Introducing "The Aarons"

Hollywood has its “Oscars” so why can’t the activist community have its “Aarons”?

Introducing “The Aarons”

 words & photos of the U.T. Students for Justice in Palestine  

Aaron Bushnell memorial event 

by C.A. Matthews

The last five months protesting the genocide in Gaza have brought together some very diverse people both online and offline. When a person commented on one of my Substack posts that they found it interesting how they were agreeing with me, a “Communist”, I was momentarily taken aback. Most Communists wouldn’t label me as such, in spite of my cool Substack and Twitter/X avatar picture with the In Event of Capitalist Crisis Break Glass fire alarm box with a hammer and sickle inside.

It really doesn’t make much difference to me how anyone labels what they perceive are my political leanings or philosophical outlook. I’d call myself a Christian Liberationist/Eco-Socialist, but if you want to call me a Green, or a Communist, or a Socialist, or an Anarchist, or a democratic socialist (small d) it doesn’t faze me one bit. I replied to the comment that I hoped I could be labeled “a human with a conscience” during these dark times when a genocide is being livestreamed on social media while simultaneously being denied by the corrupt and manipulative powers-that-be and their sycophants.

This brief interchange got me to thinking. What does it mean to be “a human with a conscience”? What would a human who possessed a conscience look or act like? And then it hit me. “A human with a conscience” is the perfect description of Aaron Bushnell. Aaron who sacrificially gave up his life in order to draw attention to the people of Gaza because it pained his conscience to see their suffering ignored. 

The signed photo was hung on the Free Speech board in the Univ. of Toledo Student Union

A human with a conscience such as Aaron should be praised, but often they’re dismissed, ridiculed, or scoffed at in our mainstream media. People are seldom truly acknowledged for their compassionate actions taken on behalf of others in our self-centered capitalist society. We praise billionaires and entrepreneurs for increasing their corporations’ profit margins instead of honoring all those kind souls who humbly help their neighbors.

Thus, the idea of “The Aarons” was born.

Superficial and self-centered Hollywood has its “Academy Awards” or “Oscars,” so why can’t the selfless and hard-working activist community have its “Aarons”? Officially the awards would be known as “A Human With A Conscience Awards.” I’d freely give them to as many people as possible so that nobody is forgotten or not thanked for their sacrificial giving to the world at large.

The awards presentation ceremony wouldn’t have to be a once a year event in a huge, glitzy theater with sparkly chandeliers and a red carpet because, let’s face it, activists aren’t usually into that sort of fancy dress-up and show off your bling thing. We could just throw a casual, come-as-you-are pot-luck supper while doing some food distribution to hungry folks in the park or near the community center where we passed out the awards. I think Aaron Bushnell would have approved.

My suggestion is we throw the first Human With A Conscience Awards here in inner-city Toledo at the Frederick Douglass Community Center (a.k.a. “The Doug”). But until I can get a non-profit organization set up so we can crowdfund some money in order to host and make the awards themselves, that big ceremony will have to wait. I’d also like to be able to provide a grant to each person or organization who wins/are nominated to help them continue their good work in the community. Because what’s the good of a statuette on your shelf if you’re in desperate need of funding to continue serving others? (If you have experience with creating a non-profit and would like to help me create one, please leave a comment below or direct message me. Thank you.) 

It’s time we recognize and celebrate all those who work selflessly to aid other human beings without regard to status, class, gender identity, race, nationality, ethnicity, religion, or any other characteristic used by the bourgeoisie to divide us. Humans with a conscience are people who care about the people that our sick and twisted society ignores or sneers at because they aren’t “successful” in the dog-eat-dog world of capitalism, or what I call “the endless rat race” of accumulating monetary wealth or material gain.

Are there any other qualifications a person must meet in order to receive an Aaron? I believe my article on The New Litmus Test describes the essential character an Aaron recipient should have. First and foremost, they cannot be pro-genocide or pro-Zionist. They can’t be enthusiastic about white settler colonialism in any way, shape or form. Forcing indigenous peoples from their homeland isn’t a thing a compassionate human does or condones. Practicing racism and apartheid isn’t something to be proud of, in other words. Expressing classist or elitist opinions are telltale signs of a lack of conscience as well.

