Pay Your Taxes: Fight For Freedom

Me and my sign at the Boston Tea Party (featuring Sarah Palin!), in 2010:

"...and schools, highways, safe air & water, Medicare..."

Too bad GWB's response to sending us to war was to tell us to go shopping.

In the clip below, the propaganda feels weird/odd now, but you can imagine how this could be re-messaged (hopefully without the bloodlust [guns...guns...GUNS...]) for 2003-201?. Watch!!



Thanks to Barry H for calling my attention to this video, via this blog post: The Income Tax as Patriotic Duty » Sociological Images http://bit.ly/GLnp1Y
More on TAXES TAXES TAXES after the flip:

Support Needham Youth Civic Engagement!

Great project!! I urge you to contribute at least a little, to show you support these young people getting involved and engaged in the civic questions of our time!  And please forward the request to others! This comes to me by way of Stacie Shapiro: 

A group of Plugged In students recently created a video that was selected for the 2nd annual "If I Had a Trillion Dollars (IHTD)" Film Festival and have been invited to go to Washington, DC to participate in a youth leadership session on lobbying and media messaging, as well as meet with legislators on Capitol Hill to discuss federal spending priorities.

The festival is presented by the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and the National Priorities Project (NPP) and encouraged youth to take a closer look at how the United States is spending our money.

The youth were asked to create a short film that expresses what they would do if they could redirect government funds away from things like war and towards projects that would help their own communities.

We are running a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the travel and lodging expenses for the group. 

The Affordable Care Act, Part II

NYT: 5 Obamacare myths (July 2012)

1. Myth: It's a jobkiller
2. Myth: it's a fed takeover of health insurance
3. Myth: the unfettered marketplace is a better solution
4. Myth: leave it to the states; they'll fix it
5. Myth: it's loser: run against it, run from it; don't run on it

Issues of Cost and the Affordable Care Act
(lots of other stuff, at this post)
Why we need "Obamacare":
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/06/what-the-wapo-wont-run.html

| TOP | _______________________
Cost/Affordable Care Act

• Kevin Drum - Mother Jones - Why Health Care Costs Keep Growing (8/2012) http://bit.ly/OIhVFh
• a big part of the blame on all the shiny new technology that we're so eager to use (and use and use and use), and the most recent estimate also lays a lot of the blame on rising incomes (as incomes go up, we actively want to spend a bigger share of our income on healthcare).
• David Pakman Show - Woman Who Sued Over Obamacare Now in Bankruptcy w/ Medical Bills (7/2012)  - http://bit.ly/LZrwK8
• RT @thinkprogress: Santorum claims Obamacare will cost 2x what Obama projected. Actually, it will cost less than Obama projected. http://thkpr.gs/xhCQNH #facts (3/17/2012)
• Santorum hammers Obama with dubious claim on healthcare bill cost - latimes.com (3/17/2012)

TWO GREAT VIDEOS to remind you about what is at stake with Health Care Reform -- recommended viewing!

More info after the flip...

What are your issues?

Take the Progressive Mass "Issues Survey" (appears below, or click to the PM website)--I am helping the Prog.MA issues team develop priorities for 2012, and the more progressives who weigh in, the better we can respond to the issues of importance to you! It takes a couple minutes, not too much time.

Thanks! Spread the word! (SURVEY AFTER FLIP!)

Super Tuesday Needham Results

In case you want to geek out on elections stuff, the view from my little corner of the world. Precinct H and G, specifically. For context, according to Needham Times, Needham has 6,641 registered Democrats, 2,511 registered Republicans and 10,244 unenrolled voters--for a total (by my math) of 19,396 registered Needham voters. 


Update 3: Compare yesterday's MA results with 2008 Presidential Primary results.:

• 2008: Romney got 255,982 in MA. (1,745 in Needham)
• 2012: Romney: 265,097 in MA. (1,831 in Needham)
• In 4 years, Romney saw an increase of 9,115 votes (86 in Needham)--a mere 4% (5% in Needham).

And it appears this voter enthusiasm problem for the Republicans is playing out nationally: Republican turnout woes intensify (DKos, 3/7/2012)

Update 2: Full Needham Results at the Needham Town Clerk website. Direct link here. Will excerpt any interesting information as the whim/notice grabs me.  The Needham Patch has excellent rundown of the main races and Needham breakdown.

(MORE AFTER THE FLIP)

Anti-Immigrant Bills in Massachusetts

shortlink: http://hmny.me/s2061 

As if the MA Legislature's embrace of failed "3 Strikes" prison "reform" wasn't enough, we are again seeing a rash of anti-immigrant bills --- with doublespeak names like "safe community"--- making their way thru the legislature.

Last week, the Senate Bill 2061 had its hearing on the same day as Senate Bill 772 (the "Overturn Citizens United" bill).  The testimony on 2061 saddened me greatly, and illustrated that the conversation about immigration and the status of undocumented residents in America and Massachusetts must happen if we are to stop the xenophobic pressure being applied to legislatures around the country.  Even Massachusetts.

PLEASE call State Sen. Ross (617-722-1555) (or your legislators if you are not in Needham) -- he sits on the Joint Committee of the Judiciary which is where the bill is currently, so his role right now is particularly important.

(MORE AFTER FLIP)

Vote Tuesday: It's Not Just the POTUS, and Not JUST Inside Baseball

UPDATE 2: MA election results and Needham turnout breakdown are here: Super Tuesday Needham Results 


UPDATE: Needham Patch has information about polling locations (remember, there was redistricting this year; some of you will be voting in different places)

VOTE ON TUESDAY! There's more than just the President on the ballot! Take charge of our Party! Make sure our progressive liberal values are represented in the State Democratic Party!

• Vote for President
• Town/Ward Committees
• Contested seat for State Committee
• >> My endorsement for this seat<<

MORE ---

Flush Rush.

Because we've had way too much of his blather for these decades and decades.

From the people who brought you the successful Stop Beck campaign... a grassroots mobilization of citizen activists to call into Rush Limbaugh's advertisers to tell them all the vile things Rush says.  One by one Beck lost advertisers and in time, the whole house of Beck fell.

Why not flush Rush?

Ongoing list of advertisers and those who've pulled out, here: Who's Advertising On Rush Limbaugh? | Media Matters for America
(MORE AFTER FLIP)

Time to End the Culture War. Time to Elect Women.

Great response and counter-argument to the Republican assault on health care, women's bodies and reproductive freedoms. 1 very quick minute--Watch it!!!

More links on these issues in these blog posts:
-Abortion

• Contraception, ACA, Religion and the ACORNification of Planned Parenthood 
• Push Back: GOP overreaches on Family Planning, Workers' Rights 
• See also: The Culture Wars

And here are some good images after the flip: