Security

Without feeling safe and secure, everything about our lives changes. contentment can turn to fear, love and compassion can morph into fear and hate, even feelings of wealth and appreciation can turn to the perception of lack and false threats. Paranoia and anxiety are the surest way to hinder and harm human development and degrade our health. This is probably one of the most difficult topics to discuss across the aisle, but one that needs to be understood through critical analysis and research, not platitudes and catch phrases.

Security has never been the result of any weapons system, peace has never flowed from the end of a gun, nothing beneficial, or even worthwhile has ever been created by exploding a bomb.

We need to have a serious discussion about the wrong headed approach to terrorism that many in our congress have urged. I know it has been made stupid/easy to follow lock step in a reactionary way to "those people", but before you let yourself be cowed by the true enemy, think for just one minute, that those people love their children, just like you do, they want what is best for everyone, just like you do and they do every bit as much living and dying as you will as well. also, when they go, those who love them will be heartbroken, just like, I suspect, your loved ones will feel when your time comes. In a microcosmic way, think abut the essential qualities of the terrorist. supposedly, according to them, they have tried reason and logic to get their way. They may have tried to advance their causes through participation in existing systems, but were shut out. Without standing in the realm of public discussion or validity of their "cause" amongst the rest of society, they strike out. This is brat child behavior...upping the ante to harsh words and eventually violence is exactly the same as the child whop throws a fit of anger.

In a five year old, it can be forgiven, but when adults throw tantrums, it is inexcusable. The more you change your behavior, based on the fit of those who act as children commits two wrongs. First, it makes them many times more powerful, exactly what you do not want to allow a bully, a brat or out of control child to get. This would be like trying to train a dog not to shit in the house, yet only giving him treats as he did so. (this is actually a form of giving in to their demands) In a society that ignores the fact that the vast, vast majority of people are good and have good, or at least neutral intentions, wasting energy on the "threat" of terrorism just proves our mathematical illiteracy.

 First and foremost, responsibility for the Syrian crisis must be understood as, in good measure our fault. None of our activities in that area helped much. The First Gulf  War, which was fought to defend slant drilling from Kuwait, under the desert if Iraq, negated below ground property rights worldwide. This, in turn, cleared the way for fracking in the U.S. Resources under anywhere in the world can be removed by whoever has the technology and deep enough pockets, it seems, as may be required to steal it. Our preoccupation with making money and befriending both weapons suppliers and planet Earth rapists belie our intentions. It would be silly for us to expect others to not understand that past behavior is a pretty good indicator of future performance. Bullies are unable to see through the fallacy that good guys with guns will necessarily vanquish bad guys with guns. Hoping that we can judge which is which or how many of our own people should be killed or jailed is not something we have a great track record with. Why would anyone trust us to give the people of their nation a fair shake on their own territory?

Second, by denying the refugees refuge, we add insult and further injury to an already destitute population, who inherited their plight through absolutely no fault of their own. Imagine what life would be like if your city was bombed and there was only one well operating. The people with the guns that are protecting the well don't like your religious beliefs and shoot to kill when you go to get water. When you took what you could carry and left, would you want to find a safe haven wher eyou could use your skills to support your family? Of course! If thousands of people like yourself had been welcomed into a nation, would you, could you possibly, with faith and moral standing within your own heart, could you randomly attack members of this compassionate and loving nation? If you could, you are pathological to begin with and nothing could be done to stop you. What saves us from terrorism every time is exhibiting the compassion and understanding that any loving parent might give the child in tantrum. By not attending to them at all, not establishing a single hoop to jump through, not entertain for a moment that they pose any threat at all has far more power than to "ramp up security". this is the crucial portion of the conversation that gets hard to hear, especially if you have been trained to hate, but it must be said. If our democracy is to stand, it must be for the powerful principles that gave our nation birth, Liberty means that you also have the liberty to act terribly, but if you do harm others, there are penalties that must be given. We cannot be both guiding lights of liberty and isolationist with relation to the world economic system.

