America has a Peace Corps but no peace. America has a State Department with its diplomatic corps but nations fear and loathe us. But now, America has a new, symbolic U.S. Democracy Corps. Members of the Corps are, figuratively speaking, ambassadors for democracy who have in their own ways been promoting peaceful and lawful means of reclaiming social and economic justice in America and establishing peaceful relations with other nations sharing this one earth, the home of humanity.
Anyone who considers themselves an advocate for democracy and the general welfare of all Americans is eligible to become a member of the Corps. Use this e-mail address: democracypower@bellsouth.net to join. Being a member does not require any additional activities beyond already being an informal ambassador for democracy. Neither does being a member mean an acceptance of all the views and activities associated with this website. The U.S. Democracy Corps is Not the Democracy
Corps (http://www.democracycorps.com). It was founded in 1999 by James Carville and
Stanley Greenberg and “provides free public opinion research and strategic
advice to those dedicated to a more responsive Congress and Presidency.” Mr.
Carville was a campaign strategist for William Clinton’s 1992 presidential
campaign. Mr. Greenberg was a polling advisor to President Clinton. Membership in the U.S. Democracy Corps signifies symbolic support of democracy and neither commits members to anything more or any responsibility for this website. If you aren't listed below Please join the U.S. Democracy Corps Segment Alternative Media Richard (RJ) Eskow, host of We Act Radio's show "The Breakdown." Glen Ford, executive editor of the Black Agenda Report and co-host of Black Agenda Radio.http://blackagendareport.com Tim Gatto, host of the Tim Gatto Show on Blog Talk Radio www.blogtalkradio.com/tim-gatto-unedited-and-uncut Burl and Merry Hall, co-hosts of ENVISION THIS! online radio show featuring visionaries of a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable future. Rob Kall, executive editor, publisher and site architect of www.OpEdNews.com, host of the Rob Kall Bottom Up Radio Show (WNJC 1360 AM), President of Futurehealth, Inc, inventor, and regular contributor to the Huffingtonpost.com Rob Kall (see Segment # 5 Authors/Journalists) Christopher Lydon, former journalist with The New York Times and anchor of The Ten-O'Clock News on WGBH in Boston. His current Radio Open Source blog has become a launch pad for international broadcasts and other activities and along with colleagues was instrumental in sparking the growth of podcasting. In 1993 he was a candidate for mayor of Boston.www.radioopensource.org RockNewman@Rock100 Howard U Grad, Radio Talk Show Host, Boxing Manager, Political Consultant, Exec Prod. of Bermuda Music Festival. Owner Hi*T Global www.RockNewman.com Personal Democracy Media. A hub for conversation among political practitioners, technologists, and anyone invigorated by the potential to engage more people in all the things that we can and must do together as citizens. www.personaldemocracy.comThe Stephanie Miller Radio Showwww.stephaniemiller.com Kim Petersen, co-editor of Dissident Voice. ProPublica@ProPublica a non-profit, independent newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest.New York, NY · http://www.propublica.org Randi Rhodes, host of the nationally syndicated radio show, Randi 24/7. Robert Scheer, editor in chief of the progressive Internet site Truthdig, university professor, and author of many books. Jamil Smith@JamilSmith Segment and digital producer for @MHPshow, airing weekends at 10am ET on @msnbc. Contributor to @EBONYMag and @tnr. Angie Tibbs, co-editor of Dissident Voice, frequent contributing writer in the progressive media, and a free-lance court reporter/transcriptionist in the legal community. Segment Authors and Journalists Nadin Abbott, writer, blogger, journalist.John Atcheson, author of A Being Darkly Wise, an eco-thriller and Book One of a Trilogy centered on global warming. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, the San Jose Mercury News and other major newspapers. Rudy Avizius, former educator and frequent contributor of articles to Market Oracle, http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/and to OpEdNews, www.opednews.com Mark Biskeborn is a novelist: Mojave Winds, A Sufi's Ghost, Mexican Trade. Short Stories: California & Beyond. Poetry & Essays. www.biskeborn.com William Blum, prolific book author and creator of the regular journal, The Anti American Report. www.killinghope.org Walter Brasch, an award-winning journalist and professor of journalism emeritus. His current books are Before the First Snow: Stories from the Revolution , America's Unpatriotic Acts: The Federal Government's Violation of Constitutional and Civil Rights, and 'Unacceptable': The Federal response to Hurricane Katrina. www.walterbrasch.com Paul Buchheit (see Honorary Affiliates). John Buell writes on labor and environmental