Changing Hearts and Minds
Hi Friends,
I attended this very workshop held by Planned Parenthood in January. I walked away with a renewed sense of optimism! The presentation we will have is a little shorter version, but impactful just the same.
We have such a wonderful opportunity to learn how to hold those difficult conversations. We will learn about oursleves and others, how not to make assumptions, how to be better at showing empathy and really listening to the other person.
Think about what you want to say and what you want to stay away from saying. Find that one-on-one opportunity and ...
Modern Abolitionists – All
I remember trout fishing in the mountains just east of Salt Lake City when we lived there in the '60s. Beautiful, clear, achingly cold streams in mountain valleys so picturesque you almost didn't care if you caught any fish at all. The prize might well have been just breathing in the view along with the cool, clean air. One hot afternoon I followed a small feeder stream away from the river I had been fishing. About a hundred yards or so up the ravine the small stream literally disappeared under a dark, thick wall of shrubs and scrub oak. I spread some branches ...
From our friends at Sawyer County-Lac Courte Oreilles
As of Tuesday evening Feb. 18, with more than 95 percent of precincts reporting statewide, Underly won 38 percent of the vote with 177,397 votes, and Kinser claimed 34.5 percent of the votes with 161, 586 votes, according to the AP. Sauk Prairie School District Superintendent Jeff Wright trailed with 27.5 percent of the vote with 128, 256 votes.
According to the New York Times, a total of 1,250 votes were cast in Sawyer County, with 34 percent of the vote going to Underly, 40 percent to Kinser, and 26 percent to Wright.
Underly has positioned herself as a ...
Bernie
We've got some exciting news to share:
Bernie’s coming to Altoona on Saturday, March 8, and you’re invited! He’ll be speaking about how our movement can come together to take on the Oligarchy and demand a government that works for all of us, not just the wealthy few.
This is going to be a great event, and we’d love to see you there. So, can you make it? Here’s everything you need to know:
Fighting Oligarchy: Where We Go From Here with Bernie Sanders in Altoona
Saturday, March 8
10:30am Doors Open
11:30am Speaking Program Starts
Altoona High ...
Gaza Absurdity
“If the Nuremberg laws were applied, then every post-war American president would have been hanged.” Noam Chomsky
In this statement, Professor Chomsky (author, political activist and social critic) was referring to the legal principles used to prosecute the Nazi war criminals after WW2. This statement certainly is appropriate for the Biden administration's support for the genocide in Gaza. Biden's shameful and illegal funding, supplying and enabling of Israel's war crimes in Gaza are the most egregious of the many war crimes committed by our country.
Donald ...
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 ...
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...
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 ...