Truthout Daily Digest | Friday, 17 April 2015

Fighting a Low-Intensity War, Indigenous Tupinamba Recover Their Land in Brazil

Santiago Navarro F., Renata Bessi and translated by Miriam Taylor, Truthout: While Brazilian state forces were sent to Tupinamba territories to guarantee law and order, the indigenous people became determined to do something the government refused: demarcate the borders of indigenous land. After self-demarcation, the Tupinamba reclaimed and occupied their territory.

Read the Article and View the Photos

Jordan Downs: Toxic Cleanups Underway, but Many Fear It’s Too Little, Too Late

Daniel Ross, Truthout: Jordan Downs, a subsidized housing project in Watts, Los Angeles, sits in one of the most heavily polluted regions in California. Although three separate toxic cleanups in and around Jordan Downs are underway, environmentalists, community advocates and residents fear the worst of the damage has already been done.

Read the Article

Diversifying the Environmental Movement Isn’t Enough

Olivia Aguilar, Truthout: Recent calls to diversify the environmental movement often ignore the racist complexities associated with the history of the movement. Environmentalists don’t have a diversity problem, they have an identity problem. And it’s rooted in a racist history and unchecked biases.

Read the Article

A Trade Rule That Makes It Illegal to Favor Local Business? Leak Shows TPP Would Do That and More

David Korten, YES! Magazine: A leaked document substantiates claims by opponents that the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a corporate-rights agreement designed to facilitate the export of US jobs, allow corporations to sue governments for enacting labor and environmental protections and make it illegal for governments to favor local businesses.

Read the Article

Reparations in Chicago: The Homestretch

Kelly Hayes, Transformative Spaces: Tuesday was a historic day in Chicago. The movement for reparations for survivors of police torture is on the brink of a tremendous victory, as Chicago’s City Council now stands ready to pass the first legislation in US history that provides reparations for police violence.

Read the Article

What Did Democrats Win in the Cardin Compromise on the Corker Bill?

Robert Naiman, Truthout: Democrats supported the amended Corker bill not because they think the bill is perfect, but because the “coach blew the whistle on the play.” You don’t want to be like a soldier who thinks he’s still fighting a war after his government has already signed a deal.

Read the Article

Khalil Muhammad: To Stop Police Killings, Transform the Political Culture That Threatens Black Lives

Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!: Protests were held from coast to coast Tuesday in a day of action against police violence and racial profiling. Amy Goodman is joined by Khalil Muhammad, author of The Condemnation of Blackness: Race, Crime, and the Making of Modern Urban America.

Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

SEIU President Mary Kay Henry Speaks at a San Fransciso McDonald’s Protest for $15 an Hour

Staff, Labor Video Project: Protests of fast-food workers were held throughout the US and globally April 15. SEIU President Mary Kay Henry called on Presidential Candidate Hillary Clinton and other candidates to support the $15 an hour campaign.

Watch the Video

Four Reasons Why the Transition From Fossil Fuels to a Green Energy Era Is Gaining Traction

Michael T. Klare, TomDispatch: Don’t hold your breath, but future historians may look back on 2015 as the year that the renewable energy ascendancy began, the moment when the world started to move decisively away from its reliance on fossil fuels.

Read the Article

Five Corporations That Probably Didn’t Pay Taxes This Year

Kevin Mathews, Care2: While the average US taxpayer tends to dread April 15, not every person needs to get upset about Tax Day. These people (or, well, “people”), better known as corporations, have found that the existing tax rules actually work in their favor.

Read the Article

The Storm Is Over

Kathy Kelly, teleSUR: Just about everyone longs to raise their children in a world where drought, storms and brutal want won’t loom as insoluble, inevitable catastrophes. But other storms will come, and we will have to see how we weather them. What if our terrible fear of each other could pass us by?

Read the Article

It’s Not Easy for Obama to Prove He’s Green

Emily Schwartz Greco, OtherWords: Just as cutting back from two packs of cigarettes a day to one pack won’t do away with your personally inflicted cancer risks, all President Obama’s great steps toward a lower-carbon future won’t paint his legacy green.

Read the Article

BuzzFlash

A Fourth of All Part-Time College Instructors Require Government Financial Aid

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: The populist protests for livable wages have spread far beyond the most visible recent public actions that were focused on the fast-food sector.

Read the BuzzFlash Commentary

Loretta Lynch Supporters Stage Hunger Strike to Urge Confirmation

Read the Article at Politico

We Need to See Realistic LGBT People on Our Screens, Not Toxic Caricatures

Read the Article at The Guardian

Petcoke in Chicago: A Toxic Gift From the Koch Brothers

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

House Votes to Repeal Estate Tax

Read the Article at The Hill

Small Aircraft Lands on Capitol Hill Lawn, Pilot Taken Into Custody

Read the Article at Huffington Post

Overfished Stocks at All-Time Low

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

Marines Set for New Mission in Troubled Central America

Read the Article at Marine Corps Times

Truthout Daily Digest | Friday, 3 April 2015

Wind Powers “Green” Growth in Kenya, but for Whom?

Chris Williams, Truthout: Lake Turkana, in northern Kenya, is a remote, arid region, home to nomadic pastoralists. It’s also part of a government development plan to increase domestic energy production with a 310-megawatt wind farm, along with new paved roads. But who really benefits from this development?

Read the Article and View the Photos

Executive Action Leaves Many Undocumented Immigrants in State of Apprehension and Uncertainty

Erika L. Sánchez, Truthout: While many undocumented immigrants are relieved and excited about the Obama administration’s immigration executive action, some fear that the policy will only be temporary, and that giving information to the government can possibly put them in a more vulnerable position.

