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Celebrate The World Wide Web’s 20th Birthday — Ask Your Lawmakers To Oppose The Internet

It was twenty years ago this week that Tim Berners-Lee, while working at CERN, put the world’s first website online. It announced his new creation: the World Wide Web. Last year while urging Internet users to sign Demand Progress’s petition against the Internet Blacklist Bill, Berners-Lee wrote this about the principles that underpin his project:

“No person or organization shall be deprived of their ability to connect to others at will without due process of law, with the presumption of innocence until found guilty. Neither governments nor corporations should be allowed to use disconnection from the Internet as a way of arbitrarily furthering their own aims.”

The Internet Blacklist Bill — S.968, formally called the PROTECT IP Act — would violate those principles by allowing the Department of Justice to force search engines, browsers, and service providers to block users’ access to websites that have been accused of facilitating intellectual property infringement — without even giving them a day in court. It would also give IP rights holders a private right of action, allowing them to sue to get sites prevented from operating. Demand Progress’s new mash-up, posted here, explains the bill in more detail.

S.968 has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee, but Ron Wyden (D-OR) is temporarily blocking it from getting a floor vote by using a procedural maneuver known as a hold, noting that “By ceding control of the internet to corporations through a private right of action, and to government agencies that do not sufficiently understand and value the internet, PIPA represents a threat to our economic future and to our international objectives.”

The House is expected to take up a version of the legislation in coming weeks.

“We encourage Americans to mark this 20th birthday of the World Wide Web by defending the principles that underpinned its creation — now under persistent threat by overzealous governments and corporate interests across the globe,” said Demand Progress executive director David Segal. “In particular, the Internet Blacklist Bill would undermine the basic integrity of the Web, and we expect Congress to take it up when they return from their summer break.”

More than 400,000 Demand Progress members have urged their lawmakers to oppose the Internet Blacklist Bill. You can email your Senators and Representatives and ask them to oppose S.968 by clicking here.

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“…but there’s no money” or other lies the business community and conservatives want …

Have you ever heard this one from people? “But there is just no money. How are we going to spend tax dollars on (insert name of needed program here) when there is just no money?” Now sadly I hear this from just as many Democrats as Republicans, but that is another story. Of course there is plenty of money; we have just decided as a nation not to collect it in tax revenue anymore, believing somehow that now, unlike in the past, when hard work and putting people in actual jobs that make things like roads and bridges and schools or intellectual property for innovation and intellectual advancement, was necessary; now all you need is libertarian fairy dust.

Of course, for those who rant that they are Taxed Enough Already…for some of us… you are right! And the reason why is because, as was pointed out here on the pages of RIFUTURE, folks in the CEO class used tax scams like the Flat Tax in Rhode Island to shift the burden of paying for the government that every citizen is part of (see comment below for more information and link). Oh, but’s right….they are the “job creators.”

written by peterasen, May 21, 2009 Ken’s Tax Liability

if it’s 23 percent higher than in Massachusetts, than his tax liability above Mass is 18.7 percent of his total Rhode Island tax (0.23 divided by 1.23). If this difference is a five digit number, then it must be no less than $10,000. That means his total tax bill must be no lower than $53,400. And his total income for 2008 must be no lower than $762,857 ($53,400 divided by .07, the flat rate for 07). Those of us who make less than 10 percent of what Mr. Block does can be forgiven for our frustration for having to pay higher sales and property taxes, not to mention fees, etc., to make up for his flat tax bonus.

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A shout out to our friends at the Rhode Island Foundation

In these economic times, everyone depends on help from somewhere and Rhode Island’s non-profit agencies probably more so than anyone. That’s where our friends at the Rhode Island Foundation play such a major role. For those of you unfamiliar with RIF, they are the pre-eminent leader in community philanthropy in the state and provide guidance, management and leadership in everything non-profit in Rhode Island. Below is their latest press release and from it you’ll be able to see just how many people and organizations they assist. Thanks again RIF, many of the state’s individuals and providers would be lost without your support.

Rhode Island Foundation Announces $3.4M in Q2 Discretionary Grants

Total of $12.5M in grants awarded to date in 2011

Providence, RI – The Rhode Island Foundation announced today that $3,394,856 in grants were awarded to local nonprofit agencies during the second quarter of 2011 through its discretionary grant programs. The Foundation’s president and CEO, Neil D. Steinberg, said the organization has granted a total of $4,627,108 in discretionary grants this year, and a total of $12.5 million so far in 2011 from all funds.

