Category Archives: Main Page

Media Reform: Help IBLTV Stop Ownership Expansion – Sign the Petition Now

Posted on September 12, 2005 by Trish Nelson

  Media Reform:  Help IBLTV Stop Ownership Expansion – Sign the Petition Now Iowans for Better Local TV IBLTV is sponsoring a citizen's petition to advocate better local broadcast television. Please add your voice by signing our petition, to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Calls to Action, How You Can Help, Iowa in the News, Main Page, Media Bias, Progressive Community | Comments Off on Media Reform: Help IBLTV Stop Ownership Expansion – Sign the Petition Now

Bush’s Poll Rating Falls to a New Low

Posted on September 11, 2005 by Trish Nelson

Bush's Poll Rating Falls to a New Low  by Richard Morin and Dan Balz, Washington Post [George Bush’s] standing with the public has sunk to an all-time low, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll. The survey found Bush's … Continue reading →

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Jon Stewart Lets Bush Have It

Posted on September 11, 2005 by bfialindathieman

Jon Stewart Lets Bush Have It Yeah, Jon Stewart thinks judging Arabian horses is excellent preparation for running the Federal Emergency Management Agency.  What?  Me, I wonder just how many emergencies Arabian horses can have? See the four-and-a-half minute clip … Continue reading →

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Your Second Priority

Posted on September 10, 2005 by Trish Nelson

Your Second Priority

NicholasJohnson.org

Nick Johnson (pictured above) was formerly an FCC Commissioner and Iowa City School Board member and now teaches at the University of Iowa College of Law.  These are his remarks to the Iowa City Federation of Labor Labor Day Picnic, September 5, 2005


“Whatever is your first priority, your second priority has to be media reform.”

I've been saying that to gatherings of labor, and other progressive organizations, for 40 years now.

Your first priority may be a fairer shake for labor. Healthcare for Iowans. Rights for women and minorities. Improvements in local schools, or the environment. Electing your candidates to public office.

Whatever is your first priority, you have little hope of making any progress with it if you can't get media coverage – fair and favorable media coverage.

For no group is this more true than for labor.

“Yeah, so what else is new?” I hear you say.

I'll tell you what's new.

For the first time in the history of Iowa, so far as I know, two currently sitting commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission – Michael Copps and Jon Adelstein – are coming to Iowa City because they want to hear from you.

The national organization Free Press is seeing to it that Wednesday, October 5th, a month from today, probably at the IMU, hundreds of Iowans will be coming forward to tell the FCC what they think about our local media.

There are petitions that give you a chance to participate. The petitions ask the FCC to at least hold hearings before automatically granting license renewals to Iowa's television stations.

All those Iowa stations have to file for renewal by October 1st. If their licenses are renewed they will be able to keep up what they've been doing for another 8 years.

Meanwhile, a local group called Iowans for Better Local Television,  and anyone else in the state, has from now until the end of December to get comments and petitions to the Commission. IBLTV's Web site actually lets you sign the petition online.

So why should labor care?

You can probably answer that better than I.

 – When did you last see a documentary favorable to organized labor on local television?


Continue reading →

Posted in Calls to Action, How You Can Help, Iowa in the News, Jobs, Labor, Local Events, Main Page, Media Bias, Progressive Community | Comments Off on Your Second Priority

Al Gore Quietly Aids Katrina Victims

Posted on September 10, 2005 by bfiamollyreagan

  Al Gore Quietly Aids Katrina Victims by Molly Regan and Caroline Vernon Here is a story you will not hear on the endless media reports about Louisiana because the man involved will do no interviews and has only told … Continue reading →

Posted in Calls to Action, How You Can Help, Main Page | 1 Comment

Katrina Timeline and Why FEMA Failed

Posted on September 9, 2005 by bfiacarolinevernon

 Katrina Timeline and Why FEMA Failed

by Caroline Vernon

Timeline excerpts from thinkprogress.org
Why FEMA Failed from Salon.com

I just heard on Air America that FEMA Director Michael Brown has been removed from his position overseeing recovery efforts post-Katrina. Although Brown has finally been demoted, the spin machine has embarked on promulgating their latest sound-bytes also known as the “blame game”. Check out the following audio file at www.salon.com and pay particular attention to what O-Reilly has to say. To further demonstrate this rare brand of compassionate conservatism, according to the progressreport.org and the Wallstreet Journal, Rep. Richard Baker (R-LA) of Baton Rouge was overhead telling lobbyists: “We finally cleaned up public housing in New Orleans. We couldn’t do it, but God did.” These guys have no shame whatsoever!

