Howard Zinn's one-man play,
MARX IN SOHO
Starring Jerry Levy as Karl Marx
Directed by Michael Fox Kennedy.
Friday, August 5, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 6, 2:00 p.m.
Jon Sims Center for the Performing Arts
1519 Mission Street near 11th Street
Advance tickets: $10
Door: $20.00
For advance tickets call: 415-824-8730
Bay Area United Against
War Benefit Presentation
www.bauaw.org
3) A call for a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT contingent
in the Sept 24 protests in Washington D.C. and San Francisco
4) "Slow Falling Bird"
Performances are Thursday, Friday
and Saturday through August 20th, at
the EXIT on Taylor, 277 Taylor Street,
San Francisco.
I encourage reservations, as the
first weekend sold out.
5) (This has made my day. How can they kill Tookie now?
...Bonnie Weinstein)
Gang founder on death row gets presidential award for good deeds
KIM CURTIS
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO -Convicted murderer Stanley "Tookie" Williams
has received an award for his good deeds on death row,
complete with a letter from President Bush praising the
notorious gang founder for demonstrating "the outstanding
character of America."
Williams, co-founder of the notorious Crips street gang,
has been an anti-gang activist during his many years on
death row at San Quentin State Prison, where he was sent
after being convicted in 1981 for killing four people.
He's authored 10 books, mostly warning young people to
stay away from gangs.
The President's Call to Service Award arrived as
Williams, 53, continues his final fight for clemency.
His case is now being reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
It was doubtful that the president, who oversaw 152
executions during his six years as Texas governor,
knew that Williams had received a congratulatory
letter bearing his signature.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/12309010.htm
6) Blair Vows New Laws to End Sanctuary for Muslim Extremists
By ALAN COWELL
Published: August 5, 2005
LONDON, Aug. 5 - After years of taunts that Britain offered
easy sanctuary to Muslim extremists, Prime Minister Tony
Blair promised new anti-terrorism measures today to close
down mosques and ban or deport clerics deemed to be fostering
hatred and violence.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/05/international/europe/05cnd-britain.html?hp&ex=1123300800&en=dfd0a450e735ea71&ei=5094&partner=homepage
7) U.S. Begins Big Push in Iraqi Area Held by Insurgents
By EDWARD WONG
Published: August 5, 2005
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 5 - The American military said today
that it had begun a major offensive in the insurgent-controlled
desert region of western Iraq, where at least 22 marines
have been killed since Monday, in one of the deadliest
weeks of the war for American troops.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/05/international/middleeast/05cnd-baghdad.html?ei=5094&en=fda2c5e1bc38acc6&hp=&ex=1123300800&adxnnl=1&partner=homepage&adxnnlx=1123254153-2aF9TmYmcRI9SaOEPJwKxg
8) "The London Bombings: The Footprints of State Terror.
Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone
Wednesday, August 31, 7:00 -10:00 p.m.
Women's Building 3543 18th Street SF, CA
9) CALIFORNIA CENTRAL VALLEY ~
EPITOME OF Police Department REPRESSION AGAINST LA RAZA!
In a message dated 8/5/05 1:06:39 AM, Iolmisha@cs.com writes:
PRESS CONFERENCE AND PROTEST
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY
8-9-05, 8 A.M.
203 W. 4th Street
Madera, Ca. 93638
(Madera Police Station)
To protest the murder of Everardo "Lalo" Torres by Madera Police.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Everardo_Lalo/
Police Department calls Lalo's death an "accident",
therefore a non issue...
Justice 4 Lalo, NOW!
We hope in spite of distance that many of you will
come ! Let's show our love and support to Lalo's family !
Mesha
Idriss Stelley Foundation
10) Our Health is Our Wealth
August 20, 2005, Noon to Midnight
Brava Theater, 2789 24th Street,
Mission District, SF
Film Screenings, Tribute, Workshops,
and Music by DJ Fonzilla
Films:
Tales from the streets of San Francisco
Redemption - The Stan "Tookie" Williams Story
The Streets Has Spoken (featuring Colored Ink)
Get Yo Mind Right (A Barbershop Tale with
Marvin X & West MacArthur)
Filmmakers and producers will be
on hand for panel discussions.
Performances/Testimonies on Violence,
Health, and Community Activism:
Colored Ink, Oonka, Howie J., Tai Soul,
Duce Eclipse, Symeon, Aretha Jones,
Mothers Against Violence, TBone, Paradise,
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children and
CA Coalition for Women Prisoners, and Pam-Pam,
of Conscious Eyes (Ch. 29) and SF Peacemakers Organizer.
Finally, a birthday tribute to Idriss Stelley –
Idriss was shot (47 times!) and killed by SFPD. RIP Idriss.
Admission: Donations, NOTA
www.coloredink.org
www.sfpeacemakers.org
11) Galloway says Blair and Bush 'have blood on their hands'
Press Association
Friday August 5, 2005
Guardian Unlimited
Tony Blair and George Bush have "far more blood on their
hands" than the terrorists who carried out the London tube
bombings, George Galloway said today.
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,15935,1543291,00.html
12) "What Have We Done?"
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
Dahr's personal log from Iraq.
August 05, 2005
http://dahrjamailiraq.com/weblog/
13) Galloway praises Iraqi insurgents
GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN AND GERRI PEEV
Key points
•Respect MP George Galloway calls Iraqi insurgents
'martyrs' on Arab TV
•Galloway says that UK, US and Iraq 'puppet regime'
will lose in Iraq
•Calls for remarks that incide attacks on British
troops to be criminalised
Key quote
"Even the puppet ministers and regime in Baghdad
know it ... America is losing the war in Iraq. And
this will not change. The resistance is getting
stronger every day, and the will to remain as an
occupier by Britain and America is getting weaker
every day" - George Galloway, Respect MP
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1730212005
14) Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights invites
you to...
Defend Women's Rights!
Sunday, August 14th at 3pm
Women's Building, 3543 18th Street (between Valencia
and Guerrero), San Francisco
15) After reading the following
statement , I got the chilling feeling that
there is nothing worse for a soldier
who is risking his life to protect his
countrymen than to realize that his
leaders have betrayed him .
m.hasan
http://mathaba.net/0_index.shtml?x=297326
I am a concerned veteran of the Iraq War.
16) UPDATE FROM LEONARD PELTIER
from the LPDC Blog -- http://lpdcinc.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
July 30, 2005
17) Neil Mackay | Iraq's Child Prisoners
A Sunday Herald investigation has discovered that coalition
forces are holding more than 100 children in jails such as
Abu Ghraib. Witnesses claim that the detainees - some as
young as 10 - are also being subjected to rape and torture.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/080405S.shtml
18) "While there is a lower class I am in it; while there
is a criminal element I am of it; while there is a soul in
prison I am not free." --Eugene V. Debs
A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF IRAQ
19) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA (HOV) CAMPAIGN NEEDS YOUR HELP!
20) Broad Environmental Damage Seen From Shuttle
By Jeff Franks, Reuters
HOUSTON (Aug. 4) - Commander Eileen Collins said astronauts
on shuttle Discovery had seen widespread environmental
destruction on Earth and warned on Thursday that greater
care was needed to protect natural resources.
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050804100809990012
21) PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE THEATER: 2575 BANCROFT WAY
@ BOWDITCH, BERKELEY
WWW.BAMPFA.BERKELEY.EDU / $4-$8
TUESDAY AUGUST 9
7:30 The Forest for the Trees: Judi Bari vs. the FBI
Bernadine Mellis (U.S., 2005)
Artist in Person!
22) Jewish Voice for Peace expresses outrage
and sadness over attack on bus in Arab Israeli town.
Demands right-wing groups end incitement to violence.
Please circulate as far and wide as you can.
Press release
Contact: Mitchell Plitnick, 510-465-1777
23) Read more about Sgt. Carlos Lazo and efforts by the
Bush administration to further divide the Cuban family:
with this Radio Progreso commentary from Miami:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z2EC13F8B )
EL NUEVO HERALD
Posted on Fri, Aug. 05, 2005
Perspective
The cruelty of a policy
By: Carlos F. Lazo
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
1) There's still time to get tickets to:
Howard Zinn's one-man play,
MARX IN SOHO
Starring Jerry Levy as Karl Marx
Directed by Michael Fox Kennedy.
