Cheri

Cheri Harris is the chief administrator of the Parkland Institute and organizer of the Fall Conference, “Crisis and Opportunity: It’s Time for a Progressive Economy.”

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Judy Rebick video — “Fix EI” town hall meeting

posted Sep. 30 - 3:38 pm by Cheri

Judy Rebick is our closing speaker. She is an energetic and empowering speaker. In this video, she addresses the "Fix EI" Town Hall Meeting held at Ryerson University in Toronto, September 21, 2009.

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Dr. Michael Hudson — “This is Not a Free Market”

posted Aug. 18 - 11:40 am by Cheri

The Renegade Economist goes to New York to hear Dr. Michael Hudson's views on the state of the US Economy. Dr. Hudson is not speaking at the conference, but his interview is definitely related to the topics that will be covered.

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Why personal change does not equal political change

posted Jul. 22 - 10:19 am by Cheri

Are we taking the easy route? Dumpster diving wouldn't have stopped Hitler, and composting wouldn't have ended slavery. Author Derrick Jensen will be speaking at our conference in November.

Would any sane person think dumpster diving would have stopped Hitler, or that composting would have ended slavery or brought about the eight-hour workday, or that chopping wood and carrying water would have gotten people out of Tsarist prisons, or that dancing naked around a fire would have helped put in place the Voting Rights Act of 1957 or the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Then why now, with all the world at stake, do so many people retreat into these entirely personal "solutions?" Part of the problem is that we've been victims of a campaign of systematic misdirection. Consumer culture and the capitalist mindset have taught us to substitute acts of personal consumption (or enlightenment) for organized political resistance. An Inconvenient Truth helped raise consciousness about global warming. But did you notice that all of the solutions presented had to do with personal consumption—changing light bulbs, inflating tires, driving half as much—and had nothing to do with shifting power away from corporations, or stopping the growth economy that is destroying the planet? Even if every person in the United States did everything the movie suggested, U.S. carbon emissions would fall by only 22 percent. Scientific consensus is that emissions must be reduced by at least 75 percent worldwide.

Read Jensen's entire article on Alternet: Why Personal Change Does Not Equal Political Change

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Out with the bad, in with the good

posted Jul. 17 - 2:36 pm by Cheri

Here is an article from Duncan Cameron with some ideas for Canada:

Canada has tested the limits of the power of inertia in economic policy. It is time for something new. The current industrial strategy dates back to 1988; its basic document is the free trade deal signed with the U.S. by the Mulroney government. Other than the NDP, no parliamentary caucus has questioned the not so hidden agenda behind the FTA/NAFTA -- economic integration into the faltering U.S. Empire -- so it would be fitting for Jack Layton and his party to take the lead in putting forward a renewed economic agenda for Canada.

This year's conference is all about why the economic crisis happened and solutions to the problems. Read Cameron's entire article on Rabble.

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The perils of financial memory loss

posted Jul. 17 - 2:31 pm by Cheri

Wouldn't it be nice to get back to the way things used to be? Faced with unfortunate events, that response is understandable (if not particularly practical). That kind of wishful thinking was behind the financial markets' exuberant but short-lived rebound in the spring. Jim Stanford is the keynote speaker for this year's fall conference, and this is the theme of Jim Stanford's article on rabble.ca, "The Perils of Financial Memory Loss."

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Michael Perelman, on Market Myths, Past and Present

posted Jul. 07 - 2:34 pm by Cheri

Michael Perelman:

"Unlike the New Deal, when the government put people to work producing valuable projects that people can readily appreciate while walking around cities today, this stimulus is largely directed toward prettying up corporate balance sheets."

Read the complete article on Truthout.org.

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