States are Duty-Bound to Interpose

by Debra Medina – (full article here)

Our founders, astute students of history, well understood as St. Augustine had described, Libido Dominandi, the lust to dominate. They knew that if permitted, the federal government would transgress the limits of the constitution, and, as Thomas Jefferson remarked, “[annihilate] the state governments and erect upon their ruins a general consolidated government.”

Mr. Jefferson wrote in 1799, “lest [our] silence be construed into an acquiescence…the states…being sovereign and independent, have the unquestionable right to judge of [the federal government’s] infraction; and “That a nullification, by those sovereignties [states] of all unauthorized acts done under color of that instrument [the Constituion] is the rightful remedy.

Mr. Jefferson understood that a stronger response than mere petitions and protests would be necessary but he sought ever to preserve the union and thus viewed secession only as a last resort.

Nullify Now – http://www.nullifynow.com/

Bernie Sanders on the TAX Scandal

Sen. Sanders talked with Ed Schultz on his radio show regarding the senator’s call for an end to corporate tax breaks which have allowed companies like General Electric to avoid paying U.S. taxes. (link below)

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/media/listen/?m=4cf940da-0401-4278-b115-75e6bec7487f

Vermont Nonprofit Conference on April 14

From Common Good Vermont:

This is a unique opportunity for us to get together and learn how to turn our hard work into community support. The topic is timely–“Measuring. Marketing & Money”– and the presentations promise to be inspirational.  Space is limited, so I hope you will join me and register today!

Check out the line up!

You can register to attend the conference in Bennington, Burlington, Randolph, Middlebury, Castleton, Springfield, Johnson, St. Albans or Waterbury. See you there!

It’s a statewide conference with a regional twist!

-Kate McGowan
United Way of Addison County

Sen. Bernie Sanders Denounces Corporate Tax Dodgers

Sen. Bernie Sanders Denounces Corporate Tax Dodgers.

Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is criticizing Republican efforts to cut social spending at a time when many of the nation’s largest corporations are paying nothing, or almost nothing, in federal income tax. Sanders has released a list of the 10 worst corporate income tax avoiders. Companies include Exxon Mobil, Bank of America, General Electric, Chevron, Boeing, Valero Energy, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, ConocoPhillips and Carnival Cruise Lines. In the case of General Electric, the company has made $26 billion in profits in the United States over the past five years. During that time, it has received over $4 billion in tax refunds from the IRS.

10 worst corporate income tax avoiders – http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=67562604-8280-4d56-8af4-a27f59d70de5

“We have a deficit problem. It has to be addressed,” Sanders said, “but it cannot be addressed on the backs of the sick, the elderly, the poor, young people, the most vulnerable in this country.  The wealthiest people and the largest corporations in this country have got to contribute. We’ve got to talk about shared sacrifice.”

NOFA joins lawsuit filed against Monsanto

By agalloway March 29, 2011 VT Digger

NOFA Vermont Joins Lawsuit Challenging Monsanto’s Patents on Genetically Engineered Crops

RICHMOND, VERMONT — On Tuesday, March 29, NOFA Vermont joined dozens of farmers, seed producers, agricultural businesses and non-profit organizations across the country and Canada, as plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed against Monsanto Corporation. The suit challenges the validity of the chemical giant’s patents on a number of its genetically engineered (GE) crops. It also asks the court to prevent Monsanto from continuing its unwarranted and damaging patent infringement lawsuits against farmers and others for alleged patent infringements when their organic and non-GE fields and crops become contaminated by Monsanto’s GE crops.

The suit was filed on behalf of the plaintiffs in federal district court in Manhattan by patent attorney Dan Ravicher, Executive Director of the Public Patent Foundation, a not-for-profit legal services organization affiliated with the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in Manhattan .

full article – http://vtdigger.org/2011/03/30/nofa-joins-lawsuit-filed-against-monsanto/

Permaculture Design Certification “Immersion Course”

Time: June 19, 2011 at 4pm to July 1, 2011 at 2pm
Location: Willow Crossing Farm
Organized By: Burlington Permaculture, Prospect Rock Permaculture

Burlington Permaculture and Prospect Rock are pleased to offer our 4th annual Permaculture Design Certification course.  This year our course will be even further immersed in ecology and practice: held at Willow Crossing Farm- a regenerative organic family farm and decade-old permaculture project on the beautiful Lamoille River and VT’s Long Trail.The 2 week residential intensive course goes above and beyond the internationally recognized standard curriculum with focus on Social Justice, Community Resilience, Farm Design, Transition, PC for Educators, Natural Building, and visits to the vibrant farms, homesteads, nurseries, and ethical businesses that contribute to the resilient agricultural economy of northern VT.  ~100% of the food served during the course will come from the host site and immediately local farms visited during the course.

for further details visit – www.prospectrock.org

Transitioning to THE NUCLEAR RENAISSANCE!?!

