For his 2005 budget, Bush proposed making permanent his previous tax cuts for the rich, and implementing two more tax cuts, costing $1.2 trillion over ten years. He also proposed increasing the military budget again, to a staggering $419 billion.

This does not even include the costs of occupying Afghanistan and Iraq, for which he will periodically request supplementary appropriations, like his latest $82 billion request. At the same time, he wants to cut $20 billion from 150 social programs for the poor.

Socialist Alternative is fighting this class-war agenda so working-class people can have a decent future. In particular, we have been successfully campaigning against military recruiters in schools.

To expand our reach, we increased the frequency of Justice to 6 issues/year, costing another $1,500/year – peanuts compared to Bush’s military budget, but a new expense nonetheless. Other expenses we face include publishing a number of new pamphlets and sending Socialist Alternative members to Europe for this year’s CWI socialist summer school. To pay for all this, we need your support! Please send in a donation from as little as a few dollars to as much as you can afford.

It is also essential that Socialist Alternative branches integrate a monthly Fighting Fund plan into their work. We are asking every member to take personal responsibility for raising $10/month on average for our Fighting Fund. Once each branch sets a collective target based on personal targets and branch activities for the month, brief weekly progress updates toward the target should be reported at each branch meeting.

By organizing a monthly fundraiser – like the Minneapolis branch’s “Pro-Choice Karaoke Kegger” or a garage sale on a street with good foot traffic – and by using campaign sign-up sheets at paper sales and asking for donations, we can dramatically increase our Fighting Fund and expand our influence.

Rush your donations (payable to Socialist Alternative) to P.O. Box 45343, Seattle, WA 98145.