What about those who make excuses for those who commit or aid and abet genocide? Or those who simply turn a blind eye and pretend that a genocide in Gaza isn’t happening? These kinds of actions reveal to me they’re not worthy Aaron recipients. While pulling the trigger and killing another makes you a murderer, those who help the killer load the weapon or place it in the killer’s hand or commit perjury to cover for the killer's movements can also be charged with murder. 

For example, Hitler himself never hit the switches or turned any valves on the gas chambers at the death camps, now did he? Yet we consider Hitler responsible for the crime of genocide committed by his soldiers working under his orders. Kissing up to genocidal powers-that-be and then claiming later that you were “only following orders” or trying to fit in with the crowd to maintain your status or further your career doesn’t indicate that you ever put the needs of others before your own or even possessed a conscience in the first place. Actions like these will bring about their own rewards in time.

Genocide apologists who post vile comments online against the victims of Israeli violence are on par with the actual culprits, in my opinion. Anyone who spends so much time and energy trying to convince others they’re “good people” while making excuses for those who are ethnically cleansing innocent civilians and starving children probably wouldn’t want to hang with us do-gooders anyway. They're free to attend the Oscars instead.

Please drop me your suggestions of award categories and the names of humans and groups worthy of an Aaron in the comments below. My talented husband has helped me put together a meme that they can display on their social media accounts showing that they’ve been nominated for an Aaron in the meantime. Folks who see the meme will know to thank them for their service to their fellow human beings. And hopefully, this award will encourage others to demonstrate that they, too, have a conscience and want to help their neighbors at home and around the globe.

Wouldn’t it be great if everyone on the planet could be nominated for a Human With a Conscience award? Wouldn’t you like to live in such a world? I know I would.

Here are some my ideas for Aaron recipients so far:

Best Medical Group with a Conscience: Doctors Without Borders 

Best Food Distro Group with a Conscience: Food Not Bombs, Third Thursday

Best Community Center/Library Builder with a Conscience (Detroit): Unholy Rome with Tour for the Poor 

Best Activist Organizers with a Conscience: AMP – American Muslims for Palestine, Jewish Voice For Peace, Not In Our Name, Veterans for Peace, CodePink

Best Indie Podcasting Channel Highlighting the Struggle of the Workers with a Conscience: Revolutionary Blackout Network

Best Video Compiler Blogger with a Conscience: Truthful News Weekend on Beanstock's World https://beanstocksworld.wordpress.com

Best Network of Independent Podcasters with a Conscience: Indie News Network/Indie Media Today https://www.indiemediatoday.com/

Best Comedian-Journalist with a Conscience: Lee Camp, Ron Placone, Graham Elwood

Best Essayist/Political Commentator with a Conscience: Caitlin Johnstone (and Tim Foley), Chris Hedges, Julian McFarlane

Best Political Cartoonist with a Conscience: Mr. Fish (ScheerReport), Mark Taylor (DeMockracy Ink)

Best Independent Journalist with a Conscience: Max Blumenthal, Aaron Mate, Glenn Greenwald, Richard Medhurst

Best Documentary Maker with a Conscience: Abby Martin

Best Podcast Interviewer with a Conscience: Sabby Sabs, Briahna Joy Gray, Katie Halper, Joy Marie Mann

Best Alternative Radio Show with a Conscience: DJ Amjad’s Deep Mix: Music and More

Best Film-maker with a Conscience: Jonathan Glazer

Best Film Festival with a Conscience: The Media Decompression's 2024 Palestine Film Festival https://mdctoledo.org/

Best Political Figure with a Conscience: Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party (Sign the pledge against genocide at her website https://jillstein2024.com); Claudia de la Cruz, Party of Socialism and Liberation; Dr. Cornel West

Best Religious Figure with a Conscience: the Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac of Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in the West Bank who gave the famous “Christ in the Rubble” sermon on Christmas Eve

Humans with a Conscience who sacrificed their lives in service to others: Rachel Corrie, Aaron Bushnell

I know I’ve left out a lot of worthy recipients. Share your thoughts below in the comments and share this link with your contacts who might have more suggestions. The main requirement to be nominated is to be “a human with a conscience” so, no A.I. ‘bots please! Also, no sociopaths, psychopaths, neoliberals, or other warmongers

We should all strive to be a human with a conscience and follow Aaron Bushnell’s instruction: Free Palestine!

