Wednesday, September 22, 2004

BAUAW NEWSLETTER-WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2004

MEETING TONIGHT
BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR (BAUAW)
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 7:00 p.m.
1380 VALENCIA STREET
(Between 24th & 25th Streets, SF)

Topics: YES ON Prop. N community organizing
Million Worker March
Justice in Palestine conference
BAUAW's new web-site and review
of Yahoo group account
Fund Raising
Possible mass action against U.S. offensive
against Iraq -- possibly Nov. 3rd
Inauguration Day Mass Action in D.C. and
possibly elsewhere.
New Business (that's up to you!)

Visit: www.bauaw.org

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VOTE YES ON PROP. 'N'! BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!


Come to the
BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW COMMITTEE MEETING
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 7:00 p.m.
AFSC - First Floor
65 NINTH STREET
(1/2 block from Market St., SF)

Help get the word out about Prop. 'N'. Bring your ideas for
community outreach, media, action, and more to make sure
we win by a landslide!

No matter who wins the elections this year, the war will not
be over. This ballot initiative will set the example for cities across
the country to do the same in future elections.

Pick up material to distribute!*

PROPOSITION 'N' ON THE NOVEMBER 3
SAN FRANCISCO BALLOT DECLARES:

"It is the policy of the people of the City and County of
San Francisco that: The Federal government should take
immediate steps to end the U.S. occupation of Iraq and
bring our troops safely home now."


Visit: www.yesonn.net


* Material costs money. Already thousands of brochures have
been printed and we need more! We need posters and buttons--
we need to cover the city with YES on 'N' campaign material!

Please send a contribution to help with these costs!
Make your check payable to:

Bring Our Troops Home Now

and mail to :

David Looman, Treasurer
325 Highland Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94110

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1) U.S. Raid on al-Sadr Office Assailed by Shiite Cleric
By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson
Published on Wednesday, September 22, 2004 by Knight Ridder
NAJAF, Iraq
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0922-23.htm

2) Eyeing Iran Reactors, Israel Seeks U.S. Bunker Bombs
By Dan Williams
JERUSALEM
Published on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 by Reuters
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0921-20.htm

3) The Struggle for Palestine:
4th Anniversary of the Intifada
October 2nd 2004.
Horace Mann Middle School - 3351 23rd Street, San Francisco
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY*

4) Singer Cat Stevens Denied U.S. Entry, Flight Diverted
WASHINGTON (Reuters)
Wed Sep 22, 2004 12:59 AM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=
6299025&src=eDialog/GetContent§ion=news

6) SOCIAL SCIENCE: Americans' prejudice against Arabs
demonstrated in experiment

7) Bush Defends Iraq War at U.N., Asks for Help
By Steve Holland
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters)
Tue Sep 21, 2004 04:47 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=
6296500&src=eDialog/GetContent§ion=news

8) U.S. Blocking Arctic Report
Scripps Howard News Service
From: "Cold Mountain, Cold Rivers"


9) *Celebrate John Lennon's 64th Birthday Party
Sat. Oct. 9, 8:00 p.m.
San Francisco
Club Jazz Nouveau at
The Cannery, 2801 Leavenworth St.,
at Beach, San Francisco
Wheelchair accessible

10) In this message:
· Speak Out Against Racism & Discrimination
· Help Needed on Mass Mailing
SPEAK OUT AGAINST RACISM & DISCRIMINATION

11) Please read! We are passing this on. Its very important!
Mandatory draft for boys and girls (ages 18-26)
starting June 15, 2005, is something that everyone should
know about. This literally affects everyone since we all
have or know children that will have to go if this bill
passes.
Seth D. King
Teacher - LAUSD
Director - United People 4 Peace


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1) U.S. Raid on al-Sadr Office Assailed by Shiite Cleric
By Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson
Published on Wednesday, September 22, 2004 by Knight Ridder
NAJAF, Iraq
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0922-23.htm

NAJAF, Iraq - U.S. forces raided the headquarters of radical Shiite
Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in the heart of the holy city of Najaf
on Tuesday and arrested his top advisers in the strongest blow yet
to al-Sadr's nationwide insurgency.

