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Greg Palast (right) and Thom Hartmann informed voters at the KPFK speakers series at the Warner Grand Theatre on Oct. 27. Photo by Benjamin Garcia
Nationally syndicated political commentator Thom Hartmann and investigative journalist Greg Palast discussed the volatility of the current political landscape By Melina Paris, RLN Reporter
Prepping the world to which critical media literacy, #MeToo could lead p. 5
[See Hartmann, p. 10]
hat was the chant that broke out at the studentorganized vigil in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh Saturday evening, following the most deadly attack on a synagogue in American history. The attack left 11 people dead at the Tree of Life Congregation, in the actual, real-life “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood.” As America goes to the polls this year, there are multiple threats to democracy afoot — violence, voter suppression, attacks on the press, and more. But the vigilers undoubtedly had the right idea: the best defense of democracy is democracy itself — in action. In the five days before the Tree of Life massacre, the discovery of 14 pipe bombs constituted the most ambitious political assassination attempt in American history. The targets were a broad range of Trumpidentified enemies: two former presidents, a former vicepresident, two sitting senators, two congress members and two major donors—both Jewish—among others. On Oct. 24, a gunman killed two black shoppers in Jeffersontown, Kentucky, after being unable to enter a black church to murder its members. This outburst of right-wing white nationalist terrorism is a chilling signal of how endangered American democracy has become. A Holocaust survivor, 80-year-old Judah Samet, was nearly one of the victims, but he was four minutes late for the service. Hitler couldn’t kill him, but Donald Trump almost did. All the blood was on Trump’s hands, because the shooter, Robert Bowers, was motivated by the Trump-promoted conservative conspiracy theory that Jewish organizations and/or individuals (such as George Soros) have been funding the so-called “migrant caravan” of Honduran asylum seekers. [See Ballot, p. 17]
November 1 - 14, 2018
ICT’s A Splintered Soul doesn’t come together — p. 14
CNN reported that since 2016, nine states, or nearly one-fourth with Republican state legislatures, have restricted voting in some way. Journalist Greg Palast added his voice to the discussion. Also, his documentary, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, in which the prolific writer explains that more than 7 million voters — almost entirely people of color — were on the Crosscheck list (the so-called anti-vote fraud program) by the 2016 presidential election. It was alleged that these voters voted multiple times in past elections. But none were prosecuted for voting twice, which is a felony. “The most substantial deciding factor on who wins the elections in the United States these days is voter suppression,” Hartmann said. “That’s been
T
By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor
Where Edgar Allan Poe and Día de los Muertos meet — p. 11
S
ix hours after the deadliest shooting at a synagogue in American history, nationally syndicated talk show host Thom Hartmann entered San Pedro’s Warner Grand Theatre to speak to a crowd of more than 800 about voter suppression and gun control in the United States. The Oct. 27 shooting followed a week of interceptions of explosive devices mailed to prominent Democrats and critics of the Trump administration. The message delivered by this town hall is that the prescription for what ails this democracy was the same as before the shooting — vote in overwhelming numbers. Random Lengths News caught up with Hartmann to discuss America’s political landscape before the talk. The prevailing topics were voter suppression and immigration. Voter suppression is a huge problem across the country, specifically in low-income areas.
“Vote, vote, vote!”
Real News, Real People, Really Effective
Pacifica Radio Live at the Warner Grand Theatre
Democracy is the question
A vigil was held in Squirrel Hill for the victims of the Tree of Life shooting. Photo by Justin Matase, Pittsburgh City Paper.
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