigs and Democrats to form the Free Soil Party, many of whose former members would later form the core of the Republican Party. Only out of many seeming failures can a movement grow -- in fact, there is no way people can gain political experience except by trying, failing
Re: ABK Comrades!
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/10/04 11:44 PM At 9:20 PM -0400 8/10/04, Michael Hoover wrote: maybe post header should have read: anybody but kerry and cobb, in any event, no need to limit oneself to left petit-bourgeois deviationism of nader, choose between several real-live socialists (commies even) Only Nader/Camejo represented a potential to threaten the Democratic Party's hegemony over the left side of the political spectrum by taking 2-7% of the votes, according to the polls http://montages.blogspot.com/2004/08/nader-2004-nader-2000.html -- hence the Democrats' well-organized attacks on Nader/Camejo. Among the parties that you listed, only the Libertarian Party, whose core supporters are well-to-do, will have its candidate on the ballots in all 50 states: blockquoteDemocratic strategists have long fretted that Ralph Nader could draw votes from their presidential candidate. But a new survey suggests that President Bush faces a potential threat of his own from a more obscure spoiler: Michael Badnarik. In the survey, conducted in three Midwest battleground states, some voters who said they would choose Bush over Sen. John F. Kerry in a two-candidate race also said they would pick Badnarik, the Libertarian Party nominee for president, if he were added to the ballot. The numbers for Badnarik were small: He drew 1% to 1.5% of the vote in a four-way race with Bush, Democratic candidate Kerry and Nader, an independent. But analysts said the results suggested that the small-government Libertarians could attract enough conservatives disaffected with Bush's leadership to swing a tight race, just as Nader attracted discontented liberals in 2000. you're not suggesting that one should only make vote choice among candidates/parties on ballot in all 50 states.. re. libertarian 'spoiler' for bush, i posted figures in aftermath of 2000 election indicating that this happened in several states where buchanan 'took votes' from bush 'allowing' gore to win those states, buchanan did this with national aggregate of 1%... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Greens For Nader Update: Rigged Convention Divides Green Party (Sign and Forward This)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/11/04 8:32 AM many technical/procedural/justice problems arise from 1787 constitutional language assigning each state authority to determine times, places, manner of holding elections... meant to note in above portion of earlier point that congress may at any time by law make or alter state regulations... query 1: what became of nader's announcement a few months ago that he was going to establish a 'populist' party... query 2: reform party 'endorsement' of nader preceded his selection of camejo as running mate, any listers know whether reform endorsement is for nader only or does it include candidate at bottom of ticket as well... can imagine some (many?) 'reformers' being less than pleased if party endorsed socialist, 2000 reform party squabbles that gave impression of turnips falling off vegetable cart still exist to some degree, evidenced by dual/duel parties in michigan, moreover, nader endorsement has apparently not gone over well with some (majority?) in whatever remains of whatever reform party endorsed him, sounds familiar... mh -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Kerry would have gone to war
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/11/04 2:27 PM Marvin Gandall wrote: I don't attach much credibility to what opportunistic politicians say in election campaigns -- particularly in Kerry's case, where he perceives his electoral fortunes, rightly or wrongly, to be dependent on adaptation to a segment of the voting population infected with a high degree of chauvinism. Huh??? A clear majority of Americans now thinks the war was a mistake. Beyond that, 90 percent of the delegates at the DP convention thought the same thing. I wouldn't call Kerry an adaptationist at all. I would say that he is swimming against the stream. kerry, of course, did go to war... guy i work with taught at school overseas with jfk's sister years ago and he says that she talked about how her brother wanted to be prez as teen (reminds of what used to be reported about clinton), he joined military because he thought that would be useful in later career, noticed wind was blowing in different direction after coming back from vietnam and jumped on anti-war bandwagon (some may recall flap a few months back over whether or not jfk was at v v a w meeting in which presidential assassination was raised, 'suggestion' was attributed to gainesville 8 defendant scott camil who feds would later try to kill), surely no one (even his loudest/strongest 'left' supporters) ever thought kerry was gonna rock the boat... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: ABK Comrades!
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/10/04 11:44 PM Only Nader/Camejo represented a potential to threaten the Democratic Party's hegemony over the left side of the political spectrum by taking 2-7% of the votes, according to the polls http://montages.blogspot.com/2004/08/nader-2004-nader-2000.html -- hence the Democrats' well-organized attacks on Nader/Camejo. Yoshie dems were going after nader irrespective of his standing polls, this was gonna be payback, baby, for what lots of dems (however misguided and cry-baby like) think happened in 2000... and hey, it's their party, they can be scummy, although i'd suggest that criticizing nade for considering another prez bid, trashing him when he decides to run, and then attempting to keep him off ballots and destroy his candidacy (at relatively little financial cost to dems and economic burden to nader) are quite different approaches, some 'lefties' (most, if not all, of whom should be able to offer persuaive account that nader did not cost gore 2000 election) might genuinely/sincerely consider first approach to be legitimate or at least something to debate, such folks should have nothing to do with nor be associated with people engaged in third approach... on other hand, nader's folks are pretty disingenuous re. reps who were apparently working to help him get on ballot, this is same ole' cynical establishment-like politics that ought to be shunned... allow me to play mainstram poli sci guy for a moment, potential electorate has been told countless times grave importance of 2004 election (for sake of discussion at least, assume this is true), historical data indicates that so-called 'important' elections are often close contests, role of minor parties tends to be reduced in such instances as competition tends toward 'big tents' of two major parties, tends to be spike in turnout in these types of elections as well, very largest percentage of which goes to one or other of two large party camps... above may help explain why nader fared less well than some had hoped in 2000, might also offer some predictive (so says mainstream poli sci guy) expectation of nader - and other minor candidates - doing rather poorly in 2004... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: ABK Comrades!
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/11/04 9:58 PM on other hand, nader's folks are pretty disingenuous re. reps who were apparently working to help him get on ballot, You might want to verify your source. (as in Michigan where we do not need any signatures thanks to the Reform Party endorsement). above was news story for some days during time i was in michigan this summer, re. reform party endorsement, apparent problem with ballot line exists because there are apparently 2 reform parties in state, nader campaign was said to be filing suit about time i was leaving at end of july, has there been court ruling in matter, if so, was it decided in nader's favor, thereby, securing his place on reform line, if not, above statement by nader is not accurate... michigan reform party flap led nader campaign in michigan to go from saying that it wouldn't accept petition signatures generated by reps to saying that it was no longer sure that it would refuse to accept such signatures to eventually accepting said signatures (which were in excess of number needed)... my source is recollection of news coverage in michigan... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
ABK Comrades!
maybe post header should have read: anybody but kerry and cobb, in any event, no need to limit oneself to left petit-bourgeois deviationism of nader, choose between several real-live socialists (commies even), and yes folks, personal choice party vp candidate is *behind green door* marilyn chambers, myself, i'd vote for leonard peltier if pf party were on florida ballot... michael hoover AMERICAN PARTY: Diane Templin (California) Presidential Nominee Al Moore (Virginia) Vice Presidential Nominee CONCERNS OF PEOPLE (PROHIBITION) PARTY: Gene Amondson (Alaska) Presidential Nominee Leroy Pletten (Michigan) Vice Presidential Nominee CONSTITUTION PARTY: Michael Peroutka (Maryland) Presidential Nominee Chuck Baldwin (Florida) Vice Presidential Nominee GREEN PARTY: David Cobb (California) Presidential Nominee Pat LaMarche (Maine) Vice Presidential Nominee LIBERTARIAN PARTY: Michael Badnarik (Texas) Presidential Nominee Richard Campagna (Iowa) Vice Presidential Nominee PEACE FREEDOM PARTY: Leonard Peltier (Kansas) Presidential Nominee Janice Jordan (California) Vice Presidential Nominee PERSONAL CHOICE PARTY: Charles Jay (Indiana) Presidential Nominee Marilyn Chambers Taylor (California) Vice Presidential Nominee PROHIBITION PARTY: Earl F. Dodge (Colorado) Presidential Nominee Howard Lydick (Texas) Vice Presidential Nominee REFORM PARTY / INDEPENDENT: Ralph Nader (I-Connecticut) Presidential Nominee Peter M. Camejo (Green-California) Vice Presidential Nominee SOCIALIST PARTY USA: Walt Brown (Oregon) Presidential Nominee Mary Alice Herbert (Vermont) Vice Presidential Nominee SOCIALIST EQUALITY PARTY: Bill Van Auken (New York) Presidential Nominee Jim Lawrence (Ohio) Vice Presidential Nominee SOCIALIST WORKERS PARTY: Róger Calero (New York) Presidential Nominee Arrin Hawkins (New York) Vice Presidential Nominee WORKERS WORLD PARTY: John Parker (California) Presidential Nominee Teresa Gutierrez (New York) Vice Presidential Nominee INDEPENDENTS WRITE-INS: A.J. Albritton (American Republican Party-Mississippi) * Sterling Allan (Providential Party-Utah) * Stanford Andy Andress (I-Colorado) * Joe Bellis (America's Party-Kansas) * Kenneth M. Bonnell (I-Mississippi) * Harry Braun (I-Arizona) * Fred Cook (I-Georgia) * Eric J. Davis (Michigan) * Robert DiGiulio (Children's Party-Vermont) * Bob Dorn (Washington) * Lonnie D. Frank (I-California) * John Galt Jr. (I-Pensylvania) * Jack Grimes (United Fascist Union-Pennsylvania) * Michael Halpin (I-New York) * Larry D. Hines (I-Texas) * Georgia Hough (I-Georgia) * Keith Judd (I-Massachusetts) * Darren E. Karr (Party X-Oregon) * Samuel Keegan (I-Rhode Island) * Joseph Martyniuk Jr. (I-Illinois) * David Mevis (I-Mississippi) * Muadin (E-Democratic Party-Massachusetts) * Jeffrey Peters (We The People Party-New Hampshire) Andrew M. Rotramel (I-Texas) * Joseph Average Joe Schriner (I-Ohio) * Dennis P. Slatton (United America Party-North Carolina) * Dan Snow (I-Texas) * Brian B. Springfield (I-Virginia) * Lawrence Rey Topham (I-Utah) * Lemuel Tucker (I-Michigan) * Da Vid (Light Party-California) * Tom Wells (Family Values Party-Florida) * A.J. Wildman (I-Virginia) * -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Greens For Nader Update: Rigged Convention Divides Green Party (Sign and Forward This)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/10/04 3:16 PM At 1:07 PM -0400 8/9/04, Michael Hoover wrote: nader people might be of greater help to polity in general (of course, this is electoral campaign which, by definition, has narrow focus) by highlighting unequal/unjust ballot access procedures, state by state rules are clear violation of 14th admendment equal protection... The best way to highlight unequal/unjust ballot access procedures is to actually run a campaign that runs afoul of them -- then, there is a practical struggle. Who cares if ballot access procedures are unequal and unjust if there is no candidate other than the Democratic and Republican ones to begin with? of course, my point was that nader people have not - and will not - raise equal protection matter (although they'll - no doubt, and rightly so - complain about being exluded from prez debates)... At 1:07 PM -0400 8/9/04, Michael Hoover wrote: carcasses of 'minor' parties across u.s. political landscape Minor parties -- the Liberal Party, the Free Soil Party, etc. -- are destined to die, but they are among the important political arenas through which people network, gain experience, and accumulate knowledge, and I'm interested in what individuals who are trained in struggles that cannot immediately achieve their goals learn and what they will do with what they have learned. We need to keep learning from major failures and minor successes until we encounter objective conditions that may allow us to make use of our experience and knowledge. neither of parties cited above would seem to be good examples of your explanation (wonder how many folks are even familiar with either)... free soilers (1848-54) were northern elite splinters from dem party who had come to oppose slavery for economic reasons (in contrast to moral abolitionists), they desired 'free land' for homesteading (19th century economic elites often manipulated egalitarian rhetoric of homesteading for financial gain by paying people to occupy land for them) while southern slaver class needed more land to perpetuate slave-based planatation system... free soil platform was ambivalent document in which anti-slavery plank was followed by statement that congress did not have authority to interfere with slavery within state boundaries, but then party slogan 'free soil, free speech, free labor, free men' was contradictory... interestingly, some complained that martin van buren's (former u.s. prez, 1837-40) 1848 prez campaign played 'spoiler' in splitting dem votes - van buren received about 10% of 'popular vote') and allowing whig zachary taylor to be elected (taylor died in office under somewhat suspicious circumstances, his body was exhumed within last decade to look into possibility of arsenic poisoning, test results said no, but michael parenti (that cper/milosevic supporter/conspiracy theorist!) suggests otherwise in _new political science_ article a few years back)... 1850 compromise weakened cause, party got about 5% of vote in 1852 prez election, dissolved itself shortly after, members dirfted into newly formed rep party... re. liberal party, suppose you mean new york liberal party as it is only one of any significance (if one considers it as such) that i'm aware of, origins in american labor split at end of ww2 over whether or not commies should be allowed to play a role in alp, anti-commie labor leaders opponents of such a role founded liberal party, so party had organized labor (of a cold war sort) support early on which manifest itself in endorsement of truman in 48 made possible by new york's 'fusion' ballot status... ny liberal party went on to endorse/nominate dem party candidate in every prez election except 1980 when it supported john anderson, party also gave endorsements to dem candidates for u.s senate from ny except for its support of 'liberal' republican jacob javits, some suggest that party's support of javits - who lost to alphonse d'mato in rep primary - split dem/lib vote in 1980 between javits and dem elizabeth holtzman allowing d'mato to win... what are lessons... At 1:07 PM -0400 8/9/04, Michael Hoover wrote: reform party line is absolutely irrevelevant in states where party has ballot status save two - florida and michigan (drum roll please - so-called 'battlegrounds') It would be ironic if Cobb/LaMarche are on the Green Party ballots in one-party states and Nader/Camejo are on the ballots in battleground states. Yoshie greens have prez ballot line in florida, parties have to hold national nominating convention to qualify, state went from most difficult access law in country to one more equitable a few years ago via initiative vote spearheaded largely by libertarian party with help from some other minor parties, including green, reform, socialist... however, my point was that nader's use of reform endorsement is politics as usual... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad
Re: nader goes southwest
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/10/04 10:01 PM Nader Presidential Campaign Announces Southwest Airlines as its Unofficial Campaign Airline Nader had a good word for Southwest Airlines founder, Herb Kelleher. wonder what nader thinks of kelleher's $47,500 to rep national committee this year and $2000 to bush campaign... wonder what nader thinks of southwest helping ins detain 'illegal' immigrants at various airports... wonder why nader didn't mention that about 90% of southwest employees are unionized (seems that would be good reason for selection), of course, company began with no unions and implemented 'cooperative culture' environment (via esop) and 'cross-utilization' (allowing management to take workers from one area and use them temporarily elsewhere) of employees prior to collective bargaining, these features have remained prominent parts of southwest's management-labor relations, both of which serve to increase labor productivity and hold down labor costs... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Bush Appointee to Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee
President Bush has announced his plan to select Dr. W. David Hager to head up the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee. The committee has not met for more than two years, during which time its charter lapsed. As a result, the Bush Administration is tasked with filling all eleven positions with new members. This position does not require Congressional approval. The FDA's Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee makes crucial decisions on matters relating to drugs used in the practice of obstetrics, gynecology and related specialties, including hormone therapy, contraception, treatment for infertility, and medical alternatives to surgical procedures for sterilization and pregnancy termination. Dr. Hager's views of reproductive health care are far outside the mainstream for reproductive technology. Dr. Hager is a practicing OB/GYN who describes himself as pro-life and refuses to prescribe contraceptives to unmarried women. Hager is the author of As Jesus Cared for Women: Restoring Women Then and Now. The book blends biblical accounts of Christ healing Women with case studies from Hager's practice. In the book Dr. Hager wrote with his wife, entitled Stress and the Woman's Body, he suggests that women who suffer from premenstrual syndrome should seek help from reading the bible and praying. As an editor and contributing author of The Reproduction Revolution: A Christian Appraisal of Sexuality Reproductive Technologies and the Family, Dr. Hager appears to have endorsed the medically inaccurate assertion that the common birth control pill is an abortifacient. Hager's mission is religiously motivated. He has an ardent interest in revoking approval for mifepristone (formerly known as RU-486) as a safe and early form of medical abortion. Hagar recently assisted the Christian Medical Association in a citizen's petition which calls upon the FDA to revoke its approval of mifepristone in the name of women's health. Hager's desire to overturn mifepristone's approval on religious grounds rather than scientific merit would halt the development of mifepristone as a treatment for numerous medical conditions disproportionately affecting women, including breast cancer, uterine cancer, uterine fibroid tumors, psychotic depression, bipolar depression and Cushing's syndrome. Women rely on the FDA to ensure their access to safe and effective drugs for reproductive health care including products that prevent pregnancy. For some women, such as those with certain types of diabetes and those undergoing treatment for cancer, pregnancy can be a life-threatening condition. We are concerned that Dr. Hager's strong religious beliefs may color his assessment of technologies that are necessary to protect women's lives or to preserve and promote women's health. Hager's track record of using religious beliefs to guide his medical decision-making makes him a dangerous and inappropriate candidate to serve as chair of this committee. Critical drug public policy and research must not be held hostage by antiabortion politics. Members of this important panel should be appointed on the basis of science and medicine, rather than politics and religion. American women deserve no less. -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Greens For Nader Update: Rigged Convention Divides Green Party (Sign and Forward This)
, it is disingenuous to suggest that nader will be included, unfair prez debate commission rules requiring that candidate poll at last 15% in 4 of 5 nationa polls insures his exclusion... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Greens For Nader Update: Rigged Convention Divides Green Party (Sign and Forward This)
is independent one but that actually serves to make my point), party conventions chose vp candidates until fdr in 1940s, today, prez nominees announce their choices and conventions accept them (btw: reform party endorsed nader, not nader/camaejo, as far i know)... re. prez debates, it is disingenuous to suggest that nader will be included, unfair prez debate commission rules requiring that candidate poll at last 15% in 4 of 5 nationa polls insures his exclusion... michael hoover
Re: Tariq Ali on the US election
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/07/04 1:25 AM Before getting to the point of actually being able to split the Democratic and Republican Parties, we need an intermediate goal: do what we can to make the next POTUS a weak president, rather than a strong one. To do so, we need to decrease the shares of popular votes that go to the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates. Yoshie what poli sci people called 'political capital' is mixture of public approval party seats in congress, kerry prez - almost by definition - would be weak, win will likely be close, dems unlikely to regain control of either congressional chamber (jfk campaign appears to have taken page from '96 clinton playbook in that regard)... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Whither the Fed?
