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BARRIO UNIDO FOR A GENERAL AND UNCONDITIONAL AMNESTY
We make a call to the immigrant community and all those who are
in solidarity with our struggle to join us in front of the Federal Building
to protest the raids that we have been victims of and that are occurring
in different parts of the country.
They harass us as though we are animals of prey.
They lock us up in prisons for working for a miserable salary.
They steal our salaries that we earn with the sweat of our brow.
They separate us from our children leaving them traumatized for life……
We denounce the North American government for treating us like garbage
to be thrown away and taking advantage of our search for our daily bread
for their own political reasons.
We denounce the Mexican and Latin American governments for being
accomplices with the North American government for our misery and
for this involuntary exodus that has been forced upon us because
of the political, social, and economic conditions of our countries
We demand…….
To cease the immigration raids now!
To free all detained workers!
To return jobs to all those detained!
The right to all undocumented immigrants to unionize!
We demand a General and Unconditional Amnesty for all!
Protest the United States government
When: Friday, January 12, 2006
Where: 450 Golden Gate (Federal Building)
Time: 4pm to 7pm
Join in the struggle!
For more information call 415-431-9925
In Spanish:
BARRIÓ UNIDO POR UNA AMNISTÍA GENERAL E INCONDICIONAL
Hace un llamado a la población emigrante y a todos las que se
solidarizan con ella a un piquete enfrente del Edificio Federal
en protesta a las redadas de que estamos siendo victimas
en diferentes partes del país.
DONDE:
Se nos acosa como si fuéramos animales de caza.
Se nos encierra en prisiones para trabajar por sueldos de miseria.
Se nos roban los sueldos que hemos ganado con el sudor de
nuestra frente…
Se nos separa de nuestros hijos dejándolos traumados de por vida……
Denunciamos al gobierno Norte Americano por tratarnos como
basura desechable y utilizar nuestra búsqueda por el pan de cada
día para sus propósitos políticos…
Denunciamos a los gobiernos de México y América latina por ser
cómplices con el gobierno de Estados Unidos de nuestra miseria
y de este éxodo involuntario que las condiciones políticas,
sociales, y económicas de nuestros países nos ha obligado
a emprender.
Demandamos...
¡Cese a las redadas de la migra ahora!
¡Libertad a todos los trabajadores detenidos!
¡Regreso a su puesto de trabajo a todos los detenidos!
¡Derecho de los indocumentados a sindicalizarse!
¡Demandamos una Amnistía General e Incondicional para todos!
Piquete al Gobierno de Estados Unidos
Cuando: Viernes, 12 de Enero 2006
Dónde: 450 Golden Gate
Hora: 4pm a 7pm
Únete a la lucha
Para mas información llame a 415-431-9925
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ARTICLES IN FULL:
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1) Military considers recruiting foreigners
Expedited citizenship would be an incentive
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff
December 26, 2006
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/12/26/military_considers_recruiting_foreigners/
2) A PALESTINIAN VIEW OF JIMMY CARTER'S BOOK
Ali Abunimah
The Wall Street Journal
26 December 2006
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article6310.shtml
3) Free Healthcare in Venezuela Regardless of Class
Ronald Suarez Rivas
and Alberto Borrego Avila (photos),
special envoys
GRANMA
December 27, 2006
Here for you in English. Not yet in English at:
http://www.granma.cubaweb.cu/2006/12/27/cubamundo/artic02.html
4) When Iraqis Gave Up on Government
Inter Press Service
Dahr Jamail and Ali Al-Fadhily
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
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1) Military considers recruiting foreigners
Expedited citizenship would be an incentive
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff
December 26, 2006
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/12/26/military_considers_recruiting_foreigners/
WASHINGTON -- The armed forces, already struggling to meet recruiting
goals, are considering expanding the number of noncitizens in the ranks
-- including disputed proposals to open recruiting stations overseas and
putting more immigrants on a faster track to US citizenship if they
volunteer -- according to Pentagon officials.
Foreign citizens serving in the US military is a highly charged issue,
which could expose the Pentagon to criticism that it is essentially
using mercenaries to defend the country. Other analysts voice concern
that a large contingent of noncitizens under arms could jeopardize
national security or reflect badly on Americans' willingness to serve
in uniform.
The idea of signing up foreigners who are seeking US citizenship
is gaining traction as a way to address a critical need for the Pentagon,
while fully absorbing some of the roughly one million immigrants that
enter the United States legally each year.
The proposal to induct more noncitizens, which is still largely on the
drawing board, has to clear a number of hurdles. So far, the Pentagon
has been quiet about specifics -- including who would be eligible
to join, where the recruiting stations would be, and what the minimum
standards might involve, including English proficiency. In the meantime,
the Pentagon and immigration authorities have expanded a program
that accelerates citizenship for legal residents who volunteer
for the military.
And since Sept. 11, 2001, the number of imm igrants in uniform
who have become US citizens has increased from 750 in 2001
to almost 4,600 last year, according to military statistics.
With severe manpower strains because of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
-- and a mandate to expand the overall size of the military --
the Pentagon is under pressure to consider a variety of proposals
involving foreign recruits, according to a military affairs analyst.
"It works as a military idea and it works in the context of American
immigration," said Thomas Donnelly , a military scholar at the conservative
American Enterprise Institute in Washington and a leading proponent
of recruiting more foreigners to serve in the military.
As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan grind on, the Pentagon has warned
Congress and the White House that the military is stretched "to the
breaking point."
Both President Bush and Robert M. Gates, his new defense secretary,
have acknowledged that the total size of the military must be
expanded to help alleviate the strain on ground troops, many
of whom have been deployed repeatedly in combat theaters.
Bush said last week that he has ordered Gates to come up with
a plan for the first significant increase in ground forces since the
end of the Cold War. Democrats who are preparing to take control
of Congress, meanwhile, promise to make increasing the size
of the military one of their top legislative priorities in 2007.
"With today's demands placing such a high strain on our service
members, it becomes more crucial than ever that we work
to alleviate their burden," said Representative Ike Skelton ,
a Missouri Democrat who is set to chair the House Armed
Services Committee, and who has been calling for a larger
Army for more than a decade.
But it would take years and billions of dollars to recruit, train,
and equip the 30,000 troops and 5,000 Marines the Pentagon
says it needs. And military recruiters, fighting the perception that
signing up means a ticket to Baghdad, have had to rely on financial
incentives and lower standards to meet their quotas.
That has led Pentagon officials to consider casting a wider net for
noncitizens who are already here, said Lieutenant Colonel Bryan
Hilferty , an Army spokesman.
Already, the Army and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement
division of the Department of Homeland Security have "made it
easier for green-card holders who do enlist to get their citizenship,"
Hilferty said.
Other Army officials, who asked not to be identified, said personnel
officials are working with Congress and other parts of the government
to test the feasibility of going beyond US borders to recruit soldiers
and Marines.
