People Before Profit blog

Calif.s most vulnerable in peril with state budget still in limbo

Sat, 30 Aug 2008 02:34:00 +0000

If California’s budget, now stalled since July 1, isn’t resolved by the end of the Labor Day holiday, it will set a dismal new record.

In the longest previous delay, a budget was finally passed on Sept. 1, 2002, and signed by then-Gov. Gray Davis on Sept. 5.

Organizations serving hundreds of thousands of the state’s most vulnerable residents — seniors, mentally and physically disabled children and adults — are increasingly hamstrung by the current delay. Marty Omoto, director/organizer of the California Disability Community Action Network, said on californiaprogressreport.org this week that the delay is causing “havoc and uncertainty” among all such organizations, with some now needing to cut services or even to close.

A conference committee addressed the $15.2 billion shortfall in the state’s $101 billion general fund weeks ago, with a compromise budget featuring higher taxes for the very wealthy and the corporations, as well as cuts. But with California the only state requiring a two-thirds majority both to pass a budget and to raise taxes, the Democratic majority in the Legislature still can’t overrule their Republican colleagues, who have locked arms against any tax hike.

While the stalled compromise would roll back some of the harshest cuts Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed earlier this year, educators and health care providers worry about those that remain, and are deeply concerned that vital programs may be cut even further.

“Having already seen legislators slash more than $2 billion from school funding, the governor now proposes to cut an additional $1 billion,” Marty Hittelman, president of the California Federation of Teachers, pointed out, also on californiaprogressreport.org. “We education leaders are left with the bitter pill of calling for adoption of the Democratic conference committee budget, which reduces education funding by $2.4 billion. Talk about bad choices.”

While the conference committee budget restored many cuts, nearly 300,000 children would still lose health coverage, the Health Access coalition said this week. “As the budget debate drags on, and Republicans refuse to agree to increased revenues to fund our state’s basic needs, more lives will be on the line,” Hanh Kim Quach wrote on the coalition’s web site. “There have been rumored mutterings of more cuts, meaning more children will be unable to get eyeglasses, teeth cleanings and basic health services that would keep them healthy for years to come.”

The needs are sure to grow. This week the California Budget Project said median income in the state dropped 2 percent in 2007 over the previous year, and residents with incomes below the poverty line rose slightly, to 12.7 percent. Meanwhile, the state’s unemployment rate reached 7.3 percent in July, the highest in 12 years.

“What low- and middle-income Californians gained in 2006, they began to lose in 2007, and they’re likely to continue to lose in 2008,” CBP’s deputy director, Alissa Anderson, said. “The current downturn points to the importance of having a strong safety net in place for families to rely on during tough economic times.”

An interesting question: With all Assembly members and half the state Senate up for election in November, will the Republicans really want to be tagged as the villains in the budget tangle?

mbechtel @ pww.org

Railroading immigrants and the Constitution

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 07:32:00 +0000

Federal immigration officials swept into Postville, Iowa, in May and detained nearly 400 workers at a kosher meat processing plant. Swiftly, local enforcement and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency arrested, charged with crimes, extracted pleas and sentenced 297 of these individuals by the end of the following week. Apparently, this shock and awe strategy was specially designed to drop the hammer on undocumented workers doing backbreaking jobs under reportedly sub-optimal conditions.

This new high-speed judicial railroad required extensive planning and coordination between the U.S. Attorney’s office in Iowa, the Department of Homeland Security and the federal judiciary. The tracks laid down to carry this new enforcement train were designed to force rapid guilty pleas under the threat of serious jail time, avoid the inconvenience of trials, limit access to immigration counsel, eliminate the prospect of all future relief and impose criminal sentences and removal orders simultaneously. To speed the process up, the court-appointed attorneys were required to represent groups of 10 to 20 or more individuals, and more than 90 individuals were processed by the court in a single day.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association wrote to the U.S. district judge who apparently authorized these expedited procedures, Chief Judge Linda R. Reade, expressing our deep concerns with the process. Chief Judge Reade subsequently said that “the immigration lawyers do not understand the federal criminal process as it relates to immigration charges.” It would be hard to overstate our respectful disagreement with that assertion.

It is precisely because immigration lawyers understand the complexity of the interplay between immigration law and criminal charges that we have recoiled so forcefully at this new approach. Leveraging excessive criminal charges through an exploding plea bargain (sign the deal within seven days of arrest or face max prosecution) to secure jail time and forfeiture of all possible immigration relief shows an utter disregard for that very complexity.

The nearly 300 individuals subjected to this process who reportedly pled guilty to the use of false documents (in order to work, mind you) in exchange for five-month prison terms and deportation were neither adequately screened, nor advised of their rights under U.S. immigration law. Some may have derivative U.S. citizenship claims. Others may have legitimate fears of persecution or torture in their home country. Still others may be eligible for visas as witnesses to crimes that may have been committed by their employer. Many are ethnic Mayan Guatemalans for whom Spanish is a second language and who signed agreements without any Mayan interpretation. In the interest of government efficiency, however, these individuals were denied access to the experts needed to help them make informed judgments about whether pleading guilty was in their best interest.

With the “government” bearing down hard and fast, these folks did just what the engineers of this new machine intended: they got on board and signed away their life in this country. The court proceedings in Iowa were a travesty of justice and have no place in a constitutional democracy. Immigrants, even those working without documentation, deserved their day in court, not a five-minute ride on a judicial cattle car that compromises the integrity of our system.

Kathleen Walker is the immediate past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. This article was distributed by American Forum, .

Letters: August 30

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 07:31:00 +0000

Fighting for single payer

Re single payer: I think one of our biggest problems is in the way we are pushing it. We tend to approach more progressive elements, and concentrate on organizations we think will be more receptive to the idea.

About half the people on Medicare, people with no coverage or not enough coverage, are most likely Republicans, a good number of them Bush supporters. What’s being done to approach these people?

We need to hold public forums. How many people in our apartment buildings are without any good coverage? How many of us have held a forum on single payer in our apartment building? People from all walks of life are concerned about health care.

Ken BeSaw New York NY

Georgia-Russia-South Ossetia

No one should be surprised that U.S. interference in the Caucasus has led to the Russian intervention in South Ossetia.

In Washington, Bush stepped out to the White House Rose Garden to declare that Russian assaults inside Georgia — a swift and crushing deployment of military force that the Russians called ‘Operation Clean Field’ — must cease.

What a misleading blunder! “Operation Clean Field” was the name given by the Georgians for their initial attack on South Ossetia and its capital, Tskhinvali, now in ruins, which was pounded with heavy artillery barrages by the Georgians, not the Russians.

How should a country of approximately 4 million people provoke a country the size of Russia unless such a country were encouraged and promised support by another country, in this case the USA.

Washington likes to appeal to international law and opinion, although it is interesting to note that the championship for disregard to international law belongs to the United States.

