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Thursday, June 23, 2005
BAUAW NEWSLETTER-THURSDAY, JUNE 23, 2005
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
7) Censorship
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
June 23, 2005
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
8) Justices, 5-4, Back Seizure
of Property for Development
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
"As a result, cities now have wide power to bulldoze
residences for projects such as shopping malls and
hotel complexes in order to generate tax revenue."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/politics/23wire-
scotus.html?hp&ex=1119585600&en=5036788eb4cc9d17&ei=5094&partner=home
page
9) Feds Target Calif. Marijuana Dispensaries
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Medical-Marijuana.html
10) Timeline for Iraq Pullout
Would Aid Insurgents, Rumsfeld Says
By TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
Published: June 23, 2005
"Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said
today that setting a timeline for withdrawal
of American troops from Iraq would give a
"lifeline for terrorists." And in a spirited
defense of the war, he invoked Abraham Lincoln
and the American revolution.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/international/middleeast/23cnd-rums.html
11) House Again Backs Ban on Flag Desecration
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 22 - Voting once again today
on an issue blending emotion, patriotism and politics,
the House of Representatives overwhelmingly endorsed
a constitutional amendment that would allow Congress
to outlaw debasing the American flag."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/22cnd-
flag.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=964c8d03d8a28062&ei=5094&partner=homepa
ge
12) A Joint Public Statement by the National
Council of Arab Americans & the
Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
on the September 24 March on
Washington
From: "NCA National Office"
nationaloffice@arab-american.net
13) Anti-war groups call for massive September mobilization
By Askia Muhammad
White House Correspondent
Updated Jun 16, 2005, 09:17 am
14) Vets hold ground at regional military
recruiting station, ignore threats
of arrest to reach young recruits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Contact: George Main 916.505-4869
or Cres Vellucci 916.996-9170
Attention: News Desk
SACRAMENTO - A military veterans
organization claimed a major victory
Early Tuesday after members - despite
repeated police warnings of immediate
arrest - were able to virtually swarm
a bus carrying potential military
recruits and distribute literature
encouraging them to not enlist
to fight in the war in Iraq.
15) Crisis in California:
WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
June 24, 2005
http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-2/549/549_08_PeterCamejo.shtml
16) On June 29 2004, Gus Rugley, 21 yr African American Youth
was shot more than a hundred times on Alemany Boulevard, San
Francisco, after what SFPD described as a high speed chase.
According to the corporate press, Rugley would have opened
fire at a police car. However, the autopsy report released
nearly 9 months after Rugley's homicide, revealed that Gus
had no gun powder traces on his skin or clothing, therefore
Gus could not have used a weapon. The toxicological screen
also revealed that Gus Rugley was not under the influence of
alcohol or any drugs at the time of his death.
Please take a moment to post a message of support to Gus'
courageous mom, Elvira Pollard. In 7 days the anniversary of
Gus' killing is coming up !
Join our campaign for Justice4GusRugley!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Gus/
Cordially,
mesha monge-irizarry
Idriss Stelley Foundation
(415) 595-8251 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis Line
ACORN
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
SF Youth Empowerment Funding Advisory Board member (Youth Commission)
17) Justice4JulioAyala Press conference &Protest,
The Heat is ON !
(mesha Monge-Irizarry, Idriss Stelley Foundation)
18) Pentagon to Gather Data on Students
Opponents Contend Move may Illegally Bypass Privacy Laws
Jonathan Krim, Washington Post
Thursday, June 23, 2005
"Washington -- The Defense Department began working
Wednesday with a private marketing firm to create
a database of high school students ages 16 to 18 and
all college students to help the military identify
potential recruits in a time of dwindling enlistment
in some branches."
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/23/MNGRODDG201.DTL
19) U.S. doctors linked to POW `torture'
Guantanamo medical records misused
Basis of interrogators' strategy: Report
TANYA TALAGA AND KAREN PALMER
STAFF REPORTERS
"Medical records compiled by doctors caring for prisoners
at the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay are being
tapped to design more effective interrogation techniques,
says an explosive new report."
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/
Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1119477015095&call_pageid=9683321
20) Military Enlists Marketer
to Get Data on Students
for Recruiters
By Mark Mazzetti
Times Staff Writer
June 23, 2005
"WASHINGTON - With the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan
making it increasingly hard for the U.S. military to fill
its ranks with recruits, the Pentagon has hired an outside
marketing firm to help compile an extensive database about
teenagers and college students that the military services
could use to target potential enlistees."
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-na-
privacy23jun23,1,5537670,print.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0623-03.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
Based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music
is the icing on the cake!
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR (BAUAW)
BAUAW is setting up a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT
PETITION CAMPAIGN table by invitation
from the Mime Troupe. THERE WILL BE AN
ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE STAGE.
We will be able to gather signatures before
and after the performance. After the performance
we will also fan out over the city to give this
petition drive a big push over the July 4th weekend.
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE
FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO, NOVEMBER 2005, ELECTIONS:
"The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public
school, college and university
facilities to recruit young
people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should
oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means
by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job
training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled
to join the military!"
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS.
FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
GET THE MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS!
MONEY FOR EDUCATION NOT FOR WAR!
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!
FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) Censorship
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
June 23, 2005
At long last, the culminating session of the World Tribunal on Iraq is
upon us. As a witness providing testimony, like the other witnesses I'm
being interviewed by many outlets. Today, one of them was by reporters
for one of the larger newspapers in Turkey, the Yeni Safak Newspaper.
I'll leave the reporters nameless, for reasons you'll soon see.
The newspaper has been translating various articles of mine into Turkish
and running them, particularly those concerning the most recent Fallujah
massacre. The report who was interviewing me today told me that the
former American consulate here, Eric Edelman, asked the Prime Minister
of Turkey to pressure his paper to not run so many of my stories.
"Why did he do this," I asked him.
"Edelman said it was the wrong news," he told me with a smile.
Turns out Edelman also asked that articles by Robert Fisk and Naomi
Klein not be run so often in Yeni Safak either.
He smiled at me while he watched the wheels turning in my head before I
smiled back and said, "That makes me very happy, it means I'm doing my
job as a journalist."
We laughed heartily together at this, as did everyone else at the table.
Reminds me of the obtuse hate mails I sometimes receive-confirmation
that I am doing my job-they always make me smile.
So the American government is pressuring foreign countries to censor
their news. Aside from the fact that this act is the height of arrogance
by the United States, it makes it exceedingly clear why so many
Americans who rely on the corporate media for their news continue to be
so misinformed/un-informed about the goings on in Iraq. If the American
government is attempting to censor the news in foreign countries, you
can imagine what they are doing at home.
Because people like Edelman don't want citizens of the United States to
know that events like the massacre of Fallujah or the atrocities in Abu
Ghraib are not isolated incidents.
People like Edelman don't want people to know what one of my sources in
Baquba just told me today.
His email reads:
"Near the city of Buhrez, 5 kilometers south of Baquba, two Humvess of
American soldiers were destroyed recently. American and Iraqi soldiers
came to the city afterwards and cut all the phones, cut the water, cut
medicine from arriving in the city and told them that until the people
of the city bring the "terrorists" to them, the embargo will continue."
The embargo has been in place now for one week now, and he continued:
"The Americans still won't anyone or any medicines and supplies into
Buhrez, nor will they allow any people in or out. Even the Al-Sadr
followers who organized some help for the people in the city (water,
food, medicine) are not being allowed into the city. Even journalists
cannot enter to publish the news, and the situation there is so bad. The
Americans keep asking for the people in the city to bring them the
persons who were in charge of destroying the two Humvees on the other
side of the city, but of course the people in the city don't know who
carried out the attack."
People like Edelman don't want people to know about the recent US
attacks in Al-Qa'im and Haditha either. Attacks that Iraqis are
describing as just as bad as the massacre of Fallujah.
On Haditha and Al-Qa'im, an Iraqi doctor sent me this email yesterday:
"Listen...we witnessed crimes in the west area of the country of what the
bastards did in Haditha and Al-Qa'im. It was a crime, a really big crime
we have witnessed and filmed in those places and recently also in
Fallujah. We need big help in the western area of the country. Our
doctors need urgent help there. Please, this is an URGENT humanitarian
request from the hospitals in the west of the country. We have big proof
on how the American troops destroyed one of our hospitals, how they
burned the whole store of medication of the west area of Iraq and how
they killed a patient in the ward...how they prevented us from helping the
people in al-Qa'im. This is an URGENT Humanitarian request. The
hospitals in the west of Iraq ask for urgent help...we are in a big
humanitarian medical disaster..."
People like Edelman don't want the public to know that the same tactics
used in Fallujah by the US military-posting snipers around the city to
shoot anyone who moves, targeting ambulances, impeding medical care, or
the detaining of innocent civilians en masse.
After all, Fallujah is the model. Fallujah is our Guernica. And now,
Haditha, Al-Qa'im can be added to the list, with Baquba and Buhrez under
deconstruction.
More writing, photos and commentary at http://dahrjamailiraq.com
Iraq_Dispatches mailing list
http://lists.dahrjamailiraq.com/mailman/listinfo/iraq_dispatches
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
8) Justices, 5-4, Back Seizure of Property for Development
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
"As a result, cities now have wide power to bulldoze residences
for projects such as shopping malls and hotel complexes in order
to generate tax revenue."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/politics/23wire-
scotus.html?hp&ex=1119585600&en=5036788eb4cc9d17&ei=5094&partner=home
page
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
9) Feds Target Calif. Marijuana Dispensaries
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Medical-Marijuana.html?
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
10) Timeline for Iraq Pullout Would Aid Insurgents, Rumsfeld Says
By TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
Published: June 23, 2005
"Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said today that setting
a timeline for withdrawal of American troops from Iraq would
give a "lifeline for terrorists." And in a spirited defense
of the war, he invoked Abraham Lincoln and the
American revolution.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/international/middleeast/23cnd-rums.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
11) House Again Backs Ban on Flag Desecration
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 22 - Voting once again today on an issue
blending emotion, patriotism and politics, the House of
Representatives overwhelmingly endorsed a constitutional
amendment that would allow Congress to outlaw debasing
the American flag."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/22cnd-
flag.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=964c8d03d8a28062&ei=5094&partner=homepa
ge
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
12) A Joint Public Statement by the
National Council of Arab Americans & the
Muslim American Society Freedom
Foundation on the September 24 March on
Washington
From: "NCA National Office" To:
nca-general@arab-american.net
For immediate release and wide distribution
Washington, DC - The Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation (MAS
Freedom) and the National Council of Arab-Americans (NCA) stand united
with our Muslim American and Arab American communities throughout the
United States in calling on all to join and support the A.N.S.W.E.R.
initiated September 24 mobilization against war and colonial occupations
that will take place in Washington, DC with parallel actions in San
Francisco and Los Angeles.
We are proud to announce that MAS Freedom and the NCA have both joined
the September 24 National Coalition for the March on Washington, which
also currently includes in its leadership the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition,
Haiti Support Network, Alliance for a Just and Lasting Peace in the
Philippines and the National Lawyers Guild (NLG). More than 4,000
organizations and individuals have thus far signed on to the coalition's
Call to Action, and significant organizing has created enthusiasm for
the mobilization all over the country. Under the overarching auspices
of the September 24 National Coalition, we believe that various
communities and organizations will come together in a genuine reflection
of the grassroots mosaic that constitutes this society.
We echo the grave concerns of our communities at the relentless efforts
by some to remove the Palestinian struggle and its anchoring principle,
the right of return, from the anti-war movement. We are reminded of the
overwhelming support that our communities received when we called for an
all- inclusive non-racist political program for the March 20, 2004
mobilization in New York City. On that day, over 100,000 people turned
out in New York City - the first anniversary of the war and occupation
of Iraq - under the slogan: "Bring the Troops Home Now! End Colonial
Occupation from Iraq to Palestine to Haiti and Everywhere!" In the same
context, our communities and the movement at large turned out in massive
numbers on April 20, 2002 in Washington, DC, signaling that a principled
unity is enthusiastically welcomed by the movement.
Communities and organizations have worked too hard over many years to
build bridges of solidarity and reciprocal respect between peoples for
us to allow some to turn us back now to the time when Arabs and Muslims
were placed on the margin. The planting of divisive seeds by some
against our targeted communities during a time when we are facing
continued governmental persecution and institutional racism is a
dangerous endeavor that must be stopped. Capitalizing on fear from
persecution to attain forced complacency and acquiescence to any offered
exclusionary political program must be exposed by the movement as a
whole. Time and again, the movement has made it clear that the
struggles of dispossessed and colonized people from Iraq, to Palestine,
to Haiti, to the Philippines and beyond, are inextricable from the
struggles of communities and the working families of this country.
It is time that our communities are fully respected as equal partners,
as we will not accept being objects of discussions nor will we be
observers of a movement about our very own lives.
Let us all stand together on September 24 in a non-segregated
mobilization that cuts across all color lines, religious beliefs and
ethnic backgrounds, to raise our voices in unison as we march hand in
hand against injustice here in the United States and abroad. And let us
shun all efforts to pit our communities against each other. Let us
refuse all attempts to segregate the movement on that day or any other.
ALL OUT ON SEPTEMBER 24!
The Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation The National Council of
Arab Americans June 20, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
13) Anti-war groups call for massive September mobilization
By Askia Muhammad
White House Correspondent
Updated Jun 16, 2005, 09:17 am
After seizing Baghdad, U.S. military is deep in a quagmire
(FCN, 06-13-2005)
International A.N.S.W.E.R. (InternationAnswer.org)
WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) - A broad anti-war coalition is planning a
mass march, encircling the White House September 24.
The International ANSWER Coalition-along with a diverse group of civil
rights, religious and community organizations-plans to mobilize 100,000
opponents to the U.S. occupation and war in Iraq here and in several
other cities, they announced at the National Press Club on June 1.
"We will, on September 24, surround the White House with a sea of
anti-war demonstrators," Brian Becker, ANSWER's national coordinator,
said at the news conference. "And this will be a graphic demonstration
... that the White House is surrounded by opposition all around the
country and this opposition grows day in and day out."
The demonstrations will also demand an end to U.S. threats against North
Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba, and an end to the "colonial-style
occupation in Palestine and in Haiti," the group said.
This "will be the largest anti-war demonstration to take place since the
second election, or selection, of George W. Bush" in November, said Mr.
Becker.
There is now a changed mood inside the United States, he said. "At this
point, we believe the majority sentiment in the country not only
disapproves of George Bush's handling of the White House, but has turned
decisively against the war in Iraq."
Others at the press conference agreed.
"From a theological perspective, we all admit that war is a terrible sin
within the human community. It is a sin that must be challenged. It is a
sin that must be lifted up. It is a sin that we must push to find
another way," said Reverend Graylan Hagler, senior minister of Plymouth
Congregational Church in Washington.
The Iraq conflict is similar in many ways to the Vietnam War, including
the way the war affects domestic politics, according to Vanessa Dixon,
of the D.C. Healthcare Coalition.
"The obscene amounts of money that have been, and will be, allocated to
the Iraqi occupation, should instead be spent on domestic priorities,
such as health care, education, affordable housing, veterans benefits
and other social programs," Ms. Dixon argued. "As a result of such
narrow and mercenary interests, the American public is paying a terrible
price for such wrong-headed priorities. We suffer from a President with
painfully limited wisdom and woefully inadequate compassion. While
waging a war against Iraq, the Bush administration wages another war
against America, by requiring massive cuts in social spending for
programs that benefit U.S. residents."
Central American and Mexican immigrants are also victims of the racist
U.S. war policy, according to Macrina Cardenas of the Mexico Solidarity
Network.
"The Bush administration has made a mess, and it gets worse every day,"
she said. "It's long past time for the people of this country to say,
'No more.' It's time for us to take this country back from the
politicians who sacrifice our children and our future to the profits of
a few oil companies.
"And now, in the name of fighting terrorists, the Bush administration is
building a wall along the Southern Border, the latest step in the racist
war that touches immigrant workers," she continued, referring to
aggressive border tactics in the Southwest.
Instead of receiving gratitude in this country for the good they do,
immigrants support families at home and, at the same time, they pay
taxes in this country. Immigrants face their own racist discrimination,
Ms. Cardenas charged. "They pay taxes, including Social Security, with
no chance of enjoying social services. And for these contributions, they
are treated like criminals, under constant threat of deportation. This
is the racist war at home against people who work hard in our homes and
communities."
The only solution is massive mobilization of the U.S. public, according
to the ANSWER Coalition. "If it's left to the Bush administration, the
United States will never leave Iraq," said Mr. Becker. "They have no
intention of leaving Iraq. The Bush administration has no intention of
leaving the Middle East. That's what the American people have to really
recognize. They went in and destroyed the Iraqi government, not because
it posed a grave and imminent danger to the people of the United States,
but because it was an impediment, and an obstacle to the full take-over
of that oil-rich region."
Mr. Becker believes that, if the public continues to wait for the U.S.
to leave Iraq, the bloodshed will only continue to grow.
"The Bush administration will go all the way to World War III in order
to win in Iraq, and yet you have the Iraqi people who are determined to
drive the Americans out, and the people of the Middle East who stand
with them and are sympathetic to their cause," he said.
"The people of the United States have to fully realize the dangerous
consequences of the Bush administration policies. The U.S. will only
leave Iraq when the people of the United States and the people of the
Middle East show that we have a commonality in opposition to the
Empire."
Other participants at the press conference included Mara
Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder, Partnership for Civil
Justice; Mahdi Bray, executive director, Muslim American Society Freedom
Foundation; and Chuck Kaufman, Nicaragua Network.
Messages of support were sent from Ramsey Clark, former U.S.
attorney-general; Michael Berg, father of Nicholas Berg; Ben Dupuy,
general-secretary, National Popular Party of Haiti (PPN); and Kathy
Boylan, Dorothy Day Catholic Worker in Washington, D.C.
ANSWER is reaching out to churches, mosques, youth and student
organizations and others, providing them with logistical information on
the demonstrations. It will hold teach-ins this summer that aim to bring
together organizers, religious and academic leaders, and elected
officials to discuss U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.
C Copyright 2005 FCN
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
14) Vets hold ground at regional military
recruiting station, ignore threats
of arrest to reach young recruits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Contact: George Main 916.505-4869
or Cres Vellucci 916.996-9170
Attention: News Desk
SACRAMENTO - A military veterans
organization claimed a major victory
Early Tuesday after members - despite
repeated police warnings of immediate
arrest - were able to virtually swarm
a bus carrying potential military
recruits and distribute literature
encouraging them to not enlist
to fight in the war in Iraq.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
15) Crisis in California:
WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
June 24, 2005
http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-2/549/549_08_PeterCamejo.shtml
THE GOVERNATOR came into office thinking he could escalate the attack
on working people in California. But Arnold Schwarzenegger has run into
a wall of resistance--rising anger and protests over his attacks on
pensions, health care, education and more.
Once considered one of the most popular politicians in the U.S.,
Schwarzenegger's approval ratings now run below George Bush's. Still,
the drive to make workers pay for California's multi-billion-dollar
budget crisis will continue--led by both Republicans and Democrats.
PETER CAMEJO was Ralph Nader's running mate in his 2004 independent
presidential campaign. Before that, he ran twice for governor of
California as the Green Party candidate, winning the highest number of
votes of any Green Party candidate in the country after Nader. In the
2003 recall election, Camejo was included in the televised debates
between the major candidates--and was widely acknowledged to have
beaten Schwarzenegger and the Democratic candidates with his
anti-corporate, pro-labor, pro-environment proposals.
Peter is a featured speaker at Socialism 2005 on July 1-4 in Chicago,
where he will speak on "How Do We Solve the Crisis in California?" For
more about information about this event, go to
www.socialismconference.org. Here, he talks to Socialist Worker's ALAN
MAASS about California's crisis.
CAN YOU talk about the scale of the crisis in California?
THE CRISIS that exists now in California was created by the Republicans
and Democrats.
What they did was dramatically lower the taxes collected from
corporations and the wealthy. The actual amount now taxed from the
wealthiest people in California--the wealthiest 1 percent, who have
incomes equal to 75 percent of the people of California--is at a rate
which is substantially below what it's been for the poorest people.
The poor in California--that is the bottom 20 percent--pay a 57 percent
higher tax rate than the richest 1 percent. The poor pay 11.3 percent
of their income in state and local taxes, and the wealthiest 1 percent
pay 7.2 percent. And even that figure is slightly exaggerated because
the official figures don't calculate capital gains in a manner that's
really appropriate.
Twenty or 25 years ago, the taxes of the corporations used to be close
to 10 percent. Today, their taxes are below 6 percent. That's a 43
percent drop in the taxes they're obligated to pay. Fifty-two percent
of the corporations in California that are profitable pay no taxes.
They pay only an $800 annual fee.
This has created a deficit along with a shift of money from the poor to
the rich, and the way that the Democrats and Republicans are trying to
overcome this is by increasing taxation on the average person.
They've increased what you pay to cross bridges--from $2 to $3, a 50
percent increase. They increased community college fees by 100 percent.
They've increased college tuition by about 30 to 40 percent and plan
for the next two years to increase it by about 10 percent per year.
On the other hand, they're cutting back essential services. Education
is the most extreme case. According to the tests done throughout the
country, California came in 48th out of the 50 states.
Forty or fifty years ago, California was considered to have the best
education system in the United States and was the envy of the world. It
had free education at the University of California system. Now you have
to pay substantial tuition at the University of California, and the
schools are falling apart. California is now only ahead of Mississippi
and Louisiana.
The right wingers claim that this is in part due to a large number of
immigrants, who come across the border from Mexico primarily. But
according to a study, if you factor out the immigrants, California
comes in 50th in the nation--the immigrants are actually holding
California up. That study was reported at the state annual conference
of the in the California Budget Project--which said to the shock of the
people listening that California had fallen to 48th.
Part of the reason for this is that wealthy people--people with higher
incomes--are now sending their children to private schools. For
instance, in the city of San Francisco, 30 percent of young people go
to private schools. So people with money are no longer interested in
public education, and they oppose funding it to the extent that's
necessary.
In 1960, there were 15.7 million people in California. In 2003, there
were 35.4 million. If you look at the rise in gross domestic product
(GDP), it rose much faster than the growth in population. Today,
there's more money per person in California than there was in 1960--yet
our education system is collapsing.
This is a direct result of policies that are aimed at lowering taxes
for the wealthiest people. The profits of American corporations in the
last two years are the highest when measured as a percentage of GDP
than at any time in the history of the United States. Part of that is
due to the U.S. government deliberately permitting the value of the
dollar to drop. Since most international corporations now do a lot of
business abroad, this creates a jump in their profits. But it actually
lowers the standard of living of the actual working person.
In the New York Times, the journalist David Cay Johnston pointed out
that since 1980, the share of income of 90 percent of the people in the
United States has declined--in one of the periods of the greatest rise
in GDP in the history of the United States.
What this shows you is that this divergence between what's happening to
the wealthiest people and what's happening to the mass of the people in
the United States is not accidental. And this is happening across the
whole nation--California is not the worst. California is in the upper
end in terms of how regressive its taxes are, but many states are even
worse.
AFTER WINNING the recall election, Arnold Schwarzenegger has seen his
popularity plummet--particularly as a result of labor-led campaigns to
protest his policies. How has this opposition developed?
THE TRUTH is that there's an enormous vacuum. The fact that working
people in California have accepted lower pay in the midst of a
massively rising economy is quite unusual in American history. If you
go back to other periods, you will see a rise in the standard of living
of working people pretty much running parallel to the rise in the GDP.
And the unions were quite aggressive in fighting for it.
But now, it was only when the Republican became governor and when the
California state government wasn't totally in the hands of the
Democrats--which it was before Schwarzenegger--that the unions even
began to do anything about this.
Yet since they have begun this--especially the California Nurses
Association, which is led by more progressive leaders--there has been
an enormous response and a very sharp drop in the governor's
popularity.
Part of what happened, I think, is that the corporations and the
lobbyists who run California overplayed their hand. They thought that
they could move to end pensions in California. That's what Arnold
actually proposed to do. People don't always realize this, but that's
what his proposal was--to end a guaranteed pension benefit by law,
according to a set formula.
The governor also attempted to change the rules for when teachers get
tenure, and to treat their pay as if it was the private sector. So
teachers wouldn't be guaranteed their pay, but it would depend on test
results, which in many cases are completely beyond the control of
teachers, because of socioeconomic reasons and so on.
This is all an attack on working people. And Schwarzenegger overplayed
his hand. His popularity is dropping. But the Democrats have no real
counterproposal. The only thing they've said so far is to talk about
some very minimal increases in taxes on the rich.
But in other cases, they've joined in on the attack--even progressive
Democrats, like [State Assemblyman] Mark Leno, who is generally doing
good work, especially on the rights of gays and lesbians. Leno has
proposed increasing taxes on the poor by re-establishing the car tax,
which was abolished. This is a tax that effects primarily the poor.
It's similar to the national situation with George Bush's tax cuts. No
one challenged those either. The Democrats went along with the
Republicans because they fear the reaction from the corporate world and
from the lobbyists who finance their campaigns.
ONE OTHER factor in the crisis has been a polarized atmosphere in which
the right wing gets more of a hearing. Can you talk about the attack on
immigrant rights in California?
THERE IS a very important campaign now against the rights of
immigrants. It's popular among the public and among many working
people, who accept these attacks against undocumented workers--as
somehow responsible for the problems we see.
The politicians making these attacks on immigrants have absolutely no
intention of stopping undocumented workers from living in California.
From George Bush down to the lowest-level Democrat and Republican, not
a single politician has come out publicly and said, "Let's round up 11
million people and deport them." So it is very odd that they continue
to refer to people as being illegal and do negative things to them,
like deny them drivers licenses, while they all insist that
undocumented workers remain in the country.
This becomes a violation of the United Nations Human Rights charter.
You cannot have people living in your country that you accept as being
part of your community who do not have equal rights. This is creating a
second-class grouping, and it's obviously being done to continue to
super-exploit them and to make them the scapegoat for social problems.
Now in the case of Mexicans, the contradiction is rather
extreme--because the people who are making statements against Mexicans
are primarily people of European descent. And if there's one group of
people who came to America illegally--without any visas or any rights
or anything that justifies them coming into America and taking it--it's
the Europeans.
Every state in the Southwest, including California, was once part of
Mexico. The people living in this area never chose to become part of
the United States. It was militarily occupied and conquered, and the
people who lived here were denied their rights. They were often
disenfranchised. And there was actually a program in
California--organized by the Democratic Party, back in the 1860s--in
which people were actually paid to kill indigenous people.
Today, these immigrants are descendents of the indigenous people of
this continent. From their point of view, all they are is refugees from
poverty. It's very important to deal with this for there to be any
unity inside the working class to rebuild the unions. If the unions
don't defend immigrant workers, this division will weaken all workers
and will lead to the lowering of the standard of living.
Globalization is a massive economic fact which, unless the labor
movement can politically defend itself, leads to a lower standard of
living in all the advanced countries. Which is what happened in the
United States, because the labor movement has no political arm.
This has to be fought politically. It can't be fought at the level of
the factory or the industry, through strikes or demonstration.
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
16) On June 29 2004, Gus Rugley, 21 yr African American Youth
was shot more than a hundred times on Alemany Boulevard, San
Francisco, after what SFPD described as a high speed chase.
According to the corporate press, Rugley would have opened
fire at a police car. However, the autopsy report released
nearly 9 months after Rugley's homicide, revealed that Gus
had no gun powder traces on his skin or clothing, therefore
Gus could not have used a weapon. The toxicological screen
also revealed that Gus Rugley was not under the influence of
alcohol or any drugs at the time of his death.
Please take a moment to post a message of support to Gus'
courageous mom, Elvira Pollard. In 7 days the anniversary of
Gus' killing is coming up !
Join our campaign for Justice4GusRugley!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Gus/
Cordially,
mesha monge-irizarry
Idriss Stelley Foundation
(415) 595-8251 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis Line
ACORN
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
SF Youth Empowerment Funding Advisory Board member
(Youth Commission)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
17) Justice4JulioAyala Press conference &Protest,
The Heat is ON !
(mesha Monge-Irizarry, Idriss Stelley Foundation)
On Wednesday 6-21, the family and friends of Julio Ayala, Latino and
Police Accountatibility activists gathered at 8:30 am in front of
Redwood City City Hall, holding the October 22 Against Police
Brutality Coalition banners, chanting "No justice, No Peace !" and
"Justicia para Julio Ayala". The corporate press was at the
rendez-vous, City Bay, the Examiner, La Prensa Grafica Salvadorena,
Channel 2 &7.
Julio Ayala, 26 yr. Salvadoreno legal US resident, who lived on
Jamestown Avenue in SF Bayview Hill until his tragic fate, died at the
hands of 13 police officers at the SF Airport Inn on 6-3-05, allegedly
"stopping to breathe" after being restrained in a body wrap for 15
minutes.
Before stepping into the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors
Chamber, we were forwarned by a city official that although the board
was aware that a group was planning to address them in public
comments, no disturbance would be tolerated, "fill out your slips, no
more than 2 minutes per comment!".
Reminiscent of the former apathic SF Police Commission before November
03 Police reform, Supervisors Mark Church, Jerry Hill, Rich Gordon,
Adrienne Tissier (all of European descent) and Rose Jacobs Gibson
(African American), stood motionless, strictly sticking to the 2
minutes imposed time limit, "Next !", and did not care to ask any
questions to Tanya (Julio's sister), Julio and Mirna Ayala (his
parents), who made a moving appeal to the board, often breaking into
heartwrenching tears (which prompted each time for the corporate press
to swirm upclose, avid for sensational material). Mr. Ayala presented
the board with close to 1000 petitions (some from 32 states outside of
California, and 11 foreign countries),demanding all reports pertaining
to the death of his son, release of the 911 dispatching tape and an
independent federal investigation, along with a letter to the Board,
portraying his family as "Law abiding, hard working Latinos" who fled
disaster, oppression and war in El Salvador to seek refuge in the Land
of Opportunity, where they ended up loosing their beautiful son at the
hands of SSF PD.
Juio's friends described him as a children loving, conscencious
worker, undeserving of such horrible fate, and pleaded the board for
their serious consideration of Julio's death matter. Union workers,
peace activists calmly reiterated the same request: "Do the right
thing! Give us Justice 4 Julio"!
"Any more comments?". "well, we do not have authority to settle this
issue at this hearing, we will review the evidence and get back to you
in 2 weeks". The whole matter was wrapped up in less than 15 minutes
before the board moved on to the next agenda item,without another
glance toward the Ayala's.
Board President Mark Church did, for whatever that was worth, pay
respect to the grieving family. On our way back to San Francisco,
Mirna and Julio Ayala alternatively break into tears. Waves of
wrenching pain and despair constantly tear them apart, over and over,
compiled with the total absence of information, disrespect and
diregard inflicted upon them for the past two and a half month. Each
unanswered appeal to let them know what happened to their son takes a
terrible toll on their emotional health and hope that our community
will honnor their beautiful child...
But the struggle for Justice4Julio will go on !
To send a message of support to the Ayala family, you can write to
Ayalajulio2@aol.com
_xIHonLFVWzf_gsYzvjshKE_mG4n9M> or post a message on
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Julio/
If you have been assaulted by PD, please call (415) 595-8251 Idriss
Stelley Foundation 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis line or write to
iolmisha@cs.com http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Julio/
post?postID=i1UIo34ZldzOXjWQHaaoBau2lOcLaxssqtuPfZS1yKNKEiVKqxvlHwjjs2BPqF
Qrz3fe-v5qSX-M
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
18) Pentagon to Gather Data on Students
Opponents Contend Move may Illegally Bypass Privacy Laws
Jonathan Krim, Washington Post
Thursday, June 23, 2005
"Washington -- The Defense Department began working Wednesday
with a private marketing firm to create a database of high
school students ages 16 to 18 and all college students to
help the military identify potential recruits in a time of
dwindling enlistment in some branches."
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/23/MNGRODDG201.DTL
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
19) U.S. doctors linked to POW `torture'
Guantanamo medical records misused
Basis of interrogators' strategy: Report
TANYA TALAGA AND KAREN PALMER
STAFF REPORTERS
"Medical records compiled by doctors caring for prisoners
at the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay are being
tapped to design more effective interrogation techniques,
says an explosive new report."
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/
Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1119477015095&call_pageid=9683321
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
20) Military Enlists Marketer
to Get Data on Students
for Recruiters
By Mark Mazzetti
Times Staff Writer
June 23, 2005
"WASHINGTON - With the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan
making it increasingly hard for the U.S. military to fill
its ranks with recruits, the Pentagon has hired an outside
marketing firm to help compile an extensive database about
teenagers and college students that the military services
could use to target potential enlistees."
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-na-
privacy23jun23,1,5537670,print.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0623-03.htm
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Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
7) Censorship
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
June 23, 2005
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
8) Justices, 5-4, Back Seizure
of Property for Development
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
"As a result, cities now have wide power to bulldoze
residences for projects such as shopping malls and
hotel complexes in order to generate tax revenue."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/politics/23wire-
scotus.html?hp&ex=1119585600&en=5036788eb4cc9d17&ei=5094&partner=home
page
9) Feds Target Calif. Marijuana Dispensaries
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Medical-Marijuana.html
10) Timeline for Iraq Pullout
Would Aid Insurgents, Rumsfeld Says
By TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
Published: June 23, 2005
"Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said
today that setting a timeline for withdrawal
of American troops from Iraq would give a
"lifeline for terrorists." And in a spirited
defense of the war, he invoked Abraham Lincoln
and the American revolution.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/international/middleeast/23cnd-rums.html
11) House Again Backs Ban on Flag Desecration
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 22 - Voting once again today
on an issue blending emotion, patriotism and politics,
the House of Representatives overwhelmingly endorsed
a constitutional amendment that would allow Congress
to outlaw debasing the American flag."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/22cnd-
flag.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=964c8d03d8a28062&ei=5094&partner=homepa
ge
12) A Joint Public Statement by the National
Council of Arab Americans & the
Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
on the September 24 March on
Washington
From: "NCA National Office"
nationaloffice@arab-american.net
13) Anti-war groups call for massive September mobilization
By Askia Muhammad
White House Correspondent
Updated Jun 16, 2005, 09:17 am
14) Vets hold ground at regional military
recruiting station, ignore threats
of arrest to reach young recruits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Contact: George Main 916.505-4869
or Cres Vellucci 916.996-9170
Attention: News Desk
SACRAMENTO - A military veterans
organization claimed a major victory
Early Tuesday after members - despite
repeated police warnings of immediate
arrest - were able to virtually swarm
a bus carrying potential military
recruits and distribute literature
encouraging them to not enlist
to fight in the war in Iraq.
15) Crisis in California:
WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
June 24, 2005
http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-2/549/549_08_PeterCamejo.shtml
16) On June 29 2004, Gus Rugley, 21 yr African American Youth
was shot more than a hundred times on Alemany Boulevard, San
Francisco, after what SFPD described as a high speed chase.
According to the corporate press, Rugley would have opened
fire at a police car. However, the autopsy report released
nearly 9 months after Rugley's homicide, revealed that Gus
had no gun powder traces on his skin or clothing, therefore
Gus could not have used a weapon. The toxicological screen
also revealed that Gus Rugley was not under the influence of
alcohol or any drugs at the time of his death.
Please take a moment to post a message of support to Gus'
courageous mom, Elvira Pollard. In 7 days the anniversary of
Gus' killing is coming up !
Join our campaign for Justice4GusRugley!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Gus/
Cordially,
mesha monge-irizarry
Idriss Stelley Foundation
(415) 595-8251 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis Line
ACORN
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
SF Youth Empowerment Funding Advisory Board member (Youth Commission)
17) Justice4JulioAyala Press conference &Protest,
The Heat is ON !
(mesha Monge-Irizarry, Idriss Stelley Foundation)
18) Pentagon to Gather Data on Students
Opponents Contend Move may Illegally Bypass Privacy Laws
Jonathan Krim, Washington Post
Thursday, June 23, 2005
"Washington -- The Defense Department began working
Wednesday with a private marketing firm to create
a database of high school students ages 16 to 18 and
all college students to help the military identify
potential recruits in a time of dwindling enlistment
in some branches."
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/23/MNGRODDG201.DTL
19) U.S. doctors linked to POW `torture'
Guantanamo medical records misused
Basis of interrogators' strategy: Report
TANYA TALAGA AND KAREN PALMER
STAFF REPORTERS
"Medical records compiled by doctors caring for prisoners
at the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay are being
tapped to design more effective interrogation techniques,
says an explosive new report."
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/
Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1119477015095&call_pageid=9683321
20) Military Enlists Marketer
to Get Data on Students
for Recruiters
By Mark Mazzetti
Times Staff Writer
June 23, 2005
"WASHINGTON - With the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan
making it increasingly hard for the U.S. military to fill
its ranks with recruits, the Pentagon has hired an outside
marketing firm to help compile an extensive database about
teenagers and college students that the military services
could use to target potential enlistees."
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-na-
privacy23jun23,1,5537670,print.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0623-03.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
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2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
Based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music
is the icing on the cake!
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR (BAUAW)
BAUAW is setting up a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT
PETITION CAMPAIGN table by invitation
from the Mime Troupe. THERE WILL BE AN
ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE STAGE.
We will be able to gather signatures before
and after the performance. After the performance
we will also fan out over the city to give this
petition drive a big push over the July 4th weekend.
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE
FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO, NOVEMBER 2005, ELECTIONS:
"The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public
school, college and university
facilities to recruit young
people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should
oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means
by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job
training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled
to join the military!"
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS.
FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
GET THE MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS!
MONEY FOR EDUCATION NOT FOR WAR!
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!
FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) Censorship
Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches
http://dahrjamailiraq.com
June 23, 2005
At long last, the culminating session of the World Tribunal on Iraq is
upon us. As a witness providing testimony, like the other witnesses I'm
being interviewed by many outlets. Today, one of them was by reporters
for one of the larger newspapers in Turkey, the Yeni Safak Newspaper.
I'll leave the reporters nameless, for reasons you'll soon see.
The newspaper has been translating various articles of mine into Turkish
and running them, particularly those concerning the most recent Fallujah
massacre. The report who was interviewing me today told me that the
former American consulate here, Eric Edelman, asked the Prime Minister
of Turkey to pressure his paper to not run so many of my stories.
"Why did he do this," I asked him.
"Edelman said it was the wrong news," he told me with a smile.
Turns out Edelman also asked that articles by Robert Fisk and Naomi
Klein not be run so often in Yeni Safak either.
He smiled at me while he watched the wheels turning in my head before I
smiled back and said, "That makes me very happy, it means I'm doing my
job as a journalist."
We laughed heartily together at this, as did everyone else at the table.
Reminds me of the obtuse hate mails I sometimes receive-confirmation
that I am doing my job-they always make me smile.
So the American government is pressuring foreign countries to censor
their news. Aside from the fact that this act is the height of arrogance
by the United States, it makes it exceedingly clear why so many
Americans who rely on the corporate media for their news continue to be
so misinformed/un-informed about the goings on in Iraq. If the American
government is attempting to censor the news in foreign countries, you
can imagine what they are doing at home.
Because people like Edelman don't want citizens of the United States to
know that events like the massacre of Fallujah or the atrocities in Abu
Ghraib are not isolated incidents.
People like Edelman don't want people to know what one of my sources in
Baquba just told me today.
His email reads:
"Near the city of Buhrez, 5 kilometers south of Baquba, two Humvess of
American soldiers were destroyed recently. American and Iraqi soldiers
came to the city afterwards and cut all the phones, cut the water, cut
medicine from arriving in the city and told them that until the people
of the city bring the "terrorists" to them, the embargo will continue."
The embargo has been in place now for one week now, and he continued:
"The Americans still won't anyone or any medicines and supplies into
Buhrez, nor will they allow any people in or out. Even the Al-Sadr
followers who organized some help for the people in the city (water,
food, medicine) are not being allowed into the city. Even journalists
cannot enter to publish the news, and the situation there is so bad. The
Americans keep asking for the people in the city to bring them the
persons who were in charge of destroying the two Humvees on the other
side of the city, but of course the people in the city don't know who
carried out the attack."
People like Edelman don't want people to know about the recent US
attacks in Al-Qa'im and Haditha either. Attacks that Iraqis are
describing as just as bad as the massacre of Fallujah.
On Haditha and Al-Qa'im, an Iraqi doctor sent me this email yesterday:
"Listen...we witnessed crimes in the west area of the country of what the
bastards did in Haditha and Al-Qa'im. It was a crime, a really big crime
we have witnessed and filmed in those places and recently also in
Fallujah. We need big help in the western area of the country. Our
doctors need urgent help there. Please, this is an URGENT humanitarian
request from the hospitals in the west of the country. We have big proof
on how the American troops destroyed one of our hospitals, how they
burned the whole store of medication of the west area of Iraq and how
they killed a patient in the ward...how they prevented us from helping the
people in al-Qa'im. This is an URGENT Humanitarian request. The
hospitals in the west of Iraq ask for urgent help...we are in a big
humanitarian medical disaster..."
People like Edelman don't want the public to know that the same tactics
used in Fallujah by the US military-posting snipers around the city to
shoot anyone who moves, targeting ambulances, impeding medical care, or
the detaining of innocent civilians en masse.
After all, Fallujah is the model. Fallujah is our Guernica. And now,
Haditha, Al-Qa'im can be added to the list, with Baquba and Buhrez under
deconstruction.
More writing, photos and commentary at http://dahrjamailiraq.com
Iraq_Dispatches mailing list
http://lists.dahrjamailiraq.com/mailman/listinfo/iraq_dispatches
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
8) Justices, 5-4, Back Seizure of Property for Development
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
"As a result, cities now have wide power to bulldoze residences
for projects such as shopping malls and hotel complexes in order
to generate tax revenue."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/politics/23wire-
scotus.html?hp&ex=1119585600&en=5036788eb4cc9d17&ei=5094&partner=home
page
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
9) Feds Target Calif. Marijuana Dispensaries
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 23, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Medical-Marijuana.html?
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
10) Timeline for Iraq Pullout Would Aid Insurgents, Rumsfeld Says
By TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
Published: June 23, 2005
"Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said today that setting
a timeline for withdrawal of American troops from Iraq would
give a "lifeline for terrorists." And in a spirited defense
of the war, he invoked Abraham Lincoln and the
American revolution.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/international/middleeast/23cnd-rums.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
11) House Again Backs Ban on Flag Desecration
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 22 - Voting once again today on an issue
blending emotion, patriotism and politics, the House of
Representatives overwhelmingly endorsed a constitutional
amendment that would allow Congress to outlaw debasing
the American flag."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/22cnd-
flag.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=964c8d03d8a28062&ei=5094&partner=homepa
ge
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
12) A Joint Public Statement by the
National Council of Arab Americans & the
Muslim American Society Freedom
Foundation on the September 24 March on
Washington
From: "NCA National Office"
nca-general@arab-american.net
For immediate release and wide distribution
Washington, DC - The Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation (MAS
Freedom) and the National Council of Arab-Americans (NCA) stand united
with our Muslim American and Arab American communities throughout the
United States in calling on all to join and support the A.N.S.W.E.R.
initiated September 24 mobilization against war and colonial occupations
that will take place in Washington, DC with parallel actions in San
Francisco and Los Angeles.
We are proud to announce that MAS Freedom and the NCA have both joined
the September 24 National Coalition for the March on Washington, which
also currently includes in its leadership the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition,
Haiti Support Network, Alliance for a Just and Lasting Peace in the
Philippines and the National Lawyers Guild (NLG). More than 4,000
organizations and individuals have thus far signed on to the coalition's
Call to Action, and significant organizing has created enthusiasm for
the mobilization all over the country. Under the overarching auspices
of the September 24 National Coalition, we believe that various
communities and organizations will come together in a genuine reflection
of the grassroots mosaic that constitutes this society.
We echo the grave concerns of our communities at the relentless efforts
by some to remove the Palestinian struggle and its anchoring principle,
the right of return, from the anti-war movement. We are reminded of the
overwhelming support that our communities received when we called for an
all- inclusive non-racist political program for the March 20, 2004
mobilization in New York City. On that day, over 100,000 people turned
out in New York City - the first anniversary of the war and occupation
of Iraq - under the slogan: "Bring the Troops Home Now! End Colonial
Occupation from Iraq to Palestine to Haiti and Everywhere!" In the same
context, our communities and the movement at large turned out in massive
numbers on April 20, 2002 in Washington, DC, signaling that a principled
unity is enthusiastically welcomed by the movement.
Communities and organizations have worked too hard over many years to
build bridges of solidarity and reciprocal respect between peoples for
us to allow some to turn us back now to the time when Arabs and Muslims
were placed on the margin. The planting of divisive seeds by some
against our targeted communities during a time when we are facing
continued governmental persecution and institutional racism is a
dangerous endeavor that must be stopped. Capitalizing on fear from
persecution to attain forced complacency and acquiescence to any offered
exclusionary political program must be exposed by the movement as a
whole. Time and again, the movement has made it clear that the
struggles of dispossessed and colonized people from Iraq, to Palestine,
to Haiti, to the Philippines and beyond, are inextricable from the
struggles of communities and the working families of this country.
It is time that our communities are fully respected as equal partners,
as we will not accept being objects of discussions nor will we be
observers of a movement about our very own lives.
Let us all stand together on September 24 in a non-segregated
mobilization that cuts across all color lines, religious beliefs and
ethnic backgrounds, to raise our voices in unison as we march hand in
hand against injustice here in the United States and abroad. And let us
shun all efforts to pit our communities against each other. Let us
refuse all attempts to segregate the movement on that day or any other.
ALL OUT ON SEPTEMBER 24!
The Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation The National Council of
Arab Americans June 20, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
13) Anti-war groups call for massive September mobilization
By Askia Muhammad
White House Correspondent
Updated Jun 16, 2005, 09:17 am
After seizing Baghdad, U.S. military is deep in a quagmire
(FCN, 06-13-2005)
International A.N.S.W.E.R. (InternationAnswer.org)
WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) - A broad anti-war coalition is planning a
mass march, encircling the White House September 24.
The International ANSWER Coalition-along with a diverse group of civil
rights, religious and community organizations-plans to mobilize 100,000
opponents to the U.S. occupation and war in Iraq here and in several
other cities, they announced at the National Press Club on June 1.
"We will, on September 24, surround the White House with a sea of
anti-war demonstrators," Brian Becker, ANSWER's national coordinator,
said at the news conference. "And this will be a graphic demonstration
... that the White House is surrounded by opposition all around the
country and this opposition grows day in and day out."
The demonstrations will also demand an end to U.S. threats against North
Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba, and an end to the "colonial-style
occupation in Palestine and in Haiti," the group said.
This "will be the largest anti-war demonstration to take place since the
second election, or selection, of George W. Bush" in November, said Mr.
Becker.
There is now a changed mood inside the United States, he said. "At this
point, we believe the majority sentiment in the country not only
disapproves of George Bush's handling of the White House, but has turned
decisively against the war in Iraq."
Others at the press conference agreed.
"From a theological perspective, we all admit that war is a terrible sin
within the human community. It is a sin that must be challenged. It is a
sin that must be lifted up. It is a sin that we must push to find
another way," said Reverend Graylan Hagler, senior minister of Plymouth
Congregational Church in Washington.
The Iraq conflict is similar in many ways to the Vietnam War, including
the way the war affects domestic politics, according to Vanessa Dixon,
of the D.C. Healthcare Coalition.
"The obscene amounts of money that have been, and will be, allocated to
the Iraqi occupation, should instead be spent on domestic priorities,
such as health care, education, affordable housing, veterans benefits
and other social programs," Ms. Dixon argued. "As a result of such
narrow and mercenary interests, the American public is paying a terrible
price for such wrong-headed priorities. We suffer from a President with
painfully limited wisdom and woefully inadequate compassion. While
waging a war against Iraq, the Bush administration wages another war
against America, by requiring massive cuts in social spending for
programs that benefit U.S. residents."
Central American and Mexican immigrants are also victims of the racist
U.S. war policy, according to Macrina Cardenas of the Mexico Solidarity
Network.
"The Bush administration has made a mess, and it gets worse every day,"
she said. "It's long past time for the people of this country to say,
'No more.' It's time for us to take this country back from the
politicians who sacrifice our children and our future to the profits of
a few oil companies.
"And now, in the name of fighting terrorists, the Bush administration is
building a wall along the Southern Border, the latest step in the racist
war that touches immigrant workers," she continued, referring to
aggressive border tactics in the Southwest.
Instead of receiving gratitude in this country for the good they do,
immigrants support families at home and, at the same time, they pay
taxes in this country. Immigrants face their own racist discrimination,
Ms. Cardenas charged. "They pay taxes, including Social Security, with
no chance of enjoying social services. And for these contributions, they
are treated like criminals, under constant threat of deportation. This
is the racist war at home against people who work hard in our homes and
communities."
The only solution is massive mobilization of the U.S. public, according
to the ANSWER Coalition. "If it's left to the Bush administration, the
United States will never leave Iraq," said Mr. Becker. "They have no
intention of leaving Iraq. The Bush administration has no intention of
leaving the Middle East. That's what the American people have to really
recognize. They went in and destroyed the Iraqi government, not because
it posed a grave and imminent danger to the people of the United States,
but because it was an impediment, and an obstacle to the full take-over
of that oil-rich region."
Mr. Becker believes that, if the public continues to wait for the U.S.
to leave Iraq, the bloodshed will only continue to grow.
"The Bush administration will go all the way to World War III in order
to win in Iraq, and yet you have the Iraqi people who are determined to
drive the Americans out, and the people of the Middle East who stand
with them and are sympathetic to their cause," he said.
"The people of the United States have to fully realize the dangerous
consequences of the Bush administration policies. The U.S. will only
leave Iraq when the people of the United States and the people of the
Middle East show that we have a commonality in opposition to the
Empire."
Other participants at the press conference included Mara
Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder, Partnership for Civil
Justice; Mahdi Bray, executive director, Muslim American Society Freedom
Foundation; and Chuck Kaufman, Nicaragua Network.
Messages of support were sent from Ramsey Clark, former U.S.
attorney-general; Michael Berg, father of Nicholas Berg; Ben Dupuy,
general-secretary, National Popular Party of Haiti (PPN); and Kathy
Boylan, Dorothy Day Catholic Worker in Washington, D.C.
ANSWER is reaching out to churches, mosques, youth and student
organizations and others, providing them with logistical information on
the demonstrations. It will hold teach-ins this summer that aim to bring
together organizers, religious and academic leaders, and elected
officials to discuss U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.
C Copyright 2005 FCN
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
14) Vets hold ground at regional military
recruiting station, ignore threats
of arrest to reach young recruits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Contact: George Main 916.505-4869
or Cres Vellucci 916.996-9170
Attention: News Desk
SACRAMENTO - A military veterans
organization claimed a major victory
Early Tuesday after members - despite
repeated police warnings of immediate
arrest - were able to virtually swarm
a bus carrying potential military
recruits and distribute literature
encouraging them to not enlist
to fight in the war in Iraq.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
15) Crisis in California:
WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
June 24, 2005
http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-2/549/549_08_PeterCamejo.shtml
THE GOVERNATOR came into office thinking he could escalate the attack
on working people in California. But Arnold Schwarzenegger has run into
a wall of resistance--rising anger and protests over his attacks on
pensions, health care, education and more.
Once considered one of the most popular politicians in the U.S.,
Schwarzenegger's approval ratings now run below George Bush's. Still,
the drive to make workers pay for California's multi-billion-dollar
budget crisis will continue--led by both Republicans and Democrats.
PETER CAMEJO was Ralph Nader's running mate in his 2004 independent
presidential campaign. Before that, he ran twice for governor of
California as the Green Party candidate, winning the highest number of
votes of any Green Party candidate in the country after Nader. In the
2003 recall election, Camejo was included in the televised debates
between the major candidates--and was widely acknowledged to have
beaten Schwarzenegger and the Democratic candidates with his
anti-corporate, pro-labor, pro-environment proposals.
Peter is a featured speaker at Socialism 2005 on July 1-4 in Chicago,
where he will speak on "How Do We Solve the Crisis in California?" For
more about information about this event, go to
www.socialismconference.org. Here, he talks to Socialist Worker's ALAN
MAASS about California's crisis.
CAN YOU talk about the scale of the crisis in California?
THE CRISIS that exists now in California was created by the Republicans
and Democrats.
What they did was dramatically lower the taxes collected from
corporations and the wealthy. The actual amount now taxed from the
wealthiest people in California--the wealthiest 1 percent, who have
incomes equal to 75 percent of the people of California--is at a rate
which is substantially below what it's been for the poorest people.
The poor in California--that is the bottom 20 percent--pay a 57 percent
higher tax rate than the richest 1 percent. The poor pay 11.3 percent
of their income in state and local taxes, and the wealthiest 1 percent
pay 7.2 percent. And even that figure is slightly exaggerated because
the official figures don't calculate capital gains in a manner that's
really appropriate.
Twenty or 25 years ago, the taxes of the corporations used to be close
to 10 percent. Today, their taxes are below 6 percent. That's a 43
percent drop in the taxes they're obligated to pay. Fifty-two percent
of the corporations in California that are profitable pay no taxes.
They pay only an $800 annual fee.
This has created a deficit along with a shift of money from the poor to
the rich, and the way that the Democrats and Republicans are trying to
overcome this is by increasing taxation on the average person.
They've increased what you pay to cross bridges--from $2 to $3, a 50
percent increase. They increased community college fees by 100 percent.
They've increased college tuition by about 30 to 40 percent and plan
for the next two years to increase it by about 10 percent per year.
On the other hand, they're cutting back essential services. Education
is the most extreme case. According to the tests done throughout the
country, California came in 48th out of the 50 states.
Forty or fifty years ago, California was considered to have the best
education system in the United States and was the envy of the world. It
had free education at the University of California system. Now you have
to pay substantial tuition at the University of California, and the
schools are falling apart. California is now only ahead of Mississippi
and Louisiana.
The right wingers claim that this is in part due to a large number of
immigrants, who come across the border from Mexico primarily. But
according to a study, if you factor out the immigrants, California
comes in 50th in the nation--the immigrants are actually holding
California up. That study was reported at the state annual conference
of the in the California Budget Project--which said to the shock of the
people listening that California had fallen to 48th.
Part of the reason for this is that wealthy people--people with higher
incomes--are now sending their children to private schools. For
instance, in the city of San Francisco, 30 percent of young people go
to private schools. So people with money are no longer interested in
public education, and they oppose funding it to the extent that's
necessary.
In 1960, there were 15.7 million people in California. In 2003, there
were 35.4 million. If you look at the rise in gross domestic product
(GDP), it rose much faster than the growth in population. Today,
there's more money per person in California than there was in 1960--yet
our education system is collapsing.
This is a direct result of policies that are aimed at lowering taxes
for the wealthiest people. The profits of American corporations in the
last two years are the highest when measured as a percentage of GDP
than at any time in the history of the United States. Part of that is
due to the U.S. government deliberately permitting the value of the
dollar to drop. Since most international corporations now do a lot of
business abroad, this creates a jump in their profits. But it actually
lowers the standard of living of the actual working person.
In the New York Times, the journalist David Cay Johnston pointed out
that since 1980, the share of income of 90 percent of the people in the
United States has declined--in one of the periods of the greatest rise
in GDP in the history of the United States.
What this shows you is that this divergence between what's happening to
the wealthiest people and what's happening to the mass of the people in
the United States is not accidental. And this is happening across the
whole nation--California is not the worst. California is in the upper
end in terms of how regressive its taxes are, but many states are even
worse.
AFTER WINNING the recall election, Arnold Schwarzenegger has seen his
popularity plummet--particularly as a result of labor-led campaigns to
protest his policies. How has this opposition developed?
THE TRUTH is that there's an enormous vacuum. The fact that working
people in California have accepted lower pay in the midst of a
massively rising economy is quite unusual in American history. If you
go back to other periods, you will see a rise in the standard of living
of working people pretty much running parallel to the rise in the GDP.
And the unions were quite aggressive in fighting for it.
But now, it was only when the Republican became governor and when the
California state government wasn't totally in the hands of the
Democrats--which it was before Schwarzenegger--that the unions even
began to do anything about this.
Yet since they have begun this--especially the California Nurses
Association, which is led by more progressive leaders--there has been
an enormous response and a very sharp drop in the governor's
popularity.
Part of what happened, I think, is that the corporations and the
lobbyists who run California overplayed their hand. They thought that
they could move to end pensions in California. That's what Arnold
actually proposed to do. People don't always realize this, but that's
what his proposal was--to end a guaranteed pension benefit by law,
according to a set formula.
The governor also attempted to change the rules for when teachers get
tenure, and to treat their pay as if it was the private sector. So
teachers wouldn't be guaranteed their pay, but it would depend on test
results, which in many cases are completely beyond the control of
teachers, because of socioeconomic reasons and so on.
This is all an attack on working people. And Schwarzenegger overplayed
his hand. His popularity is dropping. But the Democrats have no real
counterproposal. The only thing they've said so far is to talk about
some very minimal increases in taxes on the rich.
But in other cases, they've joined in on the attack--even progressive
Democrats, like [State Assemblyman] Mark Leno, who is generally doing
good work, especially on the rights of gays and lesbians. Leno has
proposed increasing taxes on the poor by re-establishing the car tax,
which was abolished. This is a tax that effects primarily the poor.
It's similar to the national situation with George Bush's tax cuts. No
one challenged those either. The Democrats went along with the
Republicans because they fear the reaction from the corporate world and
from the lobbyists who finance their campaigns.
ONE OTHER factor in the crisis has been a polarized atmosphere in which
the right wing gets more of a hearing. Can you talk about the attack on
immigrant rights in California?
THERE IS a very important campaign now against the rights of
immigrants. It's popular among the public and among many working
people, who accept these attacks against undocumented workers--as
somehow responsible for the problems we see.
The politicians making these attacks on immigrants have absolutely no
intention of stopping undocumented workers from living in California.
From George Bush down to the lowest-level Democrat and Republican, not
a single politician has come out publicly and said, "Let's round up 11
million people and deport them." So it is very odd that they continue
to refer to people as being illegal and do negative things to them,
like deny them drivers licenses, while they all insist that
undocumented workers remain in the country.
This becomes a violation of the United Nations Human Rights charter.
You cannot have people living in your country that you accept as being
part of your community who do not have equal rights. This is creating a
second-class grouping, and it's obviously being done to continue to
super-exploit them and to make them the scapegoat for social problems.
Now in the case of Mexicans, the contradiction is rather
extreme--because the people who are making statements against Mexicans
are primarily people of European descent. And if there's one group of
people who came to America illegally--without any visas or any rights
or anything that justifies them coming into America and taking it--it's
the Europeans.
Every state in the Southwest, including California, was once part of
Mexico. The people living in this area never chose to become part of
the United States. It was militarily occupied and conquered, and the
people who lived here were denied their rights. They were often
disenfranchised. And there was actually a program in
California--organized by the Democratic Party, back in the 1860s--in
which people were actually paid to kill indigenous people.