Third, our security begins, with the health of the planet. Food and water security are far more important than any external threat from the rest of civilization. The third leg in the stool would be the security afforded our individual human organisms. It has been proven that all it takes to negatively influence human development is to expose the organism to a little bit of abuse and/or neglect. Changing our notion of security will have the most powerful cost savings, combined with the most amazing increase in quality of life around the globe. The peace dividend is far more likely to "trickle down" to better conditions for everyone on the planet, simply by ending the blowing up of buildings and facilities, bridges, infrastructure and homes. Think, just for a moment what a world it would be if we led by example. when I was raised, some of the wisdom I came across was the idea that quality works by example and invites reciprocation. I truly believe that to be the case and sacrificing your own morality to "teach" someone a lesson or to drastically alter your behavior because of bullies kills liberty. When we put food security and protection of our water supply at the top of our list, instead of interventionist policies around the planet, we can get far more bang for our bucks. This relates directly back to jobs. Restorative agriculture not only fixes carbon into soil for thousands of years, but stabilizes soil moisture, nutrient cycling and increases plant health. healing soils increase the health and nutritional value of food grown on those healthy soils. Getting more for less makes us more secure than destroying things for sure!

Fourth, there needs to be security in knowing that those who benefit the most from our policies pay their fair share into the national budget. Having a stable and sensible tax system, with as few deductions as possible is the most fair way to assure that those who benefit most from our society pay the most for the opportunity to serve their fellow Americans. The real takers have been the ultra-wealthy who take entire fortunes overseas to avoid taxation. Reasonable income taxes are fine, but only a fairly high consumption tax of some sort will make those opting for cash only income streams pay part of their fair share. The more aggressively we pursue wealthy tax cheats, the more people on the low end of the income scale will feel the need to honestly report their income.

Fifth and finally, the American people need to have the security of knowing that those responsible for crashing our economy will be found, will be prosecuted and the criminal actions of large institutions will be prosecuted. Cities, Towns and villages across our nation have been hollowed out, like aborting the fetuses of our communities, removing as many of the resources as possible and giving virtually nothing back. Security will be felt most profoundly when we make it possible to sign on to a social contract when we are young, work toward a common goal...making America greater than ever before...for their lifetime and be assured of a basic level of peace and security, a modicum of support and we each can do the rest! Without feeling this sort of security, we sustain more damage than even the epitome of terrorist attacks, 9-11. Follow the money, ask...who benefits? those would be the most secure people, because they can hire lawyers to bury the rest of us and still have boatloads of money to fall back on.

To help people understand the revolutionary way I would approach global issues, and I have said it from day one. Those who knew the history of Afghanistan understood that the first thing that the Soviets did when they invaded Afghanistan, is they systematically went through every compound and destroyed the fruit trees within the walls, so that the local people would become more dependent on stores for imported goods. If we truly had military intelligence, we would have sent millions of tree seeds or seedlings and used our military to help plant them. At that point, anyone even wanting to kick us out, kill us, or exhibit hostilities could be shown to be against the interests of their countrymen. This stuff is not that hard to understand, but with some people yelling the mantra of hate and fear, many won't take the time to even consider that there are other ways of dealing with people from around the world. different ways for different people perhaps, but all in the way of compassion and intelligence.

On another level, security is about knowing that what you have to offer is worth having around. I was looking at some commercial property where I dream of retiring. Anyone who has done this can attest, it can be pretty heady knowing that your life could fit that place like a glove and that you would be willing to do nearly anything to make it possible. there were amazing views, a commercial space on the first floor and loft apartment above. The Realtor asked what sort of business we were interested in starting and I said, I would probably go door to door and survey folks in town, asking what they would want most in a new business and try to cater to one or more of those unfulfilled needs/wants. This is diametrically opposed to the ego driven, privileged, sense of entitlement that "all of my ideas are good, after all they are mine!" The Realtor kind of sat back on her heels for a moment and really considered how different that would make whatever store we would open. One of the reasons that 60% of businesses fail within their first five years is that, perhaps there wasn't even a need for their products/services in the first place. security is remaining pertinent in the economy and society of the future.

