We always note The Laura Flanders Show in its own entry because it is a community favorite.
(And thanks to Kat for doing last week's entry on it. Not only did Kat do a great job, she did it at the last minute when I realized there was no way I would be done volunteering in time. So thank you, Kat.) Rocky Anderson is the mayor of Salt Lake City, flashback, which had the big protest when Bully Boy visited at a time when he couldn't walk across his ranchetta to meet Cindy Sheehan who was camped out in Camp Casey at the time.
This Week on The Laura Flanders Show
On Air America Radio, 7-10 PM EST
As hurricanes Harriet, Fitzpatrick, and Wilma hit, we look at Mayors who are making change in challenging times, with Salt Lake City's ROCKY ANDERSON and Madison, Wisconsin's DAVE CIESLEWICZ.
We'll visit with a grandmother who got arrested trying to sign up for service in Iraq.
The Village Voices' JAMES RIDGEWAY and Editor and Publisher's JOE STRUPP consider what journalists did right and wrong this past week.
And we’ll have KATE CLINTON in studio to talk about her latest book, What the L?, and her USO tour... that's "Utah Seems Odd."
Don't Forget - You can listen to past broadcasts of the Laura Flanders Show: Download archived shows HERE or Subscribe to the Free PODCAST through the iTunes Music Store
Go to the Laura Flanders Blog
In addition to listening to The Laura Flanders Show via iPod, you can also listen to it over broadcast radio (if there's an AAR in your area), via XM Satellite Radio (channel 167) or listen online. It's a program that airs Saturdays and Sundays. (Sundays is not a rebroadcast unless the show is on vacation.)
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
the laura flanders show
laura flanders
radio
grandmothers against the war
kate clinton
rocky anderson
james ridgeway
joe strupp
grandmothers for peace international
joan wile
the village voice
dave cieslewicz
editor & publisher
kats korner
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Ruth's Morning Edition Report
Ruth: Pledge drives continue on Pacifica. (On NPR as well.) A large number of e-mails resulted from my week off; therefore, I'm doing a Morning Edition Report.
During pledge drives, it's difficult for me to figure out what will air and what will not. Which does not mean that there are not special programs worth listening to. I heard strong documentaries this week. On Wakeup Call on WBAI, Friday provided a hard hitting look at gentically modified foods. On KPFA, I heard a documentary about Michael Moore's campus appearance that had some up in arms. There was never a question of finding something worth listening to but it was difficult to follow the programming schedule.
An e-mail came in from Dallas suggesting I sample KPFA. Due to the fact that I could not get any of the streams for KPFK to work, I did just that. Each morning, I would try to get KPFK to stream but with no luck. I hope that means that a huge number of people were listening which would make up for the fact that I missed two of my favorite programs, Sojourner Truth hosted by Margaret Prescod and Connect the Dots with Lila Garrett.
Dallas is very high on KPFA. In fact, he noted that he pledged and will be receiving a DVD set of the peace rallies in DC which sounds like a wonderful gift. (Tracey and I also made a pledge but I noted a member's endorsement and will avoid stating the one I made with my granddaughter because I know this is an issue for some members.)
On the Pacifica pledge drives, I will also note that Amy Goodman must never sleep. I could hear her at various times, on various stations and her dedication to public radio as a voice for the people is inspiring. Which some might read as an effort on the part of a sneaky old woman to suggest that you consider pledging to Pacifica, but I'll just see it as noting that Amy Goodman, a voice who speaks to the community, has been working very hard to encourage people to support Pacifica.
KPFA is my choice for evening news due to their outstanding KPFA Evening News. It's an hourly broadcast Monday through Friday nights, six p.m. in California and nine p.m. where I live, and a half hour broadcast on Saturday and Sunday nights. Brad and Kara both shared that they the KPFA's archives the easiest to utilize.
On Wednesday, I listened to a program that Carl has been urging me to sample. I did attempt to sample it last week but it wasn't aired due to the pledge drive. Guns & Butter is Carl's favorite of all the Pacifica programs he's listened to.
Guns & Butter devoted its hour primarily to a speech by Norman Finklestein. Mr. Finklestein addressed the issue of how some used the charge of "anti-Semitism" to shut down discussion and tar and feather opponents. Not surprisingly, Alan Dershowitz's name came up. Mr. Dershowitz has always struck me as a child who earned too much attention from his elders in synagogue and now he hungers for it the way one might hunger for kugel. That is my polite take on Mr. Dershowitz. My impolite take would be to say he's an oysvorf. Mr. Finklestein has a book coming out shortly and in it, among other things, he takes a look into Mr. Dershowitz's claims and research. In his speech, Mr. Finklestein spoke of Mr. Dershowitz's attempts to stop the book's publication. I will note that Mr. Dershowitz maintains that he was not attempting to stop publication or censor. So his call to the Gropinator was apparently an effort to save trees?
I enjoyed hearing Mr. Finklestein's speech and hope it leads to some serious conversations, both within the American Jewish community and outside of it as well.
[Dallas notes that if anyone attempts to listen and has trouble with the link, they should try this one because currently it appears that Bay Native Circle and Guns & Butter have been inverted.]
David Gans is the host of KPFA's Dead To The World, but I still haven't heard his voice that much. An e-mail from Roger alerted me to the fact that Wednesday's program would revolve around the Who whom Roger assumed, rightly, I was a fan of. Roger, two of my sons are as well, so we ended with a crowded living room Wednesday night. Along with wonderful performance by the band, we also were provided with various facts about it as well. Such as the fact that "rock opera" was a term their manager came up with and not Pete Townsend.
Roger, my family thanks you for the alert. They may have been less thankful the next morning since the program ends well after midnight where we live.
KPFA's The Morning Show is a nice blend of news, current events and discussions. Tuesday one of the guests was Wavy Gravy and if you just asked "Who?" then you didn't live through the sixties. Mr. Gravy is both a comedian and an activist. He was also a delightful guest to listen to.
However, my favorite guests on The Morning Show this week were Annie E. Bond, author of Home Enlightenment, and Lisa Harrow, author of What Can I Do?: An Alphabet For Living. This discussion revolved around what you can do in your own home to be more friendly to the environment and also what things, such as carpet, in your home might be unhealthy for you. I found this to be one of the most enjoyable programs of the week partly due to the discussion in the second hour, as well as the first hour which featured the documentary Homeland narrated by Winona LaDuke. I will add that the author Ms. Harrow is also an actress and, for anyone my age, married to Roger Payne. Pull out your vinyl copies of Judy Collins' Whales & Nightingales and listen to "Farewell To Tarwathie" to appreciate Mr. Payne's pioneering research on the songs of whales
I also enjoyed Monday's Out-FM on WBAI. The song "With God On Our Side" was utilized throughout, performed by Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, and that was due to their topic and guest: Esther Kaplan who wrote With God On Their Side: How Christian Fundamentalists Trampled Science, Policy, and Democracy in George W. Bush's White House. The discussion revolved around topics such as the use of religious radio to smear John Kerry in the presidential election, spreading the rumor that he would "ban the Bible," the appointment of judges with former President Bill Clinton appointing moderates and the Bully Boy, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan attempting to appoint ultra-conservatives and the strategies that fundamentalists use to attack science and their fellow Americans.
In closing I'll address a topic coming up in e-mails at the end of the week. Mia was the first one to raise it; however, Tracey had already told me I'd better address it. When your granddaughter "tells" you something, you do take note.
Like many of those e-mailing, I heard quite enough of Scott Ritter this week. His comments about the DC protests were insulting. Was he there? He does not speak like he was and no one I spoke to remembered him being there as a speaker. After I shared his remarks (broadcast first on WBAI's Wakeup Call) with Elaine, she offered that he does not grasp the point of people coming together or planting seeds. More importantly, she stated, he does not grasp what went on at the protests.
I quite agree with that. Listen to his sneering claims that we sang "Kumbaya" were insulting. "Kumbaya" is a great song but a number of men, usually stocky men of a certain age, love to trot out that nonsense to prove how manly they are. They only come off more stocky and less manly. I briefly attempted to listen to Unfiltered when the program was still airing on Air America; however, Mike Papantonio's constant sneers at the peace movement were more than enough to turn me off the "Pap Smear." As Elaine pointed out, Mr. Papantonio will find that insulting because when it was offered as a nickname, he went into a panic, probably fearing it following him around. Considering his constant insults to those in the peace movement, I am happy to include it here. If you know Joe Scarborough's former law partner, I assume former, feel free to address him as "the Pap Smear."
Scott Ritter did the Pap Smear one better with coded language that was not as coded as Mr. Ritter apparently thought or hoped. Those who e-mailed all got the line he was attempting to draw with regards to his trip to Iraq. Yes, Mr. Ritter, you are no Jane Fonda. Jane Fonda did not run to the FBI before and after for cover. She excercised her rights as American citizen and did not attempt to seek permission for or take cover from her rights. Nor did she feel the need to speak of violence constantly. Rest assured, Mr. Ritter, no one will mistake you for a dove. Nor will you be mistaken for anything but what you are, a disgrunted Republican. If a serious discussion is to take place on the actions of Sandy Berger and Madeline Albright under former President Bill Clinton, it will probably take place without you due to the way you present yourself.
In addition, those who had supported you or been sympathetic to you during the false allegations that you attempted to meet up with an underage female, for questionable purposes, now grasp that you are not interested in their support by your statements that the group that really matters is the undecideds. That faulty thinking explains why Mr. Ritter can dismiss the hundreds of thousands who turned out to protest in DC and it also echoes the Democratic Party's own problems with listening to their base. If more time was spent, by either, working with the base, the base would be better able to get the message out to others. But instead of grass roots, some are more concerned with leadership roles.
Message received, Mr. Ritter, we will waste no more time supporting you so that you may spend more time pursuing the group that really matters to you. Good luck with that, as Tracey would say.
pacifca
kpfa
wbai
kpfa evening news
the morning show
out-fm
winona laduke
the who
roger payne
lisa harrow
anne bond
esther kaplan
sojourner truth
margaret prescod
connect the dots with lila garrett
norman finklestein
alan dershowitz
dead to the world
scott ritter
like maria said paz
During pledge drives, it's difficult for me to figure out what will air and what will not. Which does not mean that there are not special programs worth listening to. I heard strong documentaries this week. On Wakeup Call on WBAI, Friday provided a hard hitting look at gentically modified foods. On KPFA, I heard a documentary about Michael Moore's campus appearance that had some up in arms. There was never a question of finding something worth listening to but it was difficult to follow the programming schedule.
An e-mail came in from Dallas suggesting I sample KPFA. Due to the fact that I could not get any of the streams for KPFK to work, I did just that. Each morning, I would try to get KPFK to stream but with no luck. I hope that means that a huge number of people were listening which would make up for the fact that I missed two of my favorite programs, Sojourner Truth hosted by Margaret Prescod and Connect the Dots with Lila Garrett.
Dallas is very high on KPFA. In fact, he noted that he pledged and will be receiving a DVD set of the peace rallies in DC which sounds like a wonderful gift. (Tracey and I also made a pledge but I noted a member's endorsement and will avoid stating the one I made with my granddaughter because I know this is an issue for some members.)
On the Pacifica pledge drives, I will also note that Amy Goodman must never sleep. I could hear her at various times, on various stations and her dedication to public radio as a voice for the people is inspiring. Which some might read as an effort on the part of a sneaky old woman to suggest that you consider pledging to Pacifica, but I'll just see it as noting that Amy Goodman, a voice who speaks to the community, has been working very hard to encourage people to support Pacifica.
KPFA is my choice for evening news due to their outstanding KPFA Evening News. It's an hourly broadcast Monday through Friday nights, six p.m. in California and nine p.m. where I live, and a half hour broadcast on Saturday and Sunday nights. Brad and Kara both shared that they the KPFA's archives the easiest to utilize.
On Wednesday, I listened to a program that Carl has been urging me to sample. I did attempt to sample it last week but it wasn't aired due to the pledge drive. Guns & Butter is Carl's favorite of all the Pacifica programs he's listened to.
Guns & Butter devoted its hour primarily to a speech by Norman Finklestein. Mr. Finklestein addressed the issue of how some used the charge of "anti-Semitism" to shut down discussion and tar and feather opponents. Not surprisingly, Alan Dershowitz's name came up. Mr. Dershowitz has always struck me as a child who earned too much attention from his elders in synagogue and now he hungers for it the way one might hunger for kugel. That is my polite take on Mr. Dershowitz. My impolite take would be to say he's an oysvorf. Mr. Finklestein has a book coming out shortly and in it, among other things, he takes a look into Mr. Dershowitz's claims and research. In his speech, Mr. Finklestein spoke of Mr. Dershowitz's attempts to stop the book's publication. I will note that Mr. Dershowitz maintains that he was not attempting to stop publication or censor. So his call to the Gropinator was apparently an effort to save trees?
I enjoyed hearing Mr. Finklestein's speech and hope it leads to some serious conversations, both within the American Jewish community and outside of it as well.
[Dallas notes that if anyone attempts to listen and has trouble with the link, they should try this one because currently it appears that Bay Native Circle and Guns & Butter have been inverted.]
David Gans is the host of KPFA's Dead To The World, but I still haven't heard his voice that much. An e-mail from Roger alerted me to the fact that Wednesday's program would revolve around the Who whom Roger assumed, rightly, I was a fan of. Roger, two of my sons are as well, so we ended with a crowded living room Wednesday night. Along with wonderful performance by the band, we also were provided with various facts about it as well. Such as the fact that "rock opera" was a term their manager came up with and not Pete Townsend.
Roger, my family thanks you for the alert. They may have been less thankful the next morning since the program ends well after midnight where we live.
KPFA's The Morning Show is a nice blend of news, current events and discussions. Tuesday one of the guests was Wavy Gravy and if you just asked "Who?" then you didn't live through the sixties. Mr. Gravy is both a comedian and an activist. He was also a delightful guest to listen to.
However, my favorite guests on The Morning Show this week were Annie E. Bond, author of Home Enlightenment, and Lisa Harrow, author of What Can I Do?: An Alphabet For Living. This discussion revolved around what you can do in your own home to be more friendly to the environment and also what things, such as carpet, in your home might be unhealthy for you. I found this to be one of the most enjoyable programs of the week partly due to the discussion in the second hour, as well as the first hour which featured the documentary Homeland narrated by Winona LaDuke. I will add that the author Ms. Harrow is also an actress and, for anyone my age, married to Roger Payne. Pull out your vinyl copies of Judy Collins' Whales & Nightingales and listen to "Farewell To Tarwathie" to appreciate Mr. Payne's pioneering research on the songs of whales
I also enjoyed Monday's Out-FM on WBAI. The song "With God On Our Side" was utilized throughout, performed by Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, and that was due to their topic and guest: Esther Kaplan who wrote With God On Their Side: How Christian Fundamentalists Trampled Science, Policy, and Democracy in George W. Bush's White House. The discussion revolved around topics such as the use of religious radio to smear John Kerry in the presidential election, spreading the rumor that he would "ban the Bible," the appointment of judges with former President Bill Clinton appointing moderates and the Bully Boy, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan attempting to appoint ultra-conservatives and the strategies that fundamentalists use to attack science and their fellow Americans.
In closing I'll address a topic coming up in e-mails at the end of the week. Mia was the first one to raise it; however, Tracey had already told me I'd better address it. When your granddaughter "tells" you something, you do take note.
Like many of those e-mailing, I heard quite enough of Scott Ritter this week. His comments about the DC protests were insulting. Was he there? He does not speak like he was and no one I spoke to remembered him being there as a speaker. After I shared his remarks (broadcast first on WBAI's Wakeup Call) with Elaine, she offered that he does not grasp the point of people coming together or planting seeds. More importantly, she stated, he does not grasp what went on at the protests.
I quite agree with that. Listen to his sneering claims that we sang "Kumbaya" were insulting. "Kumbaya" is a great song but a number of men, usually stocky men of a certain age, love to trot out that nonsense to prove how manly they are. They only come off more stocky and less manly. I briefly attempted to listen to Unfiltered when the program was still airing on Air America; however, Mike Papantonio's constant sneers at the peace movement were more than enough to turn me off the "Pap Smear." As Elaine pointed out, Mr. Papantonio will find that insulting because when it was offered as a nickname, he went into a panic, probably fearing it following him around. Considering his constant insults to those in the peace movement, I am happy to include it here. If you know Joe Scarborough's former law partner, I assume former, feel free to address him as "the Pap Smear."
Scott Ritter did the Pap Smear one better with coded language that was not as coded as Mr. Ritter apparently thought or hoped. Those who e-mailed all got the line he was attempting to draw with regards to his trip to Iraq. Yes, Mr. Ritter, you are no Jane Fonda. Jane Fonda did not run to the FBI before and after for cover. She excercised her rights as American citizen and did not attempt to seek permission for or take cover from her rights. Nor did she feel the need to speak of violence constantly. Rest assured, Mr. Ritter, no one will mistake you for a dove. Nor will you be mistaken for anything but what you are, a disgrunted Republican. If a serious discussion is to take place on the actions of Sandy Berger and Madeline Albright under former President Bill Clinton, it will probably take place without you due to the way you present yourself.
In addition, those who had supported you or been sympathetic to you during the false allegations that you attempted to meet up with an underage female, for questionable purposes, now grasp that you are not interested in their support by your statements that the group that really matters is the undecideds. That faulty thinking explains why Mr. Ritter can dismiss the hundreds of thousands who turned out to protest in DC and it also echoes the Democratic Party's own problems with listening to their base. If more time was spent, by either, working with the base, the base would be better able to get the message out to others. But instead of grass roots, some are more concerned with leadership roles.
Message received, Mr. Ritter, we will waste no more time supporting you so that you may spend more time pursuing the group that really matters to you. Good luck with that, as Tracey would say.
pacifca
kpfa
wbai
kpfa evening news
the morning show
out-fm
winona laduke
the who
roger payne
lisa harrow
anne bond
esther kaplan
sojourner truth
margaret prescod
connect the dots with lila garrett
norman finklestein
alan dershowitz
dead to the world
scott ritter
like maria said paz
Heads up
Heads up to a hard hitting Ruth's Morning Edition Report. Dallas finished hunting down the links and I've done the tags but don't miss the editorial at the end of Ruth's latest (posting right after this).
I don't read the e-mails to Ruth, I just forward them on to her but a few members did write me regarding the topic she's addressing.
As Dallas said, "Go get him, Ruth!"
We'll repost it on Monday as usual.
Just wanted to add this because I try to stay out of her space and I won't be posting after the next two entries. So be sure you read to the bottom of Ruth's latest.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
I don't read the e-mails to Ruth, I just forward them on to her but a few members did write me regarding the topic she's addressing.
As Dallas said, "Go get him, Ruth!"
We'll repost it on Monday as usual.
Just wanted to add this because I try to stay out of her space and I won't be posting after the next two entries. So be sure you read to the bottom of Ruth's latest.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
Ex asistente de Powell: “Complot” de Cheney se apoderó de las políticas extranjeras
Maria: Hola. De parte de "Democracy Now!" once cosas que vale hacer notar este fin de semana. Paz.
Ex asistente de Powell: "Complot" de Cheney se apoderó de las políticas extranjeras
El ex jefe de personal de Colin Powell acusó públicamente a funcionarios de alto rango del gobierno de Bush de manejar las políticas extranjeras del país de tal manera que debilitaron la democracia estadounidense. El funcionario, Coronel Lawrence Wilkerson, hizo esas declaraciones el miércoles en Washington. Hasta enero, era el jefe de personal de Powell, quien era en ese entonces Secretario de Estado. Wilkerson dijo: "Lo que vi fue un complot entre el Vicepresidente de Estados Unidos, Richard Cheney, y el Secretario de Defensa... para tomar decisiones de las que la burocracia no tenía conocimiento" Wilkerson acusó también al Presidente Bush y a Rumsfeld de permitir el abuso a detenidos en el extranjero. El Financial Times catalogó los comentarios de Wilkerson como los ataques más severos al gobierno de Bush por un ex funcionario de alto rango desde las críticas realizadas por Richard Calark y Paul O’Neill a principios del año pasado. Wilkerson admitió el miércoles que su decisión de criticar públicamente al gobierno lo llevó a romper relaciones con Colin Powell, con quien trabajó durante 16 años.
Informe: Bush supo de la participación de Rove en la filtración hace dos años
Surgieron nuevos avances en el escándalo sobre la filtración de la identidad de la agente de la CIA Valerie Plame. El New York Daily News informa que el Presidente Bush amonestó a Karl Rove dos años después de que presuntamente conociera la vinculación de Rove con el caso de filtración. Mientras tanto, el Washington Post informa que Rove le dijo al Gran Jurado que podría haber sido Lewis "Scooter" Libby, jefe de personal del Vicepresidente Cheney, quien le reveló que Plame trabajaba para la CIA.
Rumores en DC: ¿Renunciará Cheney por caso de filtración de la CIA?
Esta noticia es sobre la investigación de la filtración de la identidad de la agente de la CIA Valerie Plame. El martes se esparció en el Capitolio el rumor de que el Vicepresidente Dick Cheney podría renunciar a causa del escándalo de la filtración. Se especula si el Fiscal Patrick Fitzgerald presentará cargos contra alguno de los involucrados en la investigación. El Washington Post informó el martes que Fitzgerald centra su atención en la participación de la oficina de Cheney. El New York Times informó hoy que Fitzgerald no tiene planeado presentar un informe sobre las investigaciones del Gran Jurado. Fitzgerald tiene dos opciones: presentar cargos o cerrar la investigación sin revelar públicamente sus hallazgos.
Informe: Soldados estadounidenses quemaron cadáveres de combatientes Talibanes
Esta noticia es sobre Afghanistan. Un programa de televisión australiano trasmitió imágenes de soldados estadounidenses quemando los cadáveres de dos combatientes del movimiento Talibán. El programa también presentó imágenes de una unidad del ejército estadounidense que trasmitía noticias sobre el incidente a residentes locales. El mensaje decía: "Permitieron que sus combatientes estén tirados con sus caras hacia el oeste quemándose. Están demasiado asustados para recuperar sus cuerpos. Esto prueba que son los hombres afeminados que siempre creímos que eran... Atacan y huyen como mujeres. Se hacen llamar Talibán, pero son una vergüenza para la religión musulmana, y avergüenzan a sus familias. Vengan y peleen como hombres y no como los perros cobardes que son". El miércoles el Pentágono anunció que investigaría el incidente.
Juez español ordena arresto de soldados estadounidenses por asesinato de Couso
Un juez español ordenó el arresto y extradición de tres soldados estadounidenses vinculados con el asesinato en Irak del camarógrafo de la televisión española Jose Couso. El juez dijo que esa medida era necesaria debido a que los soldados estadounidenses no habían proporcionado "cooperación judicial" para tratar de resolver el crimen.
Estados Unidos descarta proyectos de reconstrucción claves en Irak
Y una noticia más de Irak: el principal auditor de Estados Unidos a cargo de monitorear la reconstrucción de Irak dice que proyectos de reconstrucción serán descartados, debido a que los costos de seguridad y mantenimiento siguen aumentando. El auditor, Stuart Bowen, indicó que se necesita dinero para salud, agua, combustible e infraestructura eléctrica en Irak, y que los actuales proyectos de reconstrucción "sobrepasarán el presupuesto disponible". Bowen dijo que cerca del 26 por ciento del dinero aportado por Estados Unidos para la reconstrucción se utilizó para cubrir costos de seguridad.
Informe: No hay control sobre el gasto en defensa en Irak
En otras noticias sobre Irak, Knight Ridder informa que surgen serias preocupaciones acerca de la supervisión del gasto de 140 mil millones de dólares para defensa en Irak. La agencia de noticias indica que los auditores del Departamento de Defensa se retiraron en silencio de Irak hace un año. Desde octubre de 2004, sólo una de las 107 auditorías registradas en el sitio web del inspector general del Departamento de Defensa abarcó Irak.
Dieciocho abuelas arrestadas en protesta contra la guerra de Irak
En Estados Unidos, 18 abuelas de la organización Raging Grannies (Abuelas Furiosas) fueron arrestadas el lunes, luego de intentar alistarse en un centro de reclutamiento militar en Times Square. Las mujeres, de edades entre 40 y 90 años, se sentaron frente a la cabina de reclutamiento, cantando "Insistimos, queremos enlistarnos". Las 18 arrestadas afrontan cargos de alteración del orden público.
Tom DeLay fichado por la policía, sonríe en la foto
Tom DeLay, ex líder de la mayoría de la Cámara de Representantes, se entregó a las autoridades el martes en Houston, un día después de que se emitiera una orden de arresto en su contra. Poco después del mediodía, DeLay se presentó en el tribunal de Harris County donde se le tomaron las huellas dactilares, se le fotografió y fue liberado luego de pagar una fianza de 10.000 dólares. Sólo momentos después la fotografía de su ficha estaba en Internet. En esa fotografía, DeLay está sonriendo. El abogado de DeLay, Dick DeGuerin, criticó duramente al fiscal Ronnie Earle, a quien acusó de cometer un acto de venganza política. La oficina de Earle dijo: "Creemos que el congresista DeLay debe recibir el mismo trato que cualquier otra persona". DeLay presentó un recurso legal contra Earle, alegando mala gestión fiscal en el caso, y se llevará a cabo una audiencia sobre la legitimidad de la acusación. Mientras tanto, Earle requirió la semana pasada los registros telefónicos de DeLay. El fichaje policial del congresista se realizó sólo un día antes de la fecha fijada para su primera aparición ante un tribunal, este viernes en Austin. El mes pasado, un gran jurado acusó a DeLay y a dos de sus colaboradores de conspiración, por la presunta entrega de 190.000 dólares de donaciones realizadas por empresas a candidatos en elecciones legislativas estatales en 2002, disfrazando el origen del dinero mediante su canalización por comités nacionales de la campaña republicana. La legislación de Texas prohibe usar donaciones de empresas para financiar campañas políticas del estado.
UPFJ planifica Día de Acciones por la muerte de 2.000 militares en Irak
El grupo en contra de la guerra Unidos por la Paz y la Justicia (UFPJ, por sus siglas en inglés), anunció que está organizando un día nacional de acción para el día después de que la cifra oficial de militares muertos en Irak llegue a 2.000. El 20 de octubre el número de muertos era 1.988. UFPJ llama a la acción: "Dos mil de más". Ya se han programado manifestaciones en ciudades de todo el país. Los familiares de los militares y los veteranos estarán al frente de muchas de éstas manifestaciones.
Selva tropical amazónica es destruida más rápido de lo que se pensaba
La publicación de resultados de una nueva investigación muestra que la selva amazónica está siendo destruida al doble de la velocidad que indicaban los cálculos anteriores. Los resultados fueron publicados hoy en la revista científica Science. Un nuevo análisis de imágenes satelitales de la parte brasileña de la cuenca del Amazonas muestra que un promedio de 9.600 kilómetros cuadrados de bosque son deforestados cada año mediante tala selectiva. A eso se agrega un área talada anual similar para cría de ganado o agricultura. Como consecuencia, la liberación de dióxido de carbono a la atmósfera aumenta un 25 por ciento cada año.
Maria: In English, here are eleven stories fom Democracy Now! Remember that the headlines are provided daily in English and Spanish and please pass on to your friends. Peace.
Ex-Powell Aide: Cheney 'Cabal' Hijacked Foreign Policy
Colin Powell's former chief of staff publicly accused top-level officials in the Bush administration of hijacking the country's foreign policy in ways that have undermined American democracy. The official - Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson spoke Wednesday in Washington. Up until January he was chief of staff to then Secretary of State Powell. "What I saw was a cabal between the Vice President of the United States, Richard Cheney, and the Secretary of Defense... that made decisions that the bureaucracy did not know were being made," Wilkerson said. Wilkerson went on to accuse President Bush and Rumsfeld of condoning the abuse of detainees overseas. The Financial Times described Wilkerson's comments as the harshest attack on the administration by a former senior official since criticisms by Richard Clarke and Paul O'Neill early last year. Wilkerson admitted Wednesday his decision to publicly criticize the administration has led to a falling out with Colin Powell, who he worked with for 16 years.
