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9/22/09 Health Insurance Reform Rally - Philadelphia, PA

Written by: Tom Alba on Sep 29, 2009 2:56 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Montco DFA, Philly for Change, PA for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy, Lower Bucks for Democracy

We came.  We held signs.  We cheered speakers.  We rallied.  We marched through the streets.  We shouted at insurance companies.  We have done this and much more, many times before.  Do our voices count more than the money coming from these companies?

Here are some photos.

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John Grant's "Questioning the Army Experience Center"

Written by: Tom Alba on Sep 13, 2009 11:33 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Asheville Democracy for America, Lower Bucks for Democracy, Montco DFA, PA for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy

Questioning the Army Experience Center
Photos & report by John Grant, Veterans For Peace Chapter 31
 
People came from all over on Saturday, September 12th to express their disgust with the United States Army's $12 million experimental video-game recruitment center at the Franklin Mills Mall in Northeast Philadelphia. At 11:30 AM, over 150 people from all over the east coast began collecting at the busy intersection of Knights and Woodhaven Roads where speakers like writer Chris Hedges spoke about the insidious momentum of war. At 2 PM,  led by a contingent of anti-war veterans, the spirited group marched down Knights Road and into the Red Entrance of the Mall. They loudly marched past the Dave & Busters game emporium right up to the entrance of the Army Experience Center, which was protected by a phalanx of Philadelphia police. The marchers and their shouts of "War is not a game!" and "Close it down!" filled the Mall, as the cops stood stern-faced, some looking pained as if they wished they were somewhere else, as if their personal politics and their jobs might be in conflict. Inside the Army Experience Center, about 30 members of the right-wing veterans group A Gathering Of Eagles stood behind the glass panels smirking and mugging for protesters' cameras.

Earlier in the day, my wife Lou Ann and I wandered up to the entrance of the AEC to see what was going on. The active-duty commander of the center told us the center was closed for the day due to a 9/11 commemoration event with members of A Gathering Of Eagles. The Eagles all featured their usual denim jackets and motorcycle regalia with POW-MIA patches and other obligatory, right-wing identity symbols. I asked if, as a veteran, I could join the commemoration event, since I also felt obliged to honor the sacrifices of that day. "No!" I was told firmly. "OK," I said to the young commander. "How about if we Veterans For Peace work out with you a time when we can come to the AEC and have our own commemoration event with you involving people who have died in wars." "No!" he said, this time a bit rudely. At that point Lou Ann asked him why he was being so blatantly selective in the kinds of veterans he allowed into his establishment. At this point, he abruptly walked away. For the record, in May the Philly VFP chapter formally requested permission to set up a modest respectful table for presenting alternative views to the AEC. We have heard nothing concerning that request.  

A tall, bearded Eagle remained at the entrance, and we began to make cordial conversation with him. He was from North Carolina so we exchanged pleasantries on that fine state, since we had just returned from a week on Okracoke Island. Lou Ann knew the area he was from, so it was a polite exchange. That is, until Lou Ann asked him if he thought the polarization between left and right in America was something that could be surmounted -- or was it just a case of war. "It's not left or right," the man said. "It's Democrat-Republican, and the Democrats have been taken over by Communists. They're Marxist-Leninists." This was more than we expected. Since we had both voted for Obama, we were Democrats, but we both now felt for one reason or another Obama was in cahoots with militarists like this Eagle when it came to the issue of Afghanistan. 

"That's simply absurd," I told him.

"I won't talk about it," he said and stepped away. 

The extent of blindered and willful ignorance of this otherwise polite guy was staggering. What was so sobering was that this sort of willful ignorance symbolized for me the incredible cultural momentum from eight years of post-9/11 vengeance-rooted military mobilization, a national state of mind that has involved two major invasions and follow-up occupations and a runaway regime of secrecy, illegal surveillance, detention and torture. It was all in this guy's block-headed assumptions about "communists" in the woodpile. We certainly had our work cut out for us. How does one go about organizing a reasonable and decent society when this is the kind of response a tax-paying citizen encounters when he has the temerity to ask just what the Hell is going on and why are we choosing to hose more gasoline on the fire we kicked up in Afghanistan/Pakistan? I can hear the smarmy Gathering Of Eagle chuckle and response to this question: What about Osama bin Laden? OK, what about him? All this stuff needs to be discussed afresh. 

Every one who came out to march on Saturday against the Army Experience Center realized, as an institution, it is a fundamental adjunct of our unquestioned and unquestionable Afghanistan policy.  If you choose to make war and you choose to expand the violence, you need young men and women to hump the rugged terrain of Afghanistan and to drive the dangerous roadways of Afghanistan and to engage the fierce Pashtun Taliban fighters so infuriated at the US military occupation of their homeland. There is so much screwed up about our presence in Afghanistan it's hard to know where to start. And I won't even try here. Suffice it to say, it is fundamentally screwed up thanks to the corrupt Bush years and, now, the insidious momentum of war on both sides of the battle. It can go no where but from bad to worse. 

