#truthout

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

On Wednesday, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) reintroduced a proposal to make higher education free at public schools for most Americans — and pay for it by taxing Wall Street.

The College for All Act of 2023 would massively change the higher education landscape in the U.S., taking a step toward Sanders’s long-standing goal of making public college free for all. It would make community college and public vocational schools tuition-free for all students, while making any public college and university free for students from single-parent households making less than $125,000 or couples making less than $250,000 — or, the vast majority of families in the U.S.

The bill would increase federal funding to make tuition free for most students at universities that serve non-white groups, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). It would also double the maximum award to Pell Grant recipients at public or nonprofit private colleges from $7,395 to $14,790.

If passed, the lawmakers say their bill would be the biggest expansion of access to higher education since 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Higher Education Act, a bill that would massively increase access to college in the ensuing decades. The proposal would not only increase college access, but also help to tackle the student debt crisis.

“Today, this country tells young people to get the best education they can, and then saddles them for decades with crushing student loan debt. To my mind, that does not make any sense whatsoever,” Sanders said. “In the 21st century, a free public education system that goes from kindergarten through high school is no longer good enough. The time is long overdue to make public colleges and universities tuition-free and debt-free for working families.”

Debt activists expressed support for the bill. “This is the only real solution to the student debt crisis: eliminate tuition and debt by fully funding public colleges and universities,” the Debt Collective wrote on Wednesday. “It’s time for your member of Congress to put up or shut up. Solve the root cause and eliminate tuition and debt.”

These initiatives would be paid for by several new taxes on Wall Street, found in a separate bill reintroduced by Sanders and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-California) on Wednesday. The Tax on Wall Street Speculation would enact a 0.5% tax on stock trades, a 0.1% tax on bonds and a 0.005% tax on trades on derivatives and other types of assets.

The tax would primarily affect the most frequent, and often the wealthiest, traders and would be less than a typical fee for pension management for working class investors, the lawmakers say. It would raise up to $220 billion in the first year of enactment, and over $2.4 trillion over a decade. The proposal has the support of dozens of progressive organizations as well as a large swath of economists.

“Let us never forget: Back in 2008, middle class taxpayers bailed out Wall Street speculators whose greed, recklessness and illegal behavior caused millions of Americans to lose their jobs, homes, life savings, and ability to send their kids to college,” said Sanders. “Now that giant financial institutions are back to making record-breaking profits while millions of Americans struggle to pay rent and feed their families, it is Wall Street’s turn to rebuild the middle class by paying a modest financial transactions tax.”

#us politics #news #truthout #sen. bernie sanders #progressives #progressivism #Democrats #senate health education labor and pensions committee #College for All Act of 2023 #tax Wall Street #tax the rich #tax the 1% #tax the wealthy #college for all #student debt #student loan debt #tuition-free college #Historically Black Colleges and Universities #pell grants #Higher Education Act #Rep. Barbara Lee #rep. pramila jayapal #2023

[thefreethoughtprojectcom]

How will the now homeless children endure the harsh conditions during the coming winter months as the torrential rains flood the streets of Gaza, the temperature starts to drop and illnesses become more rampant?

Read More: https://thefreethoughtproject.com/foreign-affairs/us-and-israel-ensure-palestinians-will-spend-christmas-in-living-hell

#the free thought project #tftp #truthout #israel #palestine #gaza #ceasefire #christmas #antiwar4life

[theculturedmarxist]

#starbucks #starbucks union #workers rights #unions #truthout

[gridbug]

Sa'ed Atshan in Truthout.

With Israel’s genocidal violence continuing in Gaza, statistics of Palestinian casualties espoused by Western states, the press and even humanitarian organizations often disaggregate the data to cite numbers of women and children killed or injured. Subsequently, the lack of specification of male victims then often conjures images of Hamas militants. The possibility of a Palestinian male civilian becomes increasingly incomprehensible — and the humanity of Palestinian men writ large is therefore called into question.

