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Gravity of the Struggle

Gravity of the Struggle

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A pithy statement of the state of the disunion from Cup O’Joe:

Have yourself a nice, steaming hot Cup O’ Joe!

I believe in the long term that things will get better, but I believe that things will have to get pretty bad before the conditions for that sort of improvement will take place. And if there are any out there that still doubt the seriousness of this struggle, let me remind you of a few things:

People who issue “hunting licenses” for those they disagree with are capable of anything.

People who think torture is perfectly acceptable regardless of the results are capable of anything.

People who fully support going to war and killing thousands of people, based on flimsy evidence and under the guise of “safety” are capable of anything.

Mobilize Nov 2 – Start planning now

Mobilize Nov 2 – Start planning now

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Not in Our Name is trying to launch an initiative for November 2, 2005 called “The World Can’t Wait – Drive out the Bush Regime.” They envision mass outpourings of popular protest on the anniversary of the “re-election.” Politics as usual isn’t going to work, and dependence on semi-magical “leaders” in the Democratic party or elsewhere doesn’t appear to be a good option either. Silence and paralysis are irresponsible – what you will not protest and fight you will be forced to accept. We aren’t make much headway tackling issues one at a time.

Your government is openly torturing people, and justifying it.

Your government puts people in jail on the merest suspicion, refusing them lawyers, and either holding them indefinitely or deporting them in the dead of night.

Your government is moving each day closer to a theocracy, where a narrow and hateful brand of Christian fundamentalism will rule.

Your government suppresses the science that doesn’t fit its religious, political and economic agenda, forcing present and future generations to pay a terrible price.

Your government is moving to deny women here, and all over the world, the right to birth control and abortion.

Your government enforces a culture of greed, bigotry, intolerance and ignorance.

People who steal elections and believe they’re on a “mission from God” will not go without a fight.

—-

We must, and can, aim to create a political situation where the Bush regime’s program is repudiated, where Bush himself is driven from office, and where the whole direction he has been taking society is reversed. We, in our millions, must and can take responsibility to change the course of history.

To that end, on November 2, the first anniversary of Bush’s “re-election”, we will take the first major step in this by organizing a truly massive day of resistance all over this country. People everywhere will walk out of school, they will take off work, they will come to the downtowns and town squares and set out from there, going through the streets and calling on many more to JOIN US.

This is the first of probably several actions that aim to represent the majority as the majority despite losses in freedom of the press – to repudiate this criminal regime, making a powerful statement that this regime does not represent us and we are committed to the refusal of being ruled and manipulated for aims that are not in our national interests.

Imagine if everything just stopped for a day – cars in the streets, people walking, talking with one another. Crowds in public places. They can’t block or arrest everyone. This is a country that is supposed to ensure the right of freedom of assembly – says nothing about permits or “protest areas” in the Constitution. What if major areas all over the country took that one day just to say that they reject what it being done in the name of Americans, and to America and its citizens?

Instead of hostility toward the ones who are still being fooled by Bush Inc – how about a reach out? How about some simple – and accurate – arguments? How about some visual aids? If the protesting is happening all over the place there isn’t a whole lot anyone can do about it! If assembly is peaceable, it’s protected. I say go for it.

This isn’t some nambly-pambly feel-good action. It really means to get out there. Grab ten of your friends and start making things for the camera to see. And…. keep your face off the camera – it’s not impossible that this administration would target you under the Patriot Act as a “terrorist.” And isn’t that part of what’s wrong?

Check out the site: http://www.worldcantwait.org/, and also http://www.notinourname.net/ if you haven’t been there yet. September 3/4 New York City National Organizer’s meeting.

Initiating signers of the World Can’t Wait Call include:

William Blum, author of Rogue State
Prof B. Robert Franza, MD, author of Control of Human Retrovirus Gene Expression
Nina Felshin, author of But Is It Art: The Spirit of Art as Activism
Margot Harry, author of Attention MOVE! This is America
C. Clark Kissinger, Revolution newspaper and initiator of Not In Our Name statement
Rev. Earl Kooperkamp
Travis Morales, Revolutionary Communist Party, SF Bay Area
Jeremy Pikser, screenwriter [Bulworth]
Frances Fox Piven, author of Regulating the Poor
Ralph Poynter, community activist
Michael Steven Smith, National Lawyers Guild-NY
Lynne Stewart, criminal defense attorney
Sunsara Taylor, Revolution newspaper

No right to torture

No right to torture

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Torture is a contradiction of our historical national values. In addition, we undermine our national security and are in violation of our own laws when we allow it. Informants will not come forward if they cannot trust us not to treat them fairly under international law. We do not get accurate information with torture – ample historical precedent teaches us that those who are tortured will say anything to make it stop. After a couple of years of imprisonment, what useful information could they still have in any case? We rely on torture now because this administration does not value on-the-ground intelligence. They have not bothered to understand the language and context and history, to make the appropriate contacts that would enable them to infiltrate and get intelligence. The case of Plame shows that they are also less concerned with actual intelligence operations than with political ambitions. What appears to matter to them is the profit margin – Guantanamo, instead of being closed or moved onshore where it would have to abide by US laws, will soon have a shiny new prison – a torture profit center. If you think that the administration has to be told that we do not approve of this, please sign the form below.