Currently, Pentagon policy stipulates that only immigrants legally
residing in the United States are eligible to enlist. There are currently
about 30,000 noncitizens who serve in the US armed forces, making
up about 2 percent of the active-duty force, according to statistics
from the military and the Council on Foreign Relations. About
100 noncitizens have died in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A recent change in US law, however, gave the Pentagon authority
to bring immigrants to the United States if it determines it is vital
to national security. So far, the Pentagon has not taken advantage
of it, but the calls are growing to take use the new authority.
Indeed, some top military thinkers believe the United States should
go as far as targeting foreigners in their native countries.
"It's a little dramatic," said Michael O'Hanlon , a military specialist
at the nonpartisan Brookings Institution and another supporter
of the proposal. "But if you don't get some new idea how to do this,
we will not be able to achieve an increase" in the size of the
armed forces.
"We have already done the standard things to recruit new soldiers,
including using more recruiters and new advertising campaigns,"
O'Hanlon added.
O'Hanlon and others noted that the country has relied before on
sizable numbers of noncitizens to serve in the military -- in the
Revolutionary War, for example, German and French soldiers
served alongside the colonists, and locals were recruited into
US ranks to fight insurgents in the Philippines.
Other nations have recruited foreign citizens: In France, the famed
Foreign Legion relies on about 8,000 noncitizens; Nepalese soldiers
called Gurkhas have fought and died with British Army forces
for two centuries; and the Swiss Guard, which protects the Vatican,
consists of troops who hail from many nations.
"It is not without historical precedent," said Donnelly, author
of a recent book titled "The Army We Need," which advocates
for a larger military.
Still, to some military officials and civil rights groups, relying on large
number of foreigners to serve in the military is offensive.
The Hispanic rights advocacy group National Council of La Raza has
said the plan sends the wrong message that Americans themselves
are not willing to sacrifice to defend their country. Officials have also
raised concerns that immigrants would be disproportionately sent
to the front lines as "cannon fodder" in any conflict.
Some within the Army privately express concern that a big push to
recruit noncitizens would smack of "the decline of the American
empire," as one Army official who asked not to be identified put it.
Officially, the military remains confident that it can meet recruiting
goals -- no matter how large the military is increased -- without
having to rely on foreigners.
"The Army can grow to whatever size the nation wants us to grow
to," Hilferty said. "National defense is a national challenge, not
the Army's challenge."
He pointed out that just 15 years ago, during the Gulf War, the Army
had a total of about 730,000 active-duty soldiers, amounting to
about one American in 350 who were serving in the active-duty Army.
"Today, with 300 million Americans and about 500,000 active-duty
soldiers, only about one American in 600 is an active-duty soldier,"
he said. "America did then, and we do now, have an all-volunteer
force, and I see no reason why America couldn't increase the number
of Americans serving."
But Max Boot, a national security specialist at the Council on Foreign
Relations, said that the number of noncitizens the armed forces have
now is relatively small by historical standards.
"In the 19th century, when the foreign-born population of the United
States was much higher, so was the percentage of foreigners serving
in the military," Boot wrote in 2005.
"During the Civil War, at least 20 percent of Union soldiers were
immigrants, and many of them had just stepped off the boat before
donning a blue uniform. There were even entire units, like the
15th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry [the Scandinavian Regiment]
and General Louis Blenker's German Division, where English was
hardly spoken."
"The military would do well today to open its ranks not only to legal
immigrants but also to illegal ones and, as important, to untold
numbers of young men and women who are not here now but
would like to come," Boot added.
"No doubt many would be willing to serve for some set period,
in return for one of the world's most precious commodities --
US citizenship. Some might deride those who sign up as
mercenaries, but these troops would have significantly different
motives than the usual soldier of fortune."
Bryan Bender can be reached at bender@globe.com
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2) A PALESTINIAN VIEW OF JIMMY CARTER'S BOOK
Ali Abunimah
The Wall Street Journal
26 December 2006
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article6310.shtml
President Carter has done what few American politicians
have dared to do: speak frankly about the Israel-Palestine
conflict. He has done this nation, and the cause of peace,
an enormous service by focusing attention on what he calls
"the abominable oppression and persecution in the occupied
Palestinian territories, with a rigid system of required
passes and strict segregation between Palestine's citizens
and Jewish settlers in the West Bank."
The 39th president of the United States, the most
successful Arab- Israeli peace negotiator to date, has
braved a storm of criticism, including the insinuation
from the pro-Israel Anti-Defamation League that his
arguments are anti-Semitic.
Mr. Carter has tried to mollify critics by suggesting that
his is not a commentary on Israeli policy inside Israel's
own borders, as compared with the West Bank, Gaza Strip
and East Jerusalem -- territories Israel occupied in 1967.
He told NPR, "I know that Israel is a wonderful democracy
with equal treatment of all citizens whether Arab or Jew.
And so I very carefully avoided talking about anything
inside Israel."
Given the pressure he has faced, it may be understandable
that Mr. Carter says this, but he is wrong. In addition to
nearly four million Palestinians living under Israeli rule
in the occupied territories, another one million live
inside Israel's pre-1967 borders. These Palestinians are
descendants of those who were not forced out or did not
flee when Israel was created in 1948.
They have nominal Israeli citizenship, and unlike blacks
in apartheid South Africa, they do vote for the country's
parliament. Yet this is where any sense of equality ends.
In Israel's history, no Arab-led party has ever been asked
to join a coalition government. And, among scores of
Jewish ministers, there has only ever been one Arab
minister, of junior rank.
Discrimination against non-Jewish citizens both informal
and legalized is systematic. Non-Jewish children attend
separate schools and live in areas that receive a fraction
of the funding of their Jewish counterparts. The results
can be seen in the much poorer educational attainment,
economic, health and life outcomes of Palestinian citizens
of Israel. Much of the land of the country, controlled by
the quasi-governmental Jewish National Fund, cannot be
leased or sold to non-Jews. This is similar in effect to
the restrictive covenants that in many U.S. cities once
kept nonwhites out of certain neighborhoods.
A 2003 law stipulates that an Israeli citizen may bring a
non- citizen spouse to live in Israel from anywhere in the
world, excluding a Palestinian from the occupied
territories. A civil rights leader in Israel likened it to
the American anti-miscegenation measures from the 1950s,
when mixed race couples had to leave the state of Virginia
to marry legally.
For Palestinians, the most blatant form of discrimination
is Israel's "Law of Return," that allows a Jewish person
from any country to settle in Israel. Meanwhile, family
members of Palestinian citizens of Israel, living in
exile, sometimes in refugee camps just a few miles outside
Israel's borders, are not permitted to set foot in the
country.
The rise of Avigdor Lieberman, the new deputy prime
minister, who openly advocates stripping Palestinians in
Israel of citizenship and transferring them outside the
state, reflects increasingly extremist politics. In
response to growing discrimination, leaders of
Palestinians inside Israel recently issued a report, "The
Future Vision of the Palestinian Arabs in Israel." It
calls for Israel to become a state where all citizens and
communities have equal rights, regardless of religion.
Many Israeli commentators reacted angrily, calling the
initiative an attempt to dismantle Israel as a "Jewish
state." However, even if Mr. Carter's recommendations are
implemented, and Israel withdraws from the territories
occupied in 1967, the struggle over the legitimacy of a
state that privileges one ethno- religious group at the
expense of another will not disappear.