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links 

 

True Civilization https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/p/true-civilization

 

The New Litmus Test https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/p/the-new-litmus-test 

 

Remembering Rachel Corrie: American in Gaza Crushed by Israeli Bulldozer https://youtu.be/qHCafAwhFZo?si=I9OOtIdcnqOh3sCN 

They're Really Going To Try To Lay All The Blame For Gaza On Netanyahu https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/theyre-really-going-to-try-to-lay

Genocidal Psychopaths Celebrate International Day To Combat Islamophobia https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/genocidal-psychopaths-celebrate-international

Killing Palestinians by Blocking Aid. Killing Palestinians by Airdropping Aid https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/gaza-food-drops-human-rights

US building Gaza port to facilitate mass 'voluntary' migration: Anadolu Agency https://thecradle.co/articles-id/23838

Report Exposes The Oil Giants ‘Fueling Israel’s War Machine’ https://popularresistance.org/report-exposes-the-oil-giants-fueling-israels-war-machine/

Mapping the Business of War https://thebusinessofwar.substack.com/p/mapping-the-business-of-war

Investigation exposes Israel's lies and shows they killed their own on Oct 7th https://www.councilestatemedia.uk/p/investigation-exposes-israels-lies

The US wants to ban TikTok to protect Israel's genocide https://www.councilestatemedia.uk/p/the-us-wants-to-ban-tiktok-to-protect

If Israel Wants To Be An "Independent Nation", Let It Be An Independent Nation https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/if-israel-wants-to-be-an-independent

Crocodile Tears For Gaza While Backing Its Destruction https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/crocodile-tears-for-gaza-while-backing

ACLU Slams House for Latest Plan to Ban TikTok and Stifle Free Speech  https://scheerpost.com/2024/03/13/aclu-slams-house-for-latest-plan-to-ban-tiktok-and-stifle-free-speech/
 
The Genocide in Gaza Is Filling Our Beautiful Month of Ramadan With Dread https://truthout.org/articles/the-genocide-in-gaza-is-filling-our-beautiful-month-of-ramadan-with-dread/

Ending Impunity for the Crimes Against Palestinian and Israeli Civilians, A to Z https://www.passblue.com/2024/03/07/ending-impunity-for-the-crimes-against-palestinian-and-israeli-civilians-from-a-to-z/

Canada and Sweden defy global trend: Rush to aid Palestinians as Israel faces torture allegations https://www.nationofchange.org/2024/03/13/canada-and-sweden-defy-global-trend-rush-to-aid-palestinians-as-israel-faces-torture-allegations/

US marathon runners wave Palestinian flag at Olympic trials https://therealnews.com/us-marathon-runner-waves-palestinian-flag-at-olympic-trials

Unequal before the law https://therealnews.com/unequal-before-the-law

Biden’s Use of the Slur “Illegal” Underscores His Rightward Lurch on Immigration https://truthout.org/articles/bidens-use-of-the-slur-illegal-underscores-his-rightward-lurch-on-immigration/

Chris Hedges: Joe Biden’s Parting Gift to America Will be Christian Fascism  https://scheerpost.com/2024/03/17/chris-hedges-joe-bidens-parting-gift-to-america-will-be-christian-fascism/

Black Alliance For Peace: Haiti Behind The Headlines https://popularresistance.org/black-alliance-for-peace-backgrounder-haiti-behind-the-headlines/

Judge Allows East Palestine Residents’ Lawsuit Against Norfolk Southern https://popularresistance.org/judge-allows-east-palestine-residents-lawsuit-against-norfolk-southern/

The last days of Julian Assange in the United States https://www.declassifieduk.org/the-last-days-of-julian-assange-in-the-united-states/

Failed ICJ Case Against Russia Backfires, Paves Way for Genocide Charges Against Ukraine https://www.mintpressnews.com/failed-icj-case-against-russia-backfires-paves-way-for-genocide-charges-against-ukraine/287028/

You Can't Trust Any Part Of This Dystopia If You Want Health And Sanity https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/you-cant-trust-any-part-of-this-dystopia

Their Time Will Come (Say Free Palestine on Saint Patrick's Day) https://matthewhoh.substack.com/p/their-time-will-come

Subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack today! Blogspot/Blogger isn't working as well as it once did (Is it blatant censorship? Who knows?) so it's time to migrate to a better platform. Go to https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/ and click on one of the stories and subscribe at the link at the end of the article. You'll enjoy having each week's post automatically sent to your email box or reading it at the Substack site. Many thanks for your consideration.