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/07/04 2:11 AM ... and make the next POTUS John Kerry a weak president without a big mandate at the same time.) Is there a subtle flaw here? If either Kerry or Bush is elected they will have a big mandate. It just won't be from the people, but the corporate purchasers. I fear the people's mandate can no longer be given through the present electoral process. Dan Scanlan The larger the shares of popular votes for the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates, the bigger the next POTUS's mandate will be, though the mandate is more apparent than real, as you say. Yoshie notion (hesitate to call it theory) of presidential mandate is myth, of course, myths can have powerful influence... some occupants of white house start terms with more 'political capital' than others (i.e., lbj began first full term with deep reservoir following '64 landslide victory, gerald ford, on other hand, had little after becoming prez because of 2 resignations - as if to confirm latter's precarious position, reps loss of seats to dems in '74 congressional elections was large enough to result in smallest congressional minority for sitting prez in 20th century *and* ford had largest percentage of vetoes subjected to congressional override in country's history)... prez attempts to claim mandates are part of pseudo-democratization of office, reagan claimed mandate following '80 election even though he received just over 50% of 'popular' vote by pointing to number of states he won and - more importantly - number of electoral college votes he received (about 495 if memory serves), 'winner-take-all' distribution of ec votes in 48 states gives some prez winners opportunities to claim mandates by transforming small 'popular' majorities into 'super' ec majorities... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Tariq Ali on the US election
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/07/04 1:27 PM Actually, Bush was a weak president until 9/11/01: a big inauguration protest, Enron, unimpressive ratings, etc. According to Fox, for instance, Bush's approval rating during 1/24-25/01 was a mere 46%! Yoshie pre-9/11: congress passed major bush tax cut, education, energy bills (latter 2 after jeffords became ind and dems gained control of senate), congress also passed bush's so-called 'bankruptcy reform', bush abandoned kyoto treaty, bush signed regressive executive orders re. abortion, labor, health care, among other things... while 9/11 'made' bush presidency, dems and conservative media had already allowed bush to get out from under stigma of being 'his fraudulency 2' (rutherford hayes was called 'his fraudulency' through term after winning 'corrupt bargain' election of 1876)... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Loath by the rich: Why Hugo Chavez is heading for a stunning victory
Loathed by the rich Why Hugo Chavez is heading for a stunning victory Richard Gott in Caracas Saturday August 07 2004 The Guardian To the dismay of opposition groups in Venezuela, and to the surprise of international observers gathering in Caracas, President Hugo Chavez is about to secure a stunning victory on August 15, in a referendum designed to lead to his overthrow. First elected in 1998 as a barely known colonel, armed with little more than revolutionary rhetoric and a moderate social-democratic programme, Chavez has become the leader of the emerging opposition in Latin America to the neo-liberal hegemony of the United States. Closely allied to Fidel Castro, he rivals the Cuban leader in his fierce denunciations of George Bush, a strategy that goes down well with the great majority of the population of Latin America, where only the elites welcome the economic and political recipes devised in Washington. While Chavez has retained his popularity after nearly six years as president, support for overtly pro-US leaders in Latin America, such as Vicente Fox in Mexico and Alejandro Toledo in Peru, has dwindled to nothing. Even the fence-sitting President Lula in Brazil is struggling in the polls. The news that Chavez will win this month's referendum will be bleakly received in Washington. Chavez came to power after the traditional political system in Venezuela had self-destructed during the 1990s. But the remnants of the ancien regime, notably those entrenched in the media, have kept up a steady fight against him, in a country where racist antipathies inherited from the colonial era are never far from the surface. Chavez, with his black and Indian features and an accent that betrays his provincial origins, goes down well in the shanty towns, but is loathed by those in the rich white suburbs who fear he has mobilised the impoverished majority against them. The expected Chavez victory will be the opposition's third defeat in as many years. The first two were dramatically counter-productive for his opponents, since they only served to entrench him in power. An attempted coup d'etat in April 2002, with fascist overtones reminiscent of the Pinochet era in Chile, was defeated by an alliance of loyal officers and civilian groups who mobilised spontaneously and successfully to demand the return of their president. The unexpected restoration of Chavez not only alerted the world to an unusual leftwing, not to say revolutionary, experiment taking place in Venezuela, but it also led the country's poor majority to understand that they had a government and a president worth defending. Chavez was able to dismiss senior officers opposed to his project of involving the armed forces in programmes to help the poor, and removed the threat of a further coup. The second attempt at his overthrow - the prolonged work stoppage in December 2002 which extended to a lockout at the state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela, nationalised since 1975 - also played into the hands of the president. When the walkout (with its echoes of the CIA-backed Chilean lorry owners' strike against Salvador Allende's government in the early 1970s) failed, Chavez was able to sack the most pampered sections of a privileged workforce. The company's huge surplus oil revenues were redirected into imaginative new social programmes. Innumerable projects, or missions, were established throughout the country, recalling the atmosphere of the early years of the Cuban revolution. They combat illiteracy, provide further education for school dropouts, promote employment, supply cheap food, and extend a free medical service in the poor areas of the cities and the countryside, with the help of 10,000 Cuban doctors. Redundant oil company buildings have been commandeered to serve as the headquarters of a new university for the poor, and oil money has been diverted to set up Vive, an innovative cultural television channel that is already breaking the traditional US mould of the Latin American media. The opposition dismiss the new projects as populist, a term customarily used with pejorative intent by social scientists in Latin America. Yet faced with the tragedy of extreme poverty and neglect in a country with oil revenues to rival those of Saudi Arabia, it is difficult to see why a democratically elected government should not embark on crash programmes to help the most disadvantaged. Their impact is about to be tested at the polls on August 15. Vote Yes to eject Chavez from the presidency. Vote No to keep him there until the next presidential election in 2006. The opposition, divided politically and with no charismatic figure to rival Chavez to front their campaign, continue to behave as though their victory is certain. They discuss plans for a post-Chavez government, and watch closely the ever-dubious and endlessly conflicting opinion polls, placing their evaporating hopes on the don't knows. They still imagine fondly that they can achieve a victory
PartyBuilder - August 2004
PARTYBUILDER - August 2004 IN THIS ISSUE: DC LABOR FILM FEST - AD DEADLINE AUGUST 10TH! CNA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ROSE ANN DEMORO SPEAKS OUT ON HEALTH CARE THE MEDICARE DRUG WAR DO FAT CATS PAY LOWER TAX RATES THAN WORKERS? FREE HIGHER ED CAMPAIGN NEWS DC LABOR FILM FEST - AD DEADLINE AUGUST 10TH! The 2004 DC Labor FilmFest is scheduled for September 10-12 at the American Film Institute's Silver Theater. The festival opens with a 15th anniversary screening of Michael Moore's first film, Roger and Me and closes with a new print of the classic 1969 Marlon Brando film Burn! In between are five brand new films chronicling coal miners in China (Blind Shaft), a post-industrial, pre-apocalyptic, existential comedy (Human Error) as well as the premiere of concert film Tell Us the Truth. The November 2003 musical tour featuring Billy Bragg and Steve Earle called attention to issues of media consolidation and trade policy. We need your support! It's not too late to support the FilmFest with an ad from your union or organization in the Festival Guide. Ad space is available at the following rates: Friend of the Festival: $100 Quarter page: $250 Half page: $500 Full page: $1,000 Silver Screen Page: $2,500 Please call DJDI at 202 234-0040 x13 to reserve your ad. Many thanks to our Labor Party affiliates and supporters for ads already placed. For more information, click here: www.djdinstitute.org/f_index.html CNA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ROSE ANN DEMORO SPEAKS OUT ON HEALTH CARE In a recent guest commentary in the Contra Costa Times, Rose Ann DeMoro, executive director of the California Nurses Association (a Labor Party affiliate) charges that it is time to get serious on health care. DeMoro argues that Verbal commitments to universal health care are for some a charade, a cover for tinkering with the current system to avoid substantive change. Typical of such ideas is the notion that people without employer-provided benefits be required to purchase insurance, subsidized for the low income through tax credits, without any financial contribution by the HMOs and insurance giants that would reap gain. Read the full article at www.justhealthcare.org. Click here. THE MEDICARE DRUG WAR The pharmaceutical and managed care industries spent a record $141 million in 2003 to lobby Congress for last year's Medicare prescription drug legislation. According to The Medicare Drug War, a new report by Public Citizen, the new law may increase those industries' revenues by as much as $531.5 billion. The army of 952 lobbyists (nearly 10 for each U.S. Senator) helped ensure that the new drug benefit will be administered by private companies. The new law expressly prohibits the government from using its bargaining clout to negotiate lower prices and effectively bans the reimportation of cheaper drugs from Canada. For more information and to download the report, visit www.citizen.org. Click here DO FAT CATS PAY LOWER TAX RATES THAN WORKERS? Thanks in part to George W. Bush's recent cut in the top tax rate on dividends and capital gains, the average tax rate workers pay on wages is more than DOUBLE the rate on investment income. According to Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ) and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), federal personal taxes on investment income now average only 9.6 percent, while federal personal taxes on wages and other earnings average 23.4 percent. Before Ronald Reagan took office, the top income tax rate on most investment income was 70 percent. The top capital gains tax rate, now 15 percent, was more than 35 percent. ITEP's analysis estimates that taxing investment income like earnings would raise $338 billion in 2004 enough to cut this year's budget deficit by two-thirds or more. Or enough to fund free higher education several times over or enough to fund a substantial part of a Just Health Care budget. For more information, www.ctj.org. Click here FREE HIGHER ED CAMPAIGN NEWS The July/August 2004 issue of ACADEME the bulletin of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) features the article Free Higher Education by campaign co-chair Adolph Reed Jr. and Sharon Syzmanski, an economist with the Labor Institute. The bulletin is distributed to every member of the AAUP nationwide. The AAUP's Collective Bargaining Congress has endorsed the Free Higher Ed campaign. AAUP also invited Reed to present a workshop on the campaign at its Summer Institute at the University of Scranton on July 31st. The workshop was well received by AAUP members from around the country and was an opportunity to introduce AAUP members outside the collective bargaining section to our campaign. Visit our website at www.freehighered.org ABOUT THE LABOR PARTY The Labor Party is a national organization made up of international unions and thousands of local unions - representing over two million workers - worker supportive organizations and individual members. Founded in 1996 at a convention of 1,400 delegates, the Labor Party
Call for Papers: New Working Class Studies
CALL FOR PAPERS NEW WORKING-CLASS STUDIES: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE The 10th Aniversary Conference of the Center for Working-Class Studies at Youngstown State University, May 18-21, 2005, Youngstown, Ohio In 2005, the Center for Working-Class Studies will celebrate the 10th anniversary of its founding. In honor of that occasion, we are planning a conference that will reflect the diversity, creativity, and energy of New Working-Class Studies. The conference will feature plenary sessions reflecting on the development of the field, taking stock of where we stand today, and looking ahead to new possibilities and challenges. Our conferences always include arts exhibits, film screenings, poetry readings, and other events. The 2005 conference, co-sponsored by the Ford Foundation, will also include a business meeting of the Working-Class Studies Association. We invite proposals from students, workers, faculty members, organizers, artists, and activists in all fields, from literature to geography, history to filmmaking, union organizing to neighborhood activism. Along with papers, we invite performances, film showings, roundtables, and presentations of all kinds. In addition, we invite proposals for three-hour interactive workshops and field trips, which will be scheduled for Saturday morning. We encourage proposals that explore literature by and about the working class; working-class and labor history; material and popular culture; current workplace issues; geography and landscape; journalism and media; sociology; economics; union organizing and practice; museum studies; the arts; multiculturalism; ethnography, biography, autobiography; pedagogy; and personal narratives of work. Presenters should describe the presentation they would like to give, including the suggested presentation format (panel, roundtable, reading, workshop, etc.) and length. Proposals should be no longer than one page and must be received by January 3, 2005. Address written correspondence to John Russo, Biennial Conference, Center for Working-Class Studies, Youngstown State University, Youngstown, Ohio 44555. Fax or e-mail inquiries shouldbe sent to Patty LaPresta, (330) 941-4622 and [EMAIL PROTECTED] The Center for Working-Class Studies's website is located at http:/www.as.ysu.edu/-cwcs/ and its discussion group at [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: No Bounce for Kerry
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/03/04 12:28 AM I was struck by the same thing as Michael H. I doubt that they will reciprocate for the Dems. On Tue, Aug 03, 2004 at 12:24:33AM -0400, Michael Hoover wrote: related point: tv media abandoned past convention coverage in giving reps so many opportunities to sprinkle on dem parade...michael hoover Also, I have never heard of any competitive contest where you aim to just get over the hump. Sounds like a stupid strategy. Michael Perelman meant to write in previous post that conservative media set up dems on bounce by giving rep talking heads pre-convention opportunities to talk about how kerry would probably get double digit post-convention bump... re. dem/kerry strategy, elections are mechanisms of social control, narrow kerry win will actually be narrow bush loss, kerry's people think this can happen with existing likely electorate which, of course, means doing nothing to get more folks to vote, result will be few 'progressive' expectations of kerry administration...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: No Bounce for Kerry
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/03/04 3:52 PM If there's a great untapped reservoir of leftish populism in the American masses, why did Kucinich do so badly in the primaries, and why is Nader now down around 2%? Doug uhhh, who said anything about 'untapped reservoir of leftish populism' (whatever that is)... come now doug, you know answers to above questions... however, 'conventional wisdom' holds that dem positions on civil rights/civil liberties issues began to alienate white working class in late 1960s, race ostensibly drove wedge between white and non-white working workers with resultant diminution of class voting, such analysis is mostly based upon assessments using self-identified class, this measure fails to address voter economic circumstances, analysis relying upon relative income situation of voters reflects relative level of resources folks have, results show increasing support among less affluent for dems, differences in voting by income position (social class) have been increasing, not decreasing... mainstream poli sci guy jeffrey stonecash uses nes data - see his _class and party in american politics_ - to show that *even in south* white working class voters remain more likely to vote dem than more affluent white voters, big problem is relative scarcity of white working class turnout in south (condition exacerbated nationally by similar scarcity at polls among all workin people)...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
The Women of Crawford Have a Secret
http://www.bushvchoice.com/trailer/crawford.swf Find out how these successful, driven women could swing the election and help bring the end of a woman's right to choose -- without saying a word. Produced by: NARAL Pro-Choice America, Inc. www.ProChoiceAmerica.org -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Soviet empire was a drain on Moscow
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 8/2/2004 11:16:33 AM Put another way, to label the U.S. and the USSR with the same label, empire -- and hence to suggest that there is some analogy between the relationship USSR/Cuba and US/Puerto Rico -- is just too violent an abstraction, it leaves too little material content to what we mean when we speak of empire. Carrol paraphrase of what i wrote in 'secolas annals' (journal of southeastern council on latin american studies) twenty years ago: much was made of cuba's 'dependency' on soviet union...[but]... cuban-soviet relations did not resemble typical dominance-dependence arrangements, soviet aid strengthened rather than weakened cuba's national control of its economy, further, soviets protected cuba from fluctuations in world market prices of sugar and nickel, insured cuba continual oil supplies, and generally stayed out of cuban political affairs... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: No Bounce for Kerry
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/02/04 6:22 PM No Bounce for Kerry: bounce thing is extremely overrated, has had little relation to electoral winner, if memory serves, with exception of clinton in 92, candidates with biggest bounces have lost (and carter almost lost), most have been dems... in any event, room for bounce this year was negligible if poll numbers can be believed, bush, kerry, nader numbers leave few undecideds... kerry people appear to believe that they can beat bush (just barely) on issues except for 'security', poll numbers going into convention indicated solid bush lead in that area, dems seem to think that if they simply say things about 'making 'america stronger', 'protecting homeland', and 'destroying terrorists' enough times they will whittle away at bush in this area (all the while blathering on about kerry's wartime mettle, blah, blah, blah)... strategy suggests that kerry people hope to barely make it over hump in november, strategy also conveys that kerry campaign is absent any other appeals, has attractiveness of flagpole sitting in drawing attention to drab man... related point: tv media abandoned past convention coverage in giving reps so many opportunities to sprinkle on dem parade...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
book review: Welfare and the Constitution
From the Law and Politics Book Review WELFARE AND THE CONSTITUTION, by Sotirios A. Barber. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2004. 184pp. Cloth $27.95 / £17.95. ISBN: 0-691-11448-X Reviewed By Ronald Kahn, Department of Politics, Oberlin College. Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.bsos.umd.edu/gvpt/lpbr/subpages/reviews/barber704.htm -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Socialism of fools
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/31/04 12:10 PM I recently quoted Fred Engels as referring to anti-semitism as the socialism of fools. Pen-l alumnus Jurriaan Bendien writes me that: From memory the socialism of fools remark was by August Bebel, circa 1873. I guess I sit corrected, though I couldn't find the quote from Bebel's mouth. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] above is one of those quotes that floats around, that people cite and never indicate source, few folks probably have any idea its origins and many/most who reference it have probably never read it in english as i don't believe text has ever been translated from the german... phrase is from 10/27/1893 party congress speech that bebel made (think it appears in german as 'anti-semitism and social democracy'), what bebel termed 'socialism of fools' was specific reference to *anti-semitic populism*, bebel's speech is essentially about SPD having to make choice between urban working class and rural peasantry, he favored former and congress overwhelmingly voted that way, one consequence was that party would become increasingly detached from rural population, bebel's position is pretty conventional marxist interpretation of 'progressive tendency' of capitalist development... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Socialism of fools
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/31/04 7:59 PM above is one of those quotes that floats around, that people cite and never indicate source, few folks probably have any idea its origins and many/most who reference it have probably never read it in english as i don't believe text has ever been translated from the german... phrase is from 10/27/1893 party congress speech that bebel made (think it appears in german as 'anti-semitism and social democracy'), what bebel termed 'socialism of fools' was specific reference to *anti-semitic populism*, bebel's speech is essentially about SPD having to make choice between urban working class and rural peasantry, he favored former and congress overwhelmingly voted that way, one consequence was that party would become increasingly detached from rural population, bebel's position is pretty conventional marxist interpretation of 'progressive tendency' of capitalist development... michael hoover oops, my source for above is nicholas stargardt's _the german idea of militarism : radical and socialist critics, 1866-1914_... mh -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Kerry's a better choice for some conservatives
