!VIVA FIDEL! LONG LIVE FIDEL! LONG LIVE THE CUBAN REVOLUTION!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
A disgusting practice:
As Halloween creeps up, the holiday's signature critter could use
your help. Give bats a "treat" by urging eBay to stop allowing the
sale of their bodies as so-called art:
http://go.care2.com/e/lXWy/zMU/OwVx
What's happening: Several companies are catching bats in the wild and
killing them for sale as "art" in glass frames. One small bat, also
known as the Short-nosed fruit bat, is a major target of this cruel
practice. The fruit bat is an important pollinator and seed
dispenser, and many species are classified by IUCN as "vulnerable."
Bats already face severe threats due to habitat loss. Killing
additional bats for personal collections only leads to further
decline of wild bat populations.
Fruit and nectar-eating bats are responsible for hundreds of
economically important products including foods, drinks, medicines,
timber, fibers, dyes and fuel. Wild varieties of many of the world’s
most economically valuable crop plants, such as bananas, rely on bats
for survival. Insect eating bat species are natural enemies of night-
flying pests that damage crops, reducing the need for chemical
pesticides.
Tell eBay to stop selling stuffed bat bodies unless eBay is sure 1)
the bats are not imperiled in the wild, and 2) the bats were
collected after they died naturally.
http://go.care2.com/e/lXWy/zMU/OwVx
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/396498055?z00m=5962608&z00m=5962608<l=1162150506
Thanks for making a difference today,
Hilary S.
Care2 and ThePetitionSite.com
Thanks for getting Animals & Environment Alerts from Care2 and
ThePetitionSite.com. Please tell your friends about this petition!
[Let me just tell you a little story. Our family loves to go camping.
We used to camp by Letts Lake in Northern California. In the early
even the mosquitoes would begin to come out and so would the bats.
Within an hour or two, no more mosquitoes would bother us.
We loved sitting at dusk into night watching them dart all around
us silently as the stars appeared one by one. What beauty!...bw]
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
SCROLL DOWN TO READ:
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS
GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
ARTICLES IN FULL
LINKS AND VERY SHORT STORIES
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
TONIGHT!
Emergency Demo Mexican Consulate in SF Tuesday, October 31st at 5pm.
532 Folsom St @ 1st St. or 870 Market St at 4th and 5th St google shows both
NYC Indymedia volunteer Brad Will killed in attack by Paramilitaries in Oaxaca
http://indybay.org Now Fox is sending in planes with thousands of RIOT police.
Last photograph of Bradley Roland Will alive,
five seconds before he received two sniper's
shots in the stomach during the ongoing revolt
in Oaxaca. Brad was from New York, participated
in a housing occupation, sued the police for
arresting him, won a settlement and traveled
with the money around the world filming working
class uprisings and peasant revolts. He was
recently in Bolivia, Venezuela, Argentina...
always covering class struggle. He was connected
with Indymedia NY.
http://www.izquierda.info/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2263
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
The Middle East Children's Alliance, Speak Out,
Vanguard Public Foundation and KPFA 94.1FM present:
The Bay Area Premiere of Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove's
VOICES OF A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES
Thursday, November 9, 2006 - 7:30 pm
Berkeley Community Theatre, 1930 Allston Way
Voices of a People's History of the United States
Dramatic Readings Celebrating the Enduring Spirit of Dissent
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
CELEBRATE THE LIFE OF CAROLINE LUND
Memorial Meeting for Caroline Lund
Saturday, November 11, 2:00 PM
Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland
Between Telegraph and Broadway
Wheelchair accessible from the entrance at 411 28th St.
Caroline fought for social justice for over forty years, in the socialist
movement, the labor movement, the anti-Vietnam War movement,
the women's movement, as a leader in the Socialist Workers Party,
fighting again the U.S. wars in the Middle East, publishing the rank
and file newsletter "Barking Dog" in the NUMMI auto plant where
she worked -- wherever people were struggling to better their
lives. She died of ALS on October 14.
Join with us to remember Caroline's life and work for social justice.
Speakers:
Malik Miah, editor, Against the Current
John Percy, Democratic Socialist Perspective, Australia
Open Mike
Claudette Begin, Chair
Messages from those unable to attend (which will be available
to be read at the meeting) should be sent to
Alex Chis
achis@igc.org
For more information, email Alex , or call at 510-489-8554.
There will also be a New York Area Memorial Meeting for Caroline
Saturday, November 18, 3:00 PM
Brecht Forum, 451 West St., New York
For more information on the NY meeting,
contact Gus Horowitz: 914-953-0212 or
ghorowitz@snet. net
Alex Chis & Claudette Begin
P.O. Box 2944
Fremont, CA 94536-0944
Phone: 510-489-8554
Email: achis@igc.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
JROTC IN SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC SCHOOLS:
The issue of JROTC in S.F. public schools will be addressed
at the San Francisco Board of Education
Meeting:
Tuesday, November 14th, 7:00 P.M.
(This will be a big meeting. You should show up at 6:00 P.M.)
555 Franklin Street, 1st Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
To get on the speakers list for the Regular Board Meeting call:
415/241-6427
(Call on Monday, the day before the meeting from 8:30 A.M. until 4:00 P.M.
or Tuesday, the day of the meeting from 8:30 A.M. until 3:00 P.M.)
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
Outreach Letter for November 14 Board of Education Meeting
Dear Friends:
The San Francisco Unified School District Board is considering
a resolution to phase out the Junior Reserves Officer Training
Corp (JROTC) program over the next year while creating
a community based task force to create a program that retains
many of its popular elements without a military overtone.
(It may be amended to include concern about militarization
of youth.) We are writing to ask your organization or you
to endorse this resolution, to notify the members of the
school board of your support and to come to the board
meeting and testify in favor of the resolution.
We believe that this measure makes sense for the City and
County of San Francisco. Voters voiced their opposition to
military recruiters in the schools by passing Measure I.
While JROTC officials claim that the program is designed
to promote citizenship, Rudy de Leon, Under Secretary of
Defense, testifying before the Military Personnel Subcommittee
House Comm. On Armed Services in March 2000 said, “about 25%
of the graduating high school seniors in School Year 1997 – 98 with
more than two years participation in the JROTC program are
interested in some type of military affiliation. Translating this
to hard recruiting numbers, in FYs 1996 – 10000, about 8,000
new recruits per year entered active duty after completing two
years of JROTC. The proportion of JROTC graduates who enter
the military following completion of high school is roughly
five times greater than the proportion of non-JROTC students.”
In enticing young people to join the military, recruiters make
many promises including specialized training and college.
However, according to their own written policies, a recruiter
has no power to force the military to honor his or her promises.
While many low-income youth and youth of color see the military
as a potential resource for the future, the studies show that
this is not case; fewer than 50% ever utilize the limited college
benefits for veterans.
Currently, the School Board resolution is focused on the
district’s own policy of not contracting with any entity that
discriminates. We know that the U.S. military overtly discriminates
against gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and trans-gendered people.
While the JROTC command indicates that they allow LGBT
students to participate and even assume leadership roles,
these students are denied the specific benefits of participating
in the JROTC program – namely, eligibility for military scholarships
at the academies enrollment in the military at a higher pay-grade
after two or more years of participation in the program and eligibility
for SROTC scholarships because openly LGBT people are not allowed
to serve in the military.
We urge you to support this campaign regardless of your personal
view of the military. In our democracy, the role of the military
is separate from the roles of civil society. The military’s role
is not to educate our children in the public schools. Our public
schools are designed to prepare our children for their roles
as valued members of our community, instilling values of
responsibility, respect, tolerance and leadership.
If you have questions please call us at 415-565-0201 extension
24 for Sandra, 11 for Alan Lessik, and 12 for Stephen McNeil.
Sincerely yours,
Alan Lessik, Regional Director; Stephen McNeil, Peace Education Director;
Sandra Schwartz, Peace Ed. Coordinator; Tony Nguyen, Asian Pacific Director
State ranks second in Army recruits
By Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau
San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Californians comprised about 10 percent of the Army's new
soldiers this year, second only to Texas in providing new recruits,
according to newly released figures.
October 16, 2006
http://www.sgvtribu ne.com/news/ ci_4485649
Here are some links to JROTC facts:
Review of the JROTC Curriculum
http://www.afsc. org/youthmil/ militarism- in-schools/ JROTC-review. htm
Making Soldiers - PDF
http://www.afsc. org/youthmil/ militarism- in-schools/ msitps.pdf
Report Says JROTC Benefits Students; Calls for More Funding for Programs
By Julie Blair
September 29, 1999
http://www.jrotc.org/jrotc_benifits.htm
JROTC is a Recruiting Program for Dead-End Military Jobs
http://www.objector.org/jrotc/jrotcrecruits.html
Why Question the Military's JROTC Program?
http://www.objector.org/jrotc/why.html
JROTC Challenging Progressive Ideals of Youth Voice
by Peter Lauterborn, 2006-10-25
http://www.beyondchron.org/articles/JROTC_Challenging_Progressive_Ideals_of_Youth_Voice_3830.html
San Francisco progressives are ablaze with optimism that one
of the most institutionalized sources of militarization—the JROTC
—is now on the verge of being cut out of the City’s public schools.
Students who support the program, however, are feeling betrayed
by the school district and by progressives who had previously
touted the significance of youth voice in all policy making.
The crux of the issues is that the San Francisco Unified
School District (SFUSD) does not offer enough leadership
programs of its own, and does not sufficiently recruit students
to join. This leaves the JROTC as the sole option for youth who
are looking for leadership, self-sufficiency, and better education.