issues. His most recent book is "Politics, Religion, and Culture in an Anxious Age." Juan Cole, "Engaging the Muslim World" Richard Clark. frequent author of articles for www.openews.com. Chris Clugston, author of Scarcity - Humanity’s Final Chapter? www.nnrscarcity.com Lawrence Davidson, author of Foreign Policy Inc.: Privatizing America's National Interest; America's Palestine: Popular and Offical Perceptions from Balfour to Israeli Statehood; and Islamic Fundamentalism. www.tothepointanalyses.com Charles Derber. Most recent book, "Marx's Ghost: Midnight Conversations on Changing the World." (Site editor's note: Professor Derber's earlier writings were a major influence on the writing of the Devil's Marriage). Linnette Eller, author of Cougar of Spirit Lake. @justemily14 Progressive political writer, former newspaper editor. Writes weekly column on politics at www.ZestOfOrange.com (see also Segment # 7). Eve Ensler, Tony Award winning playwright, performer, activist (founder of V-Day; see Segment #13), recognized as one of the 100 most influential women in the world. John Feffer, author of several books and numerous articles.and co-director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies. Tim Gatto, newest book "From Complicity to Contempt" (member of site's Advisory Board). Paul Gottinger, a writer and editor of the White Rose Reader, http://whiterosereader.org Glenn Greenwald, columnist for the Guardian, former constitutional lawyer, recipient of the first annual I.F. Stone Award for Independent Journalism; most recent book, "With Liberty and Justice for Some: How the Law Is Used to Destroy Equality and Protect the Powerful." twilight greenaway@twyspy Writer and editor focused on food & sustainability. http://grist.org/author/twilight-greenaway. Burl Hall, avid writer and publishes on OpEdNews.com while also blogging regularly. Jason Hirthler, strategist, 15-year veteran of the communications industry, writer in Counterpunch, Open Democracy, World Can’t Wait, and other political communities. Ron Jacobs, author of The Way The Wind Blew: A History of the Weather Underground; latest novel The Co-Conspirator's Tale; recently released collection of essays and musings titled Tripping Through the American Night. Naomi Klein, an award-winning journalist, syndicated columnist and author of the New York Times and #1 international bestseller, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. Her first book, No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies was also an international bestseller. Robert Koehler, an award-winning, Chicago-based journalist and nationally syndicated writer. His new book is, Courage Grows Strong at the Wound. Dave Lecourt, "Deceit and Excess in America, How the Moneyed Interests Have Stolen America and How We Can Get It Back" Stephen Lendman, prolific writer, author of "How Wall Street Fleeces America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and Class War," and currently hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the progressive Radio Network. David Macaray, a Los Angeles playwright and author (It’s Never Been Easy: Essays on Modern Labor), and a former union rep. dmacaray@earthlink.net Machavelli Medici, author of Beyond Religion: Outside the Box; formerly WBAU Radio; TV commercials Tegan Mathis@TeganMathis, author of the book, Against Them: How & Why Alexander Haig, Bob Woodward, Donald Rumsfeld, & Richard Cheney Covered Up the JFK Assassination in the Wake of the Watergate Break-IN U.S.A. http://tinyurl.com/AgainstThem Ken Meyercord, author of "The Ethic of Zero Growth: a New Ethos for the New Millennium," Jospeh Nevins. Teaches geography at Vassar College. His books include “Dying to Live: A Story of US Immigration in an Age of Global Apartheid” and “Operation Gatekeeper and Beyond: The War on “Illegals” and the Remaking of the US-Mexico Boundary” Michael Payne, journalist and frequent contributor to OpedNews.com. contributor to OpEdNews.com and Dissident Voice. Mike Penney, author, Behind the gates with the rich and happy 1%www.mikepenney.com James Petras, former Professor of Sociology at Binghamton University is an adviser to the landless and jobless in Brazil and Argentina, co-author of Globalization Unmasked and most recently author of The Arab Revolt and the Imperialist Counterattack. http://petras.lahaine.org Matt Potter, staff writer and senior editor at the San Diego Reader reporting on politics and local institutions www.sandiegoreader.com/staff/matt-potter Jim Prues, author of the book, "World 5.0" John Rachel, author of four novels and an upcoming nonfiction book (see www.jdrachel.com) Brett Redmayne-Titley, frequent social commentator and contributor of articles to OpEdNewswww.opednews.com growing up in different countries and thus seeing American domestic politics and foreign policy as the epicenter for many changes that directly affect the world and its population. Ron Ridenour, revolutionary activist for half-a-century, author and journalist. Born in the