With no recognizable history or identity of its own, the Columbus anti-democratic Democratic machine—funded by Republican private interests who live outside the city that they have commanded for much of its history—are rooted in deep currents of U.S. history. Earlier this year, I compared “mayor” in name only Andy Ginther unfavorably to infamous mid-19th century New York City’s Boss Tweed. Tweed did much more for his city than Ginther can imagine.

As a life-long resident of major cities and recognized authority on cities and their histories, I must place Ginther and his anti-publics City Council and division heads in long- and short-term context.

When I was growing up in Pittsburgh, many major cities were dominated by corrupt, dishonest, self-serving Democratic machine politicians. Comparisons with loosely defined “mafia” and “mobs” were not completely imaginary. There were associations and parallels.

Our GREEP zoom #156 opens as the magnificent ANDREA MILLER of the Center for Common Ground tells us about the critical election in Virginia, showing us the astounding flood of money into these key races.  It’s an amazing show of the power of corrupt funding in what’s left of our democracy.

From the labor movement we then hear PATRICK CROWLEY, AARON WAZLAVEK and JAY PONTI fill us in powerful developments in the green economy as strikes proliferate throughout the nation.  The recent rise of organized labor is one of the great unexpected successes of the new century.

MYLA RESON and TATANKA BRICCA give us critical perspectives on all this.

Then WENDI LEDERMAN tells the horrifying on-going details of the Cop City assault on Atlanta, protestors and the actual law with a wave of brutal, illegal repression.

Pussy Riot performed from the stage at the A+R Bar Sunday after making an announcement “Pussy Riots isn’t a punk band. Pussy Riot is a protest performance.”

This didn’t deter a woman wearing a Bikini Kill shirt standing next to me from proclaiming “Pussy Riot is the most Punk Rock thing I’ve ever watched.”

Pussy Riot were performing Riot Days, a musical piece which is a book and movie written by Pussy Riot’s Maria Alyokhina about her stint in Russian prisons for opposing Vladimir Putin.

In 2012, Pussy Riot performed their song, “Punk Prayer” in an Orthodox Russian Church. “Punk Prayer” isn’t sacrilegious with a King Diamond intent. “Punk Prayer” invites Catholic women to oppose Vladimir Putin.

At first you might question why would Putin respond if some band didn’t like him? Two hundred fifty people in Columbus, Ohio were at this show. I saw a woman wearing a La Tigre shirt. Even with a Diplo remix. I would assume Putin wouldn’t worry about the Riot Grrl movement disliking him.

he nuclear industry’s war against renewable energy has taken center stage in California under Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, with a terrifying new development now threatening the state and nation with increased risk of intense radioactive fallout.

This week on October 24 — despite earlier assurances — Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) revealed that it will not test its 38-year-old atomic reactor in California’s Diablo Canyon for embrittlement during the current refueling outage, but instead plans to wait until the next outage in 2025 before conducting the crucial safety tests.

Embrittlement transforms a metallic reactor pressure vessel (RPV) as heat, pressure and radiation rob it of resilience. An embrittled reactor pressure vessel can shatter when coolant water is poured in during an emergency, causing massive steam, hydrogen and fission explosions.

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