The Few . . . The Placated . . . The Occupiers

Our December 10 article about democracy, “income inequality”, and political influences was, in part, motivated by a number of comments by Occupy Lincoln (OL) members on our site. We decided to address those comments in articles, because we believed they’d raised some issues worth writing about. Since we had already planned to point out problems… more

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Does Democracy Balance the Income and Influence Equation?

Members of the Occupy Lincoln group noticed our recent article, “Occupy Lincoln Tipi Smokes and City Ordinances Burn, Officials Fiddle” and left a number of comments there.  Because we’ll be referring to some of those comments in the body of this article, we’ve linked directly to them so those who wish may see a particular… more

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Health Care Reform: Republicans Helping Implementation (For Our Own Good)

“The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.” ~ James Madison, 1829 So, all quiet on the health care front? Definitely not. There were recent news reports about the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to consolidate and hear several health care law… more

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Reader: Nebraskans Voted For Constitutional Amendment About Marriage

One of GiN’s readers has kindly offered to share his letter written to the NU Board of Regents about President Millken’s proposal to extend medical benefits to domestic partners of University System employees. The letter appears below, and thanks to Michael for sending it in. I’d also like to report that this subject has garnered… more

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Questions: What Is Justice? Does It Exist?

We here at GiN have been focused a lot on the City’s handling of the Occupy Lincoln issue, first and foremost because of the need for justice – the need for justice for all. Since it’s Sunday, a day of rest and reflection seems appropriate. In considering what I might share here, I wondered what… more

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NU Domestic Partner Benefits: Trying To Keep Up With The (Immoral) Joneses

753px-Gustave_Doré_-_Dante_Alighieri_-_Inferno_-_Plate_22_Canto_VII_-_Hoarders_and_WastersThanks to Nancy Carr and Reverend Shannon Chestnut for bringing this issue to my attention. I have been a little pre-Occupy-ed lately. Nebraska’s Board of Regents is apparently poised to approve a provision that would extend the University systems’ employee benefits to same sex and unmarried cohabiting partners. Reportedly, the rationale for extending those benefits is to ensure that Nebraska’s “institutions of higher learning” —– YES I use that term VERY loosely —– remain competitive with peers in the ivory towers of the upper crust elites known as universities and colleges. The pressure to be competitive, I now read, has increased since Nebraska became a member of the Big Ten. Geez. Making football the center of a state’s universe actually has consequences, huh? Source post to continue reading >>>

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Occupy Lincoln Tipi Smokes and City Ordinances Burn, Officials Fiddle

Following the issuance of a press release, Linda and I, as representatives of GiN, were invited on Coby Mach’s Drive Time Lincoln radio show. That press release and our discussion echoed and expanded upon the concerns of Nebraska Right to Life about City of Lincoln officials’ treatment of the Occupy Lincoln group as compared to… more

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The New National Past Time: Pipeline Hot Potato

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No! Wait… Is that a football? No, but it is brown. And it is oblong. Hey, it’s smoking! Wait! It’s a hot potato! It’s America’s new national past time and no, sorry, Husker fans, it is not football. It’s called Pipeline Hot Potato. So, let’s play! Let’s meet our… more

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So We Had A Resolution, Huh? Hmm. How IS That State Sovereignty Thing Workin’ Out For Us?

Nebraska was one of only fourteen states to see the successful passage of a State Sovereignty Resolution in the two year period 2009 – 2010, while well over thirty states had resolutions. In other words, the passage of the Nebraska resolution on April 13, 20101 , was no small thing. It took an organized effort… more

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For A Grassroots, Spontaneous Movement – Occupy Groups Are A Lot Alike

As I mentioned in our last article about the Occupy movement, I’m aware that a lot of people observing it, especially locally, dismiss those involved, labeling all the participants as “a bunch of dumb kids” who are incoherent and “don’t even know why they are protesting”. Even people who think the occupation of public property… more

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