Tag Archives: Democratic

Save the Brazilian Amazon’s last tributary from destruction


Photo credit: Aaron Vincent Elkaim

Believe it or not there is only one major tributary in the Brazilian Amazon that still runs free – the pristine Tapajós River. Today, the Tapajós and its vast forests are at risk of imminent destruction from the Brazilian government’s plans to build 29 large dams and approximately 80 smaller dams across its tributaries. Local communities such as the Mundurukú people, whose ancestral lands would be flooded, are fiercely resisting this devastation. Please donate today and support our work to keep the Tapajós running free.

“The fact is that there is only one earth and that nature provides everything. This is the indigenous reality and that is why our peoples are uniting in order to put an end to the damage caused by the Federal Government.”
– Mundurukú Chief Saw

Working with the Mundurukú, we have already made a difference: last year, our collective efforts forced Brazil’s Ministry of Mines and Energy to postpone the dam’s license. Yet, we‘re aware that this victory, while important, is temporary.

Only the Mundurukú’s resolve and support from people around the world will defend the Tapajós basin, helping to preserve rivers, rainforests, and our climate. That’s why Amazon Watch stands with the Mundurukú while advocating for clean energy alternatives. We are advancing solutions that respect the rights of indigenous cultures, promote truly renewable energy sources, and allow the Amazon to thrive as it works to regulate our global climate.

The Mundurukú are our frontline allies in the struggle to save our planet from the devastation of climate change. How the world responds to their call reflects the choices we make about our own future. Today we invite you to make a choice in favor of people and planet.

For the Amazon,

Smells Like Death and Bad Decisions …repost


RioCoverby
Bring up Rio de Janeiro and you’ll conjure delectable images in my mind. Images like … Beaches. Mouthfuls of picanha bursting with juicy flavor. Grown and sexy natives are pressing their bodies against each other to samba music in dusky bars. Brazilian women flaunting their beautiful Brazilian bundas in skin-baring bikinis as they walk along the beach, hips swaying in the sunlight – not to mention their bronze skin and sun-kissed waist-length tresses. (Excuse me while I whip out my credit card to order 22 inches of Brazilian Remy hair. Now I want to look Brazilian for a few weeks.)

 

These appetizing images aren’t all that come to mind. I haven’t forgotten about soccer. Brazil and soccer are synonymous with one another and Brazil is hosting its first World Cup in 64 years.

Rio is also home to the 2016 Olympic Games – the first country in South America to claim the privilege. But these facts are troubling, particularly because despite these honors, Rio is socially, environmentally and financially stewing in a sewage and pollution crisis that’s as disgusting as it is disturbing. This is affecting peoples’ lives and threatening the country’s tourism industry. If these issues aren’t checked by August 5, 2016, then the 2016 Olympics are in jeopardy.

Rio’s Crappy Situation

“When Brazil was selected as the host of the World Cup five years ago, we celebrated. We celebrated because we didn’t know that it was going to cost so much,” said Mateos da Costa, a 53-year-old taxi driver told CNN. “Our leaders should have known that Brazil was not in a condition to organize the event.”

To say Brazil was not in a condition is an understatement. Brazil’s competence for hosting global events has been under scrutiny several times, but after beating out Tokyo, Madrid and Chicago to host the games, the country promised to get their act together and clean up their public sewage issues in time for the games. Now, these same unsavory sewage conditions are the reason Brazil will not make good on its commitment to clean up in time for neither the World Cup nor the 2016 Olympic Games.

UNFULFILLED PROMISES

 

Rio residents, or Cariocas, are frustrated with Rio’s behavior. Initially, the World Cup and the Olympics came attached to promises of economic prosperity for not only the government but also the people. Taxpayers have paid over $3.6 billion to develop stadiums across Brazil – and that amount is just a portion of the World Cup’s $11.5 billion price tag.

Despite all the money poured into these sports initiatives, Brazil’s has a laundry list of mostly built stadiums that aren’t ready for World Cup use. And according to discussions, there are so many factors to blame, including corruption, shortsighted planning and “overwhelming bureaucracy,” says to Wall Street Journal writers John Lyons and Loretta Chao. They insist there’s widespread belief prioritization of tourism and entertainment over education and health care keep the country poor.

“It’s an affront, in a country with so many deficiencies in basic needs, to organize a Cup in this way,” Alcyr Leme told the Wall Street Journal. Although Leme has “fond memories of going to see Brazilian legend Pelé play in the 1960s,” he plans to watch this Cup from home. “Buying game tickets would only condone the waste,” he said.