There is a strong bipartisan move afoot in Congress to limit the power of the president to torture detainees in our name, specifically to bar the U.S. Military from engaging in “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”. Does it surprise anyone that this out of control administration is threatening to veto the whole defense bill if can’t continue to commit war crimes? If we do not speak out they are our crimes as well.

This is especially meaningful in the context of the hearings Friday where seasoned intelligence operatives stepped forward to testify that good intelligence comes from building relationships over decades with foreign sources on a trust basis, not by pulling off the people’s fingernails.

Please tell Congress to demand that the torture must STOP.

http://www.usalone.com/guantanamo.htm

Criminal Source and Accountability

Criminal Source and Accountability

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Cozy with the Bush administration, Judith Miller may go to jail to protect their leakers (Rove and whoever is intended eventually to take the fall for his action – wherever will they find another Ollie North?). Normally I would be on the side of journalists to protect their anonymous sources, but in this case it is obstruction of justice to do so. I don’t think journalists should be accomplices to all this, and I don’t believe that’s what investigative journalism is all about. Of course, I don’t see a whole lot of investigative journalism anymore. There seems to be more of the “verbatim recitation of press release” style – not much in the way of helping the public to make even the most basic distinctions. Throw a few images together and you can make anything look like anything – like the falling statue of Hussein – let’s see a pan-out of the whole square, the context.

Ironically, Judith Miller says she is going to jail to defend “a free press” – could it be more absurd? What a strange Orwellian precedent! Watch for it to be used in future.

So anyway, “Bioterrorism Judy” has to decide which is worse – go to jail or risk the wrath of her sponsors/sources/demons/whatever they are. She was instrumental in spreading the word that Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. I actually read her book while I was writing my dissertation, so I think I understand how she could have been pulled in…

Meanwhile her colleague somehow walks. Very strange.

I wonder what “reporter’s notes” were actually turned over and how the corporation would even have those notes to begin with?

Outing the classified information of Plame as a CIA agent is in fact an act of treason under the law. Her work, and the work of others was hopelessly compromised and their lives were endangered (and perhaps even lost, how would we know?) because of this spiteful act. We could have used them to get better intelligence, to better protect the USA. That this was done in a sneaky way, and simply to punish her husband’s truth-telling to power (he was right about there being no WMDs, remember?) simply underlines the unethical quality of this administration. Hypocrites – whispering to the press to manipulate us, while publically condemning leaks. Please.

Meanwhile, there is simply no accountability of the governing to the governed. No-one from on higher up has even been held responsible for the war crimes in Abu Ghraib or Guantanamo – and if Alberto G. comes up for nomination, just remember who crafted the new policies for torture. Can you still call this a democracy or even, as my few remaining conservative friends remind me, a “representative republic”? Wake up sheeple!

We still have mechanisms in this contry to change things. Don’t let it get to the point of revolution. Before the 2006 election, we need to take control of our electoral apparatus. Review the new information at http://www.blackboxvoting.org about the voting machine as a “a house with an unlockable revolving door.”

Action: Markey Amendment Support

Action: Markey Amendment Support

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There are growing reports of the United States handing detainees over to countries that use torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. Amnesty International has reported cases of people being transferred into the custody of countries such as Syria, Egypt, Morocco and Saudi Arabia in violation of US and international law. This practice of “extraordinary renditions” contravenes the obligations to uphold the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution and the Convention Against Torture. It is illegal, impractical and immoral. The Markey Amendment is a step toward restoring the rule of law and protections of fundamental human rights.

CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE RIGHT AWAY

Phone number: 1-202-224-3121

— As a constituent, I am calling to urge you to support the Markey Amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations Act (HR1268), which prevents funds being used to outsource torture.

— I am very concerned about increasing evidence that the United States is involved in a practice known as “extraordinary renditions” to transfer individuals into the custody of countries that have a well-documented history of using torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.

— The US has “rendered” detainees to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Syria where individuals have reported being held and tortured and have eventually been released without charge.

— This practice does not make us safer and violates fundamental human rights and principles that are important to me.

— Please vote in support of the Markey Amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations Act. Thank you.

(this post from an email from Amnesty International)