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Madison's Battle of the Brats

by Rebekah Wilce — April 26, 2011 - 3:23pm
  • Topics: Activism, Arts / Culture, Corporations, Wisconsin Protests

    • The "World's Largest Brat Fest," which will take place over Memorial Day weekend at Willow Island at the Alliant Energy Center, will serve brats donated by Johnsonville Sausage of Sheboygan Falls, WI. Johnsonville owners (the Stayer and Stayer-Maloney families) and other principals of Johnsonville Sausage contributed a total of $48,450 to Scott Walker's gubernatorial and other 2010 Republican state campaigns, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign's Campaign Finance Database.

    Nebraska Bill Would Increase Election Spending Accountability

    by Rebekah Wilce — April 20, 2011 - 1:21pm

    The Nebraska legislature gave unanimous first-round approval in late March to LB606, a measure  to close a loophole in state campaign funding regulation which currently allows organizations like Americans for Prosperity (AFP) to spend unlimited funds to influence state politics without filing finance reports with the state Accountability and Disclosure Commission, as long as they can claim that they don’t specifically advocate voting for or against a candidate. AFP “spent tens of thousands of dollars in the 2010 Nebraska elections,” but doesn't file finance reports with the state, arguing that its efforts represented "educational’ efforts” -- everything but specifically advocating voting one way or another. AFP also claimed the exemption because they’re registered as a corporation in Nebraska, not a campaign committee or political action group. The proposal by Sen. Bill Avery of Lincoln, NE “would require AFP and any similar outfits to report their campaign spending to the Nebraska Secretary of State so that everyone would be able to know who’s spending money to influence the election -- regardless of whether they urge specific support or opposition for a candidate.”

    Main Source: 
    Nebraska StatePaper.com, March 22, 2011
    News

    Taxpayers Demand Chase Bank Pay its Fair Share

    by Rebekah Wilce — April 18, 2011 - 9:58pm
  • Topics: Activism, Corporate Social Responsibility, Banking, Wisconsin Protests

    • At a rally held in front of Chase Bank on Capitol Square in Madison, Wisconsin today, a few dozen people gathered to air their grievances against Chase and other U.S. corporations who will pay no taxes for 2010. Jeff Kravat of MoveOn hosted the rally along with Gene Lundergan, who gathered a group of four or five people to present a tax bill of almost $2 billion to the branch bank manager. This bill, for $1.988 billion, was drawn up using Chase's 2010 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and a December 2008 U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report (pdf). When Lundergan, Steve Hughes of Young Progressives and several others approached the front entrance of the bank, they were refused admission by the security guard, so they left the bill propped in the front window.

    News

    Don't "Misunderestimate" Wisconsin

    by Brendan Fischer — April 16, 2011 - 8:01pm
  • Topics: Activism, Democracy, Wisconsin Protests

    • MADISON -- Sarah Palin graced Wisconsin with her maverickness on a cold, wet Saturday where counter-protesters outnumbered Tea Party supporters. Wisconsin Wave held an early rally on the opposite side of the capitol, giving progressives a platform for the day but ending in time for attendees to march in opposition to Palin's speech.

    News

    Koch-Fueled Controversy Lands in Washington

    by Mary Bottari — April 14, 2011 - 1:20pm
  • Topics: Activism, Banking, Corporations, Democracy, Real Economy Project, Wisconsin Protests

    • On April 14 the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, chaired by Darrell Issa (R-California), held a hearing on state and municipal debt where the key question was State Budget Cuts: Choice or Necessity?

    Chairman Issa started off by framing the issue in a manner that was thrilling to Wall Street barons and corporate big wigs. He said that states will face a shortfall of $112 billion in 2012 and the reasons for this were "obvious." The primary reasons, according to Issa, are reckless spending and unfunded or underfunded pension funds. The 2008 Wall Street financial crisis and the staggering job loss, which caused state and federal tax revenues to tank, were not mentioned.

    And so it went. Flying in the face of fact and reason, Republicans insisted that states spend too much and that the best way to attack the state deficit problem is on the back of unionized workers, their only organized opposition in the electoral arena.