Jobs

The time has come to admit that a large number of people have fallen through the cracks that formed in our economy under the years of exploitation by the oligarchs. The cash economy has absorbed more people in the past several decades than we ever knew we were losing from the taxpaying public. Building an economy through job growth may only be possible if we begin to expend dollars on getting things done that no one will make any money on. One job that has needed to be done for a long, long time is rebuilding soils. Tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of jobs could be created by simply offering soil stewardship and restorative agriculture classes for farmers. Building the soils would benefit generations to come and considering how badly we need to address ecological issues, starting the ecological recovery needs to start from the ground up.

Second, we need a much larger cadre of well-trained rapid response teams that have been trained for search and rescue as well as remediation of ecological disasters. like with the massive breach of the underground storage facility in California, currently spewing billions of cubic feet of methane into the atmosphere. Letting corporate players continue to play fast and loose with public health, ecological quality and to fumble at every opportunity can not be allowed to stand. We need to take river clean up to the next level, moving up through watersheds and protecting sensitive areas all along the way. We need to at least afford nature the protection we would wish to have for all people as well. Securing riverbanks from erosion, investing in the reforestation of significant portions of headwater areas and limiting disturbances on both steep slopes and groundwater recharge areas will help as well.

Third, we must bring back ecologically inspired legislation of the type and kind that used to exist in Wisconsin. for instance, when wells are tested and they are found to be contaminated, surrounding wells need to be tested for the same contaminants to determine how extensive the contamination of the water table is and get a handle on possible sources of contamination so that the best course for remediation and how to place responsibility can be determined. Otherwise, we are all just taking shots in the dark.

Fourth, teachers need support, not further removal of resources. We could easily triple the number of teachers and in twenty years the adults who benefited from the extra attention would pay our investment back hundreds of times over in both productivity and insight. We continue to try to save money in areas that have the highest return on investment, only because the benefits of living in an educated society accrue to everyone, not just a select few. The levels of mathematical illiteracy are overwhelming. Recently we saw in real time the level of distraction caused by a larger than average lottery pay out. Think if all the hours spent discussing what we would have done if we had won would have been put into getting actual work done.

Sticking with my format, I should include a fifth element in an effective jobs plan. This will be especially important with instituting single payer health care. Many, many more jobs will need to be created. Imagine how much more satisfying it would be for people to do productive work than having to tell people who have religiously paid insurance premiums that their bills are not covered. We need to accept that many current jobs, like the 400,000 lobbyists who ride herd and help write pending legislation in Congress and the large numbers of people involved in the shell games of think tanks and superpacs have more costs than benefits. We need to have our eyes on whether jobs that are created are for the further enhancement of those who have been winning the class war for decades or if they indeed are beneficial to society as a whole. 

In this day and age, just getting paid is not enough to convey whether our job has purpose or meaning. Indeed, the two bear virtually no relationship to one another. I would go so far as to say that for those who volunteer, there is far more value in the work they do for free than there is in what brings home a paycheck. This is a situation that needs immediate and sustained attention. I also am loathe to suggest that government is the solution to every problem, but it can provide a safety net against exploitation and being lied to by our employers. We also need to remain vigilant and understand the growth industries as they become apparent. The last few years have seen more people go into farming than at any other time in our history. That means that there is a need for support services for young farmers and part of this could be provided through government subsidies for both internships for future farmers and mentors who have proven their exemplary land management skills, state of the art science regarding restorative agriculture and how to minimize off farm inputs while increasing plant health, stabilizing environmental conditions and increasing production.

Humanitarian, Cultural Responsibility

In the realm of anthropology, how a culture treats one another, especially the old and young, crippled and/or infirm, that is the only lasting clues that remain to tell us who these people really were. we must remember that we are not in some perverse "climax" state by any means. We have as much evolving to do today as we did in our fifteenth century minds, or our fifth century ones. When I was young, they taught civics, actually required students to pass courses of study about how our system works, how bills became law and the importance of the messages in our founding documents and other clarifications and elucidations of our American experiment.