JROTC is a national program run by all branches of the United
States military. Started in 1916 in the mists of World War I,
the program aims at providing leadership opportunities
to high school students while promoting good citizenship
and academic achievement. Students who enroll in JROTC—
which is offered as an elective course—can use the credit
to fulfill physical education requirements and have access
to activities such as camping and social events. The program
also offers a curriculum which covers history, health, civics,
college preparation, and more. These offers are all good
components of a rounded education which we should
be providing
But below the surface of a challenging and fulfilling extra
curricular program, the clear purpose of JROTC is to identify
and recruit students who could serve in the United State
military. Perhaps people forget what JROTC stands for:
Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps. Right there,
in its name, the purpose of the program is defined.
And in a city which successfully fought the docking
of the USS Iowa battleship at its shore, and formalized
its opposition to the Iraq War at the ballot box, subjecting
high school students to militarization is seen
as a dangerous path to follow.
The resolution, which is to be voted on by the School Board
after the November election, calls for a two-year phase out
of JROTC. A program which would emulate the positive
opportunities offered by the JROTC would then
be designed and implemented.
Contrary to popular belief, the costs of running the JROTC
are not split evenly between the SFUSD and the Federal
Government. According to the SFUSD’s budget analysis,
the District is only reimbursed for 43% of the costs,
of which most is dedicated to salaries. The budget
analysis also concluded that there would be no significant
cost in replacing JROTC with conventional physical
education courses, barring any facility inadequacies.
Proponents of the JROTC phase-out also point to the
military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy towards the
inclusion of gays and lesbians into the armed forces.
They claim that this conflicts with the SFUSD’s policy
to not contract with any agency which discriminates
in any way.
However, student leaders—particularly the SFUSD’s
Student Advisory Council (SAC)—are up in arms over
both the proposed closure and the perception that the
District is not concerned with the will of the students
it serves. “There shouldn’t be a discussion on whether
or not it should stay,” says SAC President and Mission
High senior Alvin Rivera, “The students have voiced
that they wish for it to stay.” The SAC has opposed
any closure of the JROTC program for three years,
and will be discussing the issue at their October 23
meeting. “It serves as a functioning body for the
schools well-being,” he added.
Student support for JRTOC seems to not stem from
the military aspect of the program. Rather, they are
appreciative of being reached out to and brought
into a program which has improved the lives
of many students. While the SFUSD and the City
offer a wide array of programs for students, their
recruiting efforts come nowhere close to the
aggressive recruitment conducted by the military.
A recent graduate of Balboa High School—who
asked not to be named and is personally opposed
to the JROTC—said that many students are indifferent
to the details of the JRTOC, but see the program’s
closure as yet another item within a growing list
of opportunities that are taken away, without their
input and without any replacement.
The fears students have over the loss of the JROTC
program may lie within the belief in the competency
of the SFUSD to sufficiently replace the program.
The SFUSD’s inability to create effective community-
based programs in the past is embarrassing,
and the public has good reason to suspect future
promises.
The SFUSD has not been deaf to the concerns of
students, however. The call for a two-year phase-
out rather than an immediate canceling of the program
would allow most of this year’s sophomores, juniors,
and seniors to complete the program. While the
current and future freshmen classes would not be
allowed into the program—enrollment will be whittled
down each year with no new students being allowed
to enter the program—they all have ample
opportunities to find other programs.
Of course, for this all to work, the SFUSD and the
City must make significant efforts to bring their
programs to the students, rather than expecting
students to go hunt down different programs
themselves.
A major concern is that students who participate
in the JROTC program are not hit hard with the military
recruitment aspect until late in their senior year—right
when questions about paying for college are bubbling
up. What this creates is a disconnect between students
and adults: adults know about the end goals of the JROTC,
and yet students who are in the program don’t see the
recruitment, and then feel marginalized by adults when
recruitment is discussed.
The SFUSD must address the root cause of support for
the JROTC: a lack of other programs that engage youth.
New programs should not just be more physical education
courses, but with a program includes leadership
development, self-sufficiency, and better education.
And without the militaristic mindset of the JROTC.
ACCREDITED
Army Junior ROTC Program
Mission Statement:
https://gateway.usarmyjrotc.com/http://portal.usarmyjrotc.com/jrotc/dt
To Motivate Young People to Be Better Citizens
The JROTC program intends to teach cadets to:
Appreciate the ethical values and principles that
underlie good citizenship.
Develop leadership potential, while living
and working cooperatively with others.
Be able to think logically and to communicate
effectively with others, both orally and in writing.
Appreciate the importance of physical fitness
in maintaining good health.
Understand the importance of high school graduation
for a successful future, and learn about college
and other advanced educations and employment
opportunities.
Develop mental management abilities.
Become familiar with military history as it relates to America's
culture, and understand the history, purpose, and structure
of the military services.
Develop the skills necessary to work effectively as a member of a team.
Candidates sound off on JROTC
Board of Education race
by Roger Brigham
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=1220
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Close the SOA and Change Oppressive U.S. Foreign Policy
Nov. 17-19, 2006 - Converge on Fort Benning, Georgia
People's Movements across the Americas are becoming increasingly more
powerful. Military "solutions" to social problems as supported by
institutions like the School of the Americas were unable to squash their
voices, and the call for justice and accountability is getting louder each
day.
Add your voice to the chorus, demand justice for all the people of the
Americas and engage in nonviolent direct action to close the SOA and
change oppressive U.S. foreign policy.
With former SOA graduates being unmasked in Chile, Argentina, Colombia,
Paraguay, Honduras, and Peru for their crimes against humanity, and with
the blatant similarities between the interrogation methods and torture
methods used at Abu Ghraib and those described in human rights abuse cases
in Latin America, the SOA/WHINSEC must be held accountable!
Visit http://www.soaw. org to learn more about the November Vigil, hotel
and travel information, the November Organizing Packet, and more.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Drums Across America for Peace
December 16, 2006 simultaneously across
the country at 11:00 to 11:30 A.M. PST
For More Information contact:
Marilyn Sjaastad
541-344-8088
Jade Screen Clinic
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
MARCH 17, 2007 GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION ON THE 4TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE WAR!
DEMONSTRATIONS IN WASHINGTON, D.C.; LOS ANGELES;
SAN FRANCISCO; SEATTLE; CHICAGO AND OTHER CITIES AND
TOWNS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD. THE
A.N.S.W.E.R. COALITION URGES EVERYONE IN THE ANTIWAR
MOVEMENT TO COME TOGETHER IN UNITY AGAINST THE
CRIMINAL ACTIONS OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
http://www.pephost. org/site/ PageServer? pagename= ANS_homepage
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
May Day 2007
National Mobilization to Support Immigrant Workers!
Web: http://www.MayDay2007.net
National Immigrant Solidarity Network
No Immigrant Bashing! Support Immigrant Rights!
webpage: http://www.ImmigrantSolidarity.org
e-mail: info@ImmigrantSolidarity.org
New York: (212)330-8172
Los Angeles: (213)403-0131
Washington D.C.: (202)595-8990
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
TAX FACT SHEET
http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/901006_taxpolicy.pdf
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Mumia Abu-Jamal - Reply brief, U.S. Court of Appeals (Please Circulate)
Dear Friends:
On October 23, 2006, the Fourth-Step Reply Brief of Appellee and
Cross-Appellant, Mumia Abu-Jamal was submitted to the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Philadelphia. (Abu-Jamal v. Horn,
U.S. Ct. of Appeals Nos. 01-9014, 02-9001.)
Oral argument will likely be scheduled during the coming months.
I will advise when a hearing date is set.
The attached brief is of enormous consequence since it goes
to the essence of our client's right to a fair trial, due process
of law, and equal protection of the law, guaranteed by the Fifth,
Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
The issues include:
Whether Mr. Abu-Jamal was denied the right to due process
of law and a fair trial because of the prosecutor’s “appeal-after
-appeal” argument which encouraged the jury to disregard the
presumption of innocence and reasonable doubt, and err
on the side of guilt.
Whether the prosecution’s exclusion of African Americans
from sitting on the jury violated Mr. Abu-Jamal’s right
to due process and equal protection of the law,
in contravention of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986).
Whether Mr. Abu-Jamal was denied due process and equal
protection of the law during a post-conviction hearing
because of the bias and racism of Judge Albert F. Sabo,
who was overheard during the trial commenting that
he was “going to help'em fry the nigger."
That the federal court is hearing issues which concern
Mr. Abu-Jamal's right to a fair trial is a great milestone
in this struggle for human rights. This is the first time
that any court has made a ruling in nearly a quarter
of a century that could lead to a new trial and freedom.
Nevertheless, our client remains on Pennsylvania's death
row and in great danger.
Mr. Abu-Jamal, the "voice of the voiceless," is a powerful
symbol in the international campaign against the death
penalty and for political prisoners everywhere. The goal
of Professor Judith L. Ritter, associate counsel, and
I is to see that the many wrongs which have occurred
in this case are righted, and that at the conclusion
of a new trial our client is freed.
Your concern is appreciated
With best wishes,
Robert R. Bryan
Law Offices of Robert R. Bryan
2088 Union Street, Suite 4
San Francisco, California 94123
Lead counsel for Mumia Abu-Jamal
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *---------*---------*
Antiwar Web Site Created by Troops
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
A small group of active-duty military members opposed to the war
have created a Web site intended to collect thousands of signatures
of other service members. People can submit their name, rank and
duty station if they support statements denouncing the American
invasion. “Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price,”
the Web site, appealforredress.org, says. “It is time for U.S. troops
to come home.” The electronic grievances will be passed along
to members of Congress, according to the Web site. Jonathan
Hutto, a Navy seaman based in Norfolk, Va., who set up the Web
site a month ago, said the group had collected 118 names and
was trying to verify that they were legitimate service members.
