Showing posts with label citizens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label citizens. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Secession Petitions Filed on Behalf of Citizens in 30 States (So Far)


Wow, some people seriously cannot stand living in a country with a black man as president. Or maybe it's that he supports caring for each other as citizens and acknowledging that we are interdependent both personally and economically.

According to Huffington Post, citizens in 30 states (or more) have filed petitions to secede from the union. The threshold for White House response is 25,000 signatures in 30 days. As of now, Texas already has 80,000 signatures.
Here's a list of states where residents have filed secession petitions in recent days: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
This number is way up from 20 states reported earlier today by CBS. Not at all surprised to see Arizona on the list - we think we are Texas's little brother.

Residents In More Than 30 States File Secession Petitions

Posted:

Residents in more than 30 states have filed secession petitions with the "We the People" program on the White House website.

Petitions to strip citizenship of individuals signing onto petitions to secede and exile them have also been submitted.

A threshold of 25,000 signatures must be met within 30 days for petitions to be reviewed. The Obama administration explains, "If a petition meets the signature threshold, it will be reviewed by the Administration and we will issue a response."

Micah H. (no last name provided) of Arlington, Texas filed a petition that had nearly 60,000 signatures as of Tuesday morning. It reads:
The US continues to suffer economic difficulties stemming from the federal government's neglect to reform domestic and foreign spending. The citizens of the US suffer from blatant abuses of their rights such as the NDAA, the TSA, etc. Given that the state of Texas maintains a balanced budget and is the 15th largest economy in the world, it is practically feasible for Texas to withdraw from the union, and to do so would protect it's citizens' standard of living and re-secure their rights and liberties in accordance with the original ideas and beliefs of our founding fathers which are no longer being reflected by the federal government.
Unfortunately for Micah H. and Peter Morrison -- a Texas GOP official who called for an "amicable divorce" from the United States last week -- secession is not in the cards for the Lone Star State.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) sought to distance himself from the petition on Monday. The Dallas Morning News reported that the Republican governor's press secretary wrote in an email, "Gov. Perry believes in the greatness of our Union and nothing should be done to change it. But he also shares the frustrations many Americans have with our federal government."

Thursday, March 17, 2011

The Story of Citizens United v. FEC (2011)

This video has gone viral among a certain subset of people who actually believe in Democracy as an ideal - brought to you by the same folks who brought us The Story of Stuff.
http://storyofcitizensunited.org ---- Season Two launches on March 1st with The Story of Citizens United v. FEC, an exploration of the inordinate power that corporations exercise in our democracy.

About the Film

The Story of Citizens United v. FEC, released on March 1st, 2011 at storyofcitizensunited.org, explores the history of the American corporation and corporate political spending, the appropriate roles of citizens and for-profit corporations in a democracy and the toxic impact the Citizens United decision is already having on our political process. It ends with a call to amend the U.S. constitution to confirm that people—not corporations—make the decisions in a democracy.

Join the movement and our community: Please consider a tax-deductible gift to support the distribution of The Story of Citizens United v. FEC.
 You can make a secure contribution HERE.


Written by Annie Leonard, Jonah Sachs, Louis Fox
Produced by Free Range Studios
Executive Producer Erica Priggen
Director Louis Fox
Camera Tim Kerns
Gaffer Charles Griswold
Sound Dan Gleich
Best Girl Lauren Stocker
Teleprompter Bill Buck
Hair/Make-Up Kathleena Gorga
Production Coordinator Juliet Unfried
Animation Script Louis Fox, Ruben DeLuna
Animators Ruben DeLuna, Lyla Warren, Bob Cesca, Ben Johnson
Editor Mike Farley
Sound Design Ray Sutton

Story of Stuff Project Annie Leonard, Michael O’Heaney, Christina M. Samala, Allison Cook, Renee Shade

Viral Outreach Heidi Quante, Angela Bradbery, Rachel Lewis

Script Advisor Robert Weissman

Support Provided by The Cow Hollow Fund, 11th Hour Project

About the Issue

You can only cram so much in to eight minutes, even talking as fast as Annie does! Check out these additional resources to learn more about issues Annie talks about in The Story of Citizens United v. FEC and take action to put the people back in charge of our democracy!

From the Film

FAQs (PDF)
Annotated Script (PDF)
House Party Kit (PDF)
Press Release (PDF)

On the Web

FREE SPEECH FOR PEOPLE

Free Speech For People is a new national non-partisan campaign pressing for a 28thAmendment to the US Constitution to overturn Citizens United v. FEC and restore democracy to the people. Free Speech For People (www.freespeechforpeople.org) seeks to reclaim constitutional rights for people and return corporations to their place as economic rather than political entities. Free Speech For People launched its campaign moments after the US Supreme Court issued its ruling on January 21, 2010, in Citizens United v. FEC. Since its launching, Free Speech For People has worked across the country to build a broad grassroots movement to ensure that people, not corporations, govern in America.

PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY

People For the American Way is dedicated to making the promise of America real for every American: Equality. Freedom of speech. Freedom of religion. The right to seek justice in a court of law. The right to cast a vote that counts. The American Way.

Our vision is a vibrantly diverse democratic society in which everyone is treated equally under the law, given the freedom and opportunity to pursue their dreams, and encouraged to participate in our nation’s civic and political life. Our America respects diversity, nurtures creativity and combats hatred and bigotry.

We believe a society that reflects these constitutional principles and progressive values is worth fighting for, and we take seriously our responsibility to cultivate new generations of leaders and activists who will sustain these values for the life of this nation.

PUBLIC CITIZEN

Corporations have their lobbyists in Washington, D.C.
The people need advocates too.

Public Citizen serves as the people’s voice in the nation’s capital. Since our founding in 1971, we have delved into an array of areas, but our work on each issue shares an overarching goal: To ensure that all citizens are represented in the halls of power.

For nearly four decades, we have proudly championed citizen interests before Congress, the executive branch agencies and the courts. We have successfully challenged the abusive practices of the pharmaceutical, nuclear and automobile industries, and so many others. We are leading the charge against undemocratic trade agreements that advance the interests of mega-corporations at the expense of citizens worldwide.

As the federal government wrestles with critical issues – fallout from the global economic crisis, health care reform, climate change and so much more – Public Citizen is needed now more than ever. We are the countervailing force to corporate power. We fight on behalf of all Americans – to make sure your government works for you.

We have five policy groups: our Congress Watch division, the Energy Program, Global Trade Watch, the Health Research Group and our Litigation Group. Learn more about them here.

Public Citizen is a nonprofit organization that does not participate in partisan political activities or endorse any candidates for elected office. We accept no government or corporate money – we rely solely on foundation grants, publication sales and support from our 80,000 members. Please support our valuable work.


Sunday, February 27, 2011

The Body and the State - Session One | The New School for Social Research

The New School for Social Research hosted a conference on The Body and the State, and these two videos comprise Session One (also included in the Keynote Address to begin the conference). There are at least four sessions posted now, each with two videos (I believe). Over the next several days I will post the individual sessions.

This is some interesting stuff - the discussions cover a variety of different topics about how the body is conceived in relation to various collective structures (LR in integral speak), including health, disability, media, soldiers, human rights, religion, and citizenship.
THE TRACE:
VIOLENCE, TRUTH, AND THE POLITICS OF THE BODY
KEYNOTE ADDRESS


Moderated David Van Zandt, President of The New School

Didier Fassin, MD, MPH, James D. Wolfensohn Professor, School of Social Science, Institute for Advanced Study; Director of Studies, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris

Join us as speakers discuss the body as a human rights arena in which many forces, such as religion, science, media, and the market, struggle for control over policies that control our bodies. We hope to illuminate how the often tacit assumptions about the "normal," "healthy," and "acceptable" body lead to policies which are, at their core, unjust.
Keynote:


And now on with the conference.
The Body and the State - Session I - Part 1
CONCEPTIONS OF THE "NORMAL" BODY

We all have our own ideas about what a "normal," "healthy" body is, but these ideas are neither given nor based on some eternal biological definition. Rather, they reflect many different forces within a culture and they change over time. How do these views influence public policy in different locations? How do social dynamics affect conceptions of maleness and femaleness and how do they differ in different societies?

RELIGION
Religions exert powerful pressure on how the conception of the normal or morally acceptable body is understood. How do images of the normal body differ across religious traditions? Case studies are reviewed on the role of religion in affecting state policy with regard to the body.

Joan's Two Bodies: Was Joan of Arc Killed by the Church or the State and Does it Matter?
• Winnifred F. Sullivan, Member, School of Social Science, Institute for Advanced Study; Associate Professor, Director of the Law and Religion program, University at Buffalo Law School

Ascribing Citizenship on the Muslim Body
• John Bowen, Dunbar-Van Cleve Professor in Arts and Sciences, Department of Anthropology, Washington University, St. Louis

MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY
Notions of the "healthy," "normal" body often bring with them the imprimatur of science. What role does science play in our understanding of what is normal and what is not? How are these understandings reflected in policy? Does this science-policy interplay differ across cultures?

The Body as a Biological and Genetic Entity
• Elof Axel Carlson, Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University

Moderator: Ann Stoler, Willy Brandt Distinguished University Professor of Anthropology and Historical Studies, The New School for Social Research

MORE INFORMATION
Part One:


The Body and the State - Session I - Part 2
THE CITIZEN & MEDIA

Bodies of Rights and Biomedical Markets
• João Biehl, Professor of Anthropology, Co-director, Program in Global Health and Health Policy, Princeton University

THE CITIZEN
What is the relationship between individual bodies and the body politic? What constitutes the "normal" body of the citizen, and does this vary from country to country? What does the foreigner, the non-citizen, reveal about the body of the citizen? Do existing laws and policies differentially shape certain types of bodies and affect genders and races differently? Why does the health of the citizen matter?

Disability and the Normal Body of the Citizen
• Susan Schweik, Professor, Associate Dean of Arts and Humanities, University of California, Berkeley

Making Willing Bodies: Manufacturing Consent Among Prisoners and Soldiers
• Bernard E. Harcourt, Julius Kreeger Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago

THE MEDIA
Advertising, film, television, and the internet have profound impacts on our idea of the "normal" body and how it is or should be treated. What is the media's impact on policy with regard to the body? How does this vary across cultures?

Losing Bodies
• Susie Orbach, Visiting Professor, Sociology, London School of Economics

Indian Cinema and the Beautiful Body
• Sumita S. Chakravarty, Associate Professor of Culture and Media, Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts

Moderator: Ann Stoler, Willy Brandt Distinguished University Professor of Anthropology and Historical Studies, The New School for Social Research
Part Two:


THE NEW SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH