Ronnie Dugger excerpt...

[Frances Morey]

I have long thought that it is unreasonable to think that capitalism and
democracy are compatible. If everything is being bought and sold
fundamentally in our society, how can we expect that it does not apply to
politicians? Whoever heard of a poor man exceeding in politics. If these
guys aren't bought they don't get elected.
I was somewhat startled to hear some commentator on TV suggest that in the
Middle East there is a principal of separation between faith and reason. To
try to make sense of that culture is chimmerical at best and quite beyond m=
y
comprehension. Hope I'm not being overly sophistic.
Frances

On Fri, 30 Nov 2001 02:00:53 +0000, telebob x wrote:

>  What are we in? We have an illegal President, presiding over an illegal=
=20
>  administration, declaring an unconstitutional war, and orchestrating,
under=20
>  the cover of missile defenses, American development of weapons circling
in=20
>  space which would give the United States control of every nation on
earth.
> =20
>  What has been true since the corporate takeover of the Democratic Party
in=20
>  the first half of the seventies is no truer now, but now it=92s out here=
 in

>  the open for all of us to see. The issue before us is who governs, who=
=20
>  decides, who controls=96the people or the gigantic corporations and thei=
r=20
>  political puppets.
> =20
>  Felix Rohatyn, the famous investment banker in New York City, said to=20
>  Charlie Rose, on PBS, last Dec. 21 (I wrote it down at the time): "The=
=20
>  government should be the minority stockholder, and the private sector
ought=20
>  to be the dominating factor." There is the truth of the intention, comin=
g

>  from Wall Street. There is the issue: the people, or the corporations.
There=20
>  is the issue: democracy.
> =20
>  One answer for democracy has been struck upon by the Maverick Alliance
for=20
>  Democracy in San Antonio. For the past three years they have been
sponsoring=20
>  multi-organizational gatherings of many progressive, populist, and
community=20
>  organizations under the name Independent Allies. They meet every two
weeks=20
>  at Estela=92s on the West Side. During a part of the program called=20
>  "Noticias," a representative from each participating organization tells
what=20
>  it=92s up to. "Independent Allies" is not an organization, but a=20
>  communications protocol and center, and some of us are interested in=20
>  extending the idea across the state and into the country. [Meetings will
be=20
>  held in San Antonio November 17-18. You could learn more about that by=
=20
>  phoning Bob Brischetto at 830-612-3643; his email is=20
>  brischetto@wireweb.net.] It is time for us to form now, among all our=20
>  organizations, the Equal Independent Allies, one national people=92s
movement,=20
>  independent of any political party, to demand and fight, for example,
for:
> =20
>  =95 Public funding of our elections.
> =20
>  =95 Single-payer national health insurance.
> =20
>  =95 The restoration of the corporate tax system, the progressivity of th=
e=20
>  income tax, and the replacement of the Social Security payroll tax with
the=20
>  income tax.
> =20
>  =95 Limits on the size of corporations, the cancellation of their allege=
d=20
>  "personhood" and their alleged constitutional rights.
> =20
>  =95 Limits on personal wealth and a guaranteed annual income.
> =20
>  =95 Free education as high as any student can make the grades.
> =20
>  =95 First-home building subsidies and the opening of some public lands a=
s=20
>  trust lands for homesteading.
> =20
>  =95 Equal rights and equal pay for women.
> =20
>  =95 A living wage for every working person.
> =20
>  =95 The legalization of undocumented immigrants who have been here a few
years=20
>  and work and/or have families here.
> =20
>  =95 Repeal of the Taft-Hartley law and criminal prosecution of corporati=
ons

>  that bedevil union organizers.
> =20
>  =95 Clean energy=96wind, and solar=96and the phasing down and as soon as
possible=20
>  of oil, coal, and nuclear power.
> =20
>  =95 International trade for people and the environment everywhere.
> =20
>  =95 A sharing of the wealth of the rich nations, including ours, with th=
e
two=20
>  billion people who have no schools and no toilets.
> =20
>  =95 And world citizenship, an international democracy, and a constitutio=
n=20
>  worthy of the human race.
> =20
>  I don=92t think we have much time here in our beloved country. Although =
for

>  some years I have been skeptical about electoral politics as a way of
fixing=20
>  a country where bribery has been legalized, I have become convinced, in
the=20
>  history we are in, that if, in what time we have, we are to form a new=
=20
>  government for our country to replace the one that we have lost, we must
use=20
>  electoral politics as nonviolent revolt. My idea is to try to find peopl=
e

>  somewhat like Huey Long, without his corruption or crypto-fascism,
willing=20
>  to defy the leaders of the Democratic and Republican Parties in
Washington,=20
>  to be candidates for governor or U.S. Senator as Greens, as independents=
,
as=20
>  rebellious Democrats, or even as rebellious Republicans, in as many
states=20
>  as we can get going for 2002, so that by the time we get to 2005, we wil=
l

>  not be staring again at either George W. Bush or Albert Gore.
> =20
>  Ronnie Dugger was founding editor of the Observer in 1954 and later its=
=20
>  owner and publisher until 1994.
> =20
> =20
> =20
>  _________________________________________________________________
>  Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at
http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp
> =20
> =20


"The Skinny on Weight Loss: One Woman's=20
True Journey to Fat and Back" by Frances Morey
Order online <www.xlibris.com/bookstore>
or by phone at 1-888-795-4274 Extension #276





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