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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhite House Arrests Anti-GMO Activist for Delivering Petitions to Label GMOs
This is downright embarrassing.
What little is left of the Left, is being actively
muzzled and criminalized by the Obama White House.
Another broken promise
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Who knew that Alexis Badden Mayer of the Organic Consumers Association would be arrested outside the White House when she attempted to deliver a DVD Petition with over 200,000 names asking Michelle Obama to ask her husband to fulfill a campaign promise to label GMO food products?
There is no more basic American right, than to petition the government, to speak up and have your voice heard as a citizen by your elected representatives but not if you dont have the money to buy access to officials who have become more responsive to the interest groups that finance their elections then the people who elected them. And so it was with the petition that called for the truthful labeling of foods containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs). People want to know what they are eating and want food labeling to indicate if the food has been genetically modified.
Video is included at this link: http://www.occupymonsanto360.org/2013/03/02/white-house-arrests-gmo-petitioner/
ananda
(28,783 posts)..
GreenRanger
(20 posts)the hell is going on???
99Forever
(14,524 posts)... explain just how important it is that our White House not be bothered with trivial things like petitions from the little people, when we have Big Profits for Monsano on the line. You know the guy. Started some thread earlier today about just how wonderful GMOs are for us. Got all riled up when I asked him a couple of simple questions about it.
Ever wonder when the Soylent Green production will start?
L0oniX
(31,493 posts)who knows it all ...all the time. BTW it isn't just one guy ...its a shill gang.
limpyhobbler
(8,244 posts)gateley
(62,683 posts)to make it into the media.
Rex
(65,616 posts)and special interest groups that represent a corporation and get heard by the government through invite only.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)peace activists, etc. but it seems now all interest groups on the Left have been pushed off the public stage, to the sidewalks & streets to be pepper-sprayed, bludgeoned, jailed or worse by corporate-owned police state thugs.
Rex
(65,616 posts)If you protest Wall Street you are labeled a terrorist or someone that 'Hates America'.
If you steal billions and indirectly end up bankrupting 100's of 1000's of the working class, you are told your company is 'too big to fail' (in a supposed capitalist society) and then given all the monetary aid from government you need to help maintain your position.
As many have said, this cycle cannot last forever. Without actual capitalism, the system that preys on it's own workforce will become one that has no workforce, domestically. The off shoring, the outsourcing, the tax credits, corporate welfare and tax havens make it so the system can last longer...but it will eventually crash...like it did in 2008.
Sadly, in a competitive environment you let companies fail so that new more innovate ones can come along at take its place. NOT SO in America, we gave up capitalism for plutocracy and will pay a supreme price for it one day. Maybe not ME or YOU, but your children or their children will.
socialist_n_TN
(11,481 posts)what's going on now. Or at least the end game of capitalism. Capitalism has ALWAYS preyed on it's own workforce. It's in the system and it's all there in Marx.
Rex
(65,616 posts)It is only the end result without any kind of rules in place. Like any form of economic system without limits and regulations, of course it is going to fail. Marx might be right, but that does not mean every country that uses capitalism has to destroy the middle class and create a cheap labor pool.
It is how you use any system that makes it effective or ineffective, just look at how well communism worked out for the Soviets.
A healthy capitalist nation does not have to become a plutocracy. Sorry, but it is not a requirement.
socialist_n_TN
(11,481 posts)based on a bureaucracy that was (became) all-powerful. There were other Marxist roads not taken.
And every other country that uses capitalism is moving in the same direction that we are. It's called neoliberalism and it IS a pure form of capitalism. Some are further along than us (Greece, Spain, etc.), some are not quite as far along (the Nordic countries), and some are equivalent (UK), but this IS THE DIRECTION THAT THEY ARE ALL TRENDING.
And yes, EVENTUALLY a "healthy" capitalist nation WILL become a plutocracy. That's what the system is set up to do, funnel money to the top. That's the definition of plutocracy. Add a bought government into the mix and it also becomes fascism.
Rex
(65,616 posts)But with laws in place, it doesn't have to be that way. Yes, greed will probably win in the end...it seems to no matter what form of system a country uses. Greed just about wins hands down every time.
Newest Reality
(12,712 posts)UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)randome
(34,845 posts)Delivering a petition to the First Lady, a non-elected official? And trying to take a banner through the White House front gate?
