Tag Archives: Separation of church and state

did you know … the LaRouche movement


just another rant …

I am sure that attitudes about the LaRouche movement is different among left of center folks out there. I admit my attitude is for and about left of center actions that will help my family yours and possibly effect others that have like minded actions … ones that create change for the better like: clean air water environment living for the 21st Century that is inclusive … extremists on the right or the left are tough to accept when the goal or mission is only for a select few to reap the benefits … that is just wrong in my opinion. Anyway, a little information about their movement is below and contrary to what they say I just cannot believe they consider themselves apart of the Democratic Party

Lyndon LaRouche, who is, well, a fringe political cult leader of sorts.  LaRouche is a left-wing Marxist-turned-right-wing conspiracy theorist, and believes in off-the-wall policies like space colonization, a quarantine for everyone with AIDS, and opposition to abortion and gay rights. And LaRouche, himself a former perennial presidential candidate, has been accused of espousing fascist, racist and anti-Semitic views.  As the late Manning Marable once said, “LaRouche appeals to fear, hatred and ignorance. He seeks to exploit and exacerbate the anxieties and frustrations of Americans by offering an array of scapegoats and enemies: Jews, Zionists, international bankers, blacks, labor unions-much the way Hitler did in Germany.” Not running for political office these days, LaRouche, 91 years old, has his minions on the ballot—people such as Kesha Rogers.  Like other LaRouche supporters, Rogers has compared President Obama to Hitler, complete with the mustache, and likened Obamacare to the policies of Nazi Germany. And she wants to impeach him, too.

Resources: UK Progressives … the grio … state- election.info … Rogers official website

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The LaRouche movement opposed the UN sanctions against Iraq in 1991 and the Gulf War in 1991.[13] Supporters formed the “Committee to Save the Children in Iraq”.[14] LaRouche blamed the sanctions and war on “Israeli-controlled Moslem fundamentalist groups” and the “Ariel Sharon-dominated government of Israel” whose policies were “dictated by Kissinger and company, through the Hollinger Corporation, which has taken over The Jerusalem Post for that purpose.”[15] Left-wing anti-war groups were divided over the LaRouche movement’s involvement.[16]

In 2000, the Democratic Senatorial nominee in Wyoming, Mel Logan, was a LaRouche follower;[17] the Republican incumbent, Craig Thomas, won in a 76%–23% landslide. In 2001, a “national citizen-candidates’ movement” was created, advancing candidates for a number of elective offices across the country.

In 2006, LaRouche Youth Movement activist and Los Angeles County Democratic Central Committee member Cody Jones was honored as “Democrat of the Year” for the 43rd Assembly District of California, by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.[18][better source needed] At the April 2007 California State Democratic Convention, LYM activist Quincy O’Neal was elected vice-chairman of the California State Democratic Black Caucus,[19][better source needed] and Wynneal Innocentes was elected corresponding secretary of the Filipino Caucus.[20][better source needed]

In November 2007, Mark Fairchild returned to Illinois to promote legislation authored by LaRouche, called the “Homeowners and Bank Protection Act of 2007”, establishing a moratorium on home foreclosures and establishing a new federal agency to oversee all federal and state banks. He also promoted LaRouche’s plan to build a high-speed railroad to connect Russia and the United States, including a tunnel under the Bering Strait.[7][21]

In 2009, a volunteer table in Mattituck, NY had a picture of Obama with a “drawn-in Hitler moustache” and “a picture of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi with Frankenstein-style bolts in her head.”[22] In Seattle in 2011 (?), an image of Obama with a “Hitler moustache” angered some. Police were called in regarding a LaRouche opponent telling a LaRouche volunteer “Look at me again and I’m going to punch your face.” In another case, during the prior month, “the same officer was called to investigated an incident in which a man threatened to rip down several political signs displayed by LaRouche supporters.” “Police investigated the incident as malicious harassment — the state’s hate-crime law.”[23] At one widely reported event, Congressman Barney Frank referred to the posters as “vile, contemptible nonsense.”[24]

LaRouche supporters, Homer Alaska, May 2012

In March 2010, LaRouche Youth leader Kesha Rogers won the Democratic congressional primary in Houston, Texas’ 22nd District.[25] The following day, a spokeswoman for the Texas Democratic Party stated that “La Rouche members are not Democrats. I guarantee her campaign will not receive a single dollar from anyone on our staff.”[26] In June 2012, Rogers won the Democratic congressional primary for a second time.[27]

In March 2014, Rogers received 22% of the vote in the U.S. Senate Democratic primary, placing her into a runoff election with David M. Alameel.[28]

Resource: wiki

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In May David M. Alameel won the runoff by 72% against LaRouche candidate Rogers and will need help from the Democratic Party with his bid to unseat Cornyn ~~ Nativegrl77

#NotOneMore


You helped make this powerful message unavoidabl​e

If you were in D.C., this ad was all over news sites, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Basically, all the places political offices have to monitor.”

That’s how our ad team described MoveOn members’ powerful ad campaign targeting decision makers in Washington, D.C. and state capitals across the country. The ad featured a call for action on gun violence from Richard Martinez, whose son was killed in the recent shooting at UC Santa Barbara.

This ad generated 8.1 million impressions in capital cities across the country in a week, including nearly 1 million in Washington, D.C. While not all of those “impressions” mean that someone watched the entire video, we do know that it was viewed thousands of times by government staffers and more than 600 times by members of the media.

