Divest Now!

Lefties and celebrities were all into "divesting" from South Africa.

What about divesting from Iran, which is the spider at the center of the worldwide web of islamic terror?

You'd think they were some kind of superpower the way everyone trembles at the very thought of opposing them. But they're hurting.

And more hurt is on the way:

Over the past year, one state, Missouri, has opted to do just that, while several others, including New Jersey, have also begun to write or to consider legislation to divest.

But the nascent movement took on decidedly more weight last week with the preliminary success of a bill in the California Legislature. The measure would force two of the nation’s largest pension funds — devoted to the state’s public employees and its teachers, with combined holdings of nearly $400 billion — to remove their money from any foreign company doing business in Iran. American companies are already barred from such dealings.

California pension funds are the 800-pound gorillas of the institutional investment world. As they go, so will the rest of the herd. Everyone wants CalPERS business and thus will make their funds Iran-free to be compliant.

Also,

Gov. Charlie Crist said from Israel today that he will send letters to the nation's 49 other governors and urge them to follow Florida's lead and divest their holdings in companies that do business in Iran and Sudan. When Crist returns from Israel next week, he plans to sign a bill passed during the 2007 session that requires Florida to divest its holdings.

"Florida will not stand idly by and allow businesses that operate in Iran and the Sudan to foster terror,'' Crist wrote in his letter. (Full text is available in comments section.)

Crist also said he will discuss the divestiture issue with his fellow governors during a July meeting of the National Governors Association that will be held in Michigan.

And more:

Terror-free investing is an idea whose time has come. Already last summer, the Securities and Exchange Commission wrote officially to Ford Motor Company, warning them that they had failed to mention business operations in Iran, Sudan and Syria by their subsidiary, Mazda.

The SEC letter asked Ford to address “qualitative factors that a reasonable investor would deem important in making an investment decision, and the potential impact of corporate activities [in Iran and other terrorist states] upon a corporation’s reputation and share value.”

The SEC pointed out that “Arizona and Louisiana have adopted legislation requiring their state retirement systems to prepare reports regarding state pension fund assets invested in,…companies that conduct business with countries identified as state sponsors of terrorism.” Pennsylvania had followed suit, while Illinois, Maine, New Jersey, and Oregon had all adopted similar measures regarding Sudan.

In Ohio, state legislators Rep. Josh Mandel, a 29-year old Marine sergeant who served in Iraq with DePhillips, and his co-sponsor Rep. Shannon Jones, deserve special praise for introducing this legislation and braving the irresponsibility lobby.

Contact your State Government NOW, and demand divestment from Iran.

Divest Now!