Dear Renata, I forgot to mention you folks, my apologies! And I believe you all were the first to get into community rights. All the best, Fred On Aug 18, 2016 12:26 PM, "renata sack" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Donna, we here have been working on it and were successful in having the > Black Hawk County Supervisors sign a resolution to the effect of > Corporations are not persons, etc……. > > We have more work to do with the individual communities, but we had new > mayors come in and now have to regroup an approach. > > Renata Sack > Waterloo. > > > On Aug 18, 2016, at 11:30 AM, Donna Buell <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > Thanks, Fred. This is interesting. Lots of good info. > > I have heard of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (celdf.org). > My understanding is that they want these ordinances in place to assure that > a legal challenge can be brought through the court system (some > multinational will challenge the local ordinance as a violation of the U.S. > Constitution). And a challenge again and again, if we need. In the hopes > that the U.S. Supreme Court will reverse itself. Is this your > understanding of the work of the CELDF? > > I think that’s great and I will get on the celdf.org mailing list. But. > But, the issue runs deep and wide throughout our legal system after a > hundred years of SCOTUS fallacy. I believe we need the court challenges — > and we also need the Constitutional Amendment to take us all the way back > to 1886 and reverse a pattern of court behavior that has corrupted the 1st > Amendment, the 4th, the 5th, and the 14th Amendments too. > > In other words, we need a backup plan should SCOTUS decide to do less than > what is needed. > > Thanks for the info! > > Best, > Donna > > > > > On Aug 18, 2016, at 10:59 AM, fred rosenberg <[log in to unmask]> > wrote: > > Dear Donna, and any others listening, > > There are several groups in Iowa working on what we think is a better, > more direct way to fight the corporate dominance that has overtaken our > country and world. This is called the Community Rights strategy. By now, > over 200 communities around the country have passed these very carefully > crafted ordinances that have directly and boldly (and legally) asserted > that the rights of the local community supersede corporate rights. Period. > and that even the natural ecosystem must have legal rights to exist in > their pure state. Most of these ordinances still stand. A few have been > fought back, or the ordinance pulled back. > > There is a group in Iowa City (100 grannies) that has been investigating > this, and also here in Fairfield. There is some interest in the quad cities > and elsewhere in Iowa. > > This approach bypasses the need to 'beg' regulatory agencies and/or > state/federal government officials to do the right thing. which is both > time consuming, expensive, and often futile. (witness the Bakken Oil > Pipeline situation for instance.) It does however require the local > citizens to rise up and understand their true political power. (see quote > from the Iowa constitution bill of rights, at bottom.) > > Here are several links, for those who are interested in learning more! Or, > feel free to write if you have questions. > > First, a link to the founding organization, The community environmental > legal defense fund. www.celdf.org. their founder Thomas Linzey has been > here to Fairfield twice. he spoke to full house audiences, and indeed his > initial talk was the inspiration for the Jefferson County Community Rights > Network. > > Second, below is an excerpt from this article > <http://paulcienfuegos.com/community-rights-movement-and-arc-nonviolent-social-change> > by Paul Cienfuegos from a couple of years ago. Paul has been to Iowa 3 or 4 > times, and is coming again in the next month or so. he is a quiet, gentle, > powerful speaker and advocate for 'we the people.' (Also, here > <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Prylnj4NQ8> is a great youtube video of > him being interviewed.) > > kind regards, > Fred Rosenberg > Fairfield > > A. excerpt > The rapid growth of the Community Rights movement over the past decade is > a powerful example of a new form of nonviolent civil disobedience never > before attempted in this country, and which is literally changing the > playing field under our feet. Municipal and county governments are passing > new-paradigm laws <http://celdf.org/section.php?id=39> that are > themselves "collective acts of municipal civil disobedience", as Community > Environmental Legal Defense Fund <http://www.celdf.org/> Director Thomas > Linzey calls them. Each of these new ordinances (and home rule charter > amendments) intentionally challenges existing law, because those existing > laws are themselves a violation of We The People's inherent right to govern > ourselves. > > Claims of state pre-emption and corporate constitutional so-called > "rights" are used to legalize the corporate plunder of our communities, so > in response we act through local law-making to obstruct that violence. We > choose to step outside of conventional law, and to exercise our right of > self-government. We consider it our duty to amend, alter, or abolish unjust > laws. 150 communities in seven states and climbing - there's no denying > that a powerful new form of nonviolent civil disobedience is being born and > tested in front of our eyes. > > Core to the strategy of what we are attempting to accomplish is to force > the powerholders - in this case elected state officials - to come out of > hiding and choose sides. Are our elected state officials defending the > rights of We The People? Or do they prefer to defend the so-called "rights" > of corporate legal fictions? Regardless of how the powerholders respond, we > win, IF we can sustain and build momentum at the local level, and > ultimately af the state and federal levels as well. This kind of direct > challenge is at the heart of powerful nonviolent action. (For more examples > of creating dilemmas for powerholders, click HERE > <http://wagingnonviolence.org/2012/03/how-to-create-a-dilemma/>.) > > B. excerpt from the Iowa Constitution > > *ARTICLE I. - Bill of Rights* > > *...* > > *Political power.* Section 2. All political power is inherent in the > people. Government is instituted for the protection, security, and benefit > of the people, and they have the right, at all times, to alter or reform > the same, whenever the public good may require it. > > > > > > On Thu, Aug 18, 2016 at 9:58 AM, Donna Buell <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > >> Hi all, >> >> Who is organizing around a Constitutional Amendment to clarify that >> corporations are not natural persons and that spending money is not the >> equivalent of free speech? I know of a few organizations — but, for >> example, Move to Amend does not have an Iowa state page…. Are there people >> — natural persons — on this list working the issue? Need some help? >> >> Thanks much. >> >> [log in to unmask] >> >> Donna >> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * >> To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to >> [log in to unmask] >> <[log in to unmask]&body=SIGNOFF+IOWA-TOPICS>, >> or visit Listserv online >> <http://lists.sierraclub.org/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?SUBED1=IOWA-TOPICS&A=1>. For >> all the latest news and activities, sign up for Sierra Club Insider >> <http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra-club-email/insider>, the Club's >> twice-monthly flagship e-newsletter. Listserv users are subject to the >> Sierra Club's Terms and Conditions <http://www.sierraclub.org/terms>. >> > > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * > To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to > [log in to unmask] > <[log in to unmask]&body=SIGNOFF%20IOWA-TOPICS>, > or visit Listserv online > <http://lists.sierraclub.org/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?SUBED1=IOWA-TOPICS&A=1>. For > all the latest news and activities, sign up for Sierra Club Insider > <http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra-club-email/insider>, the Club's > twice-monthly flagship e-newsletter. Listserv users are subject to the > Sierra Club's Terms and Conditions <http://www.sierraclub.org/terms>. > > > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * > To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to > [log in to unmask] > <[log in to unmask]&body=SIGNOFF%20IOWA-TOPICS>, > or visit Listserv online > <http://lists.sierraclub.org/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?SUBED1=IOWA-TOPICS&A=1>. For > all the latest news and activities, sign up for Sierra Club Insider > <http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra-club-email/insider>, the Club's > twice-monthly flagship e-newsletter. Listserv users are subject to the > Sierra Club's Terms and Conditions <http://www.sierraclub.org/terms>. > > > Renata E. Sack > 414 Sunset Road > Waterloo, IA 50701 USA > > 319 235 7395 > 319 240 4591 > [log in to unmask] > > > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * > To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to > [log in to unmask] > <[log in to unmask]&body=SIGNOFF+IOWA-TOPICS>, > or visit Listserv online > <http://LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?SUBED1=IOWA-TOPICS&A=1>. For > all the latest news and activities, sign up for Sierra Club Insider > <http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra-club-email/insider>, the Club's > twice-monthly flagship e-newsletter. Listserv users are subject to the > Sierra Club's Terms and Conditions <http://www.sierraclub.org/terms>. > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to [log in to unmask] For all the latest news and activities, sign up for Sierra Club Insider (http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra-club-email/insider), the Club's twice-monthly flagship e-newsletter.