Read the Article

The Native American Genocide and the Teaching of US History

Tanya H. Lee, Truthout: In many classrooms, the United States is left out of the list of countries where genocide has occurred. In this piece, Native American history professors discuss the controversy over including indigenous genocide on the AP US history exam, as well as the larger picture of how that history is taught.

Read the Article

The Rise of Islamic State Offers Policy Lessons for US Hawks

Patrick Glennon, Truthout: Patrick Cockburn’s new book, The Rise of Islamic State, looks at the legacy of recent wars. It emphasizes how convoluted ongoing conflicts in the Middle East truly are, and how we must search for nuanced approaches to diplomacy.

Read the Book Review

Student Debt Strikers Grow in Number and in Power

Kate Aronoff, Waging Nonviolence: Today, there are more than 100 debt strikers. Their goal is to ramp up pressure on the US Department of Education to relieve not only the debt they incurred, but all the loans of students at Corinthian Colleges. They declare that for-profit colleges are not, in fact, too big to fail.

Read the Article

The Great Game in Afghanistan: The US Is Losing Out

Dilip Hiro, TomDispatch: Having spent an estimated $1 trillion and sacrificed the lives of 2,150 US soldiers, Washington finds itself increasingly consigned to observer status in Afghanistan. A new chapter could unfold in war-torn Afghanistan, in which the Chinese role would only grow, while the United States might end up as a footnote in the long history of that country.

Read the Article

Indiana Scrambles to Contain Growing Corporate, Public Outcry Over Anti-LGBT “Religious Freedom” Law

Amy Goodman and Juan González, Democracy Now!: As Indiana faces pressure to repeal a new “religious freedom” law, Arkansas lawmakers have passed a similar bill that could allow business owners to refuse service to LGBTQ customers.

Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

Who’s on Your Side – Elizabeth Warren or Jamie Dimon?

The Daily Take Team, The Thom Hartmann Program: Sure, some politicians like Elizabeth Warren do speak out about issues that affect everyday people, but by and large, corporations and the rich get their way, much as they did over 200 years ago when the British parliament passed the Tea Act. The solution is to get money out of politics once and for all.

Read the Article

Grassroots Movement Blocks Water Privatization in Mexico

Alfredo Acedo, The CIP Americas Program: The rapid and massive response by peasant and indigenous organizations has, for now, made it clear that the privatization measures of the current government will have an increasingly high political cost.

Read the Article

Pledges for Humanitarian Aid to Syria Fall Short of Target by Billions

Thalif Deen, Inter Press Service: The third international pledging conference for humanitarian aid to Syria was able to raise only about $3.8 billion against an anticipated $8.4 billion. Nearly half the world’s top donors didn’t give their fair share of aid to the Syrian humanitarian effort in 2014, based on the size of their economies.

Read the Article

Los Angeles Teachers Escalate Action to Demand Fair Treatment

Karla Griego, Labor Notes: New leaders have mobilized around a platform modeled on a similar initiative by the Chicago Teachers Union. Demands include safe, clean and fully staffed schools; smaller class sizes; a commitment to arts, music and physical education; and good salaries and benefits to encourage teacher retention.

Read the Article

Nature Needs a New Pronoun: To Stop the Age of Extinction, Let’s Start by Ditching “It”

Robin Wall Kimmerer, YES! Magazine: Objectification of the natural world reinforces the notion that our species is somehow more deserving of the gifts of the world than the other 8.7 million species with whom we share the planet. Using “it” absolves us of moral responsibility and opens the door to exploitation.

Read the Article

Repeal the Patriot Act

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisconsin) have introduced the Surveillance State Repeal Act (H.R.1466). This bill would end the mass surveillance of US citizens under the Patriot Act and the FISA Amendments Act, restoring instead the use of the Fourth Amendment’s requirement of a warrant for any search.

Take Roots Action!

BuzzFlash

Protesters Arrested for Charging Supreme Court With Permitting the Selling of Democracy

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: As with the civil rights movement, as with Gandhi’s campaign for independence in India, when five people commit nonviolent protests and are stopped, ten more need to take their place – and then hundreds and then thousands.

Read the BuzzFlash Commentary

Anti-LGBTQ Indiana Law Complicates GOP Presidential Campaigns

Read the Article at The Washington Post

Blackwater: Still the Top Pentagon Contractor for Afghanistan Training

Read the Article at The Nation

Palestinians Formally Join International Criminal Court

Read the Article at the BBC

Black America’s State of Surveillance

Read the Article at The Progressive

David Swanson: Television Commercial in California Asks Drone Pilots to Stop Killing

Read the Article at War Is A Crime

In the Belly of the War on Drugs Beast

Read the Article at Alongside a Border

The Right’s Made-Up God: How Bigots Invented a White Supremacist Jesus

Read the Article at Salon

Truthout Daily Digest Friday March 6, 2015

What Trickle-Down Economics Has Done to the US: The Rich Get All the Money

Dan Riker, Truthout: The majority of Americans are not experiencing the recovery from the Great Recession. Wealth is being redistributed from the poor and the middle class to the rich. Trickle-down economics doesn’t work for anyone except the wealthy.

Read the Article

Greenland Reels: Climate-Disrupting Feedbacks Have Begun

Bruce Melton, Truthout: Greenland is warmer than it has been in more than 100,000 years, and climate-disrupting feedback loops have begun. Since 2000, ice loss has increased over 600 percent, and liquid water now exists inside the ice sheet year-round, no longer refreezing during winter.