It is important that the Bush administration not get away with shifting their responsibility to local officials. Here is the timeline of what actually happened. One case in point is the fact that Bush himself was previously warned of levee failure by the National Hurricane Center on August 28th, yet he stated, “no one could have anticipated that the levees would collapse.” Liar, liar, pants on fire! Yeah, he’s in the hot seat all right.

Timeline:

Friday, Aug. 26: Gov. Kathleen Blanco declares a state of emergency in Louisiana and requests troop assistance.

Saturday, Aug. 27: Gov. Blanco asks for federal state of emergency. A federal emergency is declared by Bush giving federal officials the authority to get involved.

Sunday, Aug. 28: Mayor Ray Nagin orders mandatory evacuation of New Orleans. Bush warned of Levee failure by National Hurricane Center. National Weather Service predicts area will be uninhabitable after Hurricane arrives. First reports of water toppling over the levee appear in local paper.

Monday, Aug. 29: Levee breaches and New Orleans begins to fill with water, Bush travels to Arizona and California to discuss Medicare. FEMA chief finally responds to federal emergency, dispatching employees but giving them two days to arrive on site.

Tuesday, Aug. 30: Mass looting reported, security shortage cited in New Orleans. Pentagon says that local authorities have adequate National Guard units to handle hurricane needs despite governor's earlier request. Bush returns to Crawford for final day of vacation. TV coverage is around-the-clock Hurricane news.

Wednesday, Aug. 31: Tens of thousands trapped in New Orleans including at Convention Center and Superdome in  medieval conditions. Bush finally returns to Washington to establish a task force to coordinate federal response. Local authorities run out of food and water supplies.

Thursday, Sept. 1: New Orleans descends into anarchy. New Orleans Mayor issues a  Desperate SOS  to federal government. Bush claims nobody predicted the breach of the levees despite multiple warnings and his earlier briefing.

Friday, Sept. 2: Karl Rove begins Bush administration campaign to blame state and local officials — despite their repeated requests for help.  Bush stages a photo-op — diverting Coast Guard helicopters and crew to act as backdrop for cameras. Levee repair work orchestrated for Bush's visit and White House press corps.

Saturday, Sept. 3: Bush blames state and local officials. Senior administration official (possibly Rove) caught in a lie claiming Gov. Blanco had not declared a state of emergency or asked for help.

Monday, Sept. 5: New Orleans officials begin to collect their dead.

(Adapted from: Katrina Timeline, http://thinkprogress.org/katrina-timeline/)

Those are the facts. State and local officials BEGGED for help as people in their city suffered. The Bush administration didn't get the job done and when their failure became an embarrassment they attacked those asking for help.

The New York Times recently reported that Karl Rove and White House communications director Dan Bartlett rolled out a plan… to contain the political damage from the administration's response to Hurricane Katrina.  The core of the strategy is to shift the blame away from the White House and toward officials of New Orleans and Louisiana.  
Continue reading →

Posted in Big Government, Environment, GOP, Main Page, Media Bias, National News, Progressive Community | 2 Comments

Hurricane Evacuees Arrive in Iowa

Posted on September 9, 2005 by bfiachadthompson

Hurricane Evacuees Arrive in Iowa From the Des Moines Register: About 200 people or more evacuated from areas hit by Hurricane Katrina will arrive in Des Moines today, state officials say. The first group 18 evacuees from New Orleans arrived … Continue reading →

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Red Cross Blocked by FEMA from Entering New Orleans

Posted on September 8, 2005 by bfialindathieman

Red Cross Blocked by FEMA from Entering New Orleans According to this article by Max Blumenthal in The Nation, the U.S. government has passed around a list of relief organizations for news outlets to promote.  Only two of these organizations … Continue reading →

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The Roots of Bush’s ‘Compassionate Conservatism’

Posted on September 8, 2005 by bfialindathieman

  The Roots of Bush's 'Compassionate Conservatism' by John Nichols, The Nation Finally, we have discovered the roots of George W. Bush's “compassionate conservatism.” On the heels of [Bush]'s “What, me worry?” response to the death, destruction and dislocation that … Continue reading →

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Job Opening: Constituency Organizer with Fallon for Governor

Posted on September 7, 2005 by bfialindathieman

Job Opening: Constituency Organizer with Fallon for Governor The Fallon for Governor campaign is hiring a Constituency Organizer who will be responsible for outreach to an array of constituencies including, but not limited to:  minority, GLBT, labor, environmental, rural/family farm, … Continue reading →

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