Tag Archives: Community-Based Economics

Nebraskans stand with those at Standing Rock

November 1, 2016NewsCommunity-Based Economics, Ecological Wisdom, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

From the Lincoln Journal Star:

Flashing signs that read “We Stand with Standing Rock, #NoDAPL” and “Can’t Drink Oil,” about 200 Nebraskans rallied Saturday afternoon at the state Capitol to oppose a controversial pipeline being constructed more than 400 miles away.

Should it be completed, the Dakota Access oil pipeline will run underground in close proximity to the Missouri River, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s main water source. It also would require tearing apart land the tribe considers sacred burial grounds.

Protests escalated last weekend when demonstrators set up camp on private land along the pipeline’s path, and more than 140 people were arrested Thursday.

Quieter protests continued Friday and Saturday.

Lincoln’s rally and march were organized by a 17-year-old high school student.

Read the full story.

Get Your Stein/Baraka Yard Sign

October 23, 2016Action AlertsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

Yard signs for Stein/Baraka are available:

IN OMAHA: Pick up signs any day after 7:15 p.m. at 2028 N. 65th Avenue. Phone Dave at (402) 570-2187 to make special arrangements if necessary.
IN LINCOLN: Phone Charise Grimes, (402) 720-6760, if you’re in Northeast Lincoln, or phone Mj, (402) 489-0598, in Central Lincoln.

Annual Peace Conference Oct. 29 in Omaha

October 14, 2016EventsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

From Nebraskans for Peace:

Plan to attend Nebraskans for Peace’s Annual Peace Conference. Senator Ernie Chambers, Dr. Richard Miller, and Professor John Hibbing will be keynote speakers:

Saturday, October 29
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Augustana Lutheran Church, 38th Sreet and Lafayette Avenue, Omaha

The 2016 Annual Peace Conference promises to be one of the best in our storied 46-year history. You can attend this all-day event (lunch included) for just $20. You can register for the conference by contacting the NFP State Office directly at nfpstate (at) nebraskansforpeace.org or (402) 475-4620.

The eight workshops are about Combating Climate Change, Stopping the Nuclear Arms Race, Our Criminal Justice System, The Latest on Whiteclay, Public Policy & Black Lives Matter, Getting To Know Our Muslim Neighbors, Crisis in Syria and Iraq, and The Political & Economic Prowess of the 1%.

Check out the full details, including the schedule and registration form.

State Council Meeting Oct. 16 in Omaha

October 7, 2016EventsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

Please consider attending the Nebraska Green Party’s upcoming State Council Meeting:

Sunday, Oct. 16
6:30 to 9 p.m.
Caffeine Dreams, 4524 Farnam St., Omaha

For more information and to request an agenda, contact Charles Ostdiek, NGP Co-Chair, at (402) 718-5991.

National ballot access update: Americans in 48 states can vote for Jill Stein

September 10, 2016NewsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

From jill2016.com:

The Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka campaign has been working nationally with state Green Parties and teams of volunteers to give all voters the chance to vote for our campaign and the Green Party in 2016.

September 10 update: Petitioning in all states has ended. Americans in 48 states (including the District of Columbia) are able to cast a vote for Stein/Baraka.

We’re on the ballot in 45 states (including DC) and are qualified for write-in status in another 3 states, for a total of 48 states in which a vote for our campaign will count.

Check out the national ballot access map.

Jill Stein in Omaha: ‘We are Bernie on steroids’

September 8, 2016NewsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

From the Omaha World-Herald:

Green Party presidential candidate Dr. Jill Stein sought to embrace Bernie Sanders supporters at a Nebraska campaign stop Wednesday, urging them to side with her over “lesser-evil Democrats” in November.

“We are Bernie Sanders on steroids,” she told a conference room crowd of about 250 people at Metro Community College’s Fort Omaha Campus.

In an 80-minute appearance, the second-time presidential candidate also courted environmentalists and political newcomers who opposed the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline before it was rejected last year.

“This is where you did so much to stop the Keystone pipeline,” Stein told the crowd.

Read the full story.

Jill Stein is coming to Omaha Sept. 7

August 26, 2016EventsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

Green Party Presidential Candidate Dr. Jill Stein will visit Omaha Wednesday, September 7. She will speak at the Swanson Conference Center on Metropolitan Community College’s Fort Omaha Campus, located at 5370 North 30th Street. (That’s inside the Institute for Culinary Arts.) Time is 7 to 9 p.m.

Join the Facebook event.

Map of MCC’s Fort Omaha Campus.

Update: Jill Stein will be on Nebraska’s ballot

August 19, 2016NewsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A New Choice for Nebraskans: Jill Stein to appear on the state’s November ballot

August 19, 2016

Today leaders of the Nebraska Green Party received official notification from the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office: Jill Stein, the U.S. Green Party’s presidential candidate, will appear on the state’s general election ballot this November.

“Choice is good,” said Steve Larrick, the Nebraska Green Party’s candidate for U.S. Senate in 2008 and for the District 1 U.S. House seat in 2004. “With the Green presidential ticket on the ballot, Nebraskans can now vote for the greater good, not just for the lesser of two evils.”

