Sanders to Vote No on U.S. Military Role in Syria

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said today he will vote against the United States training and arming Syrian rebels.

Sanders said the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria “is a brutal and dangerous extremist organization which must be defeated, but this war cannot be won by the United States alone. There needs to be a real international coalition led by the countries most threatened – Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Turkey and Iran.

“The worst thing that we can do now is allow ISIS to portray this struggle as East vs. West, as Muslim vs. Christian, as the Middle East vs. America. That is exactly what they want and that is exactly what we should not be giving them,” Sanders added.


An Honest Man

I’ve known Ray McGovern since we were both about 7 years old. He was a straight shooter then, and he is one still.

He was a CIA analyst from 1963 to 1990 beginning under President John F. Kennedy and lasting until the Presidency of George H. W. Bush. From 1981 to 1985 he prepared and presented the President’s Daily Brief one-on-one to President Ronald Reagan’s most senior national security advisers including then Vice President George H. W. Bush.


Early & Absentee Voting Start September 19th But VT Candidate Information Guide Has Not Been Published!

What does “one week prior to the general election” really mean?    The Secretary of State Elections Division has announced on its website that Early and Absentee Voting Ballots will be at your Town Clerks Office on September, 19, 2014.   That means you can start voting.  But, the Elections Division has not distributed the NEW internet version of the Candidate Information Guide which Vermont Election law 17 V.S.A., Chapter 59, Section 2810, requires shall be published one week prior to the general election. 


Maduro! Please Remind Obama! MLK Condemned US Atrocities Covert Violence on Three Continents

  • Tell Americans and the world that the corporate media that works to destroy the beautiful Chavista peaceful revolution for a government of all Venezuelans and not just mostly for the rich, is the same media Martin Luther King condemned for lying and promoting US “atrocity wars and covert violence on three continents, since 1945, meant to maintain unjust predatory investments”
  • Dear President Maduro, slanderous Western media, promoting war and violence for capital gains of the mercilessly amoral automaton functioning speculative interest banking industry, has put you in their spotlight to better target you with defamation. This is then your opportunity to be heard a bit world-wide. In telling the truth about the USA, you will be protecting all of us, Venezuela included. 

Should Brattleboro Have a Co-Working Space?

Co-working Space – Should we have one?

When we two Vermonters walked into a co-working space in San Fransisco, we gasped. In front of us was a large room with long tables at which people were sitting laptops plugged into outlets in the middle of the tables. 

It was quiet. Some people were walking around. A tour showed us the phone booths, a conference room, the coffee gallery (of course, it was San Fransisco) and and upstairs space where companies were renting larger offices.  The space was specifically for “social entrepreneurs.” For us two, who at the time regularly camped out at the Blue Moose, it was a vision of what we lack here. 


Sanders Statement on Obama Speech on ISIS

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement tonight after President Barack Obama delivered a nationally televised address on the Islamic State terrorist group:

“ISIS is a brutal and dangerous organization that must be defeated. I agree with the president that ISIS is a threat to the international community and must be combatted by the international community, not just the United States. Most importantly, this struggle will not be won without the active participation of the people of Iraq and Syria. This cannot be a unilateral American action. As we develop a long-term strategy, we must not forget the painful lessons learned by the Bush-Cheney wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. U.S. ground troops should not be sent back into combat. I support the president’s airstrike campaign and help for the Syrian opposition.”


Welch Statement Following President Obama’s Address

Washington, DC – Representative Peter Welch gave the following statement after the President addressed the nation tonight:

“I have appreciated the President’s clear-eyed restraint to date in responding to multiple, serious threats in this region. I have supported his use of military force to protect American personnel still in Iraq and to provide humanitarian assistance to refugees in cooperation with the competent Kurdish military in northern Iraq. I fully agree with him that American combat troops should not be deployed in the region. And I applaud his leadership in forcing Iraqi leaders to form a coalition government to respond to the threat posed by ISIS.


It Is Time For Not For Profits To Pay Their Fair Share In Brattleboro – A PILOT Program

One solution to the chronic income short fall in Brattleboro is a program that has been implemented around the US with considerable success that has benefited cash strapped communities a Payment in Lieu of Taxes or PILOT for businesses that are listed as not-for profit and yet generate revenue.  While it would not be a legally binding, it is an agreement between the town and income generating business like the Brattleboro Hospital, Windham Land Trust, colleges, and not for profits that generate say more than $100,000 in revenues per annum to pay fixed percentage of revenues like the Brattleboro Housing Authority that pays 10% of their revenues as a PILOT.  Why should multimillion dollar businesses like Windham Land Trust, the hospital, the Retreat not contribute equit


Senate Poised to Vote on Constitutional Amendment to Undo Citizens United

BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 7 – One day before the U.S. Senate votes on a constitutional amendment to restore limits on big money in politics, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called the drive to undo Supreme Court decisions that gutted campaign finance laws “the major issue of our time” and said Monday’s showdown vote is “a pivotal moment in American history.”

“Billionaires buying elections is not what our Constitution stands for,” said Sanders. He is a cosponsor of the amendment to reverse Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and later court rulings that let millionaires and billionaires spend virtually unlimited and unregulated sums to sway elections.


At AFL-CIO Convention, Sanders Proposes Wealth Tax

SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 6 – With the wealth gap in the United States growing and greater already than in any other major country, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders today called for a progressive estate tax on multi-millionaires and billionaires.

“A nation will not survive morally or economically when so few have so much while so many have so little. We need a tax system which asks the billionaire class to pay its fair share of taxes and which reduces the obscene degree of wealth inequality in America,” Sanders said in a speech to be delivered this morning at the Vermont AFL-CIO annual convention here.


9/11 – The Unfinished Business

In the unfinished business of what happened on September 11, 2001 lay the questions raising doubts about the official story. During the 13 years after the attacks, the 9/11 memorials have centered on creating a status quo of remembering the heroes, volunteers and victims who lost their lives that day.

And like many remembrances, there is a blind spot that blocks out the other side of the story. By their nature, memorials need to be one-sided. There can be no doubt as to why people commemorate war memorials. In our pride and blind patriotism, we would not believe that the 9/11 attacks were perpetrated from within and without.


Senate Majority Leader Backs Sanders’ Bid to Stop Postal Service Cuts

BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 4 – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has added his crucial backing to calls for a one-year moratorium on U.S. Postal Service plans to close up to 82 mail processing plants, slow down mail delivery and eliminate up to 15,000 jobs.

Reid added his signature to those of 50 other senators who calling for a ban on Postal Service cuts as part of must-pass legislation to keep the government running into the new fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) organized the effort to block the cuts proposed by Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe.


Health Care Cliff Looms

BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 3 – Amid a major crisis in primary health care, the situation may become significantly worse unless Congress renews support for community health centers that care for 22 million Americans, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) warned today.

Sanders four years ago helped lead the effort to secure $12.5 billion in the Affordable Care Act to expand community health centers and to recruit more doctors, dentists, nurses and other primary health providers. The health centers provide affordable primary care, dental care, mental health counseling and low-cost prescription drugs for low- and middle-income Americans.


Step In The Right Direction

The CVS pharmacy chain just announced that it has ceased sellimg tobacco products.

Quote:

Health is everything.
Your health is our #OneGoodReason to be tobacco free.


Thank You from BS&L

Community Appreciation Day was a huge success on Friday and we have you all to thank for that!!

We would like to extend a special thank you to Vermont Country Deli for allowing us to purchase a whopping 1250 fresh baked cookies, Gougers Market for prepping all of the lettuce tomato and onion, Putney Road Market for helping us to purchase several hundred hot dogs, veggie burgers, and hotdog and hamburger rolls, and Hannaford’s for helping with the purchase of 20 lbs of summer slaw and hundreds of hamburgers.

Thank you to these local vendors for helping to make such a successful event!


Sanders on Labor Day

BURLINGTON, Vt., Aug. 31 – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement in advance of Monday’s observation of Labor Day:

“Today, we salute the trade union movement and all Americans who are fighting for the needs of working families.

“The sad reality of today’s America is that while the wealthiest people and largest corporations are doing phenomenally well, the middle class is disappearing and millions of Americans are working longer hours for lower wages. Congress must start listening to the needs of ordinary Americans, not just the billionaire class and their lobbyists.