“Many outstanding organizations are addressing some of our state’s most pressing challenges and the Foundation is proud to partner with them. Whether providing children and their parents with educational opportunities throughout the summer to reinforce skills, or funding a health care job training program with a 100% placement rate for its participants, our grants support programs with tangible benefits not only for their participants, but also for all Rhode Islanders in the long term, as we become a more educated, highly-skilled, healthier, and engaged community,” said Steinberg. The Foundation’s discretionary grant programs focus on six key sectors: arts and culture, community and economic development, education, environment, health, and human services. For each sector, the Foundation has developed a focus area to award grant investments for maximum impact – creating opportunities for more productive evaluation, convening of grantees, and other types of assistance. The Foundation aims to support projects and organizations that strive for long-term solutions to critical community issues. Applicants are encouraged to seek grants for collaborative projects that serve underserved Rhode Islanders, foster innovation and seek to achieve efficiencies, reduce duplication, and provide strategies for long-term sustainability.

The Foundation is focusing additional resources, advocacy, and leadership on public education and primary health care. These were identified as areas critical to the future of our state and align directly with the Foundation’s mission to “meet the needs of the people of Rhode Island.”

A sampling of the Foundation’s Q2 grants:

Family Service of Rhode Island

$40,000

This grant supports the expansion of the work of the Justice Enforcement Social Worker to East Providence. The Justice Enforcement Social Worker partners with local police to provide rapid response to children, families, elders and other individuals during situations involving violence and/or crime, to reduce similar future incidents, and to heal wounds inflicted by chronic exposure to violence.

 

Americans for the Arts – Local Arts Index

$15,099

This grant will support data analysis as part of Americans for the Arts: Local Arts Index – a national effort to tell the story of arts vitality on the community level. In an effort to pull maximum value from the data and with funding from Kresge Foundation, Americans for the Arts is working with 100 partners, including the City of Providence, over two years to develop the Local Arts Index. This grant supports the expansion of the work currently underway with the City of Providence to the rest of the state.

 

Paul Cuffee High School Growth Initiatives

$25,000

The Paul Cuffee School, as a part of its summer activities, will engage other public schools in an education partnership initiative. The initiative is based on establishing a culture of collaboration within and between schools, sharing best practices, and establishing relationships among teachers from different schools and districts.

 

Fogarty Elementary School Summer Enrichment Program

$7,000

The Mary E. Fogarty Elementary School initiated a program aimed at improving student achievement this summer. It is a collaborative effort coordinated by the Providence Children’s Initiative, modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone. One hundred and fifty students in grades one through five have been invited to participate in four hours of classes Monday through Wednesday, including breakfast and lunch. Organizers will engage parents through special parent classes. This is the first such total collaborative effort of its kind in Providence.

 

Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless

$83,906

This grant is for the Food Access Project for homeless, elderly and disabled Rhode Islanders.

The program aims to decrease hunger and food insecurity among homeless, elderly and disabled individuals by increasing access to prepared meals through the utilization of SNAP benefits in authorized restaurants.

 

RI Philharmonic

$60,000

As the state’s only professional orchestra, the only certified community music school, and the second largest arts organization in Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Philharmonic and Music School is a leader in the arts community. Of particular note, the Philharmonic has a strong partnership with the Pawtucket Public Schools helping students meet arts graduation requirements at the Jacqueline Walsh School and providing instruction at Jenks Junior High.

 

The Poverty Institute

$75,000

This grant will support the Poverty Institute’s work to improve the economic vitality of Rhode Island and its residents through public education, work with state agencies toward system reform, and legislative advocacy. The Institute’s role in tracking and analyzing policy and budget decisions informs statewide decision-making and makes data available to the broader nonprofit sector that provides programs to improve the financial stability of low and modest-income Rhode Islanders.

 

City Year Rhode Island

$73,295

This is the second of a proposed three years of funding to City Year for the work of corps members in Providence public middle schools. During the past school year, City Year delivered targeted interventions to 1,400 struggling students and served more than 2,700 students through whole school supports. City Year has obtained access to student data after developing and signing a data sharing agreement with the district. Preliminary data shows student improvement in achievement, attendance and behavior, all necessary ingredients to student success.

 

RI Community Food Bank

$5,000

This grant provided support to the Food Bank as part of Rhode Island Public Radio (WRNI’s) summer pledge campaign running in the last week in June. During Friday and Saturday of that week, the radio station offered that for every dollar pledged to the station, a dollar would be contributed to the Food Bank to assist in meeting the needs of at-risk families during the summer months.

