You Don’t
Know ALEC
There’s a
creepy organization that has been socially engineering our Country since 1973. It’s
called ALEC http://www.alec.org/ , a relatively benign name for an Organization which operates
in the shadows. ALEC works behind the scenes, and very intelligently, http://www.governing.com/topics/politics/What-Makes-Alec-Smart.html they create their biggest influences starting on
the local level, at the County Supervisors’ and Land Planning Commissions, and
working their way up to State level. Bill
Moyers’ expose “The United States of ALEC”
http://billmoyers.com/episode/encore-united-states-of-alec/
quoted John Nichols as stating;
“If you really want to influence the politics of this
country you don’t just give money to presidential campaigns, you don’t just
give money to congressional campaign committees. The smart players put their
money in states.” According to their website http://www.alec.org/
its’ Board of Directors –every single one a Republican- are Congressmen
and Senators. (http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=ALEC_Politicians#Legislators_with_ALEC_Ties
) The ALEC Federal Forum (https://web.archive.org/web/20120530201512/http://www.commonblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/2005-ALEC-Federal-Forum-.pdf ) outlines the mission statement of
this Organization as “build[ing] a productive bipartisan working relationship
among current and former ALEC members at all levels of government. “ [sic] “all based on the Jeffersonian principles
of free markets, individual liberty, Pro-Growth and limited government.”
ALEC really
got going during the Reagan Administration, in 1981. Originally called “Conservative Caucus of State Legislators", and created to counter the EPA and all regulations designed
to protect the American people from the affects of industrial accidents and
safety violations, they changed their name to American
Legislative Exchange Council because Conservatives had discovered that the word “conservative” was
viewed negatively by the American public. They are a federally-registered
non-profit organization which acts as a bridge between Conservative Legislators
willing to trade their Votes and political influence for funding –HEAVY funding
backed by such Corporate powerhouses as the Koch brothers- and private Multi-National
Corporations and big Business interests. According to NPR, ALEC is a kind of
“Dating Service” between Multi-National Corporations and Legislators, with the
added bonus of the ability to introduce cookie cutter Conservative Bill
templates. For an audio http://www.npr.org/2013/12/10/249956329/how-alec-serves-as-a-dating-service-for-politicians-and-corporations
ALEC focuses
on several issues which affect American life. Their primary task forces (http://www.alec.org/task-forces/) are:
§
Commerce,
Insurance, and Economic Development (http://www.alec.org/task-forces/commerce-insurance-and-economic-development/
§
Communications
and Technology http://www.alec.org/task-forces/telecommunications-and-information-technology/
§
Energy,
Environment, and Agriculture
http://www.alec.org/task-forces/energy-environment-and-agriculture/
In April of 2012 their Public Safety and Elections Task Force; which
focused on stricter Voter ID Laws, Narrowing Voter Accessibility, OutSourcing
of Federal testing, and Stand Your Ground laws among other social issues; was
eliminated. ALEC stated that “We are eliminating the
ALEC Public Safety and Elections task force that dealt with
non-economic issues, and reinvesting these resources in the task forces that
focus on the economy. The remaining budgetary and economic issues will be
reassigned," Frizzell said. “While we recognize there are other critical,
non-economic issues that are vitally important to millions of Americans, we
believe we must concentrate on initiatives that spur competitiveness and
innovation and put more Americans back to work." http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/222025-corporate-lobbying-group-alec-backs-down-on-social-issues-amid-protests However, a brief look at the
other nine Task Forces easily demonstrates how social issues continue to be a
major focus with this Organization. http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=8072485
Some of the
Legislation which ALEC has advocated for, or opposed includes:
OPPOSED: In
the 1980’s, ALEC actively lobbied the Reagan Administration to cease all US
involvement in the Disinvestment of South Africa. http://www.pfaw.org/sites/default/files/83ALECsa.pdf This Disinvestment was a series of
sanctions designed to put pressure on that Country to end apartheid. http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/shilling-profit-case-study-alecs-campaign-against-south-african-divestment Since many of the Corporate sponsors of ALEC
had controlling or significant interests in South African companies, they were
adamantly opposed to any sanctions making business “less profitable” even if
that meant human deaths and violations of human rights.
OPPOSED: Civil Rights http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/civil-rights-act/ and Gay Rights. A 1985 ALEC Referendum
states that “the Homosexual Movement” was a “lifestyle choice”, and leads to
pedophilia. (http://www.pfaw.org/sites/default/files/ALECminoritygroup.pdf ) ALEC Exposed has a fairly comprehensive
list of the Civil Rights violating legislation Bill models which ALEC has
attempted to push through http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_Affecting_Civil_Rights_and_Our_Democracy
SUPPORTED: Stand Your Ground http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0776/0776.html Financed heavily by
the NRA, and indeed, written by them and then offered by ALEC as “model
legislation” http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/06/nra-alec-stand-your-ground the Stand Your Ground laws have spread to 23
other states besides Florida. Stand Your Ground Laws are often confused with
the Castle Doctrine Law (http://cga.ct.gov/2012/rpt/2012-R-0172.htm , but they differ in one important way: Castle Doctrine ends at your door, with Stand
Your Ground, unless you are a minority, you do not have the common law
requirement to retreat if possible.
OPPOSED: Anti-Gun Regulation, and all attempts to create a Federal Background
Check system http://www.prwatch.org/news/2012/12/11908/backgrounder-history-nraalec-gun-agenda or waiting
periods http://alecexposed.org/w/images/3/37/7J10-Resolution_On_Firearms_Purchase_Waiting_Periods_Exposed.pdf The NRA drafted
these anti-gun-regulatory Bills, http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/03/27/former-nra-president-we-helped-draft-floridas-s/185254 and ALEC presented
them as templates to their Representatives in Congress. Back in 2012, ALEC once
again teamed up with the NRA to draft a model Bill making illegal gun show
sales stings illegal. http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7BFB3C17E2-CDD1-4DF6-92BE-BD4429893665%7D/pse_35-day_mailing_2011_annual_meeting%20new%20orleans.pdf#page=13
OPPOSED: Abortion accessibility (http://alecexposed.org/w/images/1/11/5B5-Parental_Consent_For_Abortion_Act_Exposed.pdf ) and Reproductive health
care for Women (http://www.prwatch.org/news/2012/03/11356/arizona%E2%80%99s-alec-leader-wants-your-boss-make-decisions-about-your-contraception-cov ) including Bills aimed at the “Pre-Born” (http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/03/05/texas-alec-chair-files-preborn-pain-act-as-promised-by-rick-perry/ ) ALEC has been funding and supporting the
Americans United for Life Organization, whose main purpose is to make abortions
illegal, and to redefine a Zygote as a “Pre-Born Child With Constitutional
Rights” http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/01/30/americans-united-lifes-efforts-eliminate-insurance-coverage-abortion-get-help-alec-members/
SUPPORTED: The Privatization of our Public School systems, http://alecexposed.org/wiki/Privatizing_Public_Education,_Higher_Ed_Policy,_and_Teachers and has actively Lobbied to dismantle public schools. A List of ALEC Bill models are listed in the Common Cause-supported Library Wiki ALEC Exposed http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_Affecting_Americans%27_Rights_to_a_Public_EducationVia online schools, where students may never see other students nor an Educator, and the voucher or charter system, which funnels tax payer dollars to fund private for-profit schools –often with Religious foci – ALEC and ALEC-sponsored corporate lobbyists have been attempting to make a profit for a few on the backs of our children. In 2013 alone, there have been 139 ALEC Bills promoting a Private, For-Profit Education Model. http://www.publicschoolshakedown.org/ALEC-Education-Bills-2013 The research on the efficacy of the School Voucher Program is still on-going. However, there are some interesting points which have been uncovered. For example, recent studies have generally found no concise or clear academic advantage in student achievement for students attending private vouchers compared to their Public school counterparts. Voucher schools tend to be approx. 13 percentage points less integrated than Public Schools. Voucher schools tend to have less diversity, and students who remained in the voucher program through the duration of the study were much less likely to be African American or Latino than students within the public school system. Only 63% of current voucher users were minority students, compared with 82% to 89% of the public school comparison groups. Approx 70% of the Voucher schools are Religious in focus. The educational quality of teachers differs, as well. Nearly 51% of public school teachers have a master’s degree or higher, compared with only 18% of teachers in private voucher or charter schools. http://www.cep-dc.org/displayDocument.cfm?DocumentID=369 According to the National Education Policy Center http://nepc.colorado.edu/thinktank/review-report-card-ALEC-2013 “Overall, ALEC’s Report Card is grounded less in research than in ideological tenets, as reflected in the high grades it assigns to states with unproven and even disproven market-based policies. The report’s purpose appears to be more about shifting control of education to private interests than in improving education.” The Virtual School Program has fared even poorer in quality. In Virginia’s Carroll County, the School Board voted to close down K12′s Virginia Virtual Academy after 4 years of operation due to financial and administrative issues plus the fact that the Virtual Academy fared worse than traditional schools on 20 out of 22 measures. The Virtual Academies & the Voucher School Programs have little oversight, and are not held to the same standards as the Public Schools. http://billmoyers.com/2014/05/05/charter-schools-gone-wild-study-finds-widespread-fraud-mismanagement-and-waste/ The Integrity in Education Project http://integrityineducation.org/charter-fraud/ recently published a report charging the Charter school systems of 15 out of 42 Charter-approved States of fraud, waste and abuse of over $100 million dollars in tax-payer funding.
http://www.alecexposed.org/w/images/c/c9/ALEC_on_the_Environment_Final_PDF.pdf Corporate Responsibility in clean-ups,
long-term health risks to citizens, and litigation on behalf of injured parties
is fiercely opposed, as it affects the all-important bottom dollar. To date,
the Horizon Deepwater BP Spill in the Gulf of Mexico http://www.restorethegulf.gov/ is STILL negatively affecting small businesses, tourism, and
the health of citizens who live and work along the Gulf, not to mention the
incredible loss of wildlife still occurring. The EPA estimates –as of 2002 http://www.epa.gov/oem/docs/oil/fss/fss04/etkin_04.pdf
– that over 8 million gallons of oil spillages occurs annually in the
EPA-controlled inland waters. That does not include the off-shore spillages,
which are controlled by the US Coast Guard. According to BOEM, (The Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management) http://www.boem.gov/uploadedFiles/BOEM/Environmental_Stewardship/Environmental_Assessment/Oil_Spill_Modeling/AndersonMayesLabelle2012.pdf
227,374,392 gallons of oil and petroleum have spilled into our Oceans between
1964 through 2010
denying US citizenship to American children born here if parents are
undocumented; increase ability to detain immigrants for ANY reason, even if there was no crime
committed. http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Corporate-Greed/Mondays-with-ALEC-Immigration and detaining immigrants for prison profits http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/public-policy-private-corporations-detaining-immigrants-profit
a List of ALEC model bills relating to Human Health
OPPOSED: Any Bills
attempting to raise the minimum wage, (http://www.nelp.org/page/-/rtmw/uploads/NELP-ALEC-Wage-Suppression.pdf?nocdn=1?nocdn=1 ) or effect a “Liveable Wage”.
For an update on Bill Moyers’ video, here’s the full episode
OPPOSED: Anti-Gun Regulation, and all attempts to create a Federal
Background Check system http://www.prwatch.org/news/2012/12/11908/backgrounder-history-nraalec-gun-agenda or waiting
periods http://alecexposed.org/w/images/3/37/7J10-Resolution_On_Firearms_Purchase_Waiting_Periods_Exposed.pdf The NRA drafted
these anti-gun-regulatory Bills, http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/03/27/former-nra-president-we-helped-draft-floridas-s/185254 and ALEC presented
them as templates to their Representatives in Congress. Back in 2012, ALEC once
again teamed up with the NRA to draft a model Bill making illegal gun show
sales stings illegal. http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7BFB3C17E2-CDD1-4DF6-92BE-BD4429893665%7D/pse_35-day_mailing_2011_annual_meeting%20new%20orleans.pdf#page=13
OPPOSED: Abortion accessibility (http://alecexposed.org/w/images/1/11/5B5-Parental_Consent_For_Abortion_Act_Exposed.pdf ) and Reproductive health care for Women (http://www.prwatch.org/news/2012/03/11356/arizona%E2%80%99s-alec-leader-wants-your-boss-make-decisions-about-your-contraception-cov ) including Bills aimed at the “Pre-Born” (http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/03/05/texas-alec-chair-files-preborn-pain-act-as-promised-by-rick-perry/ ) ALEC has been funding and supporting the Americans United for Life Organization, whose main purpose is to make abortions illegal, and to redefine a Zygote as a “Pre-Born Child With Constitutional Rights” http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/01/30/americans-united-lifes-efforts-eliminate-insurance-coverage-abortion-get-help-alec-members/
OPPOSED: Equal Rights
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/labor/news/2012/08/16/12029/fact-sheet-the-wage-gap-for-women/ ALEC pretty much hit the ground
running when it came to Equal Rights. They began lobbying against the ERA in
1974, just a short while after they were formed in 1973. http://respriv.org/tag/equal-rights-amendment/
SUPPORTED: The Privatization of
our Prison system. Including lobbying for mandatory minimum sentences even for
small non-violent victimless crimes such as possession of drugs, and
three-strikes sentencing requirements http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_related_to_Guns,_Prisons,_Crime,_and_Immigration and prison labor
laws http://www.thenation.com/article/162478/hidden-history-alec-and-prison-labor ALEC influenced and
presented two major sets of Laws significantly easing the Federal requirement
which stated that Prisons could not enter into competition with outside
Businesses. Those two Laws are: Prison Industries Enhancement
Certification Program or PIE as it is colloquially known as. https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2010/mar/15/the-prison-industries-enhancement-certification-program-why-everyone-should-be-concerned/ and the Prison Industries Act http://mainstreetinsider.org/onepagers/112/S02E21%20summary%20-%20Prison%20Industries%20Act.pdf According to the Law, prisoners must be paid
prevailing wages, however, ALEC wrote in an end-around: “Diverts a portion of
the money deducted from inmate pay to “private sector prison industries
expansion accounts” that can be used to construct work facilities, recruit
corporations to participate as private sector industries programs, and pay
program management, implementation and oversight costs. As laid out in the 2004
version, this special fund receives the first $2 million of state deductions
from inmate pay and half of any further amount.” Thus, inmates are usually paid
approx. $1.oo per hour. VIDEO here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTpnRLorw3I Nevada has recently passed
Legislation demanding oversight and transparency of these “Prison Markets” in
SB 478 http://legiscan.com/NV/research/SB478/2013
Some of the concerns ranged from their “training programs” on-site on bridges
and other constructions affecting the safety of Citizens, as well as the
actions of Silver State Industries, where the Direction of the Nevada Department of Corrections candidly admitted
that the Department had not been following regulations, requirements or
protocols, and that there was a significant monetary loss which has yet to be
explained or recovered. http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/06/11/1215508/-Labor-and-Business-Win-Prison-Industry-Battle
SUPPORTED:
Stricter Voter ID Laws and diminishing availability to Vote.
http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Democracy,_Voter_Rights,_and_Federal_Power This visual map shows the States which have
followed ALEC’s lead, and those who continue to resist corporate influence: http://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/voter-id.aspx and here is an alphabetized listing
of every State’s required Voter ID requirements as of 2013. Thanks to State and
Federal Courts throughout the land, these are being struck down as
Unconstitutional, including the Voter ID Laws in Pennsylvania http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/18/us/politics/pennsylvania-voter-id-law-struck-down.html?_r=0
, Arkansas http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/24/arkansas-voter-id-law-struck-down-state-judge/ , Wisconsin http://time.com/81523/wisconsin-voter-id-law-struck-down-in-federal-court/ , Texas http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/texas-voter-id-law/index.html There are still States whose Voter
ID laws have yet to be overturned. Here is a Video briefly outlining ALEC’s
contribution to Voter disenfranchisement. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPX8yUyz4VE
SUPPORTED:
Union-busting Right-to-Work Laws Workers’ Rights list of model bills http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_Affecting_Worker_and_Consumer_Rights_and_More
SUPPORTED:
NAFTA http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/12/nafta-job-loss-trade-deficit-epi_n_859983.html
and Supports TTP http://colorlines.com/archives/2011/05/multinationals_peddle_the_myth_of_free_trade_on_the_hill.html
For an Organization whose stated purpose was strengthening the American
Economy, the support of both NAFTA and the TPP only positively affects the
Corporations involved, not the economy as a whole. OutSourcing of American
manufacturing and service has decimated the US Jobs force.
OPPOSED:
Safety Regulations and Licensing Laws http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/economic-civil-rights-act/ and Corporate Protection bills http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_Affecting_the_Rights_of_Americans_Injured_or_Killed_by_Corporations
SUPPORTED:
The Citizens United Bill http://alecexposed.org/w/images/f/f2/7G4-Resolution_in_Support_of_the_Citizens_United_Decision_Exposed.pdf
OPPOSED: The
EPA and adamantly denies any negative ramifications of pollutants in the
atmosphere, or climate change. http://scienceandpublicpolicy.org/images/stories/papers/other/55_benefits_of_co2_pamphlet.pdf All Laws pertaining to clean air, clean water,
and clean environment are considered to be tyranny on behalf of the Federal
Government, because anything which regulates Corporations’ ability to extract,
exploit, discard and pollute at will is considered by those Corporations as an
affront to their Rights of Profit. http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Bills_Affecting_our_Water,_Air,_%26_Land and http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Environment,_Energy,_and_Agriculture
5 top
anti-environment laws
OPPOSED:
Regulations on humane animal care and agriculture http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Environment,_Energy,_and_Agriculture including passing legislation
protecting people’s free choice, and State’s Rights to pass legislation supported
by its’ citizens. ALEC has come out in favor of the continued use of
antibiotics in livestock feed, http://www.alecexposed.org/w/images/5/55/3A1-ALEC_Resolution_on_Animal_Antibiotic_Use_Exposed.pdf ; DNA-manipulated high-yield
agricultural production by such Corporations as Monsanto, an ALEC Corporate
sponsor http://www.alecexposed.org/w/images/4/42/3A2-Biotechnology_Resolution_Exposed.pdf as well as against the Rights of
citizens to protest GMOs as ALEC supports activity by state governments to
safeguard against local governments regulating agriculture biotechnology. http://alecexposed.org/w/images/8/8b/3A3-Biotechnology_State_Uniformity_Resolution_Exposed.pdf
ALEC also has drafted the Ag Gag Laws, making it illegal to expose
animal cruelty by Corporate Factory Farming http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/wp-content/Images/alec_animal_ecological_terrorism_bill.pdf under the guise of “Animal Terrorism
Protection Laws”, these bills are so broad-brushed they include non-violent civil disobedience by environmental and
animal rights activists as terrorism. http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/ag-gag-american-legislative-exchange-council/5947/ This notable
inclusion in the Animal Ecological Terrorism Bill should frighten every
advocate: that anyone entering “an animal or research facility to take pictures
by photograph, video camera, or other means with the intent to commit criminal
activities or defame the facility or its owner” is hereby considered an act of terror.
SUPPORTED:
Tort reform to protect Corporations –in particular the long-term Health Care
Industry- from lawsuits in criminal neglect and abuse cases, making it illegal
to use state health investigation records in state civil
suits and makes such records inadmissible in criminal cases. http://host.madison.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/new-state-law-conceals-records-of-abuse-neglect-in-nursing/article_9a5fede0-7871-11e2-bd9f-001a4bcf887a.html?comment_form=true
SUPPORTED:
Anti-Immigration Laws, stating that “Illegal Aliens” are destroying America.
ALEC-introduced Anti- Immigration Bills http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2013/12/10/3043381/alec-immigration-bills/ include such tasty tidbits as mandated local
enforcement of Federal Immigration Laws and racial profiling; http://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/sheriff-joe-arpaio-racial-profiling-costs-taxpayers-21m
OPPOSED: All
renewable energy standards, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/documents/Electricity-Freedom-Act-121123.pdf and SUPPORTS taxes on those who have
installed alternative energy sources. http://truth-out.org/news/item/23238-koch-brothers-alec-grover-norquist-target-solar-energy
SUPPORTS: Fracking,
offshore drilling of oil and natural gas; and
nuclear energy http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2011-07-21/koch-exxon-mobil-among-corporations-helping-write-state-laws.html The Koch Brothers have served as Corporate
“Sponsor” Board Members of ALEC since 1995, and have controlling interests in
such projects as the Keystone XP Pipeline http://ecowatch.com/2013/10/20/koch-brothers-100-billion-profit-keystone-xl-pipeline-built/ , where they stand
to gain over $100 billion dollars if the pipeline is built; Koch Oil Sands Operating ULC’s Tar Sands holdings http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20120510/koch-industries-brothers-tar-sands-bitumen-heavy-oil-flint-pipelines-refinery-alberta-canada in Canada where the refining of bitumen and its’ “PetKoch” (or “petroleum
coke” ) storage systems –large 3 story piles of toxic coal ash- have negatively
affected the health and environment of citizens in Detroit, Michigan, and
Chicago, Illinois. http://www.midwestenergynews.com/2013/10/14/first-it-was-detroit-now-petkoch-piling-up-in-chicago/ These massive piles of
environmental hazards are then sent to China. As significant corporate sponsors
of ALEC, it behooves the Organization to craft laws weakening regulations and
storage requirements, while eradicating corporate responsibility to the Public.
OPPOSED: Health Care Reform ( http://www.alec.org/wp-content/uploads/State_Leg_Guide_to_Repealing_ObamaCare.pdf
) and advocates prohibiting “health insurers
from accepting federal subsidies under the Affordable Care Act that trigger the
employer mandate. Health insurers accepting subsidies shall have
their license to issue new business suspended for all business on exchanges
established by the Affordable Care Act.” (http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/health-care-freedom-act/ )
OPPOSED: Patient Rights, MediCare and Social Safety Nets
OPPOSED: paid sick
leave bills, in Florida for example, it is actually forbidden for local governments to enact paid sick leave
legislation. (http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-01-06/news/os-legislature-sick-time-fight-20130106_1_sick-time-delay-vote-measures Apparently, “smaller local government” only
applies if the “smaller local government” Votes as Corporate interests demand. http://www.prwatch.org/news/2011/10/11079/flu-burger-alec-wants-sick-people-serving-you-food
SUPPORTED: Anti-Taxes (Unless you have invested in renewable energy) http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/02/02/417488/florida-gop-alec-forget/
Just in
2011, the staggering number of ALEC-crafted, sponsored and presented Bills just
on legal reform ! http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7Bfb3c17e2-cdd1-4df6-92be-bd4429893665%7D/5-ALEC_CJ_tracking.PDF included 16 enacted Laws. It’s even difficult to categorize which areas
ALEC target, because in so many cases, they are linked as Riders to other
unrelated Bills, or an integral part of a different series of Bills. So many of
the ALEC Task Forces intertwine that sorting through them feels a great deal
like a kitten getting lost in a yarn factory.
It’s hard to
fight an idea, rather than a specific named issue. In particular, it’s difficult
for non-political citizens to understand the workings of a huge
Corporate-driven system designed to wrest control away from the People. ALEC is
a Hydra, http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/04/exposing-alec-how-conservative-backed-state-laws-are-all-connected/255869/
and for every head we cut off, another grows in its’ place. If we have
any chance of taking back our Nation from Special Interests and powerful
wealthy Multi-National Corporations, we must get up and participate in the
Democratic process. ALEC states it is a bi-partisan Organization, but there are
no Progressives involved, so just how fair and balanced can it be?
What can we
do?
Join NELP http://www.nelp.org/
Join Colors
of Change http://colorofchange.org/
Join Free to
Vote http://www.freetovote.org/
Take Action.
Join Common Cause
KNOW YOUR
ENEMY
And while
this may sound simple, hit them where they hurt the most: in the pocketbook. Contact
the Corporations and Non-Profits still involved with ALEC http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/ALEC_Corporations
and tell them how you feel about their involvement in Politics. Double
check to see if you regularly purchase from any of these Companies or support
them in any way, and BOYCOTT THEM. Make
sure to let the businesses know what your intent is; make it public. Post on
their Social Networking pages. Use the Contact Us option on their website. Call
them on the telephone. We must make our voices and our hearts known. This is
probably one of the most effective ways to affect change, since ALEC is all
about the “Free Market” and how Corporations can squeeze out more profits. Thanks
to Common Cause http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=8281551
and several other Progressive Watch Dog organizations, ALEC’s Corporate members have been exposed to
public scrutiny via a Freedom of Information Act request and an IRS Tax
Whistleblower Act Complaint http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=8060297 which put enough pressure on some of their
sponsors to drive them away http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-03/alecs-secrets-revealed-corporations-flee . When Colors of Change http://colorofchange.org/campaign/alecvotingrights
discovered in these documents how many Voter ID Bills have been
specifically crafted to deny poor and minority peoples from participating in
the democratic Voting process, they contacted these Corporations with a single
question: “Just how much do you value your minority customers?”
As you can
tell, ALEC represents Multi-National Corporate Interests, and affords owners of
Corporations and Share holders TWO Votes; a Vote as a Person, and a Vote at the
behind-the-scenes table between Special Interests and Legislators. This is a
bastardization of our Democratic process, and cannot continue to remain in
effect. Economics is not, nor should it EVER be, the moral compass of our
Nation. American citizens have a Right to do business, but business is NOT our
Guiding Principles: FREEDOM FOR ALL EQUALLY is. How can we have individual
liberty when we allow corporate interests to drive our Government? How can
individual liberty compete with Voodoo Vulture Capitalism? How can an
Organization claim to desire limited Government, yet insists upon social
engineering and inflicting its’ morality upon all US Citizens regardless of
their individual and constitutionally guaranteed 1st Amendment
Rights? How can Pro-Growth Bills which affect the very rich positively, and the
Middle class and poor negatively, which as defined favors or advocates for the
commercial development and/or exploitation of land –including Park lands and
Public lands – and other natural resources, especially with minimal government
restriction or regulation and with NO input from the Citizens of the US who
have continuously supported protecting sensitive Park lands, wildernesses, and
Public lands possibly be a fair use of those resources for all? In short, it
cannot. ALEC’s claimed focus is diametrically opposed to the Constitutional
tenets of a Free People. Let us take our Nation back, back to We the People.
But in order to do that, we must get up and participate. We MUST Vote. ALEC is,
and twice.
June 29, 2015 for my Blog and FB page
I am truly
and deeply and broken heartedly shocked at the behavior of Political Moll. I
wrote for them, and I will always be grateful for that opportunity.
They removed
me as one of the writers without any ANY AT ALL interchange or communication,
and that's OK< I understand that.
But I was
about to go back and link my article to another post and I find this:
http://politicalmoll.com/alec-a-threat-to-american-democracy/
Note the
author???
Here the
Internet Archive from when the article was uploaded.
https://web.archive.org/web/20140529004849/http://politicalmoll.com/alec-a-threat-to-american-democracy
Note the
author?
How is this
at all ethical?
