antiracismdsa: Latino Civil Rights vs.Project 2025

antiracismdsa: Latino Civil Rights vs.Project 2025:   The Battle Ahead: Latino Civil Rights vs. Project 2025 Prepared by Adriana Varea, Ari Kittrie, and Joaquin Macias, LULAC Policy and Legisl...

Economic Crisis: Why Do Some People Still Support Trump ?

RS Seminar- Economic Crisis: Why Do Some People Still Support Trump ?: Why do people still back Trump, after everything? 5 things to understand about MAGA supporters’ thinking ...

Musk Threatens Vice President- Others, now deleted

 Musk Threatens Vice President- Others

Robert Reich, 

Shortly after the apparent second assassination attempt against Trump, Elon Musk responded in a now deleted post: “And no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala 🤔 ????” 

Musk later said his post was intended as a joke. But it could be interpreted as a call to murder Biden and Harris — at least by one of the 198 million followers of Musk who initially received it. Presumably this is why the Secret Service is investigating it.

Under 18 U.S. Code Section 871, threatening a president or vice president or inciting someone to harm them is a felony that can result in a large fine and up to five years in prison. 

Yet even as Musk posted a potential death threat against the sitting commander-in-chief, his multiple defense contracts with the U.S. government have given him access to highly sensitive information. 

Reportedly, Musk has been given security clearance notwithstanding his admitted use of drugs (Musk says he has submitted to random drug testing at the request of the government), including smoking weed in public and using ketamine (for which he claims to have a prescription).

Quite apart from the drugs, when was the last time the U.S. government gave access to sensitive national security information to someone who posted a potential death threat against the president and vice president, even if he later called it a joke? 

Underlying this is a broader question: When in history has one unelected individual held such sway over American national security? 

Musk’s SpaceX has nearly total control of the world’s satellite internet through its Starlink unit. With little regulation or oversight, Musk has already put more than 4,500 Starlink satellites into orbit around the globe, accounting for more than half of all active satellites. Musk plans to have as many as 42,000satellites in orbit in coming years. 

Space X and its Starlink system have become strategically critical to American security. Starlink is providing connectivity to the U.S. Navy. The U.S. Space Force signed a $70 million contract late last year to provide it with military-grade low-earth-orbit satellite capabilities. According to Reuters, the National Reconnaissance Office, which oversees U.S. spy satellites, has a $1.8 billion contract with SpaceX. 

This gives Musk — the richest person in the world — remarkable power. Single-handedly, he can decide to shut down a country’s access to Starlink and the internet. He also can also gain access to sensitive information gathered by Starlink. “Between, Tesla, Starlink & Twitter, I may have more real-time global economic data in one head than anyone ever,” Musk tweetedin April 2023. 

Meanwhile, NASA has increasingly outsourced spaceflight projects to SpaceX, including billions in contracts for multiple moon trips and $843 million to build a vehicle that will take the International Space Station out of commission.

Conflicts of interest between Musk’s ventures around the world and U.S. national security abound, and they are multiplying.

When Putin attacked Ukraine, Musk and SpaceX’s Starlink provided Ukraine with internet access, enabling the country to plan attacks and defend itself. (This was not a charitable move by Musk; most of the 20,000 terminals in the country were funded by outside sources such as the U.S. government, the United Kingdom, and Poland). 

But in the fall of 2022, when Ukraine entered territory contested by Russia, Musk and Space X abruptly severed the connectivity. Musk explained at the time that “Starlink was barred from turning on satellite beams in Crimea at the time, because doing so would violate U.S. sanctions against Russia!”

Teachers For Harris/Walz Call In

 

JD Vance is "disturbed" by teachers without children.¹

Trump just presented a keynote address for Moms for Liberty—an extremist Project 2025 hate group focused on undermining public education and banning books in schools.²

It's clear to us and the public: Donald Trump and JD Vance simply despise teachers and educators. 

If you, like most people, respect our educators, have fond memories of your childhood teachers, or have educators in your family—or maybe you are one yourself—you know that we have to fight back against Trump's Project 2025 plans to derail our education system entirely.

That's why MoveOn and the nation's two biggest organizations of educators and teachers—the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and the National Education Association (NEA)—are hosting an "Educators for Harris" call to make it clear to the public that teachers and educators matter now, more than ever—and who controls the White House in 2025 will be critical to the futures of educators, our schools, our students, and our families all across the country. 

Join us on Thursday, September 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET for a virtual event where we will discuss the importance of this election for our education system at both the federal and state level. We will hear from teachers on the front lines fighting against attacks on our freedom to learn and discuss the dangers of a Trump presidency for our education system.

We will be joined by Randi Weingarten, President of the AFT; Rebecca "Becky" Pringle, President of the NEA; Stacy Davis Gates, President of the Chicago Teachers Union; and revered writer, poet and educator Nikki Giovanni, along with several teachers and educators speaking to their experiences.

Teachers and educators have been some of the top contributors to the Harris-Walz campaign, because they recognize the high stakes of this election for our education system.³ They have faced right-wing attacks directly—from efforts to privatize our schools, to the relentless book bans, to the efforts to demonize what educators can and cannot teach about our shared history. Educators and teachers, and so many others, have too much to lose in the event of a Trump-Vance administration. There's too much at stake in this election for any of us to sit on the sidelines. 

This event is an opportunity to hear from former and current educators who are directly impacted, and an opportunity for us to come together, and hear even more about the stakes ahead of this crucial election. RSVP for "Educators for Harris" and join us on Thursday, September 26 at 7:30 PM ET/6:30 PM CT.