October 25, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/25/washington/25brfs-005.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Judge Orders Release of Abu Ghraib Child Rape Photos
Submitted by davidswanson on Mon, 2006-10-23 20:54. Evidence
By Greg Mitchell, http://www.editorandpublisher.com
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/14864
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Profound new assault on freedom of speech and assembly:
Manhattan: New Rules for Parade Permits
By AL BAKER
After recent court rulings found the Police Department's
parade regulations too vague, the department is moving
to require parade permits for groups of 10 or more
bicyclists or pedestrians who plan to travel more than
two city blocks without complying with traffic laws.
It is also pushing to require permits for groups of 30
or more bicyclists or pedestrians who obey traffic laws.
The new rules are expected to be unveiled in a public
notice today. The department will discuss them at
a hearing on Nov. 27. Norman Siegel, a lawyer whose
clients include bicyclists, said the new rules
"raise serious civil liberties issues."
October 18, 2006
http://www.nytimes. com/2006/ 10/18/nyregion/ 18mbrfs-002. html
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Soul-Sick Nation: An Astrologer's View of America
Jessica Murray
Format: Paperback (6x9)
ISBN 1425971253
Price: $ 13.95
About the Book
Astrology and geopolitics may seem strange bedfellows, but
Soul-Sick Nation puts the two together to provide a perspective
as extraordinary as the times we are living in. Using the principles
of ancient wisdom to make sense of the current global situation,
this book invites us to look at the USA from the biggest possible
picture: that of cosmic meaning. With a rare blend of compassion,
humor and fearless taboo-busting, Soul-Sick Nation reveals
America's noble potential without sentiment and diagnoses
its neuroses without delusion, shedding new light on troubling
issues that the pundits and culture wars inflame but leave
painfully unresolved: the WTC bombings, the war in Iraq,
Islamic jihad, media propaganda, consumerism and the
American Dream.
In her interpretation of the birth chart of the entity born
July 4, 1776, Murray offers an in-depth analysis of America's
essential destiny--uncovering , chapter by chapter, the greater
purpose motivating this group soul. She shows how this
purpose has been distorted, and how it can be re-embraced
in the decades to come. She decodes current astrological
transits that express the key themes the USA must learn
in this period of millennial crisis—including that of the
responsibility of power—spelling out the profound lessons
the nation will face in the next few years.
Combining the rigor of a political theorist with the vision
of a master astrologer, this keenly intelligent book elucidates
the meaning of an epoch in distress, and proposes a path
towards healing—of the country and of its individual citizens.
Murray explains how each of us can come to terms with this
moment in history and arrive at a response that is unique
and creative. This book will leave you revitalized, shorn
of illusions and full of hope.
About the Author
"Jessica Murray's Soul-Sick Nation raises the symbol-system
of astrology to the level of a finely-honed tool for the critical
work of social insight and commentary. Her unflinching,
in-depth analysis answers a crying need of our time. Murray's
application of laser beam-lucid common sense analysis
to the mire of illusions we've sunken into as a nation is
a courageous step in the right direction... Just breathtaking! "
--Raye Robertson, author of Culture, Media and the Collective Mind
" Jessica Murray,..a choice-centered, psychospiritually- oriented
astrologer.. . has quietly made a real difference in the lives of her
clients, one at a time. In "Soul Sick Nation," she applies exactly those
same skills to understanding America as a whole. Starting from
the premise that the United States is currently a troubled adolescent,
she applies an unflinching gaze to reach an ultimately compassionate
conclusion about how we can heal ourselves and grow up."
- Steven Forrest, author of The Inner Sky and The Changing Sky
http://www.authorho use.com/BookStor e/ItemDetail~ bookid~41780. aspx
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Shop for a Donation at Al-Awda!
Interested in furthering your knowledge about Palestine
and its people?
Want to help make the Palestinian Right to Return a reality?
Looking for ways to show your support for Palestine and
Palestinian refugees?
Why not shop for a donation at Al-Awda
http://al-awda. org/shop. html
and help support a great organization and cause!!
Al-Awda offers a variety of educational materials including interesting
and unique books on everything from oral histories, photo books
on Palestinian refugees, to autobiographies, narratives, political
analysis, and culture. We also have historical maps of Palestine
(in Arabic and English), educational films, flags of various sizes,
and colorful greeting cards created by Palestinian children.
You can also show your support for a Free Palestine, and wear with
pride, great looking T-shirts, pendants, and a variety of Palestine pins.
Shop for a Donation at Al-Awda!
Visit http://al-awda. org/shop. html for these great items, and more!
The Educational Supplies Division
Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition
PO Box 131352
Carlsbad, CA 92013, USA
Tel: 760-685-3243
Fax: 360-933-3568
E-mail: info@al-awda. org
WWW: http://al-awda. org
Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition (PRRC), is a broad-
based, non-partisan, democratic, and charitable organization of
grassroots activists and students committed to comprehensive public
education about the rights of all Palestinian refugees to return to their
homes and lands of origin, and to full restitution for all their confiscated
and destroyed property in accordance with the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights, International law and the numerous United Nations
Resolutions upholding such rights (see FactSheet). Al-Awda, PRRC
is a not for profit tax-exempt educational and charitable 501(c)(3)
organization as defined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the
United States of America. Under IRS guidelines, your donations
to Al-Awda, PRRC are tax-deductible.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Before You Enlist
Excellent flash film that should be shown to all students.
http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=ZFsaGv6cefw
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
In an interview in March 1995 entitled, "Jesse Helms: Setting the
Record Straight" that appeared in the Middle East Quarterly, Helms
said, "I have long believed that if the United States is going to give
money to Israel, it should be paid out of the Department of Defense
budget. My question is this: If Israel did not exist, what would
U.S. defense costs in the Middle East be? Israel is at least the
equivalent of a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Middle East. Without
Israel promoting its and America's common interests, we would
be badly off indeed."
(Jesse Helms was the senior senator from North Carolina and the
chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at the time.)
http://www.meforum. org/article/ 244
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
A CALL TO SUPPORT THE CASE OF ELVIRA ARELLANO
Stand in solidarity with all immigrants, documented and undocumented
The IAC urges you to support the case of Elvira Arellano. Elvira is
an undocumented worker who is taking a heroic stand against
deportations and fighting for her rights. She is a native of Michoacán,
Mexico who came to the U.S. like many of the other 12 million
undocumented in this country, in search of work and a better life.
In 2002, Elvira was detained by Homeland Security agents in an
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sweep at O'Hare Airport
in Chicago under the guise of allegedly looking for "terrorists" . She
was detained by the Department of Homeland Security for using
a false social security number on her job at O'Hare.
On August 18, 2006 Elvira Arellano and her seven year old son,
Saul who is a US citizen, took sanctuary in Adalberto United Methodist
Church in Chicago instead of reporting for deportation, primarily
because Saul has health problems. She has pledged to live indefinitely
in the church until granted a reprieve.
Elvira is a well known activist, representing many families in
Congressional hearings and speaking on behalf of immigrant rights.
She worked to organize in July 2005 a march of 50,000 for immigrant
rights in Chicago, and went on a hunger strike to support workers who
were picked up by ICE prior to the historic May 1st boycott in 2006.
Arellano was a founder of both La Familia Latina Unida and the
Coalition of African Arab Asian European and Latino Immigrants
of Illinois (CAAAELII).
The case of Elvira Arellano is a just case
Elvira Arellano has become the symbol of resistance to the heartless
and callous deportations that are sweeping the country. Despite
a legislative standstill in Congress, not only are deportations
escalating, local officials around the nation are implementing
de facto immigration policy that amount to a witch-hunt against
immigrants. A case in point is the anti-immigrant ordinance that
passed in July in Hazelton, PA.
Due to her heroic stand, a group of Black ministers spoke last
week at Adalberto Methodist of the comparisons of Arellano
to Rosa Parks. Reverend Albert Tyson said he hopes "their
support would increase the bonds between Latinos and African-
Americans." At the meeting Arellano said, "I don't only speak
for me and my son, but for millions of families like mine."
Supporters from the predominantly Puerto Rican neighborhood
chanted, "Luchando mano y mano, Boriqua y Mexicano!"
("Fighting hand in hand, Puerto Rican and Mexican!")
Elvira Arellano is the perfect example that the anti-immigrant
hysteria sweeping the country is an inhumane situation that
has become intolerable. The human rights of immigrants are
being cruelly violated under the guise of fighting terrorism
or stopping "illegal" immigration. In fact, no human being
is illegal and whether in the U.S. documented or undocumented,
immigrants have a right to live in peace, without fear of evictions
from their homes or the country.
How you can help Elvira:
1. Write letters to Illinois Senators Richard Durbin and Barack
Obama as well as your own legislator urging them to prevent
her deportation.
For Senator Durbin visit: http://durbin. senate.gov/ contact.cfm# contact
For Senator Obama: http://obama. senate.gov/ contact/index. php
2. Send Letters to the Chicago Sun Times and the Chicago Tribune
asking them to stop demonizing Elvira as well as all immigrants.
Their emails are letters@suntimes. com and ctc-tribletter@ tribune.com.
3. Send letters of support directly to Elvira at the organization she works
with and who has been spearheading her support, Sin Fronteras
at Centro Sin Fronteras 2300 S. Blue Island Ave., Chicago IL 60608
or visit the website: www.legalizationyes .com
For Spanish speakers visit:
www.legalizacionsi. com
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
TWO AMICUS BRIEFS FILED FOR MUMIA ABU-JAMAL WITH
THE 3RD CIRCUIT FEDERAL APPEALS COURT IN JULY 2006
These pdf files can be found on Michael Schiffmann's web site at:
http://againstthecr imeofsilence. de/english/ copy_of_mumia/ legalarchive/
The first brief is from the National Lawyers Guild.
