http://www.popularresistance.org/popular-resistance-newsletter-real-change-is-closer-than-you-think/

Real Change Is Closer Than You Think
By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers
Popular Resistance, December 27, 2013

This week we review where we are, i.e. at what stage of the progression of social movements do we find ourselves; and broadly outline the next steps.

Successful people-powered movements follow a similar arc of development. The best description comes from Bill Moyer's The Movement Action Plan: A Strategic Framework Describing The Eight Stages of Successful Social Movements. Moyer expanded this 1987 article into, Doing Democracy, a book published in 2001, a year before he died. You can see a video of Bill Moyer’s last public presentation. (Note: We have had a few concerned readers. The Bill Moyer cited in this newsletter is not the Bill Moyers of Moyers Media)

Moyer's work is heartening for social justice activists because it shows how movements grow, recede and change their functions at different stages. By understanding the current stage of development we can better define the work that must be done to achieve success and predict how the power structure and public will react to our actions.

In a recent conversation, Ken Butigan, a peace and justice activist who worked with Moyer, told us that Moyer wrote the first draft of the Eight Stages of Successful Social Movements so people involved in movements would not despair when the movement did not immediately succeed and seemed to disappear without success. These are expected stages of development. Just as we would not expect a 4th grader to be doing calculus, we cannot expect a social movement to jump from Stage 2 to the success of Stage 7. Each step in the process serves an important role.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/16/us/16folkman.html?_r=0

Judah Folkman, Researcher, Dies at 74

By ANDREW POLLACK
Published: January 16, 2008

Dr. Judah Folkman, a path-breaking cancer researcher who faced years of skepticism before his ideas led to successful treatments, died Monday in Denver. He was 74.

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Dr. Folkman, a professor at Harvard and director of the vascular biology program at Children’s Hospital Boston, is considered the father of the idea that tumors can be kept in check by choking off the supply of blood they need to grow.

The approach is now embodied in several successful cancer drugs, most notably Avastin, by Genentech.

“His vision and ideas literally changed the course of modern medicine,” said Dr. William Li, a former student of Dr. Folkman’s, who is president of the Angiogenesis Foundation, an organization that promotes the promise of Dr. Folkman’s approach. Angiogenesis refers to the formation of new blood vessels.

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http://www.montereyherald.com/news/ci_24576238/state-briefs-bart-board-rejects-family-leave-provision

The Monterey County Herald
POSTED: 11/21/2013 08:38:12 PM PST
UPDATED: 11/21/2013 09:36:11 PM PST

SACRAMENTO

State adopts new flammability rules

California on Thursday adopted new flammability standards for furniture and other products that would allow manufacturers to stop using chemical flame retardants.

Gov. Jerry Brown said the new standards were a badly needed update to nearly 40-year-old rules that led to the widespread use of chemicals known as PBDEs to treat the foam found inside furniture.

Brown said the new standards will keep furniture in homes fire-safe while limiting chemical exposure.

The rules require manufacturers to be in compliance by Jan. 1, 2015.

http://www.psr.org/environment-and-health/environmental-health-policy-institute/flame-retardants.html

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About

Welcome to PSR's Environmental Health Policy Institute, where we ask questions -- then we ask the experts to answer them. Join us as physicians, health professionals, and environmental health experts share their ideas, inspiration, and analysis about toxic chemicals and environmental health policy.

This Month's Contributors

Courtney Carignan, PhD
Kristine Jinnett, PhD
Pamela K. Miller
Ami Zota, ScD, MS

Flame Retardants: Is California's Victory the End of This Story?
Posted by Kathy Attar

Babies born in the U.S. have in their bodies the highest average concentrations of flame retardant chemicals of any infants in the world. How did this come to be? For decades, manufacturers have treated furniture cushions and upholstery with toxic chemicals to comply with a flammability standard set by a lone state, California.

Our latest Environmental Health Policy Institute looks at how this standard -- and the tons of toxic flame retardant chemicals it brought into our homes and lives -- affect our health and the health of our children. Exposure to flame-retardant chemicals has been linked to reproductive and developmental toxicity, hormonal disruption, immunotoxicity, lowered IQ and cancer. Many of these chemicals persist in the environment and can move up the food chain to reside in humans. One example is the polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), a class of flame retardants; high levels of this chemical are found in the maternal blood serum of indigenous women of Alaska. Research also reveals that competitive gymnasts in the U.S. have three times the level of brominated flame retardant PentaBDE, in their bodies compared to the general population, due to its presence in gym mats. Read our Institute and find out more about flame retardants’ persistent and bio-accumulative nature and dangerous health effects.

Fortunately, the flammability standard was recently rejected by California Governor Jerry Brown, due primarily to the advocacy activities of a group of scientists and public health advocates. California’s victory will most likely have national implications as manufacturers no longer have to meet this outdated standard.

Read on to learn more about the campaign’s successes, as well as the current and future health implications of exposure to toxic flame retardants.

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http://www.capradio.org/articles/2013/11/21/california-governor-jerry-brown-announces-new-furniture-flammability-standards/

California Governor Jerry Brown Announces New Furniture Flammability Standards
By Max Pringle

California Governor Jerry Brown has announced the approval of new state furniture flammability standards that will reduce the required levels of chemical flame retardants. Some retardants can pose a health risk.

