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    Thursday, March 10, 2005
     

    OPEN LETTER TO BD. OF ED./NEWSLETTER

    ---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
    OPEN LETTER TO MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OF
    THE SAN FRANCISCO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT:
    ---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*

    Dear all,

    I was very disappointed by the
    March 8th meeting of the Board of Education.
    I don't understand why the two
    military men from JROTC got at least twice as
    much time to speak as all 14 of
    us anti-recruitment folks put together.

    It seems they were given as much
    time as they wanted and they said nothing.
    Now I understand the March 17 meeting
    has been changed and will take up
    school closures instead, or that we
    will have to share the time with this
    equally urgent issue.

    It is very awkward for us since we
    are against any school closures. We feel
    school closures are directly tied to
    the billions spent on war just as the
    military recruitment is tied to this
    same horror.

    As the Campus Antiwar Network put
    it recently, "The counter-recruitment
    movement is growing faster than the
    military can recruit!" This should tell
    you how important this issue is to
    the community at large (If the
    Proposition N vote didn't already tell you.)

    We feel the issue of the war and the
    military war budget overrides all other
    issues having to do with lack of funds
    for social services such as our
    schools and hospitals, etc.

    Not only is the giant U.S. War machine
    robbing the coffers to kill and maim
    an entire country and region, but
    they want to use our kids to do it while
    sacrificing their education!

    We say HELL NO!

    It is imperative for us to collaborate
    in our efforts to turn this whole
    situation around and demand that
    the military budget be used for schools,
    housing, healthcare-not for recruiting
    our kids to kill and be killed in an
    illegal and horribly unjust war.

    All the antiwar groups in the city
    are working together on this issue. And
    there is a groundswell of protest
    growing about it because of the war. You,
    the leaders of our schools must take a stand with us.

    Our group along with many others
    has brainstormed all the things that could
    be accomplished by the board; there
    could be assemblies at each school
    several times a year about the military
    and alternatives to violence as a
    way to solve problems-especially
    political ones. We could have required
    programs for parents to inform them
    in person about the risks of the
    military for their child and the urgent
    need to get more money for schools,
    etc.

    The whole School District should march
    in a contingent together March 19th
    to demand an end to the war and to
    bring the troops home now. We have
    thought of hundreds of things the
    schools in partnership with the board
    could do to stop kids from going into
    the military and getting both kids and
    parents involved in a movement to
    demand enough money for our schools
    instead of more ammunition and
    cannon fodder for the military.

    As my mother said, "It will be a great
    day when the schools get all the
    money they need and the Navy has
    to hold a bake-sale to buy a ship."

    This issue is not going to go away.
    And we don't care about being appointed
    to any "advisory board." We will continue
    to go to these meetings until we
    get some results. We demand a full
    and thorough discussion on these urgent
    issues. We demand that we get
    more than a minute to speak about them. The
    war is a fundamental issue for all
    of us if we are to survive as a
    species-don't kid yourself or be
    in denial. This is the sad and terrifying
    reality of our world today.

    Our job as parents, grandparents,
    aunts, uncles, teachers is to give our
    children the necessary tools to live
    a full and productive life. Not to die
    in a greedy and unjust war that
    devastates millions and benefits only a tiny
    few of the very wealthiest and privileged among us.

    Please give this your immediate
    and full attention. This is a job for all of
    us together. We want to have
    a thorough and full discussion with the Board.

    Peace and solidarity,

    Bonnie Weinstein, Bay Area United Against War
    Www.bauaw.org

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

    1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
    Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
    Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
    Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.

    2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
    NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
    PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY

    3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
    No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
    San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

    4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON-POWERFUL ANTIWAR MOVIES

    5) IRA Must Go, Demand Britain and U.S. (link only)
    By Alex Richardson
    BELFAST, Northern Ireland (Reuters)
    2 hours, 36 minutes ago
    March 9,2005
    http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&e=1&u=/nm/20050309/wl_nm/irish_dc

    6) US officer: 'Why I disagree (link only)
    with Bush's war for oil'
    Brayden joined the US army not thinking he'd ever be sent
    to war. He certainly hadn't entertained the idea that he
    would turn against a war.
    http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/618/618p12.htm

    7) Subject: [MilLawTF] Sole Surviving Child -- or Lies
    My Recruiter Told Me! From:
    Harold Jordan
    Date: March 8, 2005 8:36:54 AM PST
    To: MLTF full list ,
    MLTF SC
    Reply-To: MilLawTF@yahoogroups.com

    8) NEWS: *USA Today* on Army Guard recruitment -
    and on counter-recruitment
    (with additional links)

    9) FOR GUARD RECRUITERS, A TOUGH SELL (link only)
    By Dave Moniz
    USA Today
    March 8, 2005
    http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-07-recruits-cover_x.htm

    10) GLOBAL EXCHANGE ANTIWAR TEACH-IN MARCH 24
    On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the
    Vietnam War.
    NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
    Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
    Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
    $5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away for lack of funds.

    11) Students Protest Military Recruitment
    by Lachlan Maclean and William Roller staff writers
    March 9, 2005 04:51 PM
    A protest at San Francisco State University forces military
    Recruiters to leave campus early without any recruits!
    Read about it in theschool's newspaper, The Golden Gate [X]press.
    There is also VIDEO online! Scroll to the bottom of this e-mail for links.
    http://xpress.sfsu.edu/archives/breaking/003099.html

    12) CITY COLLEGE STUDENT COUNTER-RECRUITERS
    CHARGED WITH FELONY ASSAULT
    March 9, 2005
    Counter Recruitment Watch
    Projects from Peace No War Network
    URL: http://www.PeaceNoWar.net

    13) Ex-Marine Says Public Version of
    Saddam Capture Fiction
    United Press International

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

    1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
    Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
    Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
    Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.

    This is a "meeting of the whole"
    devoted solely to Military Recruitment
    and JROTC in our schools. It is a dialogue
    between the community and the School Board.

    Everyone is invited to participate in these
    important meetings.

    BAUAW has submitted the following resolution to the board:

    Draft Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
    Cut Ties with the Military:

    WHEREAS, the United States military is
    actively recruiting high school students into
    the military to fight in Iraq; and

    WHEREAS, many young San Francisco
    high school alumni are presently serving in
    military units fighting in Iraq; and

    WHEREAS, it is San Francisco City policy
    by virtue of Proposition N, to bring all U.S.
    troops home from Iraq now; and

    WHEREAS, over 1,448 U.S. soldiers and
    approximately 100,000 Iraqis have been
    killed in this war and over 10,000 U.S.
    soldiers and unknown thousands of
    Iraqis have been wounded; and

    WHEREAS, the hundreds of billions of dollars
    spent on the war have robbed our children of
    resources that should be spent on
    education and other human needs; and

    WHEREAS, military presence in our schools
    legitimizes the message that violence is
    acceptable;

    THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
    It shall be the policy of the San Francisco
    Board of Education to cut all ties
    with the United States military,
    including, but not limited to: Ending military
    recruitment on campuses; ending the
    Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps
    (JROTC); and guaranteeing that all students
    and parents are informed of their right to
    deny military recruiters access to their
    names, addresses and telephone numbers.

    Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
    www.bauaw.org
    414-824-8730

    Donations are urgently needed to carry
    out this important work. We have no
    paid staff but need money for posters,
    buttons, flyers and informational material
    to hand out to students and parents.

    Make a tax-deductible donation to:

    Bay Area United Against War/NVM
    P.O. Box 318021
    San Francisco, CA 94131-8021

    Coming Up:

    Global Day of Action
    March 19, 2005
    No to War and Occupation in Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People's Needs, Not War!

    San Francisco March Assembles:
    11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

    THE NEXT BAUAW MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE:
    SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 11:30AM
    474 VALENCIA STREET, SF
    (FIRST FLOOR, TO THE LEFT AND ALL THE WAY BACK
    TO THE COMPANEROS DEL BARRIO CHILDREN'S CENTER)

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

    2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
    NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
    PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY:

    SUGGESTION AS TO FORMAT OF LETTERS
    TO BE WRITTEN ON BEHALF OF LYNNE STEWART

    MARGIN: Please leave at least a one-inch left-hand margin to
    allow us to bind the letter into the appendix to the sentencing
    memorandum that is being filed on
    Lynne's behalf.

    INSIDE ADDRESS: Honorable John G. Koeltl
    United States District Judge
    Southern District of New York
    United States Courthouse
    500 Pearl Street
    New York, New York 10007

    GREETING: Honorable Sir or Dear Judge Koeltl:

    BODY: Briefly introduce yourself and set forth your
    relationship to Lynne.
    Briefly discuss yourself - your position in work and
    in society.
    State that you are aware that Lynne is to be sentenced
    following a jury verdict of guilty on serious charges:
    The remainder of your letter should discuss whatever
    you believe to weigh in favor of no jail time. If possible,
    you should tell of an incident where she helped you
    out or engaged in commendable community service.
    Do not try to argue that she is not guilty or was
    unfairly conviction. Focus on the unfairness of the
    government's actions in bringing the charges; the
    way in which the government portrayed her, etc.

    * Typewritten letters if possible are preferred.
    *
    WHEN LETTER IS COMPLETED: Please mail the final
    product to the following address:
    Jill R. Shellow-Lavine, Esq.
    2537 Post Road
    Southport, CT 06890

    Do not send your letters to the judge. We ask
    that you forward your letter me so that the
    lawyers can present it to Judge Koeltl with the
    other letters being written for this purpose. This
    is the manner in which letters will have the greatest
    impact. If they are sent directly to the Judge's
    chambers, they may have less of an impact and
    could cause the judge a substantial inconvenience
    (and annoyance).

    Thank you for your cooperation. If you have
    any questions, please do not hesitate to
    contact the defense committee at www.lynnestewart.org.

    Sincerely,
    Jill R. Shellow-Lavine
    Attorney for Lynne Stewart
    For more information go to:
    www.LynneStewart.org

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

    3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
    No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
    San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
    · Urgent appeal for volunteers on March 19
    · Volunteer opportunities this weekend.
    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
    March 19, 2005: Global Day of Action - San
    Francisco - Volunteers Needed!
    No to War Occupation ˜ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere! Bring the Troops
    Home Now! Money for People's Needs, Not War!

    March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

    Send this email to as many friends as you can.

    March 19, 2005, will be an International Day of Protest
    on the second anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
    As on the first anniversary of the invasion last year,
    millions of people around the world will march to say
    „No to War and Occupation from Iraq to Palestine to
    Haiti and Everywhere.‰

    Volunteers are urgently needed in San Francisco on
    March 19 to help with set-up, distributing placards to
    spread the anti-war message, carrying banners for the
    march, selling buttons and t-shirts to pay for the march,
    leafleting to let people know how to get involved, take
    down, monitoring, clean up and more.