The second brief is from the NAACP Legal Defense
and Educational Fund, Inc.
Howard Keylor
For the Labor Action Committee to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
www.laboractionmumi a.org.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
SIR! NO SIR!
I urge everyone to get a copy of "Sir! No Sir!" at:
http://www.sirnosir .com/
It is an extremely informative and powerful film
of utmost importance today. I was a participant
in the anti-Vietnam war movement. What a
powerful thing it was to see troops in uniform
leading the march against the war! If you would
like to read more here are two very good
publications:
Out Now!: A Participant' s Account of the Movement
in the United States Against the Vietnam War
by Fred Halstead (Hardcover - Jun 1978)
and:
GIs speak out against the war;: The case of the
Ft. Jackson 8; by Fred Halstead (Unknown Binding - 1970).
Both available at:
http://www.amazon. com/gp/search/ 103-1123166- 0136605?search- alias=books& rank=
+availability, -proj-total- margin&field- author=Fred% 20Halstead
In solidarity,
Bonnie Weinstein
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Endorse the following petition:
Don't Let Idaho Kill Endangered Wolves
Target: Fish and Wildlife Service
Sponsor: Defenders of Wildlife
http://www.thepetit ionsite.com/ takeaction/ 664280276?
z00m=99090&z00m= 99090<l= 1155834550
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
END ALL U.S. AID TO ISRAEL!
Stop funding Israel's war against Palestine
Complete the form at the website listed below with your information.
Personalize the message text on the right with
your own words, if you wish.
Click the Next Step button to send your letter
to these decision makers:
President George W. Bush
Vice President Richard 'Dick' B. Cheney
Your Senators
Your Representative
Go here to register your outrage:
https://secure2. convio.net/ pep/site/ Advocacy?
JServSessionIdr003= cga2p2o6x1. app2a&cmd= display&page= UserAction& id=177
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Idriss Stelley Foundation is in critical financial crisis, please help !
ISF is in critical financial crisis, and might be forced to close
its doors in a couple of months due to lack of funds to cover
DSL, SBC and utilities, which is a disaster for our numerous
clients, since the are the only CBO providing direct services
to Victims (as well as extended failies) of police misconduct
for the whole city of SF. Any donation, big or small will help
us stay alive until we obtain our 501-c3 nonprofit Federal
Status! Checks can me made out to
ISF, ( 4921 3rd St , SF CA 94124 ). Please consider to volunteer
or apply for internship to help covering our 24HR Crisis line,
provide one on one couseling and co facilitate our support
groups, M.C a show on SF Village Voice, insure a 2hr block
of time at ISF, moderate one of our 26 websites for ISF clients !
http://mysite. verizon.net/ vzeo9ewi/ idrissstelleyfou ndation/
http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/isf23/
Report Police Brutality
24HR Bilingual hotline
(415) 595-8251
http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/Justice4As a/
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Appeal for funds:
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
Visit the Dahr Jamail Iraq website http://dahrjamailir aq.com
Request for Support
Dahr Jamail will soon return to the Middle East to continue his
independent reporting. As usual, reporting independently is a costly
enterprise; for example, an average hotel room is $50, a fixer runs $50
per day, and phone/food average $25 per day. Dahr will report from the
Middle East for one month, and thus needs to raise $5,750 in order to
cover his plane ticket and daily operating expenses.
A rare opportunity has arisen for Dahr to cover several stories
regarding the occupation of Iraq, as well as U.S. policy in the region,
which have been entirely absent from mainstream media.
With the need for independent, unfiltered information greater than ever,
your financial support is deeply appreciated. Without donations from
readers, ongoing independent reports from Dahr are simply not possible.
All donations go directly towards covering Dahr's on the ground
operating expenses.
(c)2006 Dahr Jamail.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Legal update on Mumia Abu-Jamal's case
Excerpts from a letter written by Robert R. Bryan, the lead attorney
for death row political prisoner, Mumia Abu-Jamal.
...On July 20, 2006, we filed the Brief of Appellee and Cross
Appellant, Mumia Abu-Jamal, in the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Third Circuit, Philadelphia.
http://www.workers. org/2006/ us/mumia- 0810/
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Today in Palestine!
For up to date information on Israeli's brutal attack on
human rights and freedom in Palestine and Lebanon go to:
http://www.theheadl ines.org
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
For a great car magnet--a black ribbon with the words, "Bring
the troops home now!" written in red, and it also comes in a
lapel pin!--go to:
(Put out by A.N.S.W.E.R. )
https://secure2. convio.net/ pep/site/ Ecommerce? store_id= 1621
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF ZIONISM
BY RALPH SCHOENMAN
Essential reading for understanding the development of Zionism
and Israel in the service of British and USA imperialism.
The full text of the book can be found for free at:
http://takingaim. info/hhz/ index.htm
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
JOIN THE LYNNE STEWAR DEFENSE - THE CASE IS NOT OVER!
For those of you who don't know who Lynne Stewart is, go to
www.lynnestewart. org and get acquainted with Lynne and her
cause. Lynne is a criminal defense attorney who is being persecuted
for representing people charged with heinous crimes. It is a bedrock
of our legal system that every criminal defendant has a right to a
lawyer. Persecuting Lynne is an attempt to terrorize and intimidate
all criminal defense attorneys in this country so they will stop
representing unpopular people. If this happens, the fascist takeover
of this nation will be complete. We urge you all to go the website,
familiarize yourselves with Lynne and her battle for justice
www.lynnestewart. org
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
NATIONAL COMMITTEE TO FREE THE CUBAN FIVE
Comité Nacional por la Libertad de los Cinco Cubanos
Who are the Cuban Five?
The Cuban Five are five Cuban men who are in U.S. prison, serving
four life sentences and 75 years collectively, after being wrongly
convicted in U.S. federal court in Miami, on June 8, 2001.
They are Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero,
Fernando González and René González.
The Five were falsely accused by the U.S. government of committing
espionage conspiracy against the United States, and other related
charges.
But the Five pointed out vigorously in their defense that they were
involved in monitoring the actions of Miami-based terrorist groups,
in order to prevent terrorist attacks on their country of Cuba.
The Five's actions were never directed at the U.S. government.
They never harmed anyone nor ever possessed nor used any
weapons while in the United States.
The Cuban Five's mission was to stop terrorism
For more than 40 years, anti-Cuba terrorist organizations based
in Miami have engaged in countless terrorist activities against
Cuba, and against anyone who advocates a normalization
of relations between the U.S. and Cuba. More than 3,000 Cubans
have died as a result of these terrorists' attacks.
Gerardo Hernández, 2 Life Sentences
Antonio Guerrero, Life Sentence
Ramon Labañino, Life Sentence
Fernando González, 19 Years
René González, 15 Years
Free The Cuban Five Held Unjustly In The U.S.!
http://www.freethef ive.org/
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Eyewitness Account from Oaxaca
A website is now being circulated that has up-to-date info
and video that can be downloaded of the police action and
developments in Oaxaca. For those who have not seen it
elsewhere, the website is:
www.mexico.indymedi a.org/oaxaca
http://www.mexico. indymedia. org/oaxaca
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
REMINDER TO ALL GROUPS: BE SURE AND POST ALL ACTIONS AND
EVENTS TO WWW.INDYBAY. ORG TO REACH THE MOST PEOPLE
AGAINST THE WAR IN THE BAY AREA!
http://www.indybay. org
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Iraq Body Count
For current totals, see our database page.
http://www.iraqbody count.net/ press/pr13. php
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
The Cost of War
[Over three-hundred- billion so far...bw]
http://nationalprio rities.org/ index.php? optionfiltered=com_ wrapper&Itemid= 182
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
"The Democrats always promise to help workers, and the don't!
The Republicans always promise to help business, and the do!"
- Mort Sahl
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
"It's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees."
- Emilano Zapata
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Join the Campaign to
Shut Down the Guantanamo Torture Center
Go to:
http://www.shutitdo wn.org/
to send a letter to Congress and the White House:
Shut Down Guantanamo and all torture centers and prisons.
A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition
Act Now to Stop War & End Racism
http://www.ANSWERco alition.org http://www.actionsf .org
sf@internationalans wer.org
2489 Mission St. Rm. 24
San Francisco: 415-821-6545
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Great Counter-Recruitment Website
http://notyoursoldi er.org/article. php?list= type&type= 14
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
DEFEND IMMIGRANT RIGHTS AND
CIVIL RIGHTS!
Last summer the U.S. Border Patrol arrested Shanti Sellz and
Daniel Strauss, both 23-year-old volunteers assisting immigrants
on the border, for medically evacuating 3 people in critical
condition from the Arizona desert.
Criminalization for aiding undocumented immigrants already
exists on the books in the state of Arizona. Daniel and Shanti
are targeted to be its first victims. Their arrest and subsequent
prosecution for providing humanitarian aid could result in
a 15-year prison sentence. Any Congressional compromise
with the Sensenbrenner bill (HR 4437) may include these
harmful criminalization provisions. Fight back NOW!
Help stop the criminalization of undocumented immigrants
and those who support them!
For more information call 415-821- 9683.
For information on the Daniel and Shanti Defense Campaign,
visit www.nomoredeaths. org.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
FYI
According to "Minimum Wage History" at
http://oregonstate. edu/instruct/ anth484/minwage. html "
"Calculated in real 2005 dollars, the 1968 minimum wage was the
highest at $9.12. "The 8 dollar per hour Whole Foods employees
are being paid $1.12 less than the 1968 minimum wage.
"A federal minimum wage was first set in 1938. The graph shows
both nominal (red) and real (blue) minimum wage values. Nominal
values range from 25 cents per hour in 1938 to the current $5.15/hr.
