U.S. Budget Priorities
	"We urge one another to be conscious of the poverty, hunger and injustice suffered by the majority of the human family and to make choices which clearly reflect that...we stand with and for the poor."   - IHM Constitutions, Article 13       Check out the latest! Video: Hallelujah Corporations LCWR Fall 2011 Resolution to Action: Economic Justice Advocacy Critically Needed Occupy Wall Street: Ideas from the 99 Percent - The Nation Corporate Taxpayers and Corporate Tax Dodgers 2008-2010 The Story of Broke - Annie Leonard Just Say No to Corporate Greed - Marian Wright Edelman 5 Conservative Economic Myths Occupy Wall Street is Helping Bust - AlterNet A Walk in the Park - The New Yorker The Guys in the 1% Brought This On - by Barbara Ehrenreich Occupy Together Prayer Service - Interfaith Worker Justice Wealth, Income and Power - by G. William Domhoff The Issue Our mounting monetary deficit is the topic of much debate. The U.S. House of Representatives is currently debating an appropriations plan for the remainder of FY 2011 that slashes domestic (and some international) spending by more than $65 billion in the next seven months. These extreme and damaging cuts would disproportionately hurt the jobless and low-income families. Jobs programs, affordable housing, Head Start, heating assistance, community health centers, and other vital community services would all be cut. Meanwhile, Pentagon spending would increase. President Obama put forth his budget for fiscal year 2012, which is more responsible in recognizing that investments in economic growth, fair revenue increases, and military savings are necessary components of any sensible plan for our future. However, it too contains deep cuts to community-based services which undermine our economic security as a nation. Sr. Joan Chittister, OSB says that a budget is a "country's theology walking." The federal budget is a moral document that shows what is important both in the near term and in the future as it plays out. Catholic Social Teaching tells us that the needs of people who are poor and vulnerable should claim the highest priority. A just budget should promote the common good by cutting all unnecessary military spending, restoring a fair tax structure, and providing economic security for all people. IHMs in Action IHMs Lend a Hand to Habitat - By Mary Agnes Ryan, IHM Prayer Materials "A Budget Based on Values" - Education for Justice. (While created in 2004, this resource contains a number of good prayer resources, discussion questions and references to Catholic Social teaching concerning budget issues)   Resources 5 Facts You Should Know About the Wealthiest One Percent of Americans Three Charts to E-mail Your Right-Wing Brother-in-Law - Truthout PBS Newshour series on the wealth gap Part I - Land of the Free Home of the Poor Part II - Americans Facing More Inequality, More Debt and Now More Trouble? How the U.S. Racked Up $14 Trillion in Debt - PBS Newshour A Common Sense Guide to the Great Deficit Debate Learn More about U.S. Budget Priorities - An Annotated Bibliography What Does Widening U.S. Income Gap Mean for Future of Economy, Americans? - PBS News Hour Oscar Winning "Inside Job" Director Attacks Economists' Ties to Financial Sector - PBS News Hour Actually, "The Rich" Don't "Create Jobs", We Do -TruthOut Winner Take All Politics - by Jacob S. Hacker & Paul Pierson It's the Inequality Stupid - Mother Jones 15 Facts About U.S. Income Inequality That Everyone Should Know -  The Huffington Post Beyond Austerity - The Nation Top Ten States with the Worst Income Inequality - Huffington Post Bishops Highlight Protecting the Poor, Fiscal Responsibility as Moral Criteria of Budget Debate Action You Can Take Tell Congress: Increase Revenues. Don't Harm People Who are Poor - NETWORK Disclaimer regarding external links

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