Today, these immigrants are descendents of the indigenous people of
this continent. From their point of view, all they are is refugees from
poverty. It's very important to deal with this for there to be any
unity inside the working class to rebuild the unions. If the unions
don't defend immigrant workers, this division will weaken all workers
and will lead to the lowering of the standard of living.
Globalization is a massive economic fact which, unless the labor
movement can politically defend itself, leads to a lower standard of
living in all the advanced countries. Which is what happened in the
United States, because the labor movement has no political arm.
This has to be fought politically. It can't be fought at the level of
the factory or the industry, through strikes or demonstration.
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
16) On June 29 2004, Gus Rugley, 21 yr African American Youth
was shot more than a hundred times on Alemany Boulevard, San
Francisco, after what SFPD described as a high speed chase.
According to the corporate press, Rugley would have opened
fire at a police car. However, the autopsy report released
nearly 9 months after Rugley's homicide, revealed that Gus
had no gun powder traces on his skin or clothing, therefore
Gus could not have used a weapon. The toxicological screen
also revealed that Gus Rugley was not under the influence of
alcohol or any drugs at the time of his death.
Please take a moment to post a message of support to Gus'
courageous mom, Elvira Pollard. In 7 days the anniversary of
Gus' killing is coming up !
Join our campaign for Justice4GusRugley!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Gus/
Cordially,
mesha monge-irizarry
Idriss Stelley Foundation
(415) 595-8251 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis Line
ACORN
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
SF Youth Empowerment Funding Advisory Board member
(Youth Commission)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
17) Justice4JulioAyala Press conference &Protest,
The Heat is ON !
(mesha Monge-Irizarry, Idriss Stelley Foundation)
On Wednesday 6-21, the family and friends of Julio Ayala, Latino and
Police Accountatibility activists gathered at 8:30 am in front of
Redwood City City Hall, holding the October 22 Against Police
Brutality Coalition banners, chanting "No justice, No Peace !" and
"Justicia para Julio Ayala". The corporate press was at the
rendez-vous, City Bay, the Examiner, La Prensa Grafica Salvadorena,
Channel 2 &7.
Julio Ayala, 26 yr. Salvadoreno legal US resident, who lived on
Jamestown Avenue in SF Bayview Hill until his tragic fate, died at the
hands of 13 police officers at the SF Airport Inn on 6-3-05, allegedly
"stopping to breathe" after being restrained in a body wrap for 15
minutes.
Before stepping into the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors
Chamber, we were forwarned by a city official that although the board
was aware that a group was planning to address them in public
comments, no disturbance would be tolerated, "fill out your slips, no
more than 2 minutes per comment!".
Reminiscent of the former apathic SF Police Commission before November
03 Police reform, Supervisors Mark Church, Jerry Hill, Rich Gordon,
Adrienne Tissier (all of European descent) and Rose Jacobs Gibson
(African American), stood motionless, strictly sticking to the 2
minutes imposed time limit, "Next !", and did not care to ask any
questions to Tanya (Julio's sister), Julio and Mirna Ayala (his
parents), who made a moving appeal to the board, often breaking into
heartwrenching tears (which prompted each time for the corporate press
to swirm upclose, avid for sensational material). Mr. Ayala presented
the board with close to 1000 petitions (some from 32 states outside of
California, and 11 foreign countries),demanding all reports pertaining
to the death of his son, release of the 911 dispatching tape and an
independent federal investigation, along with a letter to the Board,
portraying his family as "Law abiding, hard working Latinos" who fled
disaster, oppression and war in El Salvador to seek refuge in the Land
of Opportunity, where they ended up loosing their beautiful son at the
hands of SSF PD.
Juio's friends described him as a children loving, conscencious
worker, undeserving of such horrible fate, and pleaded the board for
their serious consideration of Julio's death matter. Union workers,
peace activists calmly reiterated the same request: "Do the right
thing! Give us Justice 4 Julio"!
"Any more comments?". "well, we do not have authority to settle this
issue at this hearing, we will review the evidence and get back to you
in 2 weeks". The whole matter was wrapped up in less than 15 minutes
before the board moved on to the next agenda item,without another
glance toward the Ayala's.
Board President Mark Church did, for whatever that was worth, pay
respect to the grieving family. On our way back to San Francisco,
Mirna and Julio Ayala alternatively break into tears. Waves of
wrenching pain and despair constantly tear them apart, over and over,
compiled with the total absence of information, disrespect and
diregard inflicted upon them for the past two and a half month. Each
unanswered appeal to let them know what happened to their son takes a
terrible toll on their emotional health and hope that our community
will honnor their beautiful child...
But the struggle for Justice4Julio will go on !
To send a message of support to the Ayala family, you can write to
Ayalajulio2@aol.com
_xIHonLFVWzf_gsYzvjshKE_mG4n9M> or post a message on
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Julio/
If you have been assaulted by PD, please call (415) 595-8251 Idriss
Stelley Foundation 24HR Bilingual Spa. Crisis line or write to
iolmisha@cs.com http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Justice4Julio/
post?postID=i1UIo34ZldzOXjWQHaaoBau2lOcLaxssqtuPfZS1yKNKEiVKqxvlHwjjs2BPqF
Qrz3fe-v5qSX-M
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
18) Pentagon to Gather Data on Students
Opponents Contend Move may Illegally Bypass Privacy Laws
Jonathan Krim, Washington Post
Thursday, June 23, 2005
"Washington -- The Defense Department began working Wednesday
with a private marketing firm to create a database of high
school students ages 16 to 18 and all college students to
help the military identify potential recruits in a time of
dwindling enlistment in some branches."
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/23/MNGRODDG201.DTL
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
19) U.S. doctors linked to POW `torture'
Guantanamo medical records misused
Basis of interrogators' strategy: Report
TANYA TALAGA AND KAREN PALMER
STAFF REPORTERS
"Medical records compiled by doctors caring for prisoners
at the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay are being
tapped to design more effective interrogation techniques,
says an explosive new report."
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/
Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1119477015095&call_pageid=9683321
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
20) Military Enlists Marketer
to Get Data on Students
for Recruiters
By Mark Mazzetti
Times Staff Writer
June 23, 2005
"WASHINGTON - With the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan
making it increasingly hard for the U.S. military to fill
its ranks with recruits, the Pentagon has hired an outside
marketing firm to help compile an extensive database about
teenagers and college students that the military services
could use to target potential enlistees."
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-na-
privacy23jun23,1,5537670,print.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0623-03.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
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---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
BAUAW NEWSLETTER-WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2005
WINTER SOLDIER (1972, 96 min)
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts presents
Friday, July 1, 7:30 pm
A rarely screened, devastating documentary classic,
Winter Soldier captures the testimonies of ex-GIs at
the 1971 Detroit Winter Soldier Investigation concerning
American atrocities in Vietnam. The soldiers, including
Senator John Kerry, are riveting as they provide eye-witness
testimony to war crimes and atrocities they either
participated in or witnessed. The film evokes all of the
sorrow and pain that Vietnam has come to represent.
Tickets: $8 regular; $5 YBCA members, students, seniors
Tickets can be purchased online at www.YBCA.org,
by telephone at 415.978.ARTS, or in person at the box office.
Screening location:
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS
701 Mission Street (at Third)
San Francisco, CA, 94103-3138
P: 415.321.1323
F: 415.978.9635
www.YBCA.org
Imagine a whole new way to see.
LIFE AMPLIFIED
************************************************************
TAKE ACTION:
************************************************************
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
************************************************************
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
************************************************************
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
************************************************************
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
Based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music
is the icing on the cake!
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR (BAUAW)
BAUAW is setting up a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT
PETITION CAMPAIGN table by invitation
from the Mime Troupe. THERE WILL BE AN
ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE STAGE.
We will be able to gather signatures before
and after the performance. After the performance
we will also fan out over the city to give this
petition drive a big push over the July 4th weekend.
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE
FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO, NOVEMBER 2005, ELECTIONS:
"The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public
school, college and university
facilities to recruit young
people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should
oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means
by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job
training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled
to join the military!"
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS.
FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
GET THE MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS!
MONEY FOR EDUCATION NOT FOR WAR!
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!
FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE!
************************************************************
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
************************************************************
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
************************************************************
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
BAUAW NEWSLETTER – JUNE 22, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Picture-perfect killers
Military weapons are often technological
marvels but always instruments of death
Norman Solomon
Sunday, June 19, 2005
2) Holocaust Survivor Says He's Leaving The US
by Joey Picador
http://www.justicefornone.com
3) "by slow degrees we learn the full extent . . . "
From: "Barbara Deutsch"
4) Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
5) HIP HOP SHOW AND RALLY TO CLOSE CYA YOUTH PRISONS
Saturday, July 16, noon-2pm
Frank Ogawa Plaza, 14th St. and Broadway (Downtown Oakland)
4th Annual "Not Down with the Lockdown" Hip Hop Show and Rally
to Close the CYA Youth Prisons
FREE! All ages!
6) National Council of Churches urges grassroots campaign
To call on Congress to pass bi-partisan 'end the war' resolution
New York, June 16, 2005 - The National Council of Churches USA has welcomed bi-
partisan legislation introduced in Congress today urging President Bush "to announce
a plan for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of the year."
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) introduced the
legislation.
http://www.ncccusa.org/news/050617BipartisanResolution.html
7) A VICTORY FOR SHEILA DETOY
8) A.M.A. to Study Effect
of Marketing Drugs to Consumers
By STEPHANIE SAUL
Published: June 22, 2005
"The American Medical Association, the nation's largest
organization of physicians, agreed yesterday to study
whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary
prescriptions, potentially harming patients and driving
up health costs....Many critics say advertising fueled
the widespread use of cox-2 painkillers, recently linked
to serious cardiovascular problems. Vioxx, the cox-2 drug
that Merck withdrew from the market in September, was widely
advertised to consumers. Studies later indicated that,
for many patients, it was no more effective than other,
safer pain killers."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/business/media/22adco.html
9) Tales of the Poor, Working
to Survive in America
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS
June 22, 2005
http://movies2.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/movies/22wagi.html
10) Iraqi Rebels Refine Bomb Skills,
Pushing Toll of G.I.'s Higher
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 - American casualties from bomb attacks
in Iraq have reached new heights in the last two months as
insurgents have begun to deploy devices that leave armored
vehicles increasingly vulnerable, according to military records."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/international/middleeast/
22bomb.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=4de3c8b99cb57c82&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
11) Social Security Opened Its Files for 9/11 Inquiry
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 -The Social Security Administration has
relaxed its privacy restrictions and searched thousands of
its files at the request of the F.B.I. as part of terrorism
investigations since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, newly
disclosed records and interviews show."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/
22terror.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=f4bb907c3b74271d&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
12) Muni drivers threaten
walkout at month's end
By Marisa Lagos
Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:57 PM PDT
Some rank and file members of Muni's drivers union are
threatening to walk off the job June 30, saying union
leadership has not held strong opposing layoffs and service
cuts as its membership asked.
http://sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/06/17/news/20050617_ne11_muni.txt
13) NYT Editorial
Abu Ghraib, Rewarded
Published: June 22, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed1.html
14) Posts Considered for Commanders
After Abuse Case
By ERIC SCHMITT and THOM SHANKER
Published: June 20, 2005
WASHINGTON, June 19 - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld
is considering new top command assignments that would possibly
include promoting Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the former
American commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib prison
abuse scandal, Pentagon and military officials say.
Such a move, which has been urged by senior Army officers
and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared
General Sanchez of wrongdoing, seems to reflect a growing
confidence that the military has put the abuse scandal behind it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20military.html
15) Extending Democracy to Ex-Offenders
Published: June 22, 2005
"The laws that strip ex-offenders of the right to vote across
the United States are the shame of the democratic world. Of an
estimated five million Americans who were barred from voting
in the last presidential election, a majority would have been
able to vote if they had been citizens of countries like
Britain, France, Germany or Australia. Many nations take
the franchise so seriously that they arrange for people to
cast ballots while being held in prison. In the United States,
by contrast, inmates can vote only in two states, Maine
and Vermont.
This distinctly American bias - which extends to jobs, housing
and education - keeps even law- abiding ex-offenders confined
to the margins of society, where they have a notoriously
difficult time building successful lives. A few states,
at least, are beginning to grasp this point. Some are
reconsidering postprison sanctions, including laws that
bar ex-offenders from the polls."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed3.html
16) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.html
17) Russia after the war in Iraq
By Alan Woods
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/after_war_in_iraq.html
18) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.html
19) Insurgents killed in Afghan fighting
5 U.S. soldiers wounded in gunbattle in south of country
The Associated Press
Updated: 1:09 p.m. ET June 22, 2005
"KABUL, Afghanistan - American warplanes pounded a suspected
Taliban safe haven in the mountains of southern Afghanistan
during an assault that killed up to 76 insurgents and 12
security forces, officials said Wednesday. Five American
soldiers were wounded.
The bodies of those killed in Tuesday's fighting littered
a rugged Afghan mountainside. The surge in violence has
raised fears that an Iraq-style quagmire is developing
here, just months ahead of key legislative elections."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8197613/
20) Current, former Walgreen
workers file suit
Drugstore chain accused of discriminating against
black employees
The Associated Press
Updated: 6:51 p.m. ET June 21, 2005
"ST. LOUIS - Eleven black current and former Walgreen Co.
workers in Michigan and six other states sued the nation's
top-selling drugstore chain Monday, accusing it of having
a policy of discriminating against black employees.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis,
Ill., says the company has a "pervasive policy" of steering
black employees to work in stores in areas that have mostly
black or poorer customers, using an internal system to
categorize stores based on race and income."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8307598/
21) Marines win Iraq desert battle, war far from over
By Peter Graff
Tue Jun 21, 2005 08:08 AM ET
KARABILA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. Marines claimed success on
Tuesday in another battle against insurgents in the Iraqi
desert but acknowledged that the war was far from over and that
guerrillas would soon recover lost ground.
http://www.reuters.com/
newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8850204&src=eDialog/GetContent
22) The Washington Post and the Downing Street memo
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/jun2005/post-j22.shtml
23) From Marti Hiken of the Military Law Task Force (MLTF)
of the National Lawyers' Guild
Two MLTF members in the Bay Area have formed the Berkeley Draft
Information Project and have published a booklet for [school]
counselors, parents and young people: "FAST FAXTS about
"Military Recruitment, The Potential for a Draft and
Related Issues."
Their address is: Berkeley Draft Information Project,
2124 Kittredge St., #66, Berkeley, CA 94704.?
info@berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
www.berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
24) Vote on this online poll to help protect student's privacy!
Hi Everyone,
I received a note saying that New York State School
Boards Association is considering supporting changing
federal law to not send student contact information to
military recruiters without their consent. All you
have to do is vote on their online poll:
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
25) Mass Mobilizing Meeting
Wednesday, July 6 at 7 PM
Global Exchange: 2017 Mission St. #303, San Francisco
(across the street from the 16th St. BART station)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Picture-perfect killers
Military weapons are often technological
marvels but always instruments of death
Norman Solomon
Sunday, June 19, 2005
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/06/19/INGK0D963N1.DTL
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) Holocaust Survivor Says He's Leaving The US
by Joey Picador
http://www.justicefornone.com
One of our neighbors is moving. I've been in this neighborhood for
about six years now, but didn't really know them very well at all -
just waves and nods, mostly.
So I heard the moving van pull up this morning. When I got home this
evening I happened to spy my neighbor (he's like 85 years old - I
don't know exactly, but he's old, talks and moves very slowly)
standing on the sidewalk next to the van. I walked over and shook his
hand, and we started talking. I asked him where he was moving, and he
said, "Back to Germany."
I had been stationed in Germany for two years while in the military,
so I lit up, and commented about how beautiful the country was, and
inquired if he was going back because he missed it.
"No," he answered me. "I'm going back because I've seen this before."
He then commenced to explain that when he was a kid, he watched with
his family in fear as Hitler's government committed atrocity after
atrocity, and no one was willing to say anything. He said the news
refused to question the government, and the ones who did were not in
the newspaper business much longer. He said good neighbors, people he
had known all his life, turned against his family and other Jews,
grabbing on to the hate and superiority "as if they were starved for
it" (his words).
He said he was too old to see it happen right in front of his eyes
again, and too old to do anything about it, so he was taking his
family back to Europe on Thursday where they would be safe from George
W. Bush and his neocons. He seemed resolute, but troubled,
nonetheless, as if being too young on one end and too old on the other
to fight what he saw happening was wearing on him.
I gotta tell you - it was chilling. I let him talk, and the whole
time, my gut was churning, like I had mutated butterflies in my
stomach. When he was finished, he shook my hand, gripping it really
hard, until his knuckles turned white and he was shaking. He looked me
in the eyes, hard, and said, "I will pray for your family and your
country." He let go of my hand and hobbled away.
I have related this event to you in the hopes it will serve as a
cautionary anecdote about the state of our Union, and to illustrate
the path we Americans are being led down by a group of fanatics bent
on global economic and military dominion. When a man who survived the
fruits of fascism decides its time to leave THIS country because he's
seeing the same patterns that led to the Holocaust and other Nazi
horrors beginning to form here, it is time for us to recognize the
underlying evil inherent in the actions of those who claim they work
for all Americans, and for all mankind. And it is incumbent upon all
Americans, Red and Blue, Republican and Democrat, to stop them.
http://www.justicefornone.com/handbills/leaving1.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) "by slow degrees we learn the full extent . . . "
From: "Barbara Deutsch"
:
My source adds the following as preface to the
INDEPENDENT story
George Weller was the first
Western journalist in Nagasaki
after we dropped the plutonium bomb.
[General Douglas] Macarthur [who
was in charge of US occupation of Japan,
a country which had never before
known military defeat, and who, according to
Stephen Bezruchka –
www.alternativeradio.org/programs/BEZS001.shtml
-- by prescribing for Japan
a demilitarized, democratic, decentralized society
with universal education, strong
collective rights and protections for workers,
and restrictions on private wealth
and power, caused a rather mediocre life
expectancy rate, even without any appreciable
change in health care or delivery
(and even despite effects of bombs
and the contamination from them)
to become the highest in the world]
censored Weller's reports, but
Weller's son just discovered the
original stories in cartons.
The NYT coverage of this story
omitted this information:
William Laurance, a science
reporter with The New York Times and - it
later emerged - someone also paid
by the White House as a "consultant,"
was among a group of reporters taken
to the atomic testing site in New Mexico
to demonstrate there was no lingering
radiation. Laurance's subsequent story
said: "This historic ground in
New Mexico, scene of the first atomic explosion
on earth and a cradle of a new era
in civilisation, gave the most effective
answer today to Japanese propaganda
that [radiation was] responsible for
deaths even after the day of the explosion . . . .
Awestruck, we watched
it shoot upward like a meteor coming from
the earth instead of from outer
space, becoming ever more alive as it climbed
skyward through the white clouds . . . .
it was a living thing, a new
species of being, born right
before our incredulous eyes."
For which reporting Laurance
won the Pulitzer prize.
The article below, unlike the
NYT coverage, quotes Gregg Mitchell,
co-author of Hiroshima in America:
A Half Century of Denial , and
explains the theme of his book:
[it] details the official suppression
of the effect of the atomic weapons
and the controversy surrounding
America's decision to use them . . . .
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=648484
Nagasaki: Wasteland of war, by the
first Western reporter to witness it
The American journalist George Weller
was the first Allied observer to see
the devastation wreaked by the atomic
bomb on the Japanese city of Nagasaki.
But his account was censored at the
command of General MacArthur, and only now,
three years after his death, have his
astonishing reports finally been published.
Independent (London) 21 June 2005
By Andrew Buncombe
The scenes that confronted the
reporter George Weller would fill his
dispatches with horror and stay
with him for life. The first Western
reporter into the bombed and
off-limits city of Nagasaki in September
1945, Weller encountered sickness
and suffering of a kind never seen
before. He described the cityscape
though which he passed as a "wasteland
of war".
But his unflinching reports written
a month after the atomic bomb had
dropped caught the eye of General
Douglas MacArthur's US military censors.
Concerned at the effect Weller's
reporting would have on worldwide opinion
as well as his subsequent political
ambitions, the general ensured that
none of the reportage he filed from
Nagasaki would be published.
Until now. Three years after Weller's
death at the age of 95, and 60 years
after the US dropped atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki killing more
than 200,000 people and ushering the
world into the nuclear era, some of
those first-hand dispatches have been
published in a Japanese newspaper.
They provide a raw and unique insight
into the bomb's devastation and the
horrifying effect of radiation poisoning,
known to the author of the
reports and the bewildered doctors
he spoke to simply as "Disease X."
In a report filed from Nagasaki on
8 September 1945, Weller wrote: "In
swaybacked or flattened skeletons of
the Mitsubishi arms plants is
revealed what the atomic bomb can do
to steel and stone, but what the
riven atom can do against human
flesh and bone lies hidden in two
hospitals of downtown Nagasaki. Look
at the pushed-in faÁade of the
American consulate, three miles from
the blast's centre, or the face of
the Catholic cathedral, one mile in
the other direction, torn down like
gingerbread, and you can tell that
the liberated atom spares nothing in
the way." Weller's remarkable dispatches
might not have been discovered
but for his son Anthony, also a writer
and journalist, who was dealing
with his father's belongings after his
death in 2002. At his father's home
in San Felice Circeo, Italy, Mr Weller
was working his way through a box
of papers when he came across 75 typed
pages of carbon-paper copies
containing reports from the war in the
Pacific, which his father had
believed lost. The reports ran to
about 25,000 words.
Speaking yesterday by telephone
from his father's home, Mr Weller, 47,
told The Independent: "My father
had spoken of these reports many times
over the years and it was a source
of great frustration to him [to be
censored]. It was one of the biggest
stories of his life.
"It was very poignant to find his
carbons no more than 20 ft. from where he
was sitting. One of the rooms in
his house was overflowing with papers
from his more than 65 years as
a foreign correspondent. There were boxes
and crates with these papers
jammed into them. I spent some time going
through a crate full of mildewed
papers from the Pacific war and there
they were. The crate was a few
feet from the chair in which he used to
sit. He did not know they were there."
The story of Weller's suppressed
dispatches from the southern coastal city
of Nagasaki - devastated by the
4.5-ton "Fatman" nuclear device that was
exploded at a height of 1,500ft
at 11.02am on 9 August - are made all the
more remarkable for the effort it
took him to get into the city. With the
city and much of southern Japan
placed off-limits by MacArthur, commander
of the US forces, Weller, already
a Pulitzer Prize winner with the now
defunct Chicago Daily News, made
his way to the distant island of Kyushu.
There, with official permission,
he visited what had been a Japanese
kamikaze base. But he also noticed
that the town on the mainland - just a
few hundred yards from the island
- was connected to Nagasaki by railroad.
Using a combination of boat, train
and a bravura performance in which he
impersonated a senior US officer and
commandeered two military cars, he
was able to get into Nagasaki several
days before any other Western
reporters. Weller, who had earlier
been among the very last journalists to
leave Singapore and then Indonesia
in the face of the Japanese advance,
was not at the time particularly
opposed to the atomic bomb. "I think the
Japanese military had cleared any
sense of remorse out of him," said his
son, who usually lives in Annisquam,
Massachusetts. And his initial
reports from Nagasaki suggested
that he believed the atomic weapon, while
clearly deadly, had worked with
a rare degree of precision.
He started one early dispatch by
writing: "The atomic bomb may be
classified as a weapon capable of
being used indiscriminately, but its use
in Nagasaki was selective and proper
and as merciful as such a gigantic
force could be expected to be. The
following conclusions were made by the
writer - as the first visitor to
inspect the ruins - after an exhaustive,
though still incomplete study of
this wasteland of war." He suggested that
the death toll stood at no more
than 24,000 and that this number
(later
shown to be more than 75,000, with
another 75,000 injured and countless
more left to die later from radiation
sickness) was largely the result of
poorly designed civilian air shelters
and a refusal by the local
authorities to take air-raid warnings
seriously. He later added in his
report: "Nobody here in Nagasaki
has yet been able to show that the bomb
is different than any other,
except in a broader extent flash and a more
powerful knock-out." But as he
travelled more around Nagasaki, visiting
hospitals filled with sick and
dying people, witnessing the flattened city
and talking to the baffled Japanese
doctors unable to help so many of the
sick, Weller became aware that
something was terribly wrong. Many of those
brought into the hospitals were
not responding to treatment.
He witnessed children with red
blotches on their skin, people who had lost
their hair, patients with blackened
tongues, patients with lock-jaw.
Doctors at one hospital told him
that a month after the explosion, people
were dying at a rate of 10 a day.
He noted that the doctors had
performed precise assessments of the
patients brought to them. Their
hair had fallen out, they had skin
haemorrhages, lip sores, diarrhoea,
swelling of the throat. There had been
a fall in the number of their red
blood cells and there was an almost
absence of white blood cells.
He wrote in another dispatch: "The
atomic bomb's peculiar 'disease',
uncured because it is untreated and
untreated because it is not diagnosed,
is still snatching away lives here.
Men, women and children with no
outward marks of injury are dying
daily in hospitals, some after having
walked around for three or four
weeks thinking they have escaped. The
doctors here have every modern
medicament, but candidly confessed in
talking to the writer - the first
Allied observer to Nagasaki since the
surrender - that the answer to the
malady is beyond them. Their patients,
though their skin is whole, are all
passing away under their eyes."
After his achievement of entering
Nagasaki and acting as an eye-witness to
the destruction, Weller's mistake
was to send his reports back to Tokyo by
hand, to be approved by the military
censor. Concerned about their
potential effect on public opinion,
MacArthur ordered that that they be
destroyed.
Weller's son said his father later
believed he had lost the carbon copies
and would go to his grave summarising
his experience with the censors
simply as "They won." Indeed, at the
same time as it was suppressing
Weller's reports and denying similar
reports filed from Hiroshima by the
Australian reporter Wilfred Burchett
and published by the Daily Express in
London, the Pentagon was actively
going to great lengths to persuade its
own citizens that there was no
danger of radiation poisoning from the
atomic bombs.
William Laurance, a science reporter
with The New York Times and - it
later emerged - someone also paid by
the White House as a "consultant",
was among a group of reporters taken
to the atomic testing site in New
Mexico to demonstrate there was no
lingering radiation. Laurance's
subsequent story said: "This historic
ground in New Mexico, scene of the
first atomic explosion on earth and
a cradle of a new era in civilisation,
gave the most effective answer today
to Japanese propaganda that
[radiation was] responsible for
deaths even after the day of the
explosion."
Laurance was so liked by the
military that he was even taken in the
squadron of planes accompanying
the B-29 bomber from Tinian Island near
Guam, which dropped the Nagasaki
bomb. In contrast to Weller's reports of
suffering and sickness, Laurance
described the bomb's explosion thus:
"Awestruck, we watched it shoot
upward like a meteor coming from
the earth
instead of from outer space,
becoming ever more alive as it climbed
skyward through the white clouds
... It was a living thing, a new species
of being, born right before our
incredulous eyes." Ironically, such
reporting won Laurance himself a Pulitzer prize.
Gregg Mitchell, co-author of
Hiroshima in America: A Half Century of
Denial and editor of the magazine
Editor and Publisher, said the story of
Weller's suppressed and then lost
dispatches was one of journalism's more
considerable mysteries.
"It's different to Deep Throat,
but in nuclear history and journalism
history, [it is important]," said
Mr Mitchell, whose book details the
official suppression of the effect
of the atomic weapons and the
controversy surrounding America's
decision to use them when many in the
West believed Japan was already ready
to surrender. "It is one of the
great mysteries. People have always
wondered what was in those reports.
For them to emerge intact solves it."
Weller's son, who has also discovered
a cache of his father's photographs,
said his father had believed his reports
from Nagasaki would not be
censored. He believed that during the
three weeks he spent in Nagasaki he
was there "as a witness".
"He had been fighting the censors for
four years," he said. "[The censors]
did not want the US people to get a bad
impression of the bombs, and that
it was not MacArthur who had won the
war but a bunch of scientists in New
Mexico."
Indeed, the conclusion to one of his
father's most moving dispatches
relates to some of those very scientists,
the effect of whose labours he
had just witnessed, and who were about
to arrive in the city to measure
the radiation. "Twenty-five Americans
are due to arrive September 11 to
study the Nagasaki bombsite.
Japanese hope they will bring a solution for
Disease X."
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
** Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches **
** http://dahrjamailiraq.com **
Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
Or visit:
www.dahrjamailiraq.com and click on the 'reports' section.
Dahr Jamail reports on the struggling health care situation in Iraq.
The report surveys 13 Iraqi Hospitals, examines the actions taken by
US military against hospitals and care workers that constitute war
crimes as defined by the Geneva conventions, discusses and documents
cases of US medical personnel complicit in torture through failures
to document the visible signs of torture on their patients, and much
more.
This report is endorsed by the B/Russell/s Tribunal, El Taller
International, Asian Women's Human Rights Council, Association of
Humanitarian Lawyers, SOS Iraq, and Medical Aid for the Third World,
a.o. I'd also like to thank 11.11.11 (a consortium of NGO's.), who
offered their facilities for the presentation of this report to the
press.
/** This report is submitted as evidence to the Jury of conscience
during the culminating session of the World Tribunal on Iraq
, *//*Istanbul*//* 23-27 June*/**
More writing, photos and commentary at http://dahrjamailiraq.com
You are subscribed to the Dahr Jamail's email Iraq Dispatches because you requested
a subscription at some point.
