Apr 8, 2013
I just saw a nasty ad about Jay Nixon, the very popular democratic governor of Missouri, being paid for by an organization called United for Missouri. Let me tell you they are not united for Missouri, at least not the Missouri we want. It affects us all on a national level because it’s happening all [...]
Apr 4, 2013
editor’s note: VLTP has filed a whistleblower complaint with the IRS regarding ALEC’s 501(c)3 tax-exempt status noting that ALEC admits to being a lobbyist by virtue of statements in its own by-laws. The IRS has received 3 such whistleblower complaints, with VLTP’s being given the master number for the potential investigation. This report by our [...]
Apr 3, 2013
by VLTP Executive Director, Bob Sloan A recent article from the Advocate and the American Independent caught my attention the other day…then it was picked up and republished by Salon yesterday. These articles help us to dissect how the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) involves themselves in issue specific initiatives in an effort of promoting their “free market,” [...]
Apr 3, 2013
A small victory was won today in the battle against Right-to-Work. Ingham County Circuit Court Judge William Collette refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union and labor unions against the law. The ACLU argued that the law is invalid because it was passed while the public was locked-out of the capitol building in [...]
Apr 3, 2013
Let’s see now, what have we learned from Bob Sloan’s experiences and articles about prison industries in Nevada? Among other things, they are not supposed to be competing with free market businesses, as well as paying the going wages. Well, there are furniture factories in Maine. Do you think that they were consulted about a [...]
Apr 2, 2013
Local governments in Michigan are being subjected to the equivalent of The Hunger Games under Gov. Snyder’s policies. New laws and budgeting dictates have pitted community against community and department against department as if they were competing corporate entities. Snyder and GOP lawmakers naively think that this is a good thing — believing it will lead to [...]
Apr 2, 2013
By Bob Sloan Like the military/industrial complex, the criminal justice industrial complex is an interweaving of private business and government interests. Its twofold purpose is profit and social control. Its public rationale is the fight against crime. To accomplish the goals the public must be made to fear their neighbors, fellow employees…to walk in a [...]
Apr 2, 2013
In Greek legend, everytime the winged horse Pegasus struck his hoof to the Earth, an “inspiring spring burst forth.” Unfortunately for residents in Mayflower, Arkansas, when the Pegasus pipeline ruptured, the only thing bursting forth was a nasty tar sands oil spill. On Friday afternoon,the Pegasus pipeline operated by Exxon Mobil ruptured, flooding an Arkansas [...]
Apr 2, 2013
This article cam across my desk today, from the liberal newspaper of South Dakota. Interesting–but–I found the response from Dee Voss to be particularly informative. Remember the half-million dollars that the Legislature added to its own budget, giving themselves twelve times more money to play with than they could find for each K-12 teacher in [...]
Mar 31, 2013
New Investigation Reveals Corporate Interests Have Been Quietly Influencing Federally Appointed Judges Leave it to the Koch brothers to find a perfectly legal way to buy influence with federally appointed judges. The billionaire siblings are already well-established in their gluttonous abuse of lax campaign finance laws under Citizens United – pulling the strings of elected judges, but they’ve [...]