Joseph M. Cachia Vittoriosa MALTA

After reading the last Internet issue, I’d like to explain something to Mr. Brian Koba, who supports Georgia (PWW 8/23-29). In this case, Russia is not an aggressor. I understand that Russia is a capitalist power. But President Saakashvili’s Georgia is not a democratic one!

Vladimir Sedlacek Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia

Your articles on the mess in Georgia, the 1968 Olympics, Bolivia, labor and racism are stuff that can’t be gotten anywhere else! Conn Hallinan’s piece in the Aug. 16 issue is invaluable. Sometimes I forget how valuable and courageous the PWW is. It’s good to be reminded of that with an issue like this one.

Pete Gourfain Brooklyn NY

The left and World War I

I just read Tim Pelzer’s review of William Petz’ book (PWW 8/26 - 22), and possibly the text was “cut to fit the space” by the PWW. But I was surprised that there is no mention of the split on the Left in Europe over World War I. The “socialists” mainly decided to support their governments’ waging of war with only the left socialists (soon to be Communists) opposing the war.

This was a basic reason for the rupture, not gradual reform vs. revolution or anarchism.

Betty Smith New York NY

State budget crises

Marilyn Bechtel’s recent front-page story on the states’ budget crises (PWW 8/16-22) came to mind as I read in the Wall Street Journal that Pennsylvania is considering leasing its turnpike to a so-called public-private partnership. If it goes through, apparently other states are considering leasing their roads, bridges and tunnels to help with their budget deficits.

Good grief!

It is bad enough that the Bush administration’s never-ending war policy is flushing our tax dollars down the military toilet. It is bad enough that the current administration has cut programs that directly help people in need and is trying at every turn to privatize what we the public own.

We desperately need big changes at the federal level, starting with the president, so our demands for changes in taxation and spending can undo the damage done by the current administration, and we can get busy putting our tax dollars to work on rebuilding our infrastructure and getting our folks employed at union wages with benefits doing this important work.

Barbara Carpenter Chicago IL

Editorial: Swifter, higher, stronger

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 07:29:00 +0000

The Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Swifter, Higher, Stronger) was never so dramatically enacted as during the 29th Olympiad in Beijing these past two weeks. We watched in awe as U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps won eight gold medals.

China swept the gold medals in women’s diving and was just one medal short of a men’s sweep. Cuba’s Dayron Robles rocketed to victory in the 100 meter hurdles. Jamaica’s Usain Bolt left rival sprinters in the dust. The 6’ 5” Bolt, 22, dominated track and field as dramatically as Jesse Owens dominated the 1936 Berlin Olympics in which Owens and other African American track greats demolished Hitler’s Aryan Superman myth.

There were also poignant moments: German gymnast Oksana Chusovitna winning a silver medal at age 33 in a sport dominated by waifish teenagers half her age. We had learned Chusovitna’s story of leaving Uzbekistan seeking care for her critically ill child and finding help in Germany which has embraced her as a national hero.

For every story of triumph, there was heartbreak. Wallace Spearmon of the U.S. crossed the finish line behind his close friend, Bolt, thinking he had won the bronze in the 100 meter dash. He was in the midst of a victory lap when he learned he had been disqualified for a lane violation. Churandy Martina of the Netherlands Antilles lost his silver medal for the same mistake. Both were devastated.

U.S. diver Laura Wilkinson, a gold medal winner in 2000, was smiling to keep from crying as she finished ninth behind China’s Chen Ruolin, Canada’s Emilie Heymans and China’s Wang Xin in platform diving. She is retiring from the sport.

From the opening ceremonies on the theme “One World, One Dream” to the joyous closing, these games expressed the desire of humanity for peace and good will. Some media commentators bemoaned the decline of U.S. domination, especially of track and field, though the U.S. captured the largest number of medals overall. But it isn’t that U.S. athletes are getting worse. Athletes from other nations, including nations beset with mass poverty, are just getting better. They are running fast and they are catching up — or winning.

LETTERS: August 23

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 06:54:00 +0000

Georgia-Russia-South Ossetia

Re: “An August surprise, Georgia-Russia conflict explodes on world scene.” Russia, like the United States, is an aggressor. Until South Ossetia is officially no longer part of Georgia, neither the U.S. nor Russia should interfere with the internal affairs of the sovereign and independent state. The rebel provinces are still Georgian territory. Russia and Georgia are following the Bush policy of “do as I say not as I do.” Russia is wrong, Georgia is right as long as South Ossetia is their territory. South Ossetia is not recognized as a sovereign and independent state yet. The U.S. has no standing since it invaded two sovereign and independent states.

In addition, Russia is now threatening to attack Poland, another sovereign and independent state, over a missile defense system. Poland approved the missile defense system, therefore Russia must not be allowed to interfere with their affairs. Common sense must prevail, not pointless politics from the left and right. Does the phrase “mind your own business” ring a bell?

Brian Koba Via pww.org 'comments'

Before our country becomes involved in another armed conflict, where it is just now attempting to fight two wars at the same time in Iraq and Afghanistan, let us examine the facts in regards to the Georgian-Russian conflict that can be gleaned from the various news reports:

President Saakashvili has allowed Georgia to become a military base, complete with rearming the Georgian army with American equipment. Georgia lies on the border with Russia. If Russia were to do this to the United States and with either Cuba or Mexico, what would be our response?

What has been obliterated from most news reports is that Georgia first attacked South Ossetia, killing 2,000 people in the process before the Russians responded. Knowing the real relationship of international forces, including the fact that one of Sen. McCain’s advisors is a paid lobbyist for Georgia, is this not a bloody provocation to rally around the flag of McCain?

This seems very much like a family taking a long car trip with two pre-teen siblings in the back. First the younger pokes the older sibling until the older gets mad and punches back. At this point the parent not driving the car turns around and tells them both to stop it.

Emil Shaw Rio Rancho NM

Excuse me, but wasn’t it Georgia that launched a military operation against the break-away republic of South Ossetia to bring the pro-Russian region under their control? Georgia, some claim, is a U.S. outpost in Russia’s backyard. Yes, it is a so-called democracy. But for Russia it was 9/11 and the Cuba missile crisis rolled into one. True, Russia launched an overwhelming counterattack against Georgia. But what do you call “shock and awe” against Iraq when the charges against Iraq harboring al Qaeda and weapons of mass destruction were as phony as a three-dollar bill?

And what are John McCain and his campaign manager (who happens to be the chief lobbyist for Georgia) doing in the thick of it? The whole thing reeks of oil and pipelines and other covert reasons for our so-called interests. Please, spare me World War III.

Genevieve Fraser Orange MA

Meeting sisters and brothers for change

I attended a house party for the Obama campaign. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I invited some steelworker friends to attend, as well. I have to say that we really felt at home.