Read the Article

Violence Against Women Won’t Become History Until Mass Incarceration Is

Sheila A. Bedi, Truthout: To many, the phrase “violence against women” connotes person-on-person violence – things like spousal abuse or sexual violence on college campuses. However, the state is also very much involved in perpetuating violence against women, especially in the form of mass incarceration.

Read the Article

Petraeus and Snowden: Both Leakers of Classified Material, Same Punishment?

William J. Astore, The Contrary Perspective: A general with powerful friends gets a slap on the wrist for leaking highly classified material, and a young patriot who acts to shed light on the growing power of governmental agencies to spy on the people is hounded into exile.

Read the Article

Netanyahu Speaks, Money Talks

Bill Moyers and Michael Winship, Moyers & Company: Everything you need to know about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress Tuesday was the presence in the visitor’s gallery of one man – Sheldon Adelson.

Read the Article

Our Planet’s Lungs Are Dying

The Daily Take Team, The Thom Hartmann Program: As more and more tropical rainforests are wiped out from natural causes like drought or manmade causes like deforestation, we’re losing a key ally in the climate change fight. We need to start protecting our planet’s forests, so that they can in turn protect us.

Read the Article

Showdown in Chicago: Harold Washington Loyalist vs. “Mayor 1%”

Robert Naiman, Truthout: If the upcoming Chicago election is really going to be a referendum on where the Democratic Party is headed, with national implications, then we should all easily agree that every available Chicagoan older than 18 should participate.

Read the Article

Millions Could Lose Obamacare Coverage as Supreme Court Weighs Dubious Koch-Backed Case

Amy Goodman and Nermeen Shaikh, Democracy Now!: The US Supreme Court has heard arguments in a new challenge to the Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare.” The Competitive Enterprise Institute, backed by the billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch, sued the government over an aspect of the law dealing with tax subsidies.

Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

White House Struggles to Explain Clinton Email Flap

Anita Kumar, McClatchy Newspapers: As Republican lawmakers criticized Hillary Clinton Tuesday for using her personal email account to conduct government business at the State Department, the White House would not say whether the former Cabinet secretary violated federal law.

Read the Article

“The Internet Is My Lifeline”: Hip-Hop Artist Jasiri X on the FCC’s Net Neutrality Vote

Kayla Schultz, YES! Magazine: The political artist from Pittsburgh speaks about the importance of the internet and social media in making the voices of low-income people of color heard. He is a cofounder of the anti-violence group One Hood and the 1Hood Academy, which teaches media awareness to African-American boys.

Read the Interview

What We Lose With a Privatized Postal Service

Katherine McFate, OtherWords: The Postal Service can reach all 150 million US households because it’s a public system that we’ve been investing in for more than 200 years. Our Constitution tasked the federal government with creating a national postal system.

Read the Article

When Capitalism Becomes an Act of War

Lynn Parramore, AlterNet: Novelist Rana Dasgupta recently turned to nonfiction to explore the explosive social and economic changes in Delhi starting in 1991, when India launched a series of transformative economic reforms. In his book, he describes a city where the epic hopes of globalization have dimmed.

Read the Interview

BuzzFlash

NYPD Commissioner Stricken With Giuliani Syndrome, Blames Marijuana for Increased New York City Murder Rate

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: It is clear that the top New York City cop​ suffers from a chronic case of Giuliani Syndrome. It’s not just a personal ailment; it’s a threat to public health and safety.

Read the BuzzFlash Commentary

Computerized Vote Counting: The Hole in United States’ Political Bucket

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

US Ambassador to South Korea Slashed With Razor by Political Extremist

Read the Article at The Guardian

The Blue Wall of Silence Among Police Enables Cop Brutality

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

Georgia “License to Discriminate” Bill Forced Through Committee During Bathroom Break

Read the Article at ThinkProgress

In Ferguson, Walking While Black Was a Crime

Read the Article at Grist

Tech-Savvy Women Farmers Find Success With SIM Cards

Read the Article at Inter Press Service

Everglades to Be Killed This October by Florida’s Own Koch Brothers

Read the Article at Daily Kos

YES! Magazine Weekly Digest | Friday 6 March 2015

Toggle navigation toggle search

FROM THE CURRENT ISSUE

Can the Left and Right Unite to End Corporate Rule? An Interview with Ralph Nader and Daniel McCarthy

Partisan gridlock keeps the focus on the fight—but we might have some radical ideas in common.

“The Internet Is My Lifeline”: Hip-Hop Artist Jasiri X on the FCC’s Net Neutrality Vote

Women Over 65 Own Nearly a Third of Iowa’s Farmland—Can They Prevent the Next Dust Bowl?

Craigslist Saved 5M Tons of Stuff From Landfills—And 4 Other New Stats on Local Economies

What’s the True Impact of the Alternative Economy? Researchers Decide It’s Time to Find Out

When the Grandmothers Awoke

These Neighbors Got Together to Buy Vacant Buildings. Now They’re Renting to Bakers and Brewers

Though the model is new and small, it holds outsize potential for the many neighborhoods whose downtowns are controlled by faraway landlords or retail chains.

Forget Dystopian Fiction: This New Novel Explores Being a Modern Teenager Waiting for the End Times

We’re Young, Passionate, and Bent on Justice: Why #BlackLivesMatter Is Irresistible

Students for Economic Pluralism, Unite! How College Kids Are Taking on the “High Priests” of Money

These Cities Built Cheap, Fast, Community-Owned Broadband. Here’s What Net Neutrality Means For Them

Publicly owned broadband lets local communities from Iowa to Louisiana control a vital economic resource—rather than leaving it in the hands of a few monopolistic corporations. The outcome of this week’s FCC vote could either help or hinder the path forward.

From Warrior Cops to Community Police: A Former Chief on How We Can Turn Back the Tide of Militarization

The Largest Chinese Bike Share Program Is 12 Times the Size of NYC’s

“We’ve Known What Police Brutality Feels Like”: Pussy Riot’s Tribute Song to Eric Garner

FROM THE CURRENT ISSUE

Replace the Gospel of Money: An Interview With David Korten

What if we measured wealth in terms of life, and how well we serve it.

YES! Magazine, 284 Madrona Way NE, Ste 116, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110-2870 800/937-4451

http://www.yesmagazine.org/

Common Dreams Highlights | Friday, 27 February, 2015

Featured… Majority of Americans Agree Fighting Climate Change a ‘Moral Obligation’ by Nadia Prupis Of the 2,827 people surveyed in the poll, 66 percent said world leaders are ethically bound to reduce carbon emissions, while 72 percent believed that responsibility lay with themselves as well. News… As Fast Track Looms, Opposition Mounts to Corporate-Friendly Trade Deals by Deirdre Fulton Warren and other senators took to the chamber floor on Thursday to further voice their concern that passing Fast Track authority, which would cede the nuts and bolts of crafting trade agreements to the executive branch for at least four years, will undermine the U.S. economy. Gaza Rebuild Effort Could Take 100 Years: Oxfam by Andrea Germanos The organization’s statement comes six months after a ceasefire agreement ended Israel’s 50-day assault on Gaza, which left over 2,100 Palestinians dead, decimated thousands of structures, and weakened already damaged infrastructure systems. As Antarctica Melts Away, Seas Could Rise Ten Feet Within 100 Years by Deirdre Fulton Parts of Antarctica are thawing so quickly, the continent has become “ground zero of global climate change without a doubt,” Harvard geophysicist Jerry Mitrovica told AP. The Destruction of Afghan Lives, Captured in US Dollars by Jon Queally An armored vehicle ran over a six-year-old boy’s legs: $11,000. A jingle truck was “blown up by mistake”: $15,000. A controlled detonation broke eight windows in a mosque: $106. A boy drowned in an anti-tank ditch: $1,916. Methane-Explosion Craters Could Be Latest Indicators of a Warming Planet by Sarah Lazare Perhaps most alarming is what the funnels reveal about the rising temperature the Arctic, which is heating twice as fast as the rest of the planet. Great Recession Linked to Rising Suicides Among Middle-Aged Americans by Sarah Lazare Economic crises kill in more ways than one. more news… Views… 10 Reasons To Pray for AIPAC’s Decline by Medea Benjamin From topping a catastrophic war with Iran to finally solving the Israel/Palestine conflict, an essential starting point is breaking AIPAC’s grip on U.S. policy. Our Anti-Immigrant Racism Is Rooted in History by Sonali Kolhatkar Solalinde opined, “You don’t have to kill an immigrant with a bullet. You also kill an immigrant with discrimination, with injustice, to not recognize them, to deny them citizenship. They’re human beings.” For Suffering Palestinians, the Obama-Netanyahu “Rift” Is a Side Show by Ali Abunimah The lesson Palestinians have repeatedly learned is that whether they fight or stay quiet, Israel will be allowed to do as it pleases. When Politics Is Local, Who Decides? by David Morris The arguments for stripping people of their right to protect and enhance the health and vitality of their communities are weak. They reflect a fundamental distrust in the intelligence and capacity of the American people. Congress Is Poised to Introduce a Bill to Fast Track TPP So It’s Time to Act Now by Maira Sutton Unless this opaque, undemocratic process is fixed, and state officials uphold the interests of users rather than trampling our rights, we have no choice but to fight trade deals like the TPP. “A Red Letter Day” at the FCC – Net Neutrality Wins by Michael Winship “You did this,” Free Press President Craig Aaron told the gathering, as they held up signs and stamped their feet against the cold. “This is your victory, we did it together. Today, we celebrate. Tomorrow, we defend this win in Congress, in the courts and in the streets.” more views… Newswire… National Whistleblowers Center: Senate to Hold Hearing on FBI’s Treatment of Whistleblowers Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir: Reverend Billy Faces Up To One Year in Jail After Arrest For Sermon in Grand Central Terminal Public Citizen: Reporters’ Memo: President’s Annual March 1 Trade Report and Agenda ACLU: Kentucky Legal Team Files Brief at US Supreme Court Challenging Marriage Bans for Same-Sex Couples Amnesty International: Three Women Held in Secret Detention Over Tweets Reprieve: Houthi Authorities In Yemen Must Confirm Safety of US Citizen and Give Access to Counsel, Says Lawyer more newswire…

The Oracle Report | Friday, February 13, 2015

“FLUFFY FLYING” FROM WISE OWL ROBIN

The Oracle Report – Friday, February 13, 2015

“Outposts” – Aquarius Lunar Cycle: January 20 – February 17, 2015

OracleReport.com

“The Black Moon Transit of Virgo: November 27, 2014 – August 25, 2015”

OracleReport.com

Friday, February 13, 2015

Third Quarter Moon Phase: revise, reassess

Moon in Sagittarius

Ruling Wisdom Goddess: Matangi (Goddess of the Wind)

Skill: gain wisdom

Positive Imprints: pressing on near the finish, trust, revelations, reassurance, stress release, taking stock or measure, improving things

Catalysts for Change: testing limits, establishing unjust rules, break ups, stress from over-analysis, controlling others and their beliefs, the forbidden, selfishness, sabotage

Sabian Symbol for the Lunar Month: “an old adobe mission” (projecting plans, hopes, wishes, and dreams into the future, inner spiritual retreat

Energetically, today is the second to the last day of this astrological year. The year’s theme of “the ruler of a nation” was designed to help each of us become more of who we truly are, to take our place of power within ourselves, to stand up for ourselves, and to assume the mantle of personal sovereignty.