I am writing this not only because of what is happening in japan and with the re-licensing of  Vermont Yankee but also because of the 400+ Nuclear “plants”  across the world that threaten our very existence. It seems the “powers that be” want to Renovate the old leaky nuclear plants as a transition to this coming Nuclear Renaissance. In the wake of what is happening in Japan this sounds farcical… I wish it was

First what is a Renaissance? Stay with me here…. Literally it means Re-Birth. What is this “Re-Birth” and can it be forced or invoked into being by will? Looking to History as our guide we can see that any true renaissance came about spontaneously, it was a sort of “Leap in evolutionary progress”. Lets take the renaissance in painting for example; what was it that happened? For one thing these “Renaissance Men” as they are know where not only artists they were scientist, mathematicians and inventors. It wasn’t only a change in their method of applying the paint to the canvas that brought about this artistic renaissance it was the way they were seeing and interpreting their subject. A renaissance is normally a drawn out process, for example the historical transformational period referred to as “The Renaissance” was from the 14th to the 17th century,

Pre-renaissance artists were still using “the rational mind” to see their subject. ex. The rational mind says, “my subject is an arm” the rational mind creates a preconceived idea of what an arm should look like and this effects the outcome. Next the rational mind can’t understand how a 3D object can be recreated to look identical on a two dimensional surface.

The Renaissance Men saw that if you disregard the subject and just focus on the lines and space of the subject something happens. Being scientists and mathematicians  they started many exhaustive experiments (this involves MISTAKES). They learned about foreshortening (objects appearing smaller the further away they are) and the “vanishing point”, “negative space” and so on.

Getting to the point I am illustrating. A True Renaissance is not a “Renovation” meaning building off of the “old formula” it is a complete RE-BIRTH this means everything previously believed to be “true” or the “standard” has to discarded altogether! Are we ready to do that with Nuclear Energy Production?

Are we really ready to risk all of humanity and the future of our beautiful planet Earth by trying a “new formula” (Renaissance) with this volatile form of producing energy?

Vt legislatures innocence of “powerlessness”

above is the article I posted on VT Commons on the 13th of this month, when I first found out Senate Bill 84 was introduced. The Bill states that the Vermont Legislature should NOT have the power to determine whether Vermont  Yankee gets their license extended for another 20 years, which would mean; the Nuclear Regulatory Commission would have this exclusive power, meaning Vermont Yankee already has a 20 year extension on their license (if the bill passes).

Now we have HOUSE bill H.331 that is set to do the same thing!!!  Strip us Vermonters of our Voice to say NO to Nuclear, effectively stripping us of our Sovereignty.

VT Constitution: “all government ought to be instituted and supported, for the security and protection of the community, as such, and to enable the individuals who compose it, to enjoy their natural rights.” Our security and protection is a product of our State’s sovereignty.

The Sovereign States enjoy guaranteed rights by virtue of their reserved powers pursuant to the Tenth Amendment – “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the people.”

Americans stage protest over genetically modified foods

Sun Mar 27, 2011 1:11AM

Marjan Asi, Press TV, Washington

The movement for labeling genetically modified foods is growing as was illustrated in protests held in at least 20 cities throughout the US this past Saturday. Here in Washington, protesters gathered outside the White House to vocalize their demand for the right to know if the foods they purchase are genetically modified.

Full article and Video – http://www.presstv.ir/detail/171816.html

 

Monday March 28, Sierra Club “Protect VT’s Forests” Meeting

Monday, March 28th: Learn how you can protect VT’s forests Join us in Middlebury this Monday to learn how you can protect VT’s forests. The Vermont Sierra Club recently launched the Our Forests, Our Future campaign to establish a mosaic of town forests to protect wildlife and conserve our forests. In order win this campaign, we need to build regional grassroots activist teams across the state. These teams will play a central role in fighting on behalf of the environment on local issues and at the local level. Come to our kick-off meeting in Middlebury on March 28th to learn more about this campaign and find out how you can get involved. Meeting Details Who: Sierra Club staff and volunteers — and you! What: Middlebury regional Sierra Club team meeting When: Monday, March 28th, 7:00PM Where: The Ilsley Public Library, 75 Main Street, Middlebury (enter around back) Click here for directions! Questions: Email david.vandeusen@sierraclub.org RSVP Here: http://action.sierraclub.org/site/Calendar?view=Detail&id=151601 Thank you for everything you do for the environment. David Van Deusen Sierra Club — Vermont

Sat 3/26 (March 25-27) Online Secession Talk

by Carol Moore – VT Commons

I’ll be speaking on “Libertarian Decentralism and Secession Strategies” this Saturday 10AM EST at an online libertarian conference with 70 plus of speakers, many with green, sustainability, or self-sufficiency viewpoints. Go here for my channel and here for speakers list.