It was held at the nearby home of a retired machinist and his wife. A wonderful, small comfortable place. Around 10 people attended, all working folks. My friends and I all had horror stories to tell about how the Bush administration had stolen my pension, helped the company break the union at my friend’s shop and close my other friend’s shop. We weren’t sure how they’d all respond.

It turned out that we were among brothers and sisters here! The home’s owner spoke of the Bush administration intervening to defeat a bill that would’ve allowed them to retire earlier, then forced through the worst work rules. Another spoke of the horrible role that the administration played, attacking the rights and work rules of railroad workers. Another woman, who was legally blind, talked of the Bush administration cutting back on aid. All present said that their lives were economically much worse off since Bush came to power.

All (except for us) were getting involved in politics this year for the first time ever. In fact, the hostess wanted to borrow two voter registration forms. It seems that her 82-year-old mother, as well as her mother’s 79-year-old sister, has never voted. They had been talking with them and they have decided to finally register, and vote, this year. They both will vote for Obama and a straight Democratic ticket. “For change,” she said. We are planning to stay in touch, work and get involved together — for change!

Bruce Bostick Columbus OH

War

I was sleeping. They wake me up. No, it was not a nightmare: I am in the war.

Teresinka Pereira Toledo OH

Editorial: The Paris Hilton compromise

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 06:51:00 +0000

In her response to John McCain’s use of her name and image to attack Barack Obama in a recent TV ad, Paris Hilton proposed an interesting energy policy: combine new offshore oil drilling with serious investment in clean energy alternatives like plug-in hybrids and wind and solar power.

Apparently when Paris talks, people listen. A remarkably similar bipartisan bill is making its way through the Senate right now.

McCain opposes it. The bill reportedly includes a measure to remove tax breaks for Big Oil, to which McCain has stated specific opposition.

Obama expressed support for the compromise bill saying, “I don’t want the perfect to become the enemy of the good.” In other words, win some new substantive commitments to eco-friendly energy alternatives via the compromise rather than be seen as doing nothing with an all-or-nothing stance.

McCain is Big Oil’s candidate. Oil companies have given him millions of dollars over the years to block alternative energy subsidies and to push for more tax breaks for companies like Exxon Mobil, which raked in a record $12 billion in the last quarter alone on record high gas prices.

But virtually no one believes that new leases for offshore oil drilling will reduce oil and gas prices in the foreseeable future.

Even the Bush administration-controlled Energy Department reported in 2007 that new drilling wouldn’t reach peak production for two decades.

According to official estimates, the oil on all U.S. land, including under offshore waters, totals only 3 percent of the world’s potential supply. Meanwhile the U.S. consumes about one-fourth of the world’s oil.

Thus, any new oil from offshore sources would be a drop in the bucket with no impact on prices.

Further, the environmental dangers of offshore drilling have coastline states like Florida, North Carolina and New Jersey up in arms about the possible impact of spills and other disasters on their tourism-dependent economies, besides the immense social costs from such likely disasters. The Coast Guard recently reported, for example, that millions of gallons of oil spilled in the Gulf of Mexico after Hurricanes Rita and Katrina have yet to be fully mopped up.

If the compromise is a way to blunt the Republicans’ hypocritical hype on oil prices and also get alternative energy funding, that’s understandable, but new drilling will not lower gas prices or free us from price gouging of Big Oil.

Editorial: Some questions for the GOP

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 06:49:00 +0000

Fifteen thousand members of the press are covering the historic events at the Democratic Party convention in Denver.

Next week the same number will cover the Republican convention in the Twin Cities. After Denver, many of them may wonder how to cover the smaller, less exciting event.

Some may be tempted to do feature stories about Minnesota and its unique folklore, for example. Both F. Scott Fitzgerald and Paul Bunyan hail from the state. Others might want to write about hockey or the upcoming ice fishing season.

Rather than dwelling on such stories, however, we would like to suggest they focus on the real concerns of the American people. Here are some questions they might ask the Republicans at their gathering next week:

• What will the GOP do about infrastructure so the country never again experiences a bridge disaster like the one on I-35?

• How does the GOP plan to stop the outsourcing of American jobs?

• What are the Republicans’ proposals for trade, especially as they apply to workers’ rights here and abroad and to the creation of a just global economy?

• What will the GOP do to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to bring our troops home and to care for them properly after they get back?

• What will the Republican Party do to fix the economy, end the foreclosure crisis and stop the thievery on Wall Street? (If they tell you “more tax breaks for the rich,” tell them “wrong!”)

• What is the GOP plan to deliver quality, affordable health care to the 50 million now without insurance?

One last question — especially good to ask of the many “free market” advocates sure to gather at a Republican convention: Why not allow all workers to form unions?

Wouldn’t that be one of the best “free market” solutions to the problem of how to raise living standards and how to save the “middle class?” After all, unlike the powerful corporations behind the Republican Party, unions don’t get tax breaks or government handouts.

August 28, then and now

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 09:57:00 +0000

I remember as if it were yesterday walking across the Capitol Mall on Aug. 28, 1963, in sweltering heat, one of hundreds of thousands, Black and white, holding hands with courage and dignity to usher in a new day in our country.

It took a lot for the families with babies in strollers, teenagers like myself, seniors, and groups holding banners from unions and churches to withstand the media barrage which warned that the March for Jobs and Freedom would be a bloodbath.

On that peaceful summer day all of us who had journeyed across the length and breadth of the country to take our place knew that if we kept our eyes on the prize and kept our unity, it would be possible to overcome lynch terror and the brutality of jim crow segregation. The heroic struggles in the deep South under the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement had inspired wide solidarity. The country could no longer wait to expand voting rights and democracy for all races and nationalities toward a more perfect union. It was a moment that changed our country’s history.

A time to move forward

As Barack Obama accepts the Democratic Party nomination for president 45 years later on Aug. 28, 2008, we are again called upon to keep our eyes on the prize and keep our unity to move our country forward.

It will take a lot to withstand the corporate ultra-right think tanks and their Swift-boat-style media manipulations, created to turn hope into fear and distract from the economic crisis pressing down on everyone except the few super-rich.

The old way in times of crisis, accepting solutions like those of Bush and McCain, brings no relief. Falling in line with divisive hate-mongering and war hysteria is a losing proposition. The result is growing poverty and insecurity in the midst of lavish tax gifts to the wealthy and obscene spending on the military and war.

As whole cities and rural communities go under and jobs disappear, as pensions and access to health care become a rarity, as prices of fuel, food and mortgages become prohibitive, ordinary people are looking for solutions that raise everyone up together.

The next 68 days of organizing will be crucial. Victory is not assured.

There is the potential for a massive vote that can push aside the immediate blockage to social progress — three decades of extreme right-wing rule.

The election of Barack Obama would be a significant advance for working people. It would open the way to carry the fight forward to end the war, guarantee quality health care for everyone, and enact the Employee Free Choice Act and a massive green jobs program. The times demand deep, radical changes that confront corporate power. In a new political climate it would be more possible to win such real changes..