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/29/04 11:32 PM Dan Scanlan wrote: The Right Wing's Deep, Dark Secret Some hope for a Bush loss, and here's why By John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge We (people, leftists, left liberals) made significant gains under Nixon (despite his intentions) because we had behind us the threatening mass movements of the '60s. Leftists _must_ break, permanently and unambiguously, all ties to the DP -- and this includes the leftists of the DP (Wellstone, Obama, Hightower), who achieve nothing for us except symbolic gestures but provide cover for the party's left flank. Carrol come on, 'we' have chance in 04 to return 'liberal' jfk to prez, surely you recall last time he was in office - civil rights advocate, pro labor, tax wealthy - oh wait, he didn't actually initiate legal action in any antidiscrimination cases, he appointed segregationists to federal bench, he offered little help to civil rights activists attacked - and killed - by racists, he opposed increases in minimum wage, he sought to constrain wage demands by unions, he opposed reducing work week, he presided over tax cuts for rich and corporations... back to yesterday with jfk... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Staying the course
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/29/04 7:18 PM The London Telegraph July 29, 2004 Kerry 'will not change foreign policy' By David Rennie in Boston America's allies expecting a shift in United States foreign policy from a President John Kerry should think again, his top advisers said yesterday. surely above surprises no one, after all, last time the guy was prez he initiated massive military spending increase, introduced counterinsurgency operations throughout third world, invaded post-revo cuba, accelerated weapons of mass destruction race, expanded u.s. role in vietnam, oh wait, that was john f. kennedy, not john f. kerry, guess i got jfks mixed up, and here i've been wondering for sometime about that 22nd amendment term limits thing... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Diminishing Expectations
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/28/04 8:37 AM Michael Hoover wrote: but conversations here indicate that we sure do live in the age of diminishing expectations, which in itself gives people fewer reasons to spend time on political activism. above was yoshie... -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Blind Swordsman Zatoichi
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/28/04 11:42 AM In Hollywood, the blind are represented in film either as pitiful victims, such as in Wait Until Dark, or as comic figures like Mr. Muckle, who tears apart W. C. Fields's shop in It's a Gift. Leave it to the Japanese to come up with somebody like Zatoichi, the blind master swordsman who was played by the beloved Shintaro Katsu in 26 films between 1962 and 1989, as well as 100 television episodes based on the character. . check out 'zatoichi meets the one armed swordsman' (71 or 72) directed by kimiyoshi yasuda who directed several zatoichi films... the one armed swordsman of film is jimmy wang yu from chang cheh's 67 film of same name, here's what lisa odham stokes and i write about chang's film in _city on fire_: Chang Cheh's One Armed Swordsman (1967) is generally acknowledged as the movie that launched the 1970s' martial arts phenomenon [in hong kong]. While the film's title announces that this is a swordplay movie - nothing new in itself - the hero's disability (his sifu's jealous daughter has chopped off his right arm) produces a different type of character. Forced to undergo a strict and tough rehabilitative training program, the protagonist (Jimmy Wang Yu) becomes a 'lean mean fighting machine' with a blade. Notably brutal for its time, Chang's picture ushered in an era of the self-reliant individualist that according to [noted hk film critic] Sek Kei, simultaneously destroyed the image of the weak Chinese male by featuring 'beefcake heroes in adventure and violence.' (p. 91) in 'zatoichi meets the one armed swordsman, wang yu's character travels to japan where he intervenes to prevent a young boy's execution and has a bounty placed upoin him, meanwhile, the young boy's dying father's last wish is for shintaro katsu's blind swordsman to care for his son, communication difficulties between the two swordsmen lead to them fighting one another... trivia: tsui hark's 'the blade (95) is a remake of chang's 'one armed swordsman' by way of a detour through wong kar-wai's 'ashes of time (94) in which tony leung ka-fai plays a blind swordsman... finally: blind swordsman films inspired 71 entitled 'deaf mute heroine' directed by wu ma, one of number of hk martial arts films featuring women... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Blind Swordsman Zatoichi
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/28/04 5:38 PM finally: blind swordsman films inspired 71 entitled 'deaf mute heroine' directed by wu ma, one of number of hk martial arts films featuring women... michael hoover neglected to mention that helen ma had lead role in above... mh -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Facing South/July 27, 2004
F A C I N G S O U T H July 27, 2004 * Issue 85 INSTITUTE INDEX * Elections at Risk Number of felons purged from Florida's voter lists in the 2000 elections: 173,000 Number that weren't felons and were wrongfully barred from voting: 50,000 Number of felons Florida had planned to remove from voter rolls in 2004: 47,000 Number on list that are African-American: 22,000 Number on list that have been granted clemency and shouldn't be on the list: 2,100 Percent of Florida's African-American population that live in counties with the most unreliable voting machines: 53 Number of presidential votes lost due to election system failures in 2000, in millions: 4 to 6 Sources on file at the Institute for Southern Studies. _ DATELINE: THE SOUTH * Top Stories Around the Region ALL EYES ON FLORIDA ELECTIONS Just weeks after defending both the quality and secrecy of a list of 47,000 suspected felons to be purged from Florida voting lists, the state's elections office is now scrambling to explain why the list was so flawed that it had to be scrapped. Among other findings, reporters discovered that the list only contained the names of 61 Hispanics, who tend to vote Republican, despite the fact that Hispanics make up 11% of the prison population. (Palm Beach Post, 7/24) http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/auto/epaper/editions/today/news_1410ed51d432d15200dc.html *** RELATED: New law adds hurdle to ex-felon voting in Florida http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/072404Z.shtml 40 YEARS LATER, FREEDOM MOVEMENT VETERANS GET RESPECT Forty years ago this summer, the Democratic Party convention was rocked by the spectacle of the party clashing over whether to seat white segregationists or integrated freedom fighters from Mississippi. This year in Boston, a delegation of Misssissippi movement veterans be honored at the Democratic National Convention. (New York Times, 7/25/04) http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/072604E.shtml OIL REFINERIES USE CLOUT TO HOLD OFF REGULATION Petroleum is not just the nation's No. 1 source of energy. Refineries are often the lifeblood of many communities. With battalions of top-gun lawyers and lobbyists, they have influenced the nation's energy policy and fought regulatory crackdowns on pollution. And their political action committees pump millions of dollars into the coffers of powerful elected leaders in Washington. (Star-Telegram, 7/19) http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/nation/9189098.htm?1c LEADER OF GOP SENATE EFFORT OUTED The man heading up the effort by Republicans to keep control of the United States Senate is the latest gay politico to be outed by local activists, who claim they are pointing to the hypocrisy of a party that opposes gay rights but has many gay leaders. The director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee who works for Virginia Sen. George Allen declined tocomment on efforts to publicize his sexual orientation. (Washington Blade, 7/23) http://www.washingtonblade.com/2004/7-23/news/national/leaderout.cfm THE LEGACY OF THE RAINBOW 20 years ago, progressives were electrified by the candidacy of Jesse Jackson, whose campaign registered millions of new voters and created a multi-racial coalition in a bid for the Democratic Party nomination in 1984 and 1988. What's the legacy of the Rainbow Coalition? (The Nation, 7/15) http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040802s=wypijewski CRUNK DOMINATES THE AIRWAVES Hip-hop from Dixie has been ascendant for years, but a glance at the Billboard charts reveals that the lurching beats and bellowed choruses of Southern crunk have become 2004's defining pop sound. But what is it? (Slate, 7/20) http://slate.msn.com/id/2103955/ -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Proposal to Up Minimum Wage Makes Florida Fall Ballot
Proposal To Up The Minimum Wage Makes Florida Fall Ballot POSTED: 6:14 pm EDT July 27, 2004 TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A proposed constitutional amendment to create a state minimum wage that starts at $6.15 and is tied to inflation made the November ballot Tuesday when it cleared the signature threshold. The federal minimum wage, which hasn't changed in seven years, is $5.15. The minimum wage citizen's initiative has more than 531,000 verified signatures, according to the state Division of Elections. That's more than the 488,722 required of petition drives to make the ballot. The measure is backed by the national group ACORN, which has pushed for higher wages in cities across the country. Sponsors collected more than 900,000 signatures in their campaign. The state Supreme Court had already given the measure the go-ahead for the ballot, finding it was clearly explained in its ballot title and summary and dealt with only one subject. Four other proposed constitutional amendments are already on the ballot. One would open the door to a future parental notice law dealing with teen abortions and one would allow South Florida voters to decide if they want to permit slots at race tracks and jai-alai frontons. -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/23/04 4:19 PM Michael Hoover wrote: responses to my initial post conveyed, by and large, varying degrees of maximalism, making quantitative leap from my modest suggestion all the way to presidential electoral politics (by such measures *all attempts will fail), pervasive problem imo... The questions of what we can do to improve local governance and what we can do to change national politics shouldn't be put in terms of minimalist vs. maximalist programs, I believe, because it is not the case that you can make even minimal changes in foreign policy by taking the city halls. Even if the Green Party were to succeed in electing Green mayors in all cities in the United States, for instance, an impact of such a dramatic change in local politics on US foreign policy won't be even minimalist -- it will be practically zero. The thing is that it is possible for us to make a lot more changes for better at the local level either by building the Green Party, or taking over local Democratic parties, or pursuing some other measures (we have viable tactics and successful models of various sorts here, lacking only in enough activists willing to put in time and energy), and we should be doing what we can, but taking on national politics is qualitatively (rather than quantitatively) different from working on local politics, and here we can use some innovative ideas. Yoshie have been away from computers for several days and this thread has gone bye bye, in any event, comment above re. greens electing green mayors in all u.s. cities is itself maximalist, such thing would never happen and one could make persuasive case that it wouldn't be good idea anyway, but were this to miraculously occur, national and international u.s. politics would be qualitatively different as one would not happen without other... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/23/04 6:14 PM The reason I don't push for working through local Democratic parties is that the Green Party has already shown that it can elect its own candidates for local offices, so why bother trying the second best now? But, all the arguments in favor of concentrating on local politics that are advanced now here and elsewhere, I think, come with a subtext: you, leftists, had better work on only local issues like zoning -- leave big national and international issues like war and peace to the Democratic Party, because you can't win presidency immediately anyway. To the contrary, war years are especially important years when leftists need to make interventions in national politics, including mounting electoral challenges through presidential elections. The question is how exactly to do that effectively, knowing that our candidate won't become the next POTUS. Yoshie i've not suggested working through local dem branches as such nor working only on local issues... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/27/04 11:17 PM Presumably, leftists who follow your suggestion will be working on local issues first of all till they succeed in wresting the control of the Democratic Party at the state level. At 9:10 PM -0400 7/27/04, Michael Hoover wrote: greens electing green mayors in all u.s. cities is itself maximalist That's more of a figure of speech than anything else, but conversations here indicate that we sure do live in the age of diminishing expectations, which in itself gives people fewer reasons to spend time on political activism. -- Yoshie re. localism and diminishing expectatons, nothing i've posted here points to either, no one's going to pursue it anyway... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Democratic Party 527's
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/27/04 11:59 AM was expecting to read about jet airplanes given post header, and then to find out that rob reiner was not among leading contributors to 527 orgs, well, my disappointment runneth over... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/23/04 3:29 AM I don't think that it was worth leftists' time to fight to have Howard Dean nominated, as Dean's agenda in some crucial respects (especially on Iraq) went against leftists', but, supposing that there were left-of-center liberal folks who really, really, wanted to nominate him as the Democratic presidential candidate, it's now clear that it takes much more than internet communication to win in the caucuses and primaries. Besides, the MoveOn model is strictly one-way communication from the center to the margins (unlike the Dean model), far more centralized and undemocratic than any other organization on the left side of the political spectrum. And there is a reason why reforms and mobilizations did not last beyond Washington's death. The US-style electoral system strongly acts against party-building, but it's better to have a political party like the Green Party than a Washington-style campaign, which is doomed to remain in one location and destined to die with the person with whom mobilization is inseparably associated. -- Yoshie agree re. leftists trying to get dean nominated which has nothing to do with suggestion i made several days ago, agree also re. moveon although democratic character of lots of groups generally is debatable... as for what happened in chicago following washington's death, there's not *a* reason why things turned, there's bunch of them incuding: racism, daley machine, Washington's death re-opened bitter struggle among various political factions and activists, movement (which is what was happening rather than personal-style campaign) might not have succeeded anyway given competitive character of 'global city' that literally responds to dictates of global capital markets *and/or* dominance of urban 'growth machine'... i previously indicated that example was partial and pointed out as well that washington role was problem for long run (in short run, he helped hold some things and folks together), attempt should be judged on basis of what it was able to accomplish in brief time under very trying circumstances and for its potential (among other things, independent political party was being organized)... responses to my initial post conveyed, by and large, varying degrees of maximalism, making quantitative leap from my modest suggestion all the way to presidential electoral politics (by such measures *all attempts will fail), pervasive problem imo... think i'll leave it at that, michael hoover (checking in for last time from ann arbor where i ran into al haber - an sds founder - the other day, he's trying to rekindle sds as 'students' for dem society on one hand, seniors for dem society on other) -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Query: Ford/General Motors
what is progressive economist take on ford and general motors releasng info the other day indicating that each only made profits from credit/lending operations... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 3:07 AM I think if you really wanted to take over the state, you'd be better off with a state-wide IRV campaign. Probably equally doomed, but at least the interim incentives would make more sense: you'd build up an organization outside their grasp that could affect the media and politics independently. This is basically how people passed the term-limits laws. IRV would be more useful: it would really allow you to develop small principled parties that could grow until they won, and which would have an effect on the political discourse from the beginning. Michael term limits 'movement' movers shakers were closely associated with rep party, have read that modern-era notion (term limits idea has long history, pre-american revolution colonial and early republican-era u.s. state legislatures were commonly term limited) was hatched by paul weyrich and his free congress committee or foundation or whatever its called, number of term limits orgs were republican front groups... while '95 u.s. supreme court decision stating that limits for congress could only be imposed via u.s. constitutional amendment, not by individual states upon their own delegations, doesn't seem coincidence that wind began running out of term limits sails when rep party gained controlled of congress... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 1:19 PM I think maybe I've over-interpreted your question. I seem to be going a level of specficity beyond what you're looking for. If all you meant to ask was is it useful for lefties to engage in electoral politics with some of their energies? then my answer's yes, and we have no more argument. I thought you were talking about the relative merits of specific strategies -- becoming Democrats, trying to become the dominant Democrats, launching a third party, going half and half (the fusion strategy), working as outside pressure groups, fighting to change the electoral rules, etc. Michael my modest suggestion was about folks looking into their local dem executive committees, for example, i live in orange county, florida, most precincts have no dem workers at all, comittee chair positions ae vacant... my experience in working with local dems years ago is that they want everything their way, can recall going to local executive committee for support/endorsement of activities/projects such as trying to save african-american school building that had been abandoned by school board during 70s desegregation (circumstance repeated throughout south) and they were sympathetic - typical liberal crap - but could really see nothing in it for them, executive council members only see things in terms of potential voters and really had little use for much else see nothing (which is understandable from their narrow perspective and also politically useless)... i also worked on a couple of campaigns at that time for 'progressive' candidates shunned by local dem committee, matter might have been different had there been slate of such candidates (which i argued for and was never able to convince enough people to pursue) and if committee was comprised of like-minded folks... point - in my mind - would certainly not be to become dems as such but to maybe create some tension within local dem organizational structures and, perhaps, try tu use those structures a bit, people could continue to focus on/do whatever activities they're already working on and they could agitate amongst local dem 'leadership' groups as well... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/22/04 8:26 AM I'm asking if anyone will be doing it, because it's not a new idea, and a lot of people -- from famous guys like Michael Moore to local activists -- have proposed exactly the same thing, but they never do it themselves, much less try to make it a nationwide effort (to do the latter, you need a solid nationwide organization that exists outside electoral politics -- otherwise, no coordination among local attempts). In any event, the Green Party has proven that it is possible to elect a lot of third-party city council persons, aldermen, and even a number of mayors: http://www.feinstein.org/greenparty/electeds.html. It can continue to elect more of them, and it will probably be able to make inroads into statehouses by doing more of the same. The GP organizing has worked at local levels. The idea that we need is how to make the GP a political party that can elect its candidates to the highest levels of national political offices: representatives, senators, governors, and president. Yoshie as i mentioned in earlier post on this matte and as anyone who has ever attended such meeting will testfiy, county party executive committees meetings can be dreadfully boring (as can meetings of all stripes, obviously) and one can't miss too many of them in order to retain membership... i posted list of reasons why i think that few people want to have a go at it and my own experience suggests that folks i'd like to see engaged see it as too 'establishment'... partial example of what i've been trying to get at: harold washington's brief time as chicago mayor in the mid-1980s remains important because what emerged was a potentially powerful dialectical relationship between politicians and movement, politicos in downtown 'suites' were emboldened by activsts in neighorhood 'streets', political mobilization and organization operated 'outside of government' yet were linked 'organically'' to it worked to embolden policymakers. Results were, admittedly, limited (but achieved in face of white-dominated city council and under scrutiny of white local media), but included some shifting power and resources to neighborhoods (including creating neighborhood coops), fostering further mobilization of previously inactive folks (neighborhood orgs could review all city economic development programs and submit economic assistance proposals), and attempting some redistribution towards lower-income individuals/groups (considere no-no for municipal gov't because spending on the poor requires higher local taxes that are unattractive to potential investors), things imploded in aftermath of washington's (not necessarily my idea of appealing politician but that's not point)untimely death... was underwhelmed by list of elected green party members, most had no links to them, number of links to some who did were apparently broken, and most sites i was able to access made no mention that folks were green party members, most offices held are probably nonpartisan with respect to ballot but i'd have thought these people would want to highlight/promote green party and their membership in it at their websites, no indication of concerted party efforts but rather individual candidates running conventional campaigns that have little real connection to one another (nothing wrong with this but not indication of party growth/strength)... michael hoover (who has probably posted too much on this topic at this juncture) -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Beeps, Peeps, Veeps, Creeps