The pre-dawn raid drew an angry rebuke from the country's top
Shiite cleric, whose support is vital to maintaining calm among the
country's Shiite majority.

"We've informed the Iraqi government of our rejection and our
condemnation of American forces for entering the holy city of Najaf
and approaching the holy shrine," said a statement released by the
staff of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani in Najaf. "We
believe there was no justification for such a military measure and
hold the interim Iraqi government responsible for what happened."

U.S. military and Iraqi officials declined to comment.

Al-Sadr remained in hiding Tuesday, as did his remaining advisers.
He has kept a low profile since his gunmen vacated the city and its
holy shrine last month under an agreement brokered by Sistani.

Residents said that dozens of troops supported by helicopters
stormed the office in which al-Sadr's advisers were holed up less
than 200 feet from the Grand Imam Ali Shrine. Arrested were Sheik
Ahmed al-Sheybani, the most visible among al-Sadr's inner circle,
and his main Friday prayers leader and another key adviser, Hossam
al-Husseini.

The clerics, along with several guards, were taken away to an
undisclosed location. Witnesses said that Iraqi police later hauled
away about 40 Kalashnikov assault rifles from the office.

The raid was the third in five days on al-Sadr's deputies and offices.
In response to an arrest of a Sadr spokesman Saturday in Baghdad,
an Islamist group seized 18 Iraqi national guardsmen and threatened
to execute them. Al-Sadr intervened, and the guardsmen were
released Monday.

Many Iraqis believe the raids on al-Sadr's associates are part of the
U.S. campaign to prevent guerrillas from scuttling Iraqi elections
early next year.

But like the continuing air assaults against the Sunni stronghold of
Fallujah to the north, the attack on al-Sadr is likely to breed more
resentment and violence against U.S. forces and the Iraqi interim
government they support.

Even so, an organized backlash by al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia
would be more difficult now that its office in Najaf is closed and
key advisers are in U.S. custody.

Throughout the day, Iraqi security forces blanketed the streets of
Najaf and neighboring Kufa to prevent anticipated retaliation by
gunmen loyal to the cleric. Non-residents were forbidden from
entering the cities. Kalashnikov-wielding policemen demanded
identification papers from anyone who lingered on the street in
front of al-Sadr's empty Najaf office.

Pressure on al-Sadr and his advisers to clear out of Najaf has
steadily intensified since the occupation and siege of the holy
shrine, although Iraqi police steered clear of arresting any higher-
ranking al-Sadr loyalists.

Like Sistani, many Najaf residents were unhappy with Tuesday's
raid. They object to outsiders treading anywhere near the shrine
without permission. They also resent Americans attacking the
sanctuaries of any of the city's holy men, especially al-Sadr, whose
late father was a revered religious leader.

"We're not happy with the closing of (al-Sadr's) office, even if we are
happy if those people who entered and destroyed the city are
removed," said one merchant, Abu Hassan Naim, 44, referring to
Sadr's fighters.

The Americans can keep al-Sheybani, one of the clerics who were
arrested, the merchant added. He accused al-Sheybani of circulating
a letter two days ago with the names of 32 Najaf residents targeted
for assassination because they had demonstrated this month against
al-Sadr.

(c) 2004 Knight Ridder

###

(c) Copyrighted 1997-2004
www.commondreams.org

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2) Eyeing Iran Reactors, Israel Seeks U.S. Bunker Bombs
By Dan Williams
JERUSALEM
Published on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 by Reuters
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0921-20.htm


JERUSALEM - The United States plans to sell Israel $319 million worth
of air-launched bombs, including 500 "bunker busters" able to
penetrate Iran's underground nuclear facilities, Israeli security
sources said on Tuesday.

(Photo of bunker buster not shown, appears at the address provided
above.
The following is the description of the photo.)

