International April 13, 2011

Carrying the Voters’ Torch

An interview with Svandis Svavarsdottir, Minister of the Environment for Iceland from the Left-Green Party by Scott Laugenour Svandis Svavarsdottir has served the coalition government of Iceland for almost two years. Her Left-Green Party is part of the ruling coalition that was voted into power following the failures of Iceland’s major banks and consequent public anger at the corruption and poor governance at the root of those failures. Prior to taking this position, Svandis served for three years in the Reykjavik City Council during a period of much debate on energy policy for the municipally-owned Reykjavik Electric Company. She was…

Environment April 11, 2011

Renewables, not nuclear power, are the way forward

by David McCorquodale On March 26, The News Journal chose to print a pro-nuclear power opinion piece by Gwyneth Cravens, a romance novelist and editor who was once an anti-nuclear activist. She somehow “saw the light” and is now in favor of nuclear power — apparently because she thinks it’s “better” than burning fossil fuels. The fact that she gets a good income from making pro-nuclear power speeches to receptive audiences and from writing articles for media conglomerates who want to minimize public trepidation about nuclear energy might have a bit to do with her positive outlook. Let’s be clear…

Labor January 29, 2011

Let’s run union reps in the 2011 elections – labor can win in Philly!

an open Letter to Philly Unions .. STOP Supporting the Democrats and Republicans! Let’s Run Our Union Reps for City Council at Large & City Commisioner in 2011 as Green Party Candidates! I am a union representative for the UFCW, Local 152. Many of you know me or have heard about me in my run for State Representative where I produced the highest percentage of vote of any third party candidate in a three-way race – beating the Republican in Philadelphia! I produced this great victory because I stood for the issues, used basic union organizing skills, took NO corporate…

Third Party January 27, 2011

Memo to Progressives: Green or the Graveyard

Why progressive, antiwar, and eco voters must lead a popular revolt against two-party rule by Scott McLarty (first published in OpEdNews.com, December 2010) Is it time for progressive, antiwar, and pro-environmental activists and voters to look beyond the Democratic Party and seek other alliances? There’s only one plausible excuse left for such voters to remain loyal to the Dems in the realm of electoral politics: to prevent the GOP from winning. Some progressives insist that we need to continue supporting Democrats because of Supreme Court appointments (although Dems in Congress have approved some of the most ideologically rigid Republican appointees) and to…

2011 State of the Union address January 27, 2011

State of the Union Speech Reflects U.S. Plutocracy

by Ron Forthofer [former Green Party candidate for Congress and for Governor of Colorado] first published at Dissident Voice, January 26, 2011 The State of the Union speech has become a well-scripted event full of nice words but few ideas that will really benefit the public. This sad situation results from our political system being corrupted by big money. This corruption almost guarantees that the public interest will be trumped by the interest of the rich and powerful. To change this sorry state of affairs, it would take a courageous leader who was willing to put the interests of the…