Friday, August 5, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 6, 2:00 p.m.
Jon Sims Center for the Performing Arts
1519 Mission Street near 11th Street
Advance tickets: $10
Door: $20.00
For advance tickets call: 415-824-8730
Bay Area United Against
War Benefit Presentation
www.bauaw.org
2) LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABS (LLNL) ACTIONS AUG. 6 & 9
3) A call for a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT contingent
in the Sept 24 protests in Washington D.C. and San Francisco
4) "Slow Falling Bird"
Performances are Thursday, Friday
and Saturday through August 20th, at
the EXIT on Taylor, 277 Taylor Street,
San Francisco.
I encourage reservations, as the
first weekend sold out.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
2) LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABS (LLNL) ACTIONS AUG. 6 & 9
Friends,
This saturday evening, August 6th,
at 5:00 pm, at Lawrence Livermore
National Labs (LLNL) in Livermore,
we are putting on one of hundreds of
demonstrations worldwide remembering
the act of imperial terrorism that
was the bombing of Hiroshima. KPFA
is covering it live, and various
television media will be there.
Next Tuesday, August the 9th, the
Nagasaki anniversary, there will be a
non-violent direct action at LLNL at
8:30 in the morning. Many dozens
of people intend to risk arrest.
Please see below links to info on
how to get to these events by car,
carpool or BART/Shuttle.
http://www.trivalleycares.org/aug6-2005.asp
(Tri-Valley Communities against
a Radioactive Environment)
Contact: Tara Dorabji, Tri-Valley CAREs,
tara@trivalleycares.org , (925)
443-7148
Nukes are not an old fizzled battle—
my view is that they are a crucial
battle that is starting up all over again right now. http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/080305E.shtml
If you're thinking of whether it's
worth it to go along to these events
(I REALLY want to see you Tuesday),
I have a question. Where do you
want to be when the imperial finger
reaches for the nuclear button with
the sights on Iran--which it may well
do within a year or so? Where do
you want to be in the mean time, now
that we know that that's the plan? I
don't know whether we can stop it
altogether, but I do know that the
civilians of Iran will never forgive
us if we don't try, and try every
bit as hard as we did on behalf of
the civilians of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Our efforts did save lives,
and they will save lives.
Hope to see you in the park on
Saturday, and see you at the gates on
Tuesday!
Webb
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
3) A call for a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT contingent
in the Sept 24 protests in Washington D.C. and San Francisco
COUNTER-RECRUITMENT...COMING SOON TO A CITY NEAR YOU!
Across the country a new movement has sprung up of students, parents,
teachers and community members opposing military recruiters in their
schools and neighborhoods. From students kicking recruiters off
campus, from Seattle to the Bay Area to New Haven to New York; to
parents and teachers' unions opposing the military targeting their
children; to the growing unwillingness of young people to kill and die
in an unjust war, our message is simple:
Military recruiters out of our schools,
U.S. troops out of Iraq!
On September 24, join us from D.C. to San Francisco to say:
COLLEGE, NOT COMBAT!
SPONSORED BY: Brooklyn Parents for Peace, Campus Antiwar Network,
College Not Combat, Coney Island Avenue Project, Educators to Stop the
War, Fuerza de la Revolución, Fuerza Juvenil, Left Hook, Louisiana
Activist Network, Prospect-Lefferts Voices for Peace, Rochester
Against War, Traprock Peace Center, United Federation of Teachers to
Stop the War, Voices in the Wilderness, Women's International League
for Peace and Freedom - Monterey Branch, Youth Leadership Support
Network - Washington, D.C.
ENDORSED BY: ORGANIZATIONS: 100 Year March; Al Awda - San Francisco;
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee - San Francisco; ANSWER -
New Hampshire; Albuquerque Center for Peace and Justice; Bay Area
United Against War; Bronx Greens; Central Committee for Conscientious
Objectors; Chapter 60 Veterans for Peace; Chapter 93 Veterans For
Peace (Washtenaw County Michigan), Citizens for Legitimate Government;
Coalition Against War & Injustice of Baton Rouge; Code Pink - Bay
Area; DC Anti-War Network; Free Palestine Alliance; Global Exchange;
International Socialist Organization; March for Justice; Mid-South
Peace & Justice Center (Memphis); Middle East Children's Alliance;
National Lawyers Guild - San Francisco/Bay Area; Oregon PeaceWorks,
Peace and Justice Center (Burlington, VT); Peaceful Vocations; People
Against the Draft; Political Action Committee for Peace and Justice at
Pace University; Queens Antiwar Committee; Radio Free Eirean; San Juan
Peace Net; San Mateo Green Party; Santa Cruz Peace Coalition; Suffolk
Peace Network's Counter Military Recruiting Committee; Texans for
Peace (Austin); Vets Speak Out NYC
INDIVIDUALS*: · Kevin and Monica Benderman - Kevin is a conscientious
objector who refused re-deployment to Iraq and was sentenced to 15
months for missing movement; Natylie Baldwin, organizer and writer for
Mt. Diablo Peace Center, associate editor for Newtopia Magazine; Amy
Hagopian, parent and co-chair of Garfield High School PTSA that voted
to ban recruiters from their school; Kathy Kelly, Voices in the
Wilderness; Dennis Kyne, Gulf War veteran and activist; Michael
Letwin, Co-Convener, New York City Labor Against the War and Former
President, UAW Local 2325; Rania Masri, writer and researcher; Peter
Camejo, Green Party 2004 California gubernatorial candidate; Gloria
Mattera, Green Party candidate for Brooklyn Borough President; Camilo
Mejía, the first soldier to go public with his refusal to redeploy. He
spent seven months in military confinement for his decision, and was
released in mid-February, 2005; Sunny Miller and Charles Jenks,
Executive Director and President of Advisory Boards, respectively,
Traprock Peace Center; David Mitchell, Vietnam draft resister active
in Rockland Coalition for Peace and Justice; Wafaa' Al-Natheema,
writer, editor & translator; Victor Paredes, brother of war resister
Pablo Paredes; Ward Reilly, Louisiana Activist Network and South East
Contact for Vietnam Veterans Against the War and Veterans For Peace;
Justino Rodriguez, Hadas Thier and Nick Bergreen of the City College 4
- who were arrested for opposing the military at their school; David
Rovics, singer/songwriter; Cindy Sheehan, founding member of Gold Star
Families for Peace; Norman Solomon, author of "War Made Easy"; Annie
and Buddy Spell, activists; Carl Webb, war resister; Brian Willson,
Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Veterans For Peace; Katrina Yeaw,
Michael Hoffman, and Pardis Esmaeili- the SFSU 3, who were targeted by
their school administration for opposing recruiters; Howard Zinn and
Anthony Arnove, co-editors of "Voices of a People's History of the
United States."
*Organizational affiliations for identification purposes only.
(ALL sponsors/endorsers welcome; email recruitersout@yahoo.com)
* For information on the MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS buses from NYC to
DC, contact: recruitersout@yahoo.comrecruitersout@yahoo.com
* For information on the PEACE TRAIN to D.C.
from across the South,
contact the Louisiana Activist Network:
http://www.newdemocracyrising.com/
Rally time and location TBA.
Contact recruitersout@yahoo.com for more info.
Campus Antiwar Network
http://www.campusantiwar.net
College Not Combat
http://www.collegenotcombat.org/
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
4) "Slow Falling Bird"
Performances are Thursday, Friday
and Saturday through August 20th, at
the EXIT on Taylor, 277 Taylor Street,
San Francisco.
I encourage reservations, as the
first weekend sold out.
Disclaimer: The following is a shameless plug.
Hey everyone,
I want you all to come see my set
design for "Slow Falling Bird", the
new show by the Crowded Fire Theater
Company.
In addition to my set design,
there are also some actors in the play,
and some dialogue, and other stuff
such as one sees in plays. You may
come for those things as well,
if you like. Right, yes, the play: is
about Woomera detention camp in
Australia. From our website: "Based
on real events in the Woomera Immigration
Detention Centre, /Slow Falling
Bird/ goes far beyond the documentary
impulse, creating a hallucinatory
world of song and magic that
is beautiful, heartbreaking, and
unforgettable."
