Two new things

FIRST, the AFLCIO is taking another look at what organizing means. This approach reminds me of an old idea from the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), to wit, people have a union when they act like they have one.

HUNGRY KIDS, SCHOOLS, AND FARMS...making the connection work better.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Would that it were so

Kudos to AFLCIO president and former UMWA leader Rich Trumka for calling for serious discussions about climate change and the future of coal. Of course, I don't expect political leaders in the Mountain State of Denial to pay a lot of attention, but every little bit helps.

ON THE POSITIVE SIDE, climate change may  make reptiles smarter.

NOT ONLY ARE CORPORATIONS NOT PEOPLE, but America isn't one either.

LOOKING AHEAD, Nobel economics laureate Joseph Stiglitz sees a rough year in 2012.

HAS ANYONE NOTICED that I've gone a week without mentioning zombies?

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Saving the republic, one hot dog at a time

Since the rich are unwilling to do their part to save American democracy, the labor movement does its part.

At about 10 locations around the state of West Virginia, the state AFLCIO and allies, including West Virginians United for Social and Economic Justice and the American Friends Service Committee, celebrated the 76th birthday of Social Security by hosting a tongue in cheek "Help the Really Rich Hot Dog Sale."

Larry Matheney, secretary treasurer of the WV AFLCIO, makes his pitch to help the really rich.

Hot dogs were on sale at 1935 prices of $.05. The labor federation sent a letter to House Speaker (and faithful servant of the really rich) John Boehner that read:

In support of your effort to continue millionaires’ and corporations’ outrageous tax cuts at the expense of destroying our nation’s social safety net programs (Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid) we are advising you of the West Virginia AFL-CIO plan to reduce the debt of our nation while protecting the rich and tax dodging corporations.

On the weekend of August 14, 2011 we will be having hot dog sales promoted by our Central Labor Councils, located in thirteen cities in West Virginia, in celebration of the 76th anniversary of the signing of the Social Security Act by President Roosevelt. We will be selling our hot dogs at the 1935 price of 5¢ with all proceeds being donated to the United States government. We hope you’ll recognize our effort to reduce our nation’s debt, could help you build a stronger case to continue protecting the rich and tax dodging corporations from paying their fair share of taxes.

The West Virginia AFL-CIO will present a check to the Bureau of the Public Debt, (200 Third Street, Parkersburg W.V.), on August 25th at 1:00 p.m. and request your presence as we award the proceeds resulting from our, “Help the Really Rich Hot Dog Sale”.

The serious point behind all this is the absurdity of proposing cuts to vital programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security while undoing Bush era tax cuts for the extremely wealthy are off the table.

The next act in this tragicomedy will happen on August 25th, when proceeds from the hot dog sales will be presented to the Bureau of the Public Debt in Parkersburg.

If you think all this is silly, you're right. The only thing sillier is a Congress that thinks preserving tax cuts for the rich is more important than promoting the common good.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

LABOR CALLS FOR IRAQ SOLUTIONS

Caption: Time to get out of the web.

The national AFL-CIO executive board called on the United States to seek an end to its military involvement in Iraq.

Here's an excerpt from the beginning of the statement:

No U.S. foreign policy can be sustained without the informed consent of the American people. Last November, the people spoke clearly, calling on the president and Congress to change course in Iraq. Rather than heed the will of the citizenry or listen to the military leaders speaking out against the current policy in Iraq, the president has chosen to escalate military action. This blind pursuit of the war now undermines the very war on terror that was its justification.

And here's one from the middle:

It is time to bring our military involvement in Iraq to an end. Admittedly, there are no good options now in that country. It has descended into a sectarian civil struggle, with American troops caught in the crossfire. The latest National Intelligence Estimate reports that the greatest violence comes not from al Qaeda and foreign terrorists, but from sectarian militias caught up in their own internal conflict.

And here's one from the end:

The AFL-CIO continues to strongly support initiatives and programs to promote democracy, workers’ rights and economic development in the Middle East. We believe the bipartisan Iraq Study Group (the Baker-Hamilton Commission) provides the president and Congress with a broad range of recommendations to address the wider regional conflict as well as economic and reconstruction assistance while charting a path for reducing the U.S. presence in Iraq.

We, therefore, call on President Bush to reconsider the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group. Specifically, the administration should open up a diplomatic offensive with allies and Iraq’s neighbors. This should include a new initiative to revive a peace process in the Middle East and it should include a timetable for redeploying U.S. troops out of Iraq’s civil strife. We also call on Congress to support these actions and insist on a timetable for disengagement. If the president refuses to act, Congress must use its powers under the Constitution and act.

Works for me.

WV UPDATE. The WV House Finance Committee modified a Senate-passed corporate tax cut bill. The house version includes combined reporting, which closes corporate tax loopholes and cuts in the business franchise tax. Combined reporting is a good step. The overall business tax package is less that what passed the senate. So that's a victory of sorts.

Here's the deal: about half of WV's general revenue fund goes to K-12 education, about 10 percent to higher ed, about 20 percent to health and human services, the the rest covers everything else from parks to public safety. Going nuts on tax cuts means cutting the things we most need for a better future. Cutting education money to give goodies to out of state corporations when we can't adequately give teachers or public employees a decent raise is a little weird.

RANDOM BUT INTERESTING NEWS ITEM. Here's the lead of a cool but random news story:

Scientists studying how sleep affects memory have found that the whiff of a familiar scent can help a slumbering brain better remember things that it learned the evening before. The smell of roses — delivered to people’s nostrils as they studied and, later, as they slept — improved their performance on a memory test by about 13 percent.

Who'd a thunk it?

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED