Youth Activism Gathering, April 19-21

From Tim Sullivan" Scholarships for "Peacemaking in the 21st Century: Inner Peace, Outer Action" are available for those on low income, including students, who would like to attend the Peace Conference on June 18-20 at UM. Please contact Hugh Curran at hugh.curran@umit.maine.edu for more information. More information on the UM Peace Studies Program conference: http://dll.umaine.edu:16080/peace/conferences/index.html From invert@acadia.net Thu Apr 1 09:37:16 2004 From: invert@acadia.net (Larry Dansinger) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 09:37:16 +0000 Subject: [Megan] Youth Activism Gathering, April 19-21 Message-ID: <20040401193621.TJCB7930.mta1@[142.167.35.171]> > THIS MESSAGE IS IN MIME FORMAT. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. --MS_Mac_OE_3163657042_340178_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable Hello to Youth and friends of Youth, Please pass this invitation on to teens you think might be interested. Ther= e is still time to register and space for more youth. On-line registration is at the end. Contact person is Breanna at 948-5535 (new phone, evenings/weekends are best) or breannaannaerb@justice.com. Fourth Annual YOUTH ACTIVISM GATHERING For youth to come together, organize, and share ideas. April 19th-21st Hallowell, ME -meet organizers from around the state -have a voice in our communities -share skills and information to empower ourselves Come to workshops and discussions on: -Racism -Current American History -STD Prevention -Patriarchy/Gender -Do It Yourself Media -Unschooling/Youth Empowerment -Organizing -Domestic Violence -Maine Native American History -Depression -The War and Much, Much More!!! Besides organizing, the schedule includes: -Icebreakers -Open MIC Night -Talent Shows -Meals -Food Cookoff -Fun and Games So remember to bring: -Musical instruments like guitars, drums, songs, and voices -Frisbees, soccer balls -Art supplies -Bedding, sleeping supplies -Flyers and info on what=92s going on -Good ideas -Books and literature -Stories Who is the Youth Activism Gathering For? -We welcome people from all ages. During the last three years people have been mostly teens along with a few in their twenties who are organizing. Please come to the Youth Activism Gathering with an open mind to share ideas and meet great people. Meals will be vegetarian/Vegan (meat can be requested in advance) Directions to the YAG will be sent to pre-registrants. Registration at the door is available as space permits. ( call first ) For More INFO: e-mail Josh jlambert@justice.com Or Breanna breannaannaerb@justice.com On-line Registration Form Name: Address: Telephone: E-mail: Organization (if any): ( ) I can pay $5-10 per day or $20 for all three days. I will pay at the door ( ) sign me up, waive the fee (we want you to come regardless of finances) ( ) I want to host/organize a workshop/discussion (please specify): ( ) I need a ride, please call me ( ) I can offer a ride, please call me ( ) I have diet needs (please specify) ( ) I have other needs/requests (example: childcare) Return this email to: Breanna: breannaannaerb@justice.com --MS_Mac_OE_3163657042_340178_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable Youth Activism Gathering, April 19-21 Hello to Youth and friends of Youth, Please pass this invitation on to teens you think might be interested. Ther= e is still time to register and space for more youth. On-line registration i= s at the end. Contact person is Breanna at 948-5535 (new phone, evenings/wee= kends are best) or breannaannaerb@justice.com. Fourth AnnualYOUTH ACTIVISM GATHERING
For youth to come together, organize, and share ideas. April 19th-21st Hallowell, ME-meet organizers from around the state -have a voice in our communities -share skills and information to empower ourselves Come to workshops and discussions on: -Racism -Current American History -STD Prevention -Patriarchy/Gender -Do It Yourself Media -Unschooling/Youth Empowerment -Organizing -Domestic Violence -Maine Native American History -Depression -The War and Much, Much More!!! Besides organizing, the schedule includes: -Icebreakers -Open MIC Night -Talent Shows -Meals -Food Cookoff -Fun and Games So remember to bring: -Musical instruments like guitars, drums, songs, and voices -Frisbees, soccer balls -Art supplies -Bedding, sleeping supplies -Flyers and info on what=92s going on -Good ideas -Books and literature -Stories Who is the Youth Activism Gathering For? -We welcome people from all ages. During the last three years people have been mostly teens along with a few in their twenties who are organizing. Please come to the Youth Activism Gathering with an open mind to share ideas and meet great people. Meals will be vegetarian/Vegan (meat can be requested in advance) Directions to the YAG will be sent to pre-registrants. Registration at the door is available as space permits. ( call first )For More INFO: e-mail Josh jlambert@ju= stice.com
Or Breanna breannaannaerb@justice.com
On-line Registration Form Name: Address: Telephone: E-mail: Organization (if any): ( ) I can pay $5-10 per day or $20 for all three days. I will pay at the door ( ) sign me up, waive the fee (we want you to come regardless of finances) ( ) I want to host/organize a workshop/discussion (please specify): ( ) I need a ride, please call me ( ) I can offer a ride, please call me ( ) I have diet needs (please specify) ( ) I have other needs/requests (example: childcare)Return this email to:Breanna: breannaannaerb= @justice.com
--MS_Mac_OE_3163657042_340178_MIME_Part-- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: Erica Quin-Easter quineast@mlgpa.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------- LD 1579 Passes Senate - Encounters Opposition in House ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------- After narrowly passing its second reading in the Senate, LD 1579 was tabled today in the House. Our opponents have been pounding the pavement to discredit basic rights for domestic partners and LGBT families, and we are down to the wire. We need you to call your Representative TONIGHT and encourage their support for inheritance rights for all committed families. LD 1579 needs you! Call the House Message Center now at 1-800-423-2900. The message center is open 24/7 and your message will make a difference. (If you don't know who your representative is, go to http://janus.state.me.us/house/townlist.htm.) More info on LD 1579: http://mlgpa.org (Click on "Issues") From Tim Sullivan" http://www.bangornews.com/editorialnews/article.cfm/ID/419919 By Tom Groening, Bangor Daily News Last updated: Friday, April 2, 2004 Author: Invest in local firms Adviser writes on benefits of creating self-reliant communities ROCKPORT - Forget the warm and fuzzy reasons for shopping locally and investing in homegrown businesses. You don't need them, argues Michael Shuman, author of "Going Local: Creating Self-Reliant Communities." Instead, there are plenty of sound and quantifiable reasons to support local businesses over big-box stores and out-of-state-based manufacturers, he said. Rather than "chasing smokestacks around the world" as many towns have, seeking the new plant or mill to solve its unemployment woes, Shuman advocates investing in businesses that began locally and continue to operate locally. If $10,000 tax breaks are given to an out-of-state-based company and to a local business, the money invested locally yields 15 times more jobs, he said, because the local money is repeatedly spent in the local economy. Shuman, director of Community Ventures, a nonprofit in Washington, D.C., spoke Thursday morning at the Samoset Resort to members of Maine Businesses for Social Responsibility, and the Camden-area and Rockland-area Chambers of Commerce. A study in Austin, Texas, revealed that $100 spent in a Borders bookstore resulted in $13 recirculated locally, while the $100 spent at a locally owned bookstore yielded $43 recirculated through the community. "That's triple the local economic benefit and triple the tax benefits," he said. Shuman several times referred to the state's highly publicized efforts to save paper mills in Millinocket, Lincoln and Brewer. He is working as a consultant with Bangor-based Training and Development Corp. to the Katahdin region, and has advocated building a self-reliant economy, one which plugs the "leaks" of money leaving and products coming in. Typically, the biggest imports are food, insurance, energy and credit, which means the millions spent on them leave the area. Shuman said the Millinocket area in one year imported food equivalent to 1,213 beef cattle, 2,977 pigs, 168 sheep and lambs and 155,149 chickens. A local farmer could provide the region's chicken needs, he argued. It's something Shuman knows something about, because he has created a small poultry operation in eastern Maryland. In answer to a question, he said it is not necessarily cheaper to produce food in large farms out of state. He is writing his next book about that subject. Shuman also suggested creating a local credit card, with 1 percent of the profits going to discounts to users, and 1 percent to a "buy local" ad campaign. Rather than investing billions in a national electrical grid, a better move would be for regions to create solar and wind power for local users, he said. "Every time you import something from outside your community you are hurting your economy," Shuman said. "The more self-reliant you are, the less vulnerable you are to surprises," such as OPEC price hikes. If the Millinocket region achieved even the U.S. average of a self-reliant economy, Shuman said, it would add 1,500 jobs, which translates to $35 million in annual payroll. "This is not small potatoes for rural Maine," he said. Rather than courting another out-of-state owner for mills, he believes, a better alternative would be to sell the business to workers and other local investors. The situation is similar to the National Football League Cleveland Browns, whose owner wanted the city to invest $100 million in the team to keep it in the city. The owner took the team to Baltimore instead. A better model, Shuman said, is the NFL's Green Bay Packers, a team whose stock is owned by fans and others in Wisconsin. When ice cream manufacturer Ben & Jerry's first sold stock, it was available only to Vermont residents, he said, which keeps income in-state. Subsidizing mills with tax breaks is "a ludicrous policy," Shuman said. Instead, money should be invested in 100 local businesses, of which about 25 eventually will begin exporting products, he said. According to Shuman, local businesses: - Tend to adapt to changing conditions, and therefore survive. - Tend not to have destructive exits like out-of-state-based firms. - Pay more in taxes to local governments. - Have higher standards in treatment of the community and workers. - Are long-term producers of wealth. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Fri Apr 2 17:58:22 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Fri, 2 Apr 2004 09:58:22 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Megan] Black Historian Manning Marable speaks out on Structural Unemployment, Mass Incarceration and Disenfranchisement Message-ID: <20040402175822.51113.qmail@web40303.mail.yahoo.com> Radio Free Maine presents Manning Marable speaking on Structural Racism and the Challenge of Black Leadership: The Challenge to Youth Leadership Dr. Manning Marable, one of America's most influential historians and political interpreters of the black experience, delivered the Kenneth V. Santagata Memorial Lecture in the Social Sciences. The talk was entitled "Structural Racism and the Challenge of Black Leadership: The Challenge to Youth Leadership", which is the title of Marable's new book. Manning Marable started his talk with the observation that while the question of the 20th century was RACE, the question of the 21st century will be GLOBAL APARTHEID. He inquired of his audience if they would be the last generation to live under white racism, if they could visualize life without racism. While "Jim Crow" laws and segregation are in the past, color blind racism is the situation today. Citing the terrible triangle of structural unemployment, mass incarceration and disenfranchisement, Marable wondered whether or not race relations were improving or deteriorating. Marable referred back to his growing up black in Dayton, Ohio, where his father, a WWII veteran, faced discrimination in employment and housing on a daily basis. Citing his own experience, Marable spoke of how he almost died trying to catch a cab in New York City to go to the emergency room. During the Q&A period, I asked about the myth of non-violence in the civil rights movement. As Marable struggles to answer this question, you can see the dichotomy of non-violence and self-defense. Recorded by Roger Leisner on March 31, 2004 at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. Running time for speech: One hour Running time for Q&A period: 30 minutes VHS video and DVD video also features remarks by Manning Marable at the Closing Plenary of the 2004 Socialist Scholars Conference "The World Is Not For Sale! Rethinking the Common Good." at Cooper Union in New York City on March 14, 2004. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS videotape for $20.00 and DVD video for $20.00. Please make check payable to Roger Leisner and mail to Radio Free Maine P.O. Box 2705 Augusta, Maine 04338 ******************************************************* Dr. Manning Marable is one of America’s most influential and widely read scholars of the black experience. Since 1993, Dr. Marable has been Professor of Public Affairs, Political Science, and History at Columbia University in New York City. For ten years, Dr. Marable was founding director of the Institute for Research in African-American Studies at Columbia University, from 1993 to 2003. Under Dr. Marable’s direction, the Institute has become one of the nation’s most prestigious centers of scholarship on the black American experience. Born in 1950, Dr. Marable has written over 250 journal articles, and has authored and edited nearly twenty books and scholarly anthologies, including: The Great Wells of Democracy: The Meaning of Race in American Life (New York: Basic, 2003); general editor, Freedom on My Mind: The Columbia Documentary History of the African American Experience (New York: Columbia University Press, 2003); co-editor, with Leith Mullings, Freedom (London: Phaidon, 2002); co-editor, with Leith Mullings, Let Nobody Turn Us Around: Voices of Resistance, Reform, and Renewal: An African-American Anthology, (Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield, 2000); editor, Dispatches from the Ebony Tower: Intellectuals Confront the African American Experience (New York: Columbia University Press, 2000); Black Leadership (New York: Columbia University Press, 1998); Black Liberation in Conservative America (Boston, South End Press, 1997); Speaking Truth to Power (Boulder: Westview Press, 1996); Beyond Black and White (London: Verso, 1995); Race, Reform and Rebellion: The Second Reconstruction in Black America, 1945-1990 (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1991); W.E.B. Du Bois: Black Radical Democrat (Boston: G.K. Hall, 1986); Black American Politics (London: Verso, 1985); How Capitalism Underdeveloped Black America (Boston: South End Press, 1983). His books-in-progress include: a full-length biography of African-American leader Malcolm X; an edited volume documenting the historical writings by black scholars and prisoners on racism in the criminal justice system; a critical interpretation of the various meanings of justice to black Americans, entitled Imagining Justice, and a book-length project examining the various ways racial groups and people of divergent backgrounds construct and interpret their memory and experiences, which has as its working title, Living Black History: Memory, Identity, and the Struggle for Black Consciousness. Dr. Marable is also the Director of the newly established Center for Contemporary Black History at Columbia University. The Center’s projects include: the Malcolm X Project, that is constructing a web-based, multimedia version of The Autobiography of Malcolm X; the Africana Criminal Justice Project that focuses on strategies to empower ex-prisoners and communities devastated by mass incarceration; and the quarterly academic publication Souls: A Critical Journal of Black Politics, Culture and Society, edited by Dr. Marable and distributed by Taylor and Francis. Since 1976, Dr. Marable has written a political commentary series, “Along the Color Line,” that appears in over four hundred newspapers and journals worldwide. He is regularly featured in national and international media. He donates much of his time fundraising and speaking on behalf of prisoners’ rights, labor, civil rights, faith-based institutions, and other social justice organizations. Dr. Marable lectures frequently in Sing Sing Prison, Ossining, New York, in a Master’s Degree Program for prisoners ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Small Business $15K Web Design Giveaway http://promotions.yahoo.com/design_giveaway/ From robbins@downeast.net Fri Apr 2 20:10:12 2004 From: robbins@downeast.net (J&P Robbins) Date: Fri, 2 Apr 2004 15:10:12 -0500 Subject: [Megan] Boston: Conference on Political Prisoners Message-ID: <007b01c418ee$933e6740$58ff6442@computer> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_007C_01C418C4.AA685F40 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Boston Political Prisoners Conference! Pam Africa of the MOVE Organization and ICFFMAJ will present on Mumia Abu-Jamal's case and struggle. Please come out if you're in the Boston, MA area! -ICFFMAJ # # # Set the Captives Free! Conference on Political Prisoners, Prisoners of War and Racially profiled Detainees in the U.S. Friday, April 16th, 2004 Concert Lipke Auditorium UMass Boston 7pm-11pm dead prez FTP The Foundation Reflect & Strengthen Curtis King Simone & Wagner Iesha Knight BCR Presente! Saturday, April 17th, 2004 Conference Lipke Auditorium UMass Boston 9am - 4pm Pam Africa Fred Hampton jr. Linda Evans Russell Shoats III Netdahe Williams Marquita Peltier Rakhshanda Saleem Rawan Baraki Kamel Bell Lourdes Lugo Soffiyah Elijah Nancy Murray Prof. Robert Hall $15 for Friday Concert, $10 for Saturday Conference, $20 for both days Aged 15 and under FREE! No one will be truned away from the conference for lack of funds Herbert Lipke Auditorium is in the Science Building on the second floor, 100 Morrissey Blvd. If you take the Red Line to JFK/UMass Station. A free shuttle bus will carry you to the campus. Directions to reach the University of Massachusetts Boston by public and private transportation is available at http://www.umb.edu/about_umb/directions.html info:617-288-1433, freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com Sponsored by The Joyner Center/UMass Boston, the jericho Movement, Int'l Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, AFSC, and PRESENTE! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- "Women, children, and the poor must be the subjects, not the objects, of history. They must sit at the decision-making tables and fill the halls of power. They must occupy the radio and airwaves, talking to and calling to account their elected leaders. Their participation will democratize democracy." ~ Jean-Bertrand Aristide ------=_NextPart_000_007C_01C418C4.AA685F40 Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message

Boston Political Prisoners Conference!

Pam Africa of the MOVE Organization and ICFFMAJ will present on Mumia = Abu-Jamal's case and struggle. Please come out if you're in the Boston, = MA=20 area!

-ICFFMAJ

# # #

Set the Captives Free!

Conference on Political Prisoners, Prisoners of War

and Racially profiled Detainees in the U.S.

Friday, April 16th, 2004

Concert

Lipke Auditorium

UMass Boston

7pm-11pm

dead prez

FTP

The Foundation

Reflect & Strengthen

Curtis King

Simone & Wagner

Iesha Knight

BCR

Presente!

Saturday, April 17th, 2004

Conference

Lipke Auditorium

UMass Boston

9am - 4pm

Pam Africa

Fred Hampton jr.

Linda Evans

Russell Shoats III

Netdahe Williams

Marquita Peltier

Rakhshanda Saleem

Rawan Baraki

Kamel Bell

Lourdes Lugo

Soffiyah Elijah

Nancy Murray

Prof. Robert Hall

$15 for Friday Concert, $10 for Saturday Conference,

$20 for both days

Aged 15 and under FREE!

No one will be truned away from the conference for

lack of funds

Herbert Lipke Auditorium is in the Science Building on

the second floor, 100 Morrissey Blvd. If you take the

Red Line to JFK/UMass Station. A free shuttle bus will

carry you to the campus.

Directions to reach the University of Massachusetts

Boston by public and private transportation is

available at

http://www.umb.edu/about_umb/directions.html

<= FONT=20 size=3D2>

info:617-288-1433, freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com

Sponsored by The Joyner Center/UMass Boston, the

jericho Movement, Int'l Concerned Family and Friends

of Mumia Abu-Jamal, AFSC, and PRESENTE!

----------------------------------------------------------------= -------------

"Women, children, and the = poor must be=20 the subjects, not the objects, of history. They must sit at the = decision-making=20 tables and fill the halls of power. They must occupy the radio and = airwaves,=20 talking to and calling to account their elected leaders. Their = participation=20 will democratize democracy." ~ Jean-Bertrand Aristide

------=_NextPart_000_007C_01C418C4.AA685F40-- From llofchie@yahoo.com Fri Apr 2 21:01:13 2004 From: llofchie@yahoo.com (lloukie lofchie) Date: Fri, 2 Apr 2004 13:01:13 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Megan] unsubscription Message-ID: <20040402210113.29288.qmail@web60302.mail.yahoo.com> Because I will be out of the country in April through May 12 I need to unsubscribe from your list. Loukie Lofchie llofchie@yahoo.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Small Business $15K Web Design Giveaway http://promotions.yahoo.com/design_giveaway/ From robbins@downeast.net Tue Apr 6 02:05:09 2004 From: robbins@downeast.net (J&P Robbins) Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2004 21:05:09 -0400 Subject: [Megan] FW: [dnc2004] DNC A Quagmire Message-ID: <001f01c41b73$3a43d710$3eff6442@computer> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0020_01C41B51.B3323710 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit -----Original Message----- From: Bl(A)ck Tea Society [mailto:nodnc04@hush.com] Sent: Monday, April 05, 2004 8:50 PM To: dnc2004@lists.riseup.net Subject: [dnc2004] DNC A Quagmire This past week, the Secret Service and DNC organizing committee, announced that for the convention, North Station and Interstate 93 will be closed due to security. This has caused a sizable uproar as these are the two biggest transportation hubs in Boston. http://blackteasociety.org/news/ Read details on the closures and the reactions: Boston convention a quagmire AP Wire 4-4-04 http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040405/ap_on_el_pr/d emocratic_convention_3 Will The T be ready for an onslaught? Boston Globe 4-4-04 http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/letters/articles/2004 /04/04/will_the_t_be_ready_for_an_onslaught/ Dems running into roadblocks in Boston M-Live 4-4-04 http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/newsflash/get_story.s sf?/cgi- free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0529_BC_DemocraticConvention&&news&election2004 I-93 to close from 7-11pm during DNC Boston Globe 4-3-04 http://www.boston.com/news/politics/conventions/articles/2004/04/03/i_93 _to_close_7_11_pm_for_convention/ DNC will disrupt downeaster train Maine Today 4-1-04 http://www.pressherald.com/news/state/040401downeaster.shtml Downtown Boston scramble to make plans before DNC Miami Herald 4-1-04 http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/national/8330239.htm Convetion Wisdom Boston Globe 4-1-04 http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2 004/04/01/convention_wisdom/ Tits on a boar Weekly Dig 3-31-04 http://www.weeklydig.com/dig/content/6248.aspx DNC will be no party for commuters Boston Channel 3-31-04 http://www.thebostonchannel.com/politics/2963765/detail.html Convention To Impact Boston's Traffic Mercury News 3-31-04 http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/8321173.htm Concerned about your privacy? Follow this link to get FREE encrypted email: https://www.hushmail.com/?l=2 Free, ultra-private instant messaging with Hush Messenger https://www.hushmail.com/services.php?subloc=messenger&l=434 Promote security and make money with the Hushmail Affiliate Program: https://www.hushmail.com/about.php?subloc=affiliate&l=427 ------=_NextPart_000_0020_01C41B51.B3323710 Content-Type: text/plain; name="message-footer.txt" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="message-footer.txt" ---------------- nodnc04@hush.com *** www.blackteasociety.org ------=_NextPart_000_0020_01C41B51.B3323710-- From Tim Sullivan" Hi all - The next meeting for the Maine Coalition for Peace and Justice is April 10th, 10am at the Mediation Center on King Street in Augusta (King Street is a few blocks South of the Statehouse). A potluck will be held at noon - please bring something to eat or drink. All are welcome! Discussion topics will be a follow-up on March 20th March for Truth, Earth Day, the Boston Social Forum http://www.bostonsocialforum.org (and an informational May meeting in Maine), follow-up on a possible Palestine/Israel forum, and a social forum/conference of our own here in Maine later in the year. And of course outreach. Thanks - see you Saturday! Tim Maine Coalition for Peace and Justice http://www.mepj.org 207-542-0696 From Tim Sullivan" There will be a demonstration at the Statehouse in Augusta, this Saturday April 10th at NOON. Meet in front of the State Library. This will not be a permitted march or rally, but neither was this illegal and immoral war. 40 people killed in a mosque today - blood on the hands of the President, his Cabinet and all of Congress. If you have any questions, email me at sullboat@gwi.net or call 542-0696. We can decide what to do as a group on Saturday, or split into affinity groups as folks wish. We must take back our country. For America, Iraq and the rest of the world. Thanks, Tim ----- Original Message ----- From: "A.N.S.W.E.R." *EMERGENCY IRAQ PROTESTS* NATIONALLY-COORDINATED DAYS OF ACTION Friday, April 9 - Monday, April 12 To demand: - U.S. OUT OF IRAQ - Bring the Troops Home Now - Money for jobs, education and healthcare - Not for wars of aggression *Call initiated by the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition* See below for details of protests in New York City, Washington DC, San Francisco and Los Angeles, downloadable flyers, and a link to a form to list your city's action on the website and in future emails. * * * * * IRAQ AT THE BOILING POINT The Iraqi revolt against occupation is spreading in qualitative developments. The Pentagon is reacting with a murderous iron fist that is making the popular Iraqi position increasingly clear to the world: that the occupation forces are indeed an enemy - not liberators. In the last 72 hours, as the colonial force attempts to hold the country in a tight grip, the number of casualties has mounted, as Iraqi cities are besieged and bombed by missiles and tanks. Street fighting is raging throughout the country. In a classic demonstration of colonial practices, the U.S. is conducting a widespread reign of terror. In fact, the U.S. and its allies are now conducting military operations in Ramadi, Baghdad, Basra, Mosul, Sadr, Adamiya, Kufa, Kut, Karabla, Amarah, Kirkuk, Mosul, Nasiriyah, Shula, and other cities and towns. The city of Fallujah has been exceptionally targeted. This is the same city where in the first weeks of the occupation U.S. troops took over a local school and killed 15 residents who were protesting the takeover of the facility. Yet, this is not exactly George W. Bush's Vietnam. During Vietnam it took years for the majority of the people and most soldiers to turn against the war. This time, the people of the United States have learned within the span of only one year that the war against Iraq is not only based on outright fabrications and lies. One year after the occupation, and even before, the people of this country and the world are and have been turning against the occupation and the warmakers. Although an allegation has been made that this is isolated "trouble" within a "Sunni Triangle," the revolt is in reality over an entire Iraqi rectangle encompassing nearly all areas - from north to south. Over the past three days, the previously simmering rejection of foreign occupation has evolved into a near full-scale revolt that has spread to many cities in the south of Iraq. All while the U.S. has implemented collective punishment against the people of Fallujah and other cities in the central part of the country. In a predictable attempt at molding public opinion, the U.S. media continues to use racist stereotyping to characterize those who are resisting. The constant designation of the Iraqi people as "Sunnis" or "Shiites" is carefully calculated language designed to conceal the single most important fact: that the Iraqi people (Sunni and Shiite) believe that their country has been seized by foreign imperialist occupying forces and that they - as one people - are fighting to evict them. If the analogy with Vietnam has validity, it is this: U.S. political leaders, again emboldened by arrogance and drunk with power, falsely believe that their possession of high tech weapons is sufficient to subdue small Third World countries seeking independence and sovereignty. The words associated with Vietnam - "debacle," "quagmire," etc. - are certainly apt for Bush's war and the occupation of Iraq. But there are fundamental differences between the war in Vietnam and Iraq. The most important one being that the United States could, at the end of the day, disengage from Southeast Asia and withdraw from Vietnam. The policy planners and decision makers for the U.S. imperial establishment know full well that the United States military, political and economic structures will never voluntarily withdraw from Western Asia and Northern Africa, also known as the Middle East. This is where the oil is. Not just in Iraq, but also throughout the Gulf region where two-thirds of the world's known petroleum reserves are located. This region is also the gateway to the rapidly expanding economies of East and Southeast Asia, the northern entrance to the African continent from Europe, and the where several strategic waterways are located: the Suez Canal, Gibraltar Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf. The Arab portion of that region is also simmering with a popular notion of unity and desire for full sovereignty spanning northern Africa and western Asia. It is where the Palestinian struggle anchors a populist anti-colonial sentiment, and where imposed proxy regimes are dependent in their existence directly on the U.S. In the heart of that region, there is Israel, the U.S.'s most important ally and power broker, functioning as a spearhead that simultaneously requires a political, economic and diplomatic cover and support from the U.S. Absolute control - military control - over these highly strategic resources is the key to the exercise of hegemony in the world capitalist economy. If the United States were to leave, Japan, Germany, Britain, France would be quick to attempt to fill the void. Therefore, Bush does not contemplate withdrawing from Iraq as an option, nor would it be a considered option if Kerry replaces Bush in November. The Bush gang opted to use naked military force as a means of further consolidating an existing U.S. dictatorship over the region. The project in Iraq was designed not only to crush the Iraqi government, it was seen as a means to a larger end. The plan was to build large-scale U.S. military bases in Iraq, establish in Baghdad the largest U.S. embassy (more than 3,000 personnel) in the world, and use Iraq as the launching pad for regime change throughout the region - the imposition of a true Pax Americana. Earlier U.S. governments, including the Clinton administration, also declared regime change in Iraq as the top priority in U.S-Iraq relations. The Bush administration, however, saw Iraq in a different light: that the conquest and takeover of Iraq would be used as a strategic pivot for the long-term reorganization and globalization of this region under U.S. authority. This was not the first time the U.S. has utilized Iraq for this purpose. In 1955, the Baghdad Pact was orchestrated by Britain and the U.S. as a response to the emergence of the non-aligned movement that was established in Bandung, Indonesia by decolonizing movements and nations. The Iraqi people have never accepted that they should be pawns in someone else's geo-strategic chess board. They have always resisted colonialism. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have died already as their country was invaded and occupied. It is clear from the events of the recent days that so many Iraqis are enraged and disgusted with the occupation of their country that thousands and thousands of people are prepared to give their life rather than accept foreign domination. The Iraqis are paying with their lives rather than be colonial subjects. Meanwhile, the young men and women of the foreign occupying forces, including U.S. troops, really just want to go home. They and their families know that contrary to the assertions of Rumsfeld, the U.S. forces are not considered liberators by the people. This is the classic equation for an unwinnable imperialist war. In this sense too, the conflict resembles Vietnam. The Vietnamese people were prepared to endure immeasurable sacrifice to reclaim control over the country against foreign occupying forces that, in turn, only wanted only to return to their families in one piece. In the recent days, the U.S. media establishment has been filled with analysis and stories reflecting the grave concern within the political establishment that Bush's Iraq design may be creating the biggest crisis for U.S. imperialism since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The actions of Bush and Rumsfeld have catalyzed a revolt that is moving from an embryonic stage to a potential full-scale rebellion. Unable to prevent the spread of the rebellion by other means, the U.S. military is carrying out more murderous repression against the people, which in turn will inflame the situation in Iraq and throughout the region. Under these conditions, there is no actual exit or withdrawal strategy in site. Even should the U.S. succeed in outsourcing the occupation authority from Paul Bremmer to his hand picked Iraqi proxies, there will be no actual exit of U.S. military forces from Iraq. Even the phony exit strategy is collapsing as the Pentagon brass ponders the current need, like General Westmoreland did 1967, to send thousands of additional troops to crush a rebellion that has its roots in the anti-colonial yearnings of an occupied people. Rumsfeld has said publicly that he is considering sending additional troops to Iraq. The Pentagon has relied not only on the 120,000-plus U.S. military forces but, according to Nightline on April 6, an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 "guns for hire" - U.S., British and South African mercenaries - that are now fighting in Iraq under the euphemistic label "private contractors." The people of the world, including the people of the U.S., created an unprecedented mass movement in the last 18 months opposing Bush's war and subsequent occupation of Iraq. At this critical time it is urgent to take to the streets in emergency mobilizations to demand: U.S. Out of Iraq; Bring the Troops Home Now; Money for jobs, education and healthcare - Not for wars of aggression. From Friday April 9 through Monday April 12 there will be nationally-coordinated emergency local demonstrations in cities and towns throughout the country. Organize an action in your local area. To list your local action on the website and in future emails, fill out the easy-to-use form at http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/a10/event.html NEW YORK CITY Friday, April 9 4:30 pm Times Square 212-633-6646 WASHINGTON DC Saturday, April 10 12 noon White House (Lafayette Park) 202-544-3389 LOS ANGELES Friday, April 9 5 pm Westwood Federal Building (Wilshire & Veteran) 213-487-2368 SAN FRANCISCO Saturday, April 10 12 noon UN Plaza (Market St. between 7th St. and Hyde. Civic Center BART) 415-821-6545 Downloadable flyers, other literature and more can be found at: http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/a10/index.html LIST YOUR LOCAL ACTION: Fill out the easy-to-use form at http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/a10/event.html to list your city's or campus's event! A list of national actions will be available soon. -------------------------- A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition Act Now to Stop War & End Racism FOR MORE INFORMATION: http://www.InternationalANSWER.org info@internationalanswer.org New York 212-633-6646 Washington 202-544-3389 Los Angeles 213-487-2368 San Francisco 415-821-6545 Sign up to receive updates (low volume): http://www.internationalanswer.org/subscribelist.html To make a tax-deductible donation, go to http://www.internationalanswer.org/donate.html _______________________________________________ ANSWER.general mailing list Anyone can subscribe. Send an email request to: mailto:ANSWER.general-subscribe@organizerweb.com To unsubscribe mailto:ANSWER.general-unsubscribe@organizerweb.com Subscribing and unsubscribing can also be done on the Web at http://www.organizerweb.com/mailman/listinfo/answer.general From lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net Wed Apr 7 16:35:14 2004 From: lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net (lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net) Date: Wed, 7 Apr 2004 11:35:14 -0400 Subject: [Megan] legal observers Message-ID: <293580-22004437153514972@M2W093.mail2web.com> In view of the fact that Saturday's demonstration at noon at the capitol i= s not permittted, it is crucial that we have legal observers there=2E If an= y of you who I've trained (or even if you are not trained but can come a bit= early) can attend please let me know=2E Lynne Williams, LWILLIAMSLAW@earthlink=2Enet -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web=2Ecom/ =2E From lwill@earthlink.net Mon Apr 5 12:32:09 2004 From: lwill@earthlink.net (Lynne Williams) Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 07:32:09 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Lynne Stewart in Portland Message-ID: On Monday, April 19th the National Lawyers Guild will be hosting a talk wit= h Lynne Stewart, a New York City criminal defense attorney with a long histor= y of representing unpopular and controversial clients and causes. She was par= t of the court-appointed defense team for Sheik Abdel Rahman, who was convicted in connection with the 1993 WTC bombing. Stewart continued to represent Rahman after his incarceration. After wire-tapping her conversations with her client, Attorney General John Ashcroft indicted her on conspiracy charges alleging that she violated Special Administrative Measures in the course of her representation. Stewart=B9s trial is scheduled for May.=20 Stewart=B9s talk will be held at The University of Maine School of Law, Moot Court Room, beginning at 5:30 p.m. with a talk by Stewart to be followed by a reception in the law school=B9s Berman Lounge. The talk is free and open to the public. In order to raise funds for Stewart=B9s defense, the cost of the wine and hors d=B9oeuvre reception will be $35.00 for lawyers and members of the public and $15.00 for the university community. The Law School is located at 246 Deering Ave., Portland. For more information contact Lisa Whittier at wordsofwhit@yahoo.com or Lynn= e Williams at lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net. From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve Burke" > Flyers are available for the Augusta demo on Sat...If you can't print > out the attachment, I'll have a stack here for anyone who has time to > hang a few....slap 'em up on anything that's not moving...S Flyer is online at http://www.sullboat.com/MEPJ/april10.pdf From sky@maineindymedia.org Thu Apr 8 06:31:47 2004 From: sky@maineindymedia.org (sky) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 01:31:47 -0400 Subject: [Megan] AP NEWS: Timoney Three have been acquitted!!!! In-Reply-To: <04b301c41ccd$bfcb9480$a49ec3d8@hppav> References: <04b301c41ccd$bfcb9480$a49ec3d8@hppav> Message-ID: Great news for these three! We won this time! Thanks to all the hard work people did for the last 4 years supporting all the Philly RNC defendants. Timoney is a creep. sky By DAVID B. CARUSO The Associated Press 4/6/2004, 6:39 p.m. ET PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A judge cleared three activists Tuesday of charges that they brawled with a police unit led by the city's former police commissioner during street demonstrations at the 2000 Republican National Convention. Judge William J. Mazzola acquitted the trio of charges including riot and assault after viewing a videotape of the fracas shot by a protester. Defense attorneys said the tape showed that one of the defendants, Camilo Viveiros, acted peacefully as he was grabbed and hit by police despite testimony by the officers that he had resisted arrest. Prosecutors said the tape was inconclusive, and had asked the judge to believe the officers who said Viveiros, Darby Landy, and Eric Steinberg had instigated a fight. "I feel vindicated," said Viveiros, 34, a housing-rights activist from Somerset, Mass. "I feel like the victory today was dependent on the solidarity of people who were out on the streets videotaping police interactions," he said. "Without that video, it would have been more difficult. It would have been my testimony against the testimony of three or four different officers." About 400 people were arrested during the protests, most of which occurred several miles from the arena in which Republicans met to nominate George W. Bush. Police officers battled scores of anarchists who vandalized property and tried to set fires during the demonstrations, but organizers said many of those arrested were innocent bystanders. Only a few people were convicted, although many accepted a plea bargain that placed them on probation for a short period in exchange for a clean record. The trial for Viveiros, Landy and Steinberg was delayed for several years. The verdict came despite the testimony of former police commissioner John Timoney, now the police chief in Miami. Timoney said he and other police officers who were on bicycles wrestled with protesters as they tried to stop a group from overturning a car. Prosecutors alleged that during the melee, Viveiros raised a bicycle over his head and tossed it at a group of officers. One officer, Raymond Felder, was struck and suffered a concussion. Timoney said in his testimony that he did not see the person who threw the bike. "We thought that our evidence was very strong, and we are disappointed in Judge William Mazzola's decision," said Cathie Abookire, a spokeswoman for the district attorney. Viveiros said he was looking forward to peacefully demonstrating at the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York. http://pennlive.com/newsflash/pa/index.ssf?/base/news-14/1081291450178040.xml From Tim Sullivan" Hi all - Bob Schaible, a member of Maine Peace and Justice in Israel/Palestine, is interested in showing the video, "Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land" around the state (as far North as Bangor) and lead a discussion afterwards. Below is a description of the film. If you or your group is interested, please contact Bob at 642-4304(home), 753-6592(work) or email schaible@usm.maine.edu or rmschaible43@hotmail.com Thanks! Tim Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land http://www.mediaed.org/videos/MediaRaceAndRepresentation/PeacePropaganda This pivotal video exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites--working in combination with Israeli public relations strategies--exercise a powerful influence over news reporting about the Middle East conflict. Combining American and British TV news clips with observations of analysts, journalists, and political activists, Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land provides an historical overview, a striking media comparison, and an examination of factors that have distorted U.S. media coverage and, in turn, American public opinion. Interviewees include Seth Ackerman, Mjr. Stav Adivi, Rabbi Arik Ascherman, Hanan Ashrawi, Noam Chomsky, Robert Fisk, Dr. Neve Gordon, Toufic Haddad, Sam Husseini, Hussein Ibish, Robert Jensen, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Karen Pfeifer, Alisa Solomon, and Gila Svirsky. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Thu Apr 8 22:51:10 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Thu, 8 Apr 2004 14:51:10 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] Listing of RFM Recordings of the 2004 Socialist Scholars Conference Message-ID: <20040408215110.6038.qmail@web40310.mail.yahoo.com> Besides audiotape cassettes, VHS videos, audio CDs and DVDs, there are also 81 photos of the 2004 Socialist Scholars Conference available on Photo CD for $15.00. Radio Free Maine presents recordings of The World Is Not For Sale Rethinking the Common Good 2004 Socialist Scholars Conference March 12-14, 2004 The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art New York City Sponsored by the Democratic Socialists of America *******************************************************The Socialist Scholars Conference, held every spring in New York City for the last 23 years, is the largest event of the U.S. Left. Every year, I get a chance to record some of the thousands of radical activists, socialists, feminists, anarchists, union organizers, black liberation advocates, alternative journalists and democratic scholars who gather for a weekend of spirited debate and dialogue. This is the best on-going conference in America. For listings of recordings from previous conferences, go to the RFM Web Site www.radiofreemaine.com For info about next year’s conference, go to www.socialistscholars.org ******************************************************* Opening Plenary The World Is Not For Sale! David Harvey currently teaches anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center. He formerly taught geography at the John Hopkins University and the University of Oxford. His books include The Limits to Capital; The Condition of Postmodernity; Spaces of Hope: Spaces of Capital; Paris, Capital of Modernity; and The New Imperialism. He also regularly teaches Marx's Capital at the graduate center in collaboration with the Brecht Forum. Luciana Castellina has been a participant in the Italian left since the 1970s. After leaving the leadership of the Communist Youth, she co-founded the political organization and daily newspaper, Il Manifesto, on whose directorate she remains. She has been elected to the Italian and European parliaments several times. Castellina is active in Italy’s Environmental League and in the International Network for Cultural Diversity. In the European Parliament she presided over the Committee on Culture and Media, and the Committee for International Economic Relations. As president of Italia Cinema, she promoted Italian films abroad. She is now president of No-War-TV. Bill Fletcher, Jr., is the President and chief executive officer of TransAfrica Forum, a national non-profit organization organizing, educating and advocating for policies in favor of the peoples of Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. He was the Vice President for International Trade Union Development Programs for the George Meany Center of the AFL-CIO. Prior to his stint at the George Meany Center, Bill served as Education Director and later Assistant to the President of the AFL-CIO. He has also authored and published in a variety of books, newspapers and magazines. Vittorio Agnoletto is an M.D. who heads the major Italian NGO working on the problem of AIDS. With his broad history of activism, which includes his earlier participation in the Catholic left, he has become the symbol of unity between the social movements (including its libertarian sectors) and the trade union movements, especially after the traumatic watershed of Genoa in 2001. He is respected by the center left, Rifondazione, the trade unions and social movements, and as such is a strategic figure in Italy. He is the principal Italian representative to the International Council of the WSF, and was elected the spokesperson for the united Italian Social Forum. Barbara Garson has long combined activism and writing. During the Vietnam War she wrote Macbird, the play that sold over half a million copies. She also worked in an anti-war coffee house for GIs near the Fort Lewis Army Base. Today she is active in the Global Justice Movement and her latest book is called Money Makes the World Go Around:One Investor Tracks Her Cash Through the Global Economy (Penguin 2002). Miles Rapoport has been a leader in progressive community organizing, prodemocracy efforts, and electoral politics for 30 years. From 1995-1999, Rapoport served as the Secretary of the State of Connecticut and also served in the Connecticut General Assembly from 1985-1994. Before serving in the legislature, Rapoport was Director of Connecticut Citizen Action Group from 1979-1984. He also founded Northeast Action in 1985. Naomi Klein is the author of No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies (Picador) and, most recently, Fences and Windows: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Globalization Debate (Picador). Available on two audiotape cassettes for $22.00, two audio CDs for $20.00, VHS video for $20.00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Panel #1 The Future of Multilateralism Sponsored by Socialist Scholars Conference Chair: Ian Williams has been a member of the British Labour Party for over twenty years, and of DSA for ten years since he moved to New York. A former executive member of the British Railworkers union, he is the U.S. correspondent of Tribune, the UN correspondent for The Nation magazine and a contributor to the online news magazine Salon among many other outlets. He is author of The Alms Trade, a study of charities and The UN for Beginners. For five years he was U.S. editor of Balkan War Report. Philip S. Golub is a Contributing Editor of Le Monde Diplomatique and teaches international relations at the Institut d'études européennes, Université Paris 8, and the Institut d'études politiques de Paris (IEP). He is a specialist of international political economy with a research focus on hegemonic dynamics and US foreign policy in the post Cold War. His most recent work is synthesized in an article, "From Globalisation to Militarism: The American Hegemonic Cycle and System Wide Crisis," to appear in a collective book this Spring published by Palgrave and the Review of International Political Economy, Global Regulation After the Imperial Turn. Jan Kavan, President of the Fifty Seventh Session of the United Nations General Assembly served as the Czech Republic Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign and Security Policy and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1998 and 2002. He is a deputy in the Czech Parliament. An advocate of democracy and human rights and active member of various Czech and International NGOs, he was forced to leave Czechoslovakia for Great Britain after the Warsaw Pact invasion, assisting Czech opposition activists from abroad. On returning from political exile, he joined the political movement for democracy in Czechoslovakia and was elected to the then parliament, becoming a member of its foreign affairs committee for the Social Democratic Party. Mr. Kavan is a recipient of a number of medals for his contribution to human rights and democracy in his country and author of numerous publications. Pierre Schori is ambassador and permanent representative of Sweden to the United Nations, and has had a long and distinguished career of service as a social democrat in the Swedish government. Jürgen Dedring received his Ph.D. in Government at Harvard University. He has taught at Harvard and Dartmouth College and worked for UNITAR (1972-74) and the UN New York (1975-1996). Since 1997 he has taught international relations and comparative politics at NYU and CUNY. He conducts research and writes on the UN and multilateralism, peacemaking, conflict resolution and prevention. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS video for $20,00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Panel #12 Geneva Accord and More: How Do We Get There? Sponsored by Meretz USA Chair: Lilly Rivlin (abd) trained as a political scientist specializing in International Relations and Indian Studies (Nonviolent Conflict Resolution) at the University of California, Berkeley. She has worked as a consultant to foundations, journalist, writer, filmmaker and group facilitator both internationally and in the U.S. Rivlin's film credits include writer/director/producer of three independent documentaries, First Place winner of the National Family Relations Media 2002 award, Gimme a Kiss (2000), Miriam's Daughter's Now (1986) and The Tribe (1984), shown on PBS, Israeli and Italian TV and We’re Still Here! - The Jews Of Russia And Ukraine (1999). Naomi Chazan, former Deputy Speaker of the Israeli Knesset (parliament), represented the Meretz-Democratic Israel party in the Knesset for eleven years, from 1992 to 2003. She was chosen by her colleagues last year to head the platform drafting committee of YACHAD, the new Social Democratic party superceding Meretz. Professor Chazan is currently the Robert Wilhelm Fellow at the Center for International Studies at MIT, specializing in Political Science and African studies. She has been Chair of the Harry S. Truman Institute for the Advancement of Peace at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, a Visiting Professor of Government at Harvard University and a Visiting Scholar at the Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. She has authored and edited eight books on comparative politics, and written numerous articles on African politics, Arab-Israeli relations, Israeli politics, and women and politics. Yoav Peled is Professor of Political Science at Tel Aviv University and, in 2003-2004, an External Fellow at CCACC at Rutgers University. His work has dealt with citizenship and ethnic politics in Israel and with the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. His book, Being Israeli: The Dynamics of Multiple Citizenship, coauthored with Gershon Shafir (Cambridge 2002), won the Albert Hourani Prize of the Middle East Studies Association of North America for the best book on the Middle East in 2002. Robi Damelin belongs to a group of bereaved Israeli and Palestinian parents known as Parents Circle Family Forum and has worked for many years in the area of public relations, representing several coexistence projects, including Peace Child and an Arab Israeli youth orchestra. Robi Damelin lost her son, who was also a peace activist, to a sniper on March 3, 2002 while doing his reserve duties. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS video for $20,00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Panel #24 Democracy for Sale: The U.S. Electoral Process Today Sponsored by Socialist Scholars Conference Chair: Jeffrey Gold Democratic Socialists of America, Working Families Party of New York and IRUN Institute for Rational Urban Mobility. Sarah Tobias is the editor of Democracy Dispatches, and is a co-author of Expanding the Vote: The Practice and Promise of Election Day Registration. The focus of her current work is on enriching and expanding democratic participation. Prior to joining Demos Tobias worked as a consultant to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute, where she co-authored Family Policy: Issues Affecting Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Families (2002). A feminist theorist by training and inclination, her scholarly writings include "Toward a Feminist Ethic of War and Peace" in Terry Nardin (ed.), The Ethics of War And Peace (Princeton University Press, 1996), and "Several Steps Behind: Lesbian and Gay Adoption" in Sally Haslanger and Charlotte Witt (eds.), Adoption Matters: Feminist and Philosophical Essays (Cornell University Press, forthcoming). Tobias has a Ph.D. in Political Science from Columbia University and an undergraduate degree from Cambridge University, England. Laura Flanders is the author of BUSHWOMEN: Tales of a Cynical Species, an investigation into the women in George W. Bush's Cabinet. Flanders writes regularly for Tompaine.com, the Nation, Ms. Magazine and Znet. Her op-ed pieces have appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle. Flanders has been a regular panelist on the Fox News Channel's "Fox News Watch," and PBS's women's discussion program, "To the Contrary." Other TV appearances include "The O'Reilly Factor," "Hannity and Colmes," and CSPAN's "Washington Journal," as well as the MSNBC program, "Donahue," "Good Morning America" and the Canadian news discussion program "CounterSpin," on CBC. Flanders was founding director of the Women's Desk at the media watch group, FAIR and for more than ten years she produced and hosted CounterSpin, FAIR's nationally-syndicated radio program. Flanders is also the author of Real Majority, Media Minority; the Cost of Sidelining Women in Reporting (Common Courage Press, 1997) about which Susan Faludi wrote, "If only there were a hundred of her." Edward A. Hailes, Jr. is an experienced civil rights attorney and an ordained Baptist minister. Hailes now serves as the Power and Democracy Director for Advancement Project. He formerly served as the General Counsel for the United States Commission on Civil Rights, directing the federal agency’s historic investigation into allegations of voting irregularities in Florida during the November 2000 presidential election. Hailes also served for 10 years as legal counsel for the NAACP. Greg Palast is a BBC TV and Guardian UK reporter and author of the book The Best Democracy Money Can Buy. Palast broke the story of how Jeb Bush illegally removed thousands of black citizens from voter rolls before the 2000 election. Katherine Harris calls Greg Palast, "Twisted and maniacal." Noam Chomsky says "Palast upsets all the right people." Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS video for $20,00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Panel #55 Revitalizing the Labor Movement Sponsored by Socialist Scholars Conference Chair: Michael Hirsch is on the editorial Board of New Politics. Kim Moody was a union organizer and activist in the 60s and 70s and a journalist and director for Labor Notes in the 80s and 90s. Moody has been a close observer of the trends and struggles he analyzes. In plain language, he deals with the complex forces facing unionism and the means for dealing with them. Héctor Figueroa has been part of SEIU Local 32BJ leadership team for the past three years, helping to bring this union representing 70,000 building service workers out of trusteeship and into democratic self-government. He is the director of the union's Education, Political and Community Action Programs. Figueroa came to Local 32BJ from the SEIU International Office in Washington, D.C., where he was Assistant Research Director and coordinated strategic research for the successful "Justice for Janitors" national campaign. Michael Zweig is a professor of economics and director of the Center for Study of Working Class Life at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He is the author of The Working Class Majority: America's Best Kept Secret (Cornell University Press, 2000) and his new book, What's Class Got to Do with It? American Society in the Twenty-first Century, will be available from Cornell April 2004. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS video for $20,00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Panel #74 The Internet and Mobilization: Can You Have a Virtual Movement? Sponsored by Socialist Scholars Conference Herb Boyd is an awarding winning author and journalist who has published eleven books and countless articles for national magazines and newspapers. Brotherman—The Odyssey of Black Men in America—An Anthology(OneWorld/Ballantine, 1995), co-edited with Robert Allen, won the American Book Award for nonfiction. He currently teaches African and African American history at the College of New Rochelle, and is the managing editor of The Black World Today, an online publication. Andrew Boyd, Billionaires for Bush Micah L.Sifry is senior analyst with Public Campaign, a non-profit, non-partisan organization working on comprehensive campaign finance reform. Prior to joining Public Campaign in 1997, Sifry was an editor and writer with The Nation magazine for thirteen years. He is the author of Spoiling for a Fight: Third-Party Politics in America (Routledge, 2002) and co-edited The Iraq War Reader (Touchstone, 2003) and The Gulf War Reader (Times Books, 1991). His next book, co-authored with Nancy Watzman, on how money in politics affects people in their everyday lives, is titled Is That a Politician in Your Pocket? Ruy Teixeira is a Senior Fellow at The Century Foundation and the Center for American Progress. His is co-author, with John Judis, of The Emerging Democratic Majority , just re-issued in paperback with a new afterword on the 2002 edition. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, audio CD for $12.50, VHS video for $20,00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Final Plenary Left Futures Chair: Gregory Zucker is the Managing Editor of Logos Journal (www.LogosJournal.com) and is currently editing a book on the regressive policiesof the Bush administration. He is also a filmmaker and was formerly an organizer of the Socialist Scholars Conference. He now serves on the Board of Advisors of the Socialist Scholars Conference and of ArtTV. Frances Fox Piven teaches political science and sociology at the Graduate Center, CUNY. She known as a political activist and scholar, and is the author with Richard Cloward of Why Americans Still Don't Vote; Regulating the Poor, Poor People's Movements, The New Class War, and Labor Parties in Post-Industrial Societies. U.S. Rep. Bernie Sanders, Independent-Vermont Stephen Eric Bronner was born in 1949. He received his B.A. from the City College of New York and his Ph.D from the University of California: Berkeley. The Senior Editor of Logos, an interdisciplinary internet journal, his many works include: Socialism Unbound (Westview Press); A Rumor about the Jews: Anti-Semitism, Conspiracy, and the 'Protocols of Zion' (Oxford University Press); Imagining the Possible:Radical Politics for Conservative Times (Routledge) and the forthcoming Reclaiming the Enlightenment (Columbia University Press). Stephen Eric Bronner is currently Professor of Political Science and Comparative Literature at Rutgers University. Hilary Wainwright is editor of Red Pepper magazine, now reaching its 10th anniversary, and Research Director of the New Politics Project of the Transnational Institute, Amsterdam. Books include Beyond the Fragments: Feminism and the Making of Socialism, with Sheila Rowbotham and Lynn Segal, Labour: A Tale of Two Parties, Arguments for a New Left: Answering the Free- Market Right, and the recently published Reclaim the State: Experiments in Popular Democracy. In the early 1980s, Wainwright was coordinator of the Popular Planning Unit of the Greater London Council under Ken Livingstone. She is now active in the European Social Forum. Manning Marable is Professor of History and Political Science, Founding Director of the Institute for Research in African-American Studies at Columbia University, and editor of Souls: A Critical Journal of Black Politics, Culture and Society. Marable is the author of numerous books, including Black Leadership, Black Liberation in Conservative America, Speaking Truth to Power: Essays on Race, Radicalism and Resistance, Beyond Black and White, The Crisis of Color in Democracy, Race, Reform and Rebellion: The Second Reconstruction in Black America, 1945-1990, African and Caribbean Politics, WEB DuBois: Black Radical Democrat, Black American Politics and How Capitalism Underdeveloped Black America. Barbara Bowen is president of the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY, the union of 20,000 faculty and staff at the City University of New York. Part of a progressive caucus that won leadership of the union in 2000, Bowen has led the PSC's effort to build its political force in both economic and political struggles. The PSC has made contractual gains for its members, and at the same time emerged as a leading voice within organized labor for working-class students and against the war. Bowen is also a professor of English at CUNY and the author of several works of literary scholarship. Stanley Aronowitz teaches sociology and urban education at CUNY Graduate Center and his latest book is How Class Works (Yale 2003). Mark Seddon is editor of Tribune and an elected member of the Labour Party's ruling National Executive Committee. He contributes to a number of British newspapers and magazines and has produced a number of filmed reports for the BBC, reporting most recently from Iraq and North Korea. Available on audiotape cassette for $11.00, two audio CDs for $20.00, VHS video for $20.00 and DVD video for $20.00. ******************************************************* Unless otherwise noted, prices are as follows: Each audiotape cassette is $11.00. Each audio CD is $12.50. Canada & Mexico, add $1.00 for postage. All other countries, add $3.00. Each VHS video is $20.00. Each DVD video is $20.00 Canada & Mexico, add $2.00 for postage. All other countries, add $5.00. Free catalog with order. Without order, send SASE with $1.00 postage. Payment in US funds must accompany order. Allow 2 weeks for delivery. Please make check payable to Roger Leisner and mail to RADIO FREE MAINE P.O. Box 2705 Augusta, Maine 04338 ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Small Business $15K Web Design Giveaway http://promotions.yahoo.com/design_giveaway/ From Tim Sullivan" Hi all - We have received permission to use the Statehouse steps tomorrow (Saturday, April 10th), from noon to 3pm for the emergency rally. Please bring signs, banners, drums, and a friend or two. Also, we will have a PA system which will be open to all - tell Maine what you think of occupation and empire. Call a few folks you know who are not on email - get them to come to Augusta to support US withdrawal from Iraq! No more blood for oil!!! ----- Original Message ----- From: =========================================== ACTION ALERT * UNITED FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE http://www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545 To subscribe, visit http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email =========================================== ** Please read this urgent call to halt the U.S. military escalation in Iraqi cities. A call for international solidarity from the Baghdad-based International Occupation Watch Center follows. ** Calls for peace and an end to the occupation of Iraq are rising even as murderous violence escalates across Iraq. Hundreds of Iraqis and dozens of U.S. and international occupation troops are dying in what the Bush administration calls "liberated" Iraq. The U.S. military is now using massive 500-pound bombs against civilians - including on a Fallujah mosque compound killing at least 62 Iraqis. Sending in more troops is not the answer. Military occupation is not bringing peace, democracy or sovereignty to the people of Iraq who have already suffered for so long. It is clear that a huge portion of the Iraqi people want the U.S. out. The so-called "transfer of power" to Iraqis on June 30th will be meaningless as long as the U.S. military occupation continues. The escalation of violence in recent days, and the Pentagon's even more violent response -- including collective punishment, killings of civilians and other violations of international law and the Geneva Conventionss -- make a new approach to the crisis even more urgent. The entire world has a fundamental interest in ending this war and averting another life lost. We must bring the troops home now. TAKE ACTION 1) Call the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to speak with your Congresspersons. Press them to: * act immediately to lift the siege of civilian areas. Both military operations and the cutting off of electricity, water, supplies, and ambulances should end * call for an immediate pull-back of occupation forces from Iraqi cities and towns to put both Iraqis and occupation troops out of immediate danger * reject any calls for the deployment of more U.S. troops to Iraq * support the calls for Congressional hearings to determine why-one year after the fall of Saddam Hussein-the Coalition Provisional Authority has failed to produce a genuine plan that would allow the Iraqis to determine their own political future. * immediately convene an emergency joint session of Congress to address the crisis in Iraq and to change the course of U.S. action 2) Organize a vigil at a federal government building or military recruitment center to mourn the continued loss of life in this unnecessary war. While Congress is in recess, organize vigils outside Congressional home district offices or meetings with your Congressperson. Demand that President Bush take action to halt the killing of the Iraqi people, U.S. soldiers, and international troops. Post your events at http://www.unitedforpeace.org/calendar_gxinput.php The U.S. military occupation must be ended - it is illegal, and it is a failure. A true international mobilization of support to assist the people of Iraq will not happen until the U.S. is out. We join with people and governments around the world, who recognize the necessity of reclaiming international support for Iraq and ending military occupation, in calling on the United Nations and the international organizations of parliaments, to meet immediately in emergency session to address the Iraq crisis at this urgent moment. ************************************************* EMERGENCY CALL FOR SOLIDARITY WITH THE IRAQI PEOPLE April 8 2004 Eman Ahmed Khammas Director, International Occupation Watch Center Occupied Baghdad To the peoples of the world and their representatives at the United Nations: The Iraqi people call for international solidarity as they resist attacks by US-led Occupation Forces. It is clear that these attacks are designed to terrorize entire populations of Iraqi towns and neighborhoods. According to reports, in Falluja alone, over three hundred Iraqis have been killed and hundreds more injured since attacks began on Sunday, April 4. There is fighting in Baghdad, particularly in the neighborhoods of Sadr, Adaamiya, Shula, Yarmok, and the cities and towns of Falluja, Ramadi, Basrah, Nasiriya, Kerbala, Amarah, Kut, Kufa, Najaf, Diwaniya, Balad, and Baquba. Residences, hospitals, mosques and ambulances trying to transport the injured are being bombed and fired at by Occupation Forces' guns and tanks. Falluja and Adaamiya are currently under siege, surrounded by Occupation Forces, in contravention of the Geneva Convention that prohibits holding civilian communities under siege. Hospitals do not have access to sufficient medical aid, essential medicine and equipment or blood supplies. In Falluja, the hospitals have been surrounded by soldiers forcing doctors to establish field hospitals in private homes. Blood donors are not allowed to enter; consequently, mosques in both Baghdad and Falluja are collecting blood for the injured. Water and electricity have been cut off for the past several days. In Sadr City US helicopters have fired rockets into residential areas destroying homes. Although no curfew has officially been imposed, US soldiers have made a practice of aiming tank fire on cars they find moving through the streets after dark. On Tuesday night alone, at least 6 people were killed in this way. US forces continue to occupy and surround all the police stations and the Sadr municipal offices. While these attacks have escalated sharply over the past week, they are in no way a new phenomenon in occupied Iraq. The indiscriminate killing of civilians and the refusal to provide people with security, electricity and decent medical infrastructure have characterized the 'freedom' that Occupation Authorities have brought to Iraq. We call on the international community, civil society and the anti-war/anti-occupation movements to respond to this US-led war of terror with tangible displays of solidarity and support for Iraqi people facing this gruesome manifestation of the occupation. Please take to the streets to demand an end to the US-led aggression. Organize protests in front of US consulates and embassies around the world and demand: an immediate end to this massacre; an immediate end to the siege of Iraqi cities and neighborhoods; immediate access to humanitarian and medical aid organizations seeking to provide assistance to Iraqi people who are living under attack; and an end to the occupation of our nation. Cities in which demonstrations have already been organized include Milan, Montreal, Tokyo, Istanbul, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and New York City. To contact the International Occupation Watch Center in Baghdad, please call 001 914 360-9079 or 001 914 360-9080. You can also email eman@occupationwatch.org =========================================== ACTION ALERT * UNITED FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE http://www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545 To subscribe, visit http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email =========================================== -- To unsubscribe from this list visit http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email4.php?p=unsubscribe&uid=793358 To update your preferences visit http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email4.php?p=preferences&uid=793358 -- Powered by PHPlist, www.phplist.com -- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: Ruth Magnolia ldymgnolia@yahoo.com hey landlovers, I've got some people here at COA that can't/don't want to travel to DC for the women's rights stuff on the 25, but asked if I knew of anything going on in Maine in correlation to the DC march. Any of you guys know of anything "official" that's happening for sure? Thanks for the help!! -Ruth Magnolia From Tim Sullivan" Also, see article at http://www.bangornews.com/editorialnews/article.cfm/ID/420366 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Matt Schlobohm" PLEASE MAKE CALLS TO SUPPORT FUNDING FOR LD 1815 Hi folks- Our bill (LD 1815) was put on the Appropriations table yesterday. This means that the Appropriations committee, in very close consultation with Legislative leadership, will decide whether to fund the bill. The decision on funding will be made by next FRIDAY. WE NEED TO MAKE ONE LAST PUSH TO GENERATE AS MANY CALLS & EMAILS as possible to prove that the people want this bill funded. Please call the Speaker of the House, the Senate President and members of the Appropriations committee. The most important person for everyone to call is the Speaker of the House, Pat Colwell. MESSAGE: "Thanks for your support in passing this LD 1815. Please continue this support by fully funding LD 1815. This legislation is too important not to fund." If you want to, tell them why it is important to you to fund this bill. PLEASE CALL 1. Speaker of the House Pat Colwell At the Speakers office 287-1300 At home 582-5231 The House of Representatives Message Line 1-800-423-2900 By Email: RepPat.Colwell@legislature.maine.gov If you know anyone in the following towns please ask them to call Speaker Pat Colwell - Chelsea, Famingdale, Gardiner, Hallowell, Litchfield, Manchester, Monmouth, Pittston, Randolph, West Gardiner and Winthrop. 2. Senate President Bev Daggett At the Senate 287-1515 At home 622-9053 At the Senators Message Line 1-800-423-6900 By Email: senatorbdaggett@aol.com 3. Member of the Appropriations Committee Call any members of Appropriations who are your legislator. Senator Mary Cathcart (D - Penobscot county) Senator Peggy Rotundo (D- Lewiston) Senator Karl Turner (R - Cumberland county) Representative Richard Mailhot (D - Lewiston) Representative Scott Cowger (D - Hallowell) Representative Ben Dudley (D - Portland) Representative Sean Faircloth (D - Bangor) Representative Hannah Pingree (D - North Haven) Representative Richard Rosen (R - Bucksport) Representative Peter Mills (R - Cornville) Representative H. Sawin Millet, Jr. (R - Waterford) Representative Julie Ann O'Brien (R - Augusta) You can leave messages for any Representative at 1-800-423-2900 You can leave messages for any Senator at 1-800-423-6900 ********* Thanks for all of your great work. Every call makes a difference! In solidarity, Matt Schlobohm Maine Fair Trade Campaign 777-6387 From Tim Sullivan" Maine Peace and Justice News http://www.sullboat.com/MEPJ/news.htm ANTI-WAR RALLY IN AUGUSTA - WCSH-6, April 11, 2004 DEP approves Old Town landfill - AP, April 11, 2004 Death of a homeless man - Portland Press Herald, April 11, 2004 400 protest move MaineGeneral consolidation blasted at rally - Waterville Sentinel, April 11, 2004 Little joy on this Easter - Waterville Sentinel, April 11, 2004 Standing-room-only population tests prisons - Kennebec Journal, April 11, 2004 State trade commission awaits funds - Bangor Daily News, April 10, 2004 Union may fight factory's drug searches - Kennebec Journal, April 10, 2004 More Cives talks slated as strike enters Week 3 - Kennebec Journal, April 10, 2004 Baldacci orders state agencies to back civil rights - Kennebec Journal, April 10, 2004 Governor Bolsters Civil Rights of Immigrants - Maine Things Considered, April 9, 2004 Fair Play scores $2,000 grant - Times Record, April 9, 2004 Back from a goodwill mission to Peru - Times Record, April 9, 2004 Sprawl law could restrict hospital move - Kennebec Journal, April 9, 2004 Network hopes to help do good - Waterville Sentinel, April 9, 2004 Searsport wants Baldacci vow in writing - Bangor Daily News, April 9, 2004 Maine tax burden 2nd highest in U.S. - Bangor Daily News, April 9, 2004 Lawmakers support early-release bill - Portland Press Herald, April 9, 2004 Panel: Maine needs to address its health-care inequities - Portland Press Herald, April 9, 2004 From Tim Sullivan" A Gathering at Bath At 1 PM, on April 17th, Bath Iron Works will "christen" another Arleigh Burke Class destroyer, the USS Nimitz, DDG 94. It will be the 44th Aegis Weapon System to be built between Bath Iron Works and the Ingalls Ship Ya= rd in Mississippi. Maine Veterans Veterans For Peace, Pax Christi Maine, The Waldo County Peace and Justice Group and other Maine activist organizations and their members will, once again, meet in front of Bath Iron Works to protest the continued construction of these weapon systems. Costing approximately $1 billion each, with a nuclear capacity of 850 Hiroshima=92s, it is a weapon of mass destruction. Couldn=92t the monies = be better spent for building products of peace (hospital ships, floating classrooms, platforms for alternate power production) rather than buildin= g weapons of war whose only use is to kill something be it animal, vegetabl= e or mineral? Our answer is YES so join us on the April 17th and let the US Navy know how you feel. The ceremony is scheduled for 1 PM and gates open at 11 AM. We gather at 11 AM in front of the Bath Iron Works gate on Washington, between Spring and Castine, with appropriate signs and attitudes. Call Jack or Fay at 772-1442 or George or Maureen at 338-4776 for further information. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Sun Apr 11 21:34:50 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Sun, 11 Apr 2004 13:34:50 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] Two great links on the Kerry/Bush Crusade against the people of Iraq. Message-ID: <20040411203450.94284.qmail@web40301.mail.yahoo.com> Two great links on the Kerry/Bush Crusade against the people of Iraq. http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~stephan/USfatalities.html This is the photo of Bush with the photos of the Dead GIs. http://photomatt.net/archives/2004/04/07/mosaic/ ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html From robbins@downeast.net Mon Apr 12 01:49:53 2004 From: robbins@downeast.net (J&P Robbins) Date: Sun, 11 Apr 2004 20:49:53 -0400 Subject: [Megan] PALESTINE film Blue Hill April 22 Message-ID: <000f01c42028$8ef15da0$efff6442@computer> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0010_01C42007.07DFBDA0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit PENINSULA PEACE & JUSTICE ANNOUNCES PALESTINE FILM & DISCUSSION APRIL 22, 2004, BLUE HILL "500 Dunam on the Moon" Peninsula Peace & Justice will present this extraordinary film directed by Rachel Leah Jones, France, 2002. 500 Dunam tells the story of Ayn Haid, a Palestinian village that was captured and depopulated by Israeli forces in the 1948 war. It was later transformed into a Jewish artists' colony, known as Ein Hod, home to numerous galleries, exhibits and festivals, serving as a mecca of Israeli cultural production. Many of the village's original inhabitants settled 1.5 km away, naming their new home Ayn Hawd, a site designated by the Israeli government as an "unrecognized village." The film looks at the art of dispossession and the creativity of the dispossessed. The film will be shown at 6:30 pm on Thursday, April 22, at Liberty School on South Street in Blue Hill. A discussion will follow the film. All are welcome. For more information, please call 326-4405. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- "Women, children, and the poor must be the subjects, not the objects, of history. They must sit at the decision-making tables and fill the halls of power. They must occupy the radio and airwaves, talking to and calling to account their elected leaders. Their participation will democratize democracy." ~ Jean-Bertrand Aristide ------=_NextPart_000_0010_01C42007.07DFBDA0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message

PENINSULA PEACE=20 & JUSTICE =

ANNOUNCES = PALESTINE FILM & = DISCUSSION

APRIL = 22,=20 2004, BLUE=20 HILL

“500 Dunam on the Moon”

Peninsula Peace & Justice will present this = extraordinary film directed by Rachel Leah Jones,=20 France,=20 2002. 500 Dunam tells the story of Ayn Haid, a Palestinian village that = was=20 captured and depopulated by Israeli forces in the 1948 war. It was later transformed into a = Jewish=20 artists’ colony, known as Ein Hod, home to numerous galleries, = exhibits and=20 festivals, serving as a mecca of Israeli cultural production. Many of = the=20 village’s original inhabitants settled 1.5 km away, naming their = new home Ayn=20 Hawd, a site designated by the Israeli government as an = “unrecognized village.”=20 The film looks at the art = of=20 dispossession and the creativity of the=20 dispossessed.

The = film will be=20 shown at 6:30 pm on Thursday, April 22, at=20 Liberty=20 School on=20 South Street in Blue = Hill.

A discussion will follow the film. All are welcome.

For more information, please call 326-4405.

----------------------------------------------------------------= -------------

------=_NextPart_000_0010_01C42007.07DFBDA0-- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: MWomenL@aol.com There are a number of events happening in Maine for those who cannot travel to DC. If you would like to do a march in Maine, you are welcome to sign up on http://www.marchforwomen.org and click on GET LOCAL and enter in a city in Maine and find out where local march(es) are happening.(you must register to get this info) The last time I checked there were 3; 2 in Portland and 1 in Westbrook. Contact Cara Bilodeau at MCLU cbidodeau@mclu.org Lauren Webster, Women's Studies Dept. USM, lwebster@hotmail.com and Cindy McGinn at MAINE NOW, mainenow@maine.rr.com There will also be a rally happening on Saturday, April 24, 2004 at 830pm to send off the buses leaving for the March in DC at the Marginal Way parking lot in Portland (across from Wild Oates and the Whole Grocer). From 295 take the Forest Ave Exit South. Turn left on Marginal Way and look for the Wild Oates sign. The parking lot will be on the other side of the street. Hope this helps! Feel free to contact us at 622-0851 for more information. Lauralee Raymond Maine Women's Lobby PO Box 15 Hallowell, Maine 04347 207-622-0851 fax: 621-2551 info@mainewomen.org www.mainewomen.org From ecolink@maineindymedia.org Mon Apr 12 23:58:03 2004 From: ecolink@maineindymedia.org (ecolink) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 18:58:03 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Fw: [MeIMC-discuss] IndyMedia equiptment needs a new home In-Reply-To: References: <20040412102857.21495.83407.Mailman@berogard.psouth.net> <20040412102857.21495.83407.Mailman@berogard.psouth.net> Message-ID: ------------- Forwarded message ------------- Hello- Right now there are a lot of loose ends to tie up with IMC equiptment. I am trying to get a sense of what there is, how much space it will take up, if we need it all and most importantly- where to put it. 1) what is the status of the Lewiston office space? Was IMC paying 50 bucks a month for it? Or was that just talked about and not followed through? If no one knows the answer who can I call to find out? 2)Is there someone in the central maine area who has space for a small office? An extra bedroom that you dont use? A garage space? It would be great if we could come up with a central place to do the paper out of and keep evrything in one spot. Thats all my questions for now. Many THanks Laura C PS. Could someone please post this to the megan list? I dont have their address. _______________________________________________ MeIMC-discuss mailing list MeIMC-discuss@lists.maineindymedia.org http://lists.maineindymedia.org/mailman/listinfo/meimc-discuss --- Zippy Sez: This is a SECRETE CODE! {d16949e4fb52305da43674bb2b59e413} From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Logan Perkins" People's Free Space Resisting Empire and Sustainability School Tour May 2004 In May, the Frida Bus will be travelling around Maine putting on two presentations; during the day we will be presenting in schools sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels and in the evening we will hold multimedia presentations called "Resisting Empire." In the schools, we will be presenting the ecological and social problems with our dependance on oil and other fossil fuels and the alternatives that currently exist such as biofuels, windpower, solar power and energy conservation. Our evening presentation "Resisting Empire" will critically look at the United States' addiction to War, Oil, Drugs, and Power. Through music, puppets, slides and discussion we will show how the US empire uses food, energy and war as mechanisms to control the people off the world. We will not just dwell on the negatives though, but will showcase inspiring examples of grassroots resistance and sustainable alternatives to the corporate domination of the planet. At the end of our presentation we will facilitate a community discussion about local issues and building regional solidarity. Our presentation lasts approximately 2 hours and can be held in any space. We will be travelling on the Frida Bus, our biodiesel powered mobile community space. It is a converted school bus that contains a kitchen, a library, couch, free box,and free information. This spring before the tour we will be converting the bus to run on straight vegetable oil (it currently runs on biodiesel) and will install solar panels. If you are interested in having this tour present in your community or your school or if you need more information please get in contact with us, so that we can schedule an appearance. We can be reached at: sustainabilitytour@peoplesfreespace.org, box 1582 Portland, ME 04104, (207) 761-2909 www.peoplesfreespace.org Our tentative schedule is as follows April 30: Student Sustainability Conference, Chewonki, Wiscasset May 3: Damariscotta May 4/5: Camden May 6: Belfast May 7/8: Blue Hill May 9/10: Mount Desert Island May 11/12: Waterville May 13: Skowhegan May 14: Farmington May 15/16: Lewiston/Auburn May 17-30: Presentations at Greater Portland/Cumberland County Schools. From invert@acadia.net Mon Apr 12 22:03:32 2004 From: invert@acadia.net (Larry Dansinger) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 21:03:32 +0000 Subject: [Megan] GROW New England June 10-13 Message-ID: <20040413010930.CFTY27885.mta1@[142.167.32.30]> > THIS MESSAGE IS IN MIME FORMAT. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. --MS_Mac_OE_3164648614_321921_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Hello Maine Global Action Network people, I hope you will want to come to this and send this "Save the Date" announcement out to people you know who might be interested in coming or spreading the word. A brochure and more information will come late this month. If you know anyone who wants to become a better organizer or should be doing more organizing, please especially pass this on to them. Larry Dansinger SAVE THE DATE SAVE THE DATE SAVE THE DATE GrassRoots Organizing Workshop (GROW) New England June 10-13, 2004 World Fellowship Center (near) Conway, New Hampshire Gathering of New and Experienced Organizers from Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont to: *Learn from Each Other *Understand the Big Picture of Social Change *Increase Skills in Working with Grassroots Groups *Be More Effective in Doing Social Action *Become Lifelong Organizers for Change with Good Food, Great Company, Beautiful White Mountains Location, Much More Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshops 5:00pm Thursday June 10th - 4:00 pm Friday June 11th Anti-Oppression Organizing (facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT) Youth Organizing (Liana Foxvog, NH) Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing (jesse leah vear, ME) Labor Organizing (Leslie Manning, ME) Plus weekend (Friday, June 11-Sunday, June 13) of workshops, fun, and networking with other new and experienced organizers. Cost: $0-60 (whatever you can pay) for the 3-4 days includes food and housing For a Flyer or More Information, contact: Sha'an Mouliert, (802) 744-2760, mouliert@vtlink.net (VT) Liana Foxvog, (603) 224-2407, lfoxvog@afsc.org (NH) Larry Dansinger, (207) 525-7776, invert@acadia.net (ME) --MS_Mac_OE_3164648614_321921_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable GROW New England June 10-13 Hello Maine Global Action Network people,=

I hope you will want to come to this and send this "Save the Date"= ; announcement out to people you know who might be interested in coming or s= preading the word. A brochure and more information will come late this month= .

If you know anyone who wants to become a better organizer or should be doin= g more organizing, please especially pass this on to them.

Larry Dansinger

SAVE THE DATE SAVE THE DATE = ; SAVE THE DATE

GrassRoots Organizing Workshop (GROW)<= /FONT>
New England

June 10-13, 2004

World Fellowship Center
(near) Conway, New Hampshire
Gathering of New and Experienced Organizers
from Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont to:

*Learn from Each Other
*Understand the Big Picture of Social Change
*Increase Skills in Working with Grassroots Groups
*Be More Effective in Doing Social Action
*Become Lifelong Organizers for Change

with Good Food, Great Company, Beautiful White Mountains Location, Much Mor= e

Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshops
5:00pm Thursday June 10th - 4:00 pm Friday June 11th

Anti-Oppression Organizing (facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT)
Youth Organizing (Liana Foxvog, NH)
Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing (jesse leah vear, ME)
Labor Organizing (Leslie Manning, ME)

Plus weekend (Friday, June 11-Sunday, June 13) of workshops, fun, and netwo= rking with other new and experienced organizers.

Cost: $0-60 (whatever you can pay) for the 3-4 days includes food and housi= ng

For a Flyer or More Information, contact:

Sha'an Mouliert, (802) 744-2760, mouliert@vtlink.n= et (VT)
Liana Foxvog, (603) 224-2407, lfoxvog@afsc.org= (NH)
Larry Dansinger, (207) 525-7776, invert@acadia.net= (ME)
--MS_Mac_OE_3164648614_321921_MIME_Part-- From wolfspiritm@excite.com Tue Apr 13 13:28:51 2004 From: wolfspiritm@excite.com (Marie Zwicker) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 08:28:51 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Megan] FW: [pbpeace] Fwd: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely] Message-ID: <20040413122851.307911E4E8@xprdmailfe24.nwk.excite.com> --EXCITEBOUNDARY_000__41cf68de3cd302ba31133758d9c2c3a3 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit _______________________________________________ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! --EXCITEBOUNDARY_000__41cf68de3cd302ba31133758d9c2c3a3 Content-Type: message/rfc822; name="[pbpeace] Fwd: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely]"; Content-Description: [pbpeace] Fwd: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely] Return-Path: Delivered-To: wolfspiritm@xprdmailbe.nwk.excite.com Received: (qmail 24821 invoked from network); 13 Apr 2004 00:15:50 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO xprdmx23.nwk.excite.com) ([10.50.28.196]) (envelope-sender ) by 0 (qmail-ldap-1.03) with SMTP for ; 13 Apr 2004 00:15:50 -0000 Return-Path: Received: from n7.grp.scd.yahoo.com (n7.grp.scd.yahoo.com [66.218.66.91]) by xprdmx23.nwk.excite.com (Postfix) with SMTP id 630C217FED for ; Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:15:44 -0400 (EDT) X-eGroups-Return: sentto-8249396-1485-1081815349-wolfspiritm=excite.com@returns.groups.yahoo.com Received: from [66.218.66.29] by n7.grp.scd.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 13 Apr 2004 00:15:49 -0000 X-Sender: beadspot@yahoo.com X-Apparently-To: pbpeace@yahoogroups.com Received: (qmail 58131 invoked from network); 13 Apr 2004 00:15:48 -0000 Received: from unknown (66.218.66.218) by m23.grp.scd.yahoo.com with QMQP; 13 Apr 2004 00:15:48 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO web13501.mail.yahoo.com) (216.136.175.80) by mta3.grp.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; 13 Apr 2004 00:15:48 -0000 Message-ID: <20040413001544.38278.qmail@web13501.mail.yahoo.com> Received: from [65.2.83.205] by web13501.mail.yahoo.com via HTTP; Mon, 12 Apr 2004 17:15:44 PDT To: pbtc greens , Palm beach peace X-eGroups-Remote-IP: 216.136.175.80 From: Sarah X-Yahoo-Profile: beadspot MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list pbpeace@yahoogroups.com; contact pbpeace-owner@yahoogroups.com Delivered-To: mailing list pbpeace@yahoogroups.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 17:15:44 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [pbpeace] Fwd: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely] Reply-To: pbpeace@yahoogroups.com Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="0-679322512-1081815344=:36984" X-FII-Tracking: 0.001687 --0-679322512-1081815344=:36984 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Laura Carnal wrote:Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 13:13:28 -0400 From: Laura Carnal Subject: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely] To: Martha Nungesser , Maybel Flannery , Michelle Rau , Christine Smith , brent hopper , Bonnie for Kucinich , Echo Steiner Scroll down just to see what the conference is about this weekend. WOW!! I would really like to attend something like this one year, I think I should get a degree in political science......... Laura > ATTACHMENT part 2 message/rfc822 Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 14:41:32 -0400 From: info@leonardpeltier.org Subject: Upcoming Events - Please post widely To: lcarnal@sfwmd.gov From: peltiersupport@riseup.net [ mailto:peltiersupport@riseup.net] Sent: Thursday, April 08, 2004 11:40 PM To: peltiersupport Subject: Peltier and Day to speak with others at 4/17 Boston Conference Boston Area Leonard Peltier Support Group 4/8/04 "I know for certain Leonard [Peltier] didn't execute the FBI agents. I was there. [These claims are] totally false. I was one of the three individuals that was the first to be by the side of the FBI agents." -- Robert "Bob" Robideau "The FBI should never be allowed to have exparte communications with a judge trying the case. Somehow our government permitted this to happen with impunity." -- Peltier attorney Barry Bachrach 1. SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference April 16th and 17th, Boston, MA 2. CAMILO VIVIEROS ACQUITTED OF ALL CHARGES 3. Text of sample letter to Judiciary Committees Support legal team's request for hearings on FBI misuse of informants, agent provocateurs against the American Indian Movement (AIM) and Peltier ATTN: Northwest Peltier Supporters Download these LPDC Judiciary Campaign materials and related docs Tips (on communicating with Members of Congress): http://www.peltiersupport.org/Welcome/Tips.html Sample Letter: http://www.peltiersupport.org/Welcome/SampleLetter.html ************************************************************* 1. SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference on Political Prisoners in the USA Coming up on Friday April 16 (7pm - 11pm) and Saturday April 17, 2004 (9am - 5pm) in Boston, Massachusetts at Lipke Auditorium, UMASS Boston Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email: freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference Join us for a working conference to build towards freedom for Political Prisoners, Prisoners of War, and Racially Profiled Detainees in the U.S. All have been targeted by the U.S. government. Some were victims of the FBI's vicious COINTELPRO program which lasted from the 50's to the 80's, in which government agents sowed distrust among members of Black Liberation, Puerto Rican Independence, and American Indian Movements, assassinated dozens of leaders in these movements, and imprisoned hundreds more. Many of our Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War have been locked up for decades and are being singled out for persecution while behind bars. This disturbing trend continues today, and has now been expanded to include people of Arab and Middle Eastern descent. To date, tens of thousands of our Middle Eastern brothers and sisters have been subjected to racial harassment and unjust imprisonment without evidence of wrongdoing or access to lawyers. The COINTELPRO program is indicative of the government's "respect" for the right of speech and political action for those who struggle for true freedom for the colonized inhabitants of the United States, as well as those who are colonized abroad: If our dissent threatens to bring about the changes we seek, we're "fair game" for its policies of "neutralization"." Let's enforce our right of speech and dissent by coming together to *set the captives free.* Join us on Friday April 16 2004 (7pm - 11pm) for an evening of cultural edutainment with special musical guests Dead Prez, The Foundation, VCR, Blackout Boston, Iyeoka Ivie Okoawo, FTP, Reflect & Strengthen, Curtis King, Simon & Wagner, and PRESENTE! And Join us on Saturday April 17 all day (9am - 5pm) for workshops on Political Prisoners, Prisoners of War, and Racially Profiled Detainees in the U.S with Pam Africa (MOVE), Fred Hampton, Jr., Linda Evans, Russell Shoates, III, Netdahe Williams, Rod Coronado, Mike Duan, (South Asian Coalition,) Rawan Barakat, (New England Committee to Defend Palestine), Kamel Bell, Michelle Morales, Soffiyah Elijah, Nancy Murray (Patriot Act & Homeland Security), Prof. Robert Hall, Nalda Vigezzi (The Cuban 5) and Jean Day and Marquetta Peltier. Both events will occur at Lipke Auditorium, UMASS Boston campus. accessible by red line subway, JFK/UMASS stop. Cost: $15 for Friday Concert, $10 for Saturday Conference, $20 for both days. KIDS 15 AND UNDER GET IN FREE. No one will be turned away from the Conference for lack of funds. Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email: freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com Sponsored by the Boston Coalition to Free Political Prisoners in the U.S., the Joiner Center, The Jericho Movement, Mobarezeh Collective, Boston Area Leonard Peltier Support Group, Leonard Peltier Defense Committee, Int'l Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu Jamal, AFSC, and PRESENTE! PRESENTE! is a poetry and theatre collective that for the past three years has been conducting artistic performances calling attention to the plight of Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War held within the borders of the United States. Many of these prisoners have been incarcerated for waging struggle against the U.S. Government's colonialist and racist policies here and abroad. They are leaders and combatants for Puerto Rican Independence, Native American rights, Black Liberation; some are North American Anti-Imperialists who interfered with their government's ability to wage war around the world. Some are of Arab and Moslem backgrounds, recent targets of "Homeland Security's" policies of racial profiling and disappearances, which are implemented to silence the most critical voices of protest against colonialism and genocide in the Middle East. Many of these prisoners have been handed down sentences which amount to life imprisonment -- sentences that are a great deal more severe than what is often imposed on child molesters, rapists, and racists who engage in hate crimes. Some, like the Arab and Moslem detainees have been subject to indefinite incarceration, without charges, the benefit of counsel, or access to their loved ones. Others, like Mumia Abu Jamal, are on death row. The responses of those who have seen our performances have been very positive. We have come to the conclusion however that our efforts are wasted if they do not yield the result of active and massive organizing to seek these prisoners' release from captivity. It is in the interest of transforming our artistic work into concrete action that would be useful in securing these prisoners' release, that we have decided to organize a Set the Captives Free Conference in Boston. We hope to bring together people from the communities the prisoners represent, as well as organizers and activists. Our goal is to acquaint those who still don't know of them with their history and plight, and develop strategies that will lead to their long overdue exit from prison. Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email: freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com ************************************************************* 2. . CAMILO VIVIEROS ACQUITTED OF ALL CHARGES Camilo Vivieros, housing advocate and tireless worker for peace and social justice who was illegally arrested at the GOP national convention in Philadelphia and faced a prison sentence of up to 30 years, was acquitted today of all charges, following a massive letter-writing and lobbying campaign of concerned citizens in RI and around New England and the country. This news just came to me this afternoon in a brief phone call, so I'm sure that the details of the case and the ruling will be out soon. In the meantime, this is a triumph and is a cause for joy... Peace to you all. Molly Three protesters are acquitted of criminal charges By Linda K. Harris Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer Friends and family of three men saddled with criminal charges for more than three years following the Republican National Convention wept openly in court today after the three were acquitted of all charges. To read the article http://www.waste.org/~roadrunner/writing/camilo/main.htm ************************************************************* Subject: Letter to Northwest Congressional representatives on pending FBI misconduct Hearings Date: Tue, 6 Apr 2004 10:54:47 -0400 From: info@leonardpeltier.org Please post widely Important sign on letter for Northwest (And All) supporters of Leonard Peltier. This letter will go to all Northwest Congress people and to all members of the Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. Please sign on at the bottom of the letter and return it to: < mailto:bayou@blarg.net> bayou@blarg.net. Thank you for your support. Arthur J. Miller Tacoma LPSG Dear Congressperson (We will place the different names here): In November 2003, it was reported by the media that the Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives, plans to hold hearings into the misuse of informants by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Pursuant to this, during the week of March 22, 2004, a group of civil rights attorneys submitted a formal request to the Committee for not only this purpose, but calling for the completion of investigations begun by the Church Committee in the 1970s. As you may recall, the Church Committee reported in 1976 that the goals of the COunter INTELligence PROgrams of the period from 1956 to the mid-1970s were to "expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise neutralize" those persons or organizations that the FBI decided were "enemies of the State." Although the FBI's COINTELPRO programs officially ended in 1971, there have been many examples of counterintelligence-type operations against political dissidents since. The most notable exclusion from the list of dissident groups targeted by the FBI and investigated by the Church Committee was the American Indian Movement (AIM) - an Indigenous rights group founded in 1968 and committed to uniting all Native Peoples in an effort to uplift their communities, promote cultural pride, and ensure tribal sovereignty we feel that a full investigation of official misconduct against AIM is long overdue. Specifically, I recommend that the Committee investigate: 1. The FBI's use of informants and agent provocateurs against AIM from 1968 to the present. 2. The FBI's role in the Pine Ridge "Reign of Terror" (1973-1976), a place and time where the annual murder rate was 170 per 100,000, far exceeding the rate for Detroit (the reputed "murder capital of the United States") of 20.2 in 1974. The political murder rate at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation during this time was roughly equivalent to that in Chile during the three years after the military coup that deposed President Salvador Allende. 3. Official misconduct across the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in the case of Native American activist Leonard Peltier. The investigation should include: A.. Violation of international law, provision by the FBI and federal prosecutors of false affidavits to Canadian authorities to secure Peltier's extradition. B. Fabrication of evidence and intimidation of witnesses by the FBI to secure a conviction at Peltier's trial. C. FBI interference in Peltier's parole proceedings and his petition for Executive Clemency. D. The disposition of the Ethics Complaint concerning the Peltier case, filed in 2000 with the DOJ. 4. Actions on the part of the FBI and government prosecutors in 2004 to use court proceedings and, by extension, the media to intentionally provide as fact, false information to the public on AIM and Leonard Peltier. This has the effect of rewriting history with regard to AIM, in general, and Leonard Peltier, in particular, so as to prejudice the public against them. These actions have been taken to influence the outcome of pending federal prosecutions by potentially poisoning the jury pool, as well as preventing Peltier's release on parole in 2008. Why should Congress act now? On May 30, 2002, Attorney General Ashcroft effectively abolished restrictions first imposed (as a result of the Church Committee's findings) in 1976 on FBI surveillance of Americans' everyday lives. These regulations specifically were developed to counter the COINTELPRO domestic spying program that had led to massive civil rights era abuses during the 1960s and 1970s. Now, these restrictions no longer exist - and such abuses are repeating themselves. The work first undertaken by the Church Committee will be complete, only if a full investigation of the intelligence operation launched by the FBI against AIM is conducted, as the Committee had intended to do in 1975. We are asking you to support such an action on the part of the Committee on the Judiciary of either the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate (or both). We trust that such hearings will ultimately lead to a substantial increase in congressional oversight of FBI domestic security investigations, as well as legislation designed to ensure protection of fundamental rights for all Americans. We understand that the aforementioned attorneys offered to the Committee documentation of and witness testimony on official misconduct with respect to AIM and Mr. Peltier. If you would like to obtain further information, please contact: Barry Bachrach, Attorney at Law, Bowditch & Dewey, 311 Main Street, Worcester, MA 01615-0156; also by telephone at (508) 926-3403 or by E-mail: bbachrach@bowditch.com. We wish you success with this endeavor and trust that your subsequent actions will prevent the reoccurrence of such egregious misconduct. We look forward to hearing from you soon concerning your efforts towards that end. Sincerely, Arthur J. Miller Co-Coordinator Tacoma Leonard Peltier Support Group Member: Ship Builder's Industrial Union 320 UA Local 26 Tacoma, WA Sign on here (below) --------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-on@mail-list.com To unsubscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-off@mail-list.com To change your email address, send a message to lpdc-change@mail-list.com with your old address in the Subject: line To unsubscribe, click on the following web page. http://cgi.mail-list.com/u?ln=lpdc&nm=lcarnal@sfwmd.gov This message was launched into cyberspace to lcarnal@sfwmd.gov begin:vcard n:Carnal;Laura tel;work:561-682-6982 x-mozilla-html:FALSE adr:;;;;;; version:2.1 email;internet:lcarnal@sfwmd.gov fn:Laura Carnal end:vcard www.feedyourheadshop.com --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th --0-679322512-1081815344=:36984 Content-Type: text/html; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Laura Carnal <lcarnal@sfwmd.gov> wrote:

Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 13:13:28 -0400
From: Laura Carnal
Subject: [Fwd: Upcoming Events - Please post widely]
To: Martha Nungesser ,
Maybel Flannery ,
Michelle Rau ,
Christine Smith ,
brent hopper ,
Bonnie for Kucinich ,
Echo Steiner

Scroll down just to see what the conference is about this weekend. WOW!!
I would really like to attend something like this one year, I think I
should get a degree in political science.........
Laura

> ATTACHMENT part 2 message/rfc822
Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 14:41:32 -0400
From: info@leonardpeltier.org
Subject: Upcoming Events - Please post widely
To: lcarnal@sfwmd.gov

From: peltiersupport@riseup.net [
mailto:peltiersupport@riseup.net]

Sent: Thursday, April 08, 2004 11:40 PM

To: peltiersupport

Subject: Peltier and Day to speak with others at 4/17 Boston Conference

Boston Area Leonard Peltier Support Group

4/8/04

"I know for certain Leonard [Peltier] didn't execute the FBI agents.

I was there. [These claims are] totally false. I was one of the three

individuals that was the first to be by the side of the FBI agents."

-- Robert "Bob" Robideau

"The FBI should never be allowed to have exparte

communications with a judge trying the case. Somehow

our government permitted this to happen with impunity."

-- Peltier attorney Barry Bachrach

1. SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference

April 16th and 17th, Boston, MA

2. CAMILO VIVIEROS ACQUITTED OF ALL CHARGES

3. Text of sample letter to Judiciary Committees

Support legal team's request for hearings on FBI

misuse of informants, agent provocateurs against

the American Indian Movement (AIM) and Peltier

ATTN: Northwest Peltier Supporters

Download these LPDC Judiciary Campaign materials and related docs Tips
(on communicating with Members of Congress):

http://www.peltiersupport.org/Welcome/Tips.html

Sample Letter:

http://www.peltiersupport.org/Welcome/SampleLetter.html

*************************************************************

1. SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference on Political Prisoners in the USA

Coming up on Friday April 16 (7pm - 11pm) and Saturday April 17, 2004
(9am -

5pm) in Boston, Massachusetts at Lipke Auditorium, UMASS Boston

Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email:

freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com

SET THE CAPTIVES FREE Conference

Join us for a working conference to build towards freedom for Political
Prisoners, Prisoners of War, and Racially Profiled Detainees in the U.S.

All have been targeted by the U.S. government. Some were victims of the
FBI's vicious COINTELPRO program which lasted from the 50's to the 80's,
in which government agents sowed distrust among members of Black
Liberation, Puerto Rican Independence, and American Indian Movements,
assassinated dozens of leaders in these movements, and imprisoned
hundreds more.

Many of our Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War have been locked up
for decades and are being singled out for persecution while behind bars.
This disturbing trend continues today, and has now been expanded to
include people of Arab and Middle Eastern descent. To date, tens of
thousands of our Middle Eastern brothers and sisters have been subjected

to racial harassment and unjust imprisonment without evidence of
wrongdoing or access to lawyers.

The COINTELPRO program is indicative of the government's "respect" for
the right of speech and political action for those who struggle for true
freedom for the colonized inhabitants of the United States, as well as
those who are colonized abroad: If our dissent threatens to bring about
the changes we seek, we're "fair game" for its policies of
"neutralization"." Let's enforce our right of speech and dissent by
coming together to *set the captives free.*

Join us on Friday April 16 2004 (7pm - 11pm) for an evening of cultural
edutainment with special musical guests Dead Prez, The Foundation, VCR,
Blackout Boston, Iyeoka Ivie Okoawo, FTP, Reflect & Strengthen, Curtis
King, Simon & Wagner, and PRESENTE!

And Join us on Saturday April 17 all day (9am - 5pm) for workshops on
Political Prisoners, Prisoners of War, and Racially Profiled Detainees
in the U.S with Pam Africa (MOVE), Fred Hampton, Jr., Linda Evans,
Russell Shoates, III, Netdahe Williams, Rod Coronado, Mike Duan, (South
Asian

Coalition,) Rawan Barakat, (New England Committee to Defend Palestine),
Kamel Bell, Michelle Morales, Soffiyah Elijah, Nancy Murray (Patriot Act
& Homeland Security), Prof. Robert Hall, Nalda Vigezzi (The Cuban 5) and
Jean Day and Marquetta Peltier.

Both events will occur at Lipke Auditorium, UMASS Boston campus.
accessible by red line subway, JFK/UMASS stop.

Cost: $15 for Friday Concert, $10 for Saturday Conference, $20 for both
days.

KIDS 15 AND UNDER GET IN FREE.

No one will be turned away from the Conference for lack of funds.

Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email:

freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com

Sponsored by the Boston Coalition to Free Political Prisoners in the
U.S., the Joiner Center, The Jericho Movement, Mobarezeh Collective,
Boston Area Leonard Peltier Support Group, Leonard Peltier Defense
Committee, Int'l Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu Jamal, AFSC,
and PRESENTE!

PRESENTE! is a poetry and theatre collective that for the past three
years has been conducting artistic performances calling attention to the
plight of Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War held within the
borders of the United States. Many of these prisoners have been
incarcerated for waging struggle against the U.S. Government's
colonialist and racist policies here and abroad. They are leaders and
combatants for Puerto Rican Independence, Native American rights, Black
Liberation; some are North American Anti-Imperialists who interfered
with their government's ability to wage war around the world. Some are
of Arab and Moslem backgrounds, recent targets of "Homeland Security's"
policies of racial profiling and disappearances, which are implemented
to silence the most critical voices of protest against colonialism and
genocide in the Middle East.

Many of these prisoners have been handed down sentences which amount to
life imprisonment -- sentences that are a great deal more severe than
what is often imposed on child molesters, rapists, and racists who
engage in hate crimes. Some, like the Arab and Moslem detainees have
been subject to indefinite incarceration, without charges, the benefit
of counsel, or access to their loved ones. Others,

like Mumia Abu Jamal, are on death row.

The responses of those who have seen our performances have been very
positive. We have come to the conclusion however that our efforts are
wasted if they do not yield the result of active and massive organizing
to seek these prisoners' release from captivity.

It is in the interest of transforming our artistic work into concrete
action that would be useful in securing these prisoners' release, that
we have decided to organize a Set the Captives Free Conference in
Boston. We hope to bring together people from the communities the
prisoners represent, as well as organizers and activists. Our goal is to
acquaint those who still don't know of them with their history and
plight, and develop strategies that will lead to their long overdue exit
from prison.

Info and tickets: 617 - 288 - 1433 email:

freedomnow20042000@yahoo.com

*************************************************************

2. . CAMILO VIVIEROS ACQUITTED OF ALL CHARGES

Camilo Vivieros, housing advocate and tireless worker for peace and
social justice who was illegally arrested at the GOP national convention
in Philadelphia and faced a prison sentence of up to 30 years, was
acquitted today of all charges, following a massive letter-writing and
lobbying campaign of concerned citizens in RI and around New England and
the country.

This news just came to me this afternoon in a brief phone call, so I'm
sure that the details of the case and the ruling will be out soon. In
the meantime, this is a triumph and is a cause for joy... Peace to you
all. Molly

Three protesters are acquitted of criminal charges By Linda K. Harris
Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer Friends and family of three men
saddled with criminal charges for more than three years following the
Republican National Convention wept openly in court today after the
three were acquitted of all charges.

To read the article

http://www.waste.org/~roadrunner/writing/camilo/main.htm

*************************************************************

Subject: Letter to Northwest Congressional representatives

on pending FBI misconduct Hearings

Date: Tue, 6 Apr 2004 10:54:47 -0400

From: info@leonardpeltier.org

Please post widely

Important sign on letter for Northwest (And All) supporters of Leonard
Peltier.

This letter will go to all Northwest Congress people and to all members
of the Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. Please
sign on at the bottom of the letter and return it to: <
mailto:bayou@blarg.net> bayou@blarg.net. Thank
you for your support.

Arthur J. Miller

Tacoma LPSG Dear Congressperson (We will place the different names

here):

In November 2003, it was reported by the media that the Committee on the
Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives, plans to hold hearings into
the misuse of informants by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Pursuant to this, during the week of March 22, 2004, a group of civil
rights attorneys submitted a formal request to the Committee for not
only this purpose, but calling for the completion of investigations
begun by the Church Committee in the 1970s.

As you may recall, the Church Committee reported in 1976 that the goals
of the COunter INTELligence PROgrams of the period from 1956 to the
mid-1970s were to "expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise
neutralize" those persons or organizations that the FBI decided were
"enemies of the State." Although the FBI's COINTELPRO programs
officially ended in 1971, there have been many examples of
counterintelligence-type operations against political dissidents since.

The most notable exclusion from the list of dissident groups targeted by
the FBI and investigated by the Church Committee was the American Indian
Movement (AIM) - an Indigenous rights group founded in 1968 and
committed to uniting all Native Peoples in an effort to uplift their
communities, promote cultural pride, and ensure tribal sovereignty we
feel that a full investigation of official misconduct against AIM is
long overdue. Specifically, I recommend that the Committee investigate:

1. The FBI's use of informants and agent provocateurs against AIM from
1968 to the present.

2. The FBI's role in the Pine Ridge "Reign of Terror" (1973-1976), a
place and time where the annual murder rate was 170 per 100,000, far
exceeding the rate for Detroit (the reputed "murder capital of the
United States") of 20.2 in 1974. The political murder rate at the Pine
Ridge Indian Reservation during this time was roughly equivalent to that

in Chile during the three years after the military coup that deposed
President Salvador Allende.

3. Official misconduct across the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in
the case of Native American activist Leonard Peltier. The investigation

should include:

A.. Violation of international law, provision by the FBI and federal
prosecutors of false affidavits to Canadian authorities to secure
Peltier's extradition.

B. Fabrication of evidence and intimidation of witnesses by the FBI to
secure a conviction at Peltier's trial.

C. FBI interference in Peltier's parole proceedings and his petition for
Executive Clemency.

D. The disposition of the Ethics Complaint concerning the Peltier case,
filed in 2000 with the DOJ.

4. Actions on the part of the FBI and government prosecutors in 2004 to
use court proceedings and, by extension, the media to intentionally
provide as fact, false information to the public on AIM and Leonard
Peltier. This has the effect of rewriting history with regard to AIM, in
general, and Leonard Peltier, in particular, so as to prejudice the
public against them. These actions have been taken to influence the
outcome of pending federal prosecutions by potentially poisoning the
jury pool, as well as preventing Peltier's release on parole in 2008.

Why should Congress act now? On May 30, 2002, Attorney General Ashcroft
effectively abolished restrictions first imposed (as a result of the
Church Committee's findings) in 1976 on FBI surveillance of Americans'
everyday lives. These regulations specifically were developed to counter
the COINTELPRO domestic spying program that had led to massive civil
rights era abuses during the 1960s and 1970s. Now, these restrictions no
longer exist

- and such abuses are repeating themselves.

The work first undertaken by the Church Committee will be complete, only

if a full investigation of the intelligence operation launched by the
FBI against AIM is conducted, as the Committee had intended to do in
1975. We are asking you to support such an action on the part of the
Committee on the Judiciary of either the U.S. House of Representatives
or the U.S. Senate (or both). We trust that such hearings will
ultimately lead to a substantial increase in congressional oversight of
FBI domestic security investigations, as well as legislation designed to

ensure protection of fundamental rights for all Americans.

We understand that the aforementioned attorneys offered to the Committee

documentation of and witness testimony on official misconduct with
respect to AIM and Mr. Peltier. If you would like to obtain further
information, please contact: Barry Bachrach, Attorney at Law, Bowditch &
Dewey, 311 Main Street, Worcester, MA 01615-0156; also by telephone at

(508) 926-3403 or by E-mail: bbachrach@bowditch.com. We wish you

success with this endeavor and trust that your subsequent actions will
prevent the reoccurrence of such egregious misconduct. We look forward
to hearing from you soon concerning your efforts towards that end.

Sincerely,

Arthur J. Miller

Co-Coordinator

Tacoma Leonard Peltier Support Group

Member:

Ship Builder's Industrial Union 320

UA Local 26

Tacoma, WA

Sign on here (below)

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To subscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-on@mail-list.com
To unsubscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-off@mail-list.com
To change your email address, send a message to lpdc-change@mail-list.com
with your old address in the Subject: line

To unsubscribe, click on the following web page.
http://cgi.mail-list.com/u?ln=lpdc&nm=lcarnal@sfwmd.gov

This message was launched into cyberspace to lcarnal@sfwmd.gov
begin:vcard
n:Carnal;Laura
tel;work:561-682-6982
x-mozilla-html:FALSE
adr:;;;;;;
version:2.1
email;internet:lcarnal@sfwmd.gov
fn:Laura Carnal
end:vcard

www.feedyourheadshop.com

Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th

Yahoo! Groups Sponsor

Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pbpeace/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: pbpeace-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.
--0-679322512-1081815344=:36984-- --EXCITEBOUNDARY_000__41cf68de3cd302ba31133758d9c2c3a3-- From Tim Sullivan" Hello all - If you'll be at the HOPE Festival or BIW gathering this Saturday, April 17th, I'd like to invite you to come to the Maine Greens Celebration Dinner afterwards at 6pm, at the Lewiston Ramada. This dinner is open to all - not just registered Maine Greens - to join us in celebrating 20 years of the Green movement here in Maine, and the 5th year anniversary of the Maine Green Independent Party. Cost of the dinner is $35, with a sliding scale of $20-50 based on ability to pay. If you prefer to not eat at the Ramada, but would like to join in the celebration, the suggested donation is $10 - but no one will be turned away for lack of funds. Please email info@mainegreens.org to let us know if you would like to attend. For more information on the dinner and Convention, go to: http://www.sullboat.com/mainegreens/2004_convention.htm Thanks, Tim From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nancy Galland" Reminder: Open Public Forum on the Impacts of LNG's on Fisheries Sunday, April 18th, 2PM Troy Howard Middle School, Belfast Rte. 52 Jim Merryman and other Harpswell Fishermen will present their reasons for opposing an LNG Terminal in their town. Ron Huber of CoastWatch will present his research on the impacts of the tanker route on the lobster fisheries of Penobscot Bay. Local lobstermen will present their reasons for opposing an LNG facility and infrastructure. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Tue Apr 13 22:24:28 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 14:24:28 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] BUSH OFFICIAL SAID TO HAVE NAMED ISRAELI SECURITY AS A REASON FOR WAR Message-ID: <20040413212428.50875.qmail@web40306.mail.yahoo.com> This article is from an Association of Former Intelligence Officers newsletter BUSH OFFICIAL SAID TO HAVE NAMED ISRAELI SECURITY AS A REASON FOR WAR Iraq under Saddam Hussein did not pose a threat to the United States, but it did to Israel, which is one reason why Washington invaded the Arab country, according to Philip Zelikow, member of a top-level White House intelligence group, according to the Inter Press Service. IPS reports Zelikow, now the executive director of the 9/11 commission, said so in remarks he made at the University of Virginia on September 10, 2002 when he participated in a panel of foreign policy experts assessing the impact of 9/11 and the future of the war on al-Qa'ida. The Bush administration has never drawn a link between its war on Iraq and concern for Israel's security. The administration has insisted the war was launched to liberate the Iraqi people, destroy Iraqi WMD and protect the United States. At the time Zelikow took part in the foreign policy panel, he was a member of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. He served on the board from 2001 to 2003. "Why would Iraq attack America or use nuclear weapons against us? I'll tell you what I think the real threat [is] and actually has been since 1990 -- it's the threat against Israel," Zelikow said, according to IPS. "And this is the threat that dare not speak its name, because the Europeans don't care deeply about that threat, I will tell you frankly. And the American government doesn't want to lean too hard on it rhetorically, because it is not a popular sell." Zelikow told the university audience that a threat to Israel came from Baghdad preparing in 1990-91 to develop means of overcoming effects of a nuclear explosion that could sever radio, electronic and electrical communications. That, IPS reports him saying, was "a perfectly absurd expenditure unless you were going to ride out a nuclear exchange." Saddam was preparing for a nuclear exchange with the Israelis, according to Zelikow. He also suggested biological weapons falling into the hands of Hamas would threaten Israel rather than the US, and that those weapons could have been developed. Brent Scowcroft, national security adviser to President George H. W. Bush, is the current PFIAB chairman. Neither he nor Zelikow returned telephone calls and e-mail message, IPS says. Before his appointment to PFIAB, Zelikow was on George W. Bush's transition team in January 2001. His ties to the administration provoked accusations of a conflict of interest when he was appointed chairman of the commission in 2002 from families of 9/11 victims. Nathan Brown, professor of political science at George Washington University and an expert on the Middle East, downplayed the Israel link to IPS. "In terms of securing Israel, it doesn't make sense to me because the Israelis are probably more concerned about Iran than they were about Iraq in terms of the long-term strategic threat." ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Tue Apr 13 22:36:51 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 14:36:51 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] When U.S. Aided Insurgents, Did It Breed Future Terrorists? Message-ID: <20040413213651.65593.qmail@web40312.mail.yahoo.com> When I was a little boy, I was taught not to pee into the wind. More Republican boys should be taught that. When U.S. Aided Insurgents, Did It Breed Future Terrorists? By HUGH EAKIN ***** The New York Times, April 10, 2004***** Mahmood Mamdani, _Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror_: Mahmood Mamdani: In the varied explanations for the 9/11 attacks and the rise in terrorism, two themes keep recurring. One is that Islamic culture itself is to blame, leading to a clash of civilizations, or, as more nuanced versions have it, a struggle between secular-minded and fundamentalist Muslims that has resulted in extremist violence against the West. The second is that terrorism is a feature of the post-cold-war landscape, belonging to an era in which international relations are no longer defined by the titanic confrontation between two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. But in the eyes of Mahmood Mamdani, a Uganda-born political scientist and cultural anthropologist at Columbia University, both those assumptions are wrong. Not only does he argue that terrorism does not necessarily have anything to do with Islamic culture; he also insists that the spread of terror as a tactic is largely an outgrowth of American cold war foreign policy. After Vietnam, he argues, the American government shifted from a strategy of direct intervention in the fight against global Communism to one of supporting new forms of low-level insurgency by private armed groups. "In practice," Mr. Mamdani has written, "it translated into a United States decision to harness, or even to cultivate, terrorism in the struggle against regimes it considered pro-Soviet." The real culprit of 9/11, in other words, is not Islam but rather non-state violence in general, during the final stages of the stand-off with the Soviet Union. Using third and fourth parties, the C.I.A. supported terrorist and proto-terrorist movements in Indochina, Latin America, Africa and, of course, Afghanistan, he argues in his new book, "Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War and the Roots of Terror" (Pantheon). "The real damage the C.I.A. did was not the providing of arms and money," he writes, " but the privatization of information about how to produce and spread violence - the formation of private militias - capable of creating terror." The best-known C.I.A.-trained terrorist, he notes dryly, is Osama bin Laden. Other recent accounts have examined the ways in which American support for the mujahedeen in the 1980's helped pave the way for Islamic terrorism in the 90's. But Mr. Mamdani posits a new - and far more controversial - thesis by connecting the violent strain of Islam to a broader American strategy. "Mahmood's argument is that terrorism is a defining characteristic of the last phase of the cold war," said Robert Meister, a political scientist at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who has followed Mr. Mamdani's work for three decades. He added, "It was a characteristic that took on, especially in Africa, a logic of its own, a logic that eventually broke free of the geopolitics that started it." In a telephone interview from Kampala, Uganda, where he has a second home, Mr. Mamdani explained, "What I have in mind is the policy of proxy war." As his book recounts, the African continent became a major front in the cold war after the rapid decolonization of the 1960's and 70's gave rise to a number of nationalist movements influenced by Marxist-Leninist principles. For the United States, caught in the wave of antiwar feeling set off by Vietnam, the only way to roll back this process was to give indirect support to violent new right-wing groups. Mr. Mamdani asserts, for example, that the United States policy of constructive engagement with apartheid in South Africa helped sustain two proto-terrorist organizations - Unita, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, and Renamo, the Mozambican National Resistance - that were armed and trained by the South African Defense Force. Renamo became what Mr. Mamdani calls Africa's "first genuine terrorist movement," a privatized outfit that unleashed random violence against civilians without any serious pretension to national power. In the 1980's, Mr. Mamdani argues, the American use of proxy forces became increasingly overt. "What had begun as a very pragmatic policy under Kissinger was ideologized by the Reagan administration in highly religious terms, as a fight to the finish against the `Evil Empire,' " Mr. Mamdani said. Drawing on the same strategy used in Africa, the United States supported the Contras in Nicaragua and then created, on a grand scale, a pan-Islamic front to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. Whereas other Islamic movements, like the Iranian revolution, had clear nationalist aims, the Afghan jihad, Mr. Mamdani suggests, was created by the United States as a privatized and ideologically stateless resistance force. A result, he writes, was "the formation of an international cadre of uprooted individuals who broke ties with family and country of origin to join clandestine networks with a clearly defined enemy." According to Mr. Mamdani, the strategy of proxy warfare continued even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, as the United States looked for new ways to sponsor low-intensity conflicts against militantly nationalist regimes. In a final section on the current conflict in Iraq, the book suggests that it, much more than the end of the cold war in 1989, closed the "era of proxy warfare" in American foreign policy. Scholars familiar with the book say that Mr. Mamdani's account of the late cold war, and its emphasis on Africa in particular, is likely to be disdained by specialists on Islam, some of whom are criticized by name in the opening chapter. "The book is most original in the skewer it puts through what Mamdani calls the `culture talk' that has substituted for serious explanations of political Islam," said Timothy Mitchell, a political scientist at New York University. "Scholar-pundits like Bernard Lewis and Fouad Ajami tell us that the culture of Muslims or Arabs cannot cope with modernity. Mamdani shows us that the origins of political Islam are themselves modern, and, in fact, largely secular." But John L. Esposito, a Georgetown University expert on political Islam, warns that an attempt to explain Islamic terrorism through international politics alone risks the same flaw as the cultural approach. "To say it's simply politics, without taking into account religion, misses the causes behind a lot of these conflicts, just as the reverse misses them," he said. "It's religion and politics together." Mr. Mamdani's unusual perspective is partly a result of his own experience in Africa. A third-generation East African of Indian descent, Mr. Mamdani, 57, grew up in the final years of colonial Uganda. "Idi Amin was my first experience of terror, and I understood how a demagogue could ride a wave of popular resentment," Mr. Mamdani said, recalling how he and other Asians were expelled in 1972. After completing a Ph.D. at Harvard in 1974, he took a faculty position at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, at the time a hotbed of radical African politics. Among his colleagues were the future Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, as well as Laurent Kabila, the future president of Congo, and Ernest Wamba dia Wamba, leader of one of the revolutionary factions against Kabila. Mr. Mamdani returned to Uganda during the civil war that ousted Amin and took a deanship at the national university in Kampala, where he became a leading expert on agrarian administration and its relation to post-colonial unrest. Often outspoken against the Ugandan government, he was exiled a second time in 1985, during another civil war. In the late 1980's, he led a Ugandan commission on local government; later he taught at the University of Cape Town in South Africa during the tumultuous early years after apartheid. His previous book, "When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism and the Genocide in Rwanda," sought to overturn the view that those atrocities had deep tribal roots. Much of the Hutu-Tutsi ethnic rivalry, he argued, could be traced to the colonial period. (The Belgians had introduced and enforced Hutu and Tutsi racial identities in a segregated social system.) Mr. Mamdani, who now directs Columbia's Institute for African Studies, lives in New York and Kampala with his wife, the Indian filmmaker Mira Nair, and their son. To understand political Islam, Mr. Mamdani says Africa's experience is instructive. "Africa is seen as exceptional, as not even part of the rest of the world," he said. "But on the contrary, it's an illuminating vantage point." ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html From stevbee@midcoast.com Wed Apr 14 01:08:14 2004 From: stevbee@midcoast.com (Steve Burke) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 19:08:14 -0500 Subject: [Megan] Sam Webb visits Maine Message-ID: --============_-1130221020==_ma============ Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" > >Delivered-To: stevbee@midcoast.com >Reply-To: "W.T.Whitney Jr." > > This forward is from Tom Whitney, give him a call for more info...S > >Sam Webb visits Maine > >Sam Webb, the National Chairperson of the Communist Party, USA will >be visiting in Maine from Wednesday, April 15 through Friday, April >16. There will be several opportunities to hear him speak, to ask >questions, and to meet him. Webb grew up in Maine and was a labor >activist for many years in Maine, Ohio and Michigan. He was elected >to his present position five years ago. He will explore the >prospects of socialism in our present era of empire and offer some >historical reflections. > >Wednesday, April 14 > >University of Maine, Farmington, early afternoon, student symposium, >for location, call (207) 743-2183. >At 7:30 P.M. radio interview WMPG, Portland >Thursday, April 15, > >P.M. luncheon meeting, Memorial Union, University of Maine, Orono, >followed by presentation at 12:30 P.M., Bangor Lounge, Memorial >Union. >4:30 P.M. University of Southern Maine, Lewiston-Auburn College, 51 >Westminster St, Lewiston, Maine. Go to Room 169. >Friday, April 16, 2004, > >Noon - Luncheon gathering, home of Carolyn Chute, East Parsonsfield, Maine >5:00 P.M. Cummings Center, 134 Congress St, Portland, Maine. Food >and Refreshments followed by Sam Webb speaking at 6:00 P.M. >Sam Webb sees an acceleration of rule by corporations and the power >of money. Our job now, he says, is to turn back the most dangerous >manifestations of a worldwide, aggressive right wing assault on the >weakest and most vulnerable of us. Whatever puts the needs of people >before profits is on Webb's present agenda. The first job, of >course, is to defeat George W. Bush in November. A big part of >socialism is the fight for fairness and decency in the here and now. > >But there is more. Webb calls for unity: a coming together of >working people, racially oppressed peoples, the marginalized and >expendable, along with intellectuals and professionals. They join a >long and continuing struggle for human survival and the environment. >That is socialism too: learning about each other, building alliances >over years and decades, struggling for social and economic justice. >Webb believes that what is at stake now is the cause of humanity >itself. No wonder then that Marxists are internationalists. > >Sam Webb will undoubtedly discuss contemporary strategies for >resistance, also recent examples of imperial excess, particularly in >Haiti, Venezuela, and Cuba. Shaped by long experience in left >politics, Webb and his Party have been witnesses to history. He is >the person to ask about the future of socialism, of capitalism, the >legacies of McCarthyism and Stalinism, and the special importance of >anti-racist struggle. > >For information, call Tom Whitney at (207) 743- 2183 > > > --============_-1130221020==_ma============ Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" Sam Webb visits Maine

Delivered-To: stevbee@midcoast.com

Reply-To: "W.T.Whitney Jr." <atwhit@megalink.net>

This forward is from Tom Whitney, give him a call for more info...S

Sam Webb visits Maine

Sam Webb, the National Chairperson of the Communist Party, USA will be visiting in Maine from Wednesday, April 15 through Friday, April 16. There will be several opportunities to hear him speak, to ask questions, and to meet him. Webb grew up in Maine and was a labor activist for many years in Maine, Ohio and Michigan. He was elected to his present position five years ago. He will explore the prospects of socialism in our present era of empire and offer some historical reflections.

Wednesday, April 14

University of Maine, Farmington, early afternoon, student symposium, for location, call (207) 743-2183.
At 7:30 P.M. radio interview WMPG, Portland

Thursday, April 15,

P.M. luncheon meeting, Memorial Union, University of Maine, Orono, followed by presentation at 12:30 P.M., Bangor Lounge, Memorial Union.
4:30 P.M. University of Southern Maine, Lewiston-Auburn College, 51 Westminster St, Lewiston, Maine. Go to Room 169.

Friday, April 16, 2004,

Noon - Luncheon gathering, home of Carolyn Chute, East Parsonsfield, Maine
5:00 P.M. Cummings Center, 134 Congress St, Portland, Maine. Food and Refreshments followed by Sam Webb speaking at 6:00 P.M.

Sam Webb sees an acceleration of rule by corporations and the power of money. Our job now, he says, is to turn back the most dangerous manifestations of a worldwide, aggressive right wing assault on the weakest and most vulnerable of us. Whatever puts the needs of people before profits is on Webb's present agenda. The first job, of course, is to defeat George W. Bush in November. A big part of socialism is the fight for fairness and decency in the here and now.

But there is more. Webb calls for unity: a coming together of working people, racially oppressed peoples, the marginalized and expendable, along with intellectuals and professionals. They join a long and continuing struggle for human survival and the environment. That is socialism too: learning about each other, building alliances over years and decades, struggling for social and economic justice. Webb believes that what is at stake now is the cause of humanity itself. No wonder then that Marxists are internationalists.

Sam Webb will undoubtedly discuss contemporary strategies for resistance, also recent examples of imperial excess, particularly in Haiti, Venezuela, and Cuba. Shaped by long experience in left politics, Webb and his Party have been witnesses to history. He is the person to ask about the future of socialism, of capitalism, the legacies of McCarthyism and Stalinism, and the special importance of anti-racist struggle.

For information, call Tom Whitney at (207) 743- 2183

--============_-1130221020==_ma============-- From Tim Sullivan" http://news.mainetoday.com/home.shtml Today's Question Do you think the President should have apologized or admitted mistakes were made? The Bush Speech President Bush gave a press conference last night and said he is ready to increase American troop strength in Iraq. While some praised the President, others said he should have admitted that his administration made mistakes both in Iraq and in interpreting pre-September 11 intelligence. Do you think the President should have apologized or admitted mistakes were made? Yes - he should apologize No - he hasn't made any mistakes http://news.mainetoday.com/home.shtml From cjfindei@colby.edu Wed Apr 14 16:57:09 2004 From: cjfindei@colby.edu (Carolyn J. Findeisen) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 11:57:09 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Sherman Alexie visits Colby In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.0.20040414115023.00b459d8@pop.colby.edu> --=====================_47539347==.REL Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="=====================_47539347==.ALT" --=====================_47539347==.ALT Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed >This Sunday, April 18, Sherman Alexie will be visiting Colby College at 7 >PM in Page Commons. The event is open to the public (free!), and should be >amazing. Below are the official press release and directions to campus.... "Native American poet, author and screenwriter Sherman Alexie will deliver the lecture: "Without Reservations...An Urban Indian's Comic, Poetic, and Highly Irrelevant Look at the World." This event is open to the public and free of charge. A book signing will follow the lecture. Page Commons Room, Cottor Union. 7pm. 2d55e79.jpg "Alexie, a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, Wash. He has published 16 books to date, including "The Business of Fancydancing" a collection of poetry, which was named a 1992 Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times Book Review. His most recent collection of short stories, "Ten Little Indians", is a finalist for the 2003 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Fiction. His novel "Indian Killer" was a 1996 New York Times Notable Book of the Year. The New Yorker has named Alexie one of the top 20 writers for the 21st Century. "Alexie directed and wrote the screenplay for the 2002 film, "The Business of Fancydancing", which won several grand jury and audience awards at gay and lesbian film festivals. He also wrote the screenplay for the 1998 film "Smoke Signals", which recieved the Sundance Film Festival's Audience Award and Filmakers Trophy and a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay. 2d56014.jpg "Alexie blends his experience and creativity into thought-provoking, humorous and outrageous works of art, compelling his audiences to see the world for all of its pitfalls and its possibilities." To get to Colby and Page Commons....follow directions to Colby from exit 127 off Route 95. Once on campus, look for a sign for Cotter Union (the road is just to the left of the academic quad. Once inside the union, Page is the only large auditorium-like room. --=====================_47539347==.ALT Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii"

This Sunday, April 18, Sherman Alexie will be visiting Colby College at 7 PM in Page Commons. The event is open to the public (free!), and should be amazing.

Below are the official press release and directions to campus....

"Native American poet, author and screenwriter Sherman Alexie will deliver the lecture: "Without Reservations...An Urban Indian's Comic, Poetic, and Highly Irrelevant Look at the World." This event is open to the public and free of charge. A book signing will follow the lecture. Page Commons Room, Cottor Union. 7pm.

"Alexie, a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, Wash. He has published 16 books to date, including "The Business of Fancydancing" a collection of poetry, which was named a 1992 Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times Book Review. His most recent collection of short stories, "Ten Little Indians", is a finalist for the 2003 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Fiction. His novel "Indian Killer" was a 1996 New York Times Notable Book of the Year. The New Yorker has named Alexie one of the top 20 writers for the 21st Century.

"Alexie directed and wrote the screenplay for the 2002 film, "The Business of Fancydancing", which won several grand jury and audience awards at gay and lesbian film festivals. He also wrote the screenplay for the 1998 film "Smoke Signals", which recieved the Sundance Film Festival's Audience Award and Filmakers Trophy and a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay.

"Alexie blends his experience and creativity into thought-provoking, humorous and outrageous works of art, compelling his audiences to see the world for all of its pitfalls and its possibilities."

To get to Colby and Page Commons....follow directions to Colby from exit 127 off Route 95. Once on campus, look for a sign for Cotter Union (the road is just to the left of the academic quad. Once inside the union, Page is the only large auditorium-like room.
--=====================_47539347==.ALT-- --=====================_47539347==.REL Content-Type: image/jpeg; name="2d55e79.jpg"; x-mac-type="4A504547"; x-mac-creator="4A565752" Content-ID: <5.2.1.1.0.20040414115023.00b459d8@pop.colby.edu.0> Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64 Content-Disposition: inline; filename="2d55e79.jpg" /9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wBDAAEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEB AQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQH/2wBDAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEB AQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQH/wAARCAAEAAEDASIA AhEBAxEB/8QAHwAAAQUBAQEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFBgcICQoL/8QAtRAAAgEDAwIEAwUFBAQA AAF9AQIDAAQRBRIhMUEGE1FhByJxFDKBkaEII0KxwRVS0fAkM2JyggkKFhcYGRolJicoKSo0NTY3 ODk6Q0RFRkdISUpTVFVWV1hZWmNkZWZnaGlqc3R1dnd4eXqDhIWGh4iJipKTlJWWl5iZmqKjpKWm p6ipqrKztLW2t7i5usLDxMXGx8jJytLT1NXW19jZ2uHi4+Tl5ufo6erx8vP09fb3+Pn6/8QAHwEA AwEBAQEBAQEBAQAAAAAAAAECAwQFBgcICQoL/8QAtREAAgECBAQDBAcFBAQAAQJ3AAECAxEEBSEx BhJBUQdhcRMiMoEIFEKRobHBCSMzUvAVYnLRChYkNOEl8RcYGRomJygpKjU2Nzg5OkNERUZHSElK U1RVVldYWVpjZGVmZ2hpanN0dXZ3eHl6goOEhYaHiImKkpOUlZaXmJmaoqOkpaanqKmqsrO0tba3 uLm6wsPExcbHyMnK0tPU1dbX2Nna4uPk5ebn6Onq8vP09fb3+Pn6/9oADAMBAAIRAxEAPwD/AD/6 KKKAP//Z --=====================_47539347==.REL Content-Type: image/jpeg; name="2d56014.jpg"; x-mac-type="4A504547"; x-mac-creator="4A565752" Content-ID: <5.2.1.1.0.20040414115023.00b459d8@pop.colby.edu.1> Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64 Content-Disposition: inline; filename="2d56014.jpg" /9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wBDAAEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEB AQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQH/2wBDAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEB AQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQH/wAARCAAEAAEDASIA AhEBAxEB/8QAHwAAAQUBAQEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFBgcICQoL/8QAtRAAAgEDAwIEAwUFBAQA AAF9AQIDAAQRBRIhMUEGE1FhByJxFDKBkaEII0KxwRVS0fAkM2JyggkKFhcYGRolJicoKSo0NTY3 ODk6Q0RFRkdISUpTVFVWV1hZWmNkZWZnaGlqc3R1dnd4eXqDhIWGh4iJipKTlJWWl5iZmqKjpKWm p6ipqrKztLW2t7i5usLDxMXGx8jJytLT1NXW19jZ2uHi4+Tl5ufo6erx8vP09fb3+Pn6/8QAHwEA AwEBAQEBAQEBAQAAAAAAAAECAwQFBgcICQoL/8QAtREAAgECBAQDBAcFBAQAAQJ3AAECAxEEBSEx BhJBUQdhcRMiMoEIFEKRobHBCSMzUvAVYnLRChYkNOEl8RcYGRomJygpKjU2Nzg5OkNERUZHSElK U1RVVldYWVpjZGVmZ2hpanN0dXZ3eHl6goOEhYaHiImKkpOUlZaXmJmaoqOkpaanqKmqsrO0tba3 uLm6wsPExcbHyMnK0tPU1dbX2Nna4uPk5ebn6Onq8vP09fb3+Pn6/9oADAMBAAIRAxEAPwD/AD/6 KKKAP//Z --=====================_47539347==.REL-- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: Sherman will also be visiting the Maine Center for the Arts (MCA) at the UMO campus this Monday, April 19th at 7pm. http://shermanalexie.com/ > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Carolyn J. Findeisen cjfindei@colby.edu > > This Sunday, April 18, Sherman Alexie will be visiting Colby College at 7 PM > in Page Commons. The event is open to the public (free!), and should be > amazing. > > Below are the official press release and directions to campus.... > > "Native American poet, author and screenwriter Sherman Alexie will deliver > the lecture: "Without Reservations...An Urban Indian's Comic, Poetic, and > Highly Irrelevant Look at the World." This event is open to the public and > free of charge. A book signing will follow the lecture. Page Commons Room, > Cottor Union. 7pm. > > "Alexie, a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, grew up on the Spokane Indian > Reservation in Wellpinit, Wash. He has published 16 books to date, including > "The Business of Fancydancing" a collection of poetry, which was named a > 1992 Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times Book Review. His most > recent collection of short stories, "Ten Little Indians", is a finalist for > the 2003 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Fiction. His novel "Indian Killer" > was a 1996 New York Times Notable Book of the Year. The New Yorker has named > Alexie one of the top 20 writers for the 21st Century. > > "Alexie directed and wrote the screenplay for the 2002 film, "The Business > of Fancydancing", which won several grand jury and audience awards at gay > and lesbian film festivals. He also wrote the screenplay for the 1998 film > "Smoke Signals", which recieved the Sundance Film Festival's Audience Award > and Filmakers Trophy and a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for > Best First Screenplay. > > "Alexie blends his experience and creativity into thought-provoking, > humorous and outrageous works of art, compelling his audiences to see the > world for all of its pitfalls and its possibilities." > > To get to Colby and Page Commons....follow directions to Colby from exit 127 > off Route 95. Once on campus, look for a sign for Cotter Union (the road is > just to the left of the academic quad. Once inside the union, Page is the > only large auditorium-like room. From lwill@earthlink.net Thu Apr 15 03:08:15 2004 From: lwill@earthlink.net (Lynne Williams) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 22:08:15 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Aristede Message-ID: DELEGATION OF LAWYERS TO REPORT ON MEETING WITH ARISTIDE Lawyers Investigate Violations of International Law Surrounding de facto Haitian Government Following February Coup On Tuesday, April 13, 2004, a delegation of lawyers representing the National Lawyers Guild, American Association of Jurists, International Association of Democratic Lawyers, National Conference of Black Lawyers, an= d Bureau des Avocats Internationaux met with President Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti and his wife, Mme. Mildred Aristide in Jamaica, where they were granted temporary asylum. Jamaica and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member countries have resisted intense U.S. pressure by calling for an investigation by the United Nations into the circumstances that led to President Aristide=B9s departure from Haiti. The delegation is also investigating apparent violations of international law and the Haitian constitution surrounding the installation of the de facto Haitian governmen= t following the coup of 28-29 February. Representatives of the delegation will hold a press conference on Friday, April 16 at 11am at the National Lawyers Guild, National Office, 143 Madiso= n Avenue, 4th Floor (212-679-5100). There are facts that are not in dispute. President Aristide was popularly elected and obtained an overwhelming majority of the votes in 2000. He was forced out of office as a result of an illegally staged insurgency; the United States refused to defend the legitimate government despite the provisions of the Inter-American Democratic Charter requiring that legitimately elected governments be protected. Aristide and his wife were then flown, under duress, to the Central African Republic by the U.S. military and were held incommunicado for 20 hours. A so-called "resignation letter" claimed to have been signed by Aristide, was then determined by the U.S. State Department=B9s own Creole interpreter to have contained nothing about resignation.=20 The long history of U.S. intervention in the Americas and the disinformatio= n campaign that has emanated from the Bush Administration calls for a close scrutiny of the claims made by the Administration regarding President Aristide=B9s departure. The circumstances surrounding his departure raise man= y questions that have not been adequately answered. The only defense force available to the Haitian government, which had no military, was its police. A shipment of equipment for the police was sent from South Africa and the transport stopped in Jamaica to refuel on Februar= y 28. Before it could arrive in Haiti, the coup had already been executed, as the U.S. refused to assist the legitimate government, except to set into motion the President=B9s departure. Nevertheless, immediately following the coup, U.S. forces were deployed to Haiti, allegedly to restore stability an= d order.=20 The coup in Haiti occurred in the context of the growing movement among African descendants for reparations for centuries of slavery and colonialism. Before the coup, Haiti was asserting its own claim for reparations from France and Citibank. Since France and the U.S. were the principal forces supporting the coup, their motivations are highly suspect. The National Lawyers Guild=B9s delegation to Haiti verified the brutal and indiscriminate repression against the civilian population since the coup. However, the U.S. has closed its borders to Haitian political refugees and the Coast Guard has forced them back, disregarding the imminent danger they face upon forced return to Haiti. From Tim Sullivan" Maine Peace and Justice News http://www.sullboat.com/MEPJ/news.htm The protests roll on - Portland Phoenix, April 15, 2004 What=92s news? - Portland Phoenix, April 15, 2004 Farmers in Maine do without insurance - Waterville Sentinel, April 15, 20= 04 For land bond, popularity pays - Portland Press Herald, April 15, 2004 Offshoring backlash: Maine workers apply for trade-law benefits - Portlan= d Press Herald, April 15, 2004 Senate votes to let loggers negotiate rates collectively - Portland Press Herald, April 15, 2004 Kurds try to be heard as world turns deaf ear - Portland Press Herald, Ap= ril 15, 2004 Farmington sprawl in focus - Waterville Sentinel, April 14, 2004 Extended deployment to Iraq bad for troops, enlistment, Snowe says - Waterville Sentinel, April 14, 2004 Soldier will remain in Iraq a little longer - Lewiston Sun Journal, April 14, 2004 Orono group seeks Patriot Act resolution - Bangor Daily News, April 14, 2= 004 Elephant abuse protest expected in Portland - Bangor Daily News, April 14= , 2004 Consumers investing in local agriculture - Bangor Daily News, April 14, 2= 004 94th MP unit's stay extended 90 days - Portland Press Herald, April 14, 2= 004 Two tribes renew effort to operate Bangor slots - Portland Press Herald, April 14, 2004 Bush has 'shallow' grasp of terrorism, Allen says - Portland Press Herald= , April 14, 2004 New stations debut with shock and rock (Air America) - Portland Press Herald, April 14, 2004 A glimpse into homelessness attempts to dispel its myths - Portland Press Herald, April 14, 2004 From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gretchen D. Noyes-Hull" MOTHERS WITHOUT BORDERS! Third Annual Mother's Day March, Sunday, May 9 in Bath, Maine from 12-2. "Disarm, disarm! We women of one country are too tender of those of another to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs." , Julia Ward Howe called upon Mothers in 1870 ! Assembling on the Woolwich side, we will march across the Bath Bridge and continue on to Library Park for speakers and music. A photographic exhibit of mothers around the world is planned. People from all walks of life will carry signs and banners urging love and non-violence in the resolution of personal differences, in the setting of international policy, and in the protection of our Mother Earth. note: Please plan to park in the Woolwich Post Office lot, or in public parking under the Bath end of the bridge, not those of businesses! We will make carpooling available for your return if you need it! FMI Gretchen Hull Bridges for Peace 563 5416 peacebridges@peacebridges.org Rosalie Tyler Paul handinhand@clinic.net From uppitydisability@hotpop.com Thu Apr 15 20:05:55 2004 From: uppitydisability@hotpop.com (Mike Reynolds) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 15:05:55 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Harkin Urges Reversal of Captioning Decision Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20040415144333.0266e060@pop3.dod.net> Note - this is from Sen Harkins Office - it is real and a direct attack on media and news dissemination for all people - not just the deaf or hard of hearingf - This is the type of story that should be FRONT PAGE news in the alternative media - Or at least mentioned by Democracy Now - urge them to do so. Mike R. > > >From the Office of Senator Harkin > >: > > > >April 13, 2004 > > > >HARKIN URGES REVERSAL OF CAPTIONING DECISION DISALLOWING > >FUNDING FOR CERTAIN PROGRAMING > > > >WASHINGTON-Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), along with Senator > >Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA), today wrote to U.S. Department of > >Education Secretary Rod Paige urging the immediate reversal > >of the Department's decision to disallow funding for > >captioning of nearly 200 television programs. Harkin and > >Kennedy urged Secretary Paige to direct the engagement of a > >fair, consumer-directed process to decide how to best > >allocate these vital funds. > > > >The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) > >requires the Department of Education to distribute funding > >for the captioning of "educational, news and informational" > >programs. In years prior, the Department distributed > >federal funding to captioning agencies and required that > >these agencies create Consumer Advisory Boards to assist in > >selecting what qualifies as "educational, news and > >informational." That process, however, has recently been > >superseded by a list of disapproved programs which was > >compiled by the Department without consumer input. Many > >important entertainment news and sports news programs have > >been disapproved. > > > >"Without access to these news programs, deaf and hard of > >hearing students will be unable to participate in many > >conversations with their peers and unable to understand > >references to sports and popular culture, which are often > >used by teachers to make concepts relevant to youth. The > >disapproval of news shows and other programs also prevents > >deaf parents from reviewing these programs for their > >children - depriving them of many valuable learning > >opportunities," the letter said. > > > >Harkin also expressed concern with the Department of > >Education's claims that it instructed an external panel of > >experts with guidelines regarding which programming met > >their criteria. Harkin wrote, "One of these experts has > >reported to Congress he was not told he was serving on a > >government panel, did not meet other panel members, was not > >informed of the purpose for his input and comments and was > >not given any definitions, written instructions, or > >examples to guide his decisions." > > > >Harkin, whose brother Frank was deaf, authored the ADA in > >the Senate and has led efforts to increase access to > >captioned television programming for individuals with > >disabilities. > > > ># # # > > >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > > >---------- >Yahoo! Groups Links > * To visit your group on the web, go to: > * > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mediatalk/ > > * > * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > * > mediatalk-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com > > * > * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the > Yahoo! Terms of Service. From stevbee@midcoast.com Fri Apr 16 03:31:22 2004 From: stevbee@midcoast.com (Steve Burke) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 21:31:22 -0500 Subject: [Megan] Ellen Mariani coming to Maine Message-ID: --============_-1130039740==_ma============ Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" ELLEN MARIANI COMING TO MAINE 9/11 WIDOW TELLS HER STORY: WANTS TRUTH, NOT COMPENSATION Ellen Mariani, wife of 9/11 victim Neil Mariani of Derry, NH, will explain why she is suing the Bush administration at four public forums here in Maine this month. Neil Mariani was a passenger on United Airlines Flight 175, the second plane to crash into the World Trade Center towers. The couple had booked separate flights to their daughter's wedding in California. Ellen Mariani will share her personal story. Recently, Mrs. Mariani made headlines for refusing to accept settlement money from a government compensation fund for families of victims of 9/11. She refused to take the money because doing so would have prevented her from filing lawsuits against the airlines and the federal government. Mariani is on a mission to find the truth. "It's not about money. I want answers," she said during a telephone interview. "We are living in fear, and it's called orange, yellow, and red. It's also called Homeland Security and the Patriot Act. I'm 100 percent sure that they knew," she said. "I'm challenging the courts, the government, and United Airlines. I want to be able to sleep at night, knowing I did everything in my power to get to the bottom of what happened on September 11, 2001," she said. Phil Berg, Mariani's lawyer from Pennsylvania, hopes to be able to join her for some of the public forums. They will be held as follows: Monday, April 26, 7 PM, at United Church of Christ, 150 Congress St. in Bath. Tuesday, the 27th, 1 PM, University of Maine, Memorial Union Building, Orono. Tuesday, the 27th, 6:30 PM, St.Peter's Episcopal Church, White St., Rockland. Wednesday, April 28, 7 PM, at the Blue Hill Town Hall, Main St., Blue Hill. Admission is free. Voluntary contributions will help with Ellen's legal and travel expenses. Sponsors of the forums include Midcoast Peace and Justice Group, First Universalist Church of Rockland, St Peter's Episcopal Church-Rockland, Peace Studies Program of UMO, the Peninsula and Island Peace and Justice Groups, and Peace Action Maine. Information: 594-1478 (Rockland), 371-2077 (Bath), 348-2511 (Orono/Blue Hill). --============_-1130039740==_ma============ Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" Ellen Mariani coming to Maine

ELLEN MARIANI COMING TO MAINE

9/11 WIDOW TELLS HER STORY: WANTS TRUTH, NOT COMPENSATION

Ellen Mariani, wife of 9/11 victim Neil Mariani of Derry, NH, will explain why she is suing the Bush administration at four public forums here in Maine this month.

Neil Mariani was a passenger on United Airlines Flight 175, the second plane to crash into the World Trade Center towers. The couple had booked separate flights to their daughter's wedding in California. Ellen Mariani will share her personal story.

Recently, Mrs. Mariani made headlines for refusing to accept settlement money from a government compensation fund for families of victims of 9/11. She refused to take the money because doing so would have prevented her from filing lawsuits against the airlines and the federal government.

Mariani is on a mission to find the truth. "It's not about money. I want answers," she said during a telephone interview. "We are living in fear, and it's called orange, yellow, and red. It's also called Homeland Security and the Patriot Act. I'm 100 percent sure that they knew," she said. "I'm challenging the courts, the government, and United Airlines. I want to be able to sleep at night, knowing I did everything in my power to get to the bottom of what happened on September 11, 2001," she said.

Phil Berg, Mariani's lawyer from Pennsylvania, hopes to be able to join her for some of the public forums. They will be held as follows: Monday, April 26, 7 PM, at United Church of Christ, 150 Congress St. in Bath. Tuesday, the 27th, 1 PM, University of Maine, Memorial Union Building, Orono. Tuesday, the 27th, 6:30 PM, St.Peter's Episcopal Church, White St., Rockland. Wednesday, April 28, 7 PM, at the Blue Hill Town Hall, Main St., Blue Hill. Admission is free. Voluntary contributions will help with Ellen's legal and travel expenses.

Sponsors of the forums include Midcoast Peace and Justice Group, First Universalist Church of Rockland, St Peter's Episcopal Church-Rockland, Peace Studies Program of UMO, the Peninsula and Island Peace and Justice Groups, and Peace Action Maine. Information: 594-1478 (Rockland), 371-2077 (Bath), 348-2511 (Orono/Blue Hill).

--============_-1130039740==_ma============-- From ssternli@gwi.net Fri Apr 16 19:51:48 2004 From: ssternli@gwi.net (Selma Sternlieb) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 14:51:48 -0400 Subject: [Megan] FW: Stripping Away the Myths About Israel and Palestine In-Reply-To: Message-ID: > This message is in MIME format. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. --MS_Mac_OE_3164971908_725503_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit PeaceWorks presents Stripping Away the Myths About Israel and Palestine Video: Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land Discussion follows the video presentation Sunday, April 18, 2004 4 PM Curtis Memorial Library Brunswick "Through its unconditional support of Israel, the American government has become one of the biggest obstacles to achieving peace. Consequently, the struggle for peace and justice in the Middle East will have to be waged here in the United States." --MS_Mac_OE_3164971908_725503_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable FW: Stripping Away the Myths About Israel and Palestine

PeaceWorks presents

Stripping Away the Myths About Israel and Palestine

Video: Peace, Propaganda and the Promi= sed Land
Discussion follows the video presentation

Sunday, April 18, 2004
4 PM
Curtis Memorial Library
Brunswick

"Through its unconditional support of Israel, th= e American government has become one of the biggest obstacles to achieving p= eace. Consequently, the struggle for peace and justice in the Middle East wi= ll have to be waged here in the United States."

--MS_Mac_OE_3164971908_725503_MIME_Part-- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Will Armstrong" CALL TO ACTION!!! Bike to Demilitarize Maine Saturday, May 8, 2004 Resisting Empire With Our Own Two Legs Why Are Military Industrial Complexes Bad for Maine? Traditionally, Maine's largest employer has been manufacturing jobs, but the advent of multinational trade agreements, such as NAFTA and the World Trade Organization, has given these employers the opportunity the outsource these jobs overseas or destroy unionization attempts with threats to move factories to Mexico. As a result, most unionized jobs in Maine are directly linked to munitions production for the Armed Forces. This ride is a chance for Mainers to constructively say NO! to War Profiteering, NO! to Oil Addiction, NO! to Exported Jobs, NO! to U.S. Empire and YES! to Good Jobs, YES! to Clean Energy, YES! to Unions, YES! to Community and YES! to Peace! Where, Why, What? FIRST STOP: BATH IRON WORKS -Owned by General Dynamics, weapons manufacturer -April 17 marked launching of new AEGIS-class Destroyer, with payload of 56 Tomahawk Cruise Missiles, each with destructive power of a nuclear bomb -Rally at 8 AM SECOND STOP: BRUNSWICK NAVAL AIR STATION -Defends Maine's coastal waters from "attack" -Needlessly wastes precious fossil fuels and pollutes the air and water -Rally with Bridges for Peace and a speaker at 9 30 AM THIRD STOP: PORTLAND NBC OFFICES -Biased, pro-war stance evident in reporting -Owned by General Electric, owner of Westinghouse, weapons manufacturer -Protest outside offices at 12 30 PM will feature a fake news broadcast and guerrilla theater FOURTH STOP: SACO GENERAL DYNAMICS PLANT -General Dynamics is a chief supplier of Armerican arms -15 non-violent protesters arrest 4/15/03 for blocking entrance to base and demanding that their tax dollars be spent on education instead of subsidizing murder -Rally at 3 PM featuring a Read-In and chalking FIFTH (AND LAST!) STOP: KENNEBUNKPORT, BUSH'S SUMMER HOME -Need we say more? -Estimated arrival at 6 PM, action to follow after featuring a BOO-IN and hilarious anti-consumer guerrilla theater We invite cyclists, activists, cycling activists, and all others to come and voice your opposition to the economic and militaristic patriarchy of the United States and the presence of military-industrial complexes in Maine. We will provide a biodiesel support vehicle, free medical care, food and water, and a TON OF FUN! We are looking for thru- or partway riders, drivers, media workers, places to stay in Bath and Kennebunkport, snacks, bike experts willing to aid others, bike tools, and local volunteers. We invite and encourage autonomous affinity groups to plan actions at each stop. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Fri Apr 16 21:31:33 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 13:31:33 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] Workers Memorial Day Ceremony Message-ID: <20040416203133.77418.qmail@web40302.mail.yahoo.com> Just a quick reminder/note. The Workers Memorial Day Ceremony will be held at the North Lawn of the State House in Augusta (Rain or Shine) on Wednesday, April 28. The event will start at 11:45am. The Observance Ceremony will be held by the bell on the lawn. Invited speakers: President Ed Gorham, Maine AFL-CIO The Honorable Laura Fortman, Commissioner of Labor The Honorable Robert Duplessie, (D-Westbrook). Moment of Silence at noon, followed by a march to the federal building to remind OSHA that they have put workers at risk by closing the Portland office and moving it to Augusta. For more information, please contact Peter Crockett mlgh@gwi.net ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - File online by April 15th http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html From lwill@earthlink.net Fri Apr 16 11:11:26 2004 From: lwill@earthlink.net (Lynne Williams) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 06:11:26 -0400 Subject: [Megan] NY Protester Trial Ends in Hung Jury Message-ID: This from one of my colleagues in the National Lawyers Guild: Dear Friends: Great news from Ithaca NY. Please forward on. Over the past week or so, I was honored to help four peace activists in Ithaca, "The St. Patrick's 4," in their felony jury trial (along with great local lawyers Joanie Brandon and Kristine Shaw) in state district court. The four Catholic Workers admitted in jury selection that they had gone to the army-marine recruiting center March 17, 2002, and poured their blood all over the lobby and american flag two days before the "shock and awe" invasion of Iraq in an effort to protest the war and to prevent further recruiting for what they said was an unjust and illegal war. They were arrested, spent 4 days in jail and were indicted and charged with felony criminal damage. They agreed in court from the start that they had taken the action of pouring their own blood on the flag and the walls of the recruting center but defended it on the grounds that it was reasonable under international law, the law of justification or necessity, and under moral law. Though the judge refused to allow expert testimony on international law, the war in Iraq, necessity, justification, or the history of civil disobedience, the four defendants were allowed to testify at length about why they thought their action was reasonable. Jury selection was centered on the war in Iraq, the victims in this country and in Iraq, and the direction this country is taking. Passions were extremely high and it took nearly 80 jurors to find 12. After six days of trial and 20 hours of jury deliberation, the 12 person jury was unable to reach a verdict and was irrevocably hung. When the jury reported its conclusions at 9 pm Wednesday night, the courtroom, full of dozens of anti-war supporters, gave them a standing ovation. The prosecution and media were stunned. The judge declared a mistrial and is now entertaining motions to dismiss in the interest of justice. The DA says he will re-prosecute. Best news of all. The reports from the jury are that the vote was 9-3 for acquittal! Thanks for all who shared ideas and jury instructions. I will share the jury instructions in another mailing. Please pass this news on. Bill Quigley 504-861-5591 From ngalland@gwi.net Sun Apr 18 14:54:53 2004 From: ngalland@gwi.net (Nancy Galland) Date: Sun, 18 Apr 2004 09:54:53 -0400 Subject: [Megan] when is a vote not a vote? Message-ID: >WATCHING THE COUNT >REPUBLICANS BOYCOTT HEARING ON E-VOTING >http://www.dissidentvoice.org/April2004/Landes0413.htm > >LYNN LANDES, DISSIDENT VOICE - As the battle over voting machines rages >across the country, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights met on Friday, >April 9th, to examine the "integrity, security and accessibility in the >nation's readiness to vote." Two scientists and four representatives of >civil rights organizations were invited to brief the Commission. But, >before the panelists had a chance to share their views, three Republican >commissioners and one (notably conservative) independent commissioner >walked out, ostensibly over a personnel dispute. But, others are not so >sure. > >It appears that voting technology is a topic that the Republican >leadership wants to tightly control. It is without doubt that >Republicans own most of the companies that manufacture, sell, and >service voting machines. And President Bush and the Republican Congress >appear determined to control and limit oversight of the elections >industry. The Bush Administration has stacked the Election Assistance >Commission with supporters of paperless voting technology, while the >National Institute of Standards and Technology's got walloped with a $22 >million budget cut in fiscal 2004, which means that NIST will have to >cut back substantially on its cyber security work, as well as completely >stop all work on voting technology for the Help America Vote Act. With >no mandatory federal standards or certification in place and no funding >available, the Bush Administration and Republican-controlled Congress >have ensured that their friends in the elections industry maintain >control of voting technology and, in effect, election results. > From invert@acadia.net Sun Apr 18 10:51:54 2004 From: invert@acadia.net (Larry Dansinger) Date: Sun, 18 Apr 2004 09:51:54 +0000 Subject: [Megan] Maine meeting for Boston Social Forum Message-ID: <20040418154736.PDRZ27885.mta1@[142.167.32.98]> > THIS MESSAGE IS IN MIME FORMAT. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. --MS_Mac_OE_3165126722_412916_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Dear Friends, Here's an announcement about the meeting on May 8 I hope you will be interested in. Hope you can spread the word and send this letter to anyone who you think might be interested in coming. Larry Dear Friends, You are invited to a meeting to learn about the Boston Social Forum, to find out about the benefits of having people from Maine, especially those working for a better economy and more egalitarian society, attend the Boston Social Forum event, and to decide on whether it would also help our movement for social change to have a followup event in Maine. The meeting will be on Saturday, May 8 at 1:30 PM at the Mediation and Facilitation Resources building, 11 King St., Augusta (directions below). Here is some background: The World Social Forum has met four times in Brazil and India to understand the problems of our economy and society, to learn about successful alternatives, and to recognize that "Another World Is Possible" (the slogan of the World Social Forum). The WSF is not an organization; it is a gathering. Thousands have attended these events, including some from Maine. Following up on these gatherings, one is now planned in Boston on July 23-25, 2004, called the Boston Social Forum (BSF), to hear about and discuss ways to change our economy and society. It is a structure to help us see what's possible and necessary to create a peaceful, just, and environmentally sustainable world. There are many models from other countries that could work in the US and in Maine as well. If many people from Maine attend the Boston Social Forum, we hope that we can bring back the excitement and vision of successful alternatives to Maine as well. The goals of the May 8 meeting are: *To introduce what the Boston Social Forum will be and what it can accomplish *To encourage Maine people to attend the BSF *To think about whether a social forum in Maine would be a good idea and, if so, how we might prepare for that before the BSF Susie Husted of Kittery has been very active in the organizing of the BSF. She will describe a little about the BSF at the May 8 meeting. Others who are planning to be involved will also attend and talk about what they hope will happen at the event and with a followup in Maine. We hope you and others from your organization will come on May 8 to add your voices to the mix of ideas of how "another world is possible" and can happen in Maine. The WSF has been a very diverse gathering--many more poor people than wealthy, many women, youth, people from different racial groups, people with disabilities, gay/lesbian/bisxual/transgender, and various religious and spiritual groups represented. We want this meeting to be diverse as well, since our success in making these ideas a reality in Maine will depend on a lot of Maine people adopting them. I hope you will come to the May 8 meeting. If you have questions, please call me or email me. Larry Dansinger, PO Box 776, Monroe, ME 04951. 525-7776, invert@acadia.net. You can also call Susie Husted at 451-9724 or Matt Schlobohm at 946-4478. Directions to Mediation and Facilitation Resources, 11 King St., Augusta. King Street is a small side street off State Street about 3 blocks south of the Maine State Capitol Building in Augusta. >From I-95 north or south or Route 202 west (Winthrop, Lewiston): Take exit 109A (Augusta) to Western Ave. or take Route 202 east to Western Ave. in Augusta. Follow Western Ave. to the traffic circle and take the first right onto State St. (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capitol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza onto King Street. Go 1/2 block. >From the east (Downeast, Belfast, Rockland, Wiscasset): Take Route 3 or Route 17 or Route 27 to Augusta to the traffic circle on the east side of the river. Go through the traffic circle and across the bridge to the traffic circle on the west side. Go 3/4 of the way around the circle until you get to State Street (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capitol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza onto King Street. Go 1/2 block. --MS_Mac_OE_3165126722_412916_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable Maine meeting for Boston Social Forum Dear Friends,

Here's an announcement about the meeting on May 8 I hope you will be intere= sted in. Hope you can spread the word and send this letter to anyone who you= think might be interested in coming.

Larry

Dear Friends,

You are invited to a meeting to learn about th= e Boston Social Forum, to find out about the benefits of having people from = Maine, especially those working for a better economy and more egalitarian so= ciety, attend the Boston Social Forum event, and to decide on whether it wou= ld also help our movement for social change to have a followup event in Main= e. The meeting will be on Saturday, May 8 at 1:30 PM at the Mediation and Fa= cilitation Resources building, 11 King St., Augusta (directions below).

Here is some background: The World Social Foru= m has met four times in Brazil and India to understand the problems of our e= conomy and society, to learn about successful alternatives, and to recognize= that "Another World Is Possible" (the slogan of the World Social = Forum). The WSF is not an organization; it is a gathering. Thousands have at= tended these events, including some from Maine.

Following up on these gatherings, one is now p= lanned in Boston on July 23-25, 2004, called the Boston Social Forum (BSF), = to hear about and discuss ways to change our economy and society. It is a st= ructure to help us see what's possible and necessary to create a peaceful, j= ust, and environmentally sustainable world. There are many models from other= countries that could work in the US and in Maine as well.

If many people from Maine attend the Boston So= cial Forum, we hope that we can bring back the excitement and vision of succ= essful alternatives to Maine as well.
The goals of the May 8 meeting are:
*To introduce what the Boston Social Forum will be and what it can accompli= sh
*To encourage Maine people to attend the BSF
*To think about whether a social forum in Maine would be a good idea and, i= f so, how we might prepare for that before the BSF

Susie Husted of Kittery has been very active i= n the organizing of the BSF. She will describe a little about the BSF at the= May 8 meeting. Others who are planning to be involved will also attend and = talk about what they hope will happen at the event and with a followup in Ma= ine.

We hope you and others from your organization = will come on May 8 to add your voices to the mix of ideas of how "anoth= er world is possible" and can happen in Maine.

The WSF has been a very diverse gathering--man= y more poor people than wealthy, many women, youth, people from different ra= cial groups, people with disabilities, gay/lesbian/bisxual/transgender, and = various religious and spiritual groups represented. We want this meeting to = be diverse as well, since our success in making these ideas a reality in Mai= ne will depend on a lot of Maine people adopting them.

I hope you will come to the May 8 meeting. If = you have questions, please call me or email me.

Larry Dansinger, PO Box 776, Monroe, ME 04951.= 525-7776, invert@acadia.net.
You can also call Susie Husted at 451-9724 or Matt Schlob= ohm at 946-4478.

Directions to Mediation and Facilitation Resou= rces, 11 King St., Augusta. King Street is a small side street off State Str= eet about 3 blocks south of the Maine State Capitol Building in Augusta. From I-95 north or south or Route 202 west (Winthrop, Lewiston): Tak= e exit 109A (Augusta) to Western Ave. or take Route 202 east to Western Ave.= in Augusta. Follow Western Ave. to the traffic circle and take the first ri= ght onto State St. (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capi= tol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza ont= o King Street. Go 1/2 block.
From the east (Downeast, Belfast, Rockland, Wiscasset): Take Route 3= or Route 17 or Route 27 to Augusta to the traffic circle on the east side o= f the river. Go through the traffic circle and across the bridge to the traf= fic circle on the west side. Go 3/4 of the way around the circle until you g= et to State Street (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capi= tol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza ont= o King Street. Go 1/2 block.

--MS_Mac_OE_3165126722_412916_MIME_Part-- From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Sun Apr 18 19:45:33 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Sun, 18 Apr 2004 11:45:33 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] A good rant regarding getting out of Iraq Message-ID: <20040418184533.78983.qmail@web40308.mail.yahoo.com> Roy Tuckman, a late night DJ at KFPK (Radio Pacifica) in Los Angeles, who broadcasts Radio Free Maine recordings, sent me this good rant regarding getting out of Iraq. A good rant regarding getting out of Iraq by Chris Floyd, Moscow Times http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2004/04/16/120.html As the red wheel of Operation Iraqi FUBAR continues to roll, spewing hundreds of corpses in its wake, it becomes clearer by the hour that there is only one way for America to end this stomach-churning nightmare it has created: Get out. That's it. The occupying armies -- including the 15,000 corporate mercenaries -- should leave now. They should never have been sent in the first place on this ghoul's errand, this war of aggression, this mission of murder and plunder -- the perversion of every enlightened value of the civilization that the coalition's "Christian leaders" purport to defend. And what a sickening spectacle these "leaders" presented last weekend: George W. Bush and Tony Blair piously kneeling in prayer on Easter Sunday, pledging their fealty to Jesus Christ and His teachings of mercy and lovingkindness -- while ordering missile strikes on crowded cities, while filling hospitals with the mutilated bodies of young children, while shoveling fat war profits to their cronies and contributors. Only the most craven, bootlicking sycophant could fail to be revolted at the hypocrisy of these murderous cynics. They're a perfect match in moral idiocy for their crack-brained brother-in-arms, Osama bin Laden. Their chest-beating pronouncements about "staying the course" and "seeing it through" are just so much rag-chewing nonsense. The way to rectify a crime is not to keep doing it -- or in John Kerry's ludicrous formulations, to keep doing it in some different, "better" way -- but simply to stop doing it. The illegal invasion was a crime, the occupation is a crime, and if you would not be a criminal, you must stop committing crimes. The reprisal in Fallujah is a perfect example. Late last month, a four-day U.S. military incursion there -- totally ignored in the "coalition" press -- left 18 Iraqis dead. Days later, four American mercenaries were killed and their bodies desecrated -- a savage act by a small, angry crowd. Now, in retaliation for those four deaths, U.S. forces have killed more than 600 people, including many women and children. This isn't justice, this is collective punishment -- disproportionate, indiscriminate, just as the Nazis practiced it during their "liberation" of Europe. With each new reprisal, each act of repression, each killing of an innocent person -- intentional or not -- Bush is recruiting vast cadres of new fighters, and an even larger pool of passive support, for the armies of Islamic extremism. America -- and the world -- will be reaping this whirlwind for generations. The only solution that might -- just might -- offer some slim hope would be the immediate withdrawal of coalition forces and their replacement with a much larger United Nations force -- made up of troops from countries acceptable to the Iraqis -- to provide security and stability while the Iraqis themselves reconstruct their society, hold elections, etc. The United States and its war allies would have nothing to do with this stabilization force, beyond helping to fund and supply it. The departing Americans should then give the $18 billion slush fund now earmarked for Bush's "reconstruction" bagmen to the Iraqi people, as reparations for the coalition's war crime. Iraq's foreign loans, procured by Saddam Hussein from sugar daddies like George Bush I, should be written off -- and all of Little Bush's imperial edicts opening Iraq's economy for despoliation by his cronies should be rescinded. The United States and Britain should also be prepared to take in the vast horde of refugees who will flee the hard-line Islamic regime that will doubtless be created in the ruins Bush has made of the once-secular state. As for the "leaders" who committed this crime, there is only one thing left for them to do now, only one way for them to serve the people they have betrayed so vilely and stupidly. All of them -- Bush, Blair, Dick Cheney, Don Rumsfeld, Condi Rice, Paul Wolfowitz, Geoff Hoon, Richard Perle, the whole sick crew -- should pick up a rifle and go to the front lines in Fallujah and Baghdad. Let them take the places of the young men and young women who signed up as soldiers to defend their country or make a better life for themselves -- not to become pawns and killers for the Hitlerite ambitions of the blood-soaked fools who threw them into this quagmire. Yes, Hitlerite ambitions: dreams of global dominance, fetishes of militarism, fantasies of superiority, and the willingness to impose your self-serving vision of "universal truth" -- in this case, the rapacious crony capitalism that Bush has officially named "the single sustainable model of national success" -- at the barrel of a gun. That's what lies behind this madness. As we've noted so often here before, the conquest of Iraq has nothing to do with terrorism or liberation or WMD or national security or Arab democracy or Bush family revenge. It has been planned for years by Cheney, Wolfowitz, Rumsfeld and other Bush retainers, planned openly, and for one reason only: to give the United States direct military control of the Middle East in order to dominate global economic and political life for "the New American Century." This need was so great, said the group -- openly, in September 2000 -- that it "transcends the issue of the regime of Saddam Hussein." It wouldn't have mattered if Saddam had found Jesus, or freed his people, or set himself on fire in Madison Square Garden: The Bushists were always going to invade and occupy Iraq -- always, no matter what. So they'll never embrace any sensible solution for getting out. The red wheel will just keep rolling on, spewing thousands more unnecessary deaths -- until those rabid Easter Bunnies, Bush and Blair, finally FUBAR themselves into the inevitable, ignominious retreat. http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2004/04/16/120.html ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Photos: High-quality 4x6 digital prints for 25¢ http://photos.yahoo.com/ph/print_splash From Tim Sullivan" Celebrate Earth Day at Sears Island! A community chemical free event Children must be accompanied by a parent or adult. FMI: Janet Flint, 548-2857 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS: Thursday, April 22: Voluntary island cleanup all day 8-10am Coffee klatch (bring your own) 10am Opening ceremony with Colleen O'Connell and Bill Morley on drum Vernal pool study with UM student/researcher Historical tidbits by Jack Merrithew 12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch 1-3pm Clear paths and streams 3-5pm Dog walk with photographer on site Friday, April 23 Voluntary cleanup all day 8am-12noon Walk-a-thon, to benefit Sears Island and Pen Bay 10am Bird watch with Jim/Kathy Zeeman, Audubon 11am Kite flying (available for purchase, or bring own) 12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch 12-5pm Activities on your own 5-7pm Cookout - burgers $2, hotdogs $1, soda $.50, etc 6:30pm Campfire and Native American drumming and music Saturday, April 24 (Rain date Sunday, April 25) Voluntary cleanup all day 5:30am Sunrise ceremony with Ken Green 8-11am Walk-a-thon, to benefit Sears Island and Pen Bay 10am-12noon Children's activities Treasure hunt Rock sculptures Fairy houses Sand castles Kite flying 12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch 12:45pm Teen and adult activities Volleyball Frisbee Egg toss 7:30pm Grand finale: (rain or shine) Benefit Performance DAVE MALLETT in concert at NTWH 96 Church St, Belfast Guest appearance by MARK AUBERTIN Tickets $15 FMI: 548-2857 From Tim Sullivan" http://www.pressherald.com/news/state/040417bush.shtml Saturday, April 17, 2004 Bush making stop on Earth Day By BART JANSEN, Portland Press Herald Writer WASHINGTON - President Bush will travel to Maine for Earth Day on Thursday to talk about the environment, an important topic in a state considered competitive in this year's election. Bush will squeeze the lunchtime speech in Wells between other events in Washington that day, according to a White House spokesman who declined to say what the president would speak about or why Maine was chosen. "The president travels around the country talking about things that are important to the American people," said spokesman Ken Lisaius. He said the president would visit the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve at Laudholm Farm, a former farm now a center for study of local ecosystems. A spokeswoman for the Bush campaign in Maine declined comment on the trip because it is considered an official visit, rather than a campaign event. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, called the visit welcome news for Earth Day. "I'm thrilled that the president will have the opportunity to get to know the greater Wells community, so he better understands our plans and concerns . . .," she said. Environmentalists, who have been at odds with the president since the outset of his administration, say an Earth Day appearance does not excuse his record. "It's very, very difficult to find any environmental policy of the Bush administration that has had any benefit for Maine's environment," said Brownie Carson, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine. "My hope would be that the president would bring some good news about his administration's intent to protect the environment for a change." Maine is one of 18 battleground states in the campaign because Bush lost the state to former Vice President Al Gore in 2000 by 5 percent, a relatively close margin by national standards. Bush and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee, are both concentrating television and radio advertising in the state. Kerry's national campaign co-chairman will speak Wednesday in South Portland. Harold Schaitberger, general president of the International Association of Firefighters, will be speaking to the Maine Association of Firefighters. Bush's visit will be his seventh trip to Maine as president. Other visits include campaign speeches supporting the Republican slate in 2002, a homeland security speech aboard a Coast Guard cutter, and rest breaks at the Bush family's Walker's Point compound in Kennebunkport. Wells is near the Sanford airport, where Air Force One typically lands. Although Bush is often welcomed by Mainers who line his motorcade route, the environment is a tricky subject for him in the state. Maine's congressional delegation - Snowe, Collins, and Democratic Reps. Tom Allen and Michael Michaud - oppose him on a variety of issues dealing with air and water pollution. In his campaign, Bush highlights his Clear Skies Initiative to reduce air pollution, a program to develop hydrogen fuel and increased conservation funding. But Snowe and Collins were pivotal last year in blocking energy legislation, one of Bush's top domestic priorities, because language in the House version of the bill protected manufacturers of the gasoline additive MTBE from lawsuits. The senators also helped kill a Bush-backed provision that sought to allow drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And they unsuccessfully sought greater conservation efforts, such as higher mileage for SUVs, that Bush resisted. The delegation supports regulating carbon dioxide from power-plant emissions, which Bush opposes as drag on the economy. And the lawmakers would force greater reductions of nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions in a shorter time frame than the administration supports. The delegation has criticized a move by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to slow planned reductions in mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. The state already warns against eating too many fish from any river or lake in Maine because of mercury. When Allen staged an informal hearing last month at the State House in Augusta, about 50 people, including health officials and environmental leaders, showed up to criticize the new mercury rule. Snowe and Collins joined a bipartisan group of 46 senators who signed a letter this month urging the EPA "to take prompt and effective action to clean up mercury pollution from power plants." But Dan Riedinger, a spokesman for the Edison Electric Institute, an industry group for power plants, said U.S. utilities produce only 1 percent of global mercury emissions, so even larger reductions are unlikely to end fish advisories. The delegation also opposes a Defense Department proposal pending in Congress to relax air pollution and toxic-waste laws for military ranges where troops fire weapons. "It concerns me that communities in Maine and across the nation that neighbor defense installations could be put at risk if the military is not required to answer to environmental laws," Collins, a member of the Armed Services Committee, said when the legislation was announced earlier this month. Gov. John Baldacci, a Democrat, won't be able to appear with Bush at Thursday's event because he's planning to tour the Poland Springs water-bottling plant in Hollis, spokeswoman Joy Leach said. Staff Writer Meredith Goad contributed to this article. Staff Writer Bart Jansen can be contacted at 202-488-1119 or at: bjansen@pressherald.com From mschlobo@justice.com Mon Apr 19 18:54:58 2004 From: mschlobo@justice.com (Matthew Schlobohm) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 10:54:58 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] Maine Meeting for Boston Social Forum Message-ID: <20040419105500.13880.h012.c014.wm@mail.justice.com.criticalpath.net> PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY: The World Social Forum process is coming to Boston this summer for a Boston Social Forum. An informational meeting is being held in Maine on Saturday May 8 in Augusta. Please come out to this informational meeting and spread the word to others who might be interested. Dear Friends, You are invited to a meeting to learn about the Boston Social Forum, to find out about the benefits of having people from Maine, especially those working for a better economy and more egalitarian society, attend the Boston Social Forum event, and to decide on whether it would also help our movement for social change to have a followup event in Maine. The meeting will be on: SATURDAY, May 8 at 1:30 PM Mediation and Facilitation Resources building 11 King St., Augusta (directions below) Here is some background: The World Social Forum has met four times in Brazil and India to understand the problems of our economy and society, to learn about successful alternatives, and to recognize that "Another World Is Possible" (the slogan of the World Social Forum). The WSF is not an organization; it is a gathering. Thousands have attended these events, including some from Maine. Following up on these gatherings, one is now planned in Boston on July 23-25, 2004, called the Boston Social Forum (BSF), to hear about and discuss ways to change our economy and society. It is a structure to help us see what's possible and necessary to create a peaceful, just, and environmentally sustainable world. There are many models from other countries that could work in the US and in Maine as well. If many people from Maine attend the Boston Social Forum, we hope that we can bring back the excitement and vision of successful alternatives to Maine as well. The goals of the May 8 meeting are: *To introduce what the Boston Social Forum will be and what it can accomplish *To encourage Maine people to attend the BSF *To think about whether a social forum in Maine would be a good idea and, if so, how we might prepare for that before the BSF Susie Husted of Kittery has been very active in the organizing of the BSF. She will describe a little about the BSF at the May 8 meeting. Others who are planning to be involved will also attend and talk about what they hope will happen at the event and with a followup in Maine. We hope you and others from your organization will come on May 8 to add your voices to the mix of ideas of how "another world is possible" and can happen in Maine. The WSF has been a very diverse gathering--many more poor people than wealthy, many women, youth, people from different racial groups, people with disabilities, gay/lesbian/bisxual/transgender, and various religious and spiritual groups represented. We want this meeting to be diverse as well, since our success in making these ideas a reality in Maine will depend on a lot of Maine people adopting them. I hope you will come to the May 8 meeting. If you have questions, please call me or email me. Larry Dansinger, PO Box 776, Monroe, ME 04951. 525-7776, invert@acadia.net. You can also call Susie Husted at 451-9724 or Matt Schlobohm at 946-4478. Directions to Mediation and Facilitation Resources, 11 King St., Augusta. King Street is a small side street off State Street about 3 blocks south of the Maine State Capitol Building in Augusta. >From I-95 north or south or Route 202 west (Winthrop, Lewiston): Take exit 109A (Augusta) to Western Ave. or take Route 202 east to Western Ave. in Augusta. Follow Western Ave. to the traffic circle and take the first right onto State St. (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capitol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza onto King Street. Go 1/2 block. >From the east (Downeast, Belfast, Rockland, Wiscasset): Take Route 3 or Route 17 or Route 27 to Augusta to the traffic circle on the east side of the river. Go through the traffic circle and across the bridge to the traffic circle on the west side. Go 3/4 of the way around the circle until you get to State Street (Route 201 south toward Gardiner). Go past the State Capitol Building, then go about 3 blocks. Turn right just before Pat's Pizza onto King Street. Go 1/2 block. _________________________________________________ FindLaw - Free Case Law, Jobs, Library, Community http://www.FindLaw.com Get your FREE @JUSTICE.COM email! http://mail.Justice.com From Tim Sullivan" From: Fred Dillon fdillon@maine.rr.com Greetings Friends, According to a recent article in the Portland Press Herald, George W. Bush will be appearing at the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve (WNERR) for a lunch time chat on Earth Day. He'll no doubt be there to promote his so-called "environmental" agenda. What he'll really be trying to do is greenwash his abysmal environmental record, which uses euphemisms like "Clear Skies" and "Healthy Forests" to describe the very things his policies seek to despoil. He'll also try to use the important work done by the folks at the Coastal Ecology Center as an Earth Day propaganda tool. To provide a counter weight to this charade, I propose that we exercise our First Amendment rights by peaceably assembling to publicly display our grievances with the President's failed environmental policies. For those of you interested in participating, we can meet at the Wells park and ride lot at 10:45 AM (formerly Exit 2 now Exit 19) and proceed to the Maine Diner or Big Daddy's Ice Cream on Route One (both establishments are about 1/2 mile from the WNERR). We could then either congregate at the intersection of Laudholm Farm Road and Route One or march as close to the WNERR as we can get. Please provide your own banners or signs. I know this is short notice and it's in the middle of the day, but these are desperate times that demand we seize every opportunity to publicly expose the Bush Administration's damaging environmental agenda. Please join me in this important endeavor and let any of your friends know who might also be interested. I look forward to seeing you on Thursday! Fred Dillon From rutabaga@megalink.net Tue Apr 20 14:28:21 2004 From: rutabaga@megalink.net (Claire) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 09:28:21 -0400 Subject: [Megan] The Unmentionable Source of Terrorism In-Reply-To: <20040321203338.67665.qmail@web40309.mail.yahoo.com> References: <20040321203338.67665.qmail@web40309.mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: I meant to respond to this some time ago - my excuse is a 2-week cold and the unwillingness to stick my neck out. Roger, while I admit I don't read everything that comes my way via list-serve, I had an especially hard time with this particular email, because of the phrase "I wonder what the Maine Zionists will call me after circulating this article." What the heck does that mean? I don't think we need to fall all over ourselves trying to be "politically correct" all the time - but if we're trying to talk with each other about this stuff, isn't it a good idea not to fall into the same patterns that are part of the problem in the first place? Using the word "Zionist" as though it means only one thing Lumping a bunch of individuals in Maine (some of whom may be "Zionist" & others who are not) into that category in order to ... what? And in the article - not differentiating between the state/government-in-power in Israel, and the people of Israel - which ignores the movement for change there (which I guess the government-in-power in Israel would like to ignore as well). As house-slaves in the world's "big house" we should be know how this feels. Anyway - you get my drift Claire Reborn-pagan-brought-up-Catholic-&-somewhere-back-a-few-centuries-came-from-Lithuanian-Jews >I wonder what the Maine Zionists will call me after >circulating this article. >FYI, I have recorded Ilan Pappe and Edward Said, and >their recordings are available from Radio Free Maine. >You'll never hear them on WMPG, WERU nor Maine Public >Broadcasting. > >The Unmentionable Source of Terrorism > >by John Pilger > >The current threat of attacks in countries whose >governments have close alliances with Washington is >the latest stage in a long struggle against the >empires of the west, their rapacious crusades and >domination. The motivation of those who plant bombs in >railway carriages derives directly from this truth. >What is different today is that the weak have learned >how to attack the strong, and the western crusaders' >most recent colonial terrorism exposes "us" to >retaliation. > >The source of much of this danger is Israel. A >creation, then guardian of the west's empire in the >Middle East, the Zionist state remains the cause of >more regional grievance and sheer terror than all the >Muslim states combined. Read the melancholy >Palestinian Monitor on the Internet; it chronicles the >equivalent of Madrid's horror week after week, month >after month, in occupied Palestine. No front pages in >the West acknowledge this enduring bloodbath, let >alone mourn its victims. Moreover, the Israeli army, a >terrorist organisation by any reasonable measure, is >protected and rewarded in the west. > >In its current human rights report, the Foreign Office >criticises Israel for its "worrying disregard for >human rights" and "the impact that the continuing >Israeli occupation and the associated military >occupations have had on the lives of ordinary >Palestinians." > >Yet the Blair government has secretly authorised the >sale of vast quantities of arms and terror equipment >to Israel. These include leg-irons, electric shock >belts and chemical and biological agents. No matter >that Israel has defied more United Nations resolutions >than any other state since the founding of the world >body. Last October, the UN General Assembly voted by >144 to four to condemn the wall that Israel has cut >through the heart of the West Bank, annexing the best >agricultural land, including the aquifer system that >provides most of the Palestinians' water. Israel, as >usual, ignored the world. > >Israel is the guard dog of America's plans for the >Middle East. The former CIA analysts Kathleen and Bill >Christison have described how "two strains of Jewish >and Christian fundamentalism have dovetailed into an >agenda for a vast imperial project to restructure the >Middle East, all further reinforced by the happy >coincidence of great oil resources up for grabs and a >president and vice-president heavily invested in oil." > >The "neoconservatives" who run the Bush regime all >have close ties with the Likud government in Tel Aviv >and the Zionist lobby groups in Washington. In 1997, >the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs >(Jinsa) declared: "Jinsa has been working closely with >Iraqi National Council leader Dr Ahmad Chalabi to >promote Saddam Hussein's removal from office..." >Chalabi is the CIA-backed stooge and convicted >embezzler at present organising the next "democratic" >government in Baghdad. > >Until recently, a group of Zionists ran their own >intelligence service inside the Pentagon. This was >known as the Office of Special Plans, and was overseen >by Douglas Feith, an under-secretary of defence, >extreme Zionist and opponent of any negotiated peace >with the Palestinians. It was the Office of Special >Plans that supplied Downing Street with much of its >scuttlebutt about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction; >more often than not, the original source was Israel. > >Israel can also claim responsibility for the law >passed by Congress that imposes sanctions on Syria and >in effect threatens it with the same fate as Iraq >unless it agrees to the demands of Tel Aviv. Israel is >the guiding hand behind Bush's bellicose campaign >against the "nuclear threat" posed by Iran. Today, in >occupied Iraq, Israeli special forces are teaching the >Americans how to "wall in" a hostile population, in >the same way that Israel has walled in the >Palestinians in pursuit of the Zionist dream of an >apartheid state. The author David Hirst describes the >"Israelisation of US foreign policy" as being "now >operational as well as ideological." > >In understanding Israel's enduring colonial role in >the Middle East, it is too simple to see the outrages >of Ariel Sharon as an aberrant version of a democracy >that lost its way. The myths that abound in >middle-class Jewish homes in Britain about Israel's >heroic, noble birth have long been reinforced by a >"liberal" or "left-wing" Zionism as virulent and >essentially destructive as the Likud strain. > >In recent years, the truth has come from Israel's own >"new historians," who have revealed that the Zionist >"idealists" of 1948 had no intention of treating >justly or even humanely the Palestinians, who instead >were systematically and often murderously driven from >their homes. The most courageous of these historians >is Ilan Pappe, an Israeli-born professor at Haifa >University, who, with the publication of each of his >ground-breaking books, has been both acclaimed and >smeared. The latest is A History of Modern Palestine, >in which he documents the expulsion of Palestinians as >an orchestrated crime of ethnic cleansing that tore >apart Jews and Arabs coexisting peacefully. As for the >modern "peace process," he describes the Oslo Accords >of 1993 as a plan by liberal Zionists in the Israeli >Labour Party to corral Palestinians in South >African-style bantustans. That they were aided by a >desperate Palestinian leadership made the "peace" and >its "failure" (blamed on the Palestinians) no less >counterfeit. During the years of negotiation and >raised hopes, governments in Tel Aviv secretly doubled >the number of illegal Jewish settlements on >Palestinian land, intensified the military occupation >and completed the fragmentation of the 22 per cent of >historic Palestine that the Palestine Liberation >Organisation had agreed to accept in return for >recognising the state of Israel. > >Along with the late Edward Said, Ilan Pappe is the >most eloquent writer of Palestinian history. He is >also one of the most scholarly. This combination has >brought him many admirers, but also enemies among >Israel's academic liberal mythologists in Britain, one >of whom, Stephen Howe, was given the Pappe book to >review in the New Statesman of 8 March. Howe often >appears in these pages; his style is to damn with >faint praise and to set carefully the limits of debate >about empire, be it Irish history, the Middle East or >the "war on terror." In Pappe's case, what the reader >doesn't know is Howe's personal link to the Israeli >establishment; and what Howe does not say in his >review is that here for the first time is a textbook >on Palestine that narrates the real story as it >happened: a non-Zionist version of Zionism. > >He accuses Pappe of "factual mistakes," but gives no >evidence, then denigrates the book by dismissing it as >a footnote to another book by the Israeli historian >Benny Morris, who has long atoned for his own >revisionist work. To its credit, Cambridge University >Press has published Pappe's pioneering and highly >accessible work as an authoritative history. This >means that the "debate" over Israel's origins is >ending, regardless of what the empire's apologists >say. > > > >===== >Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com > >__________________________________ >Do you Yahoo!? >Yahoo! Finance Tax Center - File online. File on time. >http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html > >_______________________________________________ >Megan mailing list >Megan@lists.maineindymedia.org >http://lists.maineindymedia.org/mailman/listinfo/megan -- From wolfspiritm@excite.com Tue Apr 20 14:39:21 2004 From: wolfspiritm@excite.com (Marie Zwicker) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 09:39:21 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Megan] FW: WHO KNOWS Daniel Hopsicker, IN VENICE? GO TO SITE. Message-ID: <20040420133921.AF1B1B73D@xprdmailfe20.nwk.excite.com> forwarded to me by a friend and activist, some interesting info about connections and good websites for additional book resources marie ************************ original message: Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 22:38:09 EDT Subject: WHO KNOWS Daniel Hopsicker, IN VENICE? GO TO SITE. The reason I am writing now is to ask of you are aware of Daniel Hopsicker? I bought two of his books and have so far read his WELCOME TO TERRORLAND which is about Venice, Florida: http://www.madcowprod.com/ Is the peace movement in Florida aware of Hopsicker? Based on listening to him speak at the conference and reading the TERRORLAND book, I think he is a serious investigative journalist. And not only from reading Hopsicker, but from reading Kris Milligan's books http://www.fleshingoutskullandbones.com], it appears that FLORIDA is a really central place in the Bush covert milieu Well, anyway, I thought I would ask if you and Hopsicker had crossed paths. It sounded like he still lived in Florida _______________________________________________ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! From Tim Sullivan" For a copy of the questionnaire, please contact Louise directly. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Louise Roback" President Bush is coming to Maine on Thursday to the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve at Laudholm Farm (near the Stanford Airport). The ACLU has a lawsuit against the Secret Service regarding their treatment of protestors during Presidential and Vice-Presidential appearances. We are trying to track Presidential visits to find out what protestors' experiences are. If you are planning to protest Bush's appearance, or you know of any organizations or individuals that are organizing a protest, would you please read or distribute the attached memo and questionnaire. This explains the lawsuit and what information to be on the lookout for during the protests. Any questions, please let me know. Thanks. Louise G. Roback Executive Director Maine Civil Liberties Union 401 Cumberland Ave., Suite 105 Portland, Maine 04101 Tel (207) 774-5444 x206 fax (207) 774-1103 www.mclu.org From Tim Sullivan" It appears that Bush will be in Wells at 9am, instead of 11. If you intend to be there Thursday, please read the message below. Tim -----Original Message----- From: Peter Schurman, MoveOn.org moveon-help@list.moveon.org Dear MoveOn member, We hope you can make it to Wells, Maine, this Thursday morning, to protest President Bush's Earth Day visit there. Details, provided by our friends at U.S. PIRG, follow. Have fun! - Peter Schurman MoveOn.org April 19th, 2004 ----- This Thursday, April 22nd, President Bush is traveling to Wells, Maine, about ten miles from his parents' estate in Kennebunkport, to announce funding for salmon conservation projects already under way. It's fitting that President Bush has chosen Maine for his Earth Day visit. Like the rest of America, the state has felt the brunt of President Bush's systematic effort to let his campaign contributors in the oil, coal, and timber industries dismantle protections for America's clean air, clean water, and open space. To send a message that President Bush should start prioritizing America's environment over the corporate polluters who contribute to his campaigns, please join Mainers and other New Englanders at a rally outside President Bush's event on Thursday, April 22 at 8 am in Wells. Here are the details: * Show up at 8 am on Thursday, April 22, at the Wells Town Offices parking lot at 208 Sanford Road in Wells. Directions to the rally from north or south: * Heading north or south on I-95, * take the ME-109/ME-9 exit (Exit 2) towards Wells/Sanford. * Continue for approximately .7 miles. * Turn left onto Sanford Rd./ME-9/ME-109. * Continue for approximately 1 mile towards downtown Wells. * Take a left into the Wells Town Offices parking lot at 208 Sanford Rd. Background Since entering office, President Bush has systematically dismantled America's most basic environmental protections. Maine has suffered some of the worst environmental damage from his actions. Maine's Acadia National Park suffers some of the worst smog and haze of any National Park in the country, and Maine's once-famous salmon contain high levels of mercury and toxic PCB's that make them unsafe to eat. At the same time, President Bush has given in to pressure from his campaign contributors in the coal and power plant industries and weakened and delayed implementation of the Clean Air Act. Of course, this isn't the only way the Bush administration is weakening environmental protections. Since the last Earth Day alone, President Bush has taken several other major anti-environment actions: - Signed his "Healthy Forest Initiative" into law, allowing the timber industry to log America's biggest, most ecologically valuable, and most fire-resistant trees in the name of fire prevention. - Proposed to allow coal fired power plants to emit six to seven times the amount of poisonous mercury into the air, while delaying full implementation of the Clean Air Act for mercury until 2018. - Implemented a guidance that eliminated protection for 20 million acres of American wetlands, and over 20 percent of American waterways, allowing industrial mining operations and developers to fill and pollute America's waters. - Has made taxpayers foot the bill for clean up of toxic waste sites polluters are responsible for. This Earth Day, join other New Englanders in Wells, Maine to call on President Bush to protect America's environment, not polluters. __________ This is a message from MoveOn.org. To unsubscribe yourself from this list, please visit our subscription management page at http://www.moveon.org/subscrip/i.html?id=2699-807665-9SFYXqEQ19vo1tQFmGzXDw From ngalland@gwi.net Tue Apr 20 02:34:43 2004 From: ngalland@gwi.net (Nancy Galland) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 21:34:43 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Dave Mallet/Save PenBay Benefit Concert Message-ID: DAVE MALLETT BENEFIT PERFORMANCE for Sears Island and Penobscot Bay Special guest appearance - MARK AUBERTIN Saturday April 24th - 7:30pm 96 Church St, Belfast National Theater Workshop of the Handicapped Sponsors: Friends of Sears Island, Stop LNG, and NTWH Tickets - $15 at M.H. Jacobs Art Gallery, 50 Main St, Belfast or Prudential Northeast Properties, 185 W. Main St, Searsport Available at the door - Reserved seating and fmi: 548-2857 From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: David Diamond ddiam@ttlc.net Thursday, April 22, at 9 am: George W. Bush will be touting his environmental record at the Laudholm Farm in Wells, Maine, this Thursday, Earth Day. Peace and environmental activists will be gathering to rally at the Wells Junior High School on Route 1 at 10 am [other messages suggest 8 am or 9 am arrival]. The Wells Junior High School is across the street from the cemetery; there are two large white pillars at the entrance. The Jr. High parking lot is adjacent to the Town Library parking lot. Joan Newton, a Wells activist, has been working with local police in order to work out the logistics and to ensure a positive and peaceful event for all. No particular group is sponsoring this event. If you have further questions, call Debbie Atwood at Peace Action Maine at 207-772-0680 or debsway1@juno.com. Joan Newton is at newtone@maine.rr.com. From rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com Thu Apr 22 01:01:01 2004 From: rleisnerrfm@yahoo.com (Roger Leisner) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 17:01:01 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Megan] Be the Draft Board Message-ID: <20040422000101.78546.qmail@web40304.mail.yahoo.com> This is a great way to practice non-violent overthrow. ----- Original Message ----- From: Nick Turse To: POP ; CEO-I ; BoycottUS ; STOPWW3 ; historiansagainstwar@yahoogroups.com Cc: cssn@columbia.edu ; CSSN Discussion List Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2004 11:51 AM Subject: Re: [historiansagainstwar] PROPOSAL: Front of HS Protests in September Against Draft Those interested in subverting the system, should the draft become a reality, may want to visit: http://www.sss.gov/fslocal.htm where there is an application package for those interested in serving on selective service/draft boards which will decide who receives "deferments, postponements, or exemption from military service... ." Best, N ----- Original Message ----- From: Fogel, Jerise To: historiansagainstwar@yahoogroups.com ; STOPWW3 ; BoycottUS ; CEO-I ; POP Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2004 11:20 PM Subject: RE: [historiansagainstwar] PROPOSAL: Front of HS Protests in September Against Draft I think this is a great idea. I would suggest combining it with a campaign letting students know that there are other ways than joining the armed forces to pay for college. There’s a site, www.join-snafu.org, that exposes recruiters’ lies and outlines the drawbacks of signing on with the National Guard or ROTC; there is also information about so-called JROTC, “Junior ROTC,” which is invading public schools these days. A positive campaign would include info on FAFSA and other ways of financing your education without the military. This is especially important in some states and regions—especially poor ones, which are super-targeted by recruiters. Here in WV, for instance, students are *required* in some areas to take the ASVAB test, and are almost harassed into joining the Guard or ROTC. The military always has far more money at its disposal for recruiters than any business or even college, and it bombards young people with very attractive images to persuade them to join. But only 60% of those who sign on with the Guard or ROTC ever make it through their college education; and most wind up in debt that they didn’t count on, anyway. The promises made by the military don’t hold up over time. Young people should know the risks as well as the supposed benefits. Jeri -----Original Message----- From: Bob Witanek [mailto:bwitanek@igc.org] Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2004 10:58 PM To: ' STOPWW3'; 'BoycottUS'; 'CEO-I'; 'POP' Cc: historiansagainstwar@yahoogroups.com Subject: [historiansagainstwar] PROPOSAL: Front of HS Protests in September Against Draft Hey All! Each day there are more indications that the draft is coming back in 2005 – possibly sooner. What do you think if we contacted the anti-draft groups, student and youth groups, etc. and worked with them to coordinate anti-draft protests in front of as many high schools as possible in September 2004. We would do our best to involve students in the demonstrations that would occur at end of school day so that students can participate without risk of truancy or other punishment. Targeting September would give us the summer to get the plan in motion on a nationwide basis. It would also help the students start the school years off right. We can also see if College Students would organize similar protests on the campuses. I believe we should encourage: NO DRAFT! US FORCES OUT OF IRAQ NOW! as the demand. If you agree, sign up here. Indicate in the comments section if you want to assist in review and editing of a anti-draft draft statement. http://endocciraq.org/Anti_Draft_Sign_Up.htm - Bob Witanek Bob Witanek http://EndOccIraq.org http://endocciraq.org/occupation_and_the_draft.htm Visit our web page at http://www.historiansagainstwar.org ===== Roger LeisnerRadio Free MaineP.O. Box 2705Augusta, Maine 04338http://www.radiofreemaine.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Photos: High-quality 4x6 digital prints for 25¢ http://photos.yahoo.com/ph/print_splash From tydanlou@adelphia.net Thu Apr 22 01:15:32 2004 From: tydanlou@adelphia.net (Dan & Tyrrell Lourie) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 20:15:32 -0400 Subject: [Megan] please unsubscribe Message-ID: <20040422001538.RSPS21898.mta11.adelphia.net@[24.51.50.147]> From wolfspiritm@excite.com Thu Apr 22 14:01:22 2004 From: wolfspiritm@excite.com (Marie Zwicker) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 09:01:22 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Megan] FW: [pbpeace] Why more than ever SOA/WHISC must be opposed Message-ID: <20040422130122.4626B3949@xprdmailfe9.nwk.excite.com> --- On Wed 04/21, Warren Hoskins < warrenhoskins@hotmail.com > wrote: From: Warren Hoskins [mailto: warrenhoskins@hotmail.com] To: pbpeace@yahoogroups.com Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 17:17:05 -0400 Subject: [pbpeace] Why more than ever SOA/WHISC must be opposed The School of the Americas/WHISC in Georgia is still training "official" terrorists--people we are not supposed to consider terrorists, because our government is training them. If you are inclined to credit that as true for even one moment, please see the article at http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/FD15Aa02.html Grim future for global foreign policies By Piyush Mathur Because keeping this long article is so important, I am going to paste it below and include the whole text in this e-mail. You might want to copy it off the e-mail and save it as a reference document. There is no doubt that the US is putting people in charge in other countries who will torture, unjustly jail, murder or otherwise harm, in order to prevent dissent, silence human rights activism, turn off environmental activism--in short to halt anyone's efforts to act like a free human with certain inalienable rights. This article documents that it is happening internationally, far from scrutiny--our tax dollars at work creating future terrorists and organizing militaries to inflict sustained human rights violations on their own lands--until, like Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden, they turn on us in some future era. Peace, Warren Front Page - ASIA TIMES April 15, 2004 Grim future for global foreign policies By Piyush Mathur The US media are likely to spend the next few weeks analyzing the findings of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States - and projecting them through Richard Clarke's damning criticism of the Bush administration's counter-terrorism priorities. The so-called 9-11 Commission's verdict can be summarized thus: Both the administrations of Bill Clinton and George W Bush relied too heavily on diplomacy instead of military action to curb al-Qaeda before the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. Non-governmental observers following this new drama would notice that the shortsightedness of the commission's position - its reactionary, retroactive stress on military solution - has allowed the top luminaries of the US administration to look savvy and even painfully dovish in their public depositions. In justifying their supposedly cautionary approach - blamed on inadequate information and a concern for civilian casualties - the administrators have actually let across an understated apology for not being aggressive enough in their "wars on terrorism". As a shortage of military action against terrorism is made to preoccupy the American mind, there is another development that may just be ignored by the media. The latest findings by SOA Watch - a reform movement launched by Father Roy Bourgeois in 1990 - indicate that, in its new avatar as the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHISC), the US Army School of the Americas (SOA) "continues to spend US tax dollars to train known human-rights abusers". A synopsis of the findings of SOA Watch was posted on its website last month. The charge-sheet includes the names of Colonel Francisco del Cid Diaz (from El Salvador) and Major Urzagaste Rodriguez (from Bolivia) as those admitted to the WHISC despite the notoriety they had received for serious human-rights abuses in their home countries. Also mentioned are three Colombian police officers who received training at the institute and who have been under investigation for "personal use of counter-narcotics funds". Included in SOA Watch's update are the findings of a focused piece of empirical research conducted by Katherine E McCoy and titled "Trained to Torture: A Statistical Analysis of Human Rights Violations Committed by Graduates of the US Army School of the Americas, 1960-2000". Based on a sample of about 12,000 SOA graduates from Argentina, Brazil, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru and Panama, McCoy's research directly refutes the Department of Defense's (DOD's) central claim that professional US military training to Latin Americans has been good for the rule of law and maintenance of human rights in Latin America. McCoy notes that "soldiers who took two or more courses [at the SOA/WHISC] were almost four times more likely to have committed human-rights violations than soldiers who took one course". Furthermore, "the absence of any indicator that SOA graduates improved over time with respect to human rights raises the possibility that recent reforms have not managed to curb existing patterns of human-rights violations". McCoy's findings and the work of SOA Watch cast afresh a negative light on the DOD's standing claim that the WHISC's curricula - under scrutiny within the US since the late 1980s - are sensitive to human-rights concerns. The findings also strengthen SOA Watch's long-standing argument to close the WHISC. SOA Watch now aims to revitalize its lobbying with the US Congress to support the Latin America Military Training Review Act (House Resolution 1258) - which calls for suspending the SOA/WHISC and installing a joint congressional task force to probe the appropriateness and effectiveness of US military training in Latin America. The act is sponsored by Representative James McGovern, D-Massachusetts, and co-sponsored by 111 members of Congress from both main parties. A vote on it is due in Congress this summer. Wider Implications The case of the SOA/WHISC, however, has much wider implications for a global future presumably to be dominated by the nation-states' militaristic solutions to terrorism. US foreign policy has already taken a giant leap forward in that respect - even though its failures have been manifest for a long time, particularly in its Latin American policy (in which the SOA/WHISC has played an important role). The SOA, being primarily a training institute, also invites attention to the sheer US militaristic involvement in the foreign lands. That involvement goes way beyond providing mere military hardware to foreign governments: to exporting targeted expert training, a mentality, status, and economic riches to select (armed) individuals - military, paramilitary, and police forces - in conspicuously poor countries that are also challenged in terms of democracy. The flash-point cases of post-September 11 US engagement with the foreign forces include Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Yemen and post-Saddam Iraq. Less publicized, however, was the launch of the "Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa" at Camp Lemonier in the Republic of Djibouti. Since last May, about 1,800 marines and special-operations soldiers there have been giving instructions in anti-terrorism to East African forces. Another is the Pan-Sahel Initiative, a US$7 million State Department program that started last year, under which US soldiers from the 10th Special Forces Group have been training the military forces of Mali, Mauritania, Chad and Niger in counter-terrorism operations and intelligence gathering. All that, of course, pales in comparison with similar post-September 11 US pursuits in the Middle East (other than Iraq and Yemen) and Eastern Europe. How did the things get to this point? US military involvement in Latin America has long been a matter of public controversy and conflict - in Latin America. On US soil, on the other hand, the discourse about that involvement has been generally confined to special-interest politics and kept out of electoral scrutiny and short of genuine democratic mandate. SOA Watch has been trying to change precisely that, even as the DOD has so far managed to exploit the misguided foreign-policy priorities and tactics of the US government as well as the political ignorance and indifference of much of its populace. The history of the WHISC, based at Fort Benning, in the state of Georgia, dates back to 1946. Because of its notoriety, it is a history that the DOD has been trying hard both to discredit and disown - primarily by pretending that the WHISC is an entirely new entity with no connection to its predecessor, SOA. (This is despite the fact that the WHISC follows about the same curriculum as did SOA, and is located in the exact same building.) The SOA - which had trained more than 57,000 Latin American soldiers in counter-insurgency techniques, sniper activity, military intelligence, interrogation tactics, commando operations, and psychological warfare - was "officially" closed in 2000 and replaced with the WHISC. Since then, the official history of the SOA has been put on a website by the DOD ostensibly as a favor to the curious public and as a matter of historical record - but also as a public relations exercise aimed at counteracting the real, bloodied history of the SOA and at distancing itself and the school from its subsequent and current form. The SOA, the official history tells us, was: established by the United States in 1946 at Fort Amador, Panama, as the Latin American Training Center - Ground Division; renamed the US Army Caribbean School and relocated to Fort Gulick in 1950; renamed the US Army School of the Americas in 1963; relocated to Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1984 and designated an official US Army Training and Doctrine Command School. Notably, the DOD accepts all these previous incarnations of the SOA as efforts dedicated to supporting democracy and stability in the Americas and to keeping out socialism - but refuses to accept the WHISC as only the latest in line. In addition, the official history does not mention how those various incarnations turned into a self-serving, rather groundless US pretext to keep communism out of Latin America. The official history also does not mention how the regional militias were trained and used by the United States to protect the vital interests of its chosen elites and to curb popular, democratic sentiment. There is also no acknowledgement that the "closure" of the SOA and the cosmetic change of its name to WHISC had come in response to a 1999 decision by the US House of Representatives, voted 230-197, to prohibit use of Foreign Operations funding for the institute. Previous exposes The 1999 congressional move, eventually lost by a single vote in a House-Senate Conference Committee, followed highly credible allegations of serious human-rights abuses committed by SOA alumni, and high-profile revelations in 1996 of torture manuals used by the SOA in its training. Those details had surfaced in the wake of Congressman Joseph Moakley's investigation into the November 16,1989, murder by the Atlacatl Battalion of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter at the University of Central America, San Salvador. The Moakley Commission investigation exposed the involvement of several high-ranking Salvadoran military officials who had received training at the SOA and had strong ties to it. The Moakley Commission's findings were confirmed and magnified by the United Nations' "Report of the Commission on the Truth for El Salvador" issued on March 15, 1993 (S/25500). It then turned out that 19 of 26 officers cited by the UN in the 1989 murders had been trained at the SOA. (Several other reports, such as the Archdiocese of Guatemala's "Guatemala: Nunca Mas", 1998, and US State Department's "Report on Human Rights in Colombia", 1998, had also by default named several SOA graduates as serious human-rights violators.) The UN report "From Madness to Hope: The 12-year War in El Salvador" was based upon 22,000 registered cases of "serious acts of violence that occurred in El Salvador between January 1980 and July 1991". The acts included extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearance, and torture - with 85 percent of the victims or complainants blaming these incidents "on agents of the state, paramilitary groups allied to them, and the death squads". According to the UN report, "this violence originated in a political mindset that viewed political opponents as subversive and enemies". Critics of the SOA/WHISC have since argued and shown that the US military training of Latin American soldiers systematically breeds precisely that sort of mindset and equips its bearers with lethal weaponry, funds and efficient organization - thus allowing and even encouraging them to control their own populations repressively. The critics have also convincingly illustrated how US corporate and political elites have used that training for the economic and political exploitation of Latin America - and at the expense, especially, of progressive labor unions, democracy and human-rights activists, peasants, liberation theologians, and indigenous peoples. As an indicator, these critics have pointed to such notorious SOA graduates as death-squad leader Roberto D'Aubuisson of El Salvador and military dictators such as Hugo Banzer of Bolivia and General Hector Gramajo of Guatemala. (SOA Watch has posted on its website a detailed list of less-known names of other such SOA graduates from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Paraguay, Guatemala, Panama, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.) Intervention by Amnesty International The critics of the SOA/WHISC got a major boost when Amnesty International's US chapter fully endorsed and vastly substantiated SOA Watch's findings in its 2002 report titled "Unmatched Power, Unmet Principles: The Human Rights Dimensions of US Training of Foreign Military and Police Forces". The report used SOA Watch's Latin American research as part of its detailed accounting and indictment of US training of foreign forces and its vetting standards. In the report, Amnesty pointed out that, apart from the WHISC, the US had "approximately 275 military schools and installations" that trained "tens of thousands of [foreign] students" (p viii). "Far more [students]," it said, "receive some US training in their own nations through a variety of programs, including military exercises" (p viii). The report also directed attention to the US training of foreign police forces, and to training of both foreign militaries and police forces by US commercial contractors. It provided details related to the above, included a partial list of US institutes that train foreign soldiers, and contained three case studies focusing on the gross human-rights violations committed by US-trained, -armed and/or -funded soldiers in Rwanda, Indonesia and Colombia. "US forces continued to provide lethal training to Indonesian soldiers after the 1991 killings of unarmed demonstrators in East Timor - and in spite of a ban from the US Congress on military training of Indonesian forces," the report said. "In Colombia, US forces continue to provide military training, despite widespread human rights abuses by both the Colombian military forces and the paramilitary forces linked to them," it added (p x). Implications for the future Although Amnesty International said it could not account for the fast military developments that had been taking place after the September 11 attacks, those developments clearly offered a highly compelling context for the production and release of the report. As such, the significance of the agency's intervention lay in its de facto delimiting of the criticism of SOA/WHISC to a full-fledged human-rights-based scrutiny of US training of foreign militaries. Such scrutiny, while a clear necessity already, has enormous implications for a global future riddled with US militaristic expansion - sometimes in collusion and at others in collision with "old" Europe, but also in the backdrop of the aspirations of such emergent powers as India and China. For instance, South Asians have yet to learn anything significant in the media about the recent Indo-Bhutanese militaristic solution to the Assamese militants who had been camping inside Bhutanese territory: There is no audit whatsoever of that entire episode in any visible press. Of course Asians at large also need to learn about the human-rights dimensions of India's newly opened military base in Central Asia. So, as another vote against the SOA/WHISC comes up in the US Congress this summer, the citizens of the world need to be told that Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan of Pakistan was not the only one unscrupulously selling potential death. The unscrupulous export of military training and know-how by the United States through the past century may have caused more deaths and destruction altogether than its atomic bombings of two Japanese cities. On that count, the global civil society needs to ask itself and the national governments whether following the militaristic ways of the United States or other so-called superpowers has any merit against the common struggle against terror or terrorism. Piyush Mathur, PhD, an alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), is an independent observer of world affairs, the environment, science and technology policy, and literature. (Copyright 2004 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for information on our sales and syndication policies.) _________________________________________________________________ Watch LIVE baseball games on your computer with MLB.TV, included with MSN Premium! http://join.msn.com/?page=features/mlb&pgmarket=en-us/go/onm00200439ave/direct/01/

_______________________________________________ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! From Tim Sullivan" http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/articles/2004/04/22/groups_protest_bu sh_environmental_policies/ Groups protest Bush environmental policies By Clarke Canfield, Associated Press Writer | April 22, 2004 WELLS, Maine -- In a state known for environmental activism, more than 250 people gathered Tuesday to criticize the Bush administration's environmental record before the president spoke at a nearby nature reserve. Protesters held up signs ("More Trees, Less Bush") and chanted ("We want solutions, no more pollution") along U.S. Route 1 for several hours as passing motorists honked their approval. The group shouted "shame on you" in succession when the president's motorcade drove by on its way to Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, where Bush spoke. "I'm concerned for the environment, our future, our children, our health," said Ellen Froncek of Brunswick as she stood in protest. "It's not an abstract." Prior to the protest, environmental groups held a mock awards ceremony in a nearby parking lot in protest of the administration's policies. The rusty tailpipe stood for Maine's being at the receiving end of the nation's air pollution as it blows east. A three-foot fish cut out of plywood stood for mercury-tainted fish. An inhaler represented Maine's high asthma rates. Some protesters wore gas masks, fish costumes and stovepipe hats, which depicted smokestacks. The Sierra Club's Maureen Drouin said it's ironic that the president chose to celebrate Earth Day by coming to Wells, which recently failed the federal government's new ozone standards. "The purpose of this rally is to set the record straight on Bush's environmental policies, which protect corporate polluters, not the Maine environment," Drouin said. "The Bush administration has done nothing to stop soot, smog and mercury from coming to Maine." Andy Burt of Edgecomb is a member of an ad hoc group called the Environmental Dirty Laundry Project. Members strung up a clothesline with canvas cutouts in the shape of shirts and pants with descriptions of Bush's environmental policies written on them. "Unfortunately the clothesline is going to grow because every day there's more dirty laundry to hang out," she said. Maine has a long tradition of environmental activism. But it is also where President Bush's parents have a summer home, and where the president spends large chunks of time, just five miles away in Kennebunkport. Shortly before Bush's motorcade passed by, a group of 50 or so Bush supporters gathered on property near the protest. Some waved American flags and others shouted "USA" to the protesters. "I'm supporting the office of the president and the country in general," said Leigh Wood, who carried a large American flag on a pole. From Tim Sullivan" DAVE MALLETT BENEFIT PERFORMANCE for Sears Island and Penobscot Bay Special guest appearance - MARK AUBERTIN Saturday April 24th - 7:30pm 96 Church St, Belfast National Theater Workshop of the Handicapped Sponsors: Friends of Sears Island, Stop LNG, and NTWH Tickets - $15 at M.H. Jacobs Art Gallery, 50 Main St, Belfast or Prudential Northeast Properties, 185 W. Main St, Searsport Available at the door - Reserved seating and fmi: 548-2857 From Tim Sullivan" Thanks to Joan for organizing this demo - wish I could have been there! ""I think it's absolutely ludicrous that George Bush is coming to a pristine area to talk about the environment when he's single-handedly undone 30 years of progress," said protester Joan Newton of Wells." http://www.bangornews.com/editorialnews/article.cfm/ID/421051 By Misty Edgecomb, Of the NEWS Staff e-mail Misty Last updated: Friday, April 23, 2004 Bush's visit draws protesters On Earth Day, president touts his anti-pollution policies WELLS - Protesters lining U.S. Route 1 to chant "Leave Maine alone, Bush go home," made little impression on the president as he made his way to deliver an Earth Day address at the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve on Thursday."My administration has put in place some of the most important anti-pollution policies in a decade," Bush told an invited crowd of nearly 400 supporters who were bused in to the secluded site. The president cited studies indicating that America's air and water are cleaner today than they were four years ago as evidence that his policies are making a difference. Environmentalists, however, argue that recent improvements are a result of 30 years of strong environmental regulation. The Bush environmental legacy has yet to be seen on the landscape, they said. Though the speech was billed as a presidential visit rather than a campaign stop, Maine is widely predicted to be a battleground state in November. And in a state where Republicans and Democrats alike historically have valued environmental protection, Bush will need to convince voters of his environmental ethic to win its votes, said Brownie Carson of the Natural Resources Council of Maine. "The president comes to Maine and talks about his environmental record at his peril," he said. Thursday, Bush echoed a major message of his administration - that citizens should volunteer to improve their world, and not wait for government intervention. To illustrate, Bush singled out one of the 400 volunteers who make the reserve work and cited his own family's commitment to a Kennebunkport-area land trust. "[Progress] will happen when people say, 'I'm not going to rely on the government to be the solution to the problem,'" Bush said. The president also challenged businesses to behave in an environmentally responsible way as a means of avoiding new regulation. "Corporate America has a responsibility ... to contribute to the quality of the communities in which they live," Bush said. The president took the opportunity on Earth Day to announce a goal of preserving 3 million acres of wetland by 2005 through voluntary incentives such as conservation easements. American environmental policy for three decades has worked to prevent a net loss of wetlands. The new policy will be more proactive, Bush said. "We will expand the wetlands of America," he said. "We can restore wetlands so they function ... as the Almighty wanted them to function in the first place." One million acres of at-risk wetlands will be protected, another million acres of farmland restored to its original wetland state, and yet another million acres of existing wetland preserved, with $349 million in funding that has been included in the fiscal year 2005 budget, Bush said. Wetlands provide habitat for half of all endangered species, they clean groundwater, prevent flooding and, particularly in reserves such as the Wells facility, provide opportunities for people to interact with the environment. "Wetlands have been called the nurseries of life, and their well-being is vital to the health of our environment," the president said. "Wetlands provide recreational opportunity for men like me who like to fish, or people like my wife who like to watch birds." While environmentalists such as Matthew Davis of Environment Maine agree that wetlands are critical, they don't believe Bush's incentive programs are sufficient to protect them. In fact, new Environmental Protection Agency policies drafted under Bush would put an estimated 20 million acres of wetland at risk. The policies have gotten little attention in Maine because our state's wetland protection laws are stricter than federal law. Those who heard Bush speak Thursday applauded the president's approach. "It's not just a new layer of mandates and regulations," said Clark Irwin of Cumberland, who is a member of The Nature Conservancy. But for the 200 or so protesters who drove from as far away as Vermont to gather just outside the reserve, nothing he could say would convince them that his policies on air quality, wetlands protection and pollution cleanup are not favors to corporations that will be counted among America's worst environmental decisions. Groups including the Maine People's Alliance, the Maine Council of Churches, the Sierra Club, and Environment Maine helped plan the morning rally, in hopes of "setting the record straight," said Maureen Drouin of the Sierra Club. Bush has been most criticized for his attempts to drill for oil in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge and rewrite air pollution policy with the Clear Skies initiative. Congress thus far has prevented both from happening. However, protesters Thursday displayed a clothesline of "environmental dirty laundry" citing dozens of incremental changes and regulatory rollbacks that they say have quietly been implemented since Bush took office. "I think it's absolutely ludicrous that George Bush is coming to a pristine area to talk about the environment when he's single-handedly undone 30 years of progress," said protester Joan Newton of Wells. From Tim Sullivan" End the Occupation of Iraq, Palestine, Haiti Bring the Troops Home Now Saturday, May 1 12:30-2:00pm Park St.Sta., Boston Money for Jobs, Healthcare, Housing Education - Not for War - Occupation Fightback Against Poverty, Racism, Sexism, Homophobia & Repression at Home May 1 was the date that George Bush dressed up like a soldier, flew onto the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln, and claimed credit for the conquering of Iraq. Since then the war in Iraq has only intensified. More U.S. soldiers have been killed or wounded since May 1 than during the invasion phase of the war. Nearly 10,000 soldiers have been evacuated from Iraq for wounds and other injuries. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed. The May 1 anniversary will be marked by nationally-coordinated activities - demostrations, rallies, teach-ins, and forums exposing the lies of the Bush administration in regards to Iraq, Palestine & Haiti. ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism) * 617-522-6626 info@answerboston.org * http://www.answerboston.org * http://www.internationalanswer.org Committee for Peace Human Rights, Boston * 781-321-1720 From Tim Sullivan" REMINDER----- Original Message ----- From: Alan & Norma Athearn athearn2@earthlink.net Ellen Mariani, New Hampshire widow whose husband was killed in the 9/11 disaster, will visit Maine this week. She has been invited by the midcoast Peace & Justice Film/Speaker Series to explain why she has refused settlement money from the government compensation fund for families of 9/11 victims in order to sue the Bush administration. She will speak at four public forums: Monday, April 26, 7 pm in Bath. United Church of Christ, 150 Congress St. Tuesday, April 27, 1 pm in Orono, University of Maine, Memorial Union Building Tuesday, April 27, 6:30 pm in Rockland, St. Peter's Episcopal Church, White St. (next to Rockland Library) Wednesday, April 28, 7 pm in Blue Hill. Blue Hill Town Hall (Main St) She will be interviewed on WERU (89.9 FM), on Wednesday at 3 PM. Advanced discounted copies of the newly released book, The New Pearl Harbor by David Ray Griffin, will be available at each of the forums. Griffin, an eminent theologian and author, "sifts through the evidence about the attacks of 9/11-stories from the mainstream press, reports from abroad, the work of other researchers, and contradictory words by members of the Bush administration themselves." Taken together they cast serious doubt on the official story and point to the need for a REAL and INDEPENDENT investigation into what happened on 9/11. Program sponsors include Midcoast Peace and Justice Group, First Universalist Church of Rockland, St. Peter's Episcopal Church--Rockland, Peace Studies Program of UMO, Peace Action Maine, Peninsula and Island Peace and Justice Groups. Admission is free. Voluntary contributions will help with Mariani's travel and legal expenses. FMI: 594-1478. From Tim Sullivan" Maine Peace and Justice News http://www.sullboat.com/MEPJ/news.htm Nuclear 'oops!' could do us in (Helen Caldicott) - Portland Press Herald, April 25, 2004 Cultural programs, events nurture understanding - Portland Press Herald, April 25, 2004 Teach art, create peace - Portland Press Herald, April 25, 2004 Failed Maine strike has blame enough to go around (book on 1987 IP strike)- PPH, April 25, 2004 EPA's air-quality guidelines called 'a joke' - Bangor Daily News, April 24, 2004 Water bottler to hold public meeting to discuss residents' worries - Waterville Sentinel, April 24, 2004 Baldacci open to amending Constitution (tax relief) - Kennebec Journal, April 24, 2004 Tax cap making officials cringe - Kennebec Journal, April 24, 2004 Winthrop man must quell rumors as he builds religious center - Kennebec Journal, April 24, 2004 Gardiner humorist is a 'Wmn4Chng' - Kennebec Journal, April 24, 2004 Maine artist known for 'LOVE' mourns for peace in new work - Portland Press Herald, April 24, 2004 Mainers head to D.C. for a show of strength (March for Women's Lives) - Portland Press Herald, April 24, 2004 BIW eliminates severance pay - Times Record, April 23, 2004 Former Beirut hostage: U.S. taking wrong approach in Iraq - Waterville Sentinel, April 23, 2004 UMA Holocaust center to receive Auschwitz urn - Kennebec Journal, April 23, 2004 Bush's visit draws protesters - Bangor Daily News, April 23, 2004 UMaine chief faces objections to overhaul - Portland Press Herald, April 23, 2004 South Portland: Troop-supporting ordinance will go before voters - Portland Press Herald, April 23, 2004 Protesters say Bush no friend of environment - Portland Press Herald, April 23, 2004 From Tim Sullivan" Please respond to Janet directly if interested.... ----- Original Message ----- From: janet jcald@gwi.net I would like to hop a bus for this one. If folks are interested I will be= gin organizing...Janet ----- Original Message ----- From: "A.N.S.W.E.R." A CALL FOR EMERGENCY PROTESTS: SATURDAY, JUNE 5, 2004 MARCH ON THE PENTAGON (assemble at the White House at 12 noon) MASS MOBILIZATIONS in SAN FRANCISCO & LOS ANGELES *call initiated by the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition* To ENDORSE: http://www.ANSWERcoalition.org/campaigns/j5/endorse.html The U.S. war and occupation of Iraq is a disaster for the people there and here, a disaster that the Bush administration wants to escalate. In the first three weeks of April alone, more than 1,000 Iraqis, most of them civilians, and at least 110 U.S. soldiers have been killed. It is not only U.S. troops that are dying but those from Latin America and from other countries in Bush's "coalition of the willing." Thousands more have been wounded. The war is costing more than 300 million dollars ($300,000,000) every day, money that is transferred from working people in the U.S. to the pockets of arms manufacturers and corporate war profiteers. It is a war that is destroying an entire country and the lives of the Iraqi people - already victimized for more than a decade by sanctions. Now the White House and the Pentagon are calling for more troops, more death and destruction, and even more money for a war that is based on lies and deception. The Iraqi people, U.S. soldiers and reservists, and all those who are casualties in Iraq are dying for the sake of the real agenda: Corporate America's drive to dominate the oil-rich and strategic Middle East. While Bush imposes a murderous occupation in Iraq, the administration has given its full backing to the Sharon government in Israel which continues to carry out routine assassinations and land expropriation, placing an entire population within the confines of a prison wall. The Bush administration has recently announced that it too is committed to the denial of the Palestinian people's right to return 56 years after being violently expelled from their homeland. As public opinion here and around the world turns more and more against war and occupation, the Bush administration has announced a phony "turnover of sovereignty" in Iraq on June 30. In reality, it will only be a transfer of authority from one U.S. overseer, L. Paul Bremer, to another, John Negroponte, the newly proposed U.S. ambassador (dictator) in Iraq. More than 150,000 troops from the U.S. and countries dependent on the U.S. will continue to occupy Iraq after June 30. The "turnover of sovereignty" is just propaganda meant to deceive people here into believing that the situation is getting better. In fact, the Bush administration is growing ever more isolated and exposed as other countries, including Spain, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, are withdrawing their troops in the face of growing public outrage within their own countries. It is time to bring an end to occupations and dispossession of people. On June 5, we will march to demand a real end to the occupation of Iraq by bringing the troops home now, and we will demand that all foreign troops be removed from Iraq. June 5 is the anniversary of the 1967 war in which Israel, with full backing from Washington, conquered the West Bank, Gaza Strip and the Syrian Golan Heights. We will march to call for an end to the colonial occupation of Palestine, and to support the Palestinian people's right to self-determination, including their right to return to their homeland. We will stand in solidarity with the Haitian people who are living under foreign military occupation following the February 28/29 U.S.-coup against the democratically elected government of Jean-Bertrand Aristide. President Aristide must be returned to office and U.S., French and other occupation forces must withdraw. Having overthrown the government of Haiti, the Bush administration is renewing its efforts to carry out a coup against the democratically elected President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez. Likewise the Bush administration is growing ever more threatening towards the people of Cuba, in their continuing efforts to reinstate a neo-colonial regime on the island. The people of the Caribbean and Latin America, having endured more than a century of U.S. military intervention and forcible "regime change," are united in their opposition to U.S. overt and covert aggression. The Bush administration is waging war on the people here, attacking civil rights and civil liberties at home under the pretext of the war on terrorism. At the same time, hundreds of billions of dollars are being diverted for war and war contractors, while the administration is slashing desperately needed funds for jobs, education, housing, healthcare and other vital programs. Now is the time to act! Join us in national emergency protests on June 5! BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW - ALL FOREIGN TROOPS OUT OF IRAQ! END THE COLONIAL OCCUPATION OF PALESTINE =AD SUPPORT THE RIGHT OF RETURN! U.S. OUT OF HAITI, AFGHANISTAN, PHILIPPINES, COLOMBIA, VENEZUELA, KOREA & CUBA! MONEY FOR JOBS, EDUCATION, HOUSING AND HEALTHCARE - NOT FOR WAR! DEFEND CIVIL LIBERTIES AND CIVIL RIGHTS! To ENDORSE fill out the easy-to-use form at http://www.ANSWERcoalition.org/campaigns/j5/endorse.html A downloadable flyer for the March on the Pentagon is available at http://www.ANSWERboston.org/j5/j5_boston.pdf If you are organizing transportation from your city, fill out the form at http://www.ANSWERcoalition.org/campaigns/j5/transportation.html -------------------------- A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition Act Now to Stop War & End Racism FOR MORE INFORMATION: http://www.answerboston.org http://www.ANSWERcoalition.org info@answerboston.org info@internationalanswer.org New York 212-633-6646 Washington 202-544-3389 Los Angeles 213-487-2368 San Francisco 415-821-6545 Boston 617-522-6626 From robbins@downeast.net Mon Apr 26 01:47:32 2004 From: robbins@downeast.net (J&P Robbins) Date: Sun, 25 Apr 2004 20:47:32 -0400 Subject: [Megan] Art Works for Peace, Ellsworth Message-ID: <000401c42b28$12c604f0$c6ff6442@computer> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0005_01C42B06.8BB91FE0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Art Works for Peace Thirteen area artists are exhibiting work that uniquely expresses their response to current events and the desire for global peace. Hosted by The Grand Theater in Ellsworth, the work will be on display in the lobby from April 29 to May 25. The doors are generally open during the afternoons as well as during performances. Participating artists are Siri Beckman, Kelly Bellis, Natasha Mayers, Rebecca McCall, Cathy Melio, Frank Pitcher, Rebekah Raye, Peter Robbins, Rob Shetterly, Richard Stander, Sherry Streeter, Pat Wheeler, Fred Woell. The public is invited to an artists' reception on Tuesday, May 4th, from 5 to 6:30. (Playing that night at 7:30 is the film, "The Company.") ------=_NextPart_000_0005_01C42B06.8BB91FE0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message

Art Works for Peace

Thirteen area artists are exhibiting work that uniquely expresses = their

response to current events and the desire for global peace. Hosted by =

The Grand Theater in Ellsworth, the work will be on display in the =

lobby from April 29 to May 25. The doors are generally open during = the

afternoons as well as during performances.

