Government
America Celebrates Presidents’ Day
Our US Constitution establishes three co-equal branches in our federal government, legislative, executive, and judicial, and specifies each branch’s role and responsibilities under our country’s rule of law. More than 220 years ago, in Marbury v. Madison, our US Supreme Court determined that our independent judiciary is the final arbiter of the law.
Performing their responsibilities in that role, several federal judges issued temporary restraining orders and injunctions pausing some of President Trump’s recent executive actions while lawsuits challeng...
COOPERATION 106
cooperation [ koh-op-uh-rey-shuhn ]
an act or instance of working or acting together for a common purpose or benefit
mutually beneficial interaction among organisms [nations] living in a limited area [planet Earth]
It was back in November of 2024 that I wrote COOPERATION 105 in this series. There has been so much turmoil in the ensuing 3 months that it has been hard to imagine any sort of cooperation in the U.S. or globally. Yet the urgency for cooperation has only grown – in the U.S. and globally.
Donald Trump, of course, moved into the ...
Realigning the U.S. Towards Dictatorships is Dangerous
The new administration is realigning US foreign policy in a dangerous direction. Instead of traditional alliances with democratic countries, current leadership has expressed admiration for, and aligned interests, with dictatorial leaders. Principle among these countries is Putin’s Russia. Russia, is basically a failed state. Putin’s leadership has handed power to an billionaire class (oligarchs), who he has given license to to exploit the wealth of the state as long as they remain loyal to him. Education and research have declined. Life expectancy is years ...
Destroying America
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” President Abraham Lincoln
“If President Trump wants to change our nation’s laws, he has the right to ask Congress to change them. He does not have the right to violate the United States Constitution. He is not a king.” Senator Bernie Sanders.
Our country is in crisis. Our government has been seized by a dictator wannabee and a cabal of super-wealthy, authoritarian extremists who want to destroy all the social progress of the last ...
Building the Resistance
The 24-Hour Economic Blackout
Back in December I wrote about using our power as consumers to oppose the Trump wrecking crew. (“Now what? Tactics for resistance,” The Duluth Reader, Thursday December 5, 2024). In that article I suggested taking the fight to the wealthy Trump supporters by reducing our spending and not buying from companies that supported him.
I am not the only one pushing this tactic. I recently got an email saying that comedian Jon Stewart has been calling for Friday, February 28 to be a “24-hour Economic Blackout.” I have not found Jon's ...
MADISON DAY OF ACTION WITH NAOMI
Are you upset with the state of affairs in our state and nation! Come join us for an exciting day at WISDOM’S Madison Action Day, Thursday, April 10, 2025!
WISDOM is a state-wide network of people looking for the common good. WISDOM is committed to just change that brings health and stability for the second, third and seventh generations to come. NAOMI is one of 12
Affiliates in the state. Join with all the Affiliates for a dynamic day of advocacy, learning, and action with an opportunity to engage directly with your elected Representatives and Senators. Connect with ...
DETENTIONS AND DEPORTATION WILL COST US
Currently thousands of law enforcement officers are directed to arrest undocumented immigrants. Because the crime rate among the undocumented is actually low, many of those arrested are not charged or convicted criminals. Their undocumented status is a civil, not a criminal, offense.
Large numbers of undocumented non-citizens are tax-paying, important members of our workforce. They build our homes, harvest our fruits and vegetables, pack our meat, staff our restaurants and beautify our yards. One member of a three-generation family of mixed citizens and non-citizens ...
Do Your Job
Anyone who uses a computer knows the importance of maintaining security. We use safe passwords. We use two-step verification for financial and health records. We also rely upon our banks, medical clinics, and our government to protect our personal data and keep our information confidential.
Would you put up with your bank giving your personal account numbers, balances, and transactions out to unvetted people that do not have bank security clearances? That would be stealing and compromising your confidential financial information!
How about your Clinic or ...
BROKEN PROMISES
In their busy few weeks since Donald Trump and South African immigrant Elon Musk took the Oval Office, the White House has branded their hectic daily antics as “Promises Made, Promises Kept”.
“Promises Broken” is more like it. Here’s a sampling:
Trump promised to have the backs of people in law enforcement.
He broke that promise when he granted a “full, complete, and unconditional pardon” to every convicted criminal who planned and carried out assaults and murders of law enforcement officers on January 6, 2021.
&n...
HEADING TO A DANGEROUS FUTURE
These are troubling times we live in. Despite a robust, growing economy with historically low unemployment and inflation coming down from highs created by a world-wide pandemic, tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy, and exorbitant corporate profits, the American voters chose to make a change.
Many of those that voted for the convicted felon, gave in to their base racist and narcissistic characteristics. He appeals to the worst among us and even the worst tendencies of some good people among us. He and his closest followers follow the same playbook used by a small man with a ...