As other divided societies, like South Africa,
Northern Ireland and indeed our own are painfully learning, only
equal rights and esteem for all the people, in the
diversity of their identities, can bring lasting peace.
This is an even harder discussion than the one President
Carter has courageously launched, but ultimately it is one
we must confront if peace is to come to Israel-Palestine.
Ali Abunimah is co-founder of The Electronic Intifada and
author of "One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the
Israeli-Palestinian Impasse" (Metropolitan Books, 2006).
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3) Free Healthcare in Venezuela Regardless of Class
Ronald Suarez Rivas
and Alberto Borrego Avila (photos),
special envoys
GRANMA
December 27, 2006
Here for you in English. Not yet in English at:
http://www.granma.cubaweb.cu/2006/12/27/cubamundo/artic02.html
[(An exceptionally significant report with many implications for
the political and medical situation in Venezuela, Bolivia and
beyond. What a mistake it would be to simply limit medical care
to certain sections of the city or the society. The idea that
medical care is a right for all people is a solid principle to
be understood widely and, hopefully, emulated elswhere as well.
(It's a good thing that Venezuala isn't wasting any money on any
foreign wars and occupations, and with the price of oil on the
uprise, the country can afford to provide this care to everyone.
It will, furthermore, help to undercut opposition to the Chavez
government and the Bolivarian process generally. Keep in mind
that the private fee-for-service model of medical care bitterly
resents the competion from those who believe healthcare should
be a right, not a privilege for the wealth and something which
the rest can get if they are poor enough to quality for charity,
and then only if those wo give to charity give enough.
Strengthening the working class by providing free health care,
since many don't get it through their jobs, and at the same
time winning the support of as many in the middle classes as
possible by also cutting the cost of medical care can help to
undercut support for the Venezuelan opposition as well, which
is certainly not about to go away. So not only does this give
a practical demonstration of what a socialist government can
do, but it shows an astute sense of political strategy, too.
Compare the Venezuelan experience with the Honduran:
http://www.walterlippmann.com/docs070.html
(This is one readers should spread far and wide.)...Walter
Lippmann, www.walterlippmann.com ]
MIRANDA, Venezuela.- The doctor's office in the community of La
California Norte was inaugurated amid the protest of people beating
pots and pans and a shower of stones. In fact, the first patient that
same morning was a woman whose head was split open by a piece of dry
ice that somebody had thrown.
caption:
"THE SECRET TO BECOMING ACCEPTED
IS TO EXCEL IN OUR WORK," DR. MARISOL SAYS.
"They are communists, soldiers disguised as doctors who are coming to
brainwash people," some of the locals said of the Cuban doctors who
had come to serve at the new clinic as part of the Barrio Adentro
initiative in Venezuela that provides free neighborhood healthcare.
While among Venezuela's poor communities the program has been
received with enthusiasm, in this middle class neighborhood of the
state of Miranda it seemed that it would be impossible to establish.
To begin with, the Barrio Adentro clinics had been set up in the
poorest neighborhoods, but having a free and trusted healthcare
program was a request of all Venezuela and the clinics are starting
to spread to middle class neighborhoods.
"The Cuban doctors? They are very good. Whenever my children are sick
I bring them here for treatment," said Yolanda, a resident of La
California Norte.
Vitta, another local, suffers from high blood pressure and visits the
clinic on a daily basis to monitor her condition. "Before I had to go
to a drugstore, now I come here because I like it better, they take
good care of me and don't charge."
Despite the prevailing opposition to President Chavez in this
community, becoming part of the Barrio Adentro program was an
important step for several of the residents who came together to
create a health committee and support the project.
On May 12, 2004, when the health clinic opened, Dr. Marisol Pelaez
had already been serving the people of La California Norte for eight
months.
"In the beginning we provided our services at a resident's home [.]
and tried to become familiar with the community to become accepted.
The first days were really hard. We barely received two or three
patients, sometimes the same people came more than once so that we
would not be sent elsewhere because of a lack of work."
caption:
YUDITH SILVERA COMES FREQUENTLY
WITH ONE OF THE 20 CHILDREN OF THE
DAY CARE CENTER WHERE SHE WORKS.
But as time went by, the doctor's office turned into an essential
element within the neighborhood.
Carmen di Tercio owes her life to it. An aspirin she took caused an
adverse reaction while she was shopping at the Petare Market, and she
asked a taxi driver to take her to the Cuban doctors.
"When she arrived she was unconscious. We immediately injected her,
did an intravenous connection and she regained consciousness within a
few minutes," said Dr. Pelaez.
Yudith Silvera frequently brings some of the 20 children from the
children's nursery where she works.
Before she had to go through an insurance company, "The service was
slow and very expensive, but here they provide care to us immediately
and they are excellent."
Fear? Dr. Pelaez says, "Our commitment with Fidel, the importance
that the Venezuelan Revolution advance because of what it means to
the world and the protection afforded by so many friends made it so
we were never afraid.
"We were always accompanied by members of the health committee, who
came to protect the clinic. Many of the people that were banging the
pots and pans were just misled and confused. They had been told that
we were bringing weapons and were going to preach communism, but
little by little they were able to see the reality. They have even
apologized to us.
"Our secret is to do the best work possible and demonstrate the human
qualities of Cubans. People thank us on a daily basis for what we do
for them, the courage to be here and for leaving behind our families
to come and help them."
Everyday in the waiting room there are both Chavez supporters and
detractors, they sit together and talk while waiting for their turn.
"Before, this type of thing was impossible, without a doubt this is
part of the change that Venezuela is going through," Dr. Pelaez says.
Recently, a rehab clinic opened next door. During its inauguration
there were no pots and pans banged or stones thrown, instead there
was lots of excitement.
Fernando Roca, one of the regular patients, comments: "There are
still people who want to make life impossible for the Revolution and
even for us who live here. The mass media has poisoned them. But we
will continue struggling to make the process advance and so that what
has been built lasts."
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4) When Iraqis Gave Up on Government
Inter Press Service
Dahr Jamail and Ali Al-Fadhily
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
*BAGHDAD, Dec 27 (IPS) - The Iraqi government headed by Prime Minister
Noori al-Maliki, like earlier governments assigned by U.S. occupation
authorities in Iraq, appears to have killed Iraqi dreams of a brighter
future.*
General elections Dec. 15, 2005 brought in a government that was
supposed to listen to Iraqis all over the country. It was called a unity
government because the cabinet was formed to include ministers from all
ethnic and sectarian backgrounds after months of negotiations in the
parliament.
"This is a unity government that no one should object to," al-Maliki
told reporters recently in Baghdad. "All of the powers in parliament
should take part in improving security and services in order to achieve
success."
Maliki condemned groups such as Jabhat al-Tawafuq and The Iraqi Front
for National Dialogue, along with other political groups who have been
critical of the government.
Jabhat al-Tawafuq comprises three leading Sunni groups: the Iraqi
Islamic Party, the Iraqi People's Conference and the National Dialogue
Council. Their platform is based on national unity and ending the
occupation.