[The United States plans to sell Israel $319 million worth of air-
launched bombs, including 500 'bunker busters' able to penetrate
Iran's underground nuclear facilities, Israeli security sources said
on September 21, 2004. The Haaretz newspaper quoted a Pentagon
report as saying the planned procurement sought 'to maintain Israel's
qualitative advantage and advance U.S. strategic and tactical interests.'
A GBU-27 laser guided 'bunker buster' bomb is seen in this undated file
photo. Photo by Reuters]

The Haaretz newspaper quoted a Pentagon report as saying the
planned procurement sought "to maintain Israel's qualitative
advantage and advance U.S. strategic and tactical interests."

The U.S. embassy in Israel had no comment, referring queries to
Washington. Israel's Defense Ministry also declined comment.

But a senior Israeli security source who confirmed the Haaretz
story told Reuters: "This is not the sort of ordnance needed for
the Palestinian front. Bunker busters could serve Israel against
Iran, or possibly Syria."

Haaretz quoted Israeli government sources as saying the sale,
including 4,500 other guided munitions, was not expected to
go through until after the U.S. elections in November. Earlier
this month, Haaretz said Israel sought to obtain the U.S.-made,
one-ton "bunker buster" bombs for a possible future strike
against arch-foe Iran's atomic development program, which
the Jewish state considers a strategic threat.

"This relationship has a long history. The United States
has given Israel more advanced weapons than this," a spokesman
for Iran's Defense Ministry said.

"This could be psychological warfare to test us," he added.

Tehran denies hostile designs, saying its nuclear program
has peaceful purposes only. This week, it rejected international
calls to comply with a U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency
demand that it halt all uranium-enrichment activities.

Among the nuclear facilities that Iran has declared are uranium
mines near the city of Yazd, and a uranium-enrichment plant in
Natanz incorporating large underground buildings that could
accommodate thousands of gas centrifuges.

Western diplomats accuse Iran of having several undeclared
facilities close to Tehran thought to be related to uranium
enrichment, a process the United States and some other
countries believe Tehran will use to produce fissile material
for weapons.

The exiled Iranian opposition group known as the National
Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) says Iran is constructing
numerous secret facilities under its Defense Ministry.

Known by the military designations GBU-27 or GBU-28,
"bunker busters" are guided by lasers or satellites and can
penetrate up to 30 feet of earth and concrete. Israel may
already have some of the bombs for its U.S.-supplied F-15
fighter jets.

"As they are part of the weapon set for the F-15, I would
assume them to be in place," said Robert Hewson, editor of
Jane's Air-Launched Weapons. He said the bombs proved effective
in the 1991 Gulf war and 1990s NATO strikes on Serbian forces.

Israel, which is widely assumed to be the Middle East's only
nuclear-armed nation, wants to stop Iran going atomic, but
officials say diplomatic pressure on Tehran is the best method.

Many believe a military strike, especially by Israel, could kill
off any chance of a diplomatic resolution or efforts by Iranian
opposition groups to achieve internal reform.

"I think (military action) should be a last, last, last resort.
Unlike Iraq and North Korea, there is at least some chance
of bringing about an undermining of the Velayat-e Faqih's
authority," former CIA director R. James Woolsey told Reuters
this month, referring to Iran's ruling Islamic clerics.

Convinced Saddam Hussein was developing nuclear weapons,
Israel bombed Iraq's Osiraq reactor in 1981. While the move
drew international censure, eventually many U.S. experts saw it
as an important blow to Saddam's strategic weapons capabilities.

"The response of the United States was, unfortunately,
negative with respect to Osiraq," Woolsey said. "The Israelis
were right and everybody else was wrong, including us, in
1981."

The Osiraq strike did not stop Saddam's quest for the bomb.
Instead, Iraq went underground and worked in secret until the
program was uncovered by the U.N. nuclear watchdog in 1991.

