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    Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened? eBook

    Reflections on Occupy Wall Street, with photos, fun, and good wishes for the future. eBook, Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened? (Only $.99 !) In the eBook, the Occupy movement is explored through original reporting, photographs, cartoons, poetry, essays, and reviews.The collection of essays and blog posts records the unfolding of Occupy into the culture from September 2011 to the present.  Authors Kimberly Wilder and Ian Wilder were early supporters of Occupy, using their internet platforms to communicate the changes being created by the American Autumn.

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World March for Peace and Nonviolence 10/7/09 7p

Posted on September 10, 2009 by iwilder

On Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at 7pm, the Babylon Green Party Gathering will feature Sister Jeanne Clark speaking about the World March for Peace and Nonviolence activities. The event will be held at Pisces Café, 14A Railroad Avenue, Babylon, NY (631-321-1231) http://www.piscescafe.net Come hungry! For directions to the Babylon Green Party Gathering, call 631-422-4702 or email ian.wilder@yahoo.com Children are welcome. All gatherings are free of charge, and open to the public. http://www.BabylonGreens.org

A social media version of this press release can be found at http://pitch.pe/24802

This is the first World March to circle the earth calling for the end of war and nuclear arms, and the elimination of violence of all kinds. The intention of the March is to:

  • achieve the eradication of nuclear weapons;
  • the progressive and proportional reduction of non-nuclear arms;
  • the signing of non-aggression treaties among nations; and
  • the renunciation of governments of war as a way to resolve conflicts.

The March hopes to generate a worldwide social conscience that condemns all forms of violence (physical, psychological, racial, religious, economic, sexual), which is currently so widespread and accepted by societies everywhere. The website for the World March is www.theworldmarch.org Read more »

Filed under: 3rd party, Action Alert!, activism, Anti-War, Babylon Politics, Calendar, Cindy Sheehan, events, grassroots democracy, Green Party, local, long island, Long Island Politics, More Events Calendars, nonviolence, Peace, politics, Press Release, third party, US Politics, video, war | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Oliver Stone’s South of the Border – Official Trailer

Posted on September 10, 2009 by iwilder

Filed under: international politics, video | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

“California’s Real Death Panels” – Data Reveals California’s Private Insurers Deny 21% of Claims

Posted on September 9, 2009 by iwilder

“California’s Real Death Panels” – Data Reveals California’s Private Insurers Deny 21% of Claims

President Obama begins his final drive for healthcare reform tonight with a nationally televised prime-time address to a joint session of Congress. His speech comes after an explosive August recess consumed by raucous town halls and talk of government-run “death panels.” We take a look at California’s “real death panels.” That’s what the nation’s largest nurses group is calling private insurers, as new data reveals they denied one of every five claims over the past seven years. We speak with Charles Idelson of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.

Shared via AddThis

Filed under: Action Alert!, activism, Healthcare, News | 1 Comment »

Natl Lawyers Guild-NYC Chptr Condemns Bloomberg Admin treatment of 2004 Repub Natl Convention Victims

Posted on September 9, 2009 by iwilder

The National Lawyers Guild-New York City Chapter calls for justice for the 1800 people whose civil, human and constitutional rights were trampled during the 2004 Republican National Convention (RNC) in New York City.

Five years ago tens of thousands of people gathered in New York City to voice opposition to the agenda of the Bush administration, and to advocate for a more just and peaceful world.  In response the New York City Police Department (NYPD), at the direction of Mayor Bloomberg and under the command of Commissioner Kelly, engaged in the wholesale suspension of the constitutional rights of protestors by engaging in mass sweep arrests of peaceful and law-abiding demonstrators, legal observers, journalists, and passers-by, confining them for days in a filthy, hazardous garage at Pier 57 and in the City’s jails, and initiating false charges against them.

Five years later dozens of civil rights lawsuits on behalf of hundreds of the RNC victims remain unresolved. The City’s Law Department, using a cadre of hired lawyers to defend the RNC cases, has made every effort to delay resolution at a cost to city taxpayers of millions of dollars in attorney fees paid to these attorneys.