Knowing these things and learning to have proper respect for those who established this country so that it might endure, those who fought for it, those who died. Having proper respect for the teachers, who all saw that all humans can thrive when they are given security and a modicum of support. We are a nation built on a single, solitary notion. If we say we can, no matter what the rest of the world says, or does, we will achieve our intention. What kind of people would we be if we had stopped building a rail line across our country, shore to shore, or not built several of them! How would life be different if they had not tried a second time to lay a Trans Atlantic cable?

To be human today means not only responsible to our own true selves, but to one another, the world around us, and as we have seen our planet from the moon, one with the spinning blue ball of stardust we call home. Having a relationship with this part of our story, our history, the song and dance, these things, sharing culturally relevant foods and stories, these are our way home to where creator exists and wants us to be.

The divisive and accusatory rhetoric that has been flowing from the mouths of many of the candidates is just pathetic. Being boldly told that we must hate others or being openly told that womyn are second class citizens, Hispanics are criminals and rapists or that Muslims want to destroy our nation is not only wrong, but the lies themselves are the only thing that can assure the destruction of our nation. Like the McCarthy era, attacking others with lies only assures that we lose all of our credibility. We need more political leaders who put people ahead of what has been deemed expedient by the oligarchs.

Again, I would like to present five main goals to reestablishing a more humanitarian nation. without addressing all of these issues simultaneously, very little progress will be made.

Priority one: the crimes against humanity that are taking place in populations of color must end. This will require several changes. We need to admit that the drug war was a sham...legalize all drugs and make their abuse a health care issue, not a police issue. This involves transforming our police forces to look like the communities they serve, make their jobs about service rather than exploitation, and release all non-violent drug offenders. If these people had been rich, and/or white they would more often than not have been seen as entrepreneurs. We need more of them in our poverty stricken cities, not less. Also, related to law enforcement, it is time to end entrapment by federal, state and local agents. It reflects horribly on a culture to be providing opportunities, means and methods for attacking civil society in the name of fighting crime. Creating terrorists, drug dealers or other criminals is not law enforcement.

Priority two: Reestablish thriving arts programs in schools and communities. Creating a world that is for the sole purpose of making money, or preparing drones for serving the oligarchy has not worked, must not be allowed to continue and will not stand in for a world that helps individuals to flourish. Art, music, dance and theater are what make us human, not the size of our fortunes.

Priority three: We need to establish and enshrine the idea that our food needs to be adequately labeled as to point of origin and ingredients. The attacks on our food systems need to be treated as criminal, including the ability of non-food items to be called food.

Priority four: We must develop laws that protect the majority from abuses by the oligarchs. There are no excuses for the types and kinds of assaults that we typically face at the hands of the wealthy donor class who have fun things for decades. We need nothing short of a New Deal for The U.S. of America.

Priority five: Stop disrespecting teachers. I was trained to be an educator and I can tell you first hand that the ridicule, horrible treatment, name calling and disrespect begin way before you ever collect your first check as a teacher. The attacks that we have made on one of the most respectable professions that exists are inexcusable. This leads to poorly producing people of all ages, fosters a world view for our children that growing up will only bring pain and suffering and that in essence, the next generation does not matter.

As you can see the humanitarian issues cannot be seriously addressed until the financial/economic ones are taken on as well. The push to privatize everything can only lead to commodification and harming those who cannot pay simply to enrich the wealthy classes. This is probably the most unAmerican idea that has been allowed to flourish as the wealthy privatize more and more of the benefits and socialize all the costs. The greatest resource in our nation is the people, abusing them shall not stand on my watch!

Platform: Saladino 4 District 8

My first planks must be set on sturdy tenets and on one hand, fiscal responsibility is one very important consideration. Equally important would be cultural responsibility, humanity toward our fellow humans. After all, we are humans and thrive in community. We need one another to achieve greatness, so why not help one another the best we can, right? We the People need to have at least three points of contact for stability and the third must be a strong relationship with our environment. Mother Earth, the biosphere, which, if depicted in scale, the size of an apple, would be only as thick as the sin, from highest atmosphere to deepest ocean chasm, just that tiny skin.

