Local
Fifty-four of Ohio’s largest employers paid their CEOs a median of 322 times what they paid the typical employee in 2020, according to a new report
Tuesday, December 21, 2021, 6:00 - 7:00 PM
Remembering friends and family who passed away while homeless this year. Sponsored by Columbus Coalition for the Homeless With support from the ADAMH Board of Franklin County This year’s theme: Preventing overdose deaths For more information, please contact the Coalition at 614-228-1342. Location: Trinity Episcopal Church 125 E. Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215. Also streaming live on Facebook during the event at https://www.facebook.com/columbuscoalitionforthehomeless.
The biggest news story over the past few weeks has been the continued exposing of the Israeli military’s use of dirty tech to surveil Palestinians, and the extent to which Israeli-made spyware is used globally by oppressive governments. As JVP Executive Director Stefanie Fox points out in her latest newsletter Every Single Phone Call: What Israeli Spyware Reveals about the US-Israel Alliance: “Right after the Israeli Defense Ministry criminalized six of the leading Palestinian human rights and civil groups by designating them “terrorist organizations,” news broke that the phones of multiple Palestinian human rights defenders were infected with Pegasus, the military-grade spyware created by the Israeli company NSO Group.
On the very same day, another investigation revealed the Blue Wolf and White Wolf Initiatives, an extensive network of technology used by both Israeli soldiers and settlers to collect and record photos of Palestinians that are fed into a massive facial recognition database.
Former president Donald Trump popularized the phrase “fake news” as one of his terms of universal condemnation for any reporting—or stated facts—with which he disagreed, regardless of their accuracy. It became one of his rhetorical trademarks to the delight of his followers and the disgust of the legitimate press and all others.
As it scrambles to fill their pages in the absence of Trump’s daily outrageous statements or behavior, the press fears that it lacks the kinds of attention-grabbing breaking news that attracts readers, and is repeated across the multiple outlets of the social media sphere. In repeated exaggerations and repetition of dishonest messages from right-wing provocateurs and media, the legitimate press recreates the phenomenon of “fake news” that they so loudly condemned.
Several dynamics intersect in this startling development. First is the decline financially and journalistically of the daily local and national newspapers. As more and more go out of business, reduce their staffs and reporting, become parts of large for-profit networks, and face intense pressure to survive, both reporters and reporting decline.
Sunday, December 19, 2021, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
We collect, pack, and send books to Ohio prisoners every 1st and 3rd Sunday. Location: Thirdhand Bike Coop, 979 East 5th Ave, Columbus. Please wear a mask, and please don't park in front of the building.
As Ohio Republican Senate candidates Bernie Moreno and JD Vance malign, misrepresent, and demonize hard working Ohioans from immigrant backgrounds, the Ohio Immigrant Alliance urges all people of faith and good conscience to denounce these attacks.
Bernie Moreno, a car salesman (some used) from Cleveland, entered the crowded GOP primary race for Sen. Rob Portman’s seat earlier this year and the vote is scheduled for May 2022. Moreno (pictured above) was born in Bogotá, Colombia, moved to the US at age five and became a citizen at 18.
A self-proclaimed “pro-Trump legal immigrant,” the 54-year-old Moreno believes Democrats allow immigrants to cross the Mexican border for their vote, which is a myth.
Nonetheless, this so-called Democrat plot Moreno rails against also suggests he believes in the “White Extinction theory.” Now he’s spending $4 million on an ad campaign running this month and into January attacking those immigrants who sought Ohio for its plethora of low-paying servicesector jobs.
Friday, December 17, 11pm
Studio 35, 3055 Indianola Ave.
Support Free Press writer Travis Irvine in his new film showing!
A Very Special Holiday
Dec. 22-30, 2021, 6:30 PM-9:00 PM
MadLab Theatre 227 N. 3rd St. Cols. OH 43215 (Doors open 6:00 PM)
TICKET LINKS:
https://ci.ovationtix.com/35811/production/1085336
or
madlab.net/tickets
The Secret Life of Santa & Mrs. Claus
By Lynnix Marie Price
Santa and Mrs. Claus take a vacation in Hawaii and trouble follows.
Quey’s Stuffy Puppy Nose Day!
By Julie Whitney-Scott
A young boy learns the responsibilities of taking care of a pet and his close friend learns that it’s possible to have more than one friend that you love.(Based on children's book by Quentin Edwards)
That Special Joy
By Julie Whitney-Scott
Three foster group home teens are forced to host a Christmas party for three seniors and one of them doesn’t want to attend. What lessons will they all learn about loss, grief, and love?
THE REASON FOR M4GP
World BEYOND War, December 15, 2021
Whether or not you’re familiar (as everyone should be) with Peter Ackerman’s book and film “A Force More Powerful” about successful nonviolent activism campaigns, or his other books and films on the same theme, if you have any interest in changing the world for the better you’ll probably want to check out his short new book, The Checklist to End Tyranny. A webinar on this book would have accomplished radically more than the recent Joe Biden Democracy Summit.
The book does not address the criticism that powerful nonviolent tactics have been used to undesirable ends by the U.S. government, coopting local movements for desired overthrows. Nor does it apologize for its dubious origins in the Atlantic Council. But, obviously enough, getting hung up on this shortcoming reveals primarily the lack of seriousness in those getting hung up. A powerful tool is a powerful tool, no matter who uses it for what good or evil or unclear purposes. And nonviolent activism is the most powerful array of tools we’ve got. So, let’s use these tools for the best possible purposes!