Al Shaw

Jan 30

“There are 250 millionaires in Congress. Their median net worth is $891,506, nine times the typical US household.” US elections: no matter who you vote for, money always wins | Gary Younge | Comment is free | The Guardian

“Money in American politics was already an elephant in the room. Now the supreme court has given it a laxative, taken away the shovel, and asked us to ignore both the sight and the stench.” US elections: no matter who you vote for, money always wins | Gary Younge | Comment is free | The Guardian

“Republican presidential debates are not for the faint-hearted. Last week in Jacksonville, Florida, Rick Santorum warned of the “threat of radical Islam growing” in Central and South America. Newt Gingrich advocated sending up to seven flights a day to the moon, where private industry might set up a colony, and reaffirmed his claim that Palestinians were invented in the late 70s. Mitt Romney argued that if you make things tough enough for undocumented people, they will “self-deport”. Given the general state of the Republican party, such comments now attract precious little attention. Truth and facts are but two options among many.” US elections: no matter who you vote for, money always wins | Gary Younge | Comment is free | The Guardian

Jan 28

“Bill Gates, who has pledged £478m to the Global Fund to fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria does not speak with the voice of the world’s poor, but with the voice of its rich. It’s a loud voice, but the model of development it proclaims is the wrong one because philanthropy is the enemy of justice.” Philanthropy is the enemy of justice | Robert Newman | Comment is free | The Guardian

Jan 23

“Most Iran specialists, including nationally recognized experts at the Center, believe that the main factor driving Iran’s interest in nuclear technology - be it civilian or military - is national pride. Unfortunately, United States policy has been to publicly threaten and insult Iran while taking provocative actions such as adopting a policy of regime change, attempting to increase unilateral sanctions, deploying additional military assets in the region, and arresting Iranian representatives in Iraq. Such policies are counterproductive, strengthening Iranian hardliners and weakening the position of anti-nuclear and pro-democracy elements in Iran. Iran does not pose an imminent threat to the U.S. and is unlikely to do so for years, perhaps as long as a decade according to American intelligence estimates. There are numerous challenges - including mastering the nuclear fuel cycle - on the road to developing a nuclear weapon. Building a nuclear warhead and placing it on a suitable delivery vehicle, a process sometimes referred to as “weaponization,” is a difficult endeavor requiring technologies Iran has not even started working on. There is ample time for the United States, Iran, the IAEA, and other interested parties to resolve the nuclear dispute through diplomacy. Military force should not be contemplated at this time and should be considered in the future only if it meets basic requirements - including support from Congress and the U.N. - and is judged to be a net advantage to U.S. interests.” Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation: Iran

Jan 16

“

“It will be said that in a world of internationally mobile capital and people it is counterproductive to tax personal income and corporate profit to uncompetitive levels. That is right. But a progressive alternative is to shift the tax base to property, and land, which cannot run away, [and] represents in Britain an extreme concentration of wealth.”

Vince Cable, Liberal Democrat conference, Liverpool, 22 September 2010

” New Statesman - The coming battle over land and property

Jan 15

“A ‘normal’ working week of 21 hours could help to address a range of urgent, interlinked problems: overwork, unemployment, over-consumption, high carbon emissions, low well-being, entrenched inequalities, and the lack of time to live sustainably, to care for each other, and simply to enjoy life.” 21 hours | the new economics foundation

“It is our worldview that interprets the textual data, not the textual data that determines our worldview. One who disbelieves in all so-called miracles can, with good conscience, remain disbelieving in the literal resurrection of Jesus after an examination of the evidence, just as a traditional Christian can, without intellectual guilt, retain belief after surveying the pertinent particulars.” Dale Allison

“Alabama’s expansive anti-immigrant law, HB56, has been so economically devastating that farmers are seeking legislation to force hard labor on prison inmates eligible for work release programs, to “help farms fill the gap and find sufficient labor.” Alabama Farmers Look To Replace Migrants With Prisoners | The Media Freedom Foundation

Jan 10

“One thing I have noticed on the ‘green jobs circuit’, is that no one knows who to talk to in government. There is no one person, or department, who has green jobs in their remit.” Hanna Thomas - What are the barriers harming green job creation? | the new economics foundation

Al Shaw

Links, quotes, images and the occasional unoriginal thought.

10 Elements of Church Planting Movements

Red Letter Christians » Can Christians Learn from the War in Iraq?

Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist | Orion Magazine

Fukushima: The Big Lie - UK Indymedia