 We need to invest in things that will have the most benefit not only today, but for the long term. Native philosophy establishes seventh generation thinking to be part of the diplomat's job. My planks are set on the greatest timbers, I stand on the shoulders of giants. Our ancestors, who believed that the common man has a responsibility to not only participate in community, but to be of genuine use!

First I would like to discuss nuts and bolts changes in the structure of relationships between, "regulated communities" and the federal government as regulators. The clean air and clean water act, as written were supposed to guarantee every American clean and safe drinking water, as well as fresh and healthy air as well. We see more each day how deregulation means privatize more of the profits and socialize all costs. The trickle down economics didn't work, the politics of austerity has proven even more damaging, it is time for fundamental changes in the way we run government and regulate business. The rest of my posts this month will relate directly to my political campaign. Donations to help with my campaign can be sent to Saladino 4 district 8.
1446 Porlier street Green Bay, WI 54301.

We put our feet down in the Sixties for many good reasons, establishing a realistic ecological ethic was one. I still get coal dust wafting over our house after more than fifty years of litigation designed only to delay, defend against and circumscribe every law passed in defense of public good. Ideals that are foundations of what it means to be American, or even, as we see ourselves more and more each day...World Citizen, has to be reflected in our ecological ethics and respect for the sacred features that the landscape provides. The hippies were right about many more things than that, but I digress.

The government has been, for a great part, purchased by a handful of ultra-big donors. When 40 families spend virtually all of the money expended to advertise candidates beholden to the oligarchs,
 It truly is buying elections. Several steps need to be taken immediately to stem the flow of money into politics. There is no reason anyone need ever spend a million dollars to secure a seat that will earn them a few hundred thousand dollars to actually serve. I will right another post entirely on the revolving door between Congress and the top elites of the worlds of finance, energy, and media. To say it makes a mockery of democracy is an understatement.

To support and defend our democracy, I would have the ultra-wealthy actually pay taxes. I know that for those who have paid close attention, it sounds pretty unbelievable, almost incomprehensible, but there need to be more candidates that understand the conflict of interest it requires to participate in the system as it is run today. It is time to take big business out of the government equation. We cannot afford to let them "help" write laws any more.

Priority one: Overturn Citizens United decision. One dollar one vote is simply undemocratic.
Priority two: Reinstate twenty-first century Glass-Steagall. Taxing one cent per share traded on Wall street would generate millions each day.
Priority three: End political dark money/superpacs. End the revolving door between regulated communities, and governmental "service", selling access and criminalize paid lobbyists.
Priority four: End Fracking. Far cheaper and less destructive means exist to fulfill our needs. Require cost/benefit analysis of long term damage caused by fracking before permits are issued.
Priority five: Get Bernie Sanders' tax plan enacted. It is very conventional and reasonable. Part of the reason that our budget fails to bring in enough money to cover our costs is because there are too many subsidies and loopholes offered to, and frequently written into legislation by hands paid for by fealty paid by everyone as increased "costs" of doing business, tribute if you will bequeathed to the wealthiest people on the planet.

Fallen Down...

It is with great humility that I admit to have let my readers down this moon.  Perhaps there has been a benefit of writing in this blog, however. Those readers who take the time to read my writing deserve to look here for a bit of stability. Like Bernie sanders has believed since he was a young man, that if human beings are afforded security and a bit of support, they thrive. Teachers have known throughout time and science now proves that human beings are cooperative, helpful and compassionate as babies and it is only through being subjected to abuse and/or neglect that psychopaths and sociopaths are developed. There are a few exceptions to this rule, which are notable, because as human beings, we do not always act in the best interest of the fetus. Some women have been counseled by their doctors to diet while pregnant, because the baby "takes what it needs"...some people use cocaine and other drugs while pregnant, beat women who are pregnant and subject them to undue stress, so in those cases, the abuse and neglect occur in utero.