Additionally, the Law Department has targeted the NLG-NYC by repeated attempts to subpoena privileged RNC files in retaliation for the NLG-NYC’s vigorous representation and legal support for those arrested during the RNC and its criticism of the role of the Bloomberg administration.  On September 3, 2009, United States District Court Judge Richard Sullivan rejected all of the City’s legal arguments in its latest attempt to gain access to privilege communications between the NLG-NYC and its clients.

Mayor Bloomberg, Commissioner Kelly and other police officials have yet to be held fully accountable for their roles in this deplorable chapter in NYC history.  The City’s Law Department must cease their delaying and harassing tactics and the City must expeditiously and justly compensate the RNC victims.

Filed under: Action Alert!, activism, grassroots democracy, New York State Politics, Press Release | Leave a Comment »

The truth about Eli Mystal and illegal immigrants

Posted on September 9, 2009 by kwilder

KW: The story of then-Legislator Elie Mystal saying an outrageous remark about immigrants, and the response to that remark, demonstrates some stark realities about the difficulties of community organizing, public communications, and keeping relationships among activists.

The story below, by Elie Mystal’s son, inspires me, by confronting two awkward situations: former Legislator Elie Mystal, a fallen hero (and a friend of our family) and the racism of the suburban culture we are immersed in.

posted at Long Island Wins
In the News   Dear Day Laborers: Allow Me To Apologize
By Elie Mystal, guest blogger September 9, 2009

Here’s a blog post from Elie Mystal, the son of the former Amityville legislator of the same name. The post originally appeared September 2, 2009, on True/Slant as a response to his father’s mention as an inflammatory politician in the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “Climate of Fear” report. The report looked closely at the violent attacks against Latino immigrants in Suffolk County over the past decade.

I have a lot of email accounts, and this morning they all simultaneously caught on fire. A hot story? Adulation for my fast-talking Fox Business appearance? Not exactly.

Here are some of the subject lines I received today:

“Why Do You Hate Latinos?”

“Turns Out You’re The Racist, Elie.”

“Right on man!!!”

“I Hope You’re Not Related.”

Related? Oh boy, I knew where that one was going before I opened the message. Many people emailed me a link from today’s New York Times. The Southern Poverty Law Center released a report detailing the difficult environment for Latinos on Long Island. In my little world, this was the money-quote:

“The report also highlighted a comment by Elie Mystal, a county legislator from Amityville, who said during a hearing in 2007 that if day laborers started gathering in his neighborhood, ‘I would load my gun and start shooting, period.’; He later apologized for the remark and said he had been joking, according to news media reports.”(via Report Cites Atmosphere of Ethnic Hatred in Suffolk County – NYTimes.com)

Hi Dad, how are you today? Read more »

Filed under: activism, elections, local, long island, Long Island Politics, media, News, personal, politics, progressive politics, social & economic justice | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Obama: Are children natural learners? Or, must they be forced to pay attention?

Posted on September 9, 2009 by kwilder

KW: Jerry Mintz is the Director of the Alternative Education Resource Organization (AERO), based in Roslyn Heights, Long Island, New York. AERO has many functions, including being a national gathering place for information about co-operative schooling, alternative schools, democratic schools and homeschooling.

Jerry wrote a Letter to the Editor about Obama’s school speech and sent it to Newsday. It was published today, though with a lot of the meat taken out of it. Still, Newsday did put the phrase “natural learner” in it, which is a mind-expanding idea. Newsday link is: here.

Full text of letter by Jerry Mintz (as distributed by AERO):

To the Editor:

The message from President Obama as published in today’s Newsday is both ironic and self contradictory. He starts out by saying that every student has something they are good at and that they have a responsibility to pursue that. This sounds like he understands the learner-centered approach that innovative educators have found to work in a very powerful way. It implies that he understands that children are natural learners.