    Friends, families, and work groups can volunteer
    in teams! Take a stand on March 19 against war
    and occupation!

    Come to the next Volunteer Orientation at the ANSWER
    Activist Meeting on Tuesday March 15th at 7pm,
    2489 Mission Street Room #30. Also with:
    · Political update
    · Volunteer sessions: banner painting, postering teams,
    alert calls
    · March 19 volunteer orientation discussion session.

    No experience necessary! Whether you have volunteered
    before or this is your first time your help is urgently
    needed. Call 415-821-6545 for more information and
    directions to this meeting.

    If you cannot make the orientation, you can still
    volunteer to help make March 19 Day of Global
    Action protest happen:

    Come to Dolores Park at 9 a.m. the morning of March 19
    and sign in at the Volunteer ANSWER table to get the latest
    orientation and take on an area of work for the protest.
    Dolores Park is located at 18th and Dolores St. near the
    16th St. BART station.

    OR

    Come to the Civic Center at 9 a.m. the morning of March 19
    for a volunteer orientation and to get plugged in. Take BART
    to Civic Center. Look for the sign-in table under the
    ANSWER Volunteer banner.

    Volunteers are needed ALL DAY. Any amount of time you
    have to help is greatly appreciated.

    Together we‚re building a powerful new movement against
    war and racism. You‚re needed in the struggle to win money
    for peoples‚ needs, not war and corporate greed. Email, call
    or come to the volunteer orientation. Get involved today.
    _ _ _ _ _ _ _

    Don‚t miss this weekend‚s volunteer opportunity!

    Sat. Mar. 12 ˆ 11 am in San Francisco at our office
    2489 Mission St. Rm. 24. Get out in the sun or spend time
    painting while you contribute your time to the anti-war
    movement. Volunteer banner painting session and postering
    teams going out around town.

    Sat. Mar 12 ˆ 12 ˆ 12:30 pm in Oakland meet others in the
    MacArthur BART parking lot to join a postering team to
    spread the word about the protest. Organizer‚s cell phone
    number: 925-917-1039, call for location details.

    To subscribe to the list, send a message to:


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

    4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON ARE SOME POWERFUL
    ANTIWAR MOVIES
    "Mission Accomplished" is a brutally vivid documentary
    filmed entirely on the ground in Iraq. The reality of this
    war for American troops is contrasted to the
    overwhelming reality of the devastation felt and experienced
    by the people of Iraq.
    "Mission Accomplished" will open March 18th:
    4 Star
    2200 Clement St.
    San Francisco, CA 94121
    415.666.3488

    "Voices In Wartime" is a compelling portrayal of human
    experience with war through poetry, both from the point
    of view of those who were in combat and those who are left
    behind.
    "Voices In Wartime" will play in S.F. on April 15th at:
    Landmark Lumiere 3
    1572 California Street
    San Francisco, CA 94109

    [This poem by fourth-grader Cameron Penny was read
    by Marie Howe in this very beautiful film
    directed by Rick King.

    "If you are lucky in this life
    A window will appear on a battlefield between two armies
    And when the soldiers look into the window
    They don't see their enemies
    They see themselves as children
    And they stop fighting
    And go home and go to sleep
    When they wake up, the land is well again."
    By Cameron Penny]

    To learn more about these film visit
    Cinema Libre Studio
    http://www.cinemalibrestudio.com/

    Also: check out, GUNNER PALACE |
    Some war stories will never make the nightly news.


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

    5) IRA Must Go, Demand Britain and U.S. (link only)
    By Alex Richardson
    BELFAST, Northern Ireland (Reuters)
    2 hours, 36 minutes ago
    March 9,2005
    http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&e=1&u=/nm/20050309/wl_nm/irish_dc

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

    6) US officer: 'Why I disagree (link only)
    with Bush's war for oil'
    Brayden joined the US army not thinking he'd ever be sent
    to war. He certainly hadn't entertained the idea that he
    would turn against a war.
    http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/618/618p12.htm


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

    7) Subject: [MilLawTF] Sole Surviving Child -- or Lies
    My Recruiter Told Me! From:
    Harold Jordan
    Date: March 8, 2005 8:36:54 AM PST
    To: MLTF full list ,
    MLTF SC
    Reply-To: MilLawTF@yahoogroups.com

    A few year ago I published this piece on the web. I've been searching
    for the text for some weeks. I thought it might be helpful to folks-
    Marti Hiken

    A military recruiter told me that my son could sign up for the military
    but not be sent to war because he is an only child. Is this true?

    Contrary to what is often said by recruiters, no restrictions are
    automatically placed on the assignment of only children. They
    can be sent to war zones. Unfortunately this myth is widespread.

    No restrictions are automatically placed on the assignment of
    a service member to a war zone due solely to the fact of he or
    she being an only child. The services do have a special provision
    for "sole surviving sons or daughters," but this category is defined
    in a very narrow way. A "sole surviving son or daughter" is the
    only remaining son or daughter in a family where an immediate
    family member has died as a result of service, is missing in
    action (MIA), a prisoner of war (POW), or is 100% disabled and
    unemployable as a consequence of military service.

    This "sole surviving son or daughter" may request a discharge
    from the service except in a period of war or national emergency
    declared by Congress. A service member may forfeit this right
    to be separated if he or she chooses to remain on duty or
    re-enlist after he or she becomes aware of this discharge
    provision. The military tries to screen for this possibility by
    asking a question on the military enlistment documents.
    The services do not want this issue to come up later for
    someone who might have fallen into this category before
    he or she enlisted.

    Much of what the public has come to think about this issue
    stems from the controversy surrounding the Sullivan family
    tragedy during WWII. Two Sullivan brothers were among
    700 sailors that died in the sinking of the Juneau near
    Guadalcanal in November, 1942. At the time, the Navy
    called the deaths,"the greatest single blow suffered by
    one family...in American naval history." According to
    current policy, siblings may serve in a war zone as long
    as they are in different units.

    The above exceptions apply to a small number of persons,
    not to the average person who joins the military. Recruiters
    should know better than to mislead young people and
    their loved ones.

    Harold Jordan
    Executive Director
    National Coalition of Education Activists
    1420 Walnut St., Suite 720
    Philadelphia, PA 19102
    215-735-2418
    www.edactivists.org

    • To visit your group on the web, go to:
    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MilLawTF/

    National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force
    Marguerite Hiken, co-chair
    318 Ortega Street
    San Francisco, CA 94122
    415-566-3732
    mlhiken@pacbell.net

    Kathleen Gilberd, co-chair
    1168 Union Street, Ste. 302
    San Diego, CA 92101
    619-233-1701
    KathleenGilberd@aol.com

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

    8) NEWS: *USA Today* on Army Guard recruitment -
    and on counter-recruitment
    (with additional links)

    [On Tuesday, *USA Today* published figures showing that the Army National
    Guard fell 12.6% short of its recruiting target in 2003 and 12.1% short of its
    recruiting goal in fiscal 2004.[1] -- In 2005, the target has been raised
    12.5%, but "through January, four months into the recruiting year that began
    in October, the Guard had recruited just 12,821 new soldiers, almost 24% below
    its target for that period." -- The Marine Corps failed to meet it overall
    recruiting goal in January and February for the first time in almost ten
    years, and the active-duty Army is so far 6% below its target for the year.
    -- "By contrast, the Navy and Air Force are having no trouble recruiting,"
    according to *USA Today* reporter Dave Moniz, who noted: "Those branches play
    only a small role in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan." -- *USA Today* also
    published a longer, 1,300-word article on counter-recruitment: the effort to
    inform potential recruits fully about the significance and consequences of
    enlisting in the military.[2] -- A link and comment have been inserted
    pertaining to San Diego Committee v. Governing Bd., the 1986 Ninth Circuit of
    Appeals decision that is currently the legal decision governing
    counter-recruiters' claim a right to enter schools; for more information on
    counter-recruitment, see the resources listed by the Western Mass. AFSC.
    (http://www.westernmassafsc.org/CR/counter_recruitment.html) -- Also, a
    Yahoo group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/counter-recruitment/) on
    counter-recruitment activities has existed since 2000. -- Thanks to Tim
    Smith for sending the *USA Today* piece on counter-recruitment. --Mark]

    http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/2397/

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

    9) FOR GUARD RECRUITERS, A TOUGH SELL (link only)
    By Dave Moniz
    USA Today
    March 8, 2005
    http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-07-recruits-cover_x.htm

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

    10) GLOBAL EXCHANGE ANTIWAR TEACH-IN MARCH 24
    On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the
    Vietnam War.
    NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
    Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
    Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
    $5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away
    for lack of funds.

    Dear UFPJ Bay Area,

    On March 24th, Global Exchange is sponsoring a major anti-war
    teach-in that will be held at Mission High School. This teach-in
    (and teach-ins scheduled for the same day in Washington, DC
    and Ann Arbor, Michigan) is being held in remembrance of the
    wave of teach-ins about the Vietnam war starting in 1965 that
    began the long awakening that led to the US public shaking
    off the Vietnam war makers.

    Please spread the word about the teach-in, and, of course
    about the March 19 protest that ANSWER is organizing in SF
    for the two-year anniversary of the Iraq invasion. The teach-in
    won't just be people talking at the audience; we'll have
    presentations by a panel and then break into smaller groups
    for deeper discussion and strategizing.

    Hope to see you there,
    Andrea Buffa
    Global Exchange

    P.S. This is part of the education campaign adopted by
    UFPJ at the recent national assembly.

    **************************************************************
    **Please forward widely.**

    On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the Vietnam War

    NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
    Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
    Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
    $5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away
    for lack of funds.

    Two years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the country continues
    to bleed and suffer. The death toll soars on all sides and
    especially among civilians. The cost of the war mounts daily
    as vital services are cut at home. But many questions remain:
    Did the January 2005 elections improve the situation in
    Iraq? Is the US troop presence in Iraq helping stabilize the
    country, or is it at the root of Iraq's deadly violence? And
    what are the true costs of the war at home - its impact on
    military families and returning veterans, its $200+ billion
    price tag, and the looting of our economy by militarist
    corporations?

    Join people throughout the country as we consider these
    issues and others at teach-ins in San Francisco,
    Washington, DC, and Ann Arbor, marking the 40th
    anniversary of the first Vietnam War teach-in in 1965.

