When you talk to activists around the state, as I did recently during a weeklong visit, you hear a lot about Romney’s record on health care, specifically, and about his ideological squishiness in general. But you also come to understand that the antipathy in Tea Party circles is more visceral. It’s a reaction to what they perceive as Romney’s synthetic and calculating persona, the sense that he somehow embodies everything that’s false and impenetrable about the parties in Washington. And so South Carolina, which will hold its presidential primary Jan. 21, is the place where two powerful political vehicles — Mitt Romney’s establishment-backed campaign and the three-year-old Tea Party insurgency — will collide full force. It’s here where Tea Party activists have expected to assert their influence over the party’s nominating process. For most of them, that means, above all, stopping Mitt.
The problem is that they’ve had a hard time settling on any obvious alternative to Romney, in a way that might transform the primary into a clear, binary choice.
The Tea Party’s Not-So-Civil War – NYTimes.com
12 JanOccupii Membership Steadily Growing and Decentralized | Irregular Times
12 JanIt’s been about two weeks since Occupii.org, the new social network site for the Occupy movement, got kick started. A look at membership trends suggests that overall membership is steadily growing, and that it’s decentralized. Most people are not joining the two biggest groups at Occupii, Occupy USA and Occupy UK, but are rather headed to a large number of smaller groups focused on particular interests, like running a newspaper.
via Occupii Membership Steadily Growing and Decentralized | Irregular Times.
CENSORED NEWS: Wikileaks revealed US espionage of Indigenous Peoples in 2011
11 JanIn the Censored News pick for the Best of the Best in 2011, Wikileaks claims first prize. Wikileaks exposed the US corporate schemes, espionage, promotion of mining and efforts globally to halt passage of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Wikileaks revealed extensive espionage of Indigenous Peoples, including the Mapuche and Mohawks, and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales, who ushered in a new Indigenous global rights campaign.
The release of the US diplomatic cables of the US State Department confirmed that the US feared the power of Indigenous Peoples, specifically their claims to their traditional territories, a right stated in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Further, the Declaration states the right of free, prior and informed consent before development proceeds and protects intellectual and cultural property rights.
via CENSORED NEWS: Wikileaks revealed US espionage of Indigenous Peoples in 2011.
Paul Levinson’s Infinite Regress: The Day After New Hampshire
11 JanI take Ron Paul’s strong second-place in the Republican New Hampshire primary last night as a very good thing for people like me who want more government respect for the First Amendment and an end to unconstitutional wars.
Yes, there are positions that Ron Paul holds which I strongly oppose – notably his call for a Constitutional Amendment to ban abortion, which is inconsistent with libertarian philosophy and its view that the government should stay out of our lives. And I’m not at all happy about the racist observations that appeared under his name in his newsletter two decades ago.
But there’s a lot to commend in Ron Paul. He not only opposes undeclared wars but the NDAA signed into law by Obama and SOPA now under consideration in Congress. He wants an end to the massive Federal anti-drug enforcement, which he correctly sees as an invasion of privacy.
And his Republican rivals, who share none of his virtues, share all of his serious political defects.
via Paul Levinson’s Infinite Regress: The Day After New Hampshire.
Transition Videos – YouTube
11 JanAbout The Transition is Now!
Inspiring videos about a wide variety of topics including Transition Town Movement, consciousness, culture, Permaculture, Evolver Social Movement, spirituality, philosophy, and much more. We focus on solutions and strategies to create a more beautiful, sustainable world. We love to engage with other like minds through conversations in person and through this world wide web.
The EPA’s Weak Stance on Nasty, Immune System-Wrecking Dioxins – Barry Estabrook – Health – The Atlantic
11 JanIt’s difficult to see how anyone can consider issues surrounding potentially fatal poisons as irrelevant to human health. The European Union and World Health Organization have already established safe limits for dioxins in food. They are weaker than those proposed by the EPA, but in the case of dioxins, any limitations are better than none — which is what we might end up with if the food companies succeed in silencing the EPA scientists.
What about Ron Paul’s strong New Hampshire showing? – War Room – Salon.com
11 Jan… the marked improvement in his performance from 2008 (when he finished with eight percent in New Hampshire and 10 percent in Iowa) is a testament to the growing appeal of his message, both inside and outside the Republican Party. Particularly notable is the starling support Paul received in the first two contests from voters under 30 — 48 percent in Iowa and 47 percent in New Hampshire.
Clearly, Paul speaks to a significant and growing number of Americans, and it’s worth trying to understand what specific aspects of his platform are energizing each component of his coalition. How big a factor, for instance, is his support for relaxed drug laws in the enthusiasm of young voters? Does the surprising level of evangelical support he won in Iowa (18 percent — or second place) suggest there may be more room for dissent on Israel and the Middle East on the Christian right than is commonly assumed — or are Paul’s religious conservative backers simply ignoring his foreign policy views and supporting him for other reasons? And so on. Paul’s coalition is as funky as his platform, and Paul-ism is a political force that isn’t going away anytime soon.
via What about Ron Paul’s strong New Hampshire showing? – War Room – Salon.com.
As Romney Advances, Private Equity Becomes Part of the Debate – NYTimes.com
11 JanJust as Mr. Romney and his advisers are defending his work at Bain, the industry is also trying to blunt some of the attacks. For a group of Wall Street executives who prefer to operate out of the spotlight, the repercussions could be considerable. Among the things the industry wants to preserve is favorable tax treatment for profits on private equity deals.
via As Romney Advances, Private Equity Becomes Part of the Debate – NYTimes.com.
Our looming energy wars – Energy – Salon.com
10 JanThe Strait of Hormuz is, however, only one of several hot spots where energy, politics and geography are likely to mix in dangerous ways in 2012 and beyond. Keep your eye as well on the East and South China Seas, the Caspian Sea basin and an energy-rich Arctic that is losing its sea ice. In all of these places, countries are disputing control over the production and transportation of energy, and arguing about national boundaries and/or rights of passage.
Humane Connection: Educator Arnold Greenberg: Counting What Can’t Be Counted
10 JanI believe there needs to be a paradigm shift in education before we can create schools based on how children actually learn and that address 21st-century realities. The shift I am proposing centers on a problem-based curriculum in which the goal is to develop the ability to articulate important questions about issues of concern and to learn how to find solutions. “Let the questions be the curriculum,” Socrates once advocated. He “taught” by asking questions to which he did not know the answers, and he said he owed his wisdom to his willingness to let his questions guide him. Here I think it is illuminating to note the relationship between the words “quest” and “question.” For Socrates, it is the quest for knowledge that is important. A good question is a quest and can be the beginning of important journeys into the unknown.
A problem-based approach to learning is as natural as breathing. It could dramatically change how schools are structured and how teachers teach, and ultimately enable students to develop the abilities that really “count.” Problem-based learning is built on the assumption that the most effective learning takes place when students are using their knowledge to solve real life problems that concern them. It encourages them to work either individually or collaboratively on problems that are relevant to their lives in order to create and propose solutions as opposed to the traditional approach of reproducing information. Through analysis, strategizing, and the gathering of data and information, student learning is deepened because it is being used to solve real problems. Imagine students exploring the causes for global warming and proposing solutions or analyzing our current food distribution system that has a billion people hungry and suggesting how these problems can be remedied.
via Humane Connection: Educator Arnold Greenberg: Counting What Can’t Be Counted.
Truth and Traditions 