charles curtis, george dallas, john garner, garrett hobart, richard johnson, william king, thomas marshall, levi morton, daniel thompson, william wheeler, henry wilson... control of vp running mate set by fdr at 1940 dem convention, prior to that time prez nominees generally did not express preference re. who vp candidate should be (william jenings bryan called this careful neglect or some such phrase)... fdr decided that he wanted to dump john garner (who said vp position wasn't worth pitcher of warm spit), fdr failed to convince secretary of state cordell hull to accept nomination, fdr forced convention to accept henry wallace vy threatening to resign presidency otherwise... in 84, walter mondale became first prez candidate to announce running mate (geraldine ferraro) prior to convention, all dem candidates since then have folowed suit - dukakis in 88 with (lloyd 'I i knew jack kennedy, i served with jack kennedy senator [quayle] you're no jack kennedy'), clinton (gore) in 92, Gore (lieberman) in 2000, and now kerry with edwards.. as for rep candidates, only dole (kemp) and bush the second (cheney) have announced early... kerry's timing conceivably of interest, others who went public early did so just a few days before party conventions, kerry breaks record bigtime by advancing announcement three weeks, indication of weakness imo (lame attempt by lame candidate to get some news coverage)... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Beeps, Peeps, Veeps, Creeps
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 12:55 PM charles curtis, george dallas, john garner, garrett hobart, richard johnson, william king, thomas marshall, levi morton, daniel thompson, william wheeler, henry wilson... following somehow deleted from above message: these are among names that roll off people's tongues when they talk (as so many do) about vice-prez's... mh -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/20/04 7:52 PM Daniel Davies wrote: I'd be *very* careful how one went about this. It feels like entryism, and the experience of the (UK) Labour Party in the 1980s suggests that the 'mainstream' Dems would react to it very badly indeed (by which I mean that this, if it didn't work, would be the *end* of friendly relationships between the US Left (S.A.I.I) and the Democratic Party. We're not talking about people like Militant I hope. Our Trots wouldn't touch the DP with a 10-ft pole. (On this question, even some ex-Trots carry on the tradition, suggesting that membership is that community is a lot like the Party of the Right, for life at least.) We're talking about Nader voters, Greens, liberal Dems, etc. Of course that they lack the discipline of Militant they'll get chewed up quickly by the DP machinery. Doug interesting that someone referred to militant tendency/labour, i put 'entryism' in scare quotes in followup post to my suggestion re. dem county executive councils, was curious if anyone would comment as such... but my suggestion really differs from uk experience, no 'party within party' stuff... there is no dem party machinery in orblando... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 3:07 AM On Mon, 19 Jul 2004, Doug Henwood wrote: maybe the three million or so people who voted for nader in 2000 should take control of local democratic executive committees, use structure in place to recruit candidates, slag off on dems who suck, use available funds to issue policy statements and press releases one after another, show up at public and government meetings, control of county dem mechanisms might lead to control of state dem parties... This sounds like a very good idea, or at least one worth trying. What's the argument against it? There are two basically: one, it's impossible, and two, you won't be able to do anything with it. The reason is that the incentives are all on the other side and that all state party machines are collusive. In New York City, where you and I live, nothing short of the governorship would allow us to accomplish anything in the state worth doing. Lower level success would allow you to make symbolic gestures which by and large have already been made in our home town, from domestic partnership to living wage law to declarations against the war and patriot act. I think if you really wanted to take over the state, you'd be better off with a state-wide IRV campaign. Probably equally doomed, but at least the interim incentives would make more sense: you'd build up an organization outside their grasp that could affect the media and politics independently. This is basically how people passed the term-limits laws. IRV would be more useful: it would really allow you to develop small principled parties that could grow until they won, and which would have an effect on the political discourse from the beginning. Michael another of michael pollak's well-reasoned posts, you've offered number of specific obstacles re. new york (factors relevant to other locales as well), in some ways, however, your example can be used in support of above suggestion which was assumed nation-wide effort (there are 3000 counties in us, most have dem/rep executive councils serving as 'structural' foundation of respective parties)... florida dems dominated state politics until last couple of decades, but there was really no party as such, ambitious individuals decided to run, put together their own campaign org, raised their own money, in number of ways, state was ahead of the curve re. 'candidate-centered' elections... neither of two major parties in u.s. are 'mass'' organizations, membershp in many places consists several 'activists' who function as local executive committee and who recruit 'activists' to help party candidate campaigns, self-selected candidates often don't care whether they get local party support or not (and sometimes prefer not), surely progressive/left folks can do better than this with whatever shell of an organization exists... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 8:41 AM An argument against it? You would actually try it yourself if it were really a good idea. Yoshie nah, doug's a journalist, he'd write about it... michael hoover A person who puts forward a proposal should be prepared to act on it. Otherwise, others will simply conclude that, if the idea is not even worth the proposer's time, then, it's not worth their time either. -- Yoshie people do different things, as for doug, he's a reporter (he may think of himself in other terms), i've indicated number of times in past impact that i think this has on his perspective re. certain things, but above conclusion is not necessarily one of them, in any event, i made suggestion (hesitate to call it proposal) not him... michael hoover (who has actually attended local dem ex com meetings) -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Not a dime's worth of difference
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/21/04 10:44 AM louis, re. post header: not a dime's worth of difference, have you changed your mind since below appeared as part of earlier post a few months ago: Glick is basically mounting a false polemic. He characterizes radicals in the Debs and Malcolm X tradition as having the same outlook as expressed in George Wallace's pithy observation that there's not a dime's worth of difference between the two parties. In reality, this is not our view at all. If there were not substantive differences between the two parties, the system would collapse. i've always thought that wallace's assertion was incorrect, there's at least a quarter's worth of difference between 2 major parties... wallace's 'insurgent' 68 campaign resulted in 12-13% of 'popular' vote and served as basis for 'southern strategy'' that rep party would use quite successfully, kevin phillips was nixon adviser that year and his book _the emerging republican majority' released a year later argued for going after white southern and white suburban vote... assumption was that wallace took votes from nixon rather than humphrey despite fact that wallace and humphrey were both dems, that nixon would have won two-candidate race between himself and humphrey by larger than the 45-43% margin in three person race... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/19/04 6:29 PM Michael Hoover wrote: maybe the three million or so people who voted for nader in 2000 should take control of local democratic executive committees, use structure in place to recruit candidates, slag off on dems who suck, use available funds to issue policy statements and press releases one after another, show up at public and government meetings, control of county dem mechanisms might lead to control of state dem parties... This sounds like a very good idea, or at least one worth trying. What's the argument against it? Doug An argument against it? You would actually try it yourself if it were really a good idea. Yoshie nah, doug's a journalist, he'd write about it... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/19/04 3:33 PM Michael Hoover wrote: maybe the three million or so people who voted for nader in 2000 should take control of local democratic executive committees, use structure in place to recruit candidates, slag off on dems who suck, use available funds to issue policy statements and press releases one after another, show up at public and government meetings, control of county dem mechanisms might lead to control of state dem parties... This sounds like a very good idea, or at least one worth trying. What's the argument against it? Doug in no particular order: dem party is thoroughly and hopelessly capitalist, with some exceptions, dem party has dishonorable past, some left folks' preference for 'resistance' and 'struggle', would be too hard to accomplish (not to mention, really boring), inevitable/inexorable march of socialism, folks misunderstand marx re. 'parliamentary cretinism' and 'executive of modern state as committee for managing common affairs of whole bourgeoisie', incompatible with lifestyle things, better to encourage people to read marx/lenin/whomever and join one of numerous alphabet soup vanguard party comprised of ten and hundred of comrabes, red badge of being 'the opposition', dislike/fear of success, preference for whining instead of winning, activism (at least some of what passes for it) would lose character of surrogacy for psychotherapy...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/19/04 10:37 PM First, all three million do not exist in the same locality. Secondly, a large number who voted for Nader then now are happily reunited with friends inside the regular Democratic Party. Thirdly, fat chance of getting the national party to change anything, or even state parties. Remember the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party? Fourthly, the Democratic Party is not an industrial union, like the UAW or UMW, and even there and then independent workers organizations had to be, and will have to be again, constructed against the established leadership. Need I continue? no idea who lister responsible for above is but: that 3m don't live in same locality is basic point, that certain left-celebs have signed onto anyone but bush/kerry means only that those left-celebs have done so, reference to miss freedom dem party is msplaced given it was singular attempt rather than across-board - er, nation - one (btw: wouldn't take 3m people, used number bit facetiously), this form of 'entryism' would - by definition - be opposed to established leadership... again, nothing may well come of it... heighten the contradictions man , michael hoover ps: thanks for link to milo reno papers, brief bio was bit helpful, have since stumbled across book about farm holiday assn by a john shover, _cornbelt rebellion: the famers' holiday association'... -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: [Fwd: Swans' Release: July 19, 2004]
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/18/04 5:23 PM Michael wrote: i've a hunch that some left interest in nader is reflection of absence of actual left alternatives, as panelist at forum i attended in ann arbor said yesterday: 'he's best known option, lousy way to develop actual left alternative... I think that those who are seriously interested in building a movement and political party capable of challenging the bipartisan consensus on the domestic and foreign policy ought to be able to think beyond the specific positive and negative attributes of Ralph Nader as an individual and think about who (among Green Party leaders, rank-and-file Green Party members, non-Green Party members, etc.) is supporting him and why, what we can do to work with them, and so on. Yoshie some will, perhaps, pooh-pooh following as not serious but - imo - neither movements nor parties are built via campaigns for prez, too much time/effort/use of too limited resources, amount/kind of attention that nader gets (which is result of name recognition, not due to green party/ideas) will not contribute to either task, important green *party* work is down ballot if at all... nader received almost 3 million votes last time, will probably receive less this time for number of reasons, but those 3 million folks (and others who voted for various left alternatives in 2000) would make bigger statement by turning out en masse to a kerry inauguration with one statement - 'we're on your ass' (pelt his motorcade with 3 million eggs)... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/18/04 7:51 PM I don't think that the League of Pissed Off Voters, aka the League of Independent Voters, goes anywhere by itself, but seen as a part of a larger phenomenon, it's interesting. On one hand, it's an indication of how embarrassing it has become to make a straightforward argument for John Kerry or the Democratic Party in general, among thinking young persons especially, so the Democratic operatives have to come up with a face-saving cover that lets them believe that they are still independent, albeit they will be voting and working for John Kerry. Yoshie will rogers said something to effect that he wasn't a member of any party, he was a democrat... maybe the three million or so people who voted for nader in 2000 should take control of local democratic executive committees, use structure in place to recruit candidates, slag off on dems who suck, use available funds to issue policy statements and press releases one after another, show up at public and government meetings, control of county dem mechanisms might lead to control of state dem parties... maybe nothing would happen, but maybe there would be crisis of hegemony in dem party, existing national/state dem 'leaders' might have to react, maybe they'd play their hand and decide to decertify local executive councils run by leftists/ progressives, so dem party could become something different from what it is today or it might be be destroyed, either outcome would be ok...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/19/04 3:52 PM Michael Hoover: will rogers said something to effect that he wasn't a member of any party, he was a democrat... when I quoted this, I was corrected: he wasn't a member of any _organized_ party. i stand (actually, i'm sitting) corrected... maybe the three million or so people who voted for nader in 2000 should take control of local democratic executive committees, use structure in place to recruit candidates, slag off on dems who suck, all of them? then who's left? jd who's/whose left now... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Venture Communism (Robert Owen)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/19/04 8:50 AM Hazlitt's essay on Robert Owen is quite fun: http://www.blupete.com/Literature/Essays/Hazlitt/Political/Owen.htm there's also a rather good museum in New Lanark these days which makes an attractive daytrip if you're ever stuck in Glasgow. I occasionally find myself thinking that Owen and the pre-Engels British Socialists are probably worth another look, but have always been put off by the teetotal tendency which one tends to find there. dd tawney's _the radical tradition_ includes brief essay on owen that is worth looking at... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The real spoilers: Kerry and Edwards
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/17/04 8:26 AM NY Times, July 17, 2004 No Poll Boost From Edwards By RICHARD W. STEVENSON and JANET ELDER WASHINGTON, July 16 - Senator John Edwards is viewed far more favorably than unfavorably by Americans in the aftermath of his introduction as Senator John Kerry's running mate, and the intensity of feeling for Mr. Kerry has deepened, among his backers in the presidential race, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. But naming Mr. Edwards did not immediately win over any substantial number of voters for the Democratic ticket, and the campaign between Mr. Kerry and President Bush remains statistically deadlocked as Mr. Kerry heads toward the Democratic convention and his best opportunity to make a strong impression on the country, the poll found. that vp candidates make little difference in election seems truism, public opinion polls generally support assumption as only small percentages tend to say that vp nominees will influence their presidential vote choice... mainstream poli sci people have found that at aggregate-level, vp candidates have no influence, they bring national ticket neither home state or regional advantage, however, there is some indication that at Individual-level, one's evaluation of vp nominees may have bit of influence on presidential vote-choice, more importantly, vp candidate choice may 'deepen intensity' even among leaners/possible voters of a presidential candidate and this appears produced increased likelihood that some vote who might otherwise stay at home... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
There are Democrats, and there are shamefaced Democrats, and the League of Pissed Off Voters is set up to appeal to the latter. When you look at their website http://indyvoter.org/, it uses two names alternately: the League of Pissed Off Voters and the League of Independent Voters. The League of Pissed Off Voters just had its national convention http://indyvoter.org/article.php?id=72 at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. From a friend of mine who ran into the League's national organizers at a bar tonight, I hear that about 250 attended the convention, but only 15 from Columbus itself. 15 is 15 too many. Yoshie will plead ignorance re. lopov, saw name on poster, chuckled, thought to myself kinda funny, even thought 'group' might be joke, thought up by someone/small group with no serious intention of having legs for mass outreach, so my initial comments about 'rightous name' and 'growing group' were supposed to be irony (which often travels poorly in cyberspace)... so 250 people had 'national convention', doesn't matter who they are, what they stand for, what their name is, where they've been or where they're going, group is a joke (if not in manner of my immediate reaction to name lopov)... fwiw: league rep at ann arbor forum yesterday argued for voting for anybody but kerry or bush, guess she's out of step with her comrades re. dem candidate... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: [Fwd: Swans' Release: July 19, 2004]
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/18/04 3:46 PM http://www.swans.com/ July 19, 2004 -- In this issue: http://www.swans.com/library/art10/lproy17.html The Case for Nader-Camejo - by Louis Proyect Unlike the DLC-backed candidates of recent years, Nader is not afraid to represent himself as an old-fashioned trade union advocate. He writes: Whether workers unionize makes a big difference in their compensation and treatment. The Economics Policy Institute reports that unionization provides a 28 percent wage premium to workers -- meaning the same person in the same job, on average, will earn 11.5 percent more if the job is unionized -- and a much larger edge in the area of benefits (more than 100 percent for insurance, nearly 200 percent for pensions). i don't think my criticisms of nader are liberal but i guess some would disagree... i've a hunch that some left interest in nader is reflection of absence of actual left alternatives, as panelist at forum i attended in ann arbor said yesterday: 'he's best known option, lousy way to develop actual left alternative... another panelist referred with reverence to eugene debs, well i dig debs too but real importance at that time was neither his 6% of prez vote in 1912 or million votes he got in 1920 while in prison, more significant was over 1300 - mostly local - elected socialists prior to ww1... nader's advocacy of old-fashioned trade unionism (gompersism? business unionism?) apparently stops with those who've worked for him over years if accounts i've read about organizing at public citizen and multinational monitor are accurate... we've really had enough 'party of person' candidacies/parties... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: [Fwd: Swans' Release: July 19, 2004]
