The Political Buttons Zine reports on trends in new political buttons and their meaning in the political contests they are designed to affect. Old collectible campaign buttons are also discussed in their historical context.
It's Election Eve here in the United States, and the pent up energy of Americans who have felt helpless and hopeless for years is palpable. Walking down the street, even coming into work, you can see people today have a certain kind of nervous energy in anticipation of the Obama victory they're hoping for, but afraid to predict with certainty. Let's not lose this energy. Let's harness it - not just on Election Day, but beyond then. Let's keep our support for Barack Obama at a high level... Read Full Story
Interest in political buttons is almost as old as the American nation itself. As soon as there were democratic political elections, there were campaign buttons, and people quickly began collecting and trading them. Political buttons are still in heavy use today. People now use political buttons not just to promote a candidate of their choice, but to promote their values as well. This Political Buttons zine is not a one-way communications device. It's a democratic, collaborative effort in... Read Full Story
In the Irregular Times collection of 2008 election campaign buttons , there’s a button that speaks to the core of what’s wrong with the campaign of John McCain for President: John McCain doesn’t stand for anything positive.
Over 80 percent of Americans have concluded that the USA is on the wrong path, but what does John McCain want? He wants to stay the course, and continue the failed policies of George W. Bush.
McCain promises that there will be more war. He sings songs about bombing... Read Full Story
Compared to many other members of Congress, Georgia Democrat Hank Johnson doesn’t get a lot of attention. That’s too bad, because Hank Johnson is one of the best faces the Democratic Party has in the House of Representatives, earning the nickname The Even-Handed Progressive .
Congressman Johnson may be from Georgia, but he’s a solid progressive, earning a 75 percent rating from the Progressive Patriots legislative scorecard. He’s voted against dangerous bills like the Big Brother bill to... Read Full Story
The price of a barrel of oil is above $125 dollars. The cost of a gallon of gasoline is almost four dollars. Global warming, fueled by carbon emissions from gasoline engines, is accelerating. It’s a good time to consider alternatives to America’s culture of the automobile. It’s time to consider the bicycle. There’s no need for a gym to get a good lower-body workout. The bicycle helps a person burn calories even as they put miles of road behind them. Bicycling also encourages people to... Read Full Story
There are three 0s for this political button . There are the two obvious ones we can see here.
There’s O for Obama, of course. He’s the Big O of 2008. With luck, we’ll be calling him President Barack Obama next year.
Then there’s Oregon. That’s also relatively straightforward. The West Virginia Democratic presidential primary is in a few more days now, but even giving West Virginia its due, West Virginia is not big enough to settle the score between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton... Read Full Story
This button featuring the kind of sign you see at gas stations advertising prices is part of the effort to spread the Exxon-McCain 2008 meme. Greed for oil, greed for money, greed for victory at all environmental and economic costs -- that's what joins John McCain and Exxon together at the hip. $2.75 including shipping. Read Full Story
For decades environmentalists have been urging others to help save the whales. Who ever thought to save the sawfish ? It turns out that in the 1970s, just as whales were being brought under some protection, sawfish populations around the were being decimated. Oh, it’s true that sawfish had some earlier declines. However, it was in the 1970s that sawfish populations plummeted in a truly dramatic fashion. Since that time, sawfish around the world have slowly begun, one by one, to completely... Read Full Story
Barack Obama is known first and foremost as the single remaining presidential candidate who opposed the invasion of Iraq from the start. However, Barack Obama is also known among environmental leaders as the most promising presidential candidate when it comes to environmental issues.
The following are just a few of of the top environmental leaders who support Barack Obama for President :
Randy Hayes, founder of the Rainforest Action Network
Mark Van Putten, President of Conservation... Read Full Story
