Articles by Green Papers

Economy, Green Party, National Politics, on Obama March 1, 2013

Cut the Military Budget – Now

by Mark A. Dunlea It is time to cut the military budget. It has been time to cut the military budget for many years. Like right after WWII. Otherwise known as a peace dividend. Free up funds to pay for school, job training, health care, clear water and air, mass transit, housing, hunger, jobs. Under sequestration as part of the federal budget deficit deal, half the budget cuts would come from the military, around $45 billion a year – perhaps 6% of existing spending. That is way too little. Lawrence Korb, defense advisor for former President Reagan. estimates $150 billion…

Green Party, National Politics February 12, 2013

Julius Hobson, founder of the DC Statehood Party

by Michele Tingling-Clemmons (DC Statehood Green Party) (Note: The DC Statehood Party merged with the DC Green Party in 1999 to become the DC  Statehood Green Party, which is the affiliate of the Green Party of the United States in the District of Columbia.) JULIUS W. HOBSON, SR., along with Josephine Butler, founded the D.C. Statehood Party in 1969 “to redress the inequity that Washington residents were not able (and still are unable) to exercise their full rights as citizens because they live in the federal district controlled by the U.S. Congress that does not have voting representation in Congress. The…

Green Party, International, Middle East, National Politics February 12, 2013

Rachel Corrie, American Hero and American Conscience

by Carl Romanelli Originally published by the Wilkes-Barre Independent Gazette As the Republicans were wending through their convention, and the Democrats were preparing for theirs, yet another horrid court decision was handed down. No, it was not the US Supreme Court appointing a president, as was the case in December of 2000. It was not a Pennsylvania court jailing kids for cash, but just as reprehensible. Instead, this decision came from an Israeli court in Jerusalem, but it has wrenching implications here in the US. The decision was a denial in the civil suit filed for the wrongful murder of 23-year…

campaign reform, State Politics January 29, 2013

No More Shell Games: Time for Real Campaign Reform

by Mark A. Dunlea The type of public campaign finance model that Governor Cuomo allegedly supports – the NYC 6-to-1 match of small qualified contributions – will do little to curb the influence of special interest funders in dominating the State Capitol. The Clean Money Clean Election system of public financing – which provides equal public funding grants for candidates who qualify with a reasonable number of nominal private donations – is much stronger in reducing the role of special interests in buying politicians. A more fundamental reform would be for NY – and the US – to finally join the…

Environment, Green Party, National Politics January 24, 2013

The Precautionary Principle

by Ron Forthofer  The Daily Camera January 20, 2013 Here it is 2013 and the United States still refuses, with a few exceptions, to adopt the precautionary principle, a key tool used to protect the public from potentially dangerous products, policies or actions. The essence of this principle is that if there are reasonable grounds for concern about the safety of some product or action, its safety must be scientifically established before the product is released or the action taken. The precautionary principle reflects the idea that “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.” A key…