Texas Longhorns with newborn calf in Bluebonnets

Texas Longhorns with newborn calf in Bluebonnets

Please note I have a new phone number...

512-517-2708

Alan Maki

Alan Maki
Doing research at the LBJ Library in Austin, Texas

It's time to claim our Peace Dividend

It's time to claim our Peace Dividend

We need to beat swords into plowshares.

We need to beat swords into plowshares.

A program for real change...

http://peaceandsocialjustice.blogspot.com/2013/03/a-progressive-program-for-real-change.html


What we need is a "21st Century Full Employment Act for Peace and Prosperity" which would make it a mandatory requirement that the president and Congress attain and maintain full employment.


"Voting is easy and marginally useful, but it is a poor substitute for democracy, which requires direct action by concerned citizens"

- Ben Franklin

Let's talk...

Let's talk...

Monday, January 12, 2015

Defeat the TPP

http://www.cwa-union.org/news/entry/on_capitol_hill_big_tent_news_conference#.VLRFwHvrV00

The big question is this:

Will this coalition made up of organizations which represent millions of Americans from all walks of life now bring these people into active opposition to the Trans Pacific Partnership or will it become just one more press conference claiming to be the beginning of fighting back when all that it will do is nothing to mobilize the members of these organizations into concrete action entailing everything real movements do--- from writing letters, circulating petitions, to taking to the streets to refusing to vote for politicians who support the TPP to running candidates on a ticket of a new political party led by working class activists so these Wall Street bribed politicians pay a real price?

As it stands now, this press conference was just a small part of "The Big Tent Party;" here is the list of those who were present or spoke:


Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-NY)
Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR)
Congressman Tim Ryan (D-OH)
Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN)
Congressman Alan Grayson (D-FL)
Congresswoman Donna Edwards (D-MD)
Congressman Mark Pocan (D-WI)
Congressman Dan Kildee (D-MI)
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI)
Sister Simone Campbell; Executive Director; NETWORK
Larry Cohen, President, Communications Workers of America
Richard Trumka, President, AFL-CIO
Hilary O. Shelton, Director of the Washington Bureau/Senior Vice President for Advocacy, NAACP
Tony Corbo, Food and Water Watch
Ellen Bloom; Senior Director Washington Office and Federal Policy; Consumers Union
Debbie Sease, Federal Campaign Director, Sierra Club

How can any "coalition" which only represents a small group of Democrats possibly win against Obama (whom they all supported) who with the majority of the Democrats is allied with the majority of the Republicans?

The TPP is part of Wall Street's imperialist agenda. It is time to free ourselves from Wall Street's two-party trap as part of the struggle to defeat the TPP.

In reality, this is no coalition in any sense of the word; what it is, is an unauthorized caucus of the Democratic Party which the leaders of the Democratic Party and Obama will arrogantly ignore.

This struggle against the TPP requires in the first place, international working class action and solidarity. 

Another question:

Why haven't the unions and peoples' organizations--- including the Socialist, Communist and people's parties from all the countries involved with the governments and big-business parties in supporting the Trans Pacific Partnership being invited to form a real coalition that would have the possibility of defeating this swindle; isn't this the kind of coalition really required?