Outlaw Homelessness

 

Outlaw Homelessness 

by C. A. Matthews

 Arresting the homeless for camping in public areas, "loitering" in parks, and sleeping on sidewalks is nothing new. In fact, Los Angeles recently passed a law that makes being homeless in the city illegal. Police regularly grab and pitch people's tents and belongings, and there are well over 66,000 homeless individuals in L.A. at last count.

What if we flipped this social challenge on its head? What if we didn't turn the homeless into "outlaws" but outlawed the whole tragedy of homelessness instead?

Outlaw homelessness.

How would this work? I envision a similar program such as the one implemented in Finland. If a person is found to be without a secure home--for whatever reason--we simply provide one for them. It's not like there's any shortage of housing. It's estimated there's at least 17 million empty housing units in the US. That's more than enough to house the current estimate of 11 million homeless individuals.

So, what gives? Why aren't we providing homes for folks who need them when there's no shortage of empty homes? Answer: Because capitalists like landlords and international real estate holding firms don't want to fill those empty homes. It's better in their opinion to make everyone believe there's a shortage of housing so the capitalists can charge higher rent prices and drive up sale prices when they do decide to sell off some of their surplus housing stock.

Simply put, capitalists hoard things--money, houses, spaceships, yachts, etc.--so that others can't use them. The capitalists themselves aren't in need of these surplus homes since they have homes of their own in quite nice neighborhoods. They just don't want these empty homes they're hoarding to be used unless they can dictate the terms, even if these terms mean that ordinary people won't be able to afford to rent or buy these homes and even could be evicted during a pandemic.

Logically, then, the only way to effectively outlaw homelessness is to outlaw capitalism. Forever.

You're probably thinking, "It can't be done!" but I beg to differ. It can be done and it must be done for the sake of our homeless (and about to be evicted) neighbors. "How can it be done?" is the better question, and it's a tough one to answer. Why? Because for every homeless person in the US there are at least a dozen others working against any change in the status quo.

And why do Americans (some of whom aren't particularly well-to-do) wish to maintain things they way they are? Why should they support the capitalists at all? The obvious answer is that those who have a lot of wealth and power are loathed to give any of it up, and those who kiss up to the capitalists are hoping some of the "crumbs" will fall from the capitalists' table and into their laps.

But I believe there's a deeper fear beneath this heartlessness and hoarding. I believe that many capitalists (and their sycophants) are afraid that if they share any of their material wealth they will somehow be diminished in the eyes of others and thought less of. We might even make fun of the way they dress, talk, act, and well... hoard things.

In other words, capitalists are deeply afraid that no one will take care of them if and when they ever need to be taken care of, and they'll become as unwanted and uncared for as those poor souls currently camping in our cities' streets.

It's not an unreasonable fear on the capitalists' part. They realize just how much they hate their "neighbors," so they conclude that their "neighbors" are bound to reflect some of this hatred back at them. I've covered this particular irrational fear before, so I won't go into it here. You can read all about it in this piece: Why are the rich so scared of socialism?

Until we wipe out all fears that both the homeless and the capitalists have, we will continue to suffer this great divide of haves versus have nots in our society. And we will continue to see a growing number of homeless neighbors while simultaneously enjoying a growing surplus of housing units in the US.

It's insane. It's inhumane. But that's capitalism for you.

Outlaw homelessness. Today.

Here are some more videos and articles to think on:

 https://youtu.be/55QdFl_5l7I

The Moratorium Extension Won't End Evictions  https://therealnews.com/the-moratorium-extension-wont-end-%EF%BB%BFevictions

Capitalism is Holding All of Us Hostage  https://therealnews.com/richard-wolff-capitalism-is-holding-all-of-us-hostage

Why Are the Rich So Scared of Socialism? https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-are-rich-so-scared-of-socialism.html

Los Angeles Criminalizes Being Homeless  https://www.yahoo.com/news/los-angeles-criminalizes-being-homeless-171023695.html

 How Finland Solved Homelessness  https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/02/how-finland-solved-homelessness 

 

The two things the world urgently needs to bring an end to are the climate crisis and landlords

— Council Estate Media (@CEMEDlA) August 8, 2021

What’s it called when the bank says you cannot afford a $950 mortgage payment so you’re stuck paying $1500 in rent instead.

— alex 🇲🇽 (@r8dr4lfe75) August 8, 2021

Landlords want 2021 prices with 1993 kitchens and bathrooms

— 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚 #𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙚𝘼𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 (@ActivistJesse09) August 8, 2021

***

Demand that Congress pass an eviction moratorium that protects EVERY American!

Sign Now

By the end of summer 2021, an estimated 7 million tenants in the U.S. will be behind on rent. With the COVID-19 pandemic upending life as we know it, families all over the country have faced job and health crises, resulting in finances so tight, they can't afford to keep a roof over their heads. As if this weren't bad enough, the Biden administration has now announced they don't have the ability on their own to extend the federal eviction moratorium. This means that we are entering an unprecedented housing crisis which will certainly devastate families' and individuals' lives if we don't head this off now. As many as 1.2 million tenants have reported that they were very likely to be evicted as soon as the moratorium expired on July 31. The country now faces a race against the clock to find resources and shelter for millions of people, even as we are now facing yet another wave of increased COVID transmissions and lockdowns. Although Biden has said he does not have the power to extend the original moratorium himself, Congress does have this power. If lawmakers were to reconvene immediately and reinstate the mortatorium, countless families could be spared from disaster. We need bold action from Biden and Congress, and fast. Sign here to demand that Congress stay in session until they extend the federal eviction moratorium to protect all Americans! Thank you,   Miranda The Care2 Petitions Team P.S. The eviction moratorium prevented landlords from kicking people impacted by the COVID recession to the curb, but now it's over. Sign the petition to extend this moratorium.

***

There are more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. and every one should have a safe pathway to citizenship.

Immigrants are essential to the success of America. During the pandemic, roughly 23 million immigrants -- including 5 million who are undocumented -- served as health care workers, public health and safety workers, food system workers and farmworkers.

Some of the undocumented are Dreamers, brought here as children. Other immigrants are here legally due to war, political persecution or natural disasters in their countries of origin.

A recent Gallup poll proves that the American people overwhelmingly, by a 75% to 21% margin, support creating a pathway to citizenship.

Now we can make it happen. Senator Bernie Sanders, Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, has included $150 billion in the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation proposal earmarked specifically for implementing immigration policies, including a pathway to citizenship.

But Bernie needs our help building support to make sure it doesn’t get cut during negotiations on a final bill. It’s time to finally let the undocumented come out of the shadows with a pathway to citizenship.

Please write a quick message to your members of Congress demanding they support the inclusion of a pathway to citizenship in the budget reconciliation package right now.

Send your letter

Our letter writing tool is easy to use.

Just enter in your information and we’ll find and target your letter to your members of Congress. We’ve provided suggested text too, but if you’d rather write your own you can edit it and say it in your own words.

Whether your message is short and to the point or long enough to tell your personal story -- or one of a friend or family member -- you can be sure your letter will be delivered immediately.

For too long Congress has failed to take action on immigration. Isn’t it time for Congress to deliver solutions that reflect both our shared values and our national interests?

Take Action Now

All undocumented immigrants, essential workers, Dreamers, and those fleeing disasters or political persecution should be provided a pathway to citizenship without more delay.

Thank you for fighting for change.

-LeeAnn

LeeAnn Hall
Director, National Campaign for Transit Justice

Community Versus Commodity

Community Versus Commodity

by C.A. Matthews

The more you study a problem, the more facets of it you see.