The greatest percentage jump in the minimum wage was in 1950,
when it nearly doubled. The graph adjusts these wages to 2005
dollars (blue line) to show the real value of the minimum wage.
Calculated in real 2005 dollars, the 1968 minimum wage was the
highest at $9.12. Note how the real dollar minimum wage rises and
falls. This is because it gets periodically adjusted by Congress.
The period 1997-2006, is the longest period during which the
minimum wage has not been adjusted. States have departed from
the federal minimum wage. Washington has the highest minimum
wage in the country at $7.63 as of January 1, 2006. Oregon is next
at $7.50. Cities, too, have set minimum wages. Santa Fe, New
Mexico has a minimum wage of $9.50, which is more than double
the state minimum wage at $4.35."
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
NO BORDERS! NO WALLS! NO FENCES! GENERAL AMNESTY FOR ALL!
OUR HOMELAND IS WHERE WE LIVE!
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
REPEAL THE NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT IN 2007!
Check out: 10 EXCELLENT REASONS NOT TO JOIN THE MILITARY
http://www.10reason sbook.com/
Public Law print of PL 107-110, the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001 [1.8 MB]
http://www.ed. gov/policy/ elsec/leg/ esea02/index. html
Also, the law is up before Congress again in 2007.
See this article from USA Today:
Bipartisan panel to study No Child Left Behind
By Greg Toppo, USA TODAY
February 13, 2006
http://www.usatoday .com/news/ education/ 2006-02-13- education- panel_x.htm
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies
http://www.law. indiana.edu/ uslawdocs/ declaration. html
http://www.law. ou.edu/hist/ decind.html
http://www.usconsti tution.net/ declar.html
http://www.indybay. org/news/ 2006/02/1805195. php
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Bill of Rights
http://www.law. cornell.edu/ constitution/ constitution. billofrights. html
http://www.indybay. org/news/ 2006/02/1805182. php
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
ARTICLES IN FULL:
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
1) Mexican Protesters Regroup in Oaxaca
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 12:10 p.m. ET
October 30, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Mexico-Oaxaca-Unrest.html?hp&ex=1162270800&en=49becb78d904ab60&ei=5094&partner=homepage
2) AWOL Soldier to Surrender at Fort Knox
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 2:00 p.m. ET
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-AWOL-Soldier-Surrender.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
3) Olmert Says Israel May Widen Military Role in Gaza
By GREG MYRE
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/world/middleeast/31mideast.html
4) Mexican Protesters Keep Their Message Alive, and on the Air
By MARC LACEY
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/world/americas/31mexico.html
5) At University for Deaf, Protesters Press Broader Demands
By DIANA JEAN SCHEMO
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/education/31gallaudet.html?ref=us
6) U.S. Drops Bid Over Royalties From Chevron
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 — The Interior Department has dropped
claims that the Chevron Corporation systematically underpaid
the government for natural gas produced in the Gulf of Mexico,
a decision that could allow energy companies to avoid paying
hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties.
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/business/31royalties.html?ref=business
7) Brad Will: Death in Oaxaca. An Obituary by David Rovics.
From: DRovics@aol.com
Subject: My friend Brad Will has been shot to death in Oaxaca
Date: Oct 29, 2006 11:44 AM
feel free to post and distribute. for more information on the death of
brad will and the circumstances surrounding it, check out www.indymedia.org
and www.narconews.com.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Mexican Protesters Regroup in Oaxaca
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 12:10 p.m. ET
October 30, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Mexico-Oaxaca-Unrest.html?hp&ex=1162270800&en=49becb78d904ab60&ei=5094&partner=homepage
OAXACA, Mexico (AP) -- Strike-weary residents took to the streets
Monday to thank federal police for intervening in violent demonstrations
that had held their city hostage for months, but the demonstrators
said they would take back the city center in their push for the
governor's resignation.
Teachers had promised to end their five-month strike for higher
wages and go back to work Monday, but no students returned
to classes in the tense capital.
On Sunday, federal police tore down protest blockades and pushed
demonstrators out of the main square that had served as their
home base for five months.
The colonial city, a favorite of tourists, more closely resembled
a battleground early Monday, with streets littered with charred
cars and lines of federal police blocking some entrances
to the main zocalo plaza.
The city was deeply divided between protesters demanding
Gov. Ulises Ruiz's resignation and those wanting a return
to the tranquil days when foreign tourists browsed shops
and dined on the region's famous mole sauce.
Ignoring protesters who screamed ''Sellout!'' a group of about
20 residents welcomed the police, touring streets and thanking
authorities for taking control of the city.
''I don't want them to leave. Let them stay,'' Edith Mendoza,
a 40-year-old housewife, said of the police. ''We were held
hostage for five months.''
Before dawn Monday, federal police tore down the protesters'
banners in the main square, mostly to wrap around themselves
for warmth because they had been sent in without sleeping bags.
Riot police in body armor slept on sidewalks under the plaza's
famous archways, rolled up against the chill night air in banners
that once proclaimed people's power or demanded the resignation
of the governor. Others sought warmth by burning bits of banners,
wooden crates and other debris left behind by the protesters.
Interior Secretary Carlos Abascal said the federal forces would
remain until order had been established and they were
no longer needed.
There was still the threat of violence as protesters vowed to march
on the zocalo. Police stationed water tanks in the four corners
of the central plaza in preparation, and blocked anyone from
entering.
The federal government's decision to send forces into Oaxaca
came after teachers agreed to return to work by Monday, ending
a strike that kept 1.3 million children out of classes across
the southern state.
But Enrique Rueda, leader of the teachers' union, told The
Associated Press that no students had returned to class
in the capital on Monday, although some had in cities
and towns outside of Oaxaca City.
While some teachers planned to return, others said they
would stay home.
''We are not willing to go back (to work) until we get written
guarantees'' for teachers' safety, said Daniel Reyes, one
of the last of the striking teachers to leave the main square
as police surrounded it Sunday night.
During the strike, some dissident teachers tried to open
schools, and parents armed with sticks and pipes fought
off protesters who tried to keep children from entering.
Public Safety Secretary Eduardo Medina Mora said seven
police were injured in the weekend clashes. A few were
hit by gasoline bombs thrown by protesters.
''There is no cause that justifies violence,'' he said.
Protesters claimed two of their own were killed, but federal
authorities said they could not confirm that.
Protest spokesman Roberto Garcia said 50 supporters had
been arrested and police were searching houses, looking
for protest leaders.
A scattering of businesses, including the city's famous
public marketplace, reopened Monday in an attempt
to return to normal. As shoppers browsed through
the market's stalls, stocked with supplies of marigolds
to celebrate upcoming Day of the Dead celebrations,
others lined up at bank machines. But most of the
city remained shuttered.
''Today in Oaxaca social order and peace has been
restored,'' President Vicente Fox said Monday.
Ruiz -- whom the protesters accuse of corruption
and rigging elections -- was scheduled to give his
state-of-the-state address on Monday.
He refused to resign, saying: ''This is not up for
discussion. This is not the solution. The solution
is the construction of agreements.''
Fox, who leaves office Dec. 1, resisted repeated
calls to send federal forces to Oaxaca until Saturday,
a day after gunfire killed a U.S. activist-journalist
and two residents.
On the Net:
U.S. journalist's video (Spanish site):
http://video.indymedia.org/en/2006/10/542.shtml
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) AWOL Soldier to Surrender at Fort Knox
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 2:00 p.m. ET
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-AWOL-Soldier-Surrender.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A U.S. Army soldier who fled to Canada rather
than return to Iraq said Tuesday he was traveling to Fort Knox
to surrender to military authorities.
Kyle Snyder, a former combat engineer, left the U.S. in April 2005
while on leave to avoid a second deployment to Iraq.
''I don't see a lot of positive things coming from this war,''
Snyder told reporters Tuesday morning at a Louisville church.
''I see it as a counterproductive mission.''
The 23-year-old from Colorado Springs, Colo., had trained
as an engineer with the 94th Corps of Engineers, but he said
he was put on patrol when he got to Iraq in 2004, something
he said he wasn't trained to do.
Snyder said he began to turn against the war when he saw
an innocent Iraqi man seriously wounded by American gunfire.
He believed the shooting was not properly investigated.
Attorney James Fennerty said a deal has been reached to keep
Snyder from being court-martialed. Instead, he said, Snyder
will receive an other-than-honorable discharge.
That would be the same punishment received by another
deserter, Darrell Anderson, 24, of Lexington, who surrendered
at Fort Knox on Oct. 3. Anderson was held for three days
while his case was processed, then released.
Fort Knox spokeswoman Gini Sinclair said she could
not comment on Snyder's case, but she said deserters
are typically brought back to the post and assigned
to a special processing company and provided a lawyer.
The Army would then open an investigation into the desertion.
''Each situation is evaluated individually,'' Sinclair said.
Snyder had fled to Canada while on leave from the Army
and applied for refugee status. He said he worked as
a welder and at a children's health clinic while there.
Snyder was nervous about returning and said he understood
people may not agree with his decision to desert the Army.
''I don't know how the American people are going to take
the things I say,'' he said Tuesday.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) Olmert Says Israel May Widen Military Role in Gaza
By GREG MYRE
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/world/middleeast/31mideast.html
JERUSALEM, Oct. 30 — Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel
said Monday that the Israeli military might expand operations
in the Gaza Strip in an attempt to halt Palestinian rocket fire,
but that there was no intention to reoccupy the territory.
His comments came on another day of turmoil, in which Palestinian
gunmen kidnapped a Spanish aid worker in southern Gaza
and held him for several hours before releasing him,
and a Palestinian militant was killed in northern Gaza in disputed
circumstances. [Two more militants were killed in Gaza on Tuesday
in clashes between Israeli troops and Hamas gunmen,
Reuters reported.]