The country cannot withstand four more years of Bush policies with John McCain as president. A victory for Obama, no matter how close, will be significant, but making progress with a closely divided electorate would be difficult. A landslide election will be a clear mandate to change policy. To win the landslide we need to keep our unity and keep our eyes on the prize.

Keeping our unity

John McCain is targeting white workers in a transparent appeal to vote by race rather than class interests. It is based on deception. During his entire Senate career, McCain only voted with labor 17 percent of the time. Obama has a 98 percent pro-labor voting record.

The union movement is playing a leading role in tackling racism. “When we cross that color line and stand together, no one can keep us down,” said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Rich Trumka to the Steelworkers convention in July. He praised the union for its leadership, among the first historically to oppose lynchings and segregation.

The message union activists are bringing to their co-workers in home visits and on the job is straightforward: If you care about jobs, health care, retirement security and peace, Barack Obama is the candidate who represents those concerns. If you have a problem with race, get over it.

This message is understood by many low-wage workers, African American, Latino and white, who favor Obama by wide margins. They are likely more aware that McCain and fellow Republicans voted against an increase in the minimum wage and stand with Wal-Mart in opposing Obama’s commitment to workers’ right to organize.

African American voters are nearly unanimous for Obama. Latino voters are conducting a gigantic voter registration and engagement effort and support Obama nearly 3 to 1. Women voters, angered by McCain’s zero percent voting record on health issues and adamant opposition to choice, are looking to Obama. Youth voters, a major force in the primaries, are expected to continue that momentum and vote largely for Obama.

All workers, including white workers, will lose out in living standards and quality of life under a McCain presidency. Democracy should be of, by and for the people. Worker-to-worker discussions to spread this understanding in the next 68 days will strengthen the labor movement long term and help deliver a landslide vote on Nov. 4.

Keeping our eyes on the prize

There are many improvements that could and should be suggested for Obama’s platform from a working class perspective, especially a new foreign policy based on diplomacy and respect for all nations instead of pre-emptive war for corporate interests. Obama’s program is an evolving project. People’s struggles will make their imprint.

But keeping our eyes on the prize, the most important thing now is to win a change in direction away from reaction and towards progress. This is the opportunity that the election of Obama and a more pro-labor, pro-peace Congress offers. The stronger the vote for a new direction, the faster changes in policy can be won.

The vote by 155 members of Congress to end funding of the Iraq war, and congressional hearings holding the Bush administration accountable for widespread abuse of power, affirm the political shifts under way. A landslide vote can strengthen the progressive presence in Congress and change the balance of forces so stronger legislation can be passed.

The first steps to end the war in Iraq are to decisively reject the militarism of Bush and McCain and support Obama’s calls for withdrawal from Iraq and for abolition of nuclear weapons.

McCain supports the occupation. The troops increasingly favor Obama. How shameful it is that the Bush administration then says voter registration at VA hospitals is prohibited.

Four years after the 1963 March on Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. broke his silence and spoke out to end the Vietnam war, forging new civil rights/peace/labor alliances. Today similar alliances are being forged. Labor is playing a special role. First-time activists are stepping forward, dedicated to expanding our democracy.

Aug. 28 is a symbol of progressive, transformative change. It is a date of mass action by millions of people overcoming great odds to move the arc of justice forward.

Every day until Nov. 4 is a time for all democratic-minded people to take their place at phone banks, door knocks, voter registration and get-out-the-vote events. Don’t sit it out. Help change our country’s history.

Joelle Fishman (joelle.fishman@pobox.com) chairs the Communist Party USA Political Action Commission and is also chair of the Connecticut Communist Party.

A Desire Named Streetcar

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 07:05:00 +0000

As U.S. working people try to cope with job losses, housing foreclosures and evictions, runs on banks, and pain at the gasoline pump, they face one more: the crisis of mass transit.

Here is the paradox: The gasoline price rise is taking people out of their autos. They are flocking to mass transit. But mass transit finances are collapsing. How come?

The paradox is caused in part by the soaring price of diesel fuel used by buses. Another cause: many transit systems depend on revenue from local sales and real estate taxes, and these funds have been plummeting due to the national recession. Moreover, in most medium-size and smaller U.S. cities, mass transit is also paid for by federal subsidies derived from the federal gasoline tax, but soaring gasoline prices have led to a cutback in miles driven and, therefore, a drop in revenue from federal gasoline tax collections. This is happening all across the country.

Item: Ridership is soaring in Pennsylvania’s 73 public transit systems. However, they lack a stable, dedicated funding source and revenues are failing to keep pace with operating costs. Without such a source, Pennsylvania transit systems will be forced to make drastic cuts in service. Workers will have difficulty getting to jobs, schools, doctor’s offices and stores.

Item: According to Cleveland Regional Transit Authority head Joe Calabrese, ridership is up 10 percent, but fares don't cover the cost of diesel fuel. “We may have to cut more service because we have to pay for the diesel fuel,” he said.

It gets worse: in Oklahoma City and in many other parts of the South and West, reliable anecdotal reports suggest that working people who live far from the job are using horses to get to work, cantering down the freeway.

Responding to a campaign spearheaded by the Amalgamated Transit Union, the largest mass transit union in the country, joined by other unions and environmental groups such as the Environmental Defense Fund and the Natural Resources Defense Council, the House of Representatives passed the Saving Energy through Public Transportation Act of 2008 (HR 6052) on June 26. The bill's passage stunned Congress-watchers. Never before did a public mass transit funding bill pass on its own, unattached to a Highway Lobby bill. The bill authorizes $1.7 billion in emergency funding mainly for fuel to keep the buses rolling. Of that total, $237 million is earmarked for New York City, the country’s most mass-transit-dependent city. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) has introduced a companion bill in the Senate. The battle to pass the Senate bill and overcome a threatened Bush veto begins after the August recess.

Gasoline prices have come down a little in recent weeks, but most realistic forecasters believe that prices will never go back to the old levels. If they are right, the crisis of mass transit could offer an opportunity to turn around 60-year-old priorities that have reached a dead end. A resounding defeat of McCain in November, and markedly fewer Republicans in the Senate and House, could help set the stage for a people’s struggle to end overdependence on gas–guzzling private autos, and resulting urban sprawl and climate damage, and to begin a rational approach to mass transit and energy conservation.

Columnist Bob Herbert recently put it well:

“Sometimes the most logical, most obvious solutions are the most difficult to see … Put aside for a moment all the talk about alternative fuels. They are no doubt important and the wave of the future. But the fastest, cheapest, easiest and cleanest step toward a sane energy environment — a step available to all of us immediately — is the powerful combination of efficiency and conservation.”

