Scholars team up to dispel 400-year-old ‘fake news’ about U.S.

By WILLIAM J. KOLE
AP, December 25, 2016

BOSTON (AP) — Fake news, quadricentennial edition: America’s early settlers were all pious. The native people were savages. Freedom and liberty were available to all from Day One.

As the U.S. gears up to mark the 400th anniversary of its roots as a nation, leading scholars from around the globe are teaming up to dispel myths and challenge long-held assumptions about how the country was settled.

Their group, New England Beginnings, is using phone apps and searchable online archives to help set the record straight about the early 1600s — and fill in some important knowledge gaps.

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A key focus, Bremer said, is presenting a much more complete and accurate picture of how the early settlers interacted with Native Americans.

Underscoring the gulf between how natives and white Americans see history, on every Thanksgiving since 1970, members of New England tribes have gathered in downtown Plymouth for a solemn National Day of Mourning observance that recalls the disease, racism and oppression the settlers brought.

More: http://www.boston.com/news/history/2016/12/25/scholars-team-up-to-dispel-400-year-old-fake-news-about-u-s

Here is an excerpt with the chapters listed:
Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda
Former congressional staffers reveal best practices for making Congress listen

<SNIP>

One Page Summary
Here’s the quick and dirty summary of this document. While this page summarizes top-level takeaways, the full document describes how to actually carry out these activities.

Ch. 1: How grassroots advocacy worked to stop Obama. We examine lessons from the Tea Party’s rise and recommend two key strategic components:

1. A local strategy targeting individual Members of Congress (MoCs).

2. A defensive approach purely focused on stopping Trump from implementing an agenda built on racism, authoritarianism, and corruption.



Ch. 2: How your MoC thinks, and how to use that to save democracy. Reelection, reelection, reelection. MoCs want their constituents to think well of them and they want good, local press. They hate surprises, wasted time, and most of all, bad press that makes them look weak, unlikable, and vulnerable. You will use these interests to make them listen and act.

Ch. 3: Identify or organize your local group. Is there an existing local group or network you can join? Or do you need to start your own? We suggest steps to help mobilize your fellow constituents locally and start organizing for action.

Ch. 4: Four local advocacy tactics that actually work. Most of you have 3 MoCs--two Senators and one Representative. Whether you like it or not, they are your voice in Washington. Your job is to make sure they are, in fact, speaking for you. We’ve identified four key opportunity areas to pressure MoCs that just a handful of local constituents can use to great effect. For each of these always record encounters on video, prepare questions ahead of time, coordinate with your group, and report back to local media:

1. Townhalls: MoCs regularly hold public in-district events to show that they are listening to constituents. Make them listen to you, and report out when they don’t.

2. Non-townhall events. MoCs love cutting ribbons and kissing babies back home. Don’t let them get photo-ops without questions about racism, authoritarianism, and corruption.

3. District office sit-ins/meetings. Every MoC has one or several district offices. Go there. Demand a meeting with the MoC. Report to the world if they refuse to listen.

4. Coordinated calls. Calls are a light lift but can have impact. Organize your local group to barrage your MoCs at an opportune moment and on a specific issue.

More: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DzOz3Y6D8g_MNXHNMJYAz1b41_cn535aU5UsN7Lj8X8/preview#heading=h.1t4uu5uonb6f

After Trump victory at Electoral College, world views collide
Text by Christine BUCKLEY , reporting from Tallahassee, Florida

Latest update : 2016-12-21

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{Ion} Sancho later questioned the integrity of electronic voting machines used in Florida elections and was featured in the award-winning HBO documentary "Hacking Democracy". He was not surprised by Monday’s outcome at the Electoral College. “I’m a pragmatic realist,” said the man who will retire at the end of the month after almost thirty years (seven terms) on the job. But before he does, he hopes the American people will realise they’ve fallen asleep on the job, and act quickly to take back their power.

The voter suppression story ‘no one cares about’

“It’s good to see that people are disturbed,” Sancho told FRANCE 24, “But now I hope we can focus this energy on real election reform, because voter suppression has been going on here since 2000.” He estimates that more than 1.5 million African-American votes were suppressed in Florida during the 2016 election. Which for him, means that “the real story is not whether Putin manipulated the US election - he did. But our elections aren’t fair; they’re manipulated by both major parties, and I haven’t even started to talk about gerrymandering yet".

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“Since 2010 when the ‘ideological Republicans’ came to power in this country, the focus has been on ideology over facts, which has all kinds of ramifications,” Sancho said. “Evidence or data is irrelevant because faith-like ‘beliefs’ do not rest on evidence and I believe this has destroyed the American republic. Because it means that the end justifies the means for this kind of public official. And that can only lead to disaster for this nation.”

So what does Sancho suggest the average citizen do now? Read history. Educate yourself and your children. Vote and ensure that others have access to the polls. Believe in the public good. Talk about politics and listen to people who don’t agree with you. Debate. Hold politicians accountable. Demand proof and underlying evidence for everything. “All across the board, we need to get to evidence,” he said. “Opinions are irrelevant. One of the greatest con jobs politicians have pulled off in the last 25 years is to convince people that if you’re arguing on principle, you don’t need to compromise.”

