Category Archives: Information

PDACNM Redevelopment

Information

Dear PDACNM friends,

PDACNM is going on hiatus, suspending monthly gatherings and planning committee meetings while PDACNM is “under redevelopment”.  Paul and Laura are stepping down from their leadership roles and would like to see some new leadership come forward, new leadership meaning one or more persons with vision and passion for continuing to promote progressive ideals and progressive candidates for elective office.  When we began PDACNM 11 years ago this coming August, progressive issues were considered “fringe” and unattainable. But what was once considered laughable is now mainstream and popular with the majority of the country. We just need to see those progressive ideals be further on the road to reality. We hope there are folks out there who share our values enough to come forward and take on leadership roles. We plan to have clarity on PDACNM’s future by this fall, likely post-election. Your comments via email are welcome.

I would add that we will continue sharing with others the coordination of the monthly letters to our Members of Congress. Some of you may not be sure what these letters are. Basically, they are letters drafted by the PDA National Team and sent to all PDA chapters explaining the importance of specific, key progressive legislation and requesting that the MOCs co-sponsor the legislation. These letters are edited as needed to reflect local and state interests. They are then discussed with the leaders of the state offices of the MOCs, who then forward the letters to the MOCs, 

Also, our able newsletter editor Larry Baca will continue the monthly newsletter offering info and actions and our Stop Wars and Occupations team will keep up their important work.

In the meantime, we don’t need to remind anyone reading this that we are living in perilous times so even though PDACNM is taking a break, we will all be out working to get Democrats elected all over the country.  It’s imperative that we give time and money like we have never given before.

Yours with gratitude and in solidarity,

PDACNM Planning Committee, State Coordinators and Chapter Leader

STOP PRODUCTION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

Action Teams, Information

Nuclear weapons are the biggest threat to our existence, but the National
Nuclear Security Agency plans to make more of them. Lots more. We must stop
them.

Los Alamos National Lab is being ramped up now to be producing at least 30
new nuclear bomb cores (called plutonium “pits”) per year by 2026, and 80-100
per year by 2030. The pit is the part of the nuclear weapon that causes mass
destruction. Each one can destroy a large city in a flash, killing millions.
These new pits are intended to be used in futuristic nuclear warheads being
designed at weapons labs around the country. There’s even a whole new program
of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM’s) being cooked up, to house and carry
the new pits.

LANL is the only place currently capable of making the pits that these high-tech
warheads are being designed for. So if LANL can be stopped or even stalled, the
whole nuclear weapons “modernization” nightmare will grind to a halt.
Why make more nuclear weapons? It’s not like the U.S. doesn’t have enough of
them. We have thousands, enough to annihilate life on earth. It’s just that the
National Nuclear Security Administration insists we need new ones. The NNSA tries
to justify the production of new plutonium pits saying the “old” ones (average age
40 years) are degrading. But in fact the half life of plutonium is 24,000 years.
And it’s not like these bombs are cheap. Each pit costs $50 million to produce.
That’s 667 nurses salaries. The entire nuclear weapons modernization program is
costing us – our tax dollars – $60 to $70 billion annually. We could end
homelessness in America with $20 billion.

Continue reading STOP PRODUCTION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS →

Proposed Crime Bills Hurt New Mexicans

Information, Legislation

New criminal offenses and increasing criminal penalties hurt New Mexicans and New Mexico –and here’s why!

Talking points for us to use when contacting our NM Legislators!
Legislative Session, January 18 – February 17, 2022

“Tough on Crime” – In this legislative session, January 18 through 17, the legislative agenda is restricted to bills related to money – i.e., taxation and appropriation – plus any other bills the governor sets before the legislature. If history is a guide, Governor Lujan Grisham will send a number of bills to the legislature that either create new criminal offenses or increase penalties for existing offenses, or both.

These are “bad bills” – Most of the Democrats in the legislature know that these bills are ill-advised. Nonetheless, most will vote for the bills if and when they are called upon to vote. In many cases, enough Democrats will join the Republicans to pass these bad bills.

DOWNLOAD OR READ THE COMPLETE RESOURCE HERE

COP26 Presentation to 350NM.org on December 4th from Edinburgh by Lora Lucero

Information, News


Goal: share a personal account of my experience in Glasgow and leave you with a simple take away message.

Quick COP26 Background: 

COP26 follows a long line of international climate meetings going back as far as 1979 in Geneva. The scientists have been issuing their international climate reports since 1988. (First IPCC was in 1988).  The COP meeting in 2015 in Paris was considered a major breakthrough because they pledged to reduce carbon emissions, and to review the pledges every 5 years to further ratchet down CO2 emissions. Didn’t meet in 2020 but the scientists issued their startling report in August 2021 and didn’t mince words.  The situation is dire and we’re on a course today with irreversible impacts that will be catastrophic if we don’t take immediate steps to cut greenhouse gas emissions.  The goal is to keep the temperature increase to no greater than 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels. The Emissions Gap Report released in December 2020 shows we’re headed to a warming in excess of 3.0 C this century.

Continue reading COP26 Presentation to 350NM.org on December 4th from Edinburgh by Lora Lucero →