You can visit http://dahrjamailiraq.com/email_list/ to subscribe or unsubscribe to the
email list.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) HIP HOP SHOW AND RALLY TO CLOSE CYA YOUTH PRISONS
Saturday, July 16, noon-2pm
Frank Ogawa Plaza, 14th St. and Broadway (Downtown Oakland)
4th Annual "Not Down with the Lockdown" Hip Hop Show and Rally
to Close the CYA Youth Prisons
FREE! All ages!
Join us as we bring the community together with amazing Bay Area
talent to speak out against the California Youth Authority
and the prison industrial complex!
Sponsored by Books Not Bars and Let's Get Free ( http://www.booksnotbars.org )
Contact Books Not Bars:
e-mail: bnb@ellabakercenter.org
phone: 510.428.3939
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) National Council of Churches urges grassroots campaign
To call on Congress to pass bi-partisan 'end the war' resolution
New York, June 16, 2005 - The National Council of Churches USA has welcomed bi-
partisan legislation introduced in Congress today urging President Bush "to announce
a plan for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of the year."
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) introduced the
legislation.
http://www.ncccusa.org/news/050617BipartisanResolution.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) A VICTORY FOR SHEILA DETOY
Yesterday a San Francisco Superior Court Judge ruled on the
side of the people. The judge threw out the argument presented
by the Police Officers Union that it was too late to discipline
the officers that killed this seventeen year-old child.
The charges against Gregory Breslin and his cronies will
not be dismissed!!!!
This victory is a step towards discipline for the officers
that not only committed murder, but then covered it up.
Discipline of these officers will be a step towards peaceful
streets in San Francisco free from abusive cops like Gregory
Breslin.
The fight is not over, now we must demand that the San Francisco
Police Commission remove Gregory Breslin from the San Francisco
Police Department IMMEDIATELY!!!
SIX YEARS - NO JUSTICE FOR SHEILA DETOY
* May 13, 1998: San Francisco police officers shot up a car
full of unarmed teenagers and killed 17-year-old Sheila
Detoy. SFPD then blamed her friends for her death.
* The Office of Citizen Complaints found that Officer
Gregory Breslin is responsible for her death. The OCC
also sustained complaints against the other officers
involved in Sheila's killing.
In 2003 the San Francisco Police Commission decided
they wanted to file charges against the officers,
but the Police Officers Association tried to block
discipline, but they failed.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS CASE AND OTHER ISSUES
RELATED TO POLICE BRUTALITY IN THE BAY AREA PLEASE
CONTACT BAY AREA POLICEWATCH AT
malaika@ellabakercenter.org
or (510)428-3939 x. 224
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
8) A.M.A. to Study Effect
of Marketing Drugs to Consumers
By STEPHANIE SAUL
Published: June 22, 2005
"The American Medical Association, the nation's largest
organization of physicians, agreed yesterday to study
whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary
prescriptions, potentially harming patients and driving
up health costs....Many critics say advertising fueled
the widespread use of cox-2 painkillers, recently linked
to serious cardiovascular problems. Vioxx, the cox-2 drug
that Merck withdrew from the market in September, was widely
advertised to consumers. Studies later indicated that,
for many patients, it was no more effective than other,
safer pain killers."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/business/media/22adco.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
9) Tales of the Poor, Working
to Survive in America
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS
June 22, 2005
http://movies2.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/movies/22wagi.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
10) Iraqi Rebels Refine Bomb Skills,
Pushing Toll of G.I.'s Higher
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 - American casualties from bomb attacks
in Iraq have reached new heights in the last two months as
insurgents have begun to deploy devices that leave armored
vehicles increasingly vulnerable, according to military records."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/international/middleeast/
22bomb.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=4de3c8b99cb57c82&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
11) Social Security Opened Its Files for 9/11 Inquiry
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 -The Social Security Administration has
relaxed its privacy restrictions and searched thousands of
its files at the request of the F.B.I. as part of terrorism
investigations since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, newly
disclosed records and interviews show."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/
22terror.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=f4bb907c3b74271d&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
12) Muni drivers threaten
walkout at month's end
By Marisa Lagos
Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:57 PM PDT
Some rank and file members of Muni's drivers union are
threatening to walk off the job June 30, saying union
leadership has not held strong opposing layoffs and service
cuts as its membership asked.
http://sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/06/17/news/20050617_ne11_muni.txt
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
13) NYT Editorial
Abu Ghraib, Rewarded
Published: June 22, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed1.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
14) Posts Considered for Commanders
After Abuse Case
By ERIC SCHMITT and THOM SHANKER
Published: June 20, 2005
WASHINGTON, June 19 - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld
is considering new top command assignments that would possibly
include promoting Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the former
American commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib prison
abuse scandal, Pentagon and military officials say.
Such a move, which has been urged by senior Army officers
and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared
General Sanchez of wrongdoing, seems to reflect a growing
confidence that the military has put the abuse scandal behind it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20military.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
15) Extending Democracy to Ex-Offenders
Published: June 22, 2005
"The laws that strip ex-offenders of the right to vote across
the United States are the shame of the democratic world. Of an
estimated five million Americans who were barred from voting
in the last presidential election, a majority would have been
able to vote if they had been citizens of countries like
Britain, France, Germany or Australia. Many nations take
the franchise so seriously that they arrange for people to
cast ballots while being held in prison. In the United States,
by contrast, inmates can vote only in two states, Maine
and Vermont.
This distinctly American bias - which extends to jobs, housing
and education - keeps even law- abiding ex-offenders confined
to the margins of society, where they have a notoriously
difficult time building successful lives. A few states,
at least, are beginning to grasp this point. Some are
reconsidering postprison sanctions, including laws that
bar ex-offenders from the polls."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed3.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
16) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
17) Russia after the war in Iraq
By Alan Woods
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/after_war_in_iraq.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
18) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
19) Insurgents killed in Afghan fighting
5 U.S. soldiers wounded in gunbattle in south of country
The Associated Press
Updated: 1:09 p.m. ET June 22, 2005
"KABUL, Afghanistan - American warplanes pounded a suspected
Taliban safe haven in the mountains of southern Afghanistan
during an assault that killed up to 76 insurgents and 12
security forces, officials said Wednesday. Five American
soldiers were wounded.
The bodies of those killed in Tuesday's fighting littered
a rugged Afghan mountainside. The surge in violence has
raised fears that an Iraq-style quagmire is developing
here, just months ahead of key legislative elections."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8197613/
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
20) Current, former Walgreen
workers file suit
Drugstore chain accused of discriminating against
black employees
The Associated Press
Updated: 6:51 p.m. ET June 21, 2005
"ST. LOUIS - Eleven black current and former Walgreen Co.
workers in Michigan and six other states sued the nation's
top-selling drugstore chain Monday, accusing it of having
a policy of discriminating against black employees.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis,
Ill., says the company has a "pervasive policy" of steering
black employees to work in stores in areas that have mostly
black or poorer customers, using an internal system to
categorize stores based on race and income."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8307598/
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
21) Marines win Iraq desert battle, war far from over
By Peter Graff
Tue Jun 21, 2005 08:08 AM ET
KARABILA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. Marines claimed success on
Tuesday in another battle against insurgents in the Iraqi
desert but acknowledged that the war was far from over and that
guerrillas would soon recover lost ground.
http://www.reuters.com/
newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8850204&src=eDialog/GetContent
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
22) The Washington Post and the Downing Street memo
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/jun2005/post-j22.shtml
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
23) From Marti Hiken of the Military Law Task Force (MLTF)
of the National Lawyers' Guild
Two MLTF members in the Bay Area have formed the Berkeley Draft
Information Project and have published a booklet for [school]
counselors, parents and young people: "FAST FAXTS about
"Military Recruitment, The Potential for a Draft and
Related Issues."
Their address is: Berkeley Draft Information Project,
2124 Kittredge St., #66, Berkeley, CA 94704.?
info@berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
www.berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
Kristin & Dianne "work from a slightly different angle on
this project: attempting to engage high school advisors
and college counselors, who have a lot of influence with
students about the 'next step' in student lives. They
also do some of the same sort of things by engaging
sports coaches, by using school e-listings, and by
having a 'hard copy' book-style product available in
bookstores to catch the eye of people who are not
explicitly searching the internet for information.
It is an important information tool for those doing
counter-recruitment/draft counseling.
Marti
National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force?
Marguerite Hiken, co-chair
318 Ortega Street
San Francisco, CA 94122
415-566-3732
mlhiken@pacbell.net
www.nlg.org/mltf
Kathleen Gilberd, co-chair
1168 Union Street, Ste. 302
San Diego, CA 92101
619-233-1701
KathleenGilberd@aol.com
* To visit your group on the web, go to:
* http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MOOS-BAY/
*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
24) Vote on this online poll to help protect student's privacy!
Hi Everyone,
I received a note saying that New York State School
Boards Association is considering supporting changing
federal law to not send student contact information to
military recruiters without their consent. All you
have to do is vote on their online poll:
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
The law they are considering supporting, written by
Mike Honda (D-CA), would not release student
information to recruiters unless they "opt-in".
Please vote on this online poll to urge NYSSBA to
support protecting student privacy. While it is New
York State, it has important implications for the rest
of the nation as well.
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
thanks,
josh
santa cruz, ca
From the Web Site:
Military recruiters have access to students' names,
addresses and phone numbers unless parents "opt out"
by asking schools to withhold the information. Should
federal law be changed to an "opt in" system?
(See news link, below)
Yes
(376) 89.74%
No
(43) 10.26%
Total Votes: 419
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/college_not_comba
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
25) Mass Mobilizing Meeting
Wednesday, July 6 at 7 PM
Global Exchange: 2017 Mission St. #303, San Francisco
(across the street from the 16th St. BART station)
Dear Friends,
Please join us for a mass mobilizing
meeting on July 6 to build the
Seeds of Change: NO NUKES! NO WARS!
rally and march to the Livermore
nuclear weapons lab.
• Find out why, in the midst of ongoing
• slaughter in Iraq, we must call
for nuclear abolition;
• Stop the Bomb Where it Starts!
• For the 60th Anniversary of the Bombing
of Hiroshima, Help Organize the March
to the Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab!
RSVP: Tara Dorabji, Tri-Valley CARES, (925) 443-7148,
tara@trivalleycares.org
ACTION ALERT*Tri-Valley CAREs*
www.trivalleycares.org*
925-443-7148
SATURDAY AUGUST 6: SEEDS OF
CHANGE: NO NUKES! NO WARS!
RALLY AND MARCH TO THE LIVERMORE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB.
On the 60th anniversary of the
U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima...
ACT to abolish nuclear weapons and war
PROTEST new, earth-penetrating
nuclear weapons at Livermore Lab
CELEBRATE your vision of a peaceful,
just and nuclear-free world
Livermore Lab is one of the world's
primary sites for the creation and
development of nuclear weapons.
WHEN: Saturday, August 6, 2005 at 5 PM
WHERE: William Payne Park, 5800 Patterson Pass Rd.
Livermore, CA (BART
shuttles provided by the Peace and Freedom Party)
To volunteer and for more info:
(925) 443-7148 Tri-Valley CAREs
www.trivalleycares.org
(510) 839-5877
Western States Legal Foundation www.wslfweb.org
Livermore Conversion Project (510) 663-8065.
BACKGROUND
The Bay Area's Livermore Lab is one of
the three national laboratories
that serve as the brain of the U.S.
nuclear weapons complex, which today
is modernizing and developing nuclear
weapons to support U.S. wars of
empire.
August 6 and 9, 2005 mark the 60th
anniversaries of the atomic bombings
of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the
United States. Join with thousands of
people at four central US nuclear
weapons sites to call for an end to
the development and production of
nuclear warheads.
In the Bay Area, the Livermore Lab
continues to contaminate the water,
air and soil. Over 1 million curies
of airborne radiation have leaked
from the site. That is roughly equal
to the amount of radiation
deposited in the bombing of Hiroshima.
The Dept. of Energy declared the
fifty-mile radius surrounding the
facility as the affected population.
This includes over 7 million people
from San Francisco, to Stockton, to
San Jose. The storage and use of
nuclear materials at Livermore Lab
continues to increase despite safety
and security issues. The limit for
plutonium at Livermore Lab has just
been doubled to 3,080 pounds --
enough for 300 nuclear bombs!
Plutonium was recently found on site to be
absurdly stored in paint cans and food cans.
In Iraq, they never found nuclear
or other weapons of mass destruction,
yet the daily reality of death and
destruction continues, sparked by the
Bush administration's invasion and
fueled by the ongoing U.S. military
occupation. A majority of people in
this nation now oppose the war, but
the White House and most members of
Congress are resisting the only
solution to the crisis: bring the
troops home immediately. We will send
our message loud and clear to decision
-makers and the public at large:
End the war in Iraq, End the threat
of nuclear annihilation!
We found the missing weapons of mass
destruction. On August 6, we will
take our voices to the active nuclear
weapons sites across the country.
We demand an end to US nuclear weapons
development, production and
testing. We demand an end to wars of
empire and an end to nuclear
excuses for war.
NO NUKES! NO WARS!
*SEND SUNFLOWERS TO LIVERMORE NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB*
The sunflower is the international symbol
for the abolition of nuclear
weapons. We invite you to create
paper sunflowers to be planted at the
gates of Livermore Lab. Sunflowers
can be large or small, painted, be
creative. Make sure to include your
name and hometown on the sunflower.
For full instructions and mailing directions:
www.wagingpeace.org/sunflower
.
AUGUST 6 NATIONAL ACTIONS
March and Rally at core nuclear weapons
sites across the United States.
Join the global majority in saying
"Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Never Again!!!"
MAJOR RALLIES AT:
Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab in CALIFORNIA
Los Alamos Nuclear Weapons Lab in NEW MEXICO
Nevada Nuclear Test Site in NEVADA
Y-12 Nuclear Production Facility in TENNESSEE
For more info on each major rally:
http://www.abolitionnow.org/augustactions.html
TUESDAY, AUGUST 9, NAGASAKI NEVER AGAIN!!!
NOVIOLENT DIRECT ACTION AT THE LIVERMORE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB
WHEN: Tuesday, August 9 at 8AM
WHERE: Meet at William Payne Park,
5800 Patterson Pass Rd. Livermore
Take I-580 exit Vasco Rd. go South.
Take a right on Patterson Pass Rd.
Music at the gates will be provided by Clan Dyken.
NONVIOLENCE GUIDELINES: Nonviolence has
always been a core value of the
anti-nuclear movement. Details about
the nonviolence guidelines and a
complete list of sponsors and endorsers
are available at:
www.trivalleycares.org
www.wslfweb.org
TUESDAY AUGUST 9, NATIONALLY COORDINATED
CANDLELIGHT VIGILS
Organize a candlelight vigil at your
city hall on the 60^th anniversary
of the bombing of Nagasaki. In addition,
you can organize readings,
lantern lighting ceremonies, the shadow
projects and more. In support of
the Mayors for Peace, we are calling on
local groups to invite their
Mayors to participate in the vigils
and read out proclamations.
Contact: Jackie Cabasso,
Western States Legal Foundation,
wslf@earthlink.net, (510) 839-5877,
*www.wslfweb.org*
.
ASK CONGRESS TO CUT $2 BILLION FROM
THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS BUDGET
http://capwiz.com/wagingpeace/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7565846
Act now to stop a new generation of
nuclear bombs. Ask Congress to cut
$2 billion to restrain dangerous nuclear
weapons programs.
Donations should be made out and
mailed to: Livermore Conversion
Project, PO Box 31835, Oakland, CA 94604.
Checks of more than $50 are
tax-deductible if made out to Agape.
To Volunteer Contact: Tara Dorabji,
Tri-Valley CAREs,
tara@trivalleycares.org, (925) 443-7148,
*www.trivalleycares.org*
.
Initial Cosponsors and Endorsers:
Alameda County Green Party, American
Friends Service Committee, Bay Area
United for Peace and Justice, Bill
O'Donnell Social Justice Committee,
Buddhist Peace Fellowship,
California Peace Action, Bay Area
United for Peace and Justice, Fiat Pax
Berkeley, Green Party California,
Livermore Conversion Project, Martin
Luther King Jr. Freedom Center, the
Northern California Communist Party,
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Peace
and Freedom Party, Peace Fresno,
Tri-Valley Communities Against a
Radioactive Environment (CAREs),
Veterans for Peace San Francisco
Chapter 69, Wellstone Democratic
Renewal Club , Western States Legal
Foundation, Women's International
League for Peace and Freedom and
Women for Peace.
--
Tara Dorabji
Outreach Director
Tri-Valley CAREs
www.trivalleycares.org
tara@trivalleycares.org
ph: (925) 443-7148
fax: (925) 443-0177
Before the word, was the silence. In
this silence existed neither thought
nor judgment. First came laughter,then
the tears, and the sound was born.
With the sound, the world flooded with memories.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts presents
Friday, July 1, 7:30 pm
A rarely screened, devastating documentary classic,
Winter Soldier captures the testimonies of ex-GIs at
the 1971 Detroit Winter Soldier Investigation concerning
American atrocities in Vietnam. The soldiers, including
Senator John Kerry, are riveting as they provide eye-witness
testimony to war crimes and atrocities they either
participated in or witnessed. The film evokes all of the
sorrow and pain that Vietnam has come to represent.
Tickets: $8 regular; $5 YBCA members, students, seniors
Tickets can be purchased online at www.YBCA.org,
by telephone at 415.978.ARTS, or in person at the box office.
Screening location:
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS
701 Mission Street (at Third)
San Francisco, CA, 94103-3138
P: 415.321.1323
F: 415.978.9635
www.YBCA.org
Imagine a whole new way to see.
LIFE AMPLIFIED
************************************************************
TAKE ACTION:
************************************************************
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
************************************************************
1) Cut all Public School Ties to the Military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the Fourth Tuesday of Each Month Starting:
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
************************************************************
2) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAY JUNE 25, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAY JUNE 28 AND THURSDAY JUNE 30, 5 & 7 P.M.
************************************************************
3) COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
JULY 2,3 & 4 WEEKEND SCHEDULE
*SHOW UP TO PETITION:
SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, JULY 2, 3 & 4, 1:00 P.M.
DOLORES PARK, 18TH AND DOLORES STS, SF
*SEE THE SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE'S PLAY
"DOING GOOD"
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M. - SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(THEN GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER THE SHOW)
Based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music
is the icing on the cake!
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR (BAUAW)
BAUAW is setting up a COLLEGE NOT COMBAT
PETITION CAMPAIGN table by invitation
from the Mime Troupe. THERE WILL BE AN
ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE STAGE.
We will be able to gather signatures before
and after the performance. After the performance
we will also fan out over the city to give this
petition drive a big push over the July 4th weekend.
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE
FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO, NOVEMBER 2005, ELECTIONS:
"The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public
school, college and university
facilities to recruit young
people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should
oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means
by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job
training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled
to join the military!"
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS.
FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
GET THE MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS!
MONEY FOR EDUCATION NOT FOR WAR!
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!
FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE! FREE!
************************************************************
4) HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
************************************************************
5) SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(This play is fresh, new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is the
icing on the cake!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
Help get the word out about the ballot proposition
and upcoming antiwar events. Free antiwar posters!
FREE!
************************************************************
6) SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
BAUAW NEWSLETTER – JUNE 22, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Picture-perfect killers
Military weapons are often technological
marvels but always instruments of death
Norman Solomon
Sunday, June 19, 2005
2) Holocaust Survivor Says He's Leaving The US
by Joey Picador
http://www.justicefornone.com
3) "by slow degrees we learn the full extent . . . "
From: "Barbara Deutsch"
4) Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
5) HIP HOP SHOW AND RALLY TO CLOSE CYA YOUTH PRISONS
Saturday, July 16, noon-2pm
Frank Ogawa Plaza, 14th St. and Broadway (Downtown Oakland)
4th Annual "Not Down with the Lockdown" Hip Hop Show and Rally
to Close the CYA Youth Prisons
FREE! All ages!
6) National Council of Churches urges grassroots campaign
To call on Congress to pass bi-partisan 'end the war' resolution
New York, June 16, 2005 - The National Council of Churches USA has welcomed bi-
partisan legislation introduced in Congress today urging President Bush "to announce
a plan for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of the year."
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) introduced the
legislation.
http://www.ncccusa.org/news/050617BipartisanResolution.html
7) A VICTORY FOR SHEILA DETOY
8) A.M.A. to Study Effect
of Marketing Drugs to Consumers
By STEPHANIE SAUL
Published: June 22, 2005
"The American Medical Association, the nation's largest
organization of physicians, agreed yesterday to study
whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary
prescriptions, potentially harming patients and driving
up health costs....Many critics say advertising fueled
the widespread use of cox-2 painkillers, recently linked
to serious cardiovascular problems. Vioxx, the cox-2 drug
that Merck withdrew from the market in September, was widely
advertised to consumers. Studies later indicated that,
for many patients, it was no more effective than other,
safer pain killers."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/business/media/22adco.html
9) Tales of the Poor, Working
to Survive in America
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS
June 22, 2005
http://movies2.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/movies/22wagi.html
10) Iraqi Rebels Refine Bomb Skills,
Pushing Toll of G.I.'s Higher
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 - American casualties from bomb attacks
in Iraq have reached new heights in the last two months as
insurgents have begun to deploy devices that leave armored
vehicles increasingly vulnerable, according to military records."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/international/middleeast/
22bomb.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=4de3c8b99cb57c82&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
11) Social Security Opened Its Files for 9/11 Inquiry
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 -The Social Security Administration has
relaxed its privacy restrictions and searched thousands of
its files at the request of the F.B.I. as part of terrorism
investigations since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, newly
disclosed records and interviews show."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/
22terror.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=f4bb907c3b74271d&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
12) Muni drivers threaten
walkout at month's end
By Marisa Lagos
Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:57 PM PDT
Some rank and file members of Muni's drivers union are
threatening to walk off the job June 30, saying union
leadership has not held strong opposing layoffs and service
cuts as its membership asked.
http://sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/06/17/news/20050617_ne11_muni.txt
13) NYT Editorial
Abu Ghraib, Rewarded
Published: June 22, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed1.html
14) Posts Considered for Commanders
After Abuse Case
By ERIC SCHMITT and THOM SHANKER
Published: June 20, 2005
WASHINGTON, June 19 - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld
is considering new top command assignments that would possibly
include promoting Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the former
American commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib prison
abuse scandal, Pentagon and military officials say.
Such a move, which has been urged by senior Army officers
and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared
General Sanchez of wrongdoing, seems to reflect a growing
confidence that the military has put the abuse scandal behind it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20military.html
15) Extending Democracy to Ex-Offenders
Published: June 22, 2005
"The laws that strip ex-offenders of the right to vote across
the United States are the shame of the democratic world. Of an
estimated five million Americans who were barred from voting
in the last presidential election, a majority would have been
able to vote if they had been citizens of countries like
Britain, France, Germany or Australia. Many nations take
the franchise so seriously that they arrange for people to
cast ballots while being held in prison. In the United States,
by contrast, inmates can vote only in two states, Maine
and Vermont.
This distinctly American bias - which extends to jobs, housing
and education - keeps even law- abiding ex-offenders confined
to the margins of society, where they have a notoriously
difficult time building successful lives. A few states,
at least, are beginning to grasp this point. Some are
reconsidering postprison sanctions, including laws that
bar ex-offenders from the polls."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed3.html
16) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.html
17) Russia after the war in Iraq
By Alan Woods
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/after_war_in_iraq.html
18) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.html
19) Insurgents killed in Afghan fighting
5 U.S. soldiers wounded in gunbattle in south of country
The Associated Press
Updated: 1:09 p.m. ET June 22, 2005
"KABUL, Afghanistan - American warplanes pounded a suspected
Taliban safe haven in the mountains of southern Afghanistan
during an assault that killed up to 76 insurgents and 12
security forces, officials said Wednesday. Five American
soldiers were wounded.
The bodies of those killed in Tuesday's fighting littered
a rugged Afghan mountainside. The surge in violence has
raised fears that an Iraq-style quagmire is developing
here, just months ahead of key legislative elections."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8197613/
20) Current, former Walgreen
workers file suit
Drugstore chain accused of discriminating against
black employees
The Associated Press
Updated: 6:51 p.m. ET June 21, 2005
"ST. LOUIS - Eleven black current and former Walgreen Co.
workers in Michigan and six other states sued the nation's
top-selling drugstore chain Monday, accusing it of having
a policy of discriminating against black employees.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis,
Ill., says the company has a "pervasive policy" of steering
black employees to work in stores in areas that have mostly
black or poorer customers, using an internal system to
categorize stores based on race and income."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8307598/
21) Marines win Iraq desert battle, war far from over
By Peter Graff
Tue Jun 21, 2005 08:08 AM ET
KARABILA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. Marines claimed success on
Tuesday in another battle against insurgents in the Iraqi
desert but acknowledged that the war was far from over and that
guerrillas would soon recover lost ground.
http://www.reuters.com/
newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8850204&src=eDialog/GetContent
22) The Washington Post and the Downing Street memo
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/jun2005/post-j22.shtml
23) From Marti Hiken of the Military Law Task Force (MLTF)
of the National Lawyers' Guild
Two MLTF members in the Bay Area have formed the Berkeley Draft
Information Project and have published a booklet for [school]
counselors, parents and young people: "FAST FAXTS about
"Military Recruitment, The Potential for a Draft and
Related Issues."
Their address is: Berkeley Draft Information Project,
2124 Kittredge St., #66, Berkeley, CA 94704.?
info@berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
www.berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
24) Vote on this online poll to help protect student's privacy!
Hi Everyone,
I received a note saying that New York State School
Boards Association is considering supporting changing
federal law to not send student contact information to
military recruiters without their consent. All you
have to do is vote on their online poll:
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
25) Mass Mobilizing Meeting
Wednesday, July 6 at 7 PM
Global Exchange: 2017 Mission St. #303, San Francisco
(across the street from the 16th St. BART station)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) Picture-perfect killers
Military weapons are often technological
marvels but always instruments of death
Norman Solomon
Sunday, June 19, 2005
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/06/19/INGK0D963N1.DTL
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) Holocaust Survivor Says He's Leaving The US
by Joey Picador
http://www.justicefornone.com
One of our neighbors is moving. I've been in this neighborhood for
about six years now, but didn't really know them very well at all -
just waves and nods, mostly.
So I heard the moving van pull up this morning. When I got home this
evening I happened to spy my neighbor (he's like 85 years old - I
don't know exactly, but he's old, talks and moves very slowly)
standing on the sidewalk next to the van. I walked over and shook his
hand, and we started talking. I asked him where he was moving, and he
said, "Back to Germany."
I had been stationed in Germany for two years while in the military,
so I lit up, and commented about how beautiful the country was, and
inquired if he was going back because he missed it.
"No," he answered me. "I'm going back because I've seen this before."
He then commenced to explain that when he was a kid, he watched with
his family in fear as Hitler's government committed atrocity after
atrocity, and no one was willing to say anything. He said the news
refused to question the government, and the ones who did were not in
the newspaper business much longer. He said good neighbors, people he
had known all his life, turned against his family and other Jews,
grabbing on to the hate and superiority "as if they were starved for
it" (his words).
He said he was too old to see it happen right in front of his eyes
again, and too old to do anything about it, so he was taking his
family back to Europe on Thursday where they would be safe from George
W. Bush and his neocons. He seemed resolute, but troubled,
nonetheless, as if being too young on one end and too old on the other
to fight what he saw happening was wearing on him.
I gotta tell you - it was chilling. I let him talk, and the whole
time, my gut was churning, like I had mutated butterflies in my
stomach. When he was finished, he shook my hand, gripping it really
hard, until his knuckles turned white and he was shaking. He looked me
in the eyes, hard, and said, "I will pray for your family and your
country." He let go of my hand and hobbled away.
I have related this event to you in the hopes it will serve as a
cautionary anecdote about the state of our Union, and to illustrate
the path we Americans are being led down by a group of fanatics bent
on global economic and military dominion. When a man who survived the
fruits of fascism decides its time to leave THIS country because he's
seeing the same patterns that led to the Holocaust and other Nazi
horrors beginning to form here, it is time for us to recognize the
underlying evil inherent in the actions of those who claim they work
for all Americans, and for all mankind. And it is incumbent upon all
Americans, Red and Blue, Republican and Democrat, to stop them.
http://www.justicefornone.com/handbills/leaving1.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) "by slow degrees we learn the full extent . . . "
From: "Barbara Deutsch"
:
My source adds the following as preface to the
INDEPENDENT story
George Weller was the first
Western journalist in Nagasaki
after we dropped the plutonium bomb.
[General Douglas] Macarthur [who
was in charge of US occupation of Japan,
a country which had never before
known military defeat, and who, according to
Stephen Bezruchka –
www.alternativeradio.org/programs/BEZS001.shtml
-- by prescribing for Japan
a demilitarized, democratic, decentralized society
with universal education, strong
collective rights and protections for workers,
and restrictions on private wealth
and power, caused a rather mediocre life
expectancy rate, even without any appreciable
change in health care or delivery
(and even despite effects of bombs
and the contamination from them)
to become the highest in the world]
censored Weller's reports, but
Weller's son just discovered the
original stories in cartons.
The NYT coverage of this story
omitted this information:
William Laurance, a science
reporter with The New York Times and - it
later emerged - someone also paid
by the White House as a "consultant,"
was among a group of reporters taken
to the atomic testing site in New Mexico
to demonstrate there was no lingering
radiation. Laurance's subsequent story
said: "This historic ground in
New Mexico, scene of the first atomic explosion
on earth and a cradle of a new era
in civilisation, gave the most effective
answer today to Japanese propaganda
that [radiation was] responsible for
deaths even after the day of the explosion . . . .
Awestruck, we watched
it shoot upward like a meteor coming from
the earth instead of from outer
space, becoming ever more alive as it climbed
skyward through the white clouds . . . .
it was a living thing, a new
species of being, born right
before our incredulous eyes."
For which reporting Laurance
won the Pulitzer prize.
The article below, unlike the
NYT coverage, quotes Gregg Mitchell,
co-author of Hiroshima in America:
A Half Century of Denial , and
explains the theme of his book:
[it] details the official suppression
of the effect of the atomic weapons
and the controversy surrounding
America's decision to use them . . . .
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=648484
Nagasaki: Wasteland of war, by the
first Western reporter to witness it
The American journalist George Weller
was the first Allied observer to see
the devastation wreaked by the atomic
bomb on the Japanese city of Nagasaki.
But his account was censored at the
command of General MacArthur, and only now,
three years after his death, have his
astonishing reports finally been published.
Independent (London) 21 June 2005
By Andrew Buncombe
The scenes that confronted the
reporter George Weller would fill his
dispatches with horror and stay
with him for life. The first Western
reporter into the bombed and
off-limits city of Nagasaki in September
1945, Weller encountered sickness
and suffering of a kind never seen
before. He described the cityscape
though which he passed as a "wasteland
of war".
But his unflinching reports written
a month after the atomic bomb had
dropped caught the eye of General
Douglas MacArthur's US military censors.
Concerned at the effect Weller's
reporting would have on worldwide opinion
as well as his subsequent political
ambitions, the general ensured that
none of the reportage he filed from
Nagasaki would be published.
Until now. Three years after Weller's
death at the age of 95, and 60 years
after the US dropped atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki killing more
than 200,000 people and ushering the
world into the nuclear era, some of
those first-hand dispatches have been
published in a Japanese newspaper.
They provide a raw and unique insight
into the bomb's devastation and the
horrifying effect of radiation poisoning,
known to the author of the
reports and the bewildered doctors
he spoke to simply as "Disease X."
In a report filed from Nagasaki on
8 September 1945, Weller wrote: "In
swaybacked or flattened skeletons of
the Mitsubishi arms plants is
revealed what the atomic bomb can do
to steel and stone, but what the
riven atom can do against human
flesh and bone lies hidden in two
hospitals of downtown Nagasaki. Look
at the pushed-in faÁade of the
American consulate, three miles from
the blast's centre, or the face of
the Catholic cathedral, one mile in
the other direction, torn down like
gingerbread, and you can tell that
the liberated atom spares nothing in
the way." Weller's remarkable dispatches
might not have been discovered
but for his son Anthony, also a writer
and journalist, who was dealing
with his father's belongings after his
death in 2002. At his father's home
in San Felice Circeo, Italy, Mr Weller
was working his way through a box
of papers when he came across 75 typed
pages of carbon-paper copies
containing reports from the war in the
Pacific, which his father had
believed lost. The reports ran to
about 25,000 words.
Speaking yesterday by telephone
from his father's home, Mr Weller, 47,
told The Independent: "My father
had spoken of these reports many times
over the years and it was a source
of great frustration to him [to be
censored]. It was one of the biggest
stories of his life.
"It was very poignant to find his
carbons no more than 20 ft. from where he
was sitting. One of the rooms in
his house was overflowing with papers
from his more than 65 years as
a foreign correspondent. There were boxes
and crates with these papers
jammed into them. I spent some time going
through a crate full of mildewed
papers from the Pacific war and there
they were. The crate was a few
feet from the chair in which he used to
sit. He did not know they were there."
The story of Weller's suppressed
dispatches from the southern coastal city
of Nagasaki - devastated by the
4.5-ton "Fatman" nuclear device that was
exploded at a height of 1,500ft
at 11.02am on 9 August - are made all the
more remarkable for the effort it
took him to get into the city. With the
city and much of southern Japan
placed off-limits by MacArthur, commander
of the US forces, Weller, already
a Pulitzer Prize winner with the now
defunct Chicago Daily News, made
his way to the distant island of Kyushu.
There, with official permission,
he visited what had been a Japanese
kamikaze base. But he also noticed
that the town on the mainland - just a
few hundred yards from the island
- was connected to Nagasaki by railroad.
Using a combination of boat, train
and a bravura performance in which he
impersonated a senior US officer and
commandeered two military cars, he
was able to get into Nagasaki several
days before any other Western
reporters. Weller, who had earlier
been among the very last journalists to
leave Singapore and then Indonesia
in the face of the Japanese advance,
was not at the time particularly
opposed to the atomic bomb. "I think the
Japanese military had cleared any
sense of remorse out of him," said his
son, who usually lives in Annisquam,
Massachusetts. And his initial
reports from Nagasaki suggested
that he believed the atomic weapon, while
clearly deadly, had worked with
a rare degree of precision.
He started one early dispatch by
writing: "The atomic bomb may be
classified as a weapon capable of
being used indiscriminately, but its use
in Nagasaki was selective and proper
and as merciful as such a gigantic
force could be expected to be. The
following conclusions were made by the
writer - as the first visitor to
inspect the ruins - after an exhaustive,
though still incomplete study of
this wasteland of war." He suggested that
the death toll stood at no more
than 24,000 and that this number
(later
shown to be more than 75,000, with
another 75,000 injured and countless
more left to die later from radiation
sickness) was largely the result of
poorly designed civilian air shelters
and a refusal by the local
authorities to take air-raid warnings
seriously. He later added in his
report: "Nobody here in Nagasaki
has yet been able to show that the bomb
is different than any other,
except in a broader extent flash and a more
powerful knock-out." But as he
travelled more around Nagasaki, visiting
hospitals filled with sick and
dying people, witnessing the flattened city
and talking to the baffled Japanese
doctors unable to help so many of the
sick, Weller became aware that
something was terribly wrong. Many of those
brought into the hospitals were
not responding to treatment.
He witnessed children with red
blotches on their skin, people who had lost
their hair, patients with blackened
tongues, patients with lock-jaw.
Doctors at one hospital told him
that a month after the explosion, people
were dying at a rate of 10 a day.
He noted that the doctors had
performed precise assessments of the
patients brought to them. Their
hair had fallen out, they had skin
haemorrhages, lip sores, diarrhoea,
swelling of the throat. There had been
a fall in the number of their red
blood cells and there was an almost
absence of white blood cells.
He wrote in another dispatch: "The
atomic bomb's peculiar 'disease',
uncured because it is untreated and
untreated because it is not diagnosed,
is still snatching away lives here.
Men, women and children with no
outward marks of injury are dying
daily in hospitals, some after having
walked around for three or four
weeks thinking they have escaped. The
doctors here have every modern
medicament, but candidly confessed in
talking to the writer - the first
Allied observer to Nagasaki since the
surrender - that the answer to the
malady is beyond them. Their patients,
though their skin is whole, are all
passing away under their eyes."
After his achievement of entering
Nagasaki and acting as an eye-witness to
the destruction, Weller's mistake
was to send his reports back to Tokyo by
hand, to be approved by the military
censor. Concerned about their
potential effect on public opinion,
MacArthur ordered that that they be
destroyed.
Weller's son said his father later
believed he had lost the carbon copies
and would go to his grave summarising
his experience with the censors
simply as "They won." Indeed, at the
same time as it was suppressing
Weller's reports and denying similar
reports filed from Hiroshima by the
Australian reporter Wilfred Burchett
and published by the Daily Express in
London, the Pentagon was actively
going to great lengths to persuade its
own citizens that there was no
danger of radiation poisoning from the
atomic bombs.
William Laurance, a science reporter
with The New York Times and - it
later emerged - someone also paid by
the White House as a "consultant",
was among a group of reporters taken
to the atomic testing site in New
Mexico to demonstrate there was no
lingering radiation. Laurance's
subsequent story said: "This historic
ground in New Mexico, scene of the
first atomic explosion on earth and
a cradle of a new era in civilisation,
gave the most effective answer today
to Japanese propaganda that
[radiation was] responsible for
deaths even after the day of the
explosion."
Laurance was so liked by the
military that he was even taken in the
squadron of planes accompanying
the B-29 bomber from Tinian Island near
Guam, which dropped the Nagasaki
bomb. In contrast to Weller's reports of
suffering and sickness, Laurance
described the bomb's explosion thus:
"Awestruck, we watched it shoot
upward like a meteor coming from
the earth
instead of from outer space,
becoming ever more alive as it climbed
skyward through the white clouds
... It was a living thing, a new species
of being, born right before our
incredulous eyes." Ironically, such
reporting won Laurance himself a Pulitzer prize.
Gregg Mitchell, co-author of
Hiroshima in America: A Half Century of
Denial and editor of the magazine
Editor and Publisher, said the story of
Weller's suppressed and then lost
dispatches was one of journalism's more
considerable mysteries.
"It's different to Deep Throat,
but in nuclear history and journalism
history, [it is important]," said
Mr Mitchell, whose book details the
official suppression of the effect
of the atomic weapons and the
controversy surrounding America's
decision to use them when many in the
West believed Japan was already ready
to surrender. "It is one of the
great mysteries. People have always
wondered what was in those reports.
For them to emerge intact solves it."
Weller's son, who has also discovered
a cache of his father's photographs,
said his father had believed his reports
from Nagasaki would not be
censored. He believed that during the
three weeks he spent in Nagasaki he
was there "as a witness".
"He had been fighting the censors for
four years," he said. "[The censors]
did not want the US people to get a bad
impression of the bombs, and that
it was not MacArthur who had won the
war but a bunch of scientists in New
Mexico."
Indeed, the conclusion to one of his
father's most moving dispatches
relates to some of those very scientists,
the effect of whose labours he
had just witnessed, and who were about
to arrive in the city to measure
the radiation. "Twenty-five Americans
are due to arrive September 11 to
study the Nagasaki bombsite.
Japanese hope they will bring a solution for
Disease X."
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
** Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches **
** http://dahrjamailiraq.com **
Iraqi Hospitals Ailing Under Occupation
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/reports/HealthcareUnderOccupationDahrJamail.pdf
Or visit:
www.dahrjamailiraq.com and click on the 'reports' section.
Dahr Jamail reports on the struggling health care situation in Iraq.
The report surveys 13 Iraqi Hospitals, examines the actions taken by
US military against hospitals and care workers that constitute war
crimes as defined by the Geneva conventions, discusses and documents
cases of US medical personnel complicit in torture through failures
to document the visible signs of torture on their patients, and much
more.
This report is endorsed by the B/Russell/s Tribunal, El Taller
International, Asian Women's Human Rights Council, Association of
Humanitarian Lawyers, SOS Iraq, and Medical Aid for the Third World,
a.o. I'd also like to thank 11.11.11 (a consortium of NGO's.), who
offered their facilities for the presentation of this report to the
press.
/** This report is submitted as evidence to the Jury of conscience
during the culminating session of the World Tribunal on Iraq
More writing, photos and commentary at http://dahrjamailiraq.com
You are subscribed to the Dahr Jamail's email Iraq Dispatches because you requested
a subscription at some point.
You can visit http://dahrjamailiraq.com/email_list/ to subscribe or unsubscribe to the
email list.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) HIP HOP SHOW AND RALLY TO CLOSE CYA YOUTH PRISONS
Saturday, July 16, noon-2pm
Frank Ogawa Plaza, 14th St. and Broadway (Downtown Oakland)
4th Annual "Not Down with the Lockdown" Hip Hop Show and Rally
to Close the CYA Youth Prisons
FREE! All ages!
Join us as we bring the community together with amazing Bay Area
talent to speak out against the California Youth Authority
and the prison industrial complex!
Sponsored by Books Not Bars and Let's Get Free ( http://www.booksnotbars.org )
Contact Books Not Bars:
e-mail: bnb@ellabakercenter.org
phone: 510.428.3939
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) National Council of Churches urges grassroots campaign
To call on Congress to pass bi-partisan 'end the war' resolution
New York, June 16, 2005 - The National Council of Churches USA has welcomed bi-
partisan legislation introduced in Congress today urging President Bush "to announce
a plan for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of the year."
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) introduced the
legislation.
http://www.ncccusa.org/news/050617BipartisanResolution.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) A VICTORY FOR SHEILA DETOY
Yesterday a San Francisco Superior Court Judge ruled on the
side of the people. The judge threw out the argument presented
by the Police Officers Union that it was too late to discipline
the officers that killed this seventeen year-old child.
The charges against Gregory Breslin and his cronies will
not be dismissed!!!!
This victory is a step towards discipline for the officers
that not only committed murder, but then covered it up.
Discipline of these officers will be a step towards peaceful
streets in San Francisco free from abusive cops like Gregory
Breslin.
The fight is not over, now we must demand that the San Francisco
Police Commission remove Gregory Breslin from the San Francisco
Police Department IMMEDIATELY!!!
SIX YEARS - NO JUSTICE FOR SHEILA DETOY
* May 13, 1998: San Francisco police officers shot up a car
full of unarmed teenagers and killed 17-year-old Sheila
Detoy. SFPD then blamed her friends for her death.
* The Office of Citizen Complaints found that Officer
Gregory Breslin is responsible for her death. The OCC
also sustained complaints against the other officers
involved in Sheila's killing.
In 2003 the San Francisco Police Commission decided
they wanted to file charges against the officers,
but the Police Officers Association tried to block
discipline, but they failed.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS CASE AND OTHER ISSUES
RELATED TO POLICE BRUTALITY IN THE BAY AREA PLEASE
CONTACT BAY AREA POLICEWATCH AT
malaika@ellabakercenter.org
or (510)428-3939 x. 224
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
8) A.M.A. to Study Effect
of Marketing Drugs to Consumers
By STEPHANIE SAUL
Published: June 22, 2005
"The American Medical Association, the nation's largest
organization of physicians, agreed yesterday to study
whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary
prescriptions, potentially harming patients and driving
up health costs....Many critics say advertising fueled
the widespread use of cox-2 painkillers, recently linked
to serious cardiovascular problems. Vioxx, the cox-2 drug
that Merck withdrew from the market in September, was widely
advertised to consumers. Studies later indicated that,
for many patients, it was no more effective than other,
safer pain killers."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/business/media/22adco.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
9) Tales of the Poor, Working
to Survive in America
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS
June 22, 2005
http://movies2.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/movies/22wagi.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
10) Iraqi Rebels Refine Bomb Skills,
Pushing Toll of G.I.'s Higher
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 - American casualties from bomb attacks
in Iraq have reached new heights in the last two months as
insurgents have begun to deploy devices that leave armored
vehicles increasingly vulnerable, according to military records."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/international/middleeast/
22bomb.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=4de3c8b99cb57c82&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
11) Social Security Opened Its Files for 9/11 Inquiry
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 22, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 21 -The Social Security Administration has
relaxed its privacy restrictions and searched thousands of
its files at the request of the F.B.I. as part of terrorism
investigations since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, newly
disclosed records and interviews show."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/politics/
22terror.html?hp&ex=1119499200&en=f4bb907c3b74271d&ei=5094&partner=hom
epage
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
12) Muni drivers threaten
walkout at month's end
By Marisa Lagos
Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:57 PM PDT
Some rank and file members of Muni's drivers union are
threatening to walk off the job June 30, saying union
leadership has not held strong opposing layoffs and service
cuts as its membership asked.
http://sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/06/17/news/20050617_ne11_muni.txt
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
13) NYT Editorial
Abu Ghraib, Rewarded
Published: June 22, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed1.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
14) Posts Considered for Commanders
After Abuse Case
By ERIC SCHMITT and THOM SHANKER
Published: June 20, 2005
WASHINGTON, June 19 - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld
is considering new top command assignments that would possibly
include promoting Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the former
American commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib prison
abuse scandal, Pentagon and military officials say.
Such a move, which has been urged by senior Army officers
and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared
General Sanchez of wrongdoing, seems to reflect a growing
confidence that the military has put the abuse scandal behind it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20military.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
15) Extending Democracy to Ex-Offenders
Published: June 22, 2005
"The laws that strip ex-offenders of the right to vote across
the United States are the shame of the democratic world. Of an
estimated five million Americans who were barred from voting
in the last presidential election, a majority would have been
able to vote if they had been citizens of countries like
Britain, France, Germany or Australia. Many nations take
the franchise so seriously that they arrange for people to
cast ballots while being held in prison. In the United States,
by contrast, inmates can vote only in two states, Maine
and Vermont.
This distinctly American bias - which extends to jobs, housing
and education - keeps even law- abiding ex-offenders confined
to the margins of society, where they have a notoriously
difficult time building successful lives. A few states,
at least, are beginning to grasp this point. Some are
reconsidering postprison sanctions, including laws that
bar ex-offenders from the polls."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/22/opinion/22wed3.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
16) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
17) Russia after the war in Iraq
By Alan Woods
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/after_war_in_iraq.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
18) The crisis in United Russia
By Misha Steklov in Moscow
http://www.marxist.com/Russia/crisis-united-russia220605.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
19) Insurgents killed in Afghan fighting
5 U.S. soldiers wounded in gunbattle in south of country
The Associated Press
Updated: 1:09 p.m. ET June 22, 2005
"KABUL, Afghanistan - American warplanes pounded a suspected
Taliban safe haven in the mountains of southern Afghanistan
during an assault that killed up to 76 insurgents and 12
security forces, officials said Wednesday. Five American
soldiers were wounded.
The bodies of those killed in Tuesday's fighting littered
a rugged Afghan mountainside. The surge in violence has
raised fears that an Iraq-style quagmire is developing
here, just months ahead of key legislative elections."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8197613/
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
20) Current, former Walgreen
workers file suit
Drugstore chain accused of discriminating against
black employees
The Associated Press
Updated: 6:51 p.m. ET June 21, 2005
"ST. LOUIS - Eleven black current and former Walgreen Co.
workers in Michigan and six other states sued the nation's
top-selling drugstore chain Monday, accusing it of having
a policy of discriminating against black employees.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis,
Ill., says the company has a "pervasive policy" of steering
black employees to work in stores in areas that have mostly
black or poorer customers, using an internal system to
categorize stores based on race and income."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8307598/
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
21) Marines win Iraq desert battle, war far from over
By Peter Graff
Tue Jun 21, 2005 08:08 AM ET
KARABILA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. Marines claimed success on
Tuesday in another battle against insurgents in the Iraqi
desert but acknowledged that the war was far from over and that
guerrillas would soon recover lost ground.
http://www.reuters.com/
newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8850204&src=eDialog/GetContent
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
22) The Washington Post and the Downing Street memo
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/jun2005/post-j22.shtml
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
23) From Marti Hiken of the Military Law Task Force (MLTF)
of the National Lawyers' Guild
Two MLTF members in the Bay Area have formed the Berkeley Draft
Information Project and have published a booklet for [school]
counselors, parents and young people: "FAST FAXTS about
"Military Recruitment, The Potential for a Draft and
Related Issues."
Their address is: Berkeley Draft Information Project,
2124 Kittredge St., #66, Berkeley, CA 94704.?
info@berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
www.berkeleydraftinformationproject.org
Kristin & Dianne "work from a slightly different angle on
this project: attempting to engage high school advisors
and college counselors, who have a lot of influence with
students about the 'next step' in student lives. They
also do some of the same sort of things by engaging
sports coaches, by using school e-listings, and by
having a 'hard copy' book-style product available in
bookstores to catch the eye of people who are not
explicitly searching the internet for information.
It is an important information tool for those doing
counter-recruitment/draft counseling.
Marti
National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force?
Marguerite Hiken, co-chair
318 Ortega Street
San Francisco, CA 94122
415-566-3732
mlhiken@pacbell.net
www.nlg.org/mltf
Kathleen Gilberd, co-chair
1168 Union Street, Ste. 302
San Diego, CA 92101
619-233-1701
KathleenGilberd@aol.com
* To visit your group on the web, go to:
* http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MOOS-BAY/
*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
24) Vote on this online poll to help protect student's privacy!
Hi Everyone,
I received a note saying that New York State School
Boards Association is considering supporting changing
federal law to not send student contact information to
military recruiters without their consent. All you
have to do is vote on their online poll:
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
The law they are considering supporting, written by
Mike Honda (D-CA), would not release student
information to recruiters unless they "opt-in".
Please vote on this online poll to urge NYSSBA to
support protecting student privacy. While it is New
York State, it has important implications for the rest
of the nation as well.
http://www.nyssba.org/ScriptContent/Index.cfm
thanks,
josh
santa cruz, ca
From the Web Site:
Military recruiters have access to students' names,
addresses and phone numbers unless parents "opt out"
by asking schools to withhold the information. Should
federal law be changed to an "opt in" system?
(See news link, below)
Yes
(376) 89.74%
No
(43) 10.26%
Total Votes: 419
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/college_not_comba
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
25) Mass Mobilizing Meeting
Wednesday, July 6 at 7 PM
Global Exchange: 2017 Mission St. #303, San Francisco
(across the street from the 16th St. BART station)
Dear Friends,
Please join us for a mass mobilizing
meeting on July 6 to build the
Seeds of Change: NO NUKES! NO WARS!
rally and march to the Livermore
nuclear weapons lab.
• Find out why, in the midst of ongoing
• slaughter in Iraq, we must call
for nuclear abolition;
• Stop the Bomb Where it Starts!
• For the 60th Anniversary of the Bombing
of Hiroshima, Help Organize the March
to the Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab!
RSVP: Tara Dorabji, Tri-Valley CARES, (925) 443-7148,
tara@trivalleycares.org
ACTION ALERT*Tri-Valley CAREs*
www.trivalleycares.org*
925-443-7148
SATURDAY AUGUST 6: SEEDS OF
CHANGE: NO NUKES! NO WARS!
RALLY AND MARCH TO THE LIVERMORE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB.
On the 60th anniversary of the
U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima...
ACT to abolish nuclear weapons and war
PROTEST new, earth-penetrating
nuclear weapons at Livermore Lab
CELEBRATE your vision of a peaceful,
just and nuclear-free world
Livermore Lab is one of the world's
primary sites for the creation and
development of nuclear weapons.
WHEN: Saturday, August 6, 2005 at 5 PM
WHERE: William Payne Park, 5800 Patterson Pass Rd.
Livermore, CA (BART
shuttles provided by the Peace and Freedom Party)
To volunteer and for more info:
(925) 443-7148 Tri-Valley CAREs
www.trivalleycares.org
(510) 839-5877
Western States Legal Foundation www.wslfweb.org
Livermore Conversion Project (510) 663-8065.
BACKGROUND
The Bay Area's Livermore Lab is one of
the three national laboratories
that serve as the brain of the U.S.
nuclear weapons complex, which today
is modernizing and developing nuclear
weapons to support U.S. wars of
empire.
August 6 and 9, 2005 mark the 60th
anniversaries of the atomic bombings
of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the
United States. Join with thousands of
people at four central US nuclear
weapons sites to call for an end to
the development and production of
nuclear warheads.
In the Bay Area, the Livermore Lab
continues to contaminate the water,
air and soil. Over 1 million curies
of airborne radiation have leaked
from the site. That is roughly equal
to the amount of radiation
deposited in the bombing of Hiroshima.
The Dept. of Energy declared the
fifty-mile radius surrounding the
facility as the affected population.
This includes over 7 million people
from San Francisco, to Stockton, to
San Jose. The storage and use of
nuclear materials at Livermore Lab
continues to increase despite safety
and security issues. The limit for
plutonium at Livermore Lab has just
been doubled to 3,080 pounds --
enough for 300 nuclear bombs!
Plutonium was recently found on site to be
absurdly stored in paint cans and food cans.
In Iraq, they never found nuclear
or other weapons of mass destruction,
yet the daily reality of death and
destruction continues, sparked by the
Bush administration's invasion and
fueled by the ongoing U.S. military
occupation. A majority of people in
this nation now oppose the war, but
the White House and most members of
Congress are resisting the only
solution to the crisis: bring the
troops home immediately. We will send
our message loud and clear to decision
-makers and the public at large:
End the war in Iraq, End the threat
of nuclear annihilation!
We found the missing weapons of mass
destruction. On August 6, we will
take our voices to the active nuclear
weapons sites across the country.
We demand an end to US nuclear weapons
development, production and
testing. We demand an end to wars of
empire and an end to nuclear
excuses for war.
NO NUKES! NO WARS!
*SEND SUNFLOWERS TO LIVERMORE NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB*
The sunflower is the international symbol
for the abolition of nuclear
weapons. We invite you to create
paper sunflowers to be planted at the
gates of Livermore Lab. Sunflowers
can be large or small, painted, be
creative. Make sure to include your
name and hometown on the sunflower.
For full instructions and mailing directions:
www.wagingpeace.org/sunflower
AUGUST 6 NATIONAL ACTIONS
March and Rally at core nuclear weapons
sites across the United States.
Join the global majority in saying
"Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Never Again!!!"
MAJOR RALLIES AT:
Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab in CALIFORNIA
Los Alamos Nuclear Weapons Lab in NEW MEXICO
Nevada Nuclear Test Site in NEVADA
Y-12 Nuclear Production Facility in TENNESSEE
For more info on each major rally:
http://www.abolitionnow.org/augustactions.html
TUESDAY, AUGUST 9, NAGASAKI NEVER AGAIN!!!
NOVIOLENT DIRECT ACTION AT THE LIVERMORE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS LAB
WHEN: Tuesday, August 9 at 8AM
WHERE: Meet at William Payne Park,
5800 Patterson Pass Rd. Livermore
Take I-580 exit Vasco Rd. go South.
Take a right on Patterson Pass Rd.
Music at the gates will be provided by Clan Dyken.
NONVIOLENCE GUIDELINES: Nonviolence has
always been a core value of the
anti-nuclear movement. Details about
the nonviolence guidelines and a
complete list of sponsors and endorsers
are available at:
www.trivalleycares.org
www.wslfweb.org
TUESDAY AUGUST 9, NATIONALLY COORDINATED
CANDLELIGHT VIGILS
Organize a candlelight vigil at your
city hall on the 60^th anniversary
of the bombing of Nagasaki. In addition,
you can organize readings,
lantern lighting ceremonies, the shadow
projects and more. In support of
the Mayors for Peace, we are calling on
local groups to invite their
Mayors to participate in the vigils
and read out proclamations.
Contact: Jackie Cabasso,
Western States Legal Foundation,
wslf@earthlink.net, (510) 839-5877,
*www.wslfweb.org*
ASK CONGRESS TO CUT $2 BILLION FROM
THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS BUDGET
http://capwiz.com/wagingpeace/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7565846
Act now to stop a new generation of
nuclear bombs. Ask Congress to cut
$2 billion to restrain dangerous nuclear
weapons programs.
Donations should be made out and
mailed to: Livermore Conversion
Project, PO Box 31835, Oakland, CA 94604.
Checks of more than $50 are
tax-deductible if made out to Agape.
To Volunteer Contact: Tara Dorabji,
Tri-Valley CAREs,
tara@trivalleycares.org, (925) 443-7148,
*www.trivalleycares.org*
Initial Cosponsors and Endorsers:
Alameda County Green Party, American
Friends Service Committee, Bay Area
United for Peace and Justice, Bill
O'Donnell Social Justice Committee,
Buddhist Peace Fellowship,
California Peace Action, Bay Area
United for Peace and Justice, Fiat Pax
Berkeley, Green Party California,
Livermore Conversion Project, Martin
Luther King Jr. Freedom Center, the
Northern California Communist Party,
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Peace
and Freedom Party, Peace Fresno,
Tri-Valley Communities Against a
Radioactive Environment (CAREs),
Veterans for Peace San Francisco
Chapter 69, Wellstone Democratic
Renewal Club , Western States Legal
Foundation, Women's International
League for Peace and Freedom and
Women for Peace.
--
Tara Dorabji
Outreach Director
Tri-Valley CAREs
www.trivalleycares.org
tara@trivalleycares.org
ph: (925) 443-7148
fax: (925) 443-0177
Before the word, was the silence. In
this silence existed neither thought
nor judgment. First came laughter,then
the tears, and the sound was born.
With the sound, the world flooded with memories.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Monday, June 20, 2005
BAUAW NEWSLETTER-MONDAY, JUNE 20, 2005
************************************************************
Cut all Public School ties to the military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the fourth Tuesday of each month starting,
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
************************************************************
Phil Ochs "I Ain't Marching Anymore"
Oh I marched to the battle of New Orleans
At the end of the early British war
The young land started growing
The young blood started flowing
But I ain't marchin' anymore
For I've killed my share of Indians
In a thousand different fights
I was there at the Little Big Horn
I heard many men lying I saw many more dying
But I ain't marchin' anymore
(chorus)
It's always the old to lead us to the war
It's always the young to fall
Now look at all we've won with the saber and the gun
Tell me is it worth it all
For I stole California from the Mexican land
Fought in the bloody Civil War
Yes I even killed my brothers
And so many others But I ain't marchin' anymore
For I marched to the battles of the German trench
In a war that was bound to end all wars
Oh I must have killed a million men
And now they want me back again
But I ain't marchin' anymore
(chorus)
For I flew the final mission in the Japanese sky
Set off the mighty mushroom roar
When I saw the cities burning I knew that I was learning
That I ain't marchin' anymore
Now the labor leader's screamin'
when they close the missile plants,
United Fruit screams at the Cuban shore,
Call it "Peace" or call it "Treason,"
Call it "Love" or call it "Reason,"
But I ain't marchin' any more,
No I ain't marchin' any more
Of course, this has to be the best Soldier's songs
(at leats my dad sez so):
Creedence Clearwater Revival "Fortunate Son"
Some folks are born, made to wave the flag,
Ooh, they're red, white and blue.
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no,
Yeah!
Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh.
But when the taxman comes to the door,
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no.
Yeah!
Some folks inherit star spangled eyes,
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord,
And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one.
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no,
************************************************************
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAYS, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS, 5 & 7 P.M.
************************************************************
HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
************************************************************
SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
July 2, 3 & 4, DOLORES PARK
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(I saw a preview of this play.
It's fresh and new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is great!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE TO GET THE MILITARY
OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS AND PROVIDE SCHOLARSHIPS AND GRANTS
TO STUDENTS WHO CAN'T AFFORD TO GO TO COLLEGE SO THEY
DON'T HAVE TO JOIN THE MILITARY DUE TO ECONOMIC HARDSHIP.
WE WILL BE PETITIONING BEFORE AND AFTER THE PERFORMANCES.
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS. FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
FREE!
************************************************************
SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
************************************************************
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
BAUAW NEWSLETTER UPDATE-MONDAY, JUNE 20, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) INTERNATIONALIZING U.S. ROADS
Phyllis Spivey
June 10, 2005
NewsWithViews.com
Imagine this: your state government puts a transportation
corridor in your neighborhood. It's nearly a quarter-mile wide.
It will serve vehicles and trains and incorporate oil, gas,
electric and water lines. Try to fight it and you'll not only
face the combined might of your local, state, and federal
governments, but foreign interests as well.
The internationalization of U.S. roads has begun.
We're not just talking about isolated instances of
privately-built toll roads with foreign management, as
we've seen in Southern California. We're talking about
networks of toll roads that may be built by foreign builders,
managed by foreign operators, function primarily to accommodate
foreign goods, and connect U.S. roads to similar networks
in Canada, Mexico and, later, Central and South America.
Interstate 69, for example, is a planned 1600 mile national
highway connecting Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. Eight states
are involved in the project: Once completed, I-69 will extend
from Port Huron, Michigan to the Texas/Mexico border.
http://www.newswithviews.com/Spivey/phyllis3.htm
2) US lied to Britain over use of napalm in Iraq war
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
17 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=647397&host=3&dir=62
3) Halliburton to build new
$30 mln Guantanamo jail
Thu Jun 16, 2005 07:21 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8817044
4) Telling the Story
5) Radioactive contamination
at Hanford is on the move
It is 'not just staying
in place,' warns report
by watchdog group
By LISA STIFFLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/228573_hanford15.html
6) City Schools and Teachers
Revise Plan on Workday
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: June 17, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/education/17teach.html?
7) THE STATE OF OUR MOVEMENT
by Van Gosse
[Based on a talk given at
Purdue University, April 20, 2005]
published by portside
June 17, 2005
http://people-link5.inch.com/pipermail/portside/Week-of-Mon-20050613/015410.html
8) Building Unity at a Time of Possibility
By Ted Glick
Future Hope column, June 20, 2005
9) The Thinking Behind a Close Look
at a C.I.A. Operation
By BYRON CALAME
June 19, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/19/opinion/19public.html
10) To Fill Ranks, Army Acts
To Retain Even Problem Enlistees
By GREG JAFFE
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
June 3, 2005
To keep more soldiers in the
service, the Army has told battalion
commanders, who typically command
800-soldier units, that they can
no longer bounce soldiers from the
service for poor fitness, pregnancy,
alcohol and drug abuse or generally
unsatisfactory performance.
Typically such decisions are made
at that level. Instead, the
battalion commanders must send the
problem soldiers' cases up to
their brigade commander, who typically
commands about 3,000 soldiers.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/0,,SB111776400852250138-rYue9OsHO9i0IaNz4uApoo5WJ80_20060603,00.html?mod=rss_free
11) Supreme Court Orders
New Trial in 17-Year-Old
Murder Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Death-Penalty.html?hp&ex=1119326400&en=82194b1d0546fa1a&ei=5094&partner=homepage
12) Someone Else's Child
By BOB HERBERT
June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/opinion/20herbert.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1119285163-kNizkcTjuoB851nYp3vQ6g
13) Libraries Say Yes, Officials
Do Quiz Them About Users
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20patriot.html
14) G-8 Draft on Global Warming
Is Weakened at U.S. Behest
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
Published: June 18, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 17 - Drafts
of a joint statement being prepared
for the leaders of the major
industrial powers show that the Bush
administration has succeeded in
removing language calling for prompt
action to control global warming."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/18/politics/18climate.html
15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) INTERNATIONALIZING U.S. ROADS
Phyllis Spivey
June 10, 2005
NewsWithViews.com
Imagine this: your state government puts a transportation
corridor in your neighborhood. It's nearly a quarter-mile wide.
It will serve vehicles and trains and incorporate oil, gas,
electric and water lines. Try to fight it and you'll not only
face the combined might of your local, state, and federal
governments, but foreign interests as well.
The internationalization of U.S. roads has begun.
We're not just talking about isolated instances of
privately-built toll roads with foreign management, as
we've seen in Southern California. We're talking about
networks of toll roads that may be built by foreign builders,
managed by foreign operators, function primarily to accommodate
foreign goods, and connect U.S. roads to similar networks
in Canada, Mexico and, later, Central and South America.
Interstate 69, for example, is a planned 1600 mile national
highway connecting Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. Eight states
are involved in the project: Once completed, I-69 will extend
from Port Huron, Michigan to the Texas/Mexico border.
http://www.newswithviews.com/Spivey/phyllis3.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) US lied to Britain over use of napalm in Iraq war
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
17 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=647397&host=3&dir=62
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) Halliburton to build new $30 mln Guantanamo jail
Thu Jun 16, 2005 07:21 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8817044
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) Telling the Story
Those of us who are still alive
carry the burden of telling the story.
Because this life that we follow,
this reality,
gets sliced, quartered and salted
by unexpected tears,
from songs long forgotten,
like haunting lullabies
conjuring up vengeful hopes
betrayed by the collective amnesia.
Yet the story must be told.
Because time is relentless
and memory is fragile...so fragile.
I weave bits and pieces,
each strand, a chord, a muscle, a piece of flesh,
tightened to remake the world that once was.
I sing those songs,
and the words, oh those precious words,
uprooted, torn out, taken someplace to die
have come back like zombies in Ford commercials.
And in my rage, my voice has forgotten how to sing.
Like a Rock. It gets stuck in my throat.
There's no way to make those sounds.
I can only hear them in my heart.
Yet the story must be told.
Because before this cold, calculated first,
second, third strike world, there was warmth.
Even amidst the blinding heat of that war,
there were hands that held each other,
eyes that cried for napalmed children across the sea,
and hearts that became horrified by the true white
face of hatred.
Televised lairs lost their masks
and truth in all its painful courage
ran in our young blood.
Our young eyes cared not what color the flag
only that they were draped over coffins
of someone's brother, father, son.
In telling this story I am not alone.
Thousands of silent partners
pull me from different directions,
each with their own dreams of the lives they led
and of the future that should have been,
and of the lessons we should have learned by now.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) Radioactive contamination at Hanford is on the move
It is 'not just staying in place,' warns report by watchdog group
By LISA STIFFLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/228573_hanford15.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) City Schools and Teachers
Revise Plan on Workday
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: June 17, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/education/17teach.html?
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) THE STATE OF OUR MOVEMENT
by Van Gosse
[Based on a talk given at Purdue University, April 20, 2005]
published by portside
June 17, 2005
http://people-link5.inch.com/pipermail/portside/Week-of-Mon-20050613/015410.html
I want to begin this talk by focusing on the notion of a
'conjuncture,' or what dictionaries call rather blandly
'A critical set of circumstances; a crisis.'
This is a term widely used in Latin America and Europe
to get at the particular 'balance of forces,' what I
would call the set of contingencies, that define a
historical moment. And not just any and all moments
either (as in daily life)-but those important defining
periods when things change decisively.
For historians, there are no 'models' to understand
reality, there is no predictability: contingency is all.
So no matter how eerily familiar a time might seem, we
have to always begin with the understanding that it is
truly new. Which is why the emphases on specificity,
originality and exceptionality built into the concept of
the conjuncture are really useful.
Let me give an example to underline how new is our
particular conjuncture. We all know how the war in Iraq
is constantly, even necessarily compared with the U.S.
war in Vietnam. But let's imagine that right now, we
could actually reproduce all the key circumstances of
that disastrous military adventure:
* Not 150,000 but 535,000 troops 'in country' at peak
* Not over 1,700 dead Americans and at least 20,000
total casualties so far, but eventually over 58,000
dead and over 200,000 total casualties
* Instead of the probably tens of thousands of dead
Iraqis (no one will tell us the numbers, they refuse
to count), the three million who eventually died in
the Indochinese wars
* Not a decentralized, mostly anonymous, ideologically
fragmented insurgency with no political program but
one of the most tightly-organized, popular and
disciplined political-military movements in modern
history, the National Liberation Front of South
Vietnam, backed by a sovereign state, the Democratic
Republic of Vietnam, with a very clear program for
national unification and independence
Well, let's suppose that Iraq escalates into a similar
situation. And it could, possibly, if this war lasts as
long as Vietnam. But even if it does, it will make no
difference: our movement must and will be completely
different. Think about all the other factors:
* The Vietnam war has already happened and the U.S. has
been defeated, an experience from which in a literal
sense we have never recovered
* the Soviet Union no longer exists as an insurance
agency for both grassroots revolutions like Vietnam's
and military dictatorships like Saddam Hussein's that
need a friend
* the Left and the antiwar movement no longer face a
powerfully hegemonic New Deal Democratic Party in
power, to say the least
* the civil rights movement is now a great but fading
memory of mass mobilization and political victory
instead of being as immediate as Terry Schiavo's
passing, and so on and on.
So what is the current conjuncture in U.S. politics? And
why should we start there? Why not just pass over to the
state of our antiwar movement? Isn't the U.S. political
scene always somewhere between 'bad' and 'worse,' and we
can't really do much about it?
That was apparently the response when an outline of this
talk was given at a meeting of the new Steering
Committee of United for Peace and Justice on April 8. I
had five minutes, and started off talking about 'the
conjuncture,' and the leader of an important national
organization jumped in as soon as I finished, saying 'I
thought we were going to hear about the state of the
antiwar movement!'
Well, that's my point. If all we do is talk about our
movement, and in passing refer to the larger political
world, we have begun wrong and are unlikely to right
ourselves. We have to start with the larger frame of
politics, because it almost totally defines our space
for effective action, our possibilities for
intervention. That may mean paying close attention to
people we don't like, and politics that many among us
find unpleasant, meaningless and seedy, but if we don't
pay attention, we're flying blind. Thus, the importance
of 'the conjuncture.'
Right now, U.S. politics is exceptionally and
dangerously fluid. We have clearly passed into what the
great Marxist theorist Perry Anderson, building on older
texts of military and political theory, called the 'war
of maneuver.' In electoral democracies with highly
institutionalized political systems like ours, politics
is almost always defined as the 'war of position,' akin
to trench warfare: a small gain here, pushing a salient
out there, the occasional large-scale offensive (as in a
presidential campaign) that costs a great deal but may
or may not pay off. Not that much changes in any short-
term.
Occasionally, however, things break apart and down, and
the 'war of maneuver' begins: the rapid charges, chaotic
routs, and amazing changes of fortune that characterize
great battles.
This is the situation we have faced since George W. Bush
got his war vote in late October 2002, and two weeks
later won control of both houses of Congress-but by what
is historically a very narrow margin in the Senate, and
the most precarious margin imaginable in the House
(essentially the same bare majority they've held since
1994, but never been able to build on). Since then, he
and his cohort of rightist operatives have skated on the
thinnest of ice, and yet have always managed to avoid
falling through-if only by skating faster.
You may not be surprised that this is the most
controversial of my many speculations: that the
Republican hold on power, while apparently commanding,
is extremely fragile, as I argued last January in a web-
essay called 'Twelve Theses on the War in Iraq and the
Future of U.S. Politics.' Many people on the Left are
shocked and humbled, and for good reason, by the scope
and determination of the right, how they operate
effectively at every level of our politics, how they
seem to command everything. Yet I'll still reiterate my
thesis: the Right's apparent hegemony is illusory, there
is no realignment (yet), their control of the
institutional levers of power is real but insecure.
This is not a matter of the raw numbers last November 4.
Certainly it matters that GW Bush's majority of 51% was
the narrowest re-election victory by a Republican in a
century, and shockingly narrow for a 'war president.'
That's beside the point, however. We should concentrate
on Congress, where exists the real power to implement,
to delay, to harass, to force change.
By any historical standard, the Republican control of
the upper and lower houses hangs by a thread-what would
normally be considered a mere handful of seats.
Remember: in the New Deal years, the Democrats had a 3
to 1 majority in the House over three terms, peaking at
334 to 88 in 1937-39. Well into most of our lifetimes,
we took for granted huge Democratic majorities. Between
the fabled Watergate class of 1974 (that produced a
better than 2-1 majority) and 1994, the Democrats had an
average margin of 88 seats-a figure beyond Tom Delay's
wildest dreams. But we all know there was no real
parliamentary discipline. After all, Bill Clinton
entered the White House in 1993 with solid Democratic
majorities in both houses-and what good did it do him?
They disappeared in 1994. That would be a useful lesson
for GWB, if he was prepared to listen. Under political
pressure, the center will not hold, and I think the
debacle over Social Security, Bush's 'cratering' poll
numbers, the Schiavo fiasco, Delay's mess, and more to
come all suggest that this wafer-thin political
dominance may well prove its fragility over the next two
years.
To complicate matters even more, we have the first
really 'open' presidential campaign approaching since
1952: not only no incumbent, but no heir apparent in the
form of a vice-president eager to run (as in 2000, 1988,
1968, and 1960). Under these circumstances, the degree
of self-interested maneuvering we can normally
anticipate with no incumbent running will be many times
greater. 2008 will be a circus and the lions and tigers
in the Republican hierarchy are already lining up, red
in tooth and claw, ready to climb over each other to
power.
My main point is that we should be very careful about
assuming any stability at all to the current alignment
of power in U.S. national politics. If past patterns
mean anything, one can easily imagine yet another
Democratic president, with a Democratic majority in one
if not both houses of Congress, come 2008.
But this 'fragility,' if reassuring, is very much a two-
edged sword. Simply because of all the advantages of
being the default party, as the Republicans were for so
long, there are powerful compulsions encouraging the
Democrats to find the easiest common denominator (as in
Social Security), and the simplest kind of populistic
appeal (Republicans as out of touch with ordinary
Americans and too long in power, as corrupt 'big
government' and so on, all the charges Gingrich used to
undermine the Democrats over the years). With all these
easy outs, why would the Democratic leadership ever
confront an aggressive Republican machine around a
complex, dangerous issue like the war in Iraq? If
history tells us anything, it is that politicians
dependent on votes will only take that kind of stand
when the crisis is compelling enough to knock them
adrift from their traditional moorings, or when they
feel intense anger and pressure from engaged
constituencies. Minus the latter, what we can expect
from many Democrats is the kind of opportunism
manifested by John F. Kennedy in 1960, when he
relentlessly attacked Richard Nixon as soft on Red China
(Quemoy and Matsu), the Soviet Union (the phony 'missile
gap') and Cuba ('I am not the Vice President who lost
Cuba'). It was a long, drawn-out exercise in avoidance
until now-President Kennedy finally faced the great
domestic political crisis of his time on June 10, 1963,
and spoke with passion of the 'peaceful revolution' in
civil and human rights that all Americans had to accept
and undertake. And he got there only because of a
movement that never let up and because southern
Democratic leaders like George Wallace were openly
defying federal authority.
All these contingencies contribute to the regime of
brutal or vulgar partisanship which has reigned in
national politics since the mid-1990s at least. Rather
than ideological conflict, the confrontation is reduced
to strictly personal terms: Bill Clinton's sexual
dalliances, for instance. This is the worst possible
scenario for the Left in general, and certainly for the
antiwar movement. It reduces politics to simple
polarities: no matter how much I wanted Bush repudiated
for his war upon the world, an 'ABB' attitude was
foolish.
Let's turn to the state of the antiwar movement, the
historical subject seeking to act within the apparently
objective frame of US politics.
We have to begin by with a proviso, and a warning: our
opponents devoutly want to 'Iraqize' this war, and at
every point we have to be ready for a strategy which
will seek visible reductions in the US troop presence to
placate domestic opinion, just as Richard Nixon
'Vietnamized' his failing war in 1969 and after.
Having made that stipulation, there are three criteria
for a successful movement to oppose US foreign policy,
as I see it.
First, a successful movement is one that constantly
spreads into new geographic and demographic spaces (and
sectors), so as to keep structures of power on the
defensive, and hem them in.
Second, it will manifest a multi-strategy and multi-
tactics approach to swarm conventional structures of
power and policy-making elites, never letting up and
wearing them down, in the political equivalent of
guerrilla warfare.
Third, it will focus on opportunities to connect to so-
called 'mainstream,' more properly called conventional,
legislative and electoral politics, since this is the
arena where a movement must register its gains--and if
it doesn't, it can win only by dumb luck or the
intervention of an exterior force, the proverbial act of
god.
Where is the antiwar movement today, by these
benchmarks?
First, let's openly acknowledge the astonishing weakness
and failure exhibited by the various national
organizations and networks of the peace and solidarity
movement in the 1990s, which allowed for the rise of
ANSWER. Like nature, sectarians are eager to fill a
vacuum, and they did so with great energy. Since 2002,
United for Peace and Justice and a host of new
organizations (most of which belong to UFPJ) have worked
to overcome that entropy, with considerable success. The
need to come together as a broad and nonsectarian
movement in the streets, to find a unity in action,
helps explain why the overwhelming emphasis since late
2002 has been on large mobilizations (like February 15,
2003 and August 29, 2004), but now we need to move
beyond that stage of organizing and greatly diversify
both our overall strategies and our specific tactics for
ending the war.
Second, having largely overcome the problem posed by
ANSWER and the absence of a genuine, democratically-run
coalition, we can see that our movement is clearly
consolidating for the long haul. It is spreading
steadily into new spaces and sectors. But we have a very
long way to go-we as a movement have to take seriously
the challenge of simultaneous growth in all these areas:
*becoming a truly multiracial movement, a real necessity
if we ever hope to change the direction of US foreign
policy;
*consolidating a national student infrastructure with
staff and funding that will build upon the leadership of
the National Youth and Student Peace Coalition;
*making the various communities of faith a highly
visible component of our movement, a process now under
way with the founding of Clergy and Laity Concerned
About Iraq;
*developing targeted organizing and real outreach to all
those people and groups in the South, the mountain West
and rural areas in general who agree with us but are
surrounded by 'red state' rightists, and need support.
Third, we are still at a very early stage of developing
a sophisticated multi-strategy, multi-tactical approach.
In this regard the most positive signs are the strong
growth of groups like Military Families Speak Out, the
National Guard campaigns, and the burgeoning counter-
recruitment campaigns aimed at high school youth. The
decision by UFPJ to commit to a multi-pronged fall
mobilization in Washington DC, embracing a mass rally,
an interfaith service, large-scale civil disobedience,
and a coordinated national lobby day, is a major step in
the right direction.
Finally, in terms of leveraging our weight into the
conventional political (electoral and legislative)
arena, our movement has a long way to go, but is making
rapid steps. The recent vote on Rep. Lynne Woolsey's
amendment requesting that the President "develop a plan
as soon as practicable ... to provide for the withdrawal
of United States Armed Forces from Iraq" and "transmit
to the congressional defense committees a report that
contains the plan" showed how much space actually exists
to surface dissent within Congress and the structures of
power. Despite the near-absence of any coordinated
congressional pressure strategy, 122 Democrats (that's a
majority of their caucus) and 5 Republicans voted 'yes.'
We should take this as a clear signal that Congress is
prepared to respond to the mounting public
dissatisfaction, if given the kind of hard push that is
needed. Indeed, we should take this vote as a signal
that victories are ready to be won, if we will act
audaciously.
To push along an audacious perspective, here's a kind of
provocation. I want to pose a set of possible tactical
wins that would actually have an impact on the world of
conventional politics. Plenty of people assert that
thinking in these terms is premature, but to me if we
don't start thinking in these terms we will never really
move forward. So here goes:
A state legislature passes an 'Out Now' resolution
calling for immediate withdrawal (even getting a vote on
such a resolution is a victory of sorts)
A command rank officer resigns as an act of dissent from
the war
A prominent Republican elected official breaks ranks
with the President
A member of Congress loses his or her seat because of
support for the war
A major national institution (a large religious
denomination, a big union, a major association) calls
for immediate withdrawal
A citywide campaign gets recruiters kicked out of
schools
Celebrities from the (poor, people of color and/or
rural) constituencies that provide the troops speak
directly to potential volunteers, urging them not to
participate in an unjust occupation
More state legislatures follow Montana's lead and call
for bringing home their National Guard units
Churches start creating sanctuaries for soldiers who
refuse to fight
A top religious leader urges youths not to enlist, and
the right of military dissent from an unjust war
The count of members of Congress who oppose so-called
'supplemental aid' to fund the war consistently
increases
A resolution supporting immediate withdrawal is placed
on the ballot in California or elsewhere-and wins
More and more state Democratic Party organizations
follow California's in calling for immediate withdrawal
[kudos to Progressive Democrats of America on that win!]
Congress passes a non-binding resolution opposing 'stop
loss' orders as a form of involuntary servitude
The biggest win of all, of course, would be a candidate
in 2008 who repudiates not only this war, but the entire
doctrine of pre-emptive military domination of the
world, as immoral and disastrous-and not only gets the
Democratic nomination but wins the general election. A
pipe dream? Certainly, at this point, but this is how we
need to start thinking about ourselves; this is the
level of responsibility we need to accept for what our
government is doing to the world.
In conclusion, let's think about the challenge that
faces us now, not just the antiwar movement but the Left
as a whole, the challenge to take ourselves completely
seriously. This is the painful lesson we need to learn
from the no-longer-New Right's fifty-year process of
movement-building, ever since Joe McCarthy drank himself
to death and a new type of 'Southern Republicanism'
began to stir, seeking to pick up the pieces of the
Dixiecrat revolt.
The first lesson we can learn from the New Right is that
they have never allowed the immediate constraints of the
mainstream political world to define or limit them,
while at the same time they have remained intensely
focused on every possible gain and intervention in (and
manipulation of) that world. And bit by bit they have
taken it over, first within the Republican Party, and
then through the Republican Party.
Contrast this with the Left. On the one hand, we have
many formations and organizations wholly defined by and
limited by the constraints of institutional Democratic
Party politics. On the other, we have whole swathes of
activists who are deeply anti-electoral and even
abstentionist, preferring to stand aside from the impure
world of partisan activism. I know activists with
decades of experience who have never met a Member of
Congress, and know very little about how our government
actually works, its gears and levers. And there are lots
of people in-between, who participate in conventional
politics while holding their noses, wading in only up to
their knees (I would have to answer to this description,
if I'm being honest). This is why the Right, and even
many in the anemic Democratic center, mock us-and they
are correct to do so.
The second lesson is that even though the Right is just
as divided up into many different movements as we are,
with their own decades of sectarian baggage, they have
learned over time how to bring their movements together
into a common front. It would behoove us to study how
they did that-what kinds of compromises, and
institutional adjustments were necessary. At the same
time, we have to recognize that their common glue is
largely unavailable to us. In fundamental ways, people
on the right are linked by race, and by a racially and
ethnically-based (and sexualized) fear and loathing of a
whole set of 'others.' We may have common fears and
antipathies on the Left, we may all detest oppression
and militarism, but these are of a different order. So
we have to find our own common vision, one based not in
fear and the narrowest definitions of community and
patriotism, but in hope and an expansive,
internationalist love of the country we want to become,
not the country we have been. That's a tall order but
again, utterly necessary.
To really learn this second lesson, we're going to have
do something to which we as Americans are almost
congenitally averse. To build the powerful, united,
broad Left the world demands of us we are going to have
to embrace complexity-our own complexity as the historic
Left in America. We aren't at all the same kinds of
people, not just racially or sexually but in terms of
our ideologies, even our spiritualities. Pluralism is
here with a vengeance. Under no foreseeable
circumstances are we all going to become socialists, or
pacifists, or anarchists. We are Christian and Muslim
and Jewish and Buddhist, atheist and nationalist (of one
sort or another), black, brown, yellow, red and white,
working-class and middle-class. But if we can actually
come together as a movement, we have a world to gain-or
save.
Van Gosse teaches history at Franklin and Marshall
College in Lancaster, PA. He serves on the Steering
Committees of Historians Against the War and United for
Peace and Justice. The views expressed in this essay are
entirely personal.
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8) Building Unity at a Time of Possibility
By Ted Glick
Future Hope column, June 20, 2005
"Narrow approaches are a dead-end for our
movement. . . What is needed is an approach that can appeal
to millions of people, that connects with and draws strength
from the deep-seated traditions of struggle for justice
among the peoples who make up this country. This is what we
need to fight against the sham 'war on terrorism,' U.S.
support of Israeli occupation, attacks on our civil
liberties and civil rights, racism in all its forms, and the
economic terrorism experienced by people from Watts to the
Mississippi Delta to Harlem to Colombia, Africa, Argentina,
Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world."
I wrote these words in a column, "On Leftist
Parties," in January of 2003. They're still very relevant.
Since that time there have been a number of
changes as far as the make-up of the national peace and
justice movement. Back then United for Peace and Justice
(UFPJ) was just getting off the ground, and International
ANSWER was the predominant national coalition mobilizing
anti-war demonstrations. But today, following a split about
a year ago within the Workers World Party-a group with
significant influence within ANSWER--there is now a Workers
World Party-less ANSWER, and there is a newly-formed Troops
Out Now Coalition (TONC) within which WWP and its
International Action Center play a major role. Both
coalitions are significantly weaker, even taken together,
than they used to be before the WWP split.
UFPJ, on the other hand, has become the major
national peace and justice coalition. It has more than 1,000
member groups and a million dollar budget. 10 months ago it
organized a demonstration of ∏ million people outside the
Republican National Convention, and on May 1st of this year
it organized an anti-nuke, anti-war demonstration in New
York City of approximately 30,000. On the same day in NYC,
the Troops Out Now Coalition organized a demonstration of
around 1,000.
UFPJ is also undergoing some qualitative changes. One
example is the election a couple of months of ago of three
national co-chairs of color, George Friday, George Martin
and Judith LeBlanc. At its national assembly in St. Louis in
February, it adopted as one of its top priorities a
Grassroots Education Campaign "to reach potential new allies
and expand our base. . . An education working group will be
created to develop the long-term educational strategy to
reach new constituencies." This decision was made, and there
has been follow-up since, in response to internal criticism
that UFPJ was not taking seriously enough the importance of
outreach to communities of color and a linking of
international and domestic issues as they are experienced by
people at the grassroots.
It is within this context that, once again,
there is contention over UFPJ and ANSWER/TONC calls for a
massive demonstration on September 24th in Washington, D.C.
and elsewhere.
There's a lot of "déjà vu all over again" to
this contention. It reminds me of an extremely difficult and
problematic political process in the first part of 2002 as
various groups struggled to organize a united mass action on
April 20th of that year. We ended up doing so, with great
difficulty, but two aspects to the way ANSWER, supported by
TONC, are attempting to build support for their approach are
very similar to what they did then.
It is troubling that ANSWER/TONC is, ostensibly,
conducting what it calls a quest for "unity" via the
internet. So far this spring I've received at least five
emails from one or the other group trumpeting how committed
they are to achieving "unity" with UFPJ as they put forward
the correctness of their approach to making it happen. Three
and a half years ago, following some initial contact between
reps of ANSWER and reps of the April 20th Mobilization
coalition (the predecessor of UFPJ), ANSWER sent out an
email announcing that a "unity statement" had been adopted.
This false email was issued rather than ANSWER responding to
the April 20th Mobilization's putting forward of several
ideas on a possible way to have a unified day of action on
April 20th. These ideas were given with an explicit
request/understanding that ANSWER would respond to them so
that we could further process this question within our
coalition. And up until two weeks before April 20th, ANSWER
continued to use the internet to attempt to force a "unity"
on terms most favorable to them.
This is most definitely not the way to build
principled and effective unity, if that is truly the
objective.
It is also troubling that ANSWER has put forward
the demand, "Support the Palestinian People's Right of
Return" as a major demand. TONC held a conference earlier
this month on the topic, "Building a United Front to Stop
the War," and the first bulleted point that they made in
their website report of that conference was that "Support
for the Right of all Palestinian refugees and their
descendants to return to their original homes and property
in all of historic Palestine is not negotiable."
I personally understand and support the right of
Palestinian organizations to put this demand forward as they
struggle to end the Israeli occupation of Gaza, the West
Bank and East Jerusalem. When the state of Israel has been
aggressively acting upon the position that any Jew anywhere
in the world has the right to emigrate to Israel and take up
residence there, creating "facts on the ground" that lead to
more land grabs and building of settlements to accommodate
these immigrants, no one can legitimately deny this just
demand of the Palestinians. It must be dealt with as part of
the process of serious negotiations between the Palestinian
and Israeli government representatives, leading to an end to
the Israeli occupation.
