September/October 2005 Issue

Off Track

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The 7/7 London bombings had a powerful impact on Capitol Hill, where members of Congress and the Bush administration have been outdoing themselves offering sound bites on mass-transit security while simultaneously doing next to nothing to improve mass-transit security. To wit:

Tax dollars spent on airline security since 9/11: $250 BILLION

Tax dollars spent on rail and subway security since 9/11: $18 BILLION

Amount requested for rail and subway security after the London transit bombing: $1.2 BILLION

Amount given: $100 MILLION

Ratio of daily rail and subway passengers to daily airline passengers: 16 TO 1

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3 DAYS LEFT—AND EVERYTHING RIDING ON IT

A full one-third of our annual fundraising comes in this month alone. That’s risky, because a strong December means our newsroom is on the beat and reporting at full strength—but a weak one means budget cuts and hard choices ahead.

With just 3 days left, we need a huge surge in reader support to get to our $400,000 year-end goal. Whether you've given before or this is your first time, your contribution right now matters. All gifts are 3X matched and tax-deductible.

Managing an independent, nonprofit newsroom is staggeringly hard. There’s no cushion in our budget—no backup revenue, no corporate safety net. We can’t afford to fall short, and we can’t rely on corporations or deep-pocketed interests to fund the fierce, investigative journalism Mother Jones exists to do. That’s why we need you right now. Please chip in to help close the gap.

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