We come into this world assuming that we’ll be able to breathe. If we’re fortunate, we take that first big gulp of air and let out a long, piercing wail much to the relief of our parents. If we need a little help, we are fortunate someone is there to help us take that first breath, changing our skin tone from bluish to pinkish. The same with water and food. We open our mouths to latch on to a nipple and find liquid nourishment right away, or we will at some point even if we have to spend our early days in an incubator connected to an IV.

Sad to say, these natural instincts are all based on a false assumption. 

Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, the former chairman and CEO of Nestlé Corporation, the world’s biggest bottler of water, once called the idea that water is a human right "extreme."  People like him see a basic necessity such as water as a commodity. Water, air, food, land—none of these belong to us, to be shared and used for the good of all. These commodities belong only to those who can afford to pay for them—or take them by force from others.

We erroneously assume we have  the “right” to live, grow and thrive. Alas, we do not, particularly if we're unable to purchase these basic necessities under our current system of capitalism. We’ve been told that the right to exist, evolve and flourish can't be extended to other living and growing things such as ecosystems, forests, islands, lakes, rivers and streams, either.

Some brave souls do not agree with this narrow-minded view and have begun to fight back. They're boldly asserting their right to democracy, voicing their opinions and placing citizens' initiatives on the ballot. Unfortunately, the status quo won't take this lying down.

I think of this struggle as "The community versus those who label the basic necessities of life as commodity." Others call it standing up for Rights of Nature.

Stories about communities fighting for their right not to have their clean air, land and water sold off to the highest bidder have made it into the mainstream media recently. Of course, the mainstream media exists for the sole purpose to commoditize things in order to generate profits for their owners. So, it’s no surprise that mainstream reportage tends to be slanted in the direction of, “Look at these eccentric/dangerous/weird people who say they want their water supply/air/land to be clean and free of toxic chemicals. How bizarre/terrorist-like/funny is that?"

But these eccentric/dangerous/weird communities aren’t giving up. They assert they have the right to exist and not be poisoned by outsiders who barge into their community to take resources and pollute it in order to make profits. These communities insist that the local ecosystem also has rights, because one cannot divorce the community from the natural world in which the members of that community live. Perhaps the most dangerous idea is that these communities actually believe they have the right to not to be turned into paupers by those who believe their fat offshore bank accounts matter more than others' rights.

The following story links give examples of communities taking on the uncaring commodity-driven capitalist system. Note how members of these communities are fighting for the very basic necessities of life that we all assume at birth are our rights as human beings—clean, non-toxic air, land and water. They're confronting very powerful forces in both international commerce and government, and risking their health, finances and reputations in the process. 

But what other choice do they have if they wish to survive?

The Second Battle of Lake Erie 

http://www.lakeerieaction.org  
Main page for Toledoans for Safe Water. The Lake Erie Bill of Rights, the first Rights of Nature law passed in the US, is still in the courts. Both Big Ag and Big Oil interests can't do enough to thwart it--with the aid of the State of Ohio. You can read about TSW activities here at the TRC blog by doing a search using the hashtag "LEBOR." The following piece demonstrates who these bold environmental activists are really up against: https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2019/04/revealing-real-out-of-town-extremists.html

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/environment/great-lakes/ct-lake-erie-climate-change-algae-blooms-20191114-bjkteorf5vg2hfu3cgqxe2ncru-story.html
This piece by the Chicago Tribune on Lake Erie has excellent photography and graphs which explains the science behind the toxic algal blooms.

https://youtu.be/58a5rs319_g 
Ohio organizers speak about their recent experiences to inspire a Florida community fighting to protect its water from toxic algae blooms.

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/environment/2019/11/08/lebor-debate-highlights-great-lakes-water-law-conference/stories/20191108124

"Although two of Toledo’s better-known attorneys expressed sharp differences over the legal merits of the Lake Erie Bill of Rights on Friday, they found common ground on the notion that the controversial document has inspired more people to protect the world’s 11th largest body of fresh surface water."

David Takes On Goliath--and Is Forced to Pay the Frackers $75,000

https://celdf.org/2019/11/media-statement-settlement-announced-with-oil-and-gas-industry-seeking-monetary-award-ban-against-injection-wells-continues/
Settlement Announced with Oil and Gas Seeking Monetary Award:  Ban Against Injection Wells Continue in Grant Township, PA. 

