Tag Archives: stand your ground

Bob Sloan on the new slavery of the American prison factory system

By Mark | June 19, 2012

When I flew into Providence a few weeks ago, to attend the Netroots Nation conference, I caught a taxi from the airport to the hotel with a fellow by the name of Bob Sloan. Bob, like me, had won one of the Democracy for America scholarships, and we talked about our work as we made […]

Posted in Civil Liberties, Corporate Crime, Politics, Uncategorized | Also tagged ALEC, American Bail Coalition, Bill McCollum, Bob Sloan, Boeing, Bureau of Justice Assistance, CAD, Charlie Crist, Clearwater, company towns, computer drafting, corporatocracy, corrections, cubicles, Dell, Democracy for America, Department of Correction, early release bond, Escod Industries, ex-prisoners, factory, factory work, Florida, Floyd Glisson, GEO Group, HP, IBM, Indiana, Indianapolis, Jack Eckerd, James Crosby, James McDonough, Janet Reno, Jeb Bush, job training, jobs, Keefe Commissary, Koch brothers, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, minimum wage, National Correctional Industries Association, NCIA, Netroots Nation, Newt Gingrich, Nordstrom, OnShore Resources, Pam Davis, Pat Nolan, PIE Program, PIECP, pride, Prison Fellowship Ministries, prison industrial complex, Prison Industries, Prison Industries Act, prison industry, prison labor, prison reform, Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises, prison sentences, prisoner advocate, prisoner rights, Private Correctional Facilities Act, private prisons, privatization, Ray Allen, recidivism, restitution, Right on Crime, slave labor, tethers, Texas, the cost of incarceration, tough on crime, UNICOR, unions, US Technologies, Wackenhut Corrections Corp, workers rights | 40 Comments

Man has his gun stolen from holster in downtown Ypisilanti, unarmed man retrieves it for him

By Mark | April 19, 2012

I’m inclined to say that this illustrates pretty clearly why it’s stupid for regular people, as they’re walking around town, to be carrying firearms, but maybe I’m missing something… At any rate, it’s just a good thing for us that an unarmed good samaritan was nearby, who was able to keep this handgun out of […]

Posted in Ypsilanti | Also tagged CCW, concealed weapons, crime, fear, George Zimmerman, gun violence, guns, hoodies, Pearl Street, Trayvon Martin | 45 Comments

ALEC, the move to codify the extremist Republican agenda, and the Michigan connection

By Mark | March 26, 2012

Reading a column by Paul Krugman just now on the role of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in pushing so-called “Stand Your Ground” legislation around the country, I was reminded by a recent article in Mother Jones about how ALEC, working through the Mackinac Center, played a role in passing Michigan’s Public Act 4, […]

Posted in Civil Liberties, Michigan, Politics | Also tagged ALEC, American Legislative Exchange Council, Amway, anti-immigration, Brit Satchwell, Center for Media and Democracy, collective bargaining, conservative legislation, crony capitalism, Dick DeVos, Emergency Financial Manager Act, Emergency Financial Manger, Exxon Mobil, gun laws, Jonathan Williams, Koch brothers, Local Government and School District Fiscal Accountability Act, Louis Schimmel, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, Paul Krugman, Pontiac, privatization, Progress Michigan, Public Act 4, Rick Snyder, tax the rich, the growing gap between rich and poor, Trayvon Martin, union busting | 10 Comments

The killing of Trayvon Martin, and what it signals for the future of America

By Mark | March 19, 2012

By now, you’ve probably heard about Trayvon Martin, the 17 year old who was recently shot to death in a gated Florida community by an armed, criminally-overzealous-at-best member of a neighborhood watch group. Martin, who was black, was making his way back to his father’s home, after having purchased some candy and an iced tea […]