The long lead time on things I write about often make the rate of seven posts per moon seem blistering, but having thought about many of these issues since childhood helps me to dip my toe into the water amongst many diverse and infinitely deep pools. Today, people are beginning to peel back the layers of the very rotten cabbage that is Donald Trump. He is allowing a tiff with Meghan Kelly to keep him out of the debates. Now people try to believe that he would be able negotiate with Putin or Shahs, Prime Ministers or Chiefs? America, WTF? The last thing we need right now are delusional people! Perhaps I have been thin this moon, but I have begun to live in a constant state of disbelief at how off the hinges we seem to be swinging. Please, if you are reading this, help us sort things out.

Donald Trump has been studied and in addition to speaking like a middle school girl, he only tells the truth about seven percent of the time. That is 1/3 as much truth as Faux Newz gives you. I am often agape at how devolved the rhetoric has become. First and foremost, the word entitlement as it is used by policymakers, and what I know it to be. Entitlement is what allows bullies and ignorant people to graduate high School by the skin of their teeth, Get into ivy league schools because their parents endowed the Library, buy their term papers, play sports or just play the field, graduate on to the corporate world expecting to pull down huge salaries for just nodding their heads a lot and looking scornful when that is required, that is entitlement.

Don't believe for one second, the politicians who claim, that people drawing unemployment, little old ladies, pensioners, people in wheelchairs and child feeding programs are the problem. Corporate welfare and the military/industrial/energy tribute that we pay is what is strangling the economy. If the U.S. government was serious, people would be issued a Tesla with their first driver's license, but only if they were willing to put their car into a ride-sharing company during periods it is not in use. Then, take our fracking and trucking subsidies and pour them into solar/wind charging stations wherever parking lots exist. Encourage the inevitable. Just the increased efficiency between electric motors and the archaic internal combustion ones would more than halve the carbon footprint of the transportation sector. If we were truly interested in doing the right thing, we would be building Tesla manufacturing facilities where the people are!

Buying local means spending less on transport. There is no sane or scale-able way to make delivering every item by Fed-Ex. Who are we trying to kid? when we enter the marketplace at any point and follow the money, both upstream and down, we find glaring realities. If you spend an hour researching the five items you use the most, where they "come from" where the money you spend on them actually goes, and how much gets spent just getting those things to you, I guarantee it will change the way you buy things forever. See, when I signed papers at a bank, taking on a thirty year investment in property, I naively thought that the money would help someone. The banker was more harried then than he had been previously...working from before the bank actually opened until way into the evening. That was when the run up in mortgages was in full bloom. those bankers are probably near the end of trying to refinance everyone now and the need for bankers may have stabilized, but if it has, mine made less than a week's salary for what he did to make my mortgage happen. The bank promptly sold the paper to a place headquartered in Oklahoma. My bank made all the money it would ever make in one month and for twenty nine years and eleven months, I get to pay a company that isn't even in Wisconsin. The shifting money story has been told through our history, but never in as stark a contrast as it seem we have today.

There is a serious problem when the wealthiest 65 people on the planet own as much wealth as billions of others. I am going to try to rapid fire through these last four posts, so as to make the seven posts per month deadline I set for myself years ago, but I may not be able to meet the goal. Better to try and to fail than to just give up.

Saladino 4 District 8

Since my youth, I have followed politics. During the course of my life, many have said that I need to run for political office. Who among us had not heard the lie that all politicians are crooks? It goes without saying that joining a club that many believe is made up of criminals, liars, cheats and manipulative SOBs is not something that kind-hearted, compassionate and helpful people seem likely to do. To say that I have considered running for office would be an understatement. The difficulty was always the same. I have been marginalized, ridiculed and misrepresented by so many over the years that beginning to realize that I am part of, even representative of the great silent majority in our nation has been a long time coming. I have no problem being comfortable in my own shoes, but it took decades to realize that most people believe, like I do that the ultrawealthy should not be allowed to buy our representatives to any office. My maturing views led me to understand that no matter what I thought about the representatives that have come before me, my choices would be my own.

That is why I have pledged to run for the U.S. House of Representatives.

