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Bay Area United Against War Newsletter
Table of Contents:
A. EVENTS AND ACTIONS
B. VIDEO, FILM, AUDIO. ART, POETRY, ETC.
C. SPECIAL APPEALS AND ONGOING CAMPAIGNS
D. ARTICLES IN FULL
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A. EVENTS AND ACTIONS
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FRIDAY JULY 22 • SEASIDE 5:00pm - Peace Resource Center, 1364 Fremont Blvd.
BLOOD ON THE TRACKS is available for purchase from your favorite bookseller or from PM Press: www.pmpress.org (ISBN 978-1-60486-421-2)• For more information: bloodonthetracks.info • "Like" the book page on Facebook!
Follow Brian's journey...from high school jock...to Viet Nam commander...to peace activist...seeking right livelihood...and now...cycling to your town with his new book!
SUMMER 2011 BOOK TOUR
SPONSORS
Global Exchange
Joanna Macy
Unitarian Universalists for Peace, San Francisco
Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarians
Veterans For Peace San Francisco
Mt. Diablo Peace Center (Walnut Creek)
KPFA
ANSWER - SF Bay Area
Bay Area Latin America Solidarity Coalition (BALASC)
Peaceworkers (San Francisco)
Marin Task Force on the Americas
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Buddhist Peace Fellowship (Marin County)
School of the Americas Watch West (SOAWW)
The Metta Center
Pace e Bene
San Francisco Friends Meeting - Peace Committee
American Friends Service Committee Pacific Mountain Region
Progressive Democrats of America- San Francisco (PDA-SF)
Western States Legal Foundation
Peninsula Peace and Justice Center (Palo Alto)
VFW Bill Motto Post 5888
Veterans For Peace Santa Cruz
People United for Peace of Santa Cruz County
Resource Center for Nonviolence
GI Rights Hotline, Santa Cruz Node
Ecumenical Peace Institute (Berkeley)
CODE PINK
Marin Friends Meeting
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NATIONWIDE PROTEST AGAINST HYATT'S ANTI-WORKER ACTIONS!
July 21st, Thursday, 4:00pm
Grand Hyatt Hotel (Stockton and Sutter Streets)
San Francisco
PLEASE RSVP SO WE KNOW YOU'RE STANDING WITH HOTEL WORKERS ON THIS NATIONAL DAY OF PROTEST, CLICK HERE:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFZqUEMtNGU2TndRcWZsUVNGaC0tb1E6MQ
On May 10th, Hyatt offered to sign the Hilton deal. However, for the previous 19 month since our contract expired, Hyatt had been insisting on ripping off our medical benefits, freezing our pension, eliminating the room service bussers, and keeping us in a recession with their cheap wage proposal.
Ever since our contract expired on August 2009, Hyatt joined with other Class A (bigger) hotels to refuse a new, fair Union Contract. Had it not been for the Hilton which took the lead in signing the deal, Hyatt would still be offering the garbage they were offering before the Hilton signed.
Hyatt is notorious nationally for its attacks on its immigrant work force.
In August 2009, Hyatt fired its entire housekeeping department in Boston. Women, mostly immigrants (many of whom had been working for Hyatt for more than 20 years) were fired and replaced by a subcontractor company which pays its workers close to minimum wage. Read more about the Boston housekeepers.
Hyatt has also distinguished itself as the company which loads more and more work on room cleaners, often resulting in high levels of worker injuries. Hyatt has been cited by the government for unsafe working conditions in housekeeping. Read more on housekeepers' injuries, click here.
Join us for a nationwide protest against Hyatt's anti-worker actions on July 21st, Thursday, 4:00pm in front of the Grand Hyatt hotel on Stockton and Sutter Streets, San Francisco.
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July 22nd March and Rally "We Are One - Fight for a Fair Economy"
FIGHT FOR A FAIR ECONOMY!
"WE ARE ONE" MARCH AND RALLY
FRIDAY JULY 22, 11:30am
Oakland City Hall
On Friday, July 22 at 11:30am a rally and march in downtown Oakland to highlight the contract fights and other issues our working families are facing will be co-sponsored by the Alameda Labor Council and APALA. This will be an important opportunity to highlight the issues facing workers in Alameda County and nationwide. We will put 1000 trade unionists and community allies together on the ground to create the "street heat" in support of contract fights and to make Wall Street pay!
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A Benefit for Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco
Celebrate Tommi's Birthday July 24
(You'll have to come to the party to find out how old, or young, he is, see important clue below)
It's a benefit for Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco, it's at Martin de porres, 225 Potrero/16th, 1-3:00 P.M. and includes live music and veggie snacks.
In lieu of gifts, tommi requests that you make a donation to HRCSF with a 60 in the amount, for example, $6.00, $666.00, $600.00, etc. If you can't attend, please make a check out to Tides/HRCSF and send to 417 S. Ven Ness, SF 94103.
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After a decade of school "reform"
it is finally...
Our Day! Our March! Our Voice!
July 30th: Rally and march on the National Mall, Washington, D.C.
BE THERE!
In 1963, over 200,000 concerned citizens marched on Washington to participate in a momentous event that forever shifted the national dialogue on race and justice. Consequently, policy changed. Laws changed. America changed.
In 2011, it is our time to change the national dialogue on public education.
For over a decade, education laws and policies have been enacted without input from those who REALLY know how to improve our schools and our society. And now, as we stand at a critical crossroads in the future of public schools and the teaching profession...
--The President has a voice
--The Secretary of Education has a voice
--Politicians have a voice
--Corporate billionaires have a voice
--The media have a voice
On July 30, 2011
The nation will finally hear OUR VOICE!
Teachers and parents will unite to tell the nation that. . .
--Testing is not the solution
--Privatization is not the solution
--Closing schools is not the solution
--Top-down reform is not the solution
--Blaming teachers is not the solution
Teachers and parents will unite to tell the nation that to save our schools, we need...
--Equitable funding for all public school communities
--Full and equitable public funding across all schools and systems, for community support services, for 21st century libraries.
--An end to racially and economically re-segregated schools
--End to high stakes testing used for student, teacher, and school evaluation
--Multiple, varied and fair assessments, no pay per test performance for teachers and administrators, an end to public school closures based upon test performance
--Curriculum developed for and by local school communities
--Small class sizes that foster caring, democratic learning communities, access to a --wide-range of instructional programs and technologies, a well-rounded education that develops students' intellectual, creative, and physical potential, opportunities for multicultural/multilingual curriculum for all students
--Teacher, family and community leadership in forming public education policies
--Educator and community leadership in drafting of new ESEA legislation, federal support for local school programs free of punitive and competitive funding, end to political and corporate control of curriculum, instruction and assessment decisions
Visit www.saveourschoolsmarch.org for more information about the Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action events!
July 28 and 29: Educational activist conference, Washington, D.C.
Register on-line now, space limited!!
$80 cost for conference to go up to $100 on June 15.
Register for FREE on-line now to give us an idea of how many people will be showing up for the march
Save Our Schools Congress, July 31 in Washington, D.C.
Register for FREE on-line now; space is limited!
July 30th: Rally and march on the National Mall, Washington, D.C.
If there is one thing all teachers need to do over the 2011 summer break it is to attend the SOS March & National Call to Action in Washington, D.C.
Let US offer the solutions!
Let teachers and parents educate America!
Teachers and parents are the key to saving our schools!
Visit & Register at http://www.saveourschoolsmarch.org
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Millions March In Harlem
Against the Attack on African People
END
the Bombing of Libya
the Illegal Sanctions in Zimbabwe
Bloomberg's Destruction
of Education, Housing, Health Care, Jobs and more!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Pan Africanism Rising Against Imperialism!
Assemble at 10 AM
110th Street and Malcolm X Blvd
Harlem New York
Pan Africanism or Perish!
For more information and participation call (718) 398-1766
Forward to all your contacts and let us know how many will be attending!
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FREEDOM FROM VIOLENCE AND POLICE STATE TERROR
Saturday, August 20 at 2:00pm
Location: In front of SF City Hall, Polk Street side, between Grove & McAllister
On the 34th Birthday of Idriss Stelley, Killed by SFPD on 6-12-01 at the Sony Metreon Complex,
The event is meant to launch a citywide police accountability and transparency COLLECTIVE comprised of socially mindful grassroots entities , social/racial Justice activists, and "progressive "city officials, as well as mayoral candidates, HOLD THEM TO THEIR PROMISES!
Performances, music, spoken word, and speakers.
If you would like to speak or perform,
please contact Jeremy Miller at 415-595-2894, djasik87.9@gmail.com,
or mesha Monge-Irizarry at 415-595-8251
Please join our facebook group at
Idriss Stelley Foundation !
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United National Antiwar Committee
www.UNACpeace.org
UNACpeace@gmail.com
UNAC, P.O. Box 123, Delmar, New York 12054
518-227-6947
Upcoming Actions:
August 20--Local actions or educational events on Other Wars
August 28--Organizing meeting for NATO/G-8 protests in Chicago
September 15 --Rally - Palestine is Coming to the UN!
October 6--Stop the Machine demonstration in Washington, DC
October 15--Local Afghanistan demonstrations or teach-ins
November11-13 --National UNAC Conference, Stamford, CT
May 15-22--Protest actions and educational events during NATO/G-8 Summits in Chicago
REPORT ON UNITED NATIONAL ANTIWAR COMMITTEE
COORDINATING COMMITTEE LEADERSHIP STRATEGY MEETING
NEW YORK CITY, 6-18-11
A lively and hugely productive all-day meeting of the national UNAC Coordinating Committee and invited observers was attended by 69 people representing 46 organizations. The first leadership gathering since UNAC's formation at the national conference held in Albany last July was organized to review the current period and UNAC's first 10 months, and to project actions for the coming period.
Joe Lombardo, UNAC Co-Coordinator, began with an overview of the unprecedented events of the past year based on the US expansion of never-ending war along with a global economic crisis and attacks on workers and the poor at home. At the same time, conditions have worsened, the popular uprisings in North Africa and fightbacks in Madison, inspire new opportunities for organizing.
He started with the launch of UNAC in July, 2010 in Albany at the largest gathering of movement activists since 9/11 and the historic actions taken there that permanently changed the nature of the movement. One was the recognition of the monstrous growth of Islamophobia. The new alliance in defense of this community inspired the formation of the Muslim Peace Coalition and a broad coalition of organizations defending civil liberties. The second was the long overdue stand in solidarity with the Palestinians by demanding "End All US Aid to Israel". This unequivocal position has ended the marginalization of Palestinian rights and brought the antiwar and the Palestine solidarity movements together for the strengthening of both.
A highlight of the past year was the success of the April 9-10 national mobilizations, the largest in many years. These demonstrations were also the most diverse with a large number of Muslim families marching with students, Palestine solidarity activists, and thousands of others in NYC and SF.
Co-Coordinator, Marilyn Levin, addressed The Way Forward and Building UNAC. She outlined the challenge we face in this difficult period as we enter an election cycle and stressed that maintaining our basic principles of independence from political parties, unity of purpose and action in a broad, inclusive movement, defense of all individuals and constituencies under attack, and a commitment to mass action as the major strategy for movement building is the way to build the movement and strengthen UNAC.
Although the majority of the American people are with us re: ending the wars and redirecting the economy to maintain social services, the antiwar movement is still fragmented and the major constituencies do not act in a unified way, weakening all. There is even a discussion of whether we need an independent antiwar movement and the efficacy of mass action as counter to small acts of civil resistance. Given the current stresses, it seems inevitable that fight backs will increase and the need for a unified opposition will grow in spite of attempts to bring the movement into quiescence in the Democratic Party juggernaut.
Malik Mujahid of the Muslim Peace Coalition pointed out the growth of hate groups and violence with many states passing Islamopohobic, anti-immigrant and anti-union laws. He stressed outreach to faith groups and labor and ensuring the peace movement reflects the diversity of America, especially groups that are solidly against the war like students, Latinos, immigrants, African American, Muslims, and Native Americans. He emphasized the importance of using personal 1:1 communication to counter the din of electronic communication, while also using social and news media effectively. He also raised the issue of reframing the 9/11 message for the 10th anniversary when we can expect to see increased Islamophobia and repression of civil liberties. We can't appear to be anti-American or anti-religious. We must identify with America's future based on growing diversity.
Nellie Bailey, Harlem Tenants Council & Black Agenda Report introduced a motion that stressed that our outreach and public statements must be broadened to include all oppressed nationalities, not only Muslims. This passed unanimously.
A discussion of upcoming UNAC actions followed.
Chris Gauvreau, CT United for Peace, addressed the fall actions marking the 10th year of war on Afghanistan. UNAC has endorsed and will build the October 6 actions in Washington, DC that will include nonviolent civil resistance actions and a plan to stay on. UNAC has also called for peaceful, legal national local demonstrations or other actions on Sat., Oct. 15 so that thousands will be visible in the streets in October.
A call for a second large, authoritative movement conference November 11-13, in Stamford, CT, was approved. Ashley Smith of the ISO outlined the plans and motivated the importance of bringing the entire movement together for education, training, bringing in new forces, and voting on action proposals for the coming period. A committee is already working on inviting prominent speakers and organizing workshops. The Coordinating Committee will formulate an Action Program to bring to the conference.
The escalation, brutality, and continuation of the UN/US war on Libya calls for vigorous action to defend the Libyan people and demand immediate withdrawal of all military forces. UNAC calls for demonstrations on Monday, June 27, the date that NATO has decided to extend hostilities for 90 more days. Regardless of different political views on the Qaddafi regime and the nature of the opposition in Libya, we all agree that foreign military forces, funding, and manipulation must cease and we support self-determination for the Libyans.
Sara Flounders from the International Action Center reported that NATO is coming to the US in the spring of 2012 for an international summit. UNAC will issue an international call for massive actions and a gathering of all sectors of the movement wherever and whenever this takes places. This will be the definitive spring action to galvanize the movement and demonstrate widespread opposition to US wars for domination and resources. (It is now known that this will be a NATO and G-8 gathering in Chicago May 15-22, 2012 and a broad call has been issued nationally.)
The gathering addressed proposals for ongoing work and actions.
There was a panel on fighting Islamophobia, attacks on civil liberties and targeting activists. Imam Latif described his experience with American Airlines not allowing he and his son to fly with no basis other than anti-Muslim/anti-Black profiling and bias, which they are legally challenging. Steve Downs from Project SALAM put the current attacks on Muslims (700,000 have been approached by the FBI) and activists in an historical perspective from the 1960's and 1970's attacks on black activists and civil rights workers and COINTELPRO tactics using agent provocateurs and frame-ups, resurrected with a vengeance. Attacks today include environmentalists and many groups of dissenters, whistle blowers, scapegoated communities. There are many political prisoners from the past that we mustn't forget. He also stressed the abuse prisoners suffer.
Jess Sundin, one of the targeted activists from the Twin Cities described the FBI targeting Latino activist Carlos Montes with trumped up criminal charges. His next court date is July 6 and actions will be organized in support. Carlos is available to speak and this is an opportunity to forge connections with the Latino community. Debra Sweet, World Can't Wait, reported on defense of Bradley Manning and WikiLeaks and the dangerous introduction of espionage charges and the death penalty. We are also approaching the ten year anniversary of opening Guantanamo prison. UNAC has played a leading role in calling for unified defense of all under attack.
Chris Hutchinson, from the CT Bring Our War $$ Home campaign, spoke of the exciting opportunities opening with the Bring Our War $$ Home campaign. This national effort connects the war and the economy and is a natural vehicle for outreach and involvement with all the constituencies impacted by the economic crisis, particularly with workers, the poor, and youth. Creative use of petitions, resolutions, referenda, town meetings can be effectively used for outreach, education, and publicity. This outreach campaign is exciting to young activists and also to those who are engaged. It gives people who are never asked for their opinion a sense of ownership - this is "our" money.
Kathy Kelly, Voices of Creative Nonviolence, urged that we try to impact the electoral conversation by calling candidates to be accountable for their positions on the wars and other issues and pursue getting answers and to support actions like the veterans riding from Ground Zero to the Pentagon and the October 6 actions, and raising antiwar resolutions at Democratic Party caucuses.
The Other Wars have often been neglected by the antiwar movement. Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report explained that Black is Back was formed to expose Obama and call attention to US wars at home and abroad. These include US-proxy wars in Africa where the death tolls are far higher than in the acknowledged wars, particularly in Congo and Somalia. Haiti has lost its sovereignty and has the status of a protectorate, the fate awaiting Libya.
The evidence that there is a war going on at home is the number of prisoners, particularly young men of color. Other aspects of other wars discussed included the so-called "War on Drugs" and its devastating impact on Mexico, Colombia, and minorities and the poor in the US. Black youth do not use drugs disproportionately; however, the amount of surveillance and harsh penalties are disproportionate resulting in the alarming rates of incarceration. Iran and other countries that the US demonizes and threatens were highlighted; it is important that we take a firm position of non-intervention in sovereign countries. A resolution passed to condemn the role of the International Criminal Court in subverting its legal mandate through selective indictments of Africans.
Nellie Bailey of the Harlem Tenants Union and Black Agenda Report emphasized that the issue of mass incarceration is a burning issue with 2.3 million in prison and a disproportion of prisoners are African-American and Latino young men. UNAC needs to expand its base into the Black community by recognizing the crisis and supporting a national movement to end this assault on the youth and combat the prison industry, beginning with a statement.
UNAC has endorsed the Black is Back August 20 call for actions re: the Other Wars. A resource list of books, articles and speakers will be distributed.
There were several actions generated by panelists re: Palestine solidarity. Jenna Bittar from Hampshire College represented Students for Justice in Palestine. She pointed out that antiwar groups are scarce on college campuses and that SJP's have been the most politically active, particularly in BDS campaigns. She speculated that students have felt fairly powerless but the youth involvement and leadership in Egypt has raised awareness of student power and students might be more open to actions put forth by UNAC. Kathy Kelly will be on the U.S. boat to Gaza and spoke of plans to hold a memorial service for all those who have died on the boat. Stan Heller from the Middle East Crisis Committee brought a resolution from Stan, Medea Benjamin (Code PINK), and Kathy Kelly in solidarity with the flotilla. Actions included forming committees of boat watch volunteers to spread information; rallies, vigils, and meetings during the sailing; and demos the day after any attack. This resolution passed unanimously along with a resolution to denounce the U.S. tax dollar-financed murders of demonstrators for the right of return and to hold solidarity demonstrations with the third Nakba Right of Return demonstrations.
Judy Bello, Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones and End the Wars, spoke to the use of drones becoming the preferred weapons and surveillance tools for targeted assassinations. Demonstrators were arrested for protests at the Hancock AF drone base in Syracuse and expect trials this fall.
Bernadette Ellorin, Chair of BAYAN USA, spoke of the movement to close U.S. bases abroad. She described the Philippines as the "first Vietnam" where torture techniques and counterinsurgency tactics were developed and exported. UNAC voted to endorse a day of action to oppose military exercises on February 4, 2012, the anniversary of the Philippine-American war. She stressed the importance of recognizing the scope of U.S. military hegemony around the world. A motion was passed to oppose U.S. military bases, trainings, and funding and to support an educational campaign on U.S. counterinsurgency.
It was pointed out that Pakistan is the least understood country among the U.S. wars. Workshops were encouraged for the fall.
The following organizations were represented at the UNAC leadership meeting on June 18, 2011 in New York City
Action for a Progressive Pakistan; Al-Awda Palestine Right to ReturnCoalition - NY; Bayan-USA; Bethlehem Neighbors for Peace; Bail Out the People Movement; Black Agenda Report; Black is Back; Boston Stop the Wars; Code Pink; Committee to Stop FBI Repression; Ct. United for Peace; Fellowship of Reconciliation; Green Party; Haiti Liberte'; Hampshire Students for Justice in Palestine; Honduras Resistencia- USA; International Action Center; International Support Haiti Network; International League of People'sStruggle; International Socialist Organization; Islamic Leadership Council ofMetropolitan NY; Jersey City Peace Movement; May 1st Workers and Immigrant Rights Coalition; Mobilization Against War and Occupation - Canada; Metro West Peace Action; Middle East Crisis Committee; Muslim Peace Coalition; New England United; Nodutdol Korean Community Development; Pakistan Solidarity Network; Philly Against War; Project Salam; Rhode Island Mobilization Committee; Rochester Against War; SI - Solidarity with Iran; Socialist Action; Socialist Party USA; Thomas MertonCenter Pittsburgh; United for Justice and Peace; Veterans for Peace; Voices for Creative Nonviolence; West Hartford Citizens for Peace; WESPAC; Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; Workers World; World Can't Wait
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Palestine Is Coming to the U.N.!
