Alternative News

Articles from non-mainstream as opposed to corporate for profit sources.

Monsanto on the run

Details: Published on Friday, 29 August 2014 13:40; Written by editor

Monsanto is pushing to introduce GMO crops and bee-killing pesticides into one of the biggest honey-producing regions in the world -- Mexico's Yucatan peninsula.

Will you chip in CA$10 to help Mexico's beekeepers fight back?

Monsanto may have just met their match: Beekeepers.

Monsanto has been lobbying the Mexican government to approve genetically engineered crops and bee-killing pesticides in the Yucatan, one of the biggest honey producing regions in the world.

With honeybees already dying in massive numbers due to the overuse of pesticides, this could be the final nail in the coffin for Mexico's bees.

But the beekeepers are fighting back and just scored a major legal victory over Monsanto and their bee-killing pesticides. Now we need to help them defend it.

Can you chip in CA$10 ?

Click here to chip in CA$10 to help defend...

[Quaker-Concern] Summer 2014 Quaker Concern

Details: Published on Friday, 29 August 2014 10:20; Written by editor

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Dear Friends,

Attached is the Summer 2014 issue of Quaker Concern with news and updates from all of our work and from the Canadian Yearly Meeting sessions recently held in Winnipeg. We will also take this opportunity to share the following news:

Pictured: Susan (top left), with Carol Dixon (bottom left), Elaine Bishop (top right), and Marilyn Manzer (bottom right) at the clerks' table during Canadian Yearly Meeting sessions in 2012. (photo is from the CYM website www.quaker.ca)

We are saddened to share this news with you, Friends. Please feel welcome to share it. David wanted as many Canadian Friends as possible to be informed. ~ Jane Orion Smith, General Secretary of CFSC

Seriously, Fraser Institute

Details: Published on Friday, 29 August 2014 10:00; Written by editor

Just in time for Labour Day, we call out the Fraser Institute for their bogus "study" on worker rights.
Please share on FB and Twitter:
http://www.pressprogress.ca/en/post/fraser-institute-tries-and-fails-be-grinch-who-stole-labour-day

Happy Labour Day!
Sarah

Hunters Not Poachers: Botswana Bushmen to sue government over hunting ban - News from Survival

Details: Published on Thursday, 28 August 2014 14:40; Written by editor

Hunters Not Poachers: Botswana Bushmen to sue government over hunting ban

Bushmen hunt for their survival, but are treated like poachers on their land. #HuntersNotPoachers© Survival International

Africa’s last hunting Bushmen have given formal notice of their intention to sue the Botswana government over its “unlawful and unconstitutional” attempts to starve them off their ancestral land in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve.

The Bushmen rely on subsistence hunting to feed their families but face harassment, torture and arrest when found hunting for survival. Earlier this year, the Botswana government issued a nationwide ban on hunting without notifying the Kalahari Bushmen or offering any compensation.

This is the fourth time the Bushmen have been forced to resort to legal action against the government in their desperate wish to live in peace on their land. In a landmark victory in 2006, Botswana’s High Court ruled that the Bushmen have the right to live, and hunt, in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve.

Despite the High Court ruling, not a single hunting license has been issued to the Bushmen living inside the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. Ironically, wealthy trophy hunters are exempt from the ban and continue to legally hunt giraffes and zebras on private ranches.

The Bushmen have hunted game sustainably for many generations, and pose no threat to the survival of wildlife in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. © Philippe Clotuche/Survival

Ask Pope Francis:

Details: Published on Tuesday, 26 August 2014 13:00; Written by editor

Friends,

The movement to divest from fossil fuels is based on a fundamentally moral argument: Investment in the fossil fuel industry is wrong. Climate change is unjust.

That's why we think Pope Francis just might listen when we say:

It's time to divest the Vatican from fossil fuels.

With the ear of 1.2 billion Catholics and the respect of Christians and non-Christians alike, Pope Francis is uniquely positioned to add both his voice and the moral power of his office to the divestment movement.

This Pope understands the threat of climate change. He understands that if we do nothing, then the impacts of climate change will be horrific, and will fall hardest on the world's most vulnerable people. He gets that humans are responsible for protecting the planet -- and ourselves.

Click here to call on Pope Francis to divest the Vatican. Because caring for humanity's future is something we can all believe in.

In...

Video: Everyone. Everywhere.

Details: Published on Friday, 22 August 2014 02:20; Written by editor

Dear friends,

Time flies -- we’re almost one month away from making history with the People’s Climate Mobilisation across the planet.

We are excited to see so many of you getting together to organise and join events in your communities. Events are streaming in on the event map from all around the world – from the Philippines to France, Burundi to Brazil – this is going to be huge!