 

Farm Fresh Rhode Island

$25,500

This grant represents $10,500 from discretionary funds and $15,000 in co-funding from the Foundation’s George M. and Barbara H. Sage Fund in support of Farm Fresh Rhode Island’s Harvest Kitchen apprenticeship project. The Harvest Kitchen is a work experience and job-training program for adjudicated youth that supports Rhode Island’s local food system by creating high-quality products from locally grown fruit and vegetables. The project is a partnership between Farm Fresh Rhode Island and the Department of Children, Youth and Families. In addition to training youth in culinary skills, the Harvest Kitchen places youth in service opportunities at meal sites and in internships related to their training.

 

Rhode Island Hospital – Enhancing Mental Health Care in the Primary Care Setting

$35,000

Grant funds are requested to create a curriculum to teach basic mental health care interventions to primary care physicians. For the past five years, Rhode Island Hospital’s Dr. Elizabeth Toll and others have been learning to integrate mental health care with primary care. Over the past year, working with two psychiatrist colleagues, she has developed a curriculum to teach clinic doctors and nurses to do this kind of work.

 

Riverwood Mental Health Services – Housing First Rhode Island

$100,000

Housing First Rhode Island (HFRI) is Riverwood’s ground-breaking new effort designed to end chronic homelessness in our state. The chronically homeless, those who are homeless for extensive periods, sometimes years, have complex needs that service delivery systems have been unsuccessful in meeting. The Housing First model has been field-tested in our state and other communities and has produced consistent results. With Foundation support, Housing First will be able to serve an additional 240 clients, and using conservative estimates, save Rhode Island taxpayers over $2 million in service costs annually.

 

Boys & Girls Clubs of Warwick

$9,600

The seven Boys & Girls Clubs in Rhode Island have been meeting over the past year to explore various options for achieving cost savings through collaborative structures. The groups will work with consultants to decide on a collaborative structure and take the first steps to move forward. The national office of the Boys & Girls Clubs will contribute $10,000 to this project.

 

College Crusade of Rhode Island

$55,000

The College Crusade continues to show positive results as the state’s most comprehensive college readiness program, serving 17% of all middle and high school students in Providence, Pawtucket, Woonsocket, and Central Falls. Grounded in the youth development field’s best practices and relying upon a proven advisory system that develops deep personal connection with the Crusaders, the Crusade provides academic enrichment, career exploration, social/personal development and college preparation programs to approximately 3,500 middle and high school students. In addition, since 2001 the Crusade has awarded more than $22 million in scholarship aid to nearly 2,800 underserved students.

 

Jonnycake Center of Peace Dale

$5,000

The mission of the Jonnycake Center of Peace Dale is to improve the quality of life for individuals and families by providing comprehensive assistance to those in need of food, clothing, and household items and through individual and systemic advocacy for their clients. With grant funds, the agency will purchase food for their emergency food pantry.

 

Tech ACCESS of RI

$5,000

TechACCESS’s mission is to promote and support the independence and achievement of people with disabilities through the use of technology. This grant supports the TechACCESS Communication Device Loan Library. Through this program, adults who have lost their speech are able to borrow a device and receive the professional assistance they need to continue communicating with loved ones throughout the length of their illness.

 

Vietnam Era Veterans Association: Homeless Diversion Program

$4,000

The Vietnam Era Veterans Association of Rhode Island provides improved opportunities for all Rhode Island veterans, who served honorably, and their families. With grant funds, the agency will support the veterans’ needs for emergency shelter, assistance with security deposits, and pre-paid food cards to assure that qualified veterans have a safe living environment and access to food.

 

For more information about the Foundation, visit our website at www.rifoundation.org.

About The Rhode Island Foundation
Founded in 1916, the Rhode Island Foundation is one of the oldest and largest community foundations in the United States. Community foundations are composed of permanent funds established by many donors for the long-term benefit of the residents of a defined geographical area; the Rhode Island Foundation is one of the few to serve an entire state.

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Six RI Legislators Join ALEC, a Pro-Corporate “Model” Legislation Advocate

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a consortium of corporations which drafts and approves “model” legislation for right-wing state legislators on virtually every area of law. As one example, reported by Mike Elk of The Nation, in today’s interview on DemocracyNow!:

“One of the most perverse effects that ALEC has had on American society is the dramatic increase in the amount of prisoners incarcerated in this country. In 1980, there were only half a million people incarcerated in this country. Now that number has quadrupled to nearly 2.4 million…the majority for non-violent offenses. The U.S. has four per cent of the world’s population, but has 25% of the world’s prisoners in this country–and a big part of the reason for that is ALEC.”

As Elk further reports, their advocacy of tougher sentencing laws for drug violations and other offenses benefits the private prison industry–including the Corrections Corporation of America, a member of ALEC. “So they put a mass amount of people in jail,” says Elk, “and then they created a situation where they could exploit that.”