(c) 2004 Reuters

###

(c) Copyrighted 1997-2004
www.commondreams.org

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3) The Struggle for Palestine:
4th Anniversary of the Intifada
October 2nd 2004.
Horace Mann Middle School -
3351 23rd Street, San Francisco
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY*

The Justice in Palestine Coalition, a
group of progressive organizations who
have come together to work for a free
Palestine, is hosting a day-long
conference to:

1. Educate ourselves and our allies,
and deepen our knowledge &
understanding of the struggle in Palestine.

2. Link the work of our individual
organizations and strengthen our networks
and activism through discussion,
debate, and collaborative planning.

3. Organize for future solidarity and
develop concrete a concrete plan of
action for the coming months.

4. Support the resistance in Palestine,
and make links with others who are
fighting against the US occupation of
Iraq, and against US Imperialism
around the world.

The conference will include panels,
workshops and cultural performances. A
complete schedule of events is listed below.

Please reply to this email to find out
about the next meeting of Justice in
Palestine and help us build for this
important event.

** Program **

The Struggle for Palestine:
4th Anniversary of the Intifada
October 2nd, 2004
9:00-9:30: Registration

Morning Plenary Session:
The Current Status of Resistance in Palestine

workshops throughout the day include:

-Continuations of Plenary: Status of Resistance
-History of Palestine, The Nekbah and the Right of Return
-Iraq and Palestine: 2 Struggles, One cause
-Zionism
-Women and Resistance
-Direct Action: Skills Development
-The Impact of Palestine on the US Elections
-Political Prisoners, Here and in Palestine
-Globalization in the Arab World
-The Targets of Empire: Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Iran,
Philippines, Africa
-Arab World Solidarity/Resistance
-US Solidarity Groups
-Repression/Occupation in the US (patriot Act, profiling,
attacks on civil liberties)

Report Back From Workshops
Closing Summation and the Future in Palestine

Cultural Performances

for more information:

info@justiceinpalestine.net

or visit

www.justiceinpalestine.net

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4) Singer Cat Stevens Denied U.S. Entry, Flight Diverted
WASHINGTON (Reuters)
Wed Sep 22, 2004 12:59 AM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=
6299025&src=eDialog/GetContent§ion=news


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The former pop singer Cat Stevens,
now known as Yusuf Islam, was denied entry to the United States
and his flight from London was diverted to Maine, after his
name turned up on a watch list, a U.S. transportation security
official said.

United Flight 919 enroute to Washington was diverted to
Bangor where Islam was questioned and detained by federal
authorities who planned to put him on a return flight early
Wednesday, the official said.

U.S. Customs and border protection authorities discovered
that the name matched a federal watch list by checking
passenger information transmitted by the airline after the
flight departed from London, the official said.

The Washington Post, citing sources familiar with the event
reported that Islam, whose name is listed as "Usef Islam," is
on several government watch lists, including the no-fly list.

United Airlines spokesman Jeff Green said the carrier was
asked by the Transportation Security Administration to divert
the plane to Maine for security reasons.

The TSA had the flight diverted to Maine to keep it out of
the Northeast corridor airspace, TSA spokesman Nico Melendez
said.

The flight, with the remaining passengers, departed for
Dulles International Airport after about four hours on the
ground and landed at Dulles around 9 p.m., Melendez said.

Cat Stevens had a string of pop hits in the early 1970s
including "Moonshadow" and "Wild World" before converting to
Islam in late 1977.

(c) Copyright Reuters 2004.

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6) SOCIAL SCIENCE: Americans' prejudice against
Arabs demonstrated in experiment

[The daily summary of the *Chronicle
of Higher Education* published this
summary of an article from the *Journal
of Experimental Social Psychology* on
Tuesday, demonstrating quantitatively
the extent to which anti-Arab prejudice
can affect the behavior of Americans
(though, come to think of it, couldn't
this be, in the minds of the subjects of
this experiment, anti-Muslim
prejudice?). --Mark]

http://ufppc.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=1396

ANTI-ARAB DISCRIMINATION

Chronicle of Higher Education (daily summary)
September 21, 2004

MAGAZINES & JOURNALS

A glance at the November issue of
the *Journal of Experimental Social
Psychology*: Anti-Arab discrimination

People who are prejudiced against
Arabs may not commit assault or other overt
forms of bias against them, but they
will commonly discriminate against them
surreptitiously, say Brad J. Bushman,
a professor of social psychologist at
the University of Michigan's Institute
for Social Research, and Angelica
Bonacci, a graduate student in
psychology at Iowa State University.