Talks Vermonters might find of special interest include:

*David Derby, Urban Farmer, Creating a Free Food System in the Mainstream
*George Donnelly, Blogger at Arm your Mind for Liberty, Open Source Peaceful Evolution for Fun and Profit
*Thad Getterman, Broken Sidewalk Farm, Open Source Food System
*Carla Gericke, President of New Hampshire’s Free State Project
*Iloilo Jones, Cooperative Community Schooling
*Karen Kwiatkowski, Govt whistleblower, Can We Be Free in an Unfree World?
*Carlos Miller, Multimedia Journalist, Photography is Not a Crime
*Mookie Moss, Siskiyou Goat Dairy, Operating outside of State Jurisdiction: An Agricultural Perspective
*Mary Ruwart, Libertarian National Committee, Rolling Back Government Without Winning Elections
*Brad Spangler, Director, Center for a Stateless Society, Developing Alternative Legal Systems
*Jeffrey P. Zacher, CEO of Zacher Network Solutions, Creating Alternative Networks (A Brief Internet Kill Switch Survival Guide)

 

http://www.vtcommons.org/blog/2011/03/24/secede-survive-sat-326-online-secession-talk

Treasury kicks off small business lending with $53.4 million

From: The Money Blog

Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011 By Mary Rice

Three states have qualified to get big money from the Treasury Department. The Treasury Department has infused $53.4 million into lending programs in Connecticut, Vermont and Missouri. All three states have created programs that are intended to stimulate $10 worth of small business lending for every $1 invested.

The Small Business Jobs Act

Small businesses in the United States represent about 50 percent of all private-sector jobs in the United States, and 64 percent of new jobs created in the last 15 years have been created by small businesses. In order to encourage small business growth and hiring in the United States, Congress passed the Small Business Jobs Act in 2010. The Act authorized the Treasury to hand out $1.5 billion in loan guarantees to states with solid plans to increase small business investment through loan guarantees and other lending programs.

full article – http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2011/03/23/treasury-small-business-loans/

Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2011 on April 14th

From: CommonGoodVT.org

Greetings!

Those of us in the trenches of nonprofit work can feel overwhelmed by the double whammy of decreasing funding and increasing demand for services. Sometimes we feel like we are spinning our wheels in isolation. That’s why I am looking forward to seeing all of you at the Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2011 on April 14^th! Check out the line up!

sign up today

Ellen Hill
Director, Experiential Learning
and Nonprofit Management Studies
Johnson State College

You can register here at http://bitly.com/npvt11

Watch a quick video preview of the conference.

It’s Not the End of the World

The F-35: A Weapon That Costs More Than Australia

Article from: The Atlantic

The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an impressive aircraft: a fifth generation multirole fighter plane with stealth technology. It’s also a symbol of everything that’s wrong with defense spending in America.

In a rational world, U.S. military expenditure would focus on the likely threats that the United States faces today and in the future. And at a time of mounting national debt, the Tea Party would be knocking down the Pentagon’s door to cut waste.

But the only tea party in sight is the one overseen by the Mad Hatter, as we head down the rabbit hole into the military industrial wonderland.

The F-35 is designed to be the core tactical fighter aircraft for the U.S. military, with three versions for the Air Force, Navy, and the Marine Corps. Each plane clocks in at around $90 million.

In a decade’s time, the United States plans to have 15 times as many modern fighters as China, and 20 times as many as Russia.

So, how many F-35s do we need?

100?

500?

Washington intends to buy 2,443, at a price tag of $382 billion.

Add in the $650 billion that the Government Accountability Office estimates is needed to operate and maintain the aircraft, and the total cost reaches a staggering $1 trillion.

full article – http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/03/the-f-35-a-weapon-that-costs-more-than-australia/72454/#

Anti-GMO Rally Montpelier City Hall

From – VT Digger

Contact: Seana Pelkey, Organizer
Email: seana.pelkey@gmail.com
Khristopher Flack, Media Contact
Email: milkbottlestories@gmail.com

GMO Rallies expand across the US:
Vermont rally to be held Saturday at City Hall, Montpelier.

What began as a single rally scheduled to take place in Washington D.C. has expanded across the whole of the United States, thousands have signed up to have their say.

Their demands are:
1. We have the right to know and want genetically modified foods labeled.
2. We want factory farmed animal and genetically modified animal products labeled.
3. We want independent, transparent, long-term studies done on the safety of GMOs for animals/plants/humans.
4. We want the organic industry protected from cross-contamination and law suits to organic farmers.

The FDA currently considers GM foods “substantially equivalent” or GRAS (generally recognized as safe) and therefore doesn’t require labeling.

If you are interested in participating in the Vermont Rally For The Right to Know, you can meet on the steps of City Hall in Montpelier this Saturday, March 26 between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Signs are encouraged.

Visit: www.facebook.com/rallyfortherighttoknow2011 for more information.