As one of the march signs pointed out, from January to July of this year, there were more suicides among soldiers than there were combat deaths. Post Traumatic Stress is at crisis levels -- to the point the military is now featuring "resilience training" to toughed up our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. This kind of  psychological counseling is notoriously good for one thing: getting young men and women to buck up and get back on the line. No one is asking the real questions such as Why the Hell are we recruiting young kids and sending them into the war in Afghanistan at all? As many vets will submit, one of the causes of PTSD is a sense of not understanding what the mission is or slowly coming to the realization the stated mission is dishonest and the real deal is something much more insidious.  

We can only speculate why the US Army picked the Franklin Mills Mall for its experiment in high-tech youth entrapment.  Might it have something to do with the working class demographics of the Northeast Philadelphia and the dismal economic climate for jobs and careers facing young kids graduating from high school? The rumor spread during the march that the Army had decided not to invest in centers like the AEC in malls across America. One can only hope, its Gathering Of Eagles support aside, that the Army sees what a morally dubious enterprise the AEC really is.
In the end, the Philadelphia Police Civil Affairs Unit arrested a handful of demonstrators who refused to leave the mall after a robust period of loud questioning. Once everyone had been swept out of the Mall, its Red Entrance was protected by the phalanx of Philly cops. The AEC and the Mall were safe again. All the gravely serious questions this motley gathering of angry citizens still harbored had been deflected. Thanks to all the armed personnel, the Mall was returned to its commercial purpose distributing the bread & circus that keeps our citizens subdued. Dave & Busters and Victoria's Secret were safe. 

But Afghanistan will not go away, and we can all be assured more kids recruited out of cynical places like the AEC will die there.

 

CrowdHedges speaks

Above left: The marchers gather at Woodhaven and Knights Roads.    Above right: writer Chris Hedges speaks next to Gold Star Mother Celeste Zappala, whose son Sherwood was killed in Iraq.

 
Below Left: Philadelphia cops protect the Army Experience Center from all the rowdy citizens asking uncomfortable questions while inside members of A Gathering Of Eagles grin and mug at marchers behind the glass panels. They were at the AEC to commemorate 9/11.  Right: one of the marchers who would not yield and stop asking questions is arrested and rushed out a back door by Civil Affairs officers.

Arrival
John Grant, writer and photographer, is the President of  Veterans For Peace, Chapter 31 - Philadelphia Area
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Inching Closer to the "Public Option"

Written by: Tom Alba on Sep 8, 2009 6:06 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Philly for Change, Montco DFA, Lower Bucks for Democracy, Upper Bucks for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy

Today, supporters of the Public Option for Health Care Reform received an assurance from PA Specter at AmtrakSen. Arlen Specter that he will support the Option.

A rally was called to meet him at the Amtrak Station before he boarded a train to return to Washington.  He approached the rally smiling, confident and shook hands as he held an impromptu meeting with the media to declare his position.  The Fox affiliate, WTXF 29, and the Philadelphia/Wilmington PBS station, WHYY, were on hand to record the event.

On September 3rd, a similar rally was held in Philadelphia outside of the Blue Cross Headquarters and then outside Sen. Casey's office.  A spokesperson addressed the group and assured us Sen. Casey was absolutely committed to the Public Option.Outside Casey's office

The night before, a candle light vigil was held in the small suburban town of Glenside, in Montgomery County, PA.

Glenside Vigil

That group numbered about 75 and could be characterized as being extremely civil and quiet.  Even the counter demonstrators, who numbered about 15, did not try to disrupt the peaceful event.  However, their signs showed a low degree of understanding of the issues and incomprehensible statements that reflected the same.  For example, "Keep government hands off of my Medicare", and "Abortion is not Health Care", to name a few.

These are the most recent rallies I have attended.  There were others and together, they have had an effect on elected officials and public opinion.

It is a pity that the persons most needing enlightenment, keep their minds and ears shut to fact and reason.  It comes as no surprise that they are the ones most vehemently opposed to having children hear a speech from our President.  The demographics from the last Election showed Obama and the Democrats scored higher as education levels went up.  It appears the children of the ignorant will have to break out of the mold their parents try to force upon them, by virtue of their own rebellion, in their later development. 

Meanwhile, minority children who advance themselves through education, will leave the ignorant, racist offspring in the dust, making them more irrelevant. (That's right, all those nut-jobs, birthers, deathers, hate mongers, etc., are just racists who can't accept the fact that Obama is the President.)

Education explained

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They're Ba-ack!!