Rally, Thursday, September 15, 5 pm: Gather at Times Square
6 pm: March to Grand Central and then over to the U.N. to demand:
Palestine: Sovereignty Now!
Palestine: Enforce the Right of Return!
Palestine: Full Equality for All!
5 pm: Gather at Times Square
6 pm: March to Grand Central and then over to the U.N., as we say:
End All U.S. Aid to Israel!
End the Occupation!
Support Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions!
For more information, email palestineun@gmail.com
Sponsored by the Palestine U.N. Solidarity Coalition
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Protest, March & Die-In on 10th Anniversary of Afghanistan War
Friday, Oct. 7, 2011, 4:30-6:30pm
New Federal Building, 7th & Mission Sts, SF
End All the Wars & Occupations-Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, Libya, Haiti . . .
Money for Jobs, Healthcare & Schools-Not for the Pentagon
Friday, October 7, 2011 will be the exact 10th anniversary of the U.S./NATO war on the people of Afghanistan. Hundreds of thousands of Afghani people have been killed, wounded and displaced, and thousands of U.S. and NATO forces killed and wounded. The war costs more than $126 billion per year at a time when social programs are being slashed.
The true and brutal character of the U.S. strategy to "win hearts and minds" of the Afghani population was described by a Marine officer, quoted in a recent ANSWER Coalition statement:
"You can't just convince them [Afghani people] through projects and goodwill," another Marine officer said. "You have to show up at their door with two companies of Marines and start killing people. That's how you start convincing them." (To read the entire ANSWER statement, click here)
Mark your calendar now and help organize for the October 7 march and die-in in downtown San Francisco. There are several things you can do:
1. Reply to this email to endorse the protest and die-in.
2. Spread the word and help organize in your community, union, workplace and campus.
3. Make a donation to help with organizing expenses.
Only the people can stop the war!
A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition
http://www.AnswerCoalition.org
http://www.AnswerSF.org
Answer@AnswerSF.org
2969 Mission St.
415-821-6545
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(Please forward widely)
Save the dates of October 6, 15 to protest wars; and May 15-22, 2012--Northern California UNAC will be discussing plans for solidarity actions around the Chicago G-8 here.
United National Antiwar Committee
UNACpeace@gmain.com or UNAC at P.O. Box 123, Delmar, NY 12054
518-227-6947
www.UNACpeace.org
UNITED NATIONAL ANTIWAR COMMITTEE (UNAC) CALLS FOR ACTIONS IN OCTOBER
TO MARK 10 YEARS OF WAR ON AFGHANISTAN
On June 22, the White House defied the majority of Americans who want an end to the war in Afghanistan. Instead of announcing the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops, contractors, bases, and war dollars, Obama committed to removing only one twentieth of the US forces on the ground in Afghanistan over the next eight months. Another 23,000 will supposedly be withdrawn just in time to influence the 2012 elections. Even if the President follows thru on this plan, nearly 170,000 US soldiers and contractors will remain in Afghanistan. All veterans and soldiers will be raising the question, "Who will be the last U.S. combatant to die in Afghanistan?"
In truth, the President's plan is not a plan to end the war in Afghanistan. It was, instead, an announcement that the U.S. was changing strategy. As the New York Times reported, the US will be replacing the "counterinsurgency strategy" adopted 18 months ago with the kind of campaign of drone attacks, assassinations, and covert actions that the US has employed in Pakistan.
At a meeting of the United National Antiwar Committee's National Coordinating Committee, held in NYC on June 18, representatives of 47 groups voted to endorse the nonviolent civil resistance activities beginning on October 6 in Washington, D.C. and to call for nationally coordinated local actions on October 15 to protest the tenth anniversary of the US war in Afghanistan. UNAC urges activists in as many cities as possible to hold marches, picket lines, teach-ins, and other events to say:
· Withdraw ALL US/NATO Military Forces, Contractors, and Bases out of Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya NOW!
· End drone attacks on defenseless populations in Pakistan and Yemen!
· End US Aid to Israel! Hands Off Iran!
· Bring Our War Dollars Home Now! Money for Jobs and Education, Not for War and Incarceration!
Note these dates of upcoming significant events:
· November 11-13 UNAC National Conference - a gathering of all movement activists to learn, share, plan future actions.
· May 15-22, 2012 International Protest Actions against war criminals attending NATO meeting and G-8 summit in Chicago.
Challenge the NATO War Makers in Chicago May 15-22, 2012
NATO and the G8 are coming to Chicago - so are we!
The White House has just announced that the U.S. will host a major international meeting of NATO, the US-commanded and financed 28-nation military alliance, in Chicago from May 15 to May 22, 2012. It was further announced that at the same time and place, there will be a summit of the G-8 world powers. The meetings are expected to draw heads of state, generals and countless others.
At a day-long meeting in New York City on Saturday, June 18, the United National Antiwar Committee's national coordinating committee of 69 participants, representing, 47 organizations, unanimously passed a resolution to call for action at the upcoming NATO meeting.
UNAC is determined to mount a massive united outpouring in Chicago during the NATO gathering to put forth demands opposing endless wars and calling for billions spent on war and destruction be spent instead on people's needs for jobs, health care, housing and education.
CHALLENGE THE NATO WAR MAKERS
Whereas, the U.S. is the major and pre-eminent military, economic and political power behind NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), and
Whereas, the U.S. will be hosting a major NATO gathering in the spring of 2012, and
Whereas, U.S. and NATO-allied forces are actively engaged in the monstrous wars, occupations and military attacks on Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, the Middle East and elsewhere,
Be it resolved that:
1) UNAC, in conjunction with a broad range of groups and organizations that share general agreement with the major demands adopted at our 2010 Albany, NY national conference, initiate a mass demonstration at the site of the NATO gathering, and
2) UNAC welcomes and encourages the participation of all groups interested in mobilizing against war and for social justice in planning a broad range of other NATO meeting protests including teach-ins, alternative conferences and activities organized on the basis of direct action/civil resistance, and
3) UNAC will seek to make the NATO conference the occasion for internationally coordinated protests, and
4) UNAC will convene a meeting of all of the above forces to discuss and prepare initial plans to begin work on this spring action.
Resolution passed unanimously by the National Coordinating Committee of UNAC on Saturday, June 18, 2011
click here to donate to UNAC:
https://nationalpeaceconference.org/Donate.html
Click here for the Facebook UNAC group.
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_157059221012587&ap=1
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B. VIDEO, FILM, AUDIO. ART, POETRY, ETC.:
[Some of these videos are embeded on the BAUAW website:
http://bauaw.blogspot.com/ or bauaw.org ...bw]
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BART protest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIw1Z-H1WIA&feature=player_embedded
Uploaded by TheBayCitizen on Jul 11, 2011
Protesters heckled deputy BART police chief Daniel Hartwig as he tries to get them to close the door on the BART train. About 50 gathered at Civic Center Station to protest the BART police shooting of Charles Hill.
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Class Dismissed: How TV Frames the Working Class [Full Film]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6ZS91cqpa8
Narrated by Ed Asner
Based on the book by Pepi Leistyna, Class Dismissed navigates the steady stream of narrow working class representations from American television's beginnings to today's sitcoms, reality shows, police dramas, and daytime talk shows.
Featuring interviews with media analysts and cultural historians, this documentary examines the patterns inherent in TV's disturbing depictions of working class people as either clowns or social deviants -- stereotypical portrayals that reinforce the myth of meritocracy.
Class Dismissed breaks important new ground in exploring the ways in which race, gender, and sexuality intersect with class, offering a more complex reading of television's often one-dimensional representations. The video also links television portrayals to negative cultural attitudes and public policies that directly affect the lives of working class people.
Featuring interviews with Stanley Aronowitz, (City University of New York); Nickel and Dimed author, Barbara Ehrenreich; Herman Gray (University of California-Santa Cruz); Robin Kelley (Columbia University); Pepi Leistyna (University of Massachusetts-Boston) and Michael Zweig (State University of New York-Stony Brook). Also with Arlene Davila, Susan Douglas, Bambi Haggins, Lisa Henderson, and Andrea Press.
Sections: Class Matters | The American Dream Machine | From the Margins to the Middle | Women Have Class | Class Clowns | No Class | Class Action
http://www.mediaed.org
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Let's torture the truth out of suicide bombers says new CIA chief Petraeus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=sm02UbKNCKQ
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Stop Police Brutality: Justice for Eric Radcliff
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB8GpiXuSV4&NR=1
22 year old Eric Radcliff was shot and killed by police officers from the 35th district on the morning of Saturday May 21st, 2011. According to witnesses he was unarmed. The incident took place on the 5800 Block of Mascher Street in the 5th and Olney Section.
OUR COMMUNITY DEMANDS JUSTICE
WE THE FAMILIES AND FRIENDS OF ERIC RADCLIFF ARE CONCERNED THAT JUSTICE HAS NOT BEEN SERVED. WE BELIEVE THAT THE POLICE OFFICERS USED EXCESSIVE FORCE. ERIC DID NOT HAVE TO DIE.
OUR DEMANDS
1. Open An Investigation Into the May 21st Shooting Death of 22 year old Eric Radcliff by officers of the Philadelphia Police Department's 35th District.
2. End Police Brutality! Serve and Protect, Not Disrespect and Victimize!
3. LETS GET OUR HOUSE IN ORDER. Let's Unite for Real Security and To Build a Better Future for Ourselves
Please come Join in UNITY AND LOVE! God is Good, We ARE winning!
JusticeforEricRadcliff@gmail.com
215-954-2272 for more information
VIA Justice for Eric Radcliff
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Stop Police Brutality: Justice for Albert Pernell Jr.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGyR9Y2LPss
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Autopsy Released in Police Shooting of Man Holding Nozzle
Douglas Zerby was shot 12 times, in the chest, arms and lower legs.
Watch Mary Beth McDade's report
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-long-beach-belmont-shore-shooting,0,2471345.story
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I Wanna Be A Pirate
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppynM1lcst8
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Kim Ives & Dan Coughlin on WikiLeaks Cables that Reveal "Secret History" of U.S. Bullying in Haiti
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL0Dk21dC-M
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Operation Empire State Rebellion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJvBlQcaaaU&feature=player_embedded#at=10
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20 Facts About U.S. Inequality that Everyone Should Know
Click an image to learn more about a fact!
http://www.stanford.edu/group/scspi/cgi-bin/facts.php
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Licensed to Kill Video
http://nirs.org/multimedia/video/l2k.htm
Gundersen Gives Testimony to NRC ACRS from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo.
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Guy on wheelchair taken down by officers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdkJxw1mPoM
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Paradise Gray Speaks At Jordan Miles Emergency Rally 05/06/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJOLz1EYDYE&feature=player_embedded
Police Reassigned While CAPA Student's Beatdown Investigated
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK-6IsP3dUg&NR=1&feature=fvwp
Pittsburgh Student Claims Police Brutality; Shows Hospital Photos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_j_AVsTXZc&feature=relmfu
Justice For Jordan Miles
By jasiri x
http://justiceforjordanmiles.com/
Monday, May 9, 2011 at 3:22 pm
Even though Pittsburgh Police beat Jordan Miles until he looked like this: (Photo at website)
And even though Jordan Miles, an honor student who plays the viola, broke no laws and committed no crimes, the Federal Government decided not to prosecute the 3 undercover Pittsburgh Police officers who savagely beat him.
To add insult to injury, Pittsburgh's Mayor and Police Chief immediately reinstated the 3 officers without so much as a apology. An outraged Pittsburgh community called for an emergency protest to pressure the local District Attorney to prosecute these officers to the fullest extent of the law.
Below is my good friend, and fellow One Hood founding member Paradise Gray (also a founding member of the Blackwatch Movement and the legendary rap group X-Clan) passionately demanding Justice for Jordan Miles and speaking on the futility of a war of terror overseas while black men are terrorized in their own neighborhoods.
For more information on how you can help get Justice For Jordan Miles go to http://justiceforjordanmiles.com/
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Tier Systems Cripple Middle Class Dreams for Young Workers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09pQW6TW8m4&feature=youtu.be
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Union Town by Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5ZT71DxLuM&feature=player_embedded
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BRADLEY MANNING "BROKE THE LAW" SAYS OBAMA!
"He broke the law!" says Obama about Bradley Manning who has yet to even be charged, let alone, gone to trial and found guilty. How horrendous is it for the President to declare someone guilty before going to trial or being charged with a crime! Justice in the U.S.A.!
Obama on FREE BRADLEY MANNING protest... San Francisco, CA. April 21, 2011-Presidential remarks on interrupt/interaction/performance art happening at fundraiser. Logan Price queries Barack after org. FRESH JUICE PARTY political action.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfmtUpd4id0&feature=youtu.be
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Max Romeo - Socialism Is Love
http://youtu.be/eTvUs4rY4to
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Cuba: The Accidental Eden
http://video.pbs.org/video/1598230084/
[This is a stunningly beautiful portrait of the Cuban natural environment as it is today. However, several times throughout, the narrator tends to imply that if it werent for the U.S. embargo against Cuba, Cuba's natural environment would be destroyed by the influx of tourism, ergo, the embargo is saving nature. But the Cuban scientists and naturalists tell a slightly different story. But I don't want to spoil the delightfully surprising ending. It's a beautiful film of a beautiful country full of beautiful, articulate and well-educated people....bw]
Watch the full episode. See more Nature.
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VIDEO: SWAT Team Evicts Grandmother
Take Back the Land- Rochester Eviction Defense March 28, 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2axN1zsZno&feature=player_embedded
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B. D. S. [Boycott, Divest, Sanction against Israel]
(Jackson 5) Chicago Flashmob
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4tXe2HKqqs&feature=player_embedded
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The Kill Team
How U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan murdered innocent civilians and mutilated their corpses - and how their officers failed to stop them. Plus: An exclusive look at the war crime photos censored by the Pentagon
Rolling Stone
March 27, 3011
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-kill-team-20110327
Afghans respond to "Kill Team"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3guxWIorhdA
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WikiLeaks Mirrors
Wikileaks is currently under heavy attack.
In order to make it impossible to ever fully remove Wikileaks from the Internet, you will find below a list of mirrors of Wikileaks website and CableGate pages.
Go to
http://wikileaks.ch/Mirrors.html
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Labor Beat: Labor Stands with Subpoenaed Activists Against FBI Raids and Grand Jury Investigation of antiwar and social justice activists.
"If trouble is not at your door. It's on it's way, or it just left."
"Investigate the Billionaires...Full investigation into Wall Street..." Jesse Sharkey, Vice President, Chicago Teachers Union
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSNUSIGZCMQ
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Domestic Espionage Alert - Houston PD to use surveillance drone in America!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpstrc15Ogg
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Julian Assange: Why the world needs WikiLeaks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVGqE726OAo&feature=player_embedded
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Coal Ash: One Valley's Tale
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6E7h-DNvwx4&feature=player_embedded
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Flashmob: Cape Town Opera say NO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wElyrFOnKPk
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"Don't F*** With Our Activists" - Mobilizing Against FBI Raid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyG3dIUGQvQ
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C. SPECIAL APPEALS AND ONGOING CAMPAIGNS
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Barbarous Confinement
By COLIN DAYAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18dayan.html?hp
Nashville
MORE than 1,700 prisoners in California, many of whom are in maximum isolation units, have gone on a hunger strike. The protest began with inmates in the Security Housing Unit at Pelican Bay State Prison. How they have managed to communicate with each other is anyone's guess - but their protest is everyone's concern. Many of these prisoners have been sent to virtually total isolation and enforced idleness for no crime, not even for alleged infractions of prison regulations. Their isolation, which can last for decades, is often not explicitly disciplinary, and therefore not subject to court oversight. Their treatment is simply a matter of administrative convenience.
Solitary confinement has been transmuted from an occasional tool of discipline into a widespread form of preventive detention. The Supreme Court, over the last two decades, has whittled steadily away at the rights of inmates, surrendering to prison administrators virtually all control over what is done to those held in "administrative segregation." Since it is not defined as punishment for a crime, it does not fall under "cruel and unusual punishment," the reasoning goes.
As early as 1995, a federal judge, Thelton E. Henderson, conceded that so-called "supermax" confinement "may well hover on the edge of what is humanly tolerable," though he ruled that it remained acceptable for most inmates. But a psychiatrist and Harvard professor, Stuart Grassian, had found that the environment was "strikingly toxic," resulting in hallucinations, paranoia and delusions. In a "60 Minutes" interview, he went so far as to call it "far more egregious" than the death penalty.
Officials at Pelican Bay, in Northern California, claim that those incarcerated in the Security Housing Unit are "the worst of the worst." Yet often it is the most vulnerable, especially the mentally ill, not the most violent, who end up in indefinite isolation. Placement is haphazard and arbitrary; it focuses on those perceived as troublemakers or simply disliked by correctional officers and, most of all, alleged gang members. Often, the decisions are not based on evidence. And before the inmates are released from the barbarity of 22-hour-a-day isolation into normal prison conditions (themselves shameful) they are often expected to "debrief," or spill the beans on other gang members.
The moral queasiness that we must feel about this method of extracting information from those in our clutches has all but disappeared these days, thanks to the national shame of "enhanced interrogation techniques" at Guantánamo. Those in isolation can get out by naming names, but if they do so they will likely be killed when returned to a normal facility. To "debrief" is to be targeted for death by gang members, so the prisoners are moved to "protective custody" - that is, another form of solitary confinement.
Hunger strikes are the only weapon these prisoners have left. Legal avenues are closed. Communication with the outside world, even with family members, is so restricted as to be meaningless. Possessions - paper and pencil, reading matter, photos of family members, even hand-drawn pictures - are removed. (They could contain coded messages between gang members, we are told, or their loss may persuade the inmates to snitch when every other deprivation has failed.)
The poverty of our criminological theorizing is reflected in the official response to the hunger strike. Now refusing to eat is regarded as a threat, too. Authorities are considering force-feeding. It is likely it will be carried out - as it has been, and possibly still continues to be - at Guantánamo (in possible violation of international law) and in an evil caricature of medical care.
In the summer of 1996, I visited two "special management units" at the Arizona State Prison Complex in Florence. A warden boasted that one of the units was the model for Pelican Bay. He led me down the corridors on impeccably clean floors. There was no paint on the concrete walls. Although the corridors had skylights, the cells had no windows. Nothing inside could be moved or removed. The cells contained only a poured concrete bed, a stainless steel mirror, a sink and a toilet. Inmates had no human contact, except when handcuffed or chained to leave their cells or during the often brutal cell extractions. A small place for exercise, called the "dog pen," with cement floors and walls, so high they could see nothing but the sky, provided the only access to fresh air.
Later, an inmate wrote to me, confessing to a shame made palpable and real: "If they only touch you when you're at the end of a chain, then they can't see you as anything but a dog. Now I can't see my face in the mirror. I've lost my skin. I can't feel my mind."
Do we find our ethics by forcing prisoners to live in what Judge Henderson described as the setting of "senseless suffering" and "wretched misery"? Maybe our reaction to hunger strikes should involve some self-reflection. Not allowing inmates to choose death as an escape from a murderous fate or as a protest against continued degradation depends, as we will see when doctors come to make their judgment calls, on the skilled manipulation of techniques that are indistinguishable from torture. Maybe one way to react to prisoners whose only reaction to bestial treatment is to starve themselves to death might be to do the unthinkable - to treat them like human beings.
Colin Dayan, a professor of English at Vanderbilt University, is the author of "The Law Is a White Dog: How Legal Rituals Make and Unmake Persons."
URGENT: MEDICAL CONDITIONS REACH CRISIS IN PELICAN BAY HUNGER STRIKE
According to a source at Pelican Bay State Prison, who prefers to be anonymous, the medical conditions for many strikers have deteriorated to critical levels, with fears some prisoners could start to die if immediate action isn't taken. For at least 200 prisoners in the SHU at Pelican Bay, medical staff have stated:
"The prisoners are progressing rapidly to the organ damaging consequences of dehydration. They are not drinking water and have decompensated rapidly. A few have tried to sip water but are so sick that they are vomiting it back up. Some are in renal failure and have been unable to make urine for 3 days. Some are having measured blood sugars in the 30 range, which can be fatal if not treated."