Yes, you read that right. Big Oil forced citizens of a poor rural area of Pennsylvania to pay the frackers off for the right to protect their own drinking water supply from fracking wastes.  They ended up settling out of court because Big Oil demanded over $600,000 at the start of the case. Threatening lawsuits are common tactics used by big corporations to bully communities into submission.

From the "Never Keep a Treaty with an Indigenous People" Files 

It's not only the US government that doesn't recognize the rights of indigenous people to live unmolested on their native soil. The Australian state of Queensland has given Aboriginal lands to a coal mining corporation to mine without any public announcement. The community is not taking this action lying down.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/aug/31/queensland-extinguishes-native-title-over-indigenous-land-to-make-way-for-adani-coalmine?

"The Tomb" (photo by ABC Australia)

Radiation Continues Long After the Cold War on the Marshall Islands

https://www.latimes.com/projects/marshall-islands-nuclear-testing-sea-level-rise/  

This LA Times article features poignant photography and good reporting. You will be shocked at the callousness of the US government's treatment of the Marshallese over the past seven decades. And it's far from over with the coming of rising ocean levels. The islanders will have to fight hard to receive the help they deserve and recompense for their radiated homeland.

https://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/59721-climate-change-is-breaking-open-americas-nuclear-tomb

“The Marshall Islands say that plutonium is leaking into the Pacific Ocean from the concrete dome the U.S. built to dispose of nuclear waste.

During the Cold War, the United States nuked the Marshall Islands 67 times. After it finished nuking the islands, the Pentagon dropped biological weapons on the islands. Once the U.S. was finished, it scooped the irradiated and ruined soil from the islands, poured it into a crater left behind from a nuclear detonation, mixed it all with concrete, and covered the whole thing in a concrete dome. They called it “The Tomb.” According to a report from The Los Angeles Times, climate change is breaking that dome open. Rising sea levels and temperatures are cracking open The Tomb, threatening to spill nuclear waste into the Pacific Ocean.

The Marshall Islands is a collection of 29 atolls across 1,156 islands. More than 50,000 people live on the islands. From 1946 to 1958, it was a proving ground for America’s nuclear arsenal. On March 1, 1954, the Pentagon conducted Castle Bravo and detonated a 15 megaton thermonuclear warhead over the Bikini Atoll. It was the largest nuclear weapon the U.S. ever detonated. The fallout from the explosion rained down on the people of the Marshall Islands. 

 

“It was only a matter of two or three years before women on the island started to give birth to things less than human,” a Marshall Islands woman told diplomats on a fact finding mission decades later. Birth defects are so common on the islands that the people have a number of words to describe them, among them marlins, devils, jellyfish children, and grape babies.

The U.S. has largely dismissed its responsibility to the Marshall Islands. It relocated many of its people and claims the cost of relocation and installation of The Tomb at the Enewetak Atoll covers its liability. As sea levels and temperatures rise, however, the Tomb is cracking. As it cracks, water rushes over it, leaching out plutonium and dumping it into the sea. 

 

The U.S. has said The Tomb is now the Marshall Islands’ responsibility.”

In each of these instances, the community has been wronged by powerful entities condoned by the government (or in the case of the Marshall Islands harmed by the government directly). This demonstrates how easily democracy is ignored whenever ecosystems are treated as commodities. Worst yet, the rights of the community members to exist and thrive are considered less important than private corporations' profits or the military-industrial complex's insatiable desires.

Communities can't hesitate. They must claim their right to take on all who see their home as a commodity.  After all, what other home do they have?

To understand more what is meant by "Rights of Nature," watch the following excellent TEDx talk. https://youtu.be/nItsO4vKb2Q

*** 

Tell Congress: "We need Medicare for All NOW. By taking the extremely efficient administration of traditional Medicare, and improving it by eliminating copays and deductibles, and adding dental, vision, and long-term care insurance, we can build a health care system that doesn’t drive people into bankruptcy when they get sick." ADD YOUR NAME

As momentum has built for a Medicare for All system in America, so have the attacks. Now, a new report shows where these attacks are coming from: Investor-owned, for profit hospitals.¹

It’s no surprise that investor-owned hospitals are afraid of Medicare for All. Every plan is designed to lower the outrageous profit-seeking billing practices that have made American health care the most expensive in the world. 