Moreover, using ALEC-approved legislation, states are increasingly using cheap prison labor to displace union workers. Thus, through ALEC’s efforts, are not Blacks, Latinos and poor Whites being subjected to a new form of legalized slavery?

This is but the tip of the iceberg for ALEC’s impact on our political and economic system. As ALECexposed.org summarizes:

“ALEC is not a lobby; it is not a front group. It is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, behind closed doors, corporations hand state legislators the changes to the law they desire that directly benefit their bottom line. Along with legislators, corporations have membership in ALEC. Corporations sit on all nine ALEC task forces and vote with legislators to approve “model” bills. They have their own corporate governing board which meets jointly with the legislative board. (ALEC says that corporations do not vote on the board.) They fund almost all of ALEC’s operations. Participating legislators, overwhelmingly conservative Republicans, then bring those proposals home and introduce them in statehouses across the land as their own brilliant ideas and important public policy innovations—without disclosing that corporations crafted and voted on the bills. ALEC boasts that it has over 1,000 of these bills introduced by legislative members every year, with one in every five of them enacted into law.”

As cited by ALECexposed.org, six members of the Rhode Island legislature are ALEC members:

  • Sen. Leo Blais
  • Sen. Francis Maher*
  • Sen. Leonidas Raptakis* (Retired to run for Sec. of State)
  • Sen. V. Sosnowski*
  • Sen. Paul Fogarty**
  • Sen. Walter Felag**
  • Rep. Laurence Ehrhardt**

*Alternate, ALEC Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force
**Member, ALEC Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force

If you are a constituent of any of these members, you may want to ask questions such as these:  Why are you a member of ALEC? What legislative measures have you reviewed?  Have you introduced ALEC legislation at the RI statehouse?  Did you pay the $50 membership fee personally–or did you charge this to taxpayers?

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Libertarian Fairy Dust: AKA Its Only Class War When Workers Fight Back

Two interesting things of note. First, this gragh from the AFL-CIO:

 

Then this story from the NYTIMES by Steven Greenhouse:

Labor’s Decline and Wage Inequality
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE
The decline in organized labor’s power and membership has played a larger role in fostering increased wage inequality in the United States than is generally thought, according to a study published in the American Sociological Review this month.
The study, “Unions, Norms and the Rise in U.S. Wage Inequality,” found that the decline in union power and density since 1973 explained a third of the increase in wage inequality among men since then, and a fifth of the increased inequality among women.
The study noted that from 1973 to 2007, union membership in the private sector dropped to 8 percent from 34 percent among men and to 6 percent from 16 percent among women. During that time, wage inequality in the private sector increased by more than 40 percent, the study found.
While many academics argue that increased inequality in educational attainment has played a major role in expanding wage inequality, the new study reaches a surprising conclusion, saying, “The decline of the U.S. labor movement has added as much to men’s wage inequality as has the relative increase in pay for college graduates.” The study adds that “union decline contributes just half as much as education to the overall rise in women’s wage inequality.”
The study was written by Bruce Western, a professor of sociology at Harvard University, and Jake Rosenfeld, a sociology professor at the University of Washington.
The two professors found that the decline of organized labor held down wages in union and nonunion workplaces alike. Many nonunion employers — especially decades ago, when unions represented more than 30 percent of the private sector work force — raised wages to help avert the threat of union organizing.
Moreover, the study argues that when unions were larger and had a far greater voice in politics and society, they played a more influential role in advocacy on wages across the economy, for instance, in pushing to raise the minimum wage.
“In the early 1970s, when one in three male workers were organized, unions were often prominent voices for equity, not just for their members, but for all workers,” the two professors wrote. “Union decline marks an erosion of the moral economy and its underlying distributional norms. Wage inequality in the nonunion sector increased as a result.”
The two professors note that the decline of unions is part of a common account of rising inequality that is often contrasted with a market explanation that includes technological change, immigration and foreign trade. They argue that the market explanation usually understates the role of organized labor’s decline on increased inequality.
The study notes that in the 1970s, some skilled-trades unions and construction unions helped to increased inequality through exclusionary practices that reinforced racial and ethnic inequalities. But the study said that, over all, unions in the United States had been an important force for reducing inequality — although not as much as unions in Europe, which have more influence in politics and society.
The authors found that the biggest factor in the decline in unions’ power and density was job growth outside traditional labor strongholds like manufacturing, construction and transportation. They added that another important reason for the decline of organized labor was that “employers in unionized industries intensified their opposition” to unionization efforts.
They noted that as unions have grown weaker, there has been less pressure on lawmakers to enact labor-friendly or worker-friendly measures. “As organized labor’s political power dissipates,” the authors wrote, “economic interests in the labor market are dispersed and policy makers have fewer incentives to strengthen unions or otherwise equalize economic rewards.”