Since the hunger strike has spread to at least a third of CA's prisons, family members have informed Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity of their loved one's conditions. They have reported hunger strikers have lost 20-30 pounds, are incredibly pale, and that a number of prisoners fainted and/or went into diabetic shock during family visits this past weekend. Some prisoners have been taken to the prison hospital in at least Corcoran and Pelican Bay.
TODAY: Take Action! Call NOW!
Governor Jerry Brown: 916-445-2841 "Hi my name is _________ . I'm calling about the statewide prisoner hunger strike that began at Pelican Bay. I support the prisoners & their reasonable "five core demands." I am alarmed by the rapidly deteriorating medical conditions of the hunger strikers & the inaction of the CDCR. I urge you to make sure the CDCR negotiates with the prisoners immediately & in good faith, before prisoners are force-fed or even die. Thank you."
***Also call your legislators and urge them to make sure the CDCR negotiates with the prisoners in good faith.***
CDCR Secretary Matthew Cate: 916-323-6001
"Hi my name is _____. I'm calling about the statewide prisoner hunger strike that began at Pelican Bay. I support the prisoners & their reasonable "five core demands." I am alarmed by the rapidly deteriorating medical conditions of the hunger strikers & the inaction of the CDCR. I urge the CDCR to negotiate with the prisoners immediately & in good faith, before prisoners are force-fed or even die. Thank You."
Other Ways to Support the Hunger Strike:
The prisoners need international support! No matter where you are geographically, you can help amplify the prisoner's voices and demands:
Check out the blog and Attend Solidarity Events & Demonstrations!
Sign the online petition!
Organize a Solidarity Event/Action in a city or town near you!
Share this information with everyone you know through phone calls, emails, facebook, twitter, and more!
Use grassroots & mainstream media to raise awareness and amplify the prisoner's demands!
If you have a loved one locked up and want support contacting them about the hunger strike, reach out to the coalition by sending an email to: prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity@gmail.com.
It is important that they have updates on the status of the hunger strike both at Pelican Bay and across California, including how people are showing solidarity & support for the hunger strike outside.
Thank you for your support!
In Struggle,
Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity*
Five Core Demands Petition:
Prisoners in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) at Pelican Bay State Prison (California) began an indefinite hunger strike on July 1, 2011 to protest the cruel and inhumane conditions of their imprisonment. The hunger strike was organized by prisoners in an unusual show of racial unity. The hunger strikers developed five core demands. Briefly they are:
1. Eliminate group punishments. Instead, practice individual accountability. When an individual prisoner breaks a rule, the prison often punishes a whole group of prisoners of the same race. This policy has been applied to keep prisoners in the SHU indefinitely and to make conditions increasingly harsh.
2. Abolish the debriefing policy and modify active/inactive gang status criteria. Prisoners are accused of being active or inactive participants of prison gangs using false or highly dubious evidence, and are then sent to longterm isolation (SHU). They can escape these tortuous conditions only if they "debrief," that is, provide information on gang activity. Debriefing produces false information (wrongly landing other prisoners in SHU, in an endless cycle) and can endanger the lives of debriefing prisoners and their families.
3. Comply with the recommendations of the US Commission on Safety and Abuse in Prisons (2006) regarding an end to longterm solitary confinement. This bipartisan commission specifically recommended to "make segregation a last resort" and "end conditions of isolation." Yet as of May 18, 2011, California kept 3,259 prisoners in SHUs and hundreds more in Administrative Segregation waiting for a SHU cell to open up. Some prisoners have been kept in isolation for more than thirty years.
4. Provide adequate food. Prisoners report unsanitary conditions and small quantities of food that do not conform to prison regulations. There is no accountability or independent quality control of meals.
5. Expand and provide constructive programs and privileges for indefinite SHU inmates. The hunger strikers are pressing for opportunities "to engage in self-help treatment, education, religious and other productive activities..." Currently these opportunities are routinely denied, even if the prisoners want to pay for correspondence courses themselves. Examples of privileges the prisoners want are: one phone call per week, and permission to have sweatsuits and watch caps. (Often warm clothing is denied, though the cells and exercise cage can be bitterly cold.) All of the privileges mentioned in the demands are already allowed at other SuperMax prisons (in the federal prison system and other states).
http://www.change.org/petitions/support-prisoners-on-hunger-strike-at-pelican-bay-state-prison
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Statement by Angela Davis regarding Troy Davis
I urgently appeal to Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and to the members of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole - L. Gale Buckner , Robert E. Keller, James E. Donald, Albert Murray, and Terry Barnard - to spare the life of Troy Davis, a young African American citizen of your state.
I hope everyone within sight or sound of my words or my voice will likewise urgently call and fax Gov. Neal and the members of the Board. Under Georgia law, only they can stop the execution of Troy Davis.
First of all, there is very compelling evidence that Troy Davis may be innocent of the murder of Police Officer Mark MacPhail in 1989 in Savannah. The case against Davis has all but collapsed: seven of nine witnesses against him have recanted their testimony and said that they were pressured by police to lie; and nine other witnesses have implicated one of the remaining two as the actual killer. No weapon or physical evidence linking Davis to the murder was ever found. No jury has ever heard this new information, and four of the jurors who originally found him guilty have signed statements in support of Mr. Davis.
More importantly, the planned execution of a likely innocent young Black man in the state of Georgia has become a terrible blot on the status of the United States in the international community of nations. All modern industrial and democratic nations and 16 states within the United States have abolished capital punishment. The fact that the overwhelming majority of the men and women on death rows across the country are Black and other people of color, and are universally poor, severely undermines our country's standing in the eyes of the people of the world.
Most importantly, the execution of Troy Davis will contribute to an atmosphere of violence and racism and a devaluation of life itself within our country. If we can execute anyone, especially a man who may be innocent of any crime, it fosters disrespect for the law and life itself. This exacerbates every social problem at a time when the people of our country face some of the most difficult challenges regarding our economic security and future.
I urge everyone to join with me in urging Governor Neal and the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole to stay the execution of Troy Davis and commute his death sentence. Give this young man a life, and an opportunity to prove his innocence.
Please, call or fax today. Stop the execution of Troy Davis!
Gov. Nathan Deal
Tel: (404)651-1776
Fax: (404)657-7332
Email: georgia.governor@gov.state.ga.us
Web contact form: web: http://gov.state.ga.us/contact.shtml
Georgia Board of Parsons and Parole
L. Gale Buckner
Robert E. Keller
James E. Donald
Albert Murray
Terry Barnard
Tel: (404) 656-5651
Fax: (404) 651-8502
Angela Y. Davis
July 14, 2011
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Say No to Police Repression of NATO/G8 Protests
http://www.stopfbi.net/get-involved/nato-g8-police-repression
The CSFR Signs Letter to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel
The CSFR is working with the United National Antiwar Committee and many other anti-war groups to organize mass rallies and protests on May 15 and May 19, 2012. We will protest the powerful and wealthy war-makers of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Group of 8. Mobilize your groups, unions, and houses of worship. Bring your children, friends, and community. Demand jobs, healthcare, housing and education, not war!
Office of the Mayor
City of Chicago
To: Mayor Rahm Emanuel
We, the undersigned, demand that your administration grant us permits for protests on May 15 and 19, 2012, including appropriate rally gathering locations and march routes to the venue for the NATO/G8 summit taking place that week. We come to you because your administration has already spoken to us through Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy. He has threatened mass arrests and violence against protestors.
[Read the full text of the letter here: http://www.stopfbi.net/get-involved/nato-g8-police-repression/full-text]
For the 10s of thousands of people from Chicago, around the country and across the world who will gather here to protest against NATO and the G8, we demand that the City of Chicago:
1. Grant us permits to rally and march to the NATO/G8 summit
2. Guarantee our civil liberties
3. Guarantee us there will be no spying, infiltration of organizations or other attacks by the FBI or partner law enforcement agencies.
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LEONARD PELTIER NEEDS OUR HELP!
On June 27, Leonard Peltier was removed from the general population at USP-Lewisburg and thrown in the hole. Little else is known at this time. Due to his age and health status, please join us in demanding his immediate return to general population.
Thomas Kane, Acting Director
Federal Bureau of Prisons
E-Mail: info@bop.gov
Web Site: www.bop.gov
Phone: (202) 307-3198
Fax: (202) 514-6620
Address: 320 1st Street, NW
Washington, DC 20534
Launched into cyberspace by the
Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee
PO Box 7488, Fargo, ND 58106
http://www.whoisleonardpeltier.info
contact@whoisleonardpeltier.info
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CAMPAIGN TO END THE DEATH PENALTY SPECIAL CIRCULAR: PELICAN BAY HUNGER STRIKE BEGINS JULY 1
(Please post widely)
CONTENTS:
-- Introduction
-- Campaign to End the Death Penalty Solidarity Statement
-- CEDP Statement of Solidarity with Pelican Bay Hunger Strikers
-- Solidarity Statement from Corcoran State Prisoners
-- Take Action!
INTRODUCTION
Prisoners in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) of California's Pelican Bay state prison have announced that they will begin an indefinite hunger strike on July 1. Although prison officials aim to keep prisoners silenced and divided, the hunger strike has shown solidarity across racial, ethnic and religious lines and demands improvements in cruel and inhumane prison conditions.
In his statement "Why Prisoners are Protesting", prisoner Mutop DuGuya states, "Effective July 1st we are initiating a peaceful protest by way of an indefinite hunger strike in which we will not eat until our core demands are met.....we have decided to put our fate in our own hands. Some of us have already suffered a slow, agonizing death in which the state has shown no compassion toward these dying prisoners. Rather than compassion they turn up their ruthlessness. No one wants to die. Yet under this current system of what amounts to intense torture, what choice do we have? If one is to die, it will be on our own terms."
Prisons in this country stand as silent tombs. Millions are warehoused in "correctional" facilities that serve only to punish and dehumanize. These prisoners in Pelican Bay are standing bravely against tortuous conditions and those of us on the outside must stand with them and shine a light into the dark cages that politicians want us to forget.
CAMPAIGN TO END THE DEATH PENALTY SOLIDARITY STATEMENT
The Campaign to End the Death Penalty (CEDP) stands in solidarity with the prisoners of Pelican Bay State Prison (PBSP) who will be engaged in a hunger strike on July 1 in protest of their deplorable conditions.
The prisoners at Pelican Bay prison in California live in a world in which collective punishment is common, sunlight is rare, and food is used as a tool of coercion. They live in a world that is so unlike the world that most of us take for granted that it strains our comprehension. The world of the prisoners has one goal, to create passive, compliant prisoners; prisoners who will not clamor for more; prisoners who will not rock the boat; prisoners who will not threaten to expose just how rotten the prison system is.
This world has failed. While these demands show us a world turned upside down, they also show us a prison population that is fighting back against their appalling conditions. The prisoners have stated that their hunger strike will be indefinite until their demands are met. This means they could face serious health issues or even death. For them, a fighting death is preferable to the hell they are living.
The Campaign to End the Death Penalty supports the Pelican Bay hunger strikers and stand with all prisoners who seek to better their lives. We stand in solidarity with these brave fighters in their quest for justice and humanity.
The demands of the prisoners clearly show the capricious and dehumanizing conditions in which they the prisoners are calling for:
1. Eliminate group punishments. Instead, practice individual accountability. When an individual prisoner breaks a rule, the prison often punishes a whole group of prisoners of the same race. This policy has been applied to keep prisoners in the SHU indefinitely and to make conditions increasingly harsh.
2. Abolish the debriefing policy and modify active/inactive gang status criteria.
Debriefing produces false information - wrongly landing other prisoners in SHU, and can endanger the lives of debriefing prisoners and their families.
3. End long-term solitary confinement. Segregation should be used as a last resort and prisoners require access to adequate healthcare and natural sunlight.
4. Provide wholesome, nutritious meals and access to vitamins.
5. Expand and provide constructive programming such as photos of loved ones, weekly phone calls, extension of visitation time, calendars, and radios, etc.
You can read the prisoner's full text of their demands here: http://prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/take-action/
SOLIDARITY STATEMENT FROM CORCORAN STATE PRISONERS
Statement of Solidarity with the Pelican Bay Collective Hunger Strike on July 1st.
From: the N.C.T.T. Corcoran SHU
Greetings to all who support freedom, justice, and equality. We here of the N.C.T.T. SHU stand in solidarity with, and in full support of the July 1st hunger strike and the 5 major action points and sub-points as laid out by the Pelican Bay Collective in the Policy Statements (See, "Archives", P.B.S.P.-SHU-D corridor hunger strike).
What many are unaware of is that facility 4B here in Corcoran SHU is designated to house validated prisoners in indefinite SHU confinement and have an identical ultra-super max isolation unit short corridor modeled after corridor D in Pelican Bay, complete with blacked out windows a mirror tinted glass on the towers so no one but the gun tower can see in [into our cells], and none of us can see out; flaps welded to the base of the doors and sandbags on the tiers to prevent "fishing" [a means of passing notes, etc. between cells using lengths of string]; IGI [Institutional Gang Investigators] transports us all to A.C.H. [?] medical appointments and we have no contact with any prisoners or staff outside of this section here in 4B/1C C Section the "short corridor" of the Corcoran SHU. All of the deprivations (save access to sunlight); outlines in the 5-point hunger strike statement are mirrored, and in some instances intensified here in the Corcoran SHU 4B/1C C Section isolation gang unit.
Medical care here, in a facility allegedly designed to house chronic care and prisoners with psychological problems, is so woefully inadequate that it borders on intentional disdain for the health of prisoners, especially where diabetics and cancer are an issue. Access to the law library is denied for the most mundane reasons, or, most often, no reason at all. Yet these things and more are outlined in the P.B.S.P.-SHU five core demands.
What is of note here, and something that should concern all U.S. citizens, is the increasing use of behavioral control (torture units) and human experimental techniques against prisoners not only in California but across the nation. Indefinite confinement, sensory deprivation, withholding food, constant illumination, use of unsubstantiated lies from informants are the psychological billy clubs being used in these torture units. The purpose of this "treatment" is to stop prisoners from standing in opposition to inhumane prison conditions and prevent them from exercising their basic human rights.
Many lawsuits have been filed in opposition to the conditions in these conditions ... [unreadable] yet the courts have repeatedly re-interpreted and misinterpreted their own constitutional law ... [unreadable] to support the state's continued use of these torture units. When approved means of protest and redress of rights are prove meaningless and are fully exhausted, then the pursuit of those ends through other means is necessary.
It is important for all to know the Pelican Bay Collective is not (emphasis in original) alone in this struggle and the broader the participation and support for this hunger strike, the other such efforts, the greater the potential that our sacrifice now will mean a more humane world for us in the future. We urge all who reads these words to support us in this effort with your participation or your voices call your local news agencies, notify your friends on social networks, contact your legislators, tell your fellow faithful at church, mosques, temple or synagogues. Decades before Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Pelican Bay and Corcoran SHUs were described by Congressman Ralph Metcalfe as "the control unit treatment program is long-term punishment under the guise of what is, in fact, pseudo-scientific experimentation."
Our indefinite isolation here is both inhumane and illegal and the proponents of the prison industrial complex are hoping that their campaign to dehumanize us has succeeded to the degree that you don't care and will allow the torture to continue in your name. It is our belief that they have woefully underestimated the decency, principles, and humanity of the people. Join us in opposing this injustice without end. Thank you for your time and support.
In Solidarity,
N.C.T.T. Corcoran - SHU
4B/1C - C Section
Super-max isolation Unit
TAKE ACTION!
Pelican Bay Prisoners Go On Hunger Strike to Protest Grave Conditions July 1, 2011
Lawyers, Advocates, Organizations Hold Press Conference, Voice Prisoner Demand
Press Contact: Isaac Ontiveros
Communications Director, Critical Resistance
Office: 510 444 0484; Cell: 510 517 6612
The Hunger Strikers need support from outside of prison bars. Here are a few things you can do:
Sign the Petition. http://www.change.org/petitions/support-prisoners-on-hunger-strike-at-pelican-bay-state-prison
Get the word out about the hunger strike and the prisoner's demands to your family, friends, church, community groups, and over social networking sites.
Attend protests in solidarity. Rallies planned in San Francisco, Eureka, CA, Montreal, Toronto and New York. Send protest info to: http://prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/take-action/ to be listed!
Stay informed. Check the blog regularly for updates http://prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/.
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Keep the Arboretum Free
Dear Arboretum Supporter,
It's been a few months since the Board of Supervisors extended the non-resident fee at the Arboretum until September 30th, 2013. Such policy and ongoing decisions are continuing to greatly impact our neighborhoods and city resources and out of this widespread concern a new coalition has formed - Take Back Our Parks. Community and park advocates have joined together from across the city, including representatives from Keep Arboretum Free, with the common goals of keeping parks and recreation facilities open and accessible to all, stopping privatization of public park properties, protecting the natural character of our parklands and ensuring inclusive community input in planning and decision-making.
This past week a key effort was made towards some of these goals when four City Supervisors placed a measure on the November ballot to put a moratorium on fees for park resources and the long-term leasing of club-houses to private organizations. The Parks For The Public measure can be an important step towards ending the loss of access and growing privatization that is a fallout of the Recreation and Park Department's strategy of using parks as a revenue source and which has imposed policies such as the Arboretum fee.
Please visit the TBOP website to learn more about the Parks For The Public ordinance available for voters on the ballot this fall: http://www.takebackourparks.org/
It is vital that the public have a chance to shape the issues regarding our parks. We encourage you to write to the four sponsoring Supervisors (Avalos, Campos, Mar and Mirkarimi) to thank them for introducing Parks For The Public and let them know that you support limiting the privatization and unwarranted commercialization of our parks.
Ross.Mirkarimi@sfgov.org
John.Avalos@sfgov.org
Eric.L.Mar@sfgov.org
David.Campos@sfgov.org
Please help spread the news about this measure to your community in the city and thank you very much for your continued support.
Sincerely,
The Campaign to Keep The Arboretum Free
www.keeparboretumfree.org
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Supporter of Leak Suspect Is Called Before Grand Jury
By SCOTT SHANE
June 15, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/16/us/politics/16brfs-Washington.html?ref=world
A supporter of Pfc. Bradley E. Manning, who is accused of leaking hundreds of thousands of documents to WikiLeaks, was called before a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Va., on Wednesday, but he said he declined to answer any questions. The supporter, David M. House, a freelance computer scientist, said he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, because he believes the Justice Department is "creating a climate of fear around WikiLeaks and the Bradley Manning support network." The grand jury inquiry is separate from the military prosecution of Private Manning and is believed to be exploring whether the WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, or others in the group violated the law by acquiring and publishing military and State Department documents.
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Justice for Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace: Decades of isolation in Louisiana state prisons must end
Take Action -- Sign Petition Here:
http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/justice-for-albert-woodfox-and-herman-wallace
For nearly four decades, 64-year-old Albert Woodfox and 69-year-old Herman Wallace have been held in solitary confinement, mostly in the Louisiana State Penitentiary (known as Angola prison). Throughout their prolonged incarceration in Closed Cell Restriction (CCR) Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace have endured very restrictive conditions including 23 hour cellular confinement. They have limited access to books, newspapers and TV and throughout the years of imprisonment they have been deprived of opportunities for mental stimulation and access to work and education. Social interaction has been restricted to occasional visits from friends and family and limited telephone calls.
Louisiana prison authorities have over the course of 39 years failed to provide a meaningful review of the men's continued isolation as they continue to rubberstamp the original decision to confine the men in CCR. Decades of solitary confinement have had a clear psychological effect on the men. Lawyers report that they are both suffering from serious health problems caused or exacerbated by their years of close confinement.
After being held together in the same prison for nearly 40 years, the men are now held in seperate institutions where they continue to be subjected to conditions that can only be described as cruel, inhuman and degrading.
Take action now to demand that Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace be immediately removed from solitary confinement
Sign our petition which will be sent to the Governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal, calling on him to:
* take immediate steps to remove Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace from close confinement
* ensure that their treatment complies with the USA's obligations under international standards and the US Constitution.
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WITNESS GAZA
http://www.witnessgaza.com/
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Stop Coal Companies From Erasing Labor Union History
http://www.change.org/petitions/stop-coal-companies-from-erasing-labor-union-history
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One year after Bradley's detainment, we need your support more than ever.
Dear Friends,
One year ago, on May 26, 2010, the U.S. government quietly arrested a humble young American intelligence analyst in Iraq and imprisoned him in a military camp in Kuwait. Over the coming weeks, the facts of the arrest and charges against this shy soldier would come to light. And across the world, people like you and I would step forward to help defend him.