You can get more info about the
show at crowdedfire.org. Also, there
is an article about the show in this
past Saturday's Chronicle Datebook,
if you happen to have that lying around.
I'd like to get a group together to
see the show Friday, August 12th.
Let me know if you would like to
join me then and I can include you in
my reservation. If you can't make
it then, go some other time (see
below) or else I will be sad.
Either way, be sure to mention my name
when you arrive, I get some sort
of brownie points for that.
Performances are Thursday, Friday
and Saturday through August 20th, at
the EXIT on Taylor, 277 Taylor Street,
San Francisco.
I encourage reservations, as the
first weekend sold out.
Also, please bring your friends, and
forward this invite to anyone you
like (but not people you don't like),
especially if you know they know
me but I don't have their e-mail.
Hope to see you there,
Joel
P.S.: I can get two tickets for free.
Ask for them if you wouldn't
come otherwise. You can also reach
me at 415 606 1805.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
5) (This has made my day. How can they kill Tookie now?
...Bonnie Weinstein)
Gang founder on death row gets presidential award for good deeds
KIM CURTIS
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO -Convicted murderer Stanley "Tookie" Williams
has received an award for his good deeds on death row,
complete with a letter from President Bush praising the
notorious gang founder for demonstrating "the outstanding
character of America."
Williams, co-founder of the notorious Crips street gang,
has been an anti-gang activist during his many years on
death row at San Quentin State Prison, where he was sent
after being convicted in 1981 for killing four people.
He's authored 10 books, mostly warning young people to
stay away from gangs.
The President's Call to Service Award arrived as
Williams, 53, continues his final fight for clemency.
His case is now being reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
It was doubtful that the president, who oversaw 152
executions during his six years as Texas governor,
knew that Williams had received a congratulatory
letter bearing his signature.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/12309010.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
6) Blair Vows New Laws to End Sanctuary for Muslim Extremists
By ALAN COWELL
Published: August 5, 2005
LONDON, Aug. 5 - After years of taunts that Britain offered
easy sanctuary to Muslim extremists, Prime Minister Tony
Blair promised new anti-terrorism measures today to close
down mosques and ban or deport clerics deemed to be fostering
hatred and violence.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/05/international/europe/05cnd-britain.html?hp&ex=1123300800&en=dfd0a450e735ea71&ei=5094&partner=homepage
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
7) U.S. Begins Big Push in Iraqi Area Held by Insurgents
By EDWARD WONG
Published: August 5, 2005
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 5 - The American military said today
that it had begun a major offensive in the insurgent-controlled
desert region of western Iraq, where at least 22 marines
have been killed since Monday, in one of the deadliest
weeks of the war for American troops.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/05/international/middleeast/05cnd-baghdad.html?ei=5094&en=fda2c5e1bc38acc6&hp=&ex=1123300800&adxnnl=1&partner=homepage&adxnnlx=1123254153-2aF9TmYmcRI9SaOEPJwKxg
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
8) "The London Bombings: The Footprints of State Terror.
Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone
Wednesday, August 31, 7:00 -10:00 p.m.
Women's Building 3543 18th Street SF, CA
To: All News Department Managers and Reporters
and Community Calendar
From: Friends of " Taking Aim
with Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone"
Contact: Douglas MacDonald, 925-890-6430
Slug: The London Bombings: The Footprints of State Terror
San Francisco , CA . Friends of " Taking Aim " is sponsoring
a discussion by Pacifica Radio hosts Ralph Schoenman and
Mya Shone. The presentation is entitled "The London Bombings:
The Footprints of State Terror. Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone
document and analyze the relationship between foreign and
domestic intelligence operations, _The War on Terror ,_
and the economic problems of everyday Americans.
Who: Ralph Schoenman was Secretary General of the
International Tribunal on U.S. War Crimes in Indochina.
He worked with Malcolm X with respect to the battle for
the Congo and negotiated the release of political prisoners
in many countries. Today, he is an author and investigative
journalist and produces _ Taking Aim, heard weekly on
Pacifica's WBAI-NY and archived at www.takingaim.info .
Mya Shone is an economist and has a long history as an
activist involved in political, community and labor issues.
She worked closely with both Casa Nicaragua and Casa El Salvador
during the struggles taking place in Central America, was
the coordinator of the Tri-County ( Santa Barbara ,Ventura ,
San Luis Obispo ) Labor Party chapter, and was a founder
of Health Care for All-California. She was also a newscaster
and reporter at KPFK in Los Angeles .
For interviews: Contact Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone
at 707-552-9992
$10.00 donation at the door. No one turned away
for lack of funds.
For calendar listing:
The " London Bombings: The Footprints of State Terror."
Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone analyze the relationship
between foreign and domestic intelligence operations,
“The War on Terror ,” and the economic problems of
everyday Americans. Wednesday, August 31, 7:00 -10:00 p.m.,
Women’s Building 3543 18th St.,San Francisco .
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
9) CALIFORNIA CENTRAL VALLEY ~
EPITOME OF Police Department REPRESSION AGAINST LA RAZA!
In a message dated 8/5/05 1:06:39 AM, Iolmisha@cs.com writes:
PRESS CONFERENCE AND PROTEST
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY
8-9-05, 8 A.M.
203 W. 4th Street
Madera, Ca. 93638
(Madera Police Station)
To protest the murder of Everardo "Lalo" Torres by Madera Police.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Everardo_Lalo/
Police Department calls Lalo's death an "accident",
therefore a non issue...
Justice 4 Lalo, NOW!
We hope in spite of distance that many of you will
come ! Let's show our love and support to Lalo's family !
Mesha
Idriss Stelley Foundation
To get direction You can visit Mapquest.com and enter your
trip starting and destination points and it will give the
directions you need from San Francisco to Fresno or Fresno
to Madera PD DepartmeNT. I keep Mapquest.com in my favorites
because it comes really handy.
Gracias por su ayuda
Melchor Torres Jr.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
10) Our Health is Our Wealth
August 20, 2005, Noon to Midnight
Brava Theater, 2789 24th Street,
Mission District, SF
Film Screenings, Tribute, Workshops,
and Music by DJ Fonzilla
Films:
Tales from the streets of San Francisco
Redemption - The Stan "Tookie" Williams Story
The Streets Has Spoken (featuring Colored Ink)
Get Yo Mind Right (A Barbershop Tale with
Marvin X & West MacArthur)
Filmmakers and producers will be
on hand for panel discussions.
Performances/Testimonies on Violence,
Health, and Community Activism:
Colored Ink, Oonka, Howie J., Tai Soul,
Duce Eclipse, Symeon, Aretha Jones,
Mothers Against Violence, TBone, Paradise,
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children and
CA Coalition for Women Prisoners, and Pam-Pam,
of Conscious Eyes (Ch. 29) and SF Peacemakers Organizer.
Finally, a birthday tribute to Idriss Stelley –
Idriss was shot (47 times!) and killed by SFPD. RIP Idriss.
Admission: Donations, NOTA
www.coloredink.org
www.sfpeacemakers.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
11) Galloway says Blair and Bush 'have blood on their hands'
Press Association
Friday August 5, 2005
Guardian Unlimited
Tony Blair and George Bush have "far more blood on their
hands" than the terrorists who carried out the London tube
bombings, George Galloway said today.
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,15935,1543291,00.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
12) "What Have We Done?"
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
Dahr's personal log from Iraq.
August 05, 2005
http://dahrjamailiraq.com/weblog/
As the blood of US soldiers continues to drain into the hot
sands of Iraq over the last several days with at least 27
US soldiers killed and the approval rating for his handling
of the debacle in Iraq dropping to an all-time low of 38%,
Mr. Bush commented from the comforts of his ranch in Crawford,
Texas today, "We will stay the course, we will complete
the job in Iraq."
Just a two hour drive away in Dallas, at the Veterans for
Peace National Convention in Dallas, I'm sitting with
a roomful of veterans from the current quagmire.
When asked what he would say to Mr. Bush if he had the
chance to speak to him, Abdul Henderson, a corporal in
the Marines who served in Iraq from March until May, 2003,
took a deep breath and said, "It would be two hits-me
hitting him and him hitting the floor. I see this guy
in the most prestigious office in the world, and this
guy says 'bring it on.' A guy who ain't never been shot
at, never seen anyone suffering, saying 'bring it on?'