Efficiency and conservation have enemies in high places. Beating the Highway Lobby (another name for the Big Oil, Big Construction and Big Banking lobbies) won’t happen without a struggle. The Pentagon is the biggest gas guzzler in the U.S. With U.S. aggressions raging in Iraq and Afghanistan and with some 725 bases around the world, the Pentagon burns 395,000 barrels of oil per day, equivalent to the consumption of medium-sized countries such as Greece.

But first things first. The immediate struggle is for federal funding to keep our existing public transit systems, inadequate though they are, functioning. For more information: www.unionvoice.org/campaign/gasprices/ and environmentaldefenseblogs.org/climate411/2008/07/23/public_transit_bills/

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Letters - August 16, 2008

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 05:39:00 +0000

People’s Daily World

I’ve been a reader and supporter of this newspaper for years and always look forward to every issue. There is nothing like a “real” newspaper, turning the pages, looking over the headlines and photos. Something catches the eye later when you pick it up again to read.

But now I am also very pleased that you have a DAILY edition online at www.pww.org. Here I can find additional news stories, analysis, and opinion pieces. And I see that late breaking news is often covered online before the print edition arrives in the mail.

I will always love your print edition. For me your daily online coverage is a great plus.

Barbara Carpenter

Chicago IL

Historic platform

The vision put forth in the 2008 Democratic National Platform is historic in its embrace of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. Never before in our country’s history has there been a national party platform that is so inclusive of our entire community. It is a forward-looking platform in so many areas, including those relating to LGBT people. The Task Force Action Fund is certainly pleased to see that in the opening paragraph of the section titled “A More Perfect Union” for the first time the platform explicitly calls for an end to discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Is the platform perfect? No. There is much more work to be done, especially to improve issues of family recognition. However, is it a good foundation? Unequivocally yes.

Rea Carey

Via e-mail

Rea Carey is the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund

Stop killing unionists

For the first four months of 2008, there has been an increase in the number of trade union officials and members assassinated in comparison with the same period in 2007. This is the crux of the findings in a report entitled “Worrying Increase In Assassinations Against Unionized Workers In Colombia,” which was published by the Escuela Nacionale Sindical (National Union School) earlier this year.

The report notes that:

During the first trimester of 2008, 17 workers affiliated to unions have been assassinated, which represents a substantial 89 percent increase when compared to the 9 assassinations perpetrated during the same period in 2007. This implies that, if the institutions charged with guaranteeing the life of Colombian unionists do not take effective actions that attack the root causes of this anti-union violence, the number of homicides this year could double in comparison with the number perpetrated in 2007.

Despite claims by both the Colombian government and the U.S. State Department that killings of union members and their leaders is waning, the raw numbers of killings remain high. The most recent accounts of the total number of killings are 32 as of Aug. 1. Compounding this problem is the lack of justice for the victims and their families. Of the thousands of trade unionists murdered over the last decade, only 55 perpetrators have been brought to justice and half of them have been released.

Patrick Mac Manus

Copenhagen, Denmark

Time is right

I have been waiting patiently for People’s Weekly World to avail itself of the boiling discontent among the American people with its current form of government and come right out and propose a change for the better, namely, what I term “democratic Socialism.” You have a super-brain in Communist Party Chair Sam Webb; now is the time for him to outline short-term and long-range strategies that would wean Americans from war-mongering, hegemonic capitalism and transfer our resources — human and otherwise — to peaceful programs that will serve not only Americans but all (other) oppressed peoples of the world. If not now, when?

Will Shapira

Minneapolis MN

Election proposals

Greetings and thanks for sending the PWW/NM. Nice to have you around! For the 2008 elections I propose a dual strategy: short term till November and longer term from November onwards.

The short term goal should be to secure on Election Day the hugest landslide victory ever! So start with massive voter registration. But take any opportunity to organize and educate. Take advantage of door-to-door voter registration to organize block or neighborhood study circles. They would soon develop their own dynamic.

The longer term goal could be based on block or neighborhood assemblies to demand reforms in employment, housing, health care, education, the prison system and more. There are lots of things to discuss which promote “people’s cohesion.”

Yes we can! Sí podemos! Taking back America!

Ana Lucia Gelabert

Gatesville TX

New rule: confuse

We’ve heard the rumors for weeks, but newly surfaced documents have confirmed the unthinkable — the Bush administration is considering a politically motivated new rule that deliberately confuses contraception with abortion, allowing providers to cherry pick the information they give women and cut off access to some of the most commonly used forms of birth control. It’s a desperate Hail Mary pass from politicians who have lost all credibility on women’s health issues.

There is no room for political agendas in the exam room when a woman is with her health care provider, and we won’t stop until every woman in America has equal access to the full truth about her health care options.

Buckle your seat belts — this is not over.

Cecile Richards

Via e-mail

Cecile Richards is president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Health care: truths and struggles

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 05:36:00 +0000

In September 2004, this newspaper issued a pamphlet called “Medicare For All! A Guide to Single Payer National Health Insurance.” It explained what “single-payer” is and why so many organizations, health professionals and politicians see it as a necessary program to fulfill the critical health care needs of millions of Americans.

The pamphlet shows why the drive for profit is a fundamental roadblock in the path to health care for all.

But not everybody sees it that way. Most state and national proposals to solve the crisis are some kind of hybrid — programs that include both government and the private sector in providing universal, affordable health insurance.

So how do progressives bridge this divide? How can forward-thinking people play a role in winning health care for all?

Taking a page out of the labor movement’s approach is one possibility. While supporting a single-payer system, the labor movement is also keeping options open and putting forward basic principles that must be part of any health care plan, like high quality, comprehensive, affordable care for all and a strong role for government in curbing abuses and ensuring fairness and efficiency. Any plan that guarantees more people access to affordable, quality health care is a step forward and would open up more political space to win further gains.

There are lots of ways to conduct a mass political action and education campaign for fundamental health care reform. These include electing candidates to Congress who pledge to work for passage of HR 676 and initiating a mass petition campaign to get a companion bill introduced in the Senate, thereby winning over millions more to the cause of a single-payer system.

Focusing only on those who will take up the banner for single-payer health care has limited reach. A mass movement is necessary to wrest power from the giant corporations and the extremist right-wing politicians who do their bidding.

Are state troopers spying on you?

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 06:42:00 +0000

BALTIMORE -- Imagine getting a call from the Maryland American Civil Liberties Union to inform you that the Maryland State Police’s Homeland Security and Intelligence Division entered your name in the “Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area” (HIDTA) database. This happened to me, a pacifist, on July 16.

David Rocah of the ACLU informed me that my entry in the HIDTA database indicates that my “Primary Crime” is “Terrorism-Anti Govern[ment],” and my “Secondary Crime” is “Terrorism – Anti-War Protestors.” This was revealed in heavily-redacted documents released by the Maryland Attorney General’s office, after the ACLU filed suit to obtain records of surveillance by the Maryland State Police (MSP). The documents revealed that MSP agents in 2005-06 were covertly watching peace activists and anti-death penalty advocates at rallies and during meetings.

