Today's Voice
Voice4Change
Changing Hearts and Minds
http://www.voice4change.org
July 10, 2002
The Media tells us what is wrong with the world; Voice4change will tell you what to do about it! Our member organizations are busy organizing, so we want to bring their message to you. Our affiliates are doing great work every day. They need your support…We will be their link to you. Sign on to www.voice4change.org
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Life in Prison for Stealing 13 Packs of AA Batteries
CLARENCE MALBROUGH
Charge: Petty theft with a prior conviction of theft
Value of stolen goods: $80.67 (batteries)
When Clarence Malbrough walked out of the Payless store in El Cerrito on March 9 with 13 packages of double-A batteries stuffed into his shirt, he was quickly apprehended by a security guard. Police subsequently cited and released him with a court date. The batteries were worth $80.67, and Malbrough freely admitted the crime. It was the last of a number of petty thefts that had kept him behind bars for much of his 48 years.
http://www.voice4change.org/stories/showstory.asp?file=020710~facts.asp
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The Voters' Bill of Rights
The Voters' Bill of Rights is the product of a diverse, future-focused Pro-Democracy coalition that sees true democracy as a possibility in the United States. The list is comprised of solutions that directly address the most detrimental obstructions to representation in the United States today and has been endorsed by over 100 organizations. Global Exchange was active in the conception of the of the 10 point outline, and we encourage you to sign-on and join the growing movement to transform our electoral system. Visit www.votersbillofrights.org to endorse the bill. If you are a young person who would like to learn more about these issues, and how to teach others about them as well, click here.
Strict Enforcement and extension of the Voting Rights Act. As the vote in Florida and many other states demonstrated, the intimidation and disenfranchisement of communities of color still goes on. The federal Justice Department must strengthen its vote enforcement division to swiftly investigate and prosecute those who act in this way. The Voting Rights Act, some provisions of which are scheduled to expire in 2007, should be extended.
Abolishment of the Electoral College and its replacement with a majority rule election. The President should be elected by direct, popular vote and must receive a majority of the votes to take office. If no candidate receives 50% plus one of the votes cast, a runoff must be held. A system called Instant Runoff Voting, in which voters rank candidates in order of preference, will allow this to happen without the need of a second election and eliminate the "spoiler" factor.
Clean Money Elections.
A ban on "soft-money" contributions is needed immediately. We also need to establish full public financing of public campaigns and public information services for voters. Broadcasters must carry debates and provide free time for all candidates and parties as a license requirement to use our public airwaves. Candidates must be given the choice of running campaigns with public funds instead of accepting special interest campaign contributions, legalized bribery. Clean election laws like those in Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts and Arizona should be expanded to other states and taken to the federal level.
Instant Runoff Voting.
To encourage more participation in the electoral process, voters must know that their vote can really count. By allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference (first, second, third choice, etc.), if no candidate gets a majority of first choices, a runoff count can be conducted without the need for a second election. The same as in a traditional second-election runoff, the majority choice can be determined, while also allowing voters the opportunity to vote for those candidates they like the most without worrying that in doing so their vote will help candidates they like least. Instant runoff voting also promotes positive campaigning and coalitions, since winners may need the second choices from opponents' supporters.
http://www.voice4change.org/stories/showstory.asp?file=020710~gx.asp
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New Survey Released on Teens and Gun Violence
3rd Annual Nationally Valid Teen Gun Survey Reveals 40.9% of America's Teens Know Someone Who Has Been Shot and 36.2% Could Get a Handgun
Washington, DC - The Child Welfare League of America hosted the release of the 3rd Annual Uhlich Children's Home Teen Gun Survey. The nationally representative sampling of teen opinion (+/- 3% margin of error) included more than 1000 respondents from around America.
The survey was created and commissioned by Uhlich Children's Home (www.uhlich.org) a multi-service agency for at-risk children and their families in Chicago, and conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited. In response to 17 questions, America's teenagers let their viewpoints be known about gun violence and school security in the United States.
Results include the following highlights:
Many American teens know someone who has been shot: 40.9% said "yes" to the statement, "I know someone who has been shot." 60.3 % of black teens know someone who's been shot; compared to 51.8% of Hispanic teens and 33.8% of white teens. The South had the highest number of teens, 48.1%, who know someone who has been shot.
http://www.voice4change.org/stories/showstory.asp?file=020710~wand.asp
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"Buenos Aires Syndrome" Haunts San Salvador's Ruling Elite
"What happened in Argentina will not happen to us," Salvadoran president Francisco Flores has repeatedly insisted. But in fact, the two leading conditions that brought about the Argentine collapse are equally prevalent here: dollarization, and a spiraling international debt and negative balance of trade. In 1991, Argentina ceded monetary sovereignty to the US Federal Reserve. A hyper inflated dollar meant that Argentine exports could no longer compete internationally. The trade deficit worsened, but because of the IMF-mandated policy of dollar convertibility, the peso could not devalue. The resulting currency crisis ravaged what was already a slowing economy. El Salvador, too, has been dollarized since "Bimonetarismo" went into effect on January 1, 2001, but has not seen positive results: the economy grew only 2% in 2001, as the US economic crisis continues to drag El Salvador down with it. The colón is circulated less and less: 52% of all transactions now take place in dollars.
Argentina's external debt is $146.4 billion, and annual debt service comes to $26.5 billion, or 9% of GDP. For every ten dollars earned, one dollar goes to international banks to service the international debt: not to pay off the principal, but only to pay interest. 20% of this debt originated in the period of military dictatorship from 1976-1983, and much of the rest comes from nine IMF loans designed to maintain dollar convertibility. El Salvador, too, has a spiraling international debt: in 2001, the government contracted $2.9 billion in debt, mostly from the IMF and the Inter-American Development Bank. Many of these loans are meant to pay for the privatization of public services like water and health care; loans were also taken out in the 1980's to finance the war against the FMLN and the Salvadoran people. By the end of 2002, El Salvador's debt will reach 37.8% of GDP - just shy of Argentina's current rate of 44%.
http://www.voice4change.org/stories/showstory.asp?file=020710~cispes.asp
Warm Regards,
Voice4Change.org
http://www.voice4change.org
