NEBRASKA WILDFLOWER WEEK . . . June 2 througth June 10, 2012 is Nebraska Wildflower Week, a celebration of wildflowers and native plants across the state. Events are listed here. View a 13:25 minute video of native plants and wildflowers with Bob Henrickson of the state Arboretum here.
GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL UPDATE . . . Greens are united across the country in voting for Jill Stein as their 2012 presidential nominee. For the full set of primary results to date, click here. A vice presidential running mate search is on, and the campaign is asking for people’s guidance at the website.
A 1:42:42 minute video of the May 12, 2012 Green Party Presidential Forum streamed live with Stein and Roseanne Barr is here. If you ever dreamed of a new paradigm for electoral politics in this country, please watch this model of extraordinary cooperation and agreement between candidates, in stark contrast to the competitive status quo. Watch video of Stein’s 2002 Massachusetts gubernatorial debate with Mitt Romney here.
To help secure ballot status in Nebraska so that Stein can be on the November ballot, e-mail mjberry [at] inebraska [dot] com. Notarized petitions for a NGP ballot line must be submitted to the Nebraska Secretary of State by July 31st. The National Green Party convention is in Baltimore, July 12, 2012.
FARMERS MARKETS . . . There are more than 90 local Farmers Markets in Nebraska this year. For a partial schedule of current Buy Fresh Buy Local Markets, click here.
Lincoln area: Congressional District 1
OCCUPY EDUCATION . . . Check the Occupy Education – Lincoln website for the new schedule of Teach-Ins. Sunday, June 3, 2012, 7:00pm, Lynette Katrina Xavier will present “Know Your City Council” at Meadowlark Coffee and Espresso, 1624 South Street.
VIGIL AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY . . . Every Monday, noon to 1:00pm, Nebraskans for abolition of the death penalty meet in front of the governor’s mansion when weather is good, 1425 H Street, Lincoln. When weather is bad, the vigil is inside the capitol, near the Information Desk. The lunch-hour presence reminds the governor of a constituency that does not want state killings. Weekly vigils have taken place year-round since July, 1991. All abolitionists are welcome to participate for a few minutes, or the hour. For more information about NADP, click here. “It is the deed that teaches, not the name we give it. Murder and capital punishment are not opposites that cancel one another, but similars that breed their kind.” –George Bernard Shaw
LINCOLN PEACE VIGILS . . . Lincoln peace vigils continue at the Federal Building, 15th and O streets, every Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00pm. Contact Mark at 402.499.6672 or e-mail mark [at] weddleton [dot] com for more information.
SATURDAY FARMERS MARKET . . . The Haymarket Farmers Market, on 8th Street in Lincoln’s Historic Haymarket District, is now open every Saturday, 8:00am to noon, through October 13, 2012. More than 100 vendors bring farm-fresh produce, flowers, baked goods and handmade items to the local gathering place that also features a “Performance Showcase” for Nebraska folk, jazz, blues, classical, and dance talent, plus educational demonstrations and informational booths. Buy Fresh. Shop Local.
SUNDAY FARMERS MARKET . . . The Old Cheney Road Farmers Market offers local produce, baked goods and natural meats every Sunday, 10:00am to 2:00pm, at 55th Street and Old Cheney Road.
OCCUPY EDUCATION . . . Sunday, June 10, 2012, 7:00pm, the class will be “Occupy Small Town: Reaching out to the rural community,” at Meadowlark Coffee and Espresso, 1624 South Street, Lincoln.
OCCUPY LINCOLN . . . With a unanimous vote May 21, 2012, the City Council closed a loophole that allowed Occupy Lincoln to keep tents up on Centennial Mall for almost seven months. Read Lincoln Journal Star coverage of the new rule banning tents on public land without a permit here. There is a calendar of Occupy Lincoln events here. The Facebook page is here. The Twitter feed is @OccupyLincoln. For more information, e-mail occupylincoln [at] gmail [dot] com or phone 402.585.5865. Corporate Greed is Revolution’s Seed!
MOVE TO AMEND/END CORPORATE PERSONHOOD . . . Nebraska Move to Amend is gathering signatures on a petition to End Corporate Personhood by a Resolution to be presented to the Lincoln City Council. To get involved with the local campaign, e-mail Carol Smith, smithcarol [dot] 49 [at] gmail [dot] com
Omaha area: Congressional District 2
OMAHA PEACE VIGILS . . . Omaha peacemakers vigil every Wednesday, 4:30-5:30pm, at StratCom/UN-O, 6801 Pine Street, east of the Scott Technology Center on the UN-O campus. Free parking is available at the NE Corner of 67th Street and Pine in a student lot. For more information, phone Jerry Ebner, 402.502.5887. Every Saturday, 1:00-2:00pm, there is a Peace Vigil at 72nd and Dodge Streets. Park next to 72nd Street, in the pet store parking lot. Contact Steve Horn at 402.426.9068 for more information about Saturday vigils.
OMAHA PEOPLE’S FILM FESTIVAL . . . There is a People’s Film Festival every Wednesday evening, 7:00pm, at McFoster’s Natural Kind Cafe, 38th and Harney in Omaha. Wednesday, June 6, 2012, the film will be “The Good Reactor.” The film about Thorium, a technology from the Cold War era, details the potential to resolve the energy crisis, stem carbon emissions and render covert development of nuclear weapons nearly impossible. Watch a 1:35 minute trailer here. For more information, click here. The People’s Film Festival – Expanding Political Consciousness Since 2004.