devil's own country, lived and worked in many countries, including eight years in Cuba and one in Nicaragua. Writer of many books, www.ronridenour.com . Richard Schiffman, author of Mother of All and Sri Ramakrishna, A Prophet For the New Age; contributing writer at OpEd News, The Guardian, HuffPost, etc. Gina Stark ✈@SuuperG, freelance travel writer, http://gitanablog.com Marta Steele, wordsunltd.com, author of "Grassroots, Geeks, Pros, and Pols: How the People Lost and Won," 2000-2008 David Swanson, author of "When the World Outlawed War," "War Is A Lie" and "Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union." http://davidswanson.org and http://warisacrime.org Soraya Sepahpour-Ulrich, public diplomacy scholar and researcher, radio commentator, political columnist, and peace activist. John Spritzler, author of The People As Enemy: The Leaders' Hidden Agenda In World War II, and a Research Scientist at the Harvard School of Public Health. www.newdemocracyworld.org Gina Stark ✈@SuuperG, freelance travel writer, http://gitanablog.com Jon Taylor, songwriter, poet, a field hand for 50 years on various corporate plantations, now retired. Emily Theroux, former freelance features writer, newspaper and magazine editor, former member of the Society of Professional Journalists and has won both statewide and national awards for writing and design. twilight greenaway@twyspy Writer and editor focused on food & sustainability. grist.org/author/twilight Rev. Dan Vojir, author of upcoming book, Sacred cows make the best hamburgers: One Man's War With Righteous Arrogance Harvey Wasserman, author/co-author of a dozen books www.harveywasserman.com Bernard Weiner, Ph.D. in government & international relations, has taught at universities in California and Washington, worked for two decades as a writer-editor at the San Francisco Chronicle, and currently serves as co-editor of The Crisis Papers www.crisispapers.org Jon Wexford, writer, blogger, liberty advocate. His new pro-liberty thriller King of Kings is out now.http://www.jonwexford.com Eric Zuesse Investigative historian Eric Zuesse is the author, most recently, of They're Not Even Close: The Democratic vs. Republican Economic Records, 1910-2010 , and of Christs Ventriloquests:: The vent that Created Christianity
Twitter People From Afar Conchita Bea@JMConchiBea, España Mannfred Nyttingnes @MannfredNikolai, Oslo, Norway Rama Adi Wibowo @Ramatang from Southeast Asia/Oceania Segment Unions SNBCTC@SNBCTC, Southern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council is located in Henderson Nevada near Las Vegas. We are a Council made up of 18 Union construction crafts, Las Vegas · http://snbctc.org
********************************** HONORARY CORPS AFFILIATES
This site’s editor has chosen several people as Honorary Affiliates of the U.S. Democracy Corps because of their long and distinguished record of writings on and/or activism for social and economic justice and peace. Nominations are welcome for more honorees.
Advisory Board Members (See below).
Medea Benjamin. A cofounder of both CODEPINK and the international human rights organization Global Exchange. She has been an advocate for social justice for more than 30 years. Described as "one of America’s most committed -- and most effective -- fighters for human rights" by New York Newsday, and called "one of the high profile leaders of the peace movement" by the Los Angeles Times, Medea has distinguished herself as an eloquent and energetic figure in the progressive movement. In 2005 she was one of 1,000 exemplary women from 140 countries nominated to receive the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the millions of women who do the essential work of peace worldwide. In 2010 she received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Prize from the Fellowship of Reconciliation. Benjamin is the author/editor of eight books. Her latest book is called Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control, and she has been campaigning to get lethal drones out of the hands of the CIA. Her articles appear regularly in outlets such as The Huffington Post, CommonDreams, Alternet and OpEd News.
Paul Buchheit is a college teacher, an active member of US Uncut Chicago, founder and developer of social justice and educational websites (UsAgainstGreed.org, PayUpNow.org, RappingHistory.org), and the editor and main author of "American Wars: Illusions and Realities" (Clarity Press).
William Blum. Studied accounting in college followed by a short stint as a computer technician with the State Department. He left it in 1967 and became one of the founders and editors of the Washington Free Press, the first "alternative" newspaper in the Nation’s capital. He has worked as freelance journalist in the United States, Europe and South America. From 1972 to 1973 he worked as a journalist in Chile, where he reported on the Allende government's "socialist experiment." He is author of many books and the regularly published Anti-Empire Report.
