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A Time for Action - Not Servility
While Washington pundits are talking up a new civility, many progressives are bracing for the old servility -- a bipartisanship that is servile to a corporate elite that is unquenchably greedy and more powerful than ever.
But this is not a time for despair. It's a time for new activism -- built upon one of the great achievements of the last decade: the rise of independent media.
Jan 18, 2011
While Washington pundits are talking up a new civility, many progressives are bracing for the old servility -- a bipartisanship that is servile to a corporate elite that is unquenchably greedy and more powerful than ever.
But this is not a time for despair. It's a time for new activism -- built upon one of the great achievements of the last decade: the rise of independent media.
Every day, millions of people in the U.S. get their journalism from independent news outlets that expose not just the extremist antics of Republicans, but also the corporate corruption among Democrats. These informed Americans -- fearful of Speaker Boehner and alarmed by a White House now administered by a JPMorgan Chase executive -- represent a huge base ready to mobilize in new ways.
That's the basis for the launch of a new online organization -- RootsAction.org -- an initiative endorsed by such respected independent progressives as Daniel Ellsberg, Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk and Coleen Rowley.
Our first action -- in collaboration with Daniel Ellsberg -- is a petition to President Obama to end the U.S. war in Afghanistan.
RootsAction is a response to the quietude among many liberals that followed so many cave-ins from the Obama White House and Democratic leaders in recent years. Our strategy is based on using the Internet and social media as pathways around political discourse dominated by media conglomerates.
The Internet has spurred a flourishing of spirited indy news outlets and websites that are not only independent of corporate control, but also independent of corporate politicians of both major parties.
And the Internet gave birth more than a decade ago to a once-hopeful Netroots -- springing from nowhere to activate millions of people in a flash.
RootsAction aspires to be a new kind of online group -- one fully independent of Democratic leaders more intent on protecting Wall Street and endless war than on protecting the vast majority of Americans. Read our mission statement here.
A tragic example of why RootsAction is needed came when President Obama announced his Afghanistan escalation a year ago at West Point; major Netroots groups -- who would have raised hell had a President McCain announced the very same policy -- were largely silent or muted.
RootsAction will never be silent as Congress and the president squander billions on foreign wars while failing to meet crucial domestic needs.
Please join RootsAction so we can amplify our voices and mobilize.
RootsAction is for people who are loyal to progressive values -- peace, economic justice, equality, civil liberties, environment -- rather than to politicians who offer progressive-sounding rhetoric but so often fail to uphold those values. If you want to be part of an online campaign group that is as independent as the hard-hitting indy journalism outlets that bring you news each day, RootsAction is for you.
Jim Hightower explains his support this way: "Real change is up to us, not to Obama or the Democratic Party. They are not the progressive movement, we are. Only grassroots initiatives like RootsAction can put progress back in 'progressive.'"
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Norman Solomon
Norman Solomon is the national director of RootsAction.org and executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy. The paperback edition of his latest book, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine, includes an afterword about the Gaza war.
Jeff Cohen
Jeff Cohen is an activist and author. Cohen was an associate professor of journalism and the director of the Park Center for Independent Media at Ithaca College, founder of the media watch group FAIR, and former board member of Progressive Democrats of America. In 2002, he was a producer and pundit at MSNBC. He is the author of "Cable News Confidential: My Misadventures in Corporate Media" - and a co-founder of the online action group, www.RootsAction.org. His website is jeffcohen.org.
While Washington pundits are talking up a new civility, many progressives are bracing for the old servility -- a bipartisanship that is servile to a corporate elite that is unquenchably greedy and more powerful than ever.
But this is not a time for despair. It's a time for new activism -- built upon one of the great achievements of the last decade: the rise of independent media.
Every day, millions of people in the U.S. get their journalism from independent news outlets that expose not just the extremist antics of Republicans, but also the corporate corruption among Democrats. These informed Americans -- fearful of Speaker Boehner and alarmed by a White House now administered by a JPMorgan Chase executive -- represent a huge base ready to mobilize in new ways.
That's the basis for the launch of a new online organization -- RootsAction.org -- an initiative endorsed by such respected independent progressives as Daniel Ellsberg, Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk and Coleen Rowley.
Our first action -- in collaboration with Daniel Ellsberg -- is a petition to President Obama to end the U.S. war in Afghanistan.
RootsAction is a response to the quietude among many liberals that followed so many cave-ins from the Obama White House and Democratic leaders in recent years. Our strategy is based on using the Internet and social media as pathways around political discourse dominated by media conglomerates.
The Internet has spurred a flourishing of spirited indy news outlets and websites that are not only independent of corporate control, but also independent of corporate politicians of both major parties.
And the Internet gave birth more than a decade ago to a once-hopeful Netroots -- springing from nowhere to activate millions of people in a flash.
RootsAction aspires to be a new kind of online group -- one fully independent of Democratic leaders more intent on protecting Wall Street and endless war than on protecting the vast majority of Americans. Read our mission statement here.
A tragic example of why RootsAction is needed came when President Obama announced his Afghanistan escalation a year ago at West Point; major Netroots groups -- who would have raised hell had a President McCain announced the very same policy -- were largely silent or muted.
RootsAction will never be silent as Congress and the president squander billions on foreign wars while failing to meet crucial domestic needs.
Please join RootsAction so we can amplify our voices and mobilize.
RootsAction is for people who are loyal to progressive values -- peace, economic justice, equality, civil liberties, environment -- rather than to politicians who offer progressive-sounding rhetoric but so often fail to uphold those values. If you want to be part of an online campaign group that is as independent as the hard-hitting indy journalism outlets that bring you news each day, RootsAction is for you.
Jim Hightower explains his support this way: "Real change is up to us, not to Obama or the Democratic Party. They are not the progressive movement, we are. Only grassroots initiatives like RootsAction can put progress back in 'progressive.'"
Norman Solomon
Norman Solomon is the national director of RootsAction.org and executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy. The paperback edition of his latest book, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine, includes an afterword about the Gaza war.
Jeff Cohen
Jeff Cohen is an activist and author. Cohen was an associate professor of journalism and the director of the Park Center for Independent Media at Ithaca College, founder of the media watch group FAIR, and former board member of Progressive Democrats of America. In 2002, he was a producer and pundit at MSNBC. He is the author of "Cable News Confidential: My Misadventures in Corporate Media" - and a co-founder of the online action group, www.RootsAction.org. His website is jeffcohen.org.
While Washington pundits are talking up a new civility, many progressives are bracing for the old servility -- a bipartisanship that is servile to a corporate elite that is unquenchably greedy and more powerful than ever.
But this is not a time for despair. It's a time for new activism -- built upon one of the great achievements of the last decade: the rise of independent media.
Every day, millions of people in the U.S. get their journalism from independent news outlets that expose not just the extremist antics of Republicans, but also the corporate corruption among Democrats. These informed Americans -- fearful of Speaker Boehner and alarmed by a White House now administered by a JPMorgan Chase executive -- represent a huge base ready to mobilize in new ways.
That's the basis for the launch of a new online organization -- RootsAction.org -- an initiative endorsed by such respected independent progressives as Daniel Ellsberg, Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk and Coleen Rowley.
Our first action -- in collaboration with Daniel Ellsberg -- is a petition to President Obama to end the U.S. war in Afghanistan.
RootsAction is a response to the quietude among many liberals that followed so many cave-ins from the Obama White House and Democratic leaders in recent years. Our strategy is based on using the Internet and social media as pathways around political discourse dominated by media conglomerates.
The Internet has spurred a flourishing of spirited indy news outlets and websites that are not only independent of corporate control, but also independent of corporate politicians of both major parties.
And the Internet gave birth more than a decade ago to a once-hopeful Netroots -- springing from nowhere to activate millions of people in a flash.
RootsAction aspires to be a new kind of online group -- one fully independent of Democratic leaders more intent on protecting Wall Street and endless war than on protecting the vast majority of Americans. Read our mission statement here.
A tragic example of why RootsAction is needed came when President Obama announced his Afghanistan escalation a year ago at West Point; major Netroots groups -- who would have raised hell had a President McCain announced the very same policy -- were largely silent or muted.
RootsAction will never be silent as Congress and the president squander billions on foreign wars while failing to meet crucial domestic needs.
Please join RootsAction so we can amplify our voices and mobilize.
RootsAction is for people who are loyal to progressive values -- peace, economic justice, equality, civil liberties, environment -- rather than to politicians who offer progressive-sounding rhetoric but so often fail to uphold those values. If you want to be part of an online campaign group that is as independent as the hard-hitting indy journalism outlets that bring you news each day, RootsAction is for you.
Jim Hightower explains his support this way: "Real change is up to us, not to Obama or the Democratic Party. They are not the progressive movement, we are. Only grassroots initiatives like RootsAction can put progress back in 'progressive.'"
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