Now to answer “Moderate’s” question yesterday as for solutions.  To start with: I would confiscate Ken Block’s fortune and start a WPA 2.0.  To start..

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Listen to Students

Just read this in today’s ProJo:

“Looking back, Hope High School was Brady’s albatross. When the district announced that Hope, a poster child for urban school reform, was moving from an innovative schedule of longer classes to a traditional six-period day, the students revolted. They crowded School Board meetings, marched out of school en masse and eventually sued the district.

Brady now concedes he was wrong.

‘I didn’t listen to the kids enough,’ he said. ‘In hindsight, I would have come up with a compromise and let the kids keep what they thought was their magic.’ “

To all of Providence and Rhode Island’s education policy-makers, PLEASE, take this to heart. No standardized test data, no Broad fellowship course, no ed reform plan will ever be able to tell you what is best for students better than students themselves.

Listen to students’ voices. They know more than you ever will about their schools, about what helps them learn and what doesn’t, about what they need to thrive. Just listen to what they’re saying.

I don’t want any of you to retire full of regret.

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Its a day that ends in Y. You know what that means…

That’s right!  Its time for another “Flight of the Earls” story in the Rhode Island media!  This time it is from Eddie Achorn Junior, AKA, Stephen Beale of GuLP (that’s GOLOCALPROV for those of you who don’t know.  You really have to GuLP it down when you read something Beale writes).  Anyway, EJ hits the Rhode Island economic theory trifecta today!  He

He cherry picks data to claim rich people are leaving the state, aka the “the Flight of the Earls.”He refers to the OSPRI Study on Wealth Migration that even the Wall Street Journal lampooned as worthless and Projo’s “Politifact” has discredited.He quotes from Len Lardaro, the economic guru of the Carcieri years who brought us the wisdom behind the tax strategy that got us into the fiscal mess that we are in in this state.

And for honorable mention…John Hazen White? Now there is a go to guy for policy analysis.  What, was Travis Rowley too busy raising money for Mr. Hinckley?

Here on RIFUTURE we have long railed against the Flight of the Earls simply because this fallacy that we need to base our tax policy decisions on keeping a handful of people in state so we keep their tax dollars is based on faulty assumptions.

Assumption #1:  they are not leaving the state. The numbers change. Sometimes up, sometimes down, but fleeing they are not, especially as a class of wage earners, and especially not as an economic class.

Assumption #2:  if we keep them in the state, we will keep and or create jobs ( look around!)

Assumption #3:  by lowering taxes on the elite, we increase our overall revenue collection, thus benefiting all of Rhode Island.

None of these assumptions have worked, and in fact, have contributed mightily to the downfall of our economic system, both here in Rhode Island and nationally and internationally.  This isn’t even an argument between capitalism and socialism or market economies and command economies (that last one is communism for you tea party folks…it’s very different than socialism. I know…. that blows your mind, right?  Who knew?) Free Market Capitalism, for all of its flaws, has a certain logical science behind it.  With this new economic philosophy that is emerging, there is no connection to economic activity and economic outcomes.  It is the chief reason why wage growth, for example, has been decoupled from productivity gains.  American workers are the most productive they have been in years….yet they see no way to wrestle wage gains based on their productivity.  Adam Smith would blanch at such injustice.

But I digress……

The key thing here is despite all the evidence the rich guys in town keep pushing the Flight of the Earls mythology no matter what the evidence say.  We live in a fact free world, and with reporters like EJ at places like GuLP ready and willing to simply do the bidding of the elite is it any wonder the banksters feel free do what they want, say what they want, and buy whomever they want?  Who, after all, is going to stop them?

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Erica’s New Book On The Wisconsin Fight

Many of you know Erica Sagrans from her time in Providence as a student and activist.  This month she’s self-publishing an awesome new book about the labor fight in Wisconsin:

In February of 2011, the people of Wisconsin changed the political landscape in America overnight. In response to their Republican governor’s move to strip workers of the basic right to organize, Wisconsinites decided to fight back—occupying their Capitol for days on end and protesting in record numbers throughout the freezing Madison winter. Their bold action inspired progressives across the country, and revived the conversation on organized labor, direct-action, and civil resistance.

We Are Wisconsin gives an up-close,view of the Wisconsin struggle, as told by the grassroots activists, independent journalists, and Wisconsinites who led the fight. This collection of essays, blog posts, and original writing looks at what happened, what it means, and what comes next—including the real-time, fast-paced story of the Capitol occupation as told through tweets from those who were on the inside.

