Activism Across America

Continuing torture, government spying against us, huge bailouts for corrupt Wall Street firms and to inept Detroit, inaction on climate change, the ocean ecological crisis, the fraud of “clean coal”… there are plenty of serious issues that people might take action to protest about (see yesterday’s Capitol Climate Action protest for an example).

But what did Rick Allison and his buddies in New Haven, Connecticut decide to protest? The cancellation of a radio show on WPLR - of everything that’s going wrong in the world. That show’s importance? It gave air time to local music bands - people who are playing quite often in local venues.

WPLR management even offered Rick Allison the chance to host a show through the radio station’s web site. Yet, Allison refused, on some kind of principle, perhaps the principle of some kind of inherent right of people to play the tunes they want to play on a commercial radio station.

Forgive my irritation, but I find it difficult to be patient when people who have failed to protest on the significant issues of our day finally decide to act just because a radio station does not share their opinion about what kind of music is worth broadcasting. It is a frivolous act for a trivial cause in very serious times.

It was the kind of Superbowl party I love to see. John McCain thought that his Democratic-turncoat ally Joseph Lieberman could lead him into a cushy campaign stop in Connecticut, but the Connecticut Citizen Action Group showed them something different.

Protesters from the group confronted John McCain and his supporters with some pesky facts about the economy and the ongoing occupation in Iraq. By voting in favor of rushing to war in Iraq, Senator John McCain managed to provide poor leadership for the military and economy all at once. McCain pushed American soldiers into a deathtrap without any time for planning, and he threw hundreds of billions of American dollars out the window, often without any idea where that money would go.

It’s like John Murphy of Connecticut Opposes The War said at the protest: “Connecticut and the rest of the American public are strongly opposed to the McCain, Lieberman, Shays, Bush war in Iraq… The looming recession proves that we can’t afford to continue their shopping sprees in Baghdad while ignoring pressing needs like health care here at home.”

After that massive failure, John McCain thinks he’s qualified to be President? The Connecticut Citizen Action Group says no. Thanks to them for showing up to state an obvious truth, and to remind John McCain that America refuses to fall for his political shell game. We’ve been watching his hands.

So far, I have reported on many Democrats in the House and Senate who turned coat and voted along with the Republicans to give vast new powers to Alberto Gonzales with the passage of the Protect America Act.

The Protect America Act gives the Bush White House the power to keep going with its Total Information Awareness program, a program that was exposed as revived and operational by AT&T employee Mark Klein. There is some reason to believe that the Protect America Act was partially designed in order to prevent the details of the reborn Total Information Awareness program to spy on our web surfing, email, telephone calls, and other electronic communications from being released.

I am happy to report that every single Democrat in Congress from Connecticut voted against the legislation. Senator Chris Dodd and Representatives John Larson, Joe Courtney, Rosa DeLauro and Chris Murphy voted no to Big Brother on the Internet and on the phone line.

Although all the Democratic presidential candidates in Congress voted against the Protect America Act, Senator Chris Dodd is the only candidate that I can find who has issued a statement against the infamous new law. Dodd stated his position clearly: “It should have never passed — and there is no good explanation for it doing so.”

Thanks for Christopher Dodd, and to all the other Democrats in Congress who voted against the terrible Protect America Act.

Ah, but there is one who used to be a Democrat who voted to help give Alberto Gonzales new powers to spy on American citizens’ private activities on the Internet. Senator Joseph Lieberman, who represents the Joseph Lieberman Party, voted right along with the Republicans, happy to help Alberto Gonzales and George W. Bush read your emails, listen to your phone call, and keep track of which web sites you go to and what you do while there.