Methinks you protest too much!
I am all for protests and for having GMOs labelled but this was a publicity stunt.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)The banner was a last ditch attempt -- only after being ignored repeatedly for a week
by the White House, to deliver their petition, on behalf of 200,000 US citizens, who
simply want Obama to DO what he PROMISED to do on campaign trail re: GMOs.
Did these details in the story escape your notice? Some of it is in the video. Maybe you
didn't watch that?
randome
(34,845 posts)Ignored for a week? Do you have any idea how many people and organizations try to contact the White House each and every hour of every day?
Me neither.
And what's wrong with the White House petition web site that is guaranteed to get a response?
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)and I'll bet it wouldn't have taken Monsanto over a week to simply be able to officially deliver
a document. They said they'd be happy to just be able to hand the petitions to a WH gofer,
to "anyone" from the WH. They weren't asking for a personal audience with the First Lady.
I think the idea is that she could appeal to Obama's conscience or something like that.
As for the WH petition website, that's actually a good question; but I suspect the answer is
that it's already been done, and completely ignored; since Obama has installed Monsanto
executives to be in control of the FDA.
randome
(34,845 posts)But showing up at the White House and asking for someone to accept a 'package' seems a little naive. I don't know why what's-her-name didn't return their messages. You'd think they'd be more cognizant of bad P.R. But maybe she gets a hundred messages a day, I don't know.
Corporate officials have an advantage in using their money to find the right channels to use so, sure, this group is at a disadvantage.
But using the web site would have a guaranteed, public face on the issue. And unless someone is sitting in the background throwing out signers, I think they'd get more traction out of that than a data disk full of names.
Really, who use data disks anymore?
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)about the WH website.
Maybe I'll peruse said site when I've got 1/2 hour to kill, to see if that issue is
on the radar there.
randome
(34,845 posts)sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)of which I was one of the first members btw, during the Bush years. Conyers went to the WH as promised, to deliver the petition. They refused to accept it. The Left was in an uproar over the WH refusing to accept a petition from the people.
Maybe if the President would appoint a few Environmentalists rather than Monsanto CEOs, (I'm sure none of them would have had to wait a week if they had some concerns to discuss since they have representation in our government now) the people wouldn't have to wait outside to be heard.
randome
(34,845 posts)George II
(67,782 posts)Correct, it's a hazardous guess............based on questionable "knowledge" and intelligence.
George II
(67,782 posts)Grow the fuck up!!
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)They had no such "expectation" to just "saunter" into the WH.. On the
contrary, they simply had a document i.e. 200,000 signed petitions for the
government to require GMO labeling, that they wanted to officially hand
over to the WH, ANYONE at the WH.. but the WH had been stiffing them
for over a week. Also, they even said that on the video, that the WH could
send out an intern out to the gate to receive it, for delivery to Michelle.
Why they were addressing the petition to Michelle, is unclear to me, probably
because Obama had already stiffed them, but I can't prove that.
You should check the source material more closely, before making snarky
assumptions and rude accusations.
George II
(67,782 posts)L0oniX
(31,493 posts)sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)Environmentalists should not expect to just saunter into the WH, they should expect to be invited, especially by a Democratic President for whom they voted, based on promises made.
As I said, Monsanto CEOs are invited to the WH. Does anyone know if any environmentalists have ever been invited?
George II
(67,782 posts)....they're not allowed to saunter into the White House to see Michell Obama?
Figures it's yet another publicity stunt by "Occupy_______" (<-------put your issue here!)
If they're really "Occupy Monsanto", why weren't they at the Monsanto headquarters?
Was there free pizza and a disc jockey outside the White House too?
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)or are you delusional, and actually believe what you are saying?
I honestly can't tell.
NO ONE EXPECTED TO "SAUNTER INTO THE WHITE HOUSE"!!
THAT IS A BALD-FACED LIE.
George II
(67,782 posts)My guess is that the answer to both questions is no.
So, where have I "lied"???
That's a tactic that republicans use - if they don't agree with what one says they call it a "lie".
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)that's how we find out wtf we are talking about <-- which I assume you must know.