That’s a lot to do – especially all in one year!

But it really hasn’t happened just over the past year. It is the culmination of many years of inner work and spiritual guidance. It was the year that marked the change – the year we have been working toward all our lives, the year that humanity would take its place, the year that we shifted into re-building the experience of life, the year the balance tipped toward goodness.

So, we can understand how we might feel a little fatigued today. The year’s energy is departing on symbols of mountains, deserts, and thunderstorms. However, the symbol of a rainbow after a thunderstorm is in the mix as well, so we know the outcome.

People are inclined to “test” other people, places, and things with this energetic. Alongside of this is a tendency for things to go their separate ways or take different paths. People are also inclined to overanalyze, criticize, and distort things.

Wise owls are aware of this, monitor or gauge their own emotional responses, and focus on the rainbow that lies at the end of any stormy weather. The Sabian symbol of the rainbow after a heavy storm shows us that whatever transpires in the world and in our lives today and tomorrow (even things that have people and projects going their separate ways) is designed to make things better for everyone involved. We trust in the outcome.

Our minds are naturally active in self-reflection and contemplation of things that have happened since the “natural” year began on March 30, 2014. We maintain balance in this analysis, aware of the potential to take things too far. What would a wise old owl do? It would look at the circumstances and situations of our lives since then from the perspective of what was learned. The wise old owl recognizes that the year is old, thus so is the energy. View it from high up and watch it pass.

To be clear, the intense energetics and struggle of the past year are long-lived and ready to transform into something new. Are you?

(PS – Look for the audio recording of the next lunar month later today.)

Thank you for supporting The Oracle Report!

Copyright Oracle Report 2009 – 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Permission to repost is granted provided credit is given towww.oraclereport.com.

http://www.oraclereport.com/

Truthout Daily Digest | Friday, February 6, 2015

I hope the hullabaloo about measles and vaccination soon turns to what I consider the elephant in the room. Even though the inviolable sanctity of an individual’s physical body is a significant issue, and the conflict between that and the compelling aspect of the social contract re: the collective good/public health is unlikely to be resolved any time soon; the biggest issue we could effectively control is being ignored, possibly suppressed.

I’m not against vaccination. I don’t know anyone well who has children who is. So perhaps my perspective is skewed. But after my own review of the research, it appears to me the only medical problem with vaccination using dead organisms is the unintended effects caused by additives and preservatives used in the carrier fluid.

The studies “proving” the lack of connection between vaccination and negative effects such as neurological damage appear to have used fresh and uncontaminated vaccines.

Corporations that manufacture these things cut costs by using toxic preservatives like thimerosal which contains mercury ( I have been told this particular preservative was removed from many but not all vaccines). The carrier fluid can contain multiple substances that are well known toxins and allergens.

Instead of making a witch-hunt for the anti-vaccine people, it would seem more logical and sensible to simply regulate the manufacturing of vaccines to eliminate all nonessential substances, specifically all toxic or allergenic substances.

With a pure, “killed” vaccine the worst reactions should be minor except in extremely rare circumstances.

Instead we have hysteria and propaganda making certain “types” of people out to be villains just for being concerned for their children.

I think we need to pay attention to the purposeful division of Americans into opposing camps on everything. We need to get past this tendency to vilify and caricature those who think or feel differently than we do.

The only issue with that kind of stark import is environmental destruction. If our species goes extinct all other disputes immediately become pointless-or actually non-existent since no one will exist to disagree!

But even then hatred, nastiness, and oppositional language is counterproductive.

Until we learn to work together again measles is the least of our worries. As distressing as losing your child is (I know all too well unfortunately); it cannot compare to losing your only life sustaining planet or your entire species.

When we listen to one another and actually count all voices respectfully as in consensus governance, amazing creative solutions are frequently the result.
Blessings,
ohnwentsya

Laura Flanders | David Harvey: Looking Toward a Moneyless Economy and Sleeping Well at Night

Laura Flanders, Truthout: Author and professor David Harvey speaks with Laura Flanders on some of the contradictions of capitalism, the loss of meaningful jobs and possible alternatives to the current social and economic system.

Read the Interview and Watch the Video

Wheeler to Take Title II Route in Net Neutrality Proposal

Mike Ludwig, Truthout: Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler is expected to propose regulating the internet more like a public utility, a move that activists argue is the only way to establish strong net neutrality rules that will stand up to court challenges from the broadband industry.

Read the Article

Jesse Hagopian: “I Was Pepper-Sprayed by Seattle Police on MLK Day”

Jesse Hagopian, The Nation: “I still don’t know how to talk to my kids about what happened. What do I have to do so that when my sons have grown up and recall the 63rd annual MLK Day celebration, it is about remembering past trials of injustice rather than endlessly reliving them?”