We Are Wisconsin will be released in August, and will be one of first books out on the Wisconsin fight.

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Rhode Island Public Sector Unions Form New Coalition

Rhode Island Retirement Security Coalition Website
www.RhodeIslandRetirementSecurity.org

Rhode Island Public Sector Unions Form New Coalition

Group to Study and Advocate for Public Employees in Pension Change Debate

Providence, RI — A new coalition of public sector unions was announced today to advocate for public employees in the ongoing pension change debate. The Rhode Island Retirement Security Coalition was created to educate and inform the members of the coalition’s unions on the potential changes to the state retirement system that are being discussed this summer at General Treasurer Gina Raimondo’s Pension Advisory Commission and this fall in a special session of the General Assembly.

The Rhode Island Retirement Security Coalition is composed of: the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, AFSCME Council 94, the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals, the National Education Association Rhode Island, the Service Employees International Union- Locals 580 and 401, the Rhode Island Brotherhood of Correctional Officers, the International Brotherhood of Police Officers- NAGE/SEIU, the Laborers International Union of North America, and the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers- Local 400.

“With so much information coming out almost daily many of the rank-and-file members are understandably confused and scared about what is going on with their pensions, which they have faithfully paid into week after week and year after year,” said coalition spokesperson George Nee, President of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO. “The Rhode Island Retirement Security Coalition was put together so the unions could provide timely and relevant information to their members and the public.”

In an effort to reach their members quickly, the Rhode Island Retirement Security Coalition launched a website (www.RhodeIslandRetirementSecurity.org) today that allows union members and the public to access information, news stories, reports, and give their input into the discussion on the pension situation in Rhode Island.

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New National Report Highlights RI Public Defender

Back in February I posted about the fact that underfunded Public Defenders are a smokescreen for the real issue: underfunded prosecutors and courts cannot handle the number of crimes coming at them.  A new report by Justice Policy Institute, System Overload: The Costs of Under-Resourcing Public Defense, continues the one-sided argument- although making some excellent points.

The latest report (continuing the BJS findings, as did I) notes the costs to “people” and “taxpayers” through pre-trial detention, and how hasty defense increases wrongful convictions.  Yet it does not point out who benefits.  Any analysis should be a “Cost-Benefit Analysis,” and factor into account those beneficiaries who care neither about people nor taxpayers.  They care about their own bottom line, and their own power.

Those who enjoy and utilize statistics will find a wealth in the new JPI report, such as: 64% of wrongful rape convictions, exonerated from DNA evidence, are Black, although only 12% of America is Black.  I love numbers, but a popular Movement will not be based on numbers.  Simple facts, simple understandings, and a simple view of what the criminal justice system is actually doing will cause the creature to crumble.

Rhode Island and others (including Bronx Defenders and in D.C.) are lauded for taking the entire person into account, including pre-trial and post-release issues that arise from criminal justice contact.

Other than the obvious recommendation, to implement standards of representation as outlined by the American Bar Association, the report recommends two other vital pieces:

  1. Public Defenders should engage in the policy debate.  It is shameful that in a country where so many vital services are conducted through the state, those workers are generally forbidden to speak up or are living in fear for their jobs.  This is a waste of insight and experience, provided they are capable of speaking openly.
  2. Seek input from those who have been served by the Public Defender.  To move our society in any productive way on criminal justice, the “Client” relationship must be seen as a “partnership.”  Are we all in this together?  Or are the poor communities being controlled by an upper-class colonial mentality?  I have gotten more requests from my internet provider to see how they are doing than I have had from anyone in the criminal justice sphere over the past two decades.

This report still fails to pay even a passing reference to the problem of underfunded prosecutors.  I don’t believe it is intentional, it is the product of an arms race.  Funding must keep up with the other side, rather than funding must be reduced to the other side.  In a down economy, nobody will accept sweeping increases for prosecutions… but nor will we see any massive increases to Public Defense.

By making the issue about public defense, one can argue about “coddling criminals” or “can we really afford this?”  But if the argument were about whether the Attorney General and Courts should be 50% of the budget… what then?

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My RIPTA conversation with Gordon Fox


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Yesterday I wrote to Gordon Fox, asking him to help defend, not defund RIPTA. This is what I wrote:

I am writing to you because now is not the time to cut funds to RIPTA, now is the time to increase them. I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but a functioning public transportation system is a strength for the community. Portland Oregon has a strong system, and they are better for it.

Please work on behalf of your constituents and all of RI to strengthen, rather than to weaken RIPTA.

