Wrestling people power away from ruling elites is going to be a central
concern for relocalization efforts for the foreseeable future. At the
level of local government, where this is most feasible, it is already a
visibly hot issue, as the excerpts below from recent news items
illustrate well. When these questions become important political
concerns, it becomes necessary to educate people in local communities
about the real estate mafias who, in concert with local development and
commerce bureaus, have long been the decision makers on questions of
great importance to the public welfare in most small towns and cities
like Ithaca and my county seat, Cortland. These mafias will have to be
confronted and defeated before serious advances in relocalization can
occur.
There is much misunderstanding and misrepresentation by elites about what
political tools such as referenda and moratoria local communities can use
to regain democratic control over important community resources. Note
what political activist Mike Bernhard says on the Broome County Green
Party mailing list about the recent call by Caroline town supervisor
Barber's call for a moratorium on gas drilling:
"There is some misunderstanding about what a Moratorium is. It is NOT
what Barber implies, a state legislative action that awaits the election
of better state legislators. Nor is it something that counties can
undertake. It is specifically a TOWN law that requires a Public Hearing
before a town board can vote on it. Please see the explanation below for
how to enact a moratorium in your town.
"In general, the state and the feds don't like moratoria in that [they
are] too democratic ie. based on the notion that the people are the
sovereign power, which they voluntarily relinquish to governments (first
the most local, then the next, then the state, then the feds) on a
case-by-case basis. The ruling elite prefer to think of the national
gov't as the sovereign power, the states as subdivisions that can be
pre-empted, the counties as subdivisions of the state, towns as
subdivisions of counties, and so forth, with the citizen at the bottom.
These are two diametrically opposed concepts which I call "democratic
self-governance" versus "the rule of law".
"So while Barber's calling for a moratorium is good campaign rhetoric,
the only proof of the pudding is the moratorium he passes in his capacity
as Town Supervisor for Caroline. Any further questions regarding the
moratorium process can be directed here. And keep us abreast of
moratorium activity in your community!"
Peter Monague's Rachel's Democracy and Health News has long been a very
informative and reliable source on many important questions bearing on
the economic, political and environmental health of our society. Here
from Rachel's is a recent example of a success story in wrestling local
control:
Rachel's Democracy & Health News #963
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, June 12, 2008
PACKER TWP, PENNSYLVNIA, PASSES LAW CONTROLLING CORPORATIONS
[Rachel's introduction: Another muncipality has passed a local law
extinguishing the rights claimed by corporations. They said it couldn't
be done, but it is being done.]
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania -- On June 11, 2008, the Board of Supervisors
for Packer Township in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, voted unanimously to
enact a law that bans corporations from dumping sewage sludge as
"fertilizer" and for "mine reclamation."
The Ordinance also states as a matter of law that, within the community,
corporations possess no constitutional "rights," privileges or immunities
intended for people. The community included this provision as a challenge
to corporate representatives who use court- bestowed constitutional
"rights" and legal privileges to nullify local laws and override the
legitimate rights of citizens.
Board Chairman Thomas Gerhard stated, "We felt that it was in the best
interests of the residents to adopt the ordinance."
In adopting the law, Packer Township became the third local government in
the country to define liability and impose penalties for chemical bodily
trespass, following the lead of the Town of Halifax, Virginia, and
Mahanoy Township in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.
The people of Packer Township also included a provision that recognizes
the right of natural communities and ecosystems to exist and flourish
within the Township, joining nine other communities that have asserted
environmental protection as an enforceable right rather than a matter of
discretionary convenience.
Karl North
Northland Sheep Dairy, Freetown, New York USA
www.geocities.com/northsheep/
"Mother Nature never farms without animals" - Albert Howard
"Pueblo que canta no morira" - Cuban saying
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