    Op-Ed

    A Prize for Simply Doing What's Right

    by Wendell Potter — April 14, 2011 - 11:31am
  • Topics: Activism, Corporations, Ethics

    • This week I received a Ridenhour Prize for my book, Deadly Spin. I'm honored to receive the award, especially in light of my fellow recipients: former Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin; the producers of a film called Budrus, about attempts to find non-violent solutions to the strife in the Middle East, and Thomas Drake, an National Security Agency contractor who blew the whistle on what he believed were corrupt practices. Past honorees have included Bill Moyers and Bob Herbert. Elite company.

    It is always nice to be recognized for one's work. The prizes are supposed to honor those "who speak truth to power." But the honor is also ironically unfortunate. The need to write the book at all, to illustrate how selfish profit motives too frequently take precedence over the health care needs of real people, remains a tragedy. And sadly, that continues to be the case, even after so much has been revealed about the inner workings of insurance giants and even after a bruising political battle has been waged to change how health care is delivered in America. The fact is, I shouldn't have had to write the book. There shouldn't have to be an award for people who simply do what is simply right.

    AP Pranked by Hoax Press Release Saying GE Will Repay its $3.2 Billion Tax Break

    by Anne Landman — April 13, 2011 - 12:28pm

    The Associated Press published a story based on a fake, emailed press release that said General Electric would respond to criticism over the amount of taxes it avoids by repaying its entire $3.2 billion tax refund for 2010 to the U.S. Treasury Department.

    Main Source: 
    Business Insider, April 13, 2011
    News

    RELEASE: 

Sally Brown and BioCycle Magazine, Supporters of Growing Food in Sewage Sludge, Call Organic Food Advocates "Ecoterrorists"



    by Erica Pelzek — April 12, 2011 - 11:22am
  • Topics: Agriculture, Activism, Environment

    • CONTACT: John Stauber, Senior Adviser, Food Rights Network
    PHONE: (608) 260-9713; (608) 279-4044
    EMAIL: FoodRightsNetwork@gmail.com

    Sally Brown and BioCycle Magazine, Supporters of Growing Food in Sewage Sludge, Call Organic Food Advocates "Ecoterrorists"

    Organic Consumers Association and Food Rights Network Demand Retraction at April 12 BioCycle Conference (Brown Headlining)

    SAN DIEGO--Leading organic gardening and food safety advocates who oppose growing food in sewage sludge are attending the national BioCycle magazine conference Tuesday, April 12, 2011 in San Diego to demand an apology and retraction from Sally Brown, a columnist and editorial board member of BioCycle magazine, and from Nora Goldstein, the executive editor of BioCycle.

    Democrats are fighting back in Ohio

    by Jennifer Page — April 11, 2011 - 11:04am
  • Topics: Activism, Democracy, Economy, Labor, Politics, Wisconsin Protests

    • Ohio Democrats this week introduced into a divided state legislature a new bill that would allow Ohio citizens to recall Governor John Kasich and other legislatures. The state has been in an ideological upheaval for months after Kasich's budget bill was introduced, similar to the Wisconsin bill that has received incredible national attention for stripping unions of their collective bargaining rights, and eventually signed April 2nd after some concessions were made by the Republican-held Assembly and Senate.

    News

    FOX "News" Bids Glenn Beck Adieu

    by Summer Abdoh — April 10, 2011 - 8:53am
  • Topics: Activism, Right Wing, Media

    • Glenn Beck's show is ending after years of grassroots campaigning caused FOX News' once highest-rated show to lose advertising and public support.

    On April 6, 2011, FOX News announced it would help Beck "transition" into other ventures, which include for-air projects and FOX News' websites. What the press release did not mention was the successful campaign against Beck initiated by Color of Change, an organization rooted in equal political access for people of color.

    On the show Fox and Friends in 2009, Beck said that President Obama had a "deep seated hatred for white people." Color of Change began a petition appealing to Beck's advertisers to end their support, and within two days, reportedly 100,000 people had signed it. The current number of signatures, according to the group, now stands at 285,000 people. Organizations like Media Matters, MoveOn, CREDO Action and StopBeck joined Color of Change in petitioning Beck's advertisers to stop supporting the show.

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