Read the Article and Watch the Video

Beware the Best of Times

Martin Kirk, Truthout: The UN, large corporations and NGOs want us to believe that poverty has been halved in the last 15 years and can be eradicated by 2030. Are their claims justified, and their motivations pure?

Read the Article

Wildlife Conservation Efforts Are Violating Tribal Peoples’ Rights

Stephen Corry, Truthout: Conservation is failing to achieve its stated objectives, partly because it routinely violates tribal peoples’ rights. From tiger reserves in India, to ancestral forests in Cameroon, the work of conservation organizations like the World Wildlife Fund is forcing indigenous peoples off their land in the name of protecting nature.

Read the Article

The Super-Rich Can’t Hide From the Rest of Us

Michael Winship, Moyers & Company: The rich are getting ready to run away from the mess they’ve helped create. The wealthy hedge fund managers buying up remote retreats far from the madding crowd shouldn’t be hiding out of fear. They should be hiding out of shame.

Read the Article

Amy Goodman | Amid Violence Against Journalists Worldwide, Egypt Releases One of Three Jailed Al Jazeera Reporters

Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!: Al Jazeera journalist Peter Greste has been released from an Egyptian prison after 400 days behind bars. Greste and two of his Al Jazeera colleagues, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, were convicted on terrorism charges in a case widely denounced as a sham.

Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

Fracking Industry Showdown Preceding Stricter Fugitive Emissions Ordinances in Mansfield, Texas

Julie Dermansky, DeSmogBlog: The issue of fugitive emissions is one of the reasons that the Mansfield City Council is struggling with how to handle a request from another oil and gas company, Edge Resources, to renew an expired permit. Approving the permit would allow Edge Resources to pursue fracking in a neighborhood.

Read the Article and Watch the Videos

What Is the Houthi Takeover in Yemen About?

Lizabeth Paulat, Care2: In just under two weeks, Yemen has been plunged into chaos that, analysts are saying, could change the face of the nation forever. It started on January 22 when Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi resigned amid pressure from Houthi rebel forces.

Read the Article

Unbought Slate Wins Against Democrats-for-Chevron

Jane Slaughter, Labor Notes: It’s not often that a city council race in a city of 100,000 draws national attention. It happened in Richmond, California, this past fall, because one big corporation was so shameless in its open attempt to buy the election.

Read the Article

On the News With Thom Hartmann: Obama Administration Releases Plan for Offshore Drilling, and More

In today‘s On the News segment: The Obama administration proposes opening up new areas along our coastline to fossil fuel extraction; Maine may be stuck with Gov. Paul LePage for another four years, but at least the state’s got a coal-free university system; North Dakota’s oil industry is tired of all those pesky regulations; and more.

Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

BuzzFlash

Massive Deaths in Border Desert Caused by US Immigration Policy

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: The situation is a full-blown humanitarian catastrophe, and US government border enforcement strategy is directly implicated in the dramatic increase in attempted Mexican border crossing deaths.

Read the BuzzFlash Commentary

American SniperTakes a Shot at History and Turns It Into Deadly Jingoism

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

The United States’ Real National Security Budget: A Trillion Dollars a Year

Read the Article at Medium

Vaccination Debate Flares in GOP Presidential Race, Alarming Medical Experts

Read the Article at The Washington Post

How the Roberts Supreme Court Has Strengthened the Powerful and Screwed Everyone Else

Read the Article at The Nation

Leader of War Crimes Inquiry Into 2014 Gaza Conflict Resigns

Read the Article at The New York Times

Charles P. Pierce: The President Picks a Fight Over the Budget

Read the Article at Esquire

The Real Reason the US Military Was So Secretive About Afghanistan

Read the Article at Vice

Truthout Daily Digest | Friday, 30 January 2015

An Explosive Crisis: Government Bickering Clouds Cleanup Effort at Camp Minden

Mike Ludwig, Truthout: An explosion two years ago led investigators to 15 million pounds of hazardous and potentially explosive munitions waste, illegally stashed in northwest Louisiana, but cleanup is once again unclear as federal regulators haggle with an angry public and the Jindal administration.

Read the Article

Rep. Keith Ellison: Postpone Netanyahu’s Speech to Congress

Robert Naiman, Truthout: Reps. Keith Ellison, Steve Cohen and Maxine Waters are circulating a letter to Speaker Boehner, asking him to postpone the invitation until after the Israeli election and after Congress has considered the issue of Iran sanctions.

Read the Article

Shedding Light on Three Big Lies About Systemic Pesticides and Bees

Maryam Henein, Truthout: Ridiculous misinformation is being planted in the media about honeybees and the systemic pesticides killing them. This begs the question: To what extent does Big Agriculture influence the way science is researched and reported to line its pockets and benefit its corporate agendas?

Read the Article

Progressives Have Hope; Just Don’t Ask Jonathan Chait About It

Lisa Factora-Borchers, Truthout: To overlook writer Jonathan Chait’s self-appointed superiority complex as the work of one anachronistic guy would be to ignore the growing litany of complaints emerging from straight White men – claiming their own marginality.

Read the Article

Why Is Marissa Alexander Still Being Punished for Fighting Back?

Victoria Law, The Nation: On Tuesday, January 27, Marissa Alexander walked out of jail, but not as a free woman. As Alexander leaves prison for house arrest, it’s time to question the system that turns women into criminals for trying to stay alive.