    Featured Speakers include:

    •Rahul Mahajan, Anti-war Activist and Author of Full
    Spectrum Dominance: U.S. Power in Iraq and Beyond

    •Cindy Sheehan, mother of fallen Iraq war soldier, Co-
    Founder of Gold Star Parents for Peace, and member
    of Military Families Speak Out

    •Fernando Suarez, father of fallen Iraq war soldier,
    Founder of Guerrero Azteca Project and member of
    Gold Star Parents for Peace

    •Aimee Allison, Gulf War conscientious objector,
    counter recruiter, and Oakland City Council candidate

    •Howard Wallace, San Francisco Labor Council, National
    Board of Pride at Work, and Steering Committee of
    US Labor Against the War

    •Sean O'Neil, US Veteran of the Iraq War and purple-
    heart recipient

    •Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder of Global Exchange
    and CODEPINK: Women for Peace

    Sponsored By Global Exchange
    For more information: www.globalexchange.org
    or call (415) 255-7296.

    AND DON'T FORGET:
    March 19, 2005: Global Day of Action-No to
    War & Occupation
    San Francisco March Assembles:
    11 a.m. Dolores Park; Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

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

    11) Students Protest Military Recruitment
    by Lachlan Maclean and William Roller staff writers
    March 9, 2005 04:51 PM
    A protest at San Francisco State University forces military
    Recruiters to leave campus early without any recruits!
    Read about it in theschool's newspaper, The Golden Gate [X]press.
    There is also VIDEO online! Scroll to the bottom of this e-mail for links.
    http://xpress.sfsu.edu/archives/breaking/003099.html

    U.S. military recruiters left a campus career fair an hour early on
    March 9 after extensive student demonstrations for and against
    military recruitment.

    Over 100 students surrounded U.S. Air Force and Army Corps of
    Engineers recruiters' tables at the Career Center Employer Showcase at
    Jack Adams Hall. A group of five College Republicans blocked
    protesters and yelled "Don't join if you don't want to."

    "Our military is racist, homophobic, sexist and screwing people," said
    Students Against War (SAW) member Michael Hoffman, 24, a physics
    major. "Recruitment on campus is wrong."

    SAW members said they hoped the protest would rally students to take
    action against recruiters on campus.

    "We don't allow the recruiters on our campus because of the military's
    discrimination of homosexuals," said Alex Schmaus, an environmental
    studies sophomore. "(The) 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy ? goes
    clearly against campus discriminatory policy. They shouldn't be on
    campus."

    Sarah Ballinger, liberal studies major, said the recruiters' early
    departure was due to the protester's efforts.

    "I think that if we weren't there, they would've stayed until
    closing," said Ballinger. "They realized that we weren't going
    anywhere and they weren't going to recruit anyone, so they left."

    Support for SAW's protest was not unanimous, several College
    Republicans waved banners that read, "You don't have to support the
    war to support our military" and "end the commie occupation of SFSU."

    Leigh Wolfe, 18, a broadcasting major and member of the College
    Republicans said he was disappointed that students were not more
    supportive of our nation's military.

    "I wish they had a little more appreciation for what our troops are
    doing overseas," said Wolfe. "They're fighting for us and dying to
    protect us at home and (the protesters) are pretty much
    anti-anything."

    The two-day career expo was co-sponsored by the science and
    engineering departments.Jack Brewer, the career center's director,
    said the center treats all recruiters the same and doesn't distinguish
    between corporations, non-profits or the military.

    "It's my understanding that if a university would deny access by
    military recruiters, that they could lose federal funding for
    financial aid and also any funding from the department of defense,"
    said Brewer.

    "If there is a policy set up by the university about denying access to
    (discriminatory employers) then obviously I'd have to follow that
    policy. I'm not currently aware of any such policy."

    Political Science professor James Martel said recruiters should be
    kept off campus.

    "The ban against gays in the military is pure discrimination, pure
    bigotry on the part of the U.S. government with no rationale
    whatsoever," Martel said. "It sends a signal to the entire nation that
    it's OK to discriminate against lesbians and gay men."

    Tyson Eckerele, a 25-year-old biologist with the Army Corps of
    Engineering, couldn't recall any similar opposition or protests on
    other college campuses.

    "This hasn't happened to us before at UC Berkeley or at Stanford,"
    said Eckerele, who is a self-described liberal.

    According to Jim Fizzell, employee specialist at Stanford University's
    Career Center, the Army has attended past career fairs on their
    campus.

    "There's never been a problem with them being here," said Fizzell
    during a telephone interview. Brian Honeycutt, Master Sgt. and Air
    Force recruiter, was undaunted by the SF State protesters.

    "They have the right to protest peacefully if they want to," said
    Honeycutt. "But we aren't leaving unless other employers want us to.
    They can protest all day and we'll stay right here."

    Most employers who paid to attend the fair respected the students'
    right to express themselves, but some felt the protest detracted from
    their goals at the job fair.

    Nancy Peterson is a recruiter for John Muir and Mt. Diablo Health
    Systems said the protest discouraged students from entering the job
    fair and made the atmosphere uncomfortable.

    "The temperature is about 98 degrees, we haven't seen any nursing
    students, and you can't be heard over the yelling," said Peterson. "So
    it's a bit disappointing for us here."

    Peterson said her organization wasn't able to accomplish anything at
    the fair and would definitely ask more questions before paying to
    attend another job fair at SF State.

    Pacific Medical Center recruiter Rachel Barnes has been to SF State
    three times before.
    "It was the most entertained I've been since I've been here," she said.

    Jeff Boyette, an organizer with the International Socialist
    Organization (ISO) at SF State, was pleased by the fact that the
    recruiters left the career fair early. "Yes, it was indeed a success
    because a lot of the students came out for this," said Boyette.

    Ballinger said she wanted the military out of the school.

    "They're a discriminatory organization that is taking our brothers and
    sisters and classmates to a war for oil and empire," said Ballinger.

    College Republicans vice-president Chris Finarelli demonstrated at
    Malcolm X Plaza and at Jack Adams Hall.

    "I support SAW's right to be here just like the Peace Corps has a
    right to be here, just like the environmentalists who solicit me every
    time I walk on campus here, just like UNICEF, they all have a right to
    be here," Finarelli said.

    "The military is an all voluntary organization, they're not soliciting
    people they're simply sit behind the table with their hands in their
    pockets and wait until somebody comes up and asks for some
    information."

    Ballinger said the recruiters' early departure was due to the
    protester's efforts.

    "I think that if we weren't there, they would've stayed until
    closing," said Ballinger. "They realized that we weren't going
    anywhere and they weren't going to recruit anyone, so they left."

    Marxism mailing list
    Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
    http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism

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

    12) CITY COLLEGE STUDENT COUNTER-RECRUITERS CHARGED
    WITH FELONY ASSAULT
    March 9, 2005
    Counter Recruitment Watch
    Projects from Peace No War Network
    URL: http://www.PeaceNoWar.net
    March 9, 2005
    e-mail: wrigleyfield@nyu.edu

    Press Conference:
    Thursday March 10th 4pm
    100 Centre Street, New York, NY
    CONTACTS
    Activist: Meredith Kolodner (917) 881-3896
    Lawyers: Sean Maher, Darlene Jorif (212) 876-5500
    WHO: City College Counter-Recruiters: Hadas Thier, Nicholas Bergreen,
    Justino Rodriguez (pending their release) and their supporters:
    representatives from civil liberties organizations, national anti-war
    organizations, student anti-war organizations, veterans and military
    family members, and the legal community

    Three undergraduate students at the City College of New York (CCNY)
    were arrested Wednesday in the course of a peaceful protest against
    military recruiters. Hadas Thier, Nick Bergreen, and Justino
    Rodriguez, along with approximately a dozen other protesters attended
    a job fair organized by the college, and stood up in front of a
    National Guard recruitment table chanting anti-war slogans. Private
    security and campus peace officers immediately surrounded the
    protesters, pushed them into an empty hallway outside of the job fair,
    closed the hall door and assaulted two protesters and arrested a third
    who was taking pictures. The two students who were assaulted are now
    being charged with felony assault, and the third with obstruction of a
    government administrator.

    MILITARY RESPONDING TO COUNTER-RECRUITER'S SUCCESS
    "Counter-recruitment" has become a national issue (USATODAY "Counter-
    recruiters shadowing the military" 3/7/5), and it's working. Between
    these efforts, and general disagreement about the war, recruitment is
    down - according to a 3/6/5 Reuters report, "The regular Army is 6
    percent behind its year-to-date recruiting target, the Reserve is 10
    percent behind, and the Guard is 26 percent short."
    After similar counter-recruitment efforts have taken off from New York
    to Seattle, the military has clearly become concerned. At William
    Patterson University in New Jersey an activist was arrested for simply
    handing out counter-recruitment leaflets. Twice last semester, CCNY
    student protesters drove military recruiters off the campus with
    peaceful protests. This time campus security was ready. "We didn't
    even get through one round of chanting," according to Tiffany Paul,
    a junior at CCNY and a member of the Campus Anti-War Network,
    who was one of the protesters. "We were completely peaceful, it
    was the officers who were violent."

    UNNECESSARY BRUTALITY
    When Mr. Rodriguez was being arrested, his head was slammed into the
    wall. He called out "look what they're doing to me!" According to Ms.
    Paul, to silence him one of the guards pulled Mr. Rodriguez's hood
    over his head and slammed his head into the wall
    again.

    "He just stood on the guy," remembers Mark Turner, a staff member at
    CCNY, recalling the manner in which Mr. Bergreen was subdued by a
    private security guard, Mr. Robertson. "His foot was on his back,
    after he had tackled him. Private security are not supposed to touch
    us."

    Ms. Thier was arrested simply for taking pictures. Several witnesses
    recall that the guards were pulling on her hair. Juan Alduey remembers
    that the guards pushed Ms. Thier when she tried to give a statement to
    students who began filming the event. "I'm being arrested for
    exercising my right to free speech" Mr. Alduey recalled.

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

    13) Ex-Marine Says Public Version of
    Saddam Capture Fiction
    United Press International

    A former U.S. Marine who participated in capturing ousted Iraqi
    President Saddam Hussein said the public version of his capture was
    fabricated.

    Ex-Sgt. Nadim Abou Rabeh, of Lebanese descent, was quoted in the Saudi
    daily al-Medina Wednesday as saying Saddam was actually captured Friday,
    Dec. 12, 2003, and not the day after, as announced by the U.S. Army.

    "I was among the 20-man unit, including eight of Arab descent, who
    searched for Saddam for three days in the area of Dour near Tikrit, and
    we found him in a modest home in a small village and not in a hole as
    announced," Abou Rabeh said.

    "We captured him after fierce resistance during which a Marine of
    Sudanese origin was killed," he said.

