Fred 2.0 (lqc) wrote,
Fred 2.0
lqc

Will this flood wash away Congress' sins?

So yeah, Southern California is kinda halfway underwater. Okay, its not that bad really. I mean if I still talked to anyone from back in Portland where I grew up they'd glance at the weather and say, "Meh. Looks like a Thursday." So far hasn't really had much impact on life for me. *knocks on wood*

Unfortunately I can't say as much for the rest of the world. Seems the Supreme Court (conceited much?) has struck down some campaign finance issue which long story short means corporations can through more cash at elections and get their favorite asshat into Congress. Now I'm an opinionated ass ...erm, individual, but I tend to keep things to myself nonetheless unless specifically queried or provoked.

In this case I'm gonna be a bit more active and say I think this really is a big HUGE mistake. It's pretty simple. We've recently seen the way corporations work (ie banks, oil companies, etc) and its typically not inline with the interests of the people of the nation, or the community in general. And unfortunately there's less and less opportunity for grassroots movements and boycotts to have an effect versus giant megacorps. Obviously I could be wrong on this matter, but I think Wal-Mart's success record at building supercenters despite objections by the community could validate my point.

So I'm am including the main part of an email from the head of Change Congress that hopefully will catch others up to speed and inspire support. Please forward links as you see fit.

-- from email:
Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 11:15 AM
Subject: Breaking news from the Supreme Court

Friend --
I'm about to get on a plane, and I've only had a brief chance to look over the decision, but it appears the Supreme Court has struck down restrictions on corporate speech in political campaigns -- overturning 20 years of campaign finance regulations and allowing corporations to wield unprecedented control over our elections.

What we need is a system in which the American people can trust that when Congress acts, it does so based on principle, or reason, or the will of the voters -- but not on the need for campaign funds. This decision erodes that trust down to nothingness.

We need to act now to fix this broken system -- and fortunately, the path forward is clear.

I just recorded a video from the terminal with my initial reaction -- watch the video and please say you'll join this battle for fundamental reform:
Watch my reaction to the Citizens United decision
http://action.change-congress.org/SupremeCourt
Please forward this email to everyone you know who cares about the future of our democracy and ask them to get involved. And please stay tuned to http://Change-Congress.org for more on today's decision.
-- Lawrence Lessig
Tags: congress, floods, politics, rain, supreme court
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