An article in CPA Letter Daily sent to me by MichaelK finally got me to look at The Occupied Wall Street Journal. I had seen links to it before, but had always had other priorities and never got around to looking at it. The fact that this is using Kickstarter to get funding for this is a novel idea to me.
You can also see a copy of the first edition of The Occupied Wall Street Journal from this blog.
This is the precis to one of the courses being taught at the Free School Univeristy at OccupyBoston.
TAKING BACK OUR ECONOMY!
By Julie Matthaei in Occupy Boston: Free School University ·
TAKING BACK OUR ECONOMY! INTRO TO THE SOLIDARITY ECONOMY
Julie Matthaei, U.S. Solidarity Economy Network (www.ussen.org, www.ripess.org) and Professor of Economics at Wellesley College
Saturday, October 15, 2:30-3:30 pm
Meet at 2:30 at the Free School sign or join us afterwards in the park in front of the Federal Reserve Building directly across Atlantic Avenue
Economic practices and institutions based on the values of the Occupy Wall Street movement — cooperation, sustainability, equity in all dimensions, political and economic democracy, community, diversity, solidarity, and nonviolence – exist all over the world. They are growing rapidly now in response to the failings of the dominant, self-interest and profit-only motivated economy. Beginning the in 1990s, academics and activists from every continent have begun to use the term “the solidarity economy” (SE) to capture the commonality among this diverse universe of alternative practices and institutions, and the core differences between them and dominant economic practices and institutions.
SE practices and institutions have the potential to lead us towards the more just, democratic, fulfilling, and sustainable economy which the Occupy Wall Street movement is seeking. In other words, economic practices and institutions already exist and thrive around the world which constitute the basis for an emerging peoples’ economy — an economy that serves the interests of the 99%.
Some of the building blocks of the solidarity economy – such as fair trade, socially responsible consumption and investment, whistle blowing, and cooperatives — are already familiar to most in the US. Others are less well known. In this workshop, we will discuss key practices and institutions of the solidarity economy, focusing on the U.S., but with a few examples from Brazil and Canada. We will look at ways in which we can participate in the solidarity economy in every aspect of our economic lives — from consumption and work to savings, investment, entrepreneurship, and exchange. Hand-outs with information,resources, and links will be provided.
Contrary to some characterizations I have seen of the people of OccupyBoston, this does not look like something that “a bunch of idiots who know nothing” would have on their agenda.
This video gives you Elizabeth Warren’s story in her own words.
I know, she can’t really say stuff like this.
Several people have posted this on the real Elizabeth Warren’s Facebook page.
Here are a few snippets from the article A New Bush Era or a Push Era? by Amy Goodman posted on Nation Of Change,
Back when Barack Obama was still just a U.S. senator running for president, he told a group of donors in a New Jersey suburb, “Make me do it.” He was borrowing from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who used the same phrase (according to Harry Belafonte, who heard the story directly from Eleanor Roosevelt) when responding to legendary union organizer A. Philip Randolph’s demand for civil rights for African-Americans.
…
When forces used to having the ear of the most powerful person on earth whisper their demands in the Oval Office, the president must see a force more powerful outside his window, whether he likes it or not, and say, “If I do that, they will storm the Bastille.” If there’s no one out there, we are all in big trouble.
That last paragraph in particular, that’s all I have been saying, folks.
It may come as no surprise that the story by Harry Belafonte was told to Amy Goodman in an interview I have posted on this blog, Harry Belafonte Discusses President Obama.
I wish that Elizabeth Warren would acknowledge that Occupy Wall Street is doing her and Obama the favor that both FDR and Obama asked for.
This is our Elizabeth Warren speaking out the way we like to hear her.
Now if she could just say, “That too big to fail problem that I said needs to be corrected, that’s exactly the point that the OccupyWallSt movement is trying to make. If their activism is needed to help get the message across, then I am all for it.”
Raw Story has provided the transcript for Robert Reich’s video 7 Lies.
1. Tax cuts for the rich trickle down to everyone else.
2. Higher taxes on the rich would hurt the economy and slow job growth.
3. Shrinking government generates more jobs.
4. Cutting the budget deficit now is more important than boosting the economy.
5. Medicare and Medicaid are the major drivers of budget deficits.
6. Social Security is a Ponzi scheme.
7. It’s unfair that lower-income Americans don’t pay income tax.
Van Jones: ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protesters have moral clarity provided the replay of the video and these quotes:
In an interview with MoveOn.org, former Obama adviser Van Jones said that “Occupy Wall Street” may lack message clarity but had great moral clarity.
“They’ve got moral clarity,” Jones, leader of the new American Dream Movement, said “They’re as clear as a bell, and that’s what’s been missing.
This is one of the best videos from Cenk Uygir that I have seen. It is the best analysis that I have seen about anybody who claims to be a self-made rich person by using food stamps and welfare. They shout “get the government out of my food stamps and welfare.”
Common Cause Massachusetts announced the results of their Redistricting Olympics contest last week with gold, silver, and bronze medals going to young people (and a few not so young) across the state who used their website to draw House, Senate, and Congressional maps.
Click here to see their maps and to read about the contest and the winners.
Congressional Map Gold Medal Winner: Nick Rossi
Nick came to work on this project as part of a larger study that he is doing this semester as an undergraduate student at Clark University on minority influenced districts in Massachusetts. Nick is a senior at Clark University, majoring in Geography with a minor in Political Science. He plans to graduate this spring.
The judges felt that Nick’s map presented the best balance of low deviation, municipal integrity, and representation for cohesive communities of interest, including minority communities.