Report: Bush Knew Rove's Role in Leak Two Years Ago
A number of new developments have emerged in the growing scandal over the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. The New York Daily News reports that President Bush admonished Karl Rove two years ago after the president reportedly learned of Rove's involvement in the leak. Meanwhile the Washington Post reports Rove told the grand jury that it may have been Vice President Cheney's chief of staff Lewis "Scooter" Libby who first told him that Plame worked for the CIA.
Rumors In DC : Will Cheney Resign Over CIA Leak?
This update in the investigation of the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame: Rumors spread through the Capitol Tuesday that Vice President Dick Cheney might possibly resign over the leak scandal. Speculation is running high on whether Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald will indict anyone in the investigation. The Washington Post reported Tuesday Fitzgerald is focusing in on the role of Cheney's office. The New York Times reported today that Fitzgerald does not plan to issue a report on the findings of the grand jury. This leaves Fitzgerald with two options: issue indictments or close the investigation with no public disclosure of his findings.
Report: U.S. Soldiers Burnt Bodies of Captured Taliban Fighters
This news on Afghanistan - an Australian TV program has aired footage of U.S. soldiers burning the bodies of two dead Taliban fighters. The program also aired footage of a U.S. Army psy-ops unit caught on tape broadcasting news of the burning to local residents. The message read : "You allowed your fighters to be laid down facing west and burnt. You are too scared to retrieve their bodies. This just proves you are the lady boys we always believed you to be... You attack and run away like women. You call yourself Taliban but you are a disgrace to the Muslim religion, and you bring shame upon your family. Come and fight like men instead of the cowardly dogs you are." On Wednesday the Pentagon announced it would investigate the incident.
Spanish Judge Orders Arrest of U.S. Soldiers in Couso Killing
A Spanish judge has ordered the arrest and extradition of three U.S. soldiers connected to the killing of Spanish tv cameraman Jose Couso in Iraq. The judge said the action was needed because the U.S. had provided "no judicial cooperation" in trying to resolve the death. We'll have more on this in a few minutes.
U.S. Drops Key Reconstruction Projects in Iraq
In other news from Iraq -- the top U.S. auditor monitoring Iraq's reconstruction says rebuilding projects will be dropped as security and maintenance costs continue to soar. The auditor, Stuart Bowen, said money needed for Iraq's health, water, oil and electrical infrastructure and current rebuilding projects "will outstrip the available revenue." Bowen said up to 26 percent of U.S. reconstruction money has gone to security costs.
Report: No Oversight for Defense Spending in Iraq
In other Iraq news, Knight Ridder is reporting serious concerns are being raised around the oversight of more than $140 billion dollars in defense spending in Iraq. The news agency reports defense department auditors quietly pulled out of Iraq a year ago. Since October 2004, only one of the 107 audits currently listed on the Defense Department inspector general's Web site has covered Iraq.
18 Grandmothers Arrested at Iraq War Protest
Here in this country, eighteen grandmothers from the Raging Grannies were arrested Monday after they tried to enlist at a military recruiting center in Times Square. The women, ranging in age from 40 to 90, sat down in front of a recruiting booth, chanting "We insist, we want to enlist." The 18 arrested face charges of disorderly conduct.
Tom DeLay Gets Booked, Smiles in Mug Shot
Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay turned himself in to the authorities in Houston on Thursday, a day after an arrest warrant was issued for him. Shortly after noon, DeLay walked into the Harris County Sheriff's Office where he was fingerprinted, photographed and released after posting $10,000 bond. It only took moments for his mug shot to appear on the Internet. In the photo, DeLay sports a big smile. A short time later, DeLay's attorney blasted prosecutor Ronnie Earle, accusing him of political retribution. In response, Earle's office said, "We believe that Congressman DeLay should be treated like everyone else." DeLay already has subpoenaed Earle, claiming prosecutorial misconduct in the case, and a hearing will be held on the legitimacy of the prosecution. Meanwhile, Earle issued a subpoena last week for DeLay's phone records. DeLay's booking comes just a day ahead of his first scheduled court appearance Friday in Austin. Three weeks ago, a grand jury indicted Delay and two associates on a conspiracy charge on allegations they steered $190,000 in corporate donations to state legislative candidates in 2002 and disguised the source by sending the money through national Republican campaign committees. Texas law prohibits corporate donations to political campaigns.
UFPJ Plans Day of Actions Over 2,000 Military Deaths in Iraq
The antiwar group United for Peace and Justice has announced that it is organizing a national day of action planned for the day after the US military death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000. As of October 20, the total was 1,988. UFPJ is calling the action "2000 Too Many." Demonstrations are already scheduled in cities around the country. Military family members and veterans will be at the forefront of many planned protests.
Amazon Rainforest Being Destroyed Faster Than Earlier Believed
Newly published research shows that the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed at double the rate of all previous estimates. The research was published today in the journal Science. A new analysis of satellite images of the Brazilian part of the Amazon basin shows that on average 6,000 square miles of forest is being cut down by selective logging each year. This is in addition to a similar amount clear-cut annually for cattle grazing or farming. As a result, up to 25% more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere every year.
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colin powell
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Ex asistente de Powell: "Complot" de Cheney se apoderó de las políticas extranjeras
El ex jefe de personal de Colin Powell acusó públicamente a funcionarios de alto rango del gobierno de Bush de manejar las políticas extranjeras del país de tal manera que debilitaron la democracia estadounidense. El funcionario, Coronel Lawrence Wilkerson, hizo esas declaraciones el miércoles en Washington. Hasta enero, era el jefe de personal de Powell, quien era en ese entonces Secretario de Estado. Wilkerson dijo: "Lo que vi fue un complot entre el Vicepresidente de Estados Unidos, Richard Cheney, y el Secretario de Defensa... para tomar decisiones de las que la burocracia no tenía conocimiento" Wilkerson acusó también al Presidente Bush y a Rumsfeld de permitir el abuso a detenidos en el extranjero. El Financial Times catalogó los comentarios de Wilkerson como los ataques más severos al gobierno de Bush por un ex funcionario de alto rango desde las críticas realizadas por Richard Calark y Paul O’Neill a principios del año pasado. Wilkerson admitió el miércoles que su decisión de criticar públicamente al gobierno lo llevó a romper relaciones con Colin Powell, con quien trabajó durante 16 años.
Informe: Bush supo de la participación de Rove en la filtración hace dos años
Surgieron nuevos avances en el escándalo sobre la filtración de la identidad de la agente de la CIA Valerie Plame. El New York Daily News informa que el Presidente Bush amonestó a Karl Rove dos años después de que presuntamente conociera la vinculación de Rove con el caso de filtración. Mientras tanto, el Washington Post informa que Rove le dijo al Gran Jurado que podría haber sido Lewis "Scooter" Libby, jefe de personal del Vicepresidente Cheney, quien le reveló que Plame trabajaba para la CIA.
Rumores en DC: ¿Renunciará Cheney por caso de filtración de la CIA?
Esta noticia es sobre la investigación de la filtración de la identidad de la agente de la CIA Valerie Plame. El martes se esparció en el Capitolio el rumor de que el Vicepresidente Dick Cheney podría renunciar a causa del escándalo de la filtración. Se especula si el Fiscal Patrick Fitzgerald presentará cargos contra alguno de los involucrados en la investigación. El Washington Post informó el martes que Fitzgerald centra su atención en la participación de la oficina de Cheney. El New York Times informó hoy que Fitzgerald no tiene planeado presentar un informe sobre las investigaciones del Gran Jurado. Fitzgerald tiene dos opciones: presentar cargos o cerrar la investigación sin revelar públicamente sus hallazgos.
Informe: Soldados estadounidenses quemaron cadáveres de combatientes Talibanes
Esta noticia es sobre Afghanistan. Un programa de televisión australiano trasmitió imágenes de soldados estadounidenses quemando los cadáveres de dos combatientes del movimiento Talibán. El programa también presentó imágenes de una unidad del ejército estadounidense que trasmitía noticias sobre el incidente a residentes locales. El mensaje decía: "Permitieron que sus combatientes estén tirados con sus caras hacia el oeste quemándose. Están demasiado asustados para recuperar sus cuerpos. Esto prueba que son los hombres afeminados que siempre creímos que eran... Atacan y huyen como mujeres. Se hacen llamar Talibán, pero son una vergüenza para la religión musulmana, y avergüenzan a sus familias. Vengan y peleen como hombres y no como los perros cobardes que son". El miércoles el Pentágono anunció que investigaría el incidente.
Juez español ordena arresto de soldados estadounidenses por asesinato de Couso
Un juez español ordenó el arresto y extradición de tres soldados estadounidenses vinculados con el asesinato en Irak del camarógrafo de la televisión española Jose Couso. El juez dijo que esa medida era necesaria debido a que los soldados estadounidenses no habían proporcionado "cooperación judicial" para tratar de resolver el crimen.
Estados Unidos descarta proyectos de reconstrucción claves en Irak
Y una noticia más de Irak: el principal auditor de Estados Unidos a cargo de monitorear la reconstrucción de Irak dice que proyectos de reconstrucción serán descartados, debido a que los costos de seguridad y mantenimiento siguen aumentando. El auditor, Stuart Bowen, indicó que se necesita dinero para salud, agua, combustible e infraestructura eléctrica en Irak, y que los actuales proyectos de reconstrucción "sobrepasarán el presupuesto disponible". Bowen dijo que cerca del 26 por ciento del dinero aportado por Estados Unidos para la reconstrucción se utilizó para cubrir costos de seguridad.
Informe: No hay control sobre el gasto en defensa en Irak
En otras noticias sobre Irak, Knight Ridder informa que surgen serias preocupaciones acerca de la supervisión del gasto de 140 mil millones de dólares para defensa en Irak. La agencia de noticias indica que los auditores del Departamento de Defensa se retiraron en silencio de Irak hace un año. Desde octubre de 2004, sólo una de las 107 auditorías registradas en el sitio web del inspector general del Departamento de Defensa abarcó Irak.
Dieciocho abuelas arrestadas en protesta contra la guerra de Irak
En Estados Unidos, 18 abuelas de la organización Raging Grannies (Abuelas Furiosas) fueron arrestadas el lunes, luego de intentar alistarse en un centro de reclutamiento militar en Times Square. Las mujeres, de edades entre 40 y 90 años, se sentaron frente a la cabina de reclutamiento, cantando "Insistimos, queremos enlistarnos". Las 18 arrestadas afrontan cargos de alteración del orden público.
Tom DeLay fichado por la policía, sonríe en la foto
Tom DeLay, ex líder de la mayoría de la Cámara de Representantes, se entregó a las autoridades el martes en Houston, un día después de que se emitiera una orden de arresto en su contra. Poco después del mediodía, DeLay se presentó en el tribunal de Harris County donde se le tomaron las huellas dactilares, se le fotografió y fue liberado luego de pagar una fianza de 10.000 dólares. Sólo momentos después la fotografía de su ficha estaba en Internet. En esa fotografía, DeLay está sonriendo. El abogado de DeLay, Dick DeGuerin, criticó duramente al fiscal Ronnie Earle, a quien acusó de cometer un acto de venganza política. La oficina de Earle dijo: "Creemos que el congresista DeLay debe recibir el mismo trato que cualquier otra persona". DeLay presentó un recurso legal contra Earle, alegando mala gestión fiscal en el caso, y se llevará a cabo una audiencia sobre la legitimidad de la acusación. Mientras tanto, Earle requirió la semana pasada los registros telefónicos de DeLay. El fichaje policial del congresista se realizó sólo un día antes de la fecha fijada para su primera aparición ante un tribunal, este viernes en Austin. El mes pasado, un gran jurado acusó a DeLay y a dos de sus colaboradores de conspiración, por la presunta entrega de 190.000 dólares de donaciones realizadas por empresas a candidatos en elecciones legislativas estatales en 2002, disfrazando el origen del dinero mediante su canalización por comités nacionales de la campaña republicana. La legislación de Texas prohibe usar donaciones de empresas para financiar campañas políticas del estado.
UPFJ planifica Día de Acciones por la muerte de 2.000 militares en Irak
El grupo en contra de la guerra Unidos por la Paz y la Justicia (UFPJ, por sus siglas en inglés), anunció que está organizando un día nacional de acción para el día después de que la cifra oficial de militares muertos en Irak llegue a 2.000. El 20 de octubre el número de muertos era 1.988. UFPJ llama a la acción: "Dos mil de más". Ya se han programado manifestaciones en ciudades de todo el país. Los familiares de los militares y los veteranos estarán al frente de muchas de éstas manifestaciones.
Selva tropical amazónica es destruida más rápido de lo que se pensaba
La publicación de resultados de una nueva investigación muestra que la selva amazónica está siendo destruida al doble de la velocidad que indicaban los cálculos anteriores. Los resultados fueron publicados hoy en la revista científica Science. Un nuevo análisis de imágenes satelitales de la parte brasileña de la cuenca del Amazonas muestra que un promedio de 9.600 kilómetros cuadrados de bosque son deforestados cada año mediante tala selectiva. A eso se agrega un área talada anual similar para cría de ganado o agricultura. Como consecuencia, la liberación de dióxido de carbono a la atmósfera aumenta un 25 por ciento cada año.
Maria: In English, here are eleven stories fom Democracy Now! Remember that the headlines are provided daily in English and Spanish and please pass on to your friends. Peace.
Ex-Powell Aide: Cheney 'Cabal' Hijacked Foreign Policy
Colin Powell's former chief of staff publicly accused top-level officials in the Bush administration of hijacking the country's foreign policy in ways that have undermined American democracy. The official - Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson spoke Wednesday in Washington. Up until January he was chief of staff to then Secretary of State Powell. "What I saw was a cabal between the Vice President of the United States, Richard Cheney, and the Secretary of Defense... that made decisions that the bureaucracy did not know were being made," Wilkerson said. Wilkerson went on to accuse President Bush and Rumsfeld of condoning the abuse of detainees overseas. The Financial Times described Wilkerson's comments as the harshest attack on the administration by a former senior official since criticisms by Richard Clarke and Paul O'Neill early last year. Wilkerson admitted Wednesday his decision to publicly criticize the administration has led to a falling out with Colin Powell, who he worked with for 16 years.