    He said Saddam himself fired at them with a gun from the window of a
    room on the second floor. Then they shouted at him in Arabic: "You have
    to surrender. ... There is no point in resisting."

    "Later on, a military production team fabricated the film of Saddam's
    capture in a hole, which was in fact a deserted well," Abou Rabeh said.

    Abou Rabeh was interviewed in Lebanon.

    This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from
    http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm

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

    Resource:
    MONEY FOR HUMAN NEEDS NOT WAR!
    FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF SOCIAL SERVICES UNDER THE KNIFE
    RIGHT NOW GO TO:
    http://www.bauaw.org/2005/02/programs-eliminated-or-cut-in-2006.html

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

    Tuesday, March 08, 2005
     

    BAUAW NEWSLETTER-TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 2005

    1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
    There are two important meetings coming up:
    TONIGHT, Tuesday, March 8th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
    TODAY, Tuesday, March 8th from 8-3 p.m.
    Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
    Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
    Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.

    2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
    NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
    PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY

    3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
    No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
    San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

    4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON-POWERFUL ANTIWAR MOVIES

    5) KENNEDY HIGH YOUTH AGAINST WAR AND RACISM WIN
    VICTORY FOR FREE SPEECH AND PEACE MOVEMENT

    6) This is about Israel, not anti-semitism
    Not to speak out against this injustice would not only be wrong.
    It would ignore the threat it poses to us all
    Ken Livingstone
    Friday March 4, 2005
    The Guardian

    7) Please join the queer contingent against the war
    at the next mobilization which is
    SATURDAY MARCH 19, 11am DOLORES PARK
    QUEERS MEET NEAR THE ENTRANCE STEPS AT 19th & DOLORES...where
    we've met before. I will have the "Queers for Peace and Justice"
    banner spread out on the ground or we'll be holding it...everyone
    welcomed. Bring other banners, signs, noisemakers, etc. Let's
    be a loud and visible group...
    tommi

    8) The Counter Recruitment movement in the Bay Area is growing faster
    than US militarism!
    This is a great time for us to move forward together.
    You are invited to join in organizing an event for later this Spring:
    MOOS-Bay Regional Counter Recruitment Conference
    The first meeting will be:
    Tuesday, March 15th at 7pm
    American Friends Service Committee
    65 9th Street, San Francisco
    Between Market and Mission, near the Civic Center BART

    9) Dear Healthcare Activist,
    You are invited to our Saturday, March 12 meeting in San Francisco.
    It starts at 3pm at 626 Pacheco near the corner of 10th Avenue. (#6 Bus)
    We will feature a panel presentation on SB 840, the California Health
    Insurance Reliability Act that was just introduced in Sacramento on
    February 23. This replaces last years SB 921,
    the Health Care for All Californians Act.

    10) COMMENTARY
    What's Wrong With American High Schools
    The approaches of 50 years ago cannot work today, Bill Gates says.
    By Bill Gates
    (Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft, is co-founder of the
    Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation).
    March 1, 2005
    http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-
    gates1mar01,0,6675841.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions

    11) Utah set to reject No Child Left Behind (link only)
    By George Archibald
    THE WASHINGTON TIMES
    Published February 23, 2005
    http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20050222-111910-7518r.htm

    12) My truth (La mia verità)
    By Giuliana Sgrena
    From the Portside mailing list:
    Il Manifesto March 6, 2005

    13) Reminder: URGENT National Call-In Day TODAY!
    Call Your Members of Congress
    TODAY!
    WE NEED A BUDGET THAT PRIORITIZES CHILDREN!

    14) Virginia Hampton Roads Daily Express, (link only)
    March 6, 2005
    Military Update: Black Army recruits down 41 percent since 2000
    By Tom Philpott
    http://www.fra.org/mil-up/

    15) Kick Military Recruiters Out of San Francisco State
    Wednesday, March 9, 2005
    San Francisco State University
    1600 Holloway Ave
    Malcolm X Plaza
    11 AM

    16) Counter-Recruitment Calendar for the San Francisco Bay Area
    compiled by MOOS-Bay

    17) Idriss Stelley Foundation &
    Dokta Cooper Community Networking Project
    are proudly hosting the CEDP (Campaign to End the (racist)
    Death Penalty) Bayview Chapter, every other Monday evening
    at 7 P.M., at ISF office: 4921 3rd Street between Palou and Quesada.

    18) St Patrick's Day Parade Antiwar Contingent
    Comrades and friends,
    We now have the information regarding assembly for the
    St. Patrick's Day Parade in San Francisco this coming Sunday,
    March 13th. The assembly is earlier this year (10:30) as is the
    parade itself, so it is important to be on time. Our numbers are 45
    and 46, so we are closer to the start of the parade. The assembly
    point for our contingent is on 2nd Street, between Howard and Folsom
    Streets, and we are assuming we'll be closer to Howard Street.
    For additional information, contact us at irsp@netwiz.net.

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

    1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
    There are two important meetings coming up:
    TONIGHT, Tuesday, March 8th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
    TODAY, Tuesday, March 8th from 8-3 p.m.
    Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
    Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
    Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.


    There is an item on the agenda for
    Tuesday's board meeting.
    Under "Presentations to Board of Education
    Superintendent's Report", second item:
    "Update on Military Recruiting Policies
    and Procedures and JROTC Program."

    This is toward the very beginning of the
    meeting, and there should be an allowance
    for the public (and board) to speak
    since it is on the agenda. Call the board
    office at 241-6427 to get your name on
    the speakers list on this item. (It is not
    clear whether comments from the public will be
    under this point or under general comments
    from the public. Just call and get your name
    of the list to speak.

    PLEASE FORWARD THIS TO OTHERS IN THE
    ANTI-MILITARISM IN SCHOOLS COALITION

    Thanks!

    Mark Sanchez


    Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
    555 Franklin St.
    To get on the speakers list call:
    415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
    Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
    Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.

    This is a "meeting of the whole"
    devoted solely to Military Recruitment
    and JROTC in our schools. It is a dialogue
    between the community and the School Board.

    Everyone is invited to participate in these
    important meetings.

    BAUAW has submitted the following resolution to the board:

    Draft Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
    Cut Ties with the Military:

    WHEREAS, the United States military is
    actively recruiting high school students into
    the military to fight in Iraq; and

    WHEREAS, many young San Francisco
    high school alumni are presently serving in
    military units fighting in Iraq; and

    WHEREAS, it is San Francisco City policy
    by virtue of Proposition N, to bring all U.S.
    troops home from Iraq now; and

    WHEREAS, over 1,448 U.S. soldiers and
    approximately 100,000 Iraqis have been
    killed in this war and over 10,000 U.S.
    soldiers and unknown thousands of
    Iraqis have been wounded; and

    WHEREAS, the hundreds of billions of dollars
    spent on the war have robbed our children of
    resources that should be spent on
    education and other human needs; and

    WHEREAS, military presence in our schools
    legitimizes the message that violence is
    acceptable;

    THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
    It shall be the policy of the San Francisco
    Board of Education to cut all ties
    with the United States military,
    including, but not limited to: Ending military
    recruitment on campuses; ending the
    Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps
    (JROTC); and guaranteeing that all students
    and parents are informed of their right to
    deny military recruiters access to their
    names, addresses and telephone numbers.

    Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
    www.bauaw.org
    414-824-8730

    Donations are urgently needed to carry
    out this important work. We have no
    paid staff but need money for posters,
    buttons, flyers and informational material
    to hand out to students and parents.

    If anyone can donate a working copier
    that has a large capacity toner cartridge
    that would also be of great value. The
    copier we were using free of charge
    finally died.

    Make a tax-deductible donation to:

    Bay Area United Against War/NVM
    P.O. Box 318021
    San Francisco, CA 94131-8021

    Coming Up:

    Global Day of Action
    March 19, 2005
    No to War and Occupation in Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People's Needs, Not War!

    San Francisco March Assembles:
    11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

    THE NEXT BAUAW MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE:
    SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 11:30AM
    474 VALENCIA STREET, SF
    (FIRST FLOOR, TO THE LEFT AND ALL THE WAY BACK
    TO THE COMPANEROS DEL BARRIO CHILDREN'S CENTER)

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

    2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
    NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
    PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY:

    SUGGESTION AS TO FORMAT OF LETTERS
    TO BE WRITTEN ON BEHALF OF LYNNE STEWART

    MARGIN: Please leave at least a one-inch left-hand margin to allow
    us to bind the letter into the appendix to the sentencing memorandum
    that is being filed on Lynne's behalf.

    INSIDE ADDRESS: Honorable John G. Koeltl
    United States District Judge
    Southern District of New York
    United States Courthouse
    500 Pearl Street
    New York, New York 10007

    GREETING: Honorable Sir or Dear Judge Koeltl:

    BODY: Briefly introduce yourself and set forth your
    relationship to Lynne.

    Briefly discuss yourself - your position in work
    and in society.

    State that you are aware that Lynne is to be sentenced
    following a jury verdict of guilty on serious charges:
    The remainder of your letter should discuss whatever
    you believe to weigh in favor of no jail time. If possible,
    you should tell of an incident where she helped you out
    or engaged in commendable community service. Do not
    try to argue that she is not guilty or was unfairly conviction.
    Focus on the unfairness of the government's actions in
    bringing the charges; the way in which the government
    portrayed her, etc.

    * Typewritten letters if possible are preferred.
    *
    WHEN LETTER IS COMPLETED: Please mail the final product
    to the following address:
    Jill R. Shellow-Lavine, Esq.
    2537 Post Road
    Southport, CT 06890

    Do not send your letters to the judge. We ask that you
    forward your letter me so that the lawyers can present it
    to Judge Koeltl with the other letters being written for this
    purpose. This is the manner in which letters will have the
    greatest impact. If they are sent directly to the Judge's
    chambers, they may have less of an impact and could
    cause the judge a substantial inconvenience (and annoyance).

    Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions,
    please do not hesitate to contact the defense committee at
    www.lynnestewart.org.

    Sincerely,
    Jill R. Shellow-Lavine
    Attorney for Lynne Stewart
    For more information go to:
    www.LynneStewart.org

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

    3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
    No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
    Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
    Bring the Troops Home Now!
    Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
    San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
    Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center

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

    4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON ARE SOME
    POWERFUL ANTIWAR MOVIES
    "Mission Accomplished" is a a brutally vivid documentary
    filmed entirely on the ground in Iraq. The reality of this
    war for American troops is contrasted to the
    overwhelming reality of the devastation felt and experienced
    by the people of Iraq.
    "Mission Accomplished" will open March 18th:
    4 Star
    2200 Clement St.
    San Francisco, CA 94121
    415.666.3488

    "Voices In Wartime" is a compelling portrayal of human
    experience with war through poetry, both from the point
    of view of those who were in combat and those who are left
    behind.
    "Voices In Wartime" will play in S.F. on April 15th at:
    Landmark Lumiere 3
    1572 California Street
    San Francisco, CA 94109

    [This poem by fourth-grader Cameron Penny was read
    by Marie Howe in this very beautiful film
    directed by Rick King.