Dr. Jill Stein and her running mate, Ajamu Baraka, were officially nominated for the Green Party’s ticket at the national convention earlier this month in Houston, Texas. Here in Nebraska, they will be listed as nonpartisan, or “by petition,” a type of ballot access that requires 2,500 signatures from registered voters. Nebraska Greens submitted 7,656 signatures Aug. 1 requesting a ballot line for the candidates.

With the perennial hurdle of ballot access cleared, Greens in Nebraska and elsewhere are now working to reach more voters with their policy ideas, especially in the upcoming presidential debates. Access to the debates is controlled largely by the national Democratic and Republican parties, and third-party candidates are typically barred from participating.

“By being on the presidential ballot in most states,” Larrick said, “the Stein-Baraka team should rightfully be included in all presidential debates. It’s a simple matter of respect for American justice and democracy.”

Dr. Jill Stein is a practicing physician, a community organizer, mother, and environmental-health advocate. She also ran as the Green candidate in 2012, earning more votes than any previous woman candidate for president.

Ajamu Baraka is a human rights activist, organizer, and geopolitical analyst. He was the founding executive director of the U.S. Human Rights Network until 2011. He has served on the boards of various national and international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International (USA) and the National Center for Human Rights Education.

Voters can learn more about Dr. Stein and her running mate at www.jill2016.com.

The Nebraska Green Party organizes citizens in support of progressive causes and fights for broader access to the ballot. The party has fielded candidates in several elections since 2000, including the following partisan races:

In 2002 Doug Paterson for U.S. House District 2
In 2004 Steve Larrick for U.S. House District 1
In 2004 Dante Salvatierra for U.S. House District 2
In 2004 Roy Guisinger for U.S. House District 3
In 2006 Doug Paterson for Secretary of State
In 2008 Steve Larrick for U.S. Senate

Dr. Jill Stein, the U.S. Green Party, and the Nebraska Green Party are committed to 10 Key Values, centered on grassroots democracy, local decision-making, equality, environmental wisdom, and social justice. Voters can read more about the Nebraska Green Party and its values at www.nebraskagreens.org.

Nebraska Green Party Contact Information:

Mark Zimmermann, Treasurer, markalanzimmermann at gmail.com
Steve Larrick, former candidate for U.S. Senate and House, slarrick1 at msn.com

Read the press release from the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office.

Get the update on Jill Stein’s ballot status nationwide.

Ask your neighbors: Why waste money on the death penalty?

August 19, 2016Action AlertsCommunity-Based Economics, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Social JusticeShane Pekny

By Darold Bauer from Retain a Just Nebraska:

On Monday, Dr. Ernest Goss, professor at Creighton University, (the same economist who has worked for Governor Ricketts’ think tank) released the findings of his analysis of the costs of the death penalty, finding that the State of Nebraska is spending $14,600,000 annually — above and beyond the cost of life in prison — to keep the death penalty in our state.

Our opponents immediately claimed that Dr. Goss’s study was flawed and that the analysis was done by the state government when it released a fiscal note that accompanied Legislative Bill 268. The problem? The fiscal note did not include any actual real numbers — because no one had studied the costs of Nebraska’s death penalty yet. You can see the actual note here. You can read Dr. Goss’s study here.

This week, 27 Senators signed a letter responding to Dr. Goss’ study that they are more confident than ever in their decision to end Nebraska’s death penalty in 2015.

At a news conference yesterday, Speaker Galen Hadley of Kearney said Dr. Goss’ study affirmed his vote, “I am a fiscal conservative who voted against spending $14.6 million a year on a broken program.” Senator Mike Gloor, from Grand Island, Chair of the Revenue Committee, considered the future impact of $14.6 million annual savings, “this money can be better used elsewhere.”

Our opponents are deliberately delivering half truths to drive their campaign. That’s why we need your help. Based on what we’re seeing come across our desks these last couple days, it’s likely your local media outlets covered this story.

Please take a few moments to write a letter to your local paper or call into your local radio talk show and say you are outraged the state is paying $14.6 annually on the death penalty. You can find tips and suggestions for reaching out to your local media outlets here.

It is indefensible to spend $14.6 million each year on any government program that is broken and cannot be used. With your help, we will rid the state of Nebraska of the death penalty. Thank you for your ongoing support.

Open Up the Debates

August 18, 2016NewsCommunity-Based Economics, Decentralization, Ecological Wisdom, Feminism, Future Focus, Grassroots Democracy, Non-Violence, Personal and Global Responsibility, Respect for Diversity, Social JusticeShane Pekny

From Democracy Now!:

While polls show Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are among the least popular major-party candidates to ever run for the White House, it appears no third-party candidates will be invited to take part in the first presidential debate next month. The debates are organized by the Commission on Presidential Debates, which is controlled by the Democratic and Republican parties. Under the commission’s rules, candidates will only be invited if they are polling at 15 percent in five national surveys. Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson and the Green Party’s Jill Stein have both witnessed recent surges in support, but neither have crossed the 15 percent threshold. More than 12,000 people have signed a petition organized by RootsAction calling for a four-way presidential debate. We speak to Green Party presidential nominee Dr. Jill Stein. Four years ago she was arrested outside a presidential debate protesting her exclusion from the event.

Watch the video or read the transcript.