Last week the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board (PLRB) announced the results of the election to represent the 2,300 cafeteria workers and noon time aides in the Philadelphia School District: members of UNITE HERE Local 634 voted by a 2:1 margin to stay with their union and rejected SEIU's anti-union tactics.

After months of attacks directed by New York-based SEIU 32BJ, the PLRB counted 1121 votes for UNITE HERE Local 634 and only 551 votes for SEIU Philadelphia Joint Board.  There were 10 votes for no union and 198 challenged ballots.

There's more...

CNN has been gaining a great deal of attention for a series of reports it has done on the voter registration activities of ACORN. Recently, correspondent Bill Tucker taped a report on ACORN that was aired on CNN Headline News, followed by commentary by a gentleman named Rick Berman from an organization called the "Employment Policy Institute" who proceeded to attack ACORN for its alleged "fraud."

OK, so we're talking about voter registration fraud, we're near the end of possibly the most important election in 30 years, and they bring on a guy from the Employment Policy Institute to bash ACORN? Why would he care? What gives?

Well, Mr. Berman has much to care about when it comes to ACORN. You see, ACORN doesn't just register poor and minority voters. It also fights for living wages, and it has been on the front lines trying to force employers to pay a decent wage to their lowest-paid workers. This sticks very firmly in Mr. Berman's craw, because Mr. Berman - surprise - runs a Washington DC firm that lobbies against the minimum wage.

According to SourceWatch.org, Berman represents or has represented the fast food, restaurant, tobacco, and pesticide industries to name a few. He is notorious for his staunch opposition against the Americans with Disabilities Act on behalf of the restaurant lobby. And now he's on the pundit circuit attacking ACORN for registration fraud even though he has no expertise in elections, election law, voting rights issues or anything else of relevance to our democratic franchise.

And so I ask why, CNN, are you lending credibility to this person - a man called "Dr. Evil" by people who know him all too well - when he has nothing but personal opinions and an agenda to offer to the story? What are you trying to accomplish by letting a person with a separate financial motive speak on your "news" program to cast aspersions on a group that he seeks to destroy on behalf of his corporate clients?

Please ask CNN why they think Rick Berman - who has no expertise in voting issues, but who does have a powerful personal financial interest - has any business speaking about voting issues on a news program:
http://www.cnn.com/feedback/hdlns/

For more information on the amazingly creepy Mr. Berman:
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?tit le=Richard_Berman
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/0 5/60minutes/main2653020.shtml

There's more...

Taking another look at "New Progressive Voices," a collection of essays outlining a new long-term, progressive vision for America, today we turn to our Executive Director, Alan Jenkins', contribution.

The piece paints a bleak picture.  Alan outlines many of the problems facing regular Americans today.  Many people are having trouble getting a job that pays a living wage, paying for health care, and getting their children into quality schools.  Tying this together with the present high rates of incarceration, all signs point to a general lack of opportunity in America.

In keeping with goals of this essay collection Alan's essay, "The Promise of Opportunity," strives to give concrete solutions to these communal ills.  Alan's essay suggests making "opportunity" a metric by which to consider the viability of federal programs.

As with the environmental impact statements currently required under the National Environmental Policy Act, the relevant agency would require the submission of information and collect and analyze relevant data to determine the positive and negative impacts of the proposed federally funded project. Here, however, the inquiry would focus on the ways in which the project would expand or constrict opportunity in affected geographic areas and whether the project would promote equal opportunity or deepen patterns of inequality.

While the measures of opportunity would differ in different circumstances, the inquiry would typically include whether the project would create or eliminate jobs, expand or constrict access to health care services, schools, and nutritious food stores, foster or extinguish affordable housing and small business development. At the same time, [these Opportunity Impact Statements (OIS)] would assess the equity of the project's burdens and benefits, such as whether it would serve a diversity of underserved populations, create jobs accessible to the affected regions, serve diverse linguistic and cultural communities, balance necessary health and safety burdens fairly across neighborhoods, and foster integration over segregation.

To read the full article, click here.

There's more...

This Christmas season, I'm excited to offer a few thoughts on capitalism, consumption, Christmas and crookedness -- while also summing up this week's posts at the Movement Vision Lab.  Here goes.

THE TWELVE DAYS OF CAPITALISM

(to the tune of: The Twelve Days of Christmas)

On the first day of Christmas, Amaad Riverasays we have: 

an economy that favors rich whites.

On the second day of Christmas, even Adam Smith would add:

two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

On the third day of Christmas, Minsun Jipoints out:

(way more than) three exploited workers
two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

On the fourth day of Christmas, Tiny talks about:

(at least) four presents instead of presence
(way more than) three exploited workers
two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

On the fifth day of Christmas, Amy Wolfmade a great film:

(cue organ music)
five problems with big box stores!
(at least) four presents instead of presence
(way more than) three exploited workers
two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

On the sixth day of Christmas, Kathy LeMay taught:

six taboos about wealth
(cue organ music)
five problems with big box stores!
(at least) four presents instead of presence
(way more than) three exploited workers
two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

On the seventh day of Christmas, I still somehow bought:

seven overpriced trinkets
six taboos about wealth
(cue organ music)
five problems with big box stores!
(at least) four presents instead of presence
(way more than) three exploited workers
two separate classes
and an economy that favors rich whites

Okay.  This is getting tedious.  Let's cut to the end....

Eventually by some day of Christmas, we all wised up:

we started shopping local
gave more time then stuff
valued more than money
tackled structural racism
spread the wealth and love
because we're...

(cue organ music)
ALL IN IT TOGETHER!

no more shallow culture
no more credit debt
no more rich and poor
an economy that favors us all!

Happy holidays from the Movement Vision Lab!

And you know you get major props if you record yourself singing this, upload to You Tube and post the link at the Movement Vision Lab!  

There's more...

The U.S. Senate is set to take up a bill to raise the minimum wage as soon as Monday.

The American Friends Service Committee and the Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign are urging people to call their Senators today and Monday to urge them to raise the minimum wage and reject amendments that undermine workers rights or are fiscally irresponsible.

The AFSC is providing a toll-free number to call: 1-800-459-1887.

There's more...