In their study, they sent copies of an
ostensibly "lost" e-mail message to 512
students of European descent at Iowa
State whose level of prejudice against
Arab-Americans had been gauged in
earlier surveys. Some messages were
addressed to a person with the surname
"Hameed," and others to someone with
the surname "Brice." The messages
stated that the addressee either had won or
had not won a prestigious scholarship
worth tens of thousands of dollars, and
requested a reply within 48 hours.

The researchers found that participants
who were highly prejudiced against
Arabs were 12 percent less likely to
return a message reporting a win if the
addressee was a Hameed than if it was
a Brice. If the message bore bad news,
that the recipient had not won the
scholarship, highly prejudiced people were
19 percent more likely to return a
message addressed to a Hameed than to a
Brice.

By contrast, participants with low
prejudice scores in the earlier tests were
just as likely to return a positive or
negative message whether the addressee
had an Arabic or European surname.

"By identifying and understanding
less-visible discrimination techniques
individuals might use," the authors
say, "society might be better able to
protect the rights of innocent Arabs."

The article, "You've Got Mail: Using
E-Mail to Examine the Effect of
Prejudiced Attitudes on Discrimination
Against Arabs," is available online for
Science Direct subscribers at
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00221031

A copy is also available on Mr. Bushman's Web site at
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bbushman/pubs.htm

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7) Bush Defends Iraq War at U.N., Asks for Help
By Steve Holland
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters)
Tue Sep 21, 2004 04:47 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=
6296500&src=eDialog/GetContent§ion=news

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Two years after warning the
United Nations to act against Iraq or risk irrelevancy,
President Bush on Tuesday defended the U.S.-led invasion and
urged skeptical world leaders to help Iraq become a democracy
in the face of a deadly insurgency.

In a U.N. speech with election-year overtones, Bush made no
apologies about his decision to go to war against Iraq in 2003
without U.N. Security Council backing based on claims Iraq
possessed weapons of mass destruction, which were not found.

Instead, he acknowledged the presence of Iyad Allawi, the
interim prime minister of Iraq, and declared, "Since the last
meeting of this General Assembly, the people of Iraq have
regained sovereignty."

Later, he added, "The U.N., and its member nations, must
respond to Prime Minister Allawi's request, and do more to help
build an Iraq that is secure, democratic, federal, and free."

Bush's 21-minute speech was met mostly with stony silence,
save for polite applause at the end.

He appeared at the United Nations at a time of rising
violence in Iraq, with suicide car bombings and beheadings, and
some lawmakers in his own Republican Party are questioning his
Iraq policy. Democrats warn of a quagmire for U.S. troops.

His opponent in the Nov. 2 election, Democratic Sen. John Kerry,
wasted little time in declaring Bush's speech a failure for not
leveling with world leaders about the depth of the situation in Iraq.

"Iraq is in crisis, and the president needs to live in the world of
reality, not in a world of fantasy spin," Kerry told reporters in
Jacksonville, Florida. He said Bush "does not have the credibility
to lead the world."

In his speech, Bush did portray Iraq as a dangerous place,
with militants "conducting a campaign of bombings against
civilians and the beheadings of bound men."

He predicted more violence in the days ahead as both Iraq
and Afghanistan attempt to hold national elections -- next
month in Afghanistan, and in January in Iraq.

"The proper response to difficulty is not to retreat -- it
is to prevail," he said.

'DEFYING' PESSIMISTIC PREDICTIONS

Taking a few questions from reporters in a subsequent
meeting with Allawi, Bush all but dismissed a CIA report leaked
last week that offered a gloomy outlook in Iraq with the worst
scenario a civil war.