He gets to act like a cowboy in a western movie...it's
sickening to me."
The other vets with him nod in agreement as he speaks
somberly...his anger seething.
One of them, Alex Ryabov, a corporal in an artillery
unit which was in Iraq the first three months of the
invasion, asked for some time to formulate his response
to the same question.
"I don't think Bush will ever realize how many millions
of lives he and his lackeys have ruined on their quest
for money, greed and power," he says, "To take the
patriotism of the American people for granted...the
fact that people (his administration) are willing to
lie and make excuses for you while you continue to
kill and maim the youth of America and ruin countless
families...and still manage to do so with a smile
on your face."
Taking a deep breath to steady himself he continues
as if addressing Bush first-hand; "You needs to resign,
take the billions of dollars you've made off the blood
and sweat of US service members....all the suffering
you've caused us, and put those billions of dollars
into the VA to take care of the men and women you sent
to be slaughtered. Yet all those billions aren't
enough to even try to compensate all the people who
have been affected by this."
These new additions to Veterans for Peace are actively
living the statement of purpose of the organization,
having pledged to work with others towards increasing
public awareness of the costs of war, to work to
restrain their government from intervening, overtly
and covertly, in the internal affairs of other
nations and to see justice for veterans and victims
of war, among other goals.
I type furiously for three hours, trying to keep
up with the stories each of the men shared....
about the atrocities of what they saw, and
committed, while in Iraq.
Camilo Mejia, an army staff sergeant who was
sentenced to a year in military prison in May, 2004
for refusing to return to Iraq after being home on
leave, talks openly about what he did there:
"What it all comes down to is redemption for what
was done there. I was turning ambulances away from
going to hospitals, I killed civilians, I tortured
guys...and I'm ashamed of that. Once you are there,
it has nothing to do with politics...it has to do
with you as an individual being there and killing
people for no reason. There is no purpose, and now
I'm sick at myself for doing these things. I kept
telling myself I was there for my buddies.
It was a weak reasoning...because I still
shut my mouth and did my job."
Mejia then spoke candidly about why
he refused to return:
"It wasn't until I came home that I felt it-how
wrong it all was and that I was a coward for
pushing my principles aside. I'm trying to buy my
way back into heaven...and it's not so much what
I did, but what I didn't do to stop it when I was
there. So now it's a way of trying to undo the
evil that we did over there. This is why I'm
speaking out, and not going back. This is a painful
process and we're going through it."
Camilo Mejia was then quick to point towards the
success of his organization and his colleagues.
"When I went back to Iraq in October of 2003, the
Pentagon said there were 22 AWOL's. Five months
later it was 500, and when I got out of jail that
number was 5,000. These are the Pentagons' numbers
for the military. Two things are significant here-
the number went from 500-5,000 in 11 months, and
these are the numbers from the Pentagon."
While the military is falling short of its recruitment
goals across the board and the disaster in Iraq
spiraling deeper into chaos with each passing day,
these are little consolation for these men who have
paid the price they've had to pay to be at this
convention. They continue to pay, but at the same
time stand firm in their resolve to bring an end
to the occupation of Iraq and to help their fellow
soldiers.
Ryabov then begins to tell of his unit firing the
wrong artillery rounds which hit 5-10 km from their
intended target.
"We have no idea where those rounds fell, or what
they hit," he says quietly while two of the men
hold their heads in their hands, "Now we've come
to these realizations and we're trying to educate
people to save them from going through the same thing."
After talking of the use of uranium munitions, of
which Ryabov stated 300 tons of which were used
in the '91 Gulf War, and 2,200 tons and counting
having been used thus far in the current war, he
adds, "We were put in a foreign country and fire
artillery and kill people...and it shouldn't have
even happened in the first place. It's hard to put
into words the full tragedy of it-the death and
suffering on both sides. I feel a grave injustice
has been done and I'm trying to correct it. You
do all these things and come back and think,
'what have we done?' We just rolled right by
an Iraqi man with a gunshot in his thigh and
two guys near him waving white flags....
he probably bled to death."
Harvey Tharp sitting with us served in Kirkuk.
His position of being in charge of some reconstruction
projects in northern Iraq allowed him to form many
close friendships with Iraqis...something that prompts
him to ask me to tell more people of the generous
culture of the Iraqi people. His friendships apparently
brought the war much closer to home for him.
"What I concluded last summer when I was waiting to
transfer to NSA was that not only were our reasons for
being there lies, but we just weren't there to help the
Iraqis. So in November of '04 I told my commander
I couldn't take part in this. I would have been sent
into Fallujah, and he was going to order me in to do
my job. I also chose not to go back because the dropping
of bombs in urban areas like Fallujah are a violation
of the laws of warfare because of the near certainty of
collateral damage. For me, seeing the full humanity of
Iraqis made me realize I couldn't participate in these
operations."
Tharp goes on to say that he believes there are still
Vietnam vets who think that that was a necessary war
and adds, "I think it's because that keeps the demons
at bay for them to believe it is justified...this is
their coping mechanism. We, as Americans, have to face
the total obvious truth that this was all because of
a lie. We are speaking out because we have to speak out.
We want to help other vets tell other vets their
story...to keep people from drinking themselves to death."
When he is asked what he would say to Mr. Bush if he
had a few moments with him, he too took some time to
think about it, then says, "It is obvious that middle
America is starting to turn against this war and to
turn against you...for good reason. The only thing
I could see that would arrest this inevitable fall
that you deserve, is another 9/11 or another war with
say, Iran. There are some very credible indications in
the media that we are already in pre-war with Iran.
What I'm trying to do is find a stand Americans can
take against you, but I think people are willing to
say 'don't you dare do this to us again.' My message
to the American people is this-do you want to go
another round with these people? If not-now is the
time to say so."
The men are using this time to tell more of why
they are resisting the illegal occupation, and it's
difficult to ask new questions as they are adding
to what one another share.
"I didn't want to kill another soul for no reason.
That's it," adds Henderson, "We were firing into
small towns....you see people just running, cars going,
guys falling off bikes...it was just sad. You just
sit there and look through your binos and see things
blowing up, and you think, man they have no water,
living in the third world, and we're just bombing
them to hell. Blowing up buildings, shrapnel tearing
people to shreds."
Tharp jumps in and adds, "Most of what we're talking
about is war crimes...war crimes because they are
directed by our government for power projection. My
easy answer for not going is PTSD...but the deeper
moral reason is that I didn't want to be involved
in a crime against humanity."
Ryabov then adds, "We were put in a foreign country
to fire artillery and kill people...and it shouldn't
have even happened in the first place. It's hard to
put into words the full tragedy of it-the death and
suffering on both sides. I feel a grave injustice has
been done and I'm trying to correct it. You do all
these things and come back and think, what have we done?"
Michael Hoffman served as a Marine Corps corporal
who fought in Tikrit and Baghdad, and has since
become a co-founder of Iraq Veterans Against the War.
"Nobody wants to kill another person and think it
was because of a lie. Nobody wants to think their
service was in vain," says Hoffman.
His response to what he would say to Mr. Bush is
simple, "I would look him straight in the eye and
ask him 'why?' And I would hold him there and make
him answer me. He never has to deal with us one on
one. I dare him to talk to any of us like that, one
on one, and give us an answer."
Hoffman then adds, "What about the 3 year old Iraqi
girl who is now an orphan with diseases and nightmares
for the rest of her life for what we did? And the
people who orchestrated this don't have to pay
anything. How many times are my children going to
have to go through this? Our only choice is to
fight this to try to stop it from happening again."
Earlier this same day Mr. Bush said, "We cannot
leave this task half finished, we must take it
all the way to the end."
However, Charlie Anderson, another Iraq veteran,
had strong words for Bush. After discussing how
the background radiation in Baghdad is now five
times the normal rate-the equivalent of having
3 chest x-rays an hour, he said, "These are not
accidents-the DU [Depleted Uraniaum]-it's important
for people to understand this-the use of DU and
its effects are by design. These are very carefully
engineered and orchestrated incidents."
While the entire group nods in agreement and two
other soldiers stand up to shake his hand, Anderson
says firmly, "You subverted us, you destroyed our
lives, you owe us. I want your resignation in my
hand in the next five minutes. Get packin' Georgie."
