So........ We recorded this and forgot to post it in time to get it on the air. Real bonehead move on our part. The reason why is we have been working furiously this week on our comedy album, which you will be purchasing from us shortly.

This episode had some groans towards the kickoff of election season more than a year in advance but the second half of the show is an interesting interview with Tim Lockerby, the lottery loser suing his workmates.

You can find everything we do at murderrebelraidio.com, including our uncensored show, and Murder Rebel Radio. Our full blown abstract comedy endeavor that got us into radio in the first place.

Thanks for all your support and for downloading the show, you guys are the best.

In the photo above: Ohio Congressman Ryan and Ashley Allison a Franklin County organizer for Obama for America (OFA) talk outside the Short North Tavern on Sept 15.

Ryan was in Columbus to help fight against Ohio SB 5 and Ohio HB 194. After speaking with Ryan, I'm inspired, surprised and confused.

I'm inspired ordinary people such as myself can engage with politicians who spend much of their time in D.C. But
I'm surprised he said fracking (if done right) is a way to address Global Warming. And I'm confused by his support for a flat tax that is somehow progressive. I didn't know the two were compatible.

First, the congressman's remarks about taxes, then on to fracking and rebuilding US manufacturing.

Tom Over : What is your opinion on raising taxes on big corporations and the super wealthy. 1 percent of the US population controls 40 percent of the wealth. Meanwhile we're hearing about cuts to education and union busting affecting cops and firefighters. What's your opinion on progressive taxation ?

Congressman Ryan: I've been one of the few voices in Congress over the past couple of years making sure we do ask the top 1 percent to pay more. I don't think we have anything to be ashamed of.

If you look at the income that was controlled by the top 1 percent in the late 70s, it was about 9 percent of all the income in the country. Now the top 1 percent controls about 25 percent of real income in the country.

Youwillbeacreep.Fatbeardsaysit'ssoandshallitbe.

Andrew Sidesinger and about two dozen other activists were on Cleveland Avenue chanting and holding signs to remind President Obama he has the authority to reject the Keystone XL Pipeline plan.

Sidesinger said tar sands oil extraction violates the rights of indigenous people in Canada, and that it has an enormous amount of green house gas emissions.

"The tar sands is an incredibly dirty project. It destroys a beautiful pristine forest in Canada. It destroys, for every one gallon of gasoline made, 20 gallons of water."

As for why such an environmentally destructive plan is even being considered in the first place, Sidesinger said, "There are a lot of heavily invested oil companies and pipeline companies and people who want to make more money...Everybody drives cars and everybody wants more oil. They want cheap oil."

But this project won't lower oil or gas prices, Sidesinger said.

"Demand is skyrocketing. We need to find ways to reduce our usage, not continue these insane projects. There has to be a limit to what we as a society thinks is reasonable for ways to get our energy. We're scraping the bottom of the barrel, which you saw with BP and the Gulf of Mexico disaster. We're now in the Arctic drilling, where there are no resources to clean up a spill, and we're destroying a beautiful forest and turning it into a moonscape."

Sidesinger said there are better options for getting our energy.

Berchenko, the Ohio organizer for 350.org, an international climate change organization, was there on Cleveland avenue for a demonstration in view of Obama's motorcade as it passed on its way to Fort Hayes Arts and Academic High School where the president highlighted his jobs plan yesterday.

"We're here today to put the pressure on Obama to stop the permitting of this destructive pipeline--the Keystone XL--which would carry dangerous tar sands from Canada down to the US gulf coast."

Berchenko said the Keystone XL plan is dangerous for many reasons.
"It (tar sands oil) is the dirtiest form of fossil fuels on the planet. And the pipeline itself would be running over very sensitive ecosystems. One of them is the Ogallala Aquifer which supplies fresh drinking water for 20 million Americans."

He said the pipeline would also open up the Canadian tar sands to full extraction potential.

"Leading climate scientists have said if we burn the tar sands it's essentially game over in terms of climate change. It's a game-over scenario for the planet. We should not even be considering opening up the tar sands to full extraction. We should be doing everything we can to get off oil, to get beyond fossils."

Berchenko said he and other activists were there to remind Obama of the promises he made during his campaign in '08.

"He said that w/ his ascension to the presidency it would mark the beginning of the time that the rise of the oceans began to slow and the planet began to heal. And we're here to remind him of that promise."

Berchenko said the administration has not issued any statement regarding these demands.

Fallah said though this demonstration is in Columbus Ohio, it is part of a movement to improve the lives of workers all over the world.

“In my opinion, all these issues are interconnected…although we’re standing here today to support the rights of farm workers which happen to be mostly immigrants, the rights of American farmers are also being violated.”

He said the corporatist attack on workers is systematic and has been going on for a long time.

Fallah is from Iran.

“ I come from a land of oppression. It used to be oppressive before the Islamic Revolution and more oppressive even after the revolution. Ever since I can remember, I have been sensitive to the issues of poverty, injustice, human rights violations, and civil rights.”

Fallah agreed activists in the US have options that our counterparts in many other countries don’t.

“I think it’s the responsibility of everybody to stand up for the rights of others…If there are people who are not in a position to stand up for their rights (such as immigrant farm laborers who don’t speak English), then we’re responsible to stand up for their rights.”

“The fact that we can be here (in the shopping center where a Kroger store is located) is a good right, although it gets ignored because, unfortunately, a lot of people here are very disconnected.

“ I don’t mean to say they’re insensitive, but their lack of reaction (to the demonstration) may indicate there’s some degree of insensitivity. Also there’s a degree of comfort here which you may not find in other countries.

“Because ‘as long as I get my tomatoes for the lowest price and I get my clothing, I don’t care whether the sweatshop workers in Syria are getting raped, or if in Indonesia and other countries there’s abuse and slavery going on.’ Whether it’s in this country, which is happening, or in other countries there’s that attitude which is like ‘hey, as long as I’m ok and getting my stuff, then let it be.’”

“ Probably 80 percent, during the winter time, of the produce that comes to the United States comes thru those ports and from those farms (in Florida). The Immokalee workers are critical to our food chain and our food security. So we need to respect workers rights. We’re appealing to Kroger, which is a union shop, that they understand that unions are pressed ( to honor workers rights ) as well as the corporations”

The CIW (Coalition of Immokalee Workers) has been organizing since 1993.

“They’ve been on the right side of justice for that many years. So I’m here to support them.”

Stansbury said there is a downside to our food system that involves people in the US and other wealthy nations being able to buy a cornucopia of food for a relatively low price year round and at anytime of the day or night.

“Like they always say, 80 percent of all costs are labor. So, to keep the costs down, you have to keep labor down. That’s the management’s perspective.”

Stansbury said the CIW campaign connects to workers struggles around the world.

“The race to the bottom, starvation politics, or whatever you want to call it , the slave wagery that we’re in to, of only being able to make enough to make it to the next paycheck, (is bad enough but ) there are many people who are not making it to that next paycheck, and the (immigrant ) farm workers are some of them.”

Stansbury said the CIW fight for better wages and working conditions is related to the international trade of fruits and vegetables critics say hurts people in developing nations by making them dependent on global commodities markets for food, instead of using the food they are growing there.

Another All African Affair