Category: Green Party

Kaihsu’s letter in the Guardian

P&C contributor Kaihsu Tai had a letter in yesterday’s Guardian:

Don Touhig and the Co-operative party’s People’s Rail campaign (Letters, June 25) has no credibility. The party is the junior partner in government with Labour, which has already had a decade to sort out the railways by reversing privatisation. As taxpayers, the citizens are already “shareholding members” of Network Rail. Adding another layer of membership is not going to make it a “mutual” – any more than an NHS trust becoming a foundation trust (with nominal, non-shareholding membership). The Co-op needs to break from its electoral pact with Labour and cooperate with voices for real collective change.
Kaihsu Tai, Janet Warren, Sid Phelps
Oxfordshire Green party

As usual with British politics, I have no idea what is going on.

508 #11: Community

508 is a show about Worcester. This week, Brendan Melican talks about privatization and municipal employees; Mike Benedetti flips through the InCity Times and complains about the Green-Rainbow Party; Dante Comparetto talks about Worcester Local First (here’s a WCCA interview with two of the businessmen organizing it); and Nick Reville talks about Miro.

You can download the mp3, subscribe to the feed, or see other formats.

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Isaiah House Music Club
The LA Times reports that some of the kids from the Orange County Catholic Worker sang at Carnegie Hall!

Another friend attacked over gay rights
You’ll remember that back in December 2006, my friend Sarah Loy was reportedly assaulted at a pro/anti gay marriage event in Worcester. Earlier this week, Kaihsu’s friend Peter Tatchell was attacked at a gay rights event in Moscow. BBC:

Gay rights activist Peter Tatchell and singer Richard Fairbrass have expressed their shock after being punched by anti-homosexual protesters in Moscow.

Both men were hit on the head during a gay rights march on Sunday. Protesters attacked with kicks, punches and eggs.

Anne Marie Kaune profile
Nice article in Worcester Business Journal about the sometime Catholic Worker, healer of the poor, and St. Peter’s parishioner.

New Snow Ghost book: Many Wisdom
Download it from the Archive or buy it at HBML.

Snow Ghost Community Show #2: Dracula
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Election roundup

Sadly, Chris Chocola, once South Bend’s Congressman, was defeated in his bid for reelection. I don’t like his politics or his attitude, but his name is awesome.

Count Chocula

Back in my home district of WV, Alan Mollohan won re-election. I first met him back in 1988, and have rooted for him to lose ever since.

Arizona voters chose to ban putting cows in veal crates and pigs in gestation crates. This measure was strongly opposed by Big Agriculture, and it’s a tribute to both activists on the ground and the common-sense compassion of Arizonans that it passed.

John Robb says that, Iraq-wise, we’re just getting more doomed.
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Saint Kermit #43: Frank Talk

It’s been a depressing couple of weeks in Massachusetts politics, but Jim and I wade into the muck anyway. Then we point out that this election will determine if the Green-Rainbow Party and Working Families Party are official parties.

[download the mp3 of “Saint Kermit #43: Frank Talk”]

We rant about:

  • Kerry Healey calling Deval Patrick soft on crime
  • Somebody revealing the skeleton in Patrick’s sister’s closet
  • Rand Wilson, who is polling double-digits as “Working Families” candate for State Auditor
  • Jill Stein, polling double-digits as “Green-Rainbow” candidate for Secretary of State

Interview: Barney Frank.
Music: National Carpet.
Sports: Sport.

Saint Kermit #41: Healthy Activism

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Netcasting from my friends’ home office

Another week, another amazing episode of Saint Kermit.

[download the mp3 of “Saint Kermit #41:Healthy Activism”]

Rant topics:

Guest: Maine governor candidate Pat LaMarche.

Music: Rod Murphy.

Sports: Sports.

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Pat LaMarche accepts the Green Party nomination for Vice President, 2004. Photo by Mike Benedetti.

History of Immigration Laws

Mae M. Ngai had a commentary article in the L.A. Times a couple of days ago about the history of immigration laws in the U.S. Essentially, they came to be because people didn’t like Catholics, Slavs, or Chinese. But wouldn’t unskilled foreign labor cause economic havoc in the U.S.? I say let the market figure that out. If Americans are more skilled, then why are we worried about competition from Nicaragua, anyway? P&C administrator Mike, in a personal conversation, pointed out that all of this talk about free trade is really only talking about part of the equation— trade of goods. What about free trade of labor? I’m for both. And anyway, illegal immigrants are an essential part of the economy already. Legalization — the free trade of labor — is about treating people with basic human dignity rather than using them for their labor while keeping them as a permanent, illegal underclass.

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A lot about signs this week.

Darfur: Some updates to the March 29 Darfur demonstration in DC. If you live near DC, and can take the morning off, I hope to see you out there.

More Darfur: You can now see our “Fasting for Darfur” series archived by the Library of Congress/Internet Archive project.

ACLU: Ron “Worcester ACLU” Madnick, on the whole thing of the Catholic Church not supporting gay couples adopting kids:

“If they want to discriminate, that’s fine . . . . The bishops need to understand they need to give up their tax exemption and stop bringing in state and federal money.

“We cannot allow government funds to be used to discriminate against a class protected by the anti-discrimination laws of Massachusetts . . . .”
(Telegram& Gazette)

I don’t know about giving up their tax-exempt status, but I think giving up government money is an excellent idea for my church.
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