Written by: Kevin Shaw on Aug 23, 2009 9:02 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Philly for Change, PA Single Payer Healthcare Action Committee, PA for Democracy, Montco DFA

It does my heart good to see that the Billionaires are back. The former Billionaires for Bush are now the Billionaires for Wealth Care. Witness as they hook up with the teabagger element to make their point on health insurance reform:

 

 

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Jim Dean says The Media got it wrong on the Public Option

Written by: Tom Alba on Aug 17, 2009 4:29 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Local Politics Matter, PA Single Payer Healthcare Action Committee, Asheville Democracy for America, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy, Philly for Change

Just minutes ago, I got an email from Jim Dean that contained this:

 

Over the weekend Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the Obama administration was open to considering co-ops in a healthcare reform bill. Immediately, insurance-funded media went on the attack. Some reporters called the public option dead -- others "off the table".

The media is wrong... again.

Let's be clear: A Healthcare bill without a public option is D.O.A. in the House. Period.

To pass any bill in the House they need at least 218 votes but 64 House Democrats have stood up and said they will not vote for a bill without a public option. That means a bill without a public option would only have 193 votes.

 

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The Health Care War Is Over!

Written by: Tom Alba on Aug 16, 2009 10:52 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Asheville Democracy for America, Philly for Change, Lower Bucks for Democracy, Local Politics Matter, Montco DFA

Now, about that treaty.......

Seasoned political observers have stated we will have national Health Care Reform legislation passed this Fall.  How it will measure up to what we have been advocating depends on politics.

At the end of WW I, the Treaty of Versailles took from Italy most of what they fought and died for.  (Italy's objectives and strategies don't parrallel the Health Care issue, it's just an analogy.) We can't let the same happen with respect to Health Care.

The Republicans in this Congress have proven bipartisanship is a waste of time and works only to their advantage.  Their demands weakened legislation that they still voted against, even though it contained exactly what they asked for.  How many times will the Democrats fall for this sucker punch?

Forget bipartisanship, Democrats!  Hold fast to the Public Option as a minimum.  Don't accept any watered-down nonsense like co-ops.

Go for the support to block a filibuster and vote on the Reform we need.  This is the message we need to send, particularly to the handful of Senators who can prevent a filibuster.  There has to be enough of them to vote their core values to do what is right for The People, and not obey The Money. 

Do I expect too much from a Democracy?

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Town Hall Meeting Is Civil

Written by: Tom Alba on Aug 13, 2009 1:16 PM EDT

Linked to groups: PA for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy, Montco DFA, Local Politics Matter, Philly for Change

Aug 12th - Philadelphia - Tonight I attended  the Health Care Town Hall Forum with Rep. Joe Sestak, hosted by the Broad Street Ministry.

While Democrat Sestak's 7th CD is in the suburbs, totally outside of Philadelphia, he chose the city to centralize the meeting in the most populous region of  Pennsylvania, having recently announced he will oppose Arlen Specter in the 2010 primary.

The meeting was promoted heavily in advance by advocacy groups, including Health Care for America Now and Democracy for America.  Early arrival was stressed.  Scheduled start was 6:30.  I arrived before 5 and found the line already in the hundreds, mostly supporters.  At start, the church sanctuary was filled, as was the downstairs community room which had closed  circuit TV of the meeting.  The Philadelphia Inquirer reported attendance to be about 650, diverse and mostly supporters.  A few hundred more were shut out, as the Church was filled to capacity.

Rev. Bill Golderer in his introductory remarks, pointed to the hundreds of folded paper birds suspended from above, as part of an art work that adorns the sanctuary.  Inside the folds, he explained, are prayers of children, and asked attendees to be mindful of that and conduct themselves with respect towards their neighbor.

Behavior was almost perfect.  There was only one person, called "Chris", who suddenly jumped up out of turn, started waving his arms and bellowing, "when do we get our chance?".  Cameras whirled, focused and flashed to capture that moment.  Other than that, no "Town Hall Hooligans" at all.  The Philadelphia Inquirer described the meeting as "a spoonful of sugar".

That night, I decided to compare my observations with TV coverage.  The Fox affiliate, WTXF 29, reported on the Town Hall, showing clips of  outbursts at older meetings, preceding their clip of Chris's tantrum.  The impression was this meeting was just more of the same.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  I know.  I was there.  So was the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Their reporting agrees with mine.

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Supervalu squeezes life from Acme Workers - We Can Help

Written by: Tom Alba on Jul 14, 2009 4:56 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Local Politics Matter, PA Single Payer Healthcare Action Committee, Lower Bucks for Democracy, Upper Bucks for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy

Supervalu, the parent of Acme, wants to disenfranchise the workers, members of  The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1776.

I've seen this before,  as an active member of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) for 35 years (Retired Member status since 2002 and an associate member of the United Steel Workers (USW) since 2007).  After acquisitions, corporations become hostile and ruthless to increase their short term bottom line, but do not see the value of experienced workers, nor do they respect them as human beings.