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/18/04 4:33 PM Michael Hoover wrote: another panelist referred with reverence to eugene debs, well i dig debs too but real importance at that time was neither his 6% of prez vote in 1912 or million votes he got in 1920 while in prison, more significant was over 1300 - mostly local - elected socialists prior to ww1... I think it would be deeply reactionary to back somebody like Nader if another Eugene V. Debs was available. Politics is the art, however, of knowing what to do next. your comment suggests that you missed my point which was not about prez elections... nader's advocacy of old-fashioned trade unionism (gompersism? business unionism?) apparently stops with those who've worked for him over years if accounts i've read about organizing at public citizen and multinational monitor are accurate... The race is not between Ralph Nader and our ideals. In such a race, the ideals will always come in first. The challenge remains as ever to construct an alternative to the 2-party system. Nothing permanent may come out of the Nader-Camejo bid, but it takes an enormous amount of guts to stand up to the liberal establishment as Nader does. I don't Michael pays sufficient recognition to this. nader is curmudgeon so bucking liberal establishment (whatever that is) or any other establishment comes with territory, so voting for nader is what folks should know to do next... we've really had enough 'party of person' candidacies/parties... michael hoover I don't think this is what it is about. Our problem is not parties in general but the specific capitalist political machine in the USA which is an obstacle to the construction of a mass movement. Whatever Nader did wrong to his own employees, he put himself and his resources at the disposal of the Seattle anti-globalization protest. That's not what any Democratic Party presidential candidate ever did. ah, rat choice, any event, i''ve not been debating nader or any candidate for that matter vs dems... michael hoover (who voted for camejo when he ran for prez in 76 and probably hasn't known what to do next ever since) -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/16/04 2:45 PM michael hoover (reporting from birkenstock, i mean ann arbor, where forum on third parties this weekend includes representative of the righteously named - and no doubt - growing group, league of pissed off voters) Isn't that another front group for the Democrats? Yoshie aren't they all, actually, i have it on good word that dems are front group for reps... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Farm Holiday Associationn (was Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/16/04 3:20 PM Hmm, well I think we can rule out shark attacks as a factor in the decline of the Kansas left. The American heartland remains shrouded in mystery. Carl subsitute tornadoes or some other 'act of god' for which folks hold politicians accountable... re. farmbelt left, was doing some reading on pre-american revolution/colonial era violence and came across mention of 1930s group/movement with which i'm unfamiliar: farm holiday association... apparently emerged out of iowa and spread to several other states, violent direct action was principal feature, farmers defied legal processes, blocked highways, dumped milk from trucks, forcibly halted farm disclosures, assaulted public officials,,, 'leader' was guy named milo reno, henry wallace apparently compared movement to that of of boston tea party, one branch called themselves 'modern 76ers'... any listers with any info... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Facing South: 7/15
F A C I N G S O U T H A progressive Southern news report July 15, 2004 * Issue 84 _ INSTITUTE INDEX * The Two Americas Amount that job growth is lower than Bush Administration predicted in February 2004, in millions: 1.5 Of 13 Southern states, number that have had a net job gain since 2001: 0 Percent of African American teens jobless in June 2004: 77 Percent by which number of millionaires in U.S. increased last year: 14 Percent that financial wealth grew for richest 1 percent from 1983-2001: 109 Percent that it fell for bottom 40% during same time period: 46 Cost of new tax breaks given to richest 1% since 2002, in billions: $197 Cost of state budget cuts and tax increases since 2002, in billions: $200 Amount of lost government revenue each day this decade due to Bush tax cuts, in millions: $300 Sources on file at the Institute for Southern Studies. _ DATELINE: THE SOUTH * Top Stories Around the Region ONE OF EIGHT VOTERS WILL USE SAME MACHINES AS FLORIDA 2000 The 2000 Florida elections set in motion a makeover of the nation's voting systems. Yet three-quarters of American voters will cast ballots Nov. 2 using the same equipment they voted on four years ago. One in eight will be using the same type of punch-card voting machines blamed for many of Florida's problems. Electronic voting, initially seen as the best way to modernize balloting, is now the subject of questions about its security and reliability. (USA Today, 7/13) http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040713/6359064s.htm PANEL TO INVESTIGATE DELAY FACES CONFLICT OF INTEREST Texas Congressman Tom Delay (R) faces ethics charges alleging he illegally solicited campaign contributions in return for legislative favors and laundered illegal corporate contributions for use in Texas elections. Lucky for him that four of the House ethics committee members charged with investigating DeLay have taken money from him. (Alternet, 7/15) http://www.alternet.org/election04/19241/ EEOC FINDS RACIAL BIAS SURROUNDING LOCKHEED PLANT KILLINGS Lockheed Martin may have discriminated against black employees at its Meridian, Miss. plant by failing to address racial tensions that erupted into a deadly shooting rampage last year, a federal agency concluded. Six Lockheed Martin employees -- five of them black -- were killed and eight wounded by a white employee in July 8, 2003. Plaintiffs say Lockheed knew the white worker was hostile to African Americans. (Clarion-Ledger, 7/13) http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040713/NEWS01/407130346/1002 ATOMIC WASTE TANKS LEAKING IN SC Fifteen tanks holding deadly atomic waste at a nuclear weapons complex along the Savannah River have cracked, rusted or leaked, according to federal inspection reports. Some of the cracks date to the 1950s, but inspection reports say some leaks have been found in the past three years. (Associated Press, 7/10) http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=storyu=/ap/20040710/ap_on_re_us/nuclear_waste_tanks_1 COLLEGE TUITION TO RISE 10% State colleges and universities will raise tuition by an average 10 percent for the coming school year, according to new projections by a higher education organization. (Stateline.com) http://www.stateline.org/stateline/?pa=storysa=showStoryInfoid=385477 ADVOCATES FOR WAR NOW PROFITING FROM AFTERMATH Lobbyists, public relations counselors and confidential advisors to senior federal officials who pressed for war in Iraq are now collecting tens of thousands of dollars in fees for helping business clients pursue federal contracts and other financial opportunities in Iraq. For instance, a former Senate aide who helped get U.S. funds for anti-Hussein exiles who are now active in Iraqi affairs has a $175,000 deal to advise Romania on winning business in Iraq. (Los Angeles Times, 7/14) http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0714-01.htm THE UNIQUE BRUTALITY OF TEXAS At a time when many other states have been questioning their death-penalty systems, why has the death-penalty machinery in Texas been steaming right along? (The American Prospect, 7/1/04) http://www.prospect.org/web/page.ww?section=rootname=ViewPrintarticleId=7883 -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Thomas Frank op-ed piece
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/16/04 10:13 AM (Thomas Frank's new book What's Wrong With Kansas argues implicitly that the Democrats lose elections because they are identified with the wrong side of the culture wars. nah, mainstream poli sci guys christopher achen and larry bartels have much better explanation, they've convincingly shown impact of droughts, flu, shark attacks, etc. on electoral responses, for example, 1916 shark attacks (that inspired peter benchley's novel 'jaws') along new jersey beaches resulted in 10% decline from 1912 in beach town votes for woodrow wilson... michael hoover (reporting from birkenstock, i mean ann arbor, where forum on third parties this weekend includes representative of the righteously named - and no doubt - growing group, league of pissed off voters) -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Summary of Complaint Against Tom Delay
has below been in news... Summary of Complaint against Rep. Tom DeLay Filed by Rep. Chris Bell June 8, 2004 On June 8, 2004, Congressman Chris Bell (D-TX) submitted a complaint to the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct regarding the conduct of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. The complaint alleges that Mr. DeLay violated the rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Federal bribery statute, Texas campaign finance laws to advance his political interests in the state of Texas. The complaint charges that: (1) DeLay illegally solicited and accepted political contributions in return for official action. In the spring and summer of 2002, then Majority Whip DeLay, violated Federal law and the rules of the House of Representatives by soliciting and accepting contributions for his Texas-based political action committee, Texans for a Republican Majority (TRMPAC), from executives of the Kansas-based Westar Energy Corporation in return for legislative assistance on an amendment to the energy bill pending before the House Energy and Commerce Committee that would have saved Westar billions of dollars. Although Mr. DeLay was not a member of the Committee, his position in the House leadership and his close ties to senior Republican Members of the Committee, including its chairman, afforded him extraordinary influence over the amendment s fate. Westar executives noted DeLay s influence in internal company communications and contributed $25,000 to TRMPAC to curry DeLay s support. Violations: 18 U.S.C. §201(b)(2) prohibits public officials from seeking, receiving, accepting or agreeing to accept anything of value in return for doing or omitting to do any act in violation of that official s official duty. Section 3 of the Code of Official Conduct provides that [a] Member . . . of the House may not receive compensation and may not permit compensation to accrue to his beneficial interest from any source, the receipt of which would occur by virtue of influence improperly exerted from his position in Congress. (2) DeLay s TRMPAC laundered illegal corporate contributions for the purpose of influencing Texas legislative races and failed to properly disclose its financial activity. Through TRMPAC, Mr. DeLay used corporate money to secure Republican majority control of the Texas Legislature in the 2002 election in order to gerrymander Texas congressional districts to create more Republican districts. TRMPAC, which operates under Texas law for the purpose of influencing state elections, was managed by Jim Ellis, a top DeLay aide who also ran DeLay s federally registered Americans for a Republican Majority (ARMPAC). During the week of September 9, 2002, TRMPAC sent $190,000 in corporate funds to the Republican National Committee in an apparent money-laundering scheme intended to provide candidates for the Texas State Legislature with additional funding shortly before the election. Because Texas law prevents corporations from making contributions to candidates, TRMPAC could not give the money to candidates directly. Instead, TRMPAC gave Jim Ellis a blank check drawn on the PAC s soft money account, which Ellis then made out to the RNC for $190,000. Within three weeks, the RNC's state election committee sent the same amount back to Texas, divided among seven Republican candidates for the Texas State House of Representatives. Violations: Under Texas campaign finance laws and regulations, political action committees, such as DeLay s TRMPAC, are prohibited from using corporate donations to help individual candidates. Moreover, PACs must disclose all the money spent to influence state elections to the Texas Ethics Commission ( TEC ). A comparison of TRMPAC s filings with the IRS and the TEC shows that TRMPAC failed to accurately report its expenditures, further supporting the charge that TRMPAC used corporate money to support political candidates in a calculated and premeditated effort to evade and violate Texas law. (3) DeLay improperly used his office to urge federal agencies to assist in a partisan objective wholly unrelated to his official duties. During the summer of 2003, Mr. DeLay violated House Standards of Official Conduct prohibiting Members from contacting government agencies to further partisan goals by improperly using his office to exhort federal agencies, including the Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) and the Department of Justice, to search for and interdict state legislators absent from the state legislative session in Texas. In the most egregious instance, on May 12, 2003, Rep. DeLay s Congressional office pressed the FAA to provide assistance in locating an airplane that was believed to be flying some of the absent legislators out of Texas. DeLay s staff gave the FAA the tail number of the aircraft and, without providing any explanation for the request, asked the FAA to find the aircraft. The FAA tracked the plane and advised Mr. DeLay s staff that the
Re: Mike Ditka
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/14/04 7:22 PM Jack Ryan should enter the race again. He's sleazy and hypocritical enough for the US Senate, perhaps even enough for the House. jd ditka's wife apparently said she'd divorce him if he ran for senate, ryan's ex-wife said that he took her to sex clubs and tried to get her to have sex in front of other people when they were married but she also said he'd make good senator, no word on whether ditka has take his wife to sex clubs... whoops, is above re. to harrison ford character in films adapted from tom clancy (or some such writer, have never read any) novels, if so, never mind... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: ditka
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/15/04 12:39 AM Alas he is registered in Florida -- see that Michael H. -- and will not run. Michael Perelman hear ye hear ye: it's official (below story actually states he withdrew from race that he never entered)... although not necessarily for reason cited above, after all, he could do what cheney did in 2000, declared residency had been texas during years he was running halliburton, upon vp nomination, changed voter registration back to wyoming from where he'd served in congress (constitution requires prez and vp must be from different states) and where he was still getting mail six months after taking office (piece of consiracy michael moore missed)... similarly, recall hillary clinton and bobby kenned in ny... btw: there is some question as to whether or not ditka is registered in florida, his wife is, she reportedly votes, he apparenty does not... michael hoover Former Football Coach Won't Run for Senate in Illinois By STEPHEN KINZER Published: July 15, 2004 CHICAGO, July 14 - Nothing may more vividly reflect the Republican Party's difficulty finding a suitable candidate for the Senate here than its flirtation this week with the former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka. Mr. Ditka, who has made news with his enthusiastic drinking and gambling, volcanic temper and support for public executions, withdrew from the race Wednesday night after several days of flirtation. I don't know how I'd do on the Senate floor if I got in a confrontation with someone I didn't appreciate or maybe didn't appreciate me, Mr. Ditka said. Mr. Ditka was not close to being the most outlandish possible Republican candidate. Commentators here have half-seriously proposed Michael Jordan, Ernie Banks, Cindy Crawford and Oprah Winfrey. None of these figures have indicated any interest in the race. It is not even clear that they are Republicans, and at least one of them, Mr. Jordan, has contributed to the Obama campaign. As the situation degenerates into the realm of comic opera, satirists have begun suggesting fictional candidates. One proposed the cartoon character Homer Simpson (a resident of Springfield), and another suggested that deep-dish pepperoni pizza should get the nod (diversity, name recognition and immense popularity). I seriously doubt that the Republicans, even in their wildest dreams, ever expected to be in this position, said Kent Redfield, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield. The chances of this turning into a national joke are very high. It will be a three-ring circus. Republican leaders are eager to do whatever possible to hold the seat of Senator Peter G. Fitzgerald, who is retiring. On Tuesday, Senator George Allen of Virginia, chairman of the Republican Senatorial Committee and son of a former Washington Redskins coach, flew to Chicago to meet with Mr. Ditka. The head of the Illinois Republican party, Judy Baar Topinka, also attended. On Wednesday afternoon, a spokeswoman for Mr. Ditka, Mary Albright, said he had not made up his mind. He has some things he needs to sort out, she said. Those may have included myriad business obligations. Mr. Ditka is a motivational speaker, owns a steakhouse in Chicago, works as a sports commentator and is about to introduce his own line of sportswear. He is also a pitchman for Levitra, an anti-impotency drug. Republicans have named a 19-member committee to review candidates. One member, Dennis P. Wiggins, said that although there was no official deadline for a decision, one could come this week. Statewide candidates in Illinois generally win by appealing to independents, soccer moms and suburbanites. Voters in those groups mighty not have been drawn to a self-described ultraconservative with a supermacho image like Mr. Ditka. Wisecracks about Mr. Ditka, many of them involving his work for Levitra, began circulating several days ago and have become steadily more vulgar, suggesting that late-night comics might have wound up being the greatest beneficiaries of a Ditka candidacy. Several other people who had been considered possible candidates for the Republican nomination, among them State Senator Steve Rauschenberger and a businessman who is a former chairman of the State Board of Education, Ronald Gidwitz, took themselves out of consideration before Mr. Ditka's name surfaced. Among those still interested are Andrea Grubb Barthwell, who last week resigned as a deputy director in the Office of National Drug Control Policy, and Jim Oberweis, who owns a chain of ice cream parlors and finished second to Mr. Ryan in the March primary. Mr. Ditka, 64, is not registered to vote in Illinois, but is registered in Florida, where he owns a home. Until Mr. Ditka's name was brought up a few days ago on a Web site that was apparently started partly as a joke, Illinois Republican leaders were insisting that they would carefully review the records of all prospective candidates. They might have had to loosen
Re: The Future of the Green Party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/15/04 2:02 PM The Future of the Green Party (it's the Greens for Nader and Green leaders like Peter Miguel Camejo, Matt Gonzalez, Jason West, Ross Mirkarimi, Donna Warren, and others who are the future of the Green Party): -Yoshie sex pistols ranted something about 'no future', below from another list in another time (well, almost 4 yrs ago), ... michael hoover NY Times, November 2, 2000 WASHINGTON, Nov. 1 - For as long as he has been running for president, Ralph Nader has made clear that his quest is not about winning, but about building a viable third party, the Greens, that could reform Washington, elect state and local candidates and provide a home for disenchanted liberals. This is not going to go away, Mr. Nader said recently. It is going to build a major political progressive force in America. But in the colorful history of third parties in America, there have been few, if any, alternative parties that have succeeded on the scale Mr. Nader envisions, analysts say. Indeed, history is littered with tales of fledgling movements built around charismatic or iron-willed individuals - from Robert M. LaFollette to Theodore Roosevelt to Ross Perot - that crashed soon after taking flight. Louis Proyect Relative electoral strength/influence of minor parties at local state levels (concentration of immigrant socialists in urban areas, midwest populist farmers) up to WW2 has been pretty well documented. Of course, structure culture of US electoral politics have been obstacles to minor parties: premium placed on majority/plurality results, single- member legislative districts, winner-take-all offices, ballot access restrictions, absence of media attention, campaign costs. Nationally, most successful minor party presidential election efforts (since Civil War, only 4 such candidates have received more than 10% of direct vote - T Roosevelt/1912, Robert La Follette/1924, George Wallace/ 1968, Ross Perot/1992) have had transient quality. Focus on presidency has tended to make such efforts parties of the personality electoral vehicles lacking sufficient internal organization to survive defeat at polls. Program - campaigning, policy proposals, politicking - takes precedence over party building (i.e., recruiting body of workers who stick around after election is over). Above is evident in minimal number of minor party candidates who run for congressional seats. While occasional independents - James Buckley/NY, Harry Byrd/WV, Bernie Sanders/VT - have been elected since mid-20th century, not since 1924, when 2 Socialists 3 Farmer-Laborites won House races a Farmer-Laborite went to the Senate, has there been any semblance of organized left opposition. Concentration on presidential elections has left little time, people power, money to wage congressional campaigns. Inadvertently perhaps, US two-party system has been reconfirmed, reinforced, periodically revitalized by minor parties. Such parties have lost support when their issues/proposals became popular and assimilated (generally in watered down form) into one or both major parties. For example, Progressive, Socialist, Farmer-Labor, Communist party candidates collected 2 million votes in 1934 congressional elections. By 1936, left congressional candidates were negligible factor in wake of most left-leaning period of New Deal that secured FDR's re-election. Michael Hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Future of the Green Party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/15/04 3:02 PM Michael Hoover wrote: By 1936, left congressional candidates were negligible factor in wake of most left-leaning period of New Deal that secured FDR's re-election. Well, this is not quite accurate. Those candidates tended to function as the left wing of the New Deal. In other words, they had the same relation to FDR that Donna Lamarche and David Cobb have to John Kerry. In the late 1930s, we had the objective possibility for a radical labor party but that was destroyed by a CPUSA who used their hegemony to squash efforts to the left of FDR. not in 36, browder tried to norman thomas to run a socialist/comunist prez-vp ticket with thomas at top and browder as vp, thomas declined (he received about 200,000 votes that year) browder's prez candidacy drew about 80,000 votes), 36 'left' (note scare quotes, few people realized that party was front for father coughlin)) prez alternative was populist candidacy of union party's william lemke (farmer-labor member of congress from north dakota)... big difference between 36 and today re. above is that fdr did court variety of progressive types, in fact, he ran 36 campaign as 'progressive coalition' rather than DP candidacy, number of 'soft' left leaders did sign on to become 'junior' partners, socialist/farmer-labor/communist/american labor/etc congressional candidates took big hits that year... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Future of the Green Party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/15/04 3:56 PM Michael Hoover wrote 36 'left' (note scare quotes, few people realized that party was front for father coughlin)) prez alternative was populist candidacy of union party's william lemke (farmer-labor member of congress from north dakota)... left out of above: lemke received about 900,000 votes... mh -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: The Future of the Green Party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/15/04 4:02 PM
Michael Hoover wrote:
big difference between 36 and today re. above is that fdr did court
variety of progressive types, in fact, he ran 36 campaign as
'progressive coalition' rather than DP candidacy, number of 'soft'
left
leaders did sign on to become 'junior' partners,
socialist/farmer-labor/communist/american labor/etc congressional
candidates took big hits that year...