Bradley Manning, now 23 years old, has never been to court but has already served a year in prison- including 10 months in conditions of confinement that were clear violation of the international conventions against torture. Bradley has been informally charged with releasing to the world documents that have revealed corruption by world leaders, widespread civilian deaths at the hands of U.S. forces, the true face of Guantanamo, an unvarnished view of the U.S.'s imperialistic foreign negotiations, and the murder of two employees of Reuters News Agency by American soldiers. These documents released by WikiLeaks have spurred democratic revolutions across the Arab world and have changed the face of journalism forever.
For his act of courage, Bradley Manning now faces life in prison-or even death.
But you can help save him-and we've already seen our collective power. Working together with concerned citizens around the world, the Bradley Manning Support Network has helped raise worldwide awareness about Manning's torturous confinement conditions. Through the collective actions of well over a half million people and scores of organizations, we successfully pressured the U.S. government to end the tortuous conditions of pre-trial confinement that Bradley was subjected to at the Marine Base at Quantico, Virginia. Today, Bradley is being treated humanely at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. T hanks to your support, Bradley is given leeway to interact with other pre-trial prisoners, read books, write letters, and even has a window in his cell.
Of course we didn't mount this campaign to just improve Bradley's conditions in jail. Our goal is to ensure that he can receive a fair and open trial. Our goal is to win Bradley's freedom so that he can be reunited with his family and fulfill his dream of going to college. Today, to commemorate Bradley's one year anniversary in prison, will you join me in making a donation to help support Bradley's defense?
http://bradleymanning.org/donate
We'll be facing incredible challenges in the coming months, and your tax-deductible donation today will help pay for Bradley's civilian legal counsel and the growing international grassroots campaign on his behalf. The U.S. government has already spent a year building its case against Bradley, and is now calling its witnesses to Virginia to testify before a grand jury.
What happens to Bradley may ripple through history - he is already considered by many to be the single most important person of his generation. Please show your commitment to Bradley and your support for whistle-blowers and the truth by making a donation today.
With your help, I hope we will come to remember May 26th as a day to commemorate all those who risk their lives and freedom to promote informed democracy - and as the birth of a movement that successfully defended one courageous whistle-blower against the full fury of the U.S. government.
Donate now: bradleymanning.org/donate
In solidarity,
Jeff Paterson and Loraine Reitman,
On behalf of the Bradley Manning Support Network Steering Committee
www.bradleymanning.org
P.S. After you have donated, please help us by forwarding this email to your closest friends. Ask them to stand with you to support Bradley Manning, and the rights of all whistleblowers.
View the new 90 second "I am Bradley Manning" video:
I am Bradley Manning
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-P3OXML00s
Courage to Resist
484 Lake Park Ave. #41
Oakland, CA 94610
510-488-3559
couragetoresist.org
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Drop the Charges Against Carlos Montes, Stop the FBI Attack on the Chicano and Immigrant Rights Movement, and Stop FBI Repression of Anti-War Activists NOW!Call Off the Expanding Grand Jury Witchhunt and FBI Repression of Anti-War Activists NOW!
Cancel the Subpoenas! Cancel the Grand Juries!
Condemn the FBI Raids and Harassment of Chicano, Immigrant Rights, Anti-War and International Solidarity Activists!
STOP THE FBI CAMPAIGN OF REPRESSION AGAINST CHICANO, IMMIGRANT RIGHTS, ANTI-WAR AND INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY ACTIVISTS NOW!
Initiated by the Committee to Stop FBI Repression stopfbi.net stopfbi@gmail.com
http://iacenter.org/stopfbi/
Contact the Committee to Stop FBI Repression
at stopfbi.net
stopfbi@gmail.com
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Mumia Wins Decision Against Re-Imposition Of Death Sentence, But...
The Battle Is Still On To
FREE MUMIA ABU-JAMAL!
The Labor Action Committee To Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
PO Box 16222 • Oakland CA 94610
www.laboractionmumia.org
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Abolish the Death Penalty Blog
http://www.ncadp.org/blog.cfm?postID=165
Abolish the Death Penalty is a blog dedicated to...well, you know. The purpose of Abolish is to tell the personal stories of crime victims and their loved ones, people on death row and their loved ones and those activists who are working toward abolition. You may, from time to time, see news articles or press releases here, but that is not the primary mission of Abolish the Death Penalty. Our mission is to put a human face on the debate over capital punishment.
You can also follow death penalty news by reading our News page and by following us on Facebook and Twitter.
1 Million Tweets for Troy!
Take Action! Tweet for Troy!
When in doubt, don't execute!! Sign the petition for #TroyDavis! www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition
Too much doubt! Stop the execution! #TroyDavis needs us! www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition
No room for doubt! Stop the execution of #TroyDavis . Retweet, sign petition www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition
Case not "ironclad", yet Georgiacould execute #TroyDavis ! Not on our watch! Petition: www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition
No murder weapon. No physical evidence. Stop the execution! #TroyDavis petition: www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition
7 out of 9 eyewitnesses recanted. No physical evidence. Stop the execution of Troy Davis www.tinyurl.com/troyepetition #TroyDavis
Thanks!
Exonerated Death Row Survivors Urge Georgia to:
Stop the Execution of Troy Davis
Chairman James E. Donald
Georgia State Board of Pardons & Paroles
2 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, SE
Suite 458, Balcony Level, East Tower
Atlanta, GA 30334
May 1, 2011
Dear Chairperson Donald and Members of the Board:
We, the undersigned, are alive today because some individual or small group of individuals decided that our insistent and persistent proclamations of innocence warranted one more look before we were sent to our death by execution. We are among the 138 individuals who have been legally exonerated and released from death rows in the United States since 1973. We are alive because a few thoughtful persons-attorneys, journalists, judges, jurists, etc.-had lingering doubts about our cases that caused them to say "stop" at a critical moment and halt the march to the execution chamber. When our innocence was ultimately revealed, when our lives were saved, and when our freedom was won, we thanked God and those individuals of conscience who took actions that allowed the truth to eventually come to light.
We are America's exonerated death row survivors. We are living proof that a system operated by human beings is capable of making an irreversible mistake. And while we have had our wrongful convictions overturned and have been freed from death row, we know that we are extremely fortunate to have been able to establish our innocence. We also know that many innocent people who have been executed or who face execution have not been so fortunate. Not all those with innocence claims have had access to the kinds of physical evidence, like DNA, that our courts accept as most reliable. However, we strongly believe that the examples of our cases are reason enough for those with power over life and death to choose life. We also believe that those in authority have a unique moral consideration when encountering individuals with cases where doubt still lingers about innocence or guilt.
One such case is the case of Troy Anthony Davis, whose 1991 conviction for killing Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail rested almost solely on witness testimony. We know that today, 20 years later, witness evidence is considered much less reliable than it was then. This has meant that, even though most of the witnesses who testified against him have now recanted, Troy Davis has been unable to convince the courts to overturn his conviction, or even his death sentence.
Troy Davis has been able to raise serious doubts about his guilt, however. Several witnesses testified at the evidentiary hearing last summer that they had been coerced by police into making false statements against Troy Davis. This courtroom testimony reinforced previous statements in sworn affidavits. Also at this hearing, one witness testified for the first time that he saw an alternative suspect, and not Troy Davis, commit the crime. We don't know if Troy Davis is in fact innocent, but, as people who were wrongfully sentenced to death (and in some cases scheduled for execution), we believe it is vitally important that no execution go forward when there are doubts about guilt. It is absolutely essential to ensuring that the innocent are not executed.
When you issued a temporary stay for Troy Davis in 2007, you stated that the Board "will not allow an execution to proceed in this State unless and until its members are convinced that there is no doubt as to the guilt of the accused." This standard is a welcome development, and we urge you to apply it again now. Doubts persist in the case of Troy Davis, and commuting his sentence will reassure the people of Georgia that you will never permit an innocent person to be put to death in their name.
Freddie Lee Pitts, an exonerated death row survivor who faced execution by the state of Florida for a crime he didn't commit, once said, "You can release an innocent man from prison, but you can't release him from the grave."
Thank you for considering our request.
Respectfully,
Kirk Bloodsworth, Exonerated and freed from death row Maryland; Clarence Brandley, Exonerated and freed from death row in Texas; Dan Bright, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana; Albert Burrell, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana; Perry Cobb, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois; Gary Drinkard, Exonerated and freed from death row in Alabama; Nathson Fields, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois; Gary Gauger, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois; Michael Graham, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana; Shujaa Graham, Exonerated and freed from death row in California; Paul House, Exonerated and freed from death row in Tennessee; Derrick Jamison, Exonerated and freed from death row in Ohio; Dale Johnston, Exonerated and freed from death row in Ohio; Ron Keine, Exonerated and freed from death row in New Mexico; Ron Kitchen, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois; Ray Krone, Exonerated and freed from death row in Arizona; Herman Lindsey, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida; Juan Melendez, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida; Randal Padgett, Exonerated and freed from death row in Alabama; Freddie Lee Pitts, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida; Randy Steidl, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois; John Thompson, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana; Delbert Tibbs, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida; David Keaton, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida; Greg Wilhoit, Exonerated and freed from death row in Oklahoma; Harold Wilson, Exonerated and freed from death row in Pennsylvania.
-Witness to Innocence, May 11, 2011
http://www.witnesstoinnocence.com/view_news.php?Exonerated-Death-Row-Survivors-Urge-George-to-Stop-the-Execution-of-Troy-Davis-181
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"A Fort Leavenworth mailing address has been released for Bradley Manning:
Bradley Manning 89289
830 Sabalu Road
Fort Leavenworth, KS 66027
The receptionist at the military barracks confirmed that if someone sends Bradley Manning a letter to that address, it will be delivered to him."
http://www.bradleymanning.org/news/update-42811
This is also a Facebook event
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=207100509321891#!/event.php?eid=207100509321891
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Committee to Stop FBI Repression
NATIONAL CALL-IN DAY -- ANY DAY
to Fitzgerald, Holder and Obama
The Grand Jury is still on its witch hunt and the FBI is still
harassing activists. This must stop.
Please make these calls:
1. Call U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald at 312-353-5300 . Then dial 0
(zero) for operator and ask to leave a message with the Duty Clerk.
2. Call U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder 202-353-1555
3. Call President Obama at 202-456-1111
Suggested text: "My name is __________, I am from _______(city), in
______(state). I am calling _____ to demand he call off the Grand Jury
and stop FBI repression against the anti-war and Palestine solidarity
movements. I oppose U.S. government political repression and support
the right to free speech and the right to assembly of the 23 activists
subpoenaed. We will not be criminalized. Tell him to stop this
McCarthy-type witch hunt against international solidarity activists!"
If your call doesn't go through, try again later.
Update: 800 anti-war and international solidarity activists
participated in four regional conferences, in Chicago, IL; Oakland,
CA; Chapel Hill, NC and New York City to stop U.S. Attorney Patrick
Fitzgerald's Grand Jury repression.
Still, in the last few weeks, the FBI has continued to call and harass
anti-war organizers, repressing free speech and the right to organize.
However, all of their intimidation tactics are bringing a movement
closer together to stop war and demand peace.
We demand:
-- Call Off the Grand Jury Witch-hunt Against International Solidarity
Activists!
-- Support Free Speech!
-- Support the Right to Organize!
-- Stop FBI Repression!
-- International Solidarity Is Not a Crime!
-- Stop the Criminalization of Arab and Muslim Communities!
Background: Fitzgerald ordered FBI raids on anti-war and solidarity
activists' homes and subpoenaed fourteen activists in Chicago,
Minneapolis, and Michigan on September 24, 2010. All 14 refused to
speak before the Grand Jury in October. Then, 9 more Palestine
solidarity activists, most Arab-Americans, were subpoenaed to appear
at the Grand Jury on January 25, 2011, launching renewed protests.
There are now 23 who assert their right to not participate in
Fitzgerald's witch-hunt.
The Grand Jury is a secret and closed inquisition, with no judge, and
no press. The U.S. Attorney controls the entire proceedings and hand
picks the jurors, and the solidarity activists are not allowed a
lawyer. Even the date when the Grand Jury ends is a secret.
So please make these calls to those in charge of the repression aimed
against anti-war leaders and the growing Palestine solidarity
movement.
Email us to let us know your results. Send to info@StopFBI.net
**Please sign and circulate our 2011 petition at http://www.stopfbi.net/petition
In Struggle,
Tom Burke,
for the Committee to Stop FBI Repression
FFI: Visit www.StopFBI.net or email info@StopFBI.net or call
612-379-3585 .
Copyright (c) 2011 Committee to Stop FBI Repression, All rights
reserved.
Our mailing address is:
Committee to Stop FBI Repression
PO Box 14183
Minneapolis, MN 55415
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Call for EMERGENCY RESPONSE Action if Assange Indicted,
Dear Friends:
We write in haste, trying to reach as many of you as possible although the holiday break has begun.......This plan for an urgent "The Day After" demonstration is one we hope you and many, many more organizations will take up as your own, and mobilize for. World Can't Wait asks you to do all you can to spread it through list serves, Facebook, twitter, holiday gatherings.
Our proposal is very very simple, and you can use the following announcement to mobilize - or write your own....
ANY DAY NOW . . . IN THE EVENT THAT THE U.S. INDICTS JULIAN ASSANGE
An emergency public demonstration THE DAY AFTER any U.S. criminal indictment is announced against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. Spread the word and call people to come out, across the whole range of movements and groups: anti-war, human rights, freedom of information/freedom of the press, peace, anti-torture, environmental, students and youth, radicals and revolutionaries, religious, civil liberties, teachers and educators, journalists, anti-imperialists, anti-censorship, anti-police state......
At the Federal Building in San Francisco, we'll form ourselves into a human chain "surrounding" the government that meets the Wikileaked truth with repression and wants to imprison and silence leakers, whistleblowers and truthtellers - when, in fact, these people are heroes. We'll say:
HANDS OFF WIKILEAKS! FREE JULIAN ASSANGE! FREE BRADLEY MANNING!
Join the HUMAN CHAIN AROUND THE FEDERAL BUILDING!
New Federal Building, 7th and Mission, San Francisco (nearest BART: Civic Center)
4:00-6:00 PM on The Day FOLLOWING U.S. indictment of Assange
Bring all your friends - signs and banners - bullhorns.
Those who dare at great risk to themselves to put the truth in the hands of the people - and others who might at this moment be thinking about doing more of this themselves -- need to see how much they are supported, and that despite harsh repression from the government and total spin by the mainstream media, the people do want the truth told.
Brad Manning's Christmas Eve statement was just released by his lawyer: "Pvt. Bradley Manning, the lone soldier who stands accused of stealing millions of pages secret US government documents and handing them over to secrets outlet WikiLeaks, wants his supporters to know that they've meant a lot to him. 'I greatly appreciate everyone's support and well wishes during this time,' he said in a Christmas Eve statement released by his lawyer...." Read more here:
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/mannings-message-christmas-eve-i-gr/
Demonstrations defending Wikileaks and Assange, and Brad Manning, have already been flowering around the world. Make it happen here too.
Especially here . . .
To join into this action plan, or with questions, contact World Can't Wait or whichever organization or listserve you received this message from.
World Can't Wait, SF Bay
415-864-5153
sf@worldcantwait.org
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DEFEND LYNNE STEWART!
http://lynnestewart.org/
Write to Lynne Stewart at:
Lynne Stewart #53504 - 054
Unit 2N
Federal Medical Center, Carswell
P.O. Box 27137
Fort Worth, TEXAS 76127
Visiting Lynne:
Visiting is very liberal but first she has to get people on her visiting list; wait til she or the lawyers let you know. The visits are FRI, SAT, SUN AND MON for 4 hours and on weekends 8 to 3. Bring clear plastic change purse with lots of change to buy from the machines. Brief Kiss upon arrival and departure, no touching or holding during visit (!!) On visiting forms it may be required that you knew me before I came to prison. Not a problem for most of you.
Commissary Money:
Commissary Money is always welcome It is how Lynne pay for the phone and for email. Also for a lot that prison doesn't supply in terms of food and "sundries" (pens!) (A very big list that includes Raisins, Salad Dressing, ankle sox, mozzarella (definitely not from Antonys--more like a white cheddar, Sanitas Corn Chips but no Salsa, etc. To add money, you do this by using Western Union and a credit card by phone or you can send a USPO money order or Business or Govt Check. The negotiable instruments (PAPER!) need to be sent to Federal Bureau of Prisons, 53504-054, Lynne Stewart, PO Box 474701, Des Moines Iowa 50947-001 (Payable to Lynne Stewart, 53504-054) They hold the mo or checks for 15 days. Western Union costs $10 but is within 2 hours. If you mail, your return address must be on the envelope. Unnecessarily complicated? Of course, it's the BOP !)
The address of her Defense Committee is:
Lynne Stewart Defense Committee
1070 Dean Street
Brooklyn, New York 11216
For further information:
718-789-0558 or 917-853-9759
Please make a generous contribution to her defense.
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In earnest support of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange:
http://readersupportednews.org/julian-assange-petition
rsn:Petition
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KEVIN COOPER IS INNOCENT! FREE KEVIN COOPER!
Reasonable doubts about executing Kevin Cooper
Chronicle Editorial
Monday, December 13, 2010
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/12/13/EDG81GP0I7.DTL
Death penalty -- Kevin Cooper is Innocent! Help save his life from San Quentin's death row!
http://www.savekevincooper.org/
http://www.savekevincooper.org/pages/essays_content.html?ID=255
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
17 December 2010
Click here to take action online:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=jhKPIXPCIoE&b=2590179&template=x.ascx&action=15084
To learn about recent Urgent Action successes and updates, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/iar/success
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa25910.pdf
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Free the Children of Palestine!
Sign Petition:
http://www.gopetition.com/petition/41467.html
Published by Al-Awda, Palestine Right to Return Coalition on Dec 16, 2010
Category: Children's Rights
Region: GLOBAL
Target: President Obama
Web site: http://www.al-awda.org
Petition:
http://www.gopetition.com/petition/41467.html
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"Secret diplomacy is a necessary tool for a propertied minority, which is compelled to deceive the majority in order to subject it to its interests."..."Publishing State Secrets" By Leon Trotsky
Documents on Soviet Policy, Trotsky, iii, 2 p. 64
November 22, 1917
http://www.marxists.org/history/ussr/government/foreign-relations/1917/November/22.htm
FREE JULIAN ASSANGE! FREE BRADLEY MANNING! STOP THE FBI RAIDS NOW!
MONEY FOR HUMAN NEEDS NOT WAR!
To understand how much a trillion dollars is, consider looking at it in terms of time:
A million seconds would be about eleven-and-one-half days; a billion seconds would be 31 years; and a trillion seconds would be 31,000 years!
From the novel "A Dark Tide," by Andrew Gross
Now think of it in terms of U.S. war dollars and bankster bailouts!
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Courage to Resist needs your support
Please donate today:
https://co.clickandpledge.com/sp/d1/default.aspx?wid=38590
"Soldiers sworn oath is to defend and support the Constitution. Bradley Manning has been defending and supporting our Constitution."
-Dan Ellsberg, Pentagon Papers whistle-blower
Jeff Paterson
Project Director, Courage to Resist
First US military service member to refuse to fight in Iraq
Please donate today.
https://co.clickandpledge.com/sp/d1/default.aspx?wid=38590
P.S. I'm asking that you consider a contribution of $50 or more, or possibly becoming a sustainer at $15 a month. Of course, now is also a perfect time to make a end of year tax-deductible donation. Thanks again for your support!
Please click here to forward this to a friend who might
also be interested in supporting GI resisters.
http://ymlp.com/forward.php?id=lS3tR&e=bonnieweinstein@yahoo.com
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Add your name! We stand with Bradley Manning.
"We stand for truth, for government transparency, and for an end to our tax-dollars funding endless occupation abroad... We stand with accused whistle-blower US Army Pfc. Bradley Manning."
Dear All,
The Bradley Manning Support Network and Courage to Resist are launching a new campaign, and we wanted to give you a chance to be among the first to add your name to this international effort. If you sign the letter online, we'll print out and mail two letters to Army officials on your behalf. With your permission, we may also use your name on the online petition and in upcoming media ads.