Leah Bolger. Joined the Navy in March 1980, and retired in the summer of 2000 as a Commander. She served all over the world, including tours in Iceland, Bermuda, Japan and Tunisia. After moving to Corvallis, Oregon in 2004, she formed Chapter 132 of Veterans for Peace and served as its president for three years. In 2009 she was elected the national Board of Directors and served as the national vice-president until 2012 when she was reelected to her second term on the board, and to the office of national president. Ms Bolger has organized numerous public events, spoken before audiences large and small, presented workshops and served on panel discussions. She has testified before the Oregon state legislature, and has lobbied both state and federal officials. She has worked on several national campaigns and has represented VFP in various coalitions and networks. She has also been arrested numerous times for acts of civil disobedience.
Noam Chomsky. He received his Ph.D. in linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania and began teaching at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1955. He’s considered a father of modern linguistics. He has written numerous books and lectured widely on linguistics, philosophy, intellectual history, contemporary issues, international affairs and U.S. foreign policy. He spoke out against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War and has continued to publically criticize U.S. foreign policy. He is the recipient of many honorary degrees and awards.
Council of the Elders. http://www.nationalcouncilofelders.com “Architects of the Civil Rights Movement” From the 20th to the 21st CenturyThe Council of Elders, a newly organized (2012), independent group of leaders from many of the defining American social justice movements of the 20th century. We wish to explore every possible, helpful way in which we can connect together the continuing flame of the democratizing movements of the 20th century with the powerful light of the emerging movements of the present time."
Kevin Danaher. Co-founder of Global Exchange (1988); co-founder of TransFairUSA (1997); founder and Executive Co-Producer of the Green Festivals (2001); Executive Director of the Global Citizen Center (2004); co-founder and designer of ESLI, the Environmental Service Learning Initiative; and he created GreenGuardians.ning.com featuring 233 green career training videos and other green job resources. He has published numerous articles and is the author and/or editor of thirteen books, including his two latest: “The Green Festival Reader: Fresh ideas from Agents of Change” (2008); "Building the Green Economy: Success Stories from the Grass Roots" (2007). He received his Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Charles Derber. Professor of sociology at Boston College. He has written numerous books on matters related to the corpocracy and is a social critic and activist, having once been a street protestor of the war in Iraq and was booked and jailed briefly for civil disobedience in supporting the "janitors for justice" protest in Boston in 2002." His book, Regime Change Begins at Home and his advice were a big influence on the writing of the Devil’s Marriage.
Hal Donahue@haldonahue, retired Lieutenant Colonel in the US Air Force, post military career as a corporate executive and board member of several corporate and not for profit organizations. He now devotes his time to assisting military veterans and working to elect veterans and supporters to all levels of political office. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/hal-donahue
Daniel Ellsberg, one of the most well-known whistle blowers in history who helped unravel the Nixon administration and fuel opposition to the Vietnam War with publication of the famous Pentagon Papers in 1971. He was awarded the Right Livelihood Award in 2006. His PhD dissertation research in economics, completed at Harvard in 1962 resulted in the “Ellsberg paradox” that has formed the basis of a large literature on decision theory. He is the author of three books: Papers on the War (1971), Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers (2002), and Risk, Ambiguity and Decision (2001). Since the end of the Vietnam War, he has been a lecturer, writer and activist on the dangers of the nuclear era, wrongful U.S. interventions and the urgent need for patriotic whistle blowing. He is a Senior Fellow of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. Mr. Ellsberg’s website is http://www.ellsberg.net
Amitai Etzioni. After receiving his Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley in 1958, he was a professor of sociology at Columbia University for 20 years, including a period as department chair. He was a guest scholar at the Brookings Institution in 1978 before serving as a Senior Advisor to the White House from 1979-1980. In 1980, he was named the first University Professor at The George Washington University, where he is the Director of the Institute for Communitarian Policy Studies (www.. From 1987-1989, he served as the Thomas Henry Carroll Ford Foundation Professor at the Harvard Business School. In 1990, he founded the Communitarian Network, a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to shoring up the moral, social and political foundations of society; the founding president of the International Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics in 1989-90; president of the American Sociological Association in 1994-95, and editor of the journal, The Responsive Community: Rights and Responsibilities from 1991-2004. He has received numerous awards and is the author of twenty-four books.
Ron Forthofer is a retired professor of biostatistics from the University of Texas, School of Public Health in Houston, was a Green Party candidate for Congress and also for governor of Colorado, a volunteer for peace and social justice, book author, contributor to many mainstream newspapers as well as to Dissident Voice and other websites.
Daniel Geery. Mr. Geery is Justice Party Candidate for Utah Federal Senator, www.danielgeery.com.