In a closed session with a parliamentary committee, Mr. Olmert
was asked about the military’s plans for Gaza. Israeli forces,
which re-entered the territory in late June after an Israeli soldier
was seized, have been clashing with Palestinian militants almost
daily. Several Israeli political and military officials have hinted
recently that a larger operation could be coming.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Olmert, Miri Eisin, who was at the
parliamentary session, quoted the prime minister as saying:
“We aren’t going to reoccupy Gaza. But we will continue to fight
terror, and there may be a change in the level of forces there
at any given time.”
Mr. Olmert also said the military killed about 300 armed
Palestinians in the past four months, according to Ms. Eisin.
Monitoring groups have said that more than 250 Palestinians
were killed during this time, about half militants and half
civilians. Two Israeli soldiers have been killed in the fighting.
In Gaza City, Ismail Haniya, the Palestinian Authority prime
minister, said, “We call on the international community
to intervene immediately to halt the Israeli aggression.”
On Monday, Mazen Abu Oudah, 20, a member of Al Aksa
Martyrs Brigades, was killed by Israeli fire near the northern
Gaza town of Beit Hanun, according to Palestinian medical
workers. However, the Israeli military said it had not been
involved in any shooting in the area.
[The two militants killed Tuesday were shot during a military
operation near the town of Khan Younis when Israeli troops
fired on a group of militants who were trying to plant a bomb
near the soldiers, an army spokeswoman told Reuters.]
Also, Palestinians fired two rockets into southern Israel
on Monday, Israeli officials said, but they caused no damage
or injuries.
Palestinian gunmen kidnapped Roberto Vila, 34, a Spaniard
who works for a Spanish aid group, according to Palestinian
officials and news media reports. He was freed unharmed
late Monday night, according to Palestinian television.
In Israeli politics, Mr. Olmert’s cabinet and the Parliament
approved the inclusion of Israel Beiteinu, a far-right party,
in the governing coalition. Mr. Olmert’s coalition now
controls 78 of the 120 seats in Parliament, a margin
intended to make the government more stable.
However, with parties from the right, left and center,
as well as a religious party, the coalition is so broad that
the factions have little common ground on many issues,
such as how to deal with the Palestinians.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) Mexican Protesters Keep Their Message Alive, and on the Air
By MARC LACEY
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/world/americas/31mexico.html
OAXACA, Mexico, Oct. 30 — As the federal riot police hunkered down
in Oaxaca’s main square on Monday, protesters sought to protect their
not-so-secret weapon in their five-month siege of the city: the pilfered
radio transmitter they use to mobilize the population.
“We are in a red alert, a red alert!” a nervous-sounding announcer
said over and over from inside the bullet-scarred university station,
which was ringed by sandbags and protected by masked supporters
on the roof equipped with handmade mortars. “The police are moving in!”
The cry was premature, but it drew hundreds of supporters from
across this city in southern Mexico. They prepared Molotov cocktails
and reinforced the barriers around the gates of Oaxaca University
in anticipation of a raid.
“We will transmit until the last minute,” an announcer who described
himself as a law professor, but declined to provide his name,
said in an interview. “We will not run. We are like the captains
of the ship, and we’ll go down with the ship.”
Oaxaca State’s beleaguered governor, Ulises Ruiz, was also hunkered
down, on his own turf. The federal police remained in control
of the central square on Monday, but protesters marched through
the rest of downtown, denouncing Mr. Ruiz and occasionally
setting fire to vehicles.
Although the governor insisted in a television interview
on Monday that he would not resign, his support appeared
thin as both houses of the Congress passed nonbinding
resolutions urging him to cede power for the good
of the state and the nation.
In the Chamber of Deputies, only Mr. Ruiz’s Institutional
Revolutionary Party, known as the PRI, and another small
allied party stuck by the governor, and even that backing
seemed lukewarm.
In the Senate, even the PRI joined in a statement urging
Mr. Ruiz to “reconsider separating himself from charge,
in order to contribute to the re-establishment of governability,
normality and peace.”
But the governor said he was not budging. “I am governing
Oaxaca,” he declared in a late-night news conference,
dismissing the protesters as a relatively small group
that did not represent the masses. “The questions
of Oaxaca will be decided by Oaxacans.”
Mr. Ruiz said the arrival of federal troops had not
resolved the crisis but might establish an environment
where the opposing parties could resolve their differences
at the negotiating table. As for the graffiti painted around
town accusing the governor of being an assassin,
he declared, “I don’t accept their views. I respect
human rights.”
Members of the Oaxaca People’s Popular Assembly, which
has been coordinating the protests, clearly disagree,
as their frequent anti-Ruiz messages over the radio
make clear.
If the diffuse movement that has laid siege to Oaxaca
has a nerve center, it is the trash-strewn conference
room where the group broadcasts regular updates
to their comrades.
On Monday, the radio called people into the streets
for three protest marches that drew thousands.
Announcers also mourned three people who the
protesters said had died in a raid on Sunday.
The government said it had no information
of any deaths at the hands of the police.
Even after the federal police raid managed
to take back the symbolic Zócalo, or central
square, the station kept the movement alive.
The protest began as a teachers’ strike, but a deal
was reached to raise their salaries. Some teachers
returned to classes on Monday, although it appeared
that many were not sure it was safe to do so.
While the protest coalition consists of leftists, local
residents have said that the issue is more a struggle
to wrest control of the state from the PRI, the political
party that once controlled all of Mexico, but whose
national power has greatly diminished.
“It’s strange, but I’m not afraid,” Alejandra Canseco
Martínez, 22, a student who frequently sends out updates
over the airwaves, said from inside the radio station.
“Maybe I should be afraid, because we don’t know what
will happen and the police are only a few blocks away.”
It is not the first time that the station has been under siege.
The current standoff began June 14, when the police
broke up a teachers’ protest and smashed the transmitter
that the teachers had been using to broadcast their messages
from the main square. The following day, as supporters joined
forces with the teachers, university students took over the
campus station.
On July 22, gunmen opened fire on the station, sending workers
ducking for cover and eventually knocking the signal off the air.
But listeners heard the attack and converged on the station
in support.
On Aug. 8, someone sneaked into the station and poured acid
onto the transmitter, again killing the signal. But by that time,
protesters had taken over another station. Within weeks,
a dozen public and private stations around Oaxaca were
controlled by protesters.
However, the university station, with its transmitter repaired,
remains the chief source of information for the protesters.
Its messages are dismissed as revolutionary propaganda
by critics, but supporters relish the hard-edge words that
fly across the colonial city.
“The other stations only say things in support of Ulises,”
said Sal Lozano, 43, a farmer, speaking of Mr. Ruiz, the
governor. “We’re going to defend this station with everything
we have.”
Antonio Betancourt contributed reporting from Oaxaca,
and Elisabeth Malkin from Mexico City.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) At University for Deaf, Protesters Press Broader Demands
By DIANA JEAN SCHEMO
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/education/31gallaudet.html?ref=us
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 — A day after protesters at Gallaudet University,
the world’s premier university for the deaf, prevailed in their battle
to oust the incoming president, they pressed forward on Monday
with their broader demands, saying that students must have
a greater say in the search for a new president and that the
next choice should be a more forceful advocate for deaf culture
and a strong deaf identity.
“We are looking for a person who’s sensitive enough, who has
respect for all cultures and for American Sign Language,” Noah
Beckman, president of the student government, signed through
an interpreter. Mr. Beckman said the new search process would
have to demonstrate “inclusion, transparency and equality.”
On a sunny, spring-like afternoon, Mr. Beckman and other
students packed up tents and sleeping bags that had filled campus
front lawns in recent weeks. Gone were the signs deriding
Dr. Jane K. Fernandes, the former provost who had been named
to take over as president on Jan. 1, and I. King Jordan, the departing
president, who had supported her.
Dr. Fernandes’s detractors said she lacked leadership ability
and did not embrace the primacy of American Sign Language
at Gallaudet and in deaf culture. And even though the panel
that selected her included students and members of the
faculty, many complained that their opinions had been
overlooked and that the process was biased in her favor.
The university has never agreed that the process was not open.
In an e-mail message, the chairwoman of the Gallaudet
board, Brenda Jo Brueggemann, said the board had taken
many factors into account in deciding to revoke
Dr. Fernandes’s contract.
“We had to think about safety on the Gallaudet campus,”
she wrote.
“We had to think of Gallaudet’s unique role as an institution
of higher education but also as a ‘center’ for the deaf community,
nationally and even worldwide,” the message continued.
“We had to think about the way that the situation clearly was
not getting any better. We had to think about the financial and
moral impact of the protests, especially as they continued,
on the university and its constituents.”
Dr. Brueggemann said the board had not yet set parameters
for the new search.
The board’s decision to drop its original candidate will
complicate its next search, said Michael A. Baer, a partner
at Isaacson, Miller, an executive search firm for colleges,
universities and other public interest nonprofits. “There are
a limited number of people available for them to consider,
and it’s going to send a cautionary note to individuals who
could be candidates,” Mr. Baer said.
Any future candidates will have to be attuned to the issues
emerging in deaf culture, and the sensitivities involved,
he said. In addition, the prolonged protest brought to the
fore the latent discontent over a number of issues on campus,
from the failure of many professors to use American Sign
Language — the most accessible means of communication
for many deaf people — to dissatisfaction that Gallaudet
has not played more of an advocacy role for deaf rights
in every area of life.
“The search committee and board’s awareness that they
need to communicate with the entire campus community,
in the long run, may strengthen the campus community,”
Mr. Baer said.