And huge is what we need it to be in order to show the heads of state attending the Climate Summit in New York in September that we demand Action, Not Words on climate – we are standing up in our communities, to organise, to build power, to confront the power of fossil fuels, and to shift power to a just, safe, peaceful world.

Which is exactly what the below video is about – we, the people, are going...

The Dongria Kondh's victory is under threat -

Details: Published on Tuesday, 19 August 2014 12:00; Written by editor

We help tribal peoples defend their lives, protect their lands and determine their own futures.

The Dongria Kondh’s victory is under threat - please help

URGENT ACTION

Dongria Kondh silenced; Niyamgiri under threat

Notorious British mining company Vedanta Resources is trying to push ahead with a billion dollar expansion of its alumina refinery at the foot of India’s Niyamgiri Hills, despite having been refused permission for its planned mine in the Hills.

The Dongria Kondh, who made history when they refused to give their consent to the mine, spoke passionately and unanimously against the refinery expansion at a recent public hearing. But officials ignored their voices and declared it a ‘success’ for the company. Vedanta could get clearance for the expansion within weeks. The Dongria fear their sacred Hills are in danger once again.

Please email the Indian government asking them not to allow this expansion. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to send a pre-written message

Or if this doesn't work for you, you can use this text to send an email to the Minister at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it." target="_blank">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Union Advantage 2014

Details: Published on Tuesday, 19 August 2014 11:00; Written by editor

Hello,
The CLC just released its Union Advantage 2014 data. We've packaged it in a post. Please share on your social streams and help spread the word.
http://www.pressprogress.ca/en/post/these-numbers-will-blow-your-mind-and-make-you-want-join-union

Thanks,
Sarah

Socialist voices in local government

Details: Published on Tuesday, 19 August 2014 11:00; Written by editor

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Socialist voices in local government
By Ben Isittreprinted from Lower Island News
On November 15, residents of the City of Victoria and neighbouring municipalities and electoral areas in the Capital Region will choose their elected representatives on municipal councils, school boards, the Islands Trust and the Capital Regional District (CRD) board.
More than 100 elected positions will be filled. These seats with either be occupied by people who share our ideals of communities and a world that put people and the planet before private profit -- or they will be occupied by people who don't know where they stand or (worse) by tired apologists of a regressive neo-liberal agenda.
The stakes are high in this election and I strongly encourage you to get involved in local campaigns, to ensure your elected representatives share a common vision of applying democratic socialist and ecological principles to the governance of our communities.
Getting involved can take the form of putting up a lawn sign or making a financial contribution to a campaign.
Getting involved can also go further -- volunteering time a few evenings each week to help knock on doors or calling voters to help mobilize support for our ideals and the candidates who embrace them.
With a small group of committed volunteers, I was able to knock on nearly every door in the City of Victoria in the 2011 election. That played a decisive role in my election to public office.
I need your help in this election, as do other progressive incumbents and new candidates who will strengthen our voice at the municipal and school board tables.
As your elected official, I have worked hard to provide leadership for open, cost-effective public services, while advocating strongly for what we all believe in:

housing with support and harm reduction to end homelessness and reduce suffering by our most vulnerable citizens;
ecological principles in the management of parks, agricultural lands, water supply and transportation systems;
public ownership and operation of municipal services and assets;
land-use development on a human scale that respects the character of neighbourhoods while providing opportunities for affordable housing;
advocacy to the provincial and federal governments on First Nations rights, affordability for senior citizens, poverty reduction, protecting the coastline from oil tankers, and maintaining Canada Post door-to-door delivery;
incomes policies that support the right of everyone to live in dignity, including the right of working people to organize, bargain collectively and withdraw their labour if necessary to achieve fair conditions.

On November 15, we can make gains that will strengthen the socialist voice in local government and contribute to communities and a world that put people and the planet before profit. To get there, we all need to work together. Please be in touch and get involved.

Just one more thing...

Details: Published on Thursday, 14 August 2014 22:20; Written by editor

Thanks for voting -- every vote helps make our campaign stronger, and we'll soon be teaming up with our partners at WWF to deliver your message to UNESCO.

If you haven't done so already, can you take a minute to spread the campaign by sharing it on Facebook?

So many thanks,

The 350.org Team

350.org is building a global climate movement. You can connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and r38

Turning the Tables: Self-Determination Not Termination

Details: Published on Thursday, 14 August 2014 07:40; Written by editor

...

20-21 September – a call to mobilise

Details: Published on Thursday, 14 August 2014 05:20; Written by editor

Dear friends,

In September heads of state are going to New York City for a historic summit on climate change. With our future on the line, we will take a weekend and use it to bend the course of history.