Well, there is a difference between FDR's snuggling up with the CPUSA
and John Kerry's back of the hand treatment towards anybody to the left
of Chuck Schumer, but I would prefer that the left have nothing to do
with the Democrats, whether doors or opened or not.
perhaps my point was unclear: fdr sought to co-opt various 'progressive'
folks because he *had* to, indication of growing strength of left
(broadly
defined) at time, fdr's biggest fear (not too realistic imo) apparently
was that
lafollette might be able to bring together progressive/'left'
elements...
my conception of 30s left appears broader than yours, true that cp
membership
grew in later years of decade, also true that browder took party down
disastrous ('marxism as 20th century jeffersonianism' or some such
slogan) path, but don't think party was 'hegemonic'...
surely you know after all these years that i'm not proponent of working
with or
trying to move dems to left, of course, will rogers said that he wasn't
a member of any party, he was a dem, there's some truth in that, perhaps
leftists, en masse, should decide to take over local dem committees...
michael hoover
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Re: Coziness with the Saudis is a bipartisan phenomenon
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/14/04 8:51 AM coziness with the Saudis is a bipartisan phenomenon. of course... saudi gov't is among top ten buyers of u.s. arms, human rights abuses in saudi arabia include use of u.s. made restraining belts and chairs, saudis also use electro-shock devices of which u.s. is leading developer of technology... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Kucinich delegates fold like a cheap suitcase
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/13/04 9:18 AM
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
July 11, 2004
Kerry heads off platform squabble
From the Nation/Politics section
Stephen Dinan
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. -- Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's
campaign headed off a showdown in the party platform yesterday over
Iraq, convincing rival Dennis J. Kucinich's supporters not to demand
withdrawal of U.S. troops or the establishment of a Department of Peace.
dem leaders/candidates have worked overtime to prevent such disputes
since 72 when platform fight on evening of mcgovern's acceptance speech
pushed him to
about 2am eastern time when most of nation was asleep, many more people
were
tuned into dems arguing with each other during prime time (reps had
similar, albeit lesser, experience in 92 when bush the first essentially
allowed religious right to run
things)...
clintonite control of dem party in 92 and 96 not only prevented any
apparent internal differences, it also led to 'progressives' speakers
being pushed out of prime tme slots (they'd had enough of jesse
jackson's rouings 84 and 88 convention remarks)...
desire to present unified front on national tv makes sense from party
perspective, kucinich folks have to make decision at some point re. that
('their') party... michael hoover
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Re: Mike Ditka
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/13/04 5:08 PM Is he really running for Senator? Charles Barkeley spoke about running for Alabama governor, but he dropped the matter. Michael Perelman Some in Illinois Want Ditka for Senate By MIKE COLIAS Associated Press Writer July 14, 2004, 4:42 AM EDT CHICAGO -- In a Hail Mary pass by the state GOP, the party chairwoman met with former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka about a possible run for the U.S. Senate. Illinois Republicans are scrambling to find a replacement candidate with less than four months left until the November election. Jack Ryan dropped out nearly three weeks ago over embarrassing allegations in his divorce papers that he took his wife, Boston Public actress Jeri Ryan, to sex clubs before they split up. The party's top choices have refused to run. Mike Lawrence, interim director of the Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, said the GOP's fascination with Ditka is understandable. In some respects, the Republicans are in the position where it looks as if they're going to have to throw a Hail Mary here, he said, and Mike Ditka was an All-Pro end. A number of Republican leaders in both Illinois and Washington said Tuesday that Ditka's name recognition, regular-guy appeal and analytical game-planning skills would make him a viable candidate to challenge state Sen. Barack Obama, a Democratic rising star. The public is really tired of the slick politicians, they're tired of sound bites, they're tired of trial lawyers running government. To have a decent, ordinary guy, a regular guy, run, I think is something that the public would overwhelmingly embrace, said state Sen. Dave Syverson, a member of the Republican State Central Committee. Ditka, 64, said he had not decided on a run after meeting Tuesday night with Illinois Republican Party chairwoman and state treasurer Judy Baar Topinka at his Chicago restaurant. He said it is an exciting idea but he has not made up his mind. I've talked to some people but that's about all I've done, Ditka said earlier Tuesday. The Hall of Famer led the Bears to the 1986 Super Bowl and now spends most of his time on TV as a football analyst and pitchman for a casino and an anti-impotence drug. Off the field, Ditka is well known as a conservative Republican. In 2000, he warmed up a crowd for then-candidate George W. Bush by saying the W stands for women. I believe women want a man for president of the United States. If he ran for Senate, Ditka could energize the Republican base, as well as independent voters, and possibly put Illinois back into play for Bush, said U.S. Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, whose retirement opened the seat. If Ditka entered the race, Fitzgerald said, the Republicans would have a real chance of winning. Thousands of fans have weighed in on the www.draftditka.com Web site -- created to urge Ditka to become the state's GOP chairman but transformed into a Ditka for U.S. Senate movement. Even Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat, thinks Ditka would be a good choice, though he thinks Obama will win. He noted actors Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger made the transition to politics and former sports stars had done the same. If they can do it, Mike Ditka can do it, Blagojevich said. But Ditka is not a shoo-in. State Sen. Kirk Dillard, a central committee member, said Ditka would have to go through a vetting process before he would sign on to his candidacy. And Ditka, who recently joined ESPN as an NFL analyst, could lose his endorsement deals if elected. He also has a new clothing line and his restaurant to consider. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Ditka would just be walking onto another gridiron. I'd say, `Mike, you've had several bruising experiences in your life. Be prepared for another one,' McCain said. -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Query from a correspondent
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/12/04 5:42 PM For some inexplicable reason I am cyber-debating some American social democrat. He insists that the 1974-75 oil shock caused the US recession and (implicitly) US decline from hegemony and the good days. We three all disagree with each other on many questions but I *think* that we all agree that this theory is ridiculous. In his magnum opus that appeared in New Left Review in 1998, Brenner dismisses this argument out of hand by noting that the recession began in 1973 so the oil shock argument doesn't even make sense. He only spends one line on this though, dismissing it out of hand. Does anybody know any other good sources that don't use much dogmatic rhetoric? been alota years since i read it but bluestone and harrison's 'great u-turn' may be useful re. above... -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Facing South: 7/9
F A C I N G S O U T H A progressive Southern news report July 9, 2004 * Issue 83 _ INSTITUTE INDEX * Remember Enron? Amount of contributions that Enron gave to President Bush's 2000 campaign: $623,000 Rank of Enron among Bush's biggest campaign contributors in 2000: 1 Out of 8 recommendations Enron made to Bush Adminisration's energy task force, number adopted: 7 Amount that Georgia state pension plan lost due to Enron's 2001 bankruptcy, in millions: $127 Amount that 20,000 Enron workers lost in retirement savings, in billions: $1.2 Amount that top Enron executives made in stock sales before the bankruptcy, in billions: $1.1 Amount that Enron Chairman Ken Lay personally made, in millions: $217 Sources on file at the Institute for Southern Studies. _ DATELINE: THE SOUTH * Top Stories Around the Region BUSH TIES PUT ENRON BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT The indictment of President Bush's one-time friend and financial backer Kenneth Lay put the spotlight back on Bush's ties to big corporate donors as he heads into the final months of the U.S. presidential campaign. (Reuters, 7/8) http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNewsstoryID=5624062 NORTH CAROLINA MAY BECOME BATTLEGROUND STATE With U.S. Sen. John Edwards being selected Tuesday as the running mate for presumed Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, North Carolina may become the state that swings both ways. A recent Mason-Dixon poll showed a Kerry/Edwards ticket narrowly beating Bush/Cheney. (Durham Herald-Sun, 7/6) http://heraldsun.com/durham/4-498254.html LATINO VOTE KEY IN 2004 The Latino community, the largest racial minority group in the United States, could be key in deciding whether Republican George W. Bush or Democrat John Kerry wins the November 2 presidential election. Of almost 40 million Latinos living in the United States, some seven million -- 6.1 percent of the US electorate, and one million more than in the last presidential election -- will be eligible to vote. (AFP, 7/5) http://tinyurl.com/3awa8 PROMISE OF 1964 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT UNFULFILLED When the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, it capped years of struggle to have Congress enact legislation that would explicitly outlaw discrimination. But the advent of school re-segregation and a persistent class divide between white and black Americans make the Act's goals elusive. (BlackPressUSA) http://tinyurl.com/2ordt BUSH OPPONENTS HANDCUFFED FOR WEARING T-SHIRTS On July 4, President Bush celebrated America's freedom in a rally in Charleston, West Virginia. But a couple from Texas, in town on business, were hauled away in handcuffs for wearing T-shirts saying, Love America, Hate Bush. (Charleston Gazette, 7/9) http://wvgazette.com/section/Editorials/2004070819 NEW ORLEANS IS CHEAPEST PLACE TO DATE New Orleans isn't just the home of Mardi Gras and good Cajun cooking. According to Match.com, it's also the cheapest place to take someone out on a date. The website's Cost of Dating Index ranked cities by six kinds of dates: Coffee Date, Drinks, Lunch, Movie (and ice cream), Romantic (dinner, theatre tickets and flowers) and Professional sporting event. (Match.com) http://msn.match.com/msn/article.aspx?articleid=2357 -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Mike Ditka
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/14/04 11:51 AM Michael Hoover wrote: The Hall of Famer led the Bears to the 1986 Super Bowl and now spends most of his time on TV as a football analyst and pitchman for a casino and an anti-impotence drug. This would seem to qualify him to run as a Democrat, a party badly in need of some viagra. fwiw, ditka calls himself 'ultra-conservative', opposes abortion and thinks that marriage is between man woman...however, supports gun control... good for him that he lives in illinois should he decide to run, folks in louisiana likely have very different opinion given ditka's quite poor (disastrous really) time as coach of new orleans saints... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: DONKEY. ELEPHANT. CHICKEN?
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/07/04 3:50 PM What kind of national party runs 50 separate campaigns? Why not go down to the county level and run 3000 campaigns? Doug questionable whether u.s. has any national parties at all... in any event, electoral college makes for 50 state elections for prez so major parties do actually run 50 campaigns (51 counting prez candidate's own campaign, 51 and 1/2 if one includes vice-prez campaign... and given that ballot construction is responsibility of county elections officers, one could argue that there are actually 3000 county elections for prez... can't recall # of different ballots in florida but there's a whole bunch, gives lie to 5 supreme court justices who moaned about their concern for 'equal protection' of voting rights in 2000... formal voting procedures, no doubt, pale beside other issues but seems that each state could at very least have same ballot for prez election (1787 constitution assigns almost all election responsibilities to states so it may be asking too much for a common national prez ballot)...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: An editorial worth repeating
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/07/04 2:44 PM Monthly Review, Feb. 2001 The Nader Campaign and the Future of U.S. Left Electoral Politics by The Editors In our view, the Nader campaign was the electoral side of the mass organizing that produced the extraordinary demonstrations in Seattle in 1999 and in Washington, DC, and at the two national political conventions in 2000. similar view was also held by jello biafra whose candidacy for green party nomination in 2000 i personally favored, ex-dker focused, however, on green party rather than nader... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
AFSCME: Bring Troops Home Now Resolution Contradicts Union's Support of Kerry
Date: Tue, 6 Jul 2004 Subject: AFSCME Convention Votes to Bring Troops Home Now - Via Workers World News Service Reprinted from the July 8, 2004 issue of Workers World newspaper - AFSCME CONVENTION VOTES TO BRING TROOPS HOME NOW By Sharon Black Anaheim, Calif. Some 6,000 people participated in the 36th international convention of AFSCME--the State, County and Municipal Employees union--in Ana heim, Calif., June 19-25. About 3,000 were delegates from local and district AFSCME councils. AFSCME Puerto Rico's participation increased dramatically, from two to 40 delegates. The meeting, demonstrations nearby, and resolutions against the war in Iraq reflected a growing militancy among the rank and file of the public workers' union. As with the Service Employees union's convention in San Francisco earlier in June, the AFSCME gathering passed a resolution calling for U.S. troops to get out of Iraq. The final resolution involved a struggle over wording with some of the union leadership, which supports John Kerry's presidential campaign. The union's resolutions committee had watered down an earlier anti-war resolution, changing the demand to bring the troops home as soon as possible instead of now. Later, Brenda Stokely, president of District Council 1707 representing daycare workers in New York City, gave an impassioned call from the conference floor to amend this wording. She expressed the workers' sentiments when she urged, Bring the troops home now! The delegates cheered and applauded her call. And when the resolution came to the floor for a vote, these same delegates overwhelmingly passed the amendment to make the wording bring the troops home now. People in the Union and Community Campaign to Bring the Troops Home Now distributed a special petition and flier repeating this demand. AFSCME convention participants scooped up these fliers. The issue of the war is of burning importance to workers. Their children are on the front lines. UNION'S SUPPORT FOR KERRY CONTRADICTS ANTI-WAR SENTIMENT Despite the strong anti-war sentiment, AFSCME's official position is support for John Kerry. Kerry spoke at the convention on June 24. He called for a stronger military. He has vowed to increase the number of troops in Iraq. Yet the AFL-CIO's top leadership is throwing all its efforts and resources into the Kerry campaign. This stands in stark contrast to what labor really needs: a resurgence of action that gets right in the bosses' faces. Labor needs unity that will challenge the capitalists. It needs a program that is politically independent of both the Democratic and Republican parties. Kerry doesn't exactly have a strong pro-labor record. Just recently, even though he presents himself as labor's candidate, Kerry missed an important Senate vote on extending unemployment benefits for thousands of jobless and desperate workers. Had he been there the amendment would have passed. At the convention, the AFSCME delegates approved a $9 union dues increase. In itself this could be fine--but the increase is meant primarily to support the Democratic Party and the Kerry election campaign. One delegate from Detroit bravely took the microphone to oppose the dues increase, asserting that the union's strategy of relying on the elections is wrong. The delegate suggested that the money would be better used for strengthening AFSCME locals, on organizing, and on building bigger demonstrations about union issues. While this opposition to the dues increase was clearly a minority view, AFSCME staffers have expressed worry that the dues increase could hurt organizing efforts. The hoopla around Kerry also forced the tabling of many other progressive resolutions. The Million Worker March, a national rank-and- file effort to organize a mass labor march on Washington for Oct. 17, had gathered a number of supporters. Clarence Thomas from the International Longshore Workers Union Local 10 and others had come to the conference to organize for this effort. Caucus meetings and a local church meeting in Anaheim helped to build support. Unfortunately, the actual floor vote on supporting the march was scuttled. Nevertheless, march organizers felt they had succeeded in meeting many like-minded labor unionists. SECRETARY-TREASURER BILL LUCY CONTINUES ROLE During the elections of union officers, Secretary-Treasurer Bill Lucy stunned the membership when he declined nomination for re-election, citing health problems. Lucy has long been one of the labor movement's leaders most closely associated with the Black struggle for civil rights. He traces his roots to the Memphis strike of sanitation workers that the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was supporting when he was assassinated. Lucy also fought to oppose South African apartheid. He is president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. The conference floor broke out in standing ovations of support for Lucy, with delegates demanding that he stay
Re: On the cover of Time Magazine!