Veterans of presidential searches at colleges and universities
around the country said that in view of Dr. Fernandes’s ouster,
the new search would have to give even greater weight to the
views of faculty and students. In recent weeks, 82 percent
of the faculty voted for Dr. Fernandes to resign or be removed.
Claire Van Ummersen, vice president in charge of the Center
for Effective Leadership at the American Council on Education,
which represents more than 1,800 colleges, universities
and organizations involved in higher education, predicted
that Gallaudet would not have trouble finding new candidates
for the job.
The university, she said, is in a class by itself, as the world’s
only liberal arts university for the deaf, and is highly prestigious.
In interviews on campus Monday, protesters said their victory
had reinvigorated the struggle for deaf rights, pointing out that
this was the second time deaf students had demanded,
and won, a say in determining who would lead their university.
Eighteen years ago, students forced the board to abandon
its first choice of president, and to name Dr. Jordan
as Gallaudet’s first deaf president in more than 100 years.
David Reynolds, an alumnus whose family is deaf three
generations back, had driven from Indianapolis with his
21-year-old twin sons, Jonathan and Justin, to join the
protest. A teacher at the Indiana School for the Deaf,
Mr. Reynolds said the new search must allow
all groups to weigh in.
“We need the right visionary person,” Mr. Reynolds
signed. “The whole thing here is don’t rush the process.
That was the mistake the last time.”
Justin Reynolds, a Gallaudet student who was taking
a semester off, said this weekend’s victory for the protesters
signaled the ascent of deaf power. “From here on out,
the world wants to know what we’ll do next,” Mr. Reynolds
said. “With this unity, what are we capable of?”
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) U.S. Drops Bid Over Royalties From Chevron
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 — The Interior Department has dropped
claims that the Chevron Corporation systematically underpaid
the government for natural gas produced in the Gulf of Mexico,
a decision that could allow energy companies to avoid paying
hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties.
October 31, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/31/business/31royalties.html?ref=business
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 — The Interior Department has dropped claims
that the Chevron Corporation systematically underpaid the government
for natural gas produced in the Gulf of Mexico, a decision that could
allow energy companies to avoid paying hundreds of millions
of dollars in royalties.
The agency had ordered Chevron to pay $6 million in additional
royalties but could have sought tens of millions more had it prevailed.
The decision also sets a precedent that could make it easier for oil and
gas companies to lower the value of what they pump each year from
federal property and thus their payments to the government.
Interior officials said on Friday that they had no choice but to drop
their order to Chevron because a department appeals board had ruled
against auditors in a separate case.
But state governments and private landowners have challenged the
company over essentially the same practices and reached settlements
in which the company has paid $70 million in additional royalties.
In a written statement, the department’s Minerals Management
Service said it would have been useless to fight Chevron.
“It is not in the public interest to spend federal dollars pursuing
claims that have little or no chance of success,” the agency said.
“M.M.S. lost a contested and controversial issue” before the appeals
board. “Had we simply wanted to capitulate to ‘big oil,’ the agency
would not have issued the order in the first place.”
Chevron said in a written statement that it “endeavors to calculate
and pay its oil and gas royalties correctly,” and it said that
the Interior Department had agreed.
The agency notified Chevron of its decision in a confidential
letter on Aug. 3, which The New York Times obtained recently
under the Freedom of Information Act.
The reversal in the case, which involves Chevron’s accounting
of natural gas sales to a company it partly owned, has renewed
criticism that the Bush administration is reluctant to confront oil
and gas companies and is lax in collecting royalties.
“The government is giving up without a fight,” said Richard T. Dorman,
a lawyer representing private citizens suing Chevron over its federal
royalty payments. “If this decision is left standing, it would result
in the loss of tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions, of dollars
in royalties owed by other companies.”
In return for the right to drill on federal lands and in federal waters,
energy companies are required to pay the government a share
of their proceeds. Last year, businesses producing natural gas
paid $5.15 billion in government royalties.
But the Bush administration has come under fire on Capitol Hill
for its record on collecting payments. While the Interior
Department has sweetened incentives for exploration and
pushed to open wilderness areas for drilling, it has also cut
back on full-scale audits of companies intended to make
sure they are paying their full share.
Administration officials knew that dozens of companies had
incorrectly claimed exemptions from royalties since 2003, but
they waited until December 2005 to send letters demanding
about $500 million in repayments.
In February, the Interior Department acknowledged that
oil companies could escape more than $7 billion in payments
because of mistakes in leases signed in the 1990s. Top officials
are trying to renegotiate those deals, but some Republicans
and Democrats have complained that the administration
is dragging its feet.
In addition, four government auditors last month publicly
accused the Interior Department of blocking their efforts
to recover more than $30 million from the Shell Oil Corporation,
the Kerr-McGee Corporation and other major companies.
“This latest revelation proves that the Bush administration
is incapable of preventing big oil companies from cheating
taxpayers,” said Representative Edward J. Markey
of Massachusetts, a senior Democrat on the House
Committee on Resources. “The public has been systematically
fleeced out of royalties that these companies owe for the privilege
of drilling for oil and gas on lands belonging to all of us.”
The Chevron case offers a glimpse into what is normally
a secretive process. To protect what energy companies consider
proprietary information, the Interior Department does not
announce that it is accusing companies of underpaying
royalties nor does it announce its settlements in these disputes.
The government also does not disclose how much money each
company pays in royalties.
In theory, companies are required to pay the government a royalty
of 12 percent to 16 percent of their sales. In practice, the definition
of sales is as convoluted as a Rubik’s Cube.
In the Chevron case, auditors in the Minerals Management Service
were addressing an issue that had bedeviled royalty enforcement
for decades: How does the government make sure it gets its due
when companies sell natural gas to businesses they partly own?
In 1996, Chevron sold its holdings in more than 50 processing
plants to Dynegy in exchange for a 26 percent stake in the natural
gas company, which is based in Houston. For the next seven years,
Chevron sold virtually all its domestic natural gas to Dynegy
for processing.
In their original accusations, dating to 2001, the auditors asserted
that Chevron had understated sales, and hence its royalty
obligations, by inflating costs for processing gas at Dynegy.
Companies are allowed to deduct processing costs from their
sales revenues when they calculate their royalty obligations.
Processing involves separating water and a variety of liquid
fuels like propane and methane from raw natural gas. The
auditors’ accusations were not unique. State officials in New
Mexico challenged Chevron over the same issue — “non-
arms-length” deals, as regulators call them — and Chevron
agreed to pay $10.4 million in extra royalties without admitting
wrongdoing. Private property owners who leased land to Chevron
sued over the same issue in Oklahoma, and the company paid
$60 million last year to settle out of court.
“The natural gas processing business lends itself almost
uniquely to chicanery,” said Spencer Hosie, a lawyer who has
represented the states of Louisiana and Alaska in several court
fights over oil and gas royalties. “It is a complicated and opaque
business, and there are many opportunities to shade judgments
and numbers.”
From 2001 to 2003, after detailed audits of several Chevron
leases, the Interior Department said the company was reducing
its “sales value” by exaggerating processing costs at six
of Dynegy’s many plants. At one plant, auditors estimated
Chevron had claimed five times the actual costs.
At first glance, the suspected underpayments seemed trivial:
about $6 million out of hundreds of millions in royalties.
But the audits were limited to only a handful of plants. Had
the Interior Department pressed its claims successfully,
it could have recovered money tied to all the other plants,
and for other years.
Chevron paid the $6 million but appealed. The file in that
case now runs more than 900 pages, most of it still off-limits
to the public.
Mr. Hosie, who represented Louisiana in a lawsuit that led
to a $100 million verdict against Chevron over underpaid
oil royalties, expressed surprise at the federal government’s
decision in the natural gas case.
“Is it even remotely likely that oil companies systematically
underpay private royalty owners and state governments,
but pay the federal government perfectly properly?”
Mr. Hosie asked. “Isn’t it more likely they are underpaying
everybody?”
A Chevron spokesman, Donald Campbell, said laws regulating
state and private leases often differed significantly from those
of the federal government. “The rules governing valuation vary
from jurisdiction to jurisdiction,” Mr. Campbell said in a statement.
Chevron argued that New Mexico’s rules presumed that a deal
was “not at arms length” — and that costs had to be calculated
differently — if one company owned 10 percent to 50 percent
of the other. The federal regulations, Chevron said, required
auditors to consider additional factors before making such
a determination. Because of a backlog, the appeals board had
not considered Chevron’s appeal when Interior Department
officials decided they could not win. But if the appeals board
had overruled the auditors, federal regulations would have
allowed the interior secretary to let a federal court decide
the issue.
In their letter to Chevron, department officials did not say the
underlying facts had changed. Rather, they noted that the agency’s
Board of Land Appeals had rejected similar accusations about
non-arm’s-length agreements involving two other companies,
Vastar Resources and Southern Companies.
The appeals board ruled in 2005 that the Minerals Management
Service had failed to show that Vastar had any real control over
a partnership it had formed with Southern to sell its gas.
The board said Vastar had provided “uncontroverted evidence”
that the sales prices had been negotiated at arm’s length
between companies with “opposing economic interests.”
But the Chevron case differed in several important ways.
The government never audited Vastar in reaching its conclusions
and had provided a largely theoretical opinion when the company
asked for guidance. By contrast, auditors had scrutinized Chevron,
which is based in San Ramon, Calif., and Dynegy and backed their
arguments with supporting data.
Chevron’s ties with Dynegy also appeared to be closer than those
between the other companies. Chevron described Dynegy
as an affiliate in some reports to shareholders. Chevron was
also Dynegy’s biggest supplier of raw natural gas, its biggest
customer for gas processing and one of its biggest for processing
byproducts like propane and methane.