PETITION TO REVERSE DECISION CLOSING POLLING STATIONS IN DOUGLAS COUNTY . . . Open and accessible polls are essential to a representative democracy. Commissioner Phipp’s decision to close half of the county’s polls resulted in disproportionately closing more polling locations in low income areas of Omaha where citizens do not have their own personal transportation. Find more information here and here. Election Commissioner Phipp’s CAN reverse this course of action. His decision was made without ANY public input or notice until he stated it was “too late.” Demand Election Commissioner Phipps make our elections accessible by calling 402.444.8683, and sign the petition here.
OMAHA FARMERS MARKETS . . . click here for an Omaha Market schedule.
OCCUPY OMAHA . . . The official Occupy Omaha website is here. The FaceBook page is here. The Twitter feed is #occupyomaha
ENGAGE OMAHA . . . One of the nation’s first city-wide, virtual town hall websites, EngageOmaha, is now online. Omaha residents may weigh in on issues for the city to consider. Pick a topic, and join the mix here.
Greater Nebraska: Congressional District 3
KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE UPDATE . . . A new Alberta pipeline disaster last week “released 22,000 barrels of oil and water into muskeg in the far northwest of Alberta. The spill ranks among the largest in North America in recent years, a period that has seen a series of high-profile accidents that have undermined the energy industry’s safety record. The Enbridge Inc. pipeline rupture that leaked oil near Michigan’s Kalamazoo River, for example, spilled an estimated 19,500 barrels.” Read a Globe and Mail update from Calgary here.
Pipeline leaks of thousands of gallons in Southeast Nebraska resulted in fines by the EPA as reported in the Omaha World-Herald, May 29, 2012. “$1M Fine for Water Contamination,” by Joe Duggan, is here.
The Lincoln Journal Star published “Supreme Court says no to pipeline case,” by Art Hovey, May 30, 2012. “The Nebraska Supreme Court has declined to hear a case challenging the constitutionality of action in the 2012 legislative session involving the Keystone XL pipeline. That means pipeline opponents will turn to a companion lawsuit filed last week as a back-up plan in Lancaster County District Court.” Coverage is continued here.
A Memorandum Of Understanding between the U.S. Department of State and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality for Conducting an Environmental Review for the Keystone XL Pipeline Project was posted Thursday, May 24, 2012. Click here [pdf] to read the six-page document. The June 1, 2012 Lincoln Journal Star coverage, “State, federal agencies on same pipeline page,” is here. June 1st, LJS also published an AP article by Ramit Plushnick-Masti, “TransCanada submits new application for part of pipeline.”
From OnEarth Magazine: “Our agricultural policy used to be designed with farmers in mind. Then Big Ag took it over. Can it be won back?” This excellent May 23rd interview with KXL opposition leader, Nebraska Farmers Union President John Hansen, by Paul Tullis, is called “The Barnstormer.”
Click here for a Bold Nebraska recap of news, research and updates on TransCanada’s KXL pipeline for the past week.
TransCanada has secretly submitted its permit application for the Southern portion of the Keystone XL Pipeline to the Army Corps of Engineers. To evade a meaningful review, TransCanada applied for an expedited, insufficient permit. And the Army Corps, which has an abysmal environmental track record, could approve the project unless the EPA steps in. Learn more and add your name to a petition telling EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson not to allow TransCanada’s project to get rubber stamped at the CredoAction petition here. A similar Friends of the Earth Petition is here. Please sign them both.
Sign a Natural Resources Defense Council Action Alert telling Congress to reject all attempts to force approval of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline by attaching it to any unrelated legislation. The Keystone XL will deliver billions in profits to Big Oil while the people get stuck with poisoned water, contaminated land and an overheated planet.
“The Keystone pipeline will spew a massive amount of carbon pollution into our fragile atmosphere. It should be stopped. ” –Jill Stein, 2012 Green Party Presidential candidate.
STOP FRACKING NOW . . . “Confirmed: Fracking Caused Ohio Earthquakes,” by Brad Johnson, ThinkProgress, in Reader Supported News reports “A dozen earthquakes in northeastern Ohio were almost certainly induced by injection of gas-drilling wastewater into the earth, Ohio oil and gas regulators said…” Petition Congress: “We, the undersigned, call on Congress to pass the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act this year. It’s time to hold the oil and gas production industry to the same standards as any other industry to ensure the safe protection of America’s drinking water.”
PETITION THE EPA . . . Tell the Environmental Protection Agency to immediately prohibit the use of clothianidin and conduct a full scientific review to determine its impact on honey bee populations. Learn more about clothianidin and sign the petition here.
BUY FRESH. BUY LOCAL . . . . Farmers, gardeners, and craftspeople meet through The Nebraska Food Cooperative, an on-line, year-round farmers’ market and local food distribution service offering the best in local freshness. For ordering and pickup schedules, refer to the calendar here. Click here for products and prices from North Star Neighbors, a Cooperative member that doesn’t therapeutically medicate or unduly confine animals. Click here for Tomato Tomäto, Omaha’s year-round indoor Farmer’s Market at 156th & West Center. Shop for fresh foods grown in or very near your own community at Open Harvest, Lincoln’s member-owned natural foods retail cooperative at 1618 South Street. Buying local grows family farming, grows the local economy, and is thousands of miles fresher.
HELP NEBRASKA GREENS WITH GOODSEARCH . . . Each time you search the Internet (or shop online at a participating store), a donation can be made to Nebraska Green Party at no cost to you! To help NGP in this way, enter Nebraska Green Party where it asks you to name your cause here. Bookmark the GoodSearch Homepage, or make it your own Home Page. Enter the url you want in the GoodSearch search box. Each time you do, one penny will be donated to Nebraska Greens. THANK YOU for your support!
Remember, every man-made by-product of the petroleum industry could be replaced by hemp. “Help Save the Earth, Time to Substitute Hemp for oil.“