Erik Prince Still Free, Ferguson Police Abuse, Who Can’t Vote in Texas, Corp Attack On Democracy, NPR Part of Problem, Doughnut Economics

Suggested Reading for Week Ending 10/26

Christianist Erik Prince Remains Free as Blackwater Guards Convicted for Killing 14 Iraqis in Massacre
First of all, Erik Prince is a radical right-wing Christian supremacist who, from the very beginning of the so-called war on terror, viewed the role of Blackwater in the world as being neo-crusaders. And he is a radical anti-Muslim. And he hates the religion of Islam. And he—his company, basically, was allowed to operate in an atmosphere where they would kill Muslims for sport inside of Iraq.

Police in Ferguson Committed Human Rights Abuses
Police in Ferguson, Missouri, committed human rights abuses as they sought to quell mostly peaceful protests that erupted after an officer killed an unarmed black teenager, an international human rights organization said in a report released on Friday.

A Missing Piece in the Texas Voter ID Debate – Number of Texans without ID
Republican state officials working to pass a voter photo ID law in 2011 knew that more than 500,000 of the state’s registered voters did not have the credentials needed to cast ballots under the new requirement. But they did not share that information with lawmakers rushing to pass the legislation.

Vermont Attorney General’s Office Releases Draft GMO Labeling Rules
In Vermont, GMO labeling law goes into effect July 2016. However, a lawsuit has been filed by food companies. Who will prevail?

The Corporate Assault on Direct Democracy
The direct democracy of ballot initiatives – where voters get to vote yes or no, without any politicians in the way – is a treasured part of the fabric of 24 states and many more cities. But around the country, there’s been a disturbing trend this year: When initiatives threaten corporate interests, lawyers run to court to prevent voters from even getting the chance to vote.

NPR Guts Its Environment And Climate Reporting Team, Becomes ‘Part Of The Problem’
Michael Mann, director of the Penn State Earth System Science Center and one of the country’s top climatologists, told ClimateProgress, “This is a sad commentary on the current state of our media and, in particular, environmental reporting. Climate change is perhaps the greatest challenge we face as a civilization. Yet NPR apparently feels that it only deserves a fraction of one reporter.”

Want to Solve Climate Change? Tackle Inequality
Humanity’s central challenge in the 21st century is to meet the human rights of all people within the capacity of Earth’s life-support systems. In other words, we need to get into the doughnut: the safe and just sweet spot between social and planetary boundaries …

NPR Contributing to Climate Denial

Doughnut Economics — Creating a Safe and Just Place for Humanity.
(Framing of planetary boundaries.)

“Inclusive and sustainable Economic Development”