Administration officials said they had “carefully reviewed”
similarities and differences between the cases, but offered
little elaboration.
“We recognize that other parties may assert various arguments
regarding the relationship between the Vastar and Chevron
situations,” the Minerals Management Service said in its written
response to questions, “but the agency’s evaluation and
deliberative processes are privileged.”
John Bemis, the assistant commissioner for gas and minerals
in New Mexico, said his state was challenging a growing
number of such alliances. In addition to the $10.4 million
royalty settlement with Chevron, New Mexico persuaded
ConocoPhillips to settle a similar case in August for $9.5
million and is negotiating with BP in a third case.
Interior Department officials have shown little interest
in evidence from either New Mexico’s experience or
a current court fight with Chevron over federal royalties.
On July 11, three weeks before the department dropped its
case against Chevron, Mr. Dorman and other lawyers involved
in a Texas lawsuit against Chevron wrote to Interior Department
officials. The lawyers, who represent a whistle-blower seeking
to recover money for the federal government, said they were
suing Chevron over the same issues the department had raised.
“All we were saying was that they should wait to see what
evidence we turned up, and that we would gladly share
everything we had with them,” Mr. Dorman said. His firm
faxed a letter to the policy appeals division. Getting
no response, the lawyers sent a copy by U.P.S. Six days
later, it was returned. The reason, according to the U.P.S.
label: “Receiver did not want, refused delivery.”
The agency confirmed in a statement that it knew of the
lawyers’ case. Asked why it refused to accept their letter,
the Minerals Management Service said it could not comment
“because these matters are the subject of pending litigation.”
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) Brad Will: Death in Oaxaca. An Obituary by David Rovics.
From: DRovics@aol.com
Subject: My friend Brad Will has been shot to death in Oaxaca
Date: Oct 29, 2006 11:44 AM
feel free to post and distribute. for more information on the death of
brad will and the circumstances surrounding it, check out www.indymedia.org
and www.narconews.com.
brad will was a dear friend, and a true revolutionary. he died the way
countless and uncounted numbers of beautiful people have died in recent
centuries -- he was shot in the chest by rightwing paramilitaries. he was
filming the scene around one of thousands of barricades that have shut down
oaxaca city since last june, when the governor there tried to ban public
expressions of dissent, thus throwing one more historical spark into one
more historical powder keg.
brad embodied the spirit of indymedia. he was not just covering stories
that the "mainstream" press ignores, such as the exciting, violent
revolutionary moment which has gripped oaxaca for several months now. brad
was not risking his life to get a good shot of a confrontation at a
barricade because he might get a photo on the cover of a newspaper, get some
(perhaps well-deserved) fame and money -- he was posting his communiques on
indymedia, for free.
sure, brad was filming in order to cover history. but he was there also
to make history. brad knew that a camera is a weapon, or hopefully a shield
of some sort, and sometimes can serve to de-escalate a situation, to protect
people from being violated, beaten, killed. and brad knew that if the
independent media didn't document history, nobody else would.
brad deeply appreciated the power of music and culture. if he didn't have
a camera in his hands, he often had a guitar.! d uring some of his many
travels around latin america he wrote emails to me about the musicians he
met, with whom he shared my songs and recordings. he particularly liked my
song "saint patrick battalion," and reportedly shared his rendition of it
with lots of people. he would not live to know just how much his life and
death would resemble the san patricios, who died fighting for mexico during
the first u.s. invasion of that country in the 1840's.
through all brad did and saw on large swaths of three different
continents, he somehow continually brought with him a boundless enthusiasm
and obvious love of life, love, a good party, or a good riot. he was my
favorite kind of person, my favorite kind of revolutionary -- the sort who
is just as comfortable talking about revolutionary theory, current events,
music, relationships or smoking a bowl on a manhattan rooftop at sunset.
the kind of person who is alive, in mind, body and spirit, in equal
proportions.
brad became a radical long before it was briefly fashionable in the u.s.
(with the wto protests in seattle), and long since it became unfashionable
there (september 11th, 2001). the kinds of tactics and politics that the
global justice movement became briefly known for were practiced by people
like brad in the squatters' movement in new york city and the radical
environmental movement on the west coast in the 1990's. brad was in both
places and many more. brad was somewhere near the ground floor of many
other more recent anarchist institutions -- food not bombs, critical mass,
reclaim the streets, guerrilla gardening, indymedia. he saw the
connections, deeply understood the concept of "the commons," and went for
it, as an activist, a videojournalist, a musician and a cheerleader.
i never knew brad's last name until he was murdered. for me he was just
brad. in my cell phone he was "brad ! nyc" (to distinguish him from another
good friend named brad, who lives in baltimore). i don't remember talking
with him much about his past, where he grew up, how he became a
revolutionary, though we may have talked about that sort of thing. but
generally i saw him in the course of events, whether it was a film
showing/concert on a brooklyn rooftop, a land occupation in the bronx, or,
just as often, a large demonstration against an evil financial institution
somewhere in the world.
i've sung at many such events, and brad has been at most of them -- and
he's been present at many which i didn't make it to. they're all such a
blur, i don't remember which ones anymore. but the many encounters always
start out with a warm smile and a hug, and usually involve some kind of
chaos going on, with brad comfortably in the middle of it. sometimes -- all
too rarely, i suddenly realize -- the encounters would continue after the
chaos subsided, and we could be in a quiet place with a small group of
people, chilling and talking about life, my favorite bits.
there have been many debates about whether it is more useful to organize
large events or to focus on community organizing locally. whether to focus
on recording history or making it. whether to educate or to act. whether
to have a party or have a meeting. brad clearly decided that the correct
answer is "all of the above." the reality of this is easy to demonstrate --
talk to anybody in new york city involved with just about any aspect of the
progressive movement. it's a city of 8 million people, but if they are
serious participants in the more grassroots end of the movement, they know
brad. though they may not have known his last name. he's just brad, the
tall, thin guy with long hair who is often flashing a warm, gentle smile
with a compassionate, intelligent glint in his eye. he's often ! describe d
with a connector like "brad from indymedia" or "brad from more gardens" or
"brad the musician."
i haven't seen him in a while. several months at least. but suddenly i
miss him so much. i miss hanging out with him in the lower east side,
chilling at his place there, swapping stories. i miss the rejuvinating
warmth of his presence. i miss the unspoken, mutual admiration. i miss the
feeling that i was in the presence of someone who so deeply felt his
connection to the world. the feeling that here was someone who would die
for me, and me for him, no questions asked. and now, like so many others
before him, he's done just that.
like all of the rest of us, over the generations his memory will fade and
eventually disappear. but for those of us alive today who had the honor of
being one of brad's large circle of friends, his memory will be with us
painfully, deeply, lovingly, until we all join him beneath the ground --
hopefully only after each of us has managed to have the kind of impact on
each other, on the movement, and the world that brad surely had in his short
36 years.
David Rovics
www.davidrovics.com
www.soundclick.com/davidrovics
www.myspace.com/davidrovics
DRovics@aol.com
(617) 872-5124
P.O. Box 300995
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
U$A
Halliburton Boardroom Massacre CD/DVD now in a store near you, distributed
throughout North America and Europe! Please go to your local record store
and make sure they have some in stock! If they don't, they can order copies
through Caroline Distribution -- www.caroline.com (EMI).
Halliburton Boardroom Massacre World Tour happening now! Check out
www.davidrovics.com for more information!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
LINKS AND VERY SHORT STORIES
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN FISCAL YEAR 2006
http://www.ice.gov/pi/news/factsheets/2006accomplishments.htm
THE GREAT FALCON BASE ATTACK COVER UP
By Allen L Roland
October 27, 2006
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_allen_l__061027_the_great_falcon_bas.htm
America's Leadership Crisis
http://www.thewildernessvoice.net
At College for Deaf, Trustees Drop New Leader
By DIANA JEAN SCHEMO
WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 — Surrendering to months of widening
and unrelenting protests by students, faculty, alumni and advocates,
the board of trustees of Gallaudet University, the nation’s premier
university for the deaf, abandoned its choice of the institution’s
next president.
October 30, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/30/education/30gallaudet.html?hp&ex=1162270800&en=0d7f3cfaf655c7e2&ei=5094&partner=homepage
Bush Moves Toward Martial Law
Frank Morales
October 26, 2006
http://www.uruknet.info?p=27769 or
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2006/10/28/18324231.php
Yahoo! on NSA Surveillance: No Comment
By Declan McCullagh, CNET News.com
Published on ZDNet News: February 15, 2006, 1:55 PM PT
Under cross-examination during a congressional hearing, Yahoo's top
lawyer refused on Wednesday to say whether the company opens
its records for government surveillance without a court order.
http://justanotherblowback.blogspot.com/2006/10/yahoo-on-nsa-surveillance-no-comment.html
Fmr. Israeli soldier exposes abuse of Palestinians
This is an interview Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman carried out
with Yehuda Shaul, a former Israeli soldier, and the co-founder
of Breaking the Silence, a group comprised of former Israeli
soldiers who seek exposing human rights abuses by the
Israeli military.
10/28/2006 7:00:00 PM GMT
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=12030
FOCUS | Report Says Iraq Contractor Is Hiding Data From US
A Halliburton subsidiary that has been subjected to numerous
investigations for billions of dollars of contracts it has received
for work in Iraq has systematically misused federal rules
to withhold basic information on its practices from American
officials, a federal oversight agency said yesterday. Although
KBR has been subjected to a growing number of specific
investigations and paid substantial fines, this marks
the first time the federal government has weighed
in and accused it of systematically engaging in a practice
aimed at veiling its business practices in Iraq.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/102806Z.shtml
No comments:
Post a Comment