Report: Bush Knew Rove's Role in Leak Two Years Ago
A number of new developments have emerged in the growing scandal over the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. The New York Daily News reports that President Bush admonished Karl Rove two years ago after the president reportedly learned of Rove's involvement in the leak. Meanwhile the Washington Post reports Rove told the grand jury that it may have been Vice President Cheney's chief of staff Lewis "Scooter" Libby who first told him that Plame worked for the CIA.
Rumors In DC : Will Cheney Resign Over CIA Leak?
This update in the investigation of the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame: Rumors spread through the Capitol Tuesday that Vice President Dick Cheney might possibly resign over the leak scandal. Speculation is running high on whether Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald will indict anyone in the investigation. The Washington Post reported Tuesday Fitzgerald is focusing in on the role of Cheney's office. The New York Times reported today that Fitzgerald does not plan to issue a report on the findings of the grand jury. This leaves Fitzgerald with two options: issue indictments or close the investigation with no public disclosure of his findings.
Report: U.S. Soldiers Burnt Bodies of Captured Taliban Fighters
This news on Afghanistan - an Australian TV program has aired footage of U.S. soldiers burning the bodies of two dead Taliban fighters. The program also aired footage of a U.S. Army psy-ops unit caught on tape broadcasting news of the burning to local residents. The message read : "You allowed your fighters to be laid down facing west and burnt. You are too scared to retrieve their bodies. This just proves you are the lady boys we always believed you to be... You attack and run away like women. You call yourself Taliban but you are a disgrace to the Muslim religion, and you bring shame upon your family. Come and fight like men instead of the cowardly dogs you are." On Wednesday the Pentagon announced it would investigate the incident.
Spanish Judge Orders Arrest of U.S. Soldiers in Couso Killing
A Spanish judge has ordered the arrest and extradition of three U.S. soldiers connected to the killing of Spanish tv cameraman Jose Couso in Iraq. The judge said the action was needed because the U.S. had provided "no judicial cooperation" in trying to resolve the death. We'll have more on this in a few minutes.
U.S. Drops Key Reconstruction Projects in Iraq
In other news from Iraq -- the top U.S. auditor monitoring Iraq's reconstruction says rebuilding projects will be dropped as security and maintenance costs continue to soar. The auditor, Stuart Bowen, said money needed for Iraq's health, water, oil and electrical infrastructure and current rebuilding projects "will outstrip the available revenue." Bowen said up to 26 percent of U.S. reconstruction money has gone to security costs.
Report: No Oversight for Defense Spending in Iraq
In other Iraq news, Knight Ridder is reporting serious concerns are being raised around the oversight of more than $140 billion dollars in defense spending in Iraq. The news agency reports defense department auditors quietly pulled out of Iraq a year ago. Since October 2004, only one of the 107 audits currently listed on the Defense Department inspector general's Web site has covered Iraq.
18 Grandmothers Arrested at Iraq War Protest
Here in this country, eighteen grandmothers from the Raging Grannies were arrested Monday after they tried to enlist at a military recruiting center in Times Square. The women, ranging in age from 40 to 90, sat down in front of a recruiting booth, chanting "We insist, we want to enlist." The 18 arrested face charges of disorderly conduct.
Tom DeLay Gets Booked, Smiles in Mug Shot
Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay turned himself in to the authorities in Houston on Thursday, a day after an arrest warrant was issued for him. Shortly after noon, DeLay walked into the Harris County Sheriff's Office where he was fingerprinted, photographed and released after posting $10,000 bond. It only took moments for his mug shot to appear on the Internet. In the photo, DeLay sports a big smile. A short time later, DeLay's attorney blasted prosecutor Ronnie Earle, accusing him of political retribution. In response, Earle's office said, "We believe that Congressman DeLay should be treated like everyone else." DeLay already has subpoenaed Earle, claiming prosecutorial misconduct in the case, and a hearing will be held on the legitimacy of the prosecution. Meanwhile, Earle issued a subpoena last week for DeLay's phone records. DeLay's booking comes just a day ahead of his first scheduled court appearance Friday in Austin. Three weeks ago, a grand jury indicted Delay and two associates on a conspiracy charge on allegations they steered $190,000 in corporate donations to state legislative candidates in 2002 and disguised the source by sending the money through national Republican campaign committees. Texas law prohibits corporate donations to political campaigns.
UFPJ Plans Day of Actions Over 2,000 Military Deaths in Iraq
The antiwar group United for Peace and Justice has announced that it is organizing a national day of action planned for the day after the US military death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000. As of October 20, the total was 1,988. UFPJ is calling the action "2000 Too Many." Demonstrations are already scheduled in cities around the country. Military family members and veterans will be at the forefront of many planned protests.
Amazon Rainforest Being Destroyed Faster Than Earlier Believed
Newly published research shows that the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed at double the rate of all previous estimates. The research was published today in the journal Science. A new analysis of satellite images of the Brazilian part of the Amazon basin shows that on average 6,000 square miles of forest is being cut down by selective logging each year. This is in addition to a similar amount clear-cut annually for cattle grazing or farming. As a result, up to 25% more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere every year.
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General notes
There weren't any entries last night. Which had ???, Eli, Billy and Sarah wondering if the computer problems were continuing? No the UK Computer Gurus took care of that. I focused on e-mails and, honestly, wanted some sleep.
Last weekend, I pulled an all nighter on Friday and on Saturday. I grabbed eight hours last night in case anything similar happens this weekend. My apologies for anyone who wondered.
Susan wants to know what I'm listening to? Right now, I'm pretty much just listening to Bright Eyes. Partly because I enjoy the music but also because I'm too lazy to change the discs. (I've got five Bright Eyes albums in the CD player.) She also asks that I pass on the request to others.
(I have via e-mails. It was too early to call anyone when I got up this morning and started working on posts.)
Mike, Rebecca and Elaine posted last night. Cedric will post today. He had a date and called yesterday concerned that people would wonder if he didn't post. I told him he didn't need to worry and then decided to follow my own advice after three hours of reading e-mails last night.
Elaine's always "off" on Thursdays. Trina e-mailed asking about that. She does group on Thursdays and that will last for a few months. With all the sites (ten) that are up now, I really don't think anyone needs to worry if they miss a day of posting because there are certainly enough sites for members to find something to read. (I also justified my decision not to post last night with the fact that we already have three entries at The Common Ills yesterday.)
Lloyd wanted to know where the Sunday Chat & Chew entry was? It's not being done. Howard Dean's on ABC's This Week. Tim Russert has a panel on Plamegate (Frank Rich is the high point and not just because of the dreary factor of the other two) but will Tim talk? Doubtful. So watch Meet the Silence on Meet the Press if you're so inclined. I wasn't in the mood, honestly, to do one this weekend. (I didn't get much sleep Thursday night, which was another reason I grabbed sleep last night.)
There will be other entries after this one. Maria's doing the rundown of important headlines from Democracy Now! and Ruth has a new Ruth's Morning Edition Report as a result of all the e-mails that came in saying basically, "Pledge drive or not, please . . ." I'll be copying and pasting those; however, I'm also grabbing breakfast this morning for a change (moving a little slower this morning) so expect those to go up slowly. (Copying and pasting isn't a problem, but the spacing does have to be fixed. In addition Dallas is already hunting down links for Ruth's entry.) (Thank you, Dallas. And thank you to Maria and Ruth.)
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
Last weekend, I pulled an all nighter on Friday and on Saturday. I grabbed eight hours last night in case anything similar happens this weekend. My apologies for anyone who wondered.
Susan wants to know what I'm listening to? Right now, I'm pretty much just listening to Bright Eyes. Partly because I enjoy the music but also because I'm too lazy to change the discs. (I've got five Bright Eyes albums in the CD player.) She also asks that I pass on the request to others.
(I have via e-mails. It was too early to call anyone when I got up this morning and started working on posts.)
Mike, Rebecca and Elaine posted last night. Cedric will post today. He had a date and called yesterday concerned that people would wonder if he didn't post. I told him he didn't need to worry and then decided to follow my own advice after three hours of reading e-mails last night.
Elaine's always "off" on Thursdays. Trina e-mailed asking about that. She does group on Thursdays and that will last for a few months. With all the sites (ten) that are up now, I really don't think anyone needs to worry if they miss a day of posting because there are certainly enough sites for members to find something to read. (I also justified my decision not to post last night with the fact that we already have three entries at The Common Ills yesterday.)
Lloyd wanted to know where the Sunday Chat & Chew entry was? It's not being done. Howard Dean's on ABC's This Week. Tim Russert has a panel on Plamegate (Frank Rich is the high point and not just because of the dreary factor of the other two) but will Tim talk? Doubtful. So watch Meet the Silence on Meet the Press if you're so inclined. I wasn't in the mood, honestly, to do one this weekend. (I didn't get much sleep Thursday night, which was another reason I grabbed sleep last night.)
There will be other entries after this one. Maria's doing the rundown of important headlines from Democracy Now! and Ruth has a new Ruth's Morning Edition Report as a result of all the e-mails that came in saying basically, "Pledge drive or not, please . . ." I'll be copying and pasting those; however, I'm also grabbing breakfast this morning for a change (moving a little slower this morning) so expect those to go up slowly. (Copying and pasting isn't a problem, but the spacing does have to be fixed. In addition Dallas is already hunting down links for Ruth's entry.) (Thank you, Dallas. And thank you to Maria and Ruth.)
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
Other Items
Anyone with a memory going back to the Vietnam War must hear the clear echo of the term "sanctuary," which Nixon invoked as justification for widening that war into Laos and Cambodia. (Jeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith write about the possibility of a widening war at some length at portside.org.)
Already, the United States has engaged in skirmishes over the Syrian border. "Some current and former officials add that the United States military is considering plans to conduct operations inside Syria, using small, covert teams for intelligence gathering," said the Times article by Dexter Filkins.
Then there's China, which Donald Rumsfeld visited on the same day Rice was testifying before Congress.
Before 9/11, China was the next enemy in the Pentagon’s view. Osama bin Laden gave China some breathing room, but Rumsfeld is still snorting and pawing the ground as he points his bullying head toward Beijing.
In June, Rumsfeld warned that China was "expanding its missile forces, allowing them to reach targets in many areas of the world." (See Michael T. Klare's excellent article in The Nation.)
Then in July, the Pentagon released a report that said, "The pace and scope of China’s military build-up are, already, such as to put regional military balances at risk." China, the report said, is "potentially posing a credible threat to modern militaries operating in the region."
Of course, the United States is one of those modern militaries.
Wow, the New York Times is getting hard hitting! (Or as Keesha once said, "Grey Lady be letting her hair down, step!") Sadly, no. The above is from Matthew Rothschild's "A Foreign Policy of Free-Floating Belligerence" (This Just In, The Progressive). Lloyd picked the excerpt and I thought we'd open with it since we have another thing to highlight from Rothschild (which you missed, Lloyd, Valerie e-mailed to note it).
And if Dexter Filkins says something in the New York Times, you better believe the US government wants people to know about it. (Otherwise would Filkins write about it? Based on his rah-rah Falluja reporting and rumors that he cancels interviews with anyone who might raise a military commander's eye brow, the answer is probably no.)
Billie e-mails to note David D. Kirkpatrick's "Texas Senator Takes Exception to Criticism of Supreme Court Nominee's Record." Billie expresses amusement that "John Corny would lecture anyone on the Constitution!" In his three years in office (I would've said two but Billie notes that groundhog like Phil Gramm stepped down early so that Cornyn could get a head start), he's "fired off countless Corny-isms that have led him to become a laughingstock everytime he opens his mouth." Today, he's offended that Harrie Miers' questionnaire responses are dubbed inadequate by some and offended that Arlen Specter thinks Harrie needs to bone up on the Constitution.
Lynda e-mails to note Adam Liptak's "Kansas Law on Gay Sex by Teenagers Is Overturned:"
Matthew R. Limon had just turned 18 when he had consensual oral sex with a boy just shy of 15 at a Kansas school in 2000. He was convicted of criminal sodomy and sentenced to 17 years in prison. Had the sex been heterosexual, the maximum penalty would have been 15 months.
Yesterday, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the starkly different penalties violated the federal Constitution's equal protection clause. It said the state's "Romeo and Juliet" statute, which limits the punishment that can be imposed on older teenagers who have sex with younger ones, but only if they are of the opposite sex, must also apply to teenagers who engage in homosexual sex.
Mr. Limon will soon be released, his lawyer, James D. Esseks, said. "He's spent an extra four years and five months in jail only because he's gay," said Mr. Esseks, a lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union.
Erika e-mails to note Salman Masood's "Pakistani Raped by Village Order Is to Visit U.S.:"
Mukhtar Mai, the Pakistani woman whose gang rape in 2002 on the orders of a village council caused international outrage, said Friday that she planned to visit the United States next week to receive an award from an American women's magazine.
During her trip, Ms. Mukhtar said, she also plans to help raise funds for the victims of the devastating earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people in Pakistan.
"I have been invited by Glamour magazine," Ms. Mukhtar, 31, said in a telephone interview from Lahore, the city in eastern Pakistan from which she is to fly to the United States.
Glamour magazine is honoring women around the world who have struggled for women's rights in a ceremony on Nov. 2.
For more on Mukhtar Mai, refer to Democracy Now!'s "'I Will Go On Until I Have Even the Slightest Hope of Justice' - Rare Broadcast Interview With Pakistani Rape Survivor Mukhtar Mai." From Amy Goodman's introduction to that interview:
We spend the rest of the hour looking at the case of Mukhtar Mai - a Pakistani rape survivor who has become an international symbol of the ongoing struggle for women's rights in Pakistan.
In June 2002, a group of men gang-raped Mukhtar Mai near her home in Pakistan. The rape was ordered by her local tribal counsel as punishment for a crime allegedly committed by her 12-year-old brother. After her rape, Mukhtar Mai was forced to walk home nearly naked before a jeering crowd of three hundred onlookers.