Just before the summit in New York City there will be an unprecedented climate event – in size, beauty, and impact – the People’s Climate March. The march will not be just about New York or the United States, however. Heads of state from around the world will be there, as will the attention of global media. This is a time for global mobilisation!

20-21 September: Join the People’s Climate Mobilisation where you live.

Our demand is for Action, Not Words: take the action necessary to create a world with an economy that works for people and...

Weekly Indigenous news on rabble.ca

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 16:20; Written by editor

s17 r18.

rabble.ca weekly e-news for July 18th, 2014

This is your daily dose of our Editor top picks! For more new rabble content, visit www.rabble.ca-->

Indigenous This week's top news and analysis about the struggles of indigenous peoples for rights and sovereignty. For more on indigenous issues visit our topic page: http://rabble.ca/indigenous

rabble.ca • Suite 400, 215 Spadina Avenue • Toronto, ON M5T 2C7 • Canada

The end of 'Nature of Things'?

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 16:20; Written by editor

The CBC is planning to scale down its award-winning in-house documentary department because of deep government budget cuts. This could mean the end of in-depth Canadian documentaries that are timely, provocative and political like "The Nature of Things" and "8th Fire."

Tell the CBC to preserve its reputation for "fearless journalism" and keep making important documentaries in-house.

The CBC is poised to dramatically scale back production of its cutting-edge documentaries. The quality, variety and political punch of CBC documentaries is about to plummet -- unless the national broadcaster takes steps now to safeguard in-house production.

Some of the CBC's most prominent on-air personalities including David Suzuki, Peter Mansbridge, and over 30 other news and current affairs staff have spoken out publicly against the cutbacks, proposed in response to deep government budget cuts.

Reading between the lines, it’s clear that this is just part of the Conservative government's plan to gut the CBC in favor of its private media friends. SumOfUs members have successfully stepped up to protect the Canadian media landscape before. Now it’s time to do it again.

Will you speak out against the decision to produce fewer documentaries and purchase more from other production companies?

Tell the CBC to preserve its reputation for "fearless journalism" and keep making high-quality, important and edgy in-house documentaries.

It's hard to imagine losing award-winning Canadian programming like The Nature of Things, Canada: A People’s History, The Canadian Experience and 8th Fire.

never before in my life have I seen...

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 16:20; Written by editor

Action Alert

I'm asking you as an Israeli--we need you to tell Israeli leaders you won't accept racism, you won't accept human rights violations, you won't accept occupation and the killing of civilians.

This is not the time for silence.
Sign the Open Letter.

s23,

My name is Eran Efrati, I am Jewish, a veteran of the Israeli Defense Forces, and a 7th generation Jerusalemite.

What I've seen in Israel over the last few weeks is beyond anything I have witnessed in my life.

I've seen terrified Palestinian children in Hebron and Halhul, sitting on the ruins of their homes.

I've seen mobs in the street chanting "death to Arabs" and pulling out Palestinian men from their stores to beat them as other Israelis stood idly by. I've seen soldiers lined up at the Gaza border, ready at a moment's notice to invade.

And now, like you, I’ve seen the climbing death toll in Gaza, over 100 dead and some 500 injured –all by Israeli missiles, with no end in sight.

As much as it pains me to say it, I don’t think I can do a lot about it. But I believe you can.

American voices - and especially Jewish American ones - are probably the most critical voices in the world right now.

Tell Suncor's CEO Steve Williams to immediately stop lobbying the Alberta government.

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 16:00; Written by editor

Tar sands giant Suncor has spent million on ads to greenwash the company's dirty reputation. Now, it's lobbying so it can take as much water as it wants from the Athabasca River.

Tell Suncor to stop lobbying against water laws that could save the Athabasca.

Suncor, the biggest company in the tar sands, has a dirty secret -- it’s lobbying against laws that could prevent the Athabasca River from running dry.

Scientists, experts and industry know that restrictions on the amount of water taken from the river are needed to protect this rich ecosystem, one of the world’s largest freshwater deltas. But Suncor is only concerned with corporate profits -- it's determined to take as much water as it wants, whenever it wants it.

The new laws are weeks away from being released by government, and if we can force Suncor to back down, we have a chance to save the Athabasca.

Tell Suncor’s CEO: Stop lobbying against water laws that could save the Athabasca.

Suncor has spent millions on a flashy ad campaign claiming it's green, innovative and that it cares about water management. But lobbying records and leaked legislation show it's trying to weaken water laws and could be able to withdraw ten times more water than its competitors, and even be able to dump toxic tailings right back into Lake Athabasca, causing even more havoc.