"The CIA laid out several scenarios. It said that life
could be lousy, life could be OK, life could be better. And
they were just guessing as to what the conditions might be
like," he said. "The Iraq citizens are defying the pessimistic
predictions."

Allawi blamed the media for ignoring good news in Iraq.

Bush's speech was mostly free of the combativeness of his
address in 2002 when he warned world leaders that Saddam
Hussein was a grave and gathering danger and that they must act
to back up past U.N. resolutions or else be irrelevant.

He reminded the General Assembly of the Security Council's
refusal to go along with the U.S.-led coalition in backing up
with action a resolution passed unanimously before the war that
threatened serious consequences for Iraq.

"The commitments we make must have meaning," Bush said.
"When we say serious consequences for the sake of peace, there
must be serious consequences."

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said last week the war
was illegal and in a speech before Bush talked, condemned Iraqi
prisoner abuses at Abu Ghraib prison.

"In hindsight, experience shows that actions taken without
a mandate which has been clearly defined in a Security Council
resolution are doomed to failure," Swiss President Joseph Deiss
said in a speech to the assembly.

Bush cast the Iraq conflict as a moment of opportunity for
transforming the Middle East, and in a direct challenge to
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, urged Israel to impose a
freeze on Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza and to
dismantle "unauthorized outposts." (Additional reporting by
David Morgan)

(c) Copyright Reuters 2004

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8) U.S. Blocking Arctic Report
Scripps Howard News Service
From: "Cold Mountain, Cold Rivers"


Thursday 16 September 2004

Washington - The Bush administration is trying to bury an
international report that contains recommendations on the impact of
globalwarming on the people of the Arctic, an Arctic leader told a Senate
panel yesterday.

State Department officials are blocking the release of one of two
reports that were to be presented to government ministers from eight
Arcticnations at a meeting on Nov. 9 in Reykjavik, Iceland, Sheila
Watt-Cloutier of northern Quebec in Canada told the Senate Commerce
Committee.
She is chairwoman of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, representing
native people.

Four years ago, the United States and other nations launched the
Arctic Climate Impact Assessment. More than 300 scientists participated.

The results are contained in two reports - a scientific analysis and
a report outlining policy recommendations - that were to be presented at
theNovember meeting, Watt-Cloutier said.

The science report will still be presented, but the United States
has succeeded in blocking the release of the policy report at the
meeting and is
attempting to bury its recommendations in a "bureaucratic" report that
will be sent to the governments of the countries involved at a later
date,Watt-Cloutier said.

In its current draft form, the policy report notes that the Arctic
is susceptible to global warming and that there is a limit to how much
the people there can adapt to the changing climate, said Terry Fenge, a
Canadian representative to the conference. The policy document urges a
reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions, he said.

"It's politics," Watt-Cloutier said. If the United States followed
the recommendations, it would have to "sign the Kyoto Protocol and the
rest of it. It's short-term thinking pressured by [industry]," she said.

The other nations participating in the climate assessment - Canada,
Russia, Iceland, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Sweden - want the policy
recommendations released, but are being overruled by the United States,
Watt-Cloutier said.

Sally Brandel, the U.S. Arctic representative, did not respond to a
request for comment.

Sen. Olympia Snowe (R- Maine), told Watt-Cloutier that she would
look into the situation.

Cold Mountain, Cold Rivers
Working at the Crossroads of Human & Environmental Rights since 1990
PO Box 7941
Missoula, Montana USA 59807

phone: 406-728-0867
email: cmcr@wildrockies.org
website: http://www.wildrockies.org/cmcr

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---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*

9) *Celebrate John Lennon's 64th Birthday Party
Sat. Oct. 9, 8:00 p.m.
San Francisco
Club Jazz Nouveau at
The Cannery, 2801 Leavenworth St.,
at Beach, San Francisco
Wheelchair accessible

Special discount for butterfly calendar recipients.
Please read details below.