According to The New York Times, on average, a woman is raped every two hours in Pakistan, and two women a day die in so-called honor killings. Most of the cases go unnoticed, but Mukhtar Mai defied tradition by fighting back against her attackers in the courts. She testified against them. A number of them were convicted and sent to prison. With the compensation money she received, she opened elementary schools in her village.
Last week, Mukhtar Mai was back in the headlines when the Pakistani government barred her from leaving the country in an attempt to block her from publicizing her case. Amnesty International had planned to bring her to the United States. On the eve of her trip, she was detained by Pakistani government officials and placed under house arrest. The government then apparently tried to intimidate her by ordering the release of the 12 men connected to her rape.
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf admitted that he had ordered Mukhtar placed on the no fly list, telling reporters "I don't want to project a bad image of Pakistan." But her detention had the opposite effect, sparking international condemnation. The Pakistani government now says Mukhtar Mai is free to travel wherever she wants. But there is one small problem - they confiscated her passport. Once again, Mukhtar Mai is refusing to be silent and is speaking out to the local and international media about her case. New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof writes, "President Musharraf may have ousted rivals and overthrown a civilian government, but he has now met his match - a peasant woman with a heart of gold and a will of steel."
I reached Mukhtar Mai yesterday at her home in Pakistan. I began by asking her if she was free to travel outside the country. Translation is provided by Pakistani journalist Azra Rashid.
Ned e-mails to note Raymond Bonner's "Indonesian Students Skeptical About U.S. Policy, but Not America:"
Ms. Hughes, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy, began by inviting the students to tell her what they were studying and what their hopes were.
The students wanted no such small talk. They wanted to talk about Iraq and America's role in the world, offering comments, opinions and questions marked by charges that the United States was "two-faced" and "unfair."
"Why does America always act as if they are the policeman of the world?" asked 20-year-old Barikatul Hikmah, wearing a black-and-white-striped head scarf, bright yellow pumps and blue jeans.
The question was met with applause from the 100 or so students in the audience.
Brenda e-mailed to ask about a reference I made to Rebecca yesterday. I noted something about the computer problems that morning and that I wasn't doing links (other than to the articles mentioned in that entry) but I'd do the tags. (They're the things below "The e-mail address for . . .") I either said "for Rebecca" or something along the lines of she'd kill me if I didn't do them. Tags, supposedly, assist with "traffic." I'm not concerned with "traffic." But, as with links, I don't have to be and it's kind of elitist of me to not be when other people in the community could use additional visits.
Which isn't to say they're not getting members and visitors going to their sites. Just that we've got members with new sites like Wally at The Daily Jot, Seth at Seth in the City and Cedric's moved his site to Blogger, Cedric's Big Mix. Elaine's probably "new" but since I've known her for years, and been friends with her for years, as well as the six week stint she did filling in for Rebecca at Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude while Rebecca was on vacation, she doesn't seem "new" to me. Nor does she seem "old" before she picks up the phone! In addition, you have the always groovy Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills), Mike of Mikey Likes It!, Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man, Dona, Jim, Jess, Ty and Ava of The Third Estate Sunday Review -- am I leaving someone out? (Maybe I'm just thinking of Folding Star?) So the point is, tags might be of help to someone. Rebecca's the one pushing the tags so, for her, I include them in the morning entries. (I said on other entries, I probably wouldn't and usually don't. I do on the Indyround up Thursday entries.) Elaine's site is Like Maria Said Paz and that might be why I feel like I'm forgetting someone. (That I didn't include her title.)
How do tags work? In case anyone's wondering. They are supposed to allow Technocrati to provide a listing of entries from all over the net that are tagged with similar tags. For instance, yesterday Rebecca wrote about Harriet Miers. She tagged it with that. Ideally, you should be able to click on the tag at the bottom of her entry and find various writings about Harriet Miers.
Ideally. Because unless something has changed, Rebecca and Elaine both are doing tags but they don't show up on Technocrati. You can search their sites and find entries from other members, but their own entries don't show up in the search. (I have no idea why that is.)
So it's one of those get-the-word-out things. (And I've only promised to do them on morning entries and only if I have time.) I don't know how other people feel about them, but I think they're a pain in the butt. But to "get the word out," I'll do them in the morning entries. But if we mention, for instance, Matthew Rothschild here, you should be able to click on the tag with his name below and find others who are also noting him (provided they're doing tags and provide Technocrati is reading their tags).
Which provides us with a transition. Valerie e-mailed to note Matthew Rothschild's "George Mason Urges No Prosecution of Anti-Recruiter" (McCarthyism Watch, The Progressive):
On October 20, George Mason University issued a statement concerning the arrest of Tariq Khan on campus last month. (See "George Mason Student Busted for Anti-Recruiting.")
"The university believes it would be inappropriate for this student to be prosecuted in a criminal court," the statement says. It acknowledges that "aspects of this matter could have been handled differently." But it says its internal investigation "has not revealed facts that would corroborate allegations of bias on the part of university officials."
The university also said it was reviewing "all policies and procedures pertaining to leafleting, demonstrations, and other activities associated with free speech, with a goal of providing a safe and secure campus environment that preserves the rights of all those in the George Mason University community to express their views." For Khan, this is not sufficient.
Don't miss Betty's latest (Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man) which has Betinna planning a dinner party:
Mrs. K was desperate for an invite and dropped hinting as the hours grew closer to the dinner party.
"Betinna," she sobbed, "I cannot take another Friday night of franks and beans and Nicky K."
I hear her. Believe me, I do. But since Thomas Friedman and Nicky K's last encounter ended with Thomas Friedman's hands wrapped tightly around Nicky's neck, I lied and said I had already dangerously exceeded the guest to chair ratio.
She was a good sport and pretended to understand but in the background I could hear Nicky K asking her to pull the TV dinner trays in front of the TV because he felt like watching The Sandlot during dinner one more time.
I was kind of surprised that a woman as smart as she is, married to a columnist for the New York Times, could spend so many empty nights and then I remembered my own sinking boat of a marriage.
We'll note "My Interview With Wally" (Mikey Likes It!) where Mike's interviewing Wally. Trina picked a "lighter moment" in the interview:
[Mike:] Betty had a question for you. She called me today. She wants to know what is it about "you young men" that makes you go to the groin?
[Wally:] She's talking about the question on the profile, right?
Right.
That was my third question option. I was trying to hurry because C.I. needed to get to work with The Third Estate Sunday Review. Then that question came up and I just went with it.
"Paper or briefs?" "Breifs! No depends here! I pack a mean tighty whitey!"
Yeah, C.I. laughed and said something like, "That's why you get along so well with Mike."
Because of my question and answer: If you were a cannibal, what would you wear to dinner?Just the bone, just the bone. Munch on that.
We like our dicks jokes, what can I say? Or making boastful jokes. Betty wasn't offended, was she?
No, she was laughing. But she said you put two nineteen year old males together and that's what you'll get.
I feel like I let her down then! We really didn't go there much.
No, we didn't. But we'll do another interview where we do.
Brad picks the excerpt for the article Ron (Why Are We Back In Iraq?) wrote, "Miers provided misleading information to Judiciary Committee" (The Raw Story):
Miers gives wrong dates in questionnaire; Firm was sued during period omitted
President Bush's nominee to the Supreme Court, Harriet Miers, provided erroneous and incomplete information to the Senate Judiciary Committee about her membership on a Board of Directors for a real estate investment company, RAW STORY has learned.
Miers also neglected to mention a class action lawsuit that accused the firm, Capstead Mortgage, of violating federal securities laws. The suit, which was later dismissed, came during the period Miers failed to include in her responses to the Senate questionnaire.
According to CapsteadпїЅs 1999 annual report (pdf file) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Miers remained on the board as late as March 9, 2000. Miers opted not to stand for re-election, and in April of 2000, the former senior managing director at Bear, Stearns & Co., Inc., Howard Rubin was voted on to the board and replaced her as chair of the Audit Committee.
But Miers 57-page questionnaire returned to the Senate on Tuesday claimed that her tenure at Capstead lasted only from January 1993 to 1997 (link).
Lastly, please note that in Eric Lichtblau's "President Picks 2nd Nominee for Justice Post" (New York Times), on the nomination of Paul J. McNulty, Lichtblau does note concerns over McNulty's 9/11 cases. (Yesterday, it wasn't noted.)
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
matthew rothschild
A Foreign Policy of Free-Floating Belligerence
George Mason Urges No Prosecution of Anti-Recruiter
counterrecruiting
Mukhtar Mai
amy goodman
democracy now
the new york times
adam liptak
salman masood
the third estate sunday review
like maria said paz
cedrics big mix
mikey likes it
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
thomas friedman is a great man
kats korner
the daily jot
the common ills
seth in the city
why are we back in iraq
the raw story
harriet miers
eric lichtblau
Already, the United States has engaged in skirmishes over the Syrian border. "Some current and former officials add that the United States military is considering plans to conduct operations inside Syria, using small, covert teams for intelligence gathering," said the Times article by Dexter Filkins.
Then there's China, which Donald Rumsfeld visited on the same day Rice was testifying before Congress.
Before 9/11, China was the next enemy in the Pentagon’s view. Osama bin Laden gave China some breathing room, but Rumsfeld is still snorting and pawing the ground as he points his bullying head toward Beijing.
In June, Rumsfeld warned that China was "expanding its missile forces, allowing them to reach targets in many areas of the world." (See Michael T. Klare's excellent article in The Nation.)
Then in July, the Pentagon released a report that said, "The pace and scope of China’s military build-up are, already, such as to put regional military balances at risk." China, the report said, is "potentially posing a credible threat to modern militaries operating in the region."
Of course, the United States is one of those modern militaries.
Wow, the New York Times is getting hard hitting! (Or as Keesha once said, "Grey Lady be letting her hair down, step!") Sadly, no. The above is from Matthew Rothschild's "A Foreign Policy of Free-Floating Belligerence" (This Just In, The Progressive). Lloyd picked the excerpt and I thought we'd open with it since we have another thing to highlight from Rothschild (which you missed, Lloyd, Valerie e-mailed to note it).
And if Dexter Filkins says something in the New York Times, you better believe the US government wants people to know about it. (Otherwise would Filkins write about it? Based on his rah-rah Falluja reporting and rumors that he cancels interviews with anyone who might raise a military commander's eye brow, the answer is probably no.)
Billie e-mails to note David D. Kirkpatrick's "Texas Senator Takes Exception to Criticism of Supreme Court Nominee's Record." Billie expresses amusement that "John Corny would lecture anyone on the Constitution!" In his three years in office (I would've said two but Billie notes that groundhog like Phil Gramm stepped down early so that Cornyn could get a head start), he's "fired off countless Corny-isms that have led him to become a laughingstock everytime he opens his mouth." Today, he's offended that Harrie Miers' questionnaire responses are dubbed inadequate by some and offended that Arlen Specter thinks Harrie needs to bone up on the Constitution.
Lynda e-mails to note Adam Liptak's "Kansas Law on Gay Sex by Teenagers Is Overturned:"
Matthew R. Limon had just turned 18 when he had consensual oral sex with a boy just shy of 15 at a Kansas school in 2000. He was convicted of criminal sodomy and sentenced to 17 years in prison. Had the sex been heterosexual, the maximum penalty would have been 15 months.
Yesterday, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the starkly different penalties violated the federal Constitution's equal protection clause. It said the state's "Romeo and Juliet" statute, which limits the punishment that can be imposed on older teenagers who have sex with younger ones, but only if they are of the opposite sex, must also apply to teenagers who engage in homosexual sex.
Mr. Limon will soon be released, his lawyer, James D. Esseks, said. "He's spent an extra four years and five months in jail only because he's gay," said Mr. Esseks, a lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union.
Erika e-mails to note Salman Masood's "Pakistani Raped by Village Order Is to Visit U.S.:"
Mukhtar Mai, the Pakistani woman whose gang rape in 2002 on the orders of a village council caused international outrage, said Friday that she planned to visit the United States next week to receive an award from an American women's magazine.
During her trip, Ms. Mukhtar said, she also plans to help raise funds for the victims of the devastating earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people in Pakistan.
"I have been invited by Glamour magazine," Ms. Mukhtar, 31, said in a telephone interview from Lahore, the city in eastern Pakistan from which she is to fly to the United States.
Glamour magazine is honoring women around the world who have struggled for women's rights in a ceremony on Nov. 2.
For more on Mukhtar Mai, refer to Democracy Now!'s "'I Will Go On Until I Have Even the Slightest Hope of Justice' - Rare Broadcast Interview With Pakistani Rape Survivor Mukhtar Mai." From Amy Goodman's introduction to that interview:
We spend the rest of the hour looking at the case of Mukhtar Mai - a Pakistani rape survivor who has become an international symbol of the ongoing struggle for women's rights in Pakistan.
In June 2002, a group of men gang-raped Mukhtar Mai near her home in Pakistan. The rape was ordered by her local tribal counsel as punishment for a crime allegedly committed by her 12-year-old brother. After her rape, Mukhtar Mai was forced to walk home nearly naked before a jeering crowd of three hundred onlookers.
According to The New York Times, on average, a woman is raped every two hours in Pakistan, and two women a day die in so-called honor killings. Most of the cases go unnoticed, but Mukhtar Mai defied tradition by fighting back against her attackers in the courts. She testified against them. A number of them were convicted and sent to prison. With the compensation money she received, she opened elementary schools in her village.
Last week, Mukhtar Mai was back in the headlines when the Pakistani government barred her from leaving the country in an attempt to block her from publicizing her case. Amnesty International had planned to bring her to the United States. On the eve of her trip, she was detained by Pakistani government officials and placed under house arrest. The government then apparently tried to intimidate her by ordering the release of the 12 men connected to her rape.
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf admitted that he had ordered Mukhtar placed on the no fly list, telling reporters "I don't want to project a bad image of Pakistan." But her detention had the opposite effect, sparking international condemnation. The Pakistani government now says Mukhtar Mai is free to travel wherever she wants. But there is one small problem - they confiscated her passport. Once again, Mukhtar Mai is refusing to be silent and is speaking out to the local and international media about her case. New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof writes, "President Musharraf may have ousted rivals and overthrown a civilian government, but he has now met his match - a peasant woman with a heart of gold and a will of steel."