The Iraqi Front for National Dialogue also stands for ending the
occupation, rebuilding government institutions and improving the
economic and security situation.
But opposition leaders blame Maliki for denying them a role within
government, undermining his claim that there is indeed a unity government.
"We are not really in the government," Tariq al-Hashimi, leader of the
Islamic Party, and one of Iraq's two vice-presidents told IPS earlier.
"Maliki and his coalition never gave us any real role in the government,
and our ministers' actions are therefore paralysed."
Hashimi's group, like other Sunni groups and also some moderate Shia
groups, are nearly voiceless in the feeble Iraqi government.
The dominant Shia coalition was formed in accordance with advice from
Iranian-born Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the revered Shia cleric who
lives in Najaf in the south. This coalition of Shia parties was formed
to secure power against a list of secular parties led by former interim
prime minister Iyad Allawi who formed 'The Iraqi List'.
The power of the Shia coalition forced reluctant Sunnis to participate
in the elections by banding together with their own list in order to win
the votes of Sunnis. The entire political process was divided along
religious and sectarian lines, and along ethnic lines because the
Kurdish list included all of the Kurdish parties.
Given this background, few Iraqis are surprised that their government is
fractured and fragmented, and at odds with itself.
"This government will definitely lead the country into disaster," Dr.
Salih al-Mutlaq, leader of The Iraqi Front for National Dialogue told
IPS earlier. "The country will slide into civil war if this sectarian
attitude remains, and that is why we decided not to participate in this
government."
Former prime minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, with the support of Shia
cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, took over April 7, 2005. But Jaafari was
rejected by all other groups, and also by some parties within the Shia
coalition for his failure to lead the country.
Maliki was then assigned the job of prime minister on condition of fair
distribution of in the cabinet amongst winners, and fair treatment to
all Iraqis regardless of their religious or ethnic identity.
"Things only got worse, and this government and parliament won the title
of the worst in the history of Iraq," Thafir al-Ani from al-Tawafuq told
IPS. "The whole system needs to be changed, or else the country will be
divided into small states, and the catastrophe will be too vast to be
corrected."
Al-Ani cited recent polls to say that more than 90 percent of Iraqis are
angry with the government. People continue to blame the government for
everything going wrong from the high level of violence to lack of
employment and of water and electricity.
One of the darkest clouds of illegitimacy over the Iraqi government is
the alignment of top officials with the Sadr Movement, which has been
accused of backing most of the sectarian death squads that are now the
leading cause of death in Iraq.
"This government failed on all the promises it made to Iraqis, and so
all Iraqis want it changed," Muhammad Basher al-Faidhy, spokesman for
the Sunni Association of Muslim Scholars told IPS. "They are sorry they
ever took part in the elections. Our Association warned Iraqis that this
government would be the worst ever. They simply cannot get rid of death
squads because they are their major ally."
Most Iraqis see no future for Maliki's struggling government, which
barely controls the so-called Green Zone in Baghdad where its offices
are located. The rest of the country is fragmented, and the economy and
infrastructure are in ruins.
"They are going down despite the huge support they are getting from the
U.S. administration," Iraqi analyst Maki al-Nazzal told IPS. "They are
faced by an international denial after their resounding failure in
facing the deteriorating security situation and the comprehensive
collapse in services and reconstruction."
On the other hand, the Sadr movement finds itself in a strong enough
situation to turn away from al-Maliki and his Dawa Party. Sadr leaders
are now calling for early elections, and they are confident of winning
without other support, says their spokesman Hassan al-Zarqani.
"It seems that the United States have chosen the wrong ally once more,"
Zarqani told IPS. "So they will have to reconsider yet again." Sadr had
recently pulled his representatives from the government, but they came back.
Meanwhile, another crisis has arisen. Grand Ayatollah Sistani announced
last week that he will not support a U.S.-backed plan to build a
coalition across sectarian lines. The plan would have sought to
marginalise Muqtada al-Sadr by dividing the Shias.
Resistance to the occupation is rising, on the streets and politically,
as support for the government falls. Not a promising start to 2007.
(c)2006 Dahr Jamail
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LINKS AND VERY SHORT STORIES
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S.E.C. Changes Reporting Rule on Bosses’ Pay
By FLOYD NORRIS
The Securities and Exchange Commission, in a move announced late
on the last business day before Christmas, reversed a decision it had
made in July and adopted a rule that would allow many companies
to report significantly lower total compensation for top executives.
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/business/27place.html?ref=business
A Transit Union Vote So Close They Counted It Five Times
By WILLIAM NEUMAN
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/nyregion/27union.html
Texas: Challenge to Ordinance on Immigrants
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Two civil rights groups filed a lawsuit challenging a Dallas suburb’s
new ordinance that outlaws renting homes to illegal immigrants,
arguing that it violates federal law and forces landlords to act as
immigration officers. The groups, the Mexican American Legal Defense
and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union, filed the
suit on behalf of residents and landlords in Farmers Branch. The
ordinance, along with a measure that made English the official
language of the city, was passed in November and is scheduled
to go into effect Jan. 12.
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/us/27brfs-CHALLENGETOO_BRF.html
Spanish Doctor Denies Castro Has Cancer
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/world/americas/27castro.html?ref=world
2 More Die as Bird Flu Continues Spreading to Humans in Egypt
By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/world/africa/27flu.html
First Settlement in 10 Years Fuels Mideast Tension
By STEVEN ERLANGER
December 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/27/world/middleeast/27mideast.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin
Iraq/Lebanon/Gaza - Chaos By Design or Divide and Conquer
Instigating Arab Civil War for US/Israel's Benefit
http://counterpunch.org/shahid12232006.html
The First US Foreign Invasion - Seizing Florida in 1816
http://counterpunch.org/katz12232006.html
The El Mozote Massacre 25 Years later
http://counterpunch.org/gould12232006.html
Heady Days for Makers of Weapons
By LESLIE WAYNE
December 26, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/26/business/26place.html?ref=business
Diabetics Confront a Tangle of Workplace Laws
By N. R. KLEINFIELD
December 26, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/26/health/26workplace.html?ref=us
Back in Style: The Fur Trade
By KATE GALBRAITH
December 24, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/business/yourmoney/24fur.html?ref=business
The Right Has a Jailhouse Conversion
By CHRIS SUELLENTROP
December 24, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/magazine/24GOP.t.html?ref=us
Libya's travesty
Nature Editorial
Six medical workers in Libya face execution. It is not too late for
scientists to speak up on their behalf.