But to put this particular demand forward rather
than, say, a demand to end U.S. support for Israeli
occupation, can only have the effect of confusing,
alienating or turning away potential participants in and
organizers of September 24th, and not just in the white
community. It is not a demand broadly understood or
supported within the United States, even within the U.S.
progressive movement. In the context of the movement to
force the United States to pull its military troops and
military bases out of Iraq and end its neo-colonial plans to
control Iraqi oil, this is a demand that will weaken and
narrow that movement. It is just plain strategically wrong
for ANSWER/TONC to put this forward in the way that they
are.
This is a very key political moment for our movement to get
the U.S. out of Iraq. The conservative North Carolina
Republican Congressman Walter Jones, who got "French fries"
in the Congressional cafeteria changed to "freedom fries,"
has joined with another Republican and two Democrats to put
forward a bill calling for a plan to begin withdrawing U.S.
troops next year. John Conyers has just convened a very
successful public hearing in Congress calling attention to
the Downing Street memo which has led to widespread media
coverage about that memo and has helped to strengthen the
peace movement. Public opinion polls report that almost 60%
of the U.S. American people are against the war and want to
begin bringing troops home. Amnesty International is
standing up to Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld and their ilk and
calling them out for the systematic torture and abuse in
their gulag of prisons at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and
elsewhere. The Bush/Cheney gang is on the defensive.
The last thing any group on the left which purports to be
against the war should be doing right now is conducting
itself in such a way that it divides, not unites, the broad
range of people of all colors and cultures who are prepared
to come out in massive numbers to demand an end to this war.
Ted Glick works with the Independent Progressive Politics
Network (www.ippn.org) and the Climate Crisis Coalition
(www.climatecrisiscoalition.org), although these ideas are
solely his own. He can be reached at indpol@igc.org or P.O.
Box 1132, Bloomfield, N.J. 07003.
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9) The Thinking Behind a Close Look
at a C.I.A. Operation
By BYRON CALAME
June 19, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/19/opinion/19public.html
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10) To Fill Ranks, Army Acts
To Retain Even Problem Enlistees
By GREG JAFFE
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
June 3, 2005
To keep more soldiers in the service, the Army has told
battalion commanders, who typically command 800-soldier
units, that they can no longer bounce soldiers from the
service for poor fitness, pregnancy, alcohol and drug
abuse or generally unsatisfactory performance. Typically
such decisions are made at that level. Instead, the
battalion commanders must send the problem soldiers'
cases up to their brigade commander, who typically
commands about 3,000 soldiers.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/0,,SB111776400852250138-rYue9OsHO9i0IaNz4uApoo5WJ80_20060603,00.html?mod=rss_free
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11) Supreme Court Orders
New Trial in 17-Year-Old
Murder Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Death-Penalty.html?hp&ex=1119326400&en=82194b1d0546fa1a&ei=5094&partner=homepage
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12) Someone Else's Child
By BOB HERBERT
June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/opinion/20herbert.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1119285163-kNizkcTjuoB851nYp3vQ6g
It has become clearer than ever that Americans do not want
to fight George W. Bush's tragically misguided war in Iraq.
You can still find plenty of folks arguing that we have to
stay the course, or even raise the stakes by sending more
troops to the war zone. But from the very start of this war
the loudest of the flag-waving hawks were those who were safely
beyond military age themselves and were unwilling to send their
own children off to fight.
It's easy to be macho when you have nothing at risk. The hawks
want the war to be fought with other people's children, while
their own children go safely off to college, or to the mall.
The number of influential American officials who have children
in uniform in Iraq is minuscule.
Most Americans want no part of Mr. Bush's war, which is why Army
recruiters are failing so miserably at meeting their monthly
enlistment quotas. Desperate, the Army is lowering its standards,
shortening tours, increasing bonuses and violating its own
recruitment regulations and ethical guidelines.
Americans do not want to fight this war.
Times Square in Midtown Manhattan is the most heavily traveled
intersection in the country. It was mobbed on V-E Day in
May 1945 and was the scene of Alfred Eisenstaedt's legendary
photo of a sailor passionately kissing a nurse on V-J Day
the following August. There is currently an armed forces
recruiting station in Times Square, but it's a pretty lonely
outpost. An officer on duty one afternoon last week said no
one had come in all day.
Vince Morrow, a 10th grader from Allentown, Pa., was
interviewed across the street from the recruiting station,
on Broadway. He said he had once planned to join the
military after graduating from high school, but had changed
his mind. "It's the war," he said. "Going over and never
coming back. Before the war you'd just go to different
places and help people. Now you go over there and you fight."
His mother, Michelle, said: "I'd like to see him around
awhile. It was different before the war. It's the fear
of not coming home. Our other son just graduated Saturday
and he was planning to go into the Air Force. They told
him college was included and made him all kinds of promises.
They almost made him sign papers before we had decided.
We thought about it and researched it and decided against it."
Last week's New York Times/CBS News Poll found that the
mounting casualties and continuing turmoil in Iraq have
made Americans increasingly pessimistic about the war.
A majority said the U.S. should have stayed out of Iraq
and only 37 percent approved of the president's handling
of the war.
What hasn't changed is the fact that the vast majority
of the parents who support the war do not want their
children to fight it. A woman in the affluent New York
suburb of Ridgewood, N.J., who has a daughter in high
school and a younger son, said: "I would not want my
children to go. If there wasn't a war it would be
different. I support the war and I think we need to
be there. But it's not going well. It's becoming like
Vietnam. It's a very bad situation. But we can't leave."
I don't know how you win a war that your country doesn't
want to fight. We sent too few troops into Iraq in the
first place and the number of warm bodies available for
Iraq and other military missions going forward is dwindling
alarmingly. The Bush crowd may be bellicose, but for most
Americans the biggest contribution to the war effort is
a bumper sticker that says "support our troops," and maybe
a belligerent call to a talk radio station.
The home-front "warriors" who find it so easy to give
the thumbs up to war endanger the truly valorous men and
women who are actually willing to put on a uniform, pick
up a weapon and place their lives on the line.
The president and these home-front warriors got us into
this war and now they don't know how to get us out. Nor
do they have a satisfactory answer to the important ethical
question: how do you justify sending other people's children
off to fight while keeping a cloak of protection around
your own kids?
If the United States had a draft (for which there is no
political sentiment), its warriors would be drawn from
a much wider swath of the population, and political leaders
would think much longer and harder before committing the
country to war.
E-mail: bobherb@nytimes.com
Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company
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13) Libraries Say Yes, Officials
Do Quiz Them About Users
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20patriot.html
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14) G-8 Draft on Global Warming
Is Weakened at U.S. Behest
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
Published: June 18, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 17 - Drafts of a joint statement being prepared
for the leaders of the major industrial powers show that the Bush
administration has succeeded in removing language calling for prompt
action to control global warming."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/18/politics/18climate.html
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15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
Children are the subject of more antisocial behaviour orders
than adults, leading commentators to warn that the Government
is in danger of making it a "crime to become a child".
Latest figures show that children have become the prime target
of antisocial behaviour orders with more than half of Asbos
issued between June 2000 and March 2004 against children
- 1,177 against children and 1,143 against adults.
Childcare charities are concerned that some of the orders, which
if breached can result in detention in a young offenders'
institution, are being imposed for inappropriate reasons. One
15-year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome was given an Asbo
which stated he was not to stare over his neighbours' fence
into their garden. Another 15-year-old with Tourette's syndrome,
which can involve an inability to stop shouting profanities,
received an Asbo banning him from swearing in public.
Children aged between 10 and 15 are now four times more
likely to be the subject of an Asbo than when the orders were
first used in 1999.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: "In Britain today
there is no question that people need protecting from crime,
but we must not become an Asbo land, where it is a crime to
be irritating and a crime to become a child."
Juvenile justice groups and childcare organisations say that
it is too easy for the courts to impose these civil orders on
children which result in criminal punishments if breached.
Neighbourhood groups and community leaders are urging
police and local authorities to make greater use of Asbos
in an effort to stamp out nuisance behaviour. But what worries
children's groups and civil rights organisations is that this
policy is criminalising misbehaviour by imposing orders
against the softest targets - children.
In the past few months, boys as young as 10 have been
served with Asbos.
This month Siobhan Blake became the youngest girl to be
served with an Asbo. The 11-year-old was given a two-year
order banning her from throwing missiles, spitting, assaulting
anyone, using abusive language, damaging property and
harassing people. Blake had "terrorised" residents in Hastings,
East Sussex, by smashing windows and hurling eggs and stones.
The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner, Alvaro
Gil-Robles, said this month that Britain's policy on antisocial
behaviour was criminalising children. He said no juvenile
under 16 should be at risk of imprisonment for breaching
an antisocial behaviour order. Asbos should be "restricted
to serious cases".
Civil liberties groups have raised concerns that local
authorities are using the powers of the orders as a short
cut to imposing criminal punishments. An Asbo is granted
as a civil power, but a breach of the order is treated as
an offence punishable by up to five years in prison, or
a young offenders' institution.
The wide terms of the legislation mean that a magistrate
can grant an Asbo by being satisfied only on a balance
of probabilities that the accused's behaviour is "likely
to cause alarm, harassment or distress".
Groups such as the British Institute for Brain Injured Children,
a charity working with young people with behavioural difficulties,
say that the Government's targeting of "families from hell"
could lead to the demonising of children with Asperger's
syndrome or other problems.
In the first year of the Asbo, 1999, only a few dozen
applications were made to the courts. Since then, Labour
has introduced laws to strengthen their use while giving
councils and police more money to fund applications.
In many cases, an Asbo against a child is now accompanied
by a naming and shaming order.
The Children's Society has said that it is "very concerned
about the Government policy to "name and shame" children
who receive Asbos. Liz Lovell, a policy adviser at the society,
said: "The policy is not only counter-productive, it puts
children and young people at risk. We are also opposed
to the proposed extension of this policy in the Serious
Organised Crime and Police Bill.
"Although an Asbo is a civil order, breaching it is a criminal
offence, the penalty for which can be imprisonment. Asbos
were not designed with children in mind."
In the six years since the first Asbos were granted, evidence
is emerging that they no longer have a deterrent impact on
antisocial behaviour. Children are more likely to breach an
order - resulting in a criminal record - than an adult,
figures show.
Liberty has told the Commons Select Committee on Home
Affairs that such an "indiscriminate and excessive" use of
the legislation is "undermining any benefit they might bring".
Ms Chakrabarti said: "We are aware of anecdotal evidence of
Asbos being treated as a badge of honour. If that is so, then
what must be the principal purpose of Asbos, deterrence from
antisocial behaviour, is undermined. Displacement of
aggressive youths from one estate to a neighbouring one
does not address the cause of their behaviour."
Earlier this year, the Home Affairs Select Committee concluded
that the Government's Asbo policy was about right.
A spokesman for the Home Office said: "Asbos are about the
protection of the community. They are civil orders, not criminal.
As long as a young person abides by the order, there are no
further consequences and they will not get a criminal record.
"Asbos are not the first stop on the line. There have usually
been a range of interventions to attempt to modify behaviour.
"There's no evidence that Asbos are leading to an increase
in youth custody. Individual support orders and parent orders
are used to help modify youngsters' antisocial behaviour
when they are given an Asbo."
The spokeswoman added: "Breaching an Asbo is a serious
offence and it's important for the confidence of the community
that breaches are acted upon."
The Home Office was conducting research on the impact of
Asbos on the individual and the community, the spokeswoman
said, although it was important to understand that Asbos were
a "relatively new tool".
Asbo facts
* Of those who breached Asbos in 2004, 46 per cent were
given custodial sentences
* Forty-two per cent of all Asbos were breached up to
December 2003, compared to 36 per cent for the period
up to December 2002
* A Mori poll this month found that while 89 per cent of
people support Asbos, only 39 per cent feel they are effective
* The British Institute for Brain-Injured Children says at least
five children with autism and other brain disorders have
been given Asbos
Eoghan Williams
Also in Legal
The Asbo Generation
U-turn on cannabis law by Clarke
They're happy, they're humanist... and they're a British legal landmark
Lineker libel trial collapses after jury fails to reach verdict
Central government 'still obstructive' over FOI
(c) 2004 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
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Cut all Public School ties to the military!
Speak up and Picket the S.F. Board of Education
the fourth Tuesday of each month starting,
June 28TH, 7:00 P.M.
555 Franklin St., S.F,
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) will be picketing the San
Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Board of Education
meetings the 4th Tuesday of each month beginning June 28th until
the district cuts all school ties to the military.
San Francisco voters passed Proposition N for the immediate
withdrawal of troops from Iraq by a 63 percent majority last
November. And this November 2005 we will pass an anti-recruitment
resolution initiated by College Not Combat, a coalition of groups
and individuals opposed to the U.S. militaries' school recruitment
program.
We are currently gathering the necessary signatures to place
this counter-recruitment proposition on the ballot. The
proposition says, "The people of San Francisco oppose U.S.
military recruiters using public school, college and university
facilities to recruit young people into the armed forces.
Furthermore, San Francisco should oppose the military's "economic
draft" by investigating means by which to fund and grant
scholarships for college and job training to low-income students
so they are not economically compelled to join the military!"
Proposition N, passed last November, already mandates the
SFUSD to cut all school ties to the military. Yet S.F. children
are still being actively recruited at schools throughout the
district by direct military recruitment, and through the Junior
Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs.
Many students are forced into JROTC in order to get the necessary
Physical Education credits they need to graduate High School. JROTC
now fulfills this requirement-and the district actually pays
a million dollars a year to the Army to support JROTC. (JROTC, by
the way, is totally managed and controlled by the U.S. Army. The
Army writes the curriculum and appoints the teachers. The district
has no say in this program.)
In fact, the U.S. military maintains a presence in the schools
at all grade levels from kindergarten on up. And now the Military
is beginning to set up JROTC "Military Academies" in the Middle
Schools. At these "academies" children are taught how to obey
orders and to practice military maneuvers with realistically
functioning toy guns.
As a result of the board's open door military policy, many San
Francisco high school graduates are currently serving in Iraq.
This must end. Schools must not be used to recruit youngsters to
kill or be killed in this illegal, immoral war! The following
resolution was presented to the board several months ago.
They still have not acted on it!
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!
Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
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 1,700 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.
Come to the next planning meeting of Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
Saturday, July 9, 11:30 a.m. at 474 Valencia Street
between 15th & 16th Streets, S.F.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW) • www.bauaw.org
P.O. Box 318021,
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021 •
414-824-8730
************************************************************
Phil Ochs "I Ain't Marching Anymore"
Oh I marched to the battle of New Orleans
At the end of the early British war
The young land started growing
The young blood started flowing
But I ain't marchin' anymore
For I've killed my share of Indians
In a thousand different fights
I was there at the Little Big Horn
I heard many men lying I saw many more dying
But I ain't marchin' anymore
(chorus)
It's always the old to lead us to the war
It's always the young to fall
Now look at all we've won with the saber and the gun
Tell me is it worth it all
For I stole California from the Mexican land
Fought in the bloody Civil War
Yes I even killed my brothers
And so many others But I ain't marchin' anymore
For I marched to the battles of the German trench
In a war that was bound to end all wars
Oh I must have killed a million men
And now they want me back again
But I ain't marchin' anymore
(chorus)
For I flew the final mission in the Japanese sky
Set off the mighty mushroom roar
When I saw the cities burning I knew that I was learning
That I ain't marchin' anymore
Now the labor leader's screamin'
when they close the missile plants,
United Fruit screams at the Cuban shore,
Call it "Peace" or call it "Treason,"
Call it "Love" or call it "Reason,"
But I ain't marchin' any more,
No I ain't marchin' any more
Of course, this has to be the best Soldier's songs
(at leats my dad sez so):
Creedence Clearwater Revival "Fortunate Son"
Some folks are born, made to wave the flag,
Ooh, they're red, white and blue.
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no,
Yeah!
Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh.
But when the taxman comes to the door,
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no.
Yeah!
Some folks inherit star spangled eyes,
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord,
And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one.
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no,
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no,
************************************************************
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT PETITION CAMPAIGN
16TH & MISSION STREET
SATURDAYS, 12:30 P.M.
TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS, 5 & 7 P.M.
************************************************************
HANDS OFF VENEZUELA SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA FILM
SHOWING: 7:00 PM, FRIDAY JULY 15
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia, Third Floor,
Near 16th Street, SF
(not wheelchair accessible)
Close the 16th Street BART
$5/$3 Students, Seniors, Unemployed
With the Poor of the World
Con los pobres de la Tierra (2003) 56 minutes.
by Marta Harnecker on Venezuela
In Spanish with English Subtitles
This video gives the background and context of the
current struggles in Venezuela since 1993. Using TV
news footage and archival video, this film documents
the rise of Chavez and the Oligarchy's three attempts
to overthrow him.
May Day in Caracas
(2005) 22 minutes.
by a J. Carlos Flores.
In Spanish with English Subtitles
A short documentary about international labor day in
Venezuela
Hands off Venezuela will show these films as a benefit
to bring Stalin Peres Borges, a leader of the National
Union of Workers of Venezuela (UNT) a dynamic new
Venezuelan Trade Union federation.
Call Adam at 415 864 3537 or email sfbay@ushov.org for
more info or to arrange a speaker to talk about the
inspiring events in Venezuela and the need to protect
it from US attack.
Also Come To The Next Hands Off Venezuela Organizing
Meeting (all welcome): 7:00 PM, Thursday, June 30,
Socialist Action Bookstore, corner Valencia and 14th,
SF
www.handsoffvenezuela.org
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SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE
PRESENTS: "DOING GOOD"
A play based loosely on the book, "Confessions
of an Economic Hit Man", by John Perkins.
July 2, 3 & 4, DOLORES PARK
JULY 16, PRECITA PARK
MUSIC: 1:30 P.M.
SHOW: 2:00 P.M.
(I saw a preview of this play.
It's fresh and new, brilliantly performed,
insightful, full of content, and the music is great!...BW)
SPONSORED BY BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
COME HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR THE
COLLEGE NOT COMBAT BALLOT INITIATIVE TO GET THE MILITARY
OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS AND PROVIDE SCHOLARSHIPS AND GRANTS
TO STUDENTS WHO CAN'T AFFORD TO GO TO COLLEGE SO THEY
DON'T HAVE TO JOIN THE MILITARY DUE TO ECONOMIC HARDSHIP.
WE WILL BE PETITIONING BEFORE AND AFTER THE PERFORMANCES.
LOOK FOR OUR TABLE TO PICK UP PETITIONS. FREE ANTIWAR POSTERS!
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO GO!
FREE!
************************************************************
SAVE THE DATES: AUGUST 4, 5 & 6, 2005 FOR
PRESENTATION OF HOWARD ZINN'S ONE MAN SHOW,
"MARX IN SOHO" PERFORMED BY JERRY LEVY
LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED
TO BENEFIT BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR
WWW.BAUAW.ORG
(FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: 415-824-8730)
************************************************************
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BAUAW NEWSLETTER UPDATE-MONDAY, JUNE 20, 2005
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) INTERNATIONALIZING U.S. ROADS
Phyllis Spivey
June 10, 2005
NewsWithViews.com
Imagine this: your state government puts a transportation
corridor in your neighborhood. It's nearly a quarter-mile wide.
It will serve vehicles and trains and incorporate oil, gas,
electric and water lines. Try to fight it and you'll not only
face the combined might of your local, state, and federal
governments, but foreign interests as well.
The internationalization of U.S. roads has begun.
We're not just talking about isolated instances of
privately-built toll roads with foreign management, as
we've seen in Southern California. We're talking about
networks of toll roads that may be built by foreign builders,
managed by foreign operators, function primarily to accommodate
foreign goods, and connect U.S. roads to similar networks
in Canada, Mexico and, later, Central and South America.
Interstate 69, for example, is a planned 1600 mile national
highway connecting Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. Eight states
are involved in the project: Once completed, I-69 will extend
from Port Huron, Michigan to the Texas/Mexico border.
http://www.newswithviews.com/Spivey/phyllis3.htm
2) US lied to Britain over use of napalm in Iraq war
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
17 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=647397&host=3&dir=62
3) Halliburton to build new
$30 mln Guantanamo jail
Thu Jun 16, 2005 07:21 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8817044
4) Telling the Story
5) Radioactive contamination
at Hanford is on the move
It is 'not just staying
in place,' warns report
by watchdog group
By LISA STIFFLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/228573_hanford15.html
6) City Schools and Teachers
Revise Plan on Workday
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: June 17, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/education/17teach.html?
7) THE STATE OF OUR MOVEMENT
by Van Gosse
[Based on a talk given at
Purdue University, April 20, 2005]
published by portside
June 17, 2005
http://people-link5.inch.com/pipermail/portside/Week-of-Mon-20050613/015410.html
8) Building Unity at a Time of Possibility
By Ted Glick
Future Hope column, June 20, 2005
9) The Thinking Behind a Close Look
at a C.I.A. Operation
By BYRON CALAME
June 19, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/19/opinion/19public.html
10) To Fill Ranks, Army Acts
To Retain Even Problem Enlistees
By GREG JAFFE
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
June 3, 2005
To keep more soldiers in the
service, the Army has told battalion
commanders, who typically command
800-soldier units, that they can
no longer bounce soldiers from the
service for poor fitness, pregnancy,
alcohol and drug abuse or generally
unsatisfactory performance.
Typically such decisions are made
at that level. Instead, the
battalion commanders must send the
problem soldiers' cases up to
their brigade commander, who typically
commands about 3,000 soldiers.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/0,,SB111776400852250138-rYue9OsHO9i0IaNz4uApoo5WJ80_20060603,00.html?mod=rss_free
11) Supreme Court Orders
New Trial in 17-Year-Old
Murder Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Death-Penalty.html?hp&ex=1119326400&en=82194b1d0546fa1a&ei=5094&partner=homepage
12) Someone Else's Child
By BOB HERBERT
June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/opinion/20herbert.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1119285163-kNizkcTjuoB851nYp3vQ6g
13) Libraries Say Yes, Officials
Do Quiz Them About Users
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20patriot.html
14) G-8 Draft on Global Warming
Is Weakened at U.S. Behest
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
Published: June 18, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 17 - Drafts
of a joint statement being prepared
for the leaders of the major
industrial powers show that the Bush
administration has succeeded in
removing language calling for prompt
action to control global warming."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/18/politics/18climate.html
15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) INTERNATIONALIZING U.S. ROADS
Phyllis Spivey
June 10, 2005
NewsWithViews.com
Imagine this: your state government puts a transportation
corridor in your neighborhood. It's nearly a quarter-mile wide.
It will serve vehicles and trains and incorporate oil, gas,
electric and water lines. Try to fight it and you'll not only
face the combined might of your local, state, and federal
governments, but foreign interests as well.
The internationalization of U.S. roads has begun.
We're not just talking about isolated instances of
privately-built toll roads with foreign management, as
we've seen in Southern California. We're talking about
networks of toll roads that may be built by foreign builders,
managed by foreign operators, function primarily to accommodate
foreign goods, and connect U.S. roads to similar networks
in Canada, Mexico and, later, Central and South America.
Interstate 69, for example, is a planned 1600 mile national
highway connecting Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. Eight states
are involved in the project: Once completed, I-69 will extend
from Port Huron, Michigan to the Texas/Mexico border.
http://www.newswithviews.com/Spivey/phyllis3.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) US lied to Britain over use of napalm in Iraq war
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
17 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=647397&host=3&dir=62
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) Halliburton to build new $30 mln Guantanamo jail
Thu Jun 16, 2005 07:21 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8817044
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) Telling the Story
Those of us who are still alive
carry the burden of telling the story.
Because this life that we follow,
this reality,
gets sliced, quartered and salted
by unexpected tears,
from songs long forgotten,
like haunting lullabies
conjuring up vengeful hopes
betrayed by the collective amnesia.
Yet the story must be told.
Because time is relentless
and memory is fragile...so fragile.
I weave bits and pieces,
each strand, a chord, a muscle, a piece of flesh,
tightened to remake the world that once was.
I sing those songs,
and the words, oh those precious words,
uprooted, torn out, taken someplace to die
have come back like zombies in Ford commercials.
And in my rage, my voice has forgotten how to sing.
Like a Rock. It gets stuck in my throat.
There's no way to make those sounds.
I can only hear them in my heart.
Yet the story must be told.
Because before this cold, calculated first,
second, third strike world, there was warmth.
Even amidst the blinding heat of that war,
there were hands that held each other,
eyes that cried for napalmed children across the sea,
and hearts that became horrified by the true white
face of hatred.
Televised lairs lost their masks
and truth in all its painful courage
ran in our young blood.
Our young eyes cared not what color the flag
only that they were draped over coffins
of someone's brother, father, son.
In telling this story I am not alone.
Thousands of silent partners
pull me from different directions,
each with their own dreams of the lives they led
and of the future that should have been,
and of the lessons we should have learned by now.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) Radioactive contamination at Hanford is on the move
It is 'not just staying in place,' warns report by watchdog group
By LISA STIFFLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/228573_hanford15.html
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) City Schools and Teachers
Revise Plan on Workday
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: June 17, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/education/17teach.html?
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) THE STATE OF OUR MOVEMENT
by Van Gosse
[Based on a talk given at Purdue University, April 20, 2005]
published by portside
June 17, 2005
http://people-link5.inch.com/pipermail/portside/Week-of-Mon-20050613/015410.html
I want to begin this talk by focusing on the notion of a
'conjuncture,' or what dictionaries call rather blandly
'A critical set of circumstances; a crisis.'
This is a term widely used in Latin America and Europe
to get at the particular 'balance of forces,' what I
would call the set of contingencies, that define a
historical moment. And not just any and all moments
either (as in daily life)-but those important defining
periods when things change decisively.
For historians, there are no 'models' to understand
reality, there is no predictability: contingency is all.
So no matter how eerily familiar a time might seem, we
have to always begin with the understanding that it is
truly new. Which is why the emphases on specificity,
originality and exceptionality built into the concept of
the conjuncture are really useful.
Let me give an example to underline how new is our
particular conjuncture. We all know how the war in Iraq
is constantly, even necessarily compared with the U.S.
war in Vietnam. But let's imagine that right now, we
could actually reproduce all the key circumstances of
that disastrous military adventure:
* Not 150,000 but 535,000 troops 'in country' at peak
* Not over 1,700 dead Americans and at least 20,000
total casualties so far, but eventually over 58,000
dead and over 200,000 total casualties
* Instead of the probably tens of thousands of dead
Iraqis (no one will tell us the numbers, they refuse
to count), the three million who eventually died in
the Indochinese wars
* Not a decentralized, mostly anonymous, ideologically
fragmented insurgency with no political program but
one of the most tightly-organized, popular and
disciplined political-military movements in modern
history, the National Liberation Front of South
Vietnam, backed by a sovereign state, the Democratic
Republic of Vietnam, with a very clear program for
national unification and independence
Well, let's suppose that Iraq escalates into a similar
situation. And it could, possibly, if this war lasts as
long as Vietnam. But even if it does, it will make no
difference: our movement must and will be completely
different. Think about all the other factors:
* The Vietnam war has already happened and the U.S. has
been defeated, an experience from which in a literal
sense we have never recovered
* the Soviet Union no longer exists as an insurance
agency for both grassroots revolutions like Vietnam's
and military dictatorships like Saddam Hussein's that
need a friend
* the Left and the antiwar movement no longer face a
powerfully hegemonic New Deal Democratic Party in
power, to say the least
* the civil rights movement is now a great but fading
memory of mass mobilization and political victory
instead of being as immediate as Terry Schiavo's
passing, and so on and on.
So what is the current conjuncture in U.S. politics? And
why should we start there? Why not just pass over to the
state of our antiwar movement? Isn't the U.S. political
scene always somewhere between 'bad' and 'worse,' and we
can't really do much about it?
That was apparently the response when an outline of this
talk was given at a meeting of the new Steering
Committee of United for Peace and Justice on April 8. I
had five minutes, and started off talking about 'the
conjuncture,' and the leader of an important national
organization jumped in as soon as I finished, saying 'I
thought we were going to hear about the state of the
antiwar movement!'
Well, that's my point. If all we do is talk about our
movement, and in passing refer to the larger political
world, we have begun wrong and are unlikely to right
ourselves. We have to start with the larger frame of
politics, because it almost totally defines our space
for effective action, our possibilities for
intervention. That may mean paying close attention to
people we don't like, and politics that many among us
find unpleasant, meaningless and seedy, but if we don't
pay attention, we're flying blind. Thus, the importance
of 'the conjuncture.'
Right now, U.S. politics is exceptionally and
dangerously fluid. We have clearly passed into what the
great Marxist theorist Perry Anderson, building on older
texts of military and political theory, called the 'war
of maneuver.' In electoral democracies with highly
institutionalized political systems like ours, politics
is almost always defined as the 'war of position,' akin
to trench warfare: a small gain here, pushing a salient
out there, the occasional large-scale offensive (as in a
presidential campaign) that costs a great deal but may
or may not pay off. Not that much changes in any short-
term.
Occasionally, however, things break apart and down, and
the 'war of maneuver' begins: the rapid charges, chaotic
routs, and amazing changes of fortune that characterize
great battles.
This is the situation we have faced since George W. Bush
got his war vote in late October 2002, and two weeks
later won control of both houses of Congress-but by what
is historically a very narrow margin in the Senate, and
the most precarious margin imaginable in the House
(essentially the same bare majority they've held since
1994, but never been able to build on). Since then, he
and his cohort of rightist operatives have skated on the
thinnest of ice, and yet have always managed to avoid
falling through-if only by skating faster.