Jim and Megan Gerritsen are, in the editor’s opinion not only the salt of the earth but also role models in the fight against the corpocracy. They own and operate a small Certified Organic family seed farm in the State of Maine that markets products and those of a number of other Certified Organic farmers they know and trust, directly to their customers through their print catalog and their webstore,http://www.woodprairie.com. Jim is President of the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association, which is the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against one of the corpocracy’s role models, Monsanto (OSGATAet al v. Monsanto). See, e.g., 1. “Farmers Continue to Fight Monsanto’s ‘Seed Police’”; 2 “Monsanto’s Harvest of Fear”; and 3. “Top 10 Lies Told by Monsanto on GMO Labeling in California.” (1.http://ecowatch.org/2012/monsantos-seed-police/ 2. Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, Vanity Fair, May 2008 3. Michele Simon, Cyrano’s Journal, August 26 2012)
Amy Goodman. Ms Goodman is the host of "Democracy Now!," a daily international TV/radio news hour airing on 1,100 stations in North America. She was awarded the 2008 Right Livelihood Award, dubbed the “Alternative Nobel” prize, and received the award in the Swedish Parliament in December 2012.
Jay Janson, Korean War veteran, antiwar activist and prolific writer/journalist in American and international venues, founder and coordinator of the King Condemned US Wars International Awareness Campaign, and international performing, teaching and conducting musician (e.g., assistant conductor of the Shanghai Symphony and also of the Ho Chi Minh-founded Vietnam Symphony).
Mark C. Johnson, Ph.D. Exec. Director, Fellowship of Reconciliation, www.forusa.org Mark has served on FOR’s team since early 2007. On behalf of FOR’s domestic and international work, Mark travels regularly throughout the Americas and the Middle East. He is a writer, speaker, facilitator, and organizer who has led and supported dozens of campaigns for progressive, transformational social change. Mark was a conscientious objector to the Vietnam war, doing alternative service in Lebanon, living and teaching in Tyre and Beirut between 1967 and 1974. In his previous career with the YMCA, Mark also traveled widely in the United States and the world on special projects related to peace and leadership development. He served for 18 years on the staff of the Silver Bay Association for Christian Conferences and Training, located on Lake George in upstate New York. Mark likes to describe himself as a poet doing the work of peacemaking.
Rob Kall. Mr. Kall is executive editor, publisher and website architect of OpEdNews.com, Host of the Rob Kall Bottom Up Radio Show (WNJC 1360 AM), and publisher of Storycon.org, President of Futurehealth, Inc, and an inventor. He is also published regularly on the Huffingtonpost.com Mediate ranks Rob Kall among the top 150 print/online columnists, often ahead of NY Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post columnists. With his experience as architect and founder of a technorati top 100 blog, he is also a new media / social media consultant and trainer. He is a frequent Speaker on the bottom up revolution, politics, The art, science and power of story, heroes and the hero's journey and Positive Psychology. He is a campaign consultant specializing in tapping the power of stories for issue positioning, stump speeches and debates.
Maxine Hong Kingston. For more than fifteen years, Ms Kingston has led writing-and-meditation workshops for veterans and their families to help heal the trauma of war. Her books—The Woman Warrior, China Men, Tripmaster Monkey, The Fifth Book of Peace, and others—have won critical praise and national awards. President Bill Clinton presented her with a National Humanities Medal in 1997.
Ron Kovic served two tours of duty as a U.S. Marine in the Vietnam War and was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. In combat on Jan. 20, 1968, he suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed from the chest down. He became one of the best-known peace activists among the veterans. His autobiography, “Born on the Fourth of July,” was adapted as an Academy Award-winning film directed by Oliver Stone and starring Tom Cruise as Kovic. Kovic received a Golden Globe for his screenplay adaptation of his autobiography. Following the killings of student protestors by National Guardsman at Kent State College in 1970, Kovic joined the Vietnam Veterans against the War and transformed himself into a pro-active anti-war supporter. During the 1972 Republican Party convention, Kovic and some fellow vets in wheelchairs succeeded in disrupting President Nixon's televised acceptance speech, an event he considers one of the highlights of his activist years, which also included protests against nuclear-power plants, American interference in Central America and the too-often inferior medical treatment of war veterans.
Dennis Kucinich. Mr. Kucinich retired after 15 years in the House of Representatives. He was twice a candidate for President of the United States, and a former mayor of Cleveland. He is a pacifist and authored a bill to create a Department of Peace. He has created the website, http://kucinich.bluestatedigital.com where he asks its visitors to support his movement “to accomplish what we believe in and stand up for peace, justice, and human rights.”