Much more: http://www.france24.com/en/20161220-trump-victory-electoral-college-world-views-collide-protests

Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda
Former congressional staffers reveal best practices for making Congress listen

<SNIP>

One Page Summary
Here’s the quick and dirty summary of this document. While this page summarizes top-level takeaways, the full document describes how to actually carry out these activities.

Ch. 1: How grassroots advocacy worked to stop Obama. We examine lessons from the Tea Party’s rise and recommend two key strategic components:

1. A local strategy targeting individual Members of Congress (MoCs).

2. A defensive approach purely focused on stopping Trump from implementing an agenda built on racism, authoritarianism, and corruption.

Ch. 2: How your MoC thinks, and how to use that to save democracy. Reelection, reelection, reelection. MoCs want their constituents to think well of them and they want good, local press. They hate surprises, wasted time, and most of all, bad press that makes them look weak, unlikable, and vulnerable. You will use these interests to make them listen and act.

Ch. 3: Identify or organize your local group. Is there an existing local group or network you can join? Or do you need to start your own? We suggest steps to help mobilize your fellow constituents locally and start organizing for action.

Ch. 4: Four local advocacy tactics that actually work. Most of you have 3 MoCs--two Senators and one Representative. Whether you like it or not, they are your voice in Washington. Your job is to make sure they are, in fact, speaking for you. We’ve identified four key opportunity areas to pressure MoCs that just a handful of local constituents can use to great effect. For each of these always record encounters on video, prepare questions ahead of time, coordinate with your group, and report back to local media:

1. Townhalls: MoCs regularly hold public in-district events to show that they are listening to constituents. Make them listen to you, and report out when they don’t.

2. Non-townhall events. MoCs love cutting ribbons and kissing babies back home. Don’t let them get photo-ops without questions about racism, authoritarianism, and corruption.

3. District office sit-ins/meetings. Every MoC has one or several district offices. Go there. Demand a meeting with the MoC. Report to the world if they refuse to listen.

4. Coordinated calls. Calls are a light lift but can have impact. Organize your local group to barrage your MoCs at an opportune moment and on a specific issue.

More: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DzOz3Y6D8g_MNXHNMJYAz1b41_cn535aU5UsN7Lj8X8/preview#heading=h.1t4uu5uonb6f

Computer’s Modem Melts Down While Stop Sabal Trail Activist Sends Violation Reports to FERC and DEP
12/15/16

Abnormal activities are occurring in Levy County and other locations in Florida. In Levy County, Sabal Trail Transmission is installing a portion of a 516 mile, fracked gas (methane) pipeline. Violations have been duly noted and documented at the work sites by activists as the crews are rapidly installing this pipeline with no oversight.

Today a concerned resident who has been carefully documenting the violations being done by the Sabal Trail Transmission employee's, Price Gregory workers and crews from affiliated companies had her modem melt down while sending her documentation to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and other agencies.

This person’s documentation included videos, still photos and written reports.

From the activist before the computer shut down: “Not paranoid. Whilst preparing my latest DEP violations report I sit back and watched as someone took over controls on my laptop. Spybot alerted me but nothing i did gave me back contol. I was able to send reports and video I think? Not paranoid. #STOPSABALTRAIL PIPELINE”

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#StopSabalTrail
http://www.stopsabaltrail.com
http://www.facebook.com/groups/stopsabaltrailpipeline
http://www.facebook.com/stopsabaltrail
http://www.twitter.com/stopsabaltrail
Anita Stewart
anitastewart@gmail.com
813.312.2292

More: http://stopsabaltrailpipeline.blogspot.com/p/press-releases.html

We want to #StopSabalTrail pipeline, a natural gas pipeline that will threaten the lands, waters (including aquifers, watersheds, rivers, springs, ponds, wetlands), our environment and flora & fauna in three states. Over 160 eminent domain lawsuits have been filed. Citizens' properties are being seized to complete this project. Most of the people that live closest to the pipeline are not even aware that it is being installed.

Natural Gas would be transported on commuter trains and the entire system will consist of staging areas, compressor stations and areas to process and export the natural gas. One of the latter is close to a nuclear power plant. This puts lives in danger. The human impact cannot even be estimated at this time and could occur from mistakes such as work hazards, derailments and possible explosions.

We don't have much time, perhaps weeks as Sabal Trail under Spectra and other parent Big Oil and Gas companies have already broken ground in three states: Alabama, Georgia and Florida. The pipes are being installed rapidly and in multiple locations throughout the three states right now. This pipeline is expected to be operational by June of 2017.

It is important to note that this pipeline has been APPROVED. There is no more asking nicely from elected representatives. They can't help us. We need to move forward in an attempt to save our future.
http://stopsabaltrailpipeline.blogspot.com/

How Bees, Elephants, And Farmers Are Keeping Each Other Safe In A Genius Way
Laura Caseley


Being a farmer is hard work — but being a farmer in places like Kenya, Botswana, and Sri Lanka has a unique challenge that other areas of the world don’t: elephants!

Wild elephants, whose natural behavior is to roam, have been known to march right through fields, damaging and destroying crops.

When the human farmers try to intervene, things can turn ugly, and both human and elephant injuries and even deaths can occur.

Sadly, like too many animals, elephants face many dangers at the hands of humans. It’s a shame, because these creatures are intelligent, sensitive, and have complex emotional and social connections, forming strong bonds with one another, and with different animals, too.
More: http://www.littlethings.com/bees-and-elephants-vcom/