Non-Violent Resistance: It's Time to Join the Ranks of Activists

Suffice it to say that our democratic republic becomes less democratic every day. If you want your constitutional rights to remain; if you still want access to the courts and fairness when you get there; if you want free and fair elections despite the Citizens United decision; if you want your government to actually represent you, rather than corporations, it is imperative that you become an activist.

What happened to Tim DeChristopher is one good reason. I won't waste your time or insult your reading skills by repeating Tim DeChristopher's story. This article will fill you in on the details: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jay-michaelson/why-liberals-should-be-ou_b_910432.html Here's a link to his statement to the court at his sentencing. http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/07/26-13

Ready to join the non-violent activist ranks? Start reading Gandhi's "Satyagraha." and other books like it, learn about and start training people in non-violent resistance, start organizing rallies and demonstrations, write letters to the editor, write/call/e-mail/visit your representatives in government, start educating the public with facts about who's behind our government (and this corporate-backed political and justice system is not just happening in America). I've only just begun, myself.

What I see here in the USA, with my own eyes, are attacks on organized labor, education (Corporate "Reform" that demonizes and scapegoats teachers, while promoting NON-FUNDED change that results in students less capable of critical thinking - AKA teaching to the test. They want an unthinking, uneducated populace. Remember that those behind most government takeovers attack the educated and education, first?), and attempts across our country to repeal minimum wage and child labor laws. I know that the education reform laws were actually bent on taking down the National Education Association (one of the largest unions in the country) in multiple states (remember what happened in Wisconsin?) and that ALL the bills were submitted with EXACTLY the same words to get rid of collective bargaining, and the union along with it. Most importantly, I see those in power trying to pit us against each other in order to diffuse our collective power.

Economic and political repression are just two of the means by which those in power attempt to maintain the status quo. They have the deep pockets and media outlet ownership with which to control government and produce the public relations, propaganda and product defense with which they can sway unsuspecting citizens. They control the courts (Citizens United decision) and, now through that decision, election results. They control our access to the courts through recent tort reform laws. People need to make some serious choices - NOW! Are you for humanity or for power and profit? If you're for humanity, remove the wool from in front of the sheep's eyes and uncloak the wolves in sheep's clothing! Caveat - do this all non-violently.

Corporate Lies and Influence Used to Maintain Profit and Power at a High Cost to Humanity and the Environment

We have all seen corporations use product defense, the hiring of public relations firms and use of dummy "'pro'-environmental" groups used to promote their products that are actually deleterious to the health and lives of people, animals and the environment. They also have very deep pockets with which they can bribe lawmakers and use the threat of pulling their advertising dollars from media outlets to prevent them from airing/printing fact-based news and documentaries that would harm their products and, therefore, profits. US corporate executives are extremely concerned about maintaining their corporate profits and product viability because they now earn 500x more than the average worker, as compared to executives in other countries who earn up to 57x more than their average worker.

We know their high-level executives go back and forth between jobs at corporate headquarters and the very government agencies entrusted with the task of protecting that which their product destroys, in order to write policy and influence the drafting of laws that favorably protect their product and profits. This has been done, for example, by 1) tobacco companies pushing addiction to their products that cause misery to and the death of millions due to lung cancer and/or COPD; 2) chemical companies pushing gmo's into the world food supply, reducing crop diversity, increasing destruction of the environment by increased use of their toxic chemicals, and maiming and killing millions of living beings, people included, by pollution-caused illness; 3) financial and mortgage industries pushing deregulation, mortgage-backed securities, and the writing of bad loans, which have caused poverty, homelessness, an increase in national debts, and brought world governments to their knees; and 4) the big three of energy: oil, coal and nuclear who do anything for profit, even with massive pollution, toxic waste, the illness and death of billions of living beings, and global warming as a by-product.

Why have laws not been passed at every level of the legal system, local through international, to make illegal the false information and lies pedaled like mind-altering drugs by corporate "pushers" in defense of their product(s)? There has to be some way to stop huge corporations from using their billions in profits to garner influence and lie to the public in order to maintain their status quo of enormous profits, power and influence. Why is "job-sharing" (recusal doesn't happen - get real) between corporate and government jobs still legal?

These corporate entities, and the people who control them, are bullies on the world "playground" whose "games" are being enabled by legal systems, governments and mainstream media. This is happening on all fronts because unsubstantiated, non-independently researched "facts" - that are flat out lies - are legally permitted in product defense. We need truth, nothing but the truth, and if they're caught lying, the top echelon and all others responsible should go to prison, lose everything, and be forced to jump out of their position of power with their golden parachute peppered with holes. The philosophy of, 'Ethics, schmethics, the greater good be darned. It's all about me! Power, profit and influence at any cost!' must be bulldozed. These people are literally committing crimes against humanity and the environment, including genocide. They should be held accountable and prosecuted for these crimes! Enough is enough!!!

PBS Exposés on Product Defense and Bisphenol-A

This is a link to a PBS Exposé on product defense by reporter Paul Thacker. Once you watch this, you will see how tobacco manufacturers were able to put doubt in people's minds about the dangers of smoking and how Big Oil could cast doubt on Global Warming both using product defense to influence public opinion, policy and environmental law.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/expose/2008/05/111-index.html

Here's the link to the bisphenol-A story entitled Chemical War Zone that shows animal deformities and cancer links to chemical endocrine disrupters.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/expose/2008/05/303-index.html

I find it interesting that both stories name the American Chemical Society as being one party involved, while both stories also show the correlation between misinformation and product defense that allows chemical companies to continue business as usual despite known health risks to consumers and the environment. Nothing like profit, greed and power to influence public health and environmental policies and laws at the expense of health, humanity and the environment.

When you knowingly do all that you can to lie about the safety of a product that causes disease and/or death in its consumers, you should be held culpable. This is at the very least, unethical. However, I truly believe these companies are commiting crimes against humanity. If there are currently no laws on the books to deal with this, there should be - locally, nationally and internationally.