I reached Mukhtar Mai yesterday at her home in Pakistan. I began by asking her if she was free to travel outside the country. Translation is provided by Pakistani journalist Azra Rashid.
Ned e-mails to note Raymond Bonner's "Indonesian Students Skeptical About U.S. Policy, but Not America:"
Ms. Hughes, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy, began by inviting the students to tell her what they were studying and what their hopes were.
The students wanted no such small talk. They wanted to talk about Iraq and America's role in the world, offering comments, opinions and questions marked by charges that the United States was "two-faced" and "unfair."
"Why does America always act as if they are the policeman of the world?" asked 20-year-old Barikatul Hikmah, wearing a black-and-white-striped head scarf, bright yellow pumps and blue jeans.
The question was met with applause from the 100 or so students in the audience.
Brenda e-mailed to ask about a reference I made to Rebecca yesterday. I noted something about the computer problems that morning and that I wasn't doing links (other than to the articles mentioned in that entry) but I'd do the tags. (They're the things below "The e-mail address for . . .") I either said "for Rebecca" or something along the lines of she'd kill me if I didn't do them. Tags, supposedly, assist with "traffic." I'm not concerned with "traffic." But, as with links, I don't have to be and it's kind of elitist of me to not be when other people in the community could use additional visits.
Which isn't to say they're not getting members and visitors going to their sites. Just that we've got members with new sites like Wally at The Daily Jot, Seth at Seth in the City and Cedric's moved his site to Blogger, Cedric's Big Mix. Elaine's probably "new" but since I've known her for years, and been friends with her for years, as well as the six week stint she did filling in for Rebecca at Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude while Rebecca was on vacation, she doesn't seem "new" to me. Nor does she seem "old" before she picks up the phone! In addition, you have the always groovy Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills), Mike of Mikey Likes It!, Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man, Dona, Jim, Jess, Ty and Ava of The Third Estate Sunday Review -- am I leaving someone out? (Maybe I'm just thinking of Folding Star?) So the point is, tags might be of help to someone. Rebecca's the one pushing the tags so, for her, I include them in the morning entries. (I said on other entries, I probably wouldn't and usually don't. I do on the Indyround up Thursday entries.) Elaine's site is Like Maria Said Paz and that might be why I feel like I'm forgetting someone. (That I didn't include her title.)
How do tags work? In case anyone's wondering. They are supposed to allow Technocrati to provide a listing of entries from all over the net that are tagged with similar tags. For instance, yesterday Rebecca wrote about Harriet Miers. She tagged it with that. Ideally, you should be able to click on the tag at the bottom of her entry and find various writings about Harriet Miers.
Ideally. Because unless something has changed, Rebecca and Elaine both are doing tags but they don't show up on Technocrati. You can search their sites and find entries from other members, but their own entries don't show up in the search. (I have no idea why that is.)
So it's one of those get-the-word-out things. (And I've only promised to do them on morning entries and only if I have time.) I don't know how other people feel about them, but I think they're a pain in the butt. But to "get the word out," I'll do them in the morning entries. But if we mention, for instance, Matthew Rothschild here, you should be able to click on the tag with his name below and find others who are also noting him (provided they're doing tags and provide Technocrati is reading their tags).
Which provides us with a transition. Valerie e-mailed to note Matthew Rothschild's "George Mason Urges No Prosecution of Anti-Recruiter" (McCarthyism Watch, The Progressive):
On October 20, George Mason University issued a statement concerning the arrest of Tariq Khan on campus last month. (See "George Mason Student Busted for Anti-Recruiting.")
"The university believes it would be inappropriate for this student to be prosecuted in a criminal court," the statement says. It acknowledges that "aspects of this matter could have been handled differently." But it says its internal investigation "has not revealed facts that would corroborate allegations of bias on the part of university officials."
The university also said it was reviewing "all policies and procedures pertaining to leafleting, demonstrations, and other activities associated with free speech, with a goal of providing a safe and secure campus environment that preserves the rights of all those in the George Mason University community to express their views." For Khan, this is not sufficient.
Don't miss Betty's latest (Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man) which has Betinna planning a dinner party:
Mrs. K was desperate for an invite and dropped hinting as the hours grew closer to the dinner party.
"Betinna," she sobbed, "I cannot take another Friday night of franks and beans and Nicky K."
I hear her. Believe me, I do. But since Thomas Friedman and Nicky K's last encounter ended with Thomas Friedman's hands wrapped tightly around Nicky's neck, I lied and said I had already dangerously exceeded the guest to chair ratio.
She was a good sport and pretended to understand but in the background I could hear Nicky K asking her to pull the TV dinner trays in front of the TV because he felt like watching The Sandlot during dinner one more time.
I was kind of surprised that a woman as smart as she is, married to a columnist for the New York Times, could spend so many empty nights and then I remembered my own sinking boat of a marriage.
We'll note "My Interview With Wally" (Mikey Likes It!) where Mike's interviewing Wally. Trina picked a "lighter moment" in the interview:
[Mike:] Betty had a question for you. She called me today. She wants to know what is it about "you young men" that makes you go to the groin?
[Wally:] She's talking about the question on the profile, right?
Right.
That was my third question option. I was trying to hurry because C.I. needed to get to work with The Third Estate Sunday Review. Then that question came up and I just went with it.
"Paper or briefs?" "Breifs! No depends here! I pack a mean tighty whitey!"
Yeah, C.I. laughed and said something like, "That's why you get along so well with Mike."
Because of my question and answer: If you were a cannibal, what would you wear to dinner?Just the bone, just the bone. Munch on that.
We like our dicks jokes, what can I say? Or making boastful jokes. Betty wasn't offended, was she?
No, she was laughing. But she said you put two nineteen year old males together and that's what you'll get.
I feel like I let her down then! We really didn't go there much.
No, we didn't. But we'll do another interview where we do.
Brad picks the excerpt for the article Ron (Why Are We Back In Iraq?) wrote, "Miers provided misleading information to Judiciary Committee" (The Raw Story):
Miers gives wrong dates in questionnaire; Firm was sued during period omitted
President Bush's nominee to the Supreme Court, Harriet Miers, provided erroneous and incomplete information to the Senate Judiciary Committee about her membership on a Board of Directors for a real estate investment company, RAW STORY has learned.
Miers also neglected to mention a class action lawsuit that accused the firm, Capstead Mortgage, of violating federal securities laws. The suit, which was later dismissed, came during the period Miers failed to include in her responses to the Senate questionnaire.
According to CapsteadпїЅs 1999 annual report (pdf file) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Miers remained on the board as late as March 9, 2000. Miers opted not to stand for re-election, and in April of 2000, the former senior managing director at Bear, Stearns & Co., Inc., Howard Rubin was voted on to the board and replaced her as chair of the Audit Committee.
But Miers 57-page questionnaire returned to the Senate on Tuesday claimed that her tenure at Capstead lasted only from January 1993 to 1997 (link).
Lastly, please note that in Eric Lichtblau's "President Picks 2nd Nominee for Justice Post" (New York Times), on the nomination of Paul J. McNulty, Lichtblau does note concerns over McNulty's 9/11 cases. (Yesterday, it wasn't noted.)
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
matthew rothschild
A Foreign Policy of Free-Floating Belligerence
George Mason Urges No Prosecution of Anti-Recruiter
counterrecruiting
Mukhtar Mai
amy goodman
democracy now
the new york times
adam liptak
salman masood
the third estate sunday review
like maria said paz
cedrics big mix
mikey likes it
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
thomas friedman is a great man
kats korner
the daily jot
the common ills
seth in the city
why are we back in iraq
the raw story
harriet miers
eric lichtblau
NYT: "Leak Prosecutor Is Called Exacting and Apolitical" (Scott Shane & David Johnston)
To seek indictments against the White House officials caught up in the inquiry would deliver a devastating blow to the Bush administration. To simply walk away after two years of investigation, which included the jailing of a reporter for 85 days for refusing to testify, would invite cries of cover-up and waste.
Yet Mr. Fitzgerald's past courtroom allies and adversaries say that consideration of political consequences will play no role in his decision.
"I don't think the prospect of a firestorm would deter him," said J. Gilmore Childers, who worked with Mr. Fitzgerald on high-profile terrorism prosecutions in New York during the 1990s. "His only calculus is to do the right thing as he sees it."
Stanley L. Cohen, a New York lawyer who has defended those accused of terrorism in a half-dozen cases prosecuted by Mr. Fitzgerald, said he never detected the slightest political leanings, only a single-minded dedication to the law.
"There's no doubt in my mind that if he's found something, he won't be swayed one way or the other by the politics of it," Mr. Cohen said. "For Pat, there's no such thing as a little crime you can ignore."
The above is from Scott Shane and David Johnston's "Leak Prosecutor Is Called Exacting and Apolitical" in this morning's New York Times. It's a feature on Patrick Fitzgerald. We're noting it because if we didn't note Scott Shane, others at the paper couldn't write in to complain about this site 'playing favorites.' If there's any news worthy factor (most features don't have a news worthy factor), it may be in seeing how Fitzgerald is portrayed in the feature. (Remember Robert Parry's observations regarding the way Lawrence Walsh was trashed by the press.) Fitzgerald's been in the news for some time and mentioned here many times so that's another reason to note it here. (Though honestly, I do enjoy hearing other writers whine that we play favorites with Scott Shane, among others.) (And in fairness, I'm assuming that some of those e-mails are meant to be humorous. On this end, they seem that way. There was one that Jess read aloud that had us both laughing.) (Thanks to Jess and Ava for their help with the e-mails and also to Shirley and Martha who are always willing to help out during times when the e-mail volume is huge. 2016 unread this morning in the public account. 330 in the private one. Members, remember to use the private account. It always comes before the public account.)
We're going to note Katharine Q. Seelye's "Times Editor Expresses Regrets Over Handling of Leak Case" because I got calls about that last night. Keller's out of the country. He's offered some sort of apology/explanation (read Seelye's account if you're interested) re: Miller. Miller disagrees with his accounting. Why are we noting it? Rumbles. But not the obvious ones some might expect. We'll leave it at that. ("Rumbles" was what I was asked to put in by three at the Times.) Just pay attention. (Members might want to search their brains for an entry -- think The New Yorker -- and they'll have a clue re: rumbles.) (Members still in the dark can think of the gina & krista round-robin and a thing Gina, Krista and I did that noted a Simon & Garfield song. But note, it's only "rumbles.")
Kyle e-mails to note Norman Solomon's "25 Years After Reagan's Triumph" (CounterPunch):
By a twist of political fate, the Oct. 28 deadline for special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald to take action on the Plamegate matter is exactly 25 years after the only debate of the presidential race between Ronald Reagan and incumbent Jimmy Carter. How the major media outlets choose to handle the current explosive scandal in the months ahead will have enormous impacts on the trajectory of American politics.
A quarter of a century ago, conservative Republicans captured the White House. Today, a more extreme incarnation of the GOP's right wing has a firm grip on the executive branch. None of it would have been possible without a largely deferential press corps.
Among other things, Reagan's victory over Carter was a media triumph of style in the service of far-right agendas. When their only debate occurred on Oct. 28, 1980, a week before the election, Carter looked rigid and defensive while Reagan seemed at ease, making impact with zingers like "There you go again." More than ever, one-liners dazzled the press corps.
For the next eight years, a "Teflon presidency" had the news media making excuses for the nation's chief executive, who often got his facts wrong while substituting folksy exclamations for documented assertions. The Democratic Party's majorities on Capitol Hill rarely challenged Reagan, and the Washington press corps used the passivity of the Democrats to justify its own. As Walter Karp wrote in Harper's magazine a few months after Reagan left office, "the private story behind every major non-story during the Reagan administration was the Democrats' tacit alliance with Reagan."
That tacit alliance included going easy on Reagan and his vice-president-turned-successor, George H.W. Bush -- despite the Iran-Contra scandal that exposed their roles in the illegal funneling of aid to the Nicaraguan Contras, a CIA-backed army that intentionally killed civilians in Nicaragua while trying to implement Washington's goal of overthrowing the Sandinista government.
["Norman Solomon is the author of War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death." For a review of that book, you can check out The Third Estate Sunday Review's "1 Book, 10 Minutes."]
Martha asks that we note Robert Parry's "Rise of the 'Patriotic Journalist'" (Consortium News) one more time for the section on Gary Webb:
Even years later, when historical facts surfaced suggesting that serious abuses had been missed around the Iran-Contra Affair, mainstream news outlets took the lead in rallying to the Reagan-Bush defense.
When a controversy over contra-drug trafficking reemerged in 1996, the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times went on the attack -- against Gary Webb, the reporter who revived interest in the scandal. Even admissions of guilt by the CIA's inspector general in 1998 didn't shake the largely dismissive treatment of the issue by the major newspapers. [For details, see Lost History.]
(For Webb's courageous reporting, he was pushed out of his job at the San Jose Mercury News, his career was ruined, his marriage collapsed and – in December 2004 – he killed himself with his father's revolver.) [See Consortiumnews.com's "America's Debt to Journalist Gary Webb."]
When Republican rule was restored in 2001 with George W. Bush’s controversial “victory,” major news executives and many rank-and-file journalists understood that their careers could best be protected by wrapping themselves in the old red-white-and-blue. "Patriotic" journalism was in; "skeptical" journalism was definitely out.
That tendency deepened even more after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks as many journalists took to wearing American flag lapels and avoided critical reporting about Bush’s sometimes shaky handling of the crisis.
For instance, Bush's seven-minute freeze in a second-grade classroom -- after being told "the nation is under attack" -- was hidden from the public even though it was filmed and witnessed by White House pool reporters. (Millions of Americans were shocked when they finally saw the footage two years later in Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11.")
In November 2001, to avoid other questions about Bush's legitimacy, the results of a media recount of the Florida vote were misrepresented to obscure the finding that Al Gore would have carried the state -- and thus the White House -- if all legally cast votes were counted. [See Consortiumnews.com's "So Bush Did Steal the White House."]
