• Guest: Pastor Thomas Robb, National Director, The Klu Klux Klan. What are they afraid of?
• Race.
• Guest: Marjorie Cohn, president of the National Lawyers Guild. Since the Bush Administration won't enforce the law, what can congress do?
• Guest: Nick Rosen, Off-grid. How hard is it to live off the grid?
• Guest: Larry Scott, founder and Editor of VA Watch Dog. APA convention, report.

Topics, guests, upcoming events, quotes, links to articles, audio clips, books & bumper music.

Wednesday 30 April '08 show

• As a result of a call last Friday from Ernest, Thom decided to ask the Klu Klux Klan, "What do they have against a person of color having political power in America?"
• Guest: Pastor Thomas Robb, National Director, The Klu Klux Klan. What are they afraid of? He said they didn't provide free labor for him or Thom. But Thom pointed out that to the extent to which the country was built on slave labor, both have benefited. He said slave labor was only in the south and industry was primarily in the north so the country was not built on slavery. The north used indentured European servants. "His web site says Bringing a Message of Hope and Deliverance to White Christian America!" Blacks also owned slaves including the first slave owner, in Virginia. The concept of America of free enterprise, self government, innocent until proven guilty, all came from "our people", Europeans, not blacks. Thom pointed out that they were in slavery at the time; they would not have been allowed in to the conventional building, but Native Americans were. Africa.
• Bumper Music: End of the World, Blake Lewis (video).
• Article: A Nutritional Model for Effecting Change in Behavior-Disordered and Severely Emotionally Disturbed Victims of Child Abuse: The Experiences of the Salem Children's Villages, Thomas C. Hartmann, Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry, 1st Quarter 1981.
  
• The bigger picture. There is no such thing as race; scientifically, genetically, there is no single gene. There are hundreds of different genes that combine that all do different things. Similarly there is no single gene ADHD. Thom looked into genetics when he was executive director of Salem Children’s Village and then the Hunter School. He noticed a lot coming in with hyperactive syndrome. He wrote an article and 7 books on ADHD. His first book in 1981, ADD: A Different Perception, hypothesized that the genes for distractibility, impulsivity, stimulation are beneficial in a hunter's world. Two years ago the research came in, pinpointing DR and DTG genes. Intelligence genes are unrelated to skin color genes. Race is an artifice. We are all human beings, which is why Obama was offended by Wright's words. There are not even a good collection of genes for race. What is important is the character of a person's soul.
• Bumper Music: Logical Song, Supertramp.
• Article: Obama De-friends Wright on Facebook: Signals Complete Break with Former Pastor.
• The usage of the words "white", "black", "dark". The definition of "American Dream". Learning from indigenous people. How to live in balance where everything's waste is something else's food, and it's all a big cycle. Living in harmony and balance with each other and the world around us.
• Sickle cell anemia reduces the severity of malaria; your risk of having it depends on whether your ancestors came from Africa, rather than race. In the case of celiac disease, which Thom has, 1 in 15 in Northern Europe have the gene, but only one out of 5,000 from Italy, it depends on when your ancestors started eating a wheat diet.
• We're all mongrels. Subcultures have arisen to defend against racism. Corporations encourage it.
• Book: "Man's Rise to Civilization" by Peter Farb.
• Bumper Music: White Rabbit, Jefferson Airplane (video).
• Hungry Ghosts story.
• Guest: Marjorie Cohn. "Marjorie Cohn is president of the National Lawyers Guild and a professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, where she teaches criminal law and procedure, evidence, and international human rights law. She lectures throughout the world on human rights and US foreign policy." Author of "Cowboy Republic: Six Ways the Bush Gang Has Defied the Law". Since the Bush Administration won't enforce the law, what can congress do? (About prosecuting Dick Cheney over the Pentagon propagandizing the American public). There has been legislation since 1951 in the annual appropriations bill. “No part of any appropriation contained in this or any other Act shall be used for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States not heretofore authorized by the Congress.” Systematic disinformation campaign leading up to Iraq. The Center for Media and Democracy documented lies. Now they are doing similar things for Iran. Illegal. Outrageous. How do we prosecute the illegality of it? Contempt of Congress. Inherent contempt. We cannot depend on the Attorney General. Mukasey. Congress only has the sergeant of arms, can they work out of DC? Civil suit pathetic and takes years. Nancy Pelosi took impeachment off the table. Sheldon Rampton suggested passing a law to make it even more illegal.
• Bumper Music: Pink Houses, John Mellencamp.
• Article: Pentagon Pundit Scandal Broke the Law, Sheldon Rampton.
• Call Congress.
• Article: Getting to Know John McCain.
• Article: Focusing on Voter Insecurities.
• Bumper Music: Where The Blacktop Ends, Keith Urban.
• McCain says to have a gas tax holiday, but that would only amount to half a tank of gas for the average person, and it would not be funded. Hillary suggests to pay for it with windfall profits. But that still encourages more consumption. People need (a) more fuel efficient vehicles, (b) alternative public transportation strategies and (c) tax relief.
• Quote:
  "Why, of course, the people don't want war. Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece?

  Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship...

  Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.

  "
  Hermann Göring.
• If Congress don't prosecute or impeach the Bush Administration, aren't they aiding and abetting? The sergeant at arms is only for policing their own members. Enforcement of laws is the responsibility of the Executive Branch. Congress is elected every 2 years, closest to people, ballot box is the check.
• What good is the Democratic Party? Conservatives used to ask that. It's a multimillion dollar machine with brand recognition, and can take it over without a lot of money, just a lot of people, unlike a corporation. Take over. There are examples in the last chapter of
  

  

• Bumper Music: Little Bit Of Life, Craig Morgan.
• Article: In Iraq, highest U.S. monthly death toll since September.
  "The situation reflects the challenges of militants trying to reassert themselves."
• Ellen Ratner of Talk Radio News. She's in Dubai. Tomorrow is May 1. noiraqescalation.org plans to unveil a "mission accomplished" banner at the White House. There has been the highest death toll for a while. Meredith McKenzie is down in Mexico with the Secretary of Defense. Death toll in Iraq. Second aircraft carrier in the Gulf, apparently not replacing one already there, but they say they are not ramping up and have no war plans for Iran. Jay Tamboli was at the Senate Constitution, Civil Rights and Property Rights subcommittee, Brownback and Feingold, disagreed about interpretation of “Secret Law and Threat to Democratic and Accountable Government,” foreign intelligent surveillance, they are not allowing any of it to be heard. Senate agreed that notification of signing statements would be a good idea, but the Republicans said they did not have to be reported to Congress. Sheldon Rampton article.
• Everything You Know is Wrong: Guest: Nick Rosen, Off-grid. How hard is it to live off the grid? Houseboats can go off grid. A lot of them do it because they can't afford to be on the grid, and put a trailer or cabin on a small plot. Renewable energy plus batteries. You can power everything, but not necessarily at the same time. In 95/6 when Thom moved to Vermont, there were a a number of off grid houses there, some really nice. Some friends are off grid. The houses were built during 2 years at end of the Carter administration, when there were tax breaks, subsidies. There is a new wave, now that people can make a living on the Internet. There are lots of grants, and it is feasible without grants. It ca be practical, even if you are not doing it on moral grounds. Big business wants centralized alternative energy. Thom's piece in "Imagine: What America Could be in the 21st century " - do it at community level. Just do it. Solar panels prices will drop in the next year as more manufacturers come online. US rivers are contaminated with mercury from China and from US power plants. Recent AP reports, mains water contaminated with pharmaceuticals etc, which is the lesser evil? You can filter a lot, use water for washing, gardening etc - grey water. Overpopulation, countries becoming more wealthy, why is there surprise at food shortages?
• Bumper Music: Let's Roll, Dave, The Power Hour.
• Guest: Larry Scott, founder and Editor of VA Watch Dog. APA convention in DC in a couple of days, focus on veterans. They have released a brand new study about needs and attitudes. 61% soldiers do not seek help because it might affect their career, 53% because of peer attitude. Half of members, more spouses, do not know about warning signs. PTSD used to be called shell shock, battle fatigue, has it ever not been stigmatized? You can't see mental wounds. First awareness everywhere. Get them help.
• Bumper Music: That's What I Like About You, the Kinks.
• Thom reads the comments to today's 'what's on' every day.
• Bumper Music: Let Me Take You There, Plain White Ts.
• Years ago on a trip to Uganda, Dick Gregory told Thom that if you got something as good as Democracy, you wouldn't have have to shove it down people's throats with the barrel of a gun; they'd steal it.