    "If you are lucky in this life
    A window will appear on a battlefield between two armies
    And when the soldiers look into the window
    They don't see their enemies
    They see themselves as children
    And they stop fighting
    And go home and go to sleep
    When they wake up, the land is well again."
    By Cameron Penny]

    To learn more about these film visit
    Cinema Libre Studio
    http://www.cinemalibrestudio.com/

    Also: check out, GUNNER PALACE |
    Some war stories will never make the nightly news.


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

    5) KENNEDY HIGH YOUTH AGAINST WAR AND RACISM WIN
    VICTORY FOR FREE SPEECH AND PEACE MOVEMENT

    Thanks to everyone who offered us support and solidarity!

    On Wednesday, February 23, the Kennedy High School chapter
    of Youth Against War and Racism distributed counter-military-
    recruitment information from a table during lunch periods and
    held a teach-in after school. These events were successes despite
    the attempts to ban our actions by the Kennedy administration and
    the Bloomington Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent.

    The Superintendent ultimately acquiesced to our demands to be
    allowed the same rights as other student organizations and the
    military recruiters because they were flooded by phone calls from
    people involved in the anti-war movement from around the country,
    and because they saw that our student group was organized and
    not about the back down.

    We were informed Tuesday afternoon that despite prior approval
    and precedent, we would not be allowed to have a table at lunch
    when the military recruiters were present. The local American
    Legion had contacted the school Superintendent and threatened
    to withdraw their significant funding from the school if we were
    permitted to table.

    We organized an emergency meeting that evening on hearing
    the news, and plotted our next moves. Fourteen active members
    showed up and decided that we would table in violation of the
    administration's decry. If they demanded we take down our table
    we would refuse, regardless of the consequences. This would
    show them that we wouldn't back down easily, and would
    create a scene that would reflect badly on the administration.

    We drafted a flier and petition to hand out to students asking
    them to support our free speech rights. We sent an appeal to
    anti-war groups across America asking them to call the
    Superintendent and Principal to demand they allow us our free
    speech rights. Finally, we sent a press release announcing
    a press conference at 2:30 on Wednesday. We intended to
    show the administration that if they were going to violate the
    constitution so flagrantly, they would do it over our resistance,
    and they would do it publicly.

    Several students met with the Principal of Kennedy the next
    day. The Principal informed us that the decision to bar us
    from tabling was that of the Superintendent and that any
    student attempting to set up a table would be summarily
    suspended for three days. We would be allowed to speak
    with the Superintendent, but not until 11 A.M., conveniently
    timed to coincide with the lunch periods we planned to table at.

    When the first lunch period began, three students began to
    assemble the tables we had brought from home, hang sings
    from the tables, sell buttons, hand-out informational leaflets,
    and play guitar. Even in the short time before the administrators
    arrived to shutdown the table, we elicited a very positive
    response from students.

    The Principal and vice-Principal demanded that we remove our
    table, which we refused to do. Once the administrators
    themselves began taking our materials, we decided that they
    would not allow us to table successfully, and accepted their
    offer of meeting with the Superintendent. They informed
    us that the assistant Superintendent had canceled our
    teach-in that was planned for that afternoon.

    This meeting produced the startling revelation that the only
    reason we were unable to table, was that the fliers we
    planned to distribute did not have contact information
    on them. This seems incongruous with the Principal's
    insistence that we could not table under any circumstances.
    This miraculous change of heart could be due only to the fact
    that both the Principal and Superintendent had been swamped
    with phone calls and a press conference was scheduled for
    2:30 that afternoon at the school. The resolutions reached
    at this meeting were that Youth Against War and Racism would
    be allowed to table in the future provided the fliers contained
    contact information, and the teach-in scheduled for later in
    the day would be allowed to happen (the assistant
    Superintendent denied ever making any statement to
    the contrary.)

    Unfortunately, by the time we returned to school, the lunch
    periods were almost over. Several months previously we
    had also erected a table during lunch periods when recruiters
    were present, and been immensely successful. We had
    received 120 signatures to our petition to ban recruiters
    from Kennedy, and distributed hundreds of leaflets.
    The recruiters, on the other hand, were largely ignored
    by the students and spent the day looking lonely and bored.

    This had obviously left an impression on them, because
    Wednesday, in stark contrast to the six to ten recruiters
    usually present from sundry branches of the military,
    only one recruiter from the Navy even showed up.
    We were disappointed to miss such an opportunity,
    but we had scored a decisive victory over the recruiters
    and the administration, and won assurances that we
    would be allowed to table when the military recruiters return.

    The teach-in was highly successful. Youth Against War
    and Racism organizer, Brandon Madsen, described the
    events of the day and triumphantly declared the restoration
    of our civil liberties. Speakers from Veterans For Peace,
    Sabry Wazwaz of the Anti-War Committee, and Ty Moore
    of Socialist Alternative performed admirably and gave
    impassioned arguments against the war in Iraq.
    Between 30 and 40 students attended, as did several
    parents and approximately five members of the local
    press (we got a story about us in the main Minneapolis
    newspaper, the Star Tribune).

    It remains to be seen if the administration will honor
    it's promised, but for now we have come out on top.
    This successful resolution could only have been possible
    with the support of others in the anti-war movement who
    called to protest the administration's disregard for our
    First Amendment rights. With the press, all the solidarity
    phone calls, and the anti-war groups showing up at our
    school door, our Principal inadvertently revealed:
    "Its been overwhelming."

    Even Michael Moore put an article about us on his website:
    http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=1536

    Within 24 hours we went from the brink of the elimination
    of our group, to assurances that we would receive equal
    access to all facilities in the future. To all those who
    supported us and made our successes possible, thank you.

    Matt Johnson, Senior at Kennedy
    Organizer for Youth Against War and Racism
    www.yawr.org - against.war@gmail.com

    Also, here is an article written just a week ago about the
    ongoing campaign the Kennedy students have been doing
    around military recruiters in their school, written by
    Kennedy activist Brandon Madsen. It was written for
    upcoming issue of "Justice," the publication of Socialist
    Alternative, which can be read online at
    www.socialistalternative.org

    "WE NEED TO MAKE OUR SCHOOLS OFF LIMITS
    TO MILITARY RECRUITERS"

    By Brandon Madsen
    Kennedy High School, Youth Against War and Racism

    On December 8, military recruiters showed up as usual
    during lunch at Kennedy High School in Bloomington,
    Minnesota. Unlike before, however, they did not go
    unopposed. About 15 other students and I set up
    a table near the recruiters with a counter-recruitment
    display, informational leaflets, opt-out forms, and
    petitions demanding that military recruiters cease
    their activity at our school.

    The recruiters' table was abandoned by all but a few
    students who wanted to grab some free pencils and
    water bottles. Meanwhile, our table was mobbed by
    hundreds of interested students who asked questions,
    signed petitions, took flyers and pamphlets, and
    discussed politics. By the end of the day, we had
    handed out hundreds of flyers, talked with all kinds
    of students, and collected 120 signatures for the petition.

    Teachers and students alike expressed excitement
    that there was finally a voice at the school against
    the war and against military recruitment. The students
    involved with the tabling were thrilled by their
    newfound ability to be heard. Some students even
    skipped class so they could continue to table during
    all of the lunch periods.

    This huge success was only possible because of hard
    work and planning. Two friends and I, all members of
    Socialist Alternative at Kennedy, began planning before
    the school year started how to launch an anti-war
    campaign at our school. We found a supportive teacher,
    a place to meet, and obtained official group status
    through the administration. We held preliminary
    teach-ins to try to draw people who would be interested
    in joining an anti-war group.

    Out of these efforts, Students Against War was formed
    and began meeting weekly to discuss political issues and
    to plan actions. We decided that a counter-recruitment
    drive would be our first campaign. We drew up
    a counter-recruitment flyer and began planning
    to table the next time military recruiters showed up.

    For two months, we battled with the administration
    to get our flyer and table approved. The first time the
    recruiters came, we were denied. Finally, our efforts
    were successful when a school district lawyer affirmed
    our right to table against the recruiters and provide our
    own information. While this was lucky for us, we had
    no intention of backing down a second time, regardless
    of the administration's verdict, and had resolved to
    table anyway once we had exhausted the official channels.

    Spread the Campaign!
    Out of our success, Kennedy students and the Socialist
    Alternative Twin Cities branch are working to launch Youth
    Against War and Racism, a metro-wide network for
    students to come together and fight to end the occupation
    of Iraq, to cut the bloated military budget and fund
    education, to end military recruitment in schools, and
    to oppose the government's racist attacks on civil liberties.

    It is essential that we stand up and take action against
    military recruiters. The entire U.S. war machine relies on
    the willingness of young people to join the military and
    carry out the imperialist policies ordered by corrupt
    politicians. If we build a mass movement of young people
    against the war that exposes the lies of Bush and the military
    recruiters, the military will be unable to guarantee a stable
    supply of youth to use as cannon fodder.

    And just like in the Vietnam War, the spread of mass dissent
    within the U.S. armed forces will be the key to bringing
    down U.S. imperialism in Iraq and ending this brutal occupation.

    We can't count on the government or our school
    administrators to stop military recruiters from spreading
    their lies. We need to take it upon ourselves to educate
    and organize our fellow students, and to make our
    schools off-limits to recruiters. If every time they show
    up we provide an overwhelmingly unwelcome
    environment, they will simply stop coming.

    This is what we hope to accomplish at Kennedy and every
    school across the Twin Cities, and this is what students
    need to do at every school across the country.

    REMINDER - if you want your message to go the entire
    email list, be sure to hit "Reply to All" in your email
    program, and make sure "StoppingWar@yahoogroups"
    is listed in the "To/Recipient" field!

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

    6) This is about Israel, not anti-semitism
    Not to speak out against this injustice would not only be wrong.
    It would ignore the threat it poses to us all
    Ken Livingstone
    Friday March 4, 2005
    The Guardian

    Racism is a uniquely reactionary ideology, used to justify the greatest
    crimes in history - the slave trade, the extermination of all original
    inhabitants of the Caribbean, the elimination of every native inhabitant
    of Tasmania, apartheid. The Holocaust was the ultimate, "industrialised"
    expression of racist barbarity.