Read the Article

Laura Flanders | Moving Your Money: An Interview With Finance Expert Michael Shuman

Laura Flanders, GRITtv: Why is it so hard to invest your money locally? Grassroots activists trying to build economic alternatives in the United States encourage investing in the businesses in your neighborhood, instead of in far-off corporations. It turns out that it’s not so easy to move your money; there are even laws against it in the United States.

Watch the Video and Read the Article

The Invisible Man: Jeffrey Sterling, CIA Whistleblower

Norman Solomon, Expose Facts: The mass media have suddenly discovered Jeffrey Sterling – after his conviction Monday afternoon as a CIA whistleblower. Sterling’s indictment four years ago received fleeting news coverage that recited the government’s charges. From the outset, the Justice Department portrayed him as bitter and vengeful.

Read the Article

Community-Owned Energy: How Nebraska Became the Only State to Bring Everyone Power From a Public Grid

Thomas Hanna, YES! Magazine: In this red state, publicly owned utilities provide electricity to all 1.8 million people. Here’s how Nebraska took its energy out of corporate hands and made it affordable for everyday residents.

Read the Article

Trouble Already Brewing for Saudi Arabia’s New King

Lizabeth Paulat, Care2: The death of Abdullah bin Abdulaziz last Friday marked a passing of the torch in Saudi Arabia’s kingdom. His replacement – and brother – Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud has come at a tenuous time, with people now questioning his involvement in terrorist organizations and the country’s shaky human rights record.

Read the Article

Fudging the Future

Emily Schwartz Greco, OtherWords: How precise is energy forecasting? To put it politely, the experts who get paid to predict these things aren’t the most accurate arrows in the quiver. Take the still-unfolding crude crash. Its cause boils down to one simple fact: The industry is producing way more oil than consumers want.

Read the Article

Richard D. Wolff | Economic Update: Economics and Revolutions

Richard D. Wolff, Truthout: This episode provides updates on political corruption, the Greek election results, Social Security taxes, debt jubilee, union membership and the lessons of revolutions.

Listen to the Audio Segment

BuzzFlash

Romney Is as Credible a Poverty Fighter as Kochs Are as Advocates of No Campaign Spending

Mark Karlin, BuzzFlash at Truthout: The statistical economic facts have shown that the trickle-down paradigm is a hoax: It has led to the greatest redistribution of wealth – from the poor and middle class to the rich – in US history.​

Read the BuzzFlash Commentary

“Viper” Alert: Citizens United’s David Bossie Is on the Prowl

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

Mitt Romney Will Not Run for President Again

Read the Article at The Washington Post

CIA Interrogations Took Place on British Territory of Diego Garcia, Senior Bush Administration Official Says

Read the Article at Vice

Manufacturing Terror: How the FBI Invents Some Plots and Ignores Others in the “war on freedom”

Read the Article at Occupy.com

Texas Legislature Introduces Bill Allowing Teachers to Shoot Students

Read the Article at Crooks & Liars

Air Pollution Actually Messes With Your Genes

Read the Article at Grist

One of the World’s Biggest Lakes Is Dying, and We’re to Blame

Read the Article at Mother Jones

Truthout Daily Digest | Friday, January 23 2015

The Chilling First Amendment Implications of Journalist Barrett Brown’s Five-Year Sentence

Candice Bernd, Truthout: Concluding a case which has lasted more than two years, and which has frightening implications for journalists and researchers of all stripes, a federal judge in Dallas sentenced journalist and transparency activist Barrett Brown to 63 months in prison on Thursday.

Read the Article

The New “Oppressed Peoples’ Movement”: Can the Tide of Resistance Continue?

James Kilgore, Truthout: What are some of the possibilities and tensions in the mass uprisings and new social movements that have appeared in the wake of the murder of Michael Brown?

Read the Article

Sundarbans Oil Spill: An Urgent Wake-Up Call for the Bangladeshi Government

Iara Lee, Truthout: The catastrophic oil spill in Sundarbans tidal mangrove forest has mobilized activists to work even harder to prevent construction of a planned coal plant nearby.

Read the Article

Is Reinvestment a Good Strategy for the Fossil Fuel Divestment Movement?

Carlos Davidson and Cynthia Kaufman, Truthout: Fossil fuel divestment is emerging as a powerful strategy in the fight against climate change. It is crucial that activists focus on the political impact of divestment, and not get distracted by the economics.

Read the Article

Sen. Bernie Sanders | Roads and Bridges Need $1 Trillion. It Is Time to Rebuild the US

Bernie Sanders, Campaign for America’s Future: “For many years we have underfunded the maintenance of our nation’s physical infrastructure. That has to change. It is time to rebuild America. I will soon be introducing legislation for a $1 trillion investment, over five years, to modernize our country’s physical infrastructure.”

Read the Article

Dissing DuVernay and the Lessons of Selma

Sikivu Hutchinson, The Feminist Wire: The lessons of Selma itself are relevant to DuVernay’s “omission” from the Academy Awards nomination for Best Director. True to Frederick Douglass’ assertion that “power concedes nothing without demand,” the snub of DuVernay is criminal, but of course, not unprecedented.

Read the Article

The 2015 State of the Union Address: A Major Omission

David Krieger, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation: In President Obama’s 2015 State of the Union Address, the only mention of nuclear weapons was in relation to the agreement the Obama administration is seeking to negotiate with Iran.

Read the Article

Do the United States’ Hungry Children Matter?