Participating artists are Siri Beckman, Kelly Bellis, Natasha

Mayers, Rebecca McCall, Cathy Melio, Frank Pitcher, Rebekah Raye, = Peter

Robbins, Rob Shetterly, Richard Stander, Sherry Streeter, Pat = Wheeler,

Fred Woell.

The public is invited to an artists' reception on Tuesday, May 4th, =

from 5 to 6:30.

(Playing that night at 7:30 is the film, "The=20 Company.")

------=_NextPart_000_0005_01C42B06.8BB91FE0-- From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "A.N.S.W.E.R." The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition is forwarding this important message from the Right of Return Congress - North America. URGENT CALL TO SUPPORT RIGHT OF RETURN Bulletin Update of the Right of Return Congress - North America (** For direct Bulletin subscription, please write to add@ror-congress.org) - Please Post Widely and Actively on all Lists - INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO THE BUSH DECLARATION ON THE PALESTINIAN RIGHT TO RETURN ***************************** PLEASE SEND YOUR SUPPORT TO: responsetobush@yahoo.com WE ARE COUNTING ON YOU! UPDATE: In a short period of time, this International Response to the declaration made by President George W. Bush on vital issues regarding the Palestinian people has received massive support from organizations, intellectuals, and grassroots leaders worldwide. As indicated below, the Palestinian Right to Return movement in its entirety and organizations representing Palestinian refugees and those in exile stand firm and unified in their demand to exercise the inalienable right to return. We thank you for your support thus far. We are asking you to take yet another step in advocating for this fundamental right for the Palestinian people, by actively spreading this International Response and by asking your respective organizations and friends to join. We ask that each one of us attempt to reach out to 5 more, and to get the endorsement of our respective organizations and institutions. It is time that the Right of Return for the Palestinian people is normalized within the international community! This is a vital time, and we need your support! On May 15, 2004, this response will be sent to all members of the United Nations General Assembly and other relevant parties. We intend to show an international consensus. Please join in this important campaign! We encourage institutional, organizational, and individual endorsements. We ask that you post this response and pass it along as widely as possible. For endorsement, please write to: responsetobush@yahoo.com ***************************** INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE In response to the most recent declaration given by President of the United States, George W. Bush, to Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, on April 14, 2004, at the White House, we, the undersigned affirm the full individual and collective inalienable Right to Return of the Palestinian Arab People to their homes, property and land of origin. We assert in no uncertain terms that such a fundamental right is inviolable as it is based on the unbreakable natural belonging of a people to their property and place of origin, as enshrined in international law. Accordingly, we hold that the Palestinian Right to Return is an indispensable obligatory prerequisite for the achievement of any justice and peace. We consider any attempt to weaken, lessen, or alter such a right in any form through any proclamations or agreements between any parties to be counter to the human, political, civil, and national collective right of the Palestinian Arab People. Hence, such an attempt, along with its implications and ramifications, are null and void in total, regardless of the passage of time and the entities entering into such agreements or issuing such proclamations. On November 2, 1917, Great Britain issued the Balfour Declaration that promised Palestine to a European settler colonial movement, amounting to the inevitable dispossession and exile of the Palestinian people. Today, at a time when another Deir Yassin massacre is carried out in Fallujah in an attempt to cement the US occupation of Iraq, the Bush Administration is simultaneously attempting to complete the Balfour project of 1917 by nullifying the Palestinian Right to Return, and by giving an international cover to the creation of a truncated and walled collection of Bantustans that would normalize and legitimize the process of ethnic cleansing. Recognizing this existential and imminent danger, we stand against this new Balfour Declaration, and reaffirm our unwavering position that the Palestinian Right to Return is an inextricable anchor and prerequisite to full Palestinian self-determination, freedom, and liberty. (This public declaration will be submitted to all members of the UN General Assembly and other relevant parties on May 15, 2004. For endorsement, please write to: responsetobush@yahoo.com) SIGNATORIES (in formation, please join): ->>> To view the FULL list of endorsers as it is formed, please visit http://www.ror-congress.org Please join in this important campaign! We encourage institutional, organizational, and individual endorsements. We ask that you post this response and pass it along as widely as possible. For endorsement, please write to: responsetobush@yahoo.com -------------------------- Email circulated by: A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition Act Now to Stop War & End Racism www.InternationalANSWER.org _______________________________________________ ANSWER.general mailing list Anyone can subscribe. Send an email request to: mailto:ANSWER.general-subscribe@organizerweb.com From Tim Sullivan" http://www.wmtw.com/Global/story.asp?S=1817976&nav=7k6rMci8 Widow brings her mission to Maine Tuesday, April27,2004,1:21 PM By Jennifer McNeil News 8 WMTW PORTLAND -- A former Maine woman, who lost her husband in the Sept. 11 attacks, says she's looking for the truth. Ellen Mariani is suing United Airlines and the U.S. government. Monday night, she shared her story with folks in Bath. It was on Sept 11 that Ellen Mariani was catching a connecting flight in Chicago that she learned her husband Neil's flight had crashed into the World Trade Center. Their daughter's wedding, which they were both headed to, went on as planned four days later. Ellen says, "I wasn't going to let the terrorists get their way, and I wanted to show strength to my kids." Mariani, who grew up in Richmond, says Sept. 11 left her shattered. She told people in Bath her roots in the state have helped her through this ordeal. Mariani refused to accept settlement money from a government compenstation fund for families of Sept. 11 victims. It would have prevented her from filing lawsuits. "He was adandoned by the airlines, abandoned by the defense system. No one there to protect," she says of her husband. "Am I supposed to abandon my husband, now? Money -- shut up and go away." Mariani has filed lawsuits against United Airlines and the government. She says it isn't about money, but answers -- about who knew what and when. She says, "In the end, what is going to make you feel better? The truth. Then we want those accountable held accountable." Mariani is sharing her stories in different states. She's currently in Maine, talking about her mission. Ellen Mariani will be speaking Tuesday night at 6:30 at St. Peter's Episcopal Church on White Street in Rockland. Call 594-1478 for more information. From Tim Sullivan" ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gretchen D. Noyes-Hull" The Environmental Dirty Laundry Project, back from display both at Wells and Portland on Earth Day 2004, will be taken to the State House Hall of Flags (8:30 to 10:30) this Thursday April 29. We need to have some volunteers to continue to 'air" the administration's destructive environmental policies for all to see. Please contact myself or Andy Burt at 882- 6848 if you would be free to help. We are also looking for additional potential sites to display the laundry. Thanks Gretchen From Tim Sullivan" Note that Maine labor activist Peter Kellman will also be speaking at the Portland stop. ----- Original Message ----- From: "XryebreadX" Ramona Africa will be speaking in Maine this weekend. She will speak in Lewiston, Waterville, and Portland. Ramona Africa is a member of the Philadelphia-based MOVE family. On May 13, 1985, a MOVE house was bombed by the Philadelphia police, killing 9 MOVE members and burning down an entire city block. Ramona was the only adult survivor of this massacre. A former political prisoner herself, she is an outspoken supporter of Mumia Abu-Jamal, the MOVE 9, and other political prisoners. Her tour of Maine comes the weekend after Mumia Abu-Jamal's 50th birthday rally, and 19 years after the Osage Ave. bombing. She will be speaking in Maine on the following dates: LEWISTON- She will speak on Thursday, April 29 at Bates College during their Earth Day celebration. She will be speaking at 7pm in the Keck Classroom in Petingill hall. For more info, contact Ryan at rconrad2@bates.edu. There will also be a book collection for Maine books to prisoners, so bring a book to donate! WATERVILLE- She will speak on Friday April 30 at 7pm at the Pugh Center at Colby College. For more info, contact Ariel at acadams@colby.edu or 859-6523. PORTLAND- She will speak on Saturday, May 1 at the Chestnut St. United Methodist Church, 17 Chestnut St (behind city hall). Peter Kellman, Maine labor activist and historian will also be speaking about the revolutionary history of May Day. This celebration of International Workers Day is being sponsored by the Portland Victory Gardens Project. Community potluck begins at 6pm, speakers start at 7pm. All events are free to the public. Donations will be accepted to raise funds for the MOVE 9 political prisoners. From lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net Wed Apr 28 01:54:37 2004 From: lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net (lwilliamslaw@earthlink.net) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 20:54:37 -0400 Subject: [Megan] SF Chronicle column Message-ID: <191690-22004432805437651@M2W064.mail2web.com> Today the S=2EF=2E Chronicle reprinted, without comment, this Art Hoppe co= lumn from 1971=2E Art was a wonderful man who I had the honor of meeting when = I lived in San Francisco=2E Lynne Williams The radio this morning said the Allied invasion of Laos had bogged down=2E= =20 Without thinking, I nodded and said, "Good=2E"=20 And having said it, I realized the bitter truth: Now I root against my own= =20 country=2E=20 This is how far we have come in this hated and endless war=2E This is the=20= nadir I have reached in this winter of my discontent=2E This is how close = I=20 border on treason:=20 Now I root against my own country=2E=20 How frighteningly sad this is=2E My generation was raised to love our coun= try=20 and we loved it unthinkingly=2E We licked Hitler and Tojo and Mussolini=2E= =20 Those were our shining hours=2E Those were our days of faith=2E=20 They were evil; we were good=2E They told lies; we spoke the truth=2E Our = cause=20 was just, our purposes noble, and in victory we were magnanimous=2E What a= =20 wonderful country we are! I loved it so=2E=20 But now, having descended down the torturous, brutalizing years of this=20= bloody war, I have come to the dank and lightless bottom of the well: I=20= have come to root against the country that once I blindly loved=2E=20 I can rationalize it=2E I can say that if the invasion of Laos succeeds, t= he=20 chimera of victory will dance once again before our eyes -- leading us onc= e=20 again into more years of mindless slaughter=2E Thus, I can say, I hope the= =20 invasion fails=2E=20 But it is more than that=2E It is that I have come to hate my country's ro= le=20 in Vietnam=2E=20 I hate the massacres, the body counts, the free fire zones, the napalming=20= of civilians, the poisoning of rice crops=2E I hate being part of My Lai=2E= I=20 hate the fact that we have now dropped more explosives on these scrawny=20= Asian peasants than we did on all our enemies in World War II=2E=20 And I hate my leaders, who, over the years, have conscripted our young men= =20 and sent them there to kill or be killed in a senseless cause simply=20 because they can find no honorable way out -- no honorable way out for them=2E=20 I don't root for the enemy=2E I doubt they are any better than we=2E I don= 't=20 give a damn anymore who wins the day=2E But because I hate what my country= is=20 doing in Vietnam, I emotionally and often irrationally hope that it fails=2E= =20 It is a terrible thing to root against your own country=2E If I were alone= ,=20 it wouldn't matter=2E But I don't think I am alone=2E I think many America= ns=20 must feel these same sickening emotions I feel=2E I think they share my=20= guilt=2E I think they share my rage=2E=20 If this is true, we must end this war now -- in defeat, if necessary=2E We= =20 must end it because all of Southeast Asia is not worth the hatred, shame,=20= guilt and rage that is tearing Americans apart=2E We must end it not for=20= those among our young who have come to hate America, but for those who=20 somehow manage to love it still=2E=20 I doubt that I can ever again love my country in that unthinking way that = I=20 did when I was young=2E Perhaps this is a good thing=2E=20 But I would hope the day will come when I can once again believe what my=20= country says and once again approve of what it does=2E I want to have fait= h=20 once more in the justness of my country's causes and the nobleness of its=20= ideals=2E=20 What I want so very much is to be able once again to root for my own, my=20= native land=2E=20 This column by Art Hoppe was published in The Chronicle on March 5, 1971;=20= he said it attracted more letters than any other column he wrote=2E Hoppe=20= died Feb=2E 1, 2000=2E=20 -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web=2Ecom/ =2E From ltapley@prexar.com Wed Apr 28 12:42:01 2004 From: ltapley@prexar.com (Lance Tapley) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 07:42:01 -0400 Subject: [Megan] SF Chronicle column References: <191690-22004432805437651@M2W064.mail2web.com> Message-ID: <001001c42d15$d2693590$f5c0ab44@lance> Dear Lynne, I was working at the San Francisco Chronicle when this column appeared. Art was a friend and mentor. Some of us on the staff struggled mightily against the Chronicle's weak leadership and the paper's resulting weaknesses (if you lived in San Francisco, you know what they are or were). But we were always grateful that they had the sense to employ Art Hoppe. And now I don't feel so bad about my old paper when I see they have had the sense to reprint this column. Lance Tapley ----- Original Message ----- From: To: ; Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 2004 8:54 PM Subject: [Megan] SF Chronicle column Today the S.F. Chronicle reprinted, without comment, this Art Hoppe column from 1971. Art was a wonderful man who I had the honor of meeting when I lived in San Francisco. Lynne Williams The radio this morning said the Allied invasion of Laos had bogged down. Without thinking, I nodded and said, "Good." And having said it, I realized the bitter truth: Now I root against my own country. This is how far we have come in this hated and endless war. This is the nadir I have reached in this winter of my discontent. This is how close I border on treason: Now I root against my own country. How frighteningly sad this is. My generation was raised to love our country and we loved it unthinkingly. We licked Hitler and Tojo and Mussolini. Those were our shining hours. Those were our days of faith. They were evil; we were good. They told lies; we spoke the truth. Our cause was just, our purposes noble, and in victory we were magnanimous. What a wonderful country we are! I loved it so. But now, having descended down the torturous, brutalizing years of this bloody war, I have come to the dank and lightless bottom of the well: I have come to root against the country that once I blindly loved. I can rationalize it. I can say that if the invasion of Laos succeeds, the chimera of victory will dance once again before our eyes -- leading us once again into more years of mindless slaughter. Thus, I can say, I hope the invasion fails. But it is more than that. It is that I have come to hate my country's role in Vietnam. I hate the massacres, the body counts, the free fire zones, the napalming of civilians, the poisoning of rice crops. I hate being part of My Lai. I hate the fact that we have now dropped more explosives on these scrawny Asian peasants than we did on all our enemies in World War II. And I hate my leaders, who, over the years, have conscripted our young men and sent them there to kill or be killed in a senseless cause simply because they can find no honorable way out -- no honorable way out for them. I don't root for the enemy. I doubt they are any better than we. I don't give a damn anymore who wins the day. But because I hate what my country is doing in Vietnam, I emotionally and often irrationally hope that it fails. It is a terrible thing to root against your own country. If I were alone, it wouldn't matter. But I don't think I am alone. I think many Americans must feel these same sickening emotions I feel. I think they share my guilt. I think they share my rage. If this is true, we must end this war now -- in defeat, if necessary. We must end it because all of Southeast Asia is not worth the hatred, shame, guilt and rage that is tearing Americans apart. We must end it not for those among our young who have come to hate America, but for those who somehow manage to love it still. I doubt that I can ever again love my country in that unthinking way that I did when I was young. Perhaps this is a good thing. But I would hope the day will come when I can once again believe what my country says and once again approve of what it does. I want to have faith once more in the justness of my country's causes and the nobleness of its ideals. What I want so very much is to be able once again to root for my own, my native land. This column by Art Hoppe was published in The Chronicle on March 5, 1971; he said it attracted more letters than any other column he wrote. Hoppe died Feb. 1, 2000. -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ . _______________________________________________ Megan mailing list Megan@lists.maineindymedia.org http://lists.maineindymedia.org/mailman/listinfo/megan From Tim Sullivan" Download and print a flyer at http://www.sullboat.com/MEPJ/empireposter.pdf ----- Original Message ----- From: "People's Free Space" People's Free Space Resisting Empire and Sustainability School Tour May 2004 In May, the Frida Bus will be travelling around Maine putting on two presentations; during the day we will be presenting in schools sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels and in the evening we will hold multimedia presentations called "Resisting Empire." In the schools, we will be presenting the ecological and social problems with our dependance on oil and other fossil fuels and the alternatives that currently exist such as biofuels, windpower, solar power and energy conservation. Our evening presentation "Resisting Empire" will critically look at the United States' addiction to War, Oil, Drugs, and Power. Through music, puppets, slides and discussion we will show how the US empire uses food, energy and war as mechanisms to control the people off the world. We will not just dwell on the negatives though, but will showcase inspiring examples of grassroots resistance and sustainable alternatives to the corporate domination of the planet. At the end of our presentation we will facilitate a community discussion about local issues and building regional solidarity. Our presentation lasts approximately 2 hours and can be held in any space. We will be travelling on the Frida Bus, our biodiesel powered mobile community space. It is a converted school bus that contains a kitchen, a library, couch, free box,and free information. This spring before the tour we will be converting the bus to run on straight vegetable oil (it currently runs on biodiesel) and will install solar panels. If you are interested in having this tour present in your community or your school or if you need more information please get in contact with us, so that we can schedule an appearance. We can be reached at: info@peoplesfreespace.org, box 4875, Portland, ME 04112, 879-2699 www.peoplesfreespace.org :Our schedule is as follows: Friday April 30th: Chewonki Student Sustainability Conference, Wiscasset Monday May 3rd: Morris Farm Damriscotta Quaker Meeting House, Belevedere Road, Damriscotta, 7pm, Tuesday May 4th: Camden Hills Regional High School Evening: Community School, 6:30pm, 7:15 Presentation (not an open community presentation) Wednesday May 5th: Camden Hills Regional High School Belfast: Unitarian-Universalist Church, Miller St. Belfast 7pm Thursday May 6th: Troy Howard Middle School, Belfast Audobon Expedition Institute, Belfast (Looking for a Thursday Night Show) Friday: HOME Coop, East Orland: Jen Moses Liberty School, Blue Hill: 10:30 am Friday Night: Blue Hill Library, Blue Hill 7pm Saturday Off Bike2Demilitarize Maine Sunday May 9: Sunday Afternoon: Earth First! Meeting Sunday Evening: College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor Gates Auditorium, 5pm Potluck, 6pm Show Monday May 10: Mount Desert Area High School Monday Night May 10: Good Life Center, Harborview 6pm Tuesday May 11: Waterville? (we're still trying to confirm,or if anyone has any other places for us to go this day) Wednesday May 12: Unity? (we're still trying to confirm, or if anyone has any other places for us to go this day ) Thursday May 13: Skowhegan Area High School (looking for an evening show) Friday May 14: Evergreen School, Hallowell Friday May 21: Portland People's Free Space, 547A Congress St. #32 7pm May 17-30: Presentations at Greater Portland/Cumberland County Schools. From Tim Sullivan" PRESENTATION ON FREE TRADE PROTESTS On Thursday, May 13, at 7pm, presentations on last year's Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) meeting and protest in Miami will be given at the Liberty School, on South St in Blue Hill, in the Commons building. The talk is sponsored by Peninsula Peace and Justice, that will hold its regular monthly meeting beginning at 6:30pm. A facilitated discussion will take place after the presentations. Brenda Wentworth, who is from Winslow, Maine, will first give a PowerPoint presentation with actual photos and sound, and her own writing about the November 2003 FTAA Ministerial and the protests that occurred in opposition to that meeting. FTAA would create a "free trade" zone with every country in North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean, except Cuba. Ryan Conrad, with the Maine College Action Network, will show a video he made at the same protest. Conrad, who was peacefully demonstrating, was assaulted by riot police and arrested, but later his charges were dropped. The police response is being investigated by Miami's police review board. "I oppose the FTAA because I believe this corporate agreement is detrimental to the life of this Earth," Conrad said. "The agreement is undemocratic, will undermine labor rights and cause further job loss, and will jeopardize consumer and environmental protection." Free and open to the public. For more information call 326-4405 or email robbins@downeast.net From invert@acadia.net Fri Apr 30 12:37:45 2004 From: invert@acadia.net (Larry Dansinger) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 11:37:45 +0000 Subject: [Megan] GROW June 10-13 Organizer training on line brochure and registration Message-ID: <200404301633.i3UGVqJg004123@thresher.prexar.com> > THIS MESSAGE IS IN MIME FORMAT. Since your mail reader does not understand this format, some or all of this message may not be legible. --MS_Mac_OE_3166169873_210593_MIME_Part Content-type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable Hello to those interested in organizing for change in Maine, I hope you can come and spread this invitation around to others. Thanks. My apologies if you are receiving this more than once. Larry Dansinger GROW-ing Stronger Together GROW New England's GRASSROOTS ORGANIZING WORKSHOPS JUNE 10-13, 2004 World Fellowship Center near Conway, New Hampshire For New and Experienced Grassroots Organizers in Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire to Learn More about Creating Grassroots Social Change Why GROW (GrassRoots Organizing Workshop) New England? Much is not right in the world -- loss of liberties; government policies benefiting the corporate rich; war and imperialism; lack of affordable health care, housing, and education; a polluted environment; attacks against immigrants and people of color -- and those with the least economic and political power suffer the most. In order to take back our power we have to ORGANIZE. In order to create a world that provides for the well-being of everyone, we have to ORGANIZE! In order to ORGANIZE we need to gather, learn, share and plan with each other. Join new and experienced activists and organizers from Northern New England as we: learn and teach about the "big picture" of social change gain new organizing skills plan joint actions celebrate successes GROW Weekend Plus Schedule Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshops 5:00pm Thursday June 10th - 4:00 pm Friday June 11th Cost: $0 - $30 (sliding scale) includes housing (bring bedding), meals, and use of facilities. Choose One: Anti-Oppression Organizing (facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT) Youth Organizing (Liana Foxvog, NH) Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing (jesse leah vear, ME) Labor Organizing (Leslie Manning, ME) GROW Weekend Schedule 5:00pm Friday June 11th - 4:30 pm Sunday June 13th Cost $0 - $60 (sliding scale) includes housing in one of the lodges or at a campsite (bring bedding), meals, all workshops, and use of World Fellowship facilities. The weekend will offer a variety of workshops and planning opportunities. For an exact schedule and updated workshop offerings, please go to our website: http://openvoices.com/grow/ or call Liana, 603-224-2407, Sha'an, 802-744-2760, or Larry, 207-525-7776, Workshop topics to include: Power Analysis, facilitated by Tammy Greaton, ME Grassroots Fundraising, facilitated by Will Everitt, ME Overcoming Oppression, facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT How Art, Culture and Politics Come Together, facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert= , VT Learning from Our Elders, facilitated by Carol Tashie, NH Linking Congregations and Unions, facilitated by Chuck Hotchkiss, NH Accessibility: Rooms and bathroom are accessible, but there are no accessible showers or bathtubs. Child Care: Provided, at no cost, during workshop times only. Those bringin= g children must register by June 5. Meals: Vegetarian meals, with meat or vegan options, are included in the registration costs. Attendees will be asked to help with meal preparation and cleanup. Travel Costs: If you need help with travel costs, please contact us. Registration: The deadline for registration is June 5th. Registrations afte= r June 5 will be accepted only as space permits. Registration materials and directions will be e/mailed once you register. Registration Form Name Address Phone Email Please Check all that Apply: ___I am registering for the June 11-13 weekend ___I am registering for an Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshop My first choice is: ___ Anti-Oppression Organizing ___ Youth Organizing ___ Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing ___ Labor Organizing Enclosed is $_____ Check payable to "Resources for Organizing and Social Change=B2 (ROSC). Partial payment is OK. Remainder will be due at the door. Choice of housing ___ Lodge ___ Campsite Childcare ___I need childcare for children ages (please list): Ride Share: ___I need a ride from ___________ ___I can offer a ride from ___________ Please indicate any other special accommodations you require: ______________________________________________________________ Return this form by June 5 to GROW New England/ROSC, PO Box 776, Monroe, ME 04951. For registration questions: Larry, 207-525-7776, invert@acadia.net (ME) OTHER QUESTIONS? Sha'an, 802-744-2760, mouliert@vtlink.net (VT) Liana, 603-224-2407, lfoxvog@afsc.org (NH) --MS_Mac_OE_3166169873_210593_MIME_Part Content-type: text/html; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable GROW June 10-13 Organizer training on line brochure and registration= Hello to those interested in organizing for change= in Maine,

I hope you can come and spread this invitation around to others. Thanks.
My apologies if you are receiving this more than once.

Larry Dansinger

GROW-ing Stronger Together

GROW New England's

GRASSROOTS ORGANIZING WORKSHOPS<= BR>

JUNE 10-13, 2004
World Fellowship Center
near Conway, New Hampshire

For New and Experienced Grassroots Organizers in Vermont, Ma= ine, and New
Hampshire to Learn More about Creating Grassroots Social Change

Why GROW (GrassRoots Organizin= g Workshop) New England?

Much is not right in the world -- loss of liberties; government policies be= nefiting the corporate rich; war and imperialism; lack of affordable health = care, housing, and education; a polluted environment; attacks against = immigrants and people of color -- and those with the least economic and poli= tical power suffer the most.

In order to take back our power we have to ORGANIZE. In order to create a w= orld that provides for the well-being of everyone, we have to ORGANIZE! In o= rder to ORGANIZE we need to gather, learn, share and plan with each other.
Join new and experienced activists and organizers from Northern New England= as we:
learn and teach about the "big picture" of social change
gain new organizing skills
plan joint actions
celebrate successes

GROW Weekend Plus Schedule

Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshops
5:00pm Thursday June 10th - 4:00 pm Friday June 11th
Cost: $0 - $30 (sliding scale) includes housing (bring bedding), meals, and= use of facilities.

Choose One:
Anti-Oppression Organizing (facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT)
Youth Organizing (Liana Foxvog, NH)
Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing (jesse leah vear, ME)
Labor Organizing (Leslie Manning, ME)

GROW Weekend Schedule
5:00pm Friday June 11th - 4:30 pm Sunday June 13th
Cost $0 - $60 (sliding scale) includes housing in one of the lodges or at a= campsite (bring bedding), meals, all workshops, and use of World Fellowship= facilities.

The weekend will offer a variety of workshops and planning opportunities. F= or an exact schedule and updated workshop offerings, please go to our websit= e: http://openvoices.com/grow/
or call Liana, 603-224-2407, Sha'an, 802-744-2760, or Larry, 207-525-7776,<= BR>

Workshop topics to include:

Power Analysis, facilitated by Tammy Gr= eaton, ME
Grassroots Fundraising, facilitated by Will Everitt, ME
Overcoming Oppression, facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert, VT
How Art, Culture and Politics Come Together, facilitated by Sha'an Mouliert= , VT
Learning from Our Elders, facilitated by Carol Tashie, NH
Linking Congregations and Unions, facilitated by Chuck Hotchkiss, NH

Accessibility: Rooms and bathroom are accessible, but there are no accessib= le showers or bathtubs.

Child Care: Provided, at no cost, during workshop times only. Those bringin= g children must register by June 5.

Meals: Vegetarian meals, with meat or vegan options, are included in the re= gistration costs. Attendees will be asked to help with meal preparation and = cleanup.

Travel Costs: If you need help with travel costs, please contact us.

Registration: The deadline for registration is June 5th. Registrations afte= r June 5 will be accepted only as space permits. Registration materials and = directions will be e/mailed once you register.

Registration Form

Name
Address
Phone
Email

Please Check all that Apply:

___I am registering for the June 11-13 weekend
___I am registering for an Intensive Pre-Weekend Workshop

My first choice is:
___ Anti-Oppression Organizing
___ Youth Organizing
___ Economic Human Rights (anti-poverty) Organizing
___ Labor Organizing

Enclosed is $_____ Check payable to "Resources for Organizing an= d Social Change=B2 (ROSC). Partial payment is OK. Remainder will be due at the= door.

Choice of housing
___ Lodge
___ Campsite

Childcare
___I need childcare for children ages (please list):

Ride Share:

___I need a ride from ___________
___I can offer a ride from ___________

Please indicate any other special accommodations you require: _____________= _________________________________________________

Return this form by June 5 to GROW N= ew England/ROSC, PO Box 776, Monroe, ME 04951. For registration questions: L= arry, 207-525-7776, invert@acadia.net (M= E)

OTHER QUESTIONS?
Sha'an, 802-744-2760, mouliert@vtlink.net (VT)
Liana, 603-224-2407, lfoxvog@afsc.org (= NH)

--MS_Mac_OE_3166169873_210593_MIME_Part--