I will not accept any corporate donations. I have seen the disastrous end which that leads to and in advance I will say that any corporate welfare recipients who donate to my campaign will have their dollars turned directly over to not for profit organizations or the purchase of property that will be put into land trust, to protect wildlife and establish habitat for the future.

My current representative to Congress put out campaign literature that I read thoroughly and on virtually every issue we disagree. The two planks in his platform that we do agree on, however, he is in agreement for all the wrong reasons. Worse yet, his understandings and beliefs are based on the lies of the oligarchs. The Teathuglican Party has become refuge for out of touch money grubbers and billionaires. When it began, it was people tired of the takings that are associated with letting money run things. One person one vote was the Constitutional framers intent. Not one dollar one vote. I have always understood this at my core.

10 and 1/3 counties make up my District Forests to Lakeshore, The upper reaches of the Wolf, all the way to the Bay. From fertile farmland to concrete jungle, quiet meadow to bustling tourist destination, we are many things to many people. what we all want to be known for is being our best!

The single, most important thing that I have noticed in all my years watching politics closely, is the predominant feature. Virtually every political creature concedes, before their race even begins that the money will always "win". They seek it like flies find shit. In my campaign, I resign myself to be what the people want, not a sellout. We need government to spend wildly on things individuals cannot afford. I do not want to continue to spend public dollars on building stadia, expo halls and infrastructure that can only be used by out-of-towners who take their profits elsewhere. I'm sure that where I live, Northeast Wisconsin, has been shaped and designed by the very wealthiest folks, toward their ends and by any means they deemed necessary.

We have what some have called "The hardest working river in the world" running through the heart of our District. It has more power producing dams in the shortest distance of any river on earth. Virtually all of this power "belongs" to corporate agents and assigns. One dam in particular, in the heart of De Pere, flooded a mile long rapids, eliminating the turbulence that boosted O2 levels for fish downstream and provided habitat for a profusion of life. Now, it is a barrier to fish migration. This approach decidedly privatizes all profit and socializes all costs. With the current interest in whitewater kayaking, imagine the economic benefit for the entire town if it became known as the heart of a natural Olympic level practice area. Regions that currently have utilized their long and storied histories based on and related to their water resources, shipping, boat building, and their intimate relation to that history have fared well economically only because they find solace in knowing that the waters, when left alone will recover. Natural forces want this to happen. Communities that have accepted and celebrated their historic links to nature fair better than those that remain constantly at war against it. Perhaps the work that our river does can benefit more people in sustainable work.

Just the other day, I saw an office sized paper recycling station. It takes papers, to be shredded, that are currently routinely shipped off to commercial shredders, into one end and within a few hours, turns it back into ready to use paper from the other end. There are no more buggy whip manufacturers. If we do not grow and change as fast as a pea seed in springtime, we are doomed. The rise of the shared car, the co-op and communal living arrangements are not new. The consumerist way of life is. My campaign is about humanity, not defending fetuses who are later exploited, poisoned and exposed to abuse and neglect in every other way. I will not hold up religion as umbrella or sword to parry the elements of nature, of truth, and/or strike down those who are already victims. weak, tired and disenfranchised as they might be. I firmly believe that the true value of civilizations are how well they treated their children and elders, the weak, the infirm and the youth, who will always need to believe that growing up is a worthwhile endeavor.

 Those who read my blogs know more deeply my heart than my beliefs. A mind, indeed, is like a parachute, it only works when open. The opened mind knows that all is change, all is flow, flux and creation. with a bit of support and security, we can all achieve great things. If you would, please tell friends about my blog, encourage others to run for offices if they find themselves believing in people, rather than profits. We can all see the brick wall that the oligarchs keep trying to bulldoze through. Lend your voice to the movement away from dead ends of fossil energy, of privatization, of competition. together, we are all worth far more than at the throats of one another.

Thanks for sharing this around. Even those who are not from Northeast Wisconsin should know.