#palestine #palestinian genocide #truthout #free gaza

[withbriefthanksgiving]

Within disability rights organizations, the presence of board members and corporate partners who have contributed to and profited from militarism can act as an obstacle to having intersectional discussions and actions around militarism and ableism. A central example is Mitsubishi, a group of Japanese multinational companies that also has headquarters in the U.S., which frequently appears as a sponsor or partners with various disability organizations in the U.S. In 1991, the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation (MEAF) was established with a $15 million endowment from Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and the Mitsubishi Electric U.S. group companies and provided grants to multiple disability programs in the U.S. However, Mitsubishi is well-known for its engagement in militarism in collaboration with Japanese colonialism and imperialism: It has contributed to militarized violence across the globe.

#Disability #Ableism #CSR #Corporate social responsibility #Disability justice #Disability rights #Truthout #Mitsubishi #America #Japan #War #NPIC #NGOs #Theory #Non profit industrial complex #I kept all the links in from the original #I just made them longer and more descriptive #To read

[petits-moutons-noirs]

abolish the courts

founded on safe-guarding chattel slavery in the US colony, the supreme court and it’s membership are not just.

#truthout #photo credit Ayo Walker #The Supreme Court Won’t Save Us — It Was Founded to Defend White Supremacy #Claudia Garcia-Rojas

[floral-ashes]

In case you haven’t seen the truthout interview about my new book. The interviewer even made me sound smart and like I have my shit together!

#transgender #lgbtq #trans #lgbtqia #queer #lesbian #gay #lgbt #books #trans lit

[enigma2meagain]

“Stop Internet Censorship” Master List

The following is a master list for all of the major Internet Censorship and Surveillance Bills between 2022 to 2023, with the most major bills that are currently active posted below. They will each link to the Tumblr posts that I have made in the past related to them, with all of the relevant information associated.

This was made because I feel people need to get a sense for just how interconnected they really are, how much Congress and third parties are trying to desperately gain full control and access to our information and silencing anything they don’t want to see and hear, and having a centralized hub of information for them will make it easier for people to find them.

The Major Bills:

EARN IT Act: 2022 version of EARN IT Act

                      2023 version of EARN IT Act (No text yet, but it’s pretending to be about preventing child abuse online this time)

     Enigma2Me Post on EARN IT Act

     fullhalalalchemist Post on EARN IT

     Condemnation of the EARN IT Act 2020 Coalition Letter

     STOP EARN IT Act LINKTREE

     Engadget: EARN IT Act reintroduced for the Third Time

------

Kids Online Safety Act: Current Draft of 2023 KOSA bill

     Enigma2Me Post on Kids Online Safety Act

     STOP KOSA LinkTree

------

RESTRICT Act: Read Bill Here.

       Enigma2Me Post On RESTRICT Act

      LoganGalbraith’s Post on RESTRICT Act

       Truthout Article 4/02/2023: Restrict Act Critics Call the Far-Reaching “TikTok Ban” Bill a “Patriot Act 2.0”  

------

STOP CSAM Act:

      Electronic Frontier Foundation: Take Action on STOP CSAM/EARN IT

      TechDirt Post Against STOP CSAM Act

------

So if you’ve seen the above, you’re probably asking: What can we do about it?

1) Spread the Word online!

Twitter Hashtags

For Earn It: #EARNITAct, #STOPTheEARNITAct, #NoEarnItAct

For KOSA: #KOSA, #KidsOnlineSafetyAct, STOPKOSA

For RESTRICTAct: #RESTRICTAct, #STOPRESTRICTAct

2) PLEASE call your Senators.

Find your 2 senators numbers here. Fax them, email them. Tell them they MUST oppose this bill. Calmly make it clear to them that if they support this bill, then you will vote for someone else who doesn’t go along with this blatant act of authoritarian intent.

3) CONTACT any major human rights and cybersecurity related organizations and let them know about this bill. Get this out to any local news groups that you can.

The following Google Doc contains a list of every major organization we could think of to contact, and will be updated as we find more allies in the fight against censorship and surveillance.