Read the complete public letter and add your name at:
http://standwithbrad.org/
Courage to Resist (http://couragetoresist.org)
on behalf of the Bradley Manning Support Network (http://bradleymanning.org)
484 Lake Park Ave #41, Oakland CA 94610
510-488-3559
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Committee to Stop FBI Repression
P.O. Box 14183
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Please make a donation today at stopfbi.net (PayPal) on the right side of your screen. Also you can write to:
Committee to Stop FBI Repression
P.O. Box 14183
Minneapolis, MN 55414
This is a critical time for us to stand together, defend free speech, and defend those who help to organize for peace and justice, both at home and abroad!
Thank you for your generosity! Tom Burke
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Short Video About Al-Awda's Work
The following link is to a short video which provides an overview of Al-Awda's work since the founding of our organization in 2000. This video was first shown on Saturday May 23, 2009 at the fundraising banquet of the 7th Annual Int'l Al-Awda Convention in Anaheim California. It was produced from footage collected over the past nine years.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTiAkbB5uC0&eurl
Support Al-Awda, a Great Organization and Cause!
Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, depends on your financial support to carry out its work.
To submit your tax-deductible donation to support our work, go to
http://www.al-awda.org/donate.html and follow the simple instructions.
Thank you for your generosity!
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COURAGE TO RESIST!
Support the troops who refuse to fight!
http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/
Donate:
http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/21/57/
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D. ARTICLES IN FULL (Unless otherwise noted)
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1) Oscar Grant's best friend is shot, killed
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, July 16, 2011
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/07/16/BAB31KBCN2.DTL&type=printabl
2) Letting Bankers Walk
By PAUL KRUGMAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18krugman.html?hp
3) The Value of Medicaid
New York Times Editorial
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18mon1.html?hp
4) Barbarous Confinement
By COLIN DAYAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18dayan.html?hp
5) New York Unions Press Members to Accept Deal
"Union leaders are leaving nothing to chance. The Civil Service Employees Association will mail ballots to its 66,000 members on Friday, but only after the union's president, Danny Donohue, sends a mailing urging them to agree to the concessions. ...The new contract would also require workers to take nine furlough days, and it would increase health insurance costs for employees. For example, state employees currently must pay 10 percent of their individual health insurance premiums; under the new contract, the contribution would rise to 12 percent for lower-paid workers and 16 percent for higher-paid ones."
By THOMAS KAPLAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/nyregion/new-york-labor-leaders-urge-members-to-approve-contracts.html?hp
6) Yemenis Organize Shadow Government
By LAURA KASINOF
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/world/middleeast/18yemen.html?ref=world
7) Halliburton profit jumps on strong U.S. demand
By Reuters
Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:40am EDT
http://ca.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idCATRE76H1U720110718?sp=true
8) Protest Yacht, Bound for Gaza, Is Diverted by Israeli Forces
By ISABEL KERSHNER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/world/middleeast/20flotilla.html?hp
9) Radiation-Tainted Beef Spreads Through Japan's Markets
By HIROKO TABUCHI
July 18, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/19/world/asia/19beef.html?ref=world
10) Europe at the Brink
New York Times Editorial
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/opinion/20wed1.html?hp
11) Spirit of Middle East Protests Doesn't Spare Israel
By ETHAN BRONNER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/world/middleeast/20israel.html?ref=world
12) 16 Arrested as F.B.I. Hits the Hacking Group Anonymous
"In an indictment unsealed Tuesday afternoon in United States District Court in San Jose, Calif., 14 people were charged in connection with an attack on the Web site of the payment service PayPal last December, after the company suspended accounts set up for donating funds to WikiLeaks. The suspects, in 10 separate states, are accused of conspiring to 'intentionally damage protected computers.' Anonymous had publicly called on its supporters to attack the sites of companies it said were turning against WikiLeaks, using tools that bombard sites with traffic and knock them offline."
By SOMINI SENGUPTA
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/technology/16-arrested-as-fbi-hits-the-hacking-group-anonymous.html?ref=us
13) Delaware: Suit Filed Over Herbicide
By JOANNA M. FOSTER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/us/20brfs-SUITFILEDOVE_BRF.html?ref=us
14) Bonuses for Billionaires
[Funny, this is what the bi-partisan government has been doing all along to one degree or another and they will keep it up! That's the logic of lesser-evil politics...bw]
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/opinion/21kristof.html?hp
15) Social Media History Becomes a New Job Hurdle
By JENNIFER PRESTON
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/technology/social-media-history-becomes-a-new-job-hurdle.html?scp=1&sq=Social%20Mecia%20History%20Becomes%20a%20New%20Job%20Hurdle&st=cse
16) Split Within Nuclear Regulatory Agency
[This is the "just don't make waves" theory of the NRC...bw]
By MATTHEW L. WALD
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/science/earth/21nuke.html?ref=us
17) UAW/Auto: Wheeling and Dealing
"The tough times in recent years do appear to have produced an ongoing constructive dialogue between the companies and their union. Mr. King and company executives speak proudly of their regular meetings to discuss topics like vehicle quality and broader issues like new fuel economy regulations. 'It's more a problem-solving relationship rather than who is right and who is wrong,' he said. 'You know, we're not out of the woods yet.'"
By BILL VLASIC and NICK BUNKLEY
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/business/united-automobile-workers-and-carmakers-contract-talks-start-next-week.html?ref=business
18) Venezuela's president
The sick man of Havana
But just how sick is secret
Jul 21st 2011 | CARACAS |
http://www.economist.com/node/18989165?fsrc=nwl|wwp|07-21-11|politics_this_week
20) AMMIANO TO HOLD HEARING ON BART POLICE DEPARTMENT
Public Safety Committee will get update on the Progress of the Implementation of Civilian Oversight
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 19, 2011
Contact: Quintin Mecke
Office: 415-557-3013; Cell: 415.505.2417
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1) Oscar Grant's best friend is shot, killed
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, July 16, 2011
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/07/16/BAB31KBCN2.DTL&type=printable
The best friend of Oscar Grant who was there the night a BART police officer fatally shot the unarmed man was shot and killed at a Hayward gas station, authorities and friends said Saturday.
Johntue Caldwell, 25, of Fremont was found behind the wheel of a Cadillac parked at the Union 76 gas station at West Tennyson Road and Calaroga Avenue about 5:35 p.m. Friday, according to police and friends.
The victim had been sitting in the Cadillac when someone walked up to the vehicle and fired several rounds, said Hayward police Lt. Roger Keener. The assailant fled and was not located after a search of the area.
The motive for the slaying was not known, but police do not believe this was a random act, Keener said.
"Investigators will be focusing on learning anything they can about this incident from people who may have been in the area at the time," Keener said. "Through their investigation, they also expect to determine if the victim was the intended target of this attack."
In 2010, Caldwell filed a $5 million federal civil rights lawsuit, saying he was mistreated by a second BART police officer, Marysol Domenici, before Officer Johannes Mehserle shot Grant in the back on the platform of Oakland's Fruitvale Station early Jan. 1, 2009. Mehserle was recently released from custody after serving half of a two-year prison term for involuntary manslaughter.
Caldwell, the father of two young sons, was the godfather of Grant's daughter, Tatiana, now 7, who received a $1.5 million settlement from BART in connection with Grant's death.
Caldwell's suit, which is still pending, said Domenici ordered him to the ground, threatened him with a Taser, touched the stun gun to his face and cursed him using a racial slur. Caldwell was "mentally and emotionally injured," his attorneys wrote.
Dale Allen, an attorney for BART, said after the suit was filed that Caldwell had a "significant criminal history" and was one of three men who cursed at and physically challenged officers as they detained Grant and three others after a fight on a train.
But John Burris, an attorney for Grant's family whose civil suit against BART officers is pending, said Saturday, "Nothing I know about Johntue says that he was involved in any illegal activity."
Burris said, "Johntue was a wonderful young man. He had career objectives. He and his mother were very, very close. He and Oscar had been friends since early childhood. They were as close as brothers could be, and this is a tragedy of the highest order. It's hard to imagine that another young man of that relatively small group of people is dead."
E-mail Henry K. Lee at hlee@sfchronicle.com.
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2) Letting Bankers Walk
By PAUL KRUGMAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18krugman.html?hp
Ever since the current economic crisis began, it has seemed that five words sum up the central principle of United States financial policy: go easy on the bankers.
This principle was on display during the final months of the Bush administration, when a huge lifeline for the banks was made available with few strings attached. It was equally on display in the early months of the Obama administration, when President Obama reneged on his campaign pledge to "change our bankruptcy laws to make it easier for families to stay in their homes." And the principle is still operating right now, as federal officials press state attorneys general to accept a very modest settlement from banks that engaged in abusive mortgage practices.
Why the kid-gloves treatment? Money and influence no doubt play their part; Wall Street is a huge source of campaign donations, and agencies that are supposed to regulate banks often end up serving them instead. But officials have also argued at each point of the process that letting banks off the hook serves the interests of the economy as a whole.
It doesn't. The failure to seek real mortgage relief early in the Obama administration is one reason we still have 9 percent unemployment. And right now, the arguments that officials are reportedly making for a quick, bank-friendly settlement of the mortgage-abuse scandal don't make sense.
Before I get to that, a word about the current state of the mortgage mess.
Last fall, we learned that many mortgage lenders were engaging in illegal foreclosures. Most conspicuously, "robo-signers" were attesting that banks had the required documentation to seize homes without checking to see whether they actually had the right to do so - and in many cases they didn't.
How widespread and serious were the abuses? The answer is that we don't know. Nine months have passed since the robo-signing scandal broke, yet there still hasn't been a serious investigation of its reach. That's because states, suffering from severe budget troubles, lack the resources for a full investigation - and federal officials, who do have the resources, have chosen not to use them.
Instead, these officials are pushing for a settlement with mortgage companies that, reports Shahien Nasiripour of The Huffington Post, "would broadly absolve the firms of wrongdoing in exchange for penalties reaching $30 billion and assurances that the firms will adhere to better practices."
Why the rush to settle? As far as I can tell, there are two principal arguments being made for letting the banks off easy. The first is the claim that resolving the mortgage mess quickly is the key to getting the housing market back on its feet. The second, less explicitly stated, is the claim that getting tough with the banks would undermine broader prospects for recovery.
Neither of these arguments makes much sense.
The claim that removing the legal cloud over foreclosure would help the housing market - in particular, that it would help support housing prices - leaves me scratching my head. It would just accelerate foreclosures, and if more families were evicted from their homes, that would mean more homes offered for sale - an increase in supply. An increase in the supply of a good usually pushes that good's price down, not up. Why should the effect on housing go the opposite way?
You might point to the mortgage relief that would supposedly be extracted as part of the settlement. But if mortgage relief is that crucial, why isn't the administration making a major push to reinvigorate its own Home Affordable Modification Program, which has spent only a small fraction of its money? Or if making that program actually work is hard, why should we believe that any program instituted as part of a mortgage-abuse settlement would work any better?
Sorry, but the case that letting banks off the hook would help the housing market just doesn't hold together.
What about the argument that getting tough with the banks would threaten the overall economy? Here the question is: What's holding the economy back?
It's not the state of the banks. It's true that fears about bank solvency disrupted financial markets in late 2008 and early 2009. But those markets have long since returned to normal, in large part because everyone now knows that banks will be bailed out if they get in trouble.
The big drag on the economy now is the overhang of household debt, largely created by the $5.6 trillion in mortgage debt that households took on during the bubble years. Serious mortgage relief could make a dent in that problem; a $30 billion settlement from the banks, even if it proved more effective than the government's modification program, would not.
So when officials tell you that we must rush to settle with the banks for the sake of the economy, don't believe them. We should do this right, and hold bankers accountable for their actions.
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3) The Value of Medicaid
New York Times Editorial
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18mon1.html?hp
Medicaid is under assault these days from nearly every direction. Governors complain that they cannot afford to put up their share of the money. Congressional Republicans led by Paul Ryan want to reduce the federal contribution by $771 billion over the next decade and shift more costs to the states and low-income Americans. President Obama has expressed willingness to cut Washington's contribution by $100 billion over that period to help reduce the deficit.
Meanwhile, conservative critics of Medicaid - and of health care reform's requirement to expand it - have made the outlandish claim that it provides such poor care that enrollees would be better off having no coverage.
They cite a few studies that seemed to show that, in some cases, patients on Medicaid had worse outcomes than those without any insurance. They claim this is because Medicaid pays so poorly that many doctors refuse to treat the patients, who are then unable to get care or go to the least-skilled doctors.
Those claims have now been refuted by a new study of Oregon's program, conducted under the leadership of Katherine Baicker, a Harvard health economics professor who was an adviser to President George W. Bush, and Amy Finkelstein, an economics professor at M.I.T. It found that Medicaid patients reported both better health and more financial stability than uninsured poor people.
The research was made possible by unusual circumstances in Oregon, where officials had only enough money to expand Medicaid enrollments by about 10,000 people in 2008. They used a lottery to decide who got coverage among the almost 90,000 people who applied. That made it possible to conduct a "gold standard" clinical trial in which two randomly selected groups with the same demographic characteristics could be compared - those who won the lottery and those who did not. None of the studies cited by the critics had randomly selected control groups.
The Oregon study provides striking results for its first year. The group that gained Medicaid coverage was significantly more likely to have received care from a hospital or a doctor, or to use prescription drugs, belying the notion that enrollees could not find providers. The insured group was far more likely to get preventive care, like mammograms, and to have a regular doctor.
Those people were also more likely to report being in better physical and mental health. And they were better off financially: less likely to pay out of pocket, have unpaid medical bills sent to collection agencies, or need to borrow money or ignore other bills to pay for medical care.
The critics rightly point out that just because the Medicaid enrollees reported that their health was better does not mean that it actually was better. In the second year, researchers are measuring actual blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar and other physical data.
The study estimated that the additional care the new enrollees got drove up spending (from all sources) on the average individual by about $775, roughly 25 percent, above the $3,200 average for the uninsured control group.
Any politicians eager to find savings by denying poor people access to Medicaid should recognize that they will be harming the health and financial well-being of highly vulnerable Americans. Expanding Medicaid will increase spending in the short run. But the nation will benefit from a healthier, more productive population that, in the long run, may have less need for costly medical services.
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4) Barbarous Confinement
By COLIN DAYAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/opinion/18dayan.html?hp
Nashville
MORE than 1,700 prisoners in California, many of whom are in maximum isolation units, have gone on a hunger strike. The protest began with inmates in the Security Housing Unit at Pelican Bay State Prison. How they have managed to communicate with each other is anyone's guess - but their protest is everyone's concern. Many of these prisoners have been sent to virtually total isolation and enforced idleness for no crime, not even for alleged infractions of prison regulations. Their isolation, which can last for decades, is often not explicitly disciplinary, and therefore not subject to court oversight. Their treatment is simply a matter of administrative convenience.
Solitary confinement has been transmuted from an occasional tool of discipline into a widespread form of preventive detention. The Supreme Court, over the last two decades, has whittled steadily away at the rights of inmates, surrendering to prison administrators virtually all control over what is done to those held in "administrative segregation." Since it is not defined as punishment for a crime, it does not fall under "cruel and unusual punishment," the reasoning goes.
As early as 1995, a federal judge, Thelton E. Henderson, conceded that so-called "supermax" confinement "may well hover on the edge of what is humanly tolerable," though he ruled that it remained acceptable for most inmates. But a psychiatrist and Harvard professor, Stuart Grassian, had found that the environment was "strikingly toxic," resulting in hallucinations, paranoia and delusions. In a "60 Minutes" interview, he went so far as to call it "far more egregious" than the death penalty.
Officials at Pelican Bay, in Northern California, claim that those incarcerated in the Security Housing Unit are "the worst of the worst." Yet often it is the most vulnerable, especially the mentally ill, not the most violent, who end up in indefinite isolation. Placement is haphazard and arbitrary; it focuses on those perceived as troublemakers or simply disliked by correctional officers and, most of all, alleged gang members. Often, the decisions are not based on evidence. And before the inmates are released from the barbarity of 22-hour-a-day isolation into normal prison conditions (themselves shameful) they are often expected to "debrief," or spill the beans on other gang members.
The moral queasiness that we must feel about this method of extracting information from those in our clutches has all but disappeared these days, thanks to the national shame of "enhanced interrogation techniques" at Guantánamo. Those in isolation can get out by naming names, but if they do so they will likely be killed when returned to a normal facility. To "debrief" is to be targeted for death by gang members, so the prisoners are moved to "protective custody" - that is, another form of solitary confinement.
Hunger strikes are the only weapon these prisoners have left. Legal avenues are closed. Communication with the outside world, even with family members, is so restricted as to be meaningless. Possessions - paper and pencil, reading matter, photos of family members, even hand-drawn pictures - are removed. (They could contain coded messages between gang members, we are told, or their loss may persuade the inmates to snitch when every other deprivation has failed.)
The poverty of our criminological theorizing is reflected in the official response to the hunger strike. Now refusing to eat is regarded as a threat, too. Authorities are considering force-feeding. It is likely it will be carried out - as it has been, and possibly still continues to be - at Guantánamo (in possible violation of international law) and in an evil caricature of medical care.
In the summer of 1996, I visited two "special management units" at the Arizona State Prison Complex in Florence. A warden boasted that one of the units was the model for Pelican Bay. He led me down the corridors on impeccably clean floors. There was no paint on the concrete walls. Although the corridors had skylights, the cells had no windows. Nothing inside could be moved or removed. The cells contained only a poured concrete bed, a stainless steel mirror, a sink and a toilet. Inmates had no human contact, except when handcuffed or chained to leave their cells or during the often brutal cell extractions. A small place for exercise, called the "dog pen," with cement floors and walls, so high they could see nothing but the sky, provided the only access to fresh air.
Later, an inmate wrote to me, confessing to a shame made palpable and real: "If they only touch you when you're at the end of a chain, then they can't see you as anything but a dog. Now I can't see my face in the mirror. I've lost my skin. I can't feel my mind."
Do we find our ethics by forcing prisoners to live in what Judge Henderson described as the setting of "senseless suffering" and "wretched misery"? Maybe our reaction to hunger strikes should involve some self-reflection. Not allowing inmates to choose death as an escape from a murderous fate or as a protest against continued degradation depends, as we will see when doctors come to make their judgment calls, on the skilled manipulation of techniques that are indistinguishable from torture. Maybe one way to react to prisoners whose only reaction to bestial treatment is to starve themselves to death might be to do the unthinkable - to treat them like human beings.
Colin Dayan, a professor of English at Vanderbilt University, is the author of "The Law Is a White Dog: How Legal Rituals Make and Unmake Persons."
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5) New York Unions Press Members to Accept Deal
"Union leaders are leaving nothing to chance. The Civil Service Employees Association will mail ballots to its 66,000 members on Friday, but only after the union's president, Danny Donohue, sends a mailing urging them to agree to the concessions. ...The new contract would also require workers to take nine furlough days, and it would increase health insurance costs for employees. For example, state employees currently must pay 10 percent of their individual health insurance premiums; under the new contract, the contribution would rise to 12 percent for lower-paid workers and 16 percent for higher-paid ones."
By THOMAS KAPLAN
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/nyregion/new-york-labor-leaders-urge-members-to-approve-contracts.html?hp
New York labor leaders, spooked by public workers' rejection of negotiated concessions in Connecticut, are beginning a carefully planned campaign to persuade more than 100,000 state employees to accept a wage freeze and other measures in order to avoid sweeping layoffs.
The state's largest union of public workers, the Civil Service Employees Association, has sent contract negotiators across the state as part of an effort to persuade health care, maintenance and clerical workers that it would be better to stomach furloughs, benefit cuts and three years without a salary increase than to risk losing thousands of jobs as the state cuts costs.
The second-largest union, the Public Employees Federation, also plans to campaign for its members' approval after agreeing Saturday to nearly identical concessions. Together, the two unions represent more than half of New York's public work force.
The reaction of rank-and-file members is a test both for union leaders, who are trying to protect jobs in a political climate that is increasingly hostile to public employees, and for Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is trying to rein in spending without alienating labor, a traditional Democratic constituency. Mr. Cuomo won approval of a state budget that depends on $450 million in labor savings, and he has warned of as many as 9,800 layoffs if union members do not agree to concessions. He has also proposed limiting pension benefits for future employees.
"There's a lot politically riding on it for the governor," said Joshua B. Freeman, a labor historian at Queens College. "It's a potential pattern-setter for other state employees, and possibly even New York City municipal contracts."
Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat elected last year, said he was mindful of events both in Connecticut, where union members created a budget crisis last month by rejecting concessions agreed to by labor leaders and a Democratic governor, and in Albany, where a small union of law enforcement officers rejected in May a deal the governor had championed as "a model the other unions negotiating with the state can follow."
"I'm confident, but it is crazy out there, and would I guarantee anything right now?" Mr. Cuomo said in an interview last week. "No."
Union leaders are leaving nothing to chance. The Civil Service Employees Association will mail ballots to its 66,000 members on Friday, but only after the union's president, Danny Donohue, sends a mailing urging them to agree to the concessions.
"These are not ordinary times, and we worked hard to balance shared sacrifice with fairness and respect," Mr. Donohue wrote in the mailing, a copy of which was provided to The New York Times. He added of the contract, "Equally important, it provides job security and prevents massive layoffs."
The proposed contract is unlikely to thrill many of the union's members, who earn $40,000 a year on average. The contract, which Mr. Cuomo called "a tremendous deal for the state," calls for a three-year freeze on base wages and 2 percent raises for the next two years. By contrast, the previous contract gave employees 3 percent raises for each of the first three years and a 4 percent raise in the final year.
The new contract would also require workers to take nine furlough days, and it would increase health insurance costs for employees. For example, state employees currently must pay 10 percent of their individual health insurance premiums; under the new contract, the contribution would rise to 12 percent for lower-paid workers and 16 percent for higher-paid ones.
The deal that Mr. Cuomo made with the Public Employees Federation is virtually identical. The union, with 56,000 members, reached the agreement only six days before hundreds of union members were scheduled to be laid off, and the union's president, Kenneth Brynien, acknowledged as much in announcing it.
"We are confident this is the best agreement that could be negotiated in the current environment," Mr. Brynien said.
As part of the deals, the state has agreed to exempt union members from broad-based layoffs for two years, and that provision has been a major selling point for Civil Service Employees Association members.
Abraham Benjamin, 53, a local association leader who is a treatment supervisor at Bronx Psychiatric Center, has spent many lunch breaks for the past few weeks explaining the terms of the contract deal to employees in New York City.
"Initially, they're very, very disappointed," he said.
But Mr. Benjamin, who has been a state worker for three decades, said his audiences generally came around.
"I won't say I like it, but in the environment that we are in, I feel it's a good deal," he said. "I explain to them that they can hold out as much as they want, but we also have to be realistic."
Michael Weissman, 55, of Amsterdam, northwest of Albany - a youth division aide for the Office of Children and Family Services who has worked for the state for more than two decades - said he agreed that the concessions were necessary.
"It's not what we want," Mr. Weissman said. "But when you're in tough financial times, everybody's got to give. If I'm making the same amount of money and I don't get raises, but at least I have the job, that's O.K."
Some of the debate among union members is happening online. Facebook pages for Civil Service Employees Association offices around the state show a smattering of complaints about the contract deal, mostly centered on the lack of raises and higher health care costs, as well as the suggestion that the union should have taken a firmer stance against Mr. Cuomo. But when a woman posted a message last month on one of the Facebook pages, urging her fellow state employees to vote against the contract, a union staff member wrote back, "Would you rather face a layoff?"
Association members must mail back their ballots by Aug. 12, and the results are expected to be announced Aug. 15. The Public Employees Federation's executive board is scheduled to discuss that union's pact on Aug. 11, and only after that would it be sent to rank-and-file members for a vote.
The ratification process in New York is simpler than that in Connecticut, where collective bargaining rules require the approval of 14 of the 15 public employee unions, with the supporting unions representing 80 percent of the affected workers. The vote last month met neither threshold, though 57 percent of union members supported the contract.
In New York, the governor can negotiate contracts on a union-by-union basis and usually needs only a majority vote of each union's membership to win ratification. And although the first contract Mr. Cuomo negotiated, with the Law Enforcement Officers Union Council 82, faced organized opposition, no such campaign has emerged within the larger unions.
A few weeks ago, one state employee started a Facebook page to persuade C.S.E.A. members to reject the contract. But as of Sunday, it had only six supporters.
"It's not inconceivable that it could fail, even without organized opposition," Mr. Freeman, the labor historian, said. "But the fact there hasn't been that would seem to indicate some level of outrage has not been reached."
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6) Yemenis Organize Shadow Government
By LAURA KASINOF
July 17, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/world/middleeast/18yemen.html?ref=world
Even as antigovernment protesters in Yemen struggled to revitalize their movement, sketching somewhat shaky plans over the weekend for a transitional government, they produced a show of their core strength, taking to the streets in huge numbers on Sunday to protest the rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
It was the 33rd anniversary of Mr. Saleh's rule, dubbed a "day of rage" by the protesters, tens of thousands of whom turned out across the country. But despite their numbers, any advance in their position seemed tenuous, and the country remained deadlocked and leaderless.
The president's supporters also turned out to demonstrate on his behalf, although their numbers were significantly smaller. Mr. Saleh, who is in Saudi Arabia recuperating from the severe injuries he suffered in an attack on the presidential palace last month, has refused to leave office, defiantly dismissing the nationwide uprising, which is demanding his ouster, and the loss of international support.
The protest leaders' announcement of a planned shadow government represents their strongest effort yet to bring some structure and organization to the disparate groups of mostly youthful demonstrators who have rocked the country for months. But the move also reflected their fundamental fragmentation and disorganization, with the announcement taking many of the people named as leaders of the transitional government by surprise.
Nor was it clear what role the shadow government would play, what its relationship would be with the formal political opposition or how much support it had.
At a news conference in the capital, Sana, on Saturday, the protest organizers named members of a transitional council who would become the movement's political leaders. Towakil Karman, who announced the decision, said the council would "implement the goals and the demands of the people's youth revolution" and would serve during a "transition period not exceeding nine months."
The council is to appoint a shadow cabinet of technocrats and ultimately select a 501-member national assembly to draft a new constitution.
Ms. Karman asked "the international community to respect the decisions of young people by recognizing the institutions of the revolution."
The 17 council members come from many segments of society: former members of the governing party, military leaders, members of various opposition political parties and southern separatists.
But many of the council members named by Ms. Karman said they had no idea the council would be announced Saturday.
One of them, Judge Fahim Abdullah Mohsin, the chief of the appeals court in Aden, said he had not known that he would be chosen to represent the protesters, the official Saba news agency reported.
Horeya Mashoor, who also was announced as a council member, said that while she supported the idea of a transitional council she was "surprised" to find her name among its members. Ms. Mashoor said the council can begin a political transition to help Yemen "find solutions to prevent the country sliding into chaos more than it already is now."
A government spokesman, Abdu al-Janadi, denounced the council as a "coup against the Constitution."
The formal political opposition did not comment officially on the council. Opposition leaders had considered naming their own shadow government but said that they had been pressured against it over the last few weeks by Western nations because it could be seen as a hostile move by some of the remaining governing party leaders.
Nor was there public comment from the government's two most powerful opponents, the military commander Ali Mohsin al-Ahmar and the tribal leader Sheik Hamid al-Ahmar.
But the Houthi rebels, a militant group that controls large portions of northern Yemen and which is not represented in the protesters' list of council members, released a statement on their Web site warning that "declaring a transitional council before the collapse of the regime will only repeat the Libyan experience."
The Houthis also said the council was "a dangerous step, and it may lead to fighting and civil war."
It was unclear what percentage of the protest movement was represented on the council. Even Ms. Karman, one of the organizers of the street protests that began in January, is a polarizing figure among some of the demonstrators.
"I would call this council Towakil and Khaled al-Ansi's council," said Adel al-Musanif, a graduate student, referring to Ms. Karman and the protest leader who announced the council with her.
Another protester, Abdul Rehman al-Qubati, said he recognized the need to organize. "The council is a good step toward the completion of the revolution, regardless of its drawbacks," he said.
Nasser Arrabyee and Yasser Alarami contributed reporting from Sana, Yemen.
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7) Halliburton profit jumps on strong U.S. demand
By Reuters
Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:40am EDT
http://ca.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idCATRE76H1U720110718?sp=true
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Halliburton Co (HAL.N: Quote), the world's second-largest oilfield services company, reported a forecast-topping 54 percent jump in quarterly profit on Monday as a U.S. drilling boom showed no signs of cooling off.
High oil prices have prompted energy producers to plunge billions of dollars into developing fields such as Texas' Eagle Ford shale, a move that allowed Halliburton to push through price increases in the quarter.
Halliburton is the leader in the North American market in pressure pumping technology that enables oil and gas producers tap in the shale fields, and its second quarter results show it benefited from that market position.
"It was both top and bottom lines, and a significant component was pricing," said Roger Read, analyst with Morgan Keegan & Co.
Halliburton said activity boom in North America was likely to last beyond this year, the company said.
"Strong crude prices, operators' improved cash flows combined with their ability to access capital, and the increasingly liquids-rich nature of the United States land market, give us continued confidence in the strength of North America through 2012," Chief Executive and Chairman Dave Lesar said in a statement.
Second-quarter net profit climbed to $739 million, or 80 cents per share, from $480 million, or 53 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding one-time items, the company earned 81 cents per share, topping the 74 cents per share that analysts had on average forecast, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Revenue rose 35 percent to $5.9 billion and came in above the average analyst forecast of $5.71 billion.
Activity outside North America was soft, the company said, confirming its previous comments that margins outside North America were rising slower than it hoped.
Seasonal activity increases in the North Sea and Russia lifted revenues, but the shutdown in Libya, delays in Iraqi projects, rising sub-Saharan Africa costs and sluggish markets in the United Kingdom and Algeria all weighed, it said.
Shares in Halliburton were up 1 percent at $53.60 per share in premarket trading
(Reporting by Matt Daily in New York and Braden Reddall in San Francisco; Editing by Derek Caney)
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8) Protest Yacht, Bound for Gaza, Is Diverted by Israeli Forces
By ISABEL KERSHNER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/world/middleeast/20flotilla.html?hp
JERUSALEM - Israeli naval forces boarded a French yacht off the Gaza coast on Tuesday as the yacht tried to breach the Israeli maritime blockade of the Palestinian enclave. The forces met no resistance, Israeli military officials said, and steered the boat toward the Israeli port of Ashdod.
The yacht is a remnant of an international flotilla that had planned to challenge the blockade last month but was mostly thwarted.
The flotilla organizers had wanted to mark a year since the last flotilla, whose attempt to reach Gaza ended in bloodshed, and to highlight the restrictions on the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza. Israel says that its blockade is essential to prevent the smuggling of weapons into Gaza, which is run by Hamas, the Islamic militant group. The naval blockade was formally imposed in early 2009 during Israel's military offensive in Gaza.
In May 2010, Israeli naval commandos met with tough resistance when they boarded a large Turkish passenger vessel trying to breach the blockade, and fatally shot nine activists on the ship. The episode led to intense international pressure on Israel to ease its restrictions on Gaza.
The amount and variety of goods allowed in to the enclave over land crossings has increased significantly, and Egypt recently reopened the Rafah passenger crossing on its border with Gaza. But the capacity of the crossing is limited; there are currently 23,000 Palestinians on a waiting list to leave Gaza by way of Rafah, according to Gisha, an Israeli advocacy group that focuses on freedom of movement for Palestinians. The export of goods has also been severely limited to a small amount of agricultural produce.
The latest flotilla, which organizers had hoped would include up to 10 vessels and some 300 passengers, was beset by problems from the outset. Israel worked intensely at the diplomatic level to stymie the operation, and most of the vessels in the flotilla were prevented from leaving Greek ports by the Greek authorities. Members of the flotilla also said that two of the vessels were sabotaged.
The lone yacht that managed to set out for Gaza this week, the Dignite-Al Karama, left the French island of Corsica with 16 passengers and crew on board. Among them were an honorary member of the French parliament, a crew from Al Jazeera and an Israeli journalist.
The French-flagged yacht anchored in international waters before the last leg of its voyage on Monday, according to organizers from the Free Gaza Movement.
The boat represented "the steadfastness and determination of the flotilla movement to sail until the blockade is broken," the group said in a statement issued hours before the yacht was taken over.
On Tuesday morning the Israeli Navy made contact with the yacht and requested that it change course, a call that the vessel ignored. The Israeli military released a recording of a radio exchange with someone on board, who said the vessel was a "private cruiser boat," that it carried no cargo, and that its final destination was Gaza.
Brig. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the Israeli military's chief spokesman, said that the captain had lied to the Greek authorities during its voyage, telling them that the yacht's destination was Egypt.
"After dialogue reached a dead end, naval commandos boarded the yacht and took control of it without facing resistance," General Mordechai continued.
The military said that when the yacht reached Ashdod, the passengers would be questioned by the Israeli police and then turned over to immigration authorities.
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9) Radiation-Tainted Beef Spreads Through Japan's Markets
By HIROKO TABUCHI
July 18, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/19/world/asia/19beef.html?ref=world
MINAMISOMA, Japan - Even after explosions rocked the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Kuniaki Sato, who raises cattle here about 20 miles from the crippled complex, said he had received no clear warning from the government about the possible dangers of radiation to his herd.
So six weeks after the accident, on April 23, he shipped 12 of his prized cattle from his farm to market.
Now Japanese agricultural officials say meat from more than 500 cattle that were likely to have been contaminated with radioactive cesium has made its way to supermarkets and restaurants across Japan in recent weeks. Officials say the cattle ate hay that had been stored outside and exposed to radiation.
"I was a little worried, but we had to sell when we could," said Mr. Sato, whose cattle were not fed hay and so were unlikely to have been contaminated.
When a precautionary order to halt all farm shipments was lifted soon after the accident, area farmers took it as a go-ahead sign, he said. "We all resumed shipments," he said. "Of course we did."
The revelations by the government this month that contaminated meat reached Japanese markets have intensified food safety concerns in Japan, underscoring the government's inability to control the spread of radioactive material into the nation's food.
Radioactive material has been detected in a range of produce, including spinach, tea leaves, milk and fish. Contaminated hay has been found at farms more than 85 miles from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant, suggesting that the radioactive fallout has reached a wider area than first suspected.
Still, because of a severe shortage of testing equipment, and local governments that are still swamped with disaster relief, only a small percentage of farm products grown in the region get checked for radiation.
The government has suspended agricultural shipments from within a radius of about 12 miles around the Fukushima plant, as well as a number of other identified radiation "hot spots." But farms outside those areas, even those relatively close to the plant, have faced few restrictions in shipping their produce.
For months the government balked at placing a wider ban on produce from the Fukushima region despite sporadic discoveries of contaminated produce, for fear of bringing fresh confusion in the disaster-stricken area, putting thousands more people out of work and adding to growing compensation claims for Tokyo Electric Power, which operates the Fukushima plant.
Now, with the number of contamination cases rising, the government is finally moving to ban beef shipments from Fukushima Prefecture, an area of 5,300 square miles, slightly smaller than Connecticut. Yukio Edano, the chief cabinet secretary, said Tuesday that the government was in the "final stages" of coordinating such a ban and an announcement could come later that day.
Fukushima Prefecture has also said it issued instructions in late March warning farmers to make sure hay was stored indoors, to prevent possible contamination from rain. But many farmers said they were not aware of such a directive.
Cattle from some areas with high radiation readings, including here in Minamisoma, a city in Fukushima Prefecture, had been checked for radiation on the surface of their skins before being shipped to market. But those checks do not sufficiently measure whether cattle have been exposed to radiation internally by eating contaminated feed, officials say.
Fukushima government officials said they were starting inspections of all 4,000 or so cattle farms in the prefecture to make sure that none of them was using radioactive hay. Meanwhile, ranchers have been asked to comply with a new voluntary shipment ban.
This month, officials testing hay fed to cattle at a ranch in Minamisoma detected radioactive cesium 250 times above Japan's official limit. Beef from that farm contained almost five times the official limit.
Officials suspect that the hay was stored outside and became tainted with rainwater, which can carry radioactive elements in the atmosphere as it falls. Though hay is not usually fed to cattle here, a feed-supply shortage after the March 11 quake and tsunami forced some farms to substitute it for other food.
Some farmers in the region say that they welcome tougher checks, and that cattle can still be shipped from Fukushima if precautions are taken against radiation exposure.
Yuta Furuyama, who has 233 cattle in Minamisoma, is certain his herd is clean. His cattle are kept indoors, and their feed is stored in thick plastic bags, out of the rain. He said he was careful to not even bring tools that he has used outside into the cowshed, for fear of contaminating his herd, which he is eager to have tested for radiation so that his cattle can be safely sold later this year.
"I hope they will finally step up the checks," he said. "If the government had given proper advice and done proper tests in the first place, things wouldn't have gotten out of hand."
Japanese government officials insist that even at levels above government limits, radioactive cesium will not have an immediate effect on health. Longer-term effects are less known, however. Many experts say that prolonged exposure to radiation can lead to a higher incidence of cancers like leukemia.
"If you eat it every day, it might be a problem," Goshi Hosono, the minister in charge of the nuclear issue, said last week. "But if you eat just a little, there would be no big effect on your health."
Experts, however, disagree on what the effects may be of exposure to radiation above the limits but at low doses.
Some farms have sold off their herds in recent weeks, at even lower prices than the Fukushima label now fetches. On a large cattle farm in the neighboring village of Iitate, the cowsheds lie eerily empty. Since the accident, the farm rushed to sell off its 312 cows, said Akio Takahashi, who has worked there for 23 years.
After March 11, cattle sold for about $6,330 a head, about a third less than the price before the quake, he said. Then as radiation fears increased, prices plummeted further.
Panicked, the farm decided to sell its remaining 180 cattle all at once in early July, including calves still not ready for market, at rock-bottom prices to farms outside Fukushima. Those cattle were screened for radiation, Mr. Takahashi said.
When the cattle were gone, Mr. Takahashi was let go. He is now looking for a city job.
"It's finished," he said. "Nobody will ever want to eat beef from Fukushima again."
Max Hodges contributed research.
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10) Europe at the Brink
New York Times Editorial
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/opinion/20wed1.html?hp
Time is running out for salvaging Greece and, beyond it, Europe's shared currency, the euro. Thursday's emergency summit meeting looms as a Lehman Brothers moment.
If Europe's leaders fail to extricate Greece from its current unsustainable debt-servicing obligations - by lowering interest rates and lengthening maturities at a minimum - the market reaction, for all of Europe, may be unforgiving, and uncontainable as investors conclude that no European sovereign debt is safe from possible default.
Had Europe faced up to the Greek problem a year and a half ago, the crisis would likely be more contained and manageable today. It should have reached a broad pact with Athens by trading growth-promoting reforms for long-term financial guarantees and relief.
But that would have meant telling taxpayers in Germany and other northern European countries that they might have to finance some of the bailout and recovery costs (as they will end up doing anyway). And it would have meant acknowledging that heavily exposed German and French banks might have to be recapitalized at taxpayer expense.
Instead, European Union leaders imposed on Greece harsh austerity conditions that suffocated growth. They lent just enough money so it could keep paying creditors, while the ratio of its debt to gross domestic product soared.
With lower rates, longer maturities and the promise of long-term support from European institutions, Greece might have a fighting chance, or at least enough time for a negotiated solution with its creditors.
Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany says bank creditors must first agree to a partial write-down of their loans to Greece. That would certainly be fair. But there's no time for that fight right now. Her demands are pushing private lenders to the exits, driving market interest rates even higher and blocking any resolution.
France's president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has argued for swapping some of the Greek debt held by French banks for longer maturities. That offers some relief to the French banks but none to Greece, and rating agencies would likely label it partial default. Neither route addresses the fundamental problem that Greece cannot pay without lower interest rates and faster growth.
The first, and perhaps immediate, consequence of a failed summit meeting could be a disorderly and destructive Greek default. The shock waves could spread to Ireland and Portugal as lenders conclude that if Greece can default despite European Union bailout programs, so could those countries.
Spain and Italy could also be drawn in. They are large, solvent economies threatened by liquidity crunches if their interest costs keep rising. But credit markets, seeing Europe paralyzed, have started to back away from these two as well. The European Union can afford a sustainable bailout of all three smaller economies. It would be far more costly to have to rescue the two larger ones.
What matters is that the relief Europe chooses results in a lower debt-servicing burden with longer payback periods and greater chance for growth for Greece and the other heavily indebted economies. Europe as a whole can raise money at much lower interest rates, and those funds can be used to restructure and refinance Greek debt.
No such solution is possible unless Chancellor Merkel steps back from her unrealistic insistence that Greece's bank creditors first bear some of the cost of any debt restructuring. German taxpayers, and all of Europe, must be told that everyone will pay a disastrously high price if Greece is allowed to go under. Europe's leaders need to make hard choices. And they need to make them now.
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11) Spirit of Middle East Protests Doesn't Spare Israel
By ETHAN BRONNER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/world/middleeast/20israel.html?ref=world
TEL AVIV - The tents are lined up on the grassy median of this city's most stylish avenue, scores of them, populated by a downtown mix of characters: the unemployed down-and-out next to the artistic elite; half-naked men in straw hats; women in minidresses. Surrounding them are protest posters ("The only place left to live is the cemetery") and designated spots for cooking or getting an Internet connection.
Six months after Cairo's Tahrir Square became synonymous with the region's transformation, another Middle Eastern city has been hit by Facebook-driven protests with potentially serious political consequences. But here in Israel, where urban tent cities began springing up a week ago and continue multiplying across the country, the issue is not democracy but the plight of the consumer, especially in housing, food and other basic goods.
And while Israel's Arab neighbors have historically been seen here as the source of the country's woes, now some are calling them an inspiration.
"Religious Jews like to think of us as a light unto nations, meaning that others will learn from us, but this time we have learned from the nations around us that change can come from people power," said Moshe Gant, a 35-year-old business analyst who came here with his baby to support the protesters.
While economic issues factored into the Arab uprisings as well, the issue preoccupying Israel is fairly specific: the cost and availability of housing. In recent weeks, similar concerns were raised about the price of cottage cheese and gasoline. Taken together, these issues have created an alliance crossing traditional left and right and are being viewed as the first threat to the stable government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The government and Parliament have reacted quickly, promising construction of thousands of new housing units, along with a set of changes to bulldoze bureaucracies and press landlords to expand the market through a mix of carrot and stick (sell and get a bonus; don't sell and face a tax). As elsewhere in the region, various political forces have attached themselves to the movement. It remains unclear whether the promises will satisfy the protesters or feed their indignation.
"This is the first time that instead of fighting against the Arabs we are fighting for something - our life and that of our children," said Eldad Yaniv, a veteran organizer of the left who came to the Tel Aviv protest a few days after it started and pitched 30 identical tents with other activists. "The old right and left are fading. This country needs a new left, its own New Deal."
Ronen Shoval, the founder and chairman of the far-right group Im Tirzu, was standing not far away and said his group was there because one of its goals was to build a strong, healthy society.
For Israel's finance minister, the rise of this new consumer protest culture is happening at an odd time, just when the country's macroeconomic data are the best they have ever been and offer a contrast to the woes of much of the world in recent years.
In an interview in his Jerusalem office - a few dozen protesters nearly blocking the building's entrance - the finance minister, Yuval Steinitz of the governing Likud Party, noted that Israel's unemployment rate was 5.8 percent, a 25-year low and about half of that of Europe. Its currency, the shekel, is strong. Its exports outstrip its imports. It is attracting foreign investors, especially in the high-tech sector.
And an innovation by Mr. Steinitz, a former philosophy professor with little economic experience, seems to be proving its value. Israel now creates its state budget for two years at a time instead of one, the only country in the world to do so.
The International Monetary Fund recently wrote in a letter to Mr. Steinitz that it viewed the change "as integral to the success of the new fiscal rule" because it avoids burdensome annual negotiations and allows for more efficient execution. Officials in Europe and in Washington have told Mr. Steinitz they are considering the approach themselves.
Some economists argue that it is Israel's very success that is feeding the protests, a sense that Israel may be soaring, but most of its citizens are not.
"The Israeli public has the sense that the wonderful growth we are always hearing about does not filter down to most of the people," said Avi Simhon, an economist at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. "The more we speak of the success of the Israeli economy, the more we will hear about this. If we had 9 percent unemployment, people wouldn't be worrying about the price of cottage cheese."
Many Israelis said that for years they accepted the notion of hardship in a young, isolated country struggling to get on its feet. They lived in tiny apartments and made do with basics. But today Israel's gross domestic product per capita is $31,000, comparable to that of Spain and Italy, and the country has been welcomed into the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a club of the nearly three dozen richest countries.
Yet the gap between rich and poor in Israel is among the greatest of those countries, as is the number of people living below the poverty line. The struggling groups are mostly ultra-Orthodox Jews and Arabs, both with large families and poor employment. Still nearly everyone has been affected by rising rents stemming from a drop in construction, followed by a rush on available housing when mortgage rates dropped.
The latest protests began with a Facebook page created by a 25-year-old Tel Aviv woman named Daphni Leef, who urged everyone to join her with pitched tents on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv, a gracious and historic spot facing the country's national theater.
They came last Thursday and have been multiplying not only there but in other cities. On Tuesday, the front page of the newspaper Yediot Aharonot, one of the country's biggest, was devoted to the phenomenon. "Tents Across the Country," said the headline, accompanied by photographs of gatherings in Sderot, Kfar Saba, Beersheba and Ramat Gan, in addition to Tel Aviv.
Israel's consumer difficulties most likely arise from a range of factors, including its small size, few producers and plethora of regulations and middlemen, economists say. Mr. Steinitz, the finance minister, says he hopes to create competition by encouraging more imports.
But it also seems clear that protests produce results. After the country was nearly up in arms from a Facebook-led protest over the cost of cottage cheese - a daily staple - a few weeks ago, companies slashed the price by 25 percent.
As Yevgeny Chechel, a participant at the tent city here, said of the finance minister, "Tell Steinitz that if he's feeling an earthquake, that's just us."
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12) 16 Arrested as F.B.I. Hits the Hacking Group Anonymous
"In an indictment unsealed Tuesday afternoon in United States District Court in San Jose, Calif., 14 people were charged in connection with an attack on the Web site of the payment service PayPal last December, after the company suspended accounts set up for donating funds to WikiLeaks. The suspects, in 10 separate states, are accused of conspiring to 'intentionally damage protected computers.' Anonymous had publicly called on its supporters to attack the sites of companies it said were turning against WikiLeaks, using tools that bombard sites with traffic and knock them offline."
By SOMINI SENGUPTA
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/technology/16-arrested-as-fbi-hits-the-hacking-group-anonymous.html?ref=us
SAN FRANCISCO - In the most visible law enforcement response to a recent spate of online attacks, the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday announced the arrests of 16 people across the country in connection with strikes carried out by a loose, secretive federation of hackers called Anonymous.
In an indictment unsealed Tuesday afternoon in United States District Court in San Jose, Calif., 14 people were charged in connection with an attack on the Web site of the payment service PayPal last December, after the company suspended accounts set up for donating funds to WikiLeaks. The suspects, in 10 separate states, are accused of conspiring to "intentionally damage protected computers."
Anonymous had publicly called on its supporters to attack the sites of companies it said were turning against WikiLeaks, using tools that bombard sites with traffic and knock them offline.
A Florida man was also arrested and accused of breaching the Web site of Tampa InfraGard, an organization affiliated with the F.B.I., and then boasting of his actions on Twitter. And in New Jersey, a former contractor with AT&T was arrested on charges that he lifted files from that company's computer systems; the information was later distributed by LulzSec, a hacker collective that stemmed from Anonymous.
The PayPal attack came in response to the release by WikiLeaks last November of thousands of classified State Department cables. Members of Anonymous, a clique of worldwide hackers with a vague and ever-changing menu of grievances, have claimed responsibility for a number of attacks on government and corporate Web sites over the last eight months.
In recent weeks, police in Britain and the Netherlands have arrested several people suspected of having participated in those attacks. Justice Department officials said British and Dutch police also made related arrests on Tuesday. FoxNews.com reported Tuesday that the police in London had arrested a 16-year-old boy who they believed was a core member of LulzSec and used the alias Tflow.
The arrests of suspected Anonymous supporters in the United States were among the first known in this country.
Ross W. Nadel, a former federal prosecutor who founded the computer hacking and intellectual property unit at the Federal District Court in San Jose, said the arrests could be "a highly visible form of deterrence."
The prosecution is expected to face at least two major challenges, said Jennifer Granick, a San Francisco-based lawyer who specializes in computer crimes and has defended hackers in the past. Because hackers often use aliases and other people's computers when they carry out attacks, prosecutors will have to prove that those arrested "were the ones with their fingers on the keyboard," she said.
Second, the conspiracy charge could be especially difficult to prove, given that Anonymous boasts of being leaderless and free-floating. "When you have a decentralized group," Ms. Granick said, "the question is, Are there big fish, and are any of these people big fish?"
The charge of "intentional damage to a protected computer" is punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, while conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Cyberattacks are made possible by a combination of two features of the Internet economy. Poor security at many companies and agencies makes sensitive government and private data vulnerable to breaches. And mounting an attack is inexpensive and, with the right skills, relatively simple.
In the San Jose case, all 14 suspects are accused of using a free program called Low Orbit Ion Cannon to hurl large packets of data at PayPal's site with the intention of overwhelming it.
With the exception of one suspect, whose name was redacted by the court for reasons that federal officials did not explain, those arrested were identified by their real names and nicknames, ranging from Anthrophobic to Toxic to MMMM. Most were in their 20s, and just three were above the age of 30. It is unclear if any of them knew one another.
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13) Delaware: Suit Filed Over Herbicide
By JOANNA M. FOSTER
July 19, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/us/20brfs-SUITFILEDOVE_BRF.html?ref=us
A Pennsylvania homeowner and an Indiana golf course company have filed a class-action lawsuit against DuPont charging that the company was negligent or reckless in putting a new weed killer on the market. The suit, filed Monday in federal court in Delaware, asserts that the herbicide, Imprelis, is killing trees, shrubs and ornamental plants across the country. It seeks compensation for all damage suffered as a result of applications of Imprelis, an injunction barring DuPont from selling the product and unspecified punitive damages. In a statement, DuPont said it was "confident that this purported class-action lawsuit is unfounded, and we will oppose it vigorously."
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14) Bonuses for Billionaires
[Funny, this is what the bi-partisan government has been doing all along to one degree or another and they will keep it up! That's the logic of lesser-evil politics...bw]
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/opinion/21kristof.html?hp
The first few times I heard House Republicans talk about our budget mess, I worried that they had plunged off the deep end. But as I kept on listening, a buzzer went off in my mind, and I came to understand how much sense the Tea Party caucus makes.
Why would we impose "job-crushing taxes" on wealthy Americans just to pay for luxuries like federal prisons? Why end the "carried interest" tax loophole for financiers, just to pay for unemployment benefits - especially when those same selfless tycoons are buying yachts and thus creating jobs for all the rest of us?
Hmmm. The truth is that House Republicans don't actually go far enough. They should follow the logic of their more visionary members with steps like these:
BONUSES FOR BILLIONAIRES Republicans won't extend unemployment benefits, even in the worst downturn in 70 years, because that makes people lazy about finding jobs. They're right: We should be creating incentives for Americans to rise up the food chain by sending hefty checks to every new billionaire. This could be paid for with a tax surcharge on regular working folks. It's the least we can do.
Likewise, the government should take sterner measures against the persistent jobless. Don't just let their unemployment benefits expire. Take their homes!
Oh, never mind! Silly me! The banks are already doing that.
LET JOBS TRICKLE DOWN Leftist pundits say that House Republicans don't have a jobs plan. That's unfair! Granted, the Republican-sponsored Cut, Cap and Balance Act would eliminate 700,000 jobs in just its first year, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, but those analysts are no doubt liberals. America's richest 400 people own more wealth than the bottom 150 million Americans, and the affluent would feel renewed confidence if the Republican plan passed. We'd see a hiring bonanza. Each of those wealthy people might hire an extra pool attendant. That's 400 jobs right there!
Cut, Cap and Balance would go even further than the Ryan budget plan in starving the beast of government. Sure, that'll mean cuts in Social Security, Medicare and other programs, but so what? Who needs food safety? How do we know we really need air traffic control unless we try a day without it?
ROOT OUT SOCIALISM Republicans have been working to end Medicare as we know it but need to examine other reckless entitlements, such as our socialized education system, in which public schools fritter resources on classes like economics and foreign languages. As a former Texas governor, Miriam "Ma" Ferguson, is said to have declared when she opposed the teaching of foreign languages: "If English was good enough for Jesus Christ, it's good enough for us."
For that matter, who needs socialized police and fire services? We could slash job-crushing taxes at the local level and simply let the free market take over:
"9-1-1, may I help you?" "Yes, help! My house is burning down!" "Very good, sir. I can offer you one fire engine for $5,995, or two for just $10,000." "Help! My family's inside. Send three fire engines! Just hurry!" "Yes, sir. Let me just run your credit card first. And if you require the fire trucks immediately, there's a 50 percent 'rush' surcharge."
CHILL OUT ABOUT THE DEBT CEILING House Republicans like Michele Bachmann are right: If the debt ceiling isn't raised, some solution will turn up. As Representative Austin Scott, a Republican from Georgia, observes: "In the end, the sun is going to come up tomorrow."
We got through the Great Depression, didn't we? It looked pretty hopeless in 1929, but in just a dozen years World War II bailed us out with an economic stimulus. Something like that'll come along for us, too. Ya gotta have faith.
CONSIDER ASSET SALES While Democrats are harrumphing about "default," Republicans have sagely noted that there are alternatives in front of our noses. For example, why raise taxes on hard-pressed managers of hedge funds when the government can sell assets?
Fort Knox alone has 4,600 tons of gold, which I figure is worth around $235 billion. That's enough to pay our military budget for four months! And selling Yosemite, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon would buy us time as well.
RENT OUT CONGRESS If the debt ceiling isn't raised, we could also auction members of Congress for day jobs: Are you a financier who wants someone to flip burgers (steaks?) at your child's birthday party? Why, here's Eric Cantor! Many members of Congress already work on behalf of tycoons, and this way the revenue would flow to the Treasury.
Finally, if we risk default, let's rent out the Capitol for weddings to raise money for the public good. Wouldn't it be nice to see something positive emerge from the House?
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15) Social Media History Becomes a New Job Hurdle
By JENNIFER PRESTON
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/technology/social-media-history-becomes-a-new-job-hurdle.html?scp=1&sq=Social%20Mecia%20History%20Becomes%20a%20New%20Job%20Hurdle&st=cse
Companies have long used criminal background checks, credit reports and even searches on Google and LinkedIn to probe the previous lives of prospective employees. Now, some companies are requiring job candidates to also pass a social media background check.
A year-old start-up, Social Intelligence, scrapes the Internet for everything prospective employees may have said or done online in the past seven years.
Then it assembles a dossier with examples of professional honors and charitable work, along with negative information that meets specific criteria: online evidence of racist remarks; references to drugs; sexually explicit photos, text messages or videos; flagrant displays of weapons or bombs and clearly identifiable violent activity.
"We are not detectives," said Max Drucker, chief executive of the company, which is based in Santa Barbara, Calif. "All we assemble is what is publicly available on the Internet today."
The Federal Trade Commission, after initially raising concerns last fall about Social Intelligence's business, determined the company is in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, but the service still alarms privacy advocates who say that it invites employers to look at information that may not be relevant to job performance.
And what relevant unflattering information has led to job offers being withdrawn or not made? Mr. Drucker said that one prospective employee was found using Craigslist to look for OxyContin. A woman posing naked in photos she put up on an image-sharing site didn't get the job offer she was seeking at a hospital.
Other background reports have turned up examples of people making anti-Semitic comments and racist remarks, he said. Then there was the job applicant who belonged to a Facebook group, "This Is America. I Shouldn't Have to Press 1 for English." This raises a question. "Does that mean you don't like people who don't speak English?" asked Mr. Drucker rhetorically.
Mr. Drucker said his goal was to conduct pre-employment screenings that would help companies meet their obligation to conduct fair and consistent hiring practices while protecting the privacy of job candidates.
For example, he said the reports remove references to a person's religion, race, marital status, sexual orientation, disability and other information protected under federal employment laws, which companies are not supposed to ask about during interviews. Also, job candidates must first consent to the background check, and they are notified of any adverse information found.
He argues the search reduces the risk that employers may confuse the job candidate with someone else or expose the company to information that is not legally allowable or relevant. "Googling someone is ridiculously unfair," he said. "An employer could discriminate against someone inadvertently. Or worse, they are exposing themselves to all kinds of allegations about discrimination."
Marc S. Rotenberg, president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, based in Washington, said that employers were entitled to gather information to make a determination about job-related expertise, but he expressed concern that "employers should not be judging what people in their private lives do away from the workplace."
Less than a third of the data surfaced by Mr. Drucker's firm comes from such major social platforms as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. He said much of the negative information about job candidates comes from deep Web searches that find comments on blogs and posts on smaller social sites, like Tumblr, the blogging site, as well as Yahoo user groups, e-commerce sites, bulletin boards and even Craigslist.
Then there are the photos and videos that people post - or find themselves tagged in - on Facebook and YouTube and other sharing sites like Flickr, Picasa, Yfrog and Photobucket.
And it is photos and videos that seem to get most people in trouble. "Sexually explicit photos and videos are beyond comprehension," Mr. Drucker said. "We also see flagrant displays of weapons. And we see a lot of illegal activity. Lots and lots of pictures of drug use."
He recalled one man who had 15 pages of photos showing himself with various guns, including an assault rifle. Another man included pictures of himself standing in a greenhouse with large marijuana plants.
Given complex "terms of service" agreements on most sites and Web applications, Mr. Rotenberg said people do not always realize that comments or content they generate are publicly available.
"People are led to believe that there is more limited disclosure than there actually is, in many cases," he said, pointing out that Facebook's frequent changes to its privacy settings in recent years may have put some people at risk in getting a job now because of personal information they might have inadvertently made public.
"What Facebook was doing was taking people's personal information that they made available to family and friends and make that information available more widely to prospective employers," said Mr. Rotenberg, whose organization has several pending complaints at the Federal Trade Commission about Facebook's privacy settings.
Joe Bontke, outreach manager for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's office in Houston, said that he regularly reminds employers and human resource managers about the risks of violating federal antidiscrimination employment rules and laws by using online research in hiring decisions.
"Things that you can't ask in an interview are the same things you can't research," he said, which includes the gamut of information covering a person's age, gender, religion, disability, national origin and race.
That said, he added that 75 percent of recruiters are required by their companies to do online research of candidates. And 70 percent of recruiters in the United States report that they have rejected candidates because of information online, he said.
Dave Clark, owner of Impulse Advanced Communications, a telecommunications company in Southern California, began relying on Social Intelligence for background screening because he said the company needed a formal strategy and standards before assembling online information about job candidates. "They provided us with a standardized, arm's-length way of using this additional information to make better hiring decisions," he said.
About half of all companies, based on government and private surveys, now use credit reports as part of the hiring process, except in those states that limit or restrict their use. As with social media background checks, there are concerns about information that is surfaced. The equal employment agency filed a lawsuit last December against the Kaplan Higher Education Corporation, accusing it of discriminating against black job applicants in the way it used credit histories in its hiring process.
But it is not unusual for senior-level executives in many companies to undergo even more complete background checks by a private investigating firm.
"We are living in a world where you have an amazing amount of information and data on every executive," said Ann Blinkhorn, an executive recruiter in the converging technology, media and communications industry. "I think that puts the burden on the recruiter and the hiring manager to be really thoughtful about what is important and not important when making the hiring decision."
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16) Split Within Nuclear Regulatory Agency
[This is the "just don't make waves" theory of the NRC...bw]
By MATTHEW L. WALD
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/science/earth/21nuke.html?ref=us
WASHINGTON - A majority of the five-member Nuclear Regulatory Commission is signaling that it wants to move slowly on at least some new recommendations from its staff on how to reduce the chance of a Fukushima-type accident at an American reactor despite calls by its chairman for swift action.
Three commissioners are resisting a proposal by the chairman, Gregory B. Jaczko, that the commission act promptly on all the recommendations, which were issued last week by a team of six senior staff members. Mr. Jaczko said that because this task force had completed its evaluation in 90 days, the commissioners should be able to decide within a similar time frame what changes to make in safety regulations, although the reforms themselves would take longer.
This is not the first indication of conflict within the agency. After an inquiry, the commission's inspector general reported last month that some staff members were troubled by Mr. Jaczko's aggressive management style and by his decision to halt the staff's work on an Energy Department proposal to build a nuclear waste repository in the Nevada desert. The Obama administration has shelved that project, drawing criticism from many Republican members of Congress.
On Wednesday, a day after the task force briefed the commissioners on the post-Fukushima report, one member, William D. Magwood IV, posted a statement at the commission's Web site asserting that the task force had worked "without the benefit of the full analytical resources of the agency." Given its 90-day mandate, "it was not possible to give all issues the consideration they deserve," he wrote.
Another member, Kristine L. Svinicki, posted a statement that said, "I do not have a sufficient basis to accept or reject the recommendations of the Near-Term Task Force." She said the agency should "proceed with the systematic and methodical review of lessons learned."
Both commissioners noted that the task force had found no imminent threat to public health and safety from continued operation of the nation's 104 power reactors, or from extending their licenses.
A third commissioner, William C. Ostendorff, said at Tuesday's hearing, "I personally do not believe that our existing regulatory framework is broken."
The task force recommended some specific improvements and some sweeping reforms, like integrating decades of regulations and informal changes in operating practices into a single framework that systematically addresses the full range of safety risks. For example, some equipment stored at nuclear reactors in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks - like portable pumps, hoses, extra batteries and extra sources of energy - is held in places that are not protected from flooding, and the items are not regularly tested, the task force found.
The study recommended periodic re-evaluation of earthquake risk as an understanding of geology evolves, and rethinking the design of vents that have been added to some reactors to control excess pressures and get rid of hydrogen. When nuclear fuel overheated at Fukushima Daiichi, it led to a hydrogen explosion despite the presence of vents similar to those at reactors of the same type in this country.
The nuclear industry argues, though, that not enough is known now about the vents at Fukushima or the recent sequence of events there to justify changes in the United States.
The issue of how urgently to move is acquiring a partisan character. On Wednesday, Representative Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, a longtime critic of nuclear safety regulation for whom Mr. Jaczko once worked, said that the two commissioners who posted comments "want to direct the N.R.C. staff to endlessly study the N.R.C. staff's own report before they will even consider a single recommendation made by the very same N.R.C. staff."
"We do not need another study to study the N.R.C. staff's study," he said in a statement.
But on Monday the Republican leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee took the opposite tack. After reviewing the task force's report, they said, they urged Mr. Jaczko in a letter to proceed slowly.
"We believe it is essential that the commission have the benefit of the full and deliberate process of review, in accordance with established commission procedures, its principles of good regulation and statutory requirements," they wrote.
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17) UAW/Auto: Wheeling and Dealing
"The tough times in recent years do appear to have produced an ongoing constructive dialogue between the companies and their union. Mr. King and company executives speak proudly of their regular meetings to discuss topics like vehicle quality and broader issues like new fuel economy regulations. 'It's more a problem-solving relationship rather than who is right and who is wrong,' he said. 'You know, we're not out of the woods yet.'"
By BILL VLASIC and NICK BUNKLEY
July 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/business/united-automobile-workers-and-carmakers-contract-talks-start-next-week.html?ref=business
DETROIT - American carmakers and the United Automobile Workers union open contract talks next week with a common task of preserving the comeback of an industry that was on the verge of collapse just two years ago.
But their cooperation will be put to the test as the sides square off over how to divide the profits of Detroit's unexpectedly swift revival.
After a period of plunging sales, bankruptcies and government bailouts, the union is hoping to regain some of its lost jobs, reopen closed factories, and increase the pay of its 111,000 members, some of whom are being paid half as much for entry-level jobs as other workers under a two-tier wage arrangement.
But those goals run against the priorities of Detroit's Big Three automakers, who want to hold the line on costs and further close the gap in productivity with foreign-owned factories in the United States, which employ much cheaper nonunion workers.
And while contract negotiations are always prickly, this round has a particularly prominent backdrop: the long shadow of the Obama administration, which bailed out both General Motors and Chrysler and shepherded the automakers through Chapter 11.
As part of the bailouts, the U.A.W. agreed to no-strike clauses at both companies and to submit to arbitration in the event that a contract could not be reached.
That leaves Ford, the most successful of the three, as the only possible strike target should the talks fall apart. But the U.A.W. benefited greatly from the federal intervention, and Ford has been hailed by consumers for surviving the recession without financial help from taxpayers.
For the union to strike Ford or enter a contentious arbitration process could reignite debate over the bailouts and prove politically embarrassing to President Obama as he readies next year's re-election campaign.
Bob King, the union's president, said in an interview that he was "morally and legally" bound to get the best deal possible for his membership, regardless of the political consequences. "But if we end up with a strike or arbitration," he acknowledged, "I'd feel like I failed in many ways."
The union's four-year contracts with G.M., Ford and Chrysler expire in mid-September. Indications are that the U.A.W. will be aggressively seeking better profit-sharing, job guarantees, and wage increases for lower-paid, entry-level workers.
"Our members have sacrificed a lot," Mr. King said. "We're trying to figure out a path that gives members more income but doesn't disadvantage the companies."
All three automakers are making money and expanding sales. But they are loath to do anything that hurts their newfound competitiveness or adds costs to their streamlined manufacturing operations. The Big Three earned nearly $6 billion in combined profits during the first quarter of this year, and paid sizable profit-sharing checks this spring based on their 2010 results.
"We all know that there are things we can't do to go back to how we were," said Cathy Clegg, head of G.M. labor relations, during an appearance Monday at a truck plant in Flint, Mich. "We need to see a pretty healthy market recovery before we start turning factories back on."
All three companies have drastically cut production and jobs in recent years to better match their smaller market shares. The U.A.W. currently has less than half the number of employees at G.M., Ford and Chrysler than just five years ago.
The pain of losing so many jobs is still fresh in the minds of the surviving workers, said Mr. King, who was elected president last year after previously running the U.A.W.'s Ford division.
"They want stability," he said. "They want to know they'll be working next week and next year, and that they will be able to send their kids to college."
But while preserving jobs is paramount, Mr. King said that workers deserved a bigger share of the economic benefits of Detroit's turnaround.
While Mr. King does not expect across-the-board wage increases, he said the automakers should improve their profit-sharing formulas, something some auto executives have indicated a willingness to consider. He added that new entry-level workers, who are paid about $15 an hour compared with $28 for regular U.A.W. members, deserve pay increases in the new contract.
"I don't think you should be working in the auto industry at poverty-level wages when the companies are doing well," he said.
In the last negotiations in 2007, the companies successfully removed retiree health care costs from their balance sheets by financing union-run trusts. However, in these talks Mr. King vowed to fight any efforts by the automakers to trim the medical coverage and other benefits of active workers.
"There is no justification for any concessions in this round of bargaining," he said. "That is just not going to happen."
Detroit will be looking for ways to shrink the cost gap between U.A.W. workers and nonunion employees of American plants owned by Toyota, Hyundai and other foreign car companies.
The disparity is less than in previous years. In 2010, the average hourly labor cost for a union worker ranged from $58 at Ford to $49 at Chrysler. That compares with about $55 at Toyota and $44 at Hyundai, according to the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The automakers are not commenting publicly on how they expect to lower their costs. Industry experts say that the companies want more flexibility on work rules, job assignments and production schedules.
The companies will resist pressure from the union to reopen closed plants that do not have new products on the way.
"Right now the market won't call for that," said Art Schwartz, a former G.M. labor negotiator who is now president of the firm Labor and Economics Associates. "They are not going to open a plant up and lose money."
The no-strike clauses and arbitration requirements at G.M. and Chrysler could complicate the negotiations. Ford could be vulnerable because it could agree to a deal with the U.A.W. that might not stand up to arbitration at one of the other companies.
The tough times in recent years do appear to have produced an ongoing constructive dialogue between the companies and their union. Mr. King and company executives speak proudly of their regular meetings to discuss topics like vehicle quality and broader issues like new fuel economy regulations.
"It's more a problem-solving relationship rather than who is right and who is wrong," he said. "You know, we're not out of the woods yet."
And although the automotive market has rebounded somewhat and Detroit is earning profits again, both the union and the car companies are painfully aware of how fragile their recovery is. "This is not the time to get greedy on either side," Mr. Schwartz said.
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18) Venezuela's president
The sick man of Havana
But just how sick is secret
Jul 21st 2011 | CARACAS |
http://www.economist.com/node/18989165?fsrc=nwl|wwp|07-21-11|politics_this_week
THE Venezuelan constitution guarantees citizens the right to "timely, accurate and impartial information". But as Hugo Chávez, the man who inspired the document, departed on July 16th to resume his cancer treatment in Cuba, friends and foes alike were once again left with no answer to the question of the moment: just how ill is the president, and what is the prognosis?
According to the official version, Mr Chávez underwent emergency surgery for a "pelvic abscess" in early June, after symptoms emerged when he happened to be in Cuba. It was not until June 30th that he admitted, in a recorded video, what some independent journalists had been claiming for some time: that a second operation had removed a cancerous tumour. He returned, unannounced, to Caracas on July 4th in time to watch (on television) the celebrations of the bicentenary of Venezuela's independence. In brief (by his standards) media appearances, he let slip a few more details of his condition. But there has not been a single medical bulletin, and even the precise location of the "baseball-sized" tumour has still not been revealed.
His choice of Cuba for further treatment suggests that the secrecy will continue. Brazil's government offered a hospital in São Paulo where both Dilma Rousseff, now the country's president, and Paraguay's leader, Fernando Lugo, were successfully treated for lymphatic cancer. Venezuela's medical association is offended because Mr Chávez has sought care outside the country. Some opponents have pointed out that when Cuba's veteran leader, Fidel Castro, underwent abdominal surgery in 2006, Cuban doctors were reported to have botched the initial operation. But in communist Cuba, the information blackout about Mr Chávez's treatment can be kept up. He insists that "not a single malignant cell" has been found anywhere else in his body. But he admits that he will require chemotherapy, contradicting earlier statements by aides.
When he requested permission from the National Assembly to leave the country, Mr Chávez, a former army officer, gave no date of return. For the first time, he has delegated some of his administrative and budgetary powers, to the vice-president, Elías Jaua, and to the finance and planning minister, Jorge Giordani. Both men are intensely loyal civilians from the radical wing of chavismo. Mr Jaua has been granted the power to sign expropriation decrees, in consultation with Mr Chávez.
The opposition says that the country cannot be run from abroad. The constitution states that the vice-president must stand in fully when the president is "temporarily absent". Pro-government legislators argue that the opposition is seeking to ease Mr Chávez out of office. But his many exhortations in recent weeks urging unity, both in the ruling party and in the army, suggest that the president is worried that any relaxation of his grip risks unleashing a struggle for power.
That is because Mr Chávez has created a personalised regime of government-by-live-television in which senior officials must interpret his every whim on pain of dismissal. To endeavour to show that he remains in charge, before his departure he created, on camera, an electronic signature for use while he is away. But it will take more than such theatrics to dispel the doubts over his ability to micromanage affairs of state from a Cuban hospital. The governance of Venezuela is now bound up with the president's illness. Treating this as a state secret may only increase the tension back home.
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19) Why was Johntue Caldwell, Oscar Grant's best friend, murdered?
by mesha Monge-Irizarry, Idriss Stelley Foundation
San Francisco Bay View
July 18, 2011
http://sfbayview.com/2011/why-was-johntue-caldwell-oscar-grant%E2%80%99s-best-friend-murdered/
Oscar Grant's best friend, Johntue Caldwell, 25, was shot dead in his Cadillac on July 15, 2011, a mere 30 and a half months after Oscar's BART police assassination.
Johntue Caldwell, godfather of Oscar's daughter, Tatiana, was one of the terrorized Black youth on the Fruitvale BART platform on Jan. 1, 2009. He leaves behind two young sons.
Young African American brother Johntue was unarmed and killed in cold blood at a Hayward gas station at around 5:35 p.m., when "someone" walked up to his car and fired several times at him. His assailant has not been identified or located yet. Hayward police Lt. Roger Keener told the Chronicle that police do not believe this was a random act.
Another young Black brother bites the dust - coincidence or cause and effect?
A year ago, Johntue had filed a $5 million federal lawsuit on the basis of his mistreatment by BART Officer Marysol Domenici, who hurled a racial slur at him and touched a taser to his face seconds before Johannes Mehserle shot an unarmed, handcuffed Oscar Grant, who lay on his stomach, pleading for his life.
That lawsuit is still pending, but the litigant is now dead.
This case is tragically reminiscent of the fate of two Bayview Hunters Point Black plaintiffs who were shot during their pending federal lawsuits against the SFPD:
1) Tyrelle Taylor, one of the kids brutalized by SFPD on Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2002 on Kiska Road in Hunters Point, was 14 years old when an officer was caught on tape telling Sue McAllister, mother of one of the brutalized children, "As long as you people are here, we will act like this!"
Tyrelle had filed a federal lawsuit against SFPD. Three years later, he was "coincidentally" re-criminalized and shot in the back five times by San Francisco police officers. Tyrelle miraculously survived the assassination attempt.
For more information, refer to the yahoogroup that the Idriss Stelley Foundation has been maintaining for young Tyrelle since the SFPD shot him.
2) Marcus Law, who was also 14, was shot dead in a drive-by shooting in 2006, three years after his brutal assault by SFPD, at the very street corner where the first assault was perpetrated against him by the racist thugs in blue.
A couple of Black youths who witnessed the shooting flagged a patrol car and cried out: "Hurry up! They shot him from a white van that drove off that way!" The officers glared at the youngsters and slowly drove in the opposite direction towards Third Street.
At the time of his death, his federal lawsuit was pending. For more information, see my article in Indybay about his murder.
A burning question remains: Why do African American youth end up dead during pending federal lawsuits that allege excessive police force?
Immediate thoughts after reading the terrible news
A week after my only child, Idriss Stelley, became another African American victim of a SFPD assassination on June 12, 2001, my car was followed in Bayview Hunters Point by an unmarked white Lexus when I left home after 11 p.m.
It was raining heavily but I started speeding, scared out of my wits. I kept turning quickly on the deserted streets while the Lexus remained about 50 yards behind me at all times. I finally made an abrupt turn and immediately parked inside a private garage and lay down on the front seat. The stalkers did not see me, passing by me at full speed towards Third Street.
Since then, there have been two break-ins in my home office near Candlestick Park in Bayview Hunters Point, where only my hard drives were stolen. My pitbull was drugged each time.
The contents of my freezer were spread on the kitchen floor but no valuables, other electronics, cash or credit cards were missing.
One week after that first incident, Bayview reporter Ebony Colbert's home was invaded, her dog drugged and her hard drive stolen, just days after her "Mayor Newsom doesn't like Black people" article was published in the San Francisco Bay View.
In December 2005, my cousin Zaida Jimenez was murdered by an "intruder," suffering one shot to the heart at close range with a silencer.
I was in my basement and did not hear the shot but heard people screaming, so I went upstairs and found Zaida dying on the kitchen floor in the arms of one of her children.
Sweet Zaida was my age, height and skin complexion.
Police alleged that gang leader, "G-Force," who had just been released from federal prison, came to reassert his territory but "hit the wrong house." He was conveniently killed by SFPD two days later.
I knew G-force, who we called "the king of jerry curls." He did not match the description of the "large Black man with dreadlocks" seen running out of my house.
I confronted former Police Chief Heather Fong about this deception and she promised to keep the murder investigation open, but the killer - a trusted source who urged me to "get the fuck out of Bayview" after the murder, whose identity I must protect - is a large, female police informant who dresses like a man with a dreadlocked wig. She is still roaming the Bayview.
Zaida's murder remains a 'cold case'
Since 2008, I have twice been delivered anonymous death threats at night under Idriss Stelley Foundation's office front door: Once at our former Third Street and Palou Avenue location in Bayview Hunters Point and once at our current location, at 2940 16th St. in the Mission District.
So, is the murder of Johntue Caldwell a "gang-related crime" or a covert police assassination to shut down his pending federal lawsuit?
Johntue was a father and a son who had his life stolen from him and his dreams shattered. Pictures of young brother Johntue and messages from his grieving friends can be seen on his Facebook page. A candlelight vigil for Jontue was hosted at 6 p.m., Friday, July 16, at the corner of West Tennyson Road and Calaroga Avenue in Hayward, Calif., where he was killed a day prior.
Mesha Monge-Irizarry, mother of Idriss Stelley, who was murdered by San Francisco police June 13, 2001, heads the Idriss Stelley Foundation, the foremost Bay Area agency dedicated to police accountability. Contact her through the foundation's bilingual crisis line at (415) 595-8251 or through Facebook.
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20) AMMIANO TO HOLD HEARING ON BART POLICE DEPARTMENT
Public Safety Committee will get update on the Progress of the Implementation of Civilian Oversight
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 19, 2011
Contact: Quintin Mecke
Office: 415-557-3013; Cell: 415.505.2417
Sacramento - Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), Chair of the Assembly Committee on Public Safety, has announced that he will be holding an informational hearing regarding the progress of the implementation of civilian oversight for the BART Police department pursuant to AB 1586. In addition, the committee will receive an update on the progress BART's Police department has made implementing the recommendations made in the NOBLE Management Audit report which was issued last year.
"With three deaths in three years, we need to ensure that BART police are properly trained and following procedures. I urge the SFPD and BART to be transparent and share the results of their investigation into the death of Charles Hill with the public as soon as possible," said Ammiano.
The hearing date will be announced shortly and will likely be mid-August at the State Capitol.
Assemblymember Ammiano has advocated for civilian police oversight throughout his career in public office. In 2009, he was the first member of the Legislature to respond to the killing of Oscar Grant by introducing AB 312. The bill would have created an Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC) for the BART police, considered to be the strongest form of police oversight. In 2010, the Legislature passed and Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 1586 into law creating a Civilian Review Board and Independent Police Auditor for the BART Police department.
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Quintin Mecke
Communications Director
Office of Assemblymember Tom Ammiano
455 Golden Gate Avenue, #14300
San Francisco, CA 94102
Email: quintin.mecke@asm.ca.gov
Phone: 415.557.3013
Fax: 415.557.3015
Website: http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a13/
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21) Statement on the Gang of Six Plan
AddThis
Tax cuts for the wealthy, and Social Security cuts for ordinary workers
For Immediate Release: July 19, 2011
Contact: Alan Barber 202-293-5380 x115
http://www.cepr.net/index.php/press-releases/press-releases/statement-on-the-gang-of-six-plan
Washington, D.C.- Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), issued the following statement on the Gang of Six deficit plan:
"The budget plan produced by the Senate's "Gang of Six" offers the promise of huge tax breaks for some of the wealthiest people in the country, while lowering Social Security benefits for retirees and the disabled. Despite claiming that they will "reform" Social Security on a "separate track, isolated from deficit reduction," the plan includes cuts to Social Security that would be felt in less than six months, as the plan calls for a new inflation formula that will reduce benefits by 0.3 percentage points a year compared with currently scheduled benefits. The plan also calls for a process that is likely to reduce benefits further for future retirees.
"The proposed cuts to Social Security are cumulative. This means that after ten years, a beneficiary in her 70s will see a cut of close to 3 percent. After 20 years, the cuts for beneficiaries in their 80s will be close to 6 percent, while the reduction in annual benefits will be close to 9 percent by the time beneficiaries are in their 90s. For a beneficiary in her 90s living on a Social Security income of $15,000, this means a loss of more $1,200 a year in benefits.
"The plan also calls for large cuts in tax rates including a targeted top rate of between 23-29 percent, which will be at least partially offset by elimination of tax deductions. For the highest-income people, this is likely to mean a very large reduction in taxes. For example, Jamie Dimon and Lloyd Blankfein, the CEOs of J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs, respectively, are both paid close to $20 million a year at present. If this pay is taxed as ordinary income, then they would be paying close to $7.5 million a year in taxes on it after 2012. However, if the top rate is set at 29 percent, they may save as much as $1.9 million a year on their tax bill. If the top tax rate is set at 23 percent then the Gang of Six plan may increase their after-tax income by more than $3 million a year.
"It is striking that the Gang of Six chose to respond to the crisis created by the collapse of the housing bubble by developing a plan that will give even more money to top Wall Street executives and traders. By contrast, the European Union is considering imposing financial speculation taxes to reduce the power of the financial industry and raise more than $40 billion a year in revenue.
"The plan calls for substantial cuts elsewhere in the budget which are likely to cut into the incomes of large segments of the population, especially the sick and the elderly. The cuts it proposes to the military are just over 1.0 percent of projected spending over the next decade.
"In short, this is a plan that should be expected to please the wealthy since it will mean large reductions in their tax liability in the decades ahead. On the other hand, most of the rest of the country is likely to feel the effects of lower Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, in addition to other cuts that are not yet fully specified."
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