This is perhaps the fourth or fifth email I have sent Gordon Fox. For the first time, he answered me:

Thank you very much for writing to me in support of an amendment to the state budget offered by Representative Jay O’Grady regarding funding at DOT and RIPTA.  Although I could not support the amendment this year due to the severe budget constraints, I have pledged to work with Reps. O’Grady, Arthur Handy and Teresa Tanzi in the future to continue our efforts to improve our state’s transportation system.

Meanwhile, I was proud to support Article 22 of the budget, which has now been signed into law, which creates a transportation trust fund and provides that incremental increases of transportation-related surcharges will be dedicated to the fund.  It will also reduce DOT’s reliance on borrowing and transition us to a pay-as-you-go system.

I appreciate your sentiments, and I thank you again for taking the time to write about this important issue.

The response was of course unsatisfactory, and indicative of the kind of politician Gordon Fox is. It is unsatisfactory because it does nothing to answer Fox’s complicity in the cuts RIPTA is planning. The loss of revenues to RI businesses and families will be devastating to our already fragile economy. It is indicative of the way Gordon Fox oprates because he does not take a stand on an issue, he simply pledges to “work with” those who have decided to.

Fox’s support for Article 22 of the budget is a rather silly statement. he voted for the budget, so he tacitly supported all the provisions therein. In owning the one small part of the budget that will give some of the funds from the Registry of Motor Vehicles to the DOT and RIPTA, he hopes to artificially inflate his support in the public’s eyes.

There’s a curious thing about Article 22. Under it, 20% of the monies collected in 2012 by the Registry of Motor Vehicles will go towards the “Intermodal Surface Transportation Fund” and this figure will increase each year by 20% until all collected monies are so directed. Fair enough. But this year we also passed the Voter ID bill, so we can expect that, under the increased onus of free IDs, revenues from the Registry will go down. After all, free means more people, longer lines, and less monies collected.

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Top Ten Reasons Wyatt Prison is an Epic Scandal


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With the recent bankruptcy filing by Central Falls, RI, many are asking what will happen to the city’s most notorious flagship, the Wyatt Detention Facility.  The city will not disappear, no more than Bridgeport, CT disappeared along route 95 ten years ago.  Bridgeport is roughly the size of Providence, is Connecticut’s largest city, and some feared their bankruptcy in 1991 would drag the entire state into collapse.  Central Falls is Rhode Island’s smallest city, and apparently home to large scale corruption.  Here are the Top10 Reasons the privately owned, municipally managed, prison is a fitting ground zero to understand the situation.

10:  The Interest Payments- The Wyatt financial fiasco is a case study in collecting interest, as they have long since been underwater on their loans.  The Central Falls Detention Facility Corporation refinanced their loan (bonds owned by investors) so they could build an addition, and have $229 million in liabilities at the start of 2011, while their prison was independently assessed at $45 million.  With the “homeowners” barely able to make their payments now, they will surely face a “loan modification” in a very short period of time.  I wonder if anyone is willing to take over the payments?  I wonder if anyone is dumb enough to take over the prison and pay five times as much in annual interest than principal?

9:  Brown University- John Birkelund, as CEO of Dillon Read, sold the Wyatt prison bonds to John Birkelund, as Chairman of Brown’s endowment; making a profit (surely) for John Birkelund and friends.  Ever heard the phrase “Pump & Dump?”

8:  AVCORR- Anthony Ventetuolo was a founding father of the Wyatt prison, and former blue-blood of the ACI.  He learned that moving from public to private services, one can literally make millions of dollars for the same work.  AVCORR ultimately took over management of the prison, and recent financial audits have expressed serious issues with the financial controls.  He has been dismissed; and in a state where everyone is connected, an in depth state investigation by Lynch or Kilmartin is inconceivable.

7:  RDW-  Mike Doyle, a top lobbyist in Rhode Island is another founding father, greasing the wheels for a prison to legally become a for-profit enterprise and ensuring a base of lobbying efforts to create more prisoners, more crime, and more clientele.  With an office 100 yards from the statehouse, some would say it’s a nice fit.

6:  Federal Lobbying- After paying $10,000 a month to Dutko Worldwide to do D.C. lobbying, Wyatt still couldn’t keep the ICE contract after this shoestring operation (where all money has to pay off bond interest) could not keep Jason Ng alive.  One has to appreciate there is a billion dollar industry that needs to encourage incarceration through lobbying efforts.  And here you thought people only went to prison because of their own behavior.  Meanwhile, AIG holds the bond agreement, and Halliburton was the construction company; companies who merely pay fines when caught stealing.