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/04/04 6:43 PM
'I don't like this film being reduced to Bush vs. Kerry,' Moore tells
TIME
and film should not be reduced to above even if moore were to think it
should be...
from aristotle to at least james harrington (with notable exception of
hobbes), western political thinkers were concerned with 'balance of
property'...
all but forgotten today, harrington's contribution was recognizing
england's mid-seventeenth century constitutional crisis in its
historical context, in contrast to
most of his contemporaries who saw the english civil wars as conflicts
between 'good' amd 'evil', harrington stressed that they were one
manifestation of historical process - collapse of medieval political
order and emergence of modern states...
harrington developed theory of economic foundation of political power
holding that in long run (i know, keynes later said we're all dead),
government must reflect distribution of property...
harrington attempted to show how traditional system of 'mixed monarchy'
in which political power had been shared by king, nobility, and clergy
had been founded upon feudal distribution of property, he asserted that
economic conditions that had made this government form feasible
('natural') had ceased to exist in 1600s... consequently, political
realignment was necessary/inevitable...
moore's film contains seeds of similar analysis - in popular format -
for present time (if one can get past baggage that moore himself brings
to table as well as simplistic notion that film is simply diatribe
against bushes)... michael hoover
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Re: Skewering Fahrenheit 9/11
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/02/04 11:08 AM Counterpunch, July 2, 2004 Moore's Fahrenheit 911 Mocking the Moral Crisis of Capitalism By DOUGLAS VALENTINE They wept! They roared with laughter! At inappropriate times they applauded, the politically correct, white middle class audience at the Academy Theatre in avante guard Northampton, MA, home of Smith College, and many fine restaurants. But, then again, Michael Moore was preaching to the choir, wasn't he? And that's the first of two big problems with Fahrenheit 911. The other big problem is this frivolous film's utter futility. first problem with above article: venue environment that author viewed film, get out some man, go see film in mass. equivalents of kissimmee fl, ocala, fl, eustis, fl (places where film is playing, towns where no films like this ever play)... second problem with above article: it makes all easy criticisms of moore's work (at least he had sense - with one lapse into schtick of trying to get people to do things they don't want to do, in this case, get members of congress to enlist their children to go to iraq, this type of scene has really become annoying in moore's films)... so what does article leave readers with, self-congratulatory air of author who is able to see michael moore for what he 'really' is, like wow... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Facing South - 6/30/2004
F A C I N G S O U T H A progressive Southern news report June 30, 2004 * Issue 82 _ INSTITUTE INDEX * Iraq: Loot and Run Amount of U.S. money allotted for reconstruction project in Iraq, in billions: $18.6 Number of projects promised in Iraq: 2,300 Number of projects actually underway: 140 Percent of reconstruction money spent to date that has gone to security: 25 Amount taken from drinking water projects to pay for U.S. Embassy in Iraq, in millions: $184 Amount wasted due to overcharges in Iraq contracts, according to a recent Congressional report, in billions: $1 Value of Iraq oil revenues that are missing, in billions: $20 Cost of trucks Halliburton Co. instructed drivers to abandon if they got a flat tire: $85,000 Amount spent to house 100 Halliburton employees in five-star hotel in Iraq for three months in Iraq, in millions: $1 Amount spent on housing 400 soldiers in Iraq in tents for one year: $200,000 Sources on file at the Institute for Southern Studies. _ DATELINE: THE SOUTH * Top Stories Around the Region FAHRENHEIT 9/11 A BIG HIT IN N.C. MILITARY TOWN Michael Moore's left-sided documentary criticizing the Bush administration's war on terrorism, Fahrenheit 9/11, sold out two showings its first night last Friday in the military town of Fayetteville, N.C., home of Fort Bragg. Nearly 1,000 more tickets sold over the weekend -- as many as 75% from military families, according to the theater showing the film. (Fayetteville Observer, 6/29) http://www.fayettevillenc.com/story.php?Template=localStory=6429101 HALLIBURTON CHARGED WITH INFLATING WAR COSTS Houston-based Halliburton Co. paid high-priced bills for common items, such as soda, laundry and hotels, in Iraq and Kuwait and then passed the inflated costs along to taxpayers, according to several former Halliburton employees and a Pentagon internal audit. (Knight Ridder, 6/15) http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001956410_halliburton15.html TAXPAYERS SUBSIDIZING WAL-MART GROWTH State and local governments have given Arkansas-based Wal-Mart -- the biggest retail employer in the world -- over $1 billion in taxpayer-funded give-aways. Over 90% of the company's retail and distribution centers have received such incentives as free or reduced-priced land, tax breaks, and employee recruitment and training grants. (Joplin Globe, 6/13) http://www.joplinglobe.com/story.php?story_id=116727c=87 ADVOCATES SAY FLORIDA FELON LIST RIDDLED WITH ERRORS The state of Florida has released a list of over 48,000 supposed ex-felons -- disproportionately African-American -- who are to be barred from voting in November. But an independent voting rights group -- which had to sue to make the list public -- says that as many as 25,000 may be wrongfully on the list, having been granted clemency or pardons. (Miami Herald, 6/29 -- reg. req'd) http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/politics/9034893.htm?1c YOUNGER FLORIDA CUBANS CHALLENGE OLDER HARD-LINERS A growing number of Cuban-Americans reject the hard-line perspective that has dominated Cuban policy in Miami and Washington for more than four decades. Younger Cuban-Americans are joining more-recent arrivals and former hard-liners who have undergone changes of heart in moderating the political dialogue in Miami, and opposing recent Bush Administration measures that further isolate the country. (Orlando Sentinel, 6/21) http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/nation/8975398.htm TEXAS NATIVE WINS GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION Texas attorney and former chair of the Texas Green Party won the Green Party nomination for president at their nominating convention last weekend. Cobb says the Party's strategy is twofold: beat Bush, and build the Greens. (Fox News, 6/29) http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,124073,00.html -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Skewering Fahrenheit 9/11
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/04/04 12:18 PM first problem with above article: venue environment that author viewed film, get out some man, go see film in mass. equivalents of kissimmee fl, ocala, fl, eustis, fl (places where film is playing, towns where no films like this ever play)... FAHRENHEIT 9/11 A BIG HIT IN N.C. MILITARY TOWN Michael Moore's left-sided documentary criticizing the Bush administration's war on terrorism, Fahrenheit 9/11, sold out two showings its first night last Friday in the military town of Fayetteville, N.C., home of Fort Bragg. Nearly 1,000 more tickets sold over the weekend -- as many as 75% from military families, according to the theater showing the film. (Fayetteville Observer, 6/29) http://www.fayettevillenc.com/story.php?Template=localStory=6429101 -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: [Fwd: RE: [Marxism] Kerry: no drivers licenses for illegals]
---Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure. [EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/03/04 10:06 PM Original Message Subject: RE: [Marxism] Kerry: no drivers licenses for illegals Date: Sat, 3 Jul 2004 21:51:55 -0400 From: Jose G. Perez [EMAIL PROTECTED] Until very recently, virtually no state mixed immigration matters with driver's licenses. Among other things, the Democrats snuck into the Immigration bill measures to transform state-issued drivers licenses into a national ID card/internal passport. The way it was instrumented was a) requiring fingerprinting and b) requiring a verified social security number to get drivers licenses. José Driver's license changes By Skip Cauthorn, [EMAIL PROTECTED] June 30, 2004 Starting Thursday, those wishing to obtain a Tennessee driver's license will have to go through the inconvenience of providing an original birth certificate and several other documents to be eligible. The change is one of many new state laws to become effective Thursday. Those who have renewed a Tennessee license at least once in the past will not be affected by the change. However, those who didn't first obtain a license prior to January of 2001, should be ready to produce several pieces of information including an official birth certificate (no photocopies) or passport, two proofs of identity, two proofs of residency and a Social Security number. Those without a Social Security number will have to sign an affidavit stating they have never had one. Under the new law, driver's licenses will not be issued to those who aren't a legal citizen or permanent resident. Instead anyone who can't prove their status will be issued a driver's certificate. The law's first effective date was May 29, when the issuance of driver's licenses to those who couldn't prove citizenship was discontinued. Those that fell into this category since May 29 may pick up a driver's certificate, a state issued document not to be used as identification, as early as Thursday. Gov. Phil Bredesen, whose administration presented the legislation to the General Assembly months ago, says the law is necessary in addressing Homeland Security concerns despite an inconvenience to motorists. I would love to have an answer that really is convenient for everybody [but] the Homeland Security aspect of that * really trumped all the other issues, said Bredesen Monday. I certainly understand it's an inconvenience for some people; it's an inconvenience for everybody who has to bring a copy of a birth certificate to get the licenses. * But I think it's an important move to get us to be * from one of the loosest states to one of the tightest states. The new law is the latest in what has been a controversial issue since the General Assembly passed legislation in 2001 allowing those without Social Security numbers to obtain a Tennessee driver license. At the time the state Department of Safety supported the law saying it was safer to allow illegal aliens the ability to obtain a license, as they would have to pass all standard testing. Opponents of the measure argued that non-citizens shouldn't be allowed a license and criticized the long lines that resulted at testing stations. Those who obtained a license since Jan. 1, 2001, and can't prove citizenship or permanent residency, must upon expiration exchange their license for the new certificate. A recent Department of Safety figure set the number of motorists without Social Security numbers who had obtained a license since 2001 at more than 45,600. Department of Safety spokesperson Beth Denton says the department has been preparing and training for the change.
New Tennessee Driver License Law
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/03/04 10:06 PM Original Message Subject: RE: [Marxism] Kerry: no drivers licenses for illegals Date: Sat, 3 Jul 2004 21:51:55 -0400 From: Jose G. Perez Until very recently, virtually no state mixed immigration matters with driver's licenses. Among other things, the Democrats snuck into the Immigration bill measures to transform state-issued drivers licenses into a national ID card/internal passport. The way it was instrumented was a) requiring fingerprinting and b) requiring a verified social security number to get drivers licenses. José Driver's license changes By Skip Cauthorn, [EMAIL PROTECTED] June 30, 2004 Starting Thursday, those wishing to obtain a Tennessee driver's license will have to go through the inconvenience of providing an original birth certificate and several other documents to be eligible. The change is one of many new state laws to become effective Thursday. Those who have renewed a Tennessee license at least once in the past will not be affected by the change. However, those who didn't first obtain a license prior to January of 2001, should be ready to produce several pieces of information including an official birth certificate (no photocopies) or passport, two proofs of identity, two proofs of residency and a Social Security number. Those without a Social Security number will have to sign an affidavit stating they have never had one. Under the new law, driver's licenses will not be issued to those who aren't a legal citizen or permanent resident. Instead anyone who can't prove their status will be issued a driver's certificate. The law's first effective date was May 29, when the issuance of driver's licenses to those who couldn't prove citizenship was discontinued. Those that fell into this category since May 29 may pick up a driver's certificate, a state issued document not to be used as identification, as early as Thursday. Gov. Phil Bredesen, whose administration presented the legislation to the General Assembly months ago, says the law is necessary in addressing Homeland Security concerns despite an inconvenience to motorists. I would love to have an answer that really is convenient for everybody [but] the Homeland Security aspect of that * really trumped all the other issues, said Bredesen Monday. I certainly understand it's an inconvenience for some people; it's an inconvenience for everybody who has to bring a copy of a birth certificate to get the licenses. * But I think it's an important move to get us to be * from one of the loosest states to one of the tightest states. The new law is the latest in what has been a controversial issue since the General Assembly passed legislation in 2001 allowing those without Social Security numbers to obtain a Tennessee driver license. At the time the state Department of Safety supported the law saying it was safer to allow illegal aliens the ability to obtain a license, as they would have to pass all standard testing. Opponents of the measure argued that non-citizens shouldn't be allowed a license and criticized the long lines that resulted at testing stations. Those who obtained a license since Jan. 1, 2001, and can't prove citizenship or permanent residency, must upon expiration exchange their license for the new certificate. A recent Department of Safety figure set the number of motorists without Social Security numbers who had obtained a license since 2001 at more than 45,600. Department of Safety spokesperson Beth Denton says the department has been preparing and training for the change. -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: the Democratic Leadership Council wing of the Green party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/02/04 7:44 PM On Nader's site, a major push is for impeachment of the current Resident. in Chief. In my mind this is the only viable defensive action available to the American people at the moment. When Bush gets his second term, even that avenue will be gone -- in his mind (which hears God telling him to go to war), Bush will have been given permission to do whatever he wants. And his is the closest stuck-up finger to nuclear holocaust. Dan Scanlan recall that late henry gonzalez (dem congressman from west texas) filed numerous articles of impeachment against bush the first... while you've not intended it, above comment re. bush second term could be seen by some as reason to vote for kerry (or any dem at all)... michael -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
United Mine Workers strike forces rehiring of Utah miners
Date: Fri, 2 Jul 2004 Subject: Utah miners, United Mine Workers strike forces rehiring of Utah miners This was a small strike that won wide support in the labor movement and highlights the growing possibilities for union organizing in the western mines and among immigrant and other workers. It is a significant part of the new beginnings of popular anti-imperialist resistance in the world today, which include the antiwar and immigrant-rights protests, the challenges to US occupation in Iraq, and the Venezuelan revolution. Fred Feldman The Militant July 20, 2004 (two-week issue) Bosses are forced to rehire striking Utah coal miners UMWA announces breakthrough in union-organizing battle 'On toward victory in union election in August,' Utah miners say Co-Op miners describe advance at Colorado event on Ludlow massacre BY ANNE CARROLL AND GUILLERMO ESQUIVEL HUNTINGTON, Utah-In a major breakthrough for the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) organizing battle at the Co-Op mine here, the union received a draft settlement from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that orders C.W. Mining Co. to reinstate all of the 75 miners who were illegally fired last September. With most of the Co-Op strikers back to work before mid-July, the chances increase that the UMWA will win the NLRB-mandated union election that will be held sometime in August, workers report. On June 21, two bosses from the Co-Op mine hand delivered letters to the striking miners giving them an unconditional offer to return to work. The letter stated that workers must let the company know by July 6 if they are returning to their jobs and that they must report to work no later than July 12. It's a victory: we won the right to go back to work, said striker Domingo Olivas. All the work we've done up to this point puts us in a good position to win the UMWA inside the mine. We hope the miners who are already working inside will be with us. Rather than reporting separately, we will all march together to the mine on July 6 and let the Co-Op bosses know we are coming back united, said Bill Estrada, one of the strike leaders. We are inviting all strike supporters to Huntington to march with us that day and celebrate. Fifteen retired UMWA members were the first to tell us they will be there. We look forward to doing everything possible to win the union election in August. On Sept. 22, 2003, 75 coal miners were fired from their jobs at the Co-Op mine, owned by C.W. Mining. They were fired because they had contacted the UMWA about getting a union organized at the mine. The miners were being paid between $5.15 and $7.00 an hour with no benefits. A company union has existed at the mine for many years. Workers have submitted evidence that the officers of this union are bosses and are related to the Kingstons, the wealthy family that owns the mine. The strikers report that the settlement agreement from the NLRB clearly states that any type of intimidation or harassment of pro-union miners by the Co-Op management is illegal. The document states that the agreement must be visibly posted at the mine for 60 days. This is important because this is what led to the wholesale firings last September, workers say. Prior to that date, the miners had been talking to UMWA organizers about how to get a real union organized at the mine. Bosses began harassing and suspending the miners for this activity. They had cornered miners alone underground and questioned them about the meetings they were having with the UMWA. The bosses also tried to disrupt a meeting the strikers had organized outside the mine, and had threatened workers, most of whom are immigrants from Mexico, with sending the immigration police after them. When they learned of the company threats, the strikers changed the time and location of that meeting. When the miners returned to Huntington after their gathering, they say they saw the bosses standing in front of the old location waiting for the meeting to begin. The settlement explicitly prohibits any of these practices, workers say. It states that the employers must refrain even from watching the workers, or from giving them the impression they are being watched, while participating in union activities. On Sept. 23, 2003, the UMWA filed charges with the NLRB stating that all 75 miners were fired illegally for union activity. The national labor board upheld the charge in its ruling. The NLRB made the decision nine months into the workers' strike, which has continued to win broader support in the labor movement throughout the country. The miners also reported that the draft settlement includes a back pay order, the exact details of which are being negotiated and may be settled in court. The settlement reportedly states that employees have the right to pursue any legal claims they may have against the company because of loss of wages or other benefits. Strikers said that as soon as they received the news, they began contacting all the miners
