http://www.inthesetimes.com/archives/tags/poltiics/ In These Times features award-winning investigative reporting about corporate malfeasance and government wrongdoing, insightful analysis of national and international affairs, and sharp cultural criticism about events and ideas that matter. en-us Expression Engine jessica@inthesetimes.com seamus@inthesetimes.com Wed, 14 Jun 2006 05:00:00 -0500 http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2665/anarchist_cheerleader_elected/ In 1996, Cara Jennings, then 19, and her sister Aimee started the Radical Cheerleaders in their hometown of Lake Worth, Fla., a town of 35,000 north of Ft. Lauderdale. Their fishnet-stocking, punked-out leather outfits and shredded garbage bag pom-poms caught on, as did their obscenity-laced chants against the neo-liberal agenda, the WTO and various other political causes. As the worldwide protest movement rose in the late '90s, the radical cheerleaders became fixtures at anti-globalization rallies, and cheerleading troupes have sprung up around the world. For the past six years, Jennings, who works as a special needs program director at a local high school, has been very active in local politics. In late 2005 she decided to run for an open… activism poltiics social justice elections Susan J. Douglas Tue, 18 Jul 2006 05:00:00 -0500 http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2736/go_on_amend_away/ Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel," opined 17th century writer and critic Samuel Johnson. Scoundrels abound in the perennial campaign for a constitutional amendment to outlaw the desecration of the American flag. The latest salvo, which failed to pass the U.S. Senate last month by one vote, bore telltale fingerprints of the Republicans' politically astute chief scoundrel, Karl Rove.  The measure failed the Senate by a vote of 66 to 34. A constitutional amendment must pass by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress. Rove and Co. are already taking names.  They know that the flag burning amendment has zero to do with substance and everything to do with politics. Republicans are trying to jam Democrats on… poltiics Susan J. Douglas