Sunday, January 15, 2012

LOWDOWN ON JIM HIGHTOWER



IF THE GODS HAD INTENDED US TO VOTE THEY WOULD HAVE GIVEN US CANDIDATES–this is the title of a book by Jim Hightower, above, an influential American commentator and author , whose well- written and researched material often has direct relevance to Australia- and our soon to be beefed up garrison towns of Darwin and Katherine .

A cowboy hat wearing Texan, Hightower should not be regarded in the same breath as a certain vacuous sombrero toting North Queenslander. His daily radio commentaries are carried on more than 150 commercial and public stations , on the web, on Armed Forces Radio, and on Radio for Peace International. In addition, he also publishes America’s fastest growing political newsletter –THE HIGHTOWER LOWDOWN-with 135,000 subscribers .

An important person involved in production of the newsletter is Australian journalist/author, Phillip Frazer, who worked with Ralph Nader and has been mentioned in previous special Little Darwin posts dealing with Melbourne university magazines and several ground breaking publications . Frazer will be the subject of a separate article in the near future .

Hightower has spent three decades Fighting the Powers that Be on behalf of the Powers that Ought to Be ...consumers, working families, environmentalists , small businesses and “just- plain- folks.”

He believes the true political spectrum is not right to left but top to bottom .He has become a leading voice for 80 percent of the people who no longer find they are “ within shouting distance “ of the Washington and Wall Street powers at the top.

Hightower works closely with the alternative media , one being NationofChange-Progressive Journalism for Positive Action . A recent piece of his in NationofChange dealt with Afghanistan and covered the corruption, incredible US expenditure there of $8billion a month, the poppy trade , the Taliban and Pentagon hawks . He has received both the Alternative Press Award and the Independent Press Association Award for the best national newsletter .

A New York Times bestseller author , apart for the title in the intro to this post, he has written THIEVES IN HIGH PLACES: THEY’VE STOLEN OUR COUNTRY AND IT IS TIME WE TOOK IT BACK. Another catchy title aimed at those who sit on the fence : THERE’S NOTHING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD BUT YELLOW STRIPES AND DEAD ARMADILLOS .

A former editor of the Texas Express , he says he keeps his ever-ready Texan humour up front , practicing the credo of an old Yugoslav proverb : “You can fight the gods and still have fun.”