LOS ANGELES — “We welcome the proposal from readers of the Militant in California to organize to contribute the state gas rebate payments they’re starting to get to the Militant,” said editor John Studer in an Oct. 10 interview. “This is a timely initiative as the Militant is facing steeply inflated expenses while we’re working to expand the reach of the paper.”
“Costs for printing the Militant have jumped $200 an issue,” said Studer. “Our distributors in the U.S. and around the world rely on timely delivery of the paper. Mailing and FedEx costs are up over $1,000 a month and still rising. And we’re confronted with replacing 20-year-old office chairs and other equipment that no longer meet our needs, adding thousands in one-time expenses.” In spite of this, Studer said, “the Militant refuses to raise its $5 introductory subscription, the $1 cover price for a copy, or the cut-rate and free subscriptions we offer to fellow workers behind bars. These are the same prices we’ve maintained for years.”
Studer noted that the Militant is financed solely by its readers — working people who give as much as they can to our yearly spring fund drive, and in special donations they send in when they renew their subscriptions.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Democratic Party-dominated state legislature are touting this rebate as an offset for the high cost of gas in the state — more than $2 a gallon above the national average. Beginning Oct. 7, those who filed a California 2020 state income tax return will be eligible to receive a one-time payment of $350 or $700 for couples who filed a joint return. Politicians in Sacramento claim this will provide relief from soaring prices at the gas pump, but this pittance is a drop in the bucket compared to the across-the-board price squeeze workers face, of which high fuel prices are a major component.
The governor and the big oil companies blame each other for the high cost of gas in California. The oil companies say California environmental regulations designed to promote “green energy” are the culprit. Newsom says the oil companies are profiteering during an inflationary crisis and should be subject to a windfall tax. This song and dance has gone on for years, while millions of workers and their families are hammered at the pump.
We urge readers of the Militant in California to join us in contributing these one-time gas rebates to the Militant. There is no better way to use them. Checks can be sent to the Militant, 306 W. 37th St., 13th floor, New York, NY 10018 or online at themilitant.com.