All those who do not vote should flock to spread the word and write me in. Why? If for nothing else but to let the current politico-oligarch structure know just how sick we are of them! Because I am surviving on only 24k a year and taking no campaign funds and only doing a spread the word campaign for free. In the old days todays politicians would be charged with conflict of interest, graft, collusion, racketeering, anti-trust suits...just to name a few. Teapot Dome was a scandal of texas oilmen with undue influence in the Hmmmm..??? Thats why we need middleclass citizens with no corporate ownership like me to run! Please spread the word!Write in JimEllisForPresident08, a true grassroots FREE campaign, accepting no campaign money! Free America from Corporate "unspecial" influence! In a three way race we only need to win two of the large electoral college states.

I have often lamented about the difficulty of doing the "politically correct" thing. These people are not stupid; they know how to play both ends against the middle and come out smelling like a rose!

I would guess that you boycott Exxon/Mobil, that biggest example of a war profiteer - as did I. But I found out that the stockholders who are "raking it in" from the swelling bottom line include elders with small portfolios who are supplementing their inadequate Social Security pensions with dividends from their investments - like my father! And Mobil has a matching funds deal that will help to finance my grandchildren's college education! (I still don't use these brands.)

And what about WalMart? Yes, I've seen "The High Cost of Low Prices," and I've witnessed first-hand a nervous breakdown by one of their "greeters" as she jumped through hoop after hoop to get three days off in a row so that she could travel. But then I found out that WalMart was the first on the scene with bottled drinking water in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and now they are selling those light bulbs Al Gore wants us to use at affordable prices - due to outsourcing of jobs, of course! (I still don't go to WalMart.)

And what about the practice of buying politicians? It's like gambling the way the major financiers (both corporate and private) do that. They never truly back a candidate in an election - they might give 50% of the money allocated for that purpose to the favorite, 40% to the second runner's campaign, and split the other 10% among wannabe candidates just so they won't appear too partisan - just so they can cover their ***** no matter who wins!

There is more at stake than the war in Iraq, war in general, a particular piece of legislation, or any single issue. We have no voice in Halliburton's decision-making; I'd venture to say that almost nobody knows enough about what that company does to even attempt a boycott! We cannot regulate war profiteering; that job belongs to some amorphous body called "the government" - at least, that's what some people say, while others wish to allow Big Business to self-regulate!

Jumping up and down means expending a lot of energy but accomplishing no work. We can only do what we can do. Let's keep doing it. The sooner we accept these simple truths, the sooner we will be able to do what we can do with certainty and joy for the culture of peace we represent. At least we'll know, if armageddon comes, that we were not a part of its creation and are welcome on the other side. And if somebody in power with a heart - and there are a few, but they can only do so much so fast - is able to unlock the door to a peaceful, prosperous future for this planet, we will be the quantum particles of light that come pouring through into that future.

Editor, propeace.net

War Profit! How about something close-up and personal: Senator Dianne Feinstein. She sat on the committee to award contracts in Iraq and voted to award her husband's company millions of dollars worth of the contracts. His company went from being worth a few hundred thousand to being worth over 500 Million in one month. And the Feinsteins bought themselves a new 15 million dollar house in Pacific Heights to celebrate.

Worried about Halliburton? How about our very own "Representative" who profited AND CONTINUES TO PROFIT by voting for the war and more funding for the war? Why aren't people outraged over this very personal example of war profiteering? Why hasn't Feinstein resigned from the Senate? (She finally did resign from the committee that was awarding the contracts - AFTER she got fat from profiting). Why isn't the Peace community circulating this information? Is it because they hope the Senator MIGHT SOMEDAY back the creation of a US Department of Peace & Nonviolence? Isn't that kind of moral compromise the beginning of "SELLING OUT"? (what's next - kissing Dick Cheney's butt to see if he will help the Campaign???) Maybe the community and the Democratic Party are afraid to let this news run rampant because they fear losing a seat in the Senate. They won't. The people of San Francisco will elect someone better - someone more honest - someone with integrity.

Time to replace Feinstein. Time for the Peace Movement to distance itself from War Profiteers - especially ones who had the power to stop the war and the war funding in the first place, but chose, instead, to SUPPORT the death and destruction in Iraq and Afghanistan. Time to stop supporting "representatives" who support the war.

Working to establish a US Department of Peace & Nonviolence

Pardon my ignorance, but what mililitary or security secrets are bing held by Halliburton?

peace dividend
noun
a sum of public money that becomes available for other purposes when spending on defense is reduced.

measuring profit in terms of a dividend is neither violent nor clear cut, as the key word in both terms is "benefit", thus the profit of peace, is the abundance of universal plenty, the benefit of less need. . .

BL*M
Peace*Profit ;)

Peace is more profitable to the masses, as shared wealth feeds all clothes all and houses all.

The few greedy should just go mine gold together in 1000 foot deep hole they cannot get out of.

Why did Halleburton get away with it all?? Why? We all watched it??? Why??? are we so ineffective to crime???? I do not understand this???

Measuring a peace dividend in terms of profit is violent in itself. Violence arises from the assumption that resources are scarce and need is great. Need less and you will get more and you will be at peace. The universe is abundant.

(And just as I was finishing this Comment, look what came up on the Quote rota (upper right corner): War is good for the economy... like cannibalism is nutritious." Right on!)

Editor, propeace.net

"The simplest way to create peace is to remove the profit from War."

Or show how peace pays a bigger, quicker dividend. When people understand that peace is much more profitable than war, we will have peace. Until then we will continue to fight over the pittance. RicH