(Sacramento, CA)
Thursday, November 21, 2013

Russ Heimerich with the California Department of Consumer Affairs says prior flammability tests focused on the insides of furniture, while the new tests focus on areas where smoldering cigarettes and other heat sources would pose the greatest risk.

“They can either prove to us that their covering fabric meets the smolder test, or if it doesn’t, that they have a barrier underneath that covering fabric that does meet a smolder test,” says Heimerich.

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http://rt.com/usa/connecticut-malloy-gmo-labels-148/

'This is the time!’ Connecticut gov signs first GMO labeling law in US
Published time: December 12, 2013 16:44
Edited time: December 13, 2013 16:06

The governor of Connecticut hosted a ceremonial signing outside an organic restaurant in the city of Fairfield on Wednesday to commemorate the state’s passing of what could be the first GMO labeling law of its type in the United States.

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Now with Connecticut taking the lead, Gov. Malloy hopes other states will do the same.

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Malloy was flanked by state lawmakers from both the right and the left at Wednesday’s event, and Republicans and Democrats alike are now aligning themselves in the fight.

“This bill moves forward and reinforces our fundamental right to know what is in our food so we can make informed choices about what we feed our families,” said Rep. Tony Hwang (R-Fairfield-Trumbull), according to reporter Christina Chiarelli. “Consumers may or may not wish to purchase foods that they know to be genetically modified, but they need the information made available to them to make those informed choices.”

“Passing this bill is courageous and monumental,” added Rep. Philip Miller (D-Essex). “It is an affirmation for healthy, sustainable agriculture and responsible stewardship of our food supply. The ever growing grassroots efforts of Connecticut citizens has come to fruition with the passing of this legislation. I thank Governor Malloy for being a champion of our right to participate in building our economy as fully informed consumers and citizens.”

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http://www.fairfieldcitizenonline.com/news/article/Malloy-signs-state-GMO-labeling-law-in-Fairfield-5056025.php

Malloy signs state GMO labeling law in Fairfield
Genevieve Reilly
Published 4:55 pm, Wednesday, December 11, 2013

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Governor Dannel P. Malloy samples a juice drink with Tara Cook-Littman, second from left, after a ceremonial bill signing of Public Act 13-183, that requires the labeling of genetically engineered foods, at Catch a Healthy Habit Cafe at 39 Unquowa Road in Fairfield, Conn. on Wednesday, December 12, 2013. Cook-Littman, of GMO Free CT, has been the driving force championing the GMO labeling law in the legislature. Photo: Brian A. Pounds

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Connecticut is the first state to enact such legislation, but the rules will take effect only after at least four other states enact similar legislation. The bill also requires that any combination of Northeast states with a combined population of at least 20 million must adopt similar laws in order for the Connecticut regulations to take effect.

"This is a beginning, and I want to be clear what it is a beginning of," Malloy said, before putting pen to paper. "It is a national movement that will requiring (food) labeling."

Malloy said residents must speak up when they go food stores and are unable to find detailed lableing of food ingredients. "This is the time," he said. "You better get ready; people are coming and this is not a movement you are going to stop."

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Hwang said the efforts to win approval for the GMO labeling bill underscore the reality that grassroots movements can, and do, make a difference.

http://www.nrdc.org/food/saving-antibiotics.asp

Saving Antibiotics
What You Need to Know About Antibiotics Abuse on Farms

BY THE NUMBERS

80 percent of antibacterial drugs (about 29 million pounds) are sold for use in livestock in the United States and the vast majority are used on animals that are not sick.

In 2010, almost 52 percent of retail chicken breasts tested by FDA were contaminated with antibiotic-resistant E. coli.

According to a National Research Council estimate, eliminating all non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in livestock would cost grocery shoppers less than $1.25 per month per person in today's dollars.

Just one type of superbug, MRSA, kills about 19,000 Americans annually, more than HIV/AIDS.

Antibiotic resistant infections in the US are estimated to lead to up to $26 billion in additional healthcare costs annually.

MORE.

http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/akar/nrdc_sues_fda_for_failing_agai.html

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NRDC sues FDA for failing (again) to disclose information about antibiotic resistance
Posted June 6, 2013
Avinash Kar’s Blog

NRDC filed a lawsuit late last week against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for once again failing to respond in a timely manner to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for information, this time about antibiotic-resistant bacteria on meat and how antibiotics are used on livestock and poultry. The public health crisis of antibiotic resistance is reaching alarming proportions, and the public and the scientific community deserve the best available information to better understand resistance trends, monitor risky practices, target solutions, and track progress in reducing livestock antibiotic use.

FDA has utterly failed to respond to the information request despite repeated attempts to follow up. This failure is the latest in a line of failures to adhere to the requirements of FOIA. NRDC itself has filed several recent FOIA lawsuits against FDA, including on failure to disclose other information related to antibiotics.

NRDC filed this request in November last year, seeking information on the volume of antibiotics used in livestock as well the data underlying reports on the presence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in meat.

FDA collects data about antimicrobial resistance of foodborne bacteria in retail meat through the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS); however, they only report a summary, and the data upon which these reports are based is not publicly available. NRDC sought the raw data underlying the reports, and FDA has failed to respond at all.

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