Barbara Lee. Congresswoman Barbara Lee represents the 13th Congressional District of California. She is a forceful and progressive voice in Congress, dedicated to social and economic justice, international peace, and civil and human rights. She is a “Lone Ranger” (editor’s characterization) for peace. Just three days after September 11, 2001, appealing her colleagues to be rational, not emotional she cast the lone vote against "The Authorization for Use of Military Force" that remains in force today and that justifies killing with impunity all over the world in the name of fighting terrorism. Earlier this year Rep. Lee introduced a bill to repeal that legislation and also a bill to create a Department of Peacebuilding.
Patrick McCann is president of Veterans for Peace. He joined the USAF in 1970, four days prior to turning 18. He volunteered for Vietnam, where his father and brother were serving. Patrick met the Black Panthers in Chicago, and turned against the war. Opposition to the war led to stockade time, a bust to E-1, and an undesirable discharge. Patrick is currently a high school English teacher in Rockville, MD, and on the BoD of MCEA, an 11,000 member teachers' union. Patrick has been a union member for 28 years (9 in the Machinists, 19 in the National Education Association).
Ray McGovern was an Army infantry/intelligence officer and then a CIA analyst for 27 years under seven U.S. presidents, presenting the morning intelligence briefings at the White House for many of them. In 2003, together with other former CIA employees, McGovern founded the Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity and is now on its steering group. He has been an outspoken commentator on intelligence-related issues since the late 1990s and has joined the call for a new and independent investigation of 9/11. During a speech on February 16, 2011, at George Washington University by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton he stood silently with his back turned during her remarks, leading to his arrest. McGovern works with Tell the Word, the publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. His website is raymondmcgovern.com
Michael Moore, an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He has been highly acclaimed for his documentary films; Fahrenheit 9/11, Bowling for Columbine, and Sicko. Bowling for Columbine won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. He is also author of the book, Will They Ever Trust Us Again?, that is a compilation of letters sent to Mr. Moore by soldiers in Iraq and their families back home.
Walter W. Moore, WWII POW (pilot with his crew shot down in Germany). Afterwards, and until retirement, he was a professional marketing research specialist. He has been very active in local community groups. He is the author of the book, Wise Sayings for Your Thoughtful Consideration About Nature's Laws, Near Laws, Principles, Rules.
Ralph Nader, a political activist (a six-time candidate for President of the United States), consumer advocate, lawyer, and author. In his career as consumer advocate he founded many organizations including the Center for Study of Responsive Law, the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), the Center for Auto Safety, Public Citizen, Clean Water Action Project, the Disability Rights Center, the Pension Rights Center, the Project for Corporate Responsibility and The Multinational Monitor(a monthly magazine).
Hal O'Leary is an octogenarian veteran of WWII who, having spent his life in the theatre, and as a Secular Humanist, believes that it is only through the arts that we are afforded an occasional glimpse into the otherwise incomprehensible (he has written and published a number of antiwar poems and articles for OpEdNews). Hal was recently inducted into the Wheeling Hall of Fame and is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from West Liberty University.
Tom Perriello, President and CEO of the Center for American Progress Action Fund and Counselor for Policy to the Center for American Progress. He served in the U.S. Congress (2009-2011, D, Virginia), was the 2009 recipient of the Truman National Security Project Wise Man/Woman of the Year award, and recipient of the Legislator of the Year award from the National Association of Development Organizations and the UFCW Minority Coalition.
Windell Potter. Mr. Potter was Vice President of corporate communications at CIGNA, one of the United States' largest health insurance companies but left in May of 2008, partly influenced by Michael Moore’s documentary, Sicko. In June 2009, he testified against the HMO industry in the U.S. Senate as a whistleblower. In his own words, he has “worked tirelessly as an outspoken critic of corporate PR and the distortion and fear manufactured by America’s health insurance industry. It is a PR juggernaut that is bankrolled by millions of dollars, rivaling lobbying budgets and underwriting many "non-partisan" and "grassroots" organizations. He authored the popular book, Deadly Spin that reveals the machinations of the health insurance industry. Now a senior analyst at the Center for Public Integrity, a fellow at the Center for Media and Democracy, and a consumer liaison representative to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Robert Scheer. Mr. Scheer has a long and distinguished career as a journalist, prolific book author, and teacher with a reputation for strong social and political views. He is currently a clinical professor of communications at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. He is editor in chief of Truthdig, a contributing editor for The Nation as well as a Nation Fellow, and formerly a national correspondent for the Los Angeles Times. He can be heard on the political radio program “Left, Right and Center” on KCRW, the National Public Radio affiliate in Santa Monica, Calif. The most recent of his numerous books is The Great American Stickup: How Reagan Republicans and Clinton Democrats Enriched Wall Street While Mugging Main Street. He has received numerous awards over the years for his work.