Published online 20 September 2006
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v443/n7109/full/443245b.html
FOCUS | The Race for Iraq's Resources
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122306Y.shtml
FOCUS | Bush May Boost Iraq Troops by 20,000
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122406Z.shtml
VIDEO | Army Targets Truthout for Subpoenas in Watada Case
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/121306J.shtml
Outsize Profits, and Questions, in Effort to Cut Warming Gases
By KEITH BRADSHER
December 21, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/21/business/21pollute.html?ref=science
Gender Pay Gap, Once Narrowing, Is Stuck in Place
By DAVID LEONHARDT
December 24, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/business/24gap.html?ref=business
U.S. Gives Grants to 4 Gulf Coast States to Upgrade Disaster Housing
By ERIC LIPTON
"WASHINGTON, Dec. 22 — FEMA trailers, the cramped, impersonal
housing units that have come to define the federal response to major
disasters, may be on the way out, thanks to $388 million in federal
grants, announced Friday, that will test half a dozen cozier, more
permanent models of postdisaster housing."
December 23, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/washington/23fema.html?ref=us
Kansas: Abortion Charges Dismissed
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kansas’ attorney general, a vocal opponent of abortion, charged
a well-known abortion provider, Dr. George Tiller, left, with illegally
performing late-term abortions, but a judge threw out the charges
after less than a day. The judge, Paul W. Clark, dismissed the charges
at the request of District Attorney Nola Foulston of Sedgwick County,
who said her office had not been consulted by Attorney General
Phill Kline. Dr. Tiller’s clinic, one of the few in the country to
perform late-term abortions, has been a target of anti-abortion
protesters for decades.
December 23, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/us/23brfs-ABORTIONCHAR_BRF.html
West Virginia: More Testing in Mine Inquiry
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Federal scientists have found new evidence supporting the widely
held theory that lightning sparked a huge methane gas explosion
that killed 12 men in the Sago Mine last January. Sandia National
Laboratories said its lightning experts spent 10 days testing
at the mine and found that lightning can readily move through
solid ground without a metal conductor.
December 23, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/us/23brfs-MORETESTINGI_BRF.html
Seductively Easy, Payday Loans Often Snowball
By ERIK ECKHOLM
"In many states, including New Mexico, lenders also make no effort
to see if customers have borrowed elsewhere, which is how Mr. Milford
could take out so many loans at once. If they repay on time, borrowers
pay fees ranging from $15 per $100 borrowed in some states to,
in New Mexico, often $20 or more per $100, which translates into
an annualized interest rate, for a two-week loan, of 520 percent
or more."
December 23, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/us/23payday.html?ref=us
Italian Fashion Industry Pledges to Fight Anorexia
By PETER KIEFER
December 22, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/22/world/europe/22cnd-italy.html
Blood Diamond
A Film Review
By Dr. Barbara Ransby, PhD
The Black Commentator Editorial Board
December 21, 2006
Issue 211
http://www.blackcommentator.com/211/211_blood_diamond_ransby_ed_bd.html
From DVDs to IEDs
The teen and I are doing our seasonal, consumerist duty at Best Buy,
when to our right, in the DVD section, stand two tall Marines over
a smaller teen boy. Back and forth, a well-rehearsed duo, the
queries fly -- How old are you? What are your plans after high
school? What do you want out of life? Do you want to be
successful and respected?
http://redstateson.blogspot.com/2006/12/from-dvds-to-ieds.html
Marines Charged in Killing of 24 Iraqi Civilians
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122106R.shtml
Agency to Test Military Draft Machinery
By KASIE HUNT
The Associated Press
Thursday, December 21, 2006; 9:45 PM
http://www.washingt onpost.com/ wp-dyn/content/ article/2006/ 12/21/AR20061221 01327.html
"I'm Jealous of Cuba"
An Interview with Gore Vidal
By ROSA MARIAM ELIZALDE
Havana
December 21, 2006
http://www.counterpunch.com/mariam12212006.html
Chavez Landslide Tops All In US History
by Stephen Lendman
Wednesday, 20 December 2006
http://www.atlanticfreepress.com/content/view/490/81/
URGENT Support is requested from Dine Elders and Youth!
Sithe Global & DPA are proposing to build the Desert Rock
power plant, a 1,500 MW Coal Fired plant in the Four Corners
area on the Navajo Reservation. This is an area already polluted
by 2 other major coal power plants. Local Navajo residence and
community members oppose this project for many harmful
reasons!! This Desert Rock power plant is still in the environmental
review process and has NOT yet been permitted.
http://www.blackmesawatercoalition.org/urgent_Dine121406.html
Bush "Developing Illegal Bioterror Weapons"
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122006R.shtml
Climate Change vs Mother Nature: Scientists reveal that bears
have stopped hibernating
Bears have stopped hibernating in the mountains of northern Spain,
scientists revealed yesterday, in what may be one of the strongest
signals yet of how much climate change is affecting the natural world.
December 21, 2006
http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article2091875.ece
Raising the Floor on Pay
By LOUIS UCHITELLE
December 20, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/20/business/20minwage.html?ref=business
Goldman CEO's $53.4M Bonus Breaks Record
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
December 20, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Goldman-Sachs-Bonuses.html
Goldman Chairman Gets a Bonus of $53.4 Million
By JENNY ANDERSON
December 20, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/20/business/20wall.html?ref=business
Fear and Hope in Immigrant’s Furtive Existence
By LIZETTE ALVAREZ
December 20, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/20/us/20veronica.html?hp&ex=1166677200&en=e9be2f8580c85b6c&ei=5094&partner=homepage
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SCROLL DOWN TO READ:
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS (IN FULL DETAIL)
GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
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EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS
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BARRIO UNIDO FOR GENERAL AND UNCONDITIONAL
AMNESTY FOR ALL!
EMERGENCY PICKET LINE
FRIDAY, JANUARY 12, 2007, 4:00 - 7:00 P.M.
FEDERAL BUILDING
450 GOLDEN GATE AVE.
BETWEEN POLK AND LARKIN STREETS, S.F.
STOP THE ICE RAIDS! FREE THE WORKERS!
STOP THE DEPORTATIONS!
THE WORKERS SHOULD GET THEIR JOBS BACK!
WE DEMAND IMMEDIATE, GENERAL AND UNCONDITIONAL
AMNESTY FOR ALL! DEFEND THE RIGHT OF
ALL WORKERS TO ORGANIZE UNIONS IN THEIR OWN DEFENSE!
All human beings have basic, inalienable human rights to life, liberty
and the pursuit of happiness. If your family is starving and you
can not find work, you have the right to find someplace where you can
feed, clothe and house your family.
If capital can go all over the world exploiting workers, then workers
have the right to move to find work for their family's basic survival.
IMMIGRANT WORKERS ARE GUILTY OF NOTHING
BUT WORKING HARD TO SUPPORT THEMSELVES
AND THEIR FAMILIES.
From South America, Latin America, China, Africa, India--in countries
all over the world, not to speak of the war in Iraq--a war of blood
for oil--U.S. businesses are raking in huge profits off the backs of workers
who earn slave wages and work under the most dangerous working conditions
at best, and under a state of war at worse.
Meanwhile, here at home, they are laying off workers, closing factories, doing
away with benefits and working conditions won by worker's struggles
in the past--installing two, three, many-tiered pay scales--driving down
wages to below the scale parents are earning--leaving our children
with the heritage of a guaranteed life of poverty without union
representation.
WORKERS HAVE THE RIGHT TO ORGANIZE UNIONS!