While these revelations are shocking, the fact that a police agency was spying on nonviolent people is unsurprising.

Members of the Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore, listed as a “security threat group” by the State Police, knew they were being watched because of their protests at the National Security Agency (NSA). This was eventually confirmed on August 23, 2004, in the discovery process for two defendants, Cindy Farquhar and Marilyn Carlisle. These members of the Pledge were on trial for an arrest at the NSA. The NSA documents indicated members of Maryland’s Joint Terrorism Task Force were involved in keeping track of Pledge activities.

The revelations in the documents would eventually lead the ACLU to seek other documents from the NSA and other state and federal agencies. Two years after the ACLU filed Freedom of Information requests, we found out that the state police were watching nonviolent demonstrators protesting the Iraq War as well as the death penalty.

Members of the public expressed outrage, and legislators in Annapolis and Washington, D.C. began to call for hearings. Col. Terrence Sheridan, the current state police superintendent, said that the infiltration was launched out of concern about possible violent protests around two planned executions in 2005. In his opinion, the surveillance was legal. Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley announced July 31 that former Maryland Attorney General Stephen H. Sachs would head an “independent review” of the spy scandal.

The activists who were the victims were skeptical of this “review” and called a press conference at the State Police headquarters in Pikesville, Maryland on Aug. 12. The activists announced that they were sending a letter to Gov. O’Malley expressing their concerns: “[A]ny comprehensive report, and any confidence to be given to its conclusions, can result only from a broad, independent, non-politicized, and careful examination of these activities.” Twenty-one organizations, and five individuals, signed on to the letter. The groups, involved in a multitude of issues, war, the death penalty, civil rights and the environment, included the Communist Party of Maryland, the Defending Dissent Foundation, Pax Christi-Baltimore, Viva House Catholic Worker and Women in Black.

These are the suggestions listed in the letter: 1] need for more than 60 days to complete the investigation, 2] not limit the investigation to the 14-month time frame detailed in the documents, 3] involve the victims in the investigation, 4] reveal the scope of the “intelligence sharing” with police and government agencies, 5] detail other types of surveillance, electronic or otherwise, which may have occurred, 6] remove the names from all watch lists, 7] get subpoena power, 8] publish a public report, 9] call for a written apology for the victims.

The activists are awaiting Gov. O’Malley’s response.

It should be noted that other police agencies have files as well. The ACLU is working overtime to obtain the release of all documents which focus on peace and justice activities held by members of Maryland’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. What else will be revealed? What other names might be in watch lists or antiterrorism databases? I can guarantee there will be further embarrassing disclosures about police agencies spying on groups involved in constitutionally protected protest activities.

Spying on peace groups and anti-death penalty advocates is a travesty of justice, an absolute waste of taxpayer money and an unproductive use of government employees. To ensure that such scandalous behavior is not ongoing or will not be repeated in the future, the progressive community in Maryland is demanding a full investigation to determine who ordered the surveillance, how long it was ongoing, what government officials were involved and what preventive measures will be taken. The activists are prepared to take to the streets if there is an attempt to sweep this scandal under the rug.

Max Obuszewski is a member of the Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore and can be reached at mobuszewski at verizon.net.

The Boomers rise again!

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:42:00 +0000

Opinion

Remember those scenes of hundreds of thousands of young Americans in protest against the Vietnam war, racial oppression, and the draft? Remember singing Bob Dylan’s, “The Times They Are A Changing” and believing every word? Remember, in the decades since those days, hearing people sigh over and over, “Whatever happened to all those revolutionaries?”

Part of the answer comes in a recent application for membership in the Communist Party. A new Texas member writes, “I became radicalized in the anti-Vietnam Era ... and was subsequently dragooned into the military.... However, I determined to learn more about Marxism-Leninism on my own and became a life long student.” While studying, he went on to make a normal living both at government and private-sector jobs. He joined a union whenever possible, but he remained a quiet family man. However, upon retirement, he considered himself “beyond their reach” and contacted the CPUSA at . He also contacted the Obama campaign. He writes, “I understand that the main focus is on defeating the neoconservatives in the next election. McCain is using the same dangerous advisers that Bush used.”

America’s retirees are finding that the union movement is encouraging their political efforts. The AFL-CIO is cobbling together the many retiree organizations under the umbrella of the Alliance for Retired Americans. They have an excellent web page at , an outstanding weekly “Friday Alert” e-mail newsletter, and state organizations in the majority of states, including Texas. As America’s retirees realize that they are under attack, and as they realize that no one else can defend them as well as they can defend themselves, they have a solid working-class organization ready for them.

The revolutionary youth of the Vietnam days made headlines because, as the largest age group in America, there were so many of them. They made headlines, on the subjective side, because they were outraged at senseless killing and racial exploitation, and, to a certain extent, because they had no grounding ideology that kept them from taking brave but ridiculous actions. On the objective side, because people’s objective situation is what really matters, they made headlines because they didn’t want racial discrimination nor to be drafted into America’s imperialist military. Objectively, most of them stopped protesting after new civil rights legislation and the end of the draft.

The objective situation for those same people, that same giant demographic larger than any American age group, as new retirees, is what impels them now. As the baby boomers contemplate or enter retirement, they are confronted with a completely unprecedented and savage attack on the rights that older Americans have come to expect. They hear a presidential candidate calling Social Security a “disgrace” and speaking up for privatization. They see a political party united against health care and pensions that are vital to retirement. Our objective situation impels us, when we are young and when we are old. The boomers are older, wiser, and just as numerous as before. As seniors, they have more credibility than they did when they wore headbands and tie-dyed tees. They will be giants in the progressive movement!

Elections 08: embracing the moment

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 05:46:00 +0000

The expected presidential nomination of Barack Obama is a path breaking and historic achievement from many standpoints, not least the struggle for equality and against racism. Obama’s nomination leaves an enduring mark on every aspect of our nation’s culture – a culture steeped both in racism and anti-racism.

Eugene Robinson, a columnist for the Washington Post, had this to say:

“A young, black, first-term senator—a man whose father was from Kenya, whose mother was from Kansas and whose name sounds as if it might have come from the roster of Guantanamo detainees—has won the marathon of primaries and caucuses to become the presumptive presidential nominee of the Democratic Party. To reach this point, he had to do more than outduel the party’s most powerful and resourceful political machine. He also had to defy, and ultimately defeat, 389 years of history.”

The breaking of this barrier says much about the candidate but it also speaks volumes about the American people. While it augurs well for our country’s future, it must be very disconcerting for the ruling class – that class which has been the main architect and beneficiary of racism for nearly four centuries.

People crossed racial and gender barriers in numbers that many of us didn’t think possible only a few months ago. Some said an Obama nomination was impossible, that it would never happen, and that white voters would never pull the lever for a Black presidential candidate. But the primaries proved that the doubters were wrong.