    Racism serves as the cutting edge of the most reactionary movements. An
    ideology that starts by declaring one human being inferior to another is
    the slope whose end is at Auschwitz. That is why I detest racism.

    No serious commentator has argued that my comments to an Evening Standard
    reporter outside City Hall last month were anti-semitic. So I am glad
    that Henry Grunwald, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews,
    accepted on these pages that "Ken is sincere when he states that he
    regards the Holocaust as the worst crime of the last century".

    The contribution of Jewish people to human civilisation and culture is
    unexcelled and extraordinary. You only have to think of giants such as
    Einstein, Freud and Marx to realise that human civilisation would be
    unrecognisably diminished without the achievements of the Jewish people.
    The same goes for the Jewish contribution to London today.

    As mayor, I have pressed for police action over anti-semitic attacks at
    the highest level, and my administration has backed a series of
    initiatives of importance to the Jewish community, including hosting the
    Anne Frank exhibition at City Hall and measures to ensure the go-ahead
    for the north London eruv.

    Throughout the 1970s, I worked happily with the Board of Deputies in
    campaigns against the National Front. Problems began when, as leader of
    the Greater London Council, I rejected the board's request that I should
    fund only Jewish organisations that it approved of. The Board of Deputies
    was unhappy that I funded Jewish organisations campaigning for gay rights
    and others that disagreed with policies of the Israeli governmen.

    Relations with the board took a dramatic turn for the worse when I
    opposed Israel's illegal invasion of Lebanon, culminating in the
    massacres at the Palestinian camps of Sabra and Shatila. The board also
    opposed my involvement in the successful campaign in 1982 to convince the
    Labour party to recognise the PLO as the legitimate voice of the
    Palestinian people.

    The fundamental issue on which we differ, as Henry Grunwald knows, is not
    anti-semitism - which my administration has fought tooth and nail - but
    the policies of successive Israeli governments.

    To avoid manufactured misunderstandings, the policies of Israeli
    governments are not analogous to Nazism. They do not aim at the
    systematic extermination of the Palestinian people, in the way Nazism
    sought the annihilation of the Jews.

    Israel's expansion has included ethnic cleansing. Palestinians who had
    lived in that land for centuries were driven out by systematic violence
    and terror aimed at ethnically cleansing what became a large part of the
    Israeli state. The methods of groups like the Irgun and the Stern gang
    were the same as those of the Bosnian Serb leader Karadzic: to drive out
    people by terror.

    Today the Israeli government continues seizures of Palestinian land for
    settlements, military incursions into surrounding countries and denial of
    the right of Palestinians expelled by terror to return. Ariel Sharon,
    Israel's prime minister, is a war criminal who should be in prison, not
    in office. Israel's own Kahan commission found that Sharon shared
    responsibility for the Sabra and Shatila massacres.

    Sharon continues to organise terror. More than three times as many
    Palestinians as Israelis have been killed in the present conflict. There
    are more than 7,000 Palestinians in Israel's jails.

    To obscure these truths, those around Israel's present government have
    resorted to demonisation. Initial targets were Palestinians, and have now
    become Muslims. Take the Middle East Media Research Institute, run by a
    former colonel in Israeli military intelligence, which poses as a source
    of objective information but in reality selectively translates material
    from Arabic and presents Muslims and Arabs in the worst possible light.

    Today the Israeli government is helping to promote a wholly distorted
    picture of racism and religious discrimination in Europe, implying that
    the most serious upsurge of hatred and discrimination is against Jews.

    All racist and anti-semitic attacks must be stamped out. However, the
    reality is that the great bulk of racist attacks in Europe today are on
    black people, Asians and Muslims - and they are the primary targets of
    the extreme right. For 20 years Israeli governments have attempted to
    portray anyone who forcefully criticises the policies of Israel as
    anti-semitic. The truth is the opposite: the same universal human values
    that recognise the Holocaust as the greatest racist crime of the 20th
    century require condemnation of the policies of successive Israeli
    governments - not on the absurd grounds that they are Nazi or equivalent
    to the Holocaust, but because ethnic cleansing, discrimination and terror
    are immoral.

    They are also fuelling anger and violence across the world. For a mayor
    of London not to speak out against such injustice would not only be wrong
    - but would also ignore the threat it poses to the security of all Londoners.

    · Ken Livingstone is the London mayor

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

    7) Please join the queer contingent against the war
    at the next mobilization which is
    SATURDAY MARCH 19, 11am DOLORES PARK
    QUEERS MEET NEAR THE ENTRANCE STEPS AT 19th & DOLORES...
    where we've met before. I will have the "Queers for Peace and Justice"
    banner spread out on the ground or we'll be holding it...everyone
    welcomed. Bring other banners, signs, noisemakers, etc. Let's
    be a loud and visible group...
    tommi

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

    8) The Counter Recruitment movement in the Bay Area is growing faster
    than US militarism!
    This is a great time for us to move forward together.
    You are invited to join in organizing an event for later this Spring:
    MOOS-Bay Regional Counter Recruitment Conference
    The first meeting will be:
    Tuesday, March 15th at 7pm
    American Friends Service Committee
    65 9th Street, San Francisco
    Between Market and Mission, near the Civic Center BART

    We hope that one or two representatives of your group will attend to
    help shape this exciting event from the ground up!

    For more information, please feel free to email awe@o...
    or call (510) 456-1617 x 4

    Looking forward to working with you!

    Susan Quinlan, Alternatives to War Through Education/CCCO
    Sandra Schwartz, American Friends Service Committee
    Jim Haber, War Resisters League West
    --- End forwarded message ---

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

    9) Dear Healthcare Activist,
    You are invited to our Saturday, March 12 meeting in San Francisco.
    It starts at 3pm at 626 Pacheco near the corner of 10th Avenue. (#6 Bus)
    We will feature a panel presentation on SB 840, the California Health
    Insurance Reliability Act that was just introduced in Sacramento on
    February 23. This replaces last years SB 921,
    the Health Care for All Californians Act.

    Please feel free to invite others and to forward this email.

    ___ I plan on attending the March 12 meeting.
    ___ I can arrive early to help set up.
    ___ I can bring a snack (encouraged but not necessary)
    ___ I have forwarded this email
    ___ Please send me the leaflet to distribute.
    ___ Please email the new bill.
    ___ Please remove me from this list.

    Thank you.
    Don Bechler
    Chair
    Health Care for All - San Francisco chapter
    Chair
    California Universal Health Care Organizing Project
    415-695-7891


    The CALIFORNIA

    HEALTH INSURANCE RELIABILITY Act

    SB 840

    A Health Care Plan for Californians that:
    Insures Everyone
    Saves Californians Money
    Is Comprehensive
    Is Publicly Accountable

    On February 23, 2005, State Senator Sheila Kuehl introduced
    Senate Bill 840. SB 840, by consolidating all health insurance
    spending will insure everyone. It will save both businesses
    and the people of California billions of dollars. Assemblyman
    Mark Leno and State Senators Carole Migden and Don Perata
    are co-authors of SB 840. Come to a presentation and
    discussion of SB 840.

    SATURDAY 3PM

    MARCH 12

    626 PACHECO, SAN FRANCISCO

    (corner of 10 th Avenue, #6 Bus)

    Sparkers to be announced. Sponsored by the San Francisco
    chapter of Health Care for All, the California Universal Health
    Care Organizing Project, and the California Physicians Alliance.

    For more information call 415-695-7891 or email
    dbechler@value.net

    labor donated posted 2-22-05

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

    10) COMMENTARY
    What's Wrong With American High Schools
    The approaches of 50 years ago cannot work today, Bill Gates says.
    By Bill Gates
    (Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft, is co-founder of the
    Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation).
    March 1, 2005
    http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-
    gates1mar01,0,6675841.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions


    Our high schools are obsolete.

    By obsolete, I don't just mean that they are broken, flawed and
    underfunded - although I can't argue with any of those
    descriptions.

    What I mean is that they were designed 50 years ago to meet
    the needs of another age. Today, even when they work exactly
    as designed, our high schools cannot teach our kids what they
    need to know.

    Until we design high schools to meet the needs of the 21st
    century, we will keep limiting - even ruining - the lives of millions
    of Americans every year. Frankly, I am terrified for our workforce
    of tomorrow.

    The idea behind the old high school system was that you could
    train an adequate workforce by sending only a small fraction
    of students to college, and that the other kids either couldn't
    do college work or didn't need to.

    Sure enough, today only one-third of our students graduate
    from high school ready for college, work and citizenship.

    The others, most of whom are low-income and minority students,
    are tracked into courses that won't ever get them ready for any
    of those things - no matter how well the students learn or how
    hard the teachers work.

    In district after district across the country, wealthy white kids
    are taught Algebra II, while low-income minority kids are
    taught how to balance a checkbook.

    This is an economic disaster. In the international competition
    to have the best supply of workers who can communicate
    clearly, analyze information and solve complex problems,
    the United States is falling behind. We have one of the highest
    high school dropout rates in the industrialized world.

    In math and science, our fourth-graders rank among the top
    students in the world, but our 12th-graders are near the
    bottom. China has six times as many college graduates
    in engineering.

    As bad as it is for our economy, it's even worse for our
    students. Today, most jobs that pay enough to support
    a family require some post-secondary education. Yet only
    half of all students who enter high school enroll in
    a post-secondary institution.

    High school dropouts have it worst of all. Only 40% have
    jobs. They are nearly four times more likely to be arrested
    than their friends who stayed in high school. And they
    die young because of years of poor healthcare, unsafe
    living conditions and violence.

    We can put a stop to this. We designed these high
    schools; we can redesign them.

    We have to do away with the outdated idea that only some
    students need to be ready for college and that the others
    can walk away from higher education and still thrive in
    our 21st century society. We need a new design that
    realizes that all students can do rigorous work.

    There is mounting evidence in favor of this approach. Take
    the Kansas City, Kan., public school district, where 79% of
    students are minorities and 74% live below the poverty line.
    For years, the district struggled with high dropout rates and
    low test scores. In 1996, it adopted a school-reform model
    that, among many other steps, requires all students to take
    college-prep courses. Since then, the district's graduation
    rate has climbed more than 30 percentage points.

    Kansas City is not an isolated example. Exciting work is
    underway to improve high schools in such cities as
    Oakland, Chicago and New York.

    All of these schools are organized around three powerful
    principles: Ensure that all students are given a challenging
    curriculum that prepares them for college or work; that their
    courses clearly relate to their lives and goals; and that they
    are surrounded by adults who push them to achieve.

    This kind of change is never easy. But I believe there are
    three ways that political and business leaders at every level
    can help build momentum for change in our schools.

