Lara Bazelon | Kamala Harris Was Not a 'Progressive Prosecutor'

24 September 09

Reader Supported News is a new service by the creator of Truthout, Marc Ash. I started Truthout in downtown Los Angeles in the summer of 2000, as the Democratic convention unfolded a few blocks away. I did so without realizing that I would fail, and as a result, I succeeded. Truthout built its following among readers who wanted to better understand the most important stories of the day, but had grown tired of the hype and sales-pitching of the big corporate outlets.

Reader Supported News (RSN) will carry forward the core concept that the reader is best served by financial control of the news service they depend on. No outside investment capital was used in the startup of RSN. No advertising money will be accepted by RSN. No grants will be sought by RSN. We like having the reader as our boss.

The service is free to all - even if you cannot contribute, we are honored to have you join us as a reader. RSN will not be a non-profit.

Non-profits are great and do wonderful work, but a board of directors ultimately rules the roost and that can lead to anything. Contributions made to RSN are not tax-deductible. This is a new experiment: can an organization serve the community and still pay its taxes? The answer should be yes.

15 March 10

After 15 years of political organizing, I helped Marc Ash start Truthout in early 2001. George W. Bush, with the assistance of the Supreme Court, had just stolen the presidency. I met Marc while helping organize a march against the inauguration of George Bush in Los Angeles. For months Truthout was a labor of love, nobody made a dime as we built a new, progressive news voice, and I remained there for close to nine years.

I am proud of the work I did at Truthout, and am happy to continue that work at Reader Supported News. Like John Cory, I am angry, and believe that one way to take our government back is to inform the public of the truth. That was the mission we began at Truthout, and it is the mission we are continuing to follow at Reader Supported News.

Over the years I have worked with many Heroes in the fight for Peace and Justice. Phillip Berrigan and Mitch Snyder taught me that it wasn't about what I could do alone, but what we could do together. Phil was more patient than Mitch, he knew that victory was a long way off, and that each changed mind put us one step closer to a peaceful, just world. That is one of the reasons I am at Reader Supported News, because I can reach more people than I could by organizing a protest. I am committed to fighting for a world without war, poverty and injustice. But it is not about what I can do, it is about what you can do with the information we provide you. Join us in taking back the truth. The corporate media has redefined the truth for so many of our friends and family, it is up to us to lead them back to the real truth.

What you can do to help is to spread the news we provide. The right-wing echo chamber is effective at spreading lies. Help us spread the truth.

Writing for Godot is the sister site of Reader Supported News. Writing for Godot is a forum where our readers can post their own essays. The concept for Writing for Godot is drawn from Irish playwright Samuel Beckett's 1952 masterpiece "Waiting for Godot."

Beckett's story centers around two men, Estragon and Vladimir. They wait beneath a tree each day for Godot. At the end of each day, a child with innocent eyes arrives and tells them that Godot will not come today, but that Godot will come tomorrow. "Are you sure he will come tomorrow?" ask Estragon and Vladimir. "Yes," replies the boy, but Godot never comes. Others however, do come, and the play unfolds.

Critics have noted that Estragon and Vladimir represent humanity and that Godot represents God. Some say, and Beckett did, that man waits for God but God never comes. Interestingly, as Estragon and Vladimir wait without result for Godot to arrive, they contemplate suicide. Not surprising in that the horrors of World War II, a suicide attempt by all mankind, had only receded seven years earlier.

God represents many things to many people. However, in a universal sense, divinity might be equated with social justice and order, tolerance and compassion. Such are the things God represents to man. I have spent the past nine years of my life writing for social justice and order, tolerance and compassion - "Writing for Godot."I've come to understand that Godot will not come today. Perhaps he will come tomorrow...

05 July 19 It's Live on the HomePage Now: Reader Supported News Lara Bazelon | Kamala Harris Was Not a 'Progressive Prosecutor'  Lara Bazelon, The New York Times Bazelon writes: "The senator was often on the wrong side of history when she served as California's attorney general." READ MORE An undocumented immigrant is frisked by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer after arriving to an ICE processing center on April 11, 2018, in New York City. (photo: John Moore/Getty) Documents Show How ICE Uses Arrest Quotas Maryam Saleh, The Intercept Saleh writes: "As U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, at the behest of President Donald Trump, plans mass raids following the July Fourth holiday, newly released documents shed light on the tactics the agency employs during such operations." READ MORE A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B drops a laser-guided bomb during a test at Edwards Air Force Base in California. (photo: Reuters) We Can Pay for Free College the Same Way We Paid for a Pointless $5.6 Trillion War Lindsay Koshgarian, BuzzFeed Koshgarian writes: "American taxpayers have so far sunk $5.6 trillion into the war on terror with almost nothing to show for it - and no end in sight." READ MORE The migrant was forced to hold a piece of paper that reads 'me gustan los hombre(s),' which translates to 'I like men,' while being paraded through a detention center. (photo: CNN) Border Patrol Agents Allegedly Tried to Shame a Migrant by Making Him Hold a Sign Reading 'I Like Men,' Emails Show Nick Valencia, Amanda Watts and Dakin Andone, CNN Excerpt: "US Customs and Border Patrol agents at a migrant processing center in Texas allegedly attempted to humiliate a Honduran migrant by making him hold a sign that read, 'I like men,' according to emails written by an agent who witnessed the incident." READ MORE Bettie Douglas, a 61-year-old mother of three from St. Louis, stands inside the McDonald's where she worked in 2017. (photo: Jim Salter/AP) Why Nearly 350,000 Workers in Mostly Red States Aren't Seeing Wage Increases, Even Though Their Local Lawmakers Passed Them Tracy Jan, The Washington Post Jan writes: "For most of her 13 years working the grill and cash register at McDonald's, Bettie Douglas earned just over $7 an hour." READ MORE Protesters and residents hold lighted candles and placards at the wake of Kian Loyd delos Santos, a 17-year-old high school student, who was among the people shot dead last week in an escalation of President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs. (photo: Dondi Tawatao/Reuters) Philippines Faces Call for UN Investigation Into War on Drugs Killings Stephanie Nebehay, Reuters Nebehay writes: "More than two dozen countries formally called for a U.N. investigation into thousands of killings in Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs, activists said." READ MORE Redwood trees in Guerneville, California. (photo: Garbielle Lurie/Guardian UK) Tree Planting 'Has Mind-Blowing Potential' to Tackle Climate Crisis Damian Carrington, Guardian UK Carrington writes: "Planting billions of trees across the world is by far the biggest and cheapest way to tackle the climate crisis, according to scientists, who have made the first calculation of how many more trees could be planted without encroaching on crop land or urban areas." READ MORE Contribute to RSN Update My Monthly Donation