ANTI-CENSORSHIP MASTER LIST

Also Contact the organizations on these 2020 letters to get them to publicly speak out against the EARN IT Act like they did back then.

But for those who want to have official organizations to work with (and who usually have petitions except TechDirt), the following usually are up to date on info:

Electronic Frontier Foundation

Fight For the Future

Techdirt

#RESTRICT Act #EARN IT Act #Stop Kids Online Safety Act #stop internet censorship #stop restrict act #stop earn it act #FUCK BLUMENTHAL #fuck surveillance #fuck censorship

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

By Annie Norman

The public learned last fall of one particularly controversial element of United States Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s 10-year plan for the U.S. Postal Service that would be rolling out soon. Essentially, the function of sorting and delivering mail would be consolidated into regional centers, leaving empty former sorting space in the back of post offices. No layoffs were announced.

At first glance, this sounds innocuous, but seasoned postal observers suspect that with less activity happening at smaller or rural post offices, they become vulnerable to a reduction in hours or closure. This leads to the kind of job losses that initially present as don’t worry, we’ll relocate you to the regional center but are experienced by postal workers as if I don’t commute two hours there and back each day or more, I lose my job.

In response, The Save the Post Office Coalition, which I coordinate, wrote to the Secretary of the USPS Board of Governors to ensure the board was made aware of emails from 160,000 postal customers across the country urging them to stop the disastrous elements of DeJoy’s plan before it’s too late.

Among the several thousands of personalized messages, we highlighted a handful in our note:

“The USPS provides a service to the public. It was never intended to be a profit-making business. I’m disappointed & ashamed at where politics seem to be taking us.”

— David B. (veteran) Seattle, Washington.

“As a former United States Postal Service employee and as someone who regularly uses the [USPS], I ask you to do something about DeJoy, who continues to degrade everything about the postal service — especially the service part of it.”

— Kristin F. in Cottonwood, Indiana.

“It is important for seniors like me to be able to count on a dependable means of getting medications without having a further drain on our resources.”

— Peter L. in Los Angeles, California.

“I believe that a well supported and functioning post office is a hallmark of a healthy, advanced nation. Stop DeJoy’s undemocratic plan now before it’s too late.”

— Janet M. in Downers Grove, Illinois.

“We senior citizens depend on USPS. Please help keep it viable.”

—Joanne L. in Akron, Ohio.

“Our postal service should be about serving us rather than serving businesses that give it money.”

— Douglas L. in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

We have yet to hear a response or acknowledgement that the messages from the public were received, and DeJoy continues to make it clear that he doesn’t want anyone asking questions about his 10-year plan.

On the same day that USPS leadership received our coalition’s messages, the Postal Regulatory Commission issued a public inquiry order to DeJoy asking that USPS provide details on the sorting and delivery changes under his plan. In the order, the Commission said it “notes that stakeholders have expressed concerns regarding a lack of a forum to explore the impacts of these proposed changes.”

DeJoy responded with an objection to the Commission’s inquiry. On May 17, DeJoy delivered congressional testimony for the first time in nearly two years at a hearing of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Government Operations. Rep. Summer Lee asked him why USPS is objecting. In his response, DeJoy was openly hostile toward the postal regulator, accusing them of actively participating “in the destruction of [USPS].”

Just last month, DeJoy sat down with the press for a 90-minute interview where he once again doubled down with an adversarial attitude toward postal regulators who seek details for the public on his 10-year plan, calling the Commission’s inquiry “nonsense,” saying, “We don’t need to be babysat.”

On May 22, DeJoy delivered the keynote address at the 2023 National Postal Forum where he spoke at length touting his efforts to implement “dramatic changes” and increase the pace of his 10-year plan. The postmaster general told the audience that “dramatic changes must be done at a pace, and with a tenacity that is rarely seen.” However, these changes are a mystery to many, and for a public institution, this mystery is dangerous.

If the past is any guide, the effects of potential post office closings and reduced hours will be devastating, particularly to rural and Indigenous communities. The Save the Post Office Coalition organized a petition to the Postal Regulatory Commission and the USPS Office of Inspector General urging them to stop DeJoy’s “dramatic changes” and demand public input, and so far has received over 131,000 signatures from the public who regularly use the postal service.

