Mark Trahant

Presidents are required to be optimistic.The American people expect it — and reward those politicians who know their lines. President Barack Obama’s State of the Union Tuesday night followed The Script (so much so that Republicans released a video dismissing the president’s consistent rhetoric as more of the same).

“The state of our Union is getting stronger. And we’ve come too far to turn back now,” the president said. He promised “to fight obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first place.”

The president said the “defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive … no debate is more important.”

That is the rub. That is where the president’s optimism hits the side wall in a country divided. One side of our body politic is consumed by a deep distrust of anything that smacks of government, even when government actions are in our best interest.
We need to make the case for government investment. Putting money into programs and policies that will reward society. I would put education at the top of that list.

We have, as a nation, a demographic advantage over many other nations. The United States has a higher fertility rate than that of Russia, Germany, Japan and well above that of China, Italy, Singapore and most of eastern Europe. We have a young, growing working population.

But to execute that advantage we need to do improve higher education.

At the very moment we need a better educated work force, we are making it more difficult for young people to succeed in college. As the president put it: “When kids do graduate, the most daunting challenge can be the cost of college. At a time when Americans owe more in tuition debt than credit card debt.”

This is a crippling problem for young people. Just over a year ago when I was on my Kaiser Family Foundation fellowship I talked to medical professionals — doctors, dentists and nurses — who said the type of practice they were planning was dictated my their debt load. I heard many young doctors talk about what it was like to owe hundreds of thousands of dollars. I’d like to see more loan forgiveness programs, focusing on the areas of health need such as rural medicine.

The president called on Congress to limit interest rates on student loans, increase student aid and work-study. He also asked states to make education a higher priority in their budgets. I love that idea … but it shows the complexity of these problems. States cannot add more money into education until the country reduces its health care spending.

The president talked about restoring a manufacturing sector in this country. I suppose that could happen, only on a limited scale. But I don’t think we are ever going to have the type of factories and jobs that once built our middle class. But we can have a nation that, on the whole, is more creative, better educated and prepared for the challenges ahead.

But before any of this happens we have to get over this notion that all government spending is bad. It’s time to invest in young people.

Mark Trahant is a writer, speaker and Twitter poet. He is a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and lives in Fort Hall, Idaho. Trahant’s recent book, “The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars,” is the story of Sen. Henry Jackson and Forrest Gerard.

This just in from SeaMac:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
12/28/2011
Contact: press@SeaMAC.org
Carla Curio (206) 450-0706
Peter Lippman (206) 285-2154

SEAMAC BRINGS BACK ISRAELI WAR CRIMES AD

Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign (SeaMAC) will publish a large ad with the slogan ISRAELI WAR CRIMES: YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK on December 28 in both The Stranger and Seattle Weekly. The ad commemorates Israel’s assault on Gaza in December 2008, as well as the censoring of SeaMAC’s “Israeli War Crimes” bus ad last year by King County Metro.

The half-page ad will run for two weeks in each newspaper. The ad repeats the slogan and design of SeaMAC’s bus ad that was censored by King County Metro last year.

The dates of the bus ad last year and the newspaper ads this year were chosen to observe the anniversary of Israel’s three week military offensive against the captive population of Gaza which began on December 27, 2008, and resulted in the deaths of more than 1,400 Palestinians — most of them non-combatants and more than 300 of them children. The language of the ad is based on investigations by Amnesty International, the United Nations, and other human rights groups, which found evidence of war crimes committed by Israel during the assault on Gaza. Numerous other war crimes by Israel have been documented during the long occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. The ads also draw attention to the $30 billion promised to the Israeli military by the U.S. government over a 10-year period, which is part of the U.S. government’s one-sided financial, military, diplomatic, and political support for Israel.

King County first approved and then censored SeaMAC’s bus ad on December 23, 2010. King County Metro then twice revised its advertising policy to prevent any “public issue advertising expressing or advocating an opinion, position or viewpoint on matters of public debate about economic, political, religious or social issues”. In spite of that policy, King County Metro has since accepted advertisements for the Mormon religion and a labor rally, as well as a recent ad that said “Buy American”.

“It’s hard to see how King County has been unbiased or ‘viewpoint neutral’ when they have continued to run other political and religious advertisements while censoring ours,” said SeaMAC volunteer Edward Mast.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Washington is representing SeaMAC in a lawsuit against King County for breach of contract and for violating SeaMAC’s First Amendment right of free expression. The trial was scheduled to begin in federal court on October 31. King County lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, and a federal judge granted King County’s motion on October 10. SeaMAC has filed an appeal with the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Another SeaMAC ad, with the slogan EQUAL RIGHTS FOR PALESTINIANS, was accepted and put up on billboards in April 2010 by Clear Channel Outdoor, a private firm. Clear Channel then censored SeaMAC’s ads. Clear Channel had also run other controversial ads which caused public outcry, including an ad that advocated laboratory testing on live animals.

“Why should criticism of Israel be singled out for silencing?” says Peter Lippman, another SeaMAC volunteer.

SeaMAC’s print ads about Israeli war crimes are part of a series that began last August in Seattle Weekly and The Stranger. The ongoing series draws attention to Israel’s policies of segregation and apartheid, as well as the treatment of Palestinian child prisoners and Israel’s attempt to impose a non-viable fake state on Palestinians living under Israel’s illegal military occupation.

SeaMAC’s complete series of print ads can be viewed at SeaMac.

The Latin America Mining Monitoring Programme is organizing an Open Letter to Peruvian President Ollanta Humala regarding the recent shootings of protesters in the region of Cajamarca, Peru.

As documented in the following video by LAMMP, some 10,000 people had been gathered near the proposed Conga gold mine when police opened fire on the unarmed crowd, injuring up to 18 people.

Following the attack, the government of Peru denied that any bullets were fired. Then, on December 4, it declared sixty days of martial law in the region, suspending basic civil liberties and allowing security forces to break up meetings and arrest protesters at will.

Despite the aggressive measures by Peru, the mostly Indigenous protesters have vowed to continue pursuing their non-violent opposition to the mine.

Please take action now by joining the Open Letter to President Humala of Peru pasted below. Please write to info@lammp.org to add you name to the current list of signatories:

Open Letter to President Humala
President Ollanta Humala Tasso
Despacho Presidential
Jiron de la Union s/n 1 cdra
Lima
Peru

We, the undersigned individuals and institutions of several continents, committed to the movements for world justice, environmental protection and sustainable development, write to express to our deepest concern regarding events currently unfolding at the Yanacocha mine in Peru, owned by US company Newmont, with participation of the World Bank.

On 24 November tens of thousands of Peruvian citizens initiated a protest against the development of the Yanacocha mine at the Conga site. The protesters claim current plans for the mine will destroy the surrounding environment and fresh water supplies affecting a population of approximately 100 000.

On 27 November a report produced by the environment minister Mr Ricardo Giesecke identified severe failings in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approved by the previous administration in relation to the Conga site. We understand Mr Ramiro del Pino, responsible for the government department which approved the EIA, was a former executive of the Yanacocha mining company. Despite these shortcomings and appearance of impropriety, the government of Mr Humala has not sought to review the mine plans and has dispatched security forces to the Conga site.

On 29 November the security forces opened fire on unarmed protesters approaching mine installations. Up to 18 protesters reportedly received gun shot wounds. Between 8 and 30 policemen were injured. The government has so far failed to admit the extent of the civilian casualties and the use of live ammunition. Following the shooting the Yanacocha mine announced it would suspend its operations.

On 4 December the government declared sixty days of martial law or “state of emergency” in the region of Cajamarca. This measure suspends civil liberties and allows security forces to break up meetings and arrest protesters at will. On 6 December Mr Wilfredo Saavedra and five other protest leaders were detained without warrant or charges being laid. Protesters have vowed to pursue peaceful opposition to the mine.

The above situation has created an imminent risk of large scale violence. The circumstances bear a distressing resemblance to the string of recent incidents surrounding extractive industry protests, including the Bagua shootings of June 2006 in which at least 34 protesters and police officers were killed. Such conflicts ultimately entrench antagonisms and frustrate the interests of all concerned.

As the world follows the events at the Yanacocha mine in the following days, we respectfully urge you Mr Humala to consider the following measures: 1) to honor Peru’s commitments to the rule of law and human rights by recognizing and compensating the victims of the 29 November shootings 2) to guarantee the ongoing physical safety of protesters in the Cajamarca region including the right to justice and humane treatment upon detention 3) to properly address environmental concerns raised by the Conga mine and enforce corresponding requirements on the Yanacocha company.

Ken O’Keefe is a US Marine veteran of Operation Desert Storm turned justice and peace activist who has appeared on the BBC news programs, Hardtalk and Panorama.

He will be speaking about his experiences when Israeli commandos boarded the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara last May in international waters. The ship was carrying humanitarian relief workers and supplies to Gaza.

Israeli forces killed nine people and wounded dozens more on the Mavi Marmara. O’Keefe will also be speaking about and raising funds for Aloha Palestine. Aloha Palestine was founded in the UK by O’Keefe and British journalist Lauren Booth in order to lawfully break the Israeli blockade of Gaza by carrying out trade activities under the provisions of international trade agreements.

The organization is endorsed by London Mayor Ken Livingstone, peace activist and former British MP Tony Benn, Professor Noam Chomsky, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, journalist John Pilger, former British MP George Galloway, Professor Ghada Karmi, MD and others.

Ken O’Keefe’s appearance at the Trinity United Methodist Church is sponsored by Greater Seattle Veterans for Peace and Voices of Palestine.