You may not be surprised that this is the most
controversial of my many speculations: that the
Republican hold on power, while apparently commanding,
is extremely fragile, as I argued last January in a web-
essay called 'Twelve Theses on the War in Iraq and the
Future of U.S. Politics.' Many people on the Left are
shocked and humbled, and for good reason, by the scope
and determination of the right, how they operate
effectively at every level of our politics, how they
seem to command everything. Yet I'll still reiterate my
thesis: the Right's apparent hegemony is illusory, there
is no realignment (yet), their control of the
institutional levers of power is real but insecure.
This is not a matter of the raw numbers last November 4.
Certainly it matters that GW Bush's majority of 51% was
the narrowest re-election victory by a Republican in a
century, and shockingly narrow for a 'war president.'
That's beside the point, however. We should concentrate
on Congress, where exists the real power to implement,
to delay, to harass, to force change.
By any historical standard, the Republican control of
the upper and lower houses hangs by a thread-what would
normally be considered a mere handful of seats.
Remember: in the New Deal years, the Democrats had a 3
to 1 majority in the House over three terms, peaking at
334 to 88 in 1937-39. Well into most of our lifetimes,
we took for granted huge Democratic majorities. Between
the fabled Watergate class of 1974 (that produced a
better than 2-1 majority) and 1994, the Democrats had an
average margin of 88 seats-a figure beyond Tom Delay's
wildest dreams. But we all know there was no real
parliamentary discipline. After all, Bill Clinton
entered the White House in 1993 with solid Democratic
majorities in both houses-and what good did it do him?
They disappeared in 1994. That would be a useful lesson
for GWB, if he was prepared to listen. Under political
pressure, the center will not hold, and I think the
debacle over Social Security, Bush's 'cratering' poll
numbers, the Schiavo fiasco, Delay's mess, and more to
come all suggest that this wafer-thin political
dominance may well prove its fragility over the next two
years.
To complicate matters even more, we have the first
really 'open' presidential campaign approaching since
1952: not only no incumbent, but no heir apparent in the
form of a vice-president eager to run (as in 2000, 1988,
1968, and 1960). Under these circumstances, the degree
of self-interested maneuvering we can normally
anticipate with no incumbent running will be many times
greater. 2008 will be a circus and the lions and tigers
in the Republican hierarchy are already lining up, red
in tooth and claw, ready to climb over each other to
power.
My main point is that we should be very careful about
assuming any stability at all to the current alignment
of power in U.S. national politics. If past patterns
mean anything, one can easily imagine yet another
Democratic president, with a Democratic majority in one
if not both houses of Congress, come 2008.
But this 'fragility,' if reassuring, is very much a two-
edged sword. Simply because of all the advantages of
being the default party, as the Republicans were for so
long, there are powerful compulsions encouraging the
Democrats to find the easiest common denominator (as in
Social Security), and the simplest kind of populistic
appeal (Republicans as out of touch with ordinary
Americans and too long in power, as corrupt 'big
government' and so on, all the charges Gingrich used to
undermine the Democrats over the years). With all these
easy outs, why would the Democratic leadership ever
confront an aggressive Republican machine around a
complex, dangerous issue like the war in Iraq? If
history tells us anything, it is that politicians
dependent on votes will only take that kind of stand
when the crisis is compelling enough to knock them
adrift from their traditional moorings, or when they
feel intense anger and pressure from engaged
constituencies. Minus the latter, what we can expect
from many Democrats is the kind of opportunism
manifested by John F. Kennedy in 1960, when he
relentlessly attacked Richard Nixon as soft on Red China
(Quemoy and Matsu), the Soviet Union (the phony 'missile
gap') and Cuba ('I am not the Vice President who lost
Cuba'). It was a long, drawn-out exercise in avoidance
until now-President Kennedy finally faced the great
domestic political crisis of his time on June 10, 1963,
and spoke with passion of the 'peaceful revolution' in
civil and human rights that all Americans had to accept
and undertake. And he got there only because of a
movement that never let up and because southern
Democratic leaders like George Wallace were openly
defying federal authority.
All these contingencies contribute to the regime of
brutal or vulgar partisanship which has reigned in
national politics since the mid-1990s at least. Rather
than ideological conflict, the confrontation is reduced
to strictly personal terms: Bill Clinton's sexual
dalliances, for instance. This is the worst possible
scenario for the Left in general, and certainly for the
antiwar movement. It reduces politics to simple
polarities: no matter how much I wanted Bush repudiated
for his war upon the world, an 'ABB' attitude was
foolish.
Let's turn to the state of the antiwar movement, the
historical subject seeking to act within the apparently
objective frame of US politics.
We have to begin by with a proviso, and a warning: our
opponents devoutly want to 'Iraqize' this war, and at
every point we have to be ready for a strategy which
will seek visible reductions in the US troop presence to
placate domestic opinion, just as Richard Nixon
'Vietnamized' his failing war in 1969 and after.
Having made that stipulation, there are three criteria
for a successful movement to oppose US foreign policy,
as I see it.
First, a successful movement is one that constantly
spreads into new geographic and demographic spaces (and
sectors), so as to keep structures of power on the
defensive, and hem them in.
Second, it will manifest a multi-strategy and multi-
tactics approach to swarm conventional structures of
power and policy-making elites, never letting up and
wearing them down, in the political equivalent of
guerrilla warfare.
Third, it will focus on opportunities to connect to so-
called 'mainstream,' more properly called conventional,
legislative and electoral politics, since this is the
arena where a movement must register its gains--and if
it doesn't, it can win only by dumb luck or the
intervention of an exterior force, the proverbial act of
god.
Where is the antiwar movement today, by these
benchmarks?
First, let's openly acknowledge the astonishing weakness
and failure exhibited by the various national
organizations and networks of the peace and solidarity
movement in the 1990s, which allowed for the rise of
ANSWER. Like nature, sectarians are eager to fill a
vacuum, and they did so with great energy. Since 2002,
United for Peace and Justice and a host of new
organizations (most of which belong to UFPJ) have worked
to overcome that entropy, with considerable success. The
need to come together as a broad and nonsectarian
movement in the streets, to find a unity in action,
helps explain why the overwhelming emphasis since late
2002 has been on large mobilizations (like February 15,
2003 and August 29, 2004), but now we need to move
beyond that stage of organizing and greatly diversify
both our overall strategies and our specific tactics for
ending the war.
Second, having largely overcome the problem posed by
ANSWER and the absence of a genuine, democratically-run
coalition, we can see that our movement is clearly
consolidating for the long haul. It is spreading
steadily into new spaces and sectors. But we have a very
long way to go-we as a movement have to take seriously
the challenge of simultaneous growth in all these areas:
*becoming a truly multiracial movement, a real necessity
if we ever hope to change the direction of US foreign
policy;
*consolidating a national student infrastructure with
staff and funding that will build upon the leadership of
the National Youth and Student Peace Coalition;
*making the various communities of faith a highly
visible component of our movement, a process now under
way with the founding of Clergy and Laity Concerned
About Iraq;
*developing targeted organizing and real outreach to all
those people and groups in the South, the mountain West
and rural areas in general who agree with us but are
surrounded by 'red state' rightists, and need support.
Third, we are still at a very early stage of developing
a sophisticated multi-strategy, multi-tactical approach.
In this regard the most positive signs are the strong
growth of groups like Military Families Speak Out, the
National Guard campaigns, and the burgeoning counter-
recruitment campaigns aimed at high school youth. The
decision by UFPJ to commit to a multi-pronged fall
mobilization in Washington DC, embracing a mass rally,
an interfaith service, large-scale civil disobedience,
and a coordinated national lobby day, is a major step in
the right direction.
Finally, in terms of leveraging our weight into the
conventional political (electoral and legislative)
arena, our movement has a long way to go, but is making
rapid steps. The recent vote on Rep. Lynne Woolsey's
amendment requesting that the President "develop a plan
as soon as practicable ... to provide for the withdrawal
of United States Armed Forces from Iraq" and "transmit
to the congressional defense committees a report that
contains the plan" showed how much space actually exists
to surface dissent within Congress and the structures of
power. Despite the near-absence of any coordinated
congressional pressure strategy, 122 Democrats (that's a
majority of their caucus) and 5 Republicans voted 'yes.'
We should take this as a clear signal that Congress is
prepared to respond to the mounting public
dissatisfaction, if given the kind of hard push that is
needed. Indeed, we should take this vote as a signal
that victories are ready to be won, if we will act
audaciously.
To push along an audacious perspective, here's a kind of
provocation. I want to pose a set of possible tactical
wins that would actually have an impact on the world of
conventional politics. Plenty of people assert that
thinking in these terms is premature, but to me if we
don't start thinking in these terms we will never really
move forward. So here goes:
A state legislature passes an 'Out Now' resolution
calling for immediate withdrawal (even getting a vote on
such a resolution is a victory of sorts)
A command rank officer resigns as an act of dissent from
the war
A prominent Republican elected official breaks ranks
with the President
A member of Congress loses his or her seat because of
support for the war
A major national institution (a large religious
denomination, a big union, a major association) calls
for immediate withdrawal
A citywide campaign gets recruiters kicked out of
schools
Celebrities from the (poor, people of color and/or
rural) constituencies that provide the troops speak
directly to potential volunteers, urging them not to
participate in an unjust occupation
More state legislatures follow Montana's lead and call
for bringing home their National Guard units
Churches start creating sanctuaries for soldiers who
refuse to fight
A top religious leader urges youths not to enlist, and
the right of military dissent from an unjust war
The count of members of Congress who oppose so-called
'supplemental aid' to fund the war consistently
increases
A resolution supporting immediate withdrawal is placed
on the ballot in California or elsewhere-and wins
More and more state Democratic Party organizations
follow California's in calling for immediate withdrawal
[kudos to Progressive Democrats of America on that win!]
Congress passes a non-binding resolution opposing 'stop
loss' orders as a form of involuntary servitude
The biggest win of all, of course, would be a candidate
in 2008 who repudiates not only this war, but the entire
doctrine of pre-emptive military domination of the
world, as immoral and disastrous-and not only gets the
Democratic nomination but wins the general election. A
pipe dream? Certainly, at this point, but this is how we
need to start thinking about ourselves; this is the
level of responsibility we need to accept for what our
government is doing to the world.
In conclusion, let's think about the challenge that
faces us now, not just the antiwar movement but the Left
as a whole, the challenge to take ourselves completely
seriously. This is the painful lesson we need to learn
from the no-longer-New Right's fifty-year process of
movement-building, ever since Joe McCarthy drank himself
to death and a new type of 'Southern Republicanism'
began to stir, seeking to pick up the pieces of the
Dixiecrat revolt.
The first lesson we can learn from the New Right is that
they have never allowed the immediate constraints of the
mainstream political world to define or limit them,
while at the same time they have remained intensely
focused on every possible gain and intervention in (and
manipulation of) that world. And bit by bit they have
taken it over, first within the Republican Party, and
then through the Republican Party.
Contrast this with the Left. On the one hand, we have
many formations and organizations wholly defined by and
limited by the constraints of institutional Democratic
Party politics. On the other, we have whole swathes of
activists who are deeply anti-electoral and even
abstentionist, preferring to stand aside from the impure
world of partisan activism. I know activists with
decades of experience who have never met a Member of
Congress, and know very little about how our government
actually works, its gears and levers. And there are lots
of people in-between, who participate in conventional
politics while holding their noses, wading in only up to
their knees (I would have to answer to this description,
if I'm being honest). This is why the Right, and even
many in the anemic Democratic center, mock us-and they
are correct to do so.
The second lesson is that even though the Right is just
as divided up into many different movements as we are,
with their own decades of sectarian baggage, they have
learned over time how to bring their movements together
into a common front. It would behoove us to study how
they did that-what kinds of compromises, and
institutional adjustments were necessary. At the same
time, we have to recognize that their common glue is
largely unavailable to us. In fundamental ways, people
on the right are linked by race, and by a racially and
ethnically-based (and sexualized) fear and loathing of a
whole set of 'others.' We may have common fears and
antipathies on the Left, we may all detest oppression
and militarism, but these are of a different order. So
we have to find our own common vision, one based not in
fear and the narrowest definitions of community and
patriotism, but in hope and an expansive,
internationalist love of the country we want to become,
not the country we have been. That's a tall order but
again, utterly necessary.
To really learn this second lesson, we're going to have
do something to which we as Americans are almost
congenitally averse. To build the powerful, united,
broad Left the world demands of us we are going to have
to embrace complexity-our own complexity as the historic
Left in America. We aren't at all the same kinds of
people, not just racially or sexually but in terms of
our ideologies, even our spiritualities. Pluralism is
here with a vengeance. Under no foreseeable
circumstances are we all going to become socialists, or
pacifists, or anarchists. We are Christian and Muslim
and Jewish and Buddhist, atheist and nationalist (of one
sort or another), black, brown, yellow, red and white,
working-class and middle-class. But if we can actually
come together as a movement, we have a world to gain-or
save.
Van Gosse teaches history at Franklin and Marshall
College in Lancaster, PA. He serves on the Steering
Committees of Historians Against the War and United for
Peace and Justice. The views expressed in this essay are
entirely personal.
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8) Building Unity at a Time of Possibility
By Ted Glick
Future Hope column, June 20, 2005
"Narrow approaches are a dead-end for our
movement. . . What is needed is an approach that can appeal
to millions of people, that connects with and draws strength
from the deep-seated traditions of struggle for justice
among the peoples who make up this country. This is what we
need to fight against the sham 'war on terrorism,' U.S.
support of Israeli occupation, attacks on our civil
liberties and civil rights, racism in all its forms, and the
economic terrorism experienced by people from Watts to the
Mississippi Delta to Harlem to Colombia, Africa, Argentina,
Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world."
I wrote these words in a column, "On Leftist
Parties," in January of 2003. They're still very relevant.
Since that time there have been a number of
changes as far as the make-up of the national peace and
justice movement. Back then United for Peace and Justice
(UFPJ) was just getting off the ground, and International
ANSWER was the predominant national coalition mobilizing
anti-war demonstrations. But today, following a split about
a year ago within the Workers World Party-a group with
significant influence within ANSWER--there is now a Workers
World Party-less ANSWER, and there is a newly-formed Troops
Out Now Coalition (TONC) within which WWP and its
International Action Center play a major role. Both
coalitions are significantly weaker, even taken together,
than they used to be before the WWP split.
UFPJ, on the other hand, has become the major
national peace and justice coalition. It has more than 1,000
member groups and a million dollar budget. 10 months ago it
organized a demonstration of ∏ million people outside the
Republican National Convention, and on May 1st of this year
it organized an anti-nuke, anti-war demonstration in New
York City of approximately 30,000. On the same day in NYC,
the Troops Out Now Coalition organized a demonstration of
around 1,000.
UFPJ is also undergoing some qualitative changes. One
example is the election a couple of months of ago of three
national co-chairs of color, George Friday, George Martin
and Judith LeBlanc. At its national assembly in St. Louis in
February, it adopted as one of its top priorities a
Grassroots Education Campaign "to reach potential new allies
and expand our base. . . An education working group will be
created to develop the long-term educational strategy to
reach new constituencies." This decision was made, and there
has been follow-up since, in response to internal criticism
that UFPJ was not taking seriously enough the importance of
outreach to communities of color and a linking of
international and domestic issues as they are experienced by
people at the grassroots.
It is within this context that, once again,
there is contention over UFPJ and ANSWER/TONC calls for a
massive demonstration on September 24th in Washington, D.C.
and elsewhere.
There's a lot of "déjà vu all over again" to
this contention. It reminds me of an extremely difficult and
problematic political process in the first part of 2002 as
various groups struggled to organize a united mass action on
April 20th of that year. We ended up doing so, with great
difficulty, but two aspects to the way ANSWER, supported by
TONC, are attempting to build support for their approach are
very similar to what they did then.
It is troubling that ANSWER/TONC is, ostensibly,
conducting what it calls a quest for "unity" via the
internet. So far this spring I've received at least five
emails from one or the other group trumpeting how committed
they are to achieving "unity" with UFPJ as they put forward
the correctness of their approach to making it happen. Three
and a half years ago, following some initial contact between
reps of ANSWER and reps of the April 20th Mobilization
coalition (the predecessor of UFPJ), ANSWER sent out an
email announcing that a "unity statement" had been adopted.
This false email was issued rather than ANSWER responding to
the April 20th Mobilization's putting forward of several
ideas on a possible way to have a unified day of action on
April 20th. These ideas were given with an explicit
request/understanding that ANSWER would respond to them so
that we could further process this question within our
coalition. And up until two weeks before April 20th, ANSWER
continued to use the internet to attempt to force a "unity"
on terms most favorable to them.
This is most definitely not the way to build
principled and effective unity, if that is truly the
objective.
It is also troubling that ANSWER has put forward
the demand, "Support the Palestinian People's Right of
Return" as a major demand. TONC held a conference earlier
this month on the topic, "Building a United Front to Stop
the War," and the first bulleted point that they made in
their website report of that conference was that "Support
for the Right of all Palestinian refugees and their
descendants to return to their original homes and property
in all of historic Palestine is not negotiable."
I personally understand and support the right of
Palestinian organizations to put this demand forward as they
struggle to end the Israeli occupation of Gaza, the West
Bank and East Jerusalem. When the state of Israel has been
aggressively acting upon the position that any Jew anywhere
in the world has the right to emigrate to Israel and take up
residence there, creating "facts on the ground" that lead to
more land grabs and building of settlements to accommodate
these immigrants, no one can legitimately deny this just
demand of the Palestinians. It must be dealt with as part of
the process of serious negotiations between the Palestinian
and Israeli government representatives, leading to an end to
the Israeli occupation.
But to put this particular demand forward rather
than, say, a demand to end U.S. support for Israeli
occupation, can only have the effect of confusing,
alienating or turning away potential participants in and
organizers of September 24th, and not just in the white
community. It is not a demand broadly understood or
supported within the United States, even within the U.S.
progressive movement. In the context of the movement to
force the United States to pull its military troops and
military bases out of Iraq and end its neo-colonial plans to
control Iraqi oil, this is a demand that will weaken and
narrow that movement. It is just plain strategically wrong
for ANSWER/TONC to put this forward in the way that they
are.
This is a very key political moment for our movement to get
the U.S. out of Iraq. The conservative North Carolina
Republican Congressman Walter Jones, who got "French fries"
in the Congressional cafeteria changed to "freedom fries,"
has joined with another Republican and two Democrats to put
forward a bill calling for a plan to begin withdrawing U.S.
troops next year. John Conyers has just convened a very
successful public hearing in Congress calling attention to
the Downing Street memo which has led to widespread media
coverage about that memo and has helped to strengthen the
peace movement. Public opinion polls report that almost 60%
of the U.S. American people are against the war and want to
begin bringing troops home. Amnesty International is
standing up to Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld and their ilk and
calling them out for the systematic torture and abuse in
their gulag of prisons at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and
elsewhere. The Bush/Cheney gang is on the defensive.
The last thing any group on the left which purports to be
against the war should be doing right now is conducting
itself in such a way that it divides, not unites, the broad
range of people of all colors and cultures who are prepared
to come out in massive numbers to demand an end to this war.
Ted Glick works with the Independent Progressive Politics
Network (www.ippn.org) and the Climate Crisis Coalition
(www.climatecrisiscoalition.org), although these ideas are
solely his own. He can be reached at indpol@igc.org or P.O.
Box 1132, Bloomfield, N.J. 07003.
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9) The Thinking Behind a Close Look
at a C.I.A. Operation
By BYRON CALAME
June 19, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/19/opinion/19public.html
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10) To Fill Ranks, Army Acts
To Retain Even Problem Enlistees
By GREG JAFFE
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
June 3, 2005
To keep more soldiers in the service, the Army has told
battalion commanders, who typically command 800-soldier
units, that they can no longer bounce soldiers from the
service for poor fitness, pregnancy, alcohol and drug
abuse or generally unsatisfactory performance. Typically
such decisions are made at that level. Instead, the
battalion commanders must send the problem soldiers'
cases up to their brigade commander, who typically
commands about 3,000 soldiers.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/0,,SB111776400852250138-rYue9OsHO9i0IaNz4uApoo5WJ80_20060603,00.html?mod=rss_free
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11) Supreme Court Orders
New Trial in 17-Year-Old
Murder Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Death-Penalty.html?hp&ex=1119326400&en=82194b1d0546fa1a&ei=5094&partner=homepage
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12) Someone Else's Child
By BOB HERBERT
June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/opinion/20herbert.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1119285163-kNizkcTjuoB851nYp3vQ6g
It has become clearer than ever that Americans do not want
to fight George W. Bush's tragically misguided war in Iraq.
You can still find plenty of folks arguing that we have to
stay the course, or even raise the stakes by sending more
troops to the war zone. But from the very start of this war
the loudest of the flag-waving hawks were those who were safely
beyond military age themselves and were unwilling to send their
own children off to fight.
It's easy to be macho when you have nothing at risk. The hawks
want the war to be fought with other people's children, while
their own children go safely off to college, or to the mall.
The number of influential American officials who have children
in uniform in Iraq is minuscule.
Most Americans want no part of Mr. Bush's war, which is why Army
recruiters are failing so miserably at meeting their monthly
enlistment quotas. Desperate, the Army is lowering its standards,
shortening tours, increasing bonuses and violating its own
recruitment regulations and ethical guidelines.
Americans do not want to fight this war.
Times Square in Midtown Manhattan is the most heavily traveled
intersection in the country. It was mobbed on V-E Day in
May 1945 and was the scene of Alfred Eisenstaedt's legendary
photo of a sailor passionately kissing a nurse on V-J Day
the following August. There is currently an armed forces
recruiting station in Times Square, but it's a pretty lonely
outpost. An officer on duty one afternoon last week said no
one had come in all day.
Vince Morrow, a 10th grader from Allentown, Pa., was
interviewed across the street from the recruiting station,
on Broadway. He said he had once planned to join the
military after graduating from high school, but had changed
his mind. "It's the war," he said. "Going over and never
coming back. Before the war you'd just go to different
places and help people. Now you go over there and you fight."
His mother, Michelle, said: "I'd like to see him around
awhile. It was different before the war. It's the fear
of not coming home. Our other son just graduated Saturday
and he was planning to go into the Air Force. They told
him college was included and made him all kinds of promises.
They almost made him sign papers before we had decided.
We thought about it and researched it and decided against it."
Last week's New York Times/CBS News Poll found that the
mounting casualties and continuing turmoil in Iraq have
made Americans increasingly pessimistic about the war.
A majority said the U.S. should have stayed out of Iraq
and only 37 percent approved of the president's handling
of the war.
What hasn't changed is the fact that the vast majority
of the parents who support the war do not want their
children to fight it. A woman in the affluent New York
suburb of Ridgewood, N.J., who has a daughter in high
school and a younger son, said: "I would not want my
children to go. If there wasn't a war it would be
different. I support the war and I think we need to
be there. But it's not going well. It's becoming like
Vietnam. It's a very bad situation. But we can't leave."
I don't know how you win a war that your country doesn't
want to fight. We sent too few troops into Iraq in the
first place and the number of warm bodies available for
Iraq and other military missions going forward is dwindling
alarmingly. The Bush crowd may be bellicose, but for most
Americans the biggest contribution to the war effort is
a bumper sticker that says "support our troops," and maybe
a belligerent call to a talk radio station.
The home-front "warriors" who find it so easy to give
the thumbs up to war endanger the truly valorous men and
women who are actually willing to put on a uniform, pick
up a weapon and place their lives on the line.
The president and these home-front warriors got us into
this war and now they don't know how to get us out. Nor
do they have a satisfactory answer to the important ethical
question: how do you justify sending other people's children
off to fight while keeping a cloak of protection around
your own kids?
If the United States had a draft (for which there is no
political sentiment), its warriors would be drawn from
a much wider swath of the population, and political leaders
would think much longer and harder before committing the
country to war.
E-mail: bobherb@nytimes.com
Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company
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13) Libraries Say Yes, Officials
Do Quiz Them About Users
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: June 20, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/politics/20patriot.html
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14) G-8 Draft on Global Warming
Is Weakened at U.S. Behest
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
Published: June 18, 2005
"WASHINGTON, June 17 - Drafts of a joint statement being prepared
for the leaders of the major industrial powers show that the Bush
administration has succeeded in removing language calling for prompt
action to control global warming."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/18/politics/18climate.html
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15) The Asbo Generation
More children than adults given antisocial orders
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent
20 June 2005
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=648302&host=3&dir=60
Children are the subject of more antisocial behaviour orders
than adults, leading commentators to warn that the Government
is in danger of making it a "crime to become a child".
Latest figures show that children have become the prime target
of antisocial behaviour orders with more than half of Asbos
issued between June 2000 and March 2004 against children
- 1,177 against children and 1,143 against adults.
Childcare charities are concerned that some of the orders, which
if breached can result in detention in a young offenders'
institution, are being imposed for inappropriate reasons. One
15-year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome was given an Asbo
which stated he was not to stare over his neighbours' fence
into their garden. Another 15-year-old with Tourette's syndrome,
which can involve an inability to stop shouting profanities,
received an Asbo banning him from swearing in public.
Children aged between 10 and 15 are now four times more
likely to be the subject of an Asbo than when the orders were
first used in 1999.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: "In Britain today
there is no question that people need protecting from crime,
but we must not become an Asbo land, where it is a crime to
be irritating and a crime to become a child."
Juvenile justice groups and childcare organisations say that
it is too easy for the courts to impose these civil orders on
children which result in criminal punishments if breached.
Neighbourhood groups and community leaders are urging
police and local authorities to make greater use of Asbos
in an effort to stamp out nuisance behaviour. But what worries
children's groups and civil rights organisations is that this
policy is criminalising misbehaviour by imposing orders
against the softest targets - children.
In the past few months, boys as young as 10 have been
served with Asbos.
This month Siobhan Blake became the youngest girl to be
served with an Asbo. The 11-year-old was given a two-year
order banning her from throwing missiles, spitting, assaulting
anyone, using abusive language, damaging property and
harassing people. Blake had "terrorised" residents in Hastings,
East Sussex, by smashing windows and hurling eggs and stones.
The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner, Alvaro
Gil-Robles, said this month that Britain's policy on antisocial
behaviour was criminalising children. He said no juvenile
under 16 should be at risk of imprisonment for breaching
an antisocial behaviour order. Asbos should be "restricted
to serious cases".
Civil liberties groups have raised concerns that local
authorities are using the powers of the orders as a short
cut to imposing criminal punishments. An Asbo is granted
as a civil power, but a breach of the order is treated as
an offence punishable by up to five years in prison, or
a young offenders' institution.
The wide terms of the legislation mean that a magistrate
can grant an Asbo by being satisfied only on a balance
of probabilities that the accused's behaviour is "likely
to cause alarm, harassment or distress".
Groups such as the British Institute for Brain Injured Children,
a charity working with young people with behavioural difficulties,
say that the Government's targeting of "families from hell"
could lead to the demonising of children with Asperger's
syndrome or other problems.
In the first year of the Asbo, 1999, only a few dozen
applications were made to the courts. Since then, Labour
has introduced laws to strengthen their use while giving
councils and police more money to fund applications.
In many cases, an Asbo against a child is now accompanied
by a naming and shaming order.
The Children's Society has said that it is "very concerned
about the Government policy to "name and shame" children
who receive Asbos. Liz Lovell, a policy adviser at the society,
said: "The policy is not only counter-productive, it puts
children and young people at risk. We are also opposed
to the proposed extension of this policy in the Serious
Organised Crime and Police Bill.
"Although an Asbo is a civil order, breaching it is a criminal
offence, the penalty for which can be imprisonment. Asbos
were not designed with children in mind."
In the six years since the first Asbos were granted, evidence
is emerging that they no longer have a deterrent impact on
antisocial behaviour. Children are more likely to breach an
order - resulting in a criminal record - than an adult,
figures show.
Liberty has told the Commons Select Committee on Home
Affairs that such an "indiscriminate and excessive" use of
the legislation is "undermining any benefit they might bring".
Ms Chakrabarti said: "We are aware of anecdotal evidence of
Asbos being treated as a badge of honour. If that is so, then
what must be the principal purpose of Asbos, deterrence from
antisocial behaviour, is undermined. Displacement of
aggressive youths from one estate to a neighbouring one
does not address the cause of their behaviour."
Earlier this year, the Home Affairs Select Committee concluded
that the Government's Asbo policy was about right.
A spokesman for the Home Office said: "Asbos are about the
protection of the community. They are civil orders, not criminal.
As long as a young person abides by the order, there are no
further consequences and they will not get a criminal record.
"Asbos are not the first stop on the line. There have usually
been a range of interventions to attempt to modify behaviour.
"There's no evidence that Asbos are leading to an increase
in youth custody. Individual support orders and parent orders
are used to help modify youngsters' antisocial behaviour
when they are given an Asbo."
The spokeswoman added: "Breaching an Asbo is a serious
offence and it's important for the confidence of the community
that breaches are acted upon."
The Home Office was conducting research on the impact of
Asbos on the individual and the community, the spokeswoman
said, although it was important to understand that Asbos were
a "relatively new tool".
Asbo facts
* Of those who breached Asbos in 2004, 46 per cent were
given custodial sentences
* Forty-two per cent of all Asbos were breached up to
December 2003, compared to 36 per cent for the period
up to December 2002
* A Mori poll this month found that while 89 per cent of
people support Asbos, only 39 per cent feel they are effective
* The British Institute for Brain-Injured Children says at least
five children with autism and other brain disorders have
been given Asbos
Eoghan Williams
Also in Legal
The Asbo Generation
U-turn on cannabis law by Clarke
They're happy, they're humanist... and they're a British legal landmark
Lineker libel trial collapses after jury fails to reach verdict
Central government 'still obstructive' over FOI
(c) 2004 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
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