The bottom line is that the public has a right to more transparency and input in the decision-making process at a public institution. This requires engagement with said public — which DeJoy is actively resisting. When you put a rich, white, private-sector executive who isn’t used to public accountability and cooperation in charge of a treasured public institution, such a clash might be inevitable. It’s plain DeJoy doesn’t have the temperament for public service.

Communities across the nation want dramatic change at the post office too, but that dramatic change is not to be secretive or a surprise; it must be a shift toward protecting and expanding the public footprint and services available at the post office to meet new needs and change with the times. The People’s Postal Agenda outlines a framework for an expanded USPS that includes things like postal banking, expanded nonbank financial services like bill payment and ATMs, WiFi in parking lots, and public electric vehicle charging.

We still remember former President Donald Trump’s plan to privatize the post office, right before he put his thumb on the scale to have his donor DeJoy appointed as postmaster general. We also remember DeJoy’s role in sowing public fear and uncertainty in the vote-by-mail process by slowing down the mail and then sending out mailers to voters that meeting their state’s deadline would not ensure their vote would arrive in time to be counted, causing him to be sued by the NAACP and Public Citizen, as well as secretaries of state.

There is nothing to suggest that DeJoy has abandoned the privatization vision of the people who got him the job. So it’s our job as citizens to make absolutely sure any upcoming “dramatic changes” to the post office don’t shrink and privatize the institution but protect and expand it for generations to come.

#us politics #news #truthout #2023 #republicans #donald trump #conservatives #louis dejoy #Annie Norman #op eds #united states postal service #Save the Post Office Coalition #USPS Board of Governors #Postal Regulatory Commission #House Oversight Subcommittee on Government Operations #us house of representatives #Rep. Summer Lee #2023 National Postal Forum #People’s Postal Agenda #vote by mail #mail in ballots #mail in voting

[commiepinkofag]

[Genocide Joe] Biden: 'I Am a Zionist'

From 2021, but worth a read, from Truthout:

Christian Zionism must be challenged as a powerful threat to a larger progressive agenda. Because Christian Zionism is predicated on Christian salvation coinciding with the end of the world and annihilation of non-Christians, Christian Zionism is at its core anti-Muslim and antisemitic. — Jonathan Brenneman & Aidan Orly | Truthout | May 20, 2021

#christian nationalism #genocide #christofascism #evangelicals #far right #biden/trump 2024 #genocide joe #fascism #palestine #apartheid #israel #biden #trump #us politics #islamophobia #transphobes #homophobia #antisemitism #anti abortion #zealots #2023

[workersolidarity]

Kit Klarenberg reporting on a new far-reaching investigation on the CIA's twisted MK Ultra program and its experiments on people of color in the United States.

Answers and accountability is something we'll never get under the Capitalist system, because the Capitalist Class cannot allow any precedent set that allows for holding members of the Capitalist Class accountable for any kind of actions they take, regardless of the harm caused. And in this case, an unprecedented amount of harm was done to Left movements within the communities of people of color in the US as the CIA attempted to use mind control methods to suppress communities of color from organizing radical political organizations.

How sick do you have to be to use political prisoners to experiment with mind control methods? Our Wall Street sponsored Government has NO ethical or moral boundaries they aren't willing to violate to retain their power and control.

Our Capitalist Elites biggest fear is organized resistance to Capitalist control and Revolutionary Socialist movements. By labeling followers of anti-Capitalist organizations and ideologies as mentally ill, our government used this as a Medical excuse to experiment on, harm and suppress Anti-Capitalist groups and communities of color, ravaging those movements and their ability to affect policy as they had begun to do in the 1960's.

"The darkness of MKULTRA lingers still, calling for urgent answers and transparency. America’s Black community deserves nothing less than the full extent of these operations exposed; culprits held accountable, and rightful compensation for survivors. As the shadows of the past stretch into the present, the demand for truth rings louder than ever, and justice becomes an undeniable imperative."