    First, declare that all students must graduate from high
    school ready for college, work and citizenship. Every politician
    and chief executive in the country should speak up for the
    belief that children need to take courses that prepare them
    for college.

    Second, publish the data that measure our progress toward
    that goal. We already have some data that show us the extent
    of the problem. But we need to know more: What percentage
    of students are dropping out? What percentage are
    graduating? And this data must be broken down by
    race and income.

    Finally, every state should commit to turning around failing
    schools and opening new ones. When the students don't
    learn, the school must change. Every state needs a strong
    intervention strategy to improve struggling schools.

    If we keep the system as it is, millions of children will never
    get a chance to fulfill their promise because of their ZIP
    Code, their skin color or their parents' income.
    That is offensive to our values.

    Every kid can graduate ready for college. Every kid should
    have the chance.

    Let's redesign our schools to make it happen.

    If you want other stories on this topic, search the Archives
    at latimes.com/archives .

    Copyright 2005 Los Angeles Times

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

    11) Utah set to reject No Child Left Behind (link only)
    By George Archibald
    THE WASHINGTON TIMES
    Published February 23, 2005
    http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20050222-111910-7518r.htm

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

    12) My truth (La mia verità)
    By Giuliana Sgrena
    From the Portside mailing list:
    Il Manifesto March 6, 2005

    Translated by Eva Milan, ZabrinskyPoint

    I am still in the darkness. Last Friday was the most
    dramatic day of my life since I was abducted.

    I had just spoken with my abductors, who for days kept
    telling me I would be released. So I was living in
    wait. They said things that I would understand only
    later. They talked of transfer related problems. I had
    learned to understand which way the wind blew from the
    attitude of my two "sentinels," the two fellows who
    watched over me every day-especially one of them, who
    attended to my requests, was incredibly bold. In the
    attempt to understand what was going on, I
    provocatively asked him if he was happy because I would
    go away or because I would stay. I was surprised and
    happy when, for the first time, he told me, "I only
    know you will go, but I don't know when."

    To confirm that something new was happening, at one
    point they both came in the room to reassure me and
    joke: "Congratulations," they said, "you are leaving
    for Rome." To Rome, that's what they were saying.

    I had a weird feeling, because that word immediately
    evoked liberation but also projected a void inside
    myself. I realized it was the most difficult moment of
    my abduction and that if all I had lived yet was
    certain, now an abyss of heavy uncertainties was
    widening. I changed my clothes.

    They came back: "We'll escort you, but don't give
    signals of your presence, otherwise the Americans might
    intervene." That was not what wanted to hear. It was
    the happiest and also the most dangerous moment. If we
    ran into someone, meaning American troops, there would
    be an exchange of fire, and my captors were ready and
    they would have responded. I had to have my eyes
    covered. I was already getting used to a temporary
    blindness.

    About what happened outside, I only knew that in
    Baghdad it had rained. The car ran safely in a muddy
    area. There was the driver and the same old abductors.
    I soon heard something I didn't want to hear. A
    helicopter flying low over the area we had stopped in.
    "Don't worry, now they will come look for you . . .
    within ten minutes they will come." They had spoken
    Arabic all the time, some French and much broken
    English. Now they spoke in this way, too.

    Then they got out of the car. I stayed in that
    condition of immobility and blindness. My eyes were
    stuffed with cotton, and covered by sunglasses. I was
    motionless. I thought . . . what do I do? Should I
    start counting the passing seconds to another
    condition, the one of freedom? I had just started
    counting when I heard a friendly voice: "Giuliana,
    Giuliana, this is Nicola, don't worry, I've talked to
    Gabriele Polo, don't worry, you're free."

    He took my cotton blindfold and sunglasses off. I felt
    relieved, not for what was going on, which I didn't
    understand, but for Nicola's words. He kept talking
    nonstop, he was uncontainable, a flood of friendly
    words and jokes. I finally found comfort, almost
    physically, a warm comfort I had long since forgotten.

    The car proceeded on its way, through an underpass full
    of puddles, almost skidding to avoid them. We engaged
    in incredible laughter. It was relieving. Skidding
    along a road full of water in Baghdad and maybe have a
    bad car crash after all I had experienced would not be
    really explainable. Nicola Calipari sat by my side. The
    driver had notified the embassy and Italy twice that we
    were heading to the airport, which I knew was
    controlled by the American troops. It was less than one
    kilometre, they told me . . . when. . . . I remember
    only fire. At that point a rain of fire and bullets
    came at us, forever silencing the happy voices from a
    few minutes earlier.

    The driver started shouting we were Italians, "We are
    Italians! We are Italians . . ." Nicola Calipari dove
    on top of me to protect me and immediately, and I mean
    immediately, I felt his last breath as he died on me. I
    must have felt physical pain, I didn't know why. But I
    had a sudden thought: I recalled my abductors' words.
    They said they were deeply committed to releasing me,
    but that I had to be careful because "the Americans
    don't want you to return." Back then, as soon as they
    had said that, I had judged their words to be
    meaningless and ideological. In that moment such words
    risked to take the taste of the most bitter truth away.
    I can't tell the rest yet.

    This was the most dramatic moment. But the month I
    spent as a kidnap victim has probably changed my life
    forever. One month alone with myself, prisoner of my
    deepest belief. Each hour was a pitiless test of my
    work. Sometimes they kidded me. They even asked me why
    I would leave and asked me to stay. I pointed out that
    I had personal relationships. They led me to think to
    such priorities that too often we put aside.

    "Ask for your husband's help," they told me. And I did
    so in the first video, the one I think you all have
    watched. My life has changed. Same as Ra'ad Ali
    Abdulaziz's, the Iraqi engineer from "Un Ponte per" who
    was abducted with Simona & Simona. "My life is no
    longer the same," he told me. I didn't understand. Now
    I know what he meant. Because I have experienced the
    hardness of the truth, I realize the difficulty of
    communicating it, and the weakness of trying to.

    In the first days of my abduction I didn't shed a
    single tear. I was simply mad. I told them directly:
    "How can you abduct me, if I am against the war?" And
    they started a fierce debate. "Yes, because you want to
    speak to the people, we would never abduct a reporter
    who stays shut in the hotel. And then the fact you say
    you're against the war could be a cover up." I would
    reply, almost provoking them: "It's easy to abduct a
    weak woman like me, why don't you do it to the American
    officers?" I insisted that they couldn't ask the
    Italian government to withdraw its troops; that they
    had to address the Italian people who were and are
    against the war, not Italian government.

    It was a month of ups and downs, moments of hope and
    moments of deep depression. Like when the first Sunday
    after my abduction, in the Baghdad house where I was
    prisoner and where there was a satellite television
    dish, they let me see the EuroNews. I saw my poster on
    the Rome city hall building. I was relieved. Soon
    after, however, a claim from the Jihad announced I
    would be executed if Italy didn't withdraw its troops.
    I was frightened. But they reassured me that it wasn't
    them, that people should have mistrusted those
    proclamations, that they were a "provocation." I often
    asked the one who seemed more approachable and who
    looked more like a soldier: "Tell me the truth, you
    will kill me". Nonetheless, many times, we talked.
    "Come see a movie on TV," they told me, while a Wahhabi
    woman, covered from head to foot, hung around the house
    taking care of me.

    The abductors seemed a very religious group, constantly
    praying the Koran verses. But on Friday, at the time of
    my release, the one who seemed the most religious and
    who used to wake up at 5 o'clock every morning to pray,
    "congratulated" me and incredibly shook my hand-it is
    not a usual behaviour for an Islamic
    fundamentalist-adding "If you behave, you'll leave
    soon." That was followed by a rather humorous episode.
    One of my two guards came to me astonished because the
    TV showed my photographs displayed in European towns
    and also on Totti. Yes, Totti (the Rome football team
    player, T.N.). The guard said he said he was a Rome
    team fan and he was amazed that his favourite player
    had taken to field with "Free Giuliana" on his T-shirt.

    I now live with no more certainties. I find myself
    deeply weak. I failed in my belief. I had always
    claimed there was need to go tell about that dirty war.
    And I had to decide whether to stay in the hotel or
    going out and chance being abducted because of my work.
    "We don't want anyone any more," the abductors told me.
    But I wanted to tell about the bloodbath in Falluja
    through the refugees' tales. And that morning the
    refugees and some of their "leaders" didn't listen to
    me. I had in front of me the evidence of what the Iraqi
    society has become with the war and they threw their
    truth in my face: "We don't want anyone. Why don't you
    stay home? What such interview can be useful for?". The
    worst collateral damage, the war killing communication,
    was falling on me. On me, who had risked it all,
    challenging the Italian government that didn't want
    reporters gong to Iraq, and the Americans who don't
    want our work that gives witness to what that country
    has really turned into with the war, despite what they
    call elections.

    Now I wonder. Is their refusal a failure?

    http://www.onlinejournal.com/Media/030605Sgrena/030605sgrena.html

    Marxism mailing list
    Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
    http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism

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

    13) Reminder: URGENT National Call-In Day TODAY!
    Call Your Members of Congress
    TODAY!
    WE NEED A BUDGET THAT PRIORITIZES CHILDREN!

    The House and Senate Budget Committees are meeting
    next week to come up with a budget resolution! We need
    to tell our Senators and Representatives that we are
    counting on them to produce a responsible resolution
    that makes children's services a priority for our nation.
    We must stop attempts to sacrifice health care for millions
    of children, end legal guarantees of protection for abused
    and neglected children, cut child care programs, deny
    children Head Start services and more. We need them to
    vote to make sure that our most vulnerable children and
    families do not bear more budget cuts, caps, freezes or
    eliminations in order to pay for more tax cuts for the wealthy.

    Call Tuesday, March 8th at toll-free 1-800-247-2971
    You'll be connected to your Senators and Representative
    or directly call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
    The toll-free number is provided courtesy of the American
    Friends Service Committee. Don't be discouraged if the
    lines are busy -- we want calls to pour into the offices!

    Please ask your members of Congress to:

    * Protect programs like Medicaid and assistance for
    abused and neglected children. Do not cut or cap the federal
    funding of, or destroy the guarantees and legal framework
    of, these critical child health and child protection services.

    * Protect successful domestic programs that invest in
    children including child care and Head Start. Do not adopt
    President Bush's proposals to cut or eliminate programs that
    will result in fewer children receiving child care, access to
    Head Start, and other children's health, child welfare, and
    education services.

    * Stop considering shredding federal guarantees that
    reduce child suffering while stacking the deck in favor of
    the wealthy. Do not adopt budget rules that cap programs
    for children while continuing to give massive tax cuts to
    the wealthiest Americans and adding their cost to the
    national debt our children will inherit.