Posted by Dahr_Jamail at August 5, 2005 07:17 AM
(c)2004, 2005 Dahr Jamail.
--
"I'd rather vote for something I want and not get
it than vote for something I don't want, and
get it". Eugene Debs
Richard Mellor
Retired member, AFSCME Local 444
Oakland CA
Check out our website: http://www.laborsmilitantvoice.com
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
13) Galloway praises Iraqi insurgents
GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN AND GERRI PEEV
Key points
•Respect MP George Galloway calls Iraqi insurgents
'martyrs' on Arab TV
•Galloway says that UK, US and Iraq 'puppet regime'
will lose in Iraq
•Calls for remarks that incide attacks on British
troops to be criminalised
Key quote
"Even the puppet ministers and regime in Baghdad
know it ... America is losing the war in Iraq. And
this will not change. The resistance is getting
stronger every day, and the will to remain as an
occupier by Britain and America is getting weaker
every day" - George Galloway, Respect MP
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1730212005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
14) Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights invites
you to...
Defend Women's Rights!
Sunday, August 14th at 3pm
Women's Building, 3543 18th Street (between Valencia
and Guerrero), San Francisco
Come to this planning meeting to get involved with
BACORR in a variety of activites to build the movement
and defend our reproductive rights. Proposed
activities include building a possible
rally and march regarding Roe v.
Wade and the Supreme Court; clinic
defense to keep abortion safe and
legal; a women's rights conference
in the fall; street theatre actions,
and more. Everyone is welcome!
There is an immediate urgency to defend women's
rights. We need to build a movement with a strong
response to attacks on our rights--to be at the
abortion clinics to keep them open and safe; to tell
Congess that if they will not filibuster right-wing
nominations to the courts, we will on the streets; to
confront the right wherever they rear their heads; to
debate and discuss strategy and tactics to move our
struggle forward.
Some of the issues that make this meeting so
important:
**John Roberts' confirmation to the Supreme Court
seems inevitable--many Democrats,
including Sen. Diane Feinstein, have
said they will not filibuster, despite
the fact that he has continuously
lobbied to overturn
Roe v. Wade.
**Conservatives are forcing Proposition 73, the
Parental Notification Initiative (PNI), that
approximates an invasive parental consent law, to be
on the ballot in either November or the early spring
(if the Special Election in November fails) in
California.
**This past month, the Crusade for Life has felt
emboldened enough to travel the state of California
harassing women outside abortion clinics. "Walk For
Life" plans to have another march in San Francisco
in January of 2006.
**Nearly 90% of counties in the US have no access to
abortion providers. Access to any contraception at
all is under further attack: the Workplace Religious
Freedom Act, currently under consideration in the
Senate, gives pharmacists the right to refuse to fill
any contraception perscriptions, emergency or
otherwise, if it goes against their faith.
Additionally, many women of color and poor women
continue to be threatened by coerced sterilization.
**Women still make $0.75 for every $1.00 a man earns,
and decent, affordable healthcare and childcare is for
too many women an unattainable dream.
Sponsored by Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive
Rights (BACORR). BACORR puts defense of basic
reproductive rights around abortion in a broader
historical context of demands for reproductive
freedom, which includes free abortion on demand, no
parental consent laws, no Medicaid/MediCal cuts for
abortion, no coerced sterilization, free birth
control, free quality healthcare, explicit
non-moralistic sex education, and the right to have
children, including access to free quality child care
and free quality pre-natal care.
To build the strongest and broadest pro-choice
movement possible, we must fight all forms of
oppression. We see reproductive choice as an integral
part of a larger struggle for the
liberation/self-determination of all people. To this
end, BACORR recognizes the leadership of and organizes
to address the needs of those hardest hit by the
escalating rightwing climate and dismantling of social services,
including women of color; poor, immigrant and disabled women;
lesbian/bisexual/transgender people, and young women.
For more information, please contact:
lichi_d@yahoo.com or call 415-864-1278.
BACORR: Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive
Rights www.bacorr.org |
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/bacorr
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
15) After reading the following
statement , I got the chilling feeling that
there is nothing worse for a soldier
who is risking his life to protect his
countrymen than to realize that his
leaders have betrayed him .
m.hasan
http://mathaba.net/0_index.shtml?x=297326
I am a concerned veteran of the Iraq War.
Speech to the "Out of Iraq" Congressional
Caucus on July 19, 2005
By John Bruhns
I am a concerned veteran of the Iraq War. I am not an expert
on the vast and wide range of issues throughout the political
spectrum, but I can offer some first hand experience of the war
in Iraq through the eyes of a soldier. My view of the situation
in Iraq will differ from what the American People are being
told by the Bush Administration. The purpose of this message
is to voice my concern that we were misled into war and
continue to be misled about the situation! in Iraq every
day. My opinions on this matter come from what I witnessed
in Iraq personally.
George Bush and his political advisors have been successful
in presenting a false image to the American people that Saddam
Hussein was an "imminent" threat to the security of the United
States. We were told that there was overwhelming evidence that
Saddam Hussein possessed a massive WMD program, and some
members of the Bush Administration even hinted that Saddam
may have been involved in the 9/11 attacks.
We now know most of the information given to us by the current
Administration concerning Iraq, if not all the information,
was false. This was information given to the American people
to justify a war. The information about weapons of mass
destruction and a link to Osama Bin Laden scared the
American people into supporting the war in Iraq. They
presented an atmosphere of intimidation that suggested
if we did not act immediately there was the possibility
of another attack. Bush said himself that we do not want
the proof or the smoking gun to come in the form of a
"mushroom cloud." Donald Rumsfeld said, "We know where
the weapons are."
After 9/11, comments like this proved to be a successful
scare tactic to use on the American People to rally support
for the invasion. Members of the Bush Administration created
an image of "wine and roses" in terms of the aftermath of
the war. Vice-President Dick Cheney said American troops
would be greeted as "liberators." And there was a false
perception created that we would go into Iraq and
implement a democratic government and it would be over
more sooner than later. The White House also expressed
confidence that the alleged WMD program would be found
once we invaded.
I participated in the invasion, stayed in Iraq for a year
afterward, and what I witnessed was the total opposite of
what President Bush and his Administration stated to the
American People.
The invasion was very confusing, and so was the period of
time I spent in Iraq afterward. At first it did seem as
if some of the Iraqi people were happy to be rid of Saddam
Hussein. But that was only for a short period of time.
Shortly after Saddam's regime fell, the Shiite Muslims
in Iraq conducted a pilgrimage to Karbala, a pilgrimage
prohibited by Saddam while he was in power. As I
witnessed the ! Shiite pilgrimage, which was a new
freedom that we provided to them, they used the pilgrimage
to protest our presence in their country. I watched as
they beat themselves over the head with sticks until
they bled, and screamed at us in anger to leave their
country. Some even carried signs that stated, "No Saddam,
No America." These were people that Saddam oppressed;
they were his enemies. To me, it seemed they hated us
more than him.
At that moment I knew it was going to be a very long
deployment. I realized that I was not being greeted as
a liberator. I became overwhelmed with fear because
I felt I never would be viewed that way by the Iraqi
people. As a soldier this concerned me. Because if they
did not view me as a liberator, then what did they view
me as? I felt that they viewed me as foreign occupier of
their land. That led me to believe very early on that
I was going to have a fight on my hands.
During my year in Iraq I had many altercations with the
so-called "insurgency." I found the insurgency I saw to
be quite different from the insurgency described to the
American people by the Bush Administration, the media,
and other supporters of the war. There is no doubt in my
mind there are foreigners from other surrounding countries
in Iraq. Anyone in the Middle East who hates America now
has the opportunity to kill Americans because there are
roughly 140,000 US troops in Iraq. But the bulk of the
insurgency I faced was primarily the people of Iraq who
were attacking us as a reaction to what they felt was
an occupation of their country.
I was engaged actively in urban combat in the Abu Ghraib
area west of Baghdad. Many of the people who were
attacking me were the poor people of Iraq. They were
definitely not members of Al Qaeda, left over Baath
Party members, and they were not former members of
Saddam's regime. They were just your average Iraqi
civilian who wanted us out of their country.