But then he immediately segues into the opposite paradigm, one that assumes that children are naturally lazy and need to be forced to learn. He refers to homework and doing what the teacher says to do and what HE expects. Read more »

Filed under: Barack Obama, children, Education, local, long island, Long Island Politics, News, politics, president, US Politics | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Pastor vs. neighbors in Holbrook

Posted on September 8, 2009 by kwilder
Children of Holbrook Against Residential Cell Antennae

Children of Holbrook Against Residential Cell Antennae

The odds are stacked against a group of neighbors in Holbrook, where the local Catholic Church wants to install a cell tower. Though, at least the neighbors did manage to get the story covered on News12. Click here for story and video at News12.

The church that is considering installing the cell tower–so that it can get a lease and income stream from the Verizon company–is Church of the Good Shepherd in Holbrook, Long Island, New York. The church property is on Grundy Avenue, between Trumpet Lane and Coates Avenue. The pastor is Rev. Msgr. Thomas L. Spadaro, known as Father Tom.

an excerpt from News 12 text summary (the video tells more of the story) Read more »

Filed under: activism, Ecology, Environment, local, long island, Long Island Politics, News, politics, progressive politics | Tagged: , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Wangari Maathai Fall 2009 speaking tour

Posted on September 8, 2009 by iwilder

Wangari_Maathai_portrait_by_Martin_Rowe

“Climate Change justice is important for Africa because she has emitted an almost negligible amount of carbon in the last 200 years of industrialization, and yet scientists say she will be hardest hit by climate change.”–Wangari Maathai, 2009

Dr. Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate and Founder of the Green Belt Movement (http://greenbeltmovement.org) [and Founder of the Kenyan Green Party], will be in the US and Canada for her Fall 2009 speaking tour, from September 18th to October 6th!

She will be making stops in Alberta, New York, Quebec, Ohio, and North Carolina. Click here for more details about Dr. Maathai’s upcoming speaking events! http://greenbeltmovement.org/events.php In addition to the events listed below, Dr. Maathai will also participate in the 5th Annual Clinton Global Initiative Meeting and the UN General Assembly. At both of these events, Dr. Maathai will be meeting with leaders of both private and public efforts to alleviate poverty around the globe and to work together in creating a greener future for the entire planet.

We invite you to visit our website during this exciting time for tour updates including event details, press coverage and blogs from our staff!

US TOUR SCHEDULE:

  • Sept. 18th – Calgary, Alberta*The Power Within’s “Power of Women” event will feature Dr. Maathai.This event is ticketed and open to the public.
  • Sept. 20th-25th – New York, New York*Clinton Global Initiative and UN General Assembly MeetingsThese events are private and closed to the public.
  • Sept. 28th – Montreal, Quebec *A special discussion with Dr. Maathai at Concordia University.This event is free and open to members of the Concordia University community.
  • Sept. 29th – Wooster, Ohio*A special discussion with Dr. Maathai at the College of Wooster.This event is free and open to the public.
  • Oct. 1st – Raleigh, North Carolina *A special discussion with Dr. Maathai at Meredith College.This event is open to the public, and tickets are free.

For additional information about any of the tour events, please check the Events page of our website. http://greenbeltmovement.org/events.php CONTACT: The Green Belt Movement – US Office202-457- 8080, gbmius@greenbeltmovement.org

Filed under: 3rd party, Action Alert!, activism, Ecology, Global Warming, grassroots democracy, Green Party | Leave a Comment »

Veterans For Peace Long Island calendar

Posted on September 8, 2009 by kwilder

(Note: On September 12th, there are two more places in a van to Philly to protest against the Army Experience Center at the mall. And, if you are not going to Philly, you could come to the PeaceSmiths fundraiser… – KW)

Greetings Members and supporters,

Hope all is well and everyone is re-energized for an active and productive fall. As you know the wars/occupations continue and Americans, Iraqis, Afghanis, Pakistanis are dying at an alarming rate. The honeymoon is over and we must again act to remind our President that these wars are unacceptable and that they must stop. Please join us at our next planning meeting on Tuesday, September 22 7:15PM at the Universalist Unitarian Congregation in Bellport. Some of the events we will be discussing is:

1. An action to mark the 8th anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan.
2. Our “Arlington New York” event on October 17 and 18 at the Westbury Friends campus in conjunction with the World March for peace and Non violence.
3. Our poetry reading and peace concert (to include Left On Red, Lori Purdue, and the first public performance of the VFPLI musicians) on Saturday evening October 17 at the Friends Meeting Hall in Westbury.
4. The next in our continuing actions to ensure that the Army Experience Center not open on Long Island.