5:  Fiscal Impact Statement- Is $50,000 a month lots of money?  $10,000?  Depends.  The Wyatt is not only Tax Free, but it also gets free water and garbage from the City, and who knows what else.  What is the water bill for 1000 people?  What is the trash bill for Providence’s four largest hotels?  Without a Fiscal Impact Statement, the hoped for, yet denied (“Suckers”) charity that Wyatt dangles may not even make up for the charity they receive from CF and the people of Rhode Island.

4:  Mayor Moreau- This is the guy who was getting $10k contracts for friends to board up foreclosed houses.  He appointed every member of the CFDFC Board (who are charged with managing the money).  If anyone has “Federal Investigation” written all over them, it would be Mayor Moreau- who is known as a long-time friend of Patrick Lynch.  Of course, if the Bush and Obama administrations would ever take some of their White Collar investigators back from the “War on Terror,” and put them back to the “War on White Collar Crime”…

3:  Judges Pfeifer and Flanders- Connected as they come in RI (long time judiciary) and respected enough to be appointed receivers of Central Falls.  Although CFDFC, the municipal corporation created to manage Wyatt, is a “distinct legal entity” from the city, these judges fail to point this out.  Instead they allow the success or failure of this business to be seen as tied to the city, and the state.

2:  Former A.G. Patrick Lynch is more embedded in Wyatt than just a friendship with Moreau.  Of all the attorneys in RI to be Wyatt’s chief legal counsel, Lynch’s sister got the job when he was the Attorney General.  What are the connections between current A.G. Kilmartin (also from Pawtucket) and the Wyatt?  Perhaps that is an easy question for some.

1:  Congressman Cicillini a rival to Mayor Moreau on leaving a city in shambles, and now that Wyatt represents “jobs” in his congressional district…  We shall see how much he supports tax dollars being diverted to private investors’ financial scandal.  Is there a protection of taxpayer funds?  Is there a concern for human rights?  For civil rights?  Any concern for the families and communities being used to finance this business deal?

The For-Profit privately owned Wyatt prison is not the Alamo.  It is not Bunker Hill, nor Ground Zero.  Its just a bad business deal- and investors know that it doesn’t always work out.  Ciao.

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Testimony in Opposition to RIPTA Cuts: Or, Sometimes You’ve Got To Hustle


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Last night I listened to nearly three hours of testimony against RIPTA cuts. Listening for so long about something I care so much about was hard. By the time my turn came I’d drafted three different pieces of testimony. Since going through all of them would just have been rude to the dozens still sitting patiently, I said one piece and I’ll share all three points here. Thanks for listening.

I am a huge fan of RIPTA. Someone said RIPTA should sell merchandise to earn a couple extra bucks. I am one of the people who would buy that shirt because I am grateful that I don’t need to bleed hundreds of dollars a month to own and maintain a car. I am grateful that when my bike gets stolen I can still get to work on time. I’m glad I don’t even know the bus schedule because I can walk a block and expect one to show within 15 minutes. Even better – saving those hundred some dollars a month, I go to restaurants and bars during the week. Bringing home $850 a month, I have disposable income! That’s amazing! You know who wasn’t at those hearings? The good men and women who own those fine establishments. They were probably still at work. If they saw me here, they’d be pissed too, because this whole song and dance is costing them business.

There’s no money for RIPTA. That’s funny, because four years ago they told me there was no money to clean up our democracy, three years ago they said we’d keep giving away tens of millions to the wealthiest of the state, two years ago they didn’t have the money to provide to the families of homicide victims for burials, this year there wasn’t enough money to provide a place to sleep that wasn’t a sidewalk curb, or to keep poor parents and kids on health insurance. But they’ve found the money to keep the tax loopholes in place for AmGem, Raytheon and CVS, and they’ve found the money to cut the income tax for the wealthiest of us in half. Who’s calling the shots, and on whose behalf are they calling them?

I’d like to tell the story of two of the people sitting for hours in that hearing, Representative Maria Cimini, and Representative Chris Blazejewski. They saw the same charade at the State House for the 28 cuts to RIPTA service that preceded this one. They wrote their legislators, they called, they showed up. And then that wasn’t enough anymore. People tonight have asked you to heckle, but that’s not enough. Sometimes you’ve got to hustle. Maria and Chris hustled for a year and now they’ve got seats in the State House. They’ve done a good job this year too, I’ve been watching very closely. But they need a few more players on their team. Advocating for the working poor on Smith Hill can get lonely. If your representative decides to listen to AmGen before he listens to you, it’s time to hustle. If your representative doesn’t return your phone calls, it’s time to hustle. If Rhode Island is your state, it’s time to own it.

So thank you for showing up, thank you for staying. Thank you for speaking and for giving me an opportunity to speak.


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