James McEnteer :
Chained together in Hell: Manuel Noriega and George H.W. Bush

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

No one was blinder to the criminality of Noriega, who was on the CIA payroll, than George Herbert Walker Bush.

Two for the ages: Noriega and Bush. Images from Wikimedia Commons.

By James McEnteer | The Rag Blog | June 19, 2017

QUITO, Ecuador — Manuel Noriega, former president of Panama, died in prison May 28 at 83 after decades in custody. What exactly was his crime? He was a monster who turned on his enabler: George Herbert Walker Bush. Though Bush, 92, is not yet technically dead, he and Noriega will soon be chained together in Hell for all eternity.

George H.W. Bush was born not merely into wealth and privilege but into the elite financial fraternity that built the modern American national security state. His father, Prescott, along with Allen and John Foster Dulles, invested heavily in Nazi Germany, before and after the rise of Hitler. Under the Trading with the Enemy Act, the U.S. government seized the Union Banking Corporation for harboring millions in Nazi money. Prescott Bush was one of the bank’s six directors. Other companies Prescott was involved with also had their assets seized by the government.
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Steve Russell :
The downside to impeaching Trump

Posted on June 18, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Rogue’s Gallery: We should all look at the presidential bullpen in constitutional order.

Sweethearts! Would Pence be better? Photo by Steve Baker / Flickr.

By Steve Russell | The Rag Blog | June 18, 2017

The investigations are scattered among the House, the Senate, and now a special prosecutor, and the rampant obstruction brings on periodic cases of Watergate déjà vu. It is becoming less and less likely that Donald J. Trump can keep the sticky stuff in the bottle. I think it’s probable that The Donald is guilty of impeachable offenses, but, like Watergate, it’s not so much the crime as the cover-up.

“High crimes and misdemeanors” are on their face broader than felonies, as Bill Clinton found out. In many states, Clinton’s perjury would not have been a felony because it did not touch a material issue in an official proceeding. If Congress were not dominated by Republicans, it would be possible (legal) to impeach Trump on the ground that he’s an inveterate liar in public matters who brings disrepute to the office.
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Richard Croxdale :
METRO | San Marcos’s limited minimum wage law has gotten little attention

Posted on June 12, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

The law, in force since last November, applies only to businesses seeking economic incentives.

Hays County Courthouse in San Marcos, Texas. Image from
Wikimedia Commons.

By Richard Croxdale | The Rag Blog | June 12, 2017

SAN MARCOS, Texas — $15 an hour x 40 hours a week = $600 a week before deductions, or $31,200 a year before deductions.

In February 2016, the city council of San Marcos, Texas, passed a law that sets a $15/hour wage as the minimum that a business can pay if it expects to get economic incentives from the City of San Marcos. The law became active this past November, and it is unique — there is no other law of this kind in Texas.

The legislation has received scant attention. The national Fight for $15 movement was not aware of the law and did not participate in the advocacy for it. Fight for $15 is focused on specific companies and broader statewide and nationwide initiatives. For example, in June, the group supported a San Marcos Wendy’s workers strike over the lack of air conditioning in the restaurant.
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The Rag Blog :
METRO EVENT | Bill Ayers & Bernardine Dohrn present a ‘Radical Manifesto’ June 21 in Austin

Posted on June 10, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Ayers and Dohrn will speak and Bill will sign his new book, ‘Demand the Impossible.’

Event: Demand the impossible!
What: Booksigning and discussion
Who: Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn
When: Wednesday, June 21, 2017, 6-8 p.m.
Where: High Road on Dawson
Address: 700 Dawson Rd., Austin 78704
Telephone: 512-442-8535
Sponsors: New Journalism Project and Austin chapter, Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)

Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn will be Thorne Dreyer‘s guests on Rag Radio Friday, June 16, 2-3 p.m. The syndicated Rag Radio program is broadcast live on K00P 91.7 FM in Austin and can be streamed at KOOP and at Radio Free America. Find other outlets at the Rag Radio page.

AUSTIN — Legendary activists and educators Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn will speak and lead a discussion in Austin, Wednesday, June 21, 2017, from 6-8 p.m., at The High Road on Dawson. Bill will sign copies of his new book, Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto, which will be available for purchase. The event is open to the public.

There will be free snacks, and drinks can be purchased at the High Road’s full bar. The talk is sponsored by the New Journalism Project, publisher of The Rag Blog and sponsor of Rag Radio, and the Austin chapter of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). A $5 donation is suggested.
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Harry Targ :
The political time of day: Neoliberalism, resistance, and a left yearning to grow

Posted on May 30, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Progressives today must mobilize against Trumpism while articulating an alternative
political and economic analysis.

Trump time: slightly askew. Image from m01229 / Flickr.

By Harry Targ | The Rag Blog | May 30, 2017

The rift within the Democratic Party was on full display at the California Democratic Party Convention on May 19 in Sacramento, California. Progressives joined members of National Nurses United, protesting the Democratic Party establishment’s refusal to support [a] single payer health care system. Rather than follow through with Democratic rhetoric that health care is a human right, establishment Democrats have responded to voters by scolding and attacking them.
— Michael Sainato, “Tom Perez Bombs Speech, California Dem Chair Tells Protesters ‘Shut the F* Up,’” Observer, May 20, 2017.

The new Trump administration is embroiled in a series of crises, with new ones emerging on almost a daily basis. The president is bombastic, ill-informed, and narcissistic. In response to his critics he engages in dangerous and unconventional efforts to transform the dominant narrative about his incompetence. He has authorized ruthless bombings in Syria and Afghanistan and threatened war against enemies such as North Korea.

More recently, in his diplomatic trip to the Middle East and Europe, he has reached a deal to sell $110 billion in weaponry to a Saudi Arabian regime which supports terrorism throughout the Middle East and a devastating bombing campaign against Yemen. And at home he has appointed cabinet members and advisors with long histories of white supremacy and anti-Semitism (almost in defiance of accepted minimal qualifications for public office).
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Alan Waldman :
TELEVISION | ‘The Detectorists’ is a sly, deadpan Britcom with many unexpected laughs

Posted on May 29, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Two odd Brit zanies with metal detectors lead a fun cast in this ribald rural romp.

By Alan Waldman | The Rag Blog | May 29, 2017

[In his Rag Blog column, Alan Waldman reviews some of his favorite films and TV series that readers may have missed, including TV dramas, mysteries, and comedies from Canada, England, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Scotland. Most are available on DVD, Netflix and/or Netflix Instant Streaming, and some episodes are on YouTube.]

Mackenzie Crook, who performed in the three Pirates of the Caribbean flicks, Game of Thrones, and the original British version of The Office, wrote and directed all 13 episodes of the droll English sitcom The Detectorists, which won the 2015 BAFTA Best Scripted Comedy award. It also garnered his brilliant co-star Toby Jones a 2016 BAFTA Best Comedy Performer nomination and the 2015 Broadcasting Press Guild Best Actor Award. It’s very funny stuff that sneaks up on you from the side.
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Marilyn Katz :
To impeach or not to impeach? That is not
the question.

Posted on May 29, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Like a horrific accident on the highway, Trump now serves as a dangerous distraction.

Donald Trump. Carictature by DonkeyHotey / Creative Commons.

By Marilyn Katz | The Rag Blog | May 29, 1917

CHICAGO — The daily revelations of the entanglement of Trump’s entourage have Republicans squirming and Democrats salivating at the smell of blood in the water. Former boogeymen like the CIA and the FBI have suddenly become heroes to liberals. After years of relative quietude, Russia has emerged once again as the evil empire, as if we were living in the height of the Cold War.

Even progressives have not been immune, with thoughtful In These Times writers like Kate Aronoff and Jeff Alson spending their considerable brain power on weighing the danger, in the case of Alson, and benefit, as Aronoff sees it, of impeachment.

While the speculation is entertaining — and great for the bookmakers in Vegas — for progressives and others who take care about the future of the nation and the world, this almost singular focus on Trump and impeachment is both mistaken and dangerous. Like a horrific accident on the highway that commands everyone’s attention, Trump now serves as a dangerous distraction.
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Ivan Koop Kuper :
METRO | Filmmaker Eagle Pennell’s downward spiral in Houston

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Texan Pennell, a ‘patron saint of  American independent film,’ became his own worst enemy.

Texas filmmaker Eagle Pennell (1952-2002).

By Ivan Koop Kuper | The Rag Blog | May 25, 2017

HOUSTON — Independent filmmaker Eagle Pennell had become somewhat of a permanent fixture in the bohemian Montrose bar scene after he moved to Houston from Hollywood in 1982. A creature of habit, he could be found parked on a bar stool any given night of the week at any number of the neighborhood watering holes. There, he held court all evening, talking about film and filmmaking to anyone who would listen and buy him drinks.

Not one to be burdened by personal possessions or leases imposed by landlords, Pennell preferred the life of a vagabond filmmaker. The tall, blonde, and charismatic Pennell was always on the lookout for a new benefactor with deep pockets to fund his next movie, or a new girlfriend with an apartment who could provide him with an alternative to the four walls of his rooming house.
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David P. Hamilton :
How Emmanuel Macron won and how
he will govern

Posted on May 23, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Macron is a centrist neoliberal who favors unregulated capitalism.

Emmanuel Macron. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

By David P. Hamilton | The Rag Blog | May 23, 2017

PARIS — Emmanuel Macron is a clever guy, as befits his history of being an outstanding student at all the top French schools. He has recognized a central axiom of electoral strategy: that your approach to an electoral campaign depends on the relative vibrancy of your democracy.

If you are in a race that will have a 10% turnout of the eligible voters, you mobilize your base and forget the center, which is insignificant in a race between partisan activists. In that case, the electorate is not a bell curve. Conversely, if you are in an election where 90% of the people are going to vote, the center is indeed the most numerous sector of the electorate and one must moderate positions accordingly.
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The Rag Blog :
METRO EVENT | ‘Celebrating The Rag’ in Houston this Thursday!

Posted on May 16, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

Editors Thorne Dreyer, Alice Embree, and Richard Croxdale are featured in a booksigning event at H-Town’s storied Brazos Bookstore.

Top, from left: Celebrating The Rag editors Thorne Dreyer, Alice Embree, and Richard Croxdale. Photos by Alan Pogue.

Event: Celebrating The Rag in Houston
What: Booksigning and discussion
Who: Editors of Celebrating The Rag
When: Thursday, May 18, 2017, 7 p.m.
Where: Brazos Bookstore
Address: 2421 Bissonnet St., Houston 77005
Telephone: 713-523-4701

HOUSTON — The editors of the acclaimed book, Celebrating The Rag: Austin’s Iconic Underground Newspaper, will speak, lead a discussion, and sign books at Houston’s storied Brazos Bookstore at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 18.

Brazos Bookstore, a Houston literary hub since 1974, is located at 2421 Bissonnet Street in Houston.

Thorne Dreyer, Alice Embree, and Richard Croxdale edited the book that Kirkus Reviews calls “A raucous, absorbing excursion back to the 1960s and and ’70s.”
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Allen Young :
BOOKS | ‘The Sixties: A Journal of History, Politics and Culture’ reviews the ‘Rag’ book

Posted on April 28, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

‘The book is a valuable resource, offering readers an excellent…overview of what the 1960s counter-culture and political movements…were all about.’

The prestigious Sixties journal has reviewed Celebrating The Rag.

By Allen Young | The Sixties: A Journal of History, Politics and Culture | First published online 17 Apr 2017

This article was first published in The Sixties: A Journal of History, Politics and Culture, Vol 9, No 2, and was published on The Rag Blog, April 28, 2017.

Celebrating The Rag: Austin’s Iconic Underground Newspaper, edited by Thorne Webb Dreyer, Alice Embree and Richard Croxdale, designed by Carlos Lowry, Austin, TX, Lulu, 2016, 316 pages, US$25.00 (paperback), ISBN-10-1365390543

Here are some of the words and phrases used by veteran radical journalist Thorne Webb Dreyer, to describe the underground press of the 1960s: “raggedy upstart newspapers,” legendary, trailblazer, freaky, raving, irreverent, revolutionary and more (4).

“And one uppity little tabloid way down yonder in Austin, Texas, would be a very influential player in the rich if relatively short-lived odyssey of the underground press,” Dreyer proclaimed in the first chapter of Celebrating the Rag. (4)

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Kerstin Johansson :
METRO EVENT | People’s Climate March at State Capitol on Trump’s 100th Day

Posted on April 27, 2017 by Thorne Dreyer

By Kerstin Johansson | The Rag Blog | April 25, 2017

Event: Austin People’s Climate March & Rally
Dates: Saturday, April 29, 2017, 1-3:30 p.m.
Where: Texas State Capital, 1100 Congress Ave., Austin
Sponsors: Austin People’s Climate Mobilization, 350 Austin, Public Citizen Texas

AUSTIN — I’m part of the group organizing the Austin People’s Climate March and Rally this Saturday, April 29, 1-3:30 p.m., at the Texas State Capitol.

Our climate and health, all of our communities, and the rights of people of color, workers, indigenous people, immigrants, women, LGBTQIA, and young people, are being seriously threatened.  Our fights are all tied together. That’s why we are planning a huge march to bring our demands to our leaders. We demand: slashed greenhouse gases, a clean energy economy, and climate justice.

People of Central Texas will unite to stand up for our communities and our climate. We will rally and march at the the Texas State Capitol from 1-3:30 p.m., Saturday, April 29th.
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