Thanks for all you do.

How False Narrative About Haitians Gained Traction

RS Seminar- Economic Crisis: How False Narrative About Haitians Gained Traction:   Why debunked falsehoods about Haitian migrants gained traction By  Tiffany Hsu The latest, with 42 days to go, Sept, 24, 2024,    The fals...

10 Worst Things About The Trump Presidency | Robert Reich

Rambling Trump Tales

Civic Education for Students

The Office of California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D., would like to invite you to our upcoming 2024 California College Civic and Voter Empowerment Summit.   We would also greatly appreciate your help with spreading the word about this important event. Please share the information below with your networks, college students and anyone who would benefit from learning about college civic and voter empowerment and the upcoming General Election on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.     Event Details    Join California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D., and the Students Vote Project for important updates on the 2024 General Election. Learn from civic engagement leaders, enhance campus civic involvement, and participate in a virtual internship fair for college students.    Wednesday, October 9, 2024  10 a.m. – 12 p.m. PDT  Register today! Topics to include:  Importance of Voting Rights and Civic Engagement   Civic and Voter Empowerment Coordinator “Best Practices” Panel  Presentation on “What is on the Ballot?”   Virtual California State Internship Fair for College Students    View social media graphics and flyer for the virtual meeting: drive.google.com/drive/folders/14fKu4UMu9WeZTGI7tmCFAZm19i-kHlvt   Thank you for helping us spread the word! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at caststudentsvote@sos.ca.gov.     For media requests, please contact sospress@sos.ca.gov.

 

Normal Meets Weird: Debate

Normal Meets Weird: And normal wins by a knockout in Tuesday’s Harris-Trump debate.

Father of Child Killed in Ohio Crash Begs Trump, Vance To Stop Politicizing Son’s Death

 

How JD Vance Turned The Conspiracy Machine On Haitians In A Small Ohio City

Laying Out Their Economics Before Tomorrow’s Debate

Laying Out Their Economics Before Tomorrow’s Debate: Both Trump and Harris unveiled a mix of new economic policies last week. Only some were appalling.

Texas Take Over of Public Schools Fails

The Troubling Trend of State Takeovers of Public Schools

Despite aiming to close achievement gaps, state takeovers of school districts worsen education inequality for low-income and minority students.

Blogging Our Great Divide

August 06, 2024

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by Georgia Jensen

 

The state takeover of Houston Independent School District, the eighth-largest public school system in the United States, is entering its second year. 

State-appointed superintendent Mike Miles is celebrating the occasion by touting state test score results that show preliminary improvement in student achievement. Other leaders in education across the country are paying close attention to Miles’ tactics to see if they’re effective enough to implement in their own schools.

Since 1989, over 100 school districts across the U.S. have been subjected to state takeovers, in which the state seizes control of low-performing or financially struggling school districts, replacing their locally elected school boards. This is done with the goal of dramatically improving the district’s academic or financial performance. State takeovers are difficult to neatly describe because they vary from place to place depending on the policies that the state-appointed board and superintendent decide to implement. But they are overwhelmingly ineffective.

A 2021 study done by researchers from Brown University and the University of Virginia analyzed over 100 state takeovers between 1989 and 2016. It found “no evidence that takeover generates academic benefits.” In fact, it can take years for schools to return to their previous levels of academic achievement after a takeover. 

 

Texas State Takeovers.

 

https://inequality.org/great-divide/the-troubling-trend-of-state-takeovers-of-public-schools/

 

  

Project 2025: The MAGA Plan to Take Your Freedom | Robert Reich

Sept 5, 2024 -Today in School

 

Celebration of Labor Day

As we celebrate Labor Day, 2024, there is some very good news. 

Bernie Sanders 

 

Public approval of labor unions, at 70%, is higher today than it has been in decades. Over the last year major unions like the UAW have won some highly publicized strikes, while many other unions have negotiated trail-blazing contracts for their members. Young people at Starbucks and on college campuses are now more involved in labor organizing than ever before. And, for the first time in American history, a president of the United States, Joe Biden, walked a picket line with striking workers.

It is not an accident as to why we are now seeing more militancy and growth in the labor movement. The working people of our country are increasingly aware of the unprecedented level of corporate greed and power we are now experiencing, and the outrageous level of income and wealth inequality that exists. They understand that never before in American history have so few had so much, while so many continue to struggle. And they are fighting back. They know that workers in unions can negotiate contracts that give them better wages, working conditions and benefits than non-union workers. They appreciate that when you’re in a union you have some power against the arbitrary decisions corporate bosses. 

Working people today are more than aware that, over the last 50 years, there has been a massive transfer of wealth from the bottom 90% to the top 1%. They are disgusted that, despite huge increases in worker productivity, real inflation-accounted for wages for the average American worker are lower now than they were over 50 years ago as 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. They are insulted that CEOs of major corporations make almost 350 times as much as their average employee. They are concerned that the American dream is ending and that their kids may have an even lower standard of living than they do. And they worry that with the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence and robotics, they have no power as to what will happen to their jobs as the economy undergoes major transformations.

The average American worker also understands that his/her political power has been significantly diminished as billionaires pour huge amounts of money into both political parties as they undermine our democracy. It is no great secret as to who now has the clout in Congress. It is the billionaires, the corporate CEOs, the campaign donors and their well-connected lobbyists.

Purchase affordable magnetic Harris/Walz bumper stickers (2 for $5) and give them to other volunteers.

Purchase Harris/Walz window decals for car/home and give them to other volunteers.