Supervalu purchased Acme from Albertsons (now the "New Albertsons") in January 2006 and inherited the Union contract, which they obviously do not appreciate.

The contract expired in February, 2008 and since that time, the workers have been operating on an extension, while the Union has continued negotiatons.

Recent events have been ugly.  On June 9th, Acme issued an utimatum: This is our final, best offer.  Take it or leave it.  We will unilaterally terminate the contract on July 10th.

Acme workers didn't buy it.  The offer imposed serious setbacks and losses.  On June 24th, 95 percent rejected the ultimatum at a meeting in Philadelphia's Spectrum, attended by over 3,000 members.

Local 1776 said that as recently as a week ago, the union made a comprehensive offer to settle the contract. The company did not counter, but instead insisted that the members of Local 1776 take another vote on its ultimatum.  Apparently, Acme wants a vote outcome that suits their needs.

The outpouring of support has been quite impressive.  Our U.S Senators, Representatives at Federal and State levels, Labor Organizations, Community Organizations and everyday consumers have written to the Acme headquarters in Malvern, PA to express their views.  A sample of letters is at http://www.1776contractfacts.org/Support.html.   Use one to gather some thoughts for your own letter (this is how we can help).

The media has been on top of this story.  The Philadelphia Inquirer reported on the June 24th meeting and the July 10th follow up.

My PHL17 has a TV news segment.  Fox Philly 29 TV also did one.

The UFCW Local 1776 took out a full page ad in The Inquirer on June 26th.  (Local 1776 has a special site for contract news.)

Other coverage has come from The Global Report with a story in its  July 14th edition and another in its July 7th edition.  The Progressive Grocer did a story on July 9th.

Local 1776 has instructed its members to continue working and has a meeting scheduled for July 15th.  Some news sources have implied that Acme could implement a lockout.

Acme's game plan is in the union buster's guide.  UFCW Local 152, from Hammonton, representing almost 1900 workers in South Jersey, is also at an impasse since it contract expired in May.

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PA Leads The Way in Single Payer Health Care at the State Level

Written by: Tom Alba on Jun 11, 2009 5:52 PM EDT

Linked to groups: PA for Democracy, Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy, Upper Bucks for Democracy, Asheville Democracy for America, Lower Bucks for Democracy

June 11th - Harrisburg, PA

Over 400 people rallied in the Capitol rotunda today, to show their support and demand passage for pending legislation that would establish a true, Single Payer Health Care System for all Pennsylvanians, provided by the State.  They filled the entire floor around the speakers and entertainers, overflowed up the stairs, filling them and the 2nd floor circular aisles as well.

That number is quite remarkable, considering the rally was convened on a rainy Thursday morning at 11 AM in Harrisburg.  The Pennsylvania Capitol is 114 miles from Philadelphia and over 200 miles from Pittsburgh, the State's only major cities.  Yet, folks from all parts - the cities, suburbs, small towns and rural areas - came out for the event.

My eye judged the crowd to be a healthy mix of gender, age, race and ethnicity, with a good measure of Union participation thrown in.

Their cheers and applause resounded loudly in the rotunda interior, as they responded to comments made by speakers, that included State legislators who support the measure.

The event was organized by the group "HealthCare4ALLPA".  Executive Director Chuck Pennacchio is highly optimistic about this legislation because it has sponsorship and support from both sides of the aisles.  He predicts that all eyes will be on Pennsylvania this Summer and passage by Thanksgiving.

Renowned speakers were prominent Health Care advocates Donna Smith, who also appeared in Michael Moore's film, "SiCKO", and Dr. Walter Tsou, who just yesterday testified as a subject matter expert, at a Congressional Hearing in Washington.

Dr. Tsou concluded his remarks by noting that Pennsylvania is the birth place of our independence and that our Declaration starts with the words, "We, The People", not "We, the Insurance Companies"!

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Watch Countdown with Keith Olbermann on the net at http://liberal.democratz.org

Written by: Dennis Baer on Feb 17, 2009 4:04 PM EST

Linked to groups: South Carolina Progressive Network, Falls Church Area DFA Link-Up, DFALA, Democracy for Illinois, DFA Blog Network

Did you miss last night's episode of Countdown with Keith Olbermann? Does your tv system not have MSNBC? If so then you can watch Countdown with Keith Olbermann on the net at

http://liberal.democratz.org and if you can't get to that web page then go to

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze2pnn4/dmocrats1/id2.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

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1 to 10 of 37

Videos of some of the 64 House Healthcare Heroes standing strong for a public health insurance option

Congressman Emanuel Cleaver



Congressman Lloyd Dogget



Congressman Keith Ellison



Congressman Bob Filner



Congressman Phil Hare



Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey



Congresswoman Maxine Waters

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