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Tidbits - April 7, 2016 - Reader Comments: Bernie - Jewish Secular Values; Long Legs of Bernie's Army; 2016 - not 1968 or 1932; John McCain: Salute to a Communist; Fidel's Message; and lots more...

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Reader Comments: Bernie - Jewish Secular Values and what they represent; Long Legs of Bernie's Army; 2016 is not 1968 or 1932; John McCain: Salute to a Communist; Fidel's Message to Brother Obama; the Right Minimum Wage; Tech Workers and the Working Class; Israeli Minister Calls for 'Civil ' Targeted Killings of BDS Leaders - Azmi Bishara is No Enemy of the Israeli State; Military Leviathan and the Draft; Announcements: Washington, DC; Brooklyn; Berkeley; New York

Labor for Bernie and Beyond Plans for the Primaries and the Future

Dan La Botz New Politics
Labor for Bernie believes their candidate can defeat Hillary Clinton for the nomination. But Sanders supporters know that their candidate—even if he wins big in several more states—could have victory wrested from him at the convention. Therefore labor supporters gathered to discuss how to continue the movement into the future, win or lose.

The Cosmopolitans Tackles Race and Ageing - Interview with Sarah Schulman

Josephine Livingstone The Guardian
Writer and activist Sarah Schulman, whose new novel, The Cosmopolitans, tackles race and ageing, explains focus on LGBT lives and how gentrification isn't as simple as it seems. The Cosmopolitans is a beautifully written, page-turning novel about friendship, love, and revenge set in the disappeared world of 1950s New York.

The Roots of Black Incarceration

Joy James Boston Review
This recently unearthed text portrays the life of a 19th Century African American who spent much of his life in prison. Joy James guides us through this "startling," yet "instructive" book.

Donald Blankenship Sentenced to a Year in Prison in Mine Safety Case

Alan Blinder The New York Times
Former Massey Energy Company CEO was sentenced to a year in prison. He was convicted of misdemeanor conspiracy for willfully violating mine safety standards at Upper Big Branch Mine, West Virginia. 29 men died in the explosion in 2010.

The Panama Papers Could Lead to Capitalism’s Great Crisis

Rana Foroohar Time magazine
The Panama Papers illuminate a key aspect of why the system isn’t working–because globalization has allowed the capital and assets of the 1 % (be they individuals or corporations) to travel freely, while those of the 99 % cannot. I think we’re heading towards a root to branch re-evaluation of how our market system works–and doesn’t work.

What ‘White Folks Who Teach in the Hood’ Get Wrong About Education

KENYA DOWNS PBS NewsHour
Dr. Chris Emdin, who is also the university’s associate director of the Institute for Urban and Minority Education, has had enough of what he calls a pervasive narrative in urban education: a savior complex that gives mostly white teachers in minority and urban communities a false sense of saving kids.

Claudia Rankine Challenges White Teachers, Pities White Racists

Boris Kachka New York Magazine
Claudia Rankine, is better known for broadsides than bromides. Her stated topic at the annual AWP conference was “what keeps us uncomfortable in each other’s presence” or, more specifically, what she sees as persistent racial tokenism in MFA workshops.

Obama Supreme Court Nomination: A Missed Opportunity

Bill Mosley Washington Socialist
We should demand that the Senate respect the nominee of the President and give him a fair hearing and a vote But we should do more: we need an ongoing grassroots movement to pressure the White House to select judicial nominees – not only for the Supreme Court but all federal courts – who would bring to the courts a greater regard for social justice as well as more racial and gender diversity.