Amy Goodman's Un-Embed the Media Tour is in California today:
Oakland, CA:
Saturday, October 22,
7:30 PM
Presentation of first annual Pace e Bene Nonviolence Award to Dolores Huerta
First Congregational Church
2501 Harrison at 27th St
Oakland, CA
Amy will be interviewing Dolores Huerta
Tickets $15 advance, $18 door. $50 includes reserved seating and reception
Benefits Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service
Available
in advance at www.paceebene.org
by calling 510-268-8765
or at independent East Bay bookstores: Black Oak; DIESEL, A Bookstore; Global Exchange store; Pendragon; Pegasus (both stores); Walden Pond
Reception tickets only available in advance until October 17th at www.paceebene.org or by calling 510-268-8765 Download a flier here.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
norman solomon
robert parry
scott shane
david johnston
the new york times
patrick fitzgerald
gary webb
the third estate sunday review
amy goodman
Yet Mr. Fitzgerald's past courtroom allies and adversaries say that consideration of political consequences will play no role in his decision.
"I don't think the prospect of a firestorm would deter him," said J. Gilmore Childers, who worked with Mr. Fitzgerald on high-profile terrorism prosecutions in New York during the 1990s. "His only calculus is to do the right thing as he sees it."
Stanley L. Cohen, a New York lawyer who has defended those accused of terrorism in a half-dozen cases prosecuted by Mr. Fitzgerald, said he never detected the slightest political leanings, only a single-minded dedication to the law.
"There's no doubt in my mind that if he's found something, he won't be swayed one way or the other by the politics of it," Mr. Cohen said. "For Pat, there's no such thing as a little crime you can ignore."
The above is from Scott Shane and David Johnston's "Leak Prosecutor Is Called Exacting and Apolitical" in this morning's New York Times. It's a feature on Patrick Fitzgerald. We're noting it because if we didn't note Scott Shane, others at the paper couldn't write in to complain about this site 'playing favorites.' If there's any news worthy factor (most features don't have a news worthy factor), it may be in seeing how Fitzgerald is portrayed in the feature. (Remember Robert Parry's observations regarding the way Lawrence Walsh was trashed by the press.) Fitzgerald's been in the news for some time and mentioned here many times so that's another reason to note it here. (Though honestly, I do enjoy hearing other writers whine that we play favorites with Scott Shane, among others.) (And in fairness, I'm assuming that some of those e-mails are meant to be humorous. On this end, they seem that way. There was one that Jess read aloud that had us both laughing.) (Thanks to Jess and Ava for their help with the e-mails and also to Shirley and Martha who are always willing to help out during times when the e-mail volume is huge. 2016 unread this morning in the public account. 330 in the private one. Members, remember to use the private account. It always comes before the public account.)
We're going to note Katharine Q. Seelye's "Times Editor Expresses Regrets Over Handling of Leak Case" because I got calls about that last night. Keller's out of the country. He's offered some sort of apology/explanation (read Seelye's account if you're interested) re: Miller. Miller disagrees with his accounting. Why are we noting it? Rumbles. But not the obvious ones some might expect. We'll leave it at that. ("Rumbles" was what I was asked to put in by three at the Times.) Just pay attention. (Members might want to search their brains for an entry -- think The New Yorker -- and they'll have a clue re: rumbles.) (Members still in the dark can think of the gina & krista round-robin and a thing Gina, Krista and I did that noted a Simon & Garfield song. But note, it's only "rumbles.")
Kyle e-mails to note Norman Solomon's "25 Years After Reagan's Triumph" (CounterPunch):
By a twist of political fate, the Oct. 28 deadline for special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald to take action on the Plamegate matter is exactly 25 years after the only debate of the presidential race between Ronald Reagan and incumbent Jimmy Carter. How the major media outlets choose to handle the current explosive scandal in the months ahead will have enormous impacts on the trajectory of American politics.
A quarter of a century ago, conservative Republicans captured the White House. Today, a more extreme incarnation of the GOP's right wing has a firm grip on the executive branch. None of it would have been possible without a largely deferential press corps.
Among other things, Reagan's victory over Carter was a media triumph of style in the service of far-right agendas. When their only debate occurred on Oct. 28, 1980, a week before the election, Carter looked rigid and defensive while Reagan seemed at ease, making impact with zingers like "There you go again." More than ever, one-liners dazzled the press corps.
For the next eight years, a "Teflon presidency" had the news media making excuses for the nation's chief executive, who often got his facts wrong while substituting folksy exclamations for documented assertions. The Democratic Party's majorities on Capitol Hill rarely challenged Reagan, and the Washington press corps used the passivity of the Democrats to justify its own. As Walter Karp wrote in Harper's magazine a few months after Reagan left office, "the private story behind every major non-story during the Reagan administration was the Democrats' tacit alliance with Reagan."
That tacit alliance included going easy on Reagan and his vice-president-turned-successor, George H.W. Bush -- despite the Iran-Contra scandal that exposed their roles in the illegal funneling of aid to the Nicaraguan Contras, a CIA-backed army that intentionally killed civilians in Nicaragua while trying to implement Washington's goal of overthrowing the Sandinista government.
["Norman Solomon is the author of War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death." For a review of that book, you can check out The Third Estate Sunday Review's "1 Book, 10 Minutes."]
Martha asks that we note Robert Parry's "Rise of the 'Patriotic Journalist'" (Consortium News) one more time for the section on Gary Webb:
Even years later, when historical facts surfaced suggesting that serious abuses had been missed around the Iran-Contra Affair, mainstream news outlets took the lead in rallying to the Reagan-Bush defense.
When a controversy over contra-drug trafficking reemerged in 1996, the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times went on the attack -- against Gary Webb, the reporter who revived interest in the scandal. Even admissions of guilt by the CIA's inspector general in 1998 didn't shake the largely dismissive treatment of the issue by the major newspapers. [For details, see Lost History.]
(For Webb's courageous reporting, he was pushed out of his job at the San Jose Mercury News, his career was ruined, his marriage collapsed and – in December 2004 – he killed himself with his father's revolver.) [See Consortiumnews.com's "America's Debt to Journalist Gary Webb."]
When Republican rule was restored in 2001 with George W. Bush’s controversial “victory,” major news executives and many rank-and-file journalists understood that their careers could best be protected by wrapping themselves in the old red-white-and-blue. "Patriotic" journalism was in; "skeptical" journalism was definitely out.
That tendency deepened even more after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks as many journalists took to wearing American flag lapels and avoided critical reporting about Bush’s sometimes shaky handling of the crisis.
For instance, Bush's seven-minute freeze in a second-grade classroom -- after being told "the nation is under attack" -- was hidden from the public even though it was filmed and witnessed by White House pool reporters. (Millions of Americans were shocked when they finally saw the footage two years later in Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11.")
In November 2001, to avoid other questions about Bush's legitimacy, the results of a media recount of the Florida vote were misrepresented to obscure the finding that Al Gore would have carried the state -- and thus the White House -- if all legally cast votes were counted. [See Consortiumnews.com's "So Bush Did Steal the White House."]
Amy Goodman's Un-Embed the Media Tour is in California today:
Oakland, CA:
Saturday, October 22,
7:30 PM
Presentation of first annual Pace e Bene Nonviolence Award to Dolores Huerta
First Congregational Church
2501 Harrison at 27th St
Oakland, CA
Amy will be interviewing Dolores Huerta
Tickets $15 advance, $18 door. $50 includes reserved seating and reception
Benefits Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service
Available
in advance at www.paceebene.org
by calling 510-268-8765
or at independent East Bay bookstores: Black Oak; DIESEL, A Bookstore; Global Exchange store; Pendragon; Pegasus (both stores); Walden Pond
Reception tickets only available in advance until October 17th at www.paceebene.org or by calling 510-268-8765 Download a flier here.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
norman solomon
robert parry
scott shane
david johnston
the new york times
patrick fitzgerald
gary webb
the third estate sunday review
amy goodman
Air America Radio today: Kate Clinton, Laurie David, Jim Hightower, Joan Wile (Grandmothers Aginst the War), Kyle Jason trips back to 1964 and more
The Air America Radio schedule for today. (New content only.) Mia asks to remind everyone that Betsy Rosenberg's Ecotalk has been moved to Saturdays. (Rosenberg's show used to pop up early Sunday mornings with repeats as a lead in and repeats following Ecotalk. Though still surrounded by repeats, it's on Saturdays and airs at an hour that Mia hopes will encourage others to check it out. I enjoy Rosenberg's show but it aired previously during the last frantic hours helping The Third Estate Sunday Review with their edition. So if I had the radio on, I wasn't listening closely. What I would do, and what anyone can do with any Air America program, is go to Air America Place and listen to it later in the week. Air America Place archives the programming and you can listen free of charge. That's how I grab The Laura Flanders Show when I've missed something either Saturday or Sunday.)
Marcia wants it noted ("in big letters") that KATE CLINTON IS ON THE LAURA FLANDERS SHOW TONIGHT. Kate Clinton contributes regularly to The Progressive ("and she's funny even though the letters page seems to indicate every other time someone's got their panties in a wad or their briefs in a bunch because they missed her joke"). Marcus wants it noted that he never heard of the Cowboy Junkies until last Saturday when he heard them on the third hour of Flander's show. He enjoyed the interview and he enjoyed the songs they played. He says everyone should check out their new album Early 21st Century Blues.
Ecotalk
Saturdays Noon-1PM EST
With Wilma taking aim at the Florida coast and the hurricane center quickly running out of names we'll speak with global warming guru Ross Gelbspan about "Katrina's True Name". The author, journalist and lecturer tells us why we should prepare for more extreme weather. We'll also be chatting with Laurie David, eco-activist and wife of Curb Your Enthusiasm's Larry David. Laurie discusses why she's so enthusiastic about curbing global warming as is Steve Cochran, with Environmental Defense's Undo It campaign. We'll also hear why a change in the climate is impacting trout habitat in Montana - and what it means to you - from NRDC's George Black.
Ring of Fire
5-7PM
America's favorite populist and our favorite Texas-watcher Jim Hightower joins Mike to talk about the indictments of Tom DeLay - which Jim predicted years ago - and Democratic leaders' curiously pale response of to the GOP's current woes.
Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness, talks with Bobby about the administration's failure to prepare for the feared flu pandemic and what comes next for hurricane Katrina victims. Dr. Redlener has been providing care in the Gulf Coast region through Operation Assist, a mobile medical service which he founded with singer Paul Simon.
Equal time for the medical profession: Mike welcomes Ring listener Dr. James Dillard, a professor at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, who took issue with recent comments on the show about medical malpractice.
The Pap Attack: The Vast Right-Wing Inheritance Babies
The Laura Flanders Show
7-10PM
Scoundrels vs. Servants...Who's serving the public? MoveOn PAC campaign director Ben Brandzel on stopping federal budget cuts. Joan Wile of NYC's Grandmothers Against the War on her arrest this week, Yogin Ricardo Singh of Black Veterans for Social Justice on what returning GI's need and Harold Hubschman on a Massachusetts campaign to call National Guard troops home. Then, performer-commentator Kate Clinton on her disappointment at not being nominated for the Supreme Court.
The Kyle Jason Show
10PM - Midnight
This Saturday, tune in to The Kyle Jason Show for another installment of Nostalgia Night, as Kyle and his crew take you back to 1964! A watershed year for the civil rights movement, 1964 was also the year that Nelson Mandela went to prison, the year The Beatles invaded America, the year cigarettes officially stopped putting hair on your chest, and the year Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali...right after he put a hurt on big Sonny Liston. Kyle will be exploring those stories as well as assorted trivia from the year, plus the hits of 1964, courtesy of The Supremes, Louis Armstrong, The Kinks, The Drifters, Dean Martin, Dionne Warwick, and much, much more. Be sure to jump on our blog to share your thoughts and memories of 1964 with your fellow listeners! Sit back, relax, and let The Kyle Jason Show end a long week the right way, each and every Saturday night, only on Air America Radio.
To listen to Air America Radio programming, you have several options: you can listen to over broadcast radio (if there's an AAR in your area -- there are now seventy stations broadcasting AAR programming across the United States), via XM Satellite Radio (channel 167) or listen online.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
Marcia wants it noted ("in big letters") that KATE CLINTON IS ON THE LAURA FLANDERS SHOW TONIGHT. Kate Clinton contributes regularly to The Progressive ("and she's funny even though the letters page seems to indicate every other time someone's got their panties in a wad or their briefs in a bunch because they missed her joke"). Marcus wants it noted that he never heard of the Cowboy Junkies until last Saturday when he heard them on the third hour of Flander's show. He enjoyed the interview and he enjoyed the songs they played. He says everyone should check out their new album Early 21st Century Blues.
Ecotalk
Saturdays Noon-1PM EST
With Wilma taking aim at the Florida coast and the hurricane center quickly running out of names we'll speak with global warming guru Ross Gelbspan about "Katrina's True Name". The author, journalist and lecturer tells us why we should prepare for more extreme weather. We'll also be chatting with Laurie David, eco-activist and wife of Curb Your Enthusiasm's Larry David. Laurie discusses why she's so enthusiastic about curbing global warming as is Steve Cochran, with Environmental Defense's Undo It campaign. We'll also hear why a change in the climate is impacting trout habitat in Montana - and what it means to you - from NRDC's George Black.
Ring of Fire
5-7PM
America's favorite populist and our favorite Texas-watcher Jim Hightower joins Mike to talk about the indictments of Tom DeLay - which Jim predicted years ago - and Democratic leaders' curiously pale response of to the GOP's current woes.
Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness, talks with Bobby about the administration's failure to prepare for the feared flu pandemic and what comes next for hurricane Katrina victims. Dr. Redlener has been providing care in the Gulf Coast region through Operation Assist, a mobile medical service which he founded with singer Paul Simon.
Equal time for the medical profession: Mike welcomes Ring listener Dr. James Dillard, a professor at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, who took issue with recent comments on the show about medical malpractice.
The Pap Attack: The Vast Right-Wing Inheritance Babies
The Laura Flanders Show
7-10PM
Scoundrels vs. Servants...Who's serving the public? MoveOn PAC campaign director Ben Brandzel on stopping federal budget cuts. Joan Wile of NYC's Grandmothers Against the War on her arrest this week, Yogin Ricardo Singh of Black Veterans for Social Justice on what returning GI's need and Harold Hubschman on a Massachusetts campaign to call National Guard troops home. Then, performer-commentator Kate Clinton on her disappointment at not being nominated for the Supreme Court.
