Moyers And Winship: ‘Turn Left On Main Street’

Leave it to the estimable Bill Moyers and his senior writer Michael Winship to come down hard on people like Rep. John K. Delaney, who in his WaPo op‑ed lambastes all members of the Democratic Party who are politically to the left of John Boehner. Thank you, Messrs. Moyers and Winship; my patience with purportedly Democratic members of Congress who insist on pretending the Democratic Party is, was and ever shall be hardcore conservative just because self-proclaimed "New Democrats," "Blue Democrats," etc. have made inroads into the process of turning the DP into a Second Republican Party. Who the fv<k needs that?

Need Some Inspiration? Bill Moyers Is Ready And Willing To Provide

Does this Fourth of July seem bleaker than the last few? Is the sh!t flying so fast you can't duck it? Does your typically activist self feel overwhelmed speaking truth to power, because there's just so much power that needs to hear your message these days, and they're so uninterested in what you have to say?

Yeah. Me too.

One of my usual sources of inspiration in troubled times is Bill Moyers. No young man, Moyers is bound to feel the fatigue... but he never for a moment relents in his pursuit of social justice. Involved in Washington politics since at least Lyndon Johnson's presidency, he knows the ropes, and is not afraid to climb them.

And can that man interview! In the segment below, he even challenged the great Jim Hightower on the foundations of his populism, and showed him and his movement in the strong, positive light they deserve. The succeeding segment, on a new style of organizing to capture the attention of the powerful, based not on political party and in the absence of vast funding used by lobbies, is a sight to behold... and to be inspired by.

Here it is (if I can get Vimeo to cooperate). Happy Fourth; may your America thrive in the coming year, and maybe longer!

Hunger In America: ‘A Place At The Table’

Bill Moyers interviews filmmaker Kristi Jacobsen and nutrition and public health advocate Dr. Mariana Chilton on their film "A Place at the Table" and how America and especially its government continue to ignore and hide food insecurity, obesity and malnutrition... in a word, hunger... despite the vastly greater human costs and monetary costs of allowing people, especially children, to suffer that hunger compared to the costs of establishing food security for everyone. Moyers, always an excellent interviewer, intersperses his insightful questions with well-chosen excerpts from the film. The segment is about an hour, and although I am prejudiced (hunger was an activist interest of my youth), I cannot think of a better way for you to spend an hour. Please give it a try.