Alan Wieder comments on connection between the Sandy Hook shootings and drone-warfare. He considers the lamentations Americans and its leaders especially offer when certain American children are murdered in the context of drone-warfare and their otherwise disregard for children's lives around the world.

Tom Becker reads George Monbiot's essay, republished on Alternet, about the insanity of waste hidden in consumerism and the political barriers to questioning it. Monbiot considers how so many trinkets, disposable goods, planned and perceived obsolesence, are forced upon us and the planet through growth-driven economics and a vision of prosperity.

Joe Clement interviews Brandon and Alex, organizers with the Portland Solidarity Network. PDXSol, as it's sometimes referred to, is an all volunteer organization that helps workers and tenants and other people resist abuse, demand what people are owed, and bridge the gap between workplace and community organizing. They discuss what solidarity networks are, what they can do and why they work. They consider a case of success with the new Portland Solidarity Network. They also talk a little about other solidarity networks, like SeaSol.

           Tom Becker hosts today's Christmas Eve episode. We hear about the Chinese labor movement, the hypocrisy of Obama's mourning at Newtown, the Portland Solidarity Network, and the limits of consumer culture.