The petition gathering organization HAD been calling the WH for over a week to arrange
to deliver the petitions, and were completely ignored, after being told to talk with the
scheduling person or PR person or some such, who never would return calls. Clearly,
they were being ignored, but not completely, not by the capital police; but rather were
criminalized for trying, for not just giving up.
If you had actually availed yourself of the information in the link, you would have known
this.
George II
(67,782 posts)or maybe it should be..........."QUICK, drop everything, there are some "OccupySomething" crackpots out there, let's make them happy!!"
Remember............this is a country of more than THREE HUNDRED MILLION people, not the select few. Isn't that what the driving principle of Democrats is all about?
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)That way you can continue this conversation with yourself, and leave me out of it.
sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)were living in a Democracy where the 'little people' get to speak their minds and politicians and their spouses are part of the common people also.
Hilarious, someone needs to tell those uppity peasants they are in the US of A where Corporations RULE not some Democracy somewhere!
L0oniX
(31,493 posts)bvar22
(39,909 posts)....you should have voted for THIS guy!
What ever happened to THAT guy?
He would have made a great President.
You will know them by their WORKS,
not by their promises.
[font size=5 color=green]Solidarity99![/font][font size=2 color=green]
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99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)truebrit71
(20,805 posts)....
Scuba
(53,475 posts)Welcome to America, 2013.
MadHound
(34,179 posts)Thus, he feels no compunction to listen to our voices.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)MotherPetrie
(3,145 posts)It worked. He got the votes he needed from us. Now he's back to screwing us again.
L0oniX
(31,493 posts)BrotherIvan
(9,126 posts)RudynJack
(1,044 posts)"delivering petitions" is not a crime.
It amazes me that a) people write headlines like this and b) others just buy it hook, line and sinker. I will bet all that I have that they were not arrested for delivering petitions.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)and blindly trust whatever they say because, because authorities ALWAYS
TELL THE TRUTH, because the authorities would never think of misleading the
public. Besides, it's our DUTY to trust and obey our corporate elite Overlords,
and their bought and paid for Congress, WH and M$M.
Nothing thing to see here. Just some miscreant malcontents stirring up a
needless ruckus. carry on. move along now.
RudynJack
(1,044 posts)What's on the paperwork?
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)deliver the freaking petitions to ANYONE, even a WH intern would have sufficed.
Technically, of course, they wrote down something else on the citation, like "blocking
driveway" or some such, but that's not the real reason, and we both know it.
RudynJack
(1,044 posts)I've seen too many breathless reports like this, and they're ALWAYS wrong.
I guess you don't know why they were arrested. Neither do I. But I guarantee it wasn't for delivering petitions.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)because I DO know it.
I think this is where we "agree to disagree" and move on.
have a nice life.
phleshdef
(11,936 posts)I think the real answer is probably uncomfortable for you because it upsets your entire basis for your little piss fit.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)phleshdef
(11,936 posts)elleng
(130,156 posts)RudynJack
(1,044 posts)I have no idea.
elleng
(130,156 posts)arely staircase
(12,482 posts)did this woman not know this?
and the first lady has all the constitutional authority of an landers.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts).... the authorities refuse to listen or meet with someone, because they
don't want to face-up to having their pro-corporate policies exposed and
questioned;which is apparently what happened here.
Response to arely staircase (Reply #35)
99th_Monkey This message was self-deleted by its author.
Le Taz Hot
(22,271 posts)Or so they tell me . . .
darkangel218
(13,985 posts)Why do we have to be below Russia? Why is our peoples health not important? Wtf?
Comrade_McKenzie
(2,526 posts)And the guards accept nothing. It's the rules.
Get the fuck over it.
alp227
(31,962 posts)ChisolmTrailDem
(9,463 posts)And Big Ag knows that with those labels on their products people won't want it, so it's not happening since The Company owns our government.
phleshdef
(11,936 posts)Or she was breaking some other security based rule.
I support her cause. But I also support the RIGHT of the Secret Service to arrest someone that isn't complying with White House security protocol. It doesn't matter how righteous the cause is, the fact of the matter is... Lincoln, JFK, Reagan, etc. PERIOD. You wanna protest? You wanna get a petition through to the White House? There are effective avenues provided for doing so that include following the rules and not getting arrested.
Stop acting like a fucking child about it.
There are rules in place to protect the security of the White House, the President and the first family. And those rules should continue to exist. And they should apply to everyone objectively.