Floridians for All Submits 900,000 Signatures to Raise Minimum Wage
FLORIDIANS FOR ALL A Campaign to Raise the Minimum Wage Embargoed until Friday, July 2nd at 12 AM Contact:Joe Johnson: 727-542-3498 Floridians for All Submits 900,000 Petitions to Raise the Minimum Wage! On Friday, July 2nd Floridians for All, a coalition of community and labor organizations will submit the 900,000th petition collected in favor of raising the minimum wage in Florida. This total is nearly double the required 488,722 signatures. Over the past six months, volunteers and petitioners have spread out across the state, from Tallahassee to Miami, Jacksonville to Naples collecting signatures from voters who support raising the Florida minimum wage to $6.15/hr plus indexing to inflation. The federal minimum wage is currently $5.15, and Congress has not adjusted it for inflation in six years. During that time, the number of states with minimum wage laws higher than the federal has jumped from six to 12 and now Floridians can have the opportunity to raise wages for over 300,000 working families. People that have signed the petition have expressed optimism and confidence that Floridians should have the opportunity to vote on this issue, said Joe Johnson, manager of the campaign, and we see strong support for this across the board, from Democrats, Republicans and Independents. Voters tell us that raising the minimum wage is the right thing to do, and they are excited about signing the petition. The next step in the campaign is the verification of petitions by local elections officials. As of today, 226,642 petitions have been validated by elections officials and submitted to the Secretary of State. Elections offices have until August 3rd at 5:00 p.m. to submit validated signatures to the Secretary of State. For more information about raising the minimum wage and Floridians for All, go to our website at http://www.floridiansforall.org Stephanie Porta Head Organizer Central Florida ACORN 407-254-5912 407-592-4784 http://www.acorn.org http://www.floridiansforall.org -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Safe State Politics
doesn't matter which alternative candidate one votes for in so-called safe states (for either kerry or bush), vote for nader in such states is no more significant than vote for swp, wwp, sp, etc... such prez vote takes little, if any, political will at all, what do folks do for 'down' ballot elections, from u.s. senate, u.s. house state governor to state cabinet, state leg., and local partisan races...in most cases, folks vote dem because they have no other choice except to not vote, and if alternative candidate exists, they face familiar dillemma - if i vote my top choice, i may be helping rep win... fwiw: i've been making this argument for as long as i can remember, florida has not been 'in play' for most prez elections, having gone rep except for a couple of times since eisenhower was elected in 52, of course, 2000 was different and appears that 2004 will be as well, florida is perhaps idiomatic 'split' state... fwiw2: florida dems still hold lead (43% to 41%) over reps in voter reg (down from about 75% to 25% 30 years ago), dem percentage includes 'dixiecrats' who have never changed registration but vote republican... michael hoover (who is checking in from ann arbor these days where young, alternative (albeit spruced up a bit, kinda neat tidy) looking folks are doing legwork for kerry, reminds me a bit of 'clean for gene' in 68, of course. mccarthy was opposed to that war) June 25, 2004 Contrary to What You've Heard... Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn Plan to Vote for Ralph Nader By GREG BATES (Common Courage Press) Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn have stated many times that they favor ousting Bush this election, even if John Kerry is Bush-lite. And that stand has been repeatedly used by progressives opposed to Ralph Nader's campaign. However, Chomsky and Zinn, both residents of John Kerry's home state of Massachusetts, say they plan to vote for Ralph Nader. This may come as a surprise to those who have trotted out Chomsky in an effort to blunt Nader. One example is Jeff Cohen, the founder of the media watch group FAIR (and by way of disclosure, is an author along with both Chomsky and Zinn at Common Courage Press at which this reporter is Publisher). As Cohen stated on Commondreams.org May 7, Progressives need to be a bridge forward, not an obstruction. Noam Chomsky has described the choice we face: 'Help elect B ush, or do something to try to prevent it.' To cite another example, Doug Henwood, the publisher of the Left Business Observer wrote in April, ...as Noam Chomsky puts it, to the distress of his many fans, given the magnitude of U.S. power, 'small differences can translate into large outcomes.' But in response to an email query from this reporter, Chomsky wrote, Voting for Nader in a safe state is fine. That's what I'll do. I don't see how anyone could read what I wrote and think otherwise, just from the elementary logic of it. Voting for Nader in a safe state is not a vote for Bush. The point I made had to do with (effectively) voting for Bush. Chomsky also made clear how he views the election in the context of other efforts for change: Activist movements, if at all serious, pay virtually no attention to which faction of the business party is in office, but continue with their daily work, from which election s are a diversion -- which we cannot ignore, any more than we can ignore the sun rising; they exist. In another email exchange, Howard Zinn stated, I will vote for Nader because Mass. is a safe state. And voters in 'safe states' should not vote for Kerry. He also notes, I don't have faith in Kerry changing, but with Kerry there is a possibility that a powerful social movement might change him. With Bush, no chance. The question of Kerry's receptivity to social movements deserves serious consideration, discussed further in the book from which this article is adapted. But returning to the issue of voting for Kerry in safe states, the impact of the Electoral College is virtually absent in discussions about Nader's run. As BusinessWeek June 14 2004 points out, 75% of voters live in safe states. Voters casting a ballot for Kerry in those states, regardless of the message they intend to send, will be perceived by the Democratic National Committee as endorsing the Kerry platform of war and moving the Democrats to the right. Meanwhile, voters in safe states have the opportunity to send a message that Kerry's platform is unacceptable, without risking throwing the election to Bush. Greg Bates is the publisher of Common Courage Press and the author of Ralph's Revolt: the Case for Joining Nader's Rebellion, from which this essay has been excerpted. Bates can be reached at: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon
Torture: Bush Reaps What Kennedy Sowed
Torture: Bush Reaps What Kennedy Sowed By Steve Weissman t r u t h o u t | Perspective Thursday 24 June 2004 New photos of American soldiers raping and killing Iraqis will likely emerge in the coming days, as Secretary Rumsfeld obliquely warned us weeks ago. Far more graphic than any images we have yet seen, they will again drag Team Bush through the mud, further mocking their claims to uphold human rights and mucking up their celebration of Iraqi sovereignty. Taking the scandal beyond coercive interrogation, the new horror show will make real the brutality that war brings out, especially against men and women who look, dress, talk, eat, and worship in ways that seem so foreign. In young soldiers from Kansas and West Virginia, we will see the same contempt that European conquerors showed in their colonial flings, even as they preached the Word of God or the Values of Western Civilization. In jargon of an electronic age, we will hear the blood-curdling echoes of earlier American heroes wresting control of an entire continent from those who lived there before, not to mention those pumped-up imperial forays across the Pacific and into Latin America. Remember Manifest Destiny and the White Man's Burden, the high-minded phrases that hid the old down-and-dirty? War on Terror, Democracy (of an export kind), and the New American Century follow in the same tradition, celebrated or despised depending on which side of the boot one sees and who ends up with the oil. Only now, most of the world - and growing numbers of Americans - want to shed the whole bloody business. Which brings us back to those coercive interrogation techniques. Call them stress and duress, torture-lite, or just plain torture, they remain central to America's colonial adventures from Vietnam to Iraq. When John F. Kennedy entered the White House in 1961, he and his advisors looked warily at the growing nationalism in the old European colonies. Self-proclaimed communists - like Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam or Fidel Castro in Cuba - raised a red flag, while even non-communists - like Sukarno in Indonesia - threatened Western control of oil and strategic minerals. JFK responded by sending several thousand more Americans into Southeast Asia and proclaiming his Alliance for Progress in Latin America. Scholars and conspiracy addicts still speculate on whether he would have further escalated or pulled out of Vietnam had he not been killed, but his impact south of the border became obvious early on. Whatever his original intent, his liberal sounding Alliance helped native elites stave off needed reforms, defended yanqui corporations, and strengthened local armies. Six military coups overthrew civilian governments before he died, and a seventh took control in Brazil a few months after. JFK favored the kind of muscular foreign policy that today's neo-conservatives push, and many of them at the time supported his approach, whatever the human cost or long-range consequences. Both in Vietnam and Latin America, Kennedy relied heavily on American military advisors, many of them Green Berets, in whom he showed enormous interest. They knew how to withstand torture. They also knew how to apply it - and how to teach client armies to do the same. Fighting in foreign lands against rebels who often had at-least passive support from their people, the US advisors and the armies they trained needed to produce intelligence on the run. Torture, or coercive interrogation, was one way to get it. Whether to elicit information or simply to terrorize the opposition, torture had historically played a role in holding down rebellious population. But, always in character, the New Frontier brought new thinking to bear. The theory came initially from the CIA's Office of Science and Technology, which spent a fortune studying how to make unwilling people talk. Starting in the 1950s, the spooky scientists tested LSD and other drugs, brainwashing, hypnosis, polygraphs, electric shock, and a wide range of other physical and psychological pressures. They also borrowed from the French, who perfected their torture techniques in losing colonial wars against the Vietnamese and Algerians. No doubt, the British cousins also offered ideas from their equally nasty effort to hold an empire together. The CIA summed up this macabre research in a classified manual they called KUBARK Counter Intelligence Interrogation - July 1963. KUBARK was code for the CIA, which used the ideas in its murderous Operation Phoenix in Vietnam. The US military also used the manual extensively, notably at Fort Benning's School of the Americas, teaching it to upcoming officers from throughout the hemisphere and helping create the most notorious tyrants and torturers. One passage strikes almost everyone who sees it: In choosing an interrogation site, the electric current should be
Re: Saddam on TV
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/01/04 7:50 PM I saw Hussein on TV this morn Ken. most significant feature of hussein's appearance in court was u.s. flag in corner of room, media made big deal of u.s. military personnel 'retreating' after bringing him in but i've not seen anyone allude even in passing to u.s. flag... hussein's trial at this time (on u.s. tv, no less) is for bush campaign (yeah, yeah, i know the interim gov't wanted to expedite things, blah, blah, blah)... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: Kerry: no drivers licenses for illegals
Kerry: No licenses for illegal immigrants - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - By Nedra Pickler, salon.com July 1, 2004 | Pittsburgh -- Democrat John Kerry said he opposes state laws that give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, a position that puts him at odds with the Hispanic activists he is courting in the presidential race. above issue led some affluent, white dem party voters in california to vote to recall gov. gray davis *and* to vote for steroid man to replace him... apparently, these folks are 'tolerant' re. legal immigration but draw line when it comes to recognizing that undocumented have any rights... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: election concern
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/30/04 9:27 PM Voting official seeks process for canceling Election Day over terrorism Friday, June 25, 2004 BY ERICA WERNER ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - The government needs to establish guidelines for canceling or rescheduling elections if terrorists strike the United States again, says the chairman of a new federal voting commission. didn't nixon's people have contingency plan to cancel 72 elections in event of 'domestic disturbances'... michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: bushites and nader
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/30/04 9:25 PM That's nothing in comparison to Gore inspiring more than 200,000 registered Democrats in Florida to crossover and vote for George W. Bush in the last election. The Democrats should not worry about the tiny number of Democrats who vote for Nader. They should try to figure out how to get Democrats to stop voting in massive numbers for Republicans. re. florida dems voting for bush in 2000, believe i was first to make the point (among some others), in post-election articles in local 'orlando weekly' rag... about 87% of dem voters nationwide voted for gore, about 94% of rep voters nationwide voted for bush, reps have history of stronger voter loyalty... in florida, some of those who voted for bush have been voting rep for several decades, particularly true in panhandle where more than a few conservative 'dixiecrats' have maintained dem voter registration even though they consistently vote rep... fwiw: vice-prez position has not been a very good one for prez office seekers, only a few have been able to win election... of course, gore did win popular vote both nationwide and in florida, and he ran to left of dlc who whined about that being reason he 'lost'... ironically, in florida, gore lost if vote had been recounted *only* in 4 majority dem counties that his people cynically pushed for but he won if the entire state had been recounted...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: the Democratic Leadership Council wing of the Green party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/30/04 10:44 PM Dan Scanlan writes As a longtime Green activist with both a long term view and a quick knee I have got to disagree. Nader's campaigns for President have been strategic for long term betterment. Dan Scanlan thanks for informative, well-reasoned comments... however, color me a cynic as i've a hunch that the sum of the parts that you describe add up to less than suggested... i probably should have acknowledged contribution of nader's campaigns to increased number of statewide green parties (which may or may not mean much re. resonance with larger public)... green party will experience 'growing pains' if it is to have substantive longevity rather than being another in long line of minor parties that exist for years years in what amounts to 'virtual space'... perhaps cobb will do for green party what buchanan did for reform party, leaving little in his wake, but that won't happen if, in contrast to what gertrude stein said (unfairly, me thinks) about oakland, there's a there there... in any event, cobb will receive any less media coverage, public attention, and votes than did nader, and if there's anyone left afterwards, they can get down to the difficult job of building a party...michael hoover -- Please Note: Due to Florida's very broad public records law, most written communications to or from College employees regarding College business are public records, available to the public and media upon request. Therefore, this e-mail communication may be subject to public disclosure.
Re: the Democratic Leadership Council wing of the Green party
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/30/04 9:34 AM American Prospect No Tie -- Cobb! The true story of how a man you've barely heard of beat Ralph Nader for the Green Party nomination. By Garance Franke-Ruta Web Exclusive: 06.28.04 Make no mistake: Had Nader chosen to fight for it over the past year, he could have easily walked away with the Green Party nomination on Saturday. Into the political vacuum left by Nader's arms-length campaigning jumped Cobb, running on a platform of support for state parties and local candidates. For a party that draws heavily from the ranks of the alienated and disaffected -- people who already feel ignored by politicians -- Nader's decisions to eschew Green membership, not participate in the presidential-primary process, and avoid the Milwaukee convention were decisive. Nader, perhaps thinking himself a sure thing, or so outsize a figure that a fair fight would require him to tie one hand behind his back, failed to mount a campaign sufficient to win. In short, though the Greens may be way outside the mainstream of American political opinion, in the end the same laws of politics that govern the two major parties held: In order to win, it helps to outfox the other guy -- and to fight hard. maybe there is place for poli sci people after all, many could have written above article beforehand... i posted comments yesterday about why electoral campaigns are not good vehicles for building mass movements, above article reflects those remarks... have never understood green party's desire for nader, he stiffed them in 96 by refusing to campaign, his 'party of person' campaign in 2000 failed to reach 5% minimum in votes to qualify greens for matching funds in 04... of course, he's a non (even anti) party guy and always has been, a 'common cause' type, he's never been a member of green party, his prez campaigns have not been about building a green party... i'm not big green party fan myself, prefer politics of class to that of inequality (latter gives no sense of belonging to group that can take collective action, individuals are 'unequal'), but rejection of nader is 'good thing' if party is to have legs as 'party of idea'... michael hoover
Clarence Thomas Porno
for what it's worth... noticed that thomas voted with supreme court majority yesterday in opposition to federal law re. pornography children, his very first dissent from conservative bloc on court was in case involving porno (whether feds had entrapped some guy to purchase some stuff through mail), thomas rarely asks questions during court hearings no matter case issues and has little written record, but these votes (and several) others suggest that claims of his proclivity for porn may have merit... michael hoover
Re: presidential election
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/22/04 3:29 PM Is the Nader campaign the best way to build the mass movements we need? jd no election campaign is 'best' way to build mass movements, they are too periodic episodic, too narrowly focused, running a campaign 'to make a point' (or points) is self-defeating, takes too much time, effort, money, may leave something in their wake (i.e., a few voters) but their purpose runs counter to building political movements, politicians/campaigns can have 'organic' relationships with/to mass movements (or vice-versa) but two should remain independent of one another - politics of streets politics of suites...michael hoover
