Well, it is official. I am now a Credo Mobile customer. I signed up for a 30 day trial a few weeks back.. you may remember me mentioning it.

During my trial I heard that my current cell company, Verizon, was funding an anti-environment rally and I knew I had to make this switch permanent. On Labor Day, thousands of people will be gathering for the coal-powered “Friends of America Rally” in Holden, WV. Don’t you love the name? Obviously if you support clean energy you must NOT be a friend of America… puhlease. They plan to rail against clean energy legislation and talk about how clean and green energy is a job killer.

The sponsors of this ridiculous event are oil, gas, and coal companies… AND Verizon. My NEW cell company, CREDO, launched a campaign calling on Verizon to drop its sponsorship.

It all boils down to this being yet another choice to send my money to a place where it will do the most good. It is an easy decision really. So far I really like the service, their online account interface is awesome, they have paperless billing, and EASY online bill pay, and since 1985 they have donated over $60 million to groups working for progressive change. Every time I pay my bill a percentage goes toward causes I believe in and certainly NOT to anti-environment rallies!

For anyone else thinking of switching… I think they are only offering to buy out your existing cell contract if you sign up by September 4th… just so you know.

If anything can get me riled up and hotter than a brushfire in Texas it is the idea of vaccinations being required or forced on us. We are a non vaccinating family so I like to keep up to date with what is going on in the vaccine world and this issue came up on the radar recently. According to Mike Adams at Natural News:

A new bill, the “Pandemic Response Bill,” S. 2028, has passed the Massachusetts state Senate and is now awaiting approval in the House. This bill suspends virtually all Constitutional rights of Massachusetts citizens and forces anyone “suspected” of being infected to submit to interrogations, “decontaminations” and vaccines.

It also sets fines up to $1,000 per day for anyone who refuses to submit to quarantines, vaccinations, decontamination efforts or to follow any other verbal order by virtually any state-licensed law enforcement or medical personnel. You can read the text yourself here.

It is outrageous that the government can force anyone to inject themselves with any substance but especially a potentially dangerous one.

According to the Organic Consumers Association, a leaked memo revealed that the swine flu vaccine has been linked to paralysis. It also contains contains novel adjuvants, including dangerous squalene which was in all probability responsible for Gulf War syndrome.

Visit the OCA web site to send a message to legislators that this NOT acceptable. They have a letter for MA residents and those in other states.

For many years I have used Verizon as my cell phone service carrier. Until we moved recently they also provided my land line but now we are a cell only family. Their service has been outstanding… for the most part. A few months back I let a very crafty salesman talk me into getting a Blackberry. I liked the phone but I didn’t like that $30 Internet charge for it each month. Several times I asked for just a regular phone but once that guy knew I had a thing for the Blackberry he made sure to needle me until I walked out with one. I can only blame myself for being weak… and over the last few months that wasted $30, since I rarely use the Internet feature, has been bothering me.

Then I read about My Plastic Free Life‘s decision to cancel her cell service, despite being happy with it, and go to Credo. That planted a seed in my head and then this week I got a mailing from them and decided to try Credo myself.

So what is Credo? They are a cell service that donates 1% of your cell bill to progressive causes like the ACLU, Feeding America, Democracy Now, Defenders of Wildlife, and many others. They also showed how AT&T and Verizon are sending money to places and people I would rather NOT support…. like Bush, Cheney, McCain, and other conservatives who try to block environmental and social legislation that I agree with. Both of these carriers have been known to stifle free speech by censoring web casts that are critical of Republican campaigns and blocking pro-choice text messages. So much for a free country…

So, as long as I am spending money anyway I thought it would be a good idea to send a portion of that money to progessive, liberal causes. I will also be saving money by switching and getting a  no frills phone. AND because I did not want to get a new phone (they had some nice free phones too) I ordered a refurbished phone and I get to keep my same number. Wahoo!

Phone service with a conscience, no new phone, same number… I also get to try it for 30 days risk free with a temporary number. If I find all is well I will make the switch and they are buying me out of my old contract so I won’t be out the $175 early termination fee. I guess I will gift my pink Blackberry away on Freecycle…

I voted for Obama as I have mentioned here before. I put a lot of energy and passion into his election in 2008 but after he was elected I kinda took time away from political discussions. I was burnt out, LOL. I avoided following his cabinet appointments to closely because I knew that conservatives would be looking to tear apart his every move. It was as sure as the sun coming up each morning. I wanted to reserve judgment until the man was actually in office and his appointees started making policy decisions.

I was however one of the many that flooded his office with protests when he named Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack for a potential candidate as USDA Secretary of Agriculture. Vilsack is a BIG supporter of Monsanto, genetically engineered crops, and corn and soy-based biofuels (of which I am not a fan). It was apparent that this guy was the food and agriculture industry’s “boy”. So I did notice that and acted…as did many others. I knew I that I wouldn’t agree with every appointment Obama made, which is okay because he represents a diverse country of people…not just people like me. But Vilsack was going too far. It was reminicent of Bush appointing an oil man to direct environmental policy.

I have also noticed with great delight Obama’s appointment of Harvard Law School Professor Cass Sunstein to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. This position entails coordinating the many different federal agencies, including the EPA, Energy Department, and OSHA. I am really happy with this choice. He knows a lot about economics and government regulation and cost benefit analysis. More interestingly though he is a vegetarian and animal rights activist and thinks animals should be entitled to legal  representation in courts. Wow! In a society that overall values animal life very little this is refreshing.

Sunstein co-wrote a book called Animal Rights: Current Debates and New Directions. This is in the description on Amazon:

Cass Sunstein and Martha Nussbaum bring together an all-star cast of contributors to explore the legal and political issues that underlie the campaign for animal rights and the opposition to it. Addressing ethical questions about ownership, protection against unjustified suffering, and the ability of animals to make their own choices free from human control, the authors offer numerous different perspectives on animal rights and animal welfare. They show that whatever one’s ultimate conclusions, the relationship between human beings and nonhuman animals is being fundamentally rethought. This book offers a state-of-the-art treatment of that rethinking.

It looks like a good read. I added it to my wish list.

Of course the headlines are already filled with ridiculous headlines of panic that claim Obama is trying to outlaw meat, hunting, and medical testing. But that is not what Sunstein is about necessarily. He just advocates for more responsible and ethical treatment of animals. Who really can stand up and say those are not good ideals to have?

I wish Sunstein had been appointed Secretary of Agriculture but I can already see from the media blitz why he wasn’t. Here is to hoping he can affect change anyway. :)

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Everyone is getting bombarded with VOTE messages today. The energy surrounding this election is like nothing I have seen before and no matter what the result it seems half the country will be disappointed. BUT we need to remember that every day is voting day actually. No we may not get to decide on POTUS but we do get to cast votes for many other equally important issues.

Every day we vote with our shopping dollars. Are we supporting unsustainable, toxic products and companies or are we supporting conscious, safe, and sustainable companies and products? When we go down the aisle of the grocery store and pick up a bottle of cleaning fluid or a box of cereal we are casting a vote in support of that product and that company…are you voting for the people and things you want to be?

Every day we vote with our forks. Everything that goes in our mouths and bodies is a vote in support of that industry. Are we supporting organics, ethics, and kind planetary practices? Are we supporting animal cruelty and factory farming?

We have lots to consider every time we take a bite of food or open our wallets…we vote everyday for the world we want.