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

    14) Virginia Hampton Roads Daily Express, (link only)
    March 6, 2005
    Military Update: Black Army recruits down 41 percent since 2000
    By Tom Philpott
    http://www.fra.org/mil-up/

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

    15) Kick Military Recruiters Out of San Francisco State
    Wednesday, March 9, 2005
    San Francisco State University
    1600 Holloway Ave
    Malcolm X Plaza
    11 AM

    The US Military is getting hard hit
    in Iraq with the death toll. They Know
    that starting an unpopular draft
    for an unpopular war is suicide; they've
    upped recruitment bonuses and
    promises of college money as tuition is going
    up nationwide. The reality of $80
    billion more for the occupation is only
    possible due to the massive cuts
    in health care, education and the soon
    be "social-security reform."

    The Army Corps of Engineers and the
    US Navy are coming to San Francisco
    State University in the hopes of recruiting
    students to become cannon fodder for
    the US occupation effort. We have
    a different plan: we are organizing a protest
    to block the recruiters and kick them off our campus.

    Hundreds of students at low-income
    colleges and high schools nationwide have
    participated in protests like this one,
    and have successfully forced
    military recruiters to pack up and
    leave their campuses. Now is is SF State's turn.
    Join us to demand:

    End the Occupation! Troops Out Now!
    No Recruiters on Our Campus!

    For more information contact:
    Katrina Yeaw
    916.716.9817
    kyeaw@sfsu.edu

    You fasten the triggers
    For others to fire
    Then you set back and watch
    When the death count gets higher
    You hide in your mansion
    As young people's blood
    Flows out of their bodies
    And is buried in the mud

    How much do I know
    To talk out of turn
    You might say I'm young
    You might say I'm unlearned
    But there's on thing I know
    Though I'm younger than you
    Even Jesus would never
    Forgive what you do

    -Bob Dylan "Masters of War"

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    16) Counter-Recruitment Calendar for the San Francisco Bay Area
    compiled by MOOS-Bay

    This calendar will be updated weekly. Please submit your entries
    each week by Wednesday noon. Also, please notify us at
    awe@objector.org if you do not want to receive this calendar.

    Our apologies, due to a series of technological problems, this
    calendar is not as complete as we would like it to be. Please let
    us know if there are important facts to be added for next week
    or if there is inaccuracy in your listing.


    March 15, Tuesday, 5 pm - Press Conference
    Picket and Press conference in front of 670 Davis St. San
    Francisco recruitment office to publicize the March 19 protest
    and the anti-recruitment contingent. ChretienTodd@aol.com
    for more information

    March 15, Tuesday, 7 pm - First meeting to organize for the
    MOOS-Bay Regional Counter Recruitment Conference, at the
    American Friends Service Committee, 65 9th Street, San
    Francisco, between Market and Mission, near Civic Center
    BART. For more Information, awe@objector.org or
    (510) 456-1617, x4

    March 16, Wednesday, 7 pm - < FONT>When Soldiers
    Say "No to War"
    International Socialist Organization. Public meeting
    and discussion on resistance in the military.
    110 Capp St. (between 16th and 17th -buzz 202), San Francisco.
    ChretienTodd@aol.com for more information

    March 17, Thursday, 7 pm (revised date) - San Francisco
    Board of Education "meeting of the whole", To address
    military recruitment at our schools and Jr. ROTC, 555 Franklin St.
    Thursday, March 17th(revised date): The meeting will be
    devoted solely to the issue of military recruitment at our
    schools. This meeting is designed to be a very large meeting
    that will address the war and this issue only.
    caroseligman@aol.com has more information if needed.

    March 18, Friday - Albany High School Students for Peace Rally
    Against military recruitment and Against the War in Iraq.
    Students, parents, and teachers will march in a contingent at
    the March 19th SF March Against the War.
    Dr. Carlos Munoz, Jr., 510-642-9134
    http://socrates.berkeley,edu/~ethnicst/cs/munoz.html

    March 19, Saturday, 10:30 am - Campus Antiwar Network -
    Military Out of Our Schools!
    The San Francisco group College Not Combat Committe
    will join with students at 16th and Mission BART Station
    at 10 am. There will be a banner "Military Out of Our Schools".
    Then the contingent will march up to Dolores Park to meet
    up with the rest of the demonstration at 11:00.
    SAWSFSU@yahoo.com

    March 26 and 27 San Francisco Civic Center and Union
    Square (27th) EYES WIDE SHUT outdoore exhibition presented
    by AFSC. The exhibit highlights the human cost of war.
    More information about the exhibit
    http://www.afsc.org/eyes/default.htm.
    Volunteers to publicize the event and to set it up are needed: S
    teve Leeds, Volunteer Coordinator at
    415 565-0201 ext 15 or sleeds@afsc.org.


    March 27, Sunday (Easter) - Berkeley Unitarian
    Fellowship CR Event
    Workshop on Conscientious Objection and
    Counter-Recruitment (2-5 pm). Press conf.
    at 1 pm with Military Families. Morning service at
    10:30 am is "Evolution of a Decision".

    APRIL 2, Saturday, 11:30 am - Bay Area United
    Against War (BAUAW)
    Military out of our schools. 474 Valencia St., SF
    (First floor, to the left and all the way back to the
    Companeros del Barrio Children's Center).
    Caroseligman@aol.com may have more information.

    April 9, Saturday - West Coast Campus Anti-War
    Network Conference
    For student activists and anti-war groups.
    General theme - CR and campus demilitarization.
    Location tentatively set for City College.
    Contact: Ellie Houston (Students Against Was - SFSU)
    Campus Anti-War Network. elliehou@hotmail.com

    * To visit your group on the web, go to:
    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MOOS-BAY/

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

    17) Idriss Stelley Foundation &
    Dokta Cooper Community Networking Project
    are proudly hosting the CEDP (Campaign to End the (racist)
    Death Penalty) Bayview Chapter, every other Monday evening
    at 7 P.M., at ISF office: 4921 3rd Street between Palou and Quesada.

    California has the highest rate of Death row inmates in the country
    (649), followed by Texas. Most death row inmates are poor People
    of Color, mostly African Americans and Latinos.

    We oppose the death penalty for 5 main reasons:

    * It is racist
    * It is not a deterrent to violent crime
    * It targets the poor
    * It is the ultimate part of the growing prison industry (Toyota,
    Kmart, Microchips are employing inmates at 11 ct/hr)
    * Most executions are modern lynching of innocents (given
    inexperienced public defenders).

    The current Death Row execution in California is STILL cruel and
    unusual punishment: Nothing humane about lethal injection; too
    often times the tranquilizer administered before the drug
    stopping the heart is ineffective, and the inmate goes through
    the long agony of a heart attack.

    We have supported our District Attorney Kamala Harris, in spite
    of the pressure of the POA, for not pursuing the death penalty
    against David Hill for allegedly killing Officer Isaac Espinoza.

    In spite of the ongoing refusal from our governor to spare the
    lives of Kevin Cooper (with whom ISF has been actively
    corresponding), Stan Tookie Williams (5 times nominee for
    the Nobel prize for his anti violence children books) , together
    we can abolish the atrocity of the death penalty in California,
    following the path of Illinois !

    Would you kindly forward this message to your lists ? This month,
    we are launching a vast outreach effort to our community
    churches in BVHP, and would be more than happy to facilitate
    forum discussions in your organizations as well.

    Blessings,
    mesha Monge-Irizarry
    (415) 595-8251 (24-HR Crisis Line)
    Idriss Stelley Foundation


    Next meeting:
    Monday, March 21, 7 p.m. at ISF 4921 3rd St.,
    Women on Death Row, Chowchilla, CA
    Refreshment and snacks, hope yall can come !

    We are also planning a big event
    on April 30, 4 to 6 P.M.,
    hopefully at the at the Bayview Opera House
    (pending approval from their management) about Tookie.
    Barbara Baker, author of "Redemption" about his life
    and incarceration, will be the keynote speaker

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

    18) St Patrick's Day Parade Antiwar Contingent
    Comrades and friends,
    We now have the information regarding assembly for the
    St. Patrick's Day Parade in San Francisco this coming Sunday,
    March 13th. The assembly is earlier this year (10:30) as is the
    parade itself, so it is important to be on time. Our numbers are 45
    and 46, so we are closer to the start of the parade. The assembly
    point for our contingent is on 2nd Street, between Howard and Folsom
    Streets, and we are assuming we'll be closer to Howard Street.
    For additional information, contact us at irsp@netwiz.net.


    The Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America's San Francisco
    Bay Area chapter will again be participating in the San Francisco St.
    Patrick's Day Parade and is once again organising an Anti-Imperialist
    Contingent as part of its participation.

    The parade is taking place this year on Sunday, March 13th. While we never
    have many details this much before the actual parade date, the contingent
    will undoubtedly assemble between 10:45 and 11:15 a.m., somewhere south of
    Market and, of course, details will be forthcoming once we know them.

    The focus of the Anti-Imperialist Contingent this year will again
    be on ending the occupation of Iraq and of Ireland, and the slogans
    we are putting forward are:

    British and American Imperialism, Out of Iraq! Out of Ireland!

    No War but the Class War!

    These are both slogans of the IRSP, raised during demonstrations against
    the war and occupation during the past year. As always, the
    Anti-Imperialist Contingent welcome participants to have their own
    identifying banners as well, and accepts any banners or signs addressing
    the theme of this years contingent or in support of the Irish struggle for
    national liberation and socialism.

    We will extend a special invitation to ANSWER to participate,
    because the date demonstration against the war and occupation they are
    building for is a week after the St. Patrick's Day parade, making it the
    last major opportunity to building for the demonstration. If any of you
    receiving this message who are participants in the coalitions
    engaged in building for that demonstration in the Bay Area, we
    would welcome you giving voice to this offer in coalition meetings. In
    addition to marchers, we would welcome members of the coalition to
    circulate along side our contingent hand-billing for the demonstration.

    Those who have participated with us in the past know that we generally
    also have a van converted into a mobile bulletin board of sorts, which will
    be the case again this year. The van will be used to also draw attention to
    the 30th anniversary of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish
    National Liberation Army, which just took place in December and the 21st
    anniversary of the Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America,
    which were founded in St. Paul, Minnesota in March 1984

    We need to know which organisations we can anticipate joining our
    contingent this year, so please let us know by the 1st of March, if at all
    possible. And, individuals planning on coming for the weekend from out of
    town to participate need to let us know right away, if they want us to
    try to supply lodging for them.

    Following the parade, we welcome all those marching with the contingent to
    join us at 2057 15th Street, S