Sorrell emphasized that the ruling in this case not only impacts Vermont, but could also have national ramifications for other state legislatures and citizens. “There would be some disincentive to have people speak their mind because of worries that a statute could be struck down,” Sorrell said. “There is a long history in this country, in this state of constitutional protection of the freedom of legislative debate.”

The case will be heard before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.

While we are delighted that AG Sorrell has chosen to file an appeal, the legal process could take years. We, the citizens of Vermont and this region, are not going to sit idly by while Entergy continues to operate this old problem-ridden reactor against the will of both the Vermont legislature and the people. We are re-energized with the knowledge that the state will continue to fight this rouge corporation, and we are gearing up for nonviolent action to help insure Vermont Yankee is shut down!

SAGE activists, from students to Clamshell veterans, are feeling empowered and ready to go!

Safe and Green Campaign and the SAGE Alliance want to show Entergy, the NRC, the Public Service Board, and the Governor that thousands of citizens  pledge to take action to shut down Vermont Yankee. Numbers do count. So take a moment and sign the pledge. Check out our ACTION page and our EVENTS calendar for action ideas. Find an affinity group meeting on the calendar, write letters, hold a C2C vigil, get trained, share your knowledge with others.

RADIATE WELLNESS February 11

Holistic support for community health in radioactive times. A workshop with Dori Midnight, to benefit Safe and Green Campaign. Holistic Health Center, Elliot Street, Brattleboro. February 11, 2:30-4pm, sliding scale. More info and registration here.

MARCH IS ACTION MONTH  SAGE Alliance

• March 3: PowerShift! Fungi Affinity Group March to VY & AfterParty
• March 11: Fukushima Anniversary. “Evacuation” from VY to the River Garden, Brattleboro.
• March 11: Fukushima & VY Forum at the River Garden. Featured speaker: Arnie Gunderson.
• March 21: VY Retirement Party, State House, Montpelier
• March 22: Day of Action
• March 24: Nationwide VY Solidarity Day
• April 1: Rally

Calling all Citizens – Take Back Our Power from Federal Overreach
Defying the will of Vermonters, Entergy Nuclear has successfully won the first stage of its trial to allow it to break its word and to usurp the rights of the Vermont legislature.  Judge J. Garvin Murtha effectively delivered a slap in the face to the people of Vermont by saying that [contrary to prior Supreme Court judgements] the legislature has no right to regulate the operation of the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor. The Public Service Board is now the only state entity that has the power to decide VY’s future. The judge also bought Entergy’s argument that he should base his judgement not upon the written legislation in question, but rather by retroactively reading the minds of the legislators to judge what they were thinking at the time.

This ruling goes hand in glove with current Federal policies that enrich the 1% and keep power firmly in the hands of America’s largest corporations. It affirms that corporate profits trump the interests of the citizenry. And it reinforces the laughable notion that only the Federal government can be trusted to keep us safe from radiological accidents caused by corporate malfeasance and profit-driven lax practices.

More significantly, the ruling should serve as the catalyst to spark Vermonters who have been watching this struggle from the sidelines to join the citizen effort to shut down VY before an accident shuts it down for us.

A majority of Vermonters know that Vermont Yankee has run its course and needs to be shut down as originally licensed. Now is the time to turn to your neighbors. With as few as five to ten people, you can form an affinity group that takes non-violent training to help in the effort to shut down VY. You can customize your affinity group to match the interests and willingness of its members, from being a group that pledges to engage in direct action/civil disobedience, to being a group that simply pledges to stand quietly on the sidewalk in support of others. While a coalition of organizations are working hard to coordinate our efforts, you can engage in any way that seems appropriate to you.

March is going to be a month for taking action. Students at Greenfield Community College are organizing a walk from GCC to the reactor on March 3. On March 11, the anniversary of the ongoing Fukishima nuclear disaster in Japan, commemorations will be held in various locations throughout the state. On the weekend of the 17-18th, non-violence training is scheduled for Middlebury. (These free trainings are available now to any group who requests one.) There will be a shut it down rally at the State House with our state representatives on March 21. On either March 25th  or April 1st, a major rally (without a civil disobedience component) will be held in Windham county where we will make clear how strongly Vermonters support the state’s right to regulate our utilities. Civil disobedience and direct action will be directed towards Entergy Nuclear if they continue to operate past the March 21 license expiration date. These actions may take place on the 22nd and 23rd and continue as needed thereafter.

Our state will continue to assert its right to control our energy generating future, but it needs our help. Only with a strong partnership of people power and government action will we be able to achieve victory over the entrenched interests of the money powered corporate oligarchy.

Please contact us at www.sagealliance.net to see how we can help you organize your affinity group and help us take back Vermont from those who would put us at risk for the sake of their profits. The Arab Spring and the Occupy movement have shown us the potential power of the people. When we stand by and watch our leaders lead, we often find ourselves in peril. When we assert our own sovereign power we take the first step towards building a better future for us all.

Never Violence, Only Victory.

Thanks,
The SAGE Alliance

“Act 160 and a single provision in Act 74 – requiring affirmative legislative approval for storage of spent nuclear fuel after March 21, 2012 – are held to be preempted by the Atomic Energy Act…”   You can read the decision here http://www.atg.state.vt.us

Fans of political folk music and those seeking solace and community after the Murtha decision found both. On 1/21/12 St. James was overflowing, with folks squeezing into every nook and cranny and standing along the back. We sang along, we laughed, we were moved, and we left with renewed spirits.  Plus, Duopalooza raised more than twice what the organizers, our Franklin County affinity groups, had hoped for!

Safe & Green is deeply grateful to

Charlie King and Karen Brandow and Rebel Voices

 www.charlieking.org                             www.rebelvoices.com

to all who gave  their time and creativity getting the word out and production happening, those who baked and those who sold tickets. Special thanks to the many local merchants who donated goods and services:

DANCING IN GRIEF PRODUCTIONS – PROFESSIONAL VIDEOGRAPHY; EDDIE’S WHEELS – MOBILITY FOR DISABLED PETS; HOPE & OLIVE  – –AN EVERYDAY SPECIAL RESTAURANT IN GREENFIELD; MESA VERDE – A FINE BURRITO BAR IN GREENFIELD; NEW ENGLAND CHEESE COMPANY – SUPPLIES, KITS, INSTRUCTION; MARC KAUFMANN PLUMBING & HEATING CONSULTANT; PEOPLE’S PINT – GREAT FOOD, BEER & LAGER; PROGRESSVE DEMOCRATS OF AMERICA;  HEALTH CARE NOT WARFARE ; SOLAR STORE – SOLAR HOT WATER & SOLAR ELECTRIC; SOUTH RIVER MISO CO.  FAMILY OWNED ARTISAN MISO;  VOICE MALE MAGAZINE -  CHANGING MEN IN CHANGING TIMES ; WELLSPRING HOUSE –A RETREAT FOR WRITERS & ARRTISTS IN ASHFIELD, MA. ;WILDER BROOK FARM –18 YRS -  CSA SHARES, SHELBURNE FALLS, MA.; YOGA FOR RELAXATION WITH JEAN ERLBAUM; COPY CAT  PRINTING; EVERYONE’S BOOK; and the many anonymous financial contributors.

VERNON — As the year 2011 wound down on Saturday, a newly-formed New Hampshire group, opposed to the continued operation of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, gathered at gates of the plant to ring in a “nuclear free new year.”

According to its members, the group, Nuke Free Monadnock, was formed as a way for New Hampshire residents to have a voice in the opposition of the nuclear plant, owned and operated by Entergy.