It was horsemanship day at the Red Warrior Camp in Cannon Ball, North Dakota, and we had set ourselves up in the minimal shade of a small break of willow trees. It was the only shade around, and people drifted in to watch the riding events, joining us away from the blistering sun. We started … Continue reading Drone To Be Wild
After weeks of media silence, with only whispers of “DAPL” or “Sacred Stone” or “Standing Rock” in social media and the alternative press, the Dakota Access Pipeline protest has hit the media with a loud bang. “Oil Pipeline Protest Turns Violent in North Dakota.” “Violence Erupts as Native Americans Resist Oil Pipeline.” “Violence Erupts At … Continue reading Report from DAPL Protest: Cannon Ball, North Dakota
Food and Water Watch has just published a report: The State of Public Water in the United States. It is an excellent read, filled with history of public water utilities and useful data about the cost of water across the country, from both public and private, for-profit providers. It’s also long, so here are some … Continue reading Privatized Water: All About the Profit
By Michael H. Carriere As the national spotlight remains on Flint, Michigan, Republicans in another Midwestern state – Wisconsin – are quietly easing restrictions on the private purchase of municipal water systems. This attempt to privatize water and sewer utilities is just the latest in a long line of policies put forward by Wisconsin Republicans to … Continue reading Is Wisconsin the Next Flint?
A reporter at Wednesday’s press conference in Milwaukee asked Senator Larson (D) a question about the validity of the comparison between the toxic poisoning in Flint, Michigan, and the Water Privatization Bill (SB432 and AB554) that is moving through the Republican controlled Wisconsin legislature faster than cherry pits through a coyote. “After all,” the reporter … Continue reading There Is No Clean Water Without Clean Government
This is how the legislative process now works in Wisconsin. A company called Aqua America registers as a lobbyist, hires former Republican legislator and Assembly Majority Leader Steven Foti as a lobbyist, and he works to get a new law passed that will bring business for Aqua. The company has had success nationally selling its … Continue reading Who is Aqua America?
ACTION REQUEST: Be sure to contact the Wisconsin State Senators on the Workforce Development Committee to register your opposition to SB432 (aka AB554). Senator Roger Roth: Sen.Roth@legis.wisconsin.gov Senator Richard Gudex: Sen.Gudex@legis.wisconsin.gov Senator Duey Stroebel: Sen.Stroebel@legis.wisconsin.gov Senator Chris Larson: Sen.Larson@legis.wisconsin.gov Senator Julie M Lassa: Sen.Lassa@legis.wisconsin.gov +++++ There is a bill rapidly working its way through the … Continue reading From Flint to Madison: Our Water is Under Attack!
You turn on your tap and orange colored rusty crud comes out. It smells bad and tastes worse. You’ve been told not to drink it, not to bathe in it, not to wash dishes in it, yet there are few alternatives. Worse, you now understand that it is laced with lead, leached from pipes due to … Continue reading Detroit Light Brigade & the “Arrest Snyder Road Trip”
It is hard to get everyone lined up correctly so that the letters spell the words BAN THE OIL BOMB TRAINS in front of the tracks in Wauwatosa, WI, where dozens of trains carrying hundreds of oil tankers thunder pass throughout the week. It is harder than it looks. People turn to talk with each … Continue reading Daylight Brigade vs. Bomb Trains