David Swanson. Mr. Swanson worked as a newspaper reporter and as a communications director, with jobs including press secretary for Dennis Kucinich's 2004 presidential campaign, media coordinator for the International Labor Communications Association, and three years as communications coordinator for ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. He is Campaign Coordinator for the online activist organizationhttp://rootsaction.organd in April 2012, he began working for Veterans for Peace. He hosts Talk Nation Radio, blogs at http://davidswanson.org andhttp://warisacrime.org He is the author of numerous books, including The Military Industrial Complex at 50 (2012).
Debra Sweet. Ms Sweet is the Director of World Can’t Wait (www.worldcantwait.net) and leads its continuing efforts to stop the crimes of our government, including the unjust occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan and the torture and detention codes, as well as reversing the fascist direction of U.S. society, from the surveillance state to the criminalization of abortion and immigrants. Since the age of 19, when she confronted Richard Nixon during a face-to-face meeting and told him to stop the war in Vietnam, she has been a leader in the opposition to U.S. wars and invasions. She was awarded the American Humanist Association’s Heroine of the Year Award.
Patricia Nell Warren. Ms Warren is a best selling author who has written and published professionally since 1954, at age 18. In 54 years, her subjects have ranged from women and Goddess Earth to human rights, from gay life and mixed-blood people in American history to wildlife, the environment and current events. In December, 2006, Warren announced her candidacy for City Council in West Hollywood, CA. She was outspent nearly 10 to 1 by her opponents. While she was unsuccessful in her run, her campaign was much respected by the entire community for its positive, issue-oriented approach. Among Warren 's many proposals in line with traditional city issues, Warren 's campaign also issued a comprehensive white paper proposing that West Hollywood become the first city in the nation to offer a universal single-payer health care system for all residents. Today Warren lives in Los Angeles, where she owns an independent book-publishing and media company, Wildcat International.
Brian Willson, Vietnam veteran, lawyer, activist, a True Patriot. In 1987 he was run over and nearly killed by a US Navy Munitions train while engaging in a nonviolent blockade in protest of weapons shipments to El Salvador. He somehow survived while losing both legs and needing an implanted metal plate to keep intact his fractured skull. He continues to be unstoppable in his campaign to educate the public about U.S. imperialism. Actor Ed Asner said Willson was “the kind of patriot you don’t find anymore.” This site’s editor regards Willson as the True Patriot, one who exclaims, “My country do right and no wrong.” Seehttp://bloodonthetracks.infowww.brianwillson.com/autobiography
Bia Winter, artist/writer and an activist and letter-writer since the 60's. In 2004 she received the Roger Baldwin Award from the Maine American Civil Liberties Union for furthering Democracy after she got a Resolution Against the USA"Patriot"Act passed in her small home town in Maine, by overwhelming show-of-hands vote at Town Meeting. Her letters are often seen in the Baltimore Chronicle, as well as local papers in Maine. www.BiaWinterArt.com
Naomi Wolff, author, social critic, international journalist and political activist Naomi Wolf raises awareness of the pervasive inequities that exist in society and politics. Her books include the two bestsellers, The Beauty Myth, and The End of America: A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot, and the book Give Me Liberty: A Handbook For American Revolutionaries. She is co-founder of The Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership, an organization that teaches leadership to young women, and The American Freedom Campaign, a grass roots democracy movement in the United States whose mission is the defense of the Constitution and the rule of law.
Ann Wright, a 29 year US Army/Army Reserves veteran who retired as a Colonel and a former US diplomat who resigned in March, 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq. She served in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia and Mongolia. In December, 2001 she was on the small team that reopened the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. She is the co-author of the book "Dissent: Voices of Conscience." (www.voicesofconscience.com). She has written frequently on rape in the military. Dr. Wee Teck Young, a physician educated in Singapore who is a peace activist and volunteer health care giver earning no income and living in Kabul, Afghanistan. He reportedly has been denied a visa to enter the U.S.A.
ADVISORY BOARD
Timothy Gatto. Retired Army Sergeant. Former Chairman of the Liberal Party of America. A regular contributor to OpEdNews. Author of Kimchee Days, and From Complicity to Contemptand. Tim is Host of the Tim Gatto Show on Blog Talk Radio. He currently lives in South Carolina.
Arlen Grossman. Retired teacher. Writes a progressive political blog, TheBigPictureReport.com; is a regular contributor to OpEdNews; writes a weekly “What’s Your QQ?" (Quotation Quotient) quiz column in The Monterey County Herald (quotationquotient.com); and does a QQ radio segment on The Morning Show every Tuesday on KRXA 540AM, a progressive talk radio station in Monterey, and a “Quirky Quotations” quiz in Monterey’s monthly Foolish Times newspaper. He has a Journalism degree from Cal State Northridge and an M.S. in Counseling from Cal State L.A.). He lives in Monterey, on California's central coast.
