We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Sunday, June 13, 2010

National Priorities Project Tallies Cost of War through September 30, 2010

from National Priorities Project. 

This is an excellent site to track the Empire's costs of war and what might have been had the people in the US been in charge of their country. Be sure to check out their trade-off tool that allows you "to explore what services could be obtained for your community with the same amount of money that Congress has appropriated for war spending."