Jim HIghtower, always a good read. ( )

A decent review of a number of ways, movements, businesses, orghanizations, and individuals are defying convention and promoting more sustainable values in their businesses and lives. The descriptions are rather brief, but the authors are trying to cover a lot of ground. ( )

A central principle of American progressive politics is that the average American should not be afraid to stand up for justice and fair treatment for everyone in society. It is not necessary to attempt to fix all of America’s problems all at once; start with your own town or workplace. This book visits a number of people and groups doing just that.

It’s no great revelation to say that the American family farm is in very bad shape. A number of groups of farmers have banded together into democratically-run cooperatives to get decent prices for their products, something they could never have done individually. Employees of a Madison, Wisconsin cab company were tired of being treated like garbage, so they joined a union. A couple of strikes later, the owner abruptly closed up shop. The employees scraped together enough money to buy the company, and despite long odds and sleepless nights, have made the company a success. The employees of a strip club in San Francisco faced a similar dilemma. They joined a union and got their working conditions improved, then the owner suddenly closed the club. The women, several of whom have college degrees, decided that the only thing to do was become a worker-owned cooperative. They split up the duties, and got a crash course in running a business.

Creation Care is a growing movement that mixes environmentalism and evangelical religion. A way that corporations keep people apart is to assert, for instance, that gain for environmentalists means a loss for labor. Evidently, the Sierra Club and the United Steelworkers of America never got the memo, because they recently developed a joint public policy agenda, with clean energy at the top of the list. Don’t think for a second that a person loses their ability to make a difference in America once they reach "old age."

This is another excellent book from Jim Hightower. There is a list of addresses in the back (both regular mail and email) for all the groups mentioned here. If a person can’t find a local group in which to get involved, they could do a lot worse than contact any of these groups. What can I do to make America a better place? Here is a wonderful place to start. ( )

Jim Hightower and his long time collaborator Susan DeMarco have written a book sharing successful grassroots activism across the country. They have divided the book into three main sections that deal with business, politics and life. The third part they called life is mainly about religion and the environment. This book talks about the everyday people and how they can make a difference in all these realms.

Each section of the book has good examples of how regular people have worked together to against the large bureaucracy of government or business that is driven by greed of either power or wealth to do what they felt was right and in their communities best interest. These authors put forth that we, like our founding fathers, should stand up for our rights. And that hard work and perseverance does pay off. The poor and low-income masses, i.e. the people of this country, have the power to make a difference.

Though I agree with the main premises of the book, which is to do the right thing instead of just doing what is required to make the most money. They should have left it an uplifting book about being active in your community and working for what is best for all the people over self-interest. But they spent a lot of time laying blame. Regardless of your political affiliations the Bush bashing seemed out of place in this book. And part of the third section of the book seemed more like an Al Gore commercial for Gloabl Warming. This only seems to distract from a strong and true message. And I could not agree more that each and every person can make a difference in this world. They only have to decide if they will make an impact for good or ill, then stand up and be counted.

The authors summed it up best with a quote from Samuel Adams, "It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fire in people's minds." So pick up the book and read it, it is a good read and only takes an afternoon to read. ( )