Together, we’re working to make this powerful message unavoidable—to demand action in the face of the continued scourge of gun violence in communities across America. Sadly, in just the past few weeks, there have been multiple mass shootings since UCSB and countless individual gun deaths.

But passionate messages like Mr. Martinez’s can break through. As this video was being shared from coast to coast, MoveOn member and UCSB student Kyley Scarlet started a petition on gun violence to the Obama administration, and Vice President Joe Biden responded with a personal video message for students at the school.1

That’s why, no matter how frustrating this effort can be, we have to keep lifting our voices. If you haven’t already, please share the ad with everyone you know.

Thanks for all you do.

–Garlin, Jo, Nick, Alejandro, and the rest of the team

P.S. Have an idea for reducing gun violence in your community? Start your campaign today.

Sources:

1. “Vice President Joe Biden’s video message for UCSB graduates,” KCBX, June 11, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=299639&id=97504-17809870-5iignsx&t=4

Want to support our work? MoveOn Civic Action is entirely funded by our 8 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

Teachers forced to sign a “morality contract”


by Dominick Mortarotti via Change.org

I go to a Catholic school in Oakland, and the local Bishop wants to be able to fire teachers for things like supporting gay rights or seeking infertility treatment. Please sign my petition calling on the local Diocese to change this offensive contract.

Petitions on Change.org are started by people like you who care deeply about an issue. It takes only a few minutes, and can change something big.

Start your own petition

My teachers are in trouble, and we need your help. I go to a Catholic high school in Oakland, CA, and the Bishop of our district just put out a terrible new contract which says my teachers could be fired for being gay, for supporting gay rights, for supporting a woman’s right to choose, even for using or supporting infertility treatments like in vitro fertilization.

No one at my school wants this contract: not the teachers, not the students, not even the administration.  

The Bishop in my district re-categorized teachers as ministers to be able to get around employment law and fire teachers for their beliefs or even their personal medical decisions. There’s also a broad ethical clause that would give the Diocese leeway to fire teachers for any belief they hold.

I started a petition on Change.org calling on the Diocese of Oakland to get rid of this offensive and outlandish contract. Please click here to sign my petition.

It has been really difficult to watch my teachers struggle with this terrible contract. Some of them have even quit over it. My favorite teacher is just a few years away from retirement, and she has to choose whether to live with this offensive contract or risk compromising her pension. She’s the teacher who taught me about having strong moral character and standing up for yourself. It’s awful to watch her question whether she should hide her own beliefs because she can’t afford to lose her job.

This isn’t just happening in Oakland. The Catholic church is putting out terrible contracts like this all over America, from Cleveland to Honolulu. 

But some communities are fighting back, and they’re winning. In Santa Rosa, the community fought back so hard against a contract like this that the local Diocese was forced to postpone it. I know we can do the same in Oakland — and make the Bishops think twice before they try to do this to teachers in another city.

Please sign my petition calling on the Diocese of Oakland to change the contract that would allow teachers to be fired for supporting gay rights or infertility treatments.

Thank you,

Dominick Mortarotti
Oakland, CA

21st century policies ~~ by Valerie Jarrett Senior Advisor The White House


whitehousebannerI still remember the moment the value of a flexible work environment became crystal-clear for me.

I was working for Mayor Richard Daley in Chicago, and sitting in a particularly long cabinet meeting along with the Mayor’s corporation counsel, Susan Sher. Susan and I were both single moms, and dear friends — and frankly, we both had somewhere else to be.

As the meeting stretched on, and the two of us kept looking at our watches (and each other), the Mayor interrupted and asked where we needed to be that was more important.

Not quite sure what would happen, I blurted out the truth: “Susan and I both have second graders, and their Halloween Parade starts in 20 minutes — and it’s 25 minutes away.”

Without a second’s hesitation, the Mayor replied, “Well, then what are you doing here? You better get moving.”

We were fortunate that day to have an understanding boss willing to give us the flexibility we needed as parents — but in 2014, most working Americans still don’t have that.

It’s time for our workplace policies to match the realities of our families. That’s why, on June 23, we’re joining together with employers, business leaders, workers, academics, labor leaders, elected officials, and a diverse group of stakeholders and advocates to explore ways to take to scale the best practices designed to build 21st-century workplaces that meet the needs of 21st-century workers.

We’re calling it the White House Summit on Working Families, and you can add your voice to the conversation right now in two ways:

Our families and our workforce have undergone fundamental transformations over the past several decades. In 63 percent of families with children, all parents work. Thirty-two percent of families with children are single-parent households. And yet, employers report just 11 percent of workers have access to paid family leave that includes time off for caregiving.

It’s time our workplaces did something about that, and it’s going to take all of us to make it happen.

So, if you can relate at all to the story I described above — the need to choose between the very real responsibilities of being a worker and a parent — then working families’ issues are your issues.

If you’re a young woman wondering if you’re earning the same as your male counterpart, this is your battle, too.

If you’re a single, working dad struggling to balance the responsibilities of raising a family with the demands of a job, you’re in this fight.

It’s time for 21st-century workplaces that allow every American family to succeed — both at home, and at work.

Each story shared will expand this national conversation, and bring these issues to the forefront.

Add your voice — and pass it on.

Thank you,

Valerie

Valerie Jarrett
Senior Advisor
The White House

 

 

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