And now they launch an all-out war against the most vulnerable workers
--who are driven to work in these meatpacking plants. Whether
documented or not, this is brutal, dangerous and difficult work.
And not so coincidentally, these same workers just happen
to be in the midst of a fight to win union recognition!
THESE ARRESTS ARE A THREAT TO ALL WORKERS
AND ALL UNIONS!
These mass arrests are terrorist tactics designed as a warning
to all workers that if they struggle for a better life and better
working conditions, they will be persecuted in every way
imaginable.
This is an all-out assault on every worker and it is being
executed by a terrorist government--the U.S. Government--
who uses pre-emptive war based upon outright lies to further
their oil profits; who will stop at nothing to increase their
rate of profit.
The ultimate goal of the U.S. Government is for American big
business to continue to accumulate unimaginable wealth
at the expense of the hardworking majority all over the
world--nothing is off-limits to them in this, their fundamental
pursuit!
STOP THE ICE RAIDS! FREE THE WORKERS!
STOP THE DEPORTATIONS!
THE WORKERS SHOULD GET THEIR JOBS BACK!
WE DEMAND IMMEDIATE, GENERAL AND UNCONDITIONAL
AMNESTY FOR ALL! DEFEND THE RIGHT OF
ALL WORKERS TO ORGANIZE UNIONS IN THEIR OWN DEFENSE!
An injury to one is an injury to all! We are only as strong as our
weakest link. If we allow these terrorists from ICE to continue
to carry out these assaults against the basic human rights
of any of us--no matter what our immigration status--they
will not hesitate one second to use these same tactics of mass
firings, arrest, etc. against all of us who dare to struggle
in our own defense and in our own, basic human interests and
for our own basic rights as workers and human beings!
It's up to us to organize and fight back! If we are united, we cannot loose!
WE ENCOURAGE ALL WORKERS AND ALL LABOR AND COMMUNITY
ORGANIZATIONS TO ENDORSE THIS ACTION AND COME OUT TO
PICKET THE FEDERAL BUILDING TO PROTEST THESE RAIDS!
BRING YOUR OWN BANNERS AND SIGNS!
For more information contact:
Barrio Unido por una Amnistia
General e Incondicional
Cristina Gutierrez,
415-431-9925
companeros98@hotmail.com
Bonnie Weinstein, www.bauaw.org
415-824-8730
bonnieweinstein@yahoo.com
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ACT NOW TO END THE WAR!
SATURDAY JANUARY 27, 2007
Washington, D.C.
VOLUNTEER Live in NYC or DC? We need your help
before and during the protest. Call 212-868-5545
STAYINFORMED Visit www.unitedforpeace.org for
updated information and to sign up for our action alerts
DONATE Whether you can contribute $10, $100, or
$1000, we need your support to help end the war!
Call 212-866-5545 or visit www.unitedforpeace.org/donate
Join us for a massive
march on Washington
to tell the new Congress:
unitedforpeace&justice
www.unitedforpeace.org (212)868-5545
On Election Day the voters delivered a dramatic,
unmistakable mandate for peace. Now it's time for action.
On Jan. 27, 2007, help send a strong, clear message to
Congress and the Bush Administration:
Bring the troops home now!
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MARCH ON THE PENTAGON
SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2007
U.S. OUT OF IRAQ NOW
From Iraq to New Orleans, Fund the People's Needs NOT THE
WAR MACHINE! End Colonial Occupation: Iraq, Palestine, Haiti and
everywhere! Shut Down Guantanamo
AnswerCoalition.org
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LYNNE STEWART AND MICHAEL RATNER IN BAY AREA
FEBRUARY 23-25 (Lynne and her husband Ralph will
stay on several more days. Stay tuned for complete
schedule of events.)
Dear Friends of Lynne Stewart,
I am pleased to announce that Lynne Stewart and Michael Ratner have
just accepted our invitation to tour the Bay Area. The confirmed
dates are February 23-25, 2007. Lynne, accompanied by her husband
Ralph Poynter, will stay on several more days for additional meetings.
In solidarity,
Jeff Mackler,
West Coast Coordinator, Lynne Stewart Defense Committee
Co-Coordinator, Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
O: 415-255-1080
Cell: 510-387-7714
H: 510-268-9429
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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
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GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
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A NEW LOOK AT U.S. RADIOACTIVE WEAPONS
Join us in a campaign to expose and stop the use of these illegal weapons
http://poisondust.org/
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You may enjoy watching these.
In struggle
Che:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqcezl9dD2c
Leon:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukkFVV5X0p4
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FIGHTBACK! A Collection of Socialist Essays
By Sylvia Weinstein
http://www.walterlippmann.com/sylvia-weinstein-fightback-intro.html
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URGENT APPEAL TO SAVE IRAQ'S ACADEMICS.
Call for action to save Iraq's Academics
A little known aspect of the tragedy engulfing Iraq is the systematic
liquidation of the country's academics. Even according to conservative
estimates, over 250 educators have been assassinated, and many
hundreds more have disappeared. With thousands fleeing the country
in fear for their lives, not only is Iraq undergoing a major brain drain,
the secular middle class - which has refused to be co-opted by the
US occupation - is being decimated, with far-reaching consequences
for the future of Iraq.
http://www.brussellstribunal.org/
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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.
https://secure2.convio.net/pep/site/Advocacy?
JServSessionIdr003=cga2p2o6x1.app2a&cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=177
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ENDORSE THE A.N.S.W.E.R. CALL TO ACTION
March 17-18, 2007
GLOBAL DAYS OF ACTION ON THE
4TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WAR!
http://answer.pephost.org/site/Survey?
SURVEY_ID=3400&ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS&JServSessionIdr011=
k7a3443r73.app8a
http://answer.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ANS_homepage
Please circulate widely
www.answercoalition.org
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Sand Creek Massacre
Hello, Everyone,
On November 29, 1864, 700 Colorado troops savagely slaughtered
over 450 Cheyenne children, disabled, elders, and women in the
southeastern Colorado Territory under its protection. This act
became known as the Sand Creek Massacre. This film project
("The Sand Creek Massacre" documentary film project) is an
examination of an open wound in the souls of the Cheyenne
people as told from their perspective. This project chronicles
that horrific 19th century event and its affect on the 21st century
struggle for respectful coexistence between white and native
plains cultures in the United States of America.
Listed below are links on which you can click to get the latest news,
products, and view, free, "THE SAND CREEK MASSACRE" award-
winning documentary short. In order to create more native
awareness, particularly to save the roots of America's history,
please read the following:
Some people in America are trying to save the world. Bless
them. In the meantime, the roots of America are dying.
What happens to a plant when the roots die? The plant dies
according to my biology teacher in high school. American's
roots are its native people. Many of America's native people
are dying from drug and alcohol abuse, poverty, hunger,
and disease, which was introduced to them by the Caucasian
male. Tribal elders are dying. When they die, their oral
histories go with them. Our native's oral histories are the
essence of the roots of America, what took place before
our ancestors came over to America, what is taking place,
and what will be taking place. It is time we replenish
America's roots with native awareness, else America
continues its decaying, and ultimately, its death.