Green Aid: The Medical Marijuana Legal Defense & Education Fund proudly
presents: The IMAGINE Party to celebrate John Lennon's 64th birthday!

Special intimate performance with Vince Welnick former keyboardist of The
Tubes & Grateful Dead www.vincewelnick.com
A Sing A-Long of Beatles and Dead tunes!
Master of Ceremony, Guru of Ganja Ed Rosenthal
Illusion Magic Theater performed by Technomania Circus Artists

DANCING BIRTHDAY CAKE PRIZES SILENT AUCTION

8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Limited seating-order tickets early

Club Jazz Nouveau at
The Cannery, 2801 Leavenworth St.
at Beach, San Francisco
Wheelchair accessible

Tickets: $60 Purchase on line at:
http://www.inhousetickets.com or to purchase
tickets direct contact Virginia Resner
at 415-753-6602 virginiaresner@earthlink.net
If you get a ticket thru us we can can get a block
of 10 for $50.
Please RSVP Alan at bflyspirit@aol.com

We welcome auction donations
Green Aid is a 501 C (3) corporation ($35 of the
ticket price is tax deductible)
All proceeds benefit our Legal Defense &
Education Fund http://www.green-aid.com

---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*

10) In this message:
· Speak Out Against Racism Discrimination
· Help Needed on Mass Mailing
SPEAK OUT AGAINST RACISM DISCRIMINATION

A coalition of organizations-including Black Rap, And Castro For
All, ANSWER, the Harvey Milk Democratic Club, the SF LGBT Pride
Celebration Committee, GAPA, and others-have come together to
plan a demonstration to raise awareness about racism and other
forms of discrimination within the San Francisco LGBT community.

While many have fought for years to bring greater inclusion inside
the LGBT community, recently there has been a groundswell of
people speaking out. We want to seize this moment to help bring
about real change and make a claim for greater racial, gender, age,
class, and other forms of belonging among San Francisco's LGBT
people.

Please join us by becoming a co-sponsor of a march on Friday,
October 1. It will include a rally, opportunities to express both
frustration and hopes for change, and a celebration of the potential
for inclusion we will strive for our community to achieve.

In just a few days, numerous organizations have already signed on
as co-sponsors: AIDS Emergency Fund, Alice B. Toklas Democratic
Club, the Breast Cancer Emergency Fund, the Lavender Caucus of
SEIU, Lesbians Gays of African Decent Democratic Association,
and Pride at Work.

Let us know if your organization can play a part by supporting
this event and turning out participants. Its success depends on
diverse and widespread support. Co-sponsorship should include
promoting the action on your email lists and getting commitments
to attend from 10-25 people. If you want to become an organizer
and participate in planning at a more active level, we'd love to have
you on board that way as well.

If you have any questions, or to add your endorsement contact
415-821-6545 or answer@actionsf.org .

HELP NEEDED ON MASS MAILING
Mon. 9/27 and Tues. 9/28, 11am-6pm
2489 Mission St. Room 30, at 21st St.

Join us for a mass mailing to launch the PeopleÂ’s Anti-War
Referendum. Chat with other activists while helping to spread
the word about this important campaign. Refreshments provided.

To subscribe to the list, send a message to:


To remove your address from the list, just send a message to
the address in the ``List-Unsubscribe'' header of any list
message. If you haven't changed addresses since subscribing,
you can also send a message to:


For addition or removal of addresses, We'll send a confirmation
message to that address. When you receive it, simply reply to it
to complete the transaction.

---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*

11) Please read! We are passing this on. Its very important!
Mandatory draft for boys and girls (ages 18-26)
starting June 15, 2005, is something that everyone should
know about. This literally affects everyone since we all
have or know children that will have to go if this bill
passes.

Seth D. King
Teacher - LAUSD
Director - United People 4 Peace


The time to act is now. Whether you support the current administration or
not, this bill cannot be passed. Please take a moment, read this email and
go to any and all sites you can so your voice can be heard.