**A delegation of Long Islanders will be again going to Philadelphia to take part in an action to close the Army Experience Center in the Franklin Hills Mall. Two seats still remain on the van. If you would like to participate in this important and worthwhile please contact Karen at rksrc at optonline dot net Read more »

Filed under: Action Alert!, activism, afghanistan, Anti-War, international politics, Iraq, local, long island, Long Island Music, Long Island Politics, News, Peace, politics, progressive politics, US Politics, war | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Info on the NYC primaries: Tues. Sept 15, 2009

Posted on September 8, 2009 by kwilder

Update: William Thompson wins NYC Democratic primary for Mayor. Public Advocate race between de Blasio and Mark Green will probably result in a runoff primary needed. See links at bottom.

The main web page for the New York City Board of Elections, with voter information, is: here.

The Poll site locater at the NYC BOE, where you put your address in and find out where to vote, is: here.

KW: As a Long Island activist, I am not properly studied on the New York City primaries. Also, I know who I want for Mayor — Billy Talen/Green Party — and he does not have a primary (Talen just had to petition.)

So, I am not sure I agree or disagree with the opinions posted below. But, sharing some info as a service to our NYC readers.

The Gotham Gazette has a story about the primaries, the lead-up to the primaries and some implications at its post: here. Read more »

Filed under: 3rd party, democratic primary, Election 2009, elections, Green Party, local, New York State Politics, News, politics, progressive politics, third party | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Random thoughts on Obama’s school speech

Posted on September 8, 2009 by kwilder

The full text of the speech, as released by the White House previously, is: here.

Kimberly writes:

In my house, we are just not amused by status quo politicians. So, I tried not have a lot of hot feelings either way about Obama making a speech for school children, or the right wing response to it. (Though, I was suspicious of a government leader making a speech to school children.) I saw the whole argument mostly as a Clash of the Titans (Democratic leadership and Republican leadership) which I felt I could in no way come out the winner by arguing about. Read more »

Filed under: Barack Obama, children, Education, Labor, music, News, Peace, politics, presidential, progressive politics, rants, US Politics | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Reverend Billy gets coverage for stirring up youth!

Posted on September 7, 2009 by kwilder
photo by flickr user (cc) crizzirc

photo by flickr user (cc) crizzirc

(excerpt from) Good magazine
Not Like Mike

New York City’s oddball mayoral candidate Reverend Billy is mobilizing young voters in droves in his race for City Hall. He might not be able to beat the billionaire Michael Bloomberg, but he’s up for the fight.

Reverend Billy Talen bursts onstage wearing a white tuxedo and a black priest’s habit, his platinum hair sprayed into an Elvis bouffant. A 35-member gospel choir breaks into a soulful hum and within seconds, the packed New York City auditorium erupts in shouts of “Amen” and “Hallelujah.”

“I know some of you are shopping too much,” Talen bellows to a room packed with aging hippies and twenty-something hipsters. “Consuming too much, sneaking off to the big box. You gotta push back!” And with that, his back-up singers launch into their first anti-consumerist anthem of the night. “Who are these politicos? Have you ever seen one lie?” the choir sings, as the Reverend wings his head up and down, his arms reaching to the heavens. “They gotta live uptown. Somewhere where they can hide. Who buys them all that TV time? He’s the one who broke your lease. Officials slick their palms with grease.”