Continued…

let the madness of March commence …&some News


rain wind and more rain…more wind …

just another rant …

What worried me before the mid-term elections was the possibility that people who have no experience, civility, common sense or clarity may get on the floor of Congress and really ruin what used to be a great country if they “take back their country.” I guess you can plug in whatever that means for you though it sounds like an awful way to live if you are a minority on any level. Now, 7.5 yrs. later you would think, maybe people have experienced enough bs and now understand that elections have consequences. The true answer is no, not many constituents in red states have been laughing, listening or have learned  from what has occurred on the floor of Congress .

The grim reality is that a vote for Republicans is a vote against your own best interest people.

If you live under a Republican controlled state, you have to ask yourself what have Republicans really done for you lately especially if you have family friends who are Federal Employees…  co-workers Teachers, Cops, Emts, Firefighters. Honestly, i don’t get it. The Republican mission remains unchanged and is as clear as the nose on your face and what you are hearing right now is only about winning the primary, you cannot be telling me Republicans can or intend to do a 360 or 180 if they win. The mission of Republicans in congress has been to seek out and privatize public service jobs or destroy them while dismantling the ACA by any means necessary. Unfortunately, the “thing” (Women) they have chosen to use as a Political football reared its ugly head again, a need to shutdoen homeland security, EPA,Education. republicans hate immigration reform while the XXL pipeline got vetoed by POTUS, rumors are it may still get built anyway and that boggles my brain.

In 2010, Republican Governors told their constituents their focus was on JObs Jobs Jobs though as time passed it was clear the mission included eliminating unions, defunding education and every social service program available while eliminating Working Families at the same time. This was not just a rude awakening it was a slap in the face, which brought out that sleeping giant that gained speed and culminated into millions of folks fighting back voting POTUS back for a second term. Now, in this 2016 year, the 21st Century the Party of No wants to roll back the clock, stir blue collar workers into a froth with instantiated anger that they, their wives and neighbors will march into that voting booth and vote based on everything other than who really is qualified to be President of the United States . The results from the midterm elections should have been a warning shot; their votes will and have affected our children, our lives, and now a trump president could ruin our future for years to come.  Think of the possibilities, if voters put the Democratic Party back in charge.  There will still be differences of opinion but changing out the extreme and partisan Party for a Congress that might be willing to work together for the greater good, rids America of Citizens United, makes sure that equality in all its forms finally reigns and that income inequality gap starts to fall away. The choice is an obvious one to me as this group of Republican lawmakers on the local State and Federal level decidedly agreed to take an extreme hard right. The Political Party of no made the unseemly choice to sign a pledge to stick by Grover  Norquist! it hurts all Americans, supports Paul Ryan’s farst of a budget that will change Medicare/Medicaid and Social Security as we know it. We cannot afford to give power to Rep.Ryan and  McConnell power that has in my opinion been abused  misused far more than their constituents understand or accept.  Mr. McConnell’s famous statement, that his job, his only goal was and still is to make President Obama a one term President will go down in history, and not in a good way. President Barack Obama has done more for the middle class and poor on his own while in office than those running states, let alone a Congress that has been an obstacle on so many levels during his Great 2Terms in office

Voting is a Right NOT a Privilege ….

below is just one of many stories of brave people who took a stand for us, Annie took a stand for my right to vote … NOW, we all have to Stand Up ! We will NOT let them turn back the Voting Clock !

Annie Lee Cooper

The Selma Times-Journal reports:Annie Lee Cooper, a civil rights hero, died Wednesday afternoon at Vaughan Regional Medical Center. She was 100 years old.

Cooper became known worldwide in 1965 for a confrontation with Sheriff James G. Clark.

Historian David J. Garrow tells the story in his book, “Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Voting Rights Act of 1965,” which was released in the 1970s by Yale University Press.

According to Garrow’s documented version, Cooper had stood in line for hours outside the Dallas County Courthouse to register to vote. Clark ordered the 224-pound, 54-year-old African-American woman to go home. Cooper clamed he poked her in the back of the neck with either a billy club or a cattle prod. Cooper turned and delivered a right hook to the sheriff’s jaw. He dropped to the ground. — Read the whole story –> Annie Lee Cooper, civil rights legend, dies | The Selma Times?Journal

 

What’s an inversion, and what’s it costing you? a repost


President Obama called attention to one kind of corporate tax loophole in particular — called an “inversion” — a word you might be seeing in a lot of news headlines lately.

It’s not the most intuitive name for a corporate tax loophole, so we’re breaking it down for you.

Click here to find out what it is, how it’s costing you, and how to fix it.

Learn more about what inversions are.

Want more content like this delivered to your inbox every day? Sign up for the Daily Snapshot.

Stay Connected