Mariana Chilton, Moyers & Company: This is supposed to be the year when the US ends its child hunger crisis. That was the promise then-president-elect Obama made during his first campaign. At that time some 12.4 million children lived in homes that self-reported as food insecure. Today there are 15.8 million such children.

Read the Article

The 1% Are Bad for Your Health – It’s Time to Tax Them More

Kate Pickett, The Conversation: The evidence that large income differences have damaging health and social consequences is very strong, and in many countries inequality is increasing. Narrowing the gap is vital to improve our health and well-being.

Read the Article

“American Propagander”: Six Ways Paul Reickhoff’s American Sniper Column Deeply Bothers This US Veteran

Emily Yates, Emily Yates Does Everything: “When I first laid eyes on the guest column Paul Rieckhoff wrote about American Sniper, I thought I’d read the byline wrong. This has to have been written by the Department of Defense, I thought.”

Read the Article

Richard D. Wolff | Economic Update: Spinning Out of Control

Richard D. Wolff, Truthout: This episode provides updates on Obama’s State of the Union speech, the European Central Bank pumping up the money supply to stimulate Europe, forgiving Greece’s debts and housing extremes in the US. We also respond to questions on global wealth inequality and Switzerland’s currency maneuvers. Finally, we interview Dr. Harriet Fraad on the US economy’s disastrous impact on children.

Listen to the Audio Segment

BuzzFlash

The BuzzFlash commentary for Truthout will return soon.

US House Passes Stringent Abortion Restrictions

Read the Article at Salon

Joni Ernst’s Family Received Nearly $500,000 in Farm Subsidies

Read the Article at Raw Story

Obama Says Treating Drug Use as a Criminal Problem Is “Counterproductive”

Read the Article at The Huffington Post

Advocates Call for State Investigation Into Shooting of Black Man in Traffic Stop

Read the Article at The Guardian

US Militarization and the “War on Terror” Create a Tinderbox of Violence

Read the Article at BuzzFlash

Anti-Muslim Incidents Soar in France

Read the Article at The Local France

King Dies, New Tyrannical Leader for Saudi Arabia

Read the Article at USA TODAY

Common Dreams Highlights | Friday 23 January 2015

Featured… On Verge of Victory, Europe’s Ascendant Left Declares ‘Subservience is Over’ by Jon Queally In relatively short time, both Syriza and Podemos went from being non-existent political entities to standing on the doorstep of taking power. News… ‘Nauseating’ Praise for Dead Saudi King Exposes Hypocrisy of West, Say Critics by Deirdre Fulton Under the dictator’s reign, Saudi authorities sought to halt political dissent through intimidation, arrests, prosecutions, and lengthy prison sentences. And the Lifetime Award for Shameful Corporate Behavior Goes to… Chevron by Sarah Lazare The race was close, with Glencore and Walmart coming in a close second, but voters ultimately determined that Chevron deserves the top distinction. US May Soon Stand Alone Opposing Children’s Treaty by Thalif Deen Ironically, the United States was a leading contributor to the drafting of the treaty and in fact shaped a significant number of provisions. Pennsylvania Court Hands Down Big Win for Teachers’ Union by Deirdre Fulton “Today‘s decision is a victory for collective bargaining and the notion that contracts between parties should be negotiated, not imposed.” NRC: We’re Keeping Fukushima-Style Nuclear Reactors Going by Andrea Germanos The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has rejected an appeal to halt operations at the nearly two dozen reactors in the nation that have the same containment system as those at the ill-fated Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors. Fossil Fuel Industry Gives California Communities a Breath of Toxic Air: Report by Nadia Prupis There is a “disturbing lack of data on health effects of oil and gas production in California,” author Jhon Arbelaez said on Thursday. more news… Views… Message to the UK: The Fracking Bridge is Already Burning by Naomi Klein In rushing to exploit the UK’s shale gas reserves, the industry has spent millions on public relations and brazenly overridden the democratic will of British citizens by overturning laws that had prevented drilling under homes. Saudi Arabia’s Tyrant King Misremembered as Man of Peace by Murtaza Hussain It’s not often that the unelected leader of a country which publicly flogs dissidents and beheads people for sorcery wins such glowing praise from American officials. My Future in Prison by Kathy Kelly ‘I will be free in three months, but our collective future is most assuredly shackled to a wrongheaded criminal justice system.’ Hearings Highlight Congressional Efforts to Undermine Net Neutrality by Sandra Fulton The right choice was as clear after the hearings as it was before: Congress should back off and let the FCC do its job. Drones and the New Ethics of War by Neve Gordon Drone wars are wars without losses or defeats, but they are also wars without victory. How We Banned Fracking in New York by Sandra Steingraber Every rally. Every march. Every jug of Dimock water. Every public comment. Every local ban. Every letter to the editor. Every letter to the Governor. Every concert. Every expert testimony at every hearing. Thank you. more views… Newswire… Center for Economic and Policy Research: New Paper Concludes that Greece Will Need Better Macroeconomic Policies to Exit from Mass Unemployment Doctors Without Borders: Ahead of Obama Visit, MSF Warns US Pressure on India Could Impact Access to Medicines for Millions NAACP Releases Tool to Help City Planners Integrate Equity in Resilience Building Center for Biological Diversity: Petition Seeks 3 Million Acres of Critical Habitat for 9 Endangered Species Found From Maine to North Carolina, West to Illinois Human Rights Watch: Saudi Arabia: King’s Reform Agenda Unfulfilled Jubilee USA Network: Syriza Party Poised to Win Greek Elections on Platform of Canceling Austerity and Renegotiating Debt more newswire…