On Monday, April 6th, six Greenpeace activists boarded the “Polar Pioneer,” a Shell Oil drilling rig on its way to Seattle. Shell plans to use Terminal 5 of Seattle’s port to repair the rig and send it back to the Arctic. Seattle’s socialist City Councilmember Kshama Sawant spoke with the…
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Every child in this country deserves the opportunity to develop to his/her fullest potential. I believe in Education because I believe that children are our future. Consequently, I must tell you that children in this state are not getting the education they need and deserve. Not, as some would have…
To the Liberals, To the fence-sitters, To the Leftists who haven’t left yet. To the Libertarians still liberating their minds, l you the revolution has already occurred. And it is time to start acting accordingly. Pick up any history book worth its weight in citations, And flip to the section…
Throughout our childhood, our immigrant parents modeled in consistent action, words instilled, distilled at Ellis Island, their entry point into the United States: Suffrage is a right. Voting in elections a responsibility. Not always did my parents comprehend the complexities, dualities, duplicities of politics. Yet, always did they understand the…
I am a student of prophets But I am not a Christian or a Jew I pray to the east But not for Islam I begin meditation with a singing bowl and mala Yet I am not Buddhist My address is an apartment Yet my soul live in a longhouse…
You will not be alone According to a 2012 study, 3.2 percent of US adults (7.3 million) follow a vegetarian-based diet. Approximately 0.5 percent (1 million) of those are vegans, who consume no animal products at all. In addition, 10 percent of US adults (22.8 million) say they largely follow…
The cap and trade system bill unlikely to make it out of the state senate A bill that would institute a cap and trade system to put a price on carbon in WA State was held hostage this month. SB 5283 never left the committee that Senator Doug Ericksen (R)…
The FDA is in the final stages of approving the “AquaAdvantage” GE salmon Community Alliance for Global Justice (CAGJ) is a member led, Seattle-based organization that challenges unjust food and trade policies through community education and direct action. In partnership with Friends of the Earth, CAGJ is demanding that Costco,…
My thirty-fifth birthday is right around the corner. At this point in my life, I consider myself to be a very aware individual about the systems that have controlled and oppressed myself and those like me, in ways that have guided us into many undesired pathways of life. I escaped.…
Pastel colors, bunny-logoed candy, baskets filled with messy, plastic grass, and Cadbury eggs are everywhere. Easter, a supposed celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, has become another “Hallmark holiday,” an enterprise capitalizing on Christian sentiment, influencing secular society. The Christian religion is a ubiquitous structure of American culture. Recently,…
A la memoria de Malcom X, asesinado a tiros hace cincuenta años cuando comenzaba a delinear un programa radical para desafiar la opresión en todas sus formas. Toma # 1: Las películas son productos sociales manufacturados (incluso las de Woody Allen) A veces tendemos a olvidar que las películas son…
To the memory of Malcom X, gunned down fifty years ago as he was beginning to delineate a radical program to challenge oppression in all its forms. Take #1: Films are socially manufactured products (even those by Woody Allen) Sometimes we tend to forget that films are products manufactured under…
On Saturday, February 21, Patricia Pyle died unexpectedly. The cause of death was acute leukemia, which until just hours before her passing, neither she nor anyone else knew she had. The last couple of years a degenerative neck condition had caused increasing pain. Very sadly in retrospect, it seems the…
The following is Daniel Einstein’s statement at Patricia Pyle’s memorial service on March 1. Daniel and Patricia are both co-founders of the Olympia Coalition of Ecosystem Preservation, a non-profit group that formed last fall protect the only blue heron nesting site in Olympia’s city limits. February 8 No herons yet.…
Longview citizens ask port commissioners to “decline to sign” agreement with Haven It’s an all too familiar scene here in Washington State as yet another fracked product from North Dakota wants access to our public ports. This time it’s a special meeting at the Cowlitz County Expo Center in Longview,…
The present is a fragile thing. Without constant vigilance, it can be easily devoured by the past. For decades, advancements in modern medicine have been slowly chipping away at some of humanity’s most brutal diseases. On October 26, 1977, the last naturally occurring case of smallpox was diagnosed. Today, the…
Advancing social justice through the actions of activist athletes We usually have a warped version of the way things used to be. I heard somewhere that the more you access memories, the less accurate they become. With that in mind, the early 90’s were a fantastic time to be a…
For the first time in two decades, Earthbound Productions—producer of the Procession—will not be providing a free community art studio in preparation for the beloved community event in April. According to Earthbound Productions director, Eli Sterling, community use of the art space had produced only about 10 percent of the…
It’s clear this state of ours is in trouble. We have a governor and legislature refusing to fund basic education even in the face of a contempt order from the Washington State Supreme Court. At the same time, the governor and the legislature refuse to face the fundamental threat to…
On February 12 David Cobb came to Traditions Cafe in beautiful downtown Olympia to speak on the current movement to amend the US Constitution. David is an attorney and activist. In 2002 he ran as a Green for Texas State Attorney General and he was the Green Party candidate for…
This Body will only comfort, all; This Body will not hurt anyone; This Body has Siddiqan’s inspirations This Body has a great farmer’s noble pursuit; This Body has Shafi’s humbleness and mystery This Body has a medicine man’s passion; This Body feels pleasure in growing Wholesome food & sharing; This…
Climate change and its discontents: finding our way forward in a planetary crisis Governor Inslee’s proposed Carbon Pollution Accountability Act may not be perfect but it needs our support. Why? Because it’s our biggest and best chance right now to assert the value of the planet over the rights of…
I am a victim of the system. A system structured To torture; Wringing out my last ounce of dignity. You’re a victim of the system. You’re enthralled; Wrapped in chains, Pulling out and downsizing your humility. Day after day after day: time runs away! All of us see…
There have been escalating chants from the two opposing parties that have gathered at protests around the country and across social media — one camp shouting “Black lives matter,” the other insisting “all lives matter.” These voices can be heard bickering amongst themselves about the verbiage of their respective mantras…
Today I defect and join the squirrels They live in trees with no building permits cops jails or taxes I have seen treehouse masters and wholeheartedly agree Trees make much better foundations Than concrete Free The squirrels know how people are Stay away from most of them At least arm’s…
Thank you, OPEC, for lowering oil prices. This statement is counter to what I have said and felt for years. Usually lower oil prices cause more SUVs and increased destruction to the environment. Lately with oil prices high, CO2 intensive fracking oil has become profitable with oil companies. Fracked oil…
IWW Picket Line—Fairhaven Haggen Food & Pharmacy in Bellingham Saturday, February 21 and March 21, 1:00 – 2:30 pm Whoever shops for food and cooks their own meals using fresh produce has farm workers to thank. Besides the long backbreaking hours grinding through the rich Washington soil these workers face…