Is this kind of ethics individualistic or not? Yes, if one means by that that it accords to the individual an absolute value and that it recognizes in him alone the power of laying the foundations of his own existence. It is individualism in the sense in which the wisdom of the ancients, the Christian ethics of salvation, and the Kantian ideal of virtue also merit this name; it is opposed to the totalitarian doctrines which raise up beyond man the mirage of Mankind. But it is not solipsistic, since the individual is defined only by his relationship to the world and to other individuals; he exists only by transcending himself, and his freedom can be achieved only through the freedom of others. He justifies his existence by a movement which, like freedom, springs from his heart but which leads outside of him.
Simone de Beauvoir - The Ethics of Ambiguity
Decentralize The State!
The U.S. National Initiative for Democracy, started by former Senator Mike Gravel and publisher of the "Pentagon Papers", has released a promotional video entitled "Moneybomb" using Charlie Chaplin's speech from "The Great Dictator". 'Goodkind' argues that the path to achieving this is through decentralisation and direct democracy to break down the entrenchment of wealth and power is entrenched in white, patriarchal privilege. Goodkind is a writer for the upcoming political documentary "Dear America: From Patriotism to Participation".
Watch the NID and Goodkind's essay at:
Changing The Debate on Refugees
Every time a small boatload of asylum seekers seek sanctuary in Australia the conservative media and their well-paid commentators go on the attack, milking the ignorant racism that still exists. Amnesty International is running a media campaign, seeking $30AUD from people to run an advertisement in the major newspapers to remind people that there is a human cost to Australia's refugee policies.
http://amnestyinternationalaustralia.cmail3.com/T/ViewEmail/y/8835B037BC...
This week Lev Lafayette, founder of Labor for Refugees, will also be writing an article for Leftfocus on this issue.
Bloody Diamonds
Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe is selling bloody diamonds on the world market? Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe has brutally seized control of his country's diamond fields and is using the profits from our precious wedding rings and jewelry to finance a vicious political militia.
Zimbabwe's diamonds used to be mined by local people. But in the last several months, Mugabe's thugs have brutally taken over, murdering up to 200 civilians. An international investigation in July found "horrific violence against civilians".
The group of countries that regulate the global diamond trade are right now meeting in Namibia to decide whether to suspend Mugabe and stop him selling his blood diamonds on the world market. Avaaz have organised an urgent petition urging international regulators meeting in Namibia this week to ban Zimbabwe diamonds. We have just 24 hours to persuade regulators to act. Signing the petition below which will be delivered directly to the meeting in Namibia.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/diamonds_for_love_not_hate/98.php?CLICK_TF_TRACK
See also
A Human Rights Watch report on the Zimbabwe mines:
http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2009/06/26/diamonds-rough-0
Ten Years of Political Action: Moveon.org
Online political activism can contribute significantly as the U.S. website MoveOn shows. Formed in September 1998, it now has over 4.2 million members. Move.On has funded campaigns for progressive candidates, placed advertisements in major newspapers against the war, organised email and telephone campaigns, helped organised anti-war rallies, organised and distributed short video campaigns, published essays, co-sponsored the 'Vote for Change' concerts, organised 70,000 doorknockers and visited six million households in the 2004 election, worked with the AFL-CIO to prevent privtisation, opened their homes to 30,000 Hurricane Katrina evacuees, campaigned for Net Neutrality (defeating a $100 million lobbying campaign by large Internet groups), helped start Avaaz.org and the election of Obama.
The history of Move.On is illustrated at the following URL:
http://pol.moveon.org/10years/
Translators Wanted
The Isocracy Network is nascent, and have started without any political and with minimal financial backing. But we are ambitious, and we want to grow. We are currently seeking translators for our basic statement (http://isocracy.org/about) so that people can other cultures can join our organisation with greater ease. We are especially interested in any who have skills in Arabic, Chinese and Spanish. Please email public@isocracy.org