EdHacker. Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Religion (Northeastern University). Prior to earning his PhD in philosophy Ed served in the U.S. Army. He is the author of several books and articles on logic and the I Ching. He currently writes political tweets under the username of @WTNWR, and is active in supporting Elizabeth Warren's campagin for the Senate in Massachusetets. Ed lives near Boston, MA
Ruth Hull. Chairman of a liberal Democratic club that is working to move the Democratic Party towards it's true base, the people. She has organized major political events and helped elect some of the most liberal politicians in America. Her career has included work as a criminal defense attorney, a licensed private investigator, an educator and a writer.
H. Kevin McNeelege (aka Ruff Bear). Member, NGACOTUS (National General Assembly of Occupy the U.S.). Author, “Agenda for the Consenting Governed, 2012.” Former practicing attorney. Educator. Playwright. Currently lives in East Greenbush, New York.
Rick Staggenborg, MD, former Army and VA psychiatrist who ran for the US Senate in 2010 on a campaign based on a pledge to introduce a constitutional amendment to abolish corporate personhood; Board President of Take Back America for the People (http://takebackamericaforthepeople.blogspot.com); Founder of Soldiers For Peace International (www.soldiersforpeaceinternational.org) and Host of SFPI Radio. Rick blogs at www.soldiersforpeaceinternational.org/p/pledge-to-ame.
Rev. Dan Vojir. Book author (upcoming book: Sacred Cows Make The Best Hamburgers - One Man's War With Righteous Arrogance); former radio talk show host (“Strictly Books " Talk America Radio Network); book publisher; writer of over 300 articles on religion and politics for OpEdNews.com; blogger (www.thedevilanddanvojir.blogspot.com); ordained minister in the ULC.
DEMOCRACY POWER STUDENT INTERNSHIP
America's youth are America' future. Trite but so very true and crucially important. This new program seeks qualified college students interested in becoming volunteer interns for a short term (its length will depend on the nature of the assignment and the intern's schedule). This internship is designed to help enhance the research and writing skills and subject matter knowledge, especially for students majoring in communications (including journalism), comparative religion, cultural anthropology, philosophy, political science, public affairs, pre-law, sociology, and psychology. Completing the internship might possibly culminate in a senior thesis and/or co-authoring with Dr. Brumback a paper (with virtual certainty of publication) in any of four topical areas. They are the corpocracy's compromise of the professions and science; the triangulated corpocracy (i.e., the interdependencies of an industry, its allies, and government); influences on and deterrents to America's constant warring and imperialism (e.g., the role of cultural differences such as religion, ideology, and the like); and any other topic relevant to the book, The Devil's Marriage as well as to this website.
Interns will receive a free copy of The Devil's Marriage. If funds become available to underwrite stipends they will be made available to interns, even retroactively.
For more information or for applying, interested college students can e-mail democracypower@bellsouth.net describing their Internet capabilities, tentative topical choice, background and availability. One intern position is currently left for this inaugural round. The program now has four interns (see the U.S. Democracy Corps Page)
CURRENT DEMOCRACY POWER STUDENT INTERNS
Kathrina Abrot is an undergraduate student in the College of Arts and Sciences at The Ohio State University. She is majoring in Political Science. She was a legislative intern, Ohio House of Representatives. She has chosen the topical area, cultural differences on matters of war and peace and "would like to discuss how major events throughout history regarding type of governing style, have shaped views on matters of war and peace." Welcome, Ms Abrot!
Mona Asadi, the first intern is an undergraduate student in the College of Arts and Sciences at The Ohio State University. She is majoring in neuroscience with a minor in cultural anthropology. She is a Provost Scholar, a Wildermunth Scholar, and has an Academic Competitiveness Grant. She is presently deliberating between two topical areas for her internship research, the corpocracy's compromise of the professions and science;" and cultural differences on matters of war and peace. Welcome, Ms Asadi!
Pablo A. Eralio is an undergraduate in the College of Arts and Sciences at The Ohio State University majoring in political science. He is the recipient of two scholarships and has consistently been on the Dean"s List. He is interested in cultural differences on matters of war and peace. Welcome Mr. Eralio!
Erin McAuliffe is an undergraduate in the College of Art and Sciences at The Ohio State University with a double major in political science and the German language.She has received numerous scholarships. She is interested in religion and its influences on peace and war from a philosophical perspective. Welcome Ms McAuliffe!