I just read the bill below at http://thomas.loc.gov/ please pass it on to
anyone and everyone you know...we all have children in our lives that
shouldn't be burdened this way.

Mandatory draft for boys and girls (ages 18-26)
starting June 15, 2005, is something that everyone should know about.
This literally effects everyone since we all have or know children
that will have to go if this bill passes.


There is pending legislation in the house and senate (companion bills:
S89 and HR 163) which will time the program's initiation so the draft can
begin as early as spring, 2005, just after the 2004 presidential election.
The administration is quietly trying to get these bills passed now, while
the public's attention is on the elections, so our action on this is needed
immediately. Details and links follow.

This plan, among other things, eliminates higher education as a shelter and
includes women in the draft. Also, crossing into Canada has already been
made very difficult.

Actions:

Please send this on to all the parents and teachers
you know, and all the aunts and uncles, grandparents, godparents. . .
And let your children know - - it's their future, and they can be a
powerful voice for change!

This legislation is called HR 163 and can be found
in detail at this website:

http://thomas.loc.gov/

Just enter in "HR 163" and click search and will
bring up the bill for you to read. It is less than two pages long.

If this bill passes, it will include all! men and
ALL WOMEN from ages 18 - 26 in a draft for military action. In
addition, college will no longer be an option for avoiding the draft
and they will be signing an agreement with the Canada which will no
longer permit anyone attempting to dodge the draft to stay within
it's borders. This bill also includes the extention of military
service for all those that are currently active. If you go to the
selcet service web site and read their 2004 FYI Goals you will see
that the reasoning for this is to increase the size of the military
in case of terrorism. This is a critical piece of legislation, this
will effect our undergradates, our children and our grandchildren.
Please take the time to write your congressman and let them know how
you feel about this legislation.

www.house.gov www.senate.gov

Please also write to your representatives and ask
them why they aren't telling their constituents about these bills and
write to newspapers and other media outlets to ask them why they're
not covering this important story.

The draft $28 million has been added to the 2004
selective service system budget to prepare for a military draft that
could start as early as June 15, 2005. Selective service must report
to Bush on March 31, 2005 that the system, which has lain dormant for
decades, is ready for activation.

Please see www.sss.gov/perfplan_fy2004.html to view
the Selective Service System annual performance plan, fiscal year
2004.
The pentagon has quietly begun a public campaign to
fill all 10,350 draft board positions and 11,070 appeals board slots
nationwide. Though this is an unpopular election year topic, military
experts and influential members of congress are suggesting that if
Rumsfeld's prediction of a "long, hard slog" in Iraq and Afghanistan
(and permanent state of war on terrorism) proves accurate, the U.S.
may have no choice but to draft.

http://www.hslda.org/legislation/national/2003/s89 entitled the
Universal National service Act of 2003, "to provide for the common
defense by requiring that all young persons (age 18-26) in the United
States, including women, perform a period of military service or a
period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and
homeland security, and for other purposes." These active bills
currently sit in the committee on armed services. Dodging the draft
will be more difficult than those from the Vietnam era. College and
Canada will not be options. In December, 200 1, Canada and the U.S.
signed a "smart border declaration," which could be used to keep
would-be draft dodgers in. Signed by Canada's minister of foreign
affairs, John Manley, and U.S. Homeland Security director, Tom Ridge,
the declaration involves a 30 point plan which implements, among
other things, a "pre-clearance agreement" of people entering and! departing
each country. Reforms aimed at making the draft more
equitable along gender and class lines also eliminates higher
education as a shelter. Underclassmen would only be able to postpone
service until the end of their current semester. Seniors would have
until the end of the academic year.

What to do: Tell your friends, Contact your
legislators and ask them to oppose these bills

Just type "congress" into the aol search engine
and input your zip code. A list of your reps will pop up with a way
to email them directly. We can't just sit and pretend that by
ignoring it, it will go away. We must voice our concerns and create
the world we want to live in for our children and grandchildren.





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