You can help. The 22-MINUTE SAND CREEK MASSACRE
DOCUMENTARY PRESENTATION/EDUCATIONAL DVD IS
READY FOR PURCHASE! (pass the word about this powerful
educational tool to friends, family, schools, parents, teachers,
and other related people and organizations to contact
me (dvasicek@earthlink.net, 303-903-2103) for information
about how they can purchase the DVD and have me come
to their children's school to show the film and to interact
in a questions and answers discussion about the Sand
Creek Massacre.
Happy Holidays!
Donald L. Vasicek
Olympus Films+, LLC
http://us.imdb.com/Name?Vasicek,+Don
http://www.donvasicek.com
dvasicek@earthlink.net
303-903-2103
"THE SAND CREEK MASSACRE" AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY
SHORT FEATURED AT NATIVE AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL:
http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/local/16035305.htm
(scroll down when you get there])
"THE SAND CREEK MASSACRE" AWARD-WINNING
WRITER/FILMMAKER DONALD L. VASICEK REPORT:
http://www.digitalcinemareport.com/sandcreekmassacre.html
"THE SAND CREEK MASSACRE" AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY
SHORT FINALIST IN DOCUMENTARY CHANNEL COMPETITION (VIEW HERE):
http://www.docupyx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=28&Itemid=41
VIEW "THE SAND CREEK MASSACRE" AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY
SHORT FILM MOVIE OF THE WEEK FOR FREE HERE:
http://twymancreative.com/twymanc.html
SHOP:
http://www.manataka.org/page633.html
BuyIndies.com
donvasicek.com.
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MUST SEE: PBS VIDEO NOTEBOOK: A DAY AT THE PLANT
NOW's Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa takes us inside the
world's largest pork processing plant, located in Tar Heel, North
Carolina. As the first TV journalist ever allowed to film inside the
plant, owned by The Smithfield Packing Company, Hinojosa gives
us an insider's view of what conditions are like in a plant that
slaughters over 33,000 hogs per day.
http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/250/smithfield.html
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Rights activist held in Oaxaca prison
Three students arrested and held incommunicado in Oaxaca
http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2006/11/80142.html
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TAX THE RICH! FEED THE POOR! MONEY FOR HUMAN NEEDS, NOT WAR!
www.bauaw.org
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The following quote is from the 1918 anti-war speech delivered
in Canton, Ohio, by Eugene Debs. The address, protesting World War I,
resulted in Debs being arrested and imprisoned on charges of espionage.
The speech remains one of the great expressions of the militancy and
internationalism of the US working class.
His appeal, before sentencing, included one of his best-known quotes:
"...while there is a lower class, I am in it, and while there is a criminal
element I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free."
Read the complete speech at:
http://douglassarchives.org/debs_a78.htm
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!VIVA FIDEL! LONG LIVE FIDEL! LONG LIVE THE CUBAN REVOLUTION!
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My Name is Roland Sheppard
This Is My `Blog'
I am is a retired Business Representative of Painters District
Council #8 in San Francisco. I have been a life long social activist
and socialist. Roland Sheppard is a retired Business Representative
of Painters District Council #8 in San Francisco. I have been
a life long social activist and socialist.
Prior to my being elected as a union official, I had worked
for 31 years as a house painter and have been a lifelong socialist.
I have led a unique life. In my retire age, I am interested in writing
about my experiences as a socialist, as a participant in the Black
Liberation Movement, the Union Movement, and almost all social
movements.
I became especially interested in the environment when I was
diagnosed with cancer due to my work environment. I learned
how to write essays, when I first got a computer in order to put
together all the medical legal arguments on my breakthrough
workers' compensation case in California, proving that my work
environment as a painter had caused my cancer. After a five-year
struggle, I won a $300,000 settlement on his case.
The following essays are based upon my involvement in the
struggle for freedom for all humanity. I hope the history
of my life's experiences will help future generations
of Freedom Fighters.
For this purpose, this website is dedicated.
web.mac.com/rolandgarret/iWeb/Site/RolandSheppardsBlog.html
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The Corporate Looting of the Gulf Coast
Robin Hood in Reverse
http://www.counterpunch.org/quigley11132006.html
More Info:
www.justiceforneworleans.org
For a detailed report:
Big, Easy Money: Disaster Profiteering on the American Gulf Coast
by Rita J. King, Special to CorpWatch
August 15th, 2006
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=14004
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TAX FACT SHEET
http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/901006_taxpolicy.pdf
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Communist Manifesto illustrated by Disney [and other cartoons) with
words by K. Marx and F. Engels--absolutely wonderful!...bw]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1oGIffyVVk&NR
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Asylum Street Spankers-Magnetic Yellow Ribbon
http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=bfMgRHRJ- tc
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Homer Simpson Joins the Army
Another morale-booster from Groening and company. [If you get
a chance to see the whole thing, it's worth it...bw]
http://hotair.com/archives/2006/11/12/video-the-simpsons-salute-the-lazy-and
-uneducated/
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A Look at the Numbers: How the Rich Get Richer
Clara Jeffery (May/June 2006 Issue
IN 1985, THE FORBES 400 were worth $221 billion combined.
Today, they re worth $1.13 trillion more than the GDP of Canada.
THERE'VE BEEN FEW new additions to the Forbes 400.
The median household income
has also stagnated at around $44,000.
AMONG THE FORBES 400 who gave to a 2004 presidential
campaign, 72% gave to Bush.
IN 2005, there were 9 million American millionaires,
a 62% increase since 2002.
IN 2005, 25.7 million Americans received food stamps,
a 49% increase since 2000.
ONLY ESTATES worth more than $1.5 million are taxed.
That's less than 1% of all estates
http://www.motherjones.com/cgi-bin/print_article.pl?url=http://www.motherjon
es.com/news/exhibit/2006/05/perks_of_privilege.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Do You Want to Stop PREVENT War with Iran?
Dear Friend,
Every day, pundits and military experts debate on TV when, how and where
war with Iran will occur. Can the nuclear program be destroyed? Will the
Iranian government retaliate in Iraq or use the oil weapon? Will it take
three or five days of bombing? Will the US bomb Iran with "tactical"
nuclear weapons?
Few discuss the human suffering that yet another war in the Middle East
will bring about. Few discuss the thousands and thousands of innocent
Iranian and American lives that will be lost. Few think ahead and ask
themselves what war will do to the cause of democracy in Iran or to
America's global standing.
Some dismiss the entire discussion and choose to believe that war simply
cannot happen. The US is overstretched, the task is too difficult, and
the world is against it, they say.
They are probably right, but these factors don't make war unlikely. They
just make a successful war unlikely.
At the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), we are not going to
wait and see what happens.
We are actively working to stop the war and we need your help!
Working with a coalition of peace and security organizations in
Washington DC, NIAC is adding a crucial dimension to this debate - the
voice of the Iranian-American community.
Through our US-Iran Media Resource Program
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkFbIfQs8eafpLV5/
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkFbIfQs8eafpLV5/ , we help
the media ask the right questions and bring attention to the human side
of this issue.