This is tried-and-true material for “the Rev,” as William Talen, 59, is known. Ever since he founded the Church of Life After Shopping, after the World Trade Center attacks in 2001, he has been spreading the gospel that Americans cannot buy their way out of their problems. In the years since, Talen has amassed hundreds of followers and become arguably the most entertaining champion of embattled mom-and-pop retailers in the city. But this year, he upped the ante.

A few months after New York City’s two-term mayor Michael Bloomberg drafted a bill to extend term-limits so he could run a third time, the Rev vowed to take that oddball activism all the way to City Hall. And in late August, he became a bona fide New York City mayoral candidate on—what else?—the Green Party ticket… Read more »

Filed under: 3rd party, activism, Corporations, economy, Election 2009, elections, grassroots democracy, green, Green Party, local, New York State Politics, News, politics, progressive politics, social & economic justice, third party | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Green Party appeals to Labor: Democratic Party has failed working people — help elect Greens to Congress

Posted on September 7, 2009 by iwilder

Calling organized labor’s support for Democrats an “investment that hasn’t paid off,” Green Party leaders appealed to unions and all working Americans, calling for support for the election of Green candidates to Congress in the 2010 election.  On Labor Day 2009, Greens expressed their solidarity with working people with a call to “come home to the Green Party.

Matt Reichel, Green candidate for the US House in Illinois, District 5, who will join a Labor Day march sponsored by the AFL-CIO and picket with laid-off public truck drivers next Wednesday at Daley Plaza (http://www.mattreichel.us):

“The continued loyalty of unions to Democratic candidates, regardless of Democrats’ actions while in office, has proven a disaster for working Americans.  The Democratic Party has consistently favored the demands of corporations over the needs of workers.  Despite a Democrat in the White House and control over Congress, Democrats have refused to make good on campaign promises.”

“Democrats have sent trillions of dollars in bailouts to Wall Street, while offering minimal help to workers, homeowners, poor people, and others affected by the economic meltdown.  The Obama Administration, under the influence of pro-Wall Street White House staff like [economic advisor] Lawrence H. Summers, has retreated from the Employee Free Choice Act [EFCA] and from plans for public works projects that would employ millions.  Living wages, anti-labor ‘free trade’ pacts, and the Taft-Hartley Act’s curb on union power aren’t even on the table. How much more abuse and neglect can labor take?

Morning Sunday, candidate for the Maryland House of Delegates in 2002, the first Green to run for public office in Baltimore:

“We’re sending this message to union leaders and members: vote your future, help us send some Greens in Congress in 2010.  With a few Green Representatives and Senators, we’ll accomplish two things.  First, working Americans will have real representatives in Congress, since Greens do not accept contributions from corporations.  Second, the presence of Greens will show Democrats that Republicans are no longer their sole competition.  Democrats will have to follow through on their promises or get replaced by pro-labor Greens.  A few Greens in Congress will change America’s political landscape, marginalizing Republicans and ‘blue dog’ Democrats, and strengthening the political power of unions.” Read more »

Filed under: activism, grassroots democracy, Green Party, Labor | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

A Michael Moore/Ralph Nader coincidence: Confronting capitalism on Sept. 23rd

Posted on September 7, 2009 by kwilder
Photo by Sage Ross

Photo by Sage Ross

Photo by Prognosic

Photo by Prognosic

On September 23rd, 2009, Ralph Nader will launch his new, fiction book at an event in New York. The title of the book is, “Only the Super Rich Can Save Us.”

Also, on September 23rd, Michael Moore’s new movie — which previewed internationally on September 6th in Venice — will have its US opening in New York and Los Angeles.

Coincidence?

The same date launches for these projects which explore the nature of wealth in America could be happenstance. Though, Michael Moore and Nader have played on the same stage before. Moore supported an early Nader run for President, though he declined to support following Nader runs. Still, it is not inconsistent that these two scions of the progressive scene may have discussed logistics.

TIME reporter Mary Corliss states in her article about the Michael Moore movie, “But this call to arms demands more than a ringleader; it requires a ring, an engaged citizenry who are mad enough not to take it any more.” Read more »

Filed under: News | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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