Couldn't have said it better myself. Major thanks to Anthropologist Orisanmi Burton for publishing this incredibly dark report, and Truthout and MPN for reporting on it.

You can read the more in-depth Truthout article Here

#mkultra #the cia #cia #cia history #us news #us politics #cia crimes #national security #imperialism #us imperialism #us hegemony #us human rights violations #us crimes against humanity #socialism #communism #marxism leninism #socialist politics #socialist news #socialist worker #worker solidarity #workersolidarity #socialist #communist #marxism #marxist leninist #progressive politics #politics #us political suppression #us racism #western imperialism

[deadontheinsidesexyontheoutside]

Famine in Gaza Is a Culmination of Israel’s Long War on Palestine’s Food System | Truthout

#endisraelsgenocide #end Israel's genocide #free palestine #free gaza #ecocide #South Africa genocide case against Israel

[comradesaucegay]

i had a friend who loves talking politics and when they were blindly worshipping ukraines military i tried to tell them about ukraines militarys white supremacy they got worked up and indirectly accused me of 'siding with russia'. then behind my back they went to a mutual friend saying that russians are spreading propaganda about ukrainians being white supremacists. just recently they came up to me saying that right wingers in the us are siding with russia and putin against ukraine. feels like im going crazy

i'm sorry about your friend. idk if it's worth trying to argue with them, but if they approach you about this again...

BBC, 2014: Ukraine underplays role of far right in conflict

Human Rights Watch, 2014: Ukraine: Unguided Rockets Killing Civilians

Truthout, 2015: The Ukraine Mess That Nuland Made

The Hill, 2017: The reality of neo-Nazis in Ukraine is far from Kremlin propaganda

The Guardian, 2017: 'I want to bring up a warrior': Ukraine's far-right children's camp – video

WaPo, 2018: The war in Ukraine is more devastating than you know

Reuters, 2018: Ukraine’s neo-Nazi problem

The Nation, 2019: Neo-Nazis and the Far Right Are On the March in Ukraine

#also like yeah... it really does make you feel like you're insane especially if you're european

[rapeculturerealities]

Abortion Clinic Defense Needs to Be Seen as a Key Part of Anti-Fascism - Truthout

Part of this defensive work today includes supporting patients in and out of clinics. This may involve prison support and legal aid for those facing increasingly draconian laws, particularly around telemedicine and medication abortions. “[That] approach of having a kind of underground and autonomous response is going to be required,” says Beach. Because many laws have been put in place that are aimed at protecting the physical space of the clinics themselves, particularly those that limit where protesters can stand and what tactics they can take, abortion defenders can use some of the resources that would have been used for direct clinic defense to support those facing other issues related to abortion access. That could mean directing money, time and activism in the direction of supporting abortion funds, mutual aid organizations and legal defense for those seeking abortion care in this new legally repressive environment.

#Abortion #Antifa #Antifacism #Activism #reproductive justice

[edenavari]

Reposting because the OP of the original post was throwing an ableist tantrum in the notes

Israel Is Terrified the World Court Will Decide It’s Committing Genocide

South Africa, a party to the Genocide Convention, charged Israel with genocide in the International Court of Justice. By Marjorie Cohn , Truthout Published January 6, 2024

#gaza #gaza genocide

[notunexpected]

“Gaza Has Become a Death Zone,” World Health Organization Director Warns

Officials have warned that Israel’s starvation campaign threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. Truthout

Most of Gaza’s 2.3 million people are hungry, some desperately so, and aid agencies describe “pockets of famine” in the territory. Infectious diseases have spread fast and there is little access to medical care, with just 13 of Gaza’s 34 hospitals functioning, whether partly or minimally. The Guardian

Picture: Suhail Nassar, Photographer in Gaza.

Free Palestine!

#palestinian genocide #free palestine #palestine #gaza genocide #gaza #gaza strip #gazaunderattack #rafah #human rights #from the river to the sea palestine will be free