Through the LegWatch program
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabummRbIfQs8eafpLV5/
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabummRbIfQs8eafpLV5/ ,
we are building opposition to the war on Capitol Hill. We spell out the
likely
consequences of war and the concerns of the Iranian-American community
on Hill panels
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkGbIfQs8eafpLV5/
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkGbIfQs8eafpLV5/
and in direct meetings with lawmakers. We recently helped more than a dozen
Members of Congress - both Republican and Democrats - send a strong
message against war to the White House
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkHbIfQs8eafpLV5/
http://niacouncil.c.topica.com/maafjioabumkHbIfQs8eafpLV5/
But more is needed, and we need your help!
If you don't wish to see Iran turn into yet another Iraq, please make a
contribution online or send in a check to:
NIAC
2801 M St NW
Washington DC 20007
Make the check out to NIAC and mark it "NO WAR."
ALL donations are welcome, both big and small. And just so you know,
your donations make a huge difference. Before you leave the office
today, please make a contribution to stop the war.
Sincerely,
Trita Parsi
President of NIAC
U.S. Labor Against the War (USLAW)
www.uslaboragainstwar.org
http://www.uslaboragainstwar.org/
Email: info@uslaboragainstwar.org
PMB 153
1718 "M" Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20036
Voicemail: 202/521-5265
Co-convenors: Gene Bruskin, Maria Guillen, Fred Mason,
Bob Muehlenkamp, and Nancy Wohlforth
Michael Eisenscher, National Organizer & Website Coordinator
Virginia Rodino, Organizer
Adrienne Nicosia, Administrative Staff
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Immigration video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tacK8MAfuAs
*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Enforce the Roadless Rule for National Forests
Target: Michael Johanns, Secretary, USDA
Sponsor: Earthjustice
We, the Undersigned, endorse the following petition:
This past September, Earthjustice scored a huge victory for our roadless
national forests when a federal district court ordered the reinstatement
of the Roadless Rule.
The Roadless Rule protects roadless forest areas from road-building
and most logging. This is bad news for the timber, mining, and oil
& gas industries ... And so they're putting pressure on their friends
in the Bush Administration to challenge the victory.
Roadless area logging tends to target irreplaceable old growth forests.
Many of these majestic trees have stood for hundreds of years.
By targeting old-growth, the timber companies are destroying
natural treasures that cannot be replaced in our lifetime.
The future of nearly 50 million acres of wild, national forests
and grasslands hangs in the balance. Tell the secretary of the
USDA, Michael Johanns, to protect our roadless areas by enforcing
the Roadless Rule. The minute a road is cut through a forest, that
forest is precluded from being considered a "wilderness area," and
thus will not be covered by any of the Wilderness Area protections
afforded by Congress.
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/112283692?z00m=6687205&z00m=668720
5<l=1162406255
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
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
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
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.
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Asylum Street Spankers-Magnetic Yellow Ribbon
http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=bfMgRHRJ- tc
*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
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/
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Nick Mottern, Consumers for Peace
nickmottern@earthlink.net
Howard Zinn joins Kathy Kelly, Dahr Jamail, Ann Wright and Neil MacKay in
endorsing "War Crimes Committed by the United States in Iraq and
Mechanisms for Accountability."
The report was published internationally by 10 organizations in October.
"This report on the war crimes of the current administration is an
invaluable resource, with a meticulous presentation of the
evidence and an astute examination of international law.
- Howard Zinn.
The 37 page report, written by Consumers for Peace with the
consultation of international humanitarian law expert Karen
Parker, JD, is available for free download at
http://www.consumersforpeace.org/pdf/war_crimes_iraq_101006.pdf
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
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
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Oklahoma U's First African-American Speaker
Dear Representative Johnson:
Congratulations on your bill for creating an
African-American Centennial Plaza near the
Capitol.
I have a suggestion for including an important
moment in Oklahoma African-American
history in the displays.
The first African-American speaker at the
University of Oklahoma was Paul Boutelle,
in 1967.
He is still alive but has changed his name
to Kwame Somburu. I believe it would be
very appropriate also to invite Mr. Somburu
to attend the dedication ceremony for
this plaza. I correspond with him by email.
Here is a 1967 Sooner magazine article about his appearance:
http://digital.libraries.ou.edu/sooner/articles/p25-27_1967v40n2_OCR.pdf
Sincerely,
Mike Wright
Norman
329-6688
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Interesting web site with many flash films. The site is managed
by veteran James Starowicz, USN '67-'71 GMG3 Vietnam In-Country
'70-'71 Member: Veterans For Peace as well as other Veterans
and Pro-Peace Groups. Also Activist in other Area's, Questioning
Policies that only Benefit the Few, supporting Policies that Benefit
the Many and Move Us Forward as a Better Nation and World!
Politics: Registered Independent
http://imagineaworldof.blogspot.com/
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Taking Aim with Ralph Schoenman and Mya Shone has a new Internet
address: http://www.takingaimradio.com
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 the
new Taking Aim web address:
http://www.takingaimradio.com
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
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
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
Visit the Traprock Peace Center Video Archive at:
http://www.youtube.com/TraprockPeaceTV
Visit the Traprock Peace Center
Deerfield, MA
http://www.traprockpeace.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
---------*-- -------*- --------* --------- *-------- -*------- -
“It is reasonable and honorable to abhor violence and preach
against it while there is a visible and rational means of obtaining,
without violence, the indispensable justice for the welfare of man.
But, if convinced by the inevitable differences of character, by the
irreconcilable and different interests, because of the deep diversity
in the sea of the political mind and aspirations, there is not a peaceful
way to obtain the minimum rights of a people (…) or it is the blind
who against the boiling truth sustain peaceful means, or it is those
who doesn’t see and insist on proclaiming it that are untrue
to their people.”[2]
[2] José Martí “ Ciegos y desleales Obras Escogidas in III volumes;
Editorial Política 1981 Volume III p182
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Great Counter-Recruitment Website
http://notyoursoldi er.org/article. php?list= type&type= 14
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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.
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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."
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NO BORDERS! NO WALLS! NO FENCES! GENERAL AMNESTY FOR ALL!
OUR HOMELAND IS WHERE WE LIVE!
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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
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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
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Bill of Rights
http://www.law. cornell.edu/ constitution/ constitution. billofrights. html
http://www.indybay. org/news/ 2006/02/1805182. php
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"The International"
Lots of good information over at Wikipedia, as often the case:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Internationale
What I've always found fascinating is the wide variety of translations (or
perhaps it would be better to call them "interpretations" or "variations")
that exist, even in English. It's also fascinating to read all the different
verses of the song.
One thing I learned at Wikipedia is that the original intention was that the
song would be sung to the tune of the Marseillaise, but that shortly
thereafter different music was written. Good thing, in my opinion, I'd hate
to see the identities of two stirring songs be confused. Each deserves their
own place in history.
Lyrics to the Marseillaise are here - pretty stirring in their own right. As
with the Internationale, all sorts of unknown verses:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marseillaise
Eli Stephens
Left I on the News
http://lefti.blogspot.com
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