Facebook

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 16:00; Written by editor

Facebook is threatening our privacy again. In a creepy move, the company just stated it will sell our private data to advertisers.

Tell Facebook not to sell our data to ad companies.

Facebook just announced that it’s going to sell our data to big ad companies. This is a massive and dangerous breach of privacy, for us and the 1.2 billion other Facebook users out there.

Facebook says it’s doing this so that users can enjoy a more relevant “ad experience,” but in reality it’s because our data is like gold -- and Facebook is ready to make millions in profit selling our personal information.

The social media giant has been getting a lot of heat lately for not respecting its users’ right to privacy. The addition of this feature to its website and mobile app is set to come out in the next few weeks. The clock is ticking, but if we act now, we can stop Facebook before it starts.

Tell Facebook not to sell its users' personal information to big ad companies.

This development comes at a time when the most famous social media company is facing the heat for doing expirements on how to manipulate its users' emotions. It's high time Facebook respects our rights as users.

Until now, Facebook has steered clear from directly selling our data to advertisers. The ads we see in the Facebook sidebar come through third-party companies that pilfer our browsing history and populate Facebook with relevant ads. If you just searched for a new pair of sandals, for instance, sandal ads from major shoe companies will probably start to pop up in your sidebar.

That’s annoying, but things are about to get downright creepy. Facebook will be able to track our every move online thanks to a little tracking beacon that works even when you’re logged out of Facebook -- it will give it a treasure trove of information about you that advertisers have been dying to get their hands on. And we won’t be able to ignore these new ads, because now they’ll show up right in our news feeds.

Facebook is insisting that the ad feature is an opt-out, but it's a rather tedious process: you have to opt-out on several advertisers websites, and the opt-out is not always working. Plus, when you log into Facebook in another browser or on a new computer, you will have to go through the lengthy opt-out process again.

Margaret Atwood: “This is a life-wre

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 15:40; Written by editor

Like so many classic Canadian farming communities, my village of Midhurst, Ontario is surrounded by forest, fresh country air and beautiful landscapes. My husband, two boys and I routinely take hikes and have picnics in the fields and forests across from our house.

But now, our idyllic village has become ground zero in the fight to preserve Canada's fast-disappearing farmland and natural areas from sprawling mega-developments -- all because the Ontario Government made a special loophole in the 'Ontario Places to Grow Act' allowing a private developer to turn Midhurst from a village of 3,500 into a city of 30,000.

We started a petition demanding the Ontario Government close this unprecedented loophole and save Midhurst. Through the magic of twitter, Margaret Atwood found out about our petition and was inspired to lend her support! Check out this video of her visit to Midhurst and hear her explain in her own words what is at stake and why you should sign too:

You may not have heard of Midhurst, but what the Ontario Government decides to do here should matter to all who believe that farmland and nature are more than places waiting to be paved, and that local communities should have a say in how they grow and change.

The special loophole, designed just for Midhurst, is the opposite of everything the Ontario Places to Grow Act was designed to do -- protect farmland and stop unsustainable, sprawling mega-developments. Our story is a warning that the unsustainable sprawl that has devoured nearly half of our farmland in Ontario, and has irreparably damaged precious natural areas, will continue along this destructive path unless we speak out.

secretive Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal is finalized

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 15:40; Written by editor

The lobbyists behind the secret TPP trade deal have just moved the location of what might be the final negotiations -- desperate to avoid any protest or scrutiny.

Can you chip in $CA1 to help get our organizers and citizen negotiators to Ottawa, and help us stop this attempt to silence our democratic voices against the TPP?

Just next week, 600 corporate lobbyists are due to land Canada for what might be the last negotiations before the secretive Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal is finalized.

We were planning to be there in Vancouver and welcome them with a massive protest, to call attention to this dangerous corporate power grab. We were even working to get real, non-corporate representatives officially inside these crucial talks.

But we’ve just heard that TPP organizers are moving the secret talks to Ottawa...

UN: Act to protect our oceans.

Details: Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2014 15:20; Written by editor

There's a new petition to protect our oceans started by former Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin on Change.org and we think you might be interested in signing it;

Ban Ki-moon: Help secure a living ocean, food and prosperity - propose a new agreement for high seas protection in September 2014

Paul Martin, Commissioner, Global Ocean Commission
Canada

Sign Paul Martin's Petition

The ocean has been a major part of our lives as Canadians and supports the livelihoods of millions of us. But it is in trouble. Please support our petition to protect the high seas and restore ocean health.

L'océan a toujours formé partie de la vie des Canadiens; c'est le moyen de subsistance de millions d'entre nous, mais il est en danger. Je vous invite à vous joindre à notre pétition pour protéger la haute mer pour qu'elle récupère sa santé.