Learn Things

My wife likes to watch crime shows. I listen to them while I blog sometimes. Today, I'm listening to an old musical, Holiday Inn, but am reminded of the words of  the lead character from NCIS New Orleans. After giving people their assignments, the boss turns them loose with the admonition, "Learn things". What I like most about listening to that crime show is that they almost always have some good music as part of the show. Beyond this, it is always a rush to imagine having a group of people that could be discharged for the sole purpose of learning things. I can think of several issues I would turn their eyes and ears to solving. Instead of fictitious crimes, perhaps we could uncover the truth about why we are lied to by both the tee vee news and the papers. But we have already known that for decades. The rich people own them and don't want to tell us the truth.

Oh, oh, some may say, "You didn't specify that the "things" we were supposed to learn needed to be true!" That may be, but the lies are thrust on all who sit back in their easy chairs becoming tee vee glotzers (from the German) The American version is couch potato. The passive act of "learning" involves letting the media induced ignorance wash over you like pebbles on the beach. This can take off your rough edges and impart a certain luster as long as you remain wet with the dewy-eyed naivete of the surf rolled pebbles, but when push comes to shove, there is little for life to cling to without at least a tiny fissure. The rock polisher of the media makes pretty but useless souls, incapable of standing up for themselves.

If we were to draw a map of the ideas that permeate the publicly mediated discourse, it would have several large territories. They would be broken down into areas that have some substantial overlap. this map is not as clean as one that delineates nations or territories within nations. "Security Issues" would perhaps be the largest in area. The reason i enclose the term in quotation marks is because the security issues that are portrayed are as close to falsehood as you can get. for instance, you never hear on the news about the fact that more Americans were killed by toddlers getting hold of a parent's gun than by terrorists. Huge psychic territory filled with lies and deceit. "Food" seems to be taking over a larger and larger part of our awareness. The territory devoted to that powerful idea and impulses surrounding it, is growing, but if we are willing to step in close, and study carefully, a vast conspiracy to deny information is also at play here, making the territory a minefield of deceit and falsehood.

Other major territories of our mediated mental landscape are, "Them", you know, those people (this changes slightly based on audience and how small a minority we can cleave off to ostracize) virtually nothing is said about personal responsibility, ethics or morality as long as there is a them to blame things on. We are not told the truth of matters along the Southern border of the U. S. of A. More Hispanics have fled our nation than have arrived here in El Norte since the crash. Now, Mexico and other South and Central American nations are saying no to the Drug War mentality that fueled lawlessness and civil strife. It seems hard for anyone who has actually met a Muslim to single them out as "people to fear". Even those who have been convinced to hate the poor are shocked to realize that CEO pay is frequently three hundred times higher than the "average" worker earns. If there is a discreet population that we should rally against, it would be the ones skimming off the rest of us, not trying to feed their children. CEO pay , just for the top 100 "earners" is more than 26 billion 731 million dollars, which would eclipse the earning power of  the bottom 1/3 of the workforce.What must those hundred people do to be worth more than the labor, blood, sweat and tears of over one hundred million individuals can produce?

A recent meme stated that if hard work were capable of producing wealth, every woman in Africa would be a millionaire. Since childhood I have always wondered about disparity of income and have seen dozens of calculations that attempted to reconcile the true value of women. Many estimates have run into the six figures because from the time womyn are young, they are taught to care for others. Cleaning up saves the cost of a maid. Cooking and shopping, if hired out have definite costs. Laundry is not cheap. Many women are the accountants and tax people for their families. they are the taxi drivers and lawn care specialists, pool cleaners and babysitters, teachers, nutritionists and keepers of the datebook, making sure that their executives (men) get where they need to be when they are supposed to be there. We often assume that they will be nurses and dog catchers, hostesses, waiters and family documentarians. All of these things are expected, yet none come with commensurate pay.

We have to seriously question why we continue to allow motherhood to fall through the cracks of our civilization and the most common way we repay these vital multi-taskers is with abuse and neglect. We are always rushing to point the finger outward, blaming others for the failings of our culture, but we often forget that when we point our finger at anyone, there are three more pointing back at our selves.