Here’s the truth: If your business model is based on denying care, or overcharging sick people for lifesaving services and medicine, you won’t like Medicare for All.
 
But if you’re like most people, who want high quality care without going bankrupt, Medicare for All is going to be a godsend. By taking the extremely efficient administration of traditional Medicare, and improving it by eliminating copays and deductibles, and adding dental, vision, and long-term care insurance, we can build a health care system that doesn’t drive people into bankruptcy when they get sick. 

ADD YOUR NAME: It’s time for Medicare for All, now!
Thanks,
Medicare for All NOW Team 

***

From Fight for the Future:

We're now less than a year away from one of the most important elections of our lives, and you'll never guess who is running the digital election infrastructure for states across the country.
Amazon.
 
Amazon software will provide live election-night results.¹ Amazon will maintain voter-registration data and voter lists. Even the federal agency in charge of enforcing election laws is using Amazon products.
Amazon has an awful track record on data security and civil liberties. We simply can't trust them to run our elections as well.
 
Will you donate to help launch our urgent campaign to demand that Congress investigate Amazon?


There are so many reasons why it's a bad idea to let Amazon run our elections: 

1. Amazon has a terrible track record for respecting privacy. Amazon's Alexa has been caught listening to our conversations and collecting data on us. 

Amazon Ring is partnering with local police departments to build a nationwide digital dragnet. Their racially biased facial-recognition technology threatens to create a 24-hour, 50-state, automated system of racial profiling. Can you imagine what they might do with a gold mine of data about our political views? 

2. Amazon is actively working to elect more pro-Amazon candidates. Last month, Amazon dumped $1.5 million into municipal elections in Seattle. In 2018, Amazon spent $13 million on campaign contributions to influence the outcome of the midterm elections. Now, at the same time that they are actively trying to influence the outcome of elections, they want us to trust them to run the election itself. 

3. Amazon is vulnerable to hackers. One of the reasons U.S. elections are hard to hack is because they are so decentralized, with each city and state running their own election process. Centralizing voter data and election results in one system means that hackers could upend our entire democracy by cracking into that single system. Capital One's database stored on Amazon's cloud service was hacked by a former Amazon employee, and voter information stored on Amazon's cloud has been repeatedly compromised.²
 
Amazon is already a threat to our economy, our homes, and our civil rights. We can't let them threaten our elections as well. 

Will you donate to help call on Congress to investigate Amazon before it's too late?
 
We will not be co-opted into the United States of Amazon. Give what you can to stop Amazon's interference in our democracy. 

Together,
Ayele at Fight for the Future

---

Footnotes:
1. Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-elections-amazon-com-insight/how-amazon-com-moved-into-the-business-of-u-s-elections-idUSKBN1WU173
2. Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-elections-amazon-com-insight/how-amazon-com-moved-into-the-business-of-u-s-elections-idUSKBN1WU173

 ***

From the Coalition for Human Needs:

Trump’s attack on LGBTQ+ community rights is now threatening to deprive children in need of a loving home. A proposed rule would remove language protecting LGBTQ+ people and others from discrimination in foster care and adoption programs funded by grants from the Department of Health and Human Services. 

That means foster care and adoption agencies could continue getting taxpayer funding even if they exclude LGBTQ+ families and others from their services based on religious beliefs. This would block children from access to qualified, loving homes. 

And this won’t only hurt the more than 400,000 children in the US foster care system. According to the ACLU, Meals on Wheels and other HHS-funded community meal programs designed to support older adults could refuse to deliver food to older Americans who are Jewish, Muslim, or LGBTQ+. Additionally, Head Start grant recipients and other federally funded child care facilities could refuse to serve transgender youth and children with LGBTQ+ parents. 

This is an attack not only on the LGBTQ+ community, but on human needs. So join the Coalition on Human Needs and our partners to demand Congress block Trump’s anti-LGBTQ+ HHS rule. 

Sign the petition: Trump’s LGBTQ+ discrimination is costing foster children safe homes