Breaking barriers

The Clinton campaign also broke barriers. Her concession speech was stirring as well as profound in many ways. While we had disagreements (and stated them) with the racist text/subtext in her campaign, it is also true that she captured the imagination of millions of women who in their own lives encounter gender barriers and oppression in the home, work and community. I am not sure if we have taken full measure

Her candidacy dissolved male supremacist notions disfiguring the thinking of men and plowed away barriers preventing women from playing a full and equal role in every aspect of social life. The struggle for full equality of women won’t necessarily be easy going forward, but Clinton’s campaign did take the fight to higher ground.

Decent and democratic minded people are rightfully celebrating the breaking of these barriers. Imagine how enthused the depression-era communists – those who gave their lives to Black/white unity and equality at a time of legalized segregation and lynching with impunity — would be about these turn of events.

Soberness in politics is essential, but it should be combined with passion, hope, excitement and images of a just and peaceful future. If we are going to err with respect to the significance of the moment and the potential of the coming elections, it is better to err on the side of passion and hope.

Anti-racism at a new level

Most, I suspect, underestimated the growth of anti-racist feeling among white people to one degree or another. Consider this statement by Loree Suggs, executive secretary of the Cleveland building trades, in reference to Obama:

“Go back to your locals. Now is the time to unite. We cannot let any bias or racial thoughts get in the way. If your members have any problem with racial bias, tell them to get over it for all time, but especially now for this election, get over it. We must put Barack Obama in the White House and, if we don’t, we are in deep trouble.”

This may not be typical of changing sentiments of white people in general and white unionists in particular, but it isn’t atypical either. Mass thinking is changing. Again, to quote Robinson,

“[T]he amazing thing isn’t that there were instances of overt, old style racism during the campaign, it’s that there were so few. The amazing thing is that so many Americans have been willing to accept – or, indeed, reject – Obama based on his qualifications and his ideas, not on his race. I’ll never forget visiting Iowa in December and witnessing all white-crowds file into high school gymnasiums to take the measure of a black man – and, ultimately, decide that he was someone who expressed their hopes and dreams.”

While I don’t think that we have fully digested the political meaning of this turn of events, we can still say that the readiness of so many white voters to cast their ballot for an African American candidate in the presidential primaries gives confidence that the struggle against racism in its ideological and material forms can proceed on higher ground and in a bolder fashion.

Beware of rigid concepts

Tightly sealed political categories in this moment are not useful. It is said, for example, that Obama is a centrist or, worse still, a bourgeois politician. But aren’t categories of this kind, even if they capture some aspects of reality, too closed to be useful in a dynamic situation?

Political categories should allow for complexity, contradictions, transitions and new experience. If this is true in general then it is even truer at this moment when politics are fluid and social actors (individuals and social groups) are in motion?

Isn’t it possible for a social group or an individual to occupy more than one political space? Isn’t there something to be said for Italian Communist Antonio Gramsci’s concept of “contradictory consciousness?” Shouldn’t we think twice before embracing cut and dried assessments of social actors that not only fail to capture complexity of their politics, but also impede our political imagination to creatively elaborate strategic and tactical positions?

Assessments of candidates should be informed by their political formation and sensibilities, the movement that has sprung up around a candidacy and the overall context of these elections, including the presence of a powerful right-wing attack machine. Rather than pigeonholing Obama, for example, as a centrist or bourgeois politician, it may be more useful to characterize him as a potentially transformative political figure, much like Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Martin Luther King, Jr. were. None of them were revolutionaries, but they each had a keen appreciation of the moment in which they lived, they each interacted with the larger movement of their time and they each understood the necessity of expanding and giving new content to democracy and citizenship rights, albeit in the context of their times.

It isn’t ordained that Obama will fit into this category, either, but it is also far too early to foreclose that possibility. Life and struggle will decide.

Appreciating political realities

There is a tendency – especially among some on the progressive and left part of the political spectrum — to nitpick every single position of this or that candidate, including Obama. Some people on the left were apoplectic over Obama’s speeches to AIPAC and a Cuban American group in Miami. It is true that there is much in each speech that the left would disagree with, but at the same time we should look for positive openings that the speeches offer, if not now, then in the event of an Obama presidency. Unfortunately, looking for openings, by the way, isn’t something that the left is skillful at doing, especially in the electoral arena.

There should be an appreciation of this broad popular movement that has arisen around Obama’s candidacy. It has diverse currents and trends, including sections of the ruling class – all of which have to be taken into account. This campaign is also up against a very powerful right-wing attack machine – not to mention powerful and reactionary corporate interests.

What is more, to win, the campaign has to reach out to independents and disaffected Republicans. Without winning a section of them, a landslide victory is improbable.

The broader movement should give some wiggle room to this path-breaking candidacy. Obama is not running for city council in Berkeley or a safe congressional seat. Instead he is running for the highest national office in 50 states and in every region of the country.

Being right in the right way

Communists and others on the left can and should differ with Obama and other Democratic candidates. But the more important question is how we do it. Carl Winter, a former national leader of the Communist Party, said to me on more than one occasion: “It is not enough to be right, but you have to be right in the right way.” By which I understood Carl to mean that Communists, in advancing our views, have to be not only respectful of other people’s opinions and circumstances, but also to present them in a way that deepens people’s understanding, confidence and unity in the context of our strategic objective.

In order to advance one iota of a pro-people’s agenda, the people’s movement has to elect Obama and to enlarge the Democratic Party majorities in Congress. Without that everything else is wishful thinking.

However the focus in these elections should neither be solely on the candidate nor solely on the movement, but rather on the interactions and connections between the two. We should accent dynamics, fluidity and possibilities of the political process rather than dwelling on this or that shortcoming of either the candidate or the broader movement. If the latter consumes us, if it becomes the main thing, we will miss the forest for the trees. Sam Webb is chairman of the Communist Party USA. This article is based on excerpts from his latest report on the 2008 elections. For more information: .

Letters: August 2

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 05:06:00 +0000

Let’s impeach

There is still time to hold President Bush accountable for the harm done to our democracy and to show the world what kind of democracy America believes in. The House Judiciary Committee held a meeting on the actions of the president. Four congressmen, two authors, a former congresswoman and several citizens testified for impeachment. Congressman Dennis Kucinich has introduced the articles of impeachment.

President George W. Bush has committed illegal war, innuendos to make Americans believe Iraq was involved in 9/11, lies about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, preemptive strikes, warrantless spying on American citizens, torture, rendition and removal of rights from prisoners by ignoring the Geneva Convention. He caused the death of 4,000-plus American soldiers, created 4.5 million Iraqi refugees, made complete chaos of Iraq and is responsible for depleted uranium poisoning. Also, he spent $1 trillion on the war. Was this all for power or oil in the Middle East?

In addition, Bush did not sign the Kyoto Treaty, thwarted scientific reporting in the U.S. on global warming and wrote 800 plus signing statements on bills he signed.

Let’s not wait until the president bombs Iran to impeach.

Ava Jordan St. Louis MO

Hooray

Another big cheer for James Thompson’s cogent and thoughtful review of the recent film “The Visitor” (PWW 7/19-25). My husband and I are rarely movie attendees, finding most current films tedious and boring — or worse.

We have a friend who is a documentary filmmaker and she had told us that she “knew” we would appreciate this new Tom McCarthy piece of work.

Another friend gave us a “freebie pass”—and at that price it seemed like a good enough gamble of our time.

She — and Thompson — were totally correct. “The Visitor” is an adult, thoughtful, important statement of our need to be connected, to care and to act. The acting is brilliant, the story believable and touching. Like the professor, we can learn from people seemingly totally unlike us. We need to reach out and not to judge. We need to learn things not just from our day-to-day life, but from the lives of many.

Jean Anderson Portland OR

Workers comp

I read your column on worker comp. I worked at a certain home improvement warehouse for seven years and in the process of doing my job I injured my lower back. This was nothing new to leave my type of work with an injury or an ache of some kind, which normally was resolved by a hot pack or a soak in the tub. This was not the case this time. I, at one point, became paralyzed temporarily in my legs. Luckily the sensation came back.

After numerous doctors, misdiagnoses, hassles and time the insurance adjusters have decided that they want me to go get scrutinized by a hand-picked bunch of paid-off doctors to retest me for 3-year-old injuries. I have no idea how many will be in this panel but how ever many I think is a travesty considering that through this ordeal numerous highly-qualified doctors have all ready given their prognosis and solution for my situation.

I am not just missing out on the last three years which have been extremely upsetting, lonely, and full of self pity, but now I know that the nerve is dead. Not something I want to think about but it is reality.

I essentially I am not go to be able to work in hardly any field the rest of my life, and I am considering applying for permanent disability to help with my welfare.

I would love to have a jury of peers hear my case.

TLM Via e-mail

Online quips

Responding to Marilyn Bechtel’s pww.org article, “In budget battle, Calif. governor threatens state workers’ pay” in which Bechtel reported Gov. Schwarzenegger “plans to sign an executive order on July 28, temporarily cutting pay for over 200,000 state employees to the federal minimum wage, $6.55 per hour.”

Donald quipped: “If true, does the Governor get his pay cut to minimum wage also? :-)”

Donald Via Disqus

A response to pww.org’s “Organizing in a hard-hit steel town,” by Carl Davidson.

I’m from Beaver County. This article could be a portrait of any Western Pennsylvania town: Midland, Monaca, Homestead (site of the famous workers’ clash with Pinkertons), even urban Pittsburgh. We are the crown jewel of the Rust Belt, and the effects on the lives of workers here are devastating. Unemployment is up in those hardest hit by economic rusting, and young people (even me), seeing no future in the region, are moving south or west at disheartening rates. Obama’s New Deal for green power and infrastructure rebuilding could turn that around. Just as FDR’s public works shifted America from Depression three-quarters of a century ago, so too can a new progressive government shift us away from our current descent into ruin.

Brandon Getz Via Disqus

Visit and weigh in on the website debates.

Editorial: McCains gaffes:Uncovering the cover-up

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 05:01:00 +0000

In a recent interview with CBS anchorperson Katie Couric, Republican presidential contender John McCain blasted Barack Obama for opposing the surge in Iraq. McCain claimed the deployment of more U.S. troops gave rise to the “Anbar Awakening” in which Sunni Muslims turned against al-Qaeda terrorists. But the Anbar Awakening began Sept. 26, 2006. That was more than three months before President Bush even announced the surge on Jan. 10, 2007.

What makes this McCain blunder so troubling is that CBS decided to remove it from the interview, covering up McCain’s mistake. The cover-up was exposed by MSNBC commentator Keith Olbermann, who accused McCain on the air of either lying or being ignorant of the facts.

MoveOn.org launched an online petition to CBS demanding that they stop the “cover-up for McCain.”

“Ironically, John McCain is now saying the media are too soft on Barack Obama. But if Obama showed himself to be as uninformed on his top issue as McCain did on Iraq the media would have a field day,” MoveOn.org declared. The CBS cover-up is “just the tip of the iceberg” of the media’s efforts to hide “McCain’s misstatements, flip-flops, and extreme positions.”

McCain recently called Social Security a “disgrace” and lied in denying his support for privatizing it. Six times McCain has spoken of his policies toward “Czechoslovakia,” a nation that ceased to exist 15 years ago. He speaks of the “Iraq-Pakistan” border even though they do not share a border. He mixes up Somalia and Sudan. Four times he accused Iran of helping al-Qaeda with absolutely no evidence to back it up. Just like the pre-war lies told about Iraq.

Covering up McCain’s faux pas is only the most obvious sin of the corporate media. They are carrying water for McCain in this crucial election. Their main transgression is giving McCain an “extreme makeover,” promoting the hoax that he is a “moderate” or a “maverick” instead of the pro-war, anti-labor, George W. Bush clone he really is.

It is time to hold the media’s feet to the fire and demand that they stop serving as a propaganda ministry for the Republican right.

Editorial: Celebrate the Olympic Games

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 04:58:00 +0000

Hundreds of nations will participate in the 2008 Olympics, many of whom are in conflict, even at war with each other. All will be part of a single, peaceful event.

Politics and the Olympics have always been intertwined. Who could forget Jesse Owens’ gold medal wins in 1936 in Nazi Germany, poking Hitler in the eye? Who could forget the 1968 American medalists raising their fists in Mexico City? Or the horrendous 1972 killing of Israeli athletes competing in Munich? Or the Cold War boycotts of the 1980 Moscow and 1984 Los Angeles games?

This year, the Olympics will also take place in a political context.

For openers, it’s being held in China, a country that has had a socialist revolution and is experimenting with a socialist-market economy with some degree of success since it’s a tremendous rising economic and political power in the world.

Despite the inevitable mistakes and setbacks, China has moved and continues to move tens of millions of people out of severe poverty and works internationally towards a peaceful world order.

Millions will have the opportunity to see China’s accomplishments with their own eyes. The UN says in just a few short decades, China has taken more people out of poverty than any other nation in history. Modern cities are flourishing. While pollution, migration and corruption remain problems, these issues are being tackled openly and with urgency.

It is no secret that many would like to undermine China’s status as a rising power. Calls for boycotts of the Beijing Games have come from some in the Save Darfur and Free Tibet movements.

But what would such boycotts lead to? The world faces tremendous problems. Unfortunately, our government’s policies — designed to help maximize U.S. corporate profits — are the cause of many of those problems, like war and instability in the Middle East and climate-changing extreme carbon emissions. A boycott would just lead to more global political tensions.

The Beijing games offer an opportunity to defuse these conflicts, to see the world’s greatest athletes, and maybe — just maybe — to find some commonality and understanding among the world’s people.