The Kyle Jason Show
10PM - Midnight
This Saturday, tune in to The Kyle Jason Show for another installment of Nostalgia Night, as Kyle and his crew take you back to 1964! A watershed year for the civil rights movement, 1964 was also the year that Nelson Mandela went to prison, the year The Beatles invaded America, the year cigarettes officially stopped putting hair on your chest, and the year Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali...right after he put a hurt on big Sonny Liston. Kyle will be exploring those stories as well as assorted trivia from the year, plus the hits of 1964, courtesy of The Supremes, Louis Armstrong, The Kinks, The Drifters, Dean Martin, Dionne Warwick, and much, much more. Be sure to jump on our blog to share your thoughts and memories of 1964 with your fellow listeners! Sit back, relax, and let The Kyle Jason Show end a long week the right way, each and every Saturday night, only on Air America Radio.
To listen to Air America Radio programming, you have several options: you can listen to over broadcast radio (if there's an AAR in your area -- there are now seventy stations broadcasting AAR programming across the United States), via XM Satellite Radio (channel 167) or listen online.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
Friday, October 21, 2005
Democracy Now: Julia Tarver, Seymour Hersh; Juan Gonzalez, Howard Zinn, Salim Muwakkil, CODEPINK ...
UFPJ Plans Day of Actions Over 2,000 Military Deaths in Iraq
The antiwar group United for Peace and Justice has announced that it is organizing a national day of action planned for the day after the US military death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000. As of October 20, the total was 1,988. UFPJ is calling the action "2000 Too Many." Demonstrations are already scheduled in cities around the country. Military family members and veterans will be at the forefront of many planned protests.
The antiwar group United for Peace and Justice has announced that it is organizing a national day of action planned for the day after the US military death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000. As of October 20, the total was 1,988. UFPJ is calling the action "2000 Too Many." Demonstrations are already scheduled in cities around the country. Military family members and veterans will be at the forefront of many planned protests.
U.S. Marshals Interrogate Reporters at Saddam Trial
A Fox News reporter has revealed that US Marshals are overseeing security at Saddam's trial in Baghdad and have conducted interrogations of journalists, asking them a bizarre series of questions. Among the questions correspondent Dana Lewis says he was asked: "Am I friends with insurgents?" "Have I ever experimented with drugs?" "What is my religion?" "Are my teeth real?" At the end of the interview, Lewis says the Marshals asked him if he would be willing to take a polygraph. He was then led to a room for an iris scan and fingerprints, which will be used as a physical identity check entering the courtroom for the trial.
A Fox News reporter has revealed that US Marshals are overseeing security at Saddam's trial in Baghdad and have conducted interrogations of journalists, asking them a bizarre series of questions. Among the questions correspondent Dana Lewis says he was asked: "Am I friends with insurgents?" "Have I ever experimented with drugs?" "What is my religion?" "Are my teeth real?" At the end of the interview, Lewis says the Marshals asked him if he would be willing to take a polygraph. He was then led to a room for an iris scan and fingerprints, which will be used as a physical identity check entering the courtroom for the trial.
Amazon Rainforest Being Destroyed Faster Than Earlier Believed
Newly published research shows that the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed at double the rate of all previous estimates. The research was published today in the journal Science. A new analysis of satellite images of the Brazilian part of the Amazon basin shows that on average 6,000 square miles of forest is being cut down by selective logging each year. This is in addition to a similar amount clear-cut annually for cattle grazing or farming. As a result, up to 25% more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere every year.
Newly published research shows that the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed at double the rate of all previous estimates. The research was published today in the journal Science. A new analysis of satellite images of the Brazilian part of the Amazon basin shows that on average 6,000 square miles of forest is being cut down by selective logging each year. This is in addition to a similar amount clear-cut annually for cattle grazing or farming. As a result, up to 25% more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere every year.
The above three items are from Democracy Now!'s Headlines and were selected by Julia, Andy and Susan. Democracy Now! ("always worth watching," as Marcia says):
Headlines for October 21, 2005
- FEMA Scandal Widens as Internal E-mails Are Made Public
- Tom DeLay Gets Booked, Smiles in Mug Shot
- Congress Passes Pro-Gun Legislation
- Guardian Journalist Freed in Baghdad
- Saddam Trial Lawyer Killed
- US Marshals Interrogate Reporters at Saddam Trial
- UFPJ Plans Day of Actions Over 2,000 Military Deaths in Iraq
- Virginia Company Pleads Guilty in Oil-for-Food Scandal
- FEMA Scandal Widens as Internal E-mails Are Made Public
- Tom DeLay Gets Booked, Smiles in Mug Shot
- Congress Passes Pro-Gun Legislation
- Guardian Journalist Freed in Baghdad
- Saddam Trial Lawyer Killed
- US Marshals Interrogate Reporters at Saddam Trial
- UFPJ Plans Day of Actions Over 2,000 Military Deaths in Iraq
- Virginia Company Pleads Guilty in Oil-for-Food Scandal
Lawyer: Guantanamo Detainees on Hunger Strike Tortured and Violently Force-Fed by Guards, Medical Staff
We speak with attorney Julia Tarver who is representing detainees at Guanatanamo Bay. She says her clients - who are participating in a hunger strike to protest their mistreatment indefinite detention - told her guards and medical staff forcibly shoved large feeding tubes up their noses and down into their stomachs, and used the same tubes from one patient to another.
We speak with attorney Julia Tarver who is representing detainees at Guanatanamo Bay. She says her clients - who are participating in a hunger strike to protest their mistreatment indefinite detention - told her guards and medical staff forcibly shoved large feeding tubes up their noses and down into their stomachs, and used the same tubes from one patient to another.
We speak with Scott Ritter, the chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq between 1991 and 1998 about his new book: "Iraq Confidential: The Untold Story of the Intelligence Conspiracy to Undermine the UN and Overthrow Saddam Hussein." It details how the CIA manipulated and sabotaged the work of UN departments to achieve the foreign policy agenda of the United States in the Middle East.
Seymour Hersh and Scott Ritter on Iraq, WMDs and the Role of the Clinton Administration in the 1990s
Scott Ritter, the former chief UN weapons inspector in Iraq, and Pulitzer prize-winning investigative journalist, Seymour Hersh discuss the role of the Democrats and the Clinton administration in Iraq during the 1990s.
Scott Ritter, the former chief UN weapons inspector in Iraq, and Pulitzer prize-winning investigative journalist, Seymour Hersh discuss the role of the Democrats and the Clinton administration in Iraq during the 1990s.
Francisco e-mails to note Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez's "Grandmas Knew Iraq Score Early" (New York Daily News via Common Dreams):
Every Wednesday afternoon for nearly two years, a group of women has gathered for an hour outside Rockefeller Center, holding aloft their homemade placards in a silent protest against this dreadful and deceitful war carried out by President Bush and his bunglers.
They call themselves Grandmothers Against the Iraq War, and yesterday they were joined on Fifth Ave. by the most famous peace mom in the country, Cindy Sheehan.
Back in early 2004, when the grandmothers began their weekly vigil, few people were paying much attention to the anti-war movement.
But with the number of dead G.I.s at nearly 2,000, with the Iraqi resistance as strong as ever, and with the financial cost of this war mushrooming out of control, all that is changing fast.
Iraq may even become a hot topic in our own mayoral race.
On Thursday, City Council Speaker Gifford Miller and Deputy Majority Leader Bill Perkins will submit resolutions that call on Bush to pull U.S. troops out, and they will seek an expedited vote on it.
Miller and Perkins, both Manhattan Democrats, will be joined in their announcement by Fernando Ferrer, the mayoral challenger who repeatedly opposed the war during the Democratic primary.
All this means that Mayor Bloomberg may finally have to give clear answers on where he stands on Iraq.
Brenda e-mails to note Howard Zinn's "It's Not up to the Court" (The Progressive):
John Roberts sailed through his confirmation hearings as the new Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, with enthusiastic Republican support, and a few weak mutterings of opposition by the Democrats. And in nominating Harriet Miers, Bush is trying to put another rightwinger on the bench to replace Sandra Day O'Connor. This has caused a certain consternation among people we affectionately term "the left."
I can understand that sinking feeling. Even listening to pieces of Roberts's confirmation hearings was enough to induce despair: the joking with the candidate, the obvious signs that, whether Democrats or Republicans, these are all members of the same exclusive club. Roberts's proper "credentials," his "nice guy" demeanor, his insistence to the Judiciary Committee that he is not an "ideologue" (can you imagine anyone, even Robert Bork or Dick Cheney, admitting that he is an "ideologue"?) were clearly more important than his views on equality, justice, the rights of defendants, the war powers of the President.
At one point in the hearings, The New York Times reported, Roberts "summed up his philosophy." He had been asked, "Are you going to be on the side of the little guy?" (Would any candidate admit that he was on the side of "the big guy"? Presumably serious "hearings" bring out idiot questions.)
Roberts replied: "If the Constitution says that the little guy should win, the little guy's going to win in court before me. But if the Constitution says that the big guy should win, well, then the big guy's going to win, because my obligation is to the Constitution."
If the Constitution is the holy test, then a justice should abide by its provision in Article VI that not only the Constitution itself but "all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the Supreme Law of the Land." This includes the Geneva Convention of 1949, which the United States signed, and which insists that prisoners of war must be granted the rights of due process.
A district court judge in 2004 ruled that the detainees held in Guantanamo for years without trial were protected by the Geneva Convention and deserved due process. Roberts and two colleagues on the Court of Appeals overruled this.
There is enormous hypocrisy surrounding the pious veneration of the Constitution and "the rule of law." The Constitution, like the Bible, is infinitely flexible and is used to serve the political needs of the moment. When the country was in economic crisis and turmoil in the Thirties and capitalism needed to be saved from the anger of the poor and hungry and unemployed, the Supreme Court was willing to stretch to infinity the constitutional right of Congress to regulate interstate commerce. It decided that the national government, desperate to regulate farm production, could tell a family farmer what to grow on his tiny piece of land.
Brad e-mails to note Salim Muwakkil's "Katrina, Cosby and Class Divisions" (In These Times):
Hurricane Katrina made clear that poverty and blackness remain too intertwined to be coincidental. But while too many black people remain poor, a growing number do not.
Since 1968, the year of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s death, the black middle class has tripled, as measured by the percentage of families earning $50,000 or more. But the percentage of black children living at or below the poverty line also has increased since King's assassination. What's more, the incarceration epidemic (and its attendant woes) has increased poverty among countless young black men just at the peak of their earning potential.
The simultaneous growth of these disparate groups within the black community has helped nurture a class divide that is growing more rancorous. Signs of this conflict have been bubbling just beneath the public surface for quite a while.
One example of this growing tension has been the ongoing angry demonstrations by a group of young ex-offenders outside of the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow/Push Chicago headquarters. The group opposes Jackson's brokerage-style of leadership and seeks to curtail his role as the black community's leading voice. To some extent these tensions are both class and generational: Jackson's civil rights paradigm may resonate with beneficiaries of affirmative action, but it rings few bells with ex-inmates from the hip-hop generation.
So far, this gathering storm has escaped public notice. But there are increasing signs that we're in for a change.
Sarah notes this from CODEPINK:
2000 Too Many
The sad day is coming when the 2000th US soldier will have died in Iraq. With almost 2000 dead and over 25,000 wounded U.S. troops, we must also consider the more than 100,000 dead and wounded Iraqis. HOW MANY MORE MUST DIE? Now is the time to yet again remind people of the human cost of this war and call for the troops to come home now. Join us in taking action.
The sad day is coming when the 2000th US soldier will have died in Iraq. With almost 2000 dead and over 25,000 wounded U.S. troops, we must also consider the more than 100,000 dead and wounded Iraqis. HOW MANY MORE MUST DIE? Now is the time to yet again remind people of the human cost of this war and call for the troops to come home now. Join us in taking action.
Alicia e-mails to note Earl Ofari Hutchinson's "How low can Bush go?" (The Black Commentator):
In 2000, Bush barely edged out states rights champion Barry Goldwater for the dubious distinction of receiving the lowest voter percentage from Blacks of any GOP candidate in the Twentieth Century. A poll of evangelical leaning Blacks during the 2004 campaign found that they opposed by big margins, abortion, and gay marriage, and were staunch family values advocates. This was the group that Bush. Mehlman, and Rove targeted as being ripe for the GOP pickings. They dumped millions in faith based dollars in the pockets of select mega church Black ministers, wined and dined them at the White House, and swayed to the gospel beat at their churches. The same polls, though, found that Black Christians and their ministers were also just as passionate in backing affirmative action, and more federal aid for jobs, and education. Their conservativism stretched no further than family values beliefs.
While polls showed that younger, upwardly mobile, Blacks disliked, distrusted, and felt disconnected from the Democrats, and even branded themselves as independents, they expressed no great love for the GOP. With the exception of Ohio and Florida, Blacks still loyally and overwhelmingly pulled the lever for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004 just as they have for every Democrat since Lyndon Johnson in 1964.
Before, during and after the Florida vote debacle in 2000, Black antipathy toward Bush has been burning, impassioned, and relentless. They don't just dislike his politics, they dislike him. If Bush said the earth was round, many Blacks would say it's flat. Katrina and the Bennett quip simply reinforced their visceral disdain for him. Their contempt for him exceeds their contempt for President Reagan, and Reagan worked especially hard to earn the enmity of Blacks with his assault on affirmative action, and open war with civil rights leaders. That visceral dislike has dumbfounded Bush.
BuzzFlash has their latest GOP Hypocrite of the Week:
So for advocating the impeachment of Bill Clinton for lying about oral sex, while condoning illegal Bushevik actions that put America at greater risk from Weapons of Mass Destruction, we name . . . .
Who! What's the name! Click here for whom they selected.
We'll quote from it later (running out of time) but Ron (Why Are We Back In Iraq?) "Miers provided misleading information to Judiciary Committee" at The Raw Story. Martha gave a heads up on that.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
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