On October 31st, 2003, the people of Abu Ghraib organized
a large uprising against us. They launched a massive
assault on our compound in the area. We were attacked
with AK-47 machine guns, RPGs and mortars. Thousands
of people took to the streets to attack us. As the riot
unfolded before my eyes, I realized these were just the
people who lived there. There were men, women, and
children participating. Some of the Iraqi protesters
were even carrying pictures of Saddam Hussein.
My battalion fought back with everything we had
and eventually shut down the uprising.
So while President Bush speaks of freedom and liberation
of the Iraqi people, I find his statements are not
credible after witnessing events such as these.
During the violence that day I felt so much fear
throughout my entire body. I remember going home
that night and praying to God, thanking him that
I was still alive. A few months earlier President
Bush made the statement, "Bring it on" when
referring to the attacks on Americans by the
insurgency. To me, that felt like a personal
invitation to the insurgents to attack me and
my friends who desperately wanted to make
it home alive.
I did my job well in Iraq. During the deployment,
my superiors promoted me to the rank of sergeant.
I was made a rifle team leader and was put in charge
of other soldiers when we carried out missions.
My time as a Team Leader in Iraq was temporarily
interrupted when I was sent to the "Green Zone" in
Baghdad to train the Iraqi army. I was more than
happy to do it because we were being told that in
order for us to get out of Iraq completely the
Iraqi military would have to be able to take over
all security operations. The training of the Iraqi
Army became a huge concern of mine. During the time
I trained them, their basic training was only one
week long. We showed them some basic drill and
ceremony such as marching and saluting. When it
came time for weapons training, we gave each Iraqi
recruit an AK-47 and just let them shoot it. They
did not even have to qualify by hitting a target.
All they had to do was pull the trigger. I was
instructed by my superiors to stand directly behind
them with caution while they were shooting just
in case they tried to turn the weapon on us so
we could stop them.
Once they graduated from basic training, the Iraqi
soldiers in a way became part of our battalion and
we would take them on missions with us. But we
never let them know where we were going, because
we were afraid some of them might tip off the
insurgency that we were coming and we would walk
directly into an ambush. When they would get into
formation prior to the missions we made them
a part of, they would cover their faces so the
people of their communities did not identify them
as being affiliated with the American troops.
Not that long ago President Bush made a statement
at Fort Bragg when he addressed the nation about
the war in Iraq. He said we would "stand down"
when the Iraqi military is ready to "stand up."
My experience with the new Iraqi military tells
me we won't be coming home for a long time if
that's the case.
I left Iraq on February 27, 2004 and I acknowledge
a lot may have changed since then, but I find
it hard to believe the Iraqi people are any
happier now than they were when was I was there.
I remember the day I left there were hundreds
of Iraqis in the streets outside the compound
that I lived in. They watched as we moved out
to the Baghdad Airport to finally go home. The
Iraqis cheered, clapped, and shouted with joy
as we were le! aving. As a soldier, that hurt
me inside because I thought I was supposed to be
fighting for their freedom. I saw many people die
for that cause, but that is not how the Iraqi
people looked at it. They viewed me as a foreign
occupier and many of the people of Iraq may have
even preferred Saddam to the American soldiers.
I feel this way because of the consistent attacks
on me and my fellow soldiers by the Iraqi people,
who felt they were fighting for their homeland.
To us the mission turned into a quest for survival.
I wish I could provide an answer to this mess.
I wish I knew of a realistic way to get our troops
home. But we are very limited in our options in my
opinion. If we pull out immediately, it's likely
the Iraqi security forces will not be able to provide
stability on their own. In that event, the new Iraqi
government could possibly be overthrown. The other
option would be to reduce our troop numbers and have
a gradual pullout. That is very risky because it
seems that even with the current number of troops
the violence still continues. With a significant
troop reduction, there is a strong possibility the
violence and attacks on US and coalition forces
could escalate and get even worse. In my opinion,
that is more of a certainty.
And then there is the option that President Bush
brings to the table which is to "Stay the Course."
That means more years of bloodshed and a lot more
lives to be lost. Also, it will aggravate the growing
opposition to the US presence in Iraq throughout the
region and that could very well recruit more
extremists to join terror organizations that
will infiltrate into Iraq and kill more US troops.
So it does not seem to me we have a realistic
solution, and that frightens me. It has become
very obvious that we have a serious dilemma that
needs to be resolved as soon as possible to end
the ongoing violence in Iraq. But how do we end
it is the question?
We must always support the troops. If there were
a situation in which the United States is attacked
again by a legitimate enemy, they are the people who
are going to risk their lives to protect us and our
freedom. In my opinion, the best way to support them
now is to bring them home with the honor and
respect they deserve.
In closing, I ask that we never forget why this
war started. The Bush Administration cried weapons
of mass destruction and a link to Al Queda. We know
that this is false and the Bush administration
concedes it as well. As a soldier who fought in
that war, I feel misled. I feel that I was sent
off to fight for a cause that never existed.
When I joined the military I did so to defend
the United States of America, not to be sent
off to a part of the world to fight people who
never attacked me or my country. Many have died
as a result of this. The people who started this
war need to start being honest with t! he American
people and take responsibility for their actions.
More than anything, they need to stop saying
everything is rosy and create a solution to this
problem they created.
Thank you for hearing me out. God Bless our great
nation, the United States of America.
John Bruhns
Click link below to watch Congresswoman Marcy
Kaptur, read this letter into the congressional record
http://www.kaptur.house.gov/Speech.aspx?NewsID=1422
The short URL for this item is:
http://mathaba.net/0_index.shtml?x=297326
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*--------
16) UPDATE FROM LEONARD PELTIER
from the LPDC Blog -- http://lpdcinc.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
July 30, 2005
Aho my relations,
As I sit here in my solitary confinement cell at USP Terre
Haute, and reflect over the past month's events, I can't
help but feel an overwhelming sense of love and gratitude
for each and every one of you who have so diligently stood
by me in this time of crisis. As you already know by now,
on June 30, 2005, I was transferred from Leavenworth Facility,
to Terre Haute USP. The reason for my transfer, according to
the Federal Bureau of Prisons Administrative staff was that
the Leavenworth Facility was downgraded from maximum-security
level to medium, and therefore I could not remain at
Leavenworth due to my illegal sentencing and consequent
maximum-security rank.
I was transferred without notification to my attorney,
Barry Bachrach, and my family. Upon my arrival to Terre
Haute I was placed in solitary confinement and was told
that I would remain in solitary confinement until my
personal file arrived. My personal file arrived, but
I remain in solitary confinement allegedly for security
reasons. I am confined to a cell that is 8'X 8', it has
a window that is covered from the outside with an
elaborate shield that allows me to see 2-3 inches of
the sky out of the top and 2-3 inches of the ground.
All prisoners are supposed to get at least one hour
of sunlight or outdoors and so I am taken from my cell
to what is called a Recreation Room (Rec Cage), and
the only sun or outdoors that I see is from some windows
high up in this large room with a few air holes in them.
I am able to walk up and down and this fulfills the one
hour of sunlight or outdoors recreation time.
Whatever the system's logic is, it seems that I won't
stay in Terre Haute for much longer and will be transferred
again. I do not know when and where, nor do I know if
this cruel game will be over after another transfer.
After all, removal and relocation have been used to break
our people from the beginning of this country's history.
This keeps my Defense Committee from taking the necessary
steps to re-establish an office, but they are doing
everything they can to help me in this most precarious
and uncertain situation.
Before this situation developed, I asked Russ Redner
to be the National/ International Executive Director
of the LPDC. Russ is a brother from our original
Northwest AIM crew, a long time ally, and one of the
original founders of the LPDC. I have trusted Russ
with my life many times and he's proven himself at
every turn. I want him to be the last person I ever
have to ask to guide the LPDC, and as such I have given
him full authority to do whatever is necessary to prevent
problems that have plagued us in the past from ever
surfacing again. He and his wife, Paula, bring a renewed
energy to the LPDC. It is essential that Russ, Barry
Bachrach, Mike Kuzma, and the new team at the LPDC be
supported so they can work most effectively to achieve
my freedom and accomplish the things that need to be
done for my people. I have confidence that all of you
who truly support me will extend your vote of confidence
to Russ and my new team.
A month in solitary is beginning to take a toll on me
but your letters give me much hope and encouragement.
Many of you have written, e-mailed and called USP Terre
Haute, and other organizations. This has brought some
improvement to my solitary confinement. I am now getting
my medications on a daily basis, I can write out, I am
receiving my mail, and I am allowed one phone call
a month. I am allowed contact visits for those persons
authorized on my visiting list. The contact visit is
restricted to a two-hour period, and is conducted
through a glass pane and a phone. I am allowed to
visit with my attorney without those restrictions.
At this time I am asking that you continue to call/write
/e-mail the contacts below requesting that my security
level be downgraded to medium due to my health, age and
good behavior and that I be transferred to a medium
security institution with all my hard earned prisoner
privileges restored. In case I am transferred please
add the new facility (keep checking our official website: http://www.leonardpeltier.org) to your contact list and
ask them to respect my human rights and prisoner privileges.
Again, I thank you for your support and prayers, and hope
that I may one day soon be among you.
In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,
Leonard Peltier
*-*-*-*
CONTACT LIST:
U.S. Penitentiary
4700 Bureau Road South
Terre Haute, IN 47802
Phone-812-244-4400
Fax----812-244-4789
THP/EXECASSISTANT@BOP.GOV
Federal Bureau of Prisons
320 First Street NW
Washington, DC 20534
202-307-3198
info@bop.gov
Amnesty International
5 Penn Plaza ˆ 14th Floor
New York, NY 10001
Phone: 212-807-8400
Fax: 212-463-9193 / 212-627-1451
admin-us@aiusa.org
Human Rights Watch
350 Fifth Avenue, 34th floor
New York, NY 10118-3299
Tel: 1-(212) 290-4700
Fax: 1-(212) 736-1300
hrwnyc@hrw.org
Senate Judiciary Committee:
* Arlen Specter, Chairman
711 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: 202-224-4254
* Senator Patrick Leahy, Ranking Member
433 Russell Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4242
senator_leahy@leahy.senate.gov
* Senator Edward Kennedy
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202/224-4543
FAX: 202/224-2417
* Senator Joseph Biden
201 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: 202-224-5042
Fax: 202-224-0139
* Senator Dianne Feinstein
United States Senate
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3841
Fax: (202) 228-3954
* Senator Richard Durbin
332 Dirksen Senate Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-2152
Fax: (202) 228-0400
* Senator Herb Kohl
330 Hart Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5653
Fax: (202) 224-9787
* Sen. Charles E. Schumer
313 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-6542
Fax: 202-228-3027
TDD: 202-224-0420
Congressional Judiciary Committee:
* Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
2426 Rayburn Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-5126
John.Conyers@mail.house.gov
* Honorable Robert C. Scott
1201 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-8351
Fax: (202) 225-8354
bobby.scott@mail.house.gov
* Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee
2435 Rayburn Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-3816
* Honorable Maxine Waters
2344 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
202-225-2201 phone
202-225-7854 fax
* Honorable Martin Meehan
2229 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3411
Fax: (202) 226-0771
TTY: (202) 225-1904
* Honorable Bill Delahunt
2454 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3111
Fax: (202) 225-5658
William.Delahunt@mail.house.gov
* Honorable Anthony Weiner
1122 Longworth House Office Building
Washington DC 20515
(202) 225-6616
weiner@mail.house.gov
United Nations:
Louise Arbour, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Fax: 41-22-917-9022
E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org
U.N. Working Group on Indigenous Populations
United Nations Office at Geneva
1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Email: WGindigenous@ohchr.org
Fax: 41-22-917-9008
The Special Rapporteur on human rights and fundamental freedoms
of indigenous peoples: Mr. Rodolfo Stavenhagen
His contact person is: Pablo Espiniella, Human Rights Officer
Tel. 41-22-917-9413
Fax 41-22-917-9008
email: indigenous@ohchr.org
U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions
c/o Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
CH-1211, Geneva 10
Switzerland
Fax: 41-22- 917-9006
FREE LEONARD PELTIER NOW!
From: International Peltier Forum [mailto:kolahq@skynet.be]
Sent: Thursday, August 04, 2005 2:50 PM
To: IPF
Subject: [LP Forum News] Update from Leonard Peltier
INTERNATIONAL FORUM of VIPs for PELTIER
August 4th 2005 :
10772 days of WRONGFUL IMPRISONMENT!
ONLINE PETITION FOR EXECUTIVE CLEMENCY
http://users.skynet.be/kola/lppet.htm
ONLINE PETITION FOR PAROLE
http://campaign-pyramid.com/kola/leonard/
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17) Neil Mackay | Iraq's Child Prisoners
A Sunday Herald investigation has discovered that coalition
forces are holding more than 100 children in jails such as
Abu Ghraib. Witnesses claim that the detainees - some as
young as 10 - are also being subjected to rape and torture.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/080405S.shtml
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18) "While there is a lower class I am in it; while there
is a criminal element I am of it; while there is a soul in
prison I am not free." --Eugene V. Debs
A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF IRAQ
Why Iraqi's Don't Need the U.S to Run their Country
Calls for the U.S. to pull out of Iraq are growing every day.
Yet Bush and others justify the continuing occupation with
the blatantly racist notion that the Iraqi people are somehow
incapable of governing the land that is rightfully theirs.
To gain an understanding of the Iraqi resistance we must
first learn about the history of the Leftist movements in
Iraq. A new book, "A People's History of Iraq" by Ilario
Salucci, shows how the Iraqi Communist Party has contributed
to workers movements and stood up to such oppresive regimes
such as the British imperialists, their subsequent installed
monarchy, and the brutal dictatorship of Saddam Hussein.
Come to our public meeting where we'll celebrate the
publishing of this new book, and discuss the history of
the Iraqi Left, and its implications for the anti-war
movement in this country.
Sponsored by the International Socialist Organization on
Wed. August 8, 7pm
110 Capp St. (near 16th St. BART)
2nd fl. buzz#202 at gate
Call for info. (415) 336-5034 or check us out at:
www.internationalsocialist.org
www.haymarketbooks.org
Visit your group "SF_Mission_ISO
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19) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA (HOV) CAMPAIGN NEEDS YOUR HELP!
Dear Friend:
The Hands Off Venezuela campaign (HOV) is an organization
of groups and individuals who support the right of the people
of Venezuela to self-determination and oppose any intervention
by the United States against the democratically elected
government of Venezuela.
Hands Off Venezuela in the San Francisco Bay Area is part
of a relatively new national campaign, and joins with
activists from Minneapolis, Boston, Miami, and Seattle,
St. Louis, Fargo, and Providence, and others. HOV is also
part of an international campaign, based in London, England,
to build a worldwide campaign in defense of Venezuela against
U.S. interference and aggression.
It looks like the U.S. government is on a collision course
with Hugo Chavez, the most popular president elected in the
last twenty years in Latin America. (The latest public
opinion polls show his rating at 70 percent.)
Your help is needed now. We cannot stop U.S. intervention
by words alone, but only by the action of the people of the
United States, and they cannot take action without knowledge.
That is why we are calling on all freedom loving people in
the U.S. to help us bring the truth about Venezuela to this
country by bringing here one of its most important trade
union leaders, Stalin Perez Borges.
Borges comes from the UTIPC (Union de Trabajadores de la
Industria Procesadora del Cigarillo), the union at the big
Filtrona cigarette filter factory in Valencia. With decades
of experience, he became a founding member of the UNT
(Union Nacional de Trabjadores, National Union of Workers),
and is one of its national coordinators. He played a key
role in the struggle against the coup in April 2002 and
the bosses' lockout of December 2002. We believe that by
bringing him here we can begin to build a dialogue
between the people of the United States and the people
of Venezuela.
To do this we need your financial help. Please help the
campaign to bring this labor leader to the Bay area and
stop U.S. intervention in the internal affairs of Venezuela
by making a donation of $5, $10, $15, $100, or whatever
you can. Checks should be made payable to Hands Off
Venezuela. If you prefer to use a credit card, you can
make a donation using PayPal at
http://www.ushov.org/donate.html
We thank you for your support in this struggle.
Sincerely,
For Hands Off Venezuela,
Gerry Foley
Cristina Gutierrez
Gabriel Cabrera
Hands Off Venezuela San Francisco Bay
4579-18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
Web: www.ushov.org
Email: sfbay@ushov.org
Phone: (415) 864-3537
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20) Broad Environmental Damage Seen From Shuttle
By Jeff Franks, Reuters
HOUSTON (Aug. 4) - Commander Eileen Collins said astronauts
on shuttle Discovery had seen widespread environmental
destruction on Earth and warned on Thursday that greater
care was needed to protect natural resources.
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050804100809990012
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21) PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE THEATER: 2575 BANCROFT WAY
@ BOWDITCH, BERKELEY
WWW.BAMPFA.BERKELEY.EDU / $4-$8
TUESDAY AUGUST 9
7:30 The Forest for the Trees: Judi Bari vs. the FBI
Bernadine Mellis (U.S., 2005)
Artist in Person!
Tonight we present two very different portraits of activism
that detail visionary citizens' efforts to preserve the
natural world. The Forest for the Trees documents Earth
First! organizer Judi Bari's case against the FBI and
Oakland police. Following her passionate and effective
efforts to create alliances between environmental activists
and loggers and mill workers, in 1990, the car she was
driving in Oakland was bombed, and within hours she was
accused of transporting the explosives and labeled a
terrorist. The filmmaker's father was one of Bari's
lawyers, giving inside access to the intricacies of
the legal battle, which continued to be waged in
Oakland courtrooms after Bari's death from cancer
in 1997. * (2005, 54 mins, Video)
Preceded by:
Under Foot and Overstory
Jason Livingston (U.S., 2004)
Under Foot and Overstory is a playful and poetic portrait
of an Iowa City-based group of environmentalists who work
together to protect 200 acres of urban parkland...but first
they must write their mission statement. Revealing a love
of nature, group dynamics, and wordplay, Underfoot and
Overstory explores "an aesthetics of ecology" (JL). *
(2004, 35 mins, 16mm)
* (Total running time: 89 mins, Color, From the artists)
--
Laura Deutch
Outreach Coordinator
Pacific Film Archive
2625 Durant Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94720-2250
510/642-6883
www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/pfa
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22) Jewish Voice for Peace expresses outrage
and sadness over attack on bus in Arab Israeli town.
Demands right-wing groups end incitement to violence.
Please circulate as far and wide as you can.
Press release
Contact: Mitchell Plitnick, 510-465-1777
Friday August 5, 2005 (Oakland, CA) - American peace group
Jewish Voice for Peace expressed its sadness and outrage at
the murder of four Palestinian citizens of Israel by an AWOL
Israeli soldier. The attack also injured 12 other innocents
on a bus in the Arab town of Shfaram in Israel. The soldier,
Edan Natan-Zada, who was killed by enraged residents of
Shfaram, was apparently a member of the radical group, Kach,
which calls for the expulsion of Arabs from Israel and the
Occupied Palestinian Territories. He had deserted the army
about one month ago, in opposition to the planned Israeli
pullout from the Gaza Strip.
"This attack was the direct result of the extremist rhetoric
and ideology of the settler movement,‰ said Mitchell Plitnick,
JVP‚s co-director. "The killer was a 19-year old soldier,
who had recently moved to a West Bank settlement and
apparently came under the sway of so-called Œreligious
Jews‚ who preach a doctrine of hatred and of valuing Jewish
life above others. This atrocity is the result of the same
ideology that inspired Baruch Goldstein over a decade ago
and led to the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. It is high
time that Jews everywhere took a firm stand against the
preachers of hate in our own community.‰
On February 25, 1994, Dr. Baruch Goldstein of the Kiryat
Arba settlement near Hebron, killed 29 Muslim worshippers
at Friday prayers at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
On November 4, 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin
was killed by a fanatical law student named Yigal Amir at
a peace rally in Tel Aviv. Natan-Zada, Plitnick said,
was inspired by the same ideologues that inspired
Goldstein and Amir.
„These preachers of hate are the inevitable result of
the settlement ideology, which claims the West Bank and
Gaza Strip without the slightest thought to the needs of
non-Jews. World Jewry must stand up and say enough is
enough. The settlements breed killers among both Israeli
Jews and Palestinian Arabs. Only with their removal and
with the clear and honest move by Israel toward being
a state where all of its citizens have full and equal
rights will horrors like yesterday‚s be ended.‰
Jewish Voice for Peace is a national grassroots
organization dedicated to promoting a US foreign policy
in the Middle East based on democracy, human rights and
respect for international law. JVP is a voice for the
silent majority of American Jews who polls consistently
show support a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict and an end to Israel‚s occupation
of the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem. For
information about the conflict and expert sources go to www.JewishVoiceforPeace.org
To engage in online discussion of UFPJ matters,
join our discussion list by sending a blank
email to ufpj-disc-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
Visit your group "ufpj-news
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23) Read more about Sgt. Carlos Lazo and efforts by the
Bush administration to further divide the Cuban family:
with this Radio Progreso commentary from Miami:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z2EC13F8B )
EL NUEVO HERALD
Posted on Fri, Aug. 05, 2005
Perspective
The cruelty of a policy
By: Carlos F. Lazo
A CubaNews translation by Ana Portela.
Edited by Walter Lippmann.
http://www.walterlippmann.com/docs239.html
from the original at El Nuevo Herald (Miami)
http://www.miami.com/mld/elnuevo/news/opinion/12305625.htm
Going to fight on the other side of the world in the name
of freedom and democracy and, later, upon returning to your
country finding that you have lost your freedoms as a
citizen, is a sad irony. That is precisely what happened to
me after being a part of the troops in Iraq and fighting in
Falluja last year. For the past months, the United States
press have mentioned my case as an example of the
inconsistency and cruelty of the policy regarding Cuba. I
am a Cuban American and arrived at this country on a raft
during the early years of the 90s. In Cuba I left two sons,
now 16 and 19 years of age, with whom I have always had a
strong attachment, supporting them financially and visiting
them in the Island. I live in the state of Washington where
I became a sergeant medic of the National Guard and
councilor of handicapped persons for the State Department
of Social Services Department.
During my leave in the Middle East, in June of 2004, I
tried to visit my sons in Cuba. My chances of being killed
in Iraq were a daily constant urging me to see my children
since it could be the last. My wish did not come true. The
White House, involved in a tight election campaign and to
please a minority but powerful sector of the Cuban
community, decreed measures to reduce trips to the island
to once every three years. I had to return to Iraq without
going to Cuba. The planes between Miami and Havana took off
almost empty while dozens of travelers were left stranded
at the airport.
A year has passed and the cruel measures have been a
fiasco. The alleged destabilizing effect on the Cuban
economy has not borne fruit and the only evident result is
the unjust restriction that has castrated our most basic
rights as citizenz. Not even in the extreme case of a
family emergency are we free to board a plane and visit our
families in Cuba. The measures, in addition to being
inhuman in essence and anti-American by nature, have
transformed thousands of persons into delinquents, faced
with the choice of complying with the law or giving support
to their relatives. The latter choose to travel to the
Island clandestinely, without mentioning those who profess
a religion they do not have to obtain a special permission
to visit and embrace their family.
Behind these injustices that today had an identity in me,
there are thousands of victims, of Cuban Americans, who
have nowhere to voice their protest and demand such a basic
right as having normal relationships with their family in
Cuba. They number in the thousands of anonymous and pained
compatriots who are steeped in sorrow and hopelessness. Who
gave those representatives of our community the right to
decide how often we can embrace our family in Cuba, or that
my uncle is not an uncle and a cousin is no longer a
cousin?
It's ironic that I have lost my freedoms as an American
citizen while I fought for democracy in other lands. Now,
another is added to the list: the unlimited hypocrisy of
congress members who claim to support family values and, at
the same time, have served this merciless attack against
Cuban families. Because of this, more so because of them,
thousands of Cuban Americans, today, cannot fulfill their
rights and duties to their families.
Cuban American lawmakers have been deaf to our demands to
abolish or modify this freak law that prohibits travel to
Cuba. The victims have no other choice, the thousands in
our community, but to elect representatives whose priority
in their political agendas is to respect our rights as
human beings and the sanctity of family values.
Sergeant of the National Guard
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
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