Cheese Sandwich

Cheese Sandwich's Journal

October 8, 2015

Baltimore Police Commissioner Stunned by Poverty in Baltimore

Police Commissioner Kevin Davis:

"Poverty in Baltimore is pronounced. And I'm a lifelong Marylander. And you know, I'm 46 years old. I had not been in certain communities in Baltimore City my entire life, and I've been introduced to those communities since I've been here in January. And the poverty--you wouldn't think that a community like that would still exist in this country, quite frankly. The housing, the poverty, the drug addictions, the hopelessness. So you know, Baltimore is a far different city than DC."

October 8, 2015

The difference between principled opposition to the TPP vs. opposing this particular deal today

Hillary Clinton is now supposedly "against" the TPP. But to be clear there is a huge difference between the candidates on the issue.

Bernie Sanders is against the idea of a regional treaty secretly negotiated by a team of corporate lawyers to transfer power from governments to multi-national corporations.

Hillary Clinton is not against that in principal. She's OK with that project. In fact she is has been a top leader of selling that process.

So what has she now spoken "against"? She made a statement opposing this one version of the deal based on the politics of today. If the TPP changes slightly, to include different currency manipulation rules for example, she could very well switch sides again.

We should really support a candidate who stands in principled opposition to the whole project of building a framework for global governance by unelected private tyrannies.

Not someone who is OK with that if the politics can be managed correctly.

October 8, 2015

The reason pro-Palestine Boston students picked Bernie Sanders’ rally to make a statement

“We were not there to disrupt Sanders’s speech,” Samirah said. “Our genuine expectations were that the rally served as the perfect opportunity to show our support while also raising a very important question.”

They were disappointed when an event staffer, at the request of a campaign staffer, asked them to leave the event or take down their sign, “Will Ya #feeltheBern 4 Palestine?”

However, Sanders Campaign Manager Jeff Weaver said it was the actions of a rogue low-level staffer, who was wrong to ask them to take down their sign. Weaver told Boston.com Monday night that he personally apologized to the group.

Boston SJP members told Middle East Eye that they had a 10-15 minute conversation with the campaign manager and that a future meeting with Sanders campaign is “in the works.”
...

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2015/10/07/the-reason-pro-palestine-boston-students-picked-bernie-sanders-rally-make-statement/DZfCDfcTauIHJKzZrdsw7N/story.html

October 6, 2015

Workplace Democracy Act: Bernie Sanders new bill to make it easier for workers to join unions

These pictures are from twitter:
CWA ?@CWAUnion
"If workers want to exercise their right to join a union, they must be allowed to do so." - @SenSanders #1u
https://twitter.com/CWAUnion/status/651466766242156544

NationalNursesUnited @NationalNurses
NNU nurses getting ready for press conference with @BernieSanders on Capitol Hill. #StartTheConvo
https://twitter.com/NationalNurses/status/651462062145708032

Good Jobs Nation ?@GoodJobsNation
Happening now! Workers gather at the @uscapitol to support @BernieSanders' Workplace Democracy Act! #FightFor15 #1u
https://twitter.com/GoodJobsNation/status/651462094693470209

Sanders, Pocan Introduce Legislation to Strengthen Workers’ Rights

Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) introduced legislation today that would make it easier for workers to join unions and bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions.

“Millions of Americans who want to join unions are unable to do so because of the coercive and often illegal behavior of their employers,” Sanders said. “The benefits of joining a union are clear: higher wages, better benefits and a more secure retirement. If we are serious about reducing income and wealth inequality and rebuilding the middle class, we have got to substantially increase the number of union jobs in this country.

The Workplace Democracy Act will make it easier for workers to join a union by allowing the National Labor Relations Board to certify a union if a simple majority of eligible workers sign valid authorization cards. The bill also requires companies to begin negotiating within 10 days after certification. If no first contract is reached after 90 days, either party can request compulsory mediation. After 30 days of mediation, the parties will submit the remaining issues to binding arbitration.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-pocan-introduce-legislation-to-strengthen-workers-rights

October 6, 2015

O’Malley polls woefully in home state: 2%

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley’s presidential polling woes extend to his home state, where he takes only 2 percent support in the race for the Democratic nomination, according to a new poll.

A Goucher College poll released Tuesday shows Hillary Clinton leading the field in Maryland with 43 percent support, followed by Vice President Biden at 23 percent, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at 17 percent, and O’Malley, tied with former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, at 2 percent.

Those results mirror O’Malley’s struggles nationally. According to the RealClearPolitics average, he is stuck in the bottom tier of candidates at only .6 percent support.

“Although Martin O’Malley was a popular two-term governor among Democrats in the state, his campaign’s difficulties in gaining traction nationwide are reflected in Maryland,” said Mileah Kromer, the director of Goucher College’s political institute.

O’Malley served two terms as mayor of Baltimore, and two terms as governor of Maryland, ending in 2015. He launched his presidential bid from Baltimore in late May.
...

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/256045-omalley-polls-woefully-in-home-state

LOL

October 6, 2015

NAFTA on Steroids: Consumer Groups Slam the TPP as 12 Nations Agree to Trade Accord

Oct 6, 2015

October 5, 2015

Sanders campaign says pro-Palestine activists should never have been kicked out of Boston rally

Now with some positive updates

Sanders campaign says pro-Palestine activists should never have been kicked out of Boston rally

“They told us to either put the sign away or leave,” Sana Hashmani, one of the student activists, told The Intercept, which first reported the incident. “We asked why, and they said that Bernie’s campaign staff had said the sign had to go.”

But Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver told Boston.com Monday night that the incident ”100 percent” should not have happened and that the staffer never should have asked the students to take the sign down.

Weaver said the individual, whom he described as a “low-level volunteer,” will no longer be working campaign events.

“We’ve communicated to our staff to make sure nothing like this happens again,” he said.

Weaver also said he reached out to the three individuals asked to leave to let them know the incident should not have happened and to apologize on behalf on the campaign.

A cell phone video posted Sunday on YouTube by the Boston chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine shows an event staffer telling the activists that Sanders campaign staff had requested they take the sign down or leave.
...

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2015/10/05/bernie-sanders-campaign-says-pro-palestine-activists-should-never-have-been-kicked-out-boston-rally/QbqJeTYKFi4shsKlgk9fPK/story.html

Statement by Boston Students for Justice in Palestine Regarding Ejection From Bernie Sanders Rally (excerpt)

We have discussed the incident with Sanders’s campaign manager, Jeff Weaver, who expressed regret about how we were treated and acknowledged that our sign was “appropriate” and “in the spirit of many other signs there.” We are eager to engage in a dialogue about inclusivity and the elevation of under-represented voices. Sanders speaks up for those hurt by low wages, gender inequality, school tuition, corporate power, and climate change. Recently, he released a broad policy platform to address systemic racism. We want him to also speak up for those hurt by US foreign policy and military aid: we want him to speak up on Palestine. We hope that Sanders and other presidential candidates will seriously consider our government’s role in Israel's human rights abuses as they shape their foreign policy platform.

more: https://www.facebook.com/WillYaFeelTheBern4Palestine

==============

Thanks to the people who were giving these updates in the thread.

==============

You can stay but you have to put the sign away:

https://twitter.com/WillYaBern4Pal/status/651068449331015682/photo/1