Blogging for America

"We, the people..." those are the first 3 words of our constitution which underline the principle that we are a democracy...

Unfortunately for We, the people that democracy that we so value--the principles, rights and freedoms that we enjoy--has been eroding from under us.

The government that we put in place via our votes (we are a Republic) to protect our country, our rights, our democracy has been privatizing their responsibility to do so. The moral and legal mission of the government has been outsourced. These private corporations are paid for by public dollars, yet are not responsive to the needs of public, nor accountable to the public (or even our Constitution. Governmental functions have been transferred to private corporations, via deregulation or privatization--from military and intelligence functions ( Blackwater, now known as Xe Services is the largest State Department private security contractor, they are also under contract to the CIA) to allowing pharmaceutical companies to verify the safety of their drugs (think: Vioxx, for instance).

While some private-public partnerships are budgetary and mission positive. For instance, many federal and local parks have "friends of.." or not-for- profit organizations to help maintain the park, provide programming, etc. The Eleanor Roosevelt Center at Val-Kill (ERVK) is a partner with the National Parks Service in Hyde Park, in fact without ERVK's work, Val-Kill would have been sold to a developer for senior housing.

We need to remember that the primary function of our government is to uphold the Constitution--protecting and empowering the public; the primary function of corporations is to maximize their profits. Protection of the public and our rights are subordinated to profits.

Now with the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v FEC, corporations (for profit and not for profit) are going to be able to hold (more) $way over our election$ and our elected official$ because there will be no limit on the amount of money corporation$ may directly $pend to $ell their brand /candidate. [Our elected officials have long relied on the expertise of lobbyists to navigate specialized bills.] $o much for free elections.

We still have a Faith Based Initiative that still channels public monies to religious organizations to carry out programming and "to ensur[ing] that these groups are a part of the government's disaster response efforts. http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/02/03/we-approach-one-year-anniversary-white-house-office-faith-based-and-neighborhood-par). So much for separation of Church and State.


"We, the people" need to be paying attention and demanding our government be responsive, responsible and Democratic.

Howard Zinn died today. An historian best known for A People's History of the United States (1980) an alternative history that told more than the mythical history of America, but told the history of labor organizers, native americans, blacks and women. Dr. Zinn was known for his activism for civil rights and anti-war mvement from Viet Nam to Iraq. He also wrote a play about Emma Goldman "Emma" (1976).

He modeled activist teaching. From his autobiography You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train (1994): "From the start, my teaching was infused with my own history. I would try to be fair to other points of view, but I wanted more than 'objectivity' ; I wanted students to leave my classes not just better informed, but more prepared to relinquish the safety of silence, more prepared to speak up, to act against injustice wherever they saw it."

Howard Zinn's voice today was silenced, but his words still move me/us to action.

Labels: Howard Zinn

I have slogged through the Citizens United v FEC opinion [558 US ___ 2010]. The majority opinion hinges on the conceit* that corporations are persons, and thus, must be given the same rights as natural persons (equal rights**), especially those rights of free speech in the political sphere.
Corporations (for profit and not for profit) are made up of persons, and the corporate structure protects those persons. So, pehaps corporations should give up these protections? Or, IMHO, perhaps we need to re-define "person(s)" in our constitution (as in an amendment to our constitution).

10 steps to curtail the corporate state from Fran Korten on Common Dreams:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/01/26-3
The problem with these are that they require Congress to act against their own self interest (to be re-elected using corporate $$$$$).
We need a real grassroots movement--perhaps a revolution to recapture the government that was supposed to be "We, the people."



* The term Justice Stevens used in his dissent, p.2
** The absurdist in me is thinking... If corporations have equal rights with persons, I guess they can marry--oh, they already can: there are marriages (aka mergers) between corporations--perhaps then hostile takeovers would be prohibited, since in the USA the concept of freedom of choice is very prevalent in our marriage laws. Exception alert: save the freedom of same sex couples to marry. Does that mean that corporations are more of a person than lesbians and gay men ??

Labels: Constitution, corporations, person

Yesterday the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Citizens United V FEC that in short states that corporations are citizens and thus, can not be censored; they have first amendment rights to free speech.
I am making my way through the 183 page decision.. .[ http://media.npr.org/documents/2010/jan/scotus_campaign_finance.pdf for those of you who want to read it]

As I said this Fall at the Constitution Day event, if corporations are given the same rights as citizens, they also need to be given the same responsibilities. For instance, they need to be making decisions not just with their own self interest in mind (read: profit) but with the public good in mind. Perhaps using this mindset, we might not have had people mortgaged over their means with interest only mortgages because the mortgage brokers would have thought about the consequences and impact on the community five years out when the balloon payment hit, and could not be paid. Likewise the development and sale of derivatives might have been curtailed.
But, for a court which the majority are suppose to be strict constructionalists and not judicial activists, this decision is more than activist it remakes our Republic into a Corporate State.


Chris Hedges' view on this situation:http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/01/25

Labels: Citizens United V FEC, Corporate State

Here is an article with some of the aid for Haiti groups listed:

www.thenation.com/blogs/actnow/516315/helping_haiti



Here is another list of groups & what they do on the ground in Haiti to donate funds :

•Americares – provides health care materials and relief aid via partners on the ground http://www.americares.org/newsroom/news/deadly-earthquake-strikes-haiti-2010.html

•Doctors without Borders – has already set up emergency relief clinics on the ground, (may need supplies later as well)http://doctorswithoutborders.org/news/article.cfm?id=4148&cat=field-news

•Grassroots Online – partners w/local social justice organizations to help distribute food, medical supplies, & other needs identified by Haitian social justice workers; http://www.grassrootsonline.org/news/blog/all-hands-responding-haiti-emergency


•Haiti Emergency Relief Fund – has been working on social, political, and human rights issues in Haiti for 6 years, http://www.haitiaction.net/About/HERF/HERF.html

•Madre – works with community based Haitian women’s organizations, will be helping women in crisis, needs: water tablets, antibiotics, medical supplies, also distributing food & clean water asking for: donate $$ or supplies, call for more info 212 627 0444 www.madre.org/index.php?s=4&news=26

•Quixote Center – long term grassroots organization working in US & Haiti, works w/ women’s groups & is sending earthquake aid https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/531/t/7451/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=3837

•Red Cross has already allotted funds to relief effort; you can give money via link or text “Haiti” to #90999 to give $10; NO volunteer opportunities @ this time

•UNICEF – emergency teams already in Haiti or volunteer

•World Concern – offering food, clean water, blankets, and temp shelter to victims,

•World Food Programme – provides emergency meals and clean water,

•Yele - donate $5 by texting the word “yele” to #501501

If you are a relative of a US citizen in Haiti and are trying to get information about their safety, you can call 1-888-407-4747 1-888-407-4747 or 202-647-5225 202-647-5225

May all promises be kept.

“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”


To read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/