Tonight on Political Analysis, Sandy LeonVest is joined by the vice-president of the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) Greg Palleson and award-winning labor journalist Mike Elk to talk about, among other things, how US workers are being personally impacted — tangibly and right now — by policies made possible by unlimited corporate power, as embodied in the Citizens United decision, ALEC (the American Legislative Exchange Council), corporate globalization, the WTO and so-called “free trade agreements” such as the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Mike Elk is the investigative journalist who recently wrote a blockbuster article for In These Times, in which he exposed how the Koch Brothers (Charles and David) attempted to coerce some 45,000 employees at its subsidiary Georgia-Pacific into voting Republican. They did this by exploiting a loophole created by the Citizens United decision (the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that effectively gave corporations the same rights as people). The loophole allows employers to campaign — and apparently to utilize heavy-handed campaigning tactics to pressure employees in the workplace.
Greg Palleson, in his capacity of AWPPW vice-president, has taken a stand against this coercive corporate practice at substantial risk to himself and his family. He is a relentless advocate for labor rights, and is currently championing the cause of workers all over the country by organizing the rank and file to push the Obama administration to keep good-paying US manufacturing jobs here in the US.
As most of America remains transfixed by the upcoming presidential elections, Political Analysis host Sandy LeonVest reminds listeners that there are other (possibly more critical) things going on in the world. Tonight's show features excerpts from the film documentary Tar Sands Oil Extraction -- The Dirty Truth, as well as clips from the current (and expanding) blockade of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline in Winnsboro, Texas. The program also features excerpts from Chris Hedges 2010 speech, "How Corporations Destroyed America," in which Chris Hedges talks about the ravages of unlimited corporate power and how consumers have so internalized corporate values that we barely know who we are -- or how to begin reclaiming ourselves.
Last we heard (October 15, 2012), TransCanada was standing their ground. But, so too were the protesters. This, despite the fact that protesting anything in these corporate-owned times is an increasingly difficult -- and dangerous -- act of patriotism. Activist Ron Seifert told DemocracyNow's Amy Goodman that even reporters were being arrested, and that in at least one instance, a New York Times reporter was handcuffed and removed from private property (not owned by TransCanada) by TransCanada’s private security forces.
Environmental activist and author Chris Williams joins Sandy LeonVest to talk about "eco-socialism," the 2012 elections and the need to eschew capitalism and transition to a new economic model in the interest of (real) sustainability. Williams argues that there is no such thing as "sustainable capitalism," and that the ecological changes proposed by socialists are ultimately the most humane (and feasible) for building a society whose objective is human and natural sustainability. Among other issues discussed are the reluctance of US climate activists and environmentalists to connect the dots between social injustices, war, work and the environment; the folly of unending growth in a world of finite resources; and the need to work in solidarity with indigenous people within the framework of an international movement to address growing economic disparities, unprecedented environmental destruction and social injustice.
Repeat Program - 7/17/12
Green Party candidate for president, Dr. Jill Stein joins Sandy LeonVest to talk about the essential nature of third parties, why voting Green in 2012 is NOT tantamount to voting for Mitt Romney and why 2012 could be the “moment of truth” for progressives — and the progressive agenda.
Read more: http://prn.fm/2012/07/17/political-analysis-special-visit-jill-stein-071712/#ixzz28B9Exrpk Under Creative Commons License: Attribution