Defending Indigenous Democracy

From its inception, the Public Good network functioned to defeat the anti-democratic movement in the US. One aspect of that work has been the exposure of the anti-Indian movement.

Uncivil acts such as that passed unanimously by the Idaho legislature, show how far we have yet to go before we can say we live in a respectful society. Until that day comes, there will be a need for applied investigative research and communication, which is where the Public Good learning center comes in. Presently operating online and in occasional conferences and teach-ins, we hope to expand our offerings with a brick-and-mortar presence in the near future. By making a donation to this initiative, you'll help us get there sooner.

As we noted at the beginning of our social enterprise fifteen years ago, safeguarding indigenous rights is part of defending democracy. It still is.

New College Update

For those who were wondering what happened after the Public Good intervention at New College of California this summer, here's the latest.

As warned by the U.S. Department of Education in early August, the revenues have been cut off until the school proves it has instituted sufficient accountability to avoid further fraud. As we predicted, the school failed to forewarn incoming students of the seriousness of the situation, and students are now losing their apartments they rented expecting their student loans a month ago.

The announcement by the school's trustees yesterday is that they hope to have the federal funds available by Christmas. Some consolation to students who enrolled while employed at minimum wage part-time jobs.

PS: Word just in that some faculty have refused to teach classes.

Only Human

While there is much to be said for studying the usefulness of the network form in confronting corrupt institutions, it is good to keep in mind that networks are only as good or effective as the people who comprise them. A good example of this premise is when the Public Good network collaborated with the CWIS network to expose a transnational criminal network involved in trafficking women for prostitution.

David Ronfeldt's proposition is that networks are -- like tribes, institutions, and markets -- a basic form of human organization. In theory, any of these forms can be either democratic or anti-democratic. In practice, some may be structurally more conducive to egalitarian relationships, but no form is inherently immune to corrupting influences; that requires effective exercising of principles of equality.

In other words, laziness, cowardice, or depravity can undermine any human organization -- no matter how pious its rhetoric.

Getting Connected

If you haven't checked out the Dailies listed in the sidebar in a while, Jay Taber is now writing a regular column for Fourth World Eye. Like Fourth World Journal, FWE provides geopolitical perspectives unavailable elsewhere. With the advent of this weblog, readers can now interact directly with the Center for World Indigenous Studies associate scholars. And while you're at it, you can follow the CWIS link to see what's happening at the Forum for Global Exchange, as well as the new CWIS media center.

We're Working on It

If you've found that some of the links on Public Good aren't working yet, that's because we're in the middle of rebuilding the site. Maybe one of the links in the sidebar here on Continuity will interest you while you're waiting. (They include some of the best from Public Good.)

We should have everything else up and running soon. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Bigot Busters

Political Research Associates has made the dirt on homophobic, anti-semitic demagogue Lyndon